A sting on Janeway’s back caused her to fall. A second later the girl was on the ground next to her. They both turned to see what had bitten them. Two guards were standing behind them with whips in their hands laughing. Janeway started to get up, but the bite of the whip refused to let her move.
The Servant of the Patron ran frantically though the tunnels. She wasn’t in the fighting at all, which by this time was almost under control and the prisoners were being punished. There was laughter coming from tunnel 841, section G. She prayed it was her.
Her prayers were answered, sort of. The auburn-haired prisoner was being whipped as was the little girl with her. She ordered them to stop and they did. They explained that the prisoners were caught trying to escape and were being punished accordingly. She made them stop. She didn’t care if they punished the girl, but the woman was already spoken for.
Fine, she could have the woman, they would take her punishment out on the girl. They would both learn that no one could try to escape and get away with it. And of course they picked the perfect tunnel to escape down: this was one of the few tunnels that still had the chains on the walls to put disobedient ones in. The girl was put in the smallest set of chains.
The first crack of the whip made Janeway shiver. She backed away and into the legs of the third guard, but she couldn’t take her eyes off the quivering child. She felt each lick like it was her own.
The Servant of the Patron knelt behind the woman. She was shaking uncontrollably. She put her arms around the woman’s shoulders, trying to calm her down. What was the relationship of the girl to the woman? Was it her daughter? Could two unknown prisoners really care so much for each other?
Over and over again the girl was struck, each stroke harder than the last. Blood was pouring from the stripes on her back, mixing with the ooze from other wounds freshly opened. Her tiny body pulled at her bonds, her futile efforts making Janeway neasous. Finally she gave up her struggle and accepted her punishment. She hung, her entire weight supported by the chains. Once there was no unmarked space on her body the guards let her loose.
Janeway broke free of the other’s grip on her shoulders and crawled over to the girl. There was no place on her body that was not bruised, bloodied, or scarred. Janeway saw that the life was almost gone from her eyes. The girl used the last of her strength to raise her hand. Janeway took it and gave it a gentle squeeze. The girl gave a weak smile and closed her eyes for the last time.
Janeway gently let the girl’s hand fall to the ground. It wasn’t right for the girl to die like this. Granted, being a slave was no life, but as long as they were alive there was hope of escape. After all, life in a box is better than no life at all. But now the girl had made the great escape. She would no longer suffer. But her escape was caused by the greatest suffering. No person should have to endure that, especially a child.
She jumped up and lunged at the guards. But in her weakened state, despite the adrenaline rush, she was no match for them. She knew the girl died because she also received Janeway’s punishment. Maybe she could bring the girl back if she got her due.
The Servant of the Patron yelled for them to stop. The woman withered on the ground as though still being whipped. Killing the girl was one thing (inexcusable that they would be punished for), but whipping the woman after they were specifically told not to was another. She ordered them out of the tunnel and back to their posts.
The woman was still now and the Servant of the Patron feared she might have been killed, too. Blood poured from her cuts, mixing with the dirt on the floor of the tunnels. She would need to visit the medical facility before going back to her cell. When she approached the woman she saw tears flowing down her cheeks and she was curled in a fetal ball. The Servant of the Patron lifted her gently in her arms, not caring about the blood soaking into her robe.
She had seen others she cared about die in front of her eyes before. She had seen unfair deaths before, but none as unfair or tragic as this. If she was ever able to look back on these times, Janeway knew this was the point where she lost it. Whatever resolve, control, or strength was left in her died with the little girl.
Okay, this is a dream. I can control it. But he couldn’t control the rising terror in his stomach. And he couldn’t leave the room. He couldn’t get his body to move back to the door.
Chakotay...
I’m here.
Help me, Chakotay...
“Commander, there is no logic behind your...’feelings’. I do not think it is a good idea to place Voyager in danger over some kind of intuition. However, I cannot stop you if you decide to choose this course of action.” Not long ago the Commander had stopped by his quarters and proposed they take Voyager to look for Captain Janeway. He had explained his dream, But Tuvok did not see it as evidence she was in trouble.
