Tegan Chronicles STV Style 4:

Canis Major10

Tegan walked into sickbay early that morning and activated the EMH. He looked her over carefully before he spoke. "What can I do for you?"

"I need my arm."

He frowned his forehead wrinkling and she smiled lightly. Before she had gained her telepathic ability she could have actually forgotten that he was made up of merely photons and force fields. He had a dry sense of humor and the normal God complex a lot of doctors managed to pick up, his expressions were flawless but now she couldn't feel his emotions and it was a stark reminder that he was a piece of technology. She would never say it out loud; it would hurt him to be reminded that he wasn't made of flesh and blood. Although he would rattle off all the reasons he was superior because of his make-up, he was also dependent on a program that ran on electrical components. She realized they weren't really all that different after all, they were both vulnerable.

"No."

"Just for an hour." Tegan didn't want to talk to Deanna with one arm. She wasn't sure why but she didn't want that to be Deanna's first impression.

"How's your stump feeling?"

"Like a stump." She pulled her jacket off and showed it to him as he ran the medical tricorder over it.

"Fine." He relented. "Two hours tops and I want it back or I will hunt you down."

"Yes sir." She watched as he smiled at the added 'sir'.

When the turbo lift doors opened Tegan looked up to see Kathryn was inside. She grinned as she stepped in.

"Astrometrics?" Kathryn already knew the answer. "Did you find the doctor's hiding place?"

"No." Tegan shook her head. "He is letting me wear it for a couple hours then I have to return it."

Kathryn nodded.

"Deanna." Kathryn smiled broadly when the transmission cleared up on the screen.

"Kathryn, it is so good to see you." Deanna offered with genuine sincerity. "I do wish it was under better circumstances, but I am glad to know that you are alive and well."

"Thank you." Kathryn indicated Tegan. "This is Dr. Kiser."

"Dr. Kiser." Deanna's eyes moved to her.

"Counselor Troi, please call me Tegan."

"Tegan," She smiled. "You can call me Deanna. I've been looking forward to talking to you since I received the message from Captain Janeway."

"I'm going to let you two ladies talk." Kathryn excused herself.

"You have remarkable eyes, Tegan."

She was surprised she noticed them on the screen. "Thank you, you should see them in person."

Seven glanced briefly in Tegan's direction as she monitored the communication relays that had been set up.

"I know we're short on time and I've read the information Captain Janeway sent regarding how you came upon your abilities. I also understand you are working with a Vulcan to try and learn to control your abilities but you haven't had much luck."

Tegan nodded. "I've been working with Tuvok. I've also done a lot of research and I've tried every Betazoid technique I've come across but without any luck."

Deanna listed every technique she could think of, all of which Tegan had tried. "I'm not giving up and I don't want you to either. I have a friend who is a professor at the University of Betazed, I'm going to contact him and see if he has any suggestions."

Tegan could pick up in her tone that she wasn't very hopeful.

"I will send you a message in the next communication bundle and I expect to hear from you as well."

"Thank you."

"I look forward to our continued correspondence." Deanna managed to say just before the transmission cut out on them and the screen went black.

Tegan blew out the air in her lungs and looked at Seven. "That was helpful."

"Was it?" Seven couldn't help but over hear the conversation and she didn't think Deanna had shone any new light on the situation.

"Sarcasm Seven." She sighed and headed out to return her arm to the doctor.

At lunch time Kathryn managed to get away from the bridge long enough to drop in on Tegan. "How did your conversation with Deanna go?"

"She seems nice enough, but she didn't have any suggestions that I haven't already tried."

Kathryn sighed.

"She did mention getting in touch with a Betazed University professor, but it didn't sound promising." Tegan took a deep breath. "In the meantime I'd like to—"

"No." Kathryn cut her off.

"You didn't even let me finish."

"As Captain I'm telling you no. You are not going to do anything that could jeopardize your health until we have exhausted all other more viable options."

"I think you are letting our relationship cloud your judgment." She growled.

"I was afraid of the same thing so I ran your request past Chakotay and Tuvok. They both back me up unequivocally." Kathryn tried to read Tegan's expression. "They feel to let you go through with it would be irresponsible at this point."

Tegan didn't argue with her and Kathryn excused herself without setting up plans for the evening.

It was after 1830 hours when the doors to Tegan's quarters slid open and Maverick stood to greet Kathryn. "Hey you."

Kathryn stepped in and gave her a half grin while stopping to rub Maverick's ears. She watched Tegan set the PADD she was reading aside. "Am I interrupting anything important?"

"Nope, boring Deltan biology."

"Deltan?"

"Just trying to learn as much as I can about as much as I can." Tegan shrugged. "I wish I had Seven's mind."

"No, I'm glad you don't." The comment earned Kathryn a small amused grin. "Do you want to come to my quarters? I have a tub?"

"You have a tub?" Tegan laughed. "How long have you been working on that line?"

Kathryn frowned.

"Are there going to be bubbles?"

"Yes."

Tegan hopped up off the couch. "I'm game."

When they stepped into the turbolift Maverick sat his rump right on top of her foot, again. She looked down and said "Shadow" while watching him intently. He didn't move a muscle until the doors slid open.

After a relaxing bath for two and dinner Kathryn cleaned up the dishes, then she sidled herself up against Tegan on the couch so their bodies touched. Kathryn slipped her hand into Tegan's and intertwined their fingers. She felt Tegan relax into her and before too much silence settled around them she spoke. "Who or what is 'shadow'?"

Tegan pulled her head off her shoulder and looked at her.

"You've said it twice now that I'm aware of."

