Chapter Twelve
The figures were unlike anyone Chakotay or Harry had ever seen in their entire time in the Delta Quadrant, not that that was out of the ordinary given how large the quadrant was. With the help of the torch one of the aliens held aloft, they were able to get a closer look at the strangers. The aliens had deep red flesh, and a ridge that ran along their noses, bisecting their forehead before disappearing over their hairless heads and along their spines. They looked just as confused as the away team. Their yellow eyes exchanged fleeting glances before fixing their gaze back to Chakotay and Harry, who were still sprawled on the ground trying to figure out what was going on. Chakotay's hand twitched, ready at a moment's notice to reach for the phaser on his hip.
One of the aliens turned to the other and said, "They don't look Kalrussian."
"How would you know what a Kalrussian looks like?" the other snapped.
"I've seen them from a distance, and they don't look anything like this. They must be some of their victims." Chakotay and Harry exchanged quick glances as they tried to figure out what was going on. They had no idea who these beings were or if they were to be trusted.
Chakotay was the first one to regain his composure. He scrambled to his feet and pulled Harry to his feet as well. The entire time, both men kept their eyes firmly locked on the aliens, wary of who they were and what they were doing down here.
"Can you tell us what the hell is going on?" Chakotay snapped. "And why you stole our supplies." He felt that he should have started with the first question, as it was most pressing given Seven's current condition. The aliens exchanged quick glances, silently communicating for a few moments while thinking of what to say.
"My name is Henan, and this is Notaxi," one of the aliens said as he motioned to himself and his partner. "We are Ighanian. We don't have any of your supplies, but we know who does. We were lured here by a distress signal years ago. It's how they get supplies. They destroyed our shuttle, and we've been stuck here ever since." Chakotay didn't know what to believe, but it did sound an awful lot like what had happened to them. Even so, it would be easy for whoever took their supplies to make up such a story.
"How do we know you aren't the ones who lured us here, and now you're trying to trick us?" he demanded.
"Because right now the Kalrussians are using the plasma storm as cover to raid your shuttle for more supplies," Notaxi replied in a surprisingly calm voice. "They only strike during the storms so they don't get caught. Surely you've noticed that by now. Every time there's a plasma storm, more of your supplies go missing."
"There's nothing left to take. Everything is gone," Chakotay snapped in an annoyed voice. He didn't know why these Kalrussians or whoever they were kept going back to the shuttle, there wasn't anything to take; it was like beating a dead horse. "Which is why we need to get to our shuttle. If you're telling the truth, then we need to get back and stop them. They have some supplies one of our crew members desperately needs." He spun around to walk back in the direction that he came. If they were going to get back Seven's mobile regenerator, their best bet was to head back to the shuttle immediately. Henan immediately reached out and grabbed his shoulder, spinning him around in the process.
"They'll be long gone by the time you get back there," he stated. "I'm sorry."
"Regardless, we have to try," Harry argued. "We have a crew member in critical condition, and her only hope for survival is to get what they took."
"Lead us to where these Kalruss live," Chakotay directed. If these people really were who they said they were, then they would be able to take them to wherever they lived. "We'll turn the tables and take back what they took from us." Chakotay sounded excited at the notion of finally getting back Seven's mobile regenerator. Henan sighed helplessly.
"We don't know where they live," he admitted. "We've searched all over the place. They come in these large ships, raid whoever comes to help them, and then they leave again. For all we know, they live on the other side of the planet. I'm sorry." Just like that, any hope Chakotay had about getting Seven her mobile regenerator was gone in the blink of an eye. With how poorly this away mission had been going, he should have expected such a setback.
Henan and Notaxi felt for the strangers. They could see the desperation in their eyes and hear it in their voices. While they normally avoided those who the Kalrussians stranded on this planet, this was unavoidable. These strangers had stumbled upon them, and now they felt obligated to help them, especially if one of their own was in critical condition.
"We'll help you," Henan announced. "We have become proficient at surviving here. Where is your injured crewmember?" Notaxi seemed less than pleased with his friend's announcement, but he couldn't exactly say no.
"That's part of the problem," Harry explained. "There was a cave in from a plasma storm a few days again. Two of our crewmembers are trapped in the caves. We've been down here looking for them ever since. We have no idea how to get to them."
