The Rescue
Part 8: Choices Made

     B’Elanna braced herself, expecting the floor of the ship to give
way as she pushed her feet firmly into the floor. She glanced over at
Tom who was fighting the controls, beads of sweat now dotted his brow.
It wasn’t a good sign....
     Tom didn’t know what else to try. His mind raced through all the
piloting tricks he had learned over the last several years.....
nothing...... nothing even came close to this experience. Tom gamely
tried to keep the nose of the ship up. The ship’s hull hit the ground
for the first time slamming them forward despite their being braced
for it. The world outside the ship had disappeared as a cloud of dirt,
sand, & debris kicked up from the ship as it slid along carving a
groove through the loose rock and sand. The ship creaked, rattled,
metal groaned as pieces were sheered off the hull.  The remaining
consoles exploding around them, Tom & B’Elanna jumped at each
explosion of sparks. Tom glanced at the control panel. He knew it was
going to get worse. “B’Elanna, hold on...... It’s not over yet.  The
nose of the ship is going to drop.... and hit the sand, when it
does.....  you’ll feel it!!”
     Tom grabbed his seat waiting......... He swore he could feel the
ship’s angle change..... He squinted trying to see through the cloud
of dirt that hung just outside the cockpit. That’s when the ship’s
nose made contact with solid earth ........

VOYAGER

....With fighters bearing down on their position Chakotay waited for
Janeway’s reply. He saw the worried look on her face. Her gaze met
his. They both knew without shields Voyager might be destroyed. Most
of the bridge crew realized it too. There was an eerie silence.
Janeway’s voice echoed solemnly throughout the bridge. “Evasive
pattern Janeway 2 alpha, best possible speed.....” She turned, her
eyes leaving Chakotay’s, and sat down in her chair. Their only hope
was for the shields to be restored or the warp drive to be repaired.
      She wondered how long Voyager would last without her precious
shields, and about the crew that she had come to know so well, their
very lives now in jeopardy. The decision to stay to help Tom and
B’Elanna might now cost this ultimate price.  Janeway was so lost in
thought she was startled to find Chakotay standing beside her.
 “Captain....... you alright?”
“Just thinking about the choices I’ve made.”
“And?” he replied concerned.
“I’m not sure they were the right ones.”
Chakotay thought a moment before replying, “When I was young my father
use to say ‘You’re not an owl you’re a man.’ he told it to me anytime
I doubted the paths I had chosen.”
“Meaning?” She replied somewhat confused.
“Meaning...... You can’t always be wise, or see in the dark.”
He rested a reassuring hand on hers, “You made the choices that we all
would have made in your position. That’s all that matters.....”
She put her other hand on top of his grasping it firmly. She smiled,
“Thank you Chakotay.”
“Your welcome......”
Tuvok’s voice boomed from behind them, “Ships are closing into weapons
range. Their weapons are charged....”
Everyone had tensed grabbing hold of something to steady them
anticipating the attack. Tuvok, continued to stare at the tactical
screen confused.
“Curious, the ships passed us, and are not in pursuit.”
Denkar raced to Tuvok's side looking quickly over the information now
before him.
The excited look on Denkar's face conveyed the message long before he
could, "Captain those are Warki ships!"
"Captain I have a visual", Tuvok said as the viewscreen came to life.
Voyager's crew watched as the Warki ships flew into the path of the
pursuing ships. Chakotay leaned over whispering to Janeway, "My father
also had a whole book of sayings on the benefits of luck."
Janeway smiled somewhat relaxed with the increased distance between
Voyager and their pursuers, "I'm sure we just used up about half of
them.
     With Denkar's instruction Tuvok placed the Warki pilots on audio….
"…..We have to buy them some time. Hold them as long as possible, all
wings cleared for attack….."
They watched as the blackness of space was lit with the eruption of
plasma blasts and the sounds of battle. Ships from both sides
crumbling under the bombardment. Janeway whispered silently at the
viewscreen, "Good luck………."

