Title: ~Crimson Azimuth~

Author: Scorpio

Email: LouisdPdL@aol.com

Archive: ASTC, WWOMB, CKOS, & The Den. Anyone else, please ask first and I'll probably say yes.

Fandom: StarTrek Voyager

Pairing: C/P, implied K/T

Rating: NC-17 (for graphic violence & graphic sex)

Catagory: AU (see Notes), Drama/Romance, Action/Adventure

Series/Sequel: None

Status: New/complete (due to length, I'm posting in 22 parts over a period of 3 days)

STORY NOTES:

Notes # 1 - Premise: Janeway and Tuvok die on the Caretakers Array when it explodes leaving Chakotay as Captain of Voyager. They are in a running battle with the Kazon and many crew members are injuried or dead due to this. The story picks up after they have been in the Delta Quadrant for four months.

Notes # 2 - Beta: A *huge* thanks to Cinder for pre-reading this monster for me. I asked her to look over a short little story,... and it grew into this beast. She went beyond the call of duty on this. Thanks sweety! Any mistakes you find are purely my own.

Disclaimer: Paramount and Viacom own all the rights and contracts. I own nothing, nor do I intend to infringe upon those rights. I am maing no money from this.

Summary: Captain Chakotay discovers Seska lied and that there is more to Tom and Harry than meets the eye...

Captain Chakotay leaned back on the couch in his Ready Room and gazed out at the starfield streaming past his window at Warp 5.5. Such peaceful beauty still had the power to move him, to touch him deeply, even after all this time, after all the pain and suffering, despair and desolation. Sighing, he took another sip of his herbal tea.

It had been four long and terrifying months since the destruction of the Caretaker's Array which claimed the lives of Captain Janeway and Lieutenant Tuvok and trapped the rest of them here in the DQ. He had not had a chance to get to know Janeway, but Tuvok had served in his Marquis Cell for several months, fighting at his side, and he missed the Vulcan's steady presence and calming nature.

However, Tuvok and Janeway weren't the only ones lost during that first fateful battle. The fatalities included several people from both the Federation and the Marquis crews as well as his own ship, The Crazy Horse.

Since that time on the Occampa Homeworld, Voyager and it's mis-matched crew had suffered a running battle with the Kazon. Those horrendously ugly creatures seemed to know every move they made, every step they took, often times, even before they made it. Chakotay was beginning to think that there was a traitor on board. Someone feeding information to the Kazon. //But who?//

==@==

Chakotay slowly rose up through the levels of his mind until he was fully conscious once more. He opened his eyes and sighed sadly. It had been far too long since he had the time or energy to go on a Spirit Walk and he had sorely missed his spirit guides loving presence in his mind. The beautiful and majestic wolf had pointed some things out to him. Things that he saw, but refused to see. Plots within plots, like the tangled weave of silken spider thread. A web that he had been firmly ensnared in. But not any longer.

"Computer. Location of Commander Seska."

"Commander Seska is in storage area 34-D on Deck 14."

Chakotay blinked in confusion. //What was she doing down there?// Carefully, he put away his precious Medicine Bundle. He took a brief moment to stretch out the stiff muscles he'd gotten from sitting still for so long. Then, in true Marquis fashion, he armed himself with a hand phaser and a Klingon Battle Dagger.

He was striding down towards the Turbolift when he came across his Tactical and Security Chief, Lieutenant Gregor Ayala. Chakotay waved him over and briefed him in the turbolift. It was only a matter of moments until they were on Deck 14. Chakotay turned and made his way to storage area 34-D.

They had to struggle with the security lock for a few frustrating moments, but finally, the door whooshed open onto a scene straight out of Hell. Chakotay's startled gasp was the only indication of his torn heart and rapidly rising anger.

There was Tom Paris! Alive! Seska had *told* him that the cocky blonde pilot who had saved his life in the collapsed tunnels above the underground Occampa City, had then later *died* fighting off the Kazon! And here he was, alive and on Voyager!

He didn't look as if he would stay that way for very much longer however. The man was stripped naked and chained bent over a cold metal table. His pale skin was coated in scrapes, cuts and bruises. Blood seeped from a badly spilt lip and one eye was swollen shut. He was painfully thin and malnourished looking. That however, was not the worst of it.

The worst of it was who his tormentors were and what they were doing to him. Crewman Dalby was standing behind the defenseless man, violently raping him. Blood poured down the back of Paris's thighs and matted in Dalby's pubic hair. Tom had a thick leather collar around his neck with a leather leash attached to the back of it. Dalby kept yanking Tom's head backwards with every thrust he made.

Seska, Chakotay's First Officer, stood to the side holding a black box. Thin wires ran from the box to leads attached to Tom's fair skin. She would push a button on the box and then Tom's whole body shivered and jerked as if being electrocuted.

Chakotay's roar of rage startled Dalby and Seska, forcing them to look over at him. It didn't matter. Battle-madness had already claimed the Marquis Warrior and it was over almost before it began.

A few hazy, and blood-soaked moments later, Chakotay came to his senses standing over the broken bodies of Seska and Dalby, his knuckles raw and swollen, his breath gasping from his heaving chest. His looked at the unconscious figures with mild confusion and overwhelming disgust.

"Ayala. Escort Dalby and Seska to the Brig."

"Aye Captain."

Chakotay heard Gregor calling across the comm-link for a security detachment to come down and help with the unconscious duo. Taking a deep breath to help calm himself and to find his center once more, Chakotay walked over to the table Tom was strapped down to. Quickly as he could, Chakotay carefully removed the shackles and collar. Then he started in on the lead wires. As soon as he was free of his bonds he gathered the man close to him.

"Computer. Medical Emergency in storage area 34-D. Two to transport directly to Sick-Bay."

Chakotay felt the tingles of the transporter wash over him and the battered man in his arms.

==@==

Chakotay sat in his chair, waiting for his senior Bridge Crew to arrive for the meeting. He had a lot to tell them, and very little of it was good news. However, maybe this time, they could solve more problems and answer more questions than they had in the past.

He was pulled from his thoughts as his Chief Engineer Lieutenant B'Elanna Torres walked in with his Tactical Officer Lieutenant Gregor Ayala. They were followed in by his Ops Officer and his Conn Officer, Ensigns Kim and Batehardt respectively. Chakotay gestured to the chairs around the table and they sat down.

He looked at the two StarFleet Officers in their StarFleet uniforms and then at the two Marquis Officers in their Marquis uniforms and frowned. He had never understood *why* Seska had always insisted that the two groups remain in their own seperate uniforms. Now he knew. It was to forcibly keep them divided. They couldn't function as a single crew with old, and now totally irrelevant, divisions constantly being thrown in their faces. And with everything that had just come to light, they *would* have to be a single united crew working towards one single goal or they would be doomed.

Piercing his Senior Staff with his dark eyes, he cleared his throat and began.

"First of all, I just want to separate the truth from the rumors. *Yes*, Seska has been stripped of her rank and thrown into the Brig along with Dalby. *No*, I won't be changing my mind on that anytime soon.

When all the survivors from the battle on the Occampa Homeworld beamed up to Voyager, I was told by Seska that a man named Tom Paris was dead. That he had died fighting the Kazon. She *lied*."

Chakotay paused at the round of startled gasps and watched Ensign Harry Kim go pale. He vaguely recalled hearing some gossip months ago to the effect that the young man had started a tentative friendship with Paris despite repeated warnings that he was dangerous and unreliable. Ensign Kim had defended Tom with a quiet determination and unwavering loyalty. Chakotay made a mental note to interview the young man privately at a later time to find out *why*.

"Mr. Paris was discovered by Lieutenant Ayala and myself being held prisoner by Seska and Dalby. He... was *not* in good condition. The E.M.H. was able to heal *most* of his physical injuries, but he was very traumatized by his four months long. incarceration in a storage area on Deck 14.

I have him under security lock-out in my own quarters to allow him to rest and recuperate without fear of attack by any crew members. He doesn't have many friends among either the Marquis *or* StarFleet. When he is better, and the crew has had time to settle down and accept his presence he'll be allowed to come out and move around the ship."

Ensign Kim held up one pleading hand and swallowed nervously when Chakotay nodded to him.

"Captain. You said the Doctor was able to heal *most* of his injuries. What could he *not* heal?"

Chakotay sighed sadly and then captured Ensign Kim's dark eyes with his own.

"Seska severed his vocal cords after she beamed him onboard so that he couldn't cry out and be found by the crew. The damage was too severe and has been left untreated for too long. He can no longer utter a sound and most likely never will again..."

Harry gasped and his eyes filled with moisture, but he blinked them back fiercely. Compassionate and brave. Chakotay felt that when Tom was a little stronger that it would be a good idea to bring Harry in to help the pilot heal his inner wounds. He would need a friend desperately. He cleared his throat and continued grimly.

"Also, I think their may be someone who is in contact with the Kazon. I don't have any proof of this at this time, it's just a gut feeling. They have been able to anticipate too many moves we've made and weapons that badly hurt them before are now useless against them. *How?*

I want each of you to *quietly* begin monitoring the rest of the crew. Transmissions that have left the ship were probably hidden inside or behind other things that the sensors would miss unless they were specifically looking for them. I want everything turned inside out and upside down."

He paused as the startled looks faded and the strained faces of battled hardened officers once again came to the fore. He watched as Kim, Torres and Ayala began bouncing ideas off of each other on how they could and should divide the search. He watched his Command Crew interact and realized once again that this was a rare thing on this ship. StarFleet and Marquis working seamlessly together. He made another decision.

"Also, get rid of the uniforms. Both StarFleet and Marquis. I don't want this crew divided anymore. Everyone can just wear civvies until a new uniform can be designed. At that time, we will all wear the same uniform. We are one crew after all."

Once again, a startled silence descended on his officers. He nodded.

"Dismissed."

==@==

Chakotay keyed the code to open the door to his quarters and stepped inside. The lights were up to full illumination and the place was neat as a pin. He frowned slightly. When he had left this morning, his rooms had been in mild disarray. Soft music poured from the hidden speakers and Tom Paris was nowhere in sight.

A quick search found Tom in the bedroom, wedged down between the bureau and the bed, tears streaming down his grief ravaged face. The look of stark terror flashing out from those haunted blue eyes tore at Chakotay's heart. He had seen that look before on Marquis prisoners that had been held by the Cardassian's for questioning and interrogation.

Standing back a few feet, Chakotay crouched down to be eye level with Tom. The broken and battered man flinched back and tried to make himself even smaller. After a brief pause and a soft sigh, Chakoaty spoke to Tom in soft soothing tones.

"Tom? Tom, do you know who I am? Do you remember me?"

Tom's blue eyes stared at him and he didn't move. Chakotay feared that the man's mind was gone, or perhaps he was too frightened to respond. He was about to try again when Tom nodded his head slightly and mouthed the word #Chakotay# silently.

Relief poured through him in such a vast wave that he couldn't have stopped his smile from emerging if a phaser had been pointed at his head. A brief flicker of confusion flashed in Tom's eyes to be swiftly swallowed up by his fear once more and Chakotay wondered how long it had been since he had seen a smile that wasn't in response to his own pain.

"Yes Tom. I'm Chakotay. You saved my life down on the Occapma Homeworld. I had thought that you had died down there fighting the Kazon."

Confusion and disbelief battled for domination on his face.

"Tom. Seska told me you were dead."

Tom flinched painfully at the name and tears began to pour down his face freely.

"Tom. I didn't know she had you here onboard Voyager. I swear to you that as soon as I found out, I stopped her from hurting you. She and Dalby are in the Brig right now for what they did to you. I swear. No one will be allowed to hurt you on my ship again."

Utter disbelief flashed through Tom's eyes for a quick moment and then all expression disappeared as he turned inward, sinking into his own mind to escape the anguish he felt and the fear of having his hopes raised only to be taken away again. Chakotay needed to prove his words to the broken man, slowly build up trust. He shifted slightly and captured Tom's blue eyes with his own dark ones.

"Computer. Location and status of Seska."

"Prisoner Seska is in the Brig, Cell 2. Prisoner Seska has been stripped of her rank of Commander at the order of Captain Chakotay."

"Computer. Location and status of Dalby."

"Prisoner Dalby is in Sick-Bay, recovering in the surgical suite. Prisoner Dalby has been stripped of his rank of Ensign at the order of Captain Chakotay."

Chakotay watched Tom's blue eyes brighten with interest as they bored into his own. Slowly, the razor edge of his terror was dulling. Chakotay tapped his Comm Badge.

"Chakotay to E.M.H."

"E.M.H. here Captain. What can I do for you?"

"Status of prisoner Dalby's recovery."

"I was able to repair all of the damage you did to him Captain. I left the optical nerve endings severed just as you ordered. He is still blind and will continue to be so until they are repaired. However, I want to remind you, that if left untreated for too long, repairs will be more difficult and the results uncertain."

Chakotay watched astonishment wash over Tom's face at the news.

"Thank you Doctor. Chakotay out."

Tom took a deep breath and a look of determined resolve settled onto his tear stained face. Silently, he mouthed one word. #Janeway?#

A soft sigh escaped him and he could feel a wave of regret sweep over him and he shook his head faintly.

"Tom. I'm sorry. She and Lieutenant Tuvok died when the Caretaker's Array blew up. I... I'm sorry."

