Copyright 2001, Susan S. McCrackin  Reprinted with permission of the author.

Supala and Neelix looked at each other, and Neelix gave her a helpless shrug. Supala moved slowly to stand next to Harry, "Won’t you please try to eat something?"

"I’m not hungry."

She tightened her eyes at the coldness in his voice. He had not moved from the chair since they had returned from telling Tom and B’Elanna about the Doctor’s death and Seven’s sentencing. 

Neelix approached and sat down next to him, "Ensign Kim, the fight isn’t over. You know the Captain and Admiral Paris will do everything they can do to free Seven."

Harry jerked his head toward Neelix, "They also said she would be safe! And nothing they can do will bring back the Doctor. The Federation never even thought to back up the Doctor’s program. Do you think they ever meant for him to survive as an independent being? I wouldn’t be surprised if they killed the Doctor themselves."

"Ensign Kim!"

"No," he stood and wheeled around to face them, "think about it. He only had a temporary order of self-determination. Even after Seven changed her plea, the final court order had not gone through. Don’t you find it just a little strange they scrubbed his program so quickly?

"And tell me," he leaned over the chair to look Neelix in the face, "do you really believe Seven is guilty? Do you think she sabotaged Voyager?"

Neelix immediately shook his head, "No, of course not."

"Then why would she change her plea? Tell me, Neelix, what would make her plead guilty to something she never did?"

Neelix dropped his head. He knew exactly what Harry was saying. It was something he had already thought about. He knew it was what they all thought, but no one had given voice to it yet. He didn’t know that much about the Federation, but even he recognized how political it was. And he knew something was going terribly wrong where Seven was concerned. It only added up to one thing. He looked back up as Harry spoke.

"Blackmail." His voice was venomous. "They are using her child against her."

"You don’t know that."

"Don’t I? Tell me something else that would make her plead guilty. Explain how else she would admit guilt and, within twenty-four hours, Tom and B’Elanna would be given custody of KB. Explain that to me, Neelix!"

Neelix did not respond. Harry was right, and they all knew it. The question was, what could they do about it? There was no support for them right now. Even the Captain had told them it would take them a long time to work through the diplomatic channels to free Seven. She had assured them they would free Seven, but he had to admit to himself that he did not agree with her.

"I thought so." Harry turned to pace around the room, his anger building with every step. Pictures of her ran through his head. He saw her as she had been when she first came on Voyager. He saw her as she walked through the corridors of Voyager, pregnant, her belly swelling and her face growing more gaunt, but her eyes alive with the excitement of being pregnant. He saw her lying on the bed, connected to the machines keeping her alive. He saw her dying. The memories of her implant replacement rolled through his memories, and he gripped his hand tightly as he remembered the feel of her ankle in his hand as he fought to help her hold on to her humanity as the Borg had jerked it away from her. He remembered the feel of her under his body as they kissed in the cargo bay, and then her horror as she realized he was not the one she loved. And he remembered how she had looked as she had been brought into the courtroom. They had broken her spirit. Through everything she had been through, he had never seen her like that. 

Neelix watched his face, seeing the resolve that started to come into it. "Ensign Kim," his voice was questioning and cautious, "Harry, what are you thinking?"

Harry turned to him, the pain now gone and a strength coming into his eyes that Neelix had never seen. Then, Neelix watched as Harry slowly reached up to his collar and removed the pip. He held it in his hand, allowing it to roll around in his palm.

"Harry?" Neelix walked closer to him, "What are you doing?"

Harry smiled at him, "Captain Janeway has taught me that there is always another solution. There are many ways to win a fight. There is no way to win in the Federation."

Neelix watched as Harry slowly dipped his hand, and the pip rolled off of it and dropped to the floor.

"I am going to find another way to fight for Seven."

He turned from them and slowly started to walk toward the door.

"Harry, wait!" Supala moved forward.

He turned around, but did not speak.

They stared at each other, his face determined and hers uncertain. Neelix realized he was holding his breath. Finally, he watched Supala’s cheeks redden deeply as she spoke, "I’m coming with you."

She moved to his side and gave him a determined look. He finally nodded and started to turn toward the door again. Before he could, Neelix spoke.

"Harry! Supala!"

Harry and Supala turned back to him.

Neelix looked around the room, then smiled, "Wait for me."

Together, they left.

"Seven of Nine."

"Yes."

