Disclaimer: All characters, vessels, science, the original plot, and dialogue belong to Paramount with the exception of Sarah Janeway, the new parts of the plot, and anything else that is my creation.
Author's Note: Once again, HUGE apologies for the delay. I would have had this up even sooner, but I decided to wait to upload until I had new chapters for all my stories.
I'm trying something new here: character-centered episodes. This one is Chakotay. While it's not completely centered around him, I'm spending more time in his head than, say, Sarah's. I'm trying to branch out some more here, and try some of things I've learned in my creative writing classes. I'm also going to try and shake the plot up more for a new take on Voyager. Thank you so much to all the readers! Reviews are appreciated!
Anomaly
'State of Flux'
Sarah Janeway was still being punished. Instead of being able to sit and read in her quarters, her mother had sent her planetside with Chakotay and Neelix to collect food. But as she stood on a small dirt hill in a valley with the bluest sky she'd seen in ages, the sun gently warm on her skin, and a breeze ruffling her long curly hair, she couldn't help but feel that it was possibly the best punishment she'd ever received.
"Hey," came a gentle voice.
She turned to see Chakotay standing behind her.
"This is supposed to be punishment you know," he chastised her with a mock sternness, the corners of his mouth failing at suppressing a smile.
She flashed him a grin of her own. "I know…"
"C'mon." He gestured for her to join him a few feet away. "I realize you already helped fill two containers, but your mother will have my head if she doesn't think you've been sufficiently punished."
"She doesn't need to worry," Sarah replied in a quiet serious tone as she lifted the lid of a new container. "I'm done being rebellious and vengeful."
Chakotay laughed out loud.
"What?"
He shook his head with a smile and placed a hand on the top of her head. "I'm sorry. It's just that teenagers usually go through that, not so much four-year-olds."
She laughed as well. "Yeah, I guess so. But anyways, I am going to behave myself for the rest of the trip."
Lieutenant Carey and Neelix suddenly arrived from opposite directions. Neelix wasn't holding anything, but Carey had a golden apple-type fruit in his hand. "Commander! Look at this! I think they're some kind of apple. There are trees filled with them as far as the eye can see, just over that ridge."
Chakotay nodded appreciatively and Sarah stretched out her hand to touch it.
"Kaylos," Neelix identified it. Aren't they gorgeous?" He paused, seemingly for dramatic effect, for his next words were: "One bite'll kill you, puff you up like a Vakol fish." He grabbed his throat. "First your windpipe swells, and just when you think you're going to die of suffocation—"
He stopped when he noticed how Sarah's eyes widened and she pulled her hand off the fruit as though it had been scalded. She rubbed her hand vigorously up and down her pant leg.
"I think we get the picture," was Chakotay's rather unnecessary comment.
"Sorry. Just remember the old traders' axiom: Never judge a fruit by its skin. On the other hand…" Neelix held out a very strange knobbly brown root.
"What is it?"
"Leola root. Take a bite."
Chakotay did, but spit it out almost the second it entered his mouth. "You expect us to eat this?!"
"This is the reason I brought you here, Commander. There's no better source of vitamins and minerals in the Quadrant than in this, this ugly little root."
"I'd find the second best source acceptable if it tasted better."
Laughing, Neelix bid the small group to kneel in the dirt. They did, and he showed them how to dig for the roots. "You're not used to roughing it, are you? Look, you take it from one who knows, the day may come when you'll relish every last crunch of leola. Stew them for a few hours in a light herbal broth and you won't even notice the mildew!"
The three humans looked at each other with something akin to horror.
Aboard Voyager, Kathryn Janeway still felt slightly guilty for punishing her daughter. She knew the girl had only done what she'd done based on strong child's emotions, and she knew that she herself was partly to blame, but she had to get Sarah trained out of the reckless mentality to which she currently succumbed. Adult intelligence with juvenile emotions and judgment was a bad combination. She was hoping that treating her like any other child might help, somehow.
Her thoughts were interrupted by Tom's voice coming from the conn. "Captain, I don't think we're alone. Mr. Tuvok, run a low-level EM scan for me: co-ordinates 81 mark 40."
Tuvok began the scan.
Kathryn left her seat to stand behind her conn officer. "What do you see, Mr. Paris?"
"It's like a reflection, something in low orbit when it moves into a certain angle from the sun."
"He's correct," Tuvok said. "I'm picking up an ionisation trail. There's another ship in orbit."
"Using some kind of cloaking device?"
"It's not a cloaking device as we know it, Captain. I cannot say for certain what it is, but the ship does employ some kind of masking circuitry that has affected our sensors."
"Tuvok, lock onto Sarah's comm badge and beam her back aboard while I get the teams organized and ready to beam back as well."
"Aye captain."
Chakotay started in surprise when Sarah Janeway suddenly shimmered out of existence in front of him.
"Voyager to away team."
"Captain, do you realize Sarah was just beamed somewhere?"
"Yes commander. I brought her back aboard the ship for safety reasons. Are you detecting any unexpected lifesigns down there?"
"Nothing but bloodworms. Neelix wants to bring some back for a tartari he wants to make. I'm trying to talk him out of it."
"We're picking up an unidentified ship in low orbit. Collect your teams and prepare to transport back while we investigate."
"Acknowledged. Chakotay out." He then contacted the away teams. "All units, report to transport site A immediately."
Back aboard the ship, Tom had the idea to try illuminating the mystery ship with a polaron burst. It worked, and they had a brief glimpse of the ship.
"Kazon!" Captain Janeway tapped her comm badge. "Chakotay, get everyone back here NOW!"