A soundless howl of pure grief was torn from Tom's painfully thin chest and tears flooded from his tightly clenched eyes. Violent tremors racked his body and waves of anguish poured off of him. Without any hesitation, Chakotay reached out and pulled the broken man into his arms. Tom struggled briefly, but then he seemed to melt into Chakotay as his grief and terror pulled him down once more. Through it all, Chakotay just held him gently, rocking him and petting his hair while whispering soothing non-sense words into his ear.

==@==

"Captain! Sensors show two Kazon Warships coming in fast on the port side. They're arming their weapons array."

Chakotay stood up from his Command Chair, a grim look of smoldering anger burning in his dark eyes.

"Red Alert! Everyone to Battle Stations."

Klaxons blared in the background and red lights washed the bridge in their garish glow.

"Report!"

"Sensors indicate they will be in range in three minutes. Shields at 90%."

Chakotay turned from Ensign Kim to Ensign Batehardt.

"Batehardt. Evasive maneuvers. Don't let them get a hit on us."

"Aye Sir."

Batehardt's hands flew over the Conn and Chakotay turned to Lieutenant Ayala.

"You know what to do Gregor. I want them destroyed. Disabled and unable to pursue us, if you can't turn them into atomized space debris."

"Yes Sir."

Chakotay turned back to the view-screen and watched the Kazon closing in on them. Ensign Batehardt executed a series of rolls and dives that strained the inertia dampers, but landed them directly behind the lead Kazon Warship. A electronic humming sound raced across the Bridge and then the view-screen showed the phaser fire that Ayala had let loose upon the Kazon.

Batehardt banked into another dive, but it was not quick enough. A jarring jolt rocked the ship. Before he could even demand a status report on the damage, Ensign Kim was calling out readings from internal sensors.

"Captain. Shields at 80%. I'm showing a plasma leak in the aft relay conduit on Deck 8. Dispatching repair crews."

Chakotay nodded quickly in acknowledgment and then tapped his Comm Badge.

"Bridge to Engineering."

"Engineering here Captain."

"B'Elanna. What's the maximum Warp we can get right now?"

"We were in the middle of working on them when the attack struck. Maximum is still only Warp 6. Sorry Captain, that's not fast enough to out-run the Kazon."

"Keep working on it 'Lanna. I might need it in a hurry. Chakotay out."

Ayala let loose with another volley of phaser fire and Batehardt rolled the ship to evade the return fire. Inertia dampers worked frantically to keep up.

"Sensors show that the shields on the lead Kazon ship are dropping in power outage. A few more direct hits should do it Captain."

Chakotay turned from Harry Kim and nodded at Ayala. Suddenly Voyager took another jarringly powerful hit. Sparks flew up into the air from one of the science stations behind Ensign Kim, but the young man didn't even flinch, he keep his total attention focused on the ships systems and the battle they were enmeshed in.

"Shields down to 65%. I have a blown conduit in the main relay for life-support. Rerouting power through grid Alpha-335-Delta-2. Plasma fire in Jefferies Tube 31-A between Decks 11 and 12. Dispatching repair crews."

Ayala let loose with some more phaser fire targeted at the lead Kazon Warship. A whispered "Gotcha sucker" came from tactical seconds before the ship exploded into a thousand fragments. Chakotay grinned a humorless smile.

"Good shooting Lieutenant."

Ayala nodded his acknowledgment of the compliment and continued to target the remaining ship.

"Torres to Chakotay."

"Chakotay here. How are things in Engineering Lieutenant?"

"Repairs to the Warp Core are completed, although other things have sprung up. I can give you Warp 8 now Captain."

"Acknowledged. Thanks B'Elanna."

"Batehardt. Take..."

Chakotay was cut off suddenly by Ensign Kim.

"Captain! I'm reading a transporter beam out! The Kazon have just snatched Seska and Dalby from the Brig!"

"Open a channel!"

A few tense seconds later and the Bridge of the Kazon Warship flashed onto the view-screen. There, on the right hand side of the Kazon Captain, stood Seska. She sneered at them.

"You're a fool Chakotay! I *tried* to get you to listen to reason. We *need* powerful allies here. We are too far away from home. We'll *never* see the Alpha Quadrant again and we *have* to establish a power base. Here. In the Delta Quadrant. I've *told* you that, but you always refuse to listen. Well, enough talk, it's too late for that. We *are* going to take Voyager away from you Chakotay."

The view-screen went blank as Seska cut the transmission. Chakotay stared hard at it, his mind seething with anger and betrayal. A coldness for Seska welled up inside of him, destroying any remaining compassion and leniency for her that he might have had left.

"Ensign Batehardt. Take us out of here, Warp 6. Let's leave Seska to her knew friends. I hope she enjoys her time with them after her usefulness runs out."

"Yes Sir."

Voyager turned her heading and then leaped into Warp.

==@==

//Shivering?//

Awareness slowly seeped into Chakotay's sleep fogged mind. He became aware of a warm thin body huddled in his arms, pressed tightly to his chest, shivering violently.

//Tom!//

Fully awake now, he opened his eyes to see the man in his arms, trapped inside a nightmare and pitifully struggling against his own painful memories. Compassion and sorrow washed over him in an overwhelming wave. With one arm, he cradled Tom gently while he softly stroked his cheek with the other.

"Tom... Tom, baby, wake up. Shhh... it's okay. You're safe now baby. Wake up. Come on Tom. Shhh..."

Chakotay crooned soothingly and stroked Tom's stubble roughened face. Slowly, the tremors and shakes faded to a stop and then tear filled blue eyes opened to peer artlessly up at him. Raw pain shone out of those hypnotic orbs and lanced through Chakotay's soul.

//What torments had he been forced to endure? What secrets did his mind hold? *Why* had he been a target for Seska's rage and fury?//

Chakotay pressed those questions from his mind. They could wait until later. Right now Tom needed him and he wouldn't fail him again. He lightly brushed away the single tear that had escaped Tom's eye and spoke quietly once more.

"You're safe now Tom. She's gone and no one will hurt you again. I won't allow it. Shhh..."

A single shudder raced down Tom's spine and he clutched at Chakotay, burying his fear strained face into Chakotay's neck. Chakotay held him tightly while he cried himself out. Slowly, his harsh breathing evened out and Tom drifted back into a restless sleep. It was quite a while before Chakotay joined him in slumber.

==@==

Chakotay was pulled from his reports by the sound of his door chime.

"Come."

The door whooshed open and Ensign Harry Kim walked in. Chakotay took a moment to admire the new Voyager uniforms. They looked good, but they didn't resemble anything StarFleet *or* Marquis. Even down to the Comm Badges and the Pips and Bars of rank.

They were a medium brown with deep forest green detailing for crew and a deep crimson detailing for command staff. Harry wore soft brown half boots and loose fitting brown pants with crimson colored piping down the outside seam. A loose fitting open throated crimson colored silk blouse with a brown jacket over that. The jacket also had crimson colored piping detailing the yoke and cuffs. The Comm Badges were a stylized *V* on a circular background. It looked good on Harry.

"You wanted to see me Captain?"

Chakotay nodded and gestured for Harry to sit down opposite him at his desk.

"Yes Ensign. I'm... I'm trying to figure out Tom Paris and you're relationship to him, not to mention *why* Seska hated him enough to risk what she did in order to torture him. I was hoping that you could help me out with this mystery."

He watched quietly as Harry did some quick and heavy thinking. Something flashed in his dark eyes that disturbed Chakotay greatly. Everyone had always seemed to look at young Mr. Kim and see an innocent and naive young man that needed to be protected. Chakotay was beginning to think that that was what everyone was *supposed* to see. There was something about Ensign Kim that was much deeper and darker than what appeared at first glance. Chakotay could see the decision in his eyes when he made it.

"Captain. I could be executed by StarFleet for what I'm about to tell you. But... you need to know, and with us in the DQ, it's a risk I feel is necessary to take."

Chakotay's eyes widened at those words. Either Mr. Kim was exaggerating outrageously due to inexperience and groundless fear, although his performance on the Bridge during emergencies would belie that notion, or Chakotay was about to have his secret musings about Mr. Kim and his personal interest in Mr. Paris answered all at once.

"Go on."

Harry took a deep breath and then began.

"When the Treaty with the Cardassian's was drawn up and StarFleet decided to bargain away so many colonized planets in the DMZ a small faction of the Federation Counsel and StarFleet High Command fought it with all of the political and personal influence they could muster and they tried every legal option open to them to block that motion. As you well know, that didn't work. The Treaty was signed and the Federation-Cardassian War was *officially*... over.

The small faction that had tried to block the Treaty, or at least ratify it so that populated planets were *not* part of the deal then came up with a way to... continue the War in an... *unofficial* way."

Harry paused and Chakotay stared at him, waiting anxiously for him to continue and wondering what all this had to do with Tom and how Harry had gotten involved. After gathering his thoughts, Harry continued.

"This faction created the Marquis."

Chakotay gasped and leaned back in his chair, denial and shock rushing into his brain to battle each other.

"They needed to keep their own involvement in the Marquis ultra secret so that StarFleet and the Federation couldn't stop them from what they were doing. They recruited members from the Academy, from various Federation organizations as well as the freedom fighters from the DMZ. In secret, they supplied information, weapons, medical supplies and rations to Marquis Cells through an extensive system of double agents.

The original Marquis Cell, which is now known as the Inner Circle, the one that started it all, is composed of Admiral Owen Paris, the third in line for total command of StarFleet, one Anna Kim, Assistant to the Presidential Secretary of Science and Technology, and Commodore Jonathan Janeway, Liason Officer and Assistant to the Ambassador of the Klingon Empire, as well as a few others. In case you *aren't* sure, yes, that's Tom's father, *my* mother, and Captain Janeway's uncle.

While Tom, the Captain and I were *not* part of the original Cell, we were some of the very first recruits in the cause and have worked as double agents for them since the very beginning. You see Captain, *I* was Marquis before *you* even heard of the group.

Tom's accident at Caldik Prime was *not* an accident at all. It was an assassination attempt on his life by Cardassian spies. He survived. The others who were with him *did* die. They, ironically enough, were totally innocent and had no idea as to Tom's identity beyond being their pilot.

In order to protect the Marquis Inner Circle in place at StarFleet Command and the Federation High Counsel, Tom took the fall for that accident and got kicked out of StarFleet. His father ordered him to seek out the Marquis and continue to 'fight the good fight'.

It was only by pure bad luck that he was captured by a Federation ship *not* under control of the Inner Circle while piloting a mission for you Captain. He was Court Marshaled and labeled a traitor. His father publicly disowned him in order to keep up appearances and Tom was sentenced to imprisonment at Auckland.

Once in prison, Tom was ordered to do some recruiting for the Marquis and to assist any Marquis War-Criminals he found in there as well. His connections with the Inner Circle made it easy for certain prisoners to get put on a list for early parole and others to get knocked off of that list. 95% of all prisoners paroled during Tom's stay at Auckland ended up fighting in a Marquis Cell after their release.

That's when we found out some information that needed to get to the Marquis, badly. This combined with three separate attempts on Tom's life behind bars prompted the Inner Circle to use him as the messenger. He was *supposed* to be released from Auckland and used to *guide* Voyager into the Badlands to help us track down Marquis criminals. In actuality, what was going to happen was that as soon as we found the Marquis, Tom would beam over to your ship and then Captain Janeway and I would create false records on how the *traitor* managed to escape. Then we would somehow *lose* your trail and return home.

Of course, the Caretaker captured us and Tom never got to complete his mission. Now the Marquis think he's a traitor to the cause and the StarFleet crew think that he's an incompetent pilot who killed his crew mates. Neither is true."

Chakotay felt as if his eyes were bugging out of his head and his mind was whirling at Warp 7. //If this were all true...// Chakotay remembered the hot flash of bitter disappointment when he saw Tom on Voyager and realized that the man must have sold him out. Tom *had* been a member of his own Cell after all. Hell, he had been Chakotay's best pilot! He pulled away from his churning thoughts and turned to Harry once more.

"What was the message?"

Harry sighed.

"The Cardassian's had found a way to infiltrate the Marquis. They found a way to alter themselves to appear Bajoran. Only the most intensive medical scans of their DNA would show they were not truly Bajoran. It still wouldn't show that they were Cardassian, however.

They didn't have a list of names, only a few suspicions. The intelligence gathered suggested that several Cells had been compromised, however. Tom was supposed to find you and recruit you into hunting these Cardassian spy's. Captain Janeway and I were to prevent your being captured and then cover your trail."

Chakotay stared long and hard at the young Ensign looking for signs of deception and betrayal. All he saw was a young man who had carried a deep and dark secret all alone for *far* too long. It must be such a relief to have another to help shoulder the burden.

"Do you have any proof of this Ensign?"

Harry looked up at him and locked gazes for a long moment and then nodded tiredly.

"Computer. Display Mission Orders: Paris-Marquis three three five Alpha eight oh oh. Authorization: Kim-Marquis six nine five Gamma Omega four three."

Chakotay's head swiveled sharply to the left to see data scroll across his computer terminal screen.

"That's the mission specifications from the Marquis Inner Circle. If you want to view the personnel file kept by the Inner Circle on myself and Tom, I can show you that as well. Our regular StarFleet personnel files just show a lot of blank spots and classified sections."

Chakotay read through the orders quickly. It was much as Harry had said, only in greater detail. He was... stunned. He had heard the rumors of a group calling themselves the Inner Circle. All Marquis had. Only the highest ranked members and the key leaders knew their true identity. They were said to be comprised of high ranking StarFleet Officers and powerful and influential Federation civilians and that they had agents and spies everywhere. And young innocent naive Harry Kim was one of the Inner Circle's secret double agents.

