Unexpected Visitors

 

Part 1

            Kathryn pulled herself out of the tub with some difficulty and reached out for a towel.  Her seventh month of pregnancy had just begun, and she felt huge.  She had the distinct feeling that if she grew any bigger she would burst.  And the doctor had the nerve to tell her that she needed to gain more weight!

            She dried herself off and got dressed in off-duty clothes.  Kathryn was trying to get by with a minimum of maternity clothes, and as a result the dress she was now wearing was the only thing other than her uniform and her nightgown that she could fit into.

            After she had dried her hair, Kathryn headed over to her jewelry box.  She very rarely wore jewelry, but right now she felt huge and ugly and she definitely wanted to wear something to make her feel better.

            She paused when she saw something she didn't recognize in the bottom of the box.  She reached in to pull out a large green pendant on a silver chain.  The jewel looked like an emerald with some kind of symbols carved in it.  What was this?  she wondered.  Where had it come from?

            Acting on instinct, she closed her eyes and ran her hands over the pendant.  Now she remembered where it had come from: it was the pendant Jolan had given her on the planet.  She had completely forgotten about it.  But how had it ended up in her jewelry box?  She remembered putting it under her turtleneck before she went back to Voyager, but she hadn't even thought about it after that.  Someone, probably the doctor or Kes, must have put the pendant here while she was in sickbay.

            Jolan had told her that the pendant was supposed to be given to his oldest child.  Funny how things worked out, she thought.  Jolan's oldest child would get the necklace through pure accident.  Of course, since they were now traveling away from Kyrae space, her daughter would probably never find out why it was important.

 

Part 2

            Kathryn jerked awake with sweaty palms and a racing heart.  Her nightmare was already fading; she remembered no more of it than what she had the other half-dozen times she had awoken from what she was sure was the same nightmare.  At least she didn’t wake up screaming anymore, like she had the first two times.

            Knowing that it would be useless to try to get back to sleep for a while, she rolled out of bed, headed for the replicator.  She sat down on the couch with a cup of herbal tea, sipping it slowly and trying to relax.  The baby kicked, and she absentmindedly rubbed her stomach.  A moment later she felt a strange, mildly painful sensation go through her abdomen; the baby kicked again right after.

            What was that? she wondered.  The sensation was vaguely like the menstrual cramps she’d occasionally had as a teenager, but she didn’t remember them well enough to be sure.  She couldn’t be in labor, could she?  The baby wasn’t due for another two months!

            Well, I’ll wait awhile, she thought.  If it happens again I’ll go to sickbay.  She continued to sip her tea, growing drowsy as she did so.  As she was heading back to bed, she felt the pain again.  She was too sleepy to go to sickbay now, though, so she climbed into bed, resolving to go first thing in the morning.

 

Part 3

            Captain Janeway walked onto the bridge the next morning, fully ready to command…despite the twinges of pain that were getting stronger and more frequent.  She hadn’t made it to sickbay that morning; she’d fallen back to sleep after her alarm had gone off that morning, waking up barely in time to eat breakfast (which her growling stomach rendered indispensable) and make it to the bridge.

            After making sure that everything was running smoothly, she headed into her ready room, thinking that she would hand the bridge over to Chakotay as soon as he arrived in an hour and head down to visit the doctor.

            When Chakotay got to the bridge, she called him to her ready room.

            “How’s it going?” he asked.

            “Oh, fine.  Neelix is still bugging me about that baby shower.”

            “Good.  You should have one.”

            “Why?”

            “Babies need a lot of stuff, and you need to use your replicator rations for food.”

            “I can’t take rations from other people.”

            “Kathryn, they’re not rations, they’re gifts.  Ensign Wildman had a baby shower; you gave her a gift, as I recall.”

            Kathryn just shook her head.

            “I’ll bet there’ll be a lot more babies in the next few years, and I bet you’ll give them gifts too.  I don’t see why you’re being so stubborn about this.”

            Another pain shot through Kathryn, and she suddenly remembered why she had called Chakotay here in the first place; it certainly wasn’t to argue with him.  “I’ll think about it,” she said to end this line of conversation.

            “Good,” he answered.  “Now what did you want to see me about?”

            “I need to go down to sickbay; I don’t know how long I’ll be gone,” she said, thinking that if the doctor had his way, she’d probably be gone for the next two months at least.  “Think you can hold down the fort until I get back?”

            “Something wrong?”

            “I’m having contractions…probably the fake kind, nothing to worry about,” she added when she saw the worried expression on his face.

            “I hope so.  Good luck,” he said as she headed out the door.

            “You have the bridge, Commander,” she called back.

 

Part 4

            Kathryn re-entered the bridge about half an hour later, and Chakotay looked at her with a question in his eyes.  “Fake,” she answered as she sat down in the center chair.

            The contractions hadn’t actually been false, but she saw no reason to worry him.  The doctor had mixed up one of his magic potions for her; the contractions were supposed to stop within an hour or two.

            An hour later, they were still going strong.  Shouldn’t they at least be slowing down by now? she thought.  She was sitting at her desk doing reports, about two hours after going to sickbay, when an agonizing pain ripped through her, leaving her gasping for breath.  As she slowly got her wind back, she felt an urgent need to use the bathroom.  Standing up, she suddenly realized that the seat was damp.

            Oh, God, she thought.  Obviously the medicine didn’t work.  She hit her communicator and called the doctor.

            “Yes, Captain?” he answered pleasantly.  “Doing better now?”

            “I’m still having contractions, and I think my water just broke.”

            “I think you’d better come down here,” he said, sounding more worried.

            “On my way.  Janeway out.”

 

Part 5

            “Commander Chakotay, could you come to my ready room for a moment?” Kathryn Janeway’s voice came through Chakotay’s commbadge.

