summary:

TITLE: Janeway Redux
AUTHOR: halfofone
RATING: R
CODE: J/7
FEEDBACK: Constructive feedback welcome.
SUMMARY: Set after five years after the events of Counterpoint in season 5. Janeway gets remade and returns to find her old ship. She needs Voyager and the crew but can they trust her?
SPOILERS: Some Season 4 and Season 5 spoilers.
ARCHIVING: If you want ... I would quite like to know where.
DISCLAIMER: TPTB are Paramount/Viacom. In a perfect world I would own Star Trek but it's not and I don't.

disclaimer:

TPTB are many. In a perfect world I would be one of them but it's not and I'm not. No infringement of copyright/trade marks or other intellectual property is intended. This story was written for fun and not profit.

warnings:

Warning: This story includes same sex relationships between women. If you are offended by this or it is illegal where you live or you are underage then please read no further.

Full warnings, credits and disclaimers can be found in the contents page and chapter 1.

text:

Part 6 - A life worth living

Kathryn lay on the floor of the cell and tried not to move. The intense pain in her chest suggested broken ribs and possibly a punctured lung. Third of the week. She could hear Kraal, her cell mate, cursing.

"Don't touch me" she managed to say. "I don't think I could bear it."

"Hell and damnation" muttered the hairy biped. "Where are those accursed medics?"

Kathryn felt a cool wet cloth lightly stroking her forehead and felt a little water dripped on to her lips. As she lay there she rather hoped that the medics would let her die. Then she shrugged that thought off angrily. I am not going to die here.

From outside the high prison window a dreadful crying and screaming began. Janeway heard Kraal get up and move to the window. The huge beast could just see out of the window although it was nearly three metres off the ground. She knew what he was watching and as usual he began swearing, a low continuous and rhythmical stream of obscenity. After an hour had passed the noises outside had subsided and Kraal left his post.

Kathryn had still not moved. Steeling herself she asked the same question that she had asked every day for the last two weeks. "Did you see them?"

"No."

A noise at the cell door announced the arrival of the Devore prison doctor with two guards. "Well how is my most beautiful patient today? More little accidents I see. Well don't worry I'll have you fixed up in no time so you will be fit and well for your meeting with the Inspector tomorrow."

Examining her he frowned slightly. "I think Inspector Kashyk was very enthusiastic today. I really think you should be more cooperative Captain Janeway."

She heard Kraal growl and prayed he wouldn't act foolishly. The guards would gun him down and he would not get any treatment. No one cared if he lived or died.

The Doctor injected her and the pain subsided. He then proceeded to run a variety of instruments over her, repairing broken bone and damaged tissue. The treatment continued longer than usual.

"Some of these injuries cannot be immediately repaired. You will need surgery tomorrow. Inspector Kashyk may have to defer your next tete-a-tete until it is finished."

Breathing against the pain Kathryn said as brightly as she could "Well I hope that you are the one to tell him Doctor. You know how he hates to be disappointed."

Kraal snorted his approval.

The Doctor thought about her words and looked nervous. He gathered his tools before leaving with a parting shot. "You may think you are smart Captain Janeway but from what I have heard, come tomorrow you will be only too glad to cooperate with anything he asks."

Janeway kept her face impassive. But when the Devore had left she sank down. "What now? Kraal I do not understand. Kashyk is enjoying himself but he is not actually asking me any questions of importance. Not since the first day. They are waiting for something. This is just the warm up."

Concern wormed into her mind and then a musical voice in her head said. 'You are still in pain Kathryn.'

"Nithqref" she said with pleasure. "You are back from the research centre. Are you OK? Where are you?"

'The current experiments are not too distressing and I have been returned to my holding cell. Kathryn I have obtained some information about Kraal's wife. She is part of a mining detail in a camp four days distance from here. She is reported to be holding up well.' A pause. 'There is no news yet of the children.'