Chakotay glanced up into a face that looked tired, but also seemed guileless and uncertain. Innocent and pure. Chakotay snorted in amazed amusement. He didn't think he would ever look at Ensign Kim the same way again.

"I want to see both your and Tom's Marquis files. I also want to make them public knowledge, as well as these mission orders."

Harry looked startled and seemed about to protest, but Chakotay held up his hand to stop him.

"I think these will go along way to bringing the crew together and help meld them into one unit. When everyone realizes that Captain Janeway was a Marquis spy, then it will give them a common ground. Not to mention it will make things *a lot* easier on Tom. Once the Marquis part of the crew realizes that he *didn't* betray them at all, then he will be safe from them."

Chakotay could see that Harry was not happy with the idea, but all his protests died in his throat unspoken.

==@==

Chakotay walked into his quarters to the sounds of soft mellow 20th century jazz. The lighting was dim and something smelled absolutely wonderful. Walking further into the room, he found that Tom had made an elaborate pasta and vegetable dinner for them. He stood there in his newly replicated clothing putting the finishing touches on the table. It looked great.

Chakotay let his eyes wander to Tom himself. It had been a little over two weeks since he had found the man being tortured on Deck 14 by Seska and Dalby. He was still painfully thin, but he had lost that gaunt and malnourished look. His skin tone was much healthier and he even ventured a shy little smile on a rare occasion.

Chakotay was still forced to speak softly and calmly at all times, as well as keep his movements slow and deliberate. Tom startled *very* easily and anything loud or sudden sent him into a spasm of debilitating terror. As painful and slow as it was, it was *still* progress.

"Have you been practicing your Sign Language today?"

Tom glanced up at him from behind a shield of blonde curls and nodded slightly as his long fingered hands answered as well.

#Yes Chakotay.#

Chakotay gave him a gentle smile of encouragement.

"Good. Me too."

Moving slowly, Chakotay took off his jacket and sat down at the table. Inching his way around, as if afraid he was going to be severely beaten and punished at any moment, Tom slid down into the chair across from him.

Together they ate their dinner. Chakotay made certain to praise Tom over the meal, to tell him how good it tasted and how much he appreciated the man's effort to be helpful. Tom seemed confused by the praise, but he couldn't hide his pleasure at hearing it. Once again, Chakotay found himself silently cursing Seska and Dalby for breaking the spirit of a man that had once held such vitality and enthusiasm.

After they had finished eating and the dishes had been cleared away and everything was cleaned up, Chakotay gently lead Tom over to the couch. The younger man seemed to be almost grateful to be able to climb into the circle of Chakotay's arms. He felt a soundless sigh waft against his neck and Tom seemed to melt against him as the tension drained out of him. Chakotay wrapped his arms around Tom and crooned in his ear softly.

"Shhh... I know baby, I know. It's been a long tough day, huh?"

He felt Tom's tiny nod against his neck and shoulder.

"The Holo-Doc says that you're getting better though. You're beginning to put back on some of the weight that you had lost and your flexibility and reflexes are getting better as well. You'll be good as new in no time."

Chakotay paused a moment before bringing up a subject that he wasn't sure how Tom would react to, but that he felt was essential to his recovery.

"Baby... Tom, there's someone on board who is worried about you and would like to be able to visit."

Tom stiffened up violently and tried to pull away. Chakotay held on and gently petted his hair.

"Shhh... it's okay. It's okay. You don't have to see him if you don't want to, but I think you might. It's Harry Kim."

Tom's head snapped up and he caught Chakotay's eyes with his own. There was no cloudiness or fearful shyness, they were shinning like twin laser beams. Tom silently mouthed the word #Harry?# at him, one eyebrow cocked up questioningly.

Chakotay nodded.

"Yes, Harry. He's been asking about you everyday since we found out that you were still alive and on board Voyager."

A slight shiver ran through Tom at the reference to his imprisonment by Seska and Dalby.

"He says that he's your friend and that he wants to visit you. To see you and talk to you."

Chakotay could easily see the indecision in Tom's eyes. The desire to see his friend battling the terror of facing a new situation that could possibly bring him pain.

"It's okay Tom. You think about it for a while. When you're ready, let me know. Till then, I'll ask him to just be patient and give you a little more time. Okay?"

Tom searched his eyes for a brief moment and nodded slowly. Then, with a silent sigh, he settled back down against Chakotay's chest and just held on.

==@==

"Lieutenant Ayala. You have the Bridge."

"Yes Captain."

Chakotay turned, walked to the Turbolift and stepped inside.

"Engineering."

As the Turbolift began to move, Chakotay thought over the past few days. Word of Janeway, Harry and Tom's involvement with the Marquis had spread like wildfire. While everyone was fascinated by the news, very few people seemed to be upset by it. Whether that was due to the vast space and time between here and the War or because he himself was Marquis and they didn't want to offend their Captain, he didn't know.

However, public opinion concerning Tom Paris had mellowed out drastically and people tended to look at Harry a little differently now. It was as if they had a new respect for him now that they found out that he wasn't the naive and clueless young pup they had thought he was.

It was turning out just as he had said it would. He knew that Harry had been afraid and upset that Chakotay was planning on blowing his and Tom's Inner Circle cover. Chakotay could understand why. Not only was Harry worried about how the crew would react, now he and Tom could never return to the Federation. Even if they found a wormhole leading directly into the heart of the Alpha Quadrant right this second, Harry and Tom would be enemies of the Federation, guilty of High Treason.

Chakotay was pulled from his dark thoughts as the Turbolift doors opened on Engineering. He stepped out and went to find B'Elanna and Harry. They were down here working to repair some of the few remaining bits of damage caused in the latest Kazon fire-fight.

Turning a corner, he spotted them. After a few more steps, Chakotay stopped and watched. //They're *flirting*!// An astonished smile washed over his face at the light bantering as well as the obvious sub-text flying between his Chief Engineer and his Chief Operations Officer. Only a few days ago, he would have been worried that B'Elanna would chew Harry up and then spit him out, now... he wondered if it would be the other way around.

He allowed himself one last smile and a promise to follow this... *romance* more closely and then he pushed those thoughts aside. There was important ships business to take care of. Clearing his throat to announce his presence, he walked over to his two officers.

==@==

Chakotay stepped out of the shower only to find a bathrobe clad Tom Paris holding a clean towel open for him. He stepped closer and the thin man smiled shyly and then gently and slowly dried him off. The touches were soft, tender and made Chakotay feel cherished.

Once he was dry, Chakotay hooked a finger under Tom's chin and carefully lifted his face so that he could gaze into it. Tom's blue eyes were a mystery. Such sadness and yet,... something else.

Something warm and fragile. //Hope?//

"Baby?"

#Bed now?#

Chakotay smiled. Tom was much better at signing and he was starting to venture into 'talking' in a way that was going beyond the simple act of merely answering questions. He was beginning to interact as well as react. Tom *was* still skittish, but he stopped displaying any type of fear as far as Chakotay himself was concerned. And although he was plagued by nightmares every time he slept, his days were getting much easier. Chakotay had hope that eventually, Tom would recover fully from his four months of torture.

With an encouraging smile, Chakotay allowed Tom to lead him into the bedroom. The blankets were already turned down and the lights had been dimmed. With the carefully neat precision with which he did everything, Tom slid off his robe and folded it before hanging it over the back of a chair.

Naked, Tom slid into bed and snuggled up against Chakotay as he did every night. Chakotay opened his arms and pulled him in close. He expected Tom to close his eyes and slip off to sleep while he stroked those blonde curls as happened every night, but Tom's eyes didn't close. They focused on Chakotay's face, the blue being slowly eclipse by the black of his pupils.

Then slowly, a trembling hand reached out and lightly caressed Chakotay's cheek. Tingles washed over his skin in response to that gently touch. Chakotay trailed a fingertip slowly over Tom's eyebrow, down his cheek and along his jaw in return. Tom's eyelids fluttered and he sighed, leaning into the soft touch.

Uncertainty and a bit of fear rose up in Tom's eyes and then was quickly pushed away. With agonizing slowness, Tom leaned forward and lightly touched his lips to Chakotay's in a kiss. Chakotay's heart sped up and a trail of shivery goose bumps race along his flesh. With a moan of pleased surprise, Chakotay returned the kiss just as tenderly.

Tension melted out of Tom and he kissed Chakotay a little bolder, his trembling fingers still tracing little patterns along the side of Chakotay's face. Chakotay petted and gentled Tom with his hand as he tried to pour all his tenderness and concern for the man in his arms into that kiss. With a slight gasp for air, they pulled apart and gazed into each others eyes.

He watched, amazed, as Tom smiled sweetly at him and then closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep. With his thoughts and emotions churning like wildfire in his head, it was a long time before Chakotay could also drift off to sleep.

==@==

Chakotay was sitting in his Ready Room going over the latest reports from Astrometrics when his door chimed. He looked up.

"Come."

The doors whooshed open to reveal Lieutenant B'Elanna Torres. Chakotay almost absently noted that the Crimson silk blouse that signified a Commanding Officer or Department Head brought out the fire in his Chief Engineer's eyes as well as the full redness of her lips. She was a brilliant and beautiful woman. It was no wonder that Ensign Kim was so taken with her.

B'Elanna strode over to stand before him and hesitated only a brief second before she spoke.

"Captain, I... I wanted to talk to you about the crew. Gregor and I were talking recently and we both noticed a pattern in ship's gossip emerging. When I then spoke to Harry about it, he said that he had caught snatches of the same types of conversations."

Intrigued by what sort of gossip would set three of his four Senior Officers a-buzz, he leaned back and gestured for B'Elanna to sit down and tell him about it. She smiled briefly and made herself comfortable.

"Captain,... People are starting to get... worried. They are wondering why you haven't chosen another First Officer to replace Seska. Many are concerned that you might be holding the position open for her to return."

Chakotay blinked in pure astonishment.

"What?!"

B'Elanna nodded in agreement.

"I know. That's absurd. It's more likely that you'd kill her with your bare hands, but... people are worried. They *don't* want her back, yet they *do* want a First Officer in place. They are confused at the gap in the chain of Command."

Chakotay nodded. He understood and was actually a little surprised that it took so long to have the rumor mill start up about it.

"It's actually pretty simple B'Elanna. I *have* decided on a First Officer. Tom. Of course, he's still trying to get his head back together and we have to figure out a way for him to be able to actually speak. If I *can't* get him ready to fill that position, then it will fall to either you or Gregor."

B'Elanna gasped in shock.

"Chakotay, you can't be serious."

"'Lanna. You, Greg and Tom are the *only* three people on this ship that have the training and experience *needed* to take Command should anything happen to me. Maybe in a few years Harry could as well. But right now, he's not ready.

As for you, I *need* you in Engineering. It would be different if Joe Carey hadn't gotten killed during a Kazon attack. He was the only one who could have come close to replacing you in Engineering without pulling Harry from Ops and I don't have anyone that could replace Harry *there*.

As for Gregor, it's the same thing. Ensign Dalby could have due to his training, but quite frankly, I'm glad that bastard is gone. He deserves the Kazon as much as they deserve him."

"What are we supposed to do about this Chakotay? This situation is balanced on a razors edge. If we lose *anyone* in the Command structure, it will collapse."

Chakotay sighed. He sounded weary and tired, even to his own ears. He tramped down on the sadness and frustration that tried to well up in him.

"We've lost *so* many of the crew to this stupid running battle with the Kazon. I fear that a lot of it is due to Seska's tampering, meddling and sabotage. In any event, we've had to do without a lot of key people because of it.

I want to start cross training as many people as we can so that if the need arises, we can put someone into a vacant spot at a moments notice. I also want to increase the training in people's specialty so that promotions and advancements can be made.

Tom's making a remarkable recovery. He's putting back on the weight he lost and he's been doing counseling with the Holo-Doc. I'm hoping that he'll be able to start coming further out of the shell he built for himself while under torture soon."

"And if he doesn't?"

"I will have to promote you and your replacement will get on the job training."

B'Elanna looked stunned.

"Chakotay! The Warp Core can't be left in the hands of someone who doesn't know what they're doing!"

Chakotay gave her a look that spoke volumes about desperate measures.

"I know."

==@==

"Wait here Harry."

Chakotay walked across his quarters slowly towards the bedroom.

"Tom... Baby? You have a visitor. Harry stopped by like you asked. Tom?"

He found Tom standing in front of the full length mirror smoothing out nonexistent wrinkles from a thick blue sweater. He turned and gazed over at Chakotay nervously and signed.

# I look okay? #

Chakotay walked over to him and stood behind him to gaze in the mirror over Tom's shoulder. He wrapped a gentle arm around his waist.

"You look beautiful. Harry will be so happy to see you."

Tom turned and looked at him. His blue eyes looked wide and scared. This was the first time Tom would be around anyone besides himself and the Holo-Doc.

# Stay with me. #

"Yes baby, I'm going to stay. I promise."

Tom smiled gratefully and then gently turned Chakotay around towards the bedroom door and gave a tiny little push. //I guess I'm going in first.// Chakotay smiled. That was okay, at least Tom was going to follow him into the living room.

Walking out, Chakotay could feel Tom's hand clenched tightly into the back of his uniform jacket. The younger man stood behind him and peered out from around his shoulder to see Harry standing there. He shivered and Chakotay could feel the slight vibration run through Tom and into him.

Chakotay gestured for Harry to take a seat in the overstuffed chair and then he sat down on the couch. Tom also sat on the couch. His body was as close to Chakotay as he could get. They touched from shoulder to hip and then from hip to knee.

