"Report!" Captain Janeway strode onto her bridge as purposefully as ever with Lieutenant Paris in her wake.
Chakotay stood when she entered. He nodded at the viewscreen, "It looks like a temporal rift, judging by the tachyon emissions."
"What is causing it?"
"We are still trying to figure that out, Captain," came Harry's reply.
Kathryn glanced to her left. Tom was hovering near her elbow, seemingly unsure whether to be pilot or medic at the moment. She raised one eyebrow and he took the hint. As he stepped towards his station he cast a meaningful look towards Chakotay, who glanced at her, then back back at Tom and nodded. The silent communication didn't escape her notice and she could make an educated guess what it all had been about, yet it fascinated her. Tom would make a good first officer for Chakotay, she mused. A small part of her laughed at the notion that her ship would be brought home by the renegade she was sent out to capture and the convict she had taken on as an observer. But the Alpha quadrant was far away still. Right now they would need to do what was best for the ship. Tuvok was to be considered, of course, yet he might just agree.
Kathryn gazed at the phenomenon again and mentally shook her head. A temporal rift. Temporal! She didn't like the sound of it. At least that headache would be kept at bay by the painkillers, she thought wryly.
As she stepped around her first officer she dared to touch his upper arm, looking up at him with questioning eyes. His responding look was cautious but warm and something heavy in her heart lifted. Her lips curled into a crooked smile. They would be okay. At the very least he would stand behind her professionally, but she had the profound hope that the bonds of their friendship, while stretched, were still in place and could be strengthened once more. She owed him an apology and she would make the time to talk to him tonight.
The command team sat down in their respective chairs and Kathryn observed the phenomenon with curiosity.
"I'm detecting nadion discharges on the other side of the rift," Tuvok stated.
"Weapons fire?" asked Chakotay.
"It's possible. The signature appears to be Klingon."
Kathryn frowned and pursed her lips. What was going on here? She was sorely tempted to ask Q or q to show themselves, as surely father, son or both had their meddling hands in this. She called for a red alert instead.
"There's a vessel coming through the rift," Tuvok said as impassively as he would read a weather report.
"Klingon?"
"No. Federation."
Kathryn felt her pulse quicken, but it treacherously beat "temporal rift, temporal rift" against her temples. She fully expected either Captain Braxton or Lieutenant Ducane to hail them from this shuttle and lead them all into another temporal nightmare.
"We are being hailed," Harry announced.
She braced herself. 'Here goes,' she thought. "On screen!"
"Recalibrate your deflector to emit an anti-tachyon pulse. You have to seal that rift," called the woman in the shuttle who had nothing in common with the crew of the Relativity or the Q and yet, despite looking older, was very familiar.
"Seven?" Kathryn cried in astonishment.
"Well, technically it's Captain Hansen. But let's leave formal introductions for later. For now, please close the rift, Captain, or this will be a rather uncomfortable family reunion. The Klingons are on my tail."
"Do it," she ordered and watched as the rift closed, keeping the Klingons safely in… in the Alpha quadrant?
"I did what you asked, Captain Hansen. Now tell me what is going on."
The woman who looked so much like an older Seven - she even had her Borg implants - smiled. "I've come to bring Voyager home. Permission to dock my shuttle, Captain?"
Home. The thought made her dizzy. Could they really be so close to the end of their journey? Kathryn took three steadying breaths. She needed to stay calm. They have had other opportunities before, and they were still here.
"Permission granted." She stood and looked around. Chakotay, too, rose from his seat, indicating that he wanted to join her. Kathryn nodded.
"Chakotay, Tuvok, Seven, you are with me. We'll be in the shuttle bay to greet our visitor. Lieutenant Paris, you have the conn."
"Well, life in the Delta quadrant never gets boring, does it?" she addressed Chakotay.
A tentative smile flitted over his face. "Certainly not."
—
The group waited patiently as the shuttle's ramp was lowered. As Captain Hansen walked down, Kathryn automatically donned her diplomatic smile and stretched out her hand. "Welcome aboard."
"It's good to be back!" the other woman exclaimed. But she ignored her hand and wrapped the perplexed Kathryn in her arms instead.
