Klingon Hearts 04 Beginnings - Birth, Death, and Everything in Between

by Tracy Sobieski

  This is the fourth story in the 'Klingon Hearts' series. It is set about two months after Tom and B'Elanna's wedding. Childbirth, time paradoxes and Borg self-realizations abound. If Temporal Mechanics give you a headache, get the aspirin.

  As always, Paramount and Viacom, Inc own Voyager and her crew. I am just playing with their toys. K'Leena Paris and Lucas Riker belong to me, as well as this story.

  Boy, a lot of people get thanks for this one. Picard, thanks for the time paradox idea. Wulf, thanks for the original plot. Even if I didn't use it, it inspired what I did. Without your ideas I couldn't have come up with this. PJ thanks for getting me into PTFever. Thanks to Marianne and especially D'Alaire for the help with the paradox. And finally to my beta readers, D'Alaire and Wulf.

  Klingon Hearts

  Beginnings--Birth, Death and Everything In Between

  By: Tracy L. Sobieski

  It ends....

  She was dying.

  Her daughter held her hand. She was a beautiful girl. No, she was a woman now, a Starfleet officer. She was so bright and full of life, so much like her father. How proud she was of her.

  The pain was worsening. It wouldn't be long now. They had talked all night. There was so much that had to be said. She thought there would be more time for this. The accident had changed everything. She was grateful she'd been able to say it all. He would have wanted it that way.

  A peaceful light gently flowed into the room from beyond the wall. Its warmth engulfed her, taking away the pain, taking away the heartache.

  He approached. As young and vital as the last time she saw him. He stood there, dressed in full Klingon battle armor, of all things.

  She reached for him with a smile. He smiled back and grasped her hand. She felt her body slip off of her and suddenly she was standing in his embrace, looking down at herself and their silently crying daughter.

  There was a moment, just a small one, when she wanted to linger. The instinct was to stay and watch over her child. To be there for her. And he knew. He understood. He had been there as well.

  "Come, my love," he implored, gently leading her toward the light." Sto-Vo-Cor awaits."

  With one last look of longing, she followed.

  Tears fell freely as she said goodbye. It was the smile on her mother's face that finally did it. She had never seen her so peaceful, so happy. She felt an unreasonable anger at her father for abandoning them. It didn't matter that it wasn't his fault. If he had been there, things would have been different.

  The strangled cry caught in the back of her throat, as a pair of strong arms turned her into a comforting embrace, holding her close as she sobbed.

  She had only him now.

  *****

  It begins....

  B'Elanna Torres impatiently fidgeted in her chair, trying to find a comfortable position. Captain Janeway had called a Senior Staff meeting. They were still waiting for Neelix and the Doctor. Tom Paris noticed his wife's discomfort as he took his seat next to her. Discreetly he reached behind her and placed a strong hand at the small of her back. Applying the steady pressure that he knew would ease the pain, if only temporally. She looked up at him, annoyed at her weakness, and ready to snap. His innocent gaze and half smile stopped her; he was just trying to help. Who would have thought pregnancy would be her downfall.

  Unnoticed by the young couple, Commander Tuvok had witnessed the entire exchange. Had logic permitted a wry grin, Tuvok would have indulged in one. Envy. It had been a very long time since the Vulcan's logic had failed to block that emotion. But then, it had been a very long time since he had seen his family.

  Neelix and the Doctor arrived, the Captain waited for them to take their seats before she began.

  "Mr. Kim has come across a class M planet about 6 light years from here. It has heavy concentrations of dilithium. Normally I'd send B'Elanna with the away team, but circumstances being what they are.... Tom, get the Flyer flight ready. Chakotay, Harry and Neelix, you're on this as well. You leave at 13:00. Seven, they will need..."

  *****

  "I'll be back before you know it," Tom whispered in her ear as he embraced her.

  "You better be, Flyboy."

  The lighthearted words betrayed the anxiety they both felt. Routine missions had a way of turning on them. It was a fact of life on Voyager. Tom's hand trembled slightly as it rested on her stomach. They held their gaze for a long moment. Communicating without words.

  *****

  It begins again....

  She ran the pre-fight for the second time. Double-checking everything. The excitement was palpable, so was the tension. He came on board and she felt his presence instantly. Her mind reached out and touched his.

  I'll be back before you know it.

  You better be.

  She reached back with her hand. He took it, turned her chair around and pulled her into his arms. Once again, hating what she loved. Wishing, with all his heart, that she wasn't the best pilot Starfleet had.

  *****

  Now....

  Seven watched as B'Elanna's hand pause over the console, shaking slightly as she took a deep breath. It was the third time in the last hour.

  "Lieutenant, you are in labor." Seven lowered her voice so no one else in Engineering could hear her, but she wasn't going to ignore what was going on any longer.