"We know where they are from the outside, but no idea how to get to them from down below," Chakotay added. With the newfound information, Henan and Natoxi turned to talk for several moments in low, hushed voices about how to proceed from here. This gave Chakotay and Harry a chance to discuss the situation as well.
"Commander, do you think we can trust them?" Harry questioned quietly. Chakotay sighed. He'd been having the same thought. It was a risk they'd taken countless times during their time traveling across the Delta Quadrant. There had been numerous times when the Captain had put her trust in alien races when Chakotay had his doubts. Thoughts of working with the Borg immediately came to mind. It seemed like a lifetime ago, and Chakotay hadn't trusted Seven at all and now, he was willing to throw all caution to the wind to save her. At the same time, these could be the very people who took their supplies leading them into a trap.
"I don't know," he finally admitted. "But it's the only chance we have at rescuing Seven and Tom. We have to take that risk. Just be ready at a moment's notice in case anything goes wrong."
"Aye, Sir." Harry had a bad feeling about this, but he knew that Chakotay was right. If they had any hope of getting to Tom and Seven, they had to put their trust in these strangers. Of course, everyone they met in the Delta Quadrant was a stranger. After so many years, they were able to figure out who to trust and who not to trust. There were several alarm bells going off in the back of Chakotay's mind, but he also felt that he could trust them. For the time being, they would go with them, but he was ready to change his mind if necessary.
Henan and Notaxi appeared to have come to a final decision as well. Their low murmuring had stopped, and they waited patiently for Harry and Chakotay to finish their conversation as well.
"We'll help you find your friends," Henan announced proudly. Chakotay waited to hear if there were any conditions to their agreement. "Show us where your friends are." Relief washed over him. They didn't have anything to bargain with, so he was glad to hear that. With any luck, he'd at least be by Seven's side by the end of the day.
"How do we get out of here?" Harry asked as he looked around. They'd been running blindly through the caves and had no idea how to get back to the surface.
"Follow us." Henan and Notaxi began to pick up a small collection of bags on the ground. Neither Chakotay nor Harry had noticed the small collection of personal effects until just now. They'd been too caught up in trying to figure out what was going on to really take in their surroundings. Now that they had a chance, they noticed that they had stumbled upon a small camp of sorts. There appeared to be remnants of a campfire amongst the personal items.
Henan and Notaxi each shouldered their bags. Notaxi stamped out the last remnants of the small fire in the pit they'd created while Henan held up the torch so he could see.
"So, where are your friends?" Notaxi asked.
"We only know where they are from the outside," Harry replied. "But we're not entirely sure how to get out of here."
"We know how to get outside," Henan announced. "Follow us." Still feeling wary of their guides, Chakotay unholstered his phaser and held it by his side. His fingers twitched anxiously, ready to spring into action at a moment's notice in case these were the people who raided their shuttle in the first place.
The heat was unbearable. Sweat poured down Seven's neck and made it difficult for her to concentrate. It smothered her, nearly suffocating her; environmental controls must be malfunctioning. She looked up at the large screen that stretched in front of her, taking up nearly the entire wall. She did a double take. The stars in front of her were completely unfamiliar to her, causing her heart pounded in her chest anxiously. There had to be some sort of mistake with the sensors, causing them to distort the readings and create nonsensical readings. She knew she didn't know every inch of the Delta Quadrant, but she figured she would recognize at least some aspect of the star chart in front of her, especially since these readings were supposed to be from the stars in the immediate vicinity, but that wasn't the case here. None of the stars or planets in front of her looked the least bit familiar. There had to be some sort of error with the computer. She flitted between consoles nervously in an attempt to figure out what was going on and rectify the situation before the Captain found out and expressed disappointment in her.
The door to astrometrics lab slid open and quickly shut again. Seven glanced up for a second but not long enough to see who had joined her. She was more focused on trying to figure out why she didn't recognize any of the stars or planets on her screen and fix the problem quickly and efficiently.
"Seven." It was Chakotay. For some reason, his presence made her feel more anxious. When it came to him more than anyone else, she wanted to ensure perfection whenever it came to him. "What is going on here?" He sounded agitated. The tone surprised her. He was always so calm and comforting with her, even if she struggled with something.
