CHAPTER TWENTY SIX
INTUITION
Part Two
Chakotay stood up in the brig when he saw Kathryn approach. Ensign Arton deactivated the forcefield on Kathryn's command and she stepped inside, bidding Tuvok to wait outside.
Chakotay questioned. "Have you found out what's going on?"
"No," Kathryn answered. "But you were right, it was a hologram of you that attacked me."
"Generated by aliens?"
Kathryn hesitated. "Apparently there's no evidence of that."
"Then who? Who would do such a thing?"
Kathryn bridged the gap between them and lay her hand on his arm. "Right now, Tuvok thinks you are the main suspect."
Tears welled in Chakotay's eyes and he stepped away from her. "Kathryn..."
"But I don't believe it," she said, "of course not. But I have to take his findings seriously, which means ordering you to have another medical examination."
"What for?"
Again Kathryn hesitated before speaking. "To make sure you're not ill."
Chakotay trembled now. "He was never violent," he said, "never..."
Kathryn knew immediately who he meant - his grandfather. She took his hands in hers, squeezing them. "But there's nothing wrong with you, Chakotay. That gene was suppressed when you were in the womb and has been since. You're not ill. Something else is going on here. What, I don't know. But I know you're not responsible. I just have to command another examination. Part of the job."
"I understand," Chakotay said. "I do..."
Kathryn squeezed his hands again. "Then let's get this over with."
Kathryn watched as the Doctor examined Chakotay. He took his time, performing a number of different tests, some simple, others complicated. Tuvok was also present, Chakotay having consented to them both witnessing his examination.
At last, the Doctor was done.
"I'm afraid it isn't good news," he said, addressing all three.
Kathryn's face paled and she turned to Chakotay. He was trembling and there was so much fear in his eyes. "Sensory tremens?"
"I'm sorry, Commander."
Tears welled in Kathryn's eyes. "I don't believe it, Doctor. Chakotay's showed no sign of the illness and is far too young..."
"The condition normally develops in old age, but has been known to develop in people younger than the Commander."
"But my grandfather was never violent," Chakotay said quietly. "Never..."
"The condition effects different people in different ways. In some it causes hallucination, in others paranoia or multiple personalities."
Tuvok interrupted. "Could someone suffering from this condition commit an act but afterwards have no recollection of doing it?"
"Yes," the Doctor answered.
"Then I believe we have our answers, Captain," Tuvok continued. "The Commander went to the holodeck either before or after visiting the Doctor last night and created the program, but has no recollection of doing it."
Kathryn turned to Chakotay. "Do you have any blanks in memory, Chakotay? Anything at all?"
"No," he replied. "I remember going straight from our quarters to sickbay and then straight back to our quarters."
"That is how you would remember it," the Doctor said. "No recollection means no recollection. There's no doubt, Commander. You have sensory tremens."
There was a long, painful, silence. Kathryn was the first one to break it. "So, what happens now? Medication was all Chakotay's grandfather would have needed to make him well again. Is that all Chakotay needs too?"
"Medication may help for a while, but the Commander's condition will deteriorate rapidly. He will slowly lose more and more of himself until there is nothing left. Eventually he'll need to be kept in solitary confinement as he'll be a profound danger to others, aswell as to himself." He paused. "There is only one merciful answer. Euthanasia."
Kathryn's eyes widened in horror. "You can't be serious..."
"I'm afraid so, Captain. I can attempt to delay the deterioration of his mind, but insanity is inevitable. It's best for us to discuss Euthanasia now, while the Commander is still able to make that decision."
"It's out of the question," Kathryn cried. "We're not going to put him down like a dog... We'll fight this..."
"If there was something I could do, believe me I would, Captain. But there's nothing. I recommend Euthanasia as both your doctor and as your friend..."
"He's right," Chakotay interrupted. "It's the only option, Kathryn. I can't let you watch me lose my mind, I just can't..."
"What you can't let me do is watch you die," she replied, "not without a fight... not at least without trying..."
"If there was anything the Doctor could do, he would do it. But there's nothing. It has to be this way..."
Kathryn put her hands on his arms, her vision blurring. "Medication may help more than you think... And who knows what advances doctors in the Federation have made? You can't give up, Chakotay. You just can't..."