The away teams' return to the ship was not without incident. When they assembled to beam back to the ship, Harry Kim realized that Seska was missing. Chakotay went to find her in some nearby caves near where she had been picking berries. Once inside one of the caves, he managed to evade two Kazon-Nistrim soldiers and locate Seska, who had gone inside to pick mushrooms in order to teach Neelix how to make Chakotay's favorite soup. On the way back out of the cave, however, they were ambushed by the two Kazon Chakotay had seen earlier. A firefight broke out, and Chakotay was hit by one of the Kazon. Seska fired back and hit them, and the two Starfleet officers were able to make it outside and beam back aboard Voyager. An injured Chakotay was resting in his quarters.
Kathryn, sitting in her quarters, finished her log entry about the events while Sarah sat nearby, quietly reading an early piece of Vulcan literature about a young Vulcan who was unable to control his emotions and spent his youth restlessly wandering from ship to ship, planet to planet. The Vulcan author had intended it to be a cautionary tale, but almost any other species considered it to be an adventure novel.
She wondered which line of thought her daughter was getting out of it.
"Sarah?"
The little girl looked up.
"You know why I punished you?"
"Yes mama."
"You're not going to try anything like that again, are you?"
She shook her head violently side to side. "No! I promise!"
"Good girl." She sighed. "I hate having to do it, but I don't want anything to happen to you. Please try to remember you're only four, even if you can do math and read complicated literature and sense things."
"I understand mama. And I'm sorry." Sarah paused for a minute before she hesitantly looked back at her mother. "But I…I think I'm normal."
"What?"
"I think I'm normal. I can't sense things anymore." From the look on her face, she also wasn't sure how she felt about it.
"What do you mean sweetie?"
"Lieutenant Carey showed us this thing that looked like a golden apple today on the planet's surface. I reached out and touched it, and then Neelix told us that it was poisonous. I couldn't sense it." Her eyes were wide and bewildered.
"Sarah…"
"It wasn't the first time…" Her voice quivered.
Kathryn left her desk chair to hug her young daughter. "I'm sure it's nothing…" She gently rested her head on top of her daughter's and stroked her hair. As she comforted her, she couldn't help but half-hope it was permanent. It would be so much easier on the little girl, and the people around her. At the same time she felt terrible for thinking such a thing. For Sarah, it had to be like suddenly losing sight or hearing.
Chakotay was resting fairly comfortably in his quarters, sketching some Native American symbols on a piece of stone, when the door signal sounded.
Seska quickly slipped inside, grinning and holding a covered round silver dish. She sat next to Chakotay and set it on the table. "I wasn't sure I'd make it," she said, and she held out a spoon.
Confused, Chakotay took it. "What is this?"
"Well that's a spoon," Seska laughed. "But this—" She removed the cover with a flourish. "Real food!"
"You got Neelix to make mushroom soup?!" He began spooning it into his mouth, the aroma irresistible and the taste equally so. "I can't believe it…" he said between mouthfuls.
"Are you kidding? The man wanted to stretch the mushrooms with just a little—"
"Leola root!" they finished together, and laughed.
"You should have been there," she continued. "We got into this tug of war with the bag of mushrooms in the middle. It was the most ludicrous thing you've ever seen. Tuvok and Kes broke us up, and then Neelix threw me out of his kitchen."
Chakotay looked up from the soup for a second. "So how did you…?"
"Strictly a Maquis operation," she explained, getting a couple of spoonfuls of soup for herself and smirking just a bit. "First we arranged for a little morale crisis. A couple of our people suddenly came down with a case of severe homesickness. Neelix, our devoted morale officer, responded to the call and came in to cheer them up. And while they were all singing Rakan folk songs, Jackson and I broke into the kitchen."
He stopped eating to stare at her. "You looted the food reserves?"
She shrugged a little. "If he's not going to give us a decent meal…"
Chakotay pushed the bowl away with a look of disgust. "I can't believe you did this."
"Well, it's not like we're hiding anything. I did bring soup straight to the first officer, didn't I?"
"Thanks for including me in a criminal conspiracy," was his sarcastic reply. "Does he know about this yet?"
"Well, the morale crisis ended a few minutes ago, so I'd say—"
She was interrupted by Neelix's irate voice over the comm system. "Neelix to Chakotay!"
"Yeah, he probably does…" she finished.
Chakotay sighed a little. "Go ahead Neelix."
"I'd like to report a crime! Someone has broken into my kitchen and stolen food, taken food out of the mouths of their crewmates!"
"I know."
"It was that Seska, wasn't it?!"
"I promise you everyone involved will be disciplined."
"If you'd like my recommendations for punishment—"
Chakotay cut him off with a firm, "Thank you. I'll handle that. Chakotay out." He turned to Seska irritably. "Replicator privileges revoked for two days—everyone, including me."
Seska frowned a little and shook her head. "They're not going to do it."
"Then I'll personally put them in the brig."
She looked at him incredulously. "You'd put me in the brig? After all we've been through?!" Her face softened and she tilted her head towards him and she smiled a little. "The soup was worth losing the replicator privileges for two days. Admit it."
He pushed his chair away from the table and went to stand by the window, facing away from her. "That's not the point."
Seska followed him and coyly snuggled up to him from behind, wrapping her arms sensuously around his chest. "I get the point," she murmured. "Can we make up now? Who else knows how to make your favorite soup like I do?"
He turned to face her, ignoring her advances. "No one," he admitted. "But we agreed a long time ago that this wouldn't work."
She rested her head on his chest, one arm snaking up to rub his shoulder. "Things change, Chakotay…"
"You're right, they do. I have different responsibilities now."
Seska laughed. "What, like babysitting the captain's kid?" She pouted a little. "You know, you spend way more time with that girl than you do with me. How come?"
He tried to push her away. "Like I said, things change."
She tightened her grip and laughed again. "Chakotay the family man. I never thought I'd see the day. Or are you getting in good with the little one so you have more influence with the captain?" She traced his collar with the tip of her finger. "Or maybe you've been after the captain all along, and that girl's just a pawn in your little love game."