"Your child is safe. I have kept my promise to you. Judge Marshall has authorized the orders. Tom and B’Elanna Paris have custody of Kathryn B’Elanna. You do not have to worry about your aunt taking her. I will not allow that to happen."

"Thank you."

Her response surprised him. It was quiet, almost accepting. He allowed himself a moment before continuing, "You will be transported soon. Do not be afraid at what happens during your journey today, Seven of Nine. You will never arrive at Matarin Prison. Do not worry about that. I will not let that happen to you, Seven of Nine. Trust me to take care of you."

She did not respond, and her mind was blank. He could not hear her thoughts. She had learned to hide from him. It was good he would have her close to him soon. He needed to be able to look into her eyes when they spoke. He could read her eyes. Her eyes would tell him everything.

"It will not be long now, Seven of Nine. We will be together very soon. I am looking forward to our time together."

There was a long silence. Then, she spoke, "Yes."

He frowned, again wishing he could see her eyes. But her voice had been soft and accepting. "I will see you soon. Remember, do not be afraid today. I am taking care of you."

"Understood."

He allowed himself to smile. She was now his. Maybe the Doctor’s death was a more fortuitous event than he had thought. The hologram was gone. Her child was gone. She would soon be separated from all of the people who were close to her. He would be all she would have, and he knew she would come to him willingly. 

He removed the device from his neck and closed his eyes. Then, he rose. It was time for him to leave. He looked around the room, taking careful note of it, making certain he had not left anything incriminating behind. Satisfied, he slipped the device in his pocket and left.

Kathryn Janeway stood next to Admiral Paris. They were watching the guards take Seven from her cell and move her toward the ship that would transport her to the prison planet. Even though she knew Seven could not see her, she pressed her hand against the glass that separated them, trying desperately to catch sight of her eyes. What she saw hurt her even more than she thought she could be hurt.

Seven’s eyes were blank; her expression empty. She shuffled slowly, accompanied by impatient guards who sometimes dragged her faster than her shackled feet could move her. But Seven did not even seem to notice. There was no fight, no defiance, no pride in her movement. 

Janeway forced herself to watch every move she made. It was her own punishment for putting her faith in the leadership of the Federation. And she was being punished. She deserved the punishment.

Seven did not. Seven was being made the villain, but she was the innocent victim. Right now, there was nothing Janeway could do but stand by and watch. But she would find a way to fight this. She had not spent the last seven years fighting against all odds in the Delta Quadrant to come home to the Alpha Quadrant and lose this battle.

Don’t give up on me, Seven. I will find another way. Trust me.

She pressed her hand against the glass and yelled her message in her mind. Hear me Seven. Hear me and believe in me. I promise you, I will fight for you. Don’t give up. Keep fighting.

She watched as Seven looked in her direction, and she gasped. Seven’s eyes were cold and dark. She had lost faith and trust. Janeway knew it would take a lot to get it back – if she ever could. If she ever had the chance to even try. She watched her move toward the transport vehicle and disappear inside. She noticed that Seven never even looked back. For a reason she could not understand, that one action caused her heart to sink.

He watched the doors close as the last of the guards boarded the transport ship. His eyes never left the ship as it undocked and slowly made its way from the space station to take the prisoner to Matarin Prison. 

He lifted his hand to the PADD that was in his pocket. Checking to make certain no one was looking at him, he pulled the PADD out and activated it. He read through his letter of resignation again. He had read it carefully at least ten times. It was important that he have it just right.

He looked up at the disappearing ship carrying its prisoner, Seven of Nine. He looked back down at the PADD and sent the message.

It was with a deep sense of relief and satisfaction that Darrian Green officially resigned as representative of the leadership of the Federation. He would never serve them again.

Seven had been strapped in the same position for the better part of three hours. He legs were going numb, but she refused to ask the guards to remove her restraints or let her move around the cabin. She would not give them the satisfaction.

They were looking for her to show any type of weakness, and she would not allow herself to do so. She was still Borg. She concentrated on her legs, trying to give them whatever small amount of movement she could manage to improve the circulation in them. Not, of course, that it would do much good. 

She raised her head and thought. Once they arrived at her destination, she would be his, and her life would be over. She would do whatever she had to do to protect her daughter. Nothing in her life was more important that Kathryn B’Elanna. There was not a price to pay too high for her child’s life and safety. 

B’Elanna would care for her. B’Elanna would love her as she had loved her. B’Elanna would give her strength and a sense of self. In some ways, B’Elanna would be a better mother to her than she had been.