"You don't have to make the decision right away," the Doctor said. "It will be some time yet before you lose your mind completely."
A tear ran down Chakotay's cheek. "I can't let you watch me lose any of it, Kathryn. I want it to be done as soon as possible."
"No," Kathryn cried, squeezing his arms tight. "We'll get through this together..."
"It's the Commander's decision," the Doctor said. "And he's making the right one. We don't even keep mad animals in cages."
"But Chakotay's not mad," Kathryn said, turning to him, anger beginning to set in. "There'll be no lethal injection. As Captain, I prohibit it."
"You don't have the power to override me on medical matters," the Doctor answered. "This is the Commander's decision and his alone."
"And I've made up my mind," Chakotay said. "It has to be, Kathryn, for all our sakes..."
Kathryn shook her head, anger and another million emotions swirling inside her.
"I'm not settling for this," she said. "No way in hell." She hit her commbadge. "Janeway to transporter room one, transport Commander Chakotay to the brig. Janeway out."
Chakotay questioned. "Kathryn?"
But before she could give an answer, Chakotay had dematerialized. Kathryn hit her commbadge again. "Janeway to the brig. Keep Commander Chakotay confined until I tell you otherwise. Janeway out."
She then turned to Tuvok. "I want to examine all the evidence against Chakotay myself. Something is not right here. While I'm doing that, I want an inch by inch inspection of holodeck two."
"Yes, Captain," Tuvok answered.
Kathryn now turned to the Doctor. "And I want you to double check all the results of Chakotay's examination and present a report to me as soon as possible."
"But I assure you that..."
"Just do it, Doctor!"
He was subdued. "Yes, Captain."
B'Elanna found her captain, jacket off and sleeves rolled up, ploughing through data in astrometrics.
"You wanted to see me, Captain."
"Yes," Kathryn answered, finishing processing a piece of information before turning to look at her Chief Engineer. "I don't know how much you know about the goings on this morning, but I'm not happy with the way Tuvok has conducted the investigation. Something's very wrong. Call it a hunch, intuition, but I just know that something is wrong."
"Tom said something about aliens infiltrating the holodeck..."
"That might well be the case," Kathryn answered. "It would certainly make a hell of a lot more sense than the present version of events."
"You'd better fill me in," B'Elanna said. "What happened?"
"Just after ten this morning, Harry came to see me, telling me I was needed on the holodeck. But when I got there, a hologram of Chakotay was waiting for me. To cut a long story short, he tried to kill me, but I managed to escape. Tuvok investigated the incident and says that Chakotay created the program with the deliberate intention of killing me."
"But that's ridiculous!" B'Elanna cried. "Chakotay loves you..."
"Apparently Chakotay was caught on camera leaving the holodeck just after the program had been created. The Doctor examined him for any indication of mind-control, but found nothing. Then, an hour later, he examined Chakotay again and diagnosed sensory tremens with the advice that we give him a lethal injection."
B'Elanna's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Something's very wrong, B'Elanna," Kathryn continued. "It's not like the Doctor to give up on a patient so easily, and I don't for a moment believe that Chakotay is sick or that he created that program. Something else is going on and we've got to get to the bottom of it. I'm double checking everything Tuvok found myself and I want you to run a diagnostic of the Doctor's program, see if anyone's tampered with it to falsely diagnose Chakotay."
"I'll do it right away, Captain."
As she turned to leave, Kathryn returned to her task. B'Elanna slowed down as she reached the doors, and then turned back to her Captain.
"Did you say it was Harry who said you were needed in the holodeck, Captain?"
"Yes," Kathryn said, turning towards her again.
"But that can't be, Captain," B'Elanna continued. "He's been looking after Miral all morning."
"He has?"
"Yes. I didn't have anyone to look after her this morning so Harry said he would, seeing as it's his day off and he had nothing planned."
"Of course," Kathryn said quietly. "It's Harry's day off..." She hit her commbadge. "Janeway to Harry Kim."
Harry's voice answered. "Go ahead, Captain."
"Did you come to my ready room, just after ten o'clock this morning, telling me that I was needed in the holodeck?"
