by Alys Landale
He put on his best smile. “Hey, Squeaker.”
She looked from him to his wound. “I heard you were in sickbay. I thought you’d gotten hurt real bad.”
Both Janeway and the Doctor wondered what the girl would determine as ‘real bad.’
He shook his head. “I just decided to let Satira drag me into sickbay this once. Next time she won’t be so lucky.
Satira cast Paris a nasty look. “We’ll just see about that,” was all she said. She was about done with Paris by now. She ran the tricorder back over his arm to determine if she missed anything. Nope, all was back to normal.
She gave the tricorder to Paris. “Well, I have managed to put you back together again.”
He just smiled, although it wasn’t one of his usual trademark grins. This one belied the hurt he still felt inside. “Yes, you always do.” he said he then motioned for Xara come closer.
The girl climbed up into Paris’s lap and gave him a hug. “You had me worried.” she scolded him.
He laughed a bit. Janeway couldn’t help but notice how well the two fit together. It was just like a father-daughter scene.
Paris then addressed those around him.
“Could you let us have a few moments alone?” he asked.
The group conceded and the doctor went to his office while the others left sickbay all together. Janeway took one last look at the pair. They looked so perfect together. She wondered just how much the two had been through.
Once everyone had left, Paris turned his attention to Xara. His expression turned to one more serious. “I’ve got some bad
news.” he said.
Her brow knitted. Her voice was a lot softer when she asked. “What is it?”
He had always been forthright with her: never lied, never stalled. He made sure he wouldn’t do that this time. “You remember how I told you that it’s dangerous for those in the Resistance? How sometimes people might lose their lives fighting against the Empire.”
She nodded. She had seen enough people killed before Rune had saved her from the concentration camp she had been placed in.
“Well, today Aria was trying to stop the ship so that the parasites couldn’t take it over. She was successful. If it hadn’t been for her then we would have completely lost the ship and it might have even had the chance to destroy Voyager or Raken’s ship as well. But she... she was killed while doing this.” He looked down at Xara. She had nestled her head onto his chest and was crying softly. He felt the same way, but couldn’t let it show right now. He had to be strong. There was just one more thing he had to take care of.
He wiped a tear off her cheek. “Shh.” he said and stroked her hair. “I know how you feel.”
She looked up at him. “What are you going to do now?”
He didn’t know how she was going to take what he had to tell her next. “Xara I’m going to have to go back to the Jihaid in a few minutes. I need you to stay with Raken and the others, okay.”
She clutched him tighter. “Don’t go.” she pleaded.
He hugged her closer to him in an attempt to comfort her. “I don’t have a choice.” he said.
She cried a little more and he did his best to comfort her. That was how the doctor saw them through his window. A small girl clutching her hero. He turned away. Whatever Paris was about to do, he hoped it didn’t involve the man getting himself killed. Again.
B’Elanna sat in the Captain’s Ready Room. Voyager’s senior staff, along with that of the Jihaid’s, had met there to discuss what their next plan of action would be.
Tom had center stage at the present time. He had just come in and was now informing them of their status. She looked at the man she loved. It was ripping her insides out that she couldn’t be with him right now. That he didn’t know who she was. But she forced her attention on what Tom had to say. She couldn’t let her mind wander at a time like this.
“We know that this parasite’s purpose is to take control of the ship. By the intended flight pattern it was issuing, we also know where it was trying to herd us as well.” The veiwscreen illustrated a section of space with a large worm hole. Among the only ships present were two Imperial battleships. “It looks like somehow Takma was able to get these things on the ship. Now she and Kail are waiting for us at these coordinates.”
“You think that Takma believes she has control of the Jihaid?” asked Sargon.
“The parasites never had a chance to communicate with either ship, but I think its safe to say with Takma’s ego that she thinks she’s in control of the situation. We can use that as an advantage.” he said.
“What do you have in mind?” asked Raken.
Tom begin to outline his plan. “We’ve created a hole in the ship’s shielding. There’s no way that I can see of, that we can successfully exterminate these things without them infesting another ship. My idea is for me to transport aboard the ship. If I’m inside I can hack into the ship’s computer and retake the ship. After that, I make a course for Takma’s ship. She should think that she has control of the ship until its too late. By then I’ll have made my move and taken out their ships.”
“You can’t be serious,” said Janeway. “There’s no way you could do that. Even if you could break their link with the ship, those things would kill you before you could retake the ship.”
“I am very serious.” he replied. “We have an opportunity here we can’t afford to lose.”
Danag then spoke up. “I don’t doubt you could retake the ship for a while, but you’ll need more than just the Jihaid to take out two battle cruisers.”
Against his better judgment, Raken spoke up. “I could take my ship to back you up. Between the two of us we should be able to pull it off.”
Tom shook his head. “You have a load of civilians to take to safety. I can do this myself.”
Raken had to admit the man had a point. Janeway then stepped forward. “Do you really think you can do this?”
“I know I can.” he said.