"What do you mean?" she asked as she brushed past him to access another console. She still had no idea why the sensors weren't working.
"I've been asking for the latest report on the next star systems we're going to encounter in our path for the past three days, and I have yet to see them."
"I, I'm sorry, Commander, but I'm having a little trouble with the computers." There was a hint of emotion in Seven's voice as she tried to remain calm, but his presence made that difficult. Chakotay started typing on one of the consoles. His expression told her that he wasn't at all convinced.
"Everything looks functional," he stated bluntly. Unamused, he leaned against one of the consoles and crossed his arms over his chest while glaring angrily at her. His expression caught her off guard as she wiped a line of sweat from her brow. How could he not be sweating? It had to be at least thirty-five degrees in here, yet he looked completely unfazed by the temperature. "You know, when Captain Janeway brought you aboard as her little 'project', I thought it was a terrible idea. I told her that you wouldn't be able to handle it." His words stung. They felt like a knife to her heart. His tone caused her to take a step back. She'd heard him use that short, clipped tone with other crewmen, but it hadn't been directed towards her before. He had always been gentle, tender towards her, especially recently. He always had the utmost patience with her while simultaneously pushing her to be the best and helping her as she continued to discover her human side.
"I am struggling with making sense of the current star charts," she admitted. Perhaps if she came clean, then he would be able to help her. Chakotay raised his eyebrow.
"Excuse me?"
"I do not recognize the star charts, I have never before seen these systems before, therefore I cannot provide adequate information about them. I apologize, Commander."
"Well, maybe we should send you back to the Borg," Chakotay snapped. Seven looked horrified at the very notion. The crew of Voyager had always jumped through hoops to make sure the Collective never got its hands on her again, and now Chakotay was openly suggesting that she should just go back. It was as if he didn't want her here in the first place, as if he didn't care about her.
Seven muttered under her breath and shook her head side to side. Worry lines creased her alabaster skin as sweat beaded across her furrowed brow. Seeing her discomfort, Tom immediately scrambled into action as his medical training set in. He gently dabbed her forehead with the damp sleeve of his shirt. He knew it wouldn't do much to lower her fever, but it would hopefully help her be more comfortable. She hastily pushed away the sleeping bag.
"Too hot," she muttered. "Too hot." He pulled off the sleeping bag and recoiled in a combination of disgust and horror. The sleeping bag was covered in a layer of sweat. He'd been so wrapped up in trying to figure out a plan to get them out of here that hadn't realized she was overheating right in front of him. Up until now, he thought she was resting peacefully. He spread the sleeping bag out on the far side of the cave to dry out before turning his attention back to Seven. He left the sleeve of his shirt draped across her forehead in an attempt to keep her cool and pulled out his tricorder. His scans told him that her temperature was back up to a hundred and four. It was impossible to consistently regulate her temperature; all he could do was keep a close eye on her and monitor her condition to the best of his ability given the fact he had absolutely no medical supplies at hand.
After being in the depths of the caves for a few hours, the sunlight outside was blinding to Harry and Chakotay. They both squinted and looked down as their eyes adjusted to the brightness. Henan and Notaxi seemed completely unbothered by the light and pressed on without a second thought as they entered the stifling heat outside. They walked several meters before turning around. They couldn't continue without Harry and Chakotay, they had no idea where they were going. Once they were able to see properly, Harry and Chakotay joined them outside. They looked around in an attempt to figure out where they were. It took them several moments to gain their composure and take in their surroundings. Chakotay knew exactly where they were; they were approximately five kilometers from their camp.
"This way," he announced as he began to lead the way. Harry fell into step next to him as they walked back towards the camp. Harry glanced over his shoulder to see where they'd come out. He could barely see the opening, it was set down in the ground and concealed by a cluster of rocks and bushes. Once again, it was an incredibly well hidden entrance that they would have never been able to find it on their own.
"Commander," Harry said softly. "Even if we find Tom and Seven, we don't have her mobile regenerator. If the Kalrussians' camp is really as far away as Henan and Notaxi say, then we have no way of getting it." Usually the hopelessly optimistic one, he hated to be the bearer of bad news, but someone had to say what both of them were thinking.