            Lieutenant Tuvok watched from his post as the door closed behind them.  He was concerned about the captain and her child.  Although the captain’s abdomen had started to balloon several months ago, she hadn’t gained nearly enough weight; the rest of her was thinner than ever.  She must have some inner reserve of strength, though; other than her thinness, she looked healthier than she had in years.  He only hoped that her reserve would last her through the difficult process of childbirth in two months.

            The captain and first officer walked out of the ready room, heading for the turbolift.  “Mr. Tuvok, you have the bridge,” the captain said as they left.

            “Sickbay,” Chakotay said as the doors closed.  “Kathryn, how are you feeling?”

            “About the same as I was thirty seconds ago,” she answered.  She moaned and leaned heavily against the wall as pain ripped through her once again.  Chakotay was with her in an instant, holding her up and looking at her with concern.  The baby began kicking, and she muttered, “I don’t like it either.”

            Suddenly, the lights went out and the turbolift began to fall.  Janeway gasped as her contraction intensified.  The lift stopped abruptly as the dim emergency lights came on, and Kathryn and Chakotay were thrown to the floor.

            Chakotay quickly turned to Kathryn to see her gasping for breath with a pained  expression on her face.  “Kathryn!” he said loudly.

            She opened her eyes to see him looking down at her with worry and fear.  “I’m…fine,” she said in between gasps of air.  “Just got…the wind knocked…out of me.”

            “Is the baby kicking?” was his next concerned question.

            “She’s fine too,” Kathryn said, talking better now that she’d gotten her breath.  “A little confused, but fine.”  She slowly got to her feet, and Chakotay noticed the rather large wet spot on the carpet underneath her.

            His question about her previous comment was forgotten as fresh worry washed over him.  “I think we’d better get to sickbay soon,” he said.

 

Part 6

            “Lieutenant, I’m picking up an unidentified ship just dropping out of warp,” Harry Kim said just moments after the two commanding officers had left the bridge.

            “On screen,” responded Lieutenant Tuvok.  “That,” he said matter-of-factly as the ship appeared, “is a Nosfu ship.”  He looked down at his console.  “They are powering weapons.”

            The ship seemed to bounce gently as the lights went out.

            After a few seconds the emergency lights flickered on.  In the meantime it was very quiet on the pitch-black bridge.  When the dim lights lit the bridge, he could see that all the consoles were black.  He tried his communicator, noting without surprise that it was not working.  “Ensign Kim,” he said, “take the Jeffries tube to engineering and see if anything is working there.”  Kim quickly opened the hatch to the tube and left.  “In the meantime,” Tuvok continued, “everyone should remain calm and stay at your posts.”

            “You’re quite right,” said a voice from the Jeffries tube.  Harry Kim was pushed back out, followed by a tall, thin, and extremely pale man.  “Your ship,” he said, “now belongs to us.”

            “Who’s in charge here?” the man asked after he and the other three Nosfu who’d been behind him herded the crew toward the center of the bridge.

            “I am,” Tuvok replied.

            “Where’s the captain?”  The voice came from the opening to the Jeffries tube.  Tuvok looked over and recognized him as Governor Marsu from the planet they had traded with several months ago.

            “She’s not here,” Tuvok responded.

            “Well, obviously.  But where is she?” the man asked in a seemingly conversational tone.

            “I don’t know,” said Tuvok with equal composure.

            “Very well.  Krolik has located a central area on the deck immediately below us.  Take them there.  This one stays with me.”  He indicated Tuvok to the first man who had entered the bridge.  The man nodded and began herding the rest of the bridge crew off.

 

Part 7

            Kathryn pulled herself into the Jeffries tube and slid over against the wall, holding her breath as another contraction knifed through her abdomen.  After what seemed an eternity, it eased and she opened her eyes.  Chakotay was looking at her with concern.

            “I’m fine now,” she said, “but we’ve got to get to sickbay soon.  They’re getting a lot closer together.”

            He nodded.  “We’re on deck 6, so we’ll have to climb.  Think you’re up to it?”

            “Well, I suppose I’ll have to be, won’t I?”  He nodded grimly, and they began to crawl through the tubes toward the ladder that would take them to sickbay.

           

Part 8

            As they approached sickbay, they heard voices.

            “You!  Are you the ship’s doctor?” a rough male voice asked.

            “No, I’m just the nurse,” they heard Kes respond.

            “Where’s the doctor?”

            “He’s a hologram; he deactivated when the main computer went off.”

            The man mumbled something under his breath.  “Krolik to Marsu,” he said.

            Kathryn and Chakotay looked at each other, remembering the names.  Why would the Nosfu follow them this far? Kathryn wondered.  They’d left their world a good three months ago.

            “Marsu here,” a familiar voice responded.

            “We’re going to have to reactivate the main computer.  It seems the doctor is holographic.”

            “That is out of the question until we find the captain and first officer.  Isn’t there anyone else there?”

            “There’s a nurse.  She’s the one who told us about the doctor being a hologram.”

            “She’ll most likely have the information we need.  I’ll be there in a few minutes.  Keep her guarded.  Marsu out.”

            “Well, men,” Krolik said, “I don’t think this little lady will give us much trouble, but I want one of you to stay with me just in case.  The rest of you can continue searching the ship for strays.  And remember, Marsu doesn’t want anyone harmed.  Especially the captain.  So be careful.”

            They heard a chorus of “Aye, sir,” then the sound of several people tromping out of sickbay.  Deciding without words that sickbay wasn’t an option at the moment, Kathryn and Chakotay turned as quietly as they could and headed away.

 

Part 9

            Chakotay watched Kathryn, who was crouching in a Jeffries tube intersection with her head against the wall and her eyes closed.  He wished they’d had time to make it to her quarters; this wasn’t the best place for a baby to be born, especially prematurely, but it would have to do.