"Hi Tom. It's good to see you again. I've missed you."

Tom smiled at Harry shyly.

# Hi Harry. What have you been doing? #

Chakotay sat back and listened happily as Harry provided Tom with detail rich stories of some things that had happened on the Bridge and in Engineering. That, of course, led to an enthusiastic and often funny description of B'Elanna Torres, the Chief Engineer and the star of many of Harry's impure thoughts.

Harry had an amazing effect on Tom and Chakotay was very grateful to the young man. He got Tom to smile and laugh. Tom even ventured a few questions about the stories that Harry told, earning him even more of the juicy gossip and sappy details.

The three of them ate a light dinner of finger food around the coffee table and Harry entertained them with stories of his attempts to eat Gauhk with B'Elanna. Finally though, Tom began to yawn and Harry took the hint and started making 'going home' noises. It wasn't long after that that Chakotay found himself in bed with a happy and snoring Tom curled up in his arms. He fell asleep that night with a gentle smile on his face and a ray of hope in his heart.

==@==

Chakotay stood on the Holo-Deck watching Tom refamiliarize himself with the simulation of the Bridge. It was a joy to watch his enthusiasm and desire to fly create another crack in the titanium shell he'd constructed around himself. Station by station, Tom slowly made his way to the Conn.

This had started out by Chakotay wanting to get Tom starting to think about the crew and what they were doing and why. His interest in the stories that Harry had told made him believe that someday Tom *could* heal enough to become First Officer. So, with that in mind, Chakotay had explained his and B'Elanna's idea to cross train the crew and to help them expand existing skills to their fullest. It was then that he mentioned that they were using holodeck sims to do this.

When Tom heard that, he became very still and his eyes got very wide and startled looking. He had signed a question to Chakotay with small and timid movements that spoke eloquently of his fear of rejection.

# Can I do some flight sims? #

Chakotay had been forced to restrain himself from dancing around the room in unbridled joy. So, here they were, on the holodeck for Tom's first flying sim. Chakotay had made it clear that there would be no battle drills until Tom had a chance to familiarize himself with all the controls and maneuvers. He wanted the pilot to have a good understanding of how Voyager handled, to help build up his confidence, before he added to the burden of flying with a battle scene.

"Computer. Add Alpha shift Bridge crew."

With a low fizzing sound, the bridge crew and Senior Staff appeared at their duty stations. Chakotay pointed out each person by both name and rank to help Tom put together names he had heard with faces he hadn't seen in a long while, if ever. He grinned at the holographic Harry and was very fascinated with the holographic B'Elanna.

Tom paled slightly at the sight of Lieutenant Gregor Ayala when he remembered him as the one who had helped Chakotay rescue him from Seska and Dalby. Chakotay rubbed soothing circles over his back and whispered assurances in his ears about how Gregor worried about him and asked after his health on a regular basis. Since Tom knew that Gregor would never hurt him, hell the guy had helped save him, he calmed down quickly.

However, when Chakotay asked the computer to delete Ensign Batehardt's hologram from the Conn so that Tom could pilot Voyager, he couldn't contain his happiness. Chakotay smiled widely as Tom practically *bounced* over to sit in front of helm control.

Then, Chakotay deleted his own holographic version and sat down at the middle Command Chair.

"Mr. Paris. Take us out on heading one one three two mark eight, half impulse."

Tom flashed him a thumbs up sign and then they were off.

==@==

It was two weeks later when the E.M.H. commed him while he was in Astrometrics talking with Ensign Samantha Wildman and the effervescent and flirtatious Delaney sisters about training Crewman Chell to fill in during an emergency. He thanked the ladies and asked them to keep him updated and then left for Sick-Bay.

Once there, he was greeted by and excited B'Elanna, an enthusiastic Harry and a smugly arrogant hologram. They were standing around a small bio-mechanical device on a free standing mobile tray. Each of them tried to talk to him at once in loud excited voices. With a tolerant grin, he held up a hand for silence.

"Would just *one* of you mind explaining what all this is about?"

"Certainly Captain."

The Holo-Doc's smug tones carried across the room. He gestured melodramatically to the device lying on the tray.

"Lieutenant Torres, Ensign Kim and I have spent a fair amount of our time designing and then constructing this little beauty. We call it a Specified Speech Modulator. It is our hope and intention for it to be used by Mr. Paris to allow him to once again be able to talk. It will, in essence, replace his missing vocal cords and mimic their function."

Chakotay was stunned. And pleased. This could be just the thing to break down the rest of Tom's self imposed internal barrier's, not to mention that it would allow him to communicate and interact with the crew. Even to the point of giving orders.

"How does it work?"

"Well. I would have to surgically implant the device into Mr. Paris throat. It would take a while for him to get used to using it properly, but that shouldn't be too hard. It is designed to function in the same way a human's larynx does and would be attached to the same muscles and nerve endings."

"Can we hear what he would sound like?"

"Somewhat. Once it is implanted in his throat, his muscles and flesh would deepen and soften the sound considerably."

The Holo-Doc walked over to a console and entered in a few simple commands. A tiny blue light on the device flashed and then a smooth male voice spoke.

"Greetings. I am the proto-type model Specified Speech Modulator, designed and created by B'Elanna Torres, Harry Kim and E.M.H. unit Zimmerman three three four B."

Chakotay smiled widely. He could get used to that voice. It was very human sounding.

"Excellent work guys. I'll go tell Tom."

==@==

# Harry and B'Elanna built me a voice? #

Chakotay watched intently as the expression of utter shock on Tom's face slid into stunned amazement. He reached out and ran his fingertips through the soft golden curls and smiled.

"Yes baby, they did. Harry is your friend and he wants you to be well. B'Elanna... well she wants what Harry and I want. I think that you would like her."

An amused and conspiratorial smirk erupted on Tom's face, making his blue eyes twinkle.

# Harry likes her... a lot. #

Chakotay chuckled and tugged lightly on a lock of Tom's hair.

"I noticed."

They shared a grin over the romance brewing between their friends for a moment. His laughter trailing away, Chakotay hooked a finger under Tom's chin and gently lifted until they locked eyes.

"Tom... the surgery... what do you think about it?"

Tom stilled, getting slightly tense. Chakotay could almost see the thoughts running his head. Emotions flickered deep within his eyes; fear, confusion, excitement, hope.

# I want to be able to say your name. #

A wave of tenderness and desire washed over him like cool silk and warm velvet.

"Oh Tom... baby. I want to hear you call out my name too."

They stood, gazes locked. It seemed as if Tom was searching his eyes desperately, looking for some indefinable thing. Then suddenly, Tom smiled. A brilliantly happy smile that could have powered the Warp Core. Chakotay felt his heart melt in the warmth of it.

Moving slowly, to avoid startling the vulnerable young pilot, Chakotay leaned forward and lightly brushed his lips against Tom's. After the briefest of hesitations, Tom kissed him back. Then, in and act of faith and trust that touched Chakotay to the quick, Tom pressed up against him, molding his thin body to Chakotay's muscular chest while opening his mouth to deepen the kiss.

Passion flared between them. He felt his heart speed up and desire coiled in his groin. He gently pulled back to gasp for air and was rewarded by the sight of Tom's flushed cheeks and passion darkened eyes.

"Oh baby, you are so beautiful."

A flurry of naked and raw emotions raced across Tom's face, stripping away more of his inner shell, exposing him to Chakotay's warm gaze. He finally settled into a look of hopeless adoration and leaned in to kiss Chakotay with burning desire.

Long fingered hands reached out and began to gently remove his jacket. With a low moan of pleasure, Chakotay moved as Tom's soft touches indicated in order to help the young man. With tender caresses leading the way, they slowly undressed each other, one article of clothing at a time.

Once that last piece had been abandoned to the floor and forgotten, Chakotay leaned back and allowed his eyes to roam over Tom's body. He was beautiful. His fair skin no longer bore the marks of his captivity and he had been regaining the lost weight. But mostly, it was the surety of his movements, the confidence of his place in Chakotay's life and heart that made him so breathtakingly wonderful to look upon. It was the beauty of the soul.

In a blinding flash of illumination, Chakotay knew he had fallen in love.

With an endearing mix of blushing shyness and wanton desire, Tom entwined his fingers with his and then lead him over to the bed. Chakotay watched with hungry eyes as Tom crawled to the middle of the bed and lay down on his back. Tom looked up and opened him arms to Chakotay, offering up his arousal and his soul to him.

With a moan of pleasure, Chakotay climbed onto the bed next to him, prepared to worship Tom with his hands, lips and tongue. He wanted, no *needed*, to taste the essence of his lover. He stroked the soft flesh that burned to his touch, he licked the salty sweat from the side of his neck and the curve of his hip. Tom writhed beneath him, practically vibrating with pleasure. They came together in a white hot flash of passion that humbled the mind and inspired the soul before drifting off to sleep, entangled in each others arms.

==@==

Chakotay walked into Cargo Bay 3 with Ensign Harry Kim, Ensign Samantha Wildman and Crewman Megan Delaney right behind him. He stopped about 20 feet in and looked around with a critical eye. He silently compared the physical reality with the mental image in his head.

A not so subtle throat was cleared, pulling Chakotay from his thoughts. He turned around to be faced with three different versions of baffled curiosity.

"Ah... Captain, what are we doing here?"

Chakotay grinned.

"Well Mr. Kim, we're here to put one of Tom's ideas into practice. It's a good idea and can ultimately make out journey easier."

Harry's one eyebrow quirked up and an easy grin slid across his features. His pleasure at the news that Tom was taking an active interest in the ship was obvious.

"Great. What's his idea?"

"An Aeroponics Bay."

"A what?... Why?"

Chakotay turned to face Samantha and gestured to the mostly empty Cargo Bay.

"An Aeroponics Bay. So we could grow some fruits and vegetables, maybe even raise some small animals. Once completed and fully operational, it would allow us to supplement fresh foods with those we harvest from M-class planets and then put into storage."

Megan Delaney got a dreamy look on her face.

"Mmmm... fresh salads. And *still* enough replicator rations for the *good* shampoo."

Chakotay chuckled.

"That's the idea. Megan, according to your personnel file, you and your sister were practically raised in an Aeroponics Bay due to your mother being a plant biologist on Deep Space 4. I want you to work with Mr. Kim to design *us* one. Once the design is completed, I want you, Sam, to take charge of getting it built."

Chakotay paused and watched as the three of them looked around the Cargo Bay, seeing it with new eyes. He grinned. Tom would get his Aeroponics Bay.

He cleared his throat and turned to face them once he had their attention.

"Well, I'll leave the three of you to begin planning. Keep me posted."

He caught Harry's eye for a long moment, then nodded to them all and left.

==@==

Chakotay stood outside of Sick-Bay staring at the door. He took a deep breath and slowly counted to five in order to calm his suddenly excited nerves. Composing himself as best as possible, he opened the door and stepped inside.

His eyes searched out and then locked onto the sleeping form of Tom Paris recovering in the surgical suite on the far side of Sick- Bay.

Chakotay crossed the distance and looked down into his lovers face. Tom looked like a fallen angel. A wave of tenderness washed over him and he reached out to brush a golden curl back from Tom's forehead.

"Computer. Activate Emergency Medical Hologram."

A shimmering of light and energy coalesced next to him.

"Please state the nature of... Oh, hello Captain. What can I do for you?"

"How's Tom doing? Was the surgery successful?"

The Holo-Doc smiled slightly and then picked up a medical tricorder. He quickly scanned the sleeping blonde while humming to himself. Finally, he shut off the device and turned to face Chakotay.

"The operation went perfectly, if I do say so myself. It was a bit tricky making all of the connections between Mr. Paris's nerve endings and the electronic impulse sensors on the Specified Speech Modulator, however, between my superior skills as a surgeon and Lieutenant Torres and Ensign Kim's brilliant engineering, I expect a 100% success rate."

Chakotay beamed. Hidden behind the Holo-Doc's pompous arrogance, he was sure that he had heard that his lover was going to be just fine.

"How long will it take him to recover from the surgery?"

The doctor paused a split second to consider all the available data.

"It will probably take him a few days to get used to using the device to speak for an extended period of time, but he *should* be able to talk in short bursts right away. There may be a little tenderness in the area as well, but a mild analgesic can control that. Shall I wake him up for you Captain?"

"Yes please."

The Holo-Doc quickly filled a hypo-spray and pressed it to Tom's neck. The only sound in Sick-Bay was the soft hiss of the medication entering Tom's blood stream. Then Tom's eyes fluttered and he licked his lips with a flickering tongue.

"I'll go replicate some ice chips. I'll be right back."

With that, the Holo-Doc wandered away to give them a brief moment of privacy. Chakotay ran a gentle fingertip along Tom's cheek and his lover's eyes fluttered some more.

"Tom... baby. Can you hear me? Wake up honey. It's Chakotay. Tom?"

The eyelashes fluttered and then opened to reveal two beautiful blue orbs. Tom smiled sweetly.

"Ch... Cha... kotay..."

The most wonderful sound in the universe caressed his ears. His lovers voice. He wasn't even aware of the tear that traced a silent path down his cheek.

==@==

Chakotay watched Tom pace nervously back and forth from the table to check on the dinner placements and then to the living area to check on the after dinner entertainment. It wasn't the frantic half-panic that he had expected his lover to be in, instead it was more a fussy desire for everything to be just perfect.

"Tom... baby. Come sit down and have a cup of tea with me. Stop worrying. Everything is ready. You haven't forgotten anything. Honest."

