Path: newsspool2.news.atl.earthlink.net!stamper.news.atl.earthlink.net!stamper.news.pas.earthlink.net!elnk-pas-nf1!newsfeed.earthlink.net!news-out.visi.com!news-out.octanews.net!petbe.visi.com!yellow.newsread.com!news-toy.newsread.com!netaxs.com!newsread.com!POSTED.newshog.newsread.com!not-for-mail Newsgroups: alt.startrek.creative.erotica.moderated Approved: ascem@earthlink.net Organization: Better Living Thru TrekSmut Sender: ascem@earthlink.net Message-ID: From: "Layla V." MIME-Version: 1.0 Mailing-List: list ASCEML@yahoogroups.com; contact ASCEML-owner@yahoogroups.com Subject: NEW VOY "Absolute Power" Chap 6b 14/21 (C/P, J, AU) [NC-17] Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Lines: 857 Date: Tue, 10 Aug 2004 12:55:34 GMT NNTP-Posting-Host: 209.198.142.218 X-Complaints-To: Abuse Role , We Care X-Trace: newshog.newsread.com 1092142534 209.198.142.218 (Tue, 10 Aug 2004 08:55:34 EDT) NNTP-Posting-Date: Tue, 10 Aug 2004 08:55:34 EDT Xref: news.earthlink.net alt.startrek.creative.erotica.moderated:82613 X-Received-Date: Tue, 10 Aug 2004 05:55:38 PDT (newsspool2.news.atl.earthlink.net) TITLE: "Absolute Power" Chapter 6b (July 2004) AUTHOR: Layla V CONTACT: v_layla@hotmail.com WEBSITE: http://www.geocities.com/laylatrek ARCHIVING: Personal website, CPSG, Cha_Club, ASCEML SERIES: Star Trek Voyager RATING: NC-17 for violence, sex and language PART: 14 of 21 CODES: C/P, J/m, P/T implied, All Voyager characters, AU, Angst, H/c, OCC SUMMARY: Voyager's encounter with an intergalactic STORY NOTES: Evil!Janeway alert. See Part 1 of 21 for the details. DISCLAIMER: All characters, other than the original ones created by me, are owned by Paramount. I am merely playing. No copyright infringement is intended. NOTES: Thank you, Britta, for your clearheaded suggestions CHAPTER 6b Kathryn knew Chakotay wouldn't have stayed locked up in his quarters for long. The Doctor had ordered both he and Tom to "Rest from their ordeal uninterrupted for at least forty-eight hours," and Chakotay had apparently had enough after the first day. Well, good for him, she thought, as she quietly entered the observation lounge--her eyes quickly fixing on the sight of his broad frame against the starlit viewport. Now he'd get a chance to explain his actions to her. "It's a thrilling feeling, isn't it?" she said, her voice cold. With a visible start, Chakotay turned around and the same innocently startled expression came on his face that she'd seen a thousand times. Oh yes, he loved doing the innocent routine, didn't he? "Captain." He looked at her, his brown eyes wide. "I didn't hear you come in." "I am sure you didn't, Chakotay." Kathryn tried to keep her voice normal but a strange bitterness still crept into it. "You have your eyes and ears glued elsewhere these days." He blinked. "Excuse me?" She scowled at his intrinsic stupefaction. "You didn't answer my question." His eyes insolently narrowed. "Which was?" "The thrill you must've felt," she chewed every word. "The utterly magnificent, undeniably sinful shiver your contemptuous conduct must've given you. Tell me, how does it feel?" He stared at her in bafflement. "What are you talking about?" "Oh, don't be so naïve, Chakotay." She sneered, "The whole ship knows how you used your position of authority to force a subordinate into having sex with you." His mouth dropped open in yet another parody of stupid disbelief. "Forced? This is a joke, right?" "Oh, I've never been more serious." Kathryn felt contempt fill her bones. "Tell me how I'm supposed to enforce discipline on the ship when my First Officer sets such a crude and wholly reprehensible example." "Reprehensible?" he spat, outraged. "You're out of your fucking mind. You KNOW what happened down there." Kathryn felt her hackles rise. "That is no WAY to talk to your captain, Mister," she growled. "And I know EXACTLY what happened. You, with your insipid lack of intellect, created circumstances down there that brought Tom Paris into a situation where he was forced to perform sexual favors for you." "I created the situation?" He shook his head, obviously still not ready to see the light. "I almost DIED down there. Tom saved my life." "What else was he supposed to do?" she grated. "He remembered your life-debt to him, that antiquated tribal custom you'd bound him to six years ago." Her eyes narrowed as her brain aptly joined the dots of the puzzle. "How clever," she drawled. "How utterly *ingenious* of you. You had an epiphany six years ago and look at the situation NOW. How convenient, I must say." Chakotay suddenly snorted, his