Child of Night (Kind der Nacht): Part 2

Author: Christy Anderson

You can contact me at kittyunlimited@go.com.

Disclaimer: All characters belong to Paramount minus Ensign Christy Anderson and a few selected insignificant characters

This is part two of the Child of Night sequel that I have just started. A few were confused on part one, and I recommend to those who have not seen the episode Deadlock from season 2 to refer to http://www.startrek.com/library/episodes_voy_detail.asp?ID=68892 if they wish. I hope this second part can clarify any other questions that you might have. I hope you all enjoy this-- Christy

Child of Night (Kind der Nacht): Part 2

I flew up in bed, the sweat trickling down my neck and my heart pounding. Nicht wieder... nicht der gleiche erschreckende Alptraum wieder. Wann geht er überhaupt weg?… Not again... not the same frightening nightmare again. When will it ever go away?

It had been over six weeks ago since Voyager had been replicated by a freak anomaly. During the last few moments, I had watched from the Bridge as the other Voyager had exploded into streams of light and energy in the dark universe. There were millions of times in the following weeks when I felt almost guilty, even though I knew that the incident could not be helped. At one point, I could almost convince myself of that. Logically, one crew of Voyager had to be sacrificed over the other crew to ensure the survival of at least one ship from the Vidiian attack, and in between, replacing our recent losses from the other crew- Harry and Naomi- was essential.

I had no idea what she went through, the other Christy, and my lack of knowledge haunted me one hundred times worse. What had been her fears, her doubts before she had died? My rendition of her experience had constantly plagued my dreams ever since.

Beside me on the nightstand, sat the very same PADD she had touched before her death. She had given it to Harry as he left with the little Naomi Wildman. The very next day Harry had given it to me without a word. It was probably ridiculous, but I could not help but feel that Harry regarded me as an alien, the clone of the original Christy Anderson. In the past weeks, he had warmed up though.

I picked the PADD up with trembling fingers and read it over again. Those few words that had been written on it in haste contained the key to my life.

During the past weeks that Tre'kent had been on board Voyager, the telepathic link between Tre'kent and myself had grown steadily stronger. The Doctor had Tre'kent and me taking five hyposprays of Glyciporen a day in an effort to reduce the rapid growth of the link.

Finally the Doctor had told us that the situation was simply hopeless and our only options were to create the permanent link, which would instigate pregnancy in months, or to be separated forever to painfully reverse the link. It had been a tough decision to make. At eighteen, I was in no way ready to be a mother or a wife, yet losing the one I loved threatened to tear me into pieces.

In search for an answer, I had spent hours in the old lab on the holodeck alone, yet talking to my Father did not give me the assurance that I had hoped for. Samantha had only been able to shrug and sigh. "It's not that easy…" she had said, "The choice has to be yours and yours alone."

The Captain, B'Elanna with her few words of Maquis / Klingon wisdom, and even Kes in her infinite source of compassion could only echo similarities of Samantha's words. The choice had to be mine. Perhaps it had been out of my unwillingness to accept my predicament, but for the past few days I had been constantly determined to find a solution. Microscopes, comparative anatomies, holographic scientific counselors, and 500 hypotheses' later, I had been no closer to discovering the solution than the Doctor had been.

Yet, this PADD that I held contained last minute calculations of divine inspiration. These were the blueprints of a drug that would stabilize the telepathic bond for years. It had been hard to work her plans out perfectly, but the Doctor had come up with a treatment that would stabilize the telepathic bond until Tre'kent and I wanted to do anything further. Unbelievably, the first step of three treatments began today, and would take me a few hours.

Suddenly the computer beeped as the lights came on. "Ensign Anderson, the time is 07:00 hours. You have an appointment in Sick Bay at 08:00 hours."

I groaned and sat up in bed. Hurriedly I hopped into the sonic shower and dressed in my impeccable uniform. I concentrated on a mental image of Tre'kent for a few minutes and finally succeeded in opening a telepathic link between the two of us. Good morning… I called gently.

Immediately a warm feeling came over me as I heard his voice inside my head. Good morning, lieber Sonnenschein… dear sunshine he said tiredly.

I laughed as he used a German term of endearment. Are you awake? I asked him.

Christy, why do you bother asking? Actually, in a few minutes, I will be on my way to your quarters to escort you to Sick Bay, so you best be ready! he replied.

I cut off the link and moved to the door. It was difficult, painful, to keep the link open over long distances for even short periods of time. I sauntered across the hall and rang the door chimes to Samantha Wildman's quarters. I soon heard her invite me in over the soft cries of a baby, and I walked in to see her hovered over the cradle that Neelix had given her for her newborn child Naomi. With great delight, I walked over and tapped her on the shoulder.

"Guten Tag, Christy," she said with a smile. Gently she picked a rowdy Naomi up from her cradle and began to rock her ever so slowly. Noticing how tired she was I tendlerly took Naomi from Samantha and placed her over my shoulder. Samantha gave me a thankful look. "Danke… Thank you," she began. "I've been up with her all night and my next shift in the Science Lab starts in three hours. I have not had any sleep."

