When Kathryn marched onto the bridge it was both as an indignant captain, and an angry mother. Taking her usual position, she fixed her eyes on the screen, barely noticing Tom and B'Elanna following her.
"Tuvok, hail the main government building," she ordered, "and get me President Hopti."
"Aye, Captain."
"Kathryn, what's going on?" Chakotay had come up behind her, but she ignored him. She had too much else to think of right now.
The President appeared on the screen a moment later. He raised his eyebrows languidly at seeing her.
"Captain Janeway, to what do I owe—"
"This isn't a social call, President," she said, cutting him off. "I require your assistance urgently. A child visiting your world has been adversely affected by the remnants of biogenic weapons in your atmosphere. She could be dying. Judging by the relative health of your people you've somehow managed to protect yourselves from it. I want that cure."
The President had not expected this. He regarded her for a moment, before tapping on some panels on his desk.
"The recent war was devastating to the Boraan people," he said, voice dripping with sentiment. "Those weapons were deployed by the Reoch Consortium on the southern continent in their recent attempts to secede from our presidency."
"I'm not interested in a history lesson, President," Kathryn said, giving him her best scowl. "All I'm interested in right now is that cure."
He was toying with her, she soon realised. He continued tapping panels on his own computer, as though he was barely noticing her presence. When he did finally look at her, his expression did not give hope.
"The cure is available in our main medical facility," he said, and Kathryn was certain he was talking so slowly just to irritate her. "But I'm afraid it is very … expensive for us to produce."
"We are willing to trade for it," Kathryn stated quickly. "We can provide more of the medical assistance we've already given, exchange some supplies—"
"Thank you, Captain, but we have all the medical equipment we require at present," the President said. "It will have to be something else."
"Name it," Chakotay said, standing by her side. "We have a great deal to offer."
"You do, indeed." The President's mouth slowly curled into a smile. "Hand the child over to us, and we can cure her at our main medical facility. Then we can discuss payment."
"Not a chance," Kathryn said. "Tell us what you want now and we can discuss it. She's not leaving Voyager. You can send the treatment up here to us."
The President made a show of giving a heavy sigh. He shook his head slowly. "Unfortunately, that is not acceptable to us."
The President's image cut out, and just as Kathryn was about to give the order to re-establish the link, she was distracted by a shout from Harry.
"Captain, there's a ship approaching from the planet on an intercept course. They're charging weapons."
"Raise shields," she called, heading over to her seat. "Evasive manoeuvres."
"Captain, they're firing!"
The rock to the ship was more powerful than she had expected, and Kathryn had to hold on tight to not go flying across the bridge.
"Shields at 45%, Captain," Tuvok shouted over the sound of the red alert warnings. "We cannot take another hit."
All that from one shot? Kathryn suddenly began to realise how this side had won their civil war.
"They're targeting the shields over sickbay, Captain," Harry said, head darting from left to right as he read his screens. "They've created a window in the forcefield."
Amelia.
"Divert all excess power to the shields over sickbay, maybe we can—"
An alert sounded at Harry's station, and she didn't have to hear his next words to know what had happened.
"They've beamed her away, Captain."
Kathryn heard the words but could not comprehend them. All the captain in her seemed to drain away, a vast emptiness opening before her. Every raw maternal instinct in her body went on red alert.
"The ship is retreating, and the President is hailing again," Tuvok informed her.
"On screen." Kathryn heard herself give the order as if from a great distance. She turned back to the viewscreen. The President was now openly grinning.
"Give us back my daughter, you son of a bitch!" Tom had launched himself forwards to glare at the President. "Now, or I swear—"
"What? You'll attack?" The President laughed again. "I hardly think you'll risk that with her health so precarious. The virus the Reochs used was so intricate it took us almost forty years to discover a cure. Your daughter's only hope of survival is to remain with us."
"Why did you take her?" Kathryn asked. She maintained her captain's mask with difficulty. "What is it that you want?"
"The technology you refused to trade with us," the President said, clasping his hands neatly before him. "Replicators, primarily."
"You already have those," Chakotay said. Kathryn saw how his shoulders had tensed. "We saw them ourselves."
"Our replicators are only able to generate organic matter," the President dismissed. "Food, not much else. What we're interested in is replicating weapons. The Reochs have been rumbling again down south. As you saw, our weapons are extremely powerful, but they take a long time to manufacture and our supplies are greatly diminished thanks to the war. If we had the ability to replicate some of your weapons, that would be most beneficial in wiping out the people of the southern continent once and for all."
Weapons, replicators. Two things the Prime Directive explicitly forbade her from trading. Internal conflict. She'd never be allowed to interfere in something as tenuous as this planet's political structure.
Starfleet was no help to her.
The President seemed to realise he had them over a barrel. His smile slowly widened.
"I will give you twenty-four hours to discuss it with your crew, Captain. We know you will make the right decision."
The image blinked out. Kathryn felt all her hopes go with it. This … she couldn't. It was impossible.
