Disclaimer: Paramount owns the universe and all the regular characters, I just play here.
6. Planning a way home.
Kim, who had remained silent during all this, closed his tricorder as the two men approached, and now was about to clip it on his belt. Chakotay stopped him.
"I had not intended to, but we might as well let them in on this. They know we're not from here, they know we're from the past, and after what she just heard there's not much left. Besides, we need them to learn more about the history of this planet -I can not figure out how far in time we travelled."
Set and Elah sat down. Elah looked as he'd fully expected to be included in their efforts since they first walked into the Pass, just like he'd shown up that morning intending to accompany Chakotay to the Museum. Chakotay felt himself wondering if perhaps these people were low-level telepaths. *They sure seem to have an uncanny feeling for what is going on*
They opened their tricorders again.
Elah picked up quickly. He obviously had some scientific background, even though he now made his money doing all kinds of unschooled work, as he had told Chakotay when they walked to the Museum.
"It is hard to figure out how far in time we have travelled as we have no idea what time frame we are talking about. You obviously did not originate on this planet -no really old buildings, for one thing- but it would help if we knew how long you had been here."
"We colonised this world 347 years ago. We didn't have space travel at the time, and only a few FTL ships now, but we were brought here by the Tari, who have large transports. We still trade with them on occasion."
"So we travelled more than 347 years," Kim mused. He checked his tricorder. "If these records are the ones showing the ion readings at the times of your experiments, we could use them to calculate it more precisely."
"Between 430 and 380 years, that is as close as I get," Leena said after a while. "Were there any more of these experiments than the ones the Museum has information on?"
Elah looked at the list on her tricorder. "I would think there were." He thought about it. "The Museum would not have every single report, as some would have been quite similar. They would be at the Institute of Technology. That's where the transporter was built."
"Those are the ones that might tell us what we need, if they are close to the other readings. We have to know exactly what time we came from, and find a way to go back to exactly the right time."
Chakotay said. He knew it would have to come very close, indeed. If they went to a time only a little too far into the past, they risked a paradox. They would risk running into themselves, or perhaps not even beaming down at the time and place they had, as the ship's sensors would pick them up. And although he was certain the Captain would do everything she could to find them, and wouldn't leave orbit soon, she would not stay forever. Once Voyager was gone, there would be no way to travel back further in time. They would aim for one hour after their beam-down. He could only hope the Captain and B'Elanna had been able to figure out enough from the readings on their side of the time rupture not to try beaming anyone else down. Readings seemed to be far stronger and clearer on the 'far' side of the transporter beam.
"They might not be open for the public. There is a library where anyone can access the Institute's records, but a lot of the details on the transporter technology are classified," Elah said.
"If it is in the computer, I can probably get it out."
Chakotay said. Here, his Maquis experience would help him -he had broken into some of the Federation computers back in the Alpha Quadrant, getting information on ship movements on their side of the Demilitarised Zone.
Elah nodded. "I'll take you there tomorrow."
As Leena and Kim could not get any closer to the exact time, without more information, they had set to working on the transporter itself.
"The transporter in the Museum will get us far enough, and I can get it in working shape again, but there is no way the power grid in there will be able to handle it. Even if it is the minimum of 380 years," Leena reported. "There wouldn't be another one, anywhere?"
"The other prototypes were destroyed," Elah said. "You really think you can get that one working again?"
Leena nodded. "It is really a lot like our Federation technology. So much that it could somehow be left here from our journey through this quadrant." She frowned. "Or... We are 400 years in the future..."
Kim picked it up. "Perhaps travel between here and the Federation is much faster!"
But Chakotay shook his head. "Even if there is a way, we can't take it with us to the past."
Kim sighed. He'd known that, of course, but even after two years, he hadn't really given up on finding a way to get home soon. Whatever it would be, they would have to find it in their own time.
Chakotay decided to call it a day. The nights were cold, even here in the Pass, and they wouldn't gain anything by getting sick on this planet.
In the morning Elah was already awake when they got up. The Institute for Technology was located on the outskirts of the city, too far to walk, but Leena and Kim had made enough money the previous day that Chakotay and Elah could take the public transportation system right from the Pass, without going to the Promenade first.
At the Institute, Chakotay easily located the files he needed in the computer. He downloaded everything concerning the transporters to his tricorder, and they were back at the Pass before midday. He had not wanted to work on anything on the Institute's computer.
With the additional information, he could soon pinpoint the time they had travelled. Now he set to calculating the power needed to travel the 416 years. Leena had been right -it was more than the Museum could handle. It had never been built to actually run things in there, just to exhibit them. He explained the problem to Elah and Set.
"You could use a power unit like the ones used in personal air vehicles. They are light enough to be portable, and they are compatible. They pack a lot of power," Set suggested.
Elah agreed that would be possible, but he wasn't sure where to get one. "Those things are expensive, too," he remarked. "I still know a few people at one of the repair stations near the space port. I'll do some checking. I can get one for a less than a thousand."
Less than a thousand. That'd take weeks to get together, and that was if they didn't need anything else. Still, Chakotay saw they were going to need the power pack. At least with time travel it did not matter how long they spent in this period. They would be going back to an hour after they originally beamed down, taking the hour as a safety margin if their calculations would be off a bit. Well, if they were going to make money, he might as well do his part. He did not play music, but he had seen several of the street people selling hand made objects. He had learned to carve stone and wood from his father, and he decided to put that skill to use. He set out to look for some suitable pieces of material.