manner disgustingly discourteous. "Kathryn, you're insane!" "I am PERFECTLY sane," she snarled. "Don't you even know what you've DONE? You've used Tom Paris, and by doing so have destroyed a beautiful, flourishing relationship between him and the woman you dare to call your best friend." A shadow passed over Chakotay's face and she knew she'd scored a point. This was the line of reasoning she had to pursue to bring him to his knees. "What happened between Tom and B'Elanna is their *private* matter," he was saying, his voice shaking. "It has NOTHING to do with YOU." His face twisted in anger. "And what happened between Tom and I has got nothing to do with you either. It's none of your concern." "What about what exists between you and ME, Chakotay?" Her voice shook. "Does it concern me, tell me this?" "What are you talking about?" he frowned at her. She let all her pain and agony show on her face. "How could you be so heartless, Chakotay?" Her brow creased. "You do this with all the women in your life, don't you? You make them fall in love with you and then you leave them. First Seska, then B'Elanna, and now me." As she'd expected, hearing B'Elanna's name made him blank everything else out. His eyes widened. "B'Elanna?" he started, his disbelief obvious. "B'Elanna is like a sister to me. She's never... I've never..." She cut him off in the middle. "And of course YOU were BLIND to her devotion to you all these years. Everyone knows she only went with Tom because she couldn't have you. He was her second choice." And it wasn't like she was making it all up. Years ago, during the Botha incident, Kathryn had recognized B'Elanna's... need for Chakotay. As a woman, Kathryn knew that his appeal, while not all that intellectually stimulating, was at the very least physically stirring. Those rugged good looks, that ever-present smile which he flashed at everyone and everything that moved, had stolen many a heart. However, B'Elanna had never made a move on him and all these years, Kathryn had known Chakotay had never made a move on anyone else on the ship--which was the way she liked it. Like all men, he was much easier to control when he was lonely and pining after her as he was supposed to. This vision of an independent Chakotay, who actually had someone else wanting him back, did not appeal to her at all. And like always, all she had to do was throw a new bone at him and he'd forget the last one. Hearing Tom's name threw him off track yet again. "You've lost your mind," he said, his face tight. "Tom was not second choice to her. B'Elanna cared about him." "And that's why you took even HIM away from her." She glared at Chakotay. "Who would've known..." her voice dripped hatred, "...that such a *mild-mannered* man would play such cruel mind games?" His mouth worked in utter unbelief. "Mind games?" "Pulling everyone on a string," she huffed. "Playing with their deepest and most vulnerable emotions." His mouth tightened. "You're irrational!" She ignored the slur and marched on, her objective clear in her mind. "But I am not like everyone else, Chakotay," she softened her tone. This was the time to switch the game plan. "I can still give you a second chance." He stared at her. "Second chance?" "Yes," she said. "You just have to renew your promise to me. You have to make good on it once and for all." "What promise are you talking about?" "Your oath, Chakotay." She took a step closer. "Your noble, wretched oath to me." She felt her breath catch as the reality of his betrayal again clawed at her soul. "You said you'd stay by my side till the end of times, Chakotay. You said you'd share my burden. Did you forget that promise, that most intimate of vows that you made with your Kathryn?" His face was strangely pale. "My... pledge to you was a PROFESSIONAL one. And I've fulfilled it completely." His brow wrinkled. "You never wanted a relationship, remember? You didn't want to alter the parameters. Kathryn, you made it clear years ago. You didn't want me." "Is sex all you can think about?" she shouted, as disdain filled her heart. "I am the captain. I follow the hierarchy which all captains follow and that hierarchy entails strict adherence to protocols that divided the two of us from ever conceiving a bonding in flesh, Chakotay. But we did have a bonding of souls, of minds, didn't we? This beautiful... majestic... intimate fealty you molded for me." "Bonding? Fealty?" He stared at her in incredulity. "We were friends, Kathryn, nothing more. We could never be anything beyond that. You showed it by your actions." His voice