"Seska, that's enough!" Chakotay untangled her and pushed her away.
She looked hurt for a fraction of second, then angry, then impassive. "Look around, Chakotay. There aren't that many potential mates out here." She headed for the door, then turned to face him one last time before she left, smiling. "Of course, if you're not interested, I have had my eye on young Ensign Kim…"
The doors swished shut behind her and Chakotay sank onto the couch with a frustrated sigh.
It had been years since they'd admitted feelings for each other. They'd had a short trial run of a relationship before calling it quits permanently. Or so he thought.
They just weren't compatible as a couple. It caused too many work conflicts and personal arguments. But there was still a part of him that wanted to take her back in his arms and caress her dark hair…
His reverie was interrupted by the captain's voice over the comm system: "Janeway to all senior officers. Please report to the bridge."
A weak, static-laden distress signal video was being played on the main viewer. A Kazon captain was leaning forward, pleading, "We require help...immediately...anyone who can hear this message...please help!"
Chakotay looked over at Captain Janeway for an explanation. "Long-range scanners picked up the distress signal three minutes ago," she said, frowning at the image uncertainly.
"The dimensions are identical to the one we encountered at the planet," Tuvok added from his station. "It is a Kazon-Nistrim ship, captain."
"Captain, this may be a trap," Neelix cautioned. "The Kazon-Nistrim is one of the most violent sects in the entire Kazon Collective."
The distress signal continued to play and Chakotay found it hard not to be at least a little sympathetic. Whatever had happened aboard that ship, assuming it wasn't a trap, had been horrendous. The captain asked Ensign Kim if he could tell if the damage was genuine, and the young man replied that there were fluctuating nucleonic patterns, possibly indicating a reactor breakdown. When Tom Paris' scans didn't turn up any other Kazon ships in the area, Janeway ordered continuous scans and a new heading that would take them to the distressed vessel.
"I take your warning seriously, Neelix," she assured the nervous Talaxian. "And we'll act with caution. But if we can help, we should." She looked to Chakotay. "Besides, this may be an opportunity to make a friend, and out here we can use all the friends we can get."
He nodded seriously.
It was a horrific scene that created the away team from Voyager when they beamed aboard the Kazon vessel. Scans showed high levels of nucleonic radiation, and then they suddenly found themselves face-to-face with what remained of the crew: whole Kazon, fused to parts of the ship, in the bulkheads, in the computer consoles. They found a single survivor and beamed him to Sick Bay.
Chakotay and Tuvok joined Janeway, the Doctor, and Kes there, where the holographic doctor looked over the Kazon's scans, perplexed.
"Incredible! Somehow virtually every cell in his body has been altered."
"Altered? How?" the captain asked.
"His cells have mutated, or they've been fused with inorganic matter. I can't make heads or tails of it. Look at this. His bloodcells have bonded with metallic nuclei."
"The crewmembers closest to the explosion were virtually melded with huge pieces of metal fragments," Chakotay added, the image of faces and hands and boots sticking out grotesquely from every part of the ship. "He was luckier than the others."
"That remains to be seen. I'm going to have to do a complete pyrocyte replacement if we're going to keep him alive. We'd better hope that there are compatible donors on board."
"I'll run a cytological screening of the crew," Kes spoke up.
The Doctor nodded and told the senior officers, "We'll let you know the results as soon as we can."
As the three of the stepped into the hallway, Tuvok broke the disturbing news to the captain in his calm, quite way. "Captain, there was an apparent Federation signature to the explosion."
"What?!"
"The explosive residue had a .41 trace of a neosorium composite, and I don't know anyone who uses neosorium technology except for the Federation," Chakotay explained. "It looked like they were trying to install some new technology that detonated."
"You're saying they have some kind of Federation weapon on board?"
"A console on the Bridge was the source of the explosion. We're not sure what its function was and it's going to be hard to get to." He briefly explained how the levels of nucleonic radiation would interfere with a transporter beam.
Kathryn Janeway frowned. "At any rate, how could they possibly have Federation technology?"
The three stepped into a turbolift and Tuvok spoke. "There are only three alternatives that I can discern at this time. One: It is not Federation technology at all but something similar."
The captain ordered, "Bridge," and the turbolift began to move.
"Two: Another Federation starship may have been brought to the Delta Quadrant prior to our arrival and they interacted with the Kazon-Nistrim."
Chakotay wracked his memory but couldn't recall any such information. He turned to Kathryn. "Were there any other reports of missing starships?"
"Not to my knowledge…"
Tuvok continued. "Three: Someone from this ship has covertly given technology to the Kazon."
Chakotay saw something like fear and shock flit briefly across the captain's face. "Computer, halt turbolift. I don't like number three at all, Tuvok."
"Nevertheless, it is the most probable explanation. It may not be a coincidence that the Kazon ship we encountered at the planet was able to deceive our sensors. Perhaps someone transmitted instructions to them before we arrived."
She sighed. "I want you to personally go through the transmission logs, Tuvok. Compare them to the actual telemetry. See if there's any evidence of prior contact with the Kazon." She turned to him. "Chakotay, who would've had a chance to meet with them while you were on the surface?"
He thought back, but the morning was a sort of organized chaos. "A dozen people. We were scattered all over the area."
Tuvok looked at him curiously. "You did discover Ensign Seska in proximity to them."
He bristled indignantly. "Seska almost killed me because she thought I was Kazon! She wouldn't do something like this."
"Nevertheless, I urge you to regard her with caution for the time being."
The captain broke in before Chakotay could protest again in defense of Seska. "Why would anyone on this ship betray us? We're all in this together. We need to retrieve that console and get some answers before the rumors get out of hand. Computer, resume."
Chakotay refused to even consider Seska a suspect. They'd known each other for too long for that to even be a remote possibility. She wouldn't endanger the ship, the crew, him like that.