            Her head came up and she grabbed his hand, squeezing it hard.  Suddenly she opened her eyes.  “It’s time,” she said with a strange note of calm in her voice.  Chakotay moved around so that he was facing her and tried desperately to remember as much as he could about the few emergency childbirth classes he’d had at the Academy.

            Kathryn’s head came up as another contraction began on the heels of the last.  She braced herself for the pain, but she didn’t feel it this time.  Instead, she felt an intense pressure in the bottom of her abdomen.

            Then she felt a sensation of strong fear, almost panic, come over her.  She chided herself for it for a moment, then realized somehow that the fear wasn’t coming from her.  Instinctively, she reached out to the mind inside her and tried to reassure her daughter.  Although she could not articulate it, the child was terrified by the sudden pressures she felt around her and the sense of being pushed from the only place she’d ever known.  Kathryn sent waves of comfort and well being as best she could, barely conscious of the fact that her body was pushing as hard as it could.

            Chakotay was starting to worry.  Kathryn’s eyes were closed and her face was calm.  She looked as if she wasn’t even aware of what was happening.  He wondered if perhaps she had lost consciousness; he was just about to say something when he saw the baby’s head.  With Chakotay’s guidance, she slipped out easily.  She was by far the tiniest infant Chakotay had ever seen.  She lay still and blue in his hands.

            She wasn’t breathing.

            Kathryn felt her daughter’s fear intensify as she felt the cold air on her body for the first time.  Nothing happened for a moment, and Kathryn realized that the baby wasn’t aware that she was supposed to breathe.  Kathryn tried to get the idea to her, but the baby didn’t seem to understand the purpose of it.

            Kathryn opened her eyes and saw Chakotay looking at the baby with concern.  She reached over and picked her up, put her mouth on the tiny blue lips, and blew gently.

            The baby reacted.  The thin, cold stuff that surrounded her instead of the nice warm liquid she was used to was suddenly being forced inside her.  She opened her mouth, intent on getting the stuff out, and was greatly surprised by the sound that emerged from inside her throat.  She was even more surprised to find herself drawing more of the cold not-liquid inside and letting loose with another wail.

            Chakotay wrinkled his brow as he heard the baby's first cry.  It wasn't the normal thin, colorless cry of an infant; it seemed somehow warmer and richer, like no cry he'd ever heard before.  Kathryn didn't seem to notice anything amiss, though, so he soon put it out of his mind.

            Kathryn’s smile was huge as she lifted the baby and cradled her to her chest.  Chakotay watched them with a smile on his face as well, but his was tinged with a note of sadness.  The child was an incredible miracle, a wonderful bundle of joy, but…she wasn’t his.  He had always wanted to be a father, but circumstances had never worked out.  He had hoped…dreamed…desperately wanted for things to work out with Kathryn, but it looked like he was going to have to resign himself to the fact that he would never have a child of his own.

            He reminded himself, though, of the vow he had made shortly after he had found out that Kathryn was pregnant.  He would be as much of a father to this child as he could, as much as Kathryn would allow.  He would love her as if she were his own flesh and blood.  Even though her father was too far away to even know of her existence, he would try to make sure she had a daddy.  And even though Chakotay had never given his DNA to a child, he hoped that she could be a daughter to him.

            Chakotay felt greater love at that moment than he had before in his life, all of it given to the woman and child before him.  He wrapped his arms around Kathryn and the baby, hoping and praying that they would feel the same love for him.

 

Part 10

            Chakotay pushed open the doors to Kathryn’s quarters, then stepped aside to allow her to enter.  She held the baby, who had fallen asleep, tightly in her arms; to crawl through the Jeffries tubes, she’d zipped her into her uniform jacket.  Chakotay looked at Kathryn worriedly as she sat on the couch and tried to get her breath.  She was very pale, and he could see that she was exhausted.  He walked over to the couch and carefully picked her up, baby and all.

            “Chakotay!” she cried in shock.  He carried her into her bedroom and lay her on the bed, then covered her with a blanket.

            “I’m going to go try to get us some weapons; you stay here and rest,” he said softly.

            “You can’t give me orders, Chakotay; I’m coming with you,” she answered, giving him a stubborn look which was only slightly toned down by her exhaustion.

            The baby whimpered slightly in her sleep, and Kathryn laid her carefully beside her.

            “Kathryn, the doctor is unavailable right now, so I can relieve you of duty if that’s what it comes to.  You’ve just given birth, and you can’t just go running all over the ship,” he said firmly.

            She sighed in exasperation.  “All right,” she said, “but be careful.”

            “I will,” he answered.  “I should be back in about half an hour.”  He hesitated slightly, then leaned down and gave her a gentle kiss on her forehead.  She smiled at him, and he squeezed her hand before leaving the room.

 

Part 11

            Tuvok sat in the captain’s ready room, knowing that the only logical thing he could do was to wait for something to happen.  It had been two and a half hours since the Nosfu had taken the ship, and he found it quite illogical that the captain and first officer had managed to evade them for so long.

            Marsu entered the ready room with Krolik; they were both acting quite different now from the way they had on the planet.  “Well?”  Marsu demanded.

            “The only child on board is two years old.”

            “We’ll assume the captain is still pregnant, then.”

            “And if she’s not?”

            “Then she’s not.”

            “Marsu, don’t you think you should tell me what’s going on?”

            “All I can tell you is that our orders come directly from the Council.”

            “But you must know more!”

            “I do, but you don’t need to.  I am in charge, and I will give you any and all information you need.”

            Krolik looked like he was about to say something, but just then Marsu’s communicator beeped.  Marsu tapped it.  “Go ahead.”

            “We’ve captured the first officer, but there’s no sign of the captain and he’s not talking.”

            “Very well.  Bring him to the bridge.”

 

Part 12

            Chakotay was heading back to the captain’s quarters with two phasers when he heard a voice behind him.