She looked around the table at her staff. All of them seemed to encourage what she was about to say next. “Then we’ll go to back you up.” she put up her hands when she saw that he was about to protest. “I won’t take no for an answer. You can’t do this on your own and you know it.”
He realized that she was right. It would be a lot easier. “Fine,” he said. “I’ll show you the course we’ll be following.”
Half an hour later, all the ready room’s occupants met back in the transporter room. Xara was also present as well. Tom stood in the center of the room talking to Raken.
He looked to where Xara stood a few meters away. “Take care of her,” he said.
Raken nodded and then Danag appeared to interrupt their conversation.
“Sir, I’ve remodulated one of Voyager’s phasers as well as one of our own to fire on random wave lengths. You should be able to get a few shots out before they adapt. I’ve also remodulated a plasma rifle to do the same as well,” he handed Rune his weapons. While in sickbay, Tom had had a chance to change clothes. He now wore a black reconnn outfit. His trademark coat had been put away and these clothes fit to his body to provide a much more effective amount of movement. Taking the proffered guns, he attached the two phasers to his belt and then slung the rifle over his back.
Raken stood there for a few moments longer. “Good luck.” he said.
“Same to you,” he said and then walked over to where Xara stood. “Are you ready to go with Raken over to his ship?”
She nodded sadly. He knelt down to her level. “Do what Captain Raken tells you to, okay.”
She nodded again and threw her arms around his neck. “Be careful.” she said.
He hugged her back. “I always am,” he whispered. “Now go with Satira. She’ll take care of you while I’m gone.”
He stood up and Satira walked over to them. She first spoke to Rune. “Good luck Rune.” She then wrapped her arms around him. She let go of the embrace then and turned to Xara. “Come on,” she
told Xara. “The first group is preparing to beam out.”
Xara followed the Dezorisian. She cast a sad look over her shoulder at Rune but went along with Satira anyway. Paris watched her approach the platform and then averted his attention to Janeway. Voyager’s captain had been watching Tom and Xara, as had everyone else in the room. “Are you ready?” she asked him.
“As ready as I’ll ever be.” he told her. “It looks like the first group is ready to transport away.”
She nodded. They had agreed that one group would transport to Raken’s ship first, and then after Tom had gone, the next would beam out as well.
Raken, Satira, and Xara stepped up to the platform. Xara caught Satira’s attention.
“Satira,” she said. “I’ve got to go tell Rune just one more thing.”
The Dezorisian looked down at the girl. “You will miss this transport.” she said.
“I’ll go with Danag on the next one,” she told her.
Satira agreed. After all, what could she say? This might most likely be the last time Xara ever saw him.
The transporter beam engulfed the two on the platform. Xara then snuck away past those around her. She made her way out of the room and into the corridor where Naomi waited for her.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” Naomi asked.
Xara nodded. “I know Rune. I have to make sure he doesn’t do something stupid.”
The pair then ran down the corridor to Naomi’s room.
B’Elanna walked over to Tom. He was getting ready to leave now. Danag and Sargon were standing next to him.
“Watch your back.” Sargon told him.
“Yeah, we all know how good you are at that.” Danag commented.
Paris smiled. “Thanks.”
Meylin just nodded to him. There wasn’t anything that words could say. Tom nodded to her as well. B’Elanna then walked into the group.
“Can I speak to you for a moment?” she asked.
He stepped out of the group and walked over to Torres. “Yes?” he asked.
She was suddenly at a loss for words. How was she supposed to say this? “Promise me you’ll get out of this alive. I lost you once I can’t do it again.”
He looked into her eyes. Hers were full of sadness and sorrow; his were frozen in blue ice. “I’ll try my best.”
She grabbed him by his arm. “That’s an order. I want you back here alive.”
A smile touched his lips. A phrase that he had somewhere come upon surfaced. “Yes ma’am,” he said and then turned to leave.
She was left behind with the sound of his voice still in her ears. No two words could have been more refreshing. It only fueled her resolution that this was her Tom and that she was going to make sure he remembered everything.
He stepped onto the platform. He nodded to the man behind the console. With one last look at the faces around him, he vanished in the beam of the transporter.
Danag, Sargon, and Meylin then stepped up to be beamed out. Within a few more moments the only people left were Voyager’s crew.
Janeway was the first to speak. “Alright people, we have a mission to take care of.”
Raken went to the bridge as soon as he returned to his ship and Satira was called to sickbay to check on one of her patients. A few moments later Danag, Meylin, and Sargon beamed to the ship as well.
None of them noticed that one member of their group was missing. The ship jumped to warp as it began its journey to safety. People just went on about their business. Everyone’s mind was so preoccupied with the mission that the Jihaid and Voyager were about to go on, that one little girl was easily left behind.
Paris appeared in one of the corridors of his ship. The parasites had reproduced even more rapidly and now the walls were covered with their bodies plastered to them. They didn’t seem to register him as a threat at the time so he began to plot his course to the bridge. That would be where he set up his work.
Thoughts of Aria loomed up in his mind. He pushed them back though. She gave her life to stop this thing, now he was going to make sure that wasn’t in vain. He could think about that later, just not now. After all, by any measure he would probably be with her quite soon anyway.