Tom & B’Elanna

The dirt and sand shot over the ship’s canopy. Tom cried out, the
sound disappearing with the rest of his air as the impact threw him
forward against the safety straps. B’Elanna sat next to him gasping
for breath.
     They watched as sand rushed over the cockpit, unable to catch
their breath the ship hit a wall of earth. Throwing their chairs
forward snapping the mounts, and sending their shocked occupants
flying into ruined consoles and finally depositing them on the floor.
The cockpit glass shattered as the horrible sound of metal being
twisted and bent filled their ears..... the sound was deafening......
Tom struggled to his feet..... Where the cockpit once stood an
avalanche of sand and earth had taken over filling the front of the
ship, making it difficult to breathe.
     Tom was having a difficult time standing, glancing down he saw he
had once again reopened the wound on his leg. * What I wouldn't give
for a good medical kit right now.*
     Tom limped over and helped B'Elanna to her feet. She had a small
cut on her head, but appeared to be o.k. She wiped the blood from her
brow, wincing a little as her finger brushed over the cut. She looked
up at Tom, sarcasm filling her words, "What was it you said…….. oh……
Trust me……. I'm the pilot!  Well, I think I'll do the flying next time."
Tom smiled slightly, "Well, let's hope there isn't a next time!"
B'Elanna coughed in her attempt to laugh, inhaling the thick dust
filled air made it impossible. She signaled Tom with her hands that
they needed to get out of the ship. Outside, Tom walked around
shielding his eyes from the sun scanning the horizon. Nothing but sand
and open ground. "Well, let's just hope Voyager can find us before
anything else happens………"

VOYAGER
"Captain."
"Yes, Mr. Kim", Janeway said turning in his direction. Harry had only
returned to his station ten minutes ago. The Doctor had cleared him
for duty, apparently he had only suffered a minor concussion.
"Captain, phasers and shields are back online. Shields are at 55% and
increasing. We should have them to full strength in a few more minutes."
"Good….. Mr.Kim begin sensor sweeps of the planet. I want to find Tom
& B'Elanna and get the hell out of here."
"Yes, Ma'am."

BRONN
He had taken off shortly after Tom & B'Elanna with every intention of
hunting them down and disposing of them. However, right after take off
he lost track of their ship, and could get no reading. He was not
discouraged by these events only invigorated.
"President Bronn."
"What news do you have to report!" He replied, annoyed that someone
would interrupt him during his hunt.
The officer spoke, clearly nervous, "Sir, We have had to retreat
behind the defense grid."
 "What!!" Bronn yelled, "What of the Starship Voyager? Was it taken
care of?"
The officer stammered, and choked on his words, "Sir….. um…. well…..
not totally…Warki ships attacked our pilots…..  We did manage to
seriously cripple the starship… we think they fled."
Bronn's face was now contorted into a mask of rage. He sat silent
before the viewscreen, forcing the officer to speak up again. "Sir…?."
Bronn's penetrating gaze fell on him, "How soon until you can send
another squad of ships to deal with the Warki and hunt down that
crippled ship!?"
"Sir…. We have lost far too many ships in the past couple encounters.
I'm afraid it will be sometime before we are able to deal with either
problem."
"That's not what I asked!?"
"Maybe weeks…… We still are well protected by the defense grid though."
Bronn had heard enough and disconnected the transmission. "Damn, where
did that ship go!……"

TOM & B'ELANNA
(Somewhere in the Desert)
     An hour had passed and there was still no contact with Voyager.
Tom now sat propped up against the side of the ship. It was god awful
hot, and he was taking advantage of what shade it provided. Tom grit
his teeth as sweat rolled into his various cuts. He turned to look at
B'Elanna as she came out of the ship, still holding a piece of cloth
over her mouth to filter out the dust. She walked over and sat down
next to him, her face covered with a layer of dirt and sweat.
She used the cloth to wipe her face, then did the same for him. "It's
like working next to a plasma fire in there."
Tom smiled slightly, "And it's not much cooler out here. Did you make
any progress?"
"No, everything is covered with sand and dirt. The consoles I was able
to dig out are totally useless. There is no way to get Voyager a
message."
B'Elanna laid her head on Tom's shoulder, wrapping an arm around him.
He whispered to her softly, "Don't worry, they will find us….."