            “Put your weapons on the ground and turn around slowly.”

            Chakotay thought briefly about spinning around and shooting whoever was behind him, but since he didn’t know how many there were or how well they were armed, he decided it wouldn’t be wise.  He slowly placed the phasers on the floor and turned around.  It was a good thing he hadn’t fired; there were five of them, and they all had really big guns.

            A few minutes later, he was shepherded into the captain’s ready room.  Tuvok was there, along with two very mean-looking Nosfu that he recognized as Governor Marsu and his assistant, Krolik.

            “Where’s the captain?” Marsu asked.

            “I don’t know,” he answered, trying to sound convincing.

            “There’s really no point in trying to hold out, you know.  The two of you together might have had a tiny chance of retaking your ship, but there’s no way she can do it on her own.  He waited a moment for Chakotay to say something, then continued.  “Fortunately for you, I don’t feel like torturing anyone today.  We’ll catch her eventually; I can be very patient.”  He grinned a very frightening, almost wolfish, grin.  “In the meantime, you two can keep each other company.”  He grinned again and made a motion with his hand; at that, all the Nosfu filed out.

            Chakotay turned to Tuvok.  “Do you have any idea what they want?”

            “It appears,” Tuvok responded after a brief hesitation, “that they want the captain’s baby.”

 

Part 13

            It had been nearly an hour, and Chakotay still hadn’t returned.  Kathryn was beginning to get very worried.  She hadn’t slept, although she was quite exhausted; how could she sleep when someone else was in control of her ship?

            The baby whimpered as she began to wake up; Kathryn sat up and put her on her shoulder.  As she woke up more fully, she began to cry louder, so Kathryn stood up and began walking slowly in a circle.  That helped.

            “You sure picked a lousy time to be born,” she grumbled.  As if she understood, the baby began whimpering again.  “Oh, all right, I know you didn’t pick the time.”  She picked up her tricorder and tried to pinpoint Chakotay.  To her dismay, she found his life signs near the bridge.  He’d been captured.

            Kathryn sat down again and considered the situation carefully.  She couldn’t take the ship back by herself, and the baby needed medical attention.  The idea of simply giving up appalled her, though.  Suddenly a cramp shot through her midsection like fire.  It eased a moment later, leaving only a shadow of pain.  She had a feeling, though, that it would back, and it would be worse.  She picked up the tricorder again.

 

Part 14

            Kathryn approached the Nosfu guards outside the mess hall with the baby cradled in her arms.  She would have left her in her quarters for safety, but she knew that the baby was too tiny for her body to produce enough heat.  If she didn’t hold her, the tiny infant would be dead within half an hour.  She’d put the baby down for a few minutes to change her clothes and had been scared very badly when she looked at her a few minutes later and found that her lips were blue.  It had taken only a couple of minutes for that to happen; she obviously couldn’t be left for any length of time.

            The guards spotted her and raised their guns.  The baby began to wail.  The guards, looking confused, slowly put their weapons down, except for one, who kept his weapon trained on Kathryn as she quieted the baby.  Another guard tapped his communicator.  “Come in, Marsu.”

            “What is it?”  Marsu’s voice responded, sounding annoyed.

            “We have the captain here.  She seems to have turned herself in.”

            “Excellent,” Marsu responded, now sounding happily surprised.  “Bring her to the bridge.  You may use the turbolift in a moment.  Marsu out.”

            One of the three guards took her by the arm and led her toward the turbolift; the one with his gun still trained on her followed behind.  The other stopped and looked at him.  “I hardly think that’s necessary,” he said.  “Put that down and guard the rest of the prisoners.”  The man scowled, but did as he was told.  The regular lighting came up shortly before they reached the turbolift, and in a few moments they were on the bridge.

 

Part 15

            The turbolift doors opened to show Marsu standing there, obviously waiting for them.  To Kathryn’s eyes, he didn’t seem any different than he had been on the planet, except that the coldness she had felt from him seemed magnified.  “Thank you, Nodan,” he said pleasantly.  “Perhaps we can talk in here, Captain.”  He gestured towards the briefing room.  As she preceded him into the room, she wondered once again why the Nosfu would follow them this far and take over the ship.  What could be that important to them?

            “Sit down,” he said, gesturing to the chairs around the table.  She sat in the nearest one; her legs felt so weak she was afraid they were going to give out on her.  “Such a lovely baby.  How old is he?”

            “She was born a couple of hours ago.  She needs medical attention,” Kathryn answered tersely.

            Marsu looked surprised.  “She?” he asked incredulously.  “I was told to expect…Oh, well, that’s not really my problem.”  Kathryn remained silent, staring at him angrily.  “Don’t worry, she’ll get her medical attention.  I’m sure she’ll be fine.”  He patted Kathryn’s knee almost paternally; Kathryn tensed up and leaned a bit away from him.  He looked at the two of them thoughtfully for a moment, then said, “Give her to me.”

            “What?” Kathryn answered, hoping she hadn’t heard right.

            “I said give her to me.  Don’t worry, I’m not going to hurt her.  New mothers always worry so much.”

            With great trepidation, she placed the infant in Marsu’s arms.    The baby began to squall immediately.  Kathryn winced as a sharp pain suddenly pierced her skull.  “Doesn’t like me much, does she?” he said mildly as he scanned her with some kind of device.  He then handed her back to Kathryn; she immediately stopped crying as Kathryn’s headache disappeared.  Looking at the data display of his instrument, he smiled; his smile sent a chill through Kathryn’s veins.  The smile faded and he looked back at her, once again all business.  “Unwrap her,” he commanded.

            “She was born too early, and her system is very delicate.  She’ll freeze if…”

            “Just do it,” Marsu growled, very softly, in a tone that let Kathryn know in no uncertain terms that she’d better do it…or else.  She carefully unwrapped the baby, making sure to keep her as protected as she could.  She didn’t have anything underneath the blanket; all the diapers and sleepers Kathryn had replicated earlier were far too big.