"No, Captain," Harry answered sincerely. "I was looking after Miral all morning."
Kathryn nodded. "Thank you, Harry. Janeway out."
"If it wasn't Harry," B'Elanna asked, "who was it?"
"Perhaps the same aliens that posed as a hologram of Chakotay on the holodeck," Kathryn said.
"But why? If they can exist like the Doctor in places without holo-emitters, they don't need our holodecks to manifest themselves. And if they want this ship, why just try to kill you and Chakotay? Why not the rest of us..."
"I don't know," Kathryn answered. "I just..." She stopped mid-sentence as a realization dawned on her.
"What?" B'Elanna questioned. "What is it?"
"The Doctor," Kathryn said quietly, everything suddenly clear. "He can transform himself into any one of us and his program has been malfunctioning lately..."
"But I fixed it," B'Elanna answered. "He should be functioning properly..."
"If memory capacity was the problem. It maybe be something else..." She paused. "Computer, take the EMH offline."
The computer voice responded. "EMH offline."
Kathryn addressed B'Elanna again. "Let's perform that diagnostic."
It seemed an eternity as Kathryn waited for B'Elanna's verdict on the Doctor's program.
"There's no doubt about it," she said at last. "Our culprit is definitely the Doctor. Lately he's transformed himself into Harry and Chakotay, as well as other members of the crew, and the times correspond with events this morning."
Relief consumed Kathryn. This meant that Chakotay definitely wasn't ill.
"But I don't understand it," B'Elanna continued. "Insufficient memory has corrupted his personality subroutines again. But there's no way he should have used up so much memory so soon."
"Perhaps you underestimated how quickly his program expands."
"I really don't think so, Captain. But then holotechnology isn't my speciality..."
"Maybe not, but you know much more than anyone else on board. What do you suggest we do?"
"I don't know, Captain," B'Elanna replied honestly. "I really don't know. It's going to take some thinking. I could try to increase his memory capacity again, but if his program continues to expand at such a rate, we'll be faced with the same problem again next week." She paused. "It might not be possible to fix him, Captain. We might have to return him to what he was when we first activated him."
Chakotay was sitting, his head in his hands, when Kathryn arrived at the brig. She dismissed those on duty and deactivated the forcefield herself. Chakotay looked up at the buzz and saw his wife standing before him.
"It wasn't you," she said softly. "The Doctor's program has been malfunctioning again."
Tears welled in Chakotay's eyes and he got to his feet. "Then I'm not ill?"
"No," Kathryn replied. "The Doctor was just playing on your fear. He wanted to kill me and eliminate you so he could take Voyager for himself." She smiled warmly. "You're just fine."
They gazed at each other for a moment and then Kathryn bridged the gap between them and held him tight.
It was close to midnight and B'Elanna was still working on the Doctor's program.
"You really should get some rest," Kathryn said, walking over to her.
"I'm almost done," B'Elanna replied. "I'm just slow booting the Doctor's program now to see that everything's okay."
A light filled Kathryn's tired eyes. "You were able to fix him?" The Doctor had become a good friend and the thought of losing him was weighing heavily on the hearts of all the crew.
"I think so, Captain. The problems in his program were more severe than I realised last week. I assumed it was a memory problem, but the memory problem was caused by corrupted files in one section that had grown over a hundred times larger than what they should have been. As soon as new files were added to that section, they enlarged too. The Doctor adds hundreds of files there within a week, and that's what caused his program to overload, causing his personality subroutines to malfunction. But I've managed to fix the problem. It shouldn't happen again." She paused. "I also gave more thought to Chakotay's idea.about making the Doctor's memory more selective. His program contained a lot of needless memories such as walking in an out of a room. I've altered his program to auto-delete such memories after a period of ten days. I'm hoping it won't have changed the core of who he is, but we won't know for certain until he's online again."
"How long will it take to get him online?"
"He should come online any moment now. His program just needs to finish booting." B'Elanna stepped away from the console she had been working on and rubbed her aching neck. "I just hope it works, Captain. If not, we've lost the Doctor forever..."
Kathryn put a kind hand on her shoulder. "You've done your best, B'Elanna. No one can do more than that."
