"There you are!" Kathryn exclaimed, walking towards him with an excited smile.
He stood there shell shocked as her arms wrapped around his torso for a hug, but something large and round kept them from embracing fully. He pushed her away with delicate hands and examined her. She was clean, healthy, happy…and she looked to be almost nine months pregnant.
"Why don't you go outside and find Lizzy and Molly while I finish setting up for dinner," she suggested.
"Kathryn, what the hell is going on?" he asked.
She tilted her head, staring at him quizzically. She walked closer to him and rested her hand on his forehead and then his cheek.
"Are you feeling alright?" It was when she went to remove her left hand from his face that he noticed a ring.
He shook his head, trying to remember why he walked through that door in the first place. He needed to do something or find something? Where had he been? Where was he going? He couldn't recall a thing.
He looked down at his left hand and saw his own gold band around his ring finger. Within a few seconds, it all came rushing back. Years of memories, images, feelings, they all flooded his mind.
His passionate relationship with Kathryn on Voyager had grown into something more serious. He eventually gained the nerve to propose and thanked the spirits when she accepted. They were married a few weeks later in the mess hall with the senior staff as witnesses. A month later, they achieved the impossible and made it back to earth. Three months after their return, something even more incredible happened.
"Daddy!" he heard a small voice call out.
He felt a small creature wrap around his leg. Looking down, he saw a mop of dark brown hair, and then two deep blue eyes stared up at him with such love and adoration that his heart wanted to explode.
"Lizzy?" he asked, unsure.
"Up!" She called, stretching her arms towards him.
He lifted the girl into his arms and held her close.
He remembered being there when she took her first breath. He'd held her in his arms, that delicate little bundle, so afraid he would drop her or that she'd simply break into pieces, but she didn't. Instead, she opened her curious eyes and studied him silently. She didn't want him to put her down, not to sleep or even eat. From that very first moment, she had him wrapped around her tiny finger, and he never wanted it any other way. Now she was three years old, and every day seemed to be a new adventure, something new to learn, somewhere exciting to explore, and a new mess to make.
He heard a bark coming from outside and turned towards the back door to see an auburn-haired dog wagging its tail, begging for entrance.
He shifted his daughter to one arm and used his free hand to let the dog in.
"Molly!" Lizzy shouted with a giggle.
"Come on, you two! Dinner's ready!" Kathryn called out.
Lizzy slid down and ran towards the kitchen, Chakotay followed in a daze. He couldn't believe how his life had turned out. This was everything he had ever wanted. The woman of his dreams, a beautiful daughter and another child on the way. Their home was large, and reminiscent of the house he would have liked to build for them on New earth if he'd had the time.
He took a seat at the head of the table and watched Kathryn cut up Lizzy's food.
"Mommy, can I feel the baby kick?" she asked.
"Well, right now, you're little brother doesn't have too much room to move around, but you can try to feel him kick after dinner."
He stared at this perfect scene but somehow felt disconnected as if he were watching a movie rather than his reality.
"Chakotay," a distant voice whispered hoarsely, causing him to jump from his chair.
His wife and daughter looked at him with concern.
"Chakotay, do you want to go lay down for a bit? I can save your food and keep it warm if you want it later."
"No, no, I'm ok. I don't know what that-" he sat back down and picked up his fork to start eating, but as the hairs on the back of his neck stood straight up, he let the utensil slip from his grasp and clank onto his plate.
Then he heard that rasped breathing once more, it grew closer and closer until he could almost feel it on his face.
"Help me!" the voice screamed brokenly, the sound was deafening.
He fell to the ground and covered his ears.
Kathryn ran over to him and carefully bent down on her knees to check on him.
"Chakotay! Are you ok? What is it? What's wrong?" she asked, terrified.
After calming silence finally met his ears, he shot back up, stumbling backward until he bumped into the kitchen table.
A few dishes crashed and shattered on the floor, and Lizzy began to wail.