"I know," Chakotay admitted. "I'm hoping that Seven will know how to use something on the shuttle to regenerate." Harry didn't bring up the fact that there's nothing on the shuttle that Seven could use to regenerate, he'd already been over the flyer with a fine tooth comb and had a fairly good understanding of Borg technology. Besides, if Seven's condition was as bad as Tom made it out to be, then she wouldn't be in any condition to help. Harry didn't dare say any of this to Chakotay though, these thoughts were probably the only thing that probably kept him going right now.
The addition of sunlight allowed Chakotay and Harry to get a better look at their guides as they lead them towards their camp. Both aliens wore coarse, homespun clothes that appeared to be made out of the materials they found here on the planet. The free flowing tunics ended a few inches above the ground with sleeves that ended halfway between their elbows and wrists, revealing their deep red arms mottled with dark brown markings dancing across the flesh. Their coloring and eyes gave them a hostile appearance, but their movements were calm and gentle as if to counteract their appearance. Both men hand large bags slung across their backs. Chakotay assumed that those bags held all their possessions, although he couldn't be certain. There was still so much they didn't know about them.
When they arrived back at camp, Chakotay immediately went to the shuttle, not the cave; he needed to see something. The action caught Harry off guard, but he ultimately decided to follow the First Officer with Henan and Notaxi right behind him. He would have thought that Chakotay would have wanted to show Henan and Notaxi the cave so they could start looking for a way to get to Tom and Seven right away. Tricorder in hand, Chakotay entered the shuttle and began to look around. Just like before, the device picked up no signs of the intruders. When he looked around, however, he instantly knew that someone had been there. He ran his hand over the con. Crude scratch marks marred the perimeter of the panel. Closer examination revealed that they were some sort of tool marks. Someone had tried to remove it.
"Harry, I want you to check and see the damage done to all systems," he ordered. "Make sure all the gel packs are still in place. Remove any from the damaged systems but make sure to keep the ones that run the comm system in place. See if there's any way we can reroute power from the gel packs to help Seven." Chakotay knew that the gel packs would be incompatible with Seven's Borg implants, but it was the only shot they had right now.
"Aye, Sir." Harry immediately got to work checking the gel packs. If he was going to get this done in a timely fashion, then he needed to get started right away. The shuttle ran on dozens of gel packs, and it would take a while to check the status on each one before carefully removing each one.
Once Harry started his task, Chakotay lead Henan and Notaxi towards the cave. The Ighanians walked on either side of the First Officer. They'd only seen a glimpse of the shuttle, but it appeared to be relatively in tact, which surprised them. Usually the Kalrussians stripped ships to almost nothing within a few days.
"You're lucky," Notaxi commented in a cheerful voice that made Chakotay want to grind his teeth. Of all the ways he'd describe himself, he definitely wouldn't use the word "lucky". "Your shuttle appears to be in good condition. The Kalrussians have left you with most of it still in tact. Ours was stripped to nothing almost instantly."
"Unfortunately, they took the one thing one of our crew members needs to survive," Chakotay said bitterly. "Which is why we need to find them." Henan shook his head.
"That's not going to happen. We've talked to many stranded aliens over the years, and nobody's even sure where they live." Chakotay looked at him.
"Have you tried to find them?" he inquired.
"Many times," Henan replied "When we first got here, that's all we focused on doing. After about a year, we gave up. We realized that it was impossible, especially without our shuttle. We have no idea where their settlement is, so we don't know where to start looking."
"But they always appear during a plasma storm," Chakotay said.
"Usually, yes." Already, he was starting to think of a way to find these mysterious Kalrussians. All they needed was another plasma storm, which seemed common enough around here. He had a plan.
Harry carefully examined the remaining functioning systems as he carefully removed the gel packs. What he wouldn't give to have B'Elanna here right now. Not only would she be able to find a way to reroute the power from the gel packs to help Seven regenerate, but she would also figure out a way to get the shuttle up and running. Working on the fly with minimal supplies was her area of expertise. Based on what he saw and his understanding of engineering, it simply couldn't be done. He didn't want to be the one to tell Chakotay that though, and Harry wasn't about to give up either. He cared deeply for Seven, and he was determined to find some way to make this work.
