To Tell The Truth Series 04 Sunfire Read online

"And this is T'Kara, our Chief Pilot."

  The elegantly beautiful Vulcan inclined her head to the Captain.

  "Since Mr. Paris is on The Diogenes she will be working with his second?"

  "Ensign Pablo Baytart," the man who had reassumed the Conn introduced himself.

  He and T'Kara exchanged nods and began conferring on the damage to the Helm under the watchful gaze of her Security people.

  "Bartoq is our Tactical Expert," Raven continued.

  The Klingon who had had the run in with B'Elanna met Janeway's eyes. She tried not to cringe at the hardness she saw in them, though she was grateful when he broke the contact so he could head for Tuvok's station.

  She turned back in time to see Raven gesturing to a breathtakingly beautiful Orion female. "Yana's our Medical officer."

  Suddenly the little Orion female Tom had created as a playmate for Naomi did not seem to be such a fabrication. Clearly she was based on the scholarly woman before her.

  "Captain Janeway," she said in well-measured tones, "if I may have an escort to your Sickbay? I would like to begin conferring with your EMH."

  Two of the Security people stepped forwards as Janeway nodded. She had sensed it might not be the best of ideas to assign two heterosexual males, no matter how professional and serious about their task those males might be, to guard a *female* Orion of dubious intentions. As a hopefully unnecessary precaution to prevent the Orion from doing what Orion females allegedly did best -- use their sexuality to their advantage -- she had given Tuvok an unusual order. She had told him to pick from his best people either two heterosexual females or two homosexual males or -- as ended up being the case -- a combination there of. The last thing Janeway wanted was to find out these people actually were trying to trick them and Yana had seduced her lovesick guard or guards into being less than vigilant.

  "This way please, Yana," the female half of the pair offered.

  Following her female escort with the male bringing up the rear, Yana mounted the stairs to the turbolift.

  "Dumar is Ops," Raven continued.

  The Cardassian male who responded caused a few stiffened postures from the Maquis on the Bridge. If he noticed he ignored it as he mounted the stairs to Harry's position. "First, Ensign Kim, we will need to check the internal and external sensors for damage. Tom's actions should have protected them when we used or weapon, but we will have to see."

  Harry frowned. "How'd you know my name?"

  "We know all about your ship and crew," Raven reminded. "Souris here is our Counselor, Captain. She is the one who will be meeting with your crew, each individually, assessing their states of mind, and preparing them for their return home."

  A petite human female with waist-length brown hair and huge green eyes nodded to the Captain then over Kathryn's shoulder, she locked eyes with Harry. Both she and the young ensign visibly stopped breathing until she looked away. Blinking, she refocused her attention on the woman in charge.

  "I've assigned you quarters you may use as an office while you're here," Janeway informed her. "Your escorts will show them to you."

  Smiling her thanks, Souris looked up at her guards expectantly. While the two men were not the largest members on Tuvok's staff, they dwarfed their little charge. As one of them led the way, the other met the suppressed smirk of one of his colleagues with a slight shrug and trailed along behind the other two in his party.

  "And I'll be taking care of Engineering," Raven announced, removing one glove and sticking his bare hand out for B'Elanna to shake, which she begrudgingly did.

  He held her hand and eyes for a moment longer than strictly necessary. Where ordinarily she would have tugged her hand away, she did not even seem to notice his over-familiarity. In fact, the only reason she took her hand back and shifted her eyes from his was because her Captain spoke and interrupted the moment.

  "B'Elanna, before they start any alterations, I'm going to want you and Seven to check them over to make sure the Borg modifications we've made won't interfere with them."

  "Yes, Captain," the Chief Engineer answered in a distracted voice.

  "We'd better get started on the repairs then," Raven suggested. "Sooner we're done, the sooner we're home. Excuse us, Captain?"

  "Of course."

  "We were wondering at the changes we had seen to the ship," Raven remarked, a newly re-gloved hand cupping his counterpart's elbow to guide her up the stairs to the turbolift with their guards. "They're Borg, hmm?"

