Disclaimer: All characters, vessels, and science belong to Paramount with the exception of Sarah Janeway and anything else that I made up.
Author's Note:
I know—FINALLY, AN UPDATE!!!!
Thanks again to all the loyal readers!! Your reviews are awesome and greatly appreciated!!
Remember-- You will not find out who Sarah's father is until towards the end of second season. However, you can message me with guesses. I'm afraid I can't tell you what the pairings are going to be for this story since it would give away some of the plot. However, I would like to get some input in private messages from you guys about what you'd like to see in upcoming episodes. In general, this story will follow the TV show, though I'll add in some new episodes. Only one episode is getting dropped from the series—'Living Witness.' Other than that, everything's going to go mostly according to the show, but not exactly, because that would be rather boring. I'm really glad you guys are enjoying reading this as much as I'm enjoying writing it—23 reviews and 2180+ hits is great!!
Also, apologies for skipping quickly through some parts of Caretaker. Unfortunately, I had to do so to even keep this to three parts instead of the usual two. If I hadn't, we'd never move on to Parallax!!
Anomaly
'Caretaker, Part Two'
The starship Voyager began cruising smoothly through space as they left Deep Space Nine. Sarah watched the stars streak by for half a minute before her mother announced, "Commander Cavit, you have the bridge." She gestured at her daughter to follow as she made her way to the turbolift.
Joining her mother in the turbolift, Sarah got one last view of the bridge as the doors slid closed and her mother gave instructions for them to be taken to their quarters. The trip was very quick and they soon found themselves navigating the corridors again. They passed a few crewmembers, to whom her mother nodded. They nodded back, usually giving Sarah an odd look. It wasn't surprising—she was a child on tactical vessel.
Pausing outside a set of doors, Captain Janeway informed her daughter, "These are our quarters. Make sure you can find them again." Sarah looked around, noting the name by the door and the door's relative position compared with nearby control panels and such.
"I can find them again," she confidently assured her mother.
"Good," Kathryn replied, and they entered their quarters. They entered into a living room of sorts, complete with a couch, an end table, and a replicator unit on the wall, near which was another table apparently meant to serve as a sort of kitchen table. Sarah followed her mother into the next room, a bedroom. A double size bed, Starfleet standard, stood with its head against the long window that ran the length of the room. Six feet away and parallel to it was a single bed, somewhat smaller than the first.
"Our beds," Kathryn said unnecessarily. Sarah ran over to the smaller one and sat on it, bouncing, to test its comfort value. Laughing, she collapsed backward on it.
"I like it!"
"I'm glad," Kathryn smiled. "They had to put it in here rather hurriedly. Now over here you'll find our bathroom. Everything's there—toilet, sink, sonic shower."
Sarah hopped off the bed and ran to see the bathroom. "Oh, the sink's so pretty!" she exclaimed. The part that caught the water was made of clear stones and was rather attractive. "But I don't know about that sonic shower," she added. She had only ever had baths.
"You'll get used to it," her mother told her. "Now, Sarah, I need you to listen very carefully." She led her daughter back out to the living room and knelt down to face her at eye level. "You're allowed to go to the Mess Hall but other than that you need to be here. I only want you to come to the bridge if there's a big emergency. By big, I mean huge and dangerous. Ok?"
Sarah nodded seriously. "I understand mama."
Kathryn Janeway hugged her daughter affectionately. "Go ahead and unpack. I have to get back to the bridge now."
Sarah watched her mother leave, getting a small knot of dread in her stomach as she did. Shaking it off, she scampered off to their bedroom and began to pull things from her duffel bag. Much of the weight came from the multitude of books she had brought along. One at a time, she carefully transferred them to the bookshelf that her mother had requested for their quarters. Sherlock Holmes, Shakespeare, The Black Stallion, Harry Potter, The Belgariad, The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy and numerous other titles stood neatly side-by-side on the shelves. Turning her back to the books, she pulled her art set, PADDs, and camera from the bag and then placed them carefully on top of the bookshelf. Her stuffed horse, which she had named Paint Voyager in honor of the ship, was produced from the bag along with a very mashed up and battered pillow—her favorite pillow that she took on every trip. These last two she carefully put on her bed and stepped back to survey the effect.
Nodding to herself in approval, she grabbed her camera and snapped a quick picture of the bedroom and the living room since she intended to make a scrapbook of this trip. When she had finished, she stood, uncertain what to do next. Her stomach growled, giving her a hint. The question was, should she eat something from the replicator here or should she head to the Mess Hall? She thought carefully. She was allowed to go to the Mess Hall, and it would give her an excuse to see some more of the ship. A mischievous little grin broke out on her face. No one had said that she couldn't take her time getting there.