Tegan nodded, she knew exactly what Kathryn was referring to. She didn't like talking about him, in fact she had blown the whole thing off as a long story when she had been caught mumbling about alien dogs just before Maverick was commanded to her care. It wasn't that she didn't have lots of good memories with him and for the briefest of seconds a sad smile haunted her lips as she thought back to him and Cassie playing in Jack's backyard during a Memorial Day cookout. "How much time do you have?"

Kathryn squeezed her hand reassuringly. "All night."

"It hope it doesn't take that long." She forced a laugh and rubbed her thumb over the back of Kathryn's hand while picking the best starting point. "SG1 was sent off world toPX4-254 to look into a rather odd epidemic that had affected all of the prepubescent males." She knew the number designation would mean nothing to Kathryn. "The boys under twelve had been contracting the illness. Eight boys had already died and eleven more were sick. It was a small population but you can imagine what kind of impact that would have on a group that is trying to survive and grow. The mission was pretty much put on my shoulders and of course I couldn't say no, it wasn't like I was given a choice."

Tegan took a breath and rested her head back on the couch. "There had been a tank that had housed approximately ten mature Goa'uld symbiotes. According to the townspeople a dog managed to get into it and killed them all. The Goa'uld who had been there for over eighty years killed all the dogs in retribution for his loss, it was after the last dog was killed that the first boy got sick.

"On an interesting side note, the Goa'uld usually take on the names of gods from Earth's different religions. This Goa'uld was Ogbunabali the Igbo god of death. His name literally meant 'one who kills in the night'.

"We set up camp in an area that was out of the regular patrol areas of the Jaffa serving Ogbunabali and I set up a make shift field clinic. I had one patient, his name was Corrye." She stared off at the wall for a minute without talking before she continued. "He had light blue eyes and beautiful golden brown hair. He was the ninth boy to become sick and so far he had lived longer than any others, by now we had reports that ten more boys from the village were sick. I had sent Sam—Major Carter back to the SGC with blood samples."

Tegan sniffed and swallowed at the lump that was trying to form in her throat.

"You don't have to tell me." Kathryn offered an out for Tegan.

"No, I want too." She wanted to be more open with Kathryn and if she couldn't tell her about her past then what kind of relationship would they really have? "When I got the results back it was just as I had feared, he was in renal failure and there was a buildup of heavy metals in his blood. I wanted to take him back to earth and dialyze him but his parents forbid it, it was against their religion.

"He was only ten," she smiled softly. "While I'm standing there arguing with Daniel and Colonel O'Neill about how unfair it is, about how his parents should be doing everything they can to save him; I hear him behind me say 'We all have to be brave in our own way.'

"For ten years old, that kid was smart. He even managed to somehow talk me into getting an hour of rest. When I came back to the tent he was in fifty-nine minutes later his condition hadn't changed but over the next twelve hours it took a nose dive. I was doing all I could do which wasn't much. Mainly I was controlling his pain. Just before he lost consciousness he told me he was ready to die, I almost lost it right then and there." She looked down as Maverick wandered out of Kathryn's bedroom and put his head on her lap. She let go of Kathryn's hand and rubbed the top of his fuzzy head.

"I stayed with him until he took his last labored breath. And then Daniel announced he was going to take the body back to his parents so they could do his right of passage, and he asked if I wanted to go. I basically got upset and told them to tell his parents they could rot in hell and then I threw my stethoscope across the tent into an area Colonel O'Neill had just vacated, instead of landing with a clatter, as it should have, it made an odd thump followed by a yelp.

"Out of nowhere this black dog with one white ear steps out from behind these boxes. Jack swore he wasn't there seconds ago. It's funny he was Maverick's height now, about the size of a Labrador but his physique looked like a cross between a Great Dane and a Doberman. He started following me around." It had just occurred to her that both dogs had Great Dane characteristics, even if Maverick was going to be bigger. "I left the guys to take care of Corrye's remains and I went to write up my reports and rest before I packed up. A little while later Jack brought in this envelope with my name on the outside written in a child's hand, I tucked it in Corrye's chart. The dog wouldn't leave my side and he would growl at Teal'c and Sam's dad. Of course I thought he just didn't like men. When we gated back I told him to go home but we had a group of Jaffa hot on our tails and I heard him yelp so I ran back and scooped him up.

"When we got back to the SGC and the gate shut down General Hammond was not happy. We told him the dog was injured, but darn if I could find a single wound on him. He was put in a holding cell until I could talk the General into letting me run some tests. I was given 48 hours before he would be sent back through the gate. When his time was up his return trip through the gate was interrupted by a team returning. He started growling and attacked Captain Saunders. Just as the dog lunged for him Saunders' eyes lit up, he was a Goa'uld. Evidently as an after effect of eating the symbiotes he had naquada in his blood and could detect Goa'uld. So, it was determined that the dog would stay and the guys named him Shadow because he was my shadow. I wasn't given a much of a choice in keeping him but I certainly didn't mind."

Tegan scratched Maverick's ears. "When I finally read the letter from Corrye he told me his dog was the one who killed the symbiotes and that his dog hadn't been killed and if I found him to please take him home with me and take care of him." She remembered the letter word for word, though she wasn't currently up to reciting it. "He was a good dog, followed orders from the beginning just like Maverick. Although I have to admit he did listen a little bit better to other people. He would stay with Janet and Cassie when I was off world. In the end he died protecting me from Nirrti. Actually, he received fatal injuries and I had to put him down. Sometimes Maverick reminds me of Shadow."

Kathryn pulled Tegan into her chest and held her tightly. "Thank you for sharing that with me. I know it wasn't an easy thing for you to go through."

A/N if anyone is interested in reading the full story of how Shadow became Tegan's dog it is TC4: Corrye and can be found in my stories on