Chakotay stood at the mouth of the cave with Henan and Notaxi. They carefully analyzed the cave and the debris from the cave in, nodding and murmuring to each other under their breath as they discussed where this cave lead to. Chakotay silently prayed that they would be able to lead them to the other side of the cave in without a problem. This was their only shot to get to Seven and Tom. These men appeared to have a firm understanding of how to navigate the caves, which meant they were their only hope. Their murmuring didn't bode well in Chakotay's opinion. Finally, Henan and Notaxi turned to face him.
"We know how to get to where your friends around," Henan announced proudly. "But it's not an easy journey; it's no wonder you couldn't find them on your own. We'll need to leave right away if we want to get them today." Chakotay glanced at the shuttle. Harry would have to finish removing the gel packs later, this was far more important, they were finally going to get to Seven and Tom.
Lost in his own thoughts, Harry didn't hear Chakotay calling him right away. He carefully stacked the gel packs in his outer uniform tunic, which served as a makeshift bundle. It was the best he could do given his limited supplies. As he removed the gel packs, he tried to think of some way to use them to regenerate Seven. It was pointless. Without her mobile regenerator, there was nothing he could do, he needed something to harness the power supply from the gel packs.
"Harry!" His head shot up. Unaccustomed to hearing someone shout his name instead of coming up on his comm badge, he listened again to make sure he heard correctly. "Harry!" He wasn't hearing things, Chakotay was calling him. Temporarily abandoning his task, he tripped over his feet and stumbled towards the back of the shuttle. "Henan and Notaxi are going to lead us to Seven and Tom. Let's go." Harry didn't need to be told twice. He grabbed his tunic with the half dozen or so gel packs that he had managed to remove and securely closed the hatch of the system he was working on. He would have to finish this later and hope the Kalrussians didn't come and remove any gel packs on their own.
Tightly clutching his tunic in his hand, Harry jogged over to Chakotay, Notaxi and Henan where they waited halfway between the mouth of the cave and the shuttle. As soon as Notaxi saw Harry's makeshift bundle, he reached into his bag and pulled out a smaller bag. Both bags appeared to be made out of the same material as their clothes.
"Here, use this," he insisted as he handed over the bag.
"Thanks," Harry said with a grateful nod as he took the bag. He knelt down and carefully transferred the gel packs to the bag before pulling on his tunic and swinging the bag over his shoulder.
"Henan and Notaxi said they can lead us to Seven and Tom," Chakotay stated.
"It's a long journey," Henan explained.
"That doesn't bother either of us," Harry assured. "We need to get to the rest of our away team." Henan nodded as if Harry had just answered correctly and passed some sort of test.
"Good, let's get going." There was an undeniable bounce in Chakotay's step as they walked. While they still had no idea how to help Seven regenerate, at least he would be able to see her for himself as assess the severity of the situation.
Tom felt himself getting restless. He paced along the cave in front of the cave-in. He needed to do something, anything, but he knew he couldn't leave Seven. All he could do was wait and hope for the best. He hated not knowing when Chakotay and Harry would show up or even if they would show up. Both men were fiercely loyal and determined, but there were doubts in the back of his mind. For all he knew, they could show up in five minutes or in five days. He looked down at Seven. She appeared to be resting peacefully, at least for right now. He checked her temperature with his tricorder for what felt like the hundredth time. It was the same as before, a hundred and four. He wiped her head with the makeshift washcloth, causing her to mumble and push away his hand in protest.
He could just barely make out her saying, "Too cold." He ignored her protests. Her body temperature was far too high, and he needed to do something to help bring it down, even just a little.
It impressed Chakotay and Harry how easily Henan and Notaxi were able to navigate the underground caves. It only took a few minutes for both men to become turned around and utterly lost. At first, Chakotay tried to keep track of all the twist and turns they took, just in case they needed to get out of here quickly, but it didn't take long for him to lose track. He hoped that this wasn't a trick to get them turned around before stealing what few supplies they had left. Perhaps they should have left the gel packs hidden back at camp, although they could have been stolen by the Kalrussians if Henan and Notaxi were telling the truth. Chakotay knew that there was no way to win in this situation. This was the best shot they had at getting to Seven and Tom. Besides, he felt that he could trust the Ighanians, everything they'd said said had been true so far.
