For some reason I can't get this thing to indent the paragraphs like it did before. Hopefully this won't bother anyone...I wanted to get this next chapter up for feedback!
All was quiet in sickbay, but everything had been chaotic earlier. Crewmembers flooded sickbay, having been injured from the unexplained attack on Voyager. Tuvok had Captain Janeway and Commander Chakotay beamed directly to sickbay almost immediately. Not much later the strange attacks ceased and the unidentified alien vessel departed...leaving Voyager a mess. Now with most of sickbay cleared out, those injured mainly had broken bones or cuts, Kes stared out from the Doctor's office and looked at the two figures lying on the biobeds. The Captain would recover, just a mild concussion, but the Commander was another matter. There had been swelling around his brain that the Doctor was able to reduce, but at the moment he was in a coma. "Do you think he will recover?" The Ocampan turned around to look at the Doctor.
"At the moment, I'm not sure. He's in a coma, which could be a good thing...give him time to heal, but the longer he is in this state, the less likely he will wake up."
Kes stood there and just stared at the Doctor, not sure what to say. Although he was just a hologram, she knew that he had begun to care for members of the crew. "I think I will go sit with the Captain until she wakes up." The Doctor nodded as Kes walked out of the office.
She walked up to the still form of the Captain. She was relieved when the Doctor had said that she and the baby would be just fine. Kes pulled up a chair and took the older woman's hand. She wanted to be here when the Captain woke up and started asking about Chakotay. Several hours later, Kes saw the Captain begin to stir and she called for the Doctor. Both stood to the right of her, blocking her view from seeing Chakotay until the Doctor had time to talk to her.
"Captain...Captain." Kathryn groaned as she tried to open her eyes. She could hear muffled voices, but wasn't sure where they were coming from. As she began to fully them, she tried to make out the blurry visions of the two figures standing next to her.
"Kes? Doctor?" What happened? Where am I?"
Kes took Kathryn's hand, "Your in sickbay, you were injured during the attack on Voyager. You and your baby will be just..."
The memories of what happened on the bridge returned to her full force and she sat up, putting her hand to her head when the pain hit, "Chakotay...I saw him hit the wall. Where is he?" When the Doctor or Kes didn't initially answer her she began to panic. "No...please tell me he's alright! He has to be alright!" The tears were beginning to form in her eyes.
The Doctor placed his arms on the Captains shoulders. "Captain, you must lie back down. You've had a mild concussion and need to rest."
As she began to lie back, Kathryn took hold of the Doctor's hand. "Please where is he, you have to tell me."
The Doctor paused, "the Commander as you know was also injured during the attack. His injuries were far more serious than yours. He had some swelling around the brain, which I was able to reduce, but he is in a coma." Kathryn let go of the doctor's hand and moved it to her mouth as a sob escaped. "At the moment he is resting comfortably and we are monitoring his vitals."
"There's more isn't there?"
He sighed heavily before continuing, "Captain, the Commander could wake up tomorrow, the next day, or next week, but the bottom line is the longer he is in this coma, it is less likely he will wake up or there could be serious brain damage. There will be no way of knowing until he comes out of it. Now, you need to get your rest."
"I need to see him Doctor, just for a few minutes."
The Doctor looked at Kes and then back to the Captain. Quietly nodding, both helped her off the biobed. As she looked up, she could see him and tears began to form in her eyes once more. On either side of the Captain, the Doctor and Kes walked her over to Chakotay's biobed. Once there, she took hold of his hand.
"He looks so peaceful." Tears started spilling over. "Oh Chakotay...I hope you can hear me. Please wake up soon. Don't leave me alone. I can't go through all of this again." She stood there silently for a few more minutes before nodding to the Doctor that she was ready to be taken back to her bed.
"Captain, I'm going to give you a hypo to help you sleep. You should only have to be here another day and then you can go back to your quarters."
All Kathryn could do was nod as she felt the familiar hiss of the hypo against her neck. Slowly her eyes began to get heavy and she moved her hand over her abdomen. She turned her head to the side and looked at Chakotay's still form as she drifted off to sleep.