Kathryn stood up and touched his arm, but he recoiled as if contact from her caused him pain.
"You're scaring Lizzy...and you're scaring me. Why don't you go up to bed and I'll comm the Doctor."
He stared blankly and nodded, allowing her to help him up to their bedroom. They walked slowly, her hand rubbing gently up and down his back. She helped him settle and kissed his cheek, a worried but loving look in her eyes.
"Get some rest, the Doctor will be here soon," she said.
She stood at the door, hesitating to leave, but Lizzy's crying brought her back down.
He sat frozen on the edge of the bed and glanced around the room.
In the corner sat a desk with a few padds. He walked over and picked one up. On it there was a message from Starfleet headquarters regarding his new promotion to the rank of captain.
He picked up another one detailing his latest assignment into deep space to perform archeological digs around ancient colonies. In the message it mentioned that he wouldnt have to go until after his paternity leave. The admiral who had written the message made sure to congratulate him on his son's upcoming arrival. He smiled and placed it back on the desk.
The third padd had personal messages. One from his sister detailing his nephews first steps, and a new word he learned that almost sounds like 'Chakotay'. As he flipped through the next few, they were all from former maquis members. Marriages, births, promotions. All of his friends had something wonderful going on in their lives. This was everything he wanted for them.
He continued to look around. Pictures on the walls depicting his perfect life, a life he never thought could be his. But that voice he heard at the dinner table, something told him that it was important. It had sounded so familiar, almost like Kathryn, but she had been standing silently in front of him when he heard it. None of this made any sense.
He had this gut feeling that he needed to finish something, he needed to save someone and soon. He tried hard to concentrate, to remember what it was that he needed to do.
He searched in the depths of his mind and only came back with one word: Mara.
Then it struck him, as instantly and violently as lightning, that this was not real. Mara was trying to trap him in a fantasy.
He ignored the feeling of disappointment that he would have to leave this perfect dream.
"I spoke with the Doctor and he said he'll be by in about an hour." Kathryn said, walking back into the room.
He turned around, now sure that the woman before him was simply a mirage.
"Where's Kathryn?" he demanded.
She looked at him with a hurt expression and tried to get closer to him, but he stepped back.
"I...I'm right here. What are you talking about?"
"Enough! I don't know what's going on here, but you-you are not Kathryn. A door...I have to find the door and get out of here,"
He ran past her and down the steps. He opened the front door but was met only with a green yard and a small garden. He slammed it closed and ran back up the stairs. He opened every bedroom and bathroom door he could find, but found nothing.
"Where is it?" he muttered to himself.
Finally, he entered the almost finished nursery. Blue walls with fluffy white clouds painted along the border. In the center of the room sat a hand-carved cradle, the symbol of his people, etched into the side.
His heart ached. He couldn't put into words how much he wanted this to be his reality, but for this to become so, he needed to leave.
His eyes fell upon the closet door. Directly over it was a sign with his son's due date several years in the future.
"You don't have to leave, you know." a voice came from behind him.
She walked up next to him and took his hand, placing it on her stomach.
"I know it's not real, but it could be. You could stay, be with me, be with Lizzy, and our baby boy. This life… it could all be yours, all you have to do is stay with us for two more minutes. Come downstairs and have dinner with us."
Before he could reply, he heard the pitter-patter of little feet echoing through the halls.
"Daddy! Please don't leave!" She hugged his leg and held on tight.
He gently pulled away and bent down to her level.
"I wish I could stay, but I have to go."
He laid a gentle kiss upon the girl's head. He gave the two of them a sad look and a silent goodbye as he opened the closet door and walked inside. Once he was over the threshold, the door disappeared.
It was dark, cold, and the air had a dampness to it. He heard a soft cry, and then another.
"Chakotay!" she called out.
He turned in circles, trying to find out which direction the sound was emanating, but it was pointless. He was surrounded by infinite nothingness.
