Summary: Voyager's
long journey comes to an end as her crew begins their new journey into
the future.
Twisting The Threads Of Fate
Copyright September 2001
by KJ
She materialized in the transporter
room, the last time she would beam aboard this ship—her ship. Voyager had
never known another captain and now she never would, yes this truly belonged
to her. Standing here she thought back to the first time she had come aboard,
ready to take command of her brand new ship. Admiral Patterson had hit
her with a pop quiz the moment she materialized, she smiled at the memory.
=^= =^= =^=
=^= =^= =^=
"You're late." Were the first
words he spoke to her.
"Sorry, Sir." She stepped down
from the pad
"What's the threshold of the
H2 molecule?
"14.7 electron volts."
"Third brightest star in Orion?"
"Viewed from where?"
"Earth."
"Gamma Orionis or Bellatrix,
if you prefer the original Arabic name."
"Not bad. Now give me a hug
Katie, that's an order."
"I wasn't expecting a pop quiz."
She stepped forward and hugged him.
"Just wanted to make sure all
those pips haven't made you forget you're a scientist first."
"How could they? I still have
nightmares about your fractal calculus final."
They laughed then and began
her very first inspection of Voyager, neither of them could have known
this was to become her home for the next seven years.
=^= =^= =^=
=^= =^= =^=
"Ma'am?"
"Oh, yes Ensign." Brought back
from her memories, she returned the knowing smile of the young man in front
of her.
"May I take your things to your
quarters?" The young man repeated his question.
"Yes, thank you." This would
be the final time she'd use 'her' quarters. A lot of changes had taken
place since the last time she was in them, reunions, trials, promotions,
resignations, and even a declaration of sentience. Many things were different
now, but today, if only for a few hours, they would set aside all those
differences, step back in time to just one year ago; again they would become
the crew she had grown to love. They would be wearing their uniforms for
the dedication ceremony; the old style uniforms the ones they had worn
on the day they brought Voyager home. She would forgo her new rank and
wear her outdated uniform and her captain's pips proudly, the others would
be doing the same and then the uniforms would also become part of history,
some on display in the museum. Chakotay would once again don a Starfleet
uniform and again she knew he did it for her. She wouldn't be leaving after
the ceremony, instead she would use the captain's quarters to change for
the reception later this evening. She handed over the things she carried,
straightened her shoulders and left the transporter room for one last solitary
stroll around Voyager.
As she made her way to the lift,
the scurry of cadets checking, polishing and rechecking, reminded her of
another young crew. The surviving members of that crew matured quickly,
in the, often hostile, environment of the Delta Quadrant. The voices of
that triumphant crew, as well as those less fortunate members, rang down
every corridor.
"Deck fifteen." She ordered
as the lift closed behind her. She would start at the bottom and work her
way to the bridge; she needed to say good-bye to each and every deck along
the way.
She came to the small dark workspace;
she could still hear Mortimer Harren, expounding his theories, trying to
intimidate her with his 'superior intelligence', as if the encounter were
yesterday. He was so sure with his five degrees in Theoretical Cosmology,
that he would determine the origin of the entire universe and his discovery
would be wasted here in the lower decks. She remembered how he had tried
to talk his way out of the away mission and how far he had come since that
anti-social time. As she made her way around the deck, she thought back
to that mission. What started as nothing more than an exercise, a mission
contrived to allow the Captain to bring three misfits into the fold, turned
into a life altering experience for each of them. Billy Telfer, a hypochondriac
with a fear of medication and Tal Celes, an inept astrometrics assistant,
rounded out her crew for that mission and each had surpassed not only her
expectations, but their own. They had all come a long way since then and
she was as proud of them as any other members of her crew.
She worked her way past deck
fourteen with its antimatter containment pods, the science labs and past
the crew quarters on deck thirteen, stopping a moment on deck twelve. This
deck housed the reserve warp core, storage units and at one time so much
more. At one time, deck twelve was the home of Voyager's 'ghost', an alien
comprised of electrical energy, who took over control of Voyager's computer.
When it discovered Voyager and her crew had accidentally distorted the
nebula it called home, it forced the Captain to order her crew to abandon
ship. The alien then trapped her before she was able to join the rest of
the crew. Luckily in the end, she had been able to reason with the creature
and with the crew back on board, locate a new nebula into which they successfully
released the life form. She came close to losing her battle with that particular
alien; she could almost feel the pressure building in her lungs as she
remembered choking on the noxious gas, declaring she would die before surrendering
to its whim. She took a deep breath to shake off the feeling; she had eleven
more decks to visit.