            “All right.  Wrap her up again,” Marsu said.  As soon as Kathryn had done so, he held out his arms for the baby again, and again she handed her child over.  The baby whimpered, and once again Kathryn’s head pulsed with pain.  He carried her out onto the bridge with Kathryn following closely.  Marsu gestured to one of the guards, and he took Kathryn by the arm and led her off to the side.  “Establish a link with the Ambassador.”

            Moments later, the face of another Nosfu appeared on the viewscreen.  “Well?” he said without preamble.

            “We have the child,” Marsu responded.  He held the baby up so the man on the screen could see.  “Female, contrary to what I was told, in good health, and a perfect match for the data you gave me other than the gender.”

            “ Female?  That is unexpected.  Hold on.”  The image blinked out; a moment later, one of the Nosfu announced that they were receiving a transmission.  The same man appeared again.  “The gender makes no difference.  She is the one,” he said.

            “Shall I bring the child and mother to you?” Marsu asked.

“No,” the man answered, frowning.  “I feel that to be by far the best course, but unfortunately it’s not my decision to make.  Leave them both there.”

            “Yes, Ambassador.”

            “I will expect a full report from you within 6 hours.  And I assure you that you and your men will be well compensated for your efforts, governor.  The Crown thanks you for your exertions.”

            “We are always glad to serve the Empire, sir.”

            The ambassador nodded tersely at Marsu.  “That will be all, Governor.”  The image on the screen blanked out.

            Marsu walked over to Kathryn and handed her the baby, then tapped his communicator.  “Mission accomplished,” he said simply.  Moments later, all the Nosfu vanished in the sparkle of a transporter beam.

            Kathryn just stood there in a daze for a moment, shocked at the sudden end of the takeover.  “Computer,” she said, “are there any Nosfu still on board?”

            “Negative,” the computer responded.  She then saw on the viewscreen that the Nosfu ship was leaving.  She suddenly felt very tired.  She walked slowly over to the door of her ready room and opened it, then leaned against the doorframe.

            Tuvok and Chakotay saw her and quickly came towards her.  “They’re gone,” she said as they reached her.  She felt another sharp pain run through her as the edges of her vision started to go black.  She handed the baby to Chakotay and collapsed.

 

Part 16

            Kathryn opened her eyes to find herself in Chakotay’s arms.  “What happened?” she asked.  She couldn’t remember much of anything.

            “You passed out and we’re taking you to sickbay.  Can you stand?”

            “I think so,” she answered.  Suddenly a thought hit her.  “Where’s the baby?” she asked desperately.

            “I’ve got her,” Tuvok said as Chakotay set her on her feet.

            Memories were slowly coming back to her.  “The Nosfu…” she murmured.

            “They’re gone,” Chakotay responded.  “You were the one that told us, remember?”

            She nodded slowly.  “I just thought for a minute…that maybe they took her,” she said as she touched her daughter’s face.

            Chakotay looked confused.  “Why would they do that?” he asked.  He shook his head; several of Kathryn’s comments today hadn’t made much sense.  “The crew’s on their way back to their stations,” he said as the turbolift stopped and they walked towards sickbay slowly.

            “Computer, activate the EMH,” Tuvok said as they stepped through the doors.

            “Please state the nature…”  The doctor cut his customary opening line in mid-sentence when he saw the captain.  She looked half dead, and he was surprised that she was actually standing.  “Over here,” he said, moving to a biobed.  The captain followed, leaning heavily on Chakotay.  He helped her onto the bed, where she lay limp while the doctor scanned her with a tricorder.

            “Where’s the baby?” he asked in surprise when he realized that Kathryn was no longer pregnant.

            “Here,” replied Tuvok.

            “If she doesn’t seem to have any major problems, you two get her into an incubator.  There’s one behind that panel there,” he said, pointing.  “Make sure you turn it on.  Where’s Kes?”

            “She should be here in a few minutes,” Chakotay answered.  “We’ve had a very interesting day.”

            “Apparently.  But the explanation can wait,” the doctor said acerbically.  “Captain, you have some internal bleeding as a result of the birth.  I need to perform some minor surgery,” he said to Kathryn.  She was lying still on the bed with her eyes closed; Chakotay wasn’t sure she was awake.

            “Fine,” she said softly.  So she was awake.

            Shortly after the doctor had started working, the doors opened and Kes came in.  “Kes, check the baby,” the doctor said without looking up.

            Kes nodded and started to the incubator.  The captain opened her eyes and sat up halfway.  “Was anyone hurt?” she asked.

            “Everyone’s fine,” Kes replied.

            “Except you,” the doctor cut in.  “Lie back down; you’re making things rather difficult.  Commander, shouldn’t you be on the bridge?”

            Although he wanted to stay, Chakotay knew he should get out of the way.  “Keep me informed, Doctor,” he said as he headed out the door.  Tuvok turned away from the incubator, and the two officers left sickbay.

 

Part 17

            The infant in the incubator opened her eyes.  She whimpered, wriggled, and then lay still and looked around.  Everything was blurry, so she couldn't see very much.  She was warm, but it was a dead warmth.  Where was her mother?  She couldn't hear her heartbeat, and she couldn't feel her mind!  She was getting very frightened.  Her mother had always been right there, for as long as she could remember, and now she was gone.  She opened her mouth and began to wail, as loud as she could.  She didn't know why; she just felt that it was something she needed to do.