Chakotay thought about Tuvok’s words, but only for a brief second. He knew Janeway was in trouble, and he had to help her, with or without Voyager. “Your objection is noted.”
Tuvok rushed on before Chakotay could say more. “I know you are troubled by these nightmares of yours. I suggest you take some time off to evaluate them.” That wasn’t what he meant but he didn’t know a tactful way to speak the truth.
“Tuvok, I-” I don’t know what gave me the idea to try talk to you about this.
“That is an order, Commander.” He knew he couldn’t give Chakotay an order, but if the Commander knew what was good for himself and the crew, he would take some time off voluntarily.
Chakotay stared at Tuvok for a moments, surprised at his gall. It almost made him smile that a Vulcan would try to breach protocol like that. Finally, he gave in. “You’re right, as usual. Tuvok, you’re in command until I have...evaluated myself.” He left the Ready Room and the bridge. Who’s he kidding. I know he wanted me out of there so I didn’t make any rash decisions.
Janeway awoke warm for the first time since they arrived at the conference on Pallis. The cold outside permeated everything on the planet, despite the heaters installed for off-world guests. The main reason she was cold was because the heater their last room had decided to spit out cold air and refused to be fixed. Because of the numerous delegates and ambassadors, the Pallins were running short on accommodations. Janeway and her first officer were now sharing a one bedroom apartment.
And at the moment they were sharing a bed.
The night before Chakotay had given her the double bed while he slept on the couch under some blankets. Who said chivalry was dead? But after an hour she wasn’t any warmer or asleep and she didn’t think he was either. She got out of bed and walked through the cold room to the cold living room. She could just barely hear his teeth chattering. She knelt on the floor next to him.
“Chakotay?”
He opened his eyes. She hadn’t slept, either.
“It’s obvious that neither of us are going to get to sleep in this cold.” She paused, not quite sure how to...suggest her idea. “I mean, we’re both adults, and we both need our sleep, and...”
Chakotay smiled, never having seen his captain this flustered. He took her hands in his. “Captain, are you asking me to sleep with you?” The smile was in his eyes as well as on his lips.
That was what she was asking, but it seemed different when put so bluntly. She was at a loss for words.
Chakotay laughed softly. He stood, drawing her up with him. They walked into the bedroom and Chakotay climbed into his side of the bed, hoping it wasn’t the same side as Janeway’s. It wasn’t.
Janeway was a little weary when she first climbed into bed, but when she started to warm up she knew she had made the right decision.
She realized that much of the warmth she felt was due to Chakotay’s chest pressed against her back and his arm wrapped around her like a lover. She knew it wasn’t the most appropriate position for two senior officers to be in, but as much as it pained her to admit it, she liked the feeling of him holding her.
It was something she could not afford to get used to.
However, Sleep whispered in her ear, I cannot be held at bay with a thought forever.
Chakotay knew exactly where his arms were and how tight they were gripping her. He knew that his fingers were stroking her hip in a provocative manner. He also knew that Kathryn was awake, and that she hadn’t tried to stop him or move him. He was warm, and he was half awake, and he didn’t care about protocol. He longed to stay like this and completely skip the conference. But she had other ideas.
Janeway rolled away and turned to face him. She could still feel his phantom fingers on her hip. His arm was still lying on the bed where she had been, seeming to reach out for her and bring her back to him. “Thank you, Chakotay.”
There was something in her eyes he couldn’t quite place. “Just doing my duty of protecting my captain.”
Protecting my captain... Protecting my captain... Protecting my captain...
The cell door banged open and awoke Janeway with a start. The guard flashed his whip and she was out of bed in a flash. He dragged her out of her cell and in the opposite direction of the tunnels. Perhaps if he just pointed in the direction he wanted her to go she would do it. She hated being dragged everywhere, it was hard on her legs. He dragged her to the front of an elaborately carved door and threw her at its base.