She stood in main engineering,
deck eleven held many, many memories. B'Elanna Torres, tough, driven, maquis
rebel and one of the best damned Starfleet officers to ever serve on a
Starship. They never would have completed their journey without her courage,
determination and instinctive, sometimes miraculous, engineering skills.
Oh she has her faults, a red hot Klingon temper for one, Joe Carey could
attest to that. He was a good officer, Joe, and an even better man. Even
after B'Elanna broke his nose in that dispute and he had been passed over
for the Chief engineer's position, he was the first to congratulate B'Elanna
and was always there to give her his best effort. Seska had worked down
here, the thought of her brought back bad memories. She was one lost crewman
they were better off without.
She circled to the shuttle bays,
they spanned both deck eleven and ten in this section and were filled with
memories. They had launched many important missions from here and some
ill-fated ones, the delta flyer was created here and Alice was given new
life. Dignitaries had been received here, and it was right here that she
had sealed Voyager's fate with a kiss. Kashyk, she remembered well, the
evil, intriguing, yet somehow honorable, Devore Inspector. He had been
a real challenge; not an entirely unwelcome one. If she were honest with
herself, she would have to admit a strong attraction to the man, as well
as the game. He played well, but she played better and in the end he conceded
defeat and Voyager went free.
She passed over deck nine, it
was the original security deck but had been closed off early in the journey
to conserve energy. Tuvok had chosen to use his own quarters and his bridge
station instead. Deck eight held the cargo bays, nothing special except
for number two. As she entered cargo bay two, she was flooded with emotions,
not the least of which a flutter of fear for having almost lost him. She
examined the regeneration chamber. How many times had she watched as Seven
regenerated; now she wondered had Chakotay done this too? She tried not
to let Chakotay's involvement color her perception of Seven, she had come
a very long way since being liberated from the collective and Kathryn owed
her a lot, the whole crew did. More than once, Seven with her borg knowledge
and technology had served them well, more than once she had saved the proverbial
day. Fighting her fears and an alien intruder she protected the crew as
they crossed a vast nebula full of deadly radiation. Again she protected
them, when she and Naomi were the only crewmembers whose minds could not
be psychogenicly manipulated by a bio-plasmic organism, who preyed on starships.
Countless times she had been a valuable asset, and she had reclaimed her
humanity, now she was even using her human name—Annika ---still Kathryn
couldn't ease the unsettled gnawing in the pit of her stomach. She moved
on, trying to concentrate on other things.
Naomi, now there was a truly
bright spot. The first child born on Voyager, she was a ray of hope to
the entire crew. The Captain's Assistant, Naomi had declared herself and
no one enjoyed it more than the Captain herself. As she made her way to
the holodeck, she recalled telling Naomi about her own adventures with
Flotter, a holocharacter all children loved. Of course as captain, she
had her own favorite holocharacters. Leonardo, the great scientist and
artist, she had enjoyed her time with him. She scanned the program listing,
blushing when she read the name "Fair Haven". Michael, her holographic
Irish lover, now there was a real moment of weakness. She had enjoyed his
company and he was a wonderful diversion, it was all, just a little to
public. No harm had come of it, the crew was mildly amused and Starfleet
had overlooked it completely- all's well that ends well. Ahh, Lake George,
she and Chakotay had spent some quiet time sailing there. She had the real
thing now, she no longer needed the holodeck simulation, and thankfully
she no longer needed to pretend she and Chakotay were only friends.
She found herself standing outside
the door to sickbay, the memories here were especially difficult. They
suffered so many losses over the years, each one tragic. The last, possibly
the hardest, coming so close to their home coming. She wanted to acknowledge
the losses but not dwell on them, instead she chose to recollect the doctor's
victories. To concentrate on the great medical discoveries he made, the
many lives he had saved and his contribution to the crew both professionally
and personally. He had become so much more than the compilation of his
programs and she was grateful for his help, his loyalty and his friendship.
