Estranged Relations

Chapter 5: Disappearances

Shinzon would not accept Alura's quick recovery without an explanation. Alura told him all she knew about her healing abilities. Starting with how they were first discovered.

Alura started her story with the accident she had as a child. She and her friend had climbed into a spindly old tree. The tree reminded them of the ones in horror movies and on trick or treat bags and they thought it would be fun to see how high they could get. When they had climbed 7 feet, Alura's friend slipped. Alura reached down and grasped her friend's hand and pulled her up to safety. As she did, her branch broke in half and she fell.

Alura awoke in a hospital bed and the doctor told her she was very lucky to be alive after her fall. She was told that she wouldn't be able to go home because her abilities needed to be studied more closely. As the years progressed, she went from being an orphan to having friends in the government and Starfleet. She went to the academy and became a teacher hoping to help children stay with their parents while they were stationed away from Earth.

The government never found the reason for her genetic uniqueness and Alura stopped being studied once she was part of The Federation. Several years later she had found that her parents were also part of the Federation and had been killed while on an away mission. She had been found on the planet and was taken back to Earth where she had grown up.

Shinzon was amazed at Alura's story. She had endured so much in her life. He didn't push her for anymore information, but knew she was holding back something. He thanked her for letting him know and walked out of their quarters and to the bridge.

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Towards evening Kat, China and Tom went to the flight simulator to work on an advanced program. Each time they would correct something on the shuttle, another problem would occur. They decided that the only thing they could do in the simulation would be to transport down to the surface. Kat requested the computer to transport and when the program finished Tom looked at China and said "Where is Kat?"

Tom called the computer and asked for Kat's location. The computer could not locate her, so Tom called his dad and told him what had just happened.

Shinzon was beside Tom Sr. when he received the communication from his son and stumbled back into his chair. He could feel his heart racing as he tried to understand how Kat could have disappeared from a simulation. He called his quarters to let Alura know, but there was no answer to his comm. signal. He asked the computer to locate Alura and Kat and was told neither were on board. He asked the computer to locate them again, but the computer could not find them on the ship.

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Shinzon and the senior officers had been discussing the possibilities of how the two had disappeared. Every test they could think of had been run three times, with absolutely no results to where the two had been transported, or how.

After 12 hours of tests and searches, Shinzon was hailed by the new Reman Viceroy Razolon. He told Shinzon he wanted to honor their fellow Reman brother and help him in his quest to get Kat back. Shinzon didn't know what to think, they hadn't contacted anyone on Remus or Romulus, yet here was a Reman, whom he had trusted until the traitorous events that led to Donatra and Kat almost dying, offering information on his only daughter. Shinzon glared at the Reman and said, "If you have hurt my daughter, I will destroy your planet with pleasure in my heart!"

The Reman was taken aback by such a venomous outburst. He had been told that this Shinzon was weak, yet he seemed as forceful and cunning as the old Shinzon. He decided to be cautious yet truthful. "I saw two Romulans transporting a girl to one of our old female barracks. It isn't in use anymore and would be a good hiding place for someone the Romulans wouldn't want found."

Shinzon continued to listen to Razolon and realized the Reman was telling him the truth. He asked for details of the encampment and the security detail assigned to Kat. He also asked him if Alura was also in the old barracks. The Reman told him only one guard had been assigned to Kat and that she was the only one in the barracks. This infuriated Shinzon, he would not lose his little girl to Romulans or Remans. He was doubting his judgment on bringing her with him. He knew the Remans and the Romulans would love to destroy him, and killing his girl would do that.

Tom Sr. and Shinzon went over all the Reman Viceroy had to say. They analyzed the data hoping to see if there was a trap being laid, but they couldn't find one. As Shinzon started to plan his daughter's rescue, he received a transmission from the Romulan Praetor Chiluc. Shinzon entertained the conversation, and found out the same information the Reman had told him, except the Romulan blamed the Remans for the kidnapping.

The whole thing sounded very suspicious and so Shinzon sent a communication to Jean Luc hoping his father could help him decide what to do.

