Arana – Book 1 - Chapter 16
By Kudara
Disclaimer: Star Trek Voyager and all who sail in her belong to Paramount/Viacom and no infringement of copyright/trade marks is intended.
Disclaimer: The Dungeons and Dragons Roleplaying System is owned by Wizards of the Coast and no infringement of copyright/trademarks is intended. The only thing I would like to lay claim to is the original D&D character used in this story.
Rating: (M +16).
Feedback: Always welcome, feedback is what encourages me to keep writing. Please let me know what you like and what you dislike about the story.
Revision History: 01/25/06
Summary: Events of the evening following the day of the battle with Askal.
"Icheb to Seven," the hesitant voice of the young Brunali, broke the quiet silence of my quarters. Reluctantly I pulled away from Seven's embrace so she could reach her combadge to answer.
"Seven to Icheb, I apologize Icheb I was delayed. I will come to the science lab momentarily." Seven answered him.
I glanced at the time and felt a shock of guilt, we should have checked on the children thirty minutes ago.
"We have just completed the training program you instructed us to run in the holodeck," he responded. "Do you wish us to return to the science lab or we could come to Champion Arana's quarters." His voice rose at the last, betraying his personal choice.
I glanced at Seven inquiringly, sensing her sudden unease at his statement.
"May they come here?" Seven asked me, a slight frown still upon her face.
I nodded, "Of course."
"Please come to Arana's quarters, Icheb," Seven stated, and closed the communications channel.
Standing she went to my console, "I left them no instructions to run a program in the holodeck." She pulled away from the console suddenly, staring at it as if it had bitten her. "This is not possible, there was such a message sent to the children from this console, but we were discussing what occurred on the bridge at the time it was sent."
I came over and stared at the screen, "What is this program?"
"A geosciences program I had intended them to participate in next week," Seven answered me absently. She sat down in the chair and began working furiously at the console.
I watched for a few seconds, trying to figure out what she was doing, "Trying to find out if it is forged?" I hazarded a guess.
"Yes," she replied, still working quickly at the console; information flashing across it so quickly that I could barely manage to discern what it was before it disappeared to be replaced by the new. Not that I understood any of what I was seeing, what she was doing was far beyond my basic understanding of the equipment.
The door chimed a request, "enter," I said, expecting it to be the children. I was partially correct, the children entered, followed by Captain Janeway. I was suddenly quite aware of the skin tight suit I was currently wearing, as I had not fully changed after taking off my armor. I quietly greeted them and then excused myself to go change, as I entered the bathroom I heard Seven inform Captain Janeway of the false message that had been sent to the children.
When I returned a few minutes later, they were all clustered around the console. "The message came from this console," Icheb stated uncertainly.
"It cannot have, neither Arana nor I sent such a message and we were the only ones present in the room." Seven replied, her frustration bleeding over into her tone.
My attention was drawn to the Captain, who was not participating in the argument but looking at the console with a speculative expression. "Captain Janeway, you have a theory?" I asked her.
The children and Seven turned toward her with inquiring looks as she glanced my way, "Only one, Q, but why he would chose to do so escapes me." Janeway admitted.
Everyone fell silent as they considered this possibility, I included. Perhaps I had not imagined that look Q gave me. The conversation between Seven and I had been important to me, it had helped me clarify my thoughts, had allayed my fears, and brought us closer together.
Though I still felt guilty that we had forgotten that we needed to check on the children, I was thankful that Seven and I had the opportunity to discuss Askal and what he had done to me before I saw the children again, and before we needed to go to the mess hall and eat with them. The evening before me now felt like a manageable challenge, still difficult and fraught with possible dangers, but I was now confident that I could face them. Before the discussion, it had loomed forebodingly over me, a dark, frightening unknown, and I had half considered asking if we could eat in my quarters in order to avoid the other crewmembers.
My eyes met Seven's, and a look of understanding passed between us. Seven replied, "Q is the most likely possibility, he has shown interest in Arana's well being." She tapped on the console a few more times and stood up, and I guessed that she had closed the screen. "Captain did you need something from Arana or I?" she asked.
Janeway looked back and forth between Seven and me, apparently surprised by the change in subject. "I guess we're deciding it was Q then?" she asked, her tone controlled. I was confused by her displeasure until I realized that she was feeling left out, not understanding why, or how, Seven had reached that conclusion so quickly.
"He is the most likely choice, Captain, perhaps we can speak of why later, now is not that appropriate, as it is time for the children's dinner," I said quietly.
Janeway's grey eyes met mine, and then flickered over the children quickly, "Alright," she agreed. "I came to ask Seven to visit Unimatrix Zero and inform them of our plan. I know the children need to regenerate later so I wanted to mention it before it got too late."