"Kraal", Kathryn repeated aloud, "Nithqref has found out where your wife is. She is ok and working in a mining camp four days walk from here. Nithqref has not yet found your children, but is still looking." She added the last bit to counter the expression of sadness that had entered Kraal's eyes.

"I knew the old harridan would survive!" the redoubtable warthog grunted.

Kathryn laughed despite her pain. Deadman's humour she thought and then returned her attention to the telepath she could still feel in her mind. "Nithqref how is the war with the Borg progressing?"

'The Devore are losing. Another forty systems have been assimilated. The Devore had some success initially and managed to hold the Borg for a period due to some new weapon. But that advantage seems to have been lost now.'

"The Borg have adapted." A small part of her was pleased. Kathryn could not deny how she felt. She tried to squash the thought and told herself that millions of innocent bystanders were being destroyed or assimilated in this conflict yet she hated the Devore. She wasn't sure she had ever hated anyone like this before even the Cardassians. The anger and hatred were growing inside her.

She could still feel the agony of the Brenari woman who had given her mind and knowledge to Kathryn. She felt the pain as that gentle woman had watched her husband and children tortured to death. Not because they knew anything or had done anything but just because they were Brenari.

She had felt some of the despair Nithqref had suffered at the loss of his world and his culture. She could feel the pain of the beautiful Halquine at this moment, in this prison, being subjected to endless physical and psychological experiments.

She watched Kraal everyday, looking through that prison window, waiting for his wife and children to appear in the daily purge of the sick and the weak prisoners. Pushed into a large walled holding area and then methodically vapourised by phaser blasts from the gun turrets. Kraal was left to rot here knowing that all he could expect, for the short remainder of his life, was to see his family walk one by one for the last time into the ugly grey holding area.

She hated the memory of the arrogant black suited bureaucrats stalking about on her beloved ship, persecuting and bullying her crew, hunting down helpless children and terrified adults.

And she pushed her anger into a tight ball inside her. Everyday as she was beaten and humiliated she used that fury like a wall concentrating on it so hard that she could hardly feel the blows. Nithqref had noticed the change in her but when he had tried to place her feelings in perspective Kathryn had cut him off. She needed that anger to survive.

*~~~*

Kashyk smiled as his prisoner was dragged through the door and pushed to her knees on the floor in front of him. "Good morning Captain Janeway. The Doctor tells me you are not fit to continue our little discussion but I disagree and here you are."

He walked towards her and lifted her chin. "I have a nice surprise for you. An old friend. I think our meeting will be very fruitful." A man that Janeway did not recognise stepped into the room.

"Captain Janeway, I would like to introduce one of our foremost exobiologists, Professor Derrish."

"I am afraid I don't remember meeting you Professor." replied Janeway.

Kashyk sneered slightly. "My dear Captain, it is not Professor Derrish that you know but the subject of his latest investigation." He gestured at a guard standing by the door. "Bring it in."

Janeway knew almost before the figure was led through the door and could not disguise her anguish. Kashyk looked at her in delight.

"Why Captain that is more emotion than I have seen in the last two weeks."

Seven of Nine swayed uncertainly. She had been drugged and paralysed for most of the previous two weeks and had not been allowed to regenerate. Her face showed a distinctly Borg like pallor and she was painfully thin. Her eyes, even the Borg eye, focussed with difficulty on the small woman kneeling on the floor.

"Captain I have found you."

Seven of Nine pitched forward and passed out.

"What have you done to her?" said Janeway in a voice so icy that Kashyk involuntarily stepped back. He caught an amused expression on the face of the Professor and promptly kicked Janeway in the stomach to relieve his irritation. She fell back and screamed in pain as his boot impacted on her injuries from the previous day. As she lay gasping on the floor, Kashyk prepared to kick her again.

"Inspector" interrupted Professor Derrish "I am sure this is all very entertaining but we need to get to work. Bring Janeway and the Borg to the research facility."

