Chapter 5

"We can't help him" held Kathryn "It goes against everything we stand for" The guards had left and they were now alone with a plate of strange looking salad in front of them. Despite the fact they were unsure if it was safe they all ate savagely having not been fed properly in over three days.

"I don't think we have a choice on whether we do or not" said Harry defeated.

"They can't force us to think" raged B'Elanna arms crossed leaning back on the sofa defiantly. "They can force us to be here but they can't force us to think."

"She's right" Agreed Chakotay. "But…they obviously aren't just going to let us sit there and refuse to think. I think what we need to decide is whether we stay here or at the prison"

"Anywhere is better than the prison. We go back in there and we'll never get out" agonized Tom speaking everyone's thoughts. "I think we'd be safer here"

"Me too. Not that we've seen much, it does seem like security is looser here and it would be easier to escape than the prison" analysed Chakotay.

"What if we make a deal?" thought Kathryn aloud.

"What kind of deal?" Asked Tom leaning forward to snatch some remaining salad off B'Elanna's plate. She blocked his hand expertly and ate it her self.

"What if we agree to help, and in return he gives us a shuttle to go free when it's done" explained Kathryn. She had got up from her seat and began to pace around the sofa's mid sentence.

"But the prime directive?" Thought Chakotay playing through the pro's and con's in his mind.

"Say's we can't get involved. We could pretend to and then leave taking the vaccine with us" continued Kathryn stopping to lean on the back of the sofa behind Harry.

"It would take some careful planning, but we could probably pull it off" remarked Chakotay.

"It would be a lot easier than living in that prison" agreed Tom.

"But how would we get him to agree to it in the first place?" Questioned Harry confused.

"Oh, he'll agree, he knows he has no choice but too have our agreement" insisted Kathryn.

Within the hour Professor Thagtu had returned. He'd eventually agreed to receiving their help in return for letting them free at the end. He seemed happy almost at the idea and they didn't have to push it much. Once they had came to an agreement he had instructed his guards to give them a tour of his home. The ground and upper two floors had the same grand decoration that the exterior of the house did. A 20th century mansion on a planet light years away. The halls were long and hung with countless paintings. The rooms were large and nearly all had a fireplace, even though some of the fireplaces were a peculiar triangle shape, they did seem to fit in well. They had been given a room on the third floor each and despite the fact they were supposed to be prisoners they seemed to be being treated like a guest. The only thing that gave away they weren't was the guards that splattered regularly down the walls every few yards. When they returned to outside the office where they started, Thagtu opened the draw on a table in the corridor. At the same time the wall to the left pulled back to reveal a new hidden corridor. This corridor was different though. It didn't have plush carpets and fancy paintings but instead sterile white walls and flooring accented by bright spot lights along the ceiling. It was a big contrast. The corridor was on a steady slope and they followed the guard cautiously yet curious. At the bottom two sliding glass doors opened into a large room separated up into eight other sliding grey doors.

"This will be the labs you will work at. Wait here" informed and instructed a guard entering the first door on the left.

"This is strange" remarked Harry

"Weird!" agreed Tom. The conversation stopped there as the guard returned followed by a middle aged man. He was perhaps ten years older than Chakotay and his skin looked pale and like it had not seen sun in years. His build was athletic but not bulky. His face showed the signs of being quite attractive when he was younger thought Kathryn. He walked up to them enthusiastically, shaking hands with Tom, Chakotay and Harry and just nodding at Kathryn and B'Elanna. B'Elanna rolled her eyes and swore under her breath. The man didn't seem to here.

"I'm Professor Yall. I'm so glad you agreed to help." They introduced themselves quickly "When my brother Thagtu told me of his plan, I thought it would never work, but here you are. I suppose that's why I'm the scientist not the guy who comes up with the plans hey. I mean I've never bee…" Blabbered on Yall. He seemed slightly nervous and kept ringing his hands together in front of him, than pulling them part quickly when he realised only to do it again. His sweat glands seemed to be working over time too. "Would you follow me please?" They entered into the middle door and it led them into a large sterile lab, there was one technician in the corner cleaning instruments but apart from that it was empty. There was a variety of stations each for a different type of research. Yall explained a bit about each before turning back to them. "This will be where Tom and Kathryn work."