Briefly, Seven looked troubled by this request, and I could clearly sense her reluctance to do what the Captain wanted. I was puzzled by it until I remembered Axum. With all that had happened since that discussion in the vacant science lab, I had all but forgotten him. Especially since Seven had decided that she was not interested in exploring whatever relationship they used to have.
I sighed lightly, drawing Seven's attention, her blue eyes met mine, and I gave her a sympathetic look, understanding why she was unenthusiastic about returning to Unimatrix Zero.
Seven gave me a brief nod, and a resigned lift of her brow. I returned it with an encouraging look. The situation was certainly not one she had anticipated, but Voyager had agreed to help them, and she was the only one who could serve as a messenger.
Seven looked over at the Captain, "I will regenerate, and inform them as soon as we have finished consuming our food."
"Alright," Janeway replied, looking back and forth between us curiously, a slight frown on her face. "Well I've got some more work to do, enjoy your dinner," she said to all of us. We murmured our goodbyes, and the Captain took her leave of us. Just before the doors to my quarters closed, I heard the Captain grumble to herself, "And maybe next time someone will give me a crib sheet for those two."
I frowned, uncertain as to what she could have meant by the comment.
"A crib sheet is an example of known plaintext for an encrypted communication," Mezoti commented, "Why would the Captain require one to understand Seven and Arana?"
I blushed, now realizing exactly why Captain Janeway had made the comment. I would have to find a way to apologize to her later for being inconsiderate, though I would still be unable to tell her about the last exchange with Seven, as it was not my information to reveal.
"The Captain was referring to non-verbal communication between Arana and I." Seven responded to Mezoti.
The children looked back and forth between us curiously. Mezoti asked, "Arana does not have a neural interface, how are you able to communicate?"
Seven glanced in my direction, amused. We smiled at one another. "A neural interface is not required for two people to make an accurate guess as to what the other is thinking. Especially if they have made an effort to understand one another's thought processes." Before anymore questions could be asked she continued, "We need to proceed to the mess hall and consume our dinners."
"Champion Arana, did the event you were expecting occur?" Icheb asked me, as we walked toward the turbolift.
I had been expecting this for the last few minutes, and had been attempting to figure out how to answer the inevitable question. "Yes it did, I faced one of Bane's priests and defeated him in battle."
Seven drew in a protesting breath, and I turned to her, pausing, "Milady, it is best they hear this from us rather than overhearing it later." Seven's eyes widened, and though she did not look happy about the situation, she nodded.
"Bane sent an emissary to the Borg Queen," the children looked up at me in surprise and no little bit of fear, "We do not yet know what purpose he had there, but I am sure that finding out that purpose will be my task."
Seven helped me explain how the Queen had tapped into Voyagers communications system. Leaving out the conversation between Askal and I, we told them about the appearance of Q, and how he transported Askal and I to an arena for our battle.
After we were finished with our explanations Icheb asked, "So Torm and Ilmater are Q?"
"If Q is being truthful," Seven remarked.
"He was," I affirmed. I had doubted too, at first, but as Q's explanation continued, I became more certain that, in this at least, he was being truthful. I was also convinced that he had been amongst the Q who had opposed Bane and Lolth, and perhaps he had even been among those captured by them. But, if that was so, he had obviously chosen not to go into exile with them.
Seven gave me an inquiring look, curious as to what had prompted my statement.
"I believe he was one of the Q opposing Bane and Lolth," I repeated my thoughts aloud. Seven raised her brow at this, and a thoughtful look came upon her face, but she did not say anything as we had arrived at the mess hall.
Once we were seated with our meals, I had time to gauge the reactions of the crewmembers there to my presence. To my relief, it appeared that Seven was correct, while there was an undercurrent of sorrow and distress when people looked my way, the emotions were not overly strong. Just as strong were feelings of respect, and to my surprise wariness. I concentrated briefly, employing one of the shielding methods Tuvok had taught me, and relaxed as my awareness of my fellow crewmates emotions faded.
I turned my attention back to Seven and the children, listening with interest as they discussed with her what they had learned in the geosciences holoprogram. As the discussion continued, I was pleased that I could follow, and even contribute a few points to the discussion. Though the Captain, due to her uncertainty that I would be staying, had strictly limited how much I could learn, I had managed to gain a basic understanding of their sciences.
A sudden burst of emotional energy, - confusion, embarrassment, anger, and strong concern, - drew my attention to the mess hall doors. Ensign Kim, Lt. Paris and Lt. Torres had just entered, and were looking in my direction.