It was one thing to be hugged by a colleague in a friendly gesture, another to be hugged by a virtual stranger. Yet, she kept her face neutral, knowing that Tuvok and Chakotay were watching her closely for any sign of danger, even though the hug was already taking longer than necessary and became slightly uncomfortable. She peeked at Seven, their Seven, who watched the scene playing out in front of her with raised eyebrows and a curious expression. She could hardly believe that this woman was an older version of the cool and collected ex-Borg if she was at all whom she claimed to be.
"Apologies Captain, but it is so good to see you again. You, too, Commander." Both Chakotay and Tuvok received a quick hug as well as the same nostalgic smile she had bestowed upon Kathryn. With a sinking feeling in her heart, Kathryn realized that she probably wouldn't be the only casualty over the next few years. Captain Hansen's demeanor changed to one of haughty superiority when she regarded her younger self, the smile turned indulgent as she nodded at her. Kathryn bristled. Her protégée had come far in these past four years and their guest would do well to acknowledge that.
"Should we get going? No doubt, you would like the Doctor to affirm my identity." The older woman left no room for arguments and turned to the door in an all too familiar way.
"No doubt," muttered Kathryn and shook her head. After signaling her companions, they followed their guest to the sickbay.
They walked briskly down the corridor trying to keep up with Captain Hansen. When they finally reached the turbo lift, Kathryn was out of breath; her heart was racing and sweat was forming on her brow. She felt Captain Hansen's eyes on her. As she looked up, she could see the concern in them as well as a silent apology. The others caught on and regarded her in a similar fashion. She glared at them in turn. Even so, the ensuing walk through the corridors of deck five was at a much more leisurely pace.
"Captain, do you require my assistance at this time? Icheb has asked for my help with his calculations in astrometrics," asked Seven just as they reached the doors to sickbay. It was all too clear that the presence of her supposedly older self made her uncomfortable.
Before Kathryn could say anything, Captain Hansen jumped in. "Your presence is not required at this moment and the Doctor most certainly has your medical file up to date. We will call you if we need you. You may go."
Seven ignored the older woman and waited patiently for her captain to dismiss her.
"I think she is right, Seven. I am sure Icheb would appreciate your help," Kathryn said kindly. She then turned to Captain Hansen.
"Please remember that this is not your ship, Captain, and refrain from ordering my crew around," she said sternly.
"Apologies, Captain Janeway. Interacting with my younger self is quite disconcerting. I forgot how naive she had been."
"She has only been freed from the collective four years ago and has grown into a remarkable young woman and valuable member of my crew."
"Of course." Captain Hansen's face softened with an appreciative smile. "I have missed your council, Captain."
Even though she had yet to tell them outright, Kathryn understood the implications that in the other woman's timeline they hadn't found a cure in time. She swallowed. It was one thing to know of the possibility, another to know of the surety. Chakotay's small gasp and the fleeting look of agony that crossed his features told her that he most likely came to the same conclusion. But they couldn't dwell on that.
"Shall we?" She pointed towards the door.
Seeing the Doctor's face when they entered sickbay was worth it, though.
"Seven!" he cried aghast. "What happened?"
"This isn't our Seven, Doctor," Kathryn said amused. "This is Captain Hansen, a visitor from the future."
"Annika Hansen, formerly known as Seven of Nine, 26 years into your future to be precise," Captain Hansen informed him.
"Ah, and you just suddenly appeared out of nowhere?" Everyone could hear his indignation that he had seemingly been left out of the hoop once again.
"In a manner of speaking, yes Doctor. I've just arrived at these temporal and spatial coordinates."
"We literally have got as little information as you have, Doctor," Kathryn tried to placate him. "Would you please verify her claims so that we can gather some more?"
Nobody said a word as long as the Doctor worked, but the air crackled with anticipation.
"Captain Hansen is in perfect health, but my scans of the Captain's cerebral cortex turned up something interesting," the Doctor finally broke the silence and directed their attention to a medical display.
"What is it?" Kathryn asked.
"I'm not sure. I've never seen this kind of implant before."
"Alien technology? Borg even?"
"The microcircuitry has a Starfleet signature."
"Of course it does. You invented it. Twelve years ago, from my perspective." Captain Hansen looked at them with an amused expression. "And before you ask, it's a synaptic transceiver. It allows me to pilot a vessel equipped with a neural interface."
"Fascinating. Tell me, what other extraordinary breakthroughs am I going to make?" The Doctor sounded very pleased with himself.
"Doctor! Just finish your report." Kathryn had no patience for his curiosity at this moment. She needed answers!