  "Along with some other Engineering tricks we've picked up along the way," B'Elanna clarified, "yes."

  "I can't wait to hear about them. All the new technologies your people must have encountered. It must have been fascinating."

  As the turbolift doors closed, Kathryn sighed softly to herself. 'Home,' she thought. 'Finally we're going to get home. I hope.'

  -------

  Tom came to in a familiar room, in a familiar position. A Re-Education Room with him strapped in the chair. His Starfleet uniform was gone and he was wearing only the black briefs he favored.

  'Relax,' he ordered himself, testing his restrains. 'You'll get out of this. Remember the plan. Tuvok will help you.'

  "And here we are again."

  Stilling, he barely suppressed an involuntary shiver as he recognized the voice.

  Alpha Two.

  Not betraying the fear he felt in the presence of the Vulcan, he turned his head to meet the black as deep space eyes.

  "You have led us on quite the chase," Alpha Two remarked, hands folded primly behind his white uniformed body. "Across a galaxy." He leaned close to Tom's face. "Yet we still caught you."

  Tom continued to show no emotion. He knew he had to control even the slightest of responses or his adversary would gain the upper hand. This one could take things others overlooked and use them to glean what his opponent was trying to hide. Even something as subtle as an eye movement could be used by such an astute observer as this one to learn what was not being said. And Tom had too much to protect to give anything away.

  "It was obvious from your hiding Voyager behind that moon that you recognized this ship, or at least her design. How much else do you remember I wonder? Everything clearly, or bits and pieces that are all jumbled up in your mind?"

  There was no answer.

  "You may be stubborn all you want, but eventually you are going to tell me everything. If not now, then when we get back to the Alpha Quadrant. I would suggest now. The longer you remain silent, the more insistent I will have to become. You do remember what it is like when I become insistent, don't you?"

  Tom did yet he continued staring unemotionally ahead. He was the best there was at keeping his emotions under wraps, as anyone from Voyager could attest.

  "Vassanji says your Implant is badly damaged. We cannot download the information from it so unless you give me the answers I require, we will have to remove it and take the information that way. Either way, we will have what we need." He paused. "Of course there's always a mindmeld."

  The young human maintained his silence. He knew what he had dreaded all along probably was true. The chances of his ever seeing the Alpha Quadrant were slim. Well, if he was going to die, he was going to do his best to make their lives as difficult as possible before then. Starting now.

  -------

  "Doctor?" Yana's female escort called from the main room of Sickbay.

  In response to her call, they heard grumbling coming from the lab.

  "So predictable. I'm right in the middle of an experiment and someone decides they have to break something or leak bodily fluids all over the place." Head down, examining a padd as he walked through to them, he did not immediately see the new face on board. "So, what have you managed to do to yourself, hmm?"

  When he finally looked up, he nearly dropped the medical tricorder he was picking up. He had seen Yana's file, at least the credentials part of it, therefore had seen her picture yet seeing the beautiful Orion in the flesh had an incredible impact on him.

 
"I am Yana, Doctor," she smiled, holding out her hand. "It is a pleasure to meet you."

  Stunned, he shook the offered hand. "Um, yes, a pleasure."

  Yana's smile changed from friendly to knowing. "Doctor," she began, moving a step closer to the man whose hand she still held, "I see the reputation of my sex has proceeded me."

  He tried to deny it but she waved off the denial. "It's all right, Doctor. My fellow students and later my colleagues all had the same reservations that you do. They came around once they worked with me for a while and saw I was more than qualified to hold up my end of things."

  Knowing he had offended her, he tried to apologize only to have that waved off as well.

  "No need to apologize, Doctor. And no time," she said, dropping his hand. "By the time this ship is repaired and refitted for the trip home, every crewmember has to have had a full physical."

  "How long do we have?"

  "That all depends on how long the repairs take and whether or not these Gherop stay out of our way."