Tom turned and smiled bashfully, a light blush rising in his cheeks. Still, he came over to the couch and curled up next to Chakotay and picked up a mug of steaming herbal tea. Chakotay hoped that it would help him to steady his nerves a bit.

"Look, Harry and B'Elanna will be here in just a bit, so relax. Harry is your friend and he won't care about the silverware. I know you have never really met B'Elanna, but she's a great person. I know that you two will hit it off. And she's half Klingon, so she is pretty easy to please in the food department as well."

Tom got a look of concentration on his face that Chakotay had come to recognize as him wanting to talk. It wasn't that he *couldn't* talk, it was more that he had to re-strengthen the muscles used to make speech instead.

"I want to make a good impression. B'Elanna is important to you and to Harry."

Chakotay nodded.

"Yes, she is. She's a good person to know and have on your side."

Tom grinned then. It was a wicked sort of grin that was the only warning Chakotay would get that Tom's sense of humor was about to emerge.

"Harry told me that two nights ago, B'Elanna was screaming and throwing things at him. Then she bit him. He said he didn't know whether to run in fear or cum in his pants."

They shared a low chuckle. Their eyes locked and sparks of desire flew between them. Chakotay leaned forward towards Tom and reached out with one thickly muscled arm to pull his lover in close. He raised his other hand and ran it through those soft curls he adored so much and brushed his lips against Tom's. Tom moaned in pleasure.

Chakotay was just about to deepen the kiss when the door chimed. Tom's head whipped around to stare at it in startlement.

"Oh shit. They're here."

==@==

"Captain. Long range sensors show a ship heading towards us of unknown make or configuration. They are on an intercept course and will reach us in ten and a half minutes."

Chakotay glanced from Ensign Kim over to Lieutenant Ayala, one eyebrow raised expectantly. He fiddled with his console for a quick minute.

"Confirmed. Their shields are comparable to ours, but their weapons are no match. However, scanners show odd readings in their transporters."

Harry Kim punched a sequence of commands into the Ops station and read through the results of his scans.

"Confirmed Captain. It seems that their transporter technology is very... advanced. I'd need time to study the scans in more detail to give you more data than that."

"I see. How many are there? Can we get them on the view screen?"

"There's only one Captain."

The view screen flickered and the empty starfield switched angles to show a single large ship heading in their direction.

"Captain. We're being hailed."

Chakotay nodded and headed to sit in the Command Chair.

"Open a channel."

"Ay Sir."

The view screen flickered again and suddenly switched to the interior of the starship. The screen was filled with the image of a grossly maimed creature that seemed to be suffering from numerous burns, skin grafts and bio-organic transplants. It was all Chakotay could do to school his expression and not gasp in horror.

"Unknown vessel. I am Captain K'Tell of the Vidiian Starship Krendel. You are entering Vidiian space and there are many areas that are quarantined due to the Phage. We ask that you abandon your course heading and reduce your risks of contamination."

"I am Captain Chakotay of the Federation Starship Voyager. We are heading towards the Alpha Quadrant and to change our course would put us many light years out of our way. We do not wish to disturb any of the quarantines set by your people, is it possible that we could obtain a starchart of your space so that we may avoid doing just that?"

The Vidiian Captain got a thoughtful look on his mangled face and turned to speak to someone offscreen. It was impossible to hear what was being said, but apparently a decision was made. When the Captain turned back to face the view screen, another hideously scarred Vidiian steeped up next to him.

"This is Doctor T'Lear, one of our most noted and respected mdical doctors. She has long been seeking a cure for the Phage. It seems that a trade of information would be beneficial to both of our peoples. If you would allow Dr. T'Lear to access your medical database, we would be more than happy to provide you with starcharts of our entire region."

Chakotay considered it. It would be very nice to have some allies out here, especially since their relationship with the Kazon had been so violent and destructive. The Holo-Doc would be immune to the Phage due to his holographic nature, so with a force-field set around the work area for Phage research in place, there should only be minimal danger to the crew. He nodded.

"Yes Captain K'Tell. I agree that that *would* be beneficial to both of our people. I'll allow the good doctor and two of her assistants to beam over directly to our Sick-Bay to work with our doctor there in exchange for the starcharts and safe passage through your area of space."

The Vidiian Captain smiled and Chakotay inwardly flinched at the gruesome visage. He shuddered at the thought of being trapped in such a sickly and unhealthy shell.

"Ensign Kim, send the coordinates for our Sick-Bay to the Vidiians."

Harry tapped on his console quickly.

"Yes Sir."

==@==

Leaning back in his chair, Chakotay groaned. His muscles were stiff from inactivity and his spine popped and cracked. Reaching up with one hand, he rubbed at his neck, trying to alleviate some of the soreness.

He glared at the data PADD containing the crew evaluations as if it was at fault for all his trouble. It was getting a bit tiring though, doing the jobs of both Captain *and* First Officer. Gregor and 'Lanna tried to take some of the burden off of his shoulders in order to help. What's more, Chakotay had been slowly giving some of the First Officers work to Tom.

He grinned at the thought of his lover. Tom had first started reviewing basic reports as a favor to Chakotay. He had told Tom that he was overworked (true enough) and understaffed (painfully true) and would Tom please double check them for errors and inconsistencies. Tom had been happy to help.

While having Tom read the daily reports from the many department heads *had* helped to free up some of Chakotay's time, it also had a more important function. It focused Tom's mind on something other than his own personal situation and it slowly introduced him to the ships functions. Chakotay still held out hope that Tom could become First Officer once his voice was healed.

Thoughts of his lover and his desire to escape the crew evaluations for at least a little while combined to force him up from his chair and towards the door to his Reavy Room.

"Computer. Location of Tom Paris."

"Tom Paris is in Holodeck 2."

With a grin that looked suspiciously like a smirk, Chakotay turned to head towards the turbolift. It wasn't more than a matter of minutes until he was standing outside of Holodeck 2.

Chakotay stepped through the holodeck doors and onto a simulation of the bridge of Voyager. A violent jolt shuddered through the room and almost knocked him off of his feet. A shower of colored sparks rained down on him as the nearest console exploded. Smoke filled the room with the stench of burning wires and melting plastic.

A quick glance around told Chakotay that they were in a fire fight with the Kazon. Donna Henley was at Tactical and Harry Kim was at Ops. Ensign Blue was injured, but still at her science station and Gregor Ayala lay crumpled upon the floor. Klaxons blared and red alert lights flashed in the background. And through it all, his beloved Tom sat at Helm Control, hands dancing gracefully across the Conn.

"Ensign Kim. Report!"

A ripple of surprise washed over the bridge and Tom grinned at him quickly over his shoulder. Then Harry started to read off the status of various ships systems and Chakotay entered into the battle for some holographic fun.

==@==

Chakotay watched Tom set the dirty dishes in the recycler and finish cleaning up the remains of their dinner. He couldn't help but smile at the beautiful man.

Tom had been spending more and more time interacting with the crew. Most notably, in the holodeck doing flight sims. He still seemed to do best when he was with someone he knew well enough to consider a friend, like Harry, B'Elanna or even Gregor, but he *could* wander around Voyager by himself without having a panic attack.

Just as important as his excellent piloting skills and his increased duties in administrative reports and scheduling, was the fact that Tom seemed to be so happy. He smiled, joked and laughed more often and his anxiety levels had dropped greatly. Tom was still a little shy about his voice and speaking, but his symptoms of black depression had faded to almost nothing. Even his nightmares were not as frequent. To an enchanted Chakotay, it was like watching a butterfly emerge from it's cocoon.

Suddenly, Tom climbed up onto the couch and curled up against Chakotay's side. He was warm and soft and he smelled good. With a sigh of contentment, Chakotay wrapped his arms around the beautiful blonde.

Tom tilted his face up to be kissed. Chakotay couldn't resist the big blue eyes or the full soft lips, so he didn't even try to fight his desire.

He opened his mouth to deepen the kiss and Tom moaned his pleasure. His lovers taste exploded across his tongue and a ball of warmth grew in his groin. Long supple fingers began exploring his chest and opening the clasps on his jacket. A shiver of anticipation raced down his spine and he broke off the kiss with a gasp. Arousal darkened eyes gazed up at him from an expression of love and desire.

"Tom, baby... bed, *now*."

The wicked smile that flashed across Tom's face made him shiver all over again.

==@==

"Trust me. You'll love this place, and you'll love Sandrine."

Chakotay looked over at Tom's smiling face and shrugged happily. While he normally wouldn't choose a bar to go to while out on a date, he wouldn't argue. Tom had been working on this program as a surprise for him. It was, according to the younger man, a place he had visited often while he lived on earth.

Tom had told him that after Caldik Prime, he had spent a lot of time here with Sandrine. Her bar was one of the few places he *could* go and be welcomed after the crash and the Court Marshal. Chakotay knew the truth about that time, both from the official *and* unofficial records, not to mention having talked with Tom himself about it.

The crash hadn't been pilot error like the official records stated. It was an assassination attempt by the Cardassian's in an effort to stop Tom's covert operations and activities supporting the Marquis. In order to protect his deep cover and the Inner Circle, Tom had taken the fall. His public and official reputation was forever tainted and his father, an Inner Circle member, had been forced to publicly disown him.

According to Tom, after he was drummed out of StarFleet and apparently at loose ends, he had traveled to Marseilles and met up with Sandrine at the *suggestion* of a member of the Inner Circle. Sandrine was a Marquis supporter who used the cover of doing business for her bar to smuggle desperately needed supplies into the DMZ as well as smuggle refugees *out* of the DMZ. Tom went there to help her fine-tune her operation and use his contacts and ifluence to improve the quality of supplies as well as to increase her security measures.

Sandrine also turned out to be a wonderful woman who had taken in the young spy and helped him get his head back together. When Chakotay had questioned *why* Tom needed to get things settled in his mind, he confessed guilt over the deaths of his innocent crew mates and his anger at his tarnished reputation. Sandrine had been his mentor, his lover, his counselor and most importantly, his friend. She had given Tom a second chance and a sense of purpose at one of the lowest points in his life.

Now, Tom wanted to introduce him to her. He wanted to share his past and the truths which surrounded his memories in a way he never could with anyone before. Chakotay was flattered and honored. He knew it wasn't easy for Tom to do this on many levels. First, there was the fact that he had been publicly thought of as an incompetent pilot, a drunk and a traitor for so long that it was hard for Tom himself not to believe it and secondly, in his private life, he held secrets that would cause, not only his own death, but the deaths of many others. Opening up was something he *rarely* did.

Chakotay leaned down and gently kissed his lovers sweet mouth. His pulse rate rose slightly and his breath hitched. He broke off the kiss before it could go to far.

"I'm sure I'll have a great time. I can't wait to meet Sandrine. Come on baby, let's go."

==@==

Chakotay stood on one side of the force field in Sick-Bay with Lieutenant B'Elanna Torres next to him while on the other side of the force field stood the Holo-Doc and his Vidiian counterpart Dr. T'Lear. Both physicians looked insufferably smug. Chakotay hoped that was a good sign.

"Well, doctor. What's the news that you had to share with us?"

The Holo-Doc beamed, smoothed out nonexistent wrinkles from his immaculate uniform and cleared his throat. Chakotay just raised an eyebrow at the posturing and waited for the facts.

"Using a combination of the treatment techniques and natural compounds found in the Alpha Quadrant and the superior diagnostics and genetic manipulation skills of the Vidiian's, Dr. T'Lear and I were able to isolate a genetic organism that can be mutated into a cure for the Phage! It is relatively easy to replicate, so once an original sample is created and then completely analyzed by the Vidiian computers, they can create as much of it as they need."

Chakotay couldn't suppress the huge smile that emerged from hearing such good news.

"That's wonderful. I *knew* that you two could work miracles. What exactly *is* this genetic material that you need to use as the base for the medication?"

At that question, both the hologram and the grossly malformed Vidiian turned to look at B'Elanna and smiled.

"Actually, that's where the Lieutenant comes in. You see Captain, it's Ms. Torres's Klingon DNA that is needed to cure the Phage. Her blood could be used to make treatments that would place the Phage in a sort of regression, but the DNA found in her bone marrow can be made into a full blown cure."

B'Elanna gasped. She turned startled eyes on him and then turned to look at the two doctors once again. Chakotay found that he was just as speechless. The Holo-Doc had no such problem.

"We would like to take a sample of you blood right now Lieutenant, with your permission of course. We can begin replicating the treatments that will slow down the spread of the Phage as soon as possible. Then, we'd like to take a small sample of bone marrow from you so we can begin processing it into a cure."

Chakotay watched as emotions flickered across B'Elanna's face too quickly to follow accurately. Slowly, she turned to look up at him once more. He smiled as gently as he could.

"It's completely up to you B'Elanna. I won't order you to do this. This is something that you have to decide for yourself."

At those words, Dr. T'Lear seemed to become slightly agitated and worried. It was obvious that she was afraid that the cure to the Phage would slip through her fingers.

"Lieutenant. I know that this seems like we are asking a lot from you, but please understand, my people have been suffering from the Phage for generation upon generation. This is the *only* cure we have *ever* come across in all that time. Millions of Vidiians are afflicted and in one fell swoop, you can save us all. Please, please consider this from *our* point of view."

B'Elanna looked over at the hideously scarred and malformed woman and pity and compassion washed over her, softening her features.

"This... bone marrow extraction. How long would I be stuck here in Sick-Bay? I mean, the Warp Core *needs* me, I wouldn't be able to be incapacitated for very long if I did this for you."