rose in volume. "What is WRONG with you?" So now he was going to outright deny everything that had existed between them? Kathryn felt her body shaking in anger as tears flooded her eyes. "Nothing between us?" She felt a familiar twitch in her left cheek as pain filled her chest. "Have you been BLIND? I've wanted you, I've craved you with every inch of my soul..." He shook his head, his face unbelieving. "NO! That's not true." "...with every inch of my being..." She took another step forward. He clenched his teeth. "Kathryn..." And suddenly she couldn't take it anymore. Couldn't take this denial, this betrayal, this lying, this pathetic unbelievable posturing. With an enraged shout, she jumped on the man she'd called her friend for six years. "HOW DARE YOU TURN YOUR BACK ON ME?" she shouted, her fingers clawing at his shirt. "Kathryn!" He staggered back at her forceful assault, his eyes wide. "STOP IT." "HOW DARE YOU!!!" she snarled, her fingernails digging into his arm as she pinned him against the wall. Her breath heaving, her eyes wide with disbelief, she watched as he rudely grabbed her slight shoulders and shook her violently--like an animal. "STOP IT," he shouted. She felt her nails cut into the cloth of his shirt and dig into the flesh of his arm and the sensation of blood spurting out made her shiver with an oddly triumphant feeling--fueling her rage even more. But he was shaking her harder; his face contorted with fury as he grabbed her and turned her around, pushing her against the wall. "STOP IT," he yelled in her face, his gleaming dark eyes suddenly hideous with anger. "STOP IT BEFORE YOU HURT YOURSELF, KATHRYN!" Her throat tight with hatred, she raised her hand to slap his face but he caught her wrist in a death grip. "You bastard!" she growled. "You've become unhinged, Captain." He pressed his lips together. "I suggest you check yourself into Sickbay. The events of the last few days have obviously affected your senses." Such contemptible impertinence, Kathryn felt her mouth twist in repulsion. "You'll regret this, you sonofa--" "This conversation is OVER!" he interrupted her with a tightening grip on her shoulders as he pressed her further into the wall. And for one moment, he was implacable and dark and dangerous, and Kathryn felt the same disgust for him now that she'd felt for him when he'd appeared on Voyager's Bridge for the first time. That shameless Maquis traitor. "Stay the hell AWAY from me." He emphasized each word, his nostrils flaring. And then he backed away, and without another word, turned around and walked out of the lounge. She stared at the closed doors and felt a new wave of painful loathing simmering inside her. She was going to make him pay, she promised herself. With a heave, she pulled herself together, shrugged back into a semblance of normality, and stalked out of the lounge. However, in her distressed state, she never noticed the metal grate shifting back into place, once again covering the ventilation shaft in the ceiling--as her shocked audience came out of a trance and slowly crawled out of the Jeffries tube. # # **Night** Tom knew B'Elanna was right. He had to go after Chakotay. He had to clear everything up with him, get everything out in the open. That was his only choice, probably his only chance as well. If he had any hope in hell of making this thing work with Chakotay, he had to be completely honest with him. He knew what he wanted; his objective was clear in his heart and in his mind. Now he just had to work up the courage to lay it all out in front of Chakotay. When B'Elanna left, he took a few moments to gather his thoughts, and then went looking for the man. However, the location check on Chakotay's position led him to an empty turbolift where he found a combadge lying on the floor. And suddenly, Tom knew something was wrong. Had Chakotay been so upset at what he'd seen--or rather what he thought he'd seen--in Tom's quarters that he had decided to go into hiding? Was he trying to avoid being found by Tom? That was so unlike Chakotay. It just didn't make sense. Dammit, Tom shook his head--didn't Chakotay know he had other ways of zeroing in on locations? However, Tom soon realized they didn't call Chakotay the Mystic Warrior just for fun. As he accessed the computer and discreetly ran search patterns for Chakotay's life signs, he found the subroutine ending in the middle of the loop, leaving the search incomplete and him exasperated. After several dozen tries, which took nearly an hour, the closest he could get was to discover Chakotay's vague