Everyone was staring at her. They needed her to take control. But she didn't know how.
"How many people living on the southern continent, Mr. Tuvok?"
A pause. "Approximately 4.5. million, Captain."
Kathryn clasped her hands before her, almost as if she was going to pray. She hadn't prayed since she was a child. She was far too scientific for that. But all her science, her regulations and protocols … they couldn't help her now.
Kathryn slowly stood up and walked backwards and forwards across the bridge twice, drawing the stares of everyone there. She felt as if she was watching all of this from far away.
She'd do anything for her child. She loved her more than anything. But this, this was a betrayal of everything she stood for. This would mean sacrificing millions of others.
"Captain?" Tom's voice managed to get through to her. His face was white. "What are you going to do?"
Good question, Tom.
She needed to take command again. She couldn't let herself be helpless. Think, Kathryn.
"We … we need to discuss this," she said. "What they're asking for is impossible. This issue—"
"I don't see an issue," Tom said immediately. "Give them what they want!"
"Lieutenant, this is clearly a violation of the Prime—"
"I don't give a damn, Tuvok!" Tom rounded on the Vulcan, eyes blazing. "This is my daughter."
"And you see no issue with handing over lethal technology to people who intend to use it for ill purposes?"
"Doesn't matter to me what they do with after we hand it over," Tom maintained, running a hand through his hair so that it stood on end. "It's nothing to do with us."
"Tom it has everything to do with us." Kathryn tried to talk to him. Didn't he see the problem? Didn't he feel the same heart-wrenching pain as she did? "Don't you see? How can you justify killing millions for one life, just because of who she is? It's everything the Prime Directive was designed for—"
"To hell with Starfleet!" Tom's face was growing redder by the second. "This is our daughter, we're talking about! Or am I the only one seeing this?"
No, he most certainly wasn't. Amelia's face filled Kathryn's mind. She had to take a deep breath before she could continue.
"And how do you explain to her, years from now, Tom, that we aided the genocide of millions in order to keep her alive?"
"At least she'll be alive!"
"I can't accept that," Kathryn said, voice lowering to a whisper. "And I certainly can't justify it as captain."
"I'm not speaking to you as her captain, but as her mother!" Tom's anger spilled over and he actually stepped forwards to grab her by the shoulders.
"You're out of line, Lieutenant!" Chakotay had immediately leapt between the two, pushing Tom away as he attempted to grab her. "Back off."
Kathryn felt her breathing grow more difficult by the second. Had she always had this burning sensation in her throat?
"This is not who we are," she managed to say with her voice almost breaking. "We don't sacrifice others for our own needs. No matter the cost."
"And who are you to decide that?" Tom was still shouting at her from the other side of Chakotay. "Why do you get to make this decision because you're captain? She's our daughter, not yours."
Kathryn knew that. This was breaking her heart just as much as it was his. She looked at him, seeing tears spilling from his eyes. Harry had now abandoned his post to try and hold him back, his own expression tight. Chakotay moved back slightly and Kathryn saw just how defeated Tom looked, how Harry was barely keeping him from collapsing where he stood. To see him was to see her own pain reflected back at her.
No, Kathryn. You've never cried on the bridge before. You're not going to start now.
"When we agreed to do this, Tom," she said, taking a step closer to him, ignoring Chakotay's arm reaching out protectively. "We agreed we wouldn't allow our ranks and duties on this ship to affect how we behaved with regards to our daughter. You said you trusted me not to do that. Do you remember what else you said then? When I asked what we would do if we ever disagreed on something?"
Tom looked at her, the wildness in his eyes faded somewhat to be replaced with despondency. He seemed to deflate and leaned heavily on Harry as his tears continued. He looked younger, more hopeless than she'd seen him before. Like a lost child.
Like she imagined Amelia might be feeling right now.
"I said …" he began thickly. "I said we'd find a solution, find another way."
"And that's exactly what I intend to do." She said, her voice growing stronger. "You also said then that I don't back down from challenges, that I don't give up when hope is lost. Well, you were right, Tom. I'm sure as hell not going to give up now."
Leaving him standing there clinging to Harry, she turned to Tuvok, the only one still at his station. "Let the Boraanians think we're considering their offer. In the meantime, I want every single sensor array on this ship scanning that medical facility and searching for weak points. That's where they've taken her. We need to put our heads together on this one, people."
Kathryn turned and walked back to the captain's chair, opening up her armrest panel and forcing her mind to focus.
Chakotay sat beside her, and she appreciated his presence. But she could not look at him.
Was this the time he'd spoken of? When he'd said he knew she'd make the right decision, that she wouldn't allow her personal feelings to get in the way of being captain?
Her training back at Starfleet Academy rang in her ears. Starfleet officers are sworn to uphold the Prime Directive at all costs, even their own life or that of their crew. She'd never expected to be tested on it in this way.
I'm sorry, Amelia, she thought holding back her tears. But Mommy will find another way. I promise.