Harry fell into step next to Henan. As he walked, the gel packs rattled faintly against his hip. He tried to walk as gently as possible so as to not damage them, but it was difficult in the rugged underground terrain. If he did, he knew B'Elanna would kill him in the most painful way possible. As much as he didn't want to disappoint the Captain by damaging the gel packs, he knew to fear B'Elanna's temper more. Henan turned left abruptly, catching Harry off guard. He hadn't even seen the opening, even with the help of the torch in Henan's hand.
"You guys seem to know these caves really well," Harry observed.
"We usually live down here," Henan explained. "When we first got here, we lived up on the surface, but the Kalrussians kept raiding our camp. There were a few times that they came without a plasma storm hitting, but those moments are pretty rare."
"That was only once or twice," Notaxi argued. "Hardly worth noting."
"So you've lived here for years, and you have no idea what these Kalrussians look like?" Chakotay asked. He sounded skeptical. He found it hard to believe that they had no idea what these deceitful aliens looked like.
"We've seen them from a distance," Henan explained. "We've talked to other races trapped here who have seen them and tried to confront them, but we've never actually seen them up close. We live down in the caves, the Kalrussians don't come down in the caves. We don't know why, but it gives us a place to live undisturbed."
"If other alien races have been stranded here, where are they?" Harry inquired. Notaxi shrugged.
"Most are eventually rescued, but it sometimes takes a few weeks or even a few months." Chakotay's heart sank. Based on what Tom told them, Seven didn't have a few weeks, she'd be lucky if she had a few days; Voyager would have to get here much faster. "There are a handful like us who have scattered across the desert. We run into them sometimes, but we usually keep to ourselves." Chakotay carefully absorbed the information from Henan and Notaxi. He needed to find the Kalrussians, they were the only ones who could really help Seven. Unfortunately, he had no idea how to go about doing that. These aliens were like ghosts.
Moaning softly, Seven opened her eyes. Her teeth chattered, and her entire body shook violently as she attempted to get warm. Oblivious to the fact that she was awake, Tom paced nervously several meters away. Seven attempted to prop herself on one elbow but regretted it right away. Dizziness immediately washed over her, and, unable to support her weight, her arm gave out from under her, sending her crashing back down to the ground. Pain shot through her arm, and her head made a dull, sickening thud as it came in contact with the ground. A few stray tears sprang up in her eyes as she groaned. The noise caused Tom to spin around.
"Seven," he exclaimed. "What happened?" He scrambled to her side and hovered over her while trying to figure out what had happened.
"I tried to sit up," Seven explained weakly. The fact that her teeth kept chattering made it difficult to understand her. In one fluid movement, Tom pulled out the tricorder and began to scan her. Her temperature was still the same, but her condition hadn't otherwise changed.
"You don't have a concussion," he announced. "But next time you want to sit up, let me help you." Seven nodded meekly. She was unaccustomed to asking for help. When she needed something, she always did it on her own. She shouldn't need to beg for help to do something as simple as sitting up.
"Yes….Lieutenant." Tom knew he was losing her to sleep once again.
"Just Tom," he insisted. "After all these years together, you can just call me Tom."
"Tom…" Seven murmured as she drifted off to sleep once again.
Despite the extreme loneliness that came from Seven sleeping all the time, Tom was grateful that she wasn't awake. He could tell that every time she was awake she was in pain and suffering greatly. At least when she was asleep, she appeared to be at ease or at least more so than when she was awake. Unfortunately, Tom wasn't awarded the same luxury. He needed to stay awake and keep an eye on Seven. It was an exercise in futility though. All he could do was continue to monitor her constantly deteriorating condition and do his best to make her as comfortable as possible while anxiously waiting for Chakotay and Harry to show up. There was nothing worse than sitting around and waiting, unsure if respite would ever come.
Chakotay felt himself getting anxious. He knew they had been walking for hours. They should be at Seven and Tom's camp by now. In the back of his mind, he hoped Henan and Notaxi weren't leading them in circles to disorient them as a part of some sort of nefarious plan.
As if he could read the First Officer's mind, Henan assured, "We're almost there."