location was somewhere in the lower five decks. Tom resorted to manual searching--going through every public location, and a few private ones as well. Ignoring irritated Fleeters and Maquis whom he disturbed, he strategically went through all rooms, all quarters, apologizing for his intrusion but promising it was for the good of the ship. He felt himself sag with relief when he finally found Chakotay, sitting on the floor of a tiny lounge just outside the Escape Pods access on Deck 14, staring out of the window. For a moment, Tom stood quietly and watched the man's stance, noting the tension in his frame. Then he took a deep breath and carefully approached him. "There you are," he said, keeping his voice soft and casual, even if his heart skidded relentlessly in his chest. There was no answer and he saw no change in Chakotay's posture at the sound of his voice--undoubtedly he already knew Tom was there. Doesn't matter, big guy, Tom thought, I'm not going anywhere without laying all my cards on the table. He settled down next to Chakotay on the floor, pulled his knees up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them. For a short while, he stared at the sight of the Zokaa'rian station outside the tiny porthole. Many security ships were presently docked at the station, for Voyager's sake--the events of the last few days had shaken up the whole Sovereignty. With a sigh, he turned to his silent companion. "I've been looking for you all over the ship." There was again no response. He saw the adam's apple bob in the strong throat. "Here," he offered the combadge to Chakotay, "I think you left your combadge in the turbolift." "Not a very smart move, I guess," Chakotay muttered, his tone grim, his voice strangely hoarse. "I should've chucked it out of an airlock." He sounded disgusted. Tom felt his breathing quicken. "Chakotay?" "No." Chakotay shook his head as he sighed. "It's all right. I'm not mad at you." But he kept his eyes to the front, still not looking at him. Tom felt something turn inside him. "Chakotay..." "Tom, what the hell are you doing here?" Chakotay suddenly snapped, as if he had known an objection was coming and wanted to get on the offensive first. "You should be--" "I should be what?" Tom interrupted him. "With B'Elanna?" A frown appeared on Chakotay's face and keeping his eyes averted, he attempted to get up, his body rigid. "Wait." Tom grabbed his arm and pulled him down again. "You're not going anywhere, Chak. Not until you've heard everything I have to say." Now Chakotay looked at him and the anguish in his eyes staggered Tom. "What is there to say, Tom?" Tom felt his throat tighten. Chakotay really had misunderstood everything. He bit his lips. "What you saw in my quarters meant nothing, Chakotay." Chakotay closed his eyes, his brow furrowed as he shook his head. "Tom..." "B'Elanna came to tell me she'd broken up with me." After an initial struggle, Tom watched as those eyes opened and Chakotay stared at him--a strange look on his face. Tom looked into the brown eyes. "You... knew, didn't you?" Realization suddenly dawned. "That was what you didn't want to mention on the planet, when we were in the prison, wasn't it? She had told you." Tom gripped Chakotay's other arm, trying to turn him towards him. "What did you think, Chak, that after everything we'd been through together down there, I'd come back and patch things up with B'Elanna?" Chakotay pulled out his arms out of Tom's grasp. "It doesn't matter what I think." "But it does, Chak. What you think and how you feel does matter." Tom felt his voice shaking and tried to control it. "I want to know what you think. I need to." "Why, Tom?" There was pain in those eyes and Tom wondered if he was still the cause of it. "What difference does it make?" Tom felt despair closing in and sucked in a staggering breath. "You're still mad at me." Chakotay bit his lip as he closed his eyes again, the anguish on his face apparent. "What you said down there..." Tom continued. "About trusting me--was it true, Chak?" The deep brown eyes opened. "Tom..." "Chak, tell me this, was I really the biggest fucking fool in the galaxy?" Tom felt his throat closing. "Is it true that I had something right in front of me, and I didn't see it? Did I really misunderstand you so... fucking badly?" Chakotay stared at him, his eyes sparkling and wide. "Tom..." "Because... because I think I'm in love with you." Tom struggled to get the words out. "Are you listening to me, Chak? I am in love with you." His voice hoarse, he did as he'd planned to do--let it all