  B'Elanna looked up in surprise. She hadn't realized Seven had returned from Astrometrics.

  "Yes, it started this afternoon. I'm all right. Klingon women labor for days, not hours. I've got plenty of time." B'Elanna said.

  "Perhaps you should go to Sickbay."

  "Not yet, this is the early stage. I want to finish here. It will help pass the time until Tom gets back."

  "If you say so." Seven's tone was far from confident.

  *****

  Later....

  "Enterprise to Timeship Continuity. You are cleared for departure."

  "Acknowledged Enterprise. Departing from shuttle bay two."

  It never ceased to thrill her. That incredible rush she got from piloting. It satisfied some need in her to live on the edge. And this ship, with all the power of time at her fingertips, it was almost overwhelming.

  What she could do. What she could change? It was so tempting...

  *****

  Right now....

  The mission was an uneventful success, a first for the Delta Flyer. In a couple of hours they would be back on Voyager. Which was just fine with Tom, B'Elanna needed him.

  "B'Elanna's in labor." he said to no one in particular.

  Chakotay was about to tell him he was worrying unnecessarily, but thought better of it. Tom seemed to have an uncanny ability to sense when B'Elanna needed him.

  "Someday, you're going to have to tell me how you do that." Harry Kim said.

  "Do what?" Tom was confused.

  "Know things, about B'Elanna."

  "I don't know -how- I do it, I just do." It was a hard thing to describe. This link he had with her. It was there all the time just under the surface. When she needed him, he knew it. He could feel it.

  "You know, when I was researching Klingon traditions. Do you remember that time when B'Elanna was celebrating The Day of Honor? I came across an old legend that spoke of 'qa'nalq'. The empathic link sometimes shared by bonded Klingon mates. The word means 'spirit mate'. It is believed that when this happens, it means the pair is destined for all eternity to be together. I always thought it strange that a race such as the Klingons would have such romantic tales. Then again, they are such a passionate people, aren't they? Maybe it's not s
uch a strange idea after all. I've often wondered if you and B'Elanna had this ability." Neelix told them.

  "Just how much time do you people spend thinking about my marriage?"

  "Hey, it's a small ship," Harry replied. "Sometimes your love life is all we have. You have to admit; it can be a lot more entertaining than the holodeck. If you ever heard what we hear coming from your quarters, you'd be wondering too."

  "Don't let B'Elanna hear you say that, Harry. Or I'll be bunking in -your- quarters until we reach the Alpha Quadrant."

  "Tom, I'm picking up some kind of temporal disturbance off the port side. It seems to be on a direct intercept course with us." Chakotay interrupted, concerned.

  "I've got it, adjusting course. What the hell.... Is it tracking us?" Tom asked Harry.

  "I don't know, maybe the warp core is attracting it."

  "I can't out maneuver this thing, it's coming at us too fast." Tom was desperately trying to get more out of the ship.

  "Brace for impact!" Chakotay yelled.

  The edge of the disturbance reached them a microsecond later. Tom struggled with the controls, trying to keep the ship from being torn apart. As the anomaly engulfed them he saw another ship fighting the currents as well. It was on a direct course for the Flyer. Tom tried without success to get out of the way.

  "Harry! I need more power!"

  "Sorry! This is it, Tom. I can't give you any more."

  Thinking quickly Tom saw a plasma discharge forming off the starboard bow. If he could get close enough it might pull them out of their current flight path.

  The other pilot saw it too. Before Tom could try to alter his heading the other ship was riding the plasma charge. Even in alarm, Tom had to marvel at the skill of the other pilot. He was holding his own against some incredibly forceful currents. Finally the Flyer came to a stop in the center of the anomaly. All four of them watched as the other ship fought against the currents.

  "Commander, that ship has a Federation signature." Harry announced somewhat shocked.

  "Can we get close enough to tractor it out of there?" Neelix asked.

  "Not without getting pulled in ourselves," replied Tom, grimly.

  "We're caught in some type of sub-space rift. There is a temporal variance to it. It's almost as if we're caught outside time and space." Harry told them.

  At that moment the other ship broke free of the plasma charge and was flung past the Flyer.

  "This is the Delta Flyer to the Federation Ship, do you require our assistance?" Chakotay hailed the other ship.

  "No response," Harry stated. "I'm reading a single life sign, unconscious and injured."

  "Tom get us to within tractor range, Harry get that ship." Chakotay ordered.

  "Aye, sir."

  Tom brought the Flyer to the disabled ship and Harry caught it with a tractor beam.

  "Tom, you and I will beam over. The pilot might need medical attention." Chakotay ordered as he rose from his seat. Tom followed closely grabbing the med kit as the headed to the aft of the ship.

  They materialized on the bridge of the small ship. Chakotay noted immediately it was Starfleet design. It looked somewhat different than Voyager, but the similarities were startling.