Judging from the slight color in Ensign Kim's face, and the difficulty he had meeting my eyes, I guessed that he was the primary source of the embarrassment I was feeling. Lt. Paris demeanor was solemn, and when my eyes met his I could see his concern for me. Of the three Lt. Torres' response was the oddest, her eyes shifted briefly back and forth from Seven to me, with frowning confusion plain for anyone to witness upon her face. Yet, when my gaze met hers, the half-Klingon's expression changed, the confusion was still there, but mixed now with concern and sorrow.
I nodded briefly to the trio, and then turned my attention back to the children and Seven. I did not feel ready for another emotionally intense discussion tonight unless it was absolutely required. Seven was watching me, eyes holding concerned questioning. I smiled reassuringly in response.
"I must regenerate and deliver the Captain's message to Unimatrix Zero," Seven stated. "I can ask Neelix to look after the children?" she directed the question to me.
"I only need a few hours to meditate at some point in the evening, if you will not be overly long in fulfilling your duty, I would be pleased to watch over them." I offered. "If that is, of course, acceptable?" I asked the children. With prompt nods they indicated their agreement to my offer.
"It should not require more than an hour," Seven assured me.
A warm feeling suffused my heart, "Do not hurry in your task for my sake, Milady. I would not be the cause of you leaving something undone."
Seven looked uncomfortable for a moment, then gave an irritated sigh. "I do not leave my tasks unfinished," she replied defensively.
"No, Milady, my apologies for implying so," I agreed readily, "I only wished you to know that you need not feel as if you need to rush, looking after the children is a welcome duty, and not in any way burdensome to me."
Seven stared at me searchingly for a moment, then a look of gentle understanding came over her face. I wondered if she were remembering, as I was, how earlier in the day I had revealed to her how looking upon the children, seeing their innocence, reminded me of why I had chosen to be a priestess and paladin. She reached out and touched me briefly upon my shoulder. "I will find you when I am done," she replied and stood, and politely I stood as well. Looking sternly at the children she ordered, "Comply with Arana's directions," her expression lightened, "please," she finished.
"Yes, Seven," they replied, surprised. Though she had been rather strict with them as recently as two weeks ago, she had been more relaxed around them ever since I arrived. I attributed it less to my influence, and more to the simple fact that I had been helping her with them, thus giving her more time for her duties and her own personal projects.
Seven turned and took a step toward the doors, then paused and turned back toward me. Her hands clasped behind her she said in a low voice, "Until I return, may Ilmater and Torm watch over you."
I was surprised, I had said those words to her several times, but this was the first time she had ever said them to me. "And you as well, Milady." I finally gathered my wits enough to reply properly.
She nodded, our eyes met. There was an intensity to her gaze that conveyed her promise that, though she was about to see the man she had just learned was her first lover, it was I she was interested in, not Axum. We looked at each other for a moment longer, and I had the clear impression that had we been alone she would have kissed me. Arousal and a bit of nervousness swept through me as I realized it would likely have been more passionate and possessive than any of the other times our lips had met.
Then she turned and strode quickly through the doors, leaving me staring after her. It was only then that I noticed how much attention we had drawn, several of the other crewmembers were now looking my way curiously. The trio of Ensign Kim, Lt. Paris, and Lt. Torres, were among the most keenly interested of all in what had just occurred between Seven and I.
"Champion Arana," I turned back to the children at the sound of Mezoti's voice. "Can we run the Kings Canyon Natural Park Caverns program?" the girl asked excitedly.
Bemusedly I commented, "If Icheb, Rebi and Azan have no objections?" Not quite certain exactly what the program was, except that it obviously contained caves, or why Mezoti was so excited about it.
"I will be able to view the constellations from Earth," commented Icheb, his eyes bright.
Well, now at least I knew something more, this park was on Earth, which raised my interest in it. I had studied the Federation, and the planet Captain Janeway and several others of the crew were born upon. But I had not yet had the opportunity to participate in a holoprogram recreating a location upon this planet they were trying so hard to return to.
Mezoti was showing me a spider that was uniquely adapted to its cavern environment when Seven came up to us almost an hour and a half later. I turned and greeted her, relieved to see that she appeared calm and untroubled. I was curious as to what had happened during her visit, but knew now was not the proper time.
Once our allotted time was finished, Seven and I escorted the children to the cargo bay and watched them begin their regeneration cycle.
"I informed them of Captain Janeway's plans," Seven informed me abruptly once all the children were regenerating. "I also spoke with Axum," now Seven looked unsettled. "He was originally angry with me, but I believe that was due to my phrasing, it lacked sensitivity."