I tried to understand as best I could. "Neelix comes to watch her then, doesn't he?" I asked with concern.

Samantha nodded. "And you, Christy, are you still going to watch her during my night shift?" she asked hesitantly.

I smiled as I nodded. "Who would not want to watch Naomi?" I asked rhetorically.

"Are you sure? I am not intruding on your time with Tre'kent?"

"Yes, of course, I am sure, Samantha. I will do anything you need. Besides, Tre'kent will be busy in his studies with Lieutenant Gebhart."

Samantha nodded her head in relief. "Didn't the Captain offer you the chance to be his tutor?" she asked with curiosity.

"Yes," I affirmed, "but I turned it down. Tre'kent will benefit more from Lieutenant Gebhart, although Tom would disagree."

Samantha laughed. "I know, Tom gives Lieutenant Gebhart no relief! He says that the Lieutenant could even talk a Ferengi to death."

I shook my head in disbelief. "Lieutenant Gebhart is an intelligent person, and he can be very interesting when you get into more detailed studies. Tre'kent will learn much from him. Moreover, I enjoy watching Naomi; she is hardly any trouble."

Samantha's face showed immediate relief and she profusedly thanked me. "I couldn't do this if it were not for you and Neelix. Who would have thought to arrange a list of babysitters for the day besides Neelix?"

Immediately the door chimes rang and Tre'kent stepped in. By now Naomi's cries had become soft coos. I smiled and looked at the tiny smiling face. Sie war klein und hübsch, klein…She was so tiny and pretty, so small. The Ktarian ridges on her forehead were less pronounced than most, and Naomi definitely had her mother's eyes.

"Guten Tag, Tre'kent," Samantha said with a smile.

Tre'kent smiled. "Good Morning, Samantha, Naomi," he greeted with cheerfulness.

"How are your studies going, Tre'kent?" Samantha asked.

Tre'kent immediately made a twisted face. "Not well," he admitted.

I laughed and gave him a kiss. Immediately he took my hand and began to lead me out of the room. "And we'll be late if we don't get going…" he reminded me gently.

I turned around and gave Samantha a quick hug. "Lebe wohl, Samantha! Ich sehe Sie später! … Good bye, Samantha! I will see you later!" I managed to yell before the doors shut behind us.

I looked up at Tre'kent and smiled inwardly as we flew through the corridors to the turbolift. Just being in his presence uplifted my spirit. The homesickness and lonieness that had threatened to destroy me before was no where near when he was around. The joy he brought into my life was unprecedented, and each day was a new experience to take in.

We stepped into the turbolift. "Sick Bay," he commanded. He looked down at me and smiled.

Ich liebte ihn so sehr und ich verwirklichte den vollen Umfang meiner Liebe mehr und mehr, Tag für Tag… I loved him so much, and I realized the full extent of my love more and more, day after day...

I felt a tingle go down my spine as he drew me nearer protectively. Slowly I raised my head up and met him with a kiss. The turbolift jolted to a halt and the doors flew open. I drew away and headed towards Sick Bay.

"Please state the nature of the medical emergency," the Doctor said blandly as he turned around. "Ah… Ensign Anderson, Tre'kent," he added with recognition. "Please take a seat."

I hopped up on biobed two and Tre'kent took a seat across from me. The Doctor came up with a hypospray in his hand and injected a compound into my neck. "That will be all, Ensign," he informed me.

I raised my eyebrows questioningly. "That's it?" I asked.

"Yes, for now. However, the Captain requested your presence on the Bridge as soon as you were finished."

"What about Tre'kent?" I asked with persistency.

"I will have to be longer with you, Tre'kent," he answered turning to where he sat. "Your physiology requires much more attention and delicacy."

Tre'kent nodded and smiled. "I'll be sure to find you later, Christy," he promised.

At that moment Tom Paris poked his head through the door. "I'm on my way to the Bridge," he announced. "Any others?" he asked.

The Doctor seemed to get flustered. "Actually Ensign Anderson was just on her way up," he said as he shoved me out the door.

I stumbled into the hall, right into Tom who wore an unusually large smirk.

"Any idea what this is about, Lieutenant?" I asked coyly.

His grin became wider. "Not a clue," he lied.

I gave him a knowing stare. The situation was too perfect, too planned. "Even if I did," he continued, "The Captain would have my head if I told you."

We both entered the turbolift. "Bridge," he directed.

I shook my head and sighed. "What am I walking into?" I asked myself softly.

The turbolift jolted to a halt and practically spilled us out onto the Bridge. "These things are way too jerky!" Tom muttered under his breath. I regained my composure and looked up at the scene before us.

The Captain sat in her chair at the front center of the Bridge, with her arms gesturing wildly at the others. Suddenly she stopped and stood up. "So nice to see you Ensign," greeted me as she turned around at the sound of the commotion. "We have been expecting you…"

To be continued…