He stood with the captain, B'Elanna, and members of the engineering crew in Main Engineering as they tried to devise a plan to retrieve the suspect console from the Kazon ship.
"Releasing the forcefield isn't an option," B'Elanna was saying. "That would just release the radiation into the whole cabin."
"We could generate a localized subspace bubble to get past the forcefield," Seska suggested, peering at diagrams on a screen.
B'Elanna shook her head vehemently at that. "One minor subspace disruption and you're dead. Too risky."
"I'd be willing to risk it."
No one responded to Seska's statement. The ensuing silence solidified the fact that it was unacceptable.
Lieutenant Carey broke the silence. "We could use an expander to manipulate the containment field."
"Manipulate it how?" the chief engineer wanted to know.
Carey activated another monitor and played with some animations. "Move it out of the way—rotate the field and the radiation trapped inside it away from the console. Once it's clear we have access."
B'Elanna nodded approvingly as the captain inquired, "How long will it take to set this up?"
"We should be able to make an attempt by tomorrow."
"I want it ready by the end of the day." She went to leave Main Engineering, but B'Elanna spoke up and halted her.
"No, captain. When I say tomorrow, I mean tomorrow. I don't exaggerate. Tomorrow is the best I can do." The engineer locked eyes with the captain somewhat nervously before the captain responded.
"Understood, lieutenant." She wasn't angry. She seemed pleased that B'Elanna had stood up to her.
The captain nodded to Chakotay before she left the room. He smiled to himself. He was proud of B'Elanna.
"All right," the chief engineer continued, seeming a little surprised but happy that she'd survived the encounter with the captain. "We'll begin on the Kazon bridge. Carey, Nicoletti, Seska—"
As soon as Chakotay heard her name, he stopped Torres.
"No. I want Ensign Seska to coordinate the operation from our bridge." The last thing she needed was an excuse for the likes of Tuvok to accuse her of something else.
"Ok. Hennard, you're with us. Dismissed." B'Elanna moved off with her team, minus Seska, and Chakotay exited Engineering.
He didn't make it very far before Seska grabbed him by the shoulder and spun him around to face her. "What was that all about?!" she wanted to know, clearly irritated.
"What?"
"Oh, please. You know exactly what I'm talking about. There's nothing important to do on the bridge."
"I disagree. I think we need someone—"
"Save it, Chakotay." She leaned in closer to him. "What the hell is going on?"
He looked at her, and all he could see was the woman he cared deeply about, the one he'd worked alongside for years, the one he'd spent several affectionate nights with, the one he trusted with everything, including his heart, even though they both truly knew better than to try to rekindle what they'd once had. "There…there's some…concern about you."
"What kind of concern?"
He hated to say it. "Concern because I found you near the Kazon on the planet."
Seska grew more upset, her face darkening like storm cloud. "Oh I see. So now I'm a traitor. I sell technology to the enemy?!"
"I do not believe that," he said firmly.
"No, you just take me off my assignment!"
"I'm trying to take you out of harm's way to protect you!"
"If this is your idea of protection, you might as well point a finger at me in front of the entire crew!"
"You don't assign someone you don't trust to the bridge! Look, I'm sorry. But if something over there goes wrong, I don't want you anywhere near it!"
With as much sarcasm as possible, Seska replied, "Thanks for your concern." And then she stalked off.
Can't you see that I care about you?, he thought in frustration and sadness as he watched her retreating back. You still mean something to me. I don't want to see you get hurt…
Seska entered Sick Bay and inquired about the Kazon patient. As she spoke with the Doctor and Kes, she became aware of another presence and turned to see the captain's daughter staring at her. The girl was holding a compress to her arm, undoubtedly bruised from playing. The ensign didn't like the way the little girl's green eyes bored into her own, but before she could say anything, Sarah blinked, shook her head a little, and left.
"Ensign, did you ever come in to leave a blood sample on file?" Kes was saying, in reference to the fact that the Kazon's blood would need to be completely replaced and hopefully there were a few compatible donors on board.
"My blood won't help you," she answered, still somewhat distracted. "I had a childhood disease that infected it. I was warned never to donate blood for a transfusion."
"All the more reason we should have your blood on file," the Doctor added.
"I will. Right now I have something more important to take care of." She left Sick Bay, still with the image of the young dark-haired girl, eyes wide and innocent, in her mind.
Kathryn Janeway was facing one problem after another. After dropping her daughter off in Sick Bay to be treated for a bruised arm, she met up with Chakotay and Tuvok in her ready room to learn that there had indeed been an unauthorized transmission made from the ship, and whoever was responsible was an expert in covering their tracks.
"The signal was masked by a test of the dorsal emitters that we conducted a week ago," Tuvok explained.
"Who was working on that test?"
Chakotay answered with a frustrated, "Only the whole engineering crew."
"We're trying to trace the station where the signal originated. Again, the perpetrator was skilled enough to make the tracking process extremely difficult for us."
Just then, Tom Paris summoned the captain to the bridge. All three of them stepped out of the ready room to be confronted by another crisis: a Kazon ship was in the area, only a little over four hours out. Before they could properly mull over this new information, Harry Kim called out that there had just been an unauthorized transport off the ship. Kathryn asked the computer for the person's identity and it responded, "Ensign Seska."
Stunned, she looked back at Chakotay.
He was equally shocked. No, no she wouldn't… "Chakotay to Seska."
"I really don't have time to talk to you right now, Chakotay."
"What the hell do you think you're doing?!"
"Retrieving the console. My way."
"I want you back on this ship, and I mean now!"
"The captain said she wanted the console today. Carey's plan couldn't do it in time, but mine can."
There was that fire she had, the deep-seated independence and pride that he admired and loved so well. But now he could sense that it was about to cause her serious harm in some way.