out in the open. "I... want to be with you. I can't stop thinking about you, Chakotay. I just can't. And I need to know how you feel about that." Chakotay's expression was tormented. "Oh... Tom." Still no words. Nothing positive. Nothing hopeful. "Don't you... have anything at all to say?" he felt his breath stop. And suddenly, Chakotay was staring deeply into his eyes and hands were reaching out to grab his wrist. "Tom, oh God," he started. "I can't... not right now, I just can't... think about this right now." "You..." Tom felt the walls closing in on him. "You don't want to..." "NO!" Chakotay said forcefully and then struggled to lower his volume. "This has nothing--please, Tom..." Chakotay gripped Tom's wrist tightly. "Try to understand. This has NOTHING to do with you or B'Elanna. Nothing." Tom felt his eyes narrow. "Chak..." "What I want to say to you..." Chakotay said. "What I sincerely want to say... I can't right now." He grabbed Tom's shoulder. "KNOW THIS: I can't." And all of a sudden, Tom knew Chakotay was telling the truth. This wasn't about him or B'Elanna. "What in the hell happened?" he asked. He'd seen Chakotay an hour or so ago. What could've happened between then and now? Chakotay shook his head as he dropped his hands and pulled away. "I can't..." "Chakotay--" "I can't..." "But Chak," Tom reached out and then his eyes widened at the sudden flush on Chakotay's face as the older man jumped up--his face twisted in anger and anguish--and screamed. "I CAN'T TAKE THIS." Stunned, Tom watched as the older man bent down and grabbed the stool right next to him, picked it up high in the air and brought it down on the glass table top, shattering it to pieces. In alarm, Tom too jumped up. Again, Chakotay raised the stool, "I CAN'T!" and brought it down a second time, this time hitting a chair. "CHAK!" Tom shouted, feeling his spine turn cold at the display of fury and distress. "I CAN'T!" Again, Chakotay raised the stool and banged it into a second chair. "I fucking CAN'T!!!" "CHAKOTAY!!!" # # The second shout seemed to rip through Chakotay's haze like a blast of phaser fire. He froze in mid-movement, and stood there, shaking--as if woken from a nightmare, the stool gripped in his hands, his chest heaving with exertion. He stared at Tom as if seeing him for the first time and felt his face twist in torment. "Please Tom," he said. "Not right now. Don't ask me... any questions." He heard Tom take a deep breath. "Okay," the younger man said, his voice soft, soothing. "All right." Chakotay saw Tom cautiously reach out, and tried not to jump when he felt the warm hand touch his arm. "Shh. It's all right. I won't ask you anything right now," Tom murmured. "I promise." He felt overwhelmed by this dichotomy. On one hand was anger raging inside his heart that made him want to pound someone to a pulp and on the other there was the heartrending tenderness in Tom's words that made his breath stick in his throat. Feeling his body slackening, Chakotay slowly let the stool slip out of his hands and fall to the floor. Tom gripped his arm. "You're coming with me now." He felt himself tense. "Tom--" The younger man's fingers linked through his. "I said I wouldn't ask anything. But that doesn't stop me from being worried sick about you." Chakotay shook his head. "There's no need to..." "Oh no?" His words dripping with disbelief, Tom moved to stand in front of him and suddenly Chakotay found himself looking into knowing blue eyes. Tom had such beautiful, thoughtful eyes, thought Chakotay, eyes he simply couldn't hide his pain from anymore. As in the Xaoln prison, his desperation found a cohort in Tom's need to care. "Well, I disagree," Tom said, his face resolute. "And don't you dare complain. Come on." Chakotay's hand was gripped firmly as he was tugged out of the lounge and he found that he couldn't complain, couldn't stop Tom. His mind numb, he felt his chest constricted with pain at the memory of all that Kathryn had said to him, and after his furious eruption of moments ago, he felt depleted, empty. What did Tom really see in this shell of a man? Why was he being so nice to him? Was it true that Tom *loved* him? Chakotay felt his insides brim with a fusion of arrant longing and utter anguish. But why would he love him? What was the purpose? What could Chakotay, who wasn't even trusted by his own damn captain, possibly give him in return? Chakotay felt himself stiffen with another wave of anger, as the scurrilous words Kathryn had thrown at him came back to stab him in the heart. It was all bullshit, he thought, such