The Patron heard the bang and sent his servant to open the door. She ushered in the prisoner with the auburn colored hair. She was pretty enough, hopefully her body looked better without the black jumpsuit on. He only hoped her guards hadn’t damaged it beyond the beauty the doctor had said it possessed.
As the Servant to the Patron helped Janeway off the floor (she now recognized her by the way she walked and her gestures), she pressed a hypospray-type object to her neck and injected her with something. She then left Janeway alone with the Patron. He sat behind a dark wooden desk wearing a burgundy velvet robe (what else?) with his fingers steepled in front of him. He then got up and walked around her eyeing her appraisingly.
She stood proud under his scrutiny. He was not going to intimidate her into doing anything. Force, maybe, but not intimidate.
The Patron decided it was time to get a look at the goods. He ordered her to strip.
Janeway refused. With what she didn’t know.
Just what he needed: another prisoner with spirit. Perhaps all she needed was a little persuasion. He walked over to his desk and pulled out his whip. He saw the fear it generated in her eyes. This made him smile. She would be a nice challenge to conquer. She was rebellious, yet powerless.
Even with the threat of the whip she refused. Especially when she realized what he was going to do.
Her defiance would not be put up with for long. He was anxious to get going. He reached out and back-handed her. She was stunned, but it didn’t knock her over.
If he wanted her naked he would have to do it himself. No amount of punishment would make her submit to this willingly.
Okay, he could do it the hard way. Against her fighting he undressed her himself. To add to her humility he did it with her lying on the bed, treating her as a lover. She submitted unwillingly to the reactions of her body.
Protecting my captain... Protecting my captain... Protecting my captain...
That was not his usual Kathryn nightmare. Something about this one seemed much more urgent than the other one. He couldn’t just stay on the ship when she was in trouble.
As he put on some civilian clothes he began to make plans. He couldn’t take the Voyager, he wasn’t going to endanger the entire crew. And he couldn’t take a shuttle, the ship had few to spare, and they were too obvious. He’d have to ask Neelix if he could borrow his ship. He could remove anything Neelix didn’t want to lose, after all, he didn’t know what would happen when he went to get Kathryn. He would need to get some medkits from the Doctor, Starfleet Emergency Rations, and starcharts.
He paused at the door. Where was he going? He had no clue where she was.
Protecting my captain...
It didn’t matter, he would find her somehow. He had to, before it was too late.
“Of course, Mr Chakotay, you can use my ship. Don’t worry about hurting it,” said Neelix as he set a bowl of something green in front of him. “If you think the captain is in trouble I’ll do anything to help.” He raced back to the kitchen and scurried around. He returned to Chakotay with a box full of dishes. “Here are some leftovers for you and the captain. I’m sorry my ship doesn’t have a replicator.”
Chakotay wasn’t sure he wanted to eat Neelix’s food for the next who knows how long. But it was either that or SER. And his latest dishes weren’t all that bad. He didn’t think either one would be good for Kathryn.
“I’ll see that these get stowed away in my ship. And I’ll add some more, just to make sure you have enough.” He went back into the kitchen.
“Come in.”
Chakotay entered Tuvok’s quarters at 0400 hours. He didn’t like disturbing the Vulcan, but he couldn’t wait any longer. “I’m sorry to wake you, Tuvok.”
Tuvok was not asleep, he had been meditating. “Good morning, Commander.” he raised an eyebrow at his odd dress. He knew what was coming.
“I’ve decided to go look for her. Neelix has lent me his shuttle and stocked it with provisions. I’m leaving you in command of Voyager until we return.”
Tuvok sat in silence. He did not approve of the commander’s choice of action, as he was basing everything on a nightmare and emotions. It would be an interesting scenario if Chakotay found Janeway on the Quataki homeworld involved in the conference, and the nightmares were caused by an overactive imagination. The rest of the crew had become unsettled as rumors of Chakotay’s nightmares had spread. Perhaps his leaving would help to calm them. Or upset them more.
