The Color of Truth
Chapter 3
Disclaimer - Paramount and Viacom own the characters from Voyager, although they didn't often treat them right. The story line belongs to me.
A special thanks to: My friend and editor of all my stories, Mill3rs.
On the last day of their shore leave, Governor Barall invited the command crew to a picnic at the family estate. Tom and Harry introduced Captain Janeway to Kyree and she in turn introduced them to the man her father had chosen for her to marry. He was an officer in her father's security detail and was quite a bit older than she was. Although he seemed caring and expressed feelings for the girl, the Voyager crewmembers could see that she did not return these feelings.
Kyree watched as B'Elanna walked from the beam down site and joined Tom and Harry. Tom gave her a little kiss on the cheek and took her hand as they went to walk through the gardens. Captain Janeway asked Kyree if she could show her around the grounds of the estate. They talked as they strolled down the pathways behind the great house. Kyree asked the captain many questions about Earth and Starfleet. She was quite impressed that the Captain was a woman and asked her many questions about running a starship. They soon joined the others, selected their food, and carried their plates to a small clearing under some trees. The Governor called Captain Janeway over to sit with him and his advisors and Kyree excused herself to look for her friends.
Tom was engaged in a lively conversation with some of the Krill pilots and Kyree walked over to B'Elanna. "May I sit with you?" she asked shyly.
"Yes, have a seat. You must be Kyree." B'Elanna gave the girl a smile as she indicated a spot on the grass next to her. "Tom told me about meeting the bright young daughter of the Governor."
Kyree looked away and then turned back to B'Elanna. "Tom told me that you are the chief engineer on Voyager and that you are also very bright. He said you could fix anything. This is true?" she asked.
Laughing slightly, B'Elanna answered. "Yes, I am the chief engineer and I certainly try to fix anything on the ship that we need."
"Tom is very caring and his eyes are kind. I have never seen eyes that color before. They are like our sky during the winter." Kyree stated quite openly. "Did your parents promise you to Tom when you were very young?" Kyree asked as she looked back to where Tom stood.
B'Elanna smiled as she looked down at the young girl who sounded so serious when she asked about mating. "No, Tom and I were not promised to each other as children. Our cultures no longer practice that custom."
"But he kissed you and you held his hand." Kyree looked up with wide dark eyes.
"We kiss and hold hands because we like each other." B'Elanna replied with some embarrassment. "We chose each other."
Just then, Tom walked up with his plate of food and sank down on the ground next to B'Elanna. "Are you two ladies enjoying the food?" he asked. "It sure beats Neelix's experiments with new ingredients." Tom smiled knowingly at B'Elanna.
"Oh, yes, Tom. The food is very good. My father's cooks are quite accomplished. I am glad that you like it." Kyree answered Tom quickly hoping he had not heard her conversation with B'Elanna. The three of them then began to eat.
While they ate, B'Elanna noticed a young boy of about fourteen glancing at Kyree from across the lawn. Kyree shyly returned his looks when she saw her father turn to speak to Captain Janeway. As they finished eating, several girls called to Kyree. She excused herself and got up to run off with her friends. "Kyree is much too serious for someone her age." B'Elanna noted.
"After all, B'Elanna, she is the Governor's daughter and has probably been taught how to behave in front of official visitors." Tom answered, remembering many occasions when he was expected to be on his best behavior as a child.
B'Elanna grinned at him and took his hand as she stood up. "She is quite taken with you and your blue eyes. It's a good thing we are leaving here soon."
After the picnic, the command crew began beaming back up to Voyager. Captain Janeway walked with the Governor and his aides to the beam out site while Kyree ran up to Tom with a handful of bright blue flowers and shyly gave them to him. "They're for B'Elanna." she said. She thought, They are the same color as your eyes. "I hope she likes them."
"Thank you, Kyree." Tom gave her a big smile as he took one of the flowers and tucked into her long, silver hair. "I really enjoyed visiting your planet." He leaned down and gave her a small kiss on the cheek and joined the others at the beam out site. Once again, Tom felt the slight dizziness he had experienced several times on the planet. As beautiful as this planet is it will feel great to be back on Voyager with a normal atmosphere.
Kyree said goodbye to Captain Janeway and the others and went running off to the woods with her friends, talking excitedly about their visitors from the Alpha Quadrant.
After thanking the Governor for his assistance with plotting a course through the Krill area of space, Tom and Harry headed off slowly to the shuttle, going over the new flight plan and remarking about how friendly the people had been, while the rest of the command team beamed back to Voyager.
* * * * *
Tom and Harry performed the pre-flight checks and prepared to lift off the planet's surface. "They were a very helpful race. It would be nice if all the people we came across were like them." Harry said. "Though I wish their customs were not so backwards regarding mating. Kyree seems too young to marry that security officer."
"I agree, Harry, but the Prime Directive won't let us interfere with their culture.." Tom answered with a grin as he thought of the young girl who so wanted to fly a starship. "Shuttle Orion to Voyager. We are ready for lift off."
"Voyager to Orion. All sensor readings are within normal parameters. Bring it on home, Tom." The captain's voice came through the comm system.
The shuttle lifted off the planet's surface and entered the lower atmosphere. Suddenly, the shuttle was hit by a displacement wave. Harry grabbed his console and frantically tried to contact Voyager. "Voyager, come in please." He looked up in horror. "Tom, my sensors show massive earthquakes on the planet's surface!"
Tom's face paled as he thought of all of the Krill people that they had met over the past few days. He thought especially of the children. "Harry, can you reach anyone on the surface?" He fought for control as another; larger wave hit the shuttle. They pitched forward. "Inertial dampeners are offline!" Tom shouted as he and Harry were thrown from their seats. Tom's head struck the bulkhead and darkness descended on him.
to be continued….