Kashyk shrugged his shoulders and gestured to the guards who picked both women up by the arms and dragged them unceremoniously out of the Inspector's office.

*~~~*

Through force of will, Kathryn Janeway watched impassively as two Devore soldiers chained a still unconscious Seven of Nine to a bench. Professor Derrish was introducing himself to several Devore scientists and technicians who worked in the research centre. From their attitude of deference it was obvious that the Professor was an important man.

The Professor disengaged himself from the fawning scientists and came over to stand in front of Janeway. She didn't look at him but kept her gaze on Seven of Nine who had started to move a little. The Professor followed her eyes and started to speak.

"The Borg is a remarkable piece of engineering. Force fields, paralysers, tranquillizers. It has adapted to them all. We have had great difficulty controlling your Borg. Preventing it from regenerating has been the most successful strategy."

Carefully controlling her voice to sound casual Janeway enquired, "Fascinating Professor Derrish but where do I come in?"

"You are aware of the Borg invasion. Do not bother to deny it. The telepaths always know everything. You are probably also aware that we are losing this conflict."

Janeway kept silent. She did not want to admit the extent of Brenari intelligence gathering even if the Devore were truly aware of it. The scientist looked at her and seemed slightly amused in a grim way.

"Captain Janeway I see that cooperation is not going to be your preferred working method. Alright let me get to the point. We know that you and your ship survived a conflict with the Borg collective and that you captured and have somehow gained control of this particular specimen. We need any possible advantage that can be obtained from this knowledge. Therefore you are required to disclose whatever information you have. Promptly."

When she did not respond he continued. "When we captured it, this Borg was looking for you. It was travelling in a specially adapted Federation shuttle equipped with much technology of Borg in origin. We believe that your Borg has been sent by your crew to rescue you. Our fleet are now looking for Voyager as it must be somewhere near Devore space, waiting for you and the Borg to return."

Janeway felt annoyed at the idea that Chakotay might have disobeyed her orders. She suppressed her reaction. She needed to know more.

"How do you know Seven of Nine was looking for me? Perhaps she was rejoining her collective."

"The Borg asked for help in locating you from the creatures who then betrayed it to us." Derrish answered honestly, seeing no advantage in withholding information. He needed her help anyway he could get it. He returned to the point of his visit. "We are particularly interested in how you control this Borg and your knowledge of their assimilation technology. How did you avoid assimilation?"

Janeway's tone was sardonic as she replied. "I'm afraid my dear Professor that I cannot help you. We did not beat the Borg by fighting with them. The separation of Seven of Nine from the Borg collective was forcible but our success in 'controlling' her depended on persuading Seven that the future lay with us and in allowing her to develop her individuality. I do not think this method could be applied to the many thousands of drones in a Borg cube." She allowed herself to smile a little. "Believe me, it was hard enough with just one."

Derrish looked at her face trying to gauge the truth of her words. His shoulders drooped slightly and she could see the unwilling acceptance.

Kashyk entered the room, having overheard the last part of the exchange between Derrish and Janeway. He took a position facing Janeway.

"Do not believe her Professor Derrish," he said. "Deceit is second nature to the woman. I'll get the truth out of her." So saying he slapped Janeway across the face. The Captain's head snapped back and she grunted in pain.

"Do not touch her!" Seven shouted furiously. She strained desperately in her bonds and with an effort the ex-drone could not afford, snapped the chains that held her to the bench. She lurched towards Kashyk but in her weakened state, she stumbled, giving him time to retreat behind Janeway. He grabbed the Captain from behind and held his disruptor to her head. His voice shook as he shouted "Stay where you are Borg monster or your Captain dies." The Devore commander was obviously very frightened.

Seven of Nine stared unsteadily and stopped. "Do not hurt her," she half-ordered, half-pleaded.

