Tegan Chronicles STV Style 4:

Canis Major 3

At 0600 hours Tegan found herself strapped into the jump seat of the Delta flyer. Her expertise or lack thereof wasn't needed to get them from Voyager to the planet's surface. In fact her expertise wasn't needed at all on this mission but there she was. She focused on Tuvok's calm during the six hour flight to the surface. Every once in a while B'Elanna would look back at her but she never said anything. Twice Tegan lifted her brow welcoming her query but none came. On one occasion she opened her own mouth to say something but B'Elanna quickly averted her eyes.

"It is entirely too quiet." Seven observed.

"I am enjoying it." Tuvok observed from his seat beside B'Elanna.

"It is making me uncomfortable." She was used to Tom or Harry being along and they rarely stopped talking long enough to breathe.

"Well what do you want to talk about?" B'Elanna broke her self-imposed silence.

"I do not know." Seven glanced at Tegan. "Why were you chosen to go on this mission?"

Tegan rocked her jaw to the side before scoffing. "Your guess is as good as mine."

B'Elanna turned back and looked between the two women, a silent statement being made to Seven in the minute change of expression.

She could feel it bubbling inside her and for some reason she couldn't make her cooler head prevail. "What is your problem?"

"My problem?" B'Elanna scoffed. "You're the psychic you figure it out."

"Lieutenant Torres." Tuvok's tone warned as he turned his seat to glance back at Tegan.

"Me? I didn't start it."

"On the contrary, your emotions are very volatile right now." He turned back to check their descent. They were less than thirty minutes from the surface. "Perhaps we should return to Voyager."

"I am not going to be handled with kid gloves." Tegan growled.

B'Elanna laughed derisively earning a menacing glare from the redhead that caused her to think twice.

"We have a mission to complete." Tegan directed her statement to Tuvok. "I intend on doing just that, but you are the ranking officer here."

"Indeed." He went against his better judgment and continued to the surface.

After they landed and ran an additional scan for life signs he decided it was best if they split up into pairs to cover ground more quickly. He also wanted to speak with B'Elanna about her recent attitude. He sent Tegan and Seven off in the opposite direction and waited until they were out of earshot to broach the subject.

"She can't read your mind."

"I never said she could." B'Elanna kicked a rock ahead of them and watched as it disappeared into the wall of mist. The planet was hot, humid and pretty much as miserable as B'Elanna felt.

"I would think that you would be more supportive of her."

"What's that supposed to mean?" She balled her fists at her side.

"You yourself have had struggles because of being different."

"I don't have a problem with Dr. Kiser." She kicked another rock. "I liked—like Tegan."

His eyebrow rose at her slip.

"I've just never liked Betazoids."

"Dr. Kiser is not a Betazoid, she is merely empathic. She can feel your emotion as if it were her own. It is a new gift; one that she did not ask for." He paused. "She is still learning to control it. I am certain from conversations we have had that she does not wish to feel others emotions any more than they wish for her to."

They both turned as they heard the discharge of energy weapons.

"I thought there weren't any life signs on the planet." Tegan mumbled as she found her feet.

"The atmospheric conditions must have acted like a dampening field."

"Isn't that why we couldn't transport down?" Tegan had read the pre-mission report.

"Yes." Seven said bluntly while looking at Tegan's shoulder. "You are damaged."

"He missed me by a mile." Tegan looked down at the muddy dog. "Thanks to this guy."

"I believe you are mistaken." Seven continued to stare. "You would have been hit in the chest if it wasn't for this creature's actions."

"It's a dog Seven."

"Regardless you are injured."

Tegan glanced at her shoulder as the air around them shifted bringing the scent of charred flesh and fabric to her nostrils. "Well I'll be."

"Does it not hurt?"

Tegan shrugged. "Not really."

"It was a yes or no question." Seven spun as she heard a twig snap behind them and the dog at Tegan's feet snarled and growled in the same direction.

"It's ok." Tegan said to Seven causing the dog to relax. "It's Tuvok and B'Elanna."

"Are you certain?" Seven continued to hold her phaser at the ready.

"Positive."

"We heard phaser fire." Tuvok stepped out of the mist.

"There are Hirogen here." Seven looked around them, all of her senses heightened.

"You've been hit." B'Elanna pointed to the wound with her chin as her eyes dropped to the mud covered animal.

"It's a flesh wound, I barely even feel it." Tegan shook her concern off.

"Had it not been for that thing, she would have critical injuries."

"It's a dog." Tegan repeated. "And by critical she means I'd be dead."

"How?" B'Elanna noticed the red muddy paw prints on Tegan's uniform.

"He came out of nowhere and knocked her down as we heard weapons discharge." Seven told the story as Tegan turned away from them. "I managed to shoot in the direction of the weapons fire but I did not hit my target."

