Ghost of a Chance (16 page)

“We do understand how you must feel, I assure you,” Tassay insisted, then waited for Chakotay’s response, sincere as could be, the commander noted. His training and, perhaps more importantly, his experience had taught him never to completely trust anyone, not even the Federation, and yet he found himself doing just that where Tassay was concerned.

He decided to try and keep her at a distance, at least for the time being. The whole idea bothered him more than a little. The Drosary had earned his trust so far, he thought, and he believed he had earned theirs. He wasn’t sure he could necessarily say the same of the Televek, who were the ones he was ultimately dealing with—a point he thought it best to keep clearly in mind.

“Very well, but I trust the Televek won’t object if we go ahead and begin trying in the meantime. We’re not even sure the attempt is plausible.”

The Drosary turned to one another and mumbled for a brief moment.

Then Jonal looked up. “Of course not, Commander. We will inform Gantel. I’m sure he will understand, just as you do.”

“Of course,” Chakotay said, drawing three quiet Drosary smiles.

He noticed that Paris had calmed considerably and was now standing nearly face to face with Mila; an aura of chemistry hung about them.

Chakotay cleared his throat loudly. “Who is minding your station, Mister Paris?”

Chakotay heard the turbolift door hiss open. He turned in time to witness B’Elanna’s brisk entrance onto the bridge. As before, she headed straight to the engineering station, barely glancing at the others on the bridge. Her eyes never met those of the Drosary—or anyone else, for that matter—though Chakotay noticed she managed to frown rather heavily.

“Sorry, sir,” Paris said as he sat down hastily and began a quick review. Mila stepped back a bit.

B’Elanna tapped at her consoles, then turned abruptly to face the commander. “Would you like my report?” she asked, looking past him to the three advocates with what Chakotay read as a mild flash of venom.

“Of course I would like your report, Lieutenant,” Chakotay told her.

She still clearly had a problem with the aliens, for which he really didn’t see any basis. Not yet, anyway. He made a mental note to have a word with her.

“What about… them, sir?” she asked, nodding at the Drosary.

“Would you rather we spoke in the captain’s ready room?” Chakotay offered rather curtly.

B’Elanna didn’t hesitate. “I would.”

“Very well.” Chakotay bit the words off as he started across the bridge. He took a deep breath and calmed himself somewhat as the ready room door slid aside. He turned, then waited for the door to close behind B’Elanna.

“It’s not like they’re transmitting everything we say,” he told B’Elanna. “We’re controlling that, and frankly so are they.

They’ve been very helpful, at least to a point, and I’d say—” “Do you want my report or not?” she interrupted, standing less than a meter from him.

Chakotay reminded himself of her Klingon temper, her ongoing struggle to control that part of herself, and his desire to give her the chance to do so. He saw her mixed heritage as one of her greatest strengths and had always tried to encourage her to accept herself as she was, just as he had. Of course, her more aggressive nature could get out of hand. He didn’t understand her animosity toward the Drosary, something he thought had diminished since their talk in the mess hall, but he didn’t think confronting her over it would do anyone any good right now. He nodded.

“I have the warp engines back on line.”

Chakotay felt a sudden swell of enthusiasm. “That’s very good news, B’Elanna,” he said, trying to maintain a proper measure of composure.

“What about the main deflector dish?”

“That was one of the first things we were able to repair. It wasn’t damaged very badly. I’m a little concerned about the engines, though.

They aren’t exactly specification ready.”

“What can you give us?”

“Sixty percent, maybe. And I can’t guarantee how long that will last, or if it will be enough.”

“I know a way to find out,” Chakotay said.

B’Elanna nodded. “The computer is still working out the calculations, but we should be ready to attempt diverting the first moon in about an hour. I suggest we try the smallest moon first.”

“That’s also the one closest to us.”

She nodded again. “It’s up to you.”

“I agree.” He raised an eyebrow. “Completely. And thank you, Lieutenant. We’ll begin as soon as you’re ready. I’ll have Paris get right on it as well. Anything else?”

She just looked at him, hands fidgeting at waist level as she stood there. “No, sir, I guess not,” she said.

