Disclaimer: Only the story is mine. Everything else belongs to Paramount. kicks Paramount But they've abandoned their characters and stuff and did really nutso things to them, so I delete Paramount. I'm not making any money off this, so leave me alone, Paramount minions! I wrote this story, which was my very first ever Voyager fanfic, in August, 2000. It was not beta'd. This story contains a relationship between two women, so if that offends you, please read something else.
Code: T/7.
Genre: Romance, Drama
Rating: PG-13
Ghosts, Chapter 8
Janeway walked into Sickbay, wondering why the doctor had called her down. Voyager had only just resumed pursuing the Ssckerellon ship after nearly a week of preparing the ship for the upcoming battle. She hated that it required the ship to drift for six days while the deflector dish was made ready. God only knew what was happening to Naomi in that time.
As she entered she glanced around, trying to guess why she had been summoned. Her eyes rested on Aryn, her legs folded to the side of her as she sat on a biobed. She was humming softly and smiling, her eyes half closed. Janeway had two guesses as to what this was about and as the doctor approached her smiling, one of them became more solid in her mind.
"Yes, Doctor?"
"Actually, captain, I believe you should speak to Aryn yourself." Kathryn walked up to the crooning young woman and smiled. Arynlliana glowed back at her and Harry came into the room. He was grinning ear to ear and Kathryn couldn't stand the suspense any longer.
"Well, go on," she urged. Aryn leaned her head back against Harry's chest and closed her eyes.
"Captain, we'd like for you to marry us," Harry stated. Janeway lifted a brow and put her hands on her hips.
"Right here, in Sickbay?"
"No," Aryn crooned, still smiling and humming. "After we retrieve Naomi. After all, I should have a—flower girl."
"Then why did you call me down here?"
"We just couldn't wait, Captain," Harry said enthusiastically, "To share our news with you." He licked his lips and smiled at Aryn. "We're going to have a baby." Aryn nodded and lifted her shirt to show the slight swell that had begun. Kathryn smiled back as her suspicions were confirmed. But one thing nagged at the back of her mind.
"How?" This is when the doctor came in.
"Apparently, J'marel have the same number and a similar enough type of chromosomes as Humans, Vulcans and Betazoids that they can procreate with any of those species without genetic assistance. It's really quite fascinating, considering the physiological differences of all four species."
"You only have one stomach, I have four, for instance." Aryn said, then resumed humming quietly.
"Plus there's the fact that you're a unicorn," Harry teased Aryn lightly. Aryn laughed, letting more whinny into it than she normally had. Janeway smiled.
"Well then, as soon as we rescue Naomi, I guess there will be a wedding!"
Naomi, Mezoti and the other five girls all slunk through the halls of the Ssckerellon ship, silently sticking to the shadows. The shuttle bay loomed up ahead of them, if Mezoti had assimilated the information correctly and just beyond that was the second 'specimen chamber' that held the captive boys. There were only four of them.
That was their destination. The Ssckerellon kept no adults on this ship, they only studied children. At least, that was what the computer had listed as their ship's mission. Naomi much preferred 'boldly going where no one had gone before.'
Except when she was doing it almost by herself. They had armed themselves from a weapons locker that they had passed, but none of them knew how to shoot beyond 'point and press the trigger.'
The big doors loomed ahead of them and Naomi felt the butterflies in her stomach turn into wild targhs. Taking a deep breath, she assumed point and the doors opened in front of them. The hall was relatively bright, so the room they entered seemed pitch black to the seven girls.
"To the sides of the door, so it will shut," Mezoti commanded and the girls obeyed. The doors shut and a moment later a voice hissed out at them from the darkness.
"Who's there? You don't sound like an insect." Naomi didn't recognize the voice as belonging to Azan or Rebi, so she let whoever did recognize it, answer it.
"Serben? Is that you?"
"Melly? Sister?" The siblings found each other quickly and Naomi set out with two of the other girls, Senli and Ralla to free the other boys. Azan and Rebi were not in the group. Naomi glanced at Mezoti in the dark and saw the quiet anguish on her face.
"Maybe they hid from the bug people when they came." Mezoti looked at Naomi, a little hope filling her eyes.
"Perhaps." It was the most hopeful word Naomi had heard today and she briefly hugged her friend.
"Let's get out of here." Mezoti nodded and Naomi led them all back to the shuttle bay. Once there, they slipped inside to find two Ssckerellon engaged in some sort of game with a floating ball and headsets. Naomi felt her finger flit to the trigger of the blaster and she began shaking at the prospect of shooting the two monsters.
"Cease this activity." Mezoti commanded. The Ssckerellon stood and turned quickly to raise their weapons at the children. They froze in mid-motion when they saw seven blaster rifles aimed at various parts of their anatomies. "Drop your weapons." The Ssckerellon on the left had a scar down the side of his face. This was the bug that spoke.
"Why should we? Do you truly believe we will let you live after this?" It looked at Mezoti's rifle, which was balanced on the remains of her forearm and held with her right hand over the trigger. "Ah... the little Borg beast. Whatever has happened to your hand?" It growled, laughing at her.