“Where are you going?”
“I don’t know.”
“If you are correct, how do you know you will not be too late?”
“I don’t.”
Tuvok stood and held his left hand in the Vulcan symbol. “Good journey, Commander. Live long, and prosper.”
“Commander, your ship is clear for launch.”
“Thank you, Mister Paris.” He cut the commlink before anyone could extend their good wishes.
He didn’t know where he was going or how he was going to get there. He figured the way to start was to follow the route of Janeway’s shuttle and see where that led him.
Janeway sat at the table leaning over a PADD, twirling a pen in her hand. She knew she’d been sitting there too long, there was a pain just under her shoulder blades that wouldn’t go away. That, combined with all the work she’d done, was very painful. “I think I’m not used to that kind of work. My knots are getting knots.” There was laughter in her voice, but there was nothing funny about the pain.
Chakotay looked up and saw how uncomfortable she was. He put down what he was working on, stood, and walked over to her. “Here, let me help.” He took her hair in his hands to move it out of the way, but held on to it a little longer than he should have. He placed it around the front of her body and slowly began to kneed her shoulders, pressing his thumbs where he knew it hurt the most.
“Ah, that feels good,” she said softly, leaning into his hands.
“I’ve had lots of practice at this,” he said, trying to lighten the mood. “My mother used to get sore necks all the time. I was the only one she trusted not to make it worse.” He smiled at the memory and went to say something more, but didn’t. He could almost see the euphoric look on her face.
His hands slowed their movement till they were just resting on her shoulders. She could feel his breath close to the top of her head. She slowly opened her eyes. She could also sense...something. Something that might go too far if this intimacy went any further. She gave a sigh of resentment as reality hit her over the head. She stood, turning awkwardly to face him. The look on his face was hopeful, and she crushed it with one sentence. “That’s much better, thank you.”
He nodded, knowing this would probably happen. She may have been forced into giving up her old life, but she was not ready to accept the new.
“Well, I’m going to bed now. See you in the morning.”
“Sleep well, Kathryn.”
“Yes, you, too.” She smiled gratefully at him and walked to her bed.
Chakotay sighed heavily and watched her go.
As she pulled down her covers and climbed into bed, Kathryn knew that issue was not put to rest. She turned her head to watch his silhouette through the not quiet opaque partition. She’s been a coward for running away from a conversation that needed to happen sooner rather than later. If she waited it would make things more awkward between them. And, she’d never get anymore sleep.
Chakotay sat back down in his seat and tried to get back to his work, resigning himself to wait a little longer. After all, they had the rest of their lives to spend together. But he looked at her sleeping area with longing, What was she thinking back there? Did she know his feelings? The answer was yes, otherwise she wouldn’t have run out on his so fast.
He has almost finished his carving when movement from Kathryn’s sleeping area caught his eye. He didn’t know he’d been watching that intently. She sat in the chair across from him, folding her hands in front of her.
“We have to talk about this,” she said seriously.
He put his carving down. “Alright.” He could see how nervous she was by the way she couldn’t keep her hands still.
“I think we need to define some parameters...about us.”
“I’m not sure I can ‘define parameters’.” What’s the easiest way to say it? “But I can tell you a story, an ancient legend among my people. It’s about an angry warrior who lived his life in constant conflict with the rest of his tribe. A man would couldn’t find peace even with the help of his spirit guide. For years he struggled with his discontentment. The only satisfaction he ever got came when he was in battle. This made him a hero among his tribe, but the warrior still longed for peace within himself. One day, he and his war party were captured by a neighboring tribe led by a woman warrior. She called on him to join her because her tribe was too small and weak to defend itself against all its enemies. The woman warrior was brave and beautiful, and very wise. The angry warrior swore to himself he would stay by her side doing whatever he could to make her burden lighter. From that point on, her needs would come first. And in that way, the warrior began to know the true meaning of peace.”
Janeway smiled, understand and touched by his words. She leaned forward. “Is there really an ancient legend?”