She nodded sadly. "Even if he is himself," she said, "we're going to have to monitor him closely for the next couple of weeks to make sure everything's okay."
The console behind B'Elanna suddenly beeped and then the Doctor materialized before them.
"Please state the nature of the medical emergency."
B'Elanna glanced at Kathryn nervously and then back at the Doctor. "Do you recognize us, Doctor?"
"Of course I recognize you, Lieutenant," the Doctor answered. "You're B'Elanna Paris nee Torres, and you're Captain Kathryn Janeway."
"And do you know what stardate it is?"
"Stardate 55631.7. What's this about? Why was I taken offline?"
"Your program malfunctioned again," Kathryn answered. "What is the last thing you remember?"
The Doctor thought a moment. "Attending to Commander Chakotay in sickbay. There had been an incident on the holodeck, you had been attacked. I healed your injuries."
"You remember nothing after that?"
"Nothing, Captain." He paused. "What happened? Did aliens infiltrate the holodeck?"
"No, Doctor," Kathryn said cautiously. "The malfunction in your program seriosuly corrupted your personality subroutines, making you behave in uncharacteristic ways. But B'Elanna's fixed the problem now. It shouldn't happen again."
A pain filled the Doctor's holographic eyes. "Are you saying it was me, Captain? That I attacked you?"
Kathryn stepped forward and put her hand on his shoulder. "You weren't yourself, Doctor. You weren't responsible for your actions."
The Doctor was little comforted. "I could have killed you, Captain..."
"It wasn't you, Doctor. Don't blame yourself."
"Who else is there to blame, Captain?"
"Doctor, it was just..."
"You have to change me back to what I was," he continued. "What I am now can't be trusted..."
"You malfunctioned, Doctor, that's all..."
"And what if I do so again?" He tore off his mobile-emitter. "At least take this, Captain. What good's my freedom if it's someone else's death?"
"There's no need for that, Doctor. We're going to keep you closely monitored for the next couple of weeks..."
"There's every need," he said. "Take it, please..."
Kathryn took it with a sigh. "Alright, but I'll only keep it until your quarantine is over."
"Captain..."
"You've got to face the fact that you sometimes get sick just like the rest of us," she said firmly, "only you need a different kind of doctor." She paused. "Now, it's been one hell of a day and I'm exhausted. I'll leave B'Elanna to answer any questions you may have."
The Doctor nodded, her words clearly having had an impact. "Yes, Captain."
"Goodnight, Doctor." She turned to B'Elanna and smiled. "Goodnight, B'Elanna, and good work."
B'Elanna smiled in return. "Goodnight, Captain."
Chakotay was sitting in their dimly lit quarters cradling Silvia when Kathryn arrived there. She looked around the room, having expected to see Celes, not Chakotay, attending to the twins.
"Where's Celes?"
"Feeding Stevie in the nursery. I couldn't sleep, not with everything that's happened, and thought I'd sit with Silvie for a while." He paused. "Any news on the Doctor's program?"
"He's all fixed," Kathryn answered. "As I thought, it wasn't a memory problem. Part of his program had become corrupt, and this kept enlarging files so much that it caused a memory overload. B'Elanna sorted it." She smiled. "She also took up your idea of selective memory, and was able to alter his program to accommodate it." She held up the mobile-emitter. "The Doctor insisted on me taking his emitter, going on about how much of a threat he is to everyone. So, I said I'd take it until his quarantine is over...we need to monitor him over the next couple of weeks, just to see that everything is okay."
"Very wise," Chakotay said. "We can't put the crew in danger, even if that danger comes from one of us..."
"I know," Kathryn said, putting the emitter safely on a shelf. "I was just trying to reassure him."
"What should we do about allowing him to attend patients? Wait until the quarantine is over?"
"I didn't even think about that," Kathryn said, putting her hand to her brow as she made her way over to him. "My mind is so tired..." She paused. "But I think we should. We can't risk him falsely diagnosing someone again and giving them medication or surgery they don't need. Tom will have to take over for the next couple of weeks."
Chakotay got to his feet, still holding Silvie, and put his hand on his wife's shoulder. "And you have to get some rest, Kathryn. You go to bed and I'll join you as soon as I've put this little one down."