Janeway completely ignored the nervous and highly dangerous Devore commander as he held her hostage, clutching her with sweaty trembling hands. She felt no fear. All her attention was focused on Seven of Nine.

"Seven are you alright?"

If she had not been restrained Kathryn Janeway would have hit herself for asking such a stupid question. Seven was clearly far from alright. But the she answered with her usual accuracy. "I am partially functional Captain, I am operating at approximately 53.2% efficiency."

Janeway visually examined her former astrometrics officer. She noted the many bruises and cuts. She noted the exhausted trembling of her hands, the white face that spoke of days of torment and deprivation. She added Seven's suffering to the long list of grievances to be avenged.

Professor Derrish watched the exchange curiously. For two weeks the Borg had behaved like an emotionless automaton ignoring any questions, trying to escape at every opportunity but entirely without disclosing any feelings. Within five seconds of meeting Janeway, the Borg had started to display emotion. Her fear for the Captain's safety was visible in her cold blue eyes, and so was the rage directed at the shivering Kashyk as the Borg stood clenching her fists, rocking as though barely able to contain herself. A surprising hypothesis suggested itself. Derrish decided to test his idea.

"Seven of Nine."

Seven looked at him with slight surprise - none of the Devore had used her designation previously.

"Captain Janeway will not be harmed if you cooperate with me."

"You have already damaged her." Seven stated flatly.

"If you will not help us I will be forced to ask Inspector Kashyk to damage her further. But if you decide to assist me in my investigations the Captain's injuries will be attended to and no further damage done."

Janeway could see what the Professor was attempting and her hatred boiled over. "Seven you are not to help this man. That is an order." she commanded.

Seven looked at Janeway with a trace of her old arrogance. "I am not under your command now Captain Janeway. I am no longer a member of the Voyager collective."

Before she could stop herself Janeway asked in a furious voice "Then why are you here?"

Seven looked a little bewildered and realised why Naomi Wildman found adult humans somewhat stupid sometimes. They seemed to miss the obvious. "To rescue you. Silly."

Janeway opened her mouth and then did not know what to say. She was returned to the present when Kashyk roughly twisted her arm and she gasped in pain.

He snarled at the ex-drone. "Borg. It is clear your rescue attempt has failed. You will obey the Professor or I will take great pleasure in making your Captain beg for mercy. And even greater pleasure in denying her request."

Derrish interrupted quickly as Seven stiffened and took another shaky step towards the arrogant fool holding Captain Janeway.

"Thank you Inspector but I am quite capable of negotiating with my prisoners. And they are now my prisoners Inspector. The Imperium have transferred full authority to me since you were deemed to be ineffective in this matter." The contempt in the scientist's thin toneless voice was apparent. Kashyk did not release Janeway but his hold relaxed. Janeway heard him swear under his breath.

Professor Derrish then addressed Captain Janeway. "Captain Janeway why are you opposed to helping us defend ourselves against the Borg invasion? I understand that you may not have formed the best impression of the Devore Imperium but surely even you can see that the Borg must be stopped."

Janeway stared back unblinking and answered in a low frozen voice "Ask the Inspector why. Perhaps you have not noticed the purpose of this camp, this slave world. Perhaps you have not noticed the murder, suffering and torture meted out daily to your unfortunate subject peoples. Perhaps, like the Inspector here, you enjoy this power and believe in your right to inflict such pain. The Borg are a terrible foe but as someone once said to me they are like a force of nature. You cannot blame them. But I am unable to extend that understanding to the Devore Imperium."

There was a silence.

Seven of Nine broke it unexpectedly, saying evenly "I will assist you Professor."

Janeway almost screamed at her "Seven do not help them. They will not keep their word."

Seven looked into the anguished blue eyes and spoke gently but implacably. "Captain, if I do not help them then there will be one of two outcomes. Either they will eliminate you or the Borg will assimilate you. Neither option is acceptable." Ignoring the confusion in her captain's face, Seven turned her attention to Derrish. " Professor Derrish, I must regenerate for approximately sixteen hours if I am to be restored to 100 percent functionality. You will take me to the Borg alcove aboard the shuttle Faraday."