He didn’t believe her. “I think you should give our guests another chance, B’Elanna.” Chakotay stepped toward her, stood just in front of her. “There is nothing inherently wrong with people getting along. Or are you worried about the captain and Kim, or—” “If you want to get this show on the road, you’re going to have to let me go back to work?”

B’Elanna said evenly.

Chakotay sighed. “That’s it?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Very well. Dismissed.”

The door slid open again as the two of them moved toward it.

B’Elanna lingered for a moment in the opening, looking out onto the bridge. Mila and Tassay had gathered around Paris for an amicable chat. Jonal was standing near the captain’s chair having a casual conversation with four other members of the bridge crew. Their small group suddenly chuckled at something Jonal had said, and then the banter quickly resumed.

Then Tassay looked up toward the ready room. She smiled and started toward Chakotay as soon as she spotted him. B’Elanna turned and stepped back into the ready room, clutching Chakotay’s sleeve as she did so and pulling him back inside. She let the door hiss shut again.

“Don’t you see it?” she said in a peppery tone, glaring at him.

“See what?”

“We have possibly hostile aliens on the bridge, in a tactical situation.”

“The situation is unusual, but in effect the Drosary are ambassadors, so their presence is not unprecedented by any means,” Chakotay said, considering. “Under the circumstances—” “But everybody likes them.

Jonal is the life of the party, Mila is practically sitting in Paris’s lap, Tassay can’t wait to see you—for God’s sake, if she had a tail it would wag!”

“You just don’t know her as well as I do.”

“But you just met her!”

“She has quite a story to tell, B’Elanna,” Chakotay said, trying again.

“Her people do. She comes from a very large, extended family. They have a great respect for all life, for their creator and the gifts he has given them. She says that, in their own way, the Televek have always had a similar philosophy. They are terribly misunderstood by most peoples, especially in regard to their business dealings. They believe that by selling comparable goods to both sides in a conflict they are in effect preventing either side from gaining an unfair advantage, thereby often preventing slaughter. They’ve made enemies because of this, and it’s made them overly cautious, but—” “I guess I’m just a little too impressed, Chakotay. Did it ever occur to you that they also can make twice as much profit that way?”

“Yes, of course. But you’re still not seeing the situation from their side. I am at least trying to.”

“You think I don’t see them clearly? I watch them, Commander, the way they talk and act, the way you and everyone else around here acts when they are around, and I don’t know why, but I keep getting this urge to rip them in half.”

“Then get over it, Lieutenant. Soon enough, if we cooperate with them, work with them a little, we will have the captain and the others back, and we’ll also have our phasers back in working order. We might even save a race of people who alone are probably worth all of this trouble, maybe more. Then we’ll be on our way, and so will the Televek.”

“I see. Sounds sweet.”

They faced each other in silence for a moment. Chakotay didn’t want it left like this. He knew there was more he wanted to say.

And he couldn’t say for sure she wasn’t right.

“You are key to so much of this,” he finally added. “You have to work with them. As chief engineer, you could at least try to keep an open mind.”

She closed her eyes, then opened them and looked up at him again.

“Maybe things just aren’t happening soon enough.”

“I know, but they will. This is your Klingon blood talking, I think.

I’m not saying you shouldn’t listen to it; we both know it will always be a part of you, that you need it, but… maybe you should try listening to your human side, for now.”

B’Elanna took a breath. “My human side feels the same way,” she said.

“And, Commander, since you are acting as captain, you could also try to keep an open mind.”

She turned away. This time when the door opened onto the bridge, she stepped through and kept going. Chakotay watched her leave, then found Tassay standing there, waiting for him to come toward her. She was lovely, and highly skilled as a negotiator, and very, very friendly.

It was almost too good to be true…

An indirect approach seemed wisest. Janeway led the way around the south end of the Drenarians’ extensive planted fields, following a line of trees and brush that bordered the field.

Finally the three of them drew within sight of the knoll where the shuttle had landed. They crouched lower among the bushes, using them for cover. Ash and soot had covered them from head to toe, blending them in with their surroundings almost completely.