Kathryn smiled softly. "Alright." She gazed at her daughter and kissed her little head. "Goodnight, darling."
She then watched as Chakotay carried the precious child to the nursery, before making her way to the bedroom.
Petal watched from her doggie bed as her mistress climbed into bed, and then the animal lowered her head and went back to sleep. The bed was soft, welcoming, and Kathryn eagerly lay down . As soon as she did so, the doors to the bedroom opened, and Chakotay came in. He took off his robe and climbed into the bed beside her. Kathryn snuggled up to him and Chakotay took her in his arms. He kissed her hair and caressed her arm softly. He couldn't get out of his mind what had happened on the holodeck and was worried about her. After everything she had been through with the Cardassians, after the flashback she had experienced lately, she didn't need this experience. He wanted her to feel absolutely safe with him and was worried how this incident might effect her.
"I'd never hurt you, Kathryn," he whispered. "I'd rather die than ever hurt you..."
"I know that," she answered. "Of course I do. And I knew straight away that he wasn't you..."
"What...What did he do to you?"
Kathryn raised herself to look at him, wanting to put what she knew was a troubled mind at rest. "Not much, Chakotay. We were barely there five minutes. He tried to strangle me, that's all, but I managed to escape."
Chakotay brushed her hair away from her face. "He didn't...he didn't do...anything else?"
"No," Kathryn said firmly, understanding his meaning. "No."
Tears welled in Chakotay's eyes. "I love you, Kathryn. I couldn't bear it if ... if you had that memory ... of my image..."
Kathryn took his hand in hers. "Nothing like that happened, Chakotay. I swear..."
"And you're not afraid...with me?"
"Of course not," Kathryn replied. "I love you, I trust you, with all that I am..."
A tear ran down Chakotay's cheek. "When I think what could have happened...if he'd...I couldn't go through it again...losing you."
Kathryn tenderly traced the course of his tear. "Just like I couldn't bear to lose you, Chakotay." She paused. "That's why I want you to promise me something."
"Anything."
"That you'll never again give up on life so quickly, no matter what the problem."
A pain filled Chakotay's eyes and he drew away from her. "I can't," he said, sitting up. "Because if I ever do develop sensory tremens, I can't let you watch me go mad."
Kathryn sat up also and put her hand on his shoulder. "I understand, Chakotay, I do. I know how much a fate like your grandfather's frightens you. But if you ever do develop the condition, you can't give up so quickly. New medicines are being developed all the time, and one day soon there may be a cure."
"But if there isn't? I saw my grandfather lose more and more of his mind every day. You can't imagine what it's like, seeing someone you love suffer that way. I couldn't do it to you. I couldn't do it to Silvie and Stevie..."
Kathryn's voice fell to a whisper. "To us or to yourself, Chakotay?"
There was a long silence and then Chakotay began to weep softly. "I don't know, Kathryn. I don't know..."
Kathryn drew close to him, not expecting his tears, and caressed his broad back. "Chakotay..."
"I was just a boy," he said, looking up, the tears ebbing. "It was terrifying ... what he went through ... I have always been afraid... terrified ... that it will happen to me...I'd rather die, Kathryn...I'd rather die..."
Kathryn put her hand to his cheek and then brushed back the hair from his temple. "And if it was me, if I had this condition, would you want me to give up without a fight?"
"You'll never have it," he answered.
"No, but there are other conditions that can have similar effects... Would you want me to give up without even trying?"
"No," Chakotay said quietly. He then looked up at her and another tear ran down his face. " But I would administer the injection myself if it would spare you suffering the way he did..."
"Oh, Chakotay..." she whispered.
"I would do anything for you, Kathryn," he continued, "but I can't promise you something I don't know that I can keep..."
Kathryn took his hands in hers. "All I ask is that you don't give up so easily. That's all I want you to promise me, Chakotay...that's all..." Her voice fell to a whisper. "Please..."
There was so much longing in voice, in her face, that Chakotay couldn't refuse her. If the time came, then he would have to be strong ... he would have to be strong for her.
"I promise," he said, squeezing her hands. "I promise."