VOYAGER
Harry stared at the sensor readings before him, "Captain, I have
picked up sensor readings."
"What do you have Mr. Kim?"
"I've got what appears to be a downed ship, possibly two lifeforms."
Harry looked up at Janeway, "…And one ship closing on their position."
"Transporters?" She questioned immediately.
"Still offline Captain………" Harry replied.
 

BRONN
It wasn't long after he terminated the conversation with his officer
that he found exactly what he was looking for.…. in the shape of one
smoldering ship. He decided to make a pass over the ship before
blowing it to bits. *Have to make sure we not only get the ship, but
the occupants as well…. * He thought as he prepared to make his
observation pass…..
 
TOM & B'ELANNA

  Tom was the first to hear the distant sound of engines, and jumped
up hoping to see a Federation shuttle with food, water, and a good
medical kit……. It not only wasn't a shuttle, but appeared to be a
Conda ship. He sat back down behind the ship. B'Elanna was looking at
him inquisitively. "A Conda ship….. I'm not sure, but I think it's our
friend Bronn."  They both knew the cover of the ship wouldn't last
long if he began firing. The problem was…. There was nowhere to run……
B'Elanna looked directly into Tom's eyes, "Tom if we don't make it
through this…."
"B'Elanna were going to make it…."
"Tom, let me finish……. "
B'Elanna never had time to finish, ax the first blast hit near the
downed ship.
Tom grabbed her hand and they began moving away from the ship. Tom was
limping badly, "B'Elanna run on ahead of me. We'll give him two moving
targets. Don't run in a straight line, side to side…. It'll make it
tougher for him to hit…."
She didn't want to leave him, but knew he was right. They didn't have
much of a choice. She started running, Tom right behind her….. She
kept looking back making sure Tom was following……
The next blast hit the ship. Where they had been seconds before…. The
ship exploded in all directions. B'Elanna felt the heat on the back of
her neck. The concussion wave knocking her from her feet. She turned
back looking for Tom……. She saw him face down in the sand…. B'Elanna
ran to his side, turning him over. She grabbed his hand feeling for a
pulse……… *Yes… he's still alive. * Her heart leapt momentarily. She
leaned over his chest…… "Tom" she whispered softly, running her
fingers through his wind blown, sand filled hair. "Tom, wake up. We
have to move now." B'Elanna listened for Bronn's ship. She knew the
silence wouldn't last. "I'm not leaving you. Don't make me prove that,
not until I know that you know how I feel!" She grabbed Tom's hand and
squeezed it. "Tom" She began to feel her throat tighten. "In case you
didn't know…. I lo….." The sound of thrusters interrupted her thoughts
and filled the air.
B'Elanna leaned back searching the sky….. There in the distance she
saw the ship coming around for another pass…. It would probably kill
them this time, but she didn't get up to run. She knew she was right
where she wanted to be if she was going to die.
As the ship approached she gripped Tom's hand tight, she couldn't see
the pilot, but in her mind she could see the sinister grin on Bronn's
face.. She was just about to close her eyes to accept her fate, when a
phaser blast hit the back of Bronn's ship knocking it off course. She
watched him try to correct the ship's descent, but it was to no avail.
It crashed into the desert sand. B'Elanna looked back for the source
of the saving blast.
Voyager.
Janeway had brought the whole ship down to the surface for them.
 She watched Voyager’s landing gear extend. It sank slightly into the
loose sand as the weight of the huge ship settled on the planet’s
surface. A sight she thought she would never see again. Moments later
a shuttlecraft came into view, and landed near her. Chakotay, Neelix,
and the Doctor emerged. Neelix quickly helped her onboard as Chakotay
and the Doctor used a portable bio bed to move Tom into the shuttle.
    Once onboard Chakotay was at the shuttle's controls. The shuttle
glided over Bronn’s smoking ship and towards Voyager’s shuttle bay.
“Chakotay to Voyager.”
“Voyager here.... go ahead” Janeway’s voice sounded over the shuttles
com system.
“We’ve got them both. The Doctor said they’ll both pull through with a
little of his help.” Chakotay smiled after repeating the Doctor’s
statement.
“Good..... Report to the bridge once you're onboard.”