            On a nearby biobed, Kathryn opened her eyes.  She felt strangely empty.  Her hands moved to her abdomen.  Where was the baby?  She sat up in panic, but then the sound of the baby's crying registered with her.  She turned to see an incubator nearby.  In her sleep-fogged brain, only one thing was clear: she had to get to the baby.  Something terrible would happen if she didn't.  She swung her legs over the edge of the biobed and stood up, but had to catch herself when her knees immediately gave out.  She pushed herself back up again and stumbled over to the incubator.  She shut off the forcefield holding the incubator's heat in, reached in, and scooped up her daughter.  The infant's cries immediately faded down to whimpers as Kathryn held her close, murmuring, "It's okay, sweetheart.  Mama's here, right here."

            The child's tiny hands clutched at Kathryn's blue sickbay gown.  Moments later, she felt the baby's mind come in contact with her as her crying finally stopped.  She moved back to the biobed, the residual pain in her abdomen fading from her mind as she concentrated on the baby.  She pulled herself back up onto the bed and lay back, trying to find room for herself and her daughter.

            She was just starting to drift back to sleep--she had never fully woken up--when her daughter communicated the fact that she was hungry.  She sat up again to feed her, then realized that the sickbay gown was not exactly equipped for breastfeeding.  "Computer, activate the EMH," she said.

            He appeared immediately and looked quite surprised when he saw Kathryn with the baby in her arms.  "Captain, she needs to be in her incubator!"

            Completely ignoring his comment, Kathryn said, "She's hungry, and I can't feed her in these clothes."

            "Captain, we discussed this some time ago.  You decided you weren't going to breastfeed because you didn't have time, remember?  I can replicate you some formula if you'd like..."

            "I changed my mind, Doctor," Kathryn answered sharply.

            The doctor sighed.  "Very well," he said.  "I'll be right back."  He went to the replicator and ordered up a slightly different style of sickbay gown, one that had buttons down the front.  He returned and put it on the biobed.  "You'll need to put her in the incubator while you change."

            Kathryn looked at the baby and said, apparently quite seriously, "Will you be all right in the incubator for a minute?"  She paused for a moment and then said, "All right, I'll stay where you can see me."  The baby cooed happily in a manner the doctor would not have expected from a newborn.

            The doctor stayed where he was, waiting for the captain to put her daughter down.  Kathryn looked up expectantly and cleared her throat.

            "Make sure she gets in that incubator, Captain," the doctor said as he beat a hasty retreat, closing the privacy screen to the surgical bay behind him.

 

Part 18

            The doctor went to his office and kept himself occupied with data analysis for precisely five minutes.  Then, deciding that Janeway had had enough time to change, he went to the barrier and called out, “Captain?”

            “What is it, Doctor?” she answered, sounding a bit exasperated.

            “May I come in?”

            “I suppose,” came the reply.  He moved around the barrier to see her sitting up in the bed, feeding the baby.

            “You know, once you’ve started breast-feeding it’s going to be quite difficult to switch her to a bottle when you go back on duty,” the doctor said chidingly.

            “So I won’t switch her,” Janeway answered nonchalantly, then turned to the baby.

            The doctor was about to say something to the effect that he doubted she would have the time, but then thought better of it.  After all, breastfeeding was the best thing for the baby.  He picked up a tricorder, figuring he might as well scan her while she was awake.  She paid no attention to him, instead seeming fascinated with her daughter.  “Captain,” he said when he finished scanning.  He waited a moment; she gave no indication that she’d heard him.  “Captain!” he said louder.

            She looked up, obviously annoyed at being interrupted.  “What!?” she said sharply.

            “I just wanted to let you know that you seem to be doing well, and I should be able to release you to your quarters in the morning,” the doctor said a bit nervously.

            “Oh,” Janeway said, sounding happier.  “Did you hear that, Little One?  We’re going home,” she said to the baby.

            “Oh, no, Captain.  Just you.  I won’t be able to release the baby for another few weeks, not until she’s able to keep herself warm.”

            Janeway looked at him incredulously for quite a while, then seemed to pull herself together.  “I can keep her warm just fine,” she said.

            “Captain…” the doctor trailed off.  He sighed.  “You know, you’re really not acting like yourself.”  He watched as she put the baby to her shoulder to burp her.  “Why don’t you get a little sleep, and then we’ll talk about this later.”

            Kathryn yawned.  “I guess I am a little tired.”  She lay back on the biobed, settling on her side with the baby in the crook of her arm.

            The doctor moved to take the baby.  “I’ll just put her in the incubator…”

            “No,” Kathryn interrupted decisively.  “She needs to stay with me.”

            “Captain, she needs to be in the incubator, where she’ll be warm, and where I can monitor her vital signs,” the doctor said as if he were speaking to a child.

            “I can keep her warm just fine, and don’t you have something else you can use to monitor her vital signs?”

            “Captain, your behavior is very irrational.  I’m not going to continue to argue with you.”

            “Good,” she replied, then focused again on her daughter.  The doctor turned to his cart and quickly prepared a hypospray, which he then pressed against Janeway’s neck.  She looked up at him with horror, her body going limp as he lifted the baby from her arms.  “Doctor…please…” she managed to whisper before losing consciousness.

            As the doctor carried the baby away from the biobed, she began to whimper, then quickly moved on to a full-blown wail.  The doctor ignored the sound as he placed her in the incubator and activated the force field.  From what little he knew about babies, she should quiet down soon.  And she was better off in the incubator…wasn’t she?

            An alarm startled him from his reverie.  He looked down to see that not only had the baby stopped crying, she seemed to have stopped breathing as well.  He first scanned her to make sure nothing was blocking her airways, then loaded up a hypospray with the proper medication to give to someone suffering from respiratory arrest.  He gave her only one tenth of an adult dose, not sure whether it would work or not.