"Why us?" asked Kathryn. Yall seemed even more flustered receiving a question off a women and directed his answer to Tom.

"My sources have told me that Tom is a medic and that Kathryn is a capable scientist. Is this true?" he asked.

"Yeah, I suppose" Answered Tom. Kathryn nodded agreement.

"So why do you need the rest of us?" Asked B'Elanna an eyebrow raised in Tuvok fashion. Once again Yall answered but looked at Chakotay this time, the hands still wringing.

"Well, the vaccine is going to need to be administered as quickly as possible. The plan was to release it like gas is released in a bomb. Over all of our remaining colonies. Harry and B'Elanna, you will need to create a 'weapon' that's capable of doing this without affecting the Harru." He continued.

"Why the Commander as well?" asked Kathryn beginning to see how much work they really had set out here. Yall still refused to look but seemed to becoming a bit more relaxed around them. The sweat seemed to have become under control too.

"erm…well….he was stood too close to the transporters beam but I'm sure we can find a job for him" Yall smiled apologetically. Kathryn smirked at the turn of events and Chakotay seemed to shuffle self-consciously. Tom slapped his shoulder in encouragement.

"Always said you were useless" he smirked. Yall moved on quickly leaving that lab the way they'd entered and entering another door on the furthest right. They followed again. "This is the engineering bay you and B'Elanna shall wok" he directed to Harry. The room was just slightly larger than the lab but all the work stations were attached to the surrounding walls and the middle was empty. On the far right wall there was an opening to what looked like a storage room for tools and spare parts. Yall walked off followed by an eager B'Elanna and curious Harry to explain and show them some of the equipment. They looked round the lab for the next hour. Occasionally technicians would pass or be working at a station but despite the sheer size there weren't many people actually working.

"Where are all your scientists?" Asked Kathryn intrigued as they had began to resume there way back up the sloped corridor to the main house. Yall looked uncomfortable, he had started to look Kathryn and B'Elanna in the eye after about half an hour but he still shifted.

"A lot of the scientists were infected whilst on the original assignment to collect information on the disease. There are only a few of us left at this centre. You will meet the rest of them tonight at dinner" Explained Yall. He had become withdrawn almost and his head was bowed.

"Sorry" spoke Kathryn realising he was upset. She touched his elbow to bring him out of his daze. He looked up quickly.

"What?" asked Yall confused.

"I'm sorry you lost your friends" explained Kathryn for him. He stopped and looked at her properly for the first time.

"Yes…Thank you" he smiled truly grateful for been thought of. "I shall see you at dinner"

"Bye" Waved Tom as the wall returned to separate them and hide the lab again. "Does he live in there?" asked Tom scratching his head. Chakotay shrugged thinking the same thing.

"I didn't see a bed" commented B'Elanna. Thagtu had wondered out of his office at that point.

"My brother does come out sometimes but he mainly stays down there. He's slightly strange. An embarrassment really but I couldn't manage without his brains when it comes to science. Did I tell you he invented the access to the lab all by himself?" bragged Thagtu. He again spoke to Chakotay.

"No, you didn't" spoke Chakotay quite coldly. Yall seemed to be an interesting and intelligent man. The only man to actually treat Kathryn and B'Elanna with any respect so far since they'd been captured even if it did take a long time to show.

"Clothing has been provided for you in your rooms. The doctor will also be up shortly to heal your cuts. A guard will return to collect you for dinner in two hours" explained Thagtu and left almost brushing up against Kathryn as he passed. The guards led them away.

There large rooms had been set up for there use during their time away. The dressing tables had been provided with perfumes and other essentials, the women had been given a small bag of make up each. The bathrooms now had shampoos, bubble baths and toothbrushes and freshly washed towels. It all looked like a hotel room apart from knowing that there was a guard on the opposite of each door.

B'Elanna washed thoroughly and gave her teeth a good brush. Appling some moisturizer to her battered and cracked skin she felt refreshed. Wrapping her self in the fluffy white robe supplied on the back of the bathroom door she lay down on the bed staring up at the regally painted ceilings. She couldn't believe the turn of events. One day ago she had woke up in a dark damp cell bleeding and bruised being hit at every opportunity. Now virtually the same people had gave her a room of her own with plush pillows and high ceilings expecting her to be happy and relaxed. Well she wasn't and she'd never give them the satisfaction of being. Despite the comfortable conditions she still remembered that they were prisoners here, no matter how nice they were treated. Her eyelids began to close with fatigue when there was light rap at the door followed by the entrance of an old man wearing a blue flannel pants and t-shirt. On the right side of his breast was the writing 'Doctor Grag, Medical staff". He approached swiftly with a slight limp to left side. B'Elanna sat on the edge of the bed as he began to unpack the medical case he carried upon the bed beside her.