"How do you know it was Hirogen?" B'Elanna asked as Tuvok stepped up to Tegan.

"The energy signature that was left behind."

"We should set our phasers to kill and head back to the Delta Flyer." Tuvok instructed as he freed the small medical kit that was hanging across her body.

"There's someone coming." She brushed off his concern and glanced down at the dog who took off running in the general direction with his tail wagging.

"Hirogen?"

"No." Tegan's face contorted and she took a deep breath as the dog ran back out of the mist to stand in front of her.

"I thought dogs barked." B'Elanna threw out.

"Maybe he does not want to draw attention to our location." Seven's ocular implant rose.

Tegan moved as the dog turned to lead her away from the group. Her shoulder was beginning to bother her and she realized the adrenalin rush from earlier must have started to wear off.

"Doctor?"

"It's fine." Her voice was a soft whisper.

"The shuttle's in the other direction." B'Elanna threw her thumb back.

"He's injured." Tegan continued her progression deeper into the foggy forest.

Tuvok looked back at Seven and B'Elanna. "We should follow."

"She's going to get us killed." B'Elanna lifted her phaser and grumbled.

"If there is someone who needs our help…" Seven began.

"I know." B'Elanna cut her off. "I know."

When they arrived at a small clearing Tegan was kneeling beside a muscular purple skinned humanoid with his back propped up against a tree. Under the mounting physical pain she dug out the medical tricorder and scanned the man, a deep sadness pulled at her features. "You lost someone."

"They killed my son." He coughed and a yellow liquid sputtered past his lips, it was the same color as the liquid staining his garments around his chest wound. "We were out foraging for berries when we suddenly found ourselves in a large metal cage. A few days passed and we woke up one morning here."

"How long have you been here?" Tuvok asked.

He closed his eyes as he thought. "Five days?"

Tegan looked back at the group and shook her head. She reached out and took the man's hand. "Take your time."

Tuvok would have stopped her if he had known what she was going to do. Of course he had seen it coming from the moment she started heading in the direction of the injured man.

"The first day we found things to eat and regained our strength. The second day they chased us through the woods and one of them shot my son in the leg." He struggled to breathe but the pain on his face had dissipated. "We managed to get away, but the next day my son was hit in the chest with one of their weapons. Since then it has just been me and his dog. I was wounded today."

"They left you here?" B'Elanna asked from where she stood off to Tegan's right side knowing that didn't sound like the Hirogen she knew.

"No, I managed to run." He brought his eyes back to Tegan. "Whatever you gave me, I am better now. I'd like to get up."

"You need to rest. You've lost a lot of blood." She patted his hand before standing and almost falling over.

"Your injury needs to be tended to." Seven grabbed her arm to steady her.

"It's not my injury." She pulled the hypospray out of her medkit and quickly shoved a vial into it before pressing it to her neck and injecting it. She looked at Tuvok and lowered her voice. "He's dying."

Tuvok gave her a single nod and turned to the man. "How many were there?"

"Four."

"Four against two; that figures."

Tegan looked at B'Elanna.

"What? The Hirogen aren't known for fighting fair."

Tegan turned when she heard the dog whine to see him nosing the man's hand. She stepped up to him and ran the tricorder over him one last time. "He's gone."

"What are we waiting around for?" B'Elanna drew their attention. "Let's go before they start hunting us."

When they were close enough to the Delta Flyer to see it they could also see all four Hirogen guarding the vessel. They quietly backed off. Two hours later the Hirogen were still pacing around the shuttle.

Seven looked down as she felt something cool and wet on her hand. The humidity in the air seemed to be keeping the mud on his coat from drying and Seven watched as the dog took an oversized paw and sat it on Tegan's thigh. Her eyes traveled up to see Tegan's head tilted to the side and her eyes closed. She pulled the hypospray out that Tegan had used earlier and checked the contents, it was Cortropine a standard issue stimulant in Starfleet medical kits. She touched it to Tegan's neck and pushed the button but there was no release of the medication.

Tuvok turned and looked at her as she shook the device. "I do not believe that will help."

She looked up at him. "It is jammed or something."

B'Elanna glanced down and back at to the Hirogen as Seven pulled out the tricorder. "She has an infection settling in her shoulder. We need to get her to the Delta Flyer."

"Easier said than done." B'Elanna watched the dirty dog take off running through the underbrush making a ruckus which seemed to get louder the further away from them he got. Finally when he was almost directly across from them he started barking and three of the Hirogen took off after him. "I guess he does know how to bark."

"We need to go now." Tuvok checked his phaser as B'Elanna nodded that she was with him. "We will clear the way. Seven you can help Dr. Kiser."

"Help?" Seven looked at the unresponsive woman for a second before picking her up and tossing her over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

Tuvok began to lift off once they were all in the Flyer.