And Tom would be a good father. But her would never be the kind of father to Kathryn B’Elanna that the Doctor had been.

She closed her eyes at the thought. He was dead. And with his death, a large part of her had died. She looked down at the gold that now surrounded her finger. It was all she had of him, and it was her symbol of the love and commitment they shared. No one would touch her the way he had. No one would ever reach her the way he had. She remembered the feel of his lips on her implant. Only he had been capable of touching her in that way, of loving all of her, the human and the Borg.

She could be touched. She knew that now. And the man in her mind would be able to touch her, but he would never touch her soul as the Doctor had. He might have her, but he would never own her. 

And when the time was right and she knew without a doubt that Kathryn B’Elanna was beyond his reach, she would kill him. Until that time, her anger would guide her. It would give her the strength she needed to survive until it was safe for her child for her to bring this to an end. She smiled, knowing that she was looking forward to that special comfort she had found in darkness.

Suddenly, she was aware of a loud noise. She watched as the guards reacted in panic, and she heard the claxons in the transport vehicle start to sound. The ship shuttered, and she knew there had been an explosion. He had told her not to be frightened by anything that happened. He had promised she would never reach Matarin Prison. He was keeping his promise. He had kept all of his promises. And she would keep hers, only she had never verbalized it to him. 

The ship shuttered again, and she heard the computer warn that the hull integrity was compromised. Sitting quietly, she waited. She did trust him. She knew he would not let any harm come to her. He wanted her too much. She knew that. She knew it the first time he had entered her mind. He wanted her for more than her DNA. He was in love with her. She found a comfort in that. It would work to her advantage.

The ship rocked, and she was thrown against her restraints. A part of the bulkhead above her exploded, and a fragment caught her on the right side of her face. She felt a stinging pain and then felt a wet warmth spread down her cheek and her neck. The blow had dazed her, and she shook her head, trying to clear her senses. When she did, she saw blood splatter around her. She was damaged. It took her a moment to realize that blood was spurting from her neck. A part of her mind was starting to become alarmed. She had been badly cut. She scrunched her head into her shoulder as much as she could, trying to staunch the flow of blood. 

Around her, she was aware of screaming and more explosions. Then, she heard the computer counting down a warp core explosion. Another explosion behind her dislodged the chair she was sitting in, and she found herself lying on the floor, on her side, still tightly restrained and unable to move.

Maybe, she thought, this was one promise he was not going to be able to keep. She felt the darkness overtaking her, and she welcomed its coming.

They sat, their eyes focused on the monitors, listening in horror. Kathryn Janeway’s face was colorless. Chakotay had crossed to her immediately, hesitated only a moment, then wrapped his arm around her shoulder, pulling her tightly to him. His own eyes were locked on the monitor. Tom and B’Elanna were holding each other in total disbelief. T’Pel had moved slowly to her husband’s side and quietly slid her hand into his. Their children surrounded them, and they all stood close, silent in their grief.

Dr. Zimmerman stood next to Reg, who reached out to grasp him on the shoulder. After a moment, he turned and walked into the small bedroom where Dr. E’Nalto and Counselor Troi were trying to care for Kathryn B’Elanna. The child had started screaming before the news had even come on. They all knew immediately that something had gone terribly wrong. Despite the strong sedative Dr. E’Nalto had given her, she was still conscious and crying hard, her body thrashing as she fought the medicine. Dr. Zimmerman walked up to Counselor Troi who was working desperately to keep the child calm. He saw how pale Troi had become and knew that the child was exhausting her.

"Give her to me." He reached for her.

Troi reluctantly handed the child to him and watched as he cuddled her closely to him. She saw Kathryn B’Elanna reached to put her hand on Dr. Zimmerman’s face.

"Gwanpaw."

"Yes, honey. Grandpa is here."

Troi watched as Kathryn B’Elanna wrapped her arms around his neck and finally gave into the medicine. He moved to sit down in a nearby chair and held his granddaughter tightly in his arms. Troi knew he would stay like that for as long as she slept.

"What happened?" He was watching the newscasts, reporting the destruction of the transport ship carrying the condemned Borg. He turned in fury to Andrew, "That wasn’t supposed to happen for another two hours! Did we get her?"

Andrew was almost afraid to look at him. He was definitely afraid to answer. Reluctantly, he shook his head, "No, we didn’t get her. Our ships were not in the area."

"Is there any indication that she survived?"

"No. We haven’t been able to get into the area to find out. The Federation’s ships got to the area first. They are leading the examination, trying to determine exactly what happened."