Sarah could understand her mother's logic in restricting her mostly to their quarters and she could respect her reasons but one little sight seeing trip couldn't hurt anything. Swearing to herself that she would remain unobtrusive, she slipped quietly into the corridor.
She tried not to look too excitedly at the control panels and other features in the halls but rather tried to appear matter-of-fact as she made her way to a turbolift. She passed two crewmen who gave her questioning glances but didn't stop her.
Inside the turbolift, she eagerly commanded the Computer, "Mess Hall." She shivered with thrill when it beeped in acknowledgement. All too quickly, the doors slid back open and she exited on another deck. Walking happily down the corridor, she observed several other crewmembers headed for the large double doors of the Mess Hall and slipped quietly behind them. She paused just over the threshold, looking for someone she recognized. Luckily, she spotted Lieutenant Paris standing at the replicator looking somewhat irritated.
Sarah walked over shyly and heard him order "Plain tomato soup!"
Ever the helpful one, the Computer asked, "Hot or chilled?"
Exasperated, he yelled "Hot! Hot, plain tomato soup!" A bowl of it appeared in the replicator and he grabbed it gratefully.
"Replicator food's not all that great," she warned him.
Tom jumped, nearly spilling his hot soup on the small girl.
"Sorry," she said quickly.
"It's fine kid," he replied. "Thanks for the heads-up." He suddenly felt eyes on him and looked up to see Harry Kim sitting at a table with Commander Cavit and the ship's CMO. The latter two were giving him judgmental looks from the corners of their eyes while talking to Harry. Feeling resigned, he took his tray over to their table. Cavit and the CMO beat a hasty retreat.
"See?" he asked as he sat down. "I told you it wouldn't take long."
"Is it true?" Harry asked. "Did you really cause the accident that killed those officers?"
"Yes. Pilot error."
"And did you really falsify reports?"
"Keep your voice down," Tom said, watching as little Sarah Janeway seated herself two tables away. "Yes, I did."
"What made you turn yourself in and tell the truth?"
Sarcastically, Tom replied, "The ghosts of those three dead officers came to me in the middle of the night and taught me the true meaning of Christmas." Taking a sip of the soup, he choked and remarked, "They can't even get plain tomato soup right. The kid knows what she's talking about."
Standing up to leave, he looked Harry squarely in the eyes. "Look, I know Cavit and the CMO told you to stay away from me. And you know what? They're probably right. You should listen to them." He looked up to see Sarah watching him. "That goes for you too, kid," he told her. "I'm not exactly a good luck charm."
He had turned his back to the two of them and started to walk away when Harry said, "I don't need anyone to choose my friends for me."
Sarah spoke up, wise beyond her years. "Bad choices don't make you a bad person."
Tom had opened his mouth to express gratitude to both of them when his commbadge chirped. "Janeway to Paris and Kim. Report to the bridge immediately. We have reached the Badlands."
Hurriedly, he called out, "Thanks kid," and ran with Harry for the turbolift.
At the word 'Badlands', Sarah's heart had leapt into her throat so she merely waved as Tom and Harry hurried off to the bridge. Quickly, she finished her crust-less grilled cheese sandwich and ran to the turbolift herself to get to the safety of her quarters.
Tom and Harry, meanwhile, were exiting the turbolift on the bridge. Captain Janeway, Cavit, and Rollins were all crowded around the tactical station, trying to ascertain the location of the Maquis raider. "Mister Paris, any idea where they might be hiding?" Janeway asked.
Frowning thoughtfully, Tom looked over the data they had. Finally, he pointed and explained the phenomenon that allowed the Maquis ships to hide from sensors, as well as suggesting a way to detect the Val Jean.
Janeway nodded. "Do it," she called out to Harry. Another command to Stadi and the ship entered the volatile region.
In the quarters she shared with her mother, Sarah sat up on the couch where she had been reclining with one of her favorite books, The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy. The view outside the window by the couch was no longer a pristine black and white star field but rather a boiling mass of pinkish clouds and occasional electrical discharges. They were in the Badlands.
On the Bridge, Harry Kim interrupted Janeway's conversation with Tom Paris. "Captain, the sensors are reading a coherent tetryon beam scanning the ship."
Captain Janeway frowned. "Can you identify the source?"
Harry's fingers raced over his control panel. "No, captain."
Delta Quadrant! The words manifested themselves in Sarah's mind without her knowing where they came from. They simply appeared out of thin air. Nervously, she eyed the ominous view of the Badlands. What's going on?
"Captain," Harry Kim said, trying to sound calm. "Sensors are reading a displacement wave fast approaching."