Chakotay looked down and smiled, knowing he was caught. “No, But that made it easier to say.”
She looked into his eyes and saw the pain in them. The pain she had caused by rejecting him earlier, and the pain caused by telling the ‘legend’. Slowly, ever so slowly, she raised her palm towards him, fingers spread apart.He raised his hand and intertwined his fingers with hers and gently stroked her thumb.
They’d reached an understanding. He wouldn’t push her too fast, and she wouldn’t hold on to the past.
Janeway awoke to the feeling of tears dampening her cheeks. Why was she crying? She thought back to her dream.
She and Chakotay had been on New Earth, left there because of an incurable infection. Had they been forced to stay there forever...they would’ve had only each other to turn to. The protocols and barriers they had put in place would’ve only lasted so long before they came crashing down. And they had already started to fall apart. The night before they left they had had a picnic dinner in a clearing by the river to watch the sunset. And after the sun had set, they sat, they sat quietly in the twilight. She had shivered in the cool air and Chakotay had put his arms around her and kept her warm. Finally he whispered in her ear, “Are you ready?” She had said yes, and they stood, his arms still around her. She pulled away from him and they’d walked back as two separate entities. Now, as she thought more about his question she knew what he really meant. “Are you ready?” Was she ready to let go of the past? Ready to fully give in to their life on New Earth? Together? She hadn’t been ready at that point, but at this moment she prayed to any higher power that she had been. They each needed someone. They each needed someone now: a partner on the journey.
Was that it? Had she been longing for a future that never happened to her? A future where there were no barriers between her and Chakotay? Did she really want to give up the Voyager and their quest home?
Still thinking about her dream, she unconsciously stretched out a stiff muscle in her leg. She then realized what she’d done. WAY TO GO, KATHRYN. NOW YOU’LL GO BACK TO WORK IN THE TUNNELS. She listened for the guards to come down the hallway.
She heard footsteps walk past her cell and open the cell at the end of the hall, the one with the squeaky hinges. The prisoner walked down the hall behind the guard.
Why did the guard not take her? They had every other time she moved, except for the times after she was incapacitated from whippings. Had she been whipped before and left here to recover? She couldn’t remember. She remembered what happened to the little girl... (Please say it wasn’t so!) She remembered the dream about New Earth and the one about their trip to Pallis, but not what happened in between. She vaguely remembered someone injecting her with something, but not who, what, when, where, or why they did it. She began to suspect she may have been greatly injured in the tunnels, but she could find no new marks on her body. She was stiff from the waist down and her shoulders hurt, but she thought nothing of it; everything had hurt and one point or another.
The Servant of the Patron walked through the barracks looking for the prisoner with the long auburn hair. She hadn’t seen the woman since she’d left her with the Patron and she wanted to make sure she was alright and the drug injected into her was working. It would be best if she didn’t remember what the Patron had done to her. It would make life here more bearable. But the Patron intended to use her again. She was not to be worked as hard in the tunnels as the others so she would not be damaged anymore.
She was lying on her bed, stretching her sore muscles. They should be sore after all she’d been through. She appeared to have been cleaned up afterwards, but not given a new jumpsuit. The welts and sores on her back had begun to bleed again.
The Servant of the Patron opened the door quietly and walked over to the woman. She explained what she was going to do and picked her up. Right away the prisoner’s body tensed. She told her she was not going to hurt her or force her to do any work. She was going to take her to a place where her wounds would be tended to.
Slowly the tension eased from Janeway’s body and she closed her eyes and rested her head on the Servant of the Patron’s shoulder. Her velvet robe was soft on Janeway’s cheek. She felt the Servant’s arms tighten around her. This was the one person here who cared about her welfare and was watching out for her. Janeway clung tightly to her.
The next thing she knew, Janeway was lying on a soft bed. Her eyes shot open, something about that wasn’t right. She saw the Servant close and lock the door behind them. She seemed to scan the room to make sure it as empty before she walked back over to the bed. Janeway figured it was her own personal room; it was almost as nice as that of the Patron. (When had she seen the Patron’s room?)