Tuvok spoke up from his console. "Captain, it is conceivable that she's gone to the Kazon ship to destroy evidence that might implicate her."
Indignation welled up in the commander's throat and he spun to face the Vulcan. "She's gone back to the Kazon ship to prove herself to us. Can't you see that?!"
"I've got a lock on her, Captain. Do you want me to transport her back?"
"No, Mr. Kim. If we try to beam her out while she's manipulating subspace, we might kill her."
The tension on the bridge came to a culmination as Seska suddenly screamed and her comm channel cut off.
"Get her out of there! Send her to Sick Bay!"
Chakotay spent as much time by Seska's unconscious side that he could before he was forced to return to the captain's ready room where they intended to have a talk with Mr. Carey. He couldn't shake a horrible feeling of guilt. If I hadn't doubted her…if I hadn't let Tuvok get to me…she would never betray me, us. I should have trusted her more…
"Have a seat, Mr. Carey," Kathryn Janeway was saying.
Chakotay jerked himself back to the present. "How are things going for you in Engineering?"
"Fine. Why, is there a problem?"
"Are you getting on all right with Lieutenant Torres?"
"I think we've settled our differences…" Carey was starting to sound suspicious.
"She was promoted to chief engineer over you, lieutenant. That might be difficult for someone in your position to accept."
"Captain, I accepted your decision. And I've worked as hard as I can to make myself a valuable member of Lieutenant Torres' team. I can't believe she'd have any complaints about my performance."
"She doesn't."
Now he was confused. "Then what am I doing here?"
Tuvok took over inquiry. "Lieutenant, have you had any contact with the Kazon-Nistrim since we arrived in the Delta Quadrant?"
"What?! You mean me personally? No, of course not!"
"You were out of contact for almost an hour on the planet where we encountered the Kazon."
"You mean, when I was picking those poison apples?!"
"What about before we arrived at the planet: did you have any reason to signal a Kazon-Nistrim ship?" Janeway asked.
"No!"
"Nevertheless," Tuvok continued. "A signal was sent to the Kazon from your station in Engineering during our dorsal emitter test last week."
"My station?!"
"Were you not in Engineering at that time?"
"Well, yes, I was. But…you know how it is down there during a systems analysis."
"Did you see anyone else at your station?"
Carey was beginning to look and sound desperate. "Honestly, I don't remember! Maybe you should ask Seska."
Janeway frowned. "Why Seska?"
"Everybody knows she was found in a cave with the Kazon," he replied, trying to fight down a rising panic. He collected himself and added firmly, "Look, I'm not saying she did anything wrong but I didn't either."
The captain nodded slowly. "I'd like to believe you, Mr. Carey. But somebody did contact the Kazon, and until we know who I'm going to have to restrict you to quarters."
Carey looked around and, realizing the interview was over, he left, thoroughly shaken.
Kathryn leaned forward as the doors swished shut, placing her elbows on the desk and resting her chin on her intertwined fingers. "What do you think?"
"He had the motive and the opportunity," Chakotay said matter-of-factly.
"He's also had a distinguished Starfleet career. Seska spent most of the last two years as an enemy of the Federation."
Chakotay looked impassively at the captain. "So have I," he said simply.
Kathryn was able to return to her quarters and her daughter for only a little while. She'd asked Kes to check on her now and then, since the Ocampan woman was also needed in Sick Bay. Thankfully, the only incident thus far had been a bruised arm Sarah sustained while dashing between pieces of furniture clutching her stuffed horse, pretending that she was a wild Mustang. She was barely able to kiss the top of the girl's head and ask how she was doing before she was called back to the bridge: the Kazon ship was nearing hailing range. "I'm so sorry Sarah," she apologized as got up to leave. They hadn't yet had a chance to really talk about the loss of Sarah's intuitions, or to consult Kes, and Kathryn could see that her daughter was still upset and uncertain.
"It's ok," the girl replied, clutching her little horse closer. "You have to take care of everybody, not just me." She stuck out her chin bravely.
Kathryn turned back and knelt to hug her daughter tightly. "We will talk, I promise. I will be back as soon as I possibly can," she murmured into Sarah's hair.
"Ok," she whispered back.
The Kazon ship hailed them, and the captain demanded to see the unconscious sole survivor. Kathryn and Tuvok escorted him and one of his crew members to Sick Bay, where the Doctor turned to greet her with, "Ah, captain. Glad you're here. I was just about to call you."
"Doctor, this is First Maje Culluh of the Kazon-Nistrim," she replied, indicating the Kazon on her immediate right. "Could you give us the latest condition report on your Kazon patient?"
"Well, the good news is that I've been able to stabilize him. We had to completely replace his blood."
"Replace his blood? With what?" Culluh asked gruffly.
"The blood of volunteers from our crew," Janeway replied. "They saved his life."
"His own blood cells were killing him. They were changed by the accident on his ship."
"Changed in what manner?"
"We haven't been able to determine yet."
"We've been working on a plan to access the source of the explosion," Kathryn added. "It should answer a lot of questions."
"That will no longer be necessary." The Kazon always appeared to be frowning, but Culluh looked somehow even less friendly than usual. "We will take the damaged vessel to our port for inspection."
"I'm afraid I can't allow you to do that just yet."
"And what gives you the right to interfere in our affairs?"
"There was trace of a Federation compound in the remains of the explosion. We have reason that someone on board this ship gave technology to your people. Until we have a better explanation of what occurred, I can't release that ship to you."
Culluh was indignant. "That is not acceptable."
"It will have to be."
"Your unique technologies make you brave, captain, but you have only one ship. In less than a day there will be four Kazon vessels off your bow."
She held her gaze steady. "Perhaps by then we'll have the answers we need."
Culluh scowled. "You will leave us with him." He and his associate stepped closer to the unconscious form.