Elissia was at last within transporter range. It was now winter on the planet's surface and the temperature was below freezing. Kathryn was worried about taking Stevie to the mountain, but the Doctor, who was now out of quarantine and reunited with his mobile-emitter, reassured her that Stevie would be alright so long as he was dressed correctly and carried in a baby warmer - a carrier that would keep him warm for over twelve hours through heated gel packs.
Dressed in a hooded blue baby parka suit that covered his entire body and feet, a white fleece hat, and matching white gloves, Stevie was all ready for his first outing. In the transporter room, Kathryn gently placed him into the small carrier and tucked a warm blanket around him. She then pulled over the top of the carrier, zipping it in place, before lifting the hood and pulling down the ventilated protector.
When all was done, Chakotay picked up the carrier, and Kathryn gave the command for James Riley to transport, her, Chakotay, Tom and Stevie to the surface.
It was snowing a blizzard when they materialized on the planet and Kathryn shivered as the cold air penetrated her body and knifed her lungs. The wind was stronger than ever and she had to take a hold of Tom's arm to steady herself. Ploughing through the snow storm, they made their way to the cave entrance. The bitter wind died away as they ventured inside, warming the air. Kathryn checked on Stevie, and saw that he was still sleeping. She brushed away flakes of snow that had fallen on the carrier and then helped Tom to light the torches they would need to see their way in the dark mountain labyrinth.
The dark tunnel wound on and on, and grew colder the further they advanced. Every now and then Kathryn stopped to check on Stevie, but he seemed perfectly content.
"We're almost there," Chakotay said, after they had been walking for almost an hour. "I recognize this bend. The markings are distinctive. We should hear the water any moment..."
But as they walked around the bend, all that greeted them was more silence and more darkness. They walked on, waiting to hear the water, waiting to see the light... but neither came.
They followed one more bend and then there was nothing to follow. There was no more tunnel. They had reached a hollow. Kathryn and Tom cast their torches around, taking in what they could in the dim light, and Chakotay surveyed their surroundings too. Kathryn's heart sank in realization. They had reached Elissia, but Elissia had gone. They were in an empty cavern. There was no light, no water.
"I don't understand," Tom said. "Where's Elissia?"
"It might be the will of the gods to withhold healing," Chakotay said. "In which case, it's not our place to question."
"Why would they choose not to heal a baby?" Tom asked. "What kind of gods do you believe in?"
"Gods who have wisdom beyond that of man," Chakotay replied.
Kathryn gazed at the sleeping baby in the carrier before her, her eyes heavy from unshed tears. She had been so sure that Elissia would heal him, so sure.
"Let's just get out of here," she said quietly.
"You both go," Tom said. "I'd like to take a look around ... see if there's any clues to what made Elissia work. Perhaps the weather has frozen the water supply...blocked out the light..."
"It's too dangerous to be alone in here," Kathryn said firmly, her disappointment manifesting itself in toned anger. "We're all going back to the ship. End of discussion."
Chakotay watched from the kitchen entrance as Kathryn cuddled Stevie in her arms. She had barely said a word since leaving Elissia, and Stevie had been in her arms since they had returned to the ship. Chakotay put down the glass of water he held in his hands, and walked over to his wife.
"I could be jealous," he said gently, "all the cuddles he's getting."
"I just want him to know I'm here," Kathryn said, stroking her son's forehead. "It must be so silent in his world..."
"He'll be alright," Chakotay said, sitting beside her. "The Doctor said he can help him to hear."
"I know," Kathryn replied. "I just... I was just so sure that Elissia would heal him..."
"So was I."
"It's hard to believe that only a few weeks ago, Elissia was a place of running water filled with light, but is now nothing but a dark hollow."
"Yes. If the gods control Elissia, then it's their privilege to bestow or withdraw healing at their discretion. But perhaps Tom was right, the weather was responsible. Or perhaps Elissia only functions certain times of the year. Even certain times of a century, a millennium." He paused. "But what ever the reason, I'm sure thankful it brought you back to me..."
Kathryn turned to him and smiled softly. "So am I." Her smile then faded and tears welled in her eyes. "But what if the Doctor can't help him, Chakotay ... if it doesn't work? What if Stevie will never be able to hear?" That Stevie had been able to hear in the alternate future she had witnessed, didn't automatically mean he would be able to hear in this one.