Nan Loteth had given them lengths of cloth to tie bandanalike over their noses and mouths, which helped them to breathe. These had proven quite effective.

Janeway’s first concern was that any Televek present might have infrared sensing equipment trained on them. Tuvok kept watch with his tricorder. He ran a fresh scan, and decided that, so far at least, they had apparently not been detected. Kim continued scanning the planet itself. Earthquakes were often preceded by a sudden jerk that was easily detectable. That wasn’t much, but some warning, at least, would be helpful.

The morning sun was already growing uncomfortably hot, and their brisk, obstacle-fraught hike had made them sweat, causing ash to cling to their skin. The cool shade provided by the trees felt good, as did the gentle breeze.

When they neared the site, they dropped down into a shallow ravine, keeping their heads low. As they drew up approximately parallel with the shuttle’s location, Janeway dropped down on all fours, then waited while Tuvok and Kim did the same. Then they crawled up and forward through the thick, natural hedge.

From here the shuttle was plainly visible just over one hundred meters away. It appeared largely untouched, though the main hatch had clearly been opened, and just as they had feared, the shuttle was now well guarded. Half a dozen figures clad in black-and-white uniforms stood about, visually scanning their surroundings. At this distance details were difficult to discern. Still, Janeway was sure, as she shaded her eyes with one open hand, that she could see long white hair peeking out from under their squat helmets. Televek, certainly. Or Drosary.

Or whatever they were calling themselves this morning.

“Captain,” Tuvok said, raising his tricorder and tapping at it once more, “the bioscans of the Televek guarding our shuttle are precisely the same as those of the Drosary advocates aboard Voyager.”

“You read my mind, Mr. Tuvok.”

The Vulcan tipped his head toward her. “I have done no such thing, Captain.”

“Then I guess we just think alike.”

“I’m getting the same readings, Captain,” Kim said, duplicating Tuvok’s scans. “Doesn’t this mean that we’ve been had?”

“That is the only logical explanation,” Janeway said.

Tuvok looked at her. “Captain—” “I know,” Janeway said, grinning. “I read your mind.” She turned toward the shuttle again. “This also means that everything Gantel and his advocates told us was a lie,” she muttered. “At least we have to assume as much. Which means that three Televek are up there on my ship right now, lying to Chakotay. And we don’t know exactly what they’re up to. We must make contact with Voyager again at any cost.”

“There are probably more Televek inside the shuttle as well,” Tuvok pointed out. “In all, too many to attempt a frontal assault.”

“If the main hatch is blocked, we’ll just have to think of something else,” Janeway said, looking around, seeing no easy approach. Each of the Televek was holding a stubby energy rifle, and the sentinels were spaced fairly evenly around the shuttle.

Thick, knee-high grass covered the ground between the tree line and the shuttle, but it would not provide any real cover.

“Any trace of sensor equipment in use?” she asked Tuvok.

“I continue to find none, Captain,” Tuvok said, holding his open tricorder out again, moving it gently from side to side.

“They don’t need sensors,” Kim said. “With all that open ground we’ll never get close without drawing their fire.”

“Agreed, Captain,” Tuvok said. “I am scanning several bodies in the grass, all approximately twenty meters from the shuttle.

They are almost certainly Drenarian.”

“Nan Loteth’s people,” Janeway concluded.

“I’ll bet they never knew what hit them,” Kim said.

Janeway briefly envisioned the scene, energy beams striking unprotected flesh from well beyond the range of the Drenarians’ primitive weapons.

She shook the image off, but as she peered out into the tall, soot-covered grasses, she could see several dark shapes. The three officers observed a long moment of silence. Nothing changed in the field.

Janeway looked out to her left, eyeing the bluff where she had fallen the day before. A large part of hillside had fallen away during the last big quake, but the newer edge was rather like the old. She had an idea. She didn’t like the variables, but there wasn’t time to worry about that.

“We’ll have to split up. Tuvok, I want you to stand by here.

Try to get a little closer if you can, but keep your head down.

And keep your face covered, so you won’t choke on the dust.

Don’t risk being seen. Kim and I are going to work our way up there and attempt to draw some of those guards away from the shuttlecraft.