Tuvok observed from a distance as Kathryn stepped away to consult quietly with the Doctor. In little more than a whisper, she said, "I assume they'll want to take him back to their ship. I'd rather not let them do it just yet in case he regains consciousness. There are a lot of questions he can answer. Can I tell them it's not safe to move him?"
"It would be the truth."
Before she could respond, a sudden flicker of movement from the Kazon men caught her attention. Before she could make a move, Culluh's associate plunged a needle on his ring into the neck of the patient. Both she and Tuvok drew their phasers and hurried forward, but it was too late. Tuvok pinned the associate to the wall, his phaser to his throat, as she pointed her own phaser at Culluh. The Doctor rushed over to the biobed's diagnostic monitors and announced grimly, "He's dead."
Kathryn gritted her teeth. "Get off this ship," she spat at Culluh.
He smirked a little and gave a mocking bow. The two Kazon left, guarded by Tuvok.
After they were gone, the Doctor reported what else the diagnostic readouts had said in reference to the now-dead Kazon. "There was some kind of nerve toxin in that needle. He died instantly." He paused, looked at Kes, then continued with, "Captain, may we talk to you in my office?"
She dipped her head in acquiescence, still reeling and angry from the turn of events.
Once they were in his office, the Doctor stated, "It's about Seska."
"Complications?"
"I was analyzing her blood chemistry to try to locate a compatible donor," Kes said quietly. "But when I got the results her blood was lacking all the common Bajoran blood factors."
Janeway frowned. "Meaning?"
The Doctor and Kes looked at each other. "The only conclusion we can reach is that she is not in fact Bajoran," the Doctor explained. "It appears that Seska has been genetically altered. My suspicion is…she was born Cardassian."
Chakotay was still trying to fathom the bombshell Kathryn Janeway had dropped on him. "You're asking me to believe she's a Cardassian agent who infiltrated the Maquis?!" No, there is no possible way. Not Seska… He thought of their many embraces and shook his head.
Tuvok was impassive. "Starfleet Security has documented several incidents in which Cardassians have used cosmetic alterations for the purpose of infiltrating an enemy."
"This is crazy. This is just impossible!" No no no…
"The Doctor has informed us that there is no other plausible explanation for the medical anomalies."
"If you don't mind," Chakotay interjected testily. "I'd like to hear her explanation before we dismiss it. Has she been told?" He looked at the captain. Her arms were crossed across her chest, and she looked both unnerved and concerned.
"No."
"I'd like to be the one who questions her."
"I suggest we wait until we retrieve the console." She tapped her comm badge. "Janeway to Torres."
"Yes captain?"
"Your status?"
"We're finished with the computer simulations. Everything looks ok. We're ready to beam over."
"Good. Then let's get started. Janeway out."
Meeting over, Tuvok and Chakotay headed for the door. Before they exited, the commander turned to Tuvok, his face unreadable. "You were working for her," he said, nodding back towards the captain. "Seska was working for them. Was anybody on board that ship working for me?" He didn't expect or wait for an answer.
Despite threats from Culluh and the possibility of an unanticipated problem, the retrieval operation went off without a hitch. B'Elanna examined it in Main Engineering and finally sighed incredulously. "Of all the things to die for…It's a food replicator, or at least it was trying to be."
Kathryn leaned over her shoulder to get a closer look. "We may take replicators for granted but imagine what it would mean to a culture that doesn't have this technology. Can you tell if any part of the console came from our ship?"
"There's no doubt about it, captain. The pattern buffer relays are clearly composed of bioneural fibers. No other Federation ship would have them. Somebody on board Voyager gave them what they needed. I guess they just didn't know what to do with it."
Grimly, the captain replied, "I want a complete report on everything we've found so that I can share it with our Kazon friends."
Chakotay entered Sick Bay, a feeling of unpleasant anticipation hanging over him. Kes quickly realized why he was there and politely left him alone with Seska.
He walked over to the biobed, images of the two of them in a much happier time swirling in his head. "We've recovered the console. It's a replicator, constructed with materials from Voyager," he stated without pretense.
Seska opened her eyes and sat up. "I suppose everyone now thinks I went over there to destroy the evidence."
"Did you?"
Her mouth hung open a little, hurt. "I was only trying to show everyone, show you...You really think I had something to do with this, don't you?"
"To be honest, I'm not sure any more. I'm not sure of a lot of things."
"Well, why don't you go talk to your animal guide and figure it all out?"
"I plan to."
"Good." She laid back down.
"You know, it's funny, I've been thinking about what's been real, what's not been real…"
"What is this about? What's wrong with you? Talk to me, Chakotay. You owe me that much."
It was his turn to be hurt. "What would you say I owe to a Cardassian who infiltrated my crew?"
"What are you talking about?!"
"It turns out your blood is missing all the common Bajoran factors."
"It's a side-effect of Orkett's Disease. Ask your Doctor."
He paused. "Orkett's Disease."
"A childhood disease that swept through the Bajoran work camps during the Occupation. Thousands of children didn't survive. I did, thanks to a bone marrow transplant from a sympathetic Cardassian woman. Her name was Kattell. When we get home you can ask her yourself. You must think I'm horrible. Do you think I gave you my...my heart...to get your Maquis secrets?"
"I'm starting to wonder."
Seska sat back up. "Let me tell you something. Your secrets weren't good enough. They were never worth the trouble for a Cardassian agent. I only had one agenda with you Chakotay, and I never kept it secret." She softly caressed his arm. "So, you believe in me again?"
"I want to," he replied quietly.
"Good, because I want to go back to work."
"You're going to have to stay confined, at least until we find out exactly where the replicator components were taken from."
She shook her head in annoyance. "And what'll that tell you?"
"There might be evidence of who took them."
"You don't think whoever did this is foolish enough to log in using their own name?!"
"Chief inspector Tuvok leaves no stone unturned. I'll tell the Captain what you told me. Somehow we'll try to clear this up soon."