unbelievable crap. Why had she said all that to him? Where had he stumbled, what mistake had he made? Then they were in the turbolift, and within moments, the car had deposited them at Tom's deck and he found himself led out into the corridor and to the front of Tom's door. He watched as Tom keyed in his code and pulled Chakotay inside. He had a distant memory of being in Tom's quarters once or twice in the past, but the details of the living room and the rooms beyond held no significance to Chakotay right now. Without warning, a wave of exhaustion overtook him and he felt himself staggering back to the wall, as he closed his eyes. He breathed slowly, his stiff body feeling sore. He felt Tom's hand on his arm again; one warm hand touched his cheek. "Come on, you're going to bed." With a sigh, he opened his eyes. "Tom..." He wondered if Tom could see the struggle within him through his eyes. And it seemed that he could. "You need to rest, Chak," Tom insisted, his own brow creased with concern. "You look like hell..." And as if that was all the declaration needed, Tom took his hand and guided him into the bedroom--his manner almost clinical. Chakotay was led to the side of the bed and then Tom turned towards him. "Take off your shirt." Chakotay stared blankly at him as if he couldn't understand the language being spoken, and then he felt the gentle tug as his shirttails were pulled out of his trousers. "Here, let me help you." Within moments, he was stripped to the waist and deposited on top of the bed. He stumbled between the sheets, barely noticing the hardness of the mattress and sank down into the pillows, closing his eyes. Tom was right, he sighed. He was absolutely exhausted. Sleep would be bitter but welcome. He stirred when he felt the sheets pulled down to his waist but it was the sensation of something warm and silky dribbling down his back which made him want to sit up. "What the hell..." He tried to look back. "It's just oil, Chak." He felt gentle hands push him down again. "I'm gonna give you a little massage." "But Tom..." "You NEED it..." And the pads of the warm fingers were tracing the tense tissues of his back, the callused thumbs swiping down his shoulder blades, and he felt his face sink further into the pillows. Oh God, yes, it did feel so good. But then he felt Tom stop. "SHIT. What's *this*, Chakotay?" "What?" he murmured in the pillow. "There's... there's a deep scratch on your left arm." Tom's voice was shaking. "And it's BLEEDING." "Fuck," Chakotay muttered as he felt his body tense once more. "Who did this?" Chakotay sighed. "You said you weren't going to ask me any questions." "Dammit." He heard Tom swear and then those fingers were touching Chakotay's hair, slowly running through the short strands, massaging his scalp. Chakotay swallowed his groan as they reached his neck, gently rubbing the sore muscles. "What the hell happened, Chakotay?" He just sank his face into his arms. "Yeah, I know..." He heard Tom mutter, almost bitterly. "I can't ask." There was a pause and then he said. "Here... let me clean this at least." And those were the only words Tom spoke for a long time. The scratch was cleaned and regenerated, and soon Tom returned to the task of giving him a massage. Chakotay felt the strokes begin from the base of his neck, making him sigh, as Tom's hands moved along both sides of his spine. With gentle pressure and constant linear motion, the hands rubbed down his length and then up the sides of his back. Chakotay felt the lightly scented oil spread over his back, rubbed into his tense muscles, as he felt himself unwind like never before. There was nothing overt in Tom's touch, just a gentle stroking of strong hands over stiff muscles--a friend helping another relax, helping him let everything go. And strangely, in this moment--lying in Tom's bed, breathing deep the familiar masculine scent permeating the sheets and pillows--he could almost let everything go. As if they belonged in another time, in another universe, he could even put Kathryn's words out of his mind. Feeling Tom's hands on his body, those events could be ignored for a short while. For tonight. He heard himself sigh as the strokes became gentler, felt his eyelids fluttering as a euphoric lethargy filled his bones. "Better?" Tom whispered in his ear, his hands on Chakotay's shoulder. "Mmm..." he murmured. That seemed to be answer enough, for he felt Tom climb in behind him and sighed as he was pulled back into the strong--still fully-clothed--body. The sheets were pulled around them, and he felt