As she stepped through the doors, heart-wrenching visions assaulted her,
good and bad. She had first met the doctor here in the aftermath of the
displacement wave, he was nothing more than a computer program then, how
much had changed over the years. She touched the biotables as she envisioned
the room as it was on that fateful day. What had begun in the chaos, the
death and destruction of that first day in the Delta Quadrant, had ended
in the same sort of drama. Their return to Federation space was marked
not by death but by a brand new life. It was fitting, they would all have
new lives now and Voyager would soon make her final journey to a new resting
place to begin her own life anew. She reminded herself that it would be
starting soon, she needed to move on and complete her tour.
She passed over the next two
decks, crew quarters could be visited later, the lift stopped on deck two.
The mess hall and what had once been her private dinning room, now Voyagers
galley, had always been a center of activity. Meals and lives were shared
here, diplomatic dinners and crew celebrations, midnight raids on Neelix's
hidden treasures, and solitary cups of coffee in the cold loneliness of
night. Neelix, such a funny little man she had thought at first, but he
had proved to be an able shipmate, a talented diplomat with a heart at
least as big as Voyager herself. She missed him. Lost in thought she almost
missed the voices coming from inside. She peered in to see several crewmembers
already gathered there. She wasn't ready to share this with the crew yet;
she backed off and headed to the bridge.
The doors swished open and she
stood silently observing the flurry of activity. They were putting the
finishing touches on the spit and polish for today's ceremony.
"Captain on the Bridge." An
eager young voice rang out.
"As you were." Her automatic
response, as she crossed to her command chair remembering a time when the
bridge was far from the showpiece it was today. The times when wires sparked
and consoles smoked, when she had clung to her chair as the ship rocked
and jolted under some alien attack, those times played across her mind.
Looking up at the blank view screen she envisioned the first time she had
seen him there, the ruggedly handsome Maquis outlaw, even then part of
her knew she needed him. He had restrained B'Elanna that day when she destroyed
the array, held tight to her hand the day she was assimilated by the Borg
and had been at her side every step in between. Standing, she ran her hand
along the smooth, polished surface of the railing, smiling to herself as
she exited the bridge to her ready room.
=^= =^= =^=
=^= =^= =^=
"Captain." The young Lieutenant
stopped polishing the coffee table and snapped to attention.
"As you were, Lieutenant. Don't
let me interrupt you." Kathryn took a seat behind her desk.
"I'm almost finished here, ma…
Captain." She blushed slightly when she saw that Kathryn noticed the correction.
"It works, Captain." She nodded toward the replicator. "Can I get you a
coffee?"
"Thank You, Lieutenant..?" She
was tempted to get it herself, but this young woman obviously wanted to
do something for her.
"Perrier, Captain. Danielle
Perrier." She made her way to the replicator. "Coffee black." She ordered
with no hesitation.
"Thank You, Lieutenant Perrier.
How did you know how I drank it?" Kathryn smiled at the increased pinkness
in the woman's cheeks.
"I've made it a point, Captain,
to learn all I can about you." Her face was even redder now, but she forced
herself to continue. "You are an inspiration to us all. I will to be a
captain someday and I hope to be as good as you."
"Well that's very flattering,
but I've made my share of mistakes, as I'm sure you will. My best advise
Lieutenant is not to try to be me, but to be the best you, you can be and
learn by those mistakes."
"Yes, Captain I'll try."
The chime interrupted their
conversation.
"Come." Kathryn called and the
door swished open to reveal, as she knew it would, her first officer. "Come
in, Commander."
"Captain." He nodded smiling
in her direction, then at the Lieutenant. "Lieutenant"
"Sir." She looked from one to
the other. "Captain, Commander, If you will excuse me. I'm finished here."
"Certainly. Dismissed." Kathryn
stepped around the desk next to Chakotay. "Lieutenant?"
"Yes, Captain?" She turned and
faced the smiling command team.
"Keep doing your homework, You'll
make a good captain someday."
"Thank you Captain, I'll do
my best."
With the swish of the doors,
they were alone once more in her ready room, perhaps for the last time.
She stepped closer and wrapped her arms around him, he responded by pulling
her tightly to him.
"Come, look at the stars." She
move back, took his hand and led him to the viewport. "This will be the
last time any one will see the stars from this port—in about a hour you'll
see Alcatraz." She leaned back against his chest, pulling his arms around
her.
"She's had a good life, Kathryn.
She deserves a rest."
"Yes, she does, we all do, but
it's just a little sad to be moving on."
Together they watched the stars,
silently thanking whatever powers there may be, and one admiral from the
future, that they would be moving on together. It hadn't been an easy journey,
but it was a good one and the future promised to be even better.