Chakotay put a kind hand on her shoulder. "Then we'll do everything that we can to help him have a good, happy, life, and to know how special he is and how much we love him." He kissed her forehead. "Come on, let's go and discuss things with the Doctor. The sooner we know what exactly can be done for Stevie, the sooner we can help him."
Kathryn held Stevie in her arms as she and Chakotay discussed his condition with the Doctor.
"You said you could help him hear by placing a device in his ears," Kathryn began. "How soon can it be done?"
"Now if you wish," the Doctor replied. "It's a simple operation. It's just a matter of transporting the devices into his ears. But they will need to be changed every few weeks until he reaches adulthood."
"And these earring aids will give him at least seventy five percent hearing?"
"Yes, Captain. He'll be able to hear general sounds like talking, clapping, and music, but sounds below a certain decibel he won't be able to hear. But on a day to day basis it shouldn't make much difference. The seventy five percent comes in the range of hearing rather than the volume. Your voice will sound the same to him as to Silvie, only his range of hearing will be less."
Chakotay questioned now. "Will he need special schooling?"
"No," the Doctor answered. "But it might be an idea for you all to learn sign language... Silvia too. The earlier they learn it, the easier it will be for them to pick it up. Stevie's hearing will depend almost entirely on technology and if an unforeseen problem does develop, not that I expect it too, he will have another means of communication. I'm sure there'll be a holo-program in our database offering classes. If not, it shouldn't be difficult to create one."
"Then we'll do that," Kathryn said. "Whatever is necessary." She paused. "How long will the operation take?"
"Only a couple of minutes," the Doctor answered. "You can both be present."
"And you can do it now?"
The Doctor nodded. "Just put him down on the biobed behind you."
Kathryn did what she was told and put Stevie down on the bed with a kiss. The Doctor then put a hypospray to his little neck and he fell asleep.
"He must be perfectly still," the Doctor explained. He then went over to his monitor and console and began to prepare for the operation, talking as he did so.
"I'm just mapping his left inner ear. "Every hearing device is individually designed."
Chakotay went over to Kathryn and put his hand on her shoulder, a small gesture of comfort. Kathryn put her hand over his and squeezed it, returning the gesture.
"That's the left ear done," the Doctor continued. "Now the right."
He mapped Stevie's inner right ear, generated a hearing device, and then transported it into his ear.
"All done," he said, making his way from the console to his tiny patient. "I'll need to perform an intense hearing test to determine the exact percentage of hearing the devices give him," he continued, "but we'll get a rough idea as soon as he wakes up and you speak to him." He smiled. "A baby hears many sounds in the womb, but his favorite of all is his mother's voice. It's the first human voice he becomes aware of and recognizes. Therefore, I think you should be the first to speak to him, Captain."
Kathryn nodded and watched as the Doctor woke Stevie up. As he was waking, she lifted him into her arms and cradled him close.
"Hello Stevie, darling" she said softly. "This is your Mommy's voice."
Stevie stirred beneath her and opened his little eyes as she spoke.
"Can you hear me, sweetheart?"
His mouth opened, letting out a bewildered little cry, but stopping as he heard himself.
"It's alright, honey," Kathryn whispered, tears welling in her eyes, "everything is alright." She kissed his little forehead. "Don't be afraid. There's nothing to fear, darling. Nothing at all." She turned him towards Chakotay. "Your Daddy wants to say hello too."
Chakotay placed his little finger in Stevie's hand and the child clutched it tight. "Hello Stevie," Chakotay said softly, "hello son."
The Doctor, who was now back at his monitor, spoke. "Roughly eighty three percent," he said happily. "Better than we could have hoped for."
Kathryn smiled, wiped away a tear, and kissed her son again. She then laughed softly. "If I'm not mistaken, I think he's just deposited us a little something. Must have been the surprise."
Chakotay laughed too and Kathryn held Stevie out to his father.
"Your turn, Mister."
Chakotay took his son in his arms and put him against his shoulder with a smile. "Yes, Ma'am."
END OF PART TWO