  "Then we had better get started. I'll call -" He groaned. "How typical. When I could use Mr. Paris, he's nowhere in sight." The EMH gave a long-suffering sigh then motioned Yana into his office. "I'll call Ensign Wildman to give us a hand."

  -------

  "You have quite a well run Engineering Section, Lieutenant," Raven approved.

  B'Elanna smiled back at him. "Voyager's engineers are the best."

  "And very innovative too."

  "We've had to be."

  He laid a bare hand on hers. "I can imagine. It must have been very difficult for you, trying to keep all this together without help from any Starbase."

  "Yes, but we've managed," she answered in a soft voice.

  His own voice lowered an octave. "Quite well too. Integrating the Borg technology into the ship's design was brilliant. When you get home, I'm certain Starfleet Command will be itching to get you onto their Engineering Staff."

  "Well, I don't know -"

  "Chief," Carey called from across the room.

  With a show of reluctance, Raven removed his hand and stepped back a pace.

  B'Elanna stared at him for another instant then hurried over to her second in command, Raven following along behind, regloving his hand.

  -------

  "Are you certain this is not an intrusion?"

  Neelix, gazing adoringly at Souris across the Mess Hall table from him, shook his head. "No, my assistants can handle the dinner preparations. Take as long as you need."

  So she did. Almost forty minutes later, he still was talking about himself and his species when the first of the dinnertime crowd began trickling in. None of them noticed the outgoing nature of their cook/morale officer had doubled as he tried to impress his companion. They all were too wrapped up in hurrying to scoop up the meal that was free of leola root and strong spices due to Neelix's preoccupation with the lovely Souris.

  "Neelix, on a side note," she said hesitatingly, setting aside her padd, "may I ask you something about Tom?"

  "Tom? You know him?"

  "Yes. Is he...? How has he been here, on Voyager? Has he been happy?"

  "Yes, I think for the most part he has."

  "For the most part?"

  "Well, everyone's gone through some rough parts. That's only natural."

  "And Tom has too? Were they bad?"

  "I... I think you should talk to Tom about this."

  She smiled and nodded. "I plan to, but you know Tom. He internalizes things. I'm so worried he's still doing that, despite everything I've tried to do in the past to help him."

  "You know him well?"

  "Yes, for years." She laid a hand on his arm. "Anything you can tell me, Neelix, about anything he's going through here, would be a great help in my counseling sessions with him."

  "He's agreed to let you counsel him?"

  "We don't call it that, no, but yes, in the very near future he will be discussing his experiences here on Voyager. So anything you can tell me would be appreciated. Especially anything about this incident with Commander Chakotay's akoonah. That seems to be bothering him in particular. He mentioned it when he and I were talking about the crew then clammed up about it. I'm certain there was something disturbing that happened to him, yet he is not saying."

  "I knew it," he muttered to himself. Neelix had harbored the impression more had happened than Tom had let on and now found himself vindicated in thinking so. "I don't know much," he said, leaning forwards conspiratorially. "No one does actually. Tom's said nothing about what happened other than he remembers nothing of what happened when he was unconscious, that it didn't matter anyway. I knew it really did. And since he's mentioned it to you...."

  "How has he acted since then?"

  Since she had told him she was counseling Tom, Neelix saw no problem with explaining Tom's later withdrawal from the others and the parole test fiasco. She listened and nodded and was about to ask him another question when Harry appeared at her side.

  Neelix's heart plummeted to his boots when he witnessed the shy smile she offered the equally shyly grinning ensign. He knew that look. He should, he had seen it enough times in this room as this one or that one paired off with another.

  "I thought maybe we could have our session over dinner," Harry awkwardly suggested.

  "Raven to Souris," her combadge chirped. "Report to The Diogenes."

  Rising, she collected her padd and eloquently shrugged then left.

  Disappointed, Harry sighed.

  Disappointed himself, though hiding it, Neelix hustled the young man off to the counter for his meal.