"Sorry, Captain, but you can't blame a hologram for being curious. Very well. My scans indicate that Captain Hansen here and our Seven are genetically identical. The Captain is Seven, approximately twenty six years from now."
"Now that that's out of the way, I believe we should talk, Captain," Captain Hansen addressed Kathryn.
"Agreed." As she turned to leave, a hand grasped her wrist.
"A word, Captain?"
"Can't it wait?" Kathryn was getting impatient.
"It will only take a moment," the Doctor assured her. She turned back to her companions who waited for her in the open door.
"Chakotay, please take Captain Hansen to my ready room. I will be right behind you. Tuvok, I don't think that security is still necessary. You have the bridge."
"Aye, Captain."
"What is it, Doctor? Something you weren't comfortable to discuss in front of Captain Hansen?" she asked as soon as they were alone.
"So to speak. Nothing regarding our visitor, though. I meant to ask how you are holding up? You look a bit peaky."
"It's nothing," she tried to wave his concerns away.
"Hm. Let your doctor be the judge of that."
He was already holding a tricorder in his hand. Kathryn sighed in resignation. She knew from experience that she would get through things faster if she just relented instead of arguing her case. She seated herself on the nearest biobed.
"Your pulse and blood pressure are quite high," he commented.
"No wonder! We were practically running through deck 10. That woman probably works out every day." Kathryn could barely refrain from rolling her eyes.
"Oh, I am sure she does. She is in excellent shape for a woman her age. And a model patient, too." There was a proud smile on his face as if it had been his achievement alone.
Kathryn tried not to take that personally. She had never endeavored to win the patient-of-the-month award. "Well, if that's all, I'll be on my way."
"Not so fast. While that is a possible explanation for your elevated vitals - ." He paused and looked at her poignantly. "And you should refrain from any exercise at this point. Your weakened heart cannot keep up, anymore."
"No more running around the ship. Got it." Kathryn hopped off the biobed. The Doctor held her back.
"As I was saying, while the recent exertion is a possible explanation for your elevated vitals and certainly contributed to your condition, there is also another factor. Did you know that you are running a fever, Captain?"
"A fever?" Kathryn snatched the tricorder out of the Doctor's hand. "38.1C. I would hardly call that a fever, Doctor."
"Be it as it may, it tells me that your medication is inadequate and that your poor vital signs are most likely due to pain. We should have never switched back."
"We've only switched to the other medication yesterday. How is my condition any worse than the day before?" she asked.
The Doctor sighed. "We should have switched days sooner. And your body is continually weakening. Tell me, have you had any breakthrough pain since I saw you this morning?"
"Yes," she said in a guarded voice.
"Hm, but not now?"
"No."
"Baseline pain then. You shouldn't suffer through that. I will calculate the right dosage now. And then you will rest in your quarters," he stated matter-of-factly.
"You can't be serious!" she exclaimed unbelievingly but with an icy undertone.
"I don't joke about such matters." He had the audacity to walk over to one of the workstations to start his calculations. Kathryn ran after him, grabbed his arm and turned him around to face her.
"We had an agreement, Doctor. I will live with a little pain for a few more hours."
"And what if you don't? I made an error in judgement this morning. The constant pain puts too much stress on your heart."
"It's a risk I am willing to take."
"But I'm not!" He looked at her grimly. "If you can't follow my treatment plan, then I have no choice but to make it an order."
"Which I will override as is my prerogative as captain." There was no way she would just sit back, not on a day like this.
"Only if the safety of the ship is compromised."
"It may very well be." She placed a hand on his arm and tried to reason with him. "Look, Doctor, Captain Hansen came back from the future to offer us a way home!"
"I don't see why Commander Chakotay can't handle that."
"You are right," she conceded. "I may be able to delegate when I have the relevant information. Which I won't get, unless you let me get back to work."
"Will you at least keep your appointment this afternoon?" The Doctor sounded slightly challenging.
"Which appointment?" she asked exasperated.
"Your surgery was scheduled for this afternoon."
Oh, she had completely forgotten about that.
"I am sorry, Doctor, right now I can't make any promises."
"This isn't a date, Captain! It is vital surgery!" the Doctor exclaimed.
"And I have a ship to get home!" She glared at him.
"Even at the cost of your life?" He couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"If that's what it takes!" Her voice was steely. She was breathing hard, her heart hammering in her chest.
"That's it! You are not thinking clearly. As your chief medical officer I will relieve you of duty."