Seven grimaced briefly, and I wondered just what it was that she had said to Axum.
She continued, "I apologized for telling him that the earlier friendship was irrelevant."
I winced, now understanding why Axum responded less than positively.
Seven nodded, looking embarrassed. "I explained to him that the reason I did not wish to pursue the earlier relationship with him was due to the fact that I was interested in someone on Voyager." Seven's expression changed to one of bemusement, "He was not surprised when he learned you were a woman. He informed me I was attracted to another woman before he and I entered into a monogamous relationship, but she disappeared from Unimatrix Zero. After a few months we assumed that she had been killed or deactivated, and I began dating Axum."
I stared at her in astonished surprise for a moment, then my lips quirked in a smile, causing Seven to look at me curiously. "I confess, Milady, I am somewhat relieved to find out that I am not the first female you have ever been interested in having a relationship with," I admitted.
She raised her brow at me, and smiled, "No apparently you are not." Her smile faltered, "Though I do not have any memory of the woman Axum mentioned."
"I am sorry," I replied, "When I first encouraged you to find out about your time there I should have thought about some of these possibilities."
"Arana," Seven interrupted me. "You do not need to apologize for encouraging me to find out what happened during my time there. Though some of the things I have learned have been...unsettling, I have also gained some of the insight that you wished me to learn. I was able to recognize some of the people there and remember they were my friends, even though I do not have specific memories of them or the time we spent together. The experience has helped me gain a greater understanding of my humanity."
"I am pleased that my apology is not needed then," I replied, with a relieved smile.
The sound of the doors opening behind us drew our attention and Seven and I both turned curious as to who had entered the cargo bay.
"Oh, hello," Lt. Torres greeted us, sounding surprised that we were here. I was confused by her behavior, for I could easily tell that she was not surprised at all. "Just looking for some parts to get the Delta Flyer ready for the mission, don't mind me." She assured us as she began looking through the containers noisily.
Remembering her curiosity earlier, I was almost certain that she was here only to observe us. I found it odd, considering that she was getting ready to go on a fairly serious mission, but then I knew that people distracted themselves from their pre-battle fears in the strangest ways. Lt. Torres assuaging her curiosity was certainly not the most unusual thing I had ever seen someone do to calm themselves.
Seven's brow, which had been rising steadily during Lt. Torres's entire performance, was now at the highest zenith of dubiousness that I had ever witnessed from Seven. Striding over to her console she picked up a PADD, checked it, then entered some data into it.
I watched her curiously, clearly sensing her amusement and aggravation with Lt. Torres. I had the feeling she was about to do something to annoy the Lieutenant, but I could not figure out what it might be.
Walking over to Lt. Torres with the PADD in hand, Seven gave it to the mystified engineer. "I believe you will find this helpful in your efforts," Seven said to Lt. Torres as she took the PADD from her.
The Lieutenants expression changed from puzzlement to a conflicted mixture of anger and amusement. Finally she snorted, "You think so do you? That's ok; I'll leave the detailed studies up to you," she replied as she handed back the PADD to Seven. "Ah!" she reached back into the bin and drew out a piece of equipment, waving the part triumphantly in the air she said, "Found what I was looking for."
Seven and I watched as Lt. Torres sauntered back out of the cargo bay. Confused and intrigued, I turned to Seven for an explanation.
Seven sighed, looking uncomfortable, finally she began speaking, "A few months ago I conducted a study of the relationships on Voyager. The couple I spent the most time observing was Lt. Paris and Lt. Torres. Lt. Torres was not pleased when she deduced why I spent so much time around them." She finished dryly.
I suspected that was a definite understatement given what I had observed of the half-Klingon's temperament. "Seven," I managed to say in a chiding tone before giving up the battle and chuckling. I could understand why she had approached the matter in that manner; Seven was used to researching everything, why would she change her preferred method of learning just because the subjects were her fellow crewmembers?
Seven replied, "Yes, I know. I am not supposed to conduct studies as if Voyager was a nature preserve," her smile growing as she watched me.
I lost the battle completely, and began laughing in earnest at the image that arose in my mind at her words. Seven stalking through the corridors, PADD in hand, trying to covertly observe the two Lieutenants, while entering data in her usual brisk manner.
My laughter faded as I watched Seven in amazement, she had just laughed with me, it had only been two short chuckles, but she had definitely just laughed. It was, as far as I knew, the first time I had ever saw her do so.
"I laughed," Seven commented looking as surprised as I felt. "The last time I remember laughing was when I was a child."
I walked over to her and pulled her into an warm embrace, pleased and happy beyond measure that I had contributed to such a moment. "May it be the first of many for you, Milady." I wished her.