Janeway and her staff gathered on the bridge. Even Torres took her position at the Engineering console instead of her usual place in Engineering. She had to know what happened to Tom the moment it did and the bridge would be the first to get that news.
She busied herself at her work station. In her mind, she kept repeating the litany. *Please just let him be okay. Please just let him be okay.*
All on the bridge were having similar thoughts as well. But all they could do was wait until Tom retook the ship and hailed them. Seconds seemed like hours as they watched the clock. And each passing minute fueled their fears even more.
Tom held the rifle in preparation for an attack. So far all was well. He finally reached the doors to the bridge. His target was just within his reach. There was only one impediment to his task. The parasites had formed a barrier with their bodies all throughout the doorway. Not a glimmer of light could be seen through the wall of cybernetics they produced.
*Well, I suppose it’s time to piss them off now.* he thought.
Raising his rifle to his shoulder he took aim at what seemed to be the weakest link in their chain. The plasma rifle fired, creating a hole in their web. He fired again and produced the same effect. So far they hadn’t adapted yet. After a few more shots he had successfully created a large enough opening for him to go through.
He was now on the bridge. But he was also now a threat on the bridge. The parasites that were latched onto the walls began to charge their weapons. Within the matter of a few seconds, energy bursts rained down on him from everywhere. His body however had already adapted, so he paid the shots no more attention than he might pay a gust of wind.
Walking over to the console at Ops, he linked himself with the computer. Danag’s station had always been the easiest to work from so he chose that as his work area. He felt himself begin to merge with the computer. All other thoughts were wiped away as he connected himself with the ship.
The parasites had finally stopped shooting at him. They realized that any attempts to do so were futile and decided a new strategy was in order. Disconnecting five or so of its cables from the wall, one of the parasites closest to Paris began to form the same weapon that had been used upon Aria. It coiled the wires around one another into a what looked like a long spear. The end was drilled off to a point. The parasite pulled back its cybernetic appendage and prepared to thrust it into Paris.
Tom had hacked through most of the parasites’ Borg codes by now. He could see that in just a matter of seconds Propulsion and weapons would be back online. He began to speed up his pace. All he had to do was make the parasites think that he wasn’t a foreign body. If they thought he was part of their own computer system, then he could issue them commands to carry out. He was close to breaking through. He only needed a few more seconds.
Those few seconds didn’t come fast enough to ward off the attack he received from behind. The cybernetic spear flew down from where it was perched and sunk into his back and came out his right side. Tom’s eyes flew open when he felt the attack, but he kept his mind on the work at hand. All he had to do was... there he got it. He was inside the system. He had control of the ship. But most of all, he had the means to take his revenge on Takma and Kail.
His first matter of business was to retract the weapon from where it was embedded in his body. He sent the parasite an order. After a few more seconds the spike was pulled out of his torso and through his back. The blood stained cables then untwined themselves and reattached to the walls.
Paris’s body began to sway but he stayed upright. Now it was time to hail Voyager.
“We’re being hailed.” Harry said. The enthusiasm in his voice belied his years on Voyager and made him sound once again like the ‘green’ ensign he had once been.
But his excitement was
contagious. All on the bridge breathed a sigh of relief. All except Tuvok. He showed no emotion to the news but was just as relieved none the less.
“Put it through,” Janeway ordered.
The screen remained black but Tom’s voice radiated throughout the comm system. “I’ve taken control of the ship. I think it’s time to pay a visit on Takma now.” he said.
Janeway agreed. “We’re ready on this end. But what’s wrong with your comm system? We can’t get a visual of you.”
“I don’t have time to repair the damage done to the comm line. This was the best I could do.” he lied. “Just follow me to the coordinates I gave you earlier. Stay hidden until I need back up.”
She nodded and the comm line was shut off. She didn’t even think that he couldn’t see her reply.
Xara crept towards the bridge. Naomi walked ahead of her to make sure the coast was clear. Being the only one Xara could appeal to for help, Naomi had agreed to help her stay aboard Voyager. She realized that if she was in Xara’s shoes, she would want to do the same thing. Xara had to stay behind to wait on Tom. Naomi herself was also curious as to the other girl’s story about Tom. That was one reason she had agreed to help as well.
Now the two conspirators were standing in the hallway just outside the bridge.
“Here,” Naomi said and removed a wall panel although she did so with some effort. “Crawl through here and you can hear what’s happening on the bridge.”
Xara crawled through the hole. There was just enough room for her to slip inside. She turned to Naomi. “Thanks.” she said.
“Don’t mention it.” said Naomi, but deep down the girl felt badly for doing something that was so against orders. She threw that thought away as she lifted the panel back up to its place. Grown-ups just didn’t understand. They couldn’t leave the kids behind in the dark while they went and did stupid stuff like get themselves killed or something.
She made sure the panel was secured back on the wall, but not so secure that Xara couldn’t get out if she needed to. Then she walked back down the hall. She’d done all she could for now. If she didn’t get back to her quarters then Neelix would start to worry.
