In a Single Heartbeat
Disclaimer – See Chapter One.
Chapter Five – The Mines
Lieutenant Ayala turned in his seat to face Captain Janeway. "Captain, we've reached the coordinates from the shuttle's last location." He scanned the array of instruments in front of him, frowned and looked back at the captain. "There's no sign of the shuttle, Captain."
Janeway stood and approached Tuvok. "Are there signs of their warp trail?" Concern for her missing crew was evident in her voice.
"No, Captain, there are no signs that the shuttle was ever in this sector," he responded.
Harry punched up several buttons on his console and shook his head. "It's almost as if they've just disappeared." He was worried about his two friends, especially after hearing about the Goroth from Lorish and her sister.
Janeway headed for the turbolift. "I'm going to sickbay to question our guests further about this planet's shields." She turned to Tuvok. "Commander, you have the bridge. Harry, please continue your scans."
"Yes, Ma'am." Harry answered while Tuvok merely nodded and moved to the command chair.
* * * * *
Chakotay awoke to the bone chilling cold inside the small hut. He stretched his stiff muscles and sat up on the small cot. His breath misted in front of him and it was difficult to draw in more air; his ribs still aching. He pulled his boots on and walked to the door. Opening it slowly, Chakotay glanced around for the guards, but they were not in sight. The sky was just beginning to lighten in the distance. He moved toward the fire pit and saw Tom huddled against one of the larger logs.
Tom's face was pale, his eyes closed, and the right side of his face was swollen. Chakotay could see frost on the younger man's clothes. The fire was dying out, so he grabbed a long stick and poked it into the midst of the smoldering wood. The flames grew brighter. Walking toward Tom, he stepped on one of the branches with a loud snap, startling the lieutenant awake.
Tom looked around frantically; fearing one of the guards had seen that the fire had almost gone out. He spotted Chakotay and stumbled to his feet. "Damn! I just closed my eyes for a few minutes, honest. I dragged some wood over during the night." He was shivering quite noticeably and moved closer to the meager flames.
"It's alright, Paris." Chakotay hauled the log next to the fire and sat down, motioning Tom to join him. "It's still burning. I don't see any of the guards. They must have spent the night in the transport."
"Chakotay, do you think they just left B'Elanna at the shuttle? What if she was out in this cold last night?" Tom's voice was harsh from the cold and fatigue.
Chakotay knew that Tom was worried about his wife and he also knew how much more sensitive to the cold Klingons were. "It didn't sound like they were too interested in her. I'm sure that she's got Voyager looking for us right now." He tried to assure Tom, but he was also worried about his old friend from the Maquis days.
The doors on the huts opened slowly and the other men soon joined the two crewmates around the fire. After several minutes, the guards suddenly appeared. One of them was carrying a large bucket while a second one held a stack of small bowls and a crude wooden ladle in his hands. "Ah, it is good to see that the fire has been maintained through the night." The apparent leader spoke, glancing at Tom and Chakotay as he strode forward. "You will have several minutes to eat before you get to work." He motioned to the two guards, and they passed out the bowls and ladled a hot broth into them.
Tom took the bowl in his hands, but was shaking so much that he had trouble bringing it up to his mouth. Chakotay reached out and steadied the bowl so Tom was able to gulp down the liquid. "Thanks." Tom cupped the empty bowl in his hands, trying to retain the warmth against his skin. "It's not half bad. A little worse than Leola root."
Chakotay gave Tom a slight grin as he tipped the bowl up and drank the contents. "I'm sure that Neelix will appreciate your compliment to his cuisine."
The guards collected the wooden bowls and motioned the men to stand. "The mine is this way." They formed a line again, although their chains had been removed the night before. Motioning the men forward and prodding the slower moving ones with the compression rifles, the guards marched them toward the mine. After walking for several minutes, they approached a dark opening in the dusty cliff. There were several large wooden beams supporting a small entrance.
The first guard ducked into the mine entrance and the men followed him. Dim lights hanging from the walls illuminated the mine. The small tunnel entrance widened into a room about 40 meters wide by 60 long. The ceiling was quite high and there were large metal bins stacked against one wall.
"You will be mining Cadmilite." The leader grabbed a short pickaxe, off the floor and moved toward the wall. He swung it against the rock and several smaller pieces broke off onto the floor. Picking up the largest segment, he approached the men. "The greenish cast is from the Cadmilite. You will break it free from the surrounding rock and place it in your bin." He tossed the ore into one of the metal bins where it landed with a soft ping. "As I stated, last night, anyone who fails to fill ten bins, will forfeit the evening meal." He motioned the other guards out of the cavern. "My men will return with water and a mid-day meal." He turned to leave.
"Hell, Chakotay, those bins must hold 18 – 20 kilograms each. We'll never fill ten of them in one day." Tom whispered to the commander.
The first guard heard him and spun around. "You have a quick tongue. You'd better learn to silence it before we do it for you." He turned to Chakotay. "If you are in charge of this one, you'd best keep him in line. My men are at the entrance of the mine, so don't think that you can escape." He moved into the tunnel.
When he had been gone for several minutes, Tom turned to Chakotay. "Sorry, Commander. I didn't realize how sensitive their hearing is." He had dragged one of the bins to the closest wall and was breaking off chunks of the rock.
Chakotay just shook his head, knowing that he would have a hard time restraining Tom's outbursts. Though they were not close friends, Chakotay had grown to respect the younger man's talents at the helm and in sickbay. He also knew that B'Elanna would never forgive him if he let something happen to the brash lieutenant.
"It's okay. Let's get to work and hope that an away team materializes in front of those goons." Chakotay tossed a piece of ore into the second bin and winced as he turned.
"When we get back to the hut, tonight, let me take a look at those ribs, Commander." Tom said and wiped the sweat from his forehead leaving a dusty streak across his face.
Chakotay nodded and turned back to the wall.
All was quiet except for the soft clank of metal against rock and the coughs from the men as their work stirred up the thick dust in the cavern.
tbc…