There was no warning before the first bomb exploded. Kathryn had been walking slowly through the streets of the alien city, browsing shop windows while making her way to the well-recommended café where she was to meet Chakotay for lunch on an afternoon of shore leave. Unfortunately for them, somebody else seemed to have other ideas. A large chunk of flying debris narrowly missed Kathryn's head as she fought to regain her bearings. Whatever kind of explosive that was, it had done a lot of damage. The city's skyline was drastically altered as once-proud buildings lay in rubble on the ground. People ran in every direction, screaming and shouting for missing friends. And in all the chaos, Kathryn had one thing on her mind – find Chakotay.

A mad rush of terrified people knocked her to the ground and caused her to choke on the dust their running feet stirred up. She regained her balance on trembling legs just as the next explosion rocked the ground.

"Janeway to Voyager," she hailed. "We need an emergency beam-out."

"We are unable to get a lock on you at the moment," Tuvok's annoyingly calm tones responded. "There is some kind of atmospheric radiation above your position, likely caused by the explosions. It is rendering the targeting scanners inoperative in that area. You must clear the region before we can beam you out."

"Acknowledged. I'll find Chakotay and call you when we're out."

There were now emergency teams racing through the streets, trying to contain terrified mobs and rescue the victims trapped in the rubble. A sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach forced Kathryn to consider the possibility that Chakotay might be one of those victims, but for now she would keep looking. The place she was supposed to meet him was further into the town. She would have to keep pressing against the flow to get there past the fleeing crowds.

Shoving her way through the crowded streets, she finally found the fountain that served as a landmark in the city. She was almost there. She could see outdoor tables and chairs near what must have been the café, but there was only debris in that part of the street. The building was gone.

Kathryn ran desperately towards the rubble, but there was no sign of survivors. Spinning around, she scanned the crowds for his familiar face, but she saw nothing but fear and chaos. He was gone.

"Kathryn!" A strong voice bellowed out over the noise of the crowd, and Kathryn's heart leapt for joy. He was across the street, trying to push his way through the masses moving towards the large building behind him. Kathryn began to run towards him. It was difficult to keep him in her sight while fighting her way through the crowd. She caught a glimpse of him as he stopped and turned to something behind him then changed direction, moving back with the crowd. It took a minute for Kathryn to find him again, helping an old woman who was struggling to get up from the ground. Then she saw something else.

Time moved in slow motion as the building right behind where Chakotay was standing burst into a large ball of flame. Roof segments flew outwards and walls caved in. She was surrounded by mass hysteria, people screaming and pushing at her, and for a horrified minute she couldn't move or think.

Then she was dashing desperately to where she had last seen him. There was a massive amount of rubble there, and her hands were soon bleeding as she desperately hauled it aside, digging deeper into it. She found him, finally, with his body thrown on top of the old woman. It had been a futile gesture, though, as Kathryn found no signs of life in the frozen, unseeing eyes. She carefully maneuvered herself so that she could roll Chakotay over and rest his head in her lap, trying to make him comfortable. After a long moment, he began to stir. She gazed down into his pained brown eyes and tried to offer comfort with her smile.

"Why is it," he coughed painfully, "that every time both of us leave the ship… something like this happens?"

"The universe doesn't like us spending time together," she replied, wiping the dust and blood off his cheek with her thumb.

"So much for shore leave," he muttered.

"What you need is sickbay. You're bleeding everywhere."

"I think I feel some internal injuries too."

"You're going to be fine, Chakotay. I won't let you not be."

Chakotay chuckled softly, then moaned in pain.

"There are some things even you can't control, Kathryn."

He lapsed into silence then, leaving Kathryn to fight her rising fear that Voyager wouldn't get them out in time, since there was no way Chakotay was in any condition to get to a transport site.

"Will you marry me?"

The question shocked her mind into silence for a long minute.

"What?"

"I said," he coughed, "will you marry me?"

"Hell of a time for a proposal."

"I'm serious." Moving slowly and wincing at the pain, he slipped his hand into his pocket and dug out a tiny velvet box. Kathryn took it and opened it slowly to reveal the most beautiful ring she had ever seen. Tiny sapphires were nestled in a frame of silver, glinting brightly under the eerie orange glow of the sky. Now she knew why he had seemed more eager than usual for their shared shore leave.

"Oh, Chakotay," she breathed. "It's beautiful."

There was no reply.

His eyes were closed, and his breathing had become shallow and laboured. Kathryn shoved the ring box in her pocket and began frantically trying to wake him. With the head injuries he'd sustained when the building collapsed, it was unlikely he didn't have a concussion, and who knew what other injuries. A drop of water splashed onto his face, and Kathryn realized she was crying. She wiped it off gently, still murmuring his name, begging him to open his eyes. And then she realized he wasn't breathing.

With the first chest compression she felt the snap. If there weren't internal injuries before, there were now. She worked desperately to convince his heart to start beating again and tried to breathe life back into his lungs. She had no idea if it was doing any good, but she kept at it. She had to. She couldn't let him go now.

The crackle of her commbadge brought her out of her pain-filled trance. "Delta Flyer to Janeway," Paris' voice called. "Stand by for transport."

"Hurry, Tom," she called, already knowing it might be too late. As she felt another tear roll down her cheek, she leaned down to kiss Chakotay's blood-stained forehead. "I would love nothing more than to marry you," she whispered.

Then she felt the tingle of the transporter beam whisk them away.