"Tuvok to Janeway." The familiar
Vulcan voice alerted them.
"Janeway here"
"It is almost time, Captain."
"Thank you, Tuvok. On our way.
Janeway out." She turned in his arms. "Ready Commander?"
"I'm with you, Captain." He
bent and brushed his lips softly across hers. "Always."
Stepping back she straightened
her shoulders, took a deep breath and walked onto the bridge. Tuvok was
at tactical, Harry at opps, B'Elanna stood by the engineering station,
Seven, no Annika, manned the science console, and Tom had the helm. The
only thing out of place was the transmitter that would broadcast live to
everyplace capable of receiving a subspace transmission, the final flight
of the Starship Voyager, direct from the bridge. Everything they did or
said from now on would instantly be transmitted to millions.
"Captain on the bridge." Tuvok
announced and they all stood and saluted her.
She returned their salute and
took her command chair. Fighting back tears, she took his hand and nodded
to Harry to open a ship wide channel.
"All hands, this is the Captain.
Before we go into our final descent, I would like to thank you all for
the honor of being your captain. I thank you for your faith, your loyalty
and for the courage you have all shown throughout this difficult journey.
It is only through your determination and hard work that we were able to
complete our mission and return Voyager safely to the Alpha Quadrant. I
am proud to have served with each and every one of you. And I'm sure I
speak for all of you, when I say, thank you Voyager for the comfort and
shelter you steadfastly provided for us on this long and arduous journey."
She paused to collect herself, feeling him squeeze her hand she met his
moist eyes with tear-filled eyes of her own. "All hands, secure your stations,
blue alert. Lieutenant Torres, take the warp drive off line."
"Warp drive off line, Captain.
Venting plasma."
"Let's do it. Mr. Paris, take
us down."
"Aye Captain."
=^= =^= =^=
=^= =^= =^=
A sizeable crowd, which included
dignitaries from many worlds, family and friends, the Federation council,
all of Starfleet's top brass, as well as thousands of ordinary citizens,
silently watched the large screen at the landing site. The scene before
them offered more drama than any holonovel, it was heart wrenchingly powerful,
more so than Voyager's sudden return exactly a year ago.
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=^= =^= =^=
"Plotting descent course." Tom's
fingers flew over his console
"Atmospheric thrusters on line."
B'Elanna calmly informed them.
"Atmospheric controls on standby,
landing mechanisms on line, inertia dampers at maximum." Tom ran down each
step in the landing sequence.
"All decks report condition
blue, Captain." Tuvok reported
"Put her down Mr. Paris." She
settled back in her chair. "Status"
"On the glide trajectory, altitude
100 kilometers, speed 1000 KPH" Tom smiled up at the view screen, as the
picture cleared and earth came into view. "20 kilometers to landing site,
should be getting a visual now."
"Extend landing struts; prepare
to recalibrate inertial dampers to match earth's gravity."
"Landing struts down and locked.'
Tom's response was confident.
"Standing by environmental controls."
Harry watched the landing sight and enormous crowd come into view.
=^= =^= =^=
=^= =^= =^=
The scene from the bridge mesmerized
the crowd, many of them had never experienced space travel and most of
those that had, had never seen it from the bridge. The awed silence was
broken by shouts and cheers as Voyager came into view, the excitement building
as the crowd was torn between the broadcast from the bridge and the diamond
bright lights growing larger on the horizon. And then there she was,
Voyager's lights spectacular
against the darkening skies, as she swooped above the Golden Gate Bridge.
It was widely known that in relation to other ships, the intrepid class
was a small craft, but as she hovered above the landing sight, she was
the biggest, proudest, most dignified starship anyone could ever remember
seeing. She swept across the skies, looping up and taking a 'victory lap'
from the bridge, across the academy campus and back to the site, in a flamboyant
style that could only belong to Tom Paris, finally coming to rest with
feather light precision on the landing pad.
=^= =^= =^=
=^= =^= =^=
"Disengaging engines, securing
thruster exhaust." Tom gave a relieved sigh as he put the final touches
on their landing "We're down. Captain, we are home."
"Good job, Tom. All hands, we
have touch down." Kathryn stood in front of her command chair, reaching
for Chakotay's hand and bringing him to stand beside her. "Stand down blue
alert and Welcome home."