Mezoti's eyes narrowed. "The same thing that I will do to you if you don't comply."
"Yeah," Naomi added. "Watch who you're calling a beast, bug." It laughed hissingly at Naomi's defense of Mezoti.
"You are but larval mammals. You are of no threat to us. Look at you, you can not even shoot us while you have the chance. You wait while your absence is undoubtedly being noted and a search team being formed. You will die before you can find the courage to shoot us." This time, both Ssckerellon laughed.
Naomi shot the one with the scar. She was horrified to see his body eaten up by the beam until he became nothing—not even dust on the floor. Her hands tried to start shaking, but she forced herself to be calm and point at the second bug. Its hide shifted from blue to more green and Naomi wondered if that meant it was scared.
"Now are you going to drop your weapon or do I have to shoot you, too?" Naomi's mind screamed, 'Don't make me do it! Please, I can't!' everything in her body rejected the thought of killing another living creature. She hoped that this one would do as it was told so she wouldn't have to kill again.
"Comply." Mezoti demanded. It shifted its gaze between them, then as Naomi started raising her rifle menacingly; it dropped its weapon. Within a few minutes, it had opened a shuttle for them and fled the bay. Mezoti held her wrist out towards the main control panel and a moment later she was sitting at the helm, instructing them to find seats.
Naomi sat in a chair made for something shaped completely different than she was and she wiggled uncomfortably. One of the boys sat near her and looked over at her. "How old are you?" he asked.
"I was born on stardate 49548.7," she answered simply. He looked confused.
"When was that?"
"Five years ago."
"You don't look five years old."
"My species ages at one and a half times the speed of most humanoids."
"Oh," he said. "What's your name?"
"Naomi."
"Mine's Gremmel. My friends call me Grem. I'm eight." Naomi looked at him, wondering why he was talking to her. Admittedly, he was the only boy who didn't have a sibling, but surely he'd prefer to talk to one of the other boys. His eyes were an odd grey-violet color and his eyebrows had ridges instead of hair. His hair was reddish-blond, not that far from her own color. And judging by his expression, he was terrified.
"It'll be okay, Grem. I'm sure my ship is right behind us. It won't take long to reach it and then we'll be safe."
"You're sure they'll be able to protect you? Even though the insects took you once already?" He looked doubtful.
"Yep. Voyager won't lose me twice. They'll make sure we're all safe."
"All of us?" His eyes widened. "Are you sure your captain will let us hide on his ship?"
"Of course she will. I promise and you can believe me, because I'm the captain's assistant." Grem's eyes grew huge in awe.
"No wonder you're so brave," he said, beginning to smile. "Thank you for saving us. I know you didn't have to."
"Yes, I did. It would have been wrong to leave you behind. I was only doing what was right." Naomi smiled back at him. "Don't be afraid, Voyager will help us." One of the other children who had been listening spoke up.
"You're lying. Why would a captain have a child as her assistant?" Naomi glared at the boy. He had pale, greenish skin and ridges from his lip to his hairline. A shock of white hair fell down into his angry amber eyes as he leaned forward to accuse her.
"Naomi Wildman does not lie. I used to live on Voyager with her," Mezoti defended quietly as she worked the controls to the blaster cannon on the shuttle. It fired and the bay doors exploded into space. The ship, which was no longer moored to the deck, was blown out into space with a few crates and all the oxygen and loose circuitry in the large room.
Mezoti allowed the ship to drift in the debris, finally firing thrusters to head towards an asteroid cluster to hide once the Ssckerellon ship blinked out of sight. Mezoti navigated one-handed towards a crater that was just large enough to hide the shuttle inside and inconspicuous enough for it to take anyone a while to find them.
The green-skinned boy returned to his earlier attack on Naomi. "Of what possible use can you be to a captain?" His sister glared at him, but he ignored her.
"I was the first child born on Voyager. I'm her assistant so I can learn to be a starfleet officer or captain when I grow up!" The boy looked startled at her answer.
"I suppose I believe you. But, what's Starfleet?"
"An organization dedicated to exploration and the protection of the United Federation of Planets," Mezoti answered easily.
"Where's this 'Federation of Planets'?"
"In the Alpha quadrant, where my parents come from," Naomi answered.
"Where's the 'alpha quadrant'?" Naomi sighed in exasperation. Didn't this boy know anything?
"The 'Alpha Quadrant' is the designation given by the Federation and surrounding empires for their quarter of the galaxy. It is approximately sixty thousand light years from here." Naomi was grateful for Mezoti's ability to explain things so well.
"Well, how did your ship get all the way out here?"
"It's a long story," Naomi said. Suddenly, all the kids gathered around her.
"Please tell us."
"We want to hear."
"I'm so bored!" Naomi was suddenly the center of attention and she began squirming. She had never really been comfortable around other children, always keeping the Vaadwaur children in mind with the way they had talked about Neelix. Yet still, as all the eager children's faces looked into hers and rescue being hours or even days away, she couldn't help spinning the tale of Voyager, the ship far from home.
To be continued...