Chakotay left Sick Bay, his heart heavy and uncertain, and met up with Tuvok around the corner.
"She said a Cardassian bone marrow transplant saved her life as a child," he reported.
"Did you set our plan in motion?"
He nodded.
"I gave Lieutenant Carey the same information."
"Now all we can do is wait," the commander added. "And hope someone takes the bait."
Sarah Janeway sat alone on the floor of the bedroom she shared with her mother. She had paper and drawing materials in front of her, but it wasn't anything more than a futile attempt to distract herself. She felt so vulnerable, so exposed, without that elusive, intuitive sense that had helped her as much as it had caused her trouble. She sat there, trying desperately to get it back. All her efforts thus far had been utterly fruitless, and by this point she was in tears. I just want my mom, she thought, sniffling miserably. I know she has a job to do, but I just want her to come back!
Just then, the doors to their quarters swished open.
She quickly rubbed at the tears in her eyes, not wanting to make her feel guilty. "Mama?" she called hopefully.
Later on, Chakotay and Tuvok sat in Engineering playing cards while B'Elanna stood nearby. They were waiting to see what would happen with their plan.
"Gin," Tuvok said, not for the first time.
Chakotay shook his head. "I never knew Vulcans had such a talent for cards."
"It is simply a matter of logical discards which give a false impression of my own requirements, and deny the needed cards to your hand. I believe that's 94 points to me." He entered the points into a PADD.
"If you ever need a sponsor in a gin tournament, let me know."
"We're picking up two more Kazon warships, about six hours away," B'Elanna interjected. "We're not going to be able to stay here much—" A buzzer suddenly cut her off.
"That sounds like a nibble to me," Chakotay said. They leaned into the screen and watched data files being manipulated and shuffled.
"Someone is accessing the inventory database," Tuvok remarked.
"And they went straight to the missing replicator material," B'Elanna said, unsurprised.
"Shall we start the trace now?" Chakotay wanted to know.
"Negative. It might alert them."
"They're entering data."
"Intriguing. It appears as though they're trying to place evidence at the scene of the crime to indicate the guilty party."
"They're entering an encrypted security code into the materials requisition file."
"That would suggest they're hiding it, but not very well."
"Anybody know who that security code belongs to?"
"I do," Chakotay said. "It's Seska's."
"Then it has to be Carey," B'Elanna replied. "Carey is trying to point the finger at Seska."
Chakotay entered a dimly lit Sick Bay, his heart heavy and his soul sick. He watched Seska dozing on the biobed for a minute before he was able to speak up.
"It's over. We know who gave technology to the Kazon."
She opened her eyes, stretched, and sat up. "Who?" she asked curiously.
He forcibly suppressed his inner pain as best he could. "You did."
"Look, I don't know what evidence you think you've found but—"
"We found the evidence you put there for us to find: your own security code."
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
"We already knew where the stolen materials had been taken from before I met with you. We were monitoring the inventory manifest, hoping either you or Carey would try to cover your tracks."
"Hell of a way for me to cover my tracks, putting in my own security code for you to find!" she said indignantly.
"That's exactly what you did. You knew no one would believe you could be that careless. You wanted us to believe that someone else was trying to frame you."
"Ever consider that maybe someone was?"
"We traced the computer station used to enter the data. Oh, you took us all around the system and back again before we could locate the source, but it was this station, in Sick Bay."
The lights abruptly came on and Captain Janeway entered with Tuvok and two security guards.
"I'd almost say it was a Maquis operation," Chakotay continued. "If I didn't already know you were a Cardassian. Computer, activate emergency medical holographic program."
The Doctor materialized. "Ah, have I been called to testify?"
"Before you even mentioned Orkett's Disease to me, the Doctor had already discounted that as a possible explanation for your blood anomalies."
"And may I say: a doctor less informed about Bajoran medicine might've been fooled, but my program includes the complete Bajoran medical text on Orkett's Disease. There's no way any childhood virus or Cardassian bone marrow transplant can explain away the genetic markers in your blood. You are Cardassian, ensign."
"But that didn't necessarily make you the traitor we were looking for. We needed more evidence, and you gave it to us." Chakotay shook his head at his former lover, still not quite able to grasp the vast extent of her treachery. "The one thing I still can't understand is: why?"
Seska scowled. "I did it for you! I did it for this crew. We are alone here, at the mercy of any number of hostile aliens because of the incomprehensible decision of a Federation captain, a Federation captain who destroyed our only chance to get home. Federation rules...Federation nobility....Federation compassion?! Do you understand if this had been a Cardassian ship we would be home now? We must begin to forge alliances, and to survive we must have powerful friends. The Kazon-Nistrim were willing to be our protectors in return for some minor technology."
Kathryn crossed her arms and looked fiercely back at the traitorous ensign. "'Minor technology' that could change the balance of power in this quadrant."
"Change it in our favor! That is all that matters at this point—building a base of power in this Quadrant. You are a fool, captain," Seska spat angrily in response. She turned to Chakotay and wounded him with, "And you're a fool to follow her." She saw the hurt in his eyes, and added, "I can't imagine how I ever loved you." She turned back to Kathryn Janeway, sheer hate in her own eyes. "Have you checked your quarters lately, captain? Maybe next time you'll be a little more willing to work with us. Computer, command XJL!"
She started to beam out.
"Computer, override transport in progress!" Chakotay yelled.
"Unable to comply. Security lockout is in place," the Computer replied.
"Computer, identify destination of transport," Janeway called out, Seska's words ringing in her ears. What does she mean? What about my quarters?
"A Kazon vessel fourteen kilometers off the port bow," the Computer responded to the question she had voiced.
"Bridge to Janeway," came Tom Paris' voice.
"Go ahead."
"The Kazon ship is powering up its engines. It looks as if they're getting ready to go to warp."