            He breathed a sigh of relief when the baby inhaled a deep breath, but almost immediately another alarm sounded behind him.  He turned and rushed to the captain’s bed, where the monitor indicated she was in cardiac arrest.  He quickly prepared a hypospray and administered it to her, but no sooner had that alarm stopped than another went off at the incubator.  What could be causing these failures? he wondered as he went back to find the infant convulsing.  There didn’t seem to be any medical explanation…An idea came suddenly.  It didn’t make logical sense, but in his experience things often didn’t seem to make logical sense.  He turned off the field on the incubator, lifted out the convulsing child, and carried her back to the biobed where he placed her in her mother’s arms.  She twitched a few times and then lay still, whimpering a bit until Kathryn, still unconscious, wrapped her arms more tightly around the baby.

            The doctor scanned the pair to find them both apparently quite fine now.  He then noticed something odd: their heartbeats and breaths seemed to be proportional.  He watched the patterns of their breaths and heartbeats, fascinated; he had never seen anything like it.  He did a neural scan and was only slightly surprised to find that their brainwaves too showed very similar patterns.

            He didn’t understand it, but it seemed that mother and child were even more closely connected than they had been before the baby’s birth.  They would obviously have to stay together; that decided, the doctor set about widening the biobed so that they would have a bit more room.

 

Part 19

            Chakotay entered sickbay and looked for the doctor; he found him in his office.  “Doctor?” he called quietly.

            “Commander,” the doctor said softly, getting up from his desk.

            “How are they?”

            “Well, they’re both fine, now.  There’s something rather odd that I should make you aware of, though.”

            Even though the doctor had told him they were fine, a shadow of worry crossed Chakotay’s face.  “What is it?”

            The doctor looked thoughtful for a moment, then said, “I supppose I’ll start at the beginning.”  He filled Chakotay in on the earlier events, from the captain awakening him through her insistence of keeping the baby with her to the synchronization of their heartbeats and brainwaves.

            “But they are all right,” Chakotay said with relief when the doctor had finished.

            “Yes, but I certainly hope this attachment isn’t permanent.  Don’t forget that the baby is a combination of two species that have never combined before.”

            “I’m sure they’ll be fine, Doctor.  Can I see them?” Chakotay asked.

            “If you like, although I’d prefer if you didn’t wake the captain up.  Or the baby either, for that matter.”

            “Of course.”

 

Part 20

            Chakotay walked around the partition into the surgical bay, the doctor tiptoeing behind him.  He moved to the head of the bed to see Kathryn on her side, her arms curled protectively around the tiny infant.  He ran one finger along the baby’s cheek; to his surprise, the baby opened her eyes.  She looked up at him and smiled a big, toothless grin, and he had no choice but to smile back.  She reached out one tiny hand; he extended his index finger to her and she latched on to it with a surprisingly strong grip.  She made a sort of cooing sound, and suddenly Chakotay had an almost overwhelming desire to pick her up.  He even felt as if the desire was somehow coming from her.  Turning to the doctor, he asked, “Would it be okay for me to pick her up?”

            The doctor looked concerned.  “Well…” he trailed off.  “I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to try.  Just don’t go anywhere.”

            Chakotay nodded, then reached down and very gently lifted the little girl into his arms.  She laughed, a beautiful sound, something Chakotay would give almost anything to hear again.  He wondered at his reaction to this child; he’d encountered babies before, but none who inspired such total devotion as this one did.  Was it simply because she was the child of the woman he loved more than life itself?  Or was it just a fluke, a strange twist of his brain?

            She looked up at him, this man who seemed somehow familiar to her.  She didn’t recognize any of the images from her eyes, but she knew his voice, and…she reached out to touch his mind.  Yes!  He was the one who was with her mother so much of the time.  She felt her mother’s mind awaken below her, and immediately felt her mother’s familiarity with and good feelings about the man who held her.

            The baby turned her head to look down at the biobed and laughed that wonderful laugh again.  Chakotay followed her eyes to see that Kathryn was awake and smiling up at the baby.  “Hi,” he said, shifting the baby so that mother and daughter could see each other better.

            “Hi,” she answered.

            “How are you feeling?”

            “Not too bad.”  She smiled.  “And how are you?” she said to the baby.  “Well, I’m glad you’re getting along.  He is Mommy’s best friend, you know.”

            The doctor had told Chakotay about Kathryn seeming to have 2-way conversations with the baby, so he wasn’t surprised, but he was a little worried.  “Kathryn?” he said.

            She looked up at him.  “Yes?”

            “Is the baby answering you back?”

            “In a way.  I can feel her…in my head.  How she feels, what she wants…”  Kathryn trailed off.

            “Telepathy.”

            Kathryn nodded.  “She’s not just an ordinary baby, Chakotay.  I can feel it.  I know every new mother thinks her baby is the most wonderful child ever born, but, Chakotay, she’s going to be something very special.”

            “With a mother like you, I’m sure she will,” Chakotay answered her with a smile.  He shifted the topic.  “Have you decided what you’re going to name her?”

            “I think so,” Kathryn answered.  She paused for a moment.  “When I was eight years old, my father’s Aunt Mary died.  She’d always been one of his favorite relatives, and when she died he was devastated.  I promised him then that I would name my oldest daughter after her.”

            “And you remember a promise that you made when you were eight years old?”

            Kathryn nodded.  “I’d forgotten about it, but when I was looking through a list of baby names a few weeks ago I remembered.”

            The baby moved restlessly, although she made no sound.  “Oh, she’s hungry,” Kathryn said.  “I’d better take her.”

            Kathryn sat up and Chakotay handed her the baby.  He busied himself with setting a chair up by the biobed while she started feeding her.

            “Anyway,” she continued, “I promised my father that I would name my daughter after his aunt, and I intend to keep that promise.”

            “So you’re going to name her Mary?”

            “Well, the problem is that the name Mary still has the connotation of an old woman for me.  I just can’t imagine calling a little girl Mary.  I suppose it’s strange…”

            “No, not at all.  I know exactly what you mean,” Chakotay said.