  -------

  Half dazed, Tom lay in his chair. Alpha Two had left for the moment though Tom knew he would be back eventually. His internal clock told him it was suppertime, yet he knew Alpha Two had not left to collect a tray from The Diogenes' mess for his prisoner.

  'Supper,' Tom thought, 'was supposed to do something after supper tonight.'

  His sluggish mind stumbled around his skull, finally coming up with the answer.

  'Chakotay. I was supposed to see Chakotay. Why?'

  Another trip around his mind.

  'B'Elanna. I was going to ask him for permission to marry B'Elanna.'

  *Does not look like that is going to happen,* Camet chimed in.

  'Go away, Camet.'

  *But if you want to know how the conversation would have went, I am sure I can predict it for you.*

  'Shut up.'

  *Of course, if he were to find out what was going on here, I am sure it would be an even briefer conversation.*

  'They won't know what happened here. It is against AlphaOmegan rules to tell outsiders anything about us.'

  *They will have to come up with some explanation for your prolonged absence.*

  'I won't be here that long.'

  *Oh, you are going to escape, are you? Look at yourself. You cannot even stand. He has injected so much burayte into your system. And you are going to overpower him? A full grown, perfectly healthy Vulcan, and whoever else might be between you and the Transporter Room or the Shuttle Bays versus you, half doped out of your mind, have not eaten since yesterday, and mentally and physically exhausted? I do not think so. You are finished. If you surrender, maybe Alpha Two will be able to put you back to Sleep and let you go back to Voyager. Then you can make a fool of yourself and ask B'Elanna's "big brother" for her hand in marriage.*

  Tom was tempted, so tempted. All he wanted right now was to be away from here and in B'Elanna's arms. But he knew if he did surrender, the odds were against Alpha Two letting him return to his life on Voyager with the same intention to marry B'Elanna. A mate would tie him down, make it more difficult for The Protectors to call him into service when they needed him. His mind played out a scenario his heart did not wish to accept.

  "Tom!"

  At Chakotay's call, Tom slowed his step. The older man jogged down the corridor then fell in step with

  him.

  "You're back from The Diogenes
."

  "Just beamed over."

  "We were beginning to wonder if you'd died over there."

  Tom chuckled. "Obviously not, Commander."

  "Obviously. Look, you told me this morning that you wanted to talk to me about something?"

  The pilot frowned, confused.

  "You called me before shift and said you wanted to talk about something after shift? I have sometime now if you-"

  "I can't even remember what it was, Commander, so it couldn't have been important."

  "Oh, well, it sounded rather important at the time."

  "Well, I guess it isn't anymore. If you'll excuse me, I have to check on the Assessment Team's progress with the refit."

  *Yes,* Camet agreed whole-heatedly, *that is how it would go.*

  'And I'm not going to let that happen,' Tom vowed, sitting up a little straighter in his chair. 'My plan will work.'

  *That so-called plan of yours will never work.*

  The door to the Room reopened and seconds later Tom's head roughly was shoved to one side as yet another dose of burayte was shot into his neck. Despite so many parts of his body crying out for him to scream, he did not made a sound. That show of strength angered Alpha Two.

  "Let us start again," the Vulcan said dispassionately. "Six years ago, you took some classified information and escaped with it. Later, you were captured then you, the soldiers who had captured you, and Sunfire vanished for two days before showing up at Base 16. When you did, the others had no recollection of where all of you had been for that time. I want to know where you went, what you did, and who you told what you know."

  The man in the chair said nothing.

  "Do not think I am above using any of them to get you to talk. I brought along all of the soldiers who captured you. You have neatly erased their memories of what you did, but I know how attached to them you are. Surely one of them can get you to talk." He leaned towards Tom's ear. "Sunfire is here too."

  It was all Tom could do not to flinch.

  "If you do not want to talk to me, perhaps I can get what I want from her. Her memory may have been purged too, but given her special nature, I think she may still know the truth. With the proper persuasion, say being confronted with the possibility of your death if she does not speak, I think she will see reason."