Jean Luc was at a loss. This wasn't normal Romulan behavior to be so forthcoming with information. He told Shinzon to be very careful and to bring his granddaughter back safely. Then he signed off.

Shinzon felt better getting to talk with his dad, and it inspired him to do whatever he had to do to save his little girl. He even tried some of the old Reman tricks he learned while they were fighting in the Dominion War.

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On the Remus, Kat was inspecting her cell. She could tell that it was made of thick metal sheeting, possibly lead based. If so, that could keep a transporter from saving her. She frantically tried to remember all her training with Tom Jr. and China. She also let her natural instincts take over, the ones she knew from an early age were a gift from her father. She was only sixteen, but through the years, when left at school on her own, she had found natural survival instincts embedded into her very being. She found combat tactics very easy and would have her friends, rebels like herself, try to come up with impossible scenarios. She hadn't found one yet she couldn't overcome. Of course they were childish scenarios back then, but when she started training with Tom Jr. and China they tapped into the database for the hardest scenarios they could find. They worked well together and were able to succeed in solving most of them. Now she was here and she knew this wasn't a scenario, she wished her father, Tom Jr. or China was with her, this was real and she was frightened.

Kat found herself very tired and hungry. No one had come in to talk with her and there were no bed linens or food that she could see. She huddled back against a wall and waited for her captures to show themselves, she knew being the daughter of Shinzon that someone would come, it was only a matter of time.

Ten hours later, a Romulan soldier unlocked the door to Kat's cell and threw a blanket, some bread and a container of water at her. She tried to ask him why she had been taken, where she was and if she could talk with her father, but the Romulan soldier turned and solemnly closed the door. Kat could feel her temper rising to the surface once she knew the Romulans were responsible. Hadn't they done enough to her family? She looked at the items the guard had given her and found a small button on the blanket. It was circular and made of black plastic. She examined it closely because it had no obvious reason for being attached. As she examined it she noticed the top of the button was actually a cover. She carefully pried it open and found a small red light blinking. Kat knew immediately it was a tracking device. Maybe the Romulans weren't responsible, or maybe her guard didn't agree with what her captors were doing. She decided to eat the bread she had been given to maintain her strength, and as she tore at the bread she found another item. This one was about the size of a small communications device. She opened it and tried to hail Voyager. All she got was static, but she decided she would work on the device until she could talk with her father.

The next morning Kat finally saw someone she knew. Senator Chen walked into the room and grimaced at Kat. "Well, I see we were successful in bringing the tramp Donatra's daughter to her holding cell. Your mother was suppose to serve our planet and bring your father over to our side. We could have been the strongest military force ever seen! When she left with him and became his little whore, I wanted revenge, yet our government decided to do nothing. Now your father is worse than a Reman. Meeting you, befriending you, and now taking you has given us the advantage."

Kat had a feeling that Senator Chen wasn't working for the Romulan government. He sounded as much a rebel as what she had been since arriving on Voyager. He was fairly young for a senator, but Kat knew he was dangerous, and didn't antagonize him. She continued to let him gloat on his accomplishment trying to absorb any useful information he would volunteer.

After what seemed to be hours, Chen left her alone again. He hadn't hurt her, but she had a sense that if she had given any response to him at all, she would have been beaten, possibly even violated for being who she was. She knew escape was imperative now and concentrated her efforts on getting the communicator to work.

The next day Chen came back again. As the door to her cell opened, Kat hid her treasures. Chen walked up to her and raised her from her seated position. He ran his fingers through her tousled blonde hair and stroked her cheek. "You are very beautiful for a human Kat, its too bad your father is the mighty Shinzon. I think we need to send him a lock of your hair today, I wonder how that will make him feel?"

Kat felt him tear hairs from their roots and she muffled the pain and her scream as best she could. She glared up at Chen hoping to show him that she didn't fear him. Chen smiled back at her and with clenched teeth said, "Little girl, you show no fear now, but if your father doesn't accept our terms, I can't be held responsible for my actions."

Kat waited for Chen to leave and laid down on her pallet made only of the one blanket she had been given and cried.