"We warned you that it was a long journey," Notaxi added. Chakotay nodded. They had warned them that it would be a long walk to Seven and Tom's camp, but he didn't expect it to be quite this long. "We'll need to join your colleagues at their camp for the night."
"We need to stay close to our shuttle," Chakotay argued. "Our crew will be looking for us near there."
"We'll go back," Notaxi assured. "Tomorrow. It'll be too late today, we'll need to rest." Chakotay didn't argue. Beggars can't be choosers, and at least he would be by Seven's side once again.
Almost in unison, Henan and Notaxi both slowed to a stop. Confused, Harry and Chakotay followed their lead. They looked around. This couldn't be it, there was no sign of Tom or Seven anywhere. Henan carefully analyzed their surroundings. Anxiety began to build up inside of Chakotay as he too looked around, longing to see a flash of Seven's platinum blonde hair or Tom's red uniform, but instead he only saw more of the same caves they'd been stuck in all day. Had this been a wild goose chase the entire time? He looked over at the Ighanians, who were murmuring to each other under their breath. Unsure what was going to happen next, Chakotay's fingers brushed against his phaser, ready at any moment to pull it out and defend himself. He glanced over at Harry, who seemed equally apprehensive.
"You're friends are up to the left," Notaxi finally announced. It was such a simple sentence, yet it made Chakotay's heart soar. Finally, after being apart for five days, the away team was about to be reunited.
Tom sat on the floor of his quarters next to Miral, who was stretched out on a blanket. He tickled her pudgy belly playfully. The infant squealed with delight at her father's unwavering attention and kicked her fat legs. Smiling, B'Elanna sat down next to him and handed him a glass of water. He shared her happiness as he looped an arm around her waist and pulled her close, pressing a loving kiss to her temple.
"We missed you," B'Elanna informed him as she settled against him. Their bodies fit together perfectly, like two pieces to a puzzle.
"I missed you guys too." Longing for someone to pay attention to her, Miral grabbed a hold of Tom's finger. She was already so strong; she'd be a fighter like his mother. A week away from his family was far too long for him to be away. From now on, he'd ask the Captain for only short away missions if at all possible.
"Tom?" He hadn't realized that he had spaced out.
"Huh?" Something didn't seem right. That wasn't B'Elanna's voice. Confusion flashed across his face. It was his wife sitting next to him, but it was Chakotay's voice.
"Tom, what's wrong?" B'Elanna asked as she reached over to stroke his cheek. Her voice was back to normal, back to the voice he knew and loved more than anything else in the world, but the mishap still left him feeling deeply shaken. He recoiled in horror as he tried to figure out what was going on.
Nearly jumping out of his skin, Tom cried out and jerked awake. Gasping, his head whipped around as he tried to figure out what the hell had just happened. It had all been a dream. He didn't even remember falling asleep; he'd sat down to rest for a few moments, or so he thought. Shaking slightly, Tom got to his feet and went over to check on Seven. His heart continued to pound in his chest as he regained his composure and scanned her with his tricorder. She appeared to be resting as comfortably as possible given her current condition. As he brushed her hair back from her face, he heard the distant voices again.
"Tom? Seven?" His head shot up. Was he still dreaming? This certainly felt real, but, then again, so did his dream just a few moments earlier. No, all of this was real, he could feel Seven's blazing hot flesh under his touch, telling him he was very much awake.
"We're right here!" Tom called as he got to his feet and rushed in the direction of the voices. "Harry! Commander! We're here." Four distant figures began to take shape. A smile spread across Tom's face. It looked like Voyager had come back for them. They would be able to get Seven out of here and back to her alcove, and it would quickly be nothing more than a distant nightmare.
Unable to help himself, Tom broke out into a jog as he rushed to meet his rescuers. When he got closer, he was able to get a better look at them with the help of the torch one of them held. The smile momentarily faded from his face. While it was Chakotay and Harry standing in front of him, they were accompanied by two strange looking aliens. A sobering realization washed over him. While Harry and Chakotay were here, nobody else from Voyager was with them, which meant this ordeal was far from over.
Author's Note: Be sure to leave a review and check out my other fic, Adjustment Period, which is another Chakotay/Seven fic. It's completely different from this one and will be part of a trilogy.