"We might be able to disperse the wave with a graviton particle wave," Commander Cavit suggested.
The captain nodded. "Do it," she said. "Stadi, get the ship away from the wave, full impulse."
"Aye captain," Stadi said, raising her voice over the various alarms that, upon detecting imminent danger, had begun to loudly voice warnings. Fingers flying over the console, she tried to coax more speed from the sleek vessel. Despite her best efforts, the wave was just too fast. "We can't outrun it! Collision in twenty seconds!"
"All hands, brace for impact!" Captain Janeway yelled. What have I done?!? she thought desperately. I'm not only going to be responsible for the deaths of my crew but also for my daughter's death!
Sarah felt impending doom in the air. She began to shake, and then to cry. She never cried.
"Ten seconds!"
Why did I insist I come along, Sarah thought desperately. Why?
The impact badly jarred the ship, making it shudder and buck. The force of the collision threw Captain Janeway across the bridge as alarms wailed and red lights flashed. She barely had time to register other crewmembers being thrown around like rag dolls before her head made painful contact with the floor and she blacked out.
As small as she was, Sarah didn't stand a chance against the force of the impact. The deck heaved and rolled as the ship spun out of control, inertial dampers unable to compensate. She screamed as the force hurled her from the couch to the wall. Her head slammed against the surface first, instantly making her pass out.
When she came to, her head felt heavy and her neck hurt. She could taste the slippery alkaline taste of blood and her eyes were crusted shut with tears. Her whole body ached as though she'd been beaten with a heavy stick. Putting a hand to her head, she pulled it away quickly in pain and found her palm covered with blood. She wiped her hand on the floor and painfully picked herself off the floor. The lights had been replaced with the glowing red flashes of a red alert. Wires and other essential ship equipment hung from a hole in the ceiling. She had somehow lost her socks and her hair had been partially pulled from her braid. She looked out the window and gasped. They weren't in the Badlands anymore, and the stars weren't right for the open space near them. Where were they?
The Delta Quadrant. The thought jumped into her head again. That can't be, she thought frantically. That's on the other side of the galaxy! Frightened, she started to cry again. I think this qualifies as a big emergency.
She anxiously made her way out into corridor, not even noticing when the metal fragments lying on the floor cut her bare feet. Dodging flying sparks from control panels and stumbling in the darkness, she had only one thought—to get to her mother.
On the bridge, Captain Janeway came to amid low wailing alarms and the smell of burnt circuitry. She slowly and painfully managed to stand. Holding her head as the room spun, she noticed Commander Cavit sprawled on the deck near his chair. She knelt down and felt his wrist for a pulse. There was none. He was dead.
She closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them again, she noticed Tom Paris checking on Stadi. "How is she?" she asked, dreading the answer.
"She's dead," came the solemn response.
Sarah! she thought in a panic. Did she survive?
The sudden swish of the turbolift, surprisingly enough apparently undamaged, interrupted her thoughts. She snapped her head around and was shocked to see that the occupant was her daughter. Shock turned to horror as Sarah stepped from the turbolift and she could see a large, angry red cut slashed across her forehead. The entire left side of her face was bruised and she moved stiffly, evidence that she possibly had more than surface injuries.
Unable to restrain herself, Kathryn ran to her sobbing daughter, not even wasting time on the stairs but rather climbing under the railing. "Sarah! You're alive!" She gathered her little girl in her arms, shuddering at the bloody smudges that her daughter had left on the carpet.
"I knew this was going to happen," the small child choked out. "Somehow I knew! We're never going to get home!"
"Sarah, calm down. What are you talking about?"
With tearstained eyes, her daughter informed her in a quavering voice, "We're in the Delta Quadrant."
Icy fear settled in Captain Janeway's stomach. Nervously, hoping her daughter was merely hysterical, she called out, "Where are we, Mr. Kim?"
"If the sensors are working correctly, captain," he said disbelievingly, "We're 70,000 lightyears from where we were." He looked at her anxiously. "We're in the Delta Quadrant."
Eyes wide, she turned back to her daughter. "How did you know?" she asked in a whisper.
"I don't know," came the trembling reply. "I just knew."
Listening to the damage reports come in, Kathryn stood up. "Sarah, go to Sick Bay and then back to our quarters."
Frantically, Sarah ran forward and grabbed at her mother's pant leg. "No, please don't make me go! I don't want to be alone." Her voice cracked in fear. "I'll live. Others might not be so lucky. I don't need to go to Sick Bay." The look on her face showed that her stubborn streak was coming to light again.
Her mother shut her eyes against all the chaos for a moment. What was the point in arguing? It would just waste time. "All right," she conceded. "But stay out of the way. I can't be a mother right now. I have to be the captain."