            “Well, anyway, I’ve decided that I’m going to name her Mary but call her by her middle name.  I’d make Mary her middle name, but it would be odd for it to be Mary and not Marie, and my Aunt Mary had an incredible hatred for the name Marie.”

            “Isn’t your middle name Marie?”

            She nodded.  “That’s why I heard so much about it,” she said with a grin.

            “So what’s the middle name that we’re all going to call Voyager’s newest darling?” Chakotay asked.

            “I don’t know yet…”  She paused, and then an odd look came into her face.  “Elizabeth.”  She looked down at the baby.  “Is that what you want your name to be?  Elizabeth?”  He saw no response from the baby, but Kathryn seemed to be satisfied.  “Elizabeth.  That’s it.  Mary Elizabeth Janeway.”

            Chakotay smiled.  He reached out and stroked the baby’s tiny hand.  “Welcome to Voyager, Elizabeth.”

 

Part 21

            Kathryn sat in her quarters, holding Elizabeth on her lap in one hand and a padd in the other.  The ship’s status report for the day before indicated, once again, that not much was going on.  They seemed to be in a relatively empty area of space, and there was no sign of the Nosfu.

            Kathryn finished the report and put it aside, then looked down at Elizabeth.  Kathryn, of course, thought that she was absolutely the most beautiful child ever to grace the universe.  She’d been born with a lot of hair, much lighter than that of most babies.  It was definitely red; Tom Paris, when he saw her for the first time, couldn’t resist cracking a joke that her personality was pushing its way out through her head.  He predicted she would have “the stubbornness of an immovable object and a temper hot enough to cause spontaneous combustion.”  Kathryn had promptly given him her most effective red-hot death glare, at which he had immediately begun slapping at his head, saying he was trying to put the fire out.  Her eyes were the greenest anyone had ever seen (naturally, anyway), although Kathryn had noticed that they looked brown when she was sleepy and blue when she was happy. 

At just over six weeks old, Elizabeth was still very tiny, but she was growing unbelievably fast—she now weighed almost two kilograms, double her birth weight.  The doctor said she was able to maintain her body temperature now, but Kathryn still felt the need to be in contact with her at all times.  She’d found that she could put her in the incubator as long as they could still see each other, although she didn’t like to and only did it when necessary.  The only other person Elizabeth would allow to hold her was Chakotay.  If anyone else tried she would immediately start squalling, and Kathryn would get the same kind of headache she’d gotten when Marsu held her.

            Kathryn knew that the doctor and Chakotay were beginning to worry about her.  They’d thought they would have her kicking and screaming her way back into the captain’s chair in under two weeks, but she hadn’t shown any interest in resuming command.  Of course, the fact that she still wouldn’t put the baby down didn’t help—she obviously couldn’t captain a starship with a child constantly in her arms.  She knew, though, that it wasn’t time for her to go back to captaining Voyager yet.  Elizabeth needed her right now, all the time; she would know when the time was right for her to go back to work.

            Kathryn smiled as she thought of one of the duties she expected to carry out not too long after she went back.  Tom Paris and B’Elanna Torres had come to her yesterday and asked her permission to marry; she had happily granted it.  She was somewhat surprised that they were proceeding to this step already; she’d noticed that they were spending a lot of time together, but she’d thought they would date for a while longer.  They seemed to know what they were doing, though, so she had given them her blessing.  They were planning to make the official announcement tonight, and Kathryn was sure Neelix would have a party planned within an hour.  With Chakotay’s help, he’d thrown her a surprise baby shower two weeks after Elizabeth was born, with nearly the entire ship in attendance; although she had made some mild protests, she had to admit she’d enjoyed herself, and the gifts the crew had given her would all get much use.  She looked down at her favorite gift, an oversized rocking chair Chakotay had made for her himself, albeit using replicated wood.  He’d fitted it with wonderfully soft cushions, and she loved to sit in it and rock Elizabeth.  Elizabeth loved it too; whenever she was having trouble going to sleep, Kathryn would simply rock her in the rocking chair while playing some soothing music, and she would calm right down.

            Kathryn stood up and moved toward the replicator, intending to get herself a cup of tea.  As she stood, she felt Elizabeth’s mind wake up; a moment later the baby stirred in her arms.

            She felt something suddenly, a strange kind of *snap* that caused her to stumble and almost fall.  Elizabeth started crying, something she very rarely did.  Kathryn quickly recovered her senses, but something was different.  For a moment, she nearly panicked as she realized she couldn’t feel Elizabeth’s mind; then she reached out and felt her, just as before, except that she felt…more distant now.  That’s it, Kathryn realized, she’s farther away.  The telepathic tether that had bound them so closely for the last few weeks had disappeared.  Although Kathryn could still feel Elizabeth’s emotions, she had to reach out to do it.  There was no longer any confusion between which emotions were the baby’s and which were her own.

            She had known this would happen somehow, Kathryn realized.  It had been obvious that she and Elizabeth couldn’t remain so closely connected forever, and she’d felt that something like this was coming.  She realized that she was herself again.  She could put Elizabeth down and leave the room, or even leave her with someone else for a few hours, without suffering physical and mental pain.  The prospect frightened her.  Elizabeth had been with her constantly for over eight months.  How could she separate from her, even for a short time?

            Then Elizabeth looked up at her and beamed her infectious smile.  Kathryn felt the baby’s mind touching her own, passing along waves of calm and contentment.  Kathryn almost laughed.  To think that her six-week-old daughter was comforting her!  She smiled down at Elizabeth, then touched her mind and sent her a beam of joy and intense love for her.  As Kathryn looked into her daughter’s eyes, she realized that no matter what happened, she and her daughter would always be able to feel each other’s love, and nothing could ever tear them apart.

Email me!

On to "Wedding Bells"

Back to "Elizabeth"

Back to my stories