"You wouldn't dare!" Kathryn was furious, black spots started to dance before her eyes.
"Try me! Computer!..."
"Stop! Doctor!" She tried to take a deep breath, which was difficult at the moment. Still, she calmed down somewhat. "Will you please see it from my perspective?" she pleaded.
"Computer, belay that." He turned to her with a serious expression. "I'll try."
"If you had invested your whole being in one very important project for seven years and just when you are very close to a breakthrough, somebody tells you it is time to turn it over to someone else, would you just hand it over and be on your merry way?"
"There is nothing merry about it. You are very ill!" he told her gravely.
"I know! Believe me, Doctor, I know. But I need to see Voyager home. Please, let's see what Captain Hansen is proposing before we make any plans? If our journey takes another few weeks or months, I will consent to surgery, tonight or tomorrow, we may even talk about organ transplants. If we could be home by tonight or tomorrow, then I'll willingly go to Starfleet Medical without complaint. In any case we will start the stronger medication tonight, as per our agreement."
Kathryn swayed. She suddenly felt faint and dizzy, her heart galloping away. Distantly she heard someone call her name or was it her title? She tried to answer, but her tongue was clumsy. Did they need her help? She took one step, or tried to, anyway, as the floor fell away.
When she came around, lying on a biobed, it was shame she first felt. To faint just like that!
"You are awake!" The Doctor was at her side regarding her with an odd expression.
"Mhm. How long was I out?"
"Just a few minutes."
"Long enough! Chakotay and the Captain must be waiting. I should…" She tried to sit up as she spoke. The Doctor gently pushed her back down.
"Easy there, Captain. I've informed the Commander of your delay."
"So, where do we go from here?" she asked, threading his response.
"I still stand by my recommendation to switch to the new regimen now, and for you to rest in your quarters."
"I see." Kathryn rolled onto her side, facing the doors. She felt tears forming in her eyes but she didn't care. The Doctor had proven his point, anyway. She wasn't fit to lead this ship anywhere, not even home.
"Captain," the Doctor called her gently and slightly shook her shoulder. "That doesn't mean I don't understand your plight and your suggestion has merit. I will take you up on it with a few conditions, of course."
She eyed him incredulously. "You mean I can go?"
"Yes, in a few minutes. But you need to take it easy. Rest when you can. Eat. Let the crew help you out, delegate. And contact me when you don't feel well! There is no need for heroics. You can't afford to be heroic, Captain, not this time."
Kathryn nodded in understanding.
"There is something I want to try, though." He showed her the hypospray in his hand. "I would like to add 5 cc's of triptacederine to your pain relief regimen to lessen the pain and the stress to your heart. It is still not ideal, but should help. My simulations show minimal interactions between the drugs, if at all."
"Alright."
He injected the drug. "There. Now rest for a few more minutes."
She draped her arm over her eyes and tried not to fret about what was happening in her ready room. Chakotay would have everything under control.
"How do you feel now?" the Doctor asked fifteen minutes later and helped her sit up. "Your vitals are looking much better."
This time she took a moment to consider. "Not too bad, actually. The pain is receding and I am not dizzy anymore."
"Good." All of a sudden he looked guilty. "I should never have treated you this way, Captain. What kind of doctor gets into an argument with a patient?"
"The kind with the stubborn patient?" she tried to lighten his mood.
He shook his head. "I've acted very unprofessionally and worsened your condition."
"Over the past seven years we've had our moments. It's easy to slip into familiar roles." Her lips formed a half-smile and she patted his shoulder. "Let's face it, Doctor, you are becoming more human by the day." She slid off the bed and found her legs surprisingly steady.
"I am not sure whether to be flattered or offended." He looked a bit miffed. Kathryn laughed.
"The former, definitely. You fit right into our Voyager family with all of its strengths and weaknesses." She started for the door. "Well, I need to get going. I've let Chakotay and Captain Hansen wait for far too long."
"Yes, but Captain…" Kathryn turned in the door.
"I know, I know. No running, jumping or any wrestling matches. No heated arguments with any of my crew, human, bolian or hologram. Order the crew around like a proper captain and let them cater to my every whim. Have I forgotten anything?" She tilted her head.
The Doctor smiled. "Call me."
"I will. I will keep you updated on everything our visitor from the future will share with us. There probably will be another senior staff briefing later. And I will definitely see you this evening."