"Who attacked?"

"We don’t know if the ship was attacked. The explosion seemed to come from the ship itself."

"Have either of the groups claimed responsibility?"

"Not yet." Andrew breathed deeply, "It’s too early, sir. The explosion just happened. We don’t know what caused it or why."

He paused, "Were there any survivors?"

Andrew hesitated, "None have been found so far."

He stopped to think, "Leave me."

Andrew left immediately, grateful for the opportunity to do so.

He grabbed the device out of his pocket and attached it quickly to his neck, turning it up to maximum. He concentrated, trying desperately to find her thoughts.

Ketaria was sitting in their bed, her face still pale and her eyes weak. Kahkar placed a tray on her lap, "It isn’t as good as Supala would be able to fix, but I think it is edible."

She smiled at him, "It will be fine." She started to spoon the soup, carefully blowing on it to cool it off.

"How is your headache?"

"Getting better, but still there."

He looked at her, trying to return her smile, "I was so scared for you."

"You should have been." She sighed, "If it had not been for Kathryn B’Elanna, I could not have found my way back. I was too lost." She looked at him, almost afraid to ask, "Have we received any messages?"

He shook his head, "No, nothing. We have been monitoring carefully, but have yet to hear anything. I don’t know whether to be afraid or encouraged."

"You know we were not to hear anything this early."

"I know. Still….." His voice trailed off. "Meloka has been carefully monitoring all subspace communications, and Otoro has been commanding the bridge. They have both done a marvelous job. Otoro has even managed to get Eloca and Rowin to work together plotting safe passage into the Alpha Quadrant. We will be starting soon. Our preparations are almost complete."

"Supala?"

He shook his head. "Nothing."

"I guess that is good."

He nodded his head. "At least, I hope so." He hesitated, "Anything else from Kathryn B’Elanna?"

"No, and I am worried about her. Helping me was very difficult on her. I hope she was not hurt." She looked at him carefully, "Kahkar, she should not have been able to do what she did."

"I have already thought about that."

"Kahkar."

He looked at her.

"Regardless of what we hear from Kathryn, getting Kathryn B’Elanna must be our first priority. If she keeps going the way she is going, she will soon be uncontrollable. If something happens to either of her parents…." She did not finish.

He nodded, "I know." He sat, reluctant to ask his wife his question, "Do you think you are up to trying to communicate with her?"

"I don’t know, but I will try soon. We must know what has happened. And we must assure her that we are on our way. I will do everything possible to keep her calm." She watched as a look of anger crossed her husband’s face. She knew what he was going to say before the words were out of his mouth.

"If that man has hurt Seven in any way, I will kill him."

She nodded. She knew his was not an idle threat.

Kathryn B’Elanna’s mind was awake, but she was careful not to move her body. Gwanpaw still had her, and she did not want to move from his arms. Gwanpaw felt like Dada.

Her head hurt. Still, she pushed at the medicine, feeling it slip away from her. Then, she reached out with her mind. There were so many thoughts around her, all of them causing her pain. It was hard pushing all of those away. They were crowding in on her, exhausting her.

But she was worried about Keta. She had to go find Keta. Reaching out with her mind, she left the space station, traveling through space to go to Keta. Concentrating hard, ignoring the stabbing pain in her head, she worked to get to Keta. Finally, she saw Keta in the bed, her eyes closed. She struggled to sink deeper, reaching out to touch Keta’s mind.

"Kathryn B’Elanna!"

She felt Keta reaching out, giving her help, and she accepted it gratefully.

"Keta. Dada dead. Mama dead."

She felt Keta’s shock, "Kathryn B’Elanna, no, you cannot be right."

She opened her mind and felt Keta’s pain. Then, she felt her struggle to regain control. Finally, she heard her speak.

"Kathryn B’Elanna, we are coming for you. We will get you soon. Do not do anything. Do you understand me? Do not do anything. Kahkar will do. Kathryn B’Elanna will not do."

But Kathryn B’Elanna just looked at her and said, "Hurry come."

Ketaria watched as the child left. Then, she threw back the covers and pushed herself shakily to her feet. She was screaming for Kahkar before she even had the door of their bedroom open.

"I think she is waking up."

"Get Motalli in here. He wanted to be here when she woke up."