"Ready a tractor beam—"
"I've also got two Kazon warships on an intercept course less than ten minutes away," he interrupted via the comm system.
The meaning of Seska's words finally hit her amid the chaos. Sarah.
Chakotay saw the captain's face suddenly drain of all color and a fear leapt into her eyes and he too realized what Seska had meant.
"Captain, even with our superior defense capabilities we cannot prevail against three Kazon warships," Tuvok said.
"Computer locate Sarah Janeway!" she yelled, ignoring him for the moment.
"Sarah Janeway is in her quarters," came the too-calm computerized response.
"Power down the tractor beam and set a course out of here, Mr. Paris—warp four, engage when ready, Janeway out!" She was running out of Sick Bay before she had completely finished her sentence, Chakotay right behind her. No, not Sarah! No no no!
They reached her quarters in record time that felt like years. She pushed between the automatic doors that opened too slowly. "Sarah!!"
The little girl was sprawled on the floor, her dark hair fanned out like a curtain as her small body seized and her eyes rolled back in her head. There was a bloody foam around her mouth.
Kathryn knelt by her daughter's side as Chakotay yelled, "Medical emergency! We need a site-to-site transport now!"
The trio immediately materialized back in Sick Bay. Chakotay scooped up the child and gently placed her on the main biobed.
"What happened?" the EMH demanded.
"We found her like this, I don't know!" the captain answered, hovering over her daughter's mainly still form. There was an unnatural pallor to her skin, and it was cold to the touch. "Sarah! Sarah, can you hear me?!"
The Doctor started yelling to Kes for instruments and tried to get the captain away from the biobed. "Please, captain! I need room to work!"
She wouldn't move. "Sarah? Sarah!"
Chakotay gently took Kathryn by the shoulders and pulled her away. She didn't fight him, but put one hand over her mouth in horror as her daughter continued to writhe every so often. The Doctor and Kes buzzed around the biobed with instruments, him yelling numbers, observations, symptoms and her scurrying to help and trying to comfort the little girl.
The commander closed his eyes in pain. Not only had the woman he loved betrayed him completely, but she had gone out of her way to hurt two people he cared about deeply, one an innocent child. How could you Seska? How could you? It was too much to take in at once. He was overwhelmed, but he kept his hands on the captain's shoulders, trying to give her any strength he could. I am so sorry.
It was several minutes before the Doctor stopped dashing from monitor to monitor and grabbing instruments. He came over to the two of them.
"I managed to stabilize her," he said quietly. "But she's in a coma."
"What happened?" Kathryn's voice was angry and fearful at the same time.
"She was injected with a variant of the nerve toxin that the Culluh's associate used on our former Kazon patient. It's a wonder she survived."
"Seska." The captain's face was dark.
The EMH nodded slowly. "I'm afraid so."
"How did she get out of here without anyone knowing?!"
"I haven't worked that out yet."
"Is she…" Chakotay couldn't finish the sentence.
"As I said, she's stable for now but comatose. However, I can't bring her out of it. I don't know enough about this particular substance to create a treatment. And even if I did, it may not be enough for her to fully recover. There is a high potential for permanent damage to her brain and central nervous system."
"How did she survive?" Kathryn asked, fighting to stay calm. You're still the captain—hold it together.
The Doctor opened his mouth and paused for a moment before he replied, trying to find the easiest way to tell her. "It appears…that the dose was…calculated."
"Calculated?"
"She was given just enough to reduce her to…this state. I don't believe Seska was trying to kill her."
"Then what?"
He paused again. "I will use every resource at my disposal, but the best hope for your daughter is…to find someone with firsthand knowledge of this poison."
No one had to say anything because they were all thinking it.
The Kazon.
This is what she meant by cooperation…and next time…
Chakotay cornered Tuvok later in the Mess Hall. Besides the horrific attack on the captain's daughter, he couldn't get something out of his head.
"Can I ask you to be honest with me, lieutenant?" he asked.
"As a Vulcan, I'm at all times honest, commander." Even for a Vulcan, he seemed somewhat muted and despondent. News about Sarah had spread quickly throughout the ship.
"That's not exactly true. You lied to me when you passed yourself off as a Maquis to get on my crew."
"I was honest to my own convictions within the defined parameters of my mission."
He snorted. "You damned Vulcans and your 'defined parameters'. That's easy for you."
"On the contrary. The demands on a Vulcan's character are extraordinarily difficult. Do not mistake composure for ease. How may I be honest with you today?"
"I'd just like to know from someone else who pulled the wool over my eyes: Was I particularly naive? Was I not paying enough attention? What the hell was it that let all you spies get by me?"
"Like all humans, you depend on feelings and instincts to guide you, and they invariably let you down. But 'particularly naive'? No, commander, and I've always considered your attention span to be adequate."
"Did you ever see anything about Seska that made you suspicious?"
"No. She quite expertly pulled the wool over my eyes as well."
"Ah. That makes me feel a little better. Thanks." He turned to leave.
"Curious."
"What?" He turned back.
"That my failure added to your own should improve your feelings."
Chakotay half-attempted a smile. "Misery loves company, Tuvok."
Kathryn was lying on the couch in her ready room because she couldn't stand to sleep in her quarters without her daughter there. It was too quiet and it reminded her too much of everything she'd done wrong. She was too tired to be angry at anyone but herself. Why did I ever agree to let her come along? Too much risk, too much liability for her, for me, for this ship and this crew! I try to split my attention and everyone ends up losing. She cursed herself out, silently, as tears began slipping down her cheeks.
I am so sorry…
Author's Note: Well, this is my first big break from the original flow of things in the show, as you'll see better illustrated in the next chapter. I know it ended on a pretty depressing note, but it will improve, I promise. I'm going to be trying some more new things in the upcoming installments. Thanks to all of you who continue to stick with me!