Sarah nodded and hurried to fit herself into the infinitesimal space behind the captain's chair.
"Mr. Kim," Captain Janeway called out. "Damage report!"
"Hull breach, deck fourteen. Communications to engineering are down, currently trying to reestablish."
"Get repair crews to seal off the breach."
"Aye captain."
"Casualty reports coming in," another crewmember spoke up. "Sick Bay is not responding."
"Bridge to Sick Bay." Captain Janeway paused, listening for an answer. There was none. "Doctor, can you hear me?" Still nothing.
"Captain," Harry Kim said uncertainly. "There's something out there."
"I'm going to need more information than that, ensign," she replied, restraining herself from sounding frustrated.
"I'm reading…I'm not sure what I'm reading."
"Can we get it on screen?"
"I'm trying." A blurry image shook and wavered on the screen. After a few seconds, Harry had cleared it of most of the static and everyone could see an array of some sort with gigantic arms extending into space. Every few seconds it dispersed an energy pulse into the distance.
"I also found the Maquis ship, captain, but I'm not reading any life signs," Harry added.
Eyes fixed on the image of the alien structure, Captain Janeway said "Try hailing the array."
Suddenly, there came another voice. "Engineering to bridge. We suffered major damage down here. The Chief's dead. We're facing the possibility of a warp core breach."
Sarah's eyes widened from her hiding place.
Kathryn closed hers for a moment before beginning to snap out orders. "Secure all engineering systems. I'm on my way. Any response from the array?"
"No captain."
"In that case, Ensign Kim, get down to Sick Bay and see what's going on. Rollins, you have the bridge." As she headed for the turbolift, Sarah ran to join her, a silent solemn shadow. Since there was no time to waste on arguments and her daughter seemed to have some sort of advance knowledge, she said nothing. If the warp core breached, it wouldn't matter where on the ship the small girl was.
Paris and Kim entered Sick Bay to find the doctor and medical staff dead. The room was crowded with injured crewmen, a chaotic dark cavern. As Tom helped an ensign to a biobed, Harry Kim called out, "Computer, activate the Emergency Medical Hologram." The holographic doctor, Starfleet's emergency program, appeared.
He calmly requested, "Please state the nature of the medical emergency."
Kim replied, "The ship's doctor is dead, as is the nurse. You're the only medical officer on board."
Picking up a medical tricorder and heading for a patient with severe burns, he recited his pre-programmed response, "A replacement doctor must be acquired as soon as possible."
Exchanging a look with Harry, Tom replied, "I'm afraid you're going to be stuck with us for a while."
Meanwhile, Captain Janeway and her daughter had made it to Engineering where the state of chaos was about the same as in Sick Bay. Sarah crawled under a command console, drawing her knees to her chest and wrapping her arms around her legs to make herself as small as possible though it hurt her upper body to do so.
Lieutenant Joe Carey came running over to the captain. "Captain, there's a micro-fracture in the warp core. A breach is imminent."
"Can we lock down the magnetic restrictor coil?" she asked, surveying the warp core.
"Yes, but if we do so, we might not be able to initialize the dilithium reaction. That would make warp drive impossible."
Listening to the alarms screaming and seeing the dangerous readings on the control panel before her, she responded, "It doesn't look like we have much of a choice. Engage the magnetic constrictor."
"Aye, captain."
She watched as he carefully initiated the procedure. After several tense seconds, he announced, "The pressure's beginning to stabilize."
Kathryn let out the breath she didn't know she had been holding.
Suddenly, a crewman on the other side of the room called out, "We're being scanned with some kind of—"
At Sarah's startled yell of fright, Kathryn whipped her head around to find people disappearing in orange flashes of light. As she watched her daughter disappear with them, she tried to shout out but found herself disappearing as well.
When she could see again, she was shocked to find herself, as well as her crew, standing in the yard of a farmhouse. A woman suddenly emerged from the house. "I'm Aunt Adah," she said. "Why don't ya'll come on up to the house and have some lemonade and sugar cookies?"
A little rattled, Captain Janeway pulled out her tricorder and took some readings. "Don't be fooled," she called out to her crew. "We've only been transported 100 kilometers. We're inside the array. This is a holographic program of some sort."
Before any of the crew or any of the holographic characters could do anything more, a bloodcurdling scream came from a distance. It took a second for the captain to realize it was her daughter's voice.
Her mouth went dry as she and several crewmembers ran towards the sound. Sarah! Not again!