Tom spoon behind him, his lean arms wrapping around Chakotay's chest. "Thank you..." Chakotay mumbled as he felt blessed--not bitter--sleep approaching fast. Tom's warm breath tickled the back of his neck, as a soft kiss was placed on his skin. "You're welcome..." And then he was asleep. # # Her face calm and her breathing much under control now, Kathryn Janeway walked out into her living room and approached the large viewport. From the corner of her eye, she caught a green light blinking on her computer console. A message was waiting for her. She frowned. She didn't have time to waste on answering messages right now. Instead, she focused on the ships docked into the station, and as expected, didn't find the black royal vessel that belonged to Kel'kar'vheel there. As the ministers she'd spoken to had told her, the Chieftain was no longer on the station. He was meeting with the System Kings on Asteroid Cluster 5 in the Deb'rar sector. That was where she would be looking for him. Her hands on her hips, she stood back and pondered her situation. Her years long command experience had taught her many things. One was the decree that you should never trust anyone blindly in your professional life. The only person you could truly rely on was yourself. As a captain, your own judgment and abilities were more important than anyone else's opinion. A captain--as a rule--always stood alone. Her six years in the Delta Quadrant had shown her how true those words had been. Especially in her unique situation where she'd been with a crew that was comprised either of freshly minted Starfleet ensigns or hardened and ruthless Maquis criminals. She knew the dangers she worked with, knew anything could go wrong at anytime and that it was important to be prepared for any untoward incidents. The wayward First Officer, for example, could go berserk due to some hidden mental deformities. After all, she had seen signs of it within months of their being in the Delta Quadrant. How could she forget the time Chakotay had stolen a shuttle to go after Seska because she had supposedly humiliated him in front of the whole crew? Or the time he'd let himself get captured and brainwashed by the Vori, creating a diplomatic incident of calamitous proportions with their kind Kradin hosts. Or the incident with the Mars orbiter when he had slovenly put the lives of his entire away team at risk by stranding them within the eclipse. All of the above incidents could undoubtedly be explained by the recent episode in chaotic space, when medical evidence of Chakotay's true mental illness had finally been laid bare. That supposedly 'dormant' crazy gene--that had nearly driven him out of his mind, when due to his ineffectiveness he had almost caused Voyager's destruction. This was the reason why Kathryn had made special arrangements to counter the effect of any unforeseen circumstances. From the time she'd joined Starfleet, she had always been cautious about the people she found herself surrounded by. And the incidents of the last few days --though heartbreakingly painful-- had proven all her suspicions of years ago. Chakotay's insolent actions had told her only one thing: Voyager's Maquis crew was irredeemable. Obviously, no amount of leniency and positive experience could housetrain rabid animals. She turned from the window and again the blinking light caught her attention. What could it be? She hated leaving her work unfinished--another lesson taught by her command experience. Deciding it couldn't take more than a few minutes, she sat down on the chair and clicked the console. Her eyes widened. It was a datastream from Starfleet. God, she'd completely forgotten that they had in fact downloaded the latest one a few days ago. Seven must've realized how busy she was and had sent her messages directly to her own console. Kathryn skimmed the long list of messages and suddenly her eyes caught one name. Admiral Houston. She frowned. This was a name she hadn't heard in decades. Her heart suddenly beating very fast, she hastily opened the message and started to read. By the time she was halfway through, dismay had replaced the speculation in her mind and Kathryn Janeway had simply forgotten how to breathe. # # END CHAPTER 6 Continued in Chap 7a _________________________________________________________________ STOP MORE SPAM with the new MSN 8 and get 2 months FREE* http://join.msn.com/?page=features/junkmail ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ ASCEM messages are copied to a mailing list. 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