  Tom knelt down next to the pilot, who was lying unconscious on the floor. It was a woman. Her uniform, like her ship, bore a strong resemblance to the one's they wore. It too was different enough to take note of, however.

  "How is she?" Chakotay asked as he crouched down next to Tom.

  "Mild concussion. Nothing serious. It's the thick Klingon skulls that save 'em every time." Tom jested, making Chakotay notice that the woman was indeed Klingon. Part Klingon, anyway.

  "Can you wake her?"

  "Sure," Tom took out a hypo-spray and applied it to her neck.

  Her eyelids fluttered once then opened. Slowly taking in the two men who hovered over her.

  "What happened?" She asked trying to sit up. Groaning as her head protested the movement.

  "Easy, you have a concussion," Tom told her as he helped steady her.

  "We were hoping you could help answer that question. Both our ships are caught in some type of sub-space tear. There's a temporal variance we can't account for either." Chakotay said.

  "Well, Commander. Unfortunately, I think I can." Was the grim reply.

  "I take it you're Starfleet." Tom said, noting she recognized the rank insignia on Chakotay's collar.

  "From the cradle, Ensign, from the cradle." She paused and looked intently at the two men before continuing, "Lt. Commander Isobel Riker, welcome to the Federation Timeship Continuity, gentlemen."

  "Timeship?" Tom asked with dread, he hated Temporal Mechanics.

  "Yes, and if you two are who I think you are. I'm in big trouble." With a sigh, she brushed back the thick red hair that had come loose from the braid she wore.

  "Who do you think we are?" Chakotay asked.

  "Commander Chakotay and Ensign Tom Paris of the Federation Starship Voyager. What's the Stardate?"

  "53846.2," Tom answered.

  "Of course, I should have known," she muttered as she stood up on shaking legs.

  *****

  "I would like to know how you knew you were in love with Ensign Paris," Seven said, trying to find ways to take B'Elanna's mind off the situation as they continued to search for the away team. They were six hours over due, and there was no sign of them.

  Taken aback at the question, B'Elanna thought for a few minutes. When did it happen?

  "I'm not sure exactly when," B'Elanna paused with a grin. "It was a gradual thing, I hated him for a long time. Thought he was a pig, and that he had betrayed the Maquis to Starfleet."

  B'Elanna's smile broadened at the memory and continued, "His behavior didn't help much. He chased every available woman on the ship the first few months after we were stranded. Or at least that's what he wanted everybody to think. I'm not so sure it's true anymore. I have the feeling he was putting on a good show, but it was just that, a show."

  Seven listened with interest.

  "I think I began to realize I was wrong about him when the Vidiians captured us and split me in two. One fully Klingon being and one fully human. They kept my Klingon half for experimentation and sent me, as a human, back to the cell. It was very hard for me. I was sick and worst of all, frightened. A new feeling for me. And Tom was right there. He understood. He listened to me. He held me. He protected me. He kept me going, without him I wouldn't have made it out of there."

  She stopped and took a deep breath as another contraction began to build. Seven watched her stoically ride the pain out. Never giving in to it. It had become a battle to be won. A challenge to be concurred. She would not let it beat her.

  "Continue." Seven demanded, ignoring the other woman's irked expression.

  "Ummm...Tom. Things started to change for us after that. I started to see him for who he really was. It didn't take long before I realized he was attracted to me. I would catch him watching me when he thought I wasn't looking. He would get jealous if I was with anybody else. He tried to hide it behind the jokes, but I still saw it. I wasn't interested him in that way.... or so I kept telling myself." She smirked as she spoke.

  "Although we became friends, I still kept him at arm's length. Not letting him too close.... but he was persistent. Constantly pushing me, never letting me be. He would go out of his way to make me angry with him!"

  Seven raised her eyebrow, lifting the ocular implant in her best Tuvok imitation. Making B'Elanna mad was not a difficult task. Foolish, but not difficult. Then again, Ensign Paris had never been known for his common sense.

  "We danced around each other for a -long- time. Flirting, teasing, fighting--generally providing great entertainment for the crew...then Vorik went through the Pon Farr. Things got a little more difficult for us after that. I guess we were both a little scared of what was happening. We played cat and mouse for a while. Advancing, retreating, advancing again. It took a crazy dead woman to make me see ho
w much I had come to depend on him."

  *****

  Then....

  B'Elanna followed Tom as he left the briefing room. She hadn't had a chance to talk to him yet. She wanted to make sure he was all right.

  "Tom," she called out. He turned and looked at her in surprise.

  "B'Elanna," he said guardedly. He never knew how to take an advance from her.

  "I just...I just wanted to make sure you were all right, and everything."

  Why did she stammer like a nervous schoolgirl when she was alone with him?