The Holo-Doc nodded as if he had been expecting this question. Not surprising once you got to know the Chief Engineer and her passion for her job.

"Well Lieutenant. The procedure itself is fairly simple. The surgery would only take about two hours tops. The recovery period is generally two days. One day here in Sick-Bay and then one day where you could be released to your quarters on light duty. Reports and things of that nature. On the morning of the third day, you would come in here to get your final evaluation. If everything is going as expected, you would be released for duty that very morning."

B'Elanna thought about it for a few quick minutes before turning to Chakotay once again.

"Captain. I know we are *very* short handed and with Joe Carey dead there isn't really anyone to replace me, but... Well, I *want* to do this. I mean, how often am I going to get a chance to do good on such a massive scale? Could you possibly spare me for two days?"

Chakotay shuffled things around in his mind quickly.

"I can divide your duties up. I'll assign the technical things to Harry and the administrative work to Tom. If needed, Tom can even do repair work, if someone shows him what needs to be done first."

Dr. T'Lear looked as if she would faint from relief and happiness, but the Holo-Doc simply modulated his energy and walked through the force field. He gestured to the Surgical Suite and picked up some instruments.

"If you'll follow me Lieutenant, we'll get started right away."

==@==

Chakotay followed Tom and Harry into Astrometrics and walked over to Ensign Samantha Wildman. She tapped out a few commands on her console and the giant view screen showed a representation of a starchart that the Vidiian's had given them.

"Captain. As you can see, the Ca Polin System has two M-Class planets. Both of them have sufficient planet life and mineral deposits to provide Voyager with needed supplies."

Samantha tapped out some more commands and the Ca Polin System became the central image and then enlarged to fill the screen.

"This first M-Class planet should be avoided. It supports a pre-Warp post-Industrial civilization and has been marked off limits by the Vidiians. However, this second planet has no sentient life and vast quantities of duranium."

Chakotay nodded. That was welcome news. They could power up Voyager and stock up on much needed food stuff at the same time. He turned to Harry.

"How are the designs coming along for the new Aeroponics Bay?"

Harry turned from gazing out at the images on the view screen to look at him and smile.

"Great Captain. The designs for the room itself are complete and construction on the basic forms and systems are already started. The designs for the more specialized systems are being fine turned still, but they will be completed soon. Once the specs are done, the construction of those systems shouldn't take more than a few days at most."

Chakotay nodded.

"Good. Then we should set a heading for the Ca Polin System. We have some supplies and resources to gather."

==@==

Tom's graceful hands traced the muscle ridges along his abdomen and tickled his skin deliciously. Languidly, they moved upwards until two fingertips flicked at the twins nubs of aroused pleasure standing proudly on his pectorals. He arched into the fleeting touch and moaned his approval. Without thought, he spread his thick thighs wider and tilted his hips up in a wanton display of need.

At the sound of Tom's soft gasp, he opened his eyes. He was rewarded with the lovely vision of Tom Paris in heat. His lover was kneeling between his wide flung legs, blonde curls mussed and pale skin flushed with the heat of desire. His normally bright blue eyes were nearly eclipsed with passionate hunger and his pink tongue flickered out to lick his swollen lips. Chakotay whimpered pleadingly.

Those long fingers which he worshipped skimmed down his body leaving trails of hot tingles in their wake. He shivered at the teasingly light touch. Then Tom leaned down and wet heat engulfed him. A jolt of pleasure slammed through him so intensely that it caused his eyes to roll back into his head and his toes to curl.

When he was able to bring a portion of his mind to focus once again, he found that his hands were clenched into fists, desperately clutching the sheets in an effort to stave off his completion and that Tom had lube slicked fingers deep inside him. Unconsciously, he was rocking back onto his lovers hands, fucking himself in mindless bliss.

"Tom... I need you... in me... *please*... now baby, now..."

Unlike their arrival, Chakotay was acutely aware of Tom's fingers leaving his body. He barely had time to mourn their loss when they were gently replaced by Tom's long cock. His lover's length was hot and smooth, yet stiff and unyielding, like silk over steel. Chakotay moaned as he felt Tom slide in to the hilt, his lover' balls resting against his flesh.

*This* was his reward. This was the compensation for all the stress and the burden of being Captain. The spirits had given him Tom and all of the vast love and pleasure that he carried inside of him. For half a heartbeat Chakotay wished that he could freeze time in this one perfect moment and never leave it. Then Tom moved inside of him and it was infinitely better.

Quickly finding their rhythm, they slowly built up speed. They moved as one, pushing together and then sliding apart. Faster and faster they danced. The pleasure built up inside him like a bright golden light at the base of his spine until the pressure was too great to contain. Together they exploded into a million pieces only to reform back into two separate beings, enfolded in each others arms.

Tilting his head slightly, Chakotay pressed his lips against Tom's. Instantly, Tom opened his mouth and invited him in. Their tongues mated and love passed from one to the other and then back again. Giving to and taking from each other in equal amounts. Finally, when the need for air drove them apart, Chakotay smiled at his lover.

"Tom, baby... I love you."

"I love you too Chakotay."

With a soft sigh of happy contentment, Chakotay drifted off to sleep.

==@==

"Come!"

The door swished open in front of him to reveal the dimly lit quarters beyond. After a slight hesitancy, Chakotay stepped through.

He stopped inside the main room for a moment to look around and absorb the unique atmosphere and flavor within B'Elanna's quarters. Voyager was sleek and graceful, but it was ultimately designed for battle. That meant that the crew and officer quarters were not designed for luxury, yet B'Elanna had managed to turn the dreary and small rooms into a warm and welcoming home.

Bold and colorful art stood on shelves and hung from the walls. Percussion based music could be heard in the background and the coffee table was littered with data PADD's. The room was as dramatic in it's own way as was it's owner. Speaking of which...

"'Lanna. How are you feeling? The Holo-Doc assured me that everything went great with the bone-marrow extraction, but,... I just figured I'd stop by to be sure."

B'Elanna looked up from where she was ensconced on the couch with a soft blanket and a data PADD. She looked tired, but oddly happy. Chakoaty had expected her to be on edge.

"I'm fine Chakotay. I was bored a bit earlier,... but I *do* feel fine. I'm a little tired, but the doctor said that I would be. I can't wait to go back on duty tomorrow. Forced inactivity is *not* my favorite thing."

Chakotay smiled. B'Elanna was a passionately driven workaholic. He had been around her during medically advised bed-rest before and he knew for a fact that the young half-Klingon *hated* to be still without something to do. It drove her to distraction and then she in turn drove everyone around her bonkers. It was a part of her unique charm.

He stepped deeper into the room and over to the couch. B'Elanna shifted slightly and Chakotay sat down by her feet. His knee bumped the coffee table and a few of the data PADD's slid to the floor. He made an "oops" face at her and then bent over to pick them up again. He glanced at a few as he did so.

"Hey. Are these the design specs for the machinery needed to run the Aeroponics Bay?"

B'Elanna nodded and handed over the data PADD that was in her hand and pointed out what she had been reading when he'd first come in.

"Yeah. Harry dropped them by. He just finished them and he wanted me to double check it to see if I can find any errors or if I can think of any improvements. He seemed apologetic about disturbing me with work while I'm recuperating, but they need to be finished fast because we're heading to go get supplies even as we speak. He said that he didn't trust anyone but me to review them closely enough.

Chakotay tried to control the silly smile that wanted to erupt on his face. Harry was a slick one, he had to give the man that much. While B'Elanna *was* the best person on board to review those specs, it wasn't *that* big of a rush to get completed. Chaokaty knew that if B'Elanna had been on duty that the specs would have waited. It was just that Harry had enough insight into what made B'Elanna tick, to know that she would *need* something to do. So, he gave her a task that was necessary and would keep her mind thoroughly occupied, yet not tax her body.

Skimming over the specs quickly, Chakotay made a mental note to thank Harry for giving B'Elanna something more to contemplate than her living room walls. It was very thoughtful. Still, Chakotay knew that the specs would not eat up all of her free time. He turned back to face one of his oldest and dearest friends.

"Well, just to warn you ahead of time, I'm going to ask Tom to stop by later on tonight to give you a quick briefing about the reports and administrative work he's done for Engineering. I want you to just make sure everything's in order and that he didn't forget anything. I'll ask him to be brief since you *do* need your rest and you *have* been working today."

She nodded and flashed him a half grin. He handed back the data PADD.

"So,... tell me what you think of Ensign Kim's designs?"

==@==

Chakotay punched in some commands on the console attached to the Command Chair and read the report that scrolled across it. The scans told him exactly what he expected them to. Everything was just fine and right on schedule. It didn't really help, he still worried.

They had reached the planet that the Vidiian starcharts had told them about. It was a beautiful M-class planet just as was promised with lots of native grains, fruits and vegetables, not to mention rich and abundant mineral resources were in evidence.

The only real problem was the odd subspace interference in the upper atmosphere. It blocked all transporter signals in much the same way that lead blocked radiation. It transporter beam simply couldn't push through the barrier of the energy field. A shuttlecraft, however, had no problem flying right on through it.

So, his beloved Tom had spent the better part of the last two days ferrying people and foods stuffs between Voyager and the planet surface. The duranium was being mined right now and would be ready to go by tomorrow. Everything was right on schedule.

Yet, Chakotay worried for Tom. It was irrational, he knew that, but that fact didn't stop him from tormenting himself with "what- if"'s. This was the first time Tom had flown a real vessel and not a holo-sim since he was captured by the Federation while on a piloting mission in the Marquis for Chakotay.

Granted, it was a simple mission piloting between Voyager and the planet, but it was still a lot of responsibility, not to mention longer hours than Tom was used to. Chakotay had been a bit surprised when Tom volunteered for the job. He had Lieutenant Ayala in charge of the away team gathering the food stores and Ensign Kim in charge of the mining project. When Tom found out his friends were heading to the planet, Tom had immediately wanted to go too. He wanted to fly, to pilot the shuttle. How could Chakotay say no?

Chakotay punched in a few quick commands into the small console next to the Command Chair and read the report that scrolled across the screen. Yep. Everything was still going smoothly and right on schedule...

==@==

He looked into the mirror and studied the face that peered back at him. It was a good face, but time and stress were beginning to take it's toll and leave it's marks. His family tattoo was still as vibrant as ever and his eyes were just as clear and focused as they had always been. However, there were more lines around his eyes and there were a few gray hairs peeking out of his cropped black hair. //Face it old man... you're not getting any younger.//

Sighing to himself, he finished getting ready to go out to Sandrines. He and Tom were hosting an informal get together to celebrate the cure for the Phage and the success of the Aeroponics Bay. It was Tom's idea and he had readily agreed. He was glad that Tom was taking an active interest in socializing once again. For far to long, he had shut himself away in order to heal from the scars that Seska and Dalby had left, not only on his body, but on his soul.

Even still, he was tired. The past week had put a lot of stress and strain on him. The Vidiian's themselves were wonderful allies once you got over their appearance, and it *had* been great to travel through a sector of space without a constant running gun battle, but it *hadn't* been the break from stress that he had hoped.

For one, he had half the ship in an uproar over the Aeroponics Bay. Not that anyone complained, they all thought it was a great idea. However, it *was* a lot of hard work to get it designed, built and then operational. Then there was Tom's flying, both in and out of the holodeck. He worried not only that Tom would crash or get hurt, but also that he might be pushing himself too hard and panic at the wrong time.

He admitted now that he had worried for nothing. Tom had not only done an excellent job, he had a wonderful time doing it. His lover had spent the better part of yesterday babbling excitedly over each nuance of the mission. Now he was itching to fly Voyager. Chakotay grinned at the thought. Tomorrow he would sit down with his lover and talk about the possibility of rearranging the schedule to let Tom sit at the Conn.

Smoothing out a last seam and making a final adjustment to his jacket, Chakotay also considered the other aspect of these past few days that he hadn't considered before. Being a diplomat to the Vidiian's had not been as easy as he'd first thought. He hadn't wanted to do or say anything to upset or offend their first allies. Dealing with the passionate hatred of the Kazon was bad enough, he didn't want any more enemies here in the DQ.

Suddenly the bedroom door opened. He turned to look and saw Tom standing there. His lover was dressed in pale blues and golds with black detailing. He looked good enough to eat. With a smile, Chakotay stopped fussing with his clothes and walked over to kiss his man.

Tom' lips were soft and full and they called to him like a siren's song. He leaned in and brushed his lips against Tom's and they opened up for him. His tongue delved into the moist heat and his hands grabbed onto Tom's perfect ass. The young pilot pressed up against him and a small shiver of desire rushed along his suddenly flushed skin. He was just about to suggest they forego the party and stay in and make love when his comm link beeped.

"Torres to the Captain."

He sighed and pulled slightly apart so he could tap his comm badge.

"Chakotay here. What is it 'Lanna?"

"Are you guys coming? It's 1900 hours already. A few of us are waiting in the corridor outside Holodeck 2. We can't really start without you since we don't know which program you were planning to run for the party."

Tom tapped his comm badge.

"We're on our way now 'Lanna. We'll be there in a few minutes."

"Okay Tom. See you then. B'Elanna out."

Chakotay gazed into Tom's bright blue eyes and smiled. He traced his lover's jaw with one thick fingertip.

"Well, baby. It's seems as if our audience awaits."

Tom grinned and stepped back. He made a half bow and gestured towards the door with a flourish.

"After you."

Chakotay chuckled.

"Smart ass."

Tom grinned wickedly.