"Are you in any discomfort?" he asked impatiently, scanning her up and down.

"Just my elbow" she answered lifting it slightly. He ran the scan more thoroughly on the elbow, before putting the scanner down and running a different instrument over it that looked suspiciously like a dermal regenerator. The pain inflicted by one of Beentok's men yesterday began to dissipate and she rotated it freely for the first time. He ran the instrument over her other lacerations before administrating a hypospray and leaving with out another word. "And I thought our doctor had a bad bedside manner!"

In a grump she got up and walked to the wardrobe. A dress had been left out for her to wear tonight and inside there was a selection of more casual ones and others similar to what she had out in different colours. Removing her gown she undid the wrap of the dress and slipped her shoulders in. Tying the belt on the right snugly it felt nice to finally be wearing something that actually fitted. Sitting herself at the mirror she applied some powder to cover the redness left by the doctor and a light lilac eye shadow to match her dress. She had ten minutes left to waste.

"Let's see how free we really are?" she thought aloud. Placing on her shoes, she strode to the door. Taking in a deep breath she opened it and waited whilst the guard moved aside for her exit. She then began to cross the corridor to Tom's room directly opposite to hers.

"In case you are wondering how far you can go, you are not allowed off this corridor." The guard spoke that had let her pass him, he did not make eye contact even though he was talking to her directly.

"Thanks" B'Elanna sarcastically replied. The guard outside Tom's door stepped to the side and she knocked on waiting patiently. Tom answered almost immediately. She walked in to find him sat on the bed tying his black patent shoes, struggling with the strange tangled looking laces.

"You look nice" complimented Tom as B'Elanna sat down next to him.

"You don't look too bad yourself. You should wear a shirt and tie more often."

"What and be all dressed up with no where to go?"

"Suppose" smiled B'Elanna. "Has the doctor been yet?"

"Yeah, about an hour ago. Nice guy wasn't he, he even gave me advice on what tie to wear." Tom answered. He finished with his shoes and had now stood up to put on some aftershave.

"What? He barely spoke to me. In fact I think he tried to pretend I wasn't even there" commented B'Elanna. "What's wrong with this place? Why are they stuck in the middle ages still? I'm tired of being ignored"

"Hey. Come on, it's not all that bad." Tom stopped messing with his aftershave and knelt down on the floor in front of her. He placed his hands either side of her cheeks lifting her head up so she could see him. "At least were out of the prison. Hell knows what could have happened in there. Listen I bet we won't even be here long. Tomorrow you'll start working and you won't even notice the time pass, I promise. Then we leave and return to voyager and you can play with your engines again." B'Elanna laughed at this. She reached her arms around his hugging him close.

"Thank you" The door opened abruptly at the hand of a guard.

"Time to go" Tom said pulling her along by her hand.

They were sat at the dinner table swiftly. As well as the five of them, they were joined by Thagtu, Yall and five other science officers. Not all the science officers were a pasty faced as Yall, and they all seemed to share Thagtu's arrogant attitude towards women. It was just over an hour before B'Elanna got spoke to and even then it was just being ordered to pass the bottle of wine up the table. Irritated and annoyed Kathryn quickly lost the appetite she had and began to just push the food around her plate.

"Tell me about your planet, Earth" instructed Thagtu, he chewed a piece of meat savagely from the bone with his fingers even whilst he spoke.

"Well, there's not much to say, it's a planet the same as any else" answered Chakotay truthfully his stomach protesting the sight he witnessed.

"Then why are you travelling so far to return if it's not special?" Thagtu laughed at them, his five 'back ups' joining in. He now threw the finished piece of bone on the floor where his collection of three dogs noisily fought for it almost knocking over a servant.

"It's not the planet, but the people we search. Our home, familiar ground" explained Chakotay as best he could, the dog's finally going quiet, one winning the prize.