He sat and watched, almost willing her not to open her eyes. Not yet, anyway. Still, it was a relief that she was finally doing so. It had been two days, and she had wavered between life and death. Not for the first time, he angrily thought about their lack of medical supplies and equipment. Her rescue was not supposed to have been such a dangerous mission. They had never realized the ship had been so heavily loaded with explosives. It had almost cost all of them their lives. And hers. Even now, he was not certain she was going to survive. She had almost bled to death before they could even get to her. 

They had set off a small explosion as a distraction on the ship, never realizing the ship already had been heavily loaded with explosives. Their small explosion had set off a cascade of larger explosions that quickly compromised the hull integrity of the ship. He had gotten to her himself and found her lying on her side on the deck, still restrained in her chair, unconscious and bleeding badly. Then, they realized the warp core field of the ship was destabilizing, and they had to beam her off of the ship using a wide-angle transport beam, chair and all. As soon as they all materialized on their ship, they had tried to jump to warp in an effort to outrun to warp core explosion, but had been unsuccessful, and their ship had been caught in the shock waves, badly damaging it. Even though they had managed to transport her in her chair, they had not been able to remove her restraints or secure the chair before their ship was rolled and the chair had been sent flying through the transporter room. She had been tossed around like a rag doll. 

They had left her in her restraints, thinking that they were now providing her body with support, fearful that she had sustained breaks and that being held immobile would work to her benefit. They had managed to position her in the makeshift regeneration unit they had on the ship, set it to maximum and waited.

Motalli had not left her side. He had monitored her regeneration carefully and had tried to treat the deep cut on her face. They weren’t going to be able to do anything about the cut. They didn’t even have old fashion needles and sutures. It was going to scar. Such a shame. Motalli had told him that she was beautiful, and she really was. Even the scar would not be able to hide her beauty. No wonder Motalli had fallen in love with her.

She groaned slightly, and he was tempted to reach out to touch her, to let her know that she was safe, but he did not dare. Motalli had been adamant that no one should touch her. He did not want her frightened. And, he wanted his own face to be the first she saw when she woke up. 

You’d better hurry, buddy. Her eyes will be open in a few seconds.

He heard the door open and turned to see Motalli run into the room. He backed away as his friend approached, "She hasn’t opened her eyes yet. I’ve been watching carefully.

Motalli nodded, moved close to her and spoke to her softly, "Seven of Nine. Can you hear me?" He reached out to stroke her left cheek, "Seven, wake up."

Her eyes fluttered open and slowly focused on him. 

He smiled at her, "It is good to see you, Seven. Don’t worry about anything, you are safe now."

Her eyes widened in surprise. Finally, she said, "You!"

He grinned at her and gave her a small shrug, "Yes, me. Surprise."

She was not dead. He could not hear her thoughts, and he could not get her to hear his, but he knew she was still alive. The question was where was she, and how could he get her back?

He would get her back.

He jerked the device off his neck and started to pace. The world thought her dead, but he knew better. And she would be content to hide. Why wouldn’t she? Every report said she had been killed. No one had any reason to believe anything different.

But he knew she was still alive. And, he knew that there was one thing that would make her come to him.

He still controlled what happened to the child. He would use the child to bring back his Borg. 

She would still be his.

And if she didn’t, he would at least have the child. The Borg had told him the child was unusable, but the child had the genetic gift. The Borg had been adamant the child be left alone, but what would they know?

Maybe he would get lucky. Maybe she would come to him once he had the child, and he would have both of them. Another win, win. He was definitely a winner.

It was time for another plan.

Kathryn Janeway was looking at Tuvok, her face tight with frustration, "Does anyone have any idea where they are?"

"No, Captain. No one has seen them."

She put her hand to her forehead, rubbing it. "I can just imagine what Harry is up to. You would think that her death would have caused him to drop this."

"Maybe he does not know she is dead."

"How in the world could he not know she is dead? I don’t think anyone in the universe doesn’t know she is dead."

"You need to let him work this out of his system, Captain. He will eventually return."

"And in the meantime, I have to protect him to keep Starfleet from declaring him AWOL. Plus, he has Supala and Neelix with him."

"Perhaps you can convince Starfleet that they have gone somewhere to privately mourn Seven’s death."

She looked at him, a quizzical smile coming to her lips, "Deception, Tuvok?"

"A tactical maneuver necessary to protect a member of your crew."

Despite herself, she laughed, finding a certain comfort in his words. "Good idea." She moved around the room, finally flopping down in a chair, "Do you want to hear something totally crazy?"

He looked at her, lifted his eyebrow and waited.

"I wish I was with them."