==@==

Chakotay sat in his Ready Room with Tom going over the Conn Reports. Ensign Batehardt had started turning them in directly to Tom after he started flying a few shifts at the helm. This was for the best, since Chakotay was slowly introducing Tom to more and more of the First Officers duties.

He felt that it wouldn't be long until Tom could be officially named First Officer with a field rank of Commander. In fact, there were many who were surprised that he didn't have that rank and duties assigned to him already. Chakotay had to admit that it was fairly obvious that it was what Tom was being groomed for.

They had left Vidiian space two days ago and were headed towards an area rife with asteroid belts and spatial anomalies. It would be some tricky flying in some spots. Tom wanted to try and plot a course around the anomalies, yet he felt that the asteroid belt would best be crossed using manual steering as opposed to a pre-programmed flight path. Chakotay wasn't sure about that. Only Tom had the kind of training and experience to manually navigate the belt, but he wasn't sure if Tom was up to that kind of pressure yet.

They were discussing the pros and cons of each side of the issue when Chakotay's comm link beeped.

"Ensign Kim to the Captain."

Chakotay tapped his comm badge.

"Chakotay here. What is it Harry?"

"Captain. Long range sensors are picking up some strange readings. It's some sort of spatial anomaly much like a wormhole, only without the fluctuations in internal gravametric pressure. You might want to come see this."

"All right. I'm on my way."

Chakotay stood up and took a last sip of his tea before gesturing for Tom to join him. Tom smiled at him brightly. Since Tom wasn't on any official duty roister and he didn't actually hold a rank, he rarely went to the bridge without a specific invitation. The work that he *did* do, and it was a fair amount, were all as "favors" to other people. Chakotay knew that would change soon, but for now, they walked out of his Ready Room and onto the Bridge together.

Chakotay sat down in his Command Chair and motioned for Tom to sit down in the vacant First Officer's Chair. Tom's hands fluttered nervously for just a second before he did. Chakotay had only a few seconds to consider how right it felt for Tom to be sitting there before Harry's report broke into his thoughts.

"The anomaly is growing larger and it has many wormhole characteristics. I'm putting it on screen now."

The starfield on the view screen flickered and was replaced by a swirling dark red energy form that was rapidly forming into what appeared to be a wormhole.

"Well, it certainly *looks* like a wormhole. What do the scanners say that makes you believe otherwise?"

"The gravametric pressure inside of the anomaly is stable and usually a wormhole has randomly fluctuating phase-particle levels. This one has the phase-particle levels rising and falling in a fairly predictable pattern. Every 14.2 seconds."

"Ensign Batehardt. Bring us in a bit closer so Mr. Kim can get a clearer reading. Half impulse."

"Aye Captain."

For a minute or two, the Bridge was silent except for the sounds of the consoles and monitors beeping and chirping. Everyone was busy doing their respective jobs. Harry's excited voice shattered the stillness.

"Captain. I'm reading what appears to be the ion signatures of a Warp Drive. It's coming from inside the pseudo-wormhole."

Chakotay hadn't even finished turning his head to look at his Tactical Officer when Lieutenant Ayala's voice echoed through the Bridge like the clap of doom.

"Confirmed Captain. There is a ship coming through the wormhole headed straight for us. Ion signatures match those of a Class 8 Kazon Warship."

Chakotay felt his blood run cold at those words and he watched as every person on the bridge seemed to flinch slightly. The Kazon were their most hated enemy here in the Delta Quadrant and they had lost many crewmen to the running gun battles that the Kazon always seemed to initiate. Hopefully with them so far from their home sector of space, they would not want to start trouble with Voyager. Chakotay wasn't going to count on that vague hope.

"Red Alert! Harry, open hailing frequencies as soon as they are clear from the event horizon of the pseudo-wormhole. Batehardt, back us away and get us into a position so that Tactical will have a clean and clear target with phasers."

Klaxon's blared and a hellish flashing red light bathed everyone and everything crimson. The cold in his veins settled in deep, readying him for the chance that he would soon enter battle and lose more of his crew to the Kazon. He watched silently as everyone of the Alpha shift Bridge crew went about their duties, preparing for battle like the blooded warriors they were. All of them had had their trial by fire and survived, perhaps not unscathed, but harder, stronger.

His eyes sought out Tom. His lover was very pale and his jaw was clenched tightly. For just a quick second, he was going to order him from the Bridge, but then he realized that it would be seen as a sign that Chakotay didn't trust him in a crunch. If *he* didn't trust Tom, then no one else would, including Tom himself. That wouldn't do. He fully intended Tom to be second in command of Voyager, and that meant being on the Bridge during all battles. Protecting him now would only hurt him later, so Chakotay let him stay and hoped that Tom's seemingly healed soul was, in fact, up to facing the Kazon once again.

He turned his thoughts back to the situation at hand. He stood and walked towards the view screen to get a better look at the pseudo-wormhole. It appeared to have stabilized it's size now.

"Status."

"Kazon Warship will enter our space in approximately 37 seconds Captain. Our shields are a maximum and ships systems are all fully functional."

He turned from Harry to Gregor.

"Confirmed. Our weapons are fully powered up and engineering reports that we have full Warp capacity."

Chakotay strode back towards the Command Chair and noticed that Tom had the console next to the First Officers chair up and running. He was scanning reports coming in from various sections of the ship. He tapped in a few commands and nodded satisfactorily. Chakotay didn't ask. He trusted Tom to do what needed to be done.

"Captain. The Kazon Warship is emerging from the wormhole. Opening channel now."

"Kazon Warship. This is Captain Chakotay of the Starship Voyager. You are far from Kazon space. What are your intentions?"

The view screen flickered from an image of the outside of the Warship to the interior of it's Bridge. The Kazon Captain sat at his chair looking quite smug and arrogant. A very pregnant Seska stood at his side. Chakotay heard a startled gasp and looked to see that Tom's face had gone white with beads of sweat along his hairline and his hands were clenched into tight fists of fear and rage. Seska smirked.

"I see you've made a few changes since I left. I like the uniform's Chakotay, even if they *do* suggest one single crew instead of two separate ones."

Seska turned her head slightly to look Tom full in the face and smiled a deceptively charming and sweet smile.

"Hello my pet. You're certainly looking more healthy than the last time I saw you. I'm sorry to see that Chakotay isn't making you wear that lovely collar I replicated for you."

Tom flinched slightly, but he didn't cower. Chakotay saw this a good sign of his full recovery. He was, however, a bit shocked when Tom actually spoke to her.

"I'm *not* your pet Seska and I never was. You hurt me, you even bent me, but I *didn't* break... and you know it. You can't touch me anymore because you have no hold on me. You can't threaten me with the death and betrayal of the crew when you're the lap-dog of the Kazon."

Chakotay watched as Seska blanched at that stinging insult and he allowed a tiny smile to turn up the corner of his lips. That small smile died quickly when he watched Seska run a gentle hand down her largely rounded stomach. She appeared to be due to deliver in about two months, if that.

"It speaks! New vocal cords I assume... So, I have no hold over you, my pet? What do you call this?"

She patted her bulging mid-section.

"I am carrying your child, my pet. A boy, I might add. You're going to be a father. When I take control of Voyager, I am going to kill your precious Chakotay and enslave you all over again. Your good behavior will determine how much happiness your son is to be allowed to have. What do you think of that?"

Chakotay noticed a tiny tremor run through his beloved and he stared daggers at the madwoman who still continued to cause Tom such unspeakable pain.

"I think you are a sick person and I think you are lying."

Seska just laughed as if she had heard a funny joke. Suddenly, as if a switch had been thrown, her laughter cut off and her eyes were as hard as agates, burning with fury.

"Prepare to lose Voyager *and* your life Chakotay. I'm coming for both."

With that, the view screen shifted back to the view of the outside of the Kazon Warship. Chakotay took a deep breath and made some hard decisions. He prayed to the spirits that they were the right ones.

"I want Seska taken prisoner alive, if at all possible. She could be lying about that being Tom's child, but I don't want to take that chance. The infant is an innocent victim in this and *no* child deserves being raised by Seska. Once we have her locked down in the brig, I want that Warship atomized!"

Chakotay listened to the round of "Aye Sir"'s and "Yes Captain"'s as he sat down at the Command Chair. He turned a steely gaze on the view screen.

"Batehardt. Evasive maneuvers. Ayala. Fire at will. Knock down their shields!"

Immediately, the Bridge filled with the humming sounds of the phasers firing. The view screen showed bright red bolts of energy blast from the phaser banks and disperse across the Kazon shields again and again.

Chakotay had to grab onto the arm of his chair as Ensign Batehardt spun Voyager into a dive to evade return fire. Inertia dampers struggled to keep up with the rolling spin. Suddenly, they leveled off and dashed under the belly of the enemy. Phaser fire erupted once again, targeting the section of the Kazon ship that controlled their thrusters.

"Kazon shields are dropping. Sensors show them down to 85%."

The Kazon Warship swung around and returned fire. Ensign Batehardt executed a series of twists and turns in order to evade the blasts, but a few shocking jolts to Voyager spoke louder than words that several phaser blasts had hit them.

"Captain. Our shields are down to 90%. I'm also showing massive power levels mounting in the aft section of the Kazon ship. I'm not sure what is causing it."

Chakotay glanced at Gregor to see him typing commands into his console in rapid fire succession.

"Rising power levels confirmed Captain. It's a new device that the Kazon have never employed before, but it *does* appear to be similar to a Romulan Disrupter."

//Seska!// Chakotay felt his face go white at the thought of Romulan weapons technology in the hands of the Kazon. //That *stupid* bitch!//

"Batehardt. Do whatever you have to in order to keep us from being hit by that Disrupter. Ayala. Target the power source and blow them to pieces if you have to."

Voyager entered into a swirling series of leaps and dips, avoiding the phaser fire of the Kazon. Ayala returned the favor with a higher degree of success and accuracy than his Kazon counterpart, but he couldn't quite get the angle to hit the Disrupter. Chakotay could see a green glow begin to emanate from the aft section of the Kazon Warship.

"Mr. Kim. Reroute power from life support in the vacant sections of the ship to starboard shields. Now!"

Harry's hands fairly flew over his console as he attempted to raise the power level to the shields.

"Shields at... 90%,... 95%..."

Suddenly, with a stomach churning lurch, the entire ship jolted painfully as the green wave of disrupter energy slammed into the starboard hull. Inertia dampers whined crazily and everyone was tossed violently to the left.

A loud sickening *crunch* pulled Chakotay's attention to the Conn as he was shakingly rising from his sprawl on the floor. He gasped at the horrifying sight. Ensign Batehardt was lying alongside the Conn, his neck at an unnatural angle. Quickly getting to his feet, Chakotay rushed over and checked his Chief Pilot. Dead.

"Captain?..."

Chakotay turned to look behind him at the questioning sound of his lovers voice. He didn't have to say anything, his eyes held the truth for anyone to see. Tom nodded sharply and then headed straight to the Conn without asking. He sat down, scanned the multiple consoles and monitors quickly and then began to pilot Voyager.

Chakotay stumbled back to his chair and began scanning the reports flooding in from various departments.

"Report!"

"Shields down to 50%. We can't take another hit from that Disrupter again. I have plasma leaks on Decks 4 and 8. Sending repair crews now. I have three burnt out power relays. I'm rerouting power around them. I'm also receiving ship wide reports of injuries, but only a few causalities."

"Ayala. I need that Disrupter destroyed. Priority targeting. Tom, can you get us into position."

"Yes Captain."

Chakotay vaguely noted that while Tom was pale and sweat was beaded up on his brow, he voice was strong and his hands were steady on the helm. Good. He needed Tom in control of himself. He could fall apart later all he wanted, but right now, Chakotay was counting on Tom's superior piloting skills to see them all through this encounter alive.

The two ships swirled around each other in a deadly parody of a dance with phaser fire arcing back and forth between them. Ayala scored several good hits on the Kazon, but the return fire never touched Voyager. Suddenly Tom took a deep breath and spared a quick glance over his shoulder at Chakotay.

"Hang on everyone. This is going to be a rough ride. Get ready Ayala, I'm not sure if we'll get another chance at this."

Chakotay felt his stomach leap into his chest in response to the violently quick and twisting spiral that Tom sent Voyager into. Inertia dampers worked like mad to keep up, but it was almost useless. They swung around in a graceful but painfully tight loop and then suddenly, the Kazon Disrupter was right in front of them, perfectly lined up to target. Ayala hit it dead center with a powerful phaser blast. He followed this shot quickly with a series of smaller bursts aimed at the Kazon shield generators.

"Captain! Massive power fluctuations in the Kazon Disrupters. It's going to blow. Kazon shields have dropped down to 20% and I have a transporter lock on Seska. Where do you want her?"

"The brig. Ayala, send a detachment of your top security officers to meet her there."

"Aye Sir."

Harry punched a few more commands into his console.

"I've got her Captain. I suggest we more away from the Kazon Warship. She's going to explode."

Chakotay nodded and turned to face the Conn.

"Tom. Set a course for the Alpha Quadrant. Maximum Warp."

"Aye Captain."

==@==

Chakotay stood between Tom and the Holo-Doc as he stared at Seska. She was being held in a restraining field on the bio-bed in the surgical suite. At first she had taunted them and tried to engage them in arguments, but she now lay back and stared sightlessly at the ceiling, listening to their words, but not commenting.