"Kathryn! Where are you?" a shouted. The sound of his own voice echoed on into the void.
"I can't hold on much longer," her voice grew weaker and more distant.
"Kathryn, hold on for me. I'm right here," he pleaded.
He kept going round and round, walking aimlessly, but there was nothing, and though he couldn't hear her voice anymore, there was a distinct sound of labored breathing.
"Mara! That's enough! I did what you asked, I've played your games, faced my past...I've made peace with it. Let us go!"
Startled by the sudden sensation of her presence, he tried to jump or move away, but he was frozen to the spot. Her hands, cold like ice, wrapped around to cover his eyes. He felt her warm breath on his ear, and his stomach churned.
"You're right. You passed every test, and you found where your Kathryn was hiding. I'll set you free….all you have to do is take her by the hand."
He felt her hands slither from his eyes down to his neck, and then they were gone.
He slowly opened his eyes, squinting as they were met with a harsh light.
As they adjusted to his surroundings, he saw Kathryn, unlocked chains sat on the ground by her feet, but she was still stuck to the ground. She reached out her hand, and he went to take it.
"Chakotay, don't! It's a trick!"
He turned his head to the left, and there stood a second Kathryn.
The one in front of him commanded his attention.
"Don't look at her, look at me. I'm the real Kathryn! She's the imposter!" She stretched her arm out further, begging him to take her hand.
"No! She's lying!" The Kathryn to his left yelled.
After a moment of silence to gather his thoughts, he tried to find a way to determine which of them was lying.
"Tell me something only Kathryn would know," he said.
The one directly in front of him spoke up first.
"New Earth, the night of our first kiss. We decided to sleep under the stars. You held me close, and when you thought I was asleep, you whispered that you loved me. I've been trying to work up the courage ever since that night….to tell you that I feel the same." he turned toward the other Janeway to his left, waiting for her to say something to try and convince him.
She looked flustered, her face was blushing slightly, and her eyes were wide with confusion.
Finally, she looked at him.
"She's been inside our minds. She knows too much. Nothing I say will convince you of my true identity, but there's still time...wake up. Leave me behind and wake up. If you take her hand, or if time runs out, we're both trapped here forever. At least this way, you can be free," she said sadly.
He shook his head.
"I'm not leaving without her," he said, reaching out towards the Kathryn directly in front of him.
The Kathryn to the left of him screamed at him to stop, but it was too late.
As his hand met hers, he felt the familiar coldness of her skin. All at once, the woman before him transformed into that green-eyed demon.
"Wrong choice," she said with a devious chuckle.
He looked in her eyes and, with a smirk, leaned in and whispered: "I know."
He gripped the sides of her face tightly and chanted out the words, without giving her time to react.
"daemonis somnia. Interfectorem gaudium. Nunc somnum. Somnum sempiternum magis!"
Those same words he had heard chanted during her false defeat from before turned out to be true. During his hour of planning, a quick comm with the Shaqrien confirmed as much. In her foolish hubris, she practically handed him the tools to her own demise.
As the words were spoken, Mara screamed in agony. He watched the steam rise from her skin as it melted off. He backed away and quickly took the real Kathryn by the hand. She leaned on him for support, her legs still weak and wobbly.
She looked at him in amazement.
"How did you know it was really me?" she asked.
He smiled and touched a hand tentatively to her cheek.
"Only you would be foolish enough to think I could leave you behind."
She gripped the collar of his shirt and pulled him in for a kiss. As the two of them deepened the kiss, a golden light enveloped them. He felt the softness of her lips fade away, the warmth of her body against his left and was replaced with cool empty calm.
"Chakotay," he heard.
His eyes peeled open, and immediately they began to water with tears of joy. Never before had he been so happy to see the walls of sickbay, but nothing could match the feeling of overwhelming joy that came from staring into those deep blue eyes. He pulled her close and breathed in her scent, relished in feeling her in his arms.
"We're free," he said.