Disclaimer: Nope.

A/N: So here we are. Just about at the end. Only two more chapters left after this one.

Chakotay tapped his fingers against his chair's armrest with a sudden surge of nervous energy. On the forward viewscreen was the magnified image of several escape pods. There was no telling them apart, each had the exact same markings and were the exact same size, but it seemed to him that many of the pods were in some sort of formation around a pod in the center of the mass exodus. Whether intentional or not he wasn't sure.

"Can they detect us form this range, Harry?"

"I can't be sure of the pods capabilities, Commander, but my guess is that we're still too far away. Even Voyager can just barely see that they're there."

"There are lifesign readings being picked up," Tuvok added from his Security station. "However we cannot yet distinguish human from non-human."

A loud warning alarm from the helm captured everyone's attention. Chakotay's brows creased and he simply asked, "Tom?"

"It's another ship," the helms officer answered. "A big one."

Harry was already working away at his station by the time Chakotay looked in his direction. "It's at least the size of Voyager if not bigger," Harry elaborated. "And it's heading towards the escape pods."

"It would seem it was not their intention to navigate their way back to their home planet, wherever that may be, by way of escape pod," Tuvok stated.

Chakotay agreed with the assessment. The larger ship now on the viewscreen didn't seem to be approaching the pods threateningly and the pods themselves seemed to be altering their courses just enough to intercept. "They must have called for help before launching the pods," he said, mostly to himself. "If we're going to get the Captain we'll need to do it now before that ship gets any closer. Tom..."

"Course already set in. Just waiting for the go ahead."

"Once we're in range begin scanning for human lifesigns and once you have a lock don't wait to beam her aboard. As soon as we have the Captain get us out of here, Tom." He waited just a moment longer to make sure everyone was ready before giving the order...

"Take us in."

The alien vessel was looming closer by the second. In a few seconds more it would be on top of them. If it weren't for the escape pods scattered all around, making it difficult not to hit one if a battle began, the other ship would no doubt have already begun firing. The closer they came the better shot they had though.

"Anything yet?" Chakotay asked, trying to sound calm when in fact he was pretty sure that if he got any stiffer he'd have muscle strain.

"We're trying," Harry answered as he and Seven focused on the console. "It's like looking for a needle in a hay stack."

Seven didn't seem to agree with that assessment, but other than an arched eyebrow she gave no further response.

"That ship is closing in on us," Tom pointed out as he tried his best to maneuver away from the other vessel while staying in range of the pods. "Hurry up, Harry!"

"Just give us one more..." he trailed off for a second before his fingers began flying across the console. "Found her! Locking on and..."

Chakotay waited with bated breath, as did the rest of the bridge crew, for Harry to continue and confirm that they had their captain back.

"Got her!" Harry finished, looking up with a grin. "She's in the transporter room and being beamed to sickbay now, Commander."

"Get us out of here, Tom."

"Already on it."

However, just as they started to jump to warp the alien ship fired, causing the ship to jolt as the blast hit Voyager's shields. "The sooner the better, Lieutenant," Chakotay gritted out.

"I'm working on it," Tom replied with his own annoyance lacing his voice.

Another hit to the shields, this one making the ship rock and nearly sending Chakotay to an untimely meeting with the deck.

"Shields down to 80%," Tuvok reported.

"Return fire." Chakotay watched as Tuvok fired as instructed, but the phaser fire absorbed right into the other ship's shields. He doubted the crew of that ship so much as felt a vibration in the bulkheads. "Divert power to the warp engines. Cut off life support if you have to, but get us out of here."

With another jarring jolt Voyager jumped to warp. "Have we lost them?" Chakotay asked after a few seconds without anything exploding or being tossed around.

Harry, the majority of his attention still focused on his console, was the first to answer. "They're still on our tail, but it doesn't look like they can match our speed." Another jolt shut through the ship as the other ship were fired on again. "They're turning around and heading back to the escape pods," Harry added, his whole body relaxing significantly.

Chakotay released a long breath and rubbed a hand over his tired eyes. "Good work, everyone." He stood, wincing lightly when his sore ribs protested the movement. "Tom, once you're sure we have a clear path hand over the conn and report to sickbay so the Doctor can finish healing those burns."

He wasn't expecting the prompt, 'yes, sir', he received, but he quickly realized the helmsman probably wanted to check in on the Captain as much as Chakotay did after the away team's little escapade. "Tuvok, you have the bridge." He almost felt bad about leaving Tuvok in command yet again, but one of them should be left on the bridge and it wasn't going to be him right now. Not until he was sure Kathryn was alright.