They traced the source of the noise to a big old barn. The holograms tried to deny them access, but they forced their way in. Once inside, they found Sarah collapsed on a pile of hay. Kathryn tried to run to her, but 'Aunt Adah' appeared and blocked her way. "We already tested her," she said. "She's too young and she doesn't have what he needs. The rest of you might." A flash of orange light and the small girl had disappeared.
Opening her mouth to protest and inquire what she meant by her cryptic speech, 'Aunt Adah' interrupted, saying, "Since no one wants any sugar cookies, we'll get on with it." The back barn wall flickered and disappeared to reveal a medical-looking room, where the entire crew of the Val Jean lay on some kind of beds with probes stuck in them. The Voyager crew barely had time to gasp before they found themselves in the same place.
On Voyager, Sarah Janeway was lying limply on the floor in engineering. She had just regained consciousness but was too weak to do more than stare at the ceiling with her good eye. The other was swollen shut. Her untreated injuries seemed to be compounding.
Maybe I should have gone to Sick Bay, she thought dimly, trying not to breathe too hard. Her ribs ached horribly. Maybe it's not so great that I can ignore my injuries for a while. She barely noticed the flashes of orange light that signaled the return of the crew.
Kathryn Janeway slowly picked herself up off the floor in Engineering, listening to the moans of her crewmembers. Holding her head, she called out, "Janeway to bridge."
She was relieved to hear a response. "Rollins here, captain."
"Rollins, how long were we aboard the array?"
"If the ship's chronometer is correct, three days."
"Three days?" she repeated disbelievingly. Suddenly, she spotted her daughter lying still beneath a console. "Rollins, you have the bridge. I'll be there as soon as I can. Janeway out."
She gathered her daughter in her arms. Her bruised face was worse, one eye was swollen shut, her chest seemed to be very sore, and she seemed to be drawing breath only with effort. "I think it's time for you to go to Sick Bay now," she told the little girl. There was no protest.
The EMH was none too pleased. "This child should have been here three days ago!"
"Circumstances were somewhat non-conducive, doctor," Janeway replied dryly, watching him scan her daughter. "How bad is she?"
His face was neutral as he read off ailments. "Bruises, cuts, lightly fractured wrist, bruised ribs. She'll be fine in a minute."
She held her daughter's good hand as the Doctor treated her injuries. "There. She'll need to take it easy for a while, though."
Kathryn nodded. Leaning over her daughter who was gingerly feeling her wrist and ribs, she said "I need to get to the bridge."
Sarah sat up and slid from the biobed and stood at her mother's side. "I need to go with you." Her face had resumed its earnest, honest expression. She seemed to be adjusting to their situation quite rapidly.
The EMH protested. "She needs rest!"
Kathryn waved her hand. "It's all right, doctor." She motioned for her daughter to follow her and the two of them departed Sick Bay, leaving a confused and frustrated EMH blustering behind them.
Captain Janeway hurried from the turbolift on to the bridge. "Is everyone back?" she asked.
"The computer reports everyone here except for one crewmember. Ensign Harry Kim."
She whipped around to face the viewscreen. "Hail the Maquis ship," she ordered.
A handsome man with raven-black hair, calm brown eyes, and an honest face adorned with a tattoo on his forehead appeared on the screen. It took a second for her to realize it was the Maquis captain, Chakotay.
I expected him to look more like felon, she thought. It took her only a second to regain her train of thought. "I'm Captain Kathryn Janeway," she said.
"Captain Chakotay," the man replied, nodding.
"Captain, we're missing a crewman. Was he beamed to your ship by accident?"
Chakotay conversed over his shoulder with someone. When he turned around, he replied, "No. In fact, one of our own crewmembers is missing."
Trying to be diplomatic, though her mission had been or still was to capture these outlaws, she said, "It sounds like we have the same problem. It would make sense to work together to solve it."
Slowly, Chakotay nodded. "Agreed. Three of us will beam over to your ship. Chakotay out."
Kathryn stepped back to sit in her command chair. She didn't know if these Maquis could be trusted, but what choice did she have? She looked over at Sarah, seated near the railing adjacent to her chair. Her daughter looked at her, surprisingly smiling.
"Don't worry. You can trust them," she said. "I have a good feeling about them."
Sighing, her mother stared off into space. "Let's hope your good feeling is right."
Sarah nodded. "Beyond a shadow of a doubt."
Author's Note: Again, sorry for the extensive length!! I hope you enjoyed this installment. Sorry it took so long to get posted. Also, sorry for 'fast-forwarding' through some parts and dwelling on others and if some of this stuff doesn't match up with the episode, I'm sorry as well. There should be more action and more 'Sarah' interaction with the crew to highlight the anomaly that she is. Hope you enjoyed!! Leave lots of reviews!!