Her sulking silence was the direct result of Tom's limited ability to deal with her. He had specifically asked that no one address Seska personally. He wished everyone to act as if she were not a sentient person, but merely an incubator for the child she carried. It was a bit cold and harsh, but Chakotay realized that Tom needed this... distancing. He could be near her and still function if she was reduced to the equivalent of a machine in his mind.

No one spoke to her or asked her opinion about anything. No one questioned her about her involvement with the Kazon and she wasn't ever interrogated. She was ignored and spoken about in cold and dispassionate terms right in front of her. At first, this infuriated and confused her, but soon, she realized that she herself was unimportant to the crew of Voyager. It was only her child they cared about. It was *that* fact seeping into her head that brought about her stony silence.

"Well doctor. Have you completed the scans?"

The Holo-Doc nodded and pointed out various readings on his monitors.

"Yes I have. The DNA scans show that the child is half-human and half-Cardassian."

Chakotay jumped at that news. He turned startled eyes on the Holo-Doc.

"Cardassian? What do you mean by that? How can there be Cardassian DNA in the child?"

"Simple. Seska *is* Cardassian. I was a bit confused by this myself at first, but then I checked the test results against the mission parameters that brought us all out here.

As I understand it, Mr. Paris was to contact you in the Marquis regarding Cardassian spies who had infiltrated the Marquis. It seems that Seska was one such spy. While she *appears* to be Bajoran, she doesn't actually have any of the common Bajoran characteristics in her blood. How they managed to do away with the majority of the characteristics common to Cardassian's, I'm uncertain, but they did."

Chakotay nodded slowly as he contemplated this news. It suddenly made sense to him. *That's* why Seska tortured Tom, to find out if he knew that *she* was a Cardassian. Finally, he turned back to the Holo-Doc.

"Is the child Tom's?"

The Holo-Doc nodded again.

"Preliminary test results *do* support that suggestion, however, it won't be conclusive until *after* the child is born and I have fully examined it."

Tom appeared to be thinking hard. He started to speak several times and then stopped. After a quick minute, he took a deep breath and tried again.

"Doc. How soon can the baby be born and still survive out of the womb?"

The Holo-Doc paused while he considered all of the variables.

"Actually, Mr. Paris. The child could be born at this stage of development as long as the proper medical supplies and equipment were available. I mean, he would need constant supervision and his medical needs would be great. With all of that at his beck and call, well, his chances for survival would be the same as any child carried to full term. Why?"

Tom turned to look at Chakotay, his big blue eyes pleading for understanding. He trembled slightly, but didn't back down. Chakotay was tempted to lean forward and kiss the worry line from between his eyes.

"Captain... Chakotay... I... I want us to take my son from out of Seska. The sooner he's away from her and in the doctor's care, the better I'll feel. I don't trust her not to do something to jeopardize his health as long as she's got him. Please, let's free him from her."

Chakotay searched those bright blue eyes and only saw sincerity shining back at him. There was nothing Tom hated or feared more than Seska and he could easily understand how Tom wouldn't want his child anywhere near her,... even if she *was* that same child's mother. He nodded his agreement and watched Tom smile slightly in relief.

"Doctor. I want you to prepare to deliver the child. By cesarean section if you need to. Make sure you replicate any equipment you think you will need in order to care for him once he's born. I'll grant any additional replicator rations you might need for this. If there is something you need that isn't listed in the replicator banks menu, design it and I'll have it built for you. Understood?"

The doctor seemed about to say something and then changed his mind.

"Yes Captain."

Tom tugged on his sleeve and he looked back into the face of his lover.

"Thanks Cha... I love you. You don't know how much this means to me."

Chakotay smiled widely.

"Yes, I think I do. I love you too Tom. Why don't you go back to our quarters and start making plans for *our* son to move in. He won't be in Sick-Bay forever. And you should start thinking of a name for him as well."

Tom's smile was like the sun coming up. With an excited little bounce, Tom leaned forward and gave Chakotay a passionate and loving kiss. Then, with a soft sigh of happiness, he turned and headed out of Sick-Bay.

==@==

Chakotay sat at the head of the conference table in the formal staff meeting room. He looked around and caught the eye of everyone there. Tom, Gregor, B'Elanna and Harry. They were all very aware of the absence of Ensign Batehardt. It would take a long time to put that loss behind them. Chakotay cleared his throat as a way to call the meeting to order.

"We have a lot to discuss today. Many things have happened in a relatively short amount of time. We have to get ourselves put back together and get the different departments back to top efficiency. We need to get this crew focused on the future, not the past. We have to get them to face what's coming, and help them mourn what was lost.

To that end, I'm officially assigning Tom Paris as First Officer with a field rank of Commander. He will, from this time on, handle all of the duties of that office. Also, in the wake of Ensign Batehardt's untimely death, Commander Paris will also act as Senior Pilot and Chief Navigator.

Ensign Kim, I'm also giving you a field promotion to Lieutenant Junior Grade. The chain of command will run as follows: myself, Commander Paris, Lieutenant Commander Ayala, Lieutenant Torres and then Lieutenant Kim.

I also want to issue field promotions to the crew in many of the various departments. While this particular need is greatest in the Navigation department at the moment, I want *all* departments to upstep the additional training programs they have been running. Schedule a series of holodeck sims, on the job cross-training and issue written and verbal tests of the knowledge gained. Talk to your department heads and inform them of these plans. I'd like a list of recommended promotions at the end of the month."

B'Elanna leaned forward and caught Chakotay's eyes with her hand. He nodded to her and gestured for her to speak.

"Um, Captain. I lost one of my department heads during the latest Kazon attack. I'd like to promote Crewman Vorik into that slot. I really think he'd do well. He's already fully trained for it. The only reason he wasn't there already was a simple matter of seniority."

Chakotay nodded as he considered the quiet and serious young Vulcan.

"I'll grant him a field promotion to the rank of Ensign. Have him begin his duties as a department head starting today."

B'Elanna nodded.

"Thank you Captain."

He grinned at her slightly.

"Does anyone else have someone who is already in a position to be promoted?"

At everyone's negative head shakes, Chakotay took a sip of his tea and continued.

"I'm planning on promoting the Delaney sisters to the rank of Ensign. Later on I'll be calling them to my Ready Room to speak to them about it. I'm going to assign Megan Delaney to be in charge of the Areoponics Bay and I'm going to assign Jenny Delaney to Morale Officer. With the possible exception of Lieutenant Kim here, she is the biggest gossip on board Voyager. We'll let her put that talent to good use."

A few chuckles eased the tension in the room and Harry blushed at being called a gossip. Chakotay grinned at him.

"So,... how are repairs going?"

Harry cleared his throat and began to give his report once everyone's eyes turned to him.

"Damage to the shields is completely fixed and they are back up to 100%. With the help from some of B'Elanna's people, my crews were able to repair the burnt relays, however, there has been a real strain on the main power conduit on Deck 7 Grid C due continuous rerouting of power through it. I'd like to have some maintenance done on it, as well as several others, once the remainder of the repair work is done."

Chakotay nodded. It made a lot of sense to do maintenance now instead of spot patching and repair after the fact.

"Good. I'll want a more detailed report on the maintenance schedule once you have it in place."

Haryy nodded and Chakotay turned to looked questioningly at B'Elanna.

"The plasma leaks have all been repaired. I also had to completely replace a few gel-packs, however, that project went smoother than I had originally thought it would. The inertia dampers have taken a real beating lately and I ran some diagnostics on it. Everything checks out fine, but I just have a feeling about it. I'd like to be able to get in there and see for myself.

If there *is* something there that's ready to blow, I'd rather not find out about it at the wrong time. If inertia dampers have to go off line, it's better to have it scheduled so everyone can take precautions and get everything strapped down. If they go off line by themselves, people could get hurt badly when things start flying through the air."

Chakotay couldn't completely suppress the shudder that went through him at the thought of the inertia dampers blowing up. He had lived through that happening on the Battleship Alexis and had no desire to see it happen to Voyager.

"Fine. As soon as the repairs to the gel-packs are complete, we'll set up a time for you to go in there. I'd rather you nip a problem in the bud than to be slammed into the deck plating at Warp 7."

Everyone nodded in agreement to *that* pleasant thought. Once he had everyone's attention again, he cleared his throat and continued.

"And lastly, there's the issue of what to do with Seska. Later on today, the Holo-Doc is planning to remove Tom's son from her body by way of cesarean section. He'll be kept in Sick-Bay under the doctor's constant care for approximately one and a half months. By then he should be strong enough to leave Sick-Bay and move in with Tom and I.

However, once Tom's son is no longer inside of Seska's body, we'll have to deal with what to do with her. At that point, she will no longer be of any further use to this crew.

I'm not going to hold a Federation style Court Marshal for her. We're not a true Federation ship, nor do we operate like one. We're also not a true Marquis ship either, so *that* style of Criminal Trial would also be inappropriate. I want us here, as the Command Crew of Voyager, to come to an agreement of what to do with her."

Chakotay paused to let that sink in.

"Seska's crimes against us are many and varied. All of them are deadly serious. She is a Cardassian spy who has betrayed us as a whole to the Kazon. She stole technology from us and communicated our plans and position to them time and again. She has tried on several occasions to gain control of Voyager and is directly responsible for the deaths of several crew members.

Beyond all of that, she personally held Commander Paris as a prisoner of war for a period of four months, during which she subjected him to physical and mental torture.

As I see it, we have two choices. We can sentence her to life imprisonment in the brig. Or we can execute her."

Not surprisingly, it was Tom who wished to give the first opinion on Seska's fate. Chakotay turned his full attention on his lover and second in command.

"I don't really think life in the brig will work. Personally I would love to watch her go crazy from the boredom, but I don't trust her enough for that. I feel like she'd somehow find a way to get out and start havoc. She's slippery like an eel that way. I vote to execute her. Beam her into space if you have to, just... get rid of her once and for all."

Chakotay idly wondered why he was startled over the fact that Tom wanted her dead. He couldn't really blame him, he himself felt the same way, but for some reason he thought that his tender hearted lover would be a little more lenient. In a way he was glad that Tom was so firm on the subject. B'Elanna's growl broke into his introspection like a knife.

"Well, that's one vote to toss her out an air-lock and I second it."

Chakotay turned questioning looks on Gregor and Harry. Gregor had a fierce and unpleasant smile twisting his rough hewn features into a grimace.

"Would it be considered bad form to use her corpse for target practice?"

Chakotay bit back a chuckle at the mental image that statement brought to mind, but B'Elanna laughed out loud and pounded his back in a gesture of camaraderie. Harry Kim just shrugged.

"Might as well make it unanimous. Kill the bitch."

With a grim expression on his face that unconsciously mirrored the scowl on Tom's, he nodded.

"Agreed. Seska will be executed first thing tomorrow morning. I'll talk to the Holo-Doc about lethal injections."

Chakotay grinned at his ruthless Command Staff.

"This part of space is controlled by the people of Beta Cinder, and they might be offended if we just beamed her directly into space. They have an odd sense of... neatness. It would only be polite to leave their territory as tidy as we found it."

==@==

Chakotay walked into Sick-Bay quietly. Turning to the left, he saw his lover standing with the Holo-Doc next to a small clear incubator. He watched as Tom slowly stuck his hand through the force field that would eliminate any and all contagions on his skin and gently stroke the tiny newborn's arm.

Tom had finally decided to name his son Owen Eugene Paris, after his own father. Chakotay thought it was a good name. Owen, or Wen for short, would have big shoes to fill in order to live up to his name-sake. His grandfather was not only an Admiral in the Federation StarFleet, he was also almost single-handedly responsible for the creation of the Marquis as the instigator of the first meeting of the highly secretive Inner Circle.

Chakotay had already assumed that the infant would grow to be a smart and deadly adversary to any who stood in Voyager's way. He came from a long line of warriors and spies. The Inner Circle on his father's side and the Obsidian Order on his mother's.

He stepped up behind Tom and gazed down over his lover's shoulder at Wen. He was a remarkably beautiful child. Tom's genes which dictated fair creamy skin and red-gold hair had mellowed out the harsher Cardassian features. Wen's skin was not so much a gray color as it was a light olive complexion. The scaly reptilian appearance that most Cardassian's had was not in evidence. Wen's skin was smooth and unblemished, with only a few muted indentations and ridges along his forehead and neck. His hair was a dark auburn with deep red highlights and his eyes were a startling bright blue.

Tenderly, he wrapped his arm around Tom's waist and brushed a soft kiss against the side of his neck. Tom leaned against him and continued to stroke Wen's thin arm. He only trembled slightly as he took a deep breath to steady his nerves before turning to gaze at Chakotay.

"Cha...?"

Chakotay's eyes locked onto Tom's and saw a haunting mixture of happiness, sadness and a vast fear.

"It's done. She's... gone."

Chakotay watched as relief washed over Tom's features, draining away the last of his fears.

"Good. Thank you. For... everything."

Chakotay didn't answer. He just squeezed Tom around the waist tighter. He leaned in and dropped a quick kiss to his lover's cheek. Tom turned around in his arms again so that he could once more look down at his infant son.

"Isn't he beautiful?"

"Yes. Yes he is."

"It's amazing how something so wonderful could come about in spite of, or even because of something so horrible, hateful and evil."

Chakotay rubbed small circles low on Tom's back and got a thoughtful look on his face.

"You know Tom. Some people believe that nothing is ever one sided. That all things have an equal but opposite equation. Perhaps this is one of those times. Now that the bad is done, the good is ready to begin."

Chakotay watched Tom's face as he considered this. Slowly, a smile began to form on his full vips.

END
Crimson Azimuth