VOYAGER
Janeway was standing on the bridge, waiting for the shuttle, when
Chakotay walked onto the bridge from the turbolift.
“How are they?” she asked.
“The Doctor has them in sickbay. He’s just checking B’Elanna over,
taking care of a couple cuts and bruises. Tom may be stuck there for a
couple days. His injuries were more serious.”
She turned, still concerned with their condition, and looked in
Denkar’s direction.
“Signal your ships.... You’re going to get that chance to get your
people off this planet after all.”
Denkar wasn’t quite sure what she meant, but got to work quickly. He
informed all Warki ships to standby and prepare to transport people
from Conda.
“Mr. Kim..... patch me through to Bronn’s ship.”
“Coming through now Captain.....”
She watched the screen, as Bronn’s image appeared larger than life. He
had a few cuts, but otherwise appeared unharmed. His hatred for her
was readily apparent.
“Captain.” he growled.
“Bronn..... Our people have always placed a high value on the
noninterference with other races and their development. Our Prime
Directive. A directive we broke to help your people……. One we’ll break
again.....”
“Please.... Captain spare me your lectures, and get off my planet.”
“Oh..... I will, but first there’s a little business to take care of...”
“What business Captain?”  A hint of worry appearing on his face for
the first time.
“The kind bullies never like...... I think it’s time we push back.”
She turned her head slightly, “Helm, get us off this planet.” The
viewscreen went blank.
“What business!!?” Bronn continued to yell.
A cloud of dust was kicked up as Voyager moved skyward. Bronn, who had
climbed from the wreckage of his ship, watched the landing gear
disappear into the under belly of Voyager. The ship was now hovering
hundreds of feet overhead.
     On Voyager's bridge Janeway turned to Tuvok, “Lock on that target
and prepare a spread of Photon Torpedoes.”
“Target locked........ firing Captain.”
Back on the planet’s surface Bronn watched from beneath the ship as
five bright objects shot from Voyager. He followed them with his eyes
seeing the objects disappear over the horizon. Suddenly it hit
him....... his face became pale....... he broke into a sweat. Looking
up at Voyager, he screamed................
     He knew what had happened. Voyager had fired upon the defense
grid, and destroyed it.  The Warki could not be kept out....... All
was lost............

VOYAGER
Tuvok didn’t take long to confirm that the defense grid was destroyed.
Denkar contacted his ships informing them of the situation. They began
their descent to the planet. A descent that would end years of
conflict........

Captain’s Log Supplemental:
     Most of our repairs have been completed, and B'Elanna assures me
that the engines will be able to handle the jump to warp. Tom is back
on duty. He still is required (Doctor's order) to visit sickbay daily
to make sure his leg is healing properly. Tom & B'Elanna have grown
much closer after their ordeal, as I think we all have.
     We've just left orbit, and are once again headed home, leaving
behind new friends and a few new enemies. More importantly we hope,
peace between two worlds.
     Choices made…….. Choices are funny things…… Sometimes you think
they're right, sometimes they're very wrong, and as Chakotay's father
might say…. Sometimes a little luck would never hurt. From the time
you are young you make choices every minute of every day. Most are
automatic, some require a great deal of thought, and others are based
solely on emotion. What defines those choices is dependent upon each
person's character……..  ……..And there is a lot of character on this
ship……………..

[End Log]
 

First the legal stuff: Paramount ship,characters are copyright
paramount 1998
Bronn,Denkar,Conda, Warki, story concept,plot etc…. is all mine, you
can't have it ! It is protected by copyright amendments of 1976!
Course you may print & share it with fellow readers, or post it on you
page for others to enjoy…….

******QUESTIONS & ANSWERS********
     You may have questions about what happened with Tom & B'Elanna
did she tell him…. Or didn't she…. What is going to happen from here….
How's Tom's leg…. Well, I can't tell you……..yet!  I didn't want to
wrap it up into a neat little package…. At least not just yet! You
will be able to see what happens after this story…. In my next fanfic
story/novel which will be available (I hope) in about 2 weeks. It
promises more Tom & B'elanna, plus I'm going to have some more focus
on all the characters. So, until then I'll keep writing, you keep
reading….. questions concerning this 8 part story can be sent to me at
my email address at the top of the page…. I'll answer all questions to
the best of my ability…..Thanks……

END
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