"Oooh…so there's a woman waiting for you there?" Thagtu presumed wrongly, winking his eye slyly. "She must be worth it?"

"I don't have a woman waiting for me on earth" he looked at Kathryn opposite him unconsciously; this didn't go amiss to Thagtu. "But many of the crew do, children too" Thagtu stared at Kathryn for a minute she just carried on pushing her food.

"Harry have you got a little wench waiting for you at home?" he asked sloshing more wine into his already mostly full glass.

"No but I do have a fiance." Answered Harry uncomfortable with how he spoke about his love Libby. Thagtu laughed at him. A full belly laugh, mocking him.

"So young and naïve, wait till you marry then you'll see the wench she really is. Tom, you?" Harry prickled at the comment grinding his hand in a fist under the table to control his anger. If he hadn't have moved on to Tom he would have said something he might of regret. Breathing out deeply he began to gain control again.

"I have my wife right here with me" Tom said putting his hand over B'Elannas resting on the table between them. He softly stroked the tops of her fingers reassuringly. B'Elanna hooked her little finger around his from below returning the gesture. Thagtu missed the gesture because a servant was in front of him cleaning away their used plates. They pulled apart before he could see again.

"Just the one?" At first Tom thought Thagtu was joking but his passive comment told his he was deadly serious. "I find the same legs again and again can get a little boring. Don't you?"

"She's all I want" answered Tom truthyfully and keeping his disgust out of his tone as best he could.

"What about her, is she one of your crews whores?" Thagtu asked Chakotay. Chakotay thought about saying Kathryn was his wife to save any hassle but Kathryn's response could have been the rest of the journey in the brig. Before he'd made his mind up the choice was taken out of his hands.

"I can answer for myself and no I am not" snapped Kathryn, her anger flared in red streaks across her cheeks. Thagtu looked at her as if she hadn't spoke, looking her up and down. Kathryn shifted uncomfortably under the scrutiny.

"Such a shame, she looks quite pleasant. Maybe we can come to some sort of 'arrangement' during your stay" he spoke to Chakotay despite looking the other way.

"I assure you, no 'arrangement' will be made with any member of the crew whilst were here" The room was silent. Thagtu's people not used to hearing him spoke to in such a manner. The tension simmered as Chakotay and Thagtu remained in eye lock each waiting for the other to back down. Knowing it is much more than a staring competition at stake.

"We'll see my friend. We'll see" Desert arrived breaking the moment, others around the table thankful for the interruption. Especially Professor Yall. He had seemed extremely uncomfortable through out the hold exchange seeming to hold his breathe, his hands wringing again whilst sweat began to bead in lines down his fore head.

The rest of dinner moved swiftly with not many incidents. Thagtu shot a few more suggestive comments at Kathryn but nothing as obvious as before and they eventually dwindled out as the evening progressed as he saw even his own men were becoming uncomfortable with them. After a desert of some kind of fruit and sorbet. They had a drink in a lounging room before being escorted back to their rooms by the guards.

Chakotay watched Kathryn silently enter her room and close the door without uttering a single good night. Turning to his side he noticed that Tom had watched to.

"Is she gonna be alright?" asked Tom concerned leaning from his door.

"Yeah. I'll go see her before I go to bed. Night Tom."

"Night" When the hall was empty apart from for the guards, Chakotay exited his room again and made his way to Kathryn's. Rapping lightly on the door, he waited to be accessed entry. When he came in he saw Kathryn stood at the edge of her bed holding a robe round her tightly. She messed with the joining at the top unconsciously trying to cover her self more. When she saw Chakotay enter her shoulders slouched and she sat down on the bed.

"Chakotay, it's you. I thought…" the rest of her sentence she left unsaid as if embarrassed. Chakotay came and sat next to her on the bed.

"Are you ok?" He asked stroking her back with his large hands.

"Yeah. I'm tired. I just want to sleep" Said Kathryn looking down at her bare toes.

"Are you sure, Thagtu was…." Chakotay began

"I said I'm fine Chakotay! Now I would like to go to bed" she snapped edging away from the hand that had come to rest on her shoulder. Acknowledging defeat Chakotay gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze and stood up.

"I'm just next door if you want to talk" he finished. Leaning down he kissed her hair before walking away.

"Chakotay..!" He turned back to the emotional woman. "Th...Thank you" He nodded his reply and left.