Suddenly a hidden door in one of the walls was thrown open and at least twenty guards burst in with whips and riffles pointed.
The captain of the guard walked up to the Servant and explained to her that they were tired of her getting in their way. The prisoners were theirs to take care of and they should be able to do what they please, when they please without having to worry about what was best for them.
The Servant tried to tell him that the Patron wouldn’t stand for it, they’d all be arrested, made slaves themselves, or disposed of.
They laughed in her face. There were twenty of them and one of her - the prisoner would be of no help. Besides, they could remove her vocal chords, make her a slave, and the Patron would never know the difference, he’d never seen her before. They already had a story to tell him when she didn’t show up next time he needed her.
Janeway watched all this from the bed, unable to move. From fear or from weakness, she didn’t know which.
Chakotay...
I’m coming.
Help me, Chakotay...
He must have drifted off for a minute. He couldn’t afford to do that, he might miss something vital in finding her. He had already been to the planet and hadn’t heard anything about a Federation shuttle. The gossip in the local bars in the capital was that the Patron had been stood up by Voyager; their captain had stood him up. But he wasn’t upset about it, which is what had started the this gossip. He had managed to sneak into the Imperial Palace by taking out a guard and stealing his burgundy robe. All the people in the palace wore these robes where ever they went.
Now he was almost at the moon field. It was a place where twenty-one moons orbited around a wormhole the size of a pinprick, but with a gravitational field of a large planet.
He was being hailed. “Who goes there?” A figure in a burgundy robe appeared. There was something about the anonymity of the robes that disturbed him.
“Hello. I am Hajona, a trader. I was wondering if I could trade and resupply at your outpost.” Hajona was a very ancient Native American word whose language and meaning have been lost with time. His mother had sung to him “Where the Earth Meets the Sky” as a little boy and he had never forgotten the words.
“Your docking port is #47 and your docking number is 933. I am sending you a copy of the maps, as well as our rules you must follow. Do not leave your ship until you have read all of them.” The person disappeared before he could reply.
This is it, Chakotay, you’re going in. He sent a coded message to Voyager before proceeding.
Tuvok looked around the bridge and decided it was safe. He turned to Chakotay. "Commander, might I have a word with you in the captain's Ready Room?"
"Of course," Chakotay stood up and turned to Kim. "You have the conn." He followed the Vulcan off the bridge. After the doors closed Tuvok turned abruptly to him.
“Have you spoken to the captain since the accident? I tried to speak with her on two occasions, but she has assured me she was okay." It had been a little over a week since Janeway's drowning experience. She had immersed herself in work and gone to bed too exhausted to dream. Tuvok had noticed the wear and tear on her, but had not found a logical way to bring it up.
"I spoke with her for some time that night. She said she needed to handle it on her own and assured me she could." Chakotay was pretty sure she couldn't. He and his spirit guide had made very little progress, although they were making some. He knew Janeway wasn't as well acquainted with her guide and the work she spent most of her time with was little help. He hadn't been to see her on a personal note since that night. Maybe it's time to go back.
"Would you mind checking on her?"
Chakotay smiled at him. "If I didn't know you better, I'd say you're worried about her." He left before Tuvok could respond.
Janeway knew he was coming even before the door chimed. Ever since her experience she had somehow been linked to him. She knew he was going to say something about all the work she'd been doing. She'd tried not to let it show, but it's hard to keep things quiet in a city of about 200.
She put her PADD down and rolled her shoulders. All that paperwork was beginning to become physical.
The door chimed.
"Come in." It was Chakotay. She'd thought he was going to start off on lecture about over working, but he didn't say a word.
He just walked over and took her hair, which was down, in his hands and held it for a few seconds. He finally placed it around one side of her neck and gently began to work her shoulders. They were extremely tense and knotted. But, after a few moments, he felt her melting under his fingers.
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