Professor Derrish nodded his assent with relief and instructed his assistant to accompany Seven of Nine.

"Remember Seven of Nine", he called after her, as she was led away under guard, "do not deceive me or your Captain Janeway will pay with her life."

"Hmm. How very touching." said a smooth voice in Janeway's ear, "The Borg would appear to be emotionally attached to you Kathryn." Now that Seven had gone Kashyk had recovered his nerve and was holding her painfully tight and grinning. "This could be very amusing. I wonder if you have feelings for that creature? Surely not after all we have shared." He pushed her back against the wall.

The memory of kissing the Devore Inspector on Voyager made Kathryn feel sick now, although at the time it had not seemed so bad and a necessary part of the game she had played with Kashyk. Seven was not the only one who would do almost anything to get what she wanted. she reflected.

"That's quite enough Inspector Kashyk" said Professor Derrish impatiently. "We need the Borg's help. Captain Janeway will remain in good health and you will keep away from her. Is that understood? When the Borg has regenerated, she will be very hard to control without the help of the good captain. Return Janeway to the cells but I want her back here in sixteen hours fed, rested and healed."

Kashyk scowled and then released Janeway, forcing a half-smile to his lips. "A temporary respite dear Kathryn. Temporary."

*~~~*

Kathryn sat on the floor of her cell refusing to speak. Kraal had roared, argued and sneered for the last thirty minutes but without penetrating her fully armoured indifference. Internally she raged against Seven of Nine for agreeing to help the accursed Devore, the act had became a betrayal of everything that she had believed the Borg had learned in her time on Voyager. That Seven was doing this to save Kathryn Janeway made it worse, made the Captain responsible. The small part of her mind that asked why the ex-drone would want to rescue her was shouted down.

It was in this mental state of incoherent fury and turmoil that Nithqref found Janeway. Gently, trying not to intrude too brutally on her disturbed psyche, the Halquine probed her thoughts trying to understand the ex-Federation Captain's distress.

"God! Nithqref, you have no sense of privacy," she exclaimed angrily.

'That is a difficult concept for a Halquine' Nithqref agreed equably. 'Why are you so adamant about helping the Devore?'

"How can you, of all people, ask such a question? After what those bastards have done to your people." She banged her hand on the ground in frustration, ignoring the pain in two broken fingers, a parting gift from the Inspector.

'Kathryn I have no love for the Devore Imperium but assimilation by the Borg is not an acceptable alternative. My home world has been enslaved and my people hunted and persecuted for more than one hundred Halquine cycles but at least we can resist the Devore. There is hope that one day we will prevail. Once assimilated by the Borg that hope has gone.'

The small redheaded captain shifted uncomfortably but was not ready to surrender her hatred. "If we help the Devore then we hand them even more power over their enemies. I cannot allow that, I made that mistake once before."

Janeway's imagination presented her with the image of two pairs of gentle violet eyes, studying her and she felt the Halquine's compassion as Nithqref postulated 'When you helped the Borg defeat species 8472? The Halquine winced at the guilt oozing poisonously in the human's mind.

Kathryn, there are always choices between lesser or greater evils. Your decision then may have had appalling consequences but to have done otherwise may have had worse consequences. You will never know. You made the best decision you could under the circumstances.'

Her voice was anguished as she confessed, "But I did not defeat species 8472 to save the galaxy. I did it to save my ship, to help Voyager get home a little quicker. And now I am expected to help the Devore to save myself." Janeway wrapped her arms tightly around her knees and tried not to shiver.

Nithqref was relentless. 'Your guilt is unproductive and selfish. Kathryn, another two subject systems were assimilated today. The H'ronor home world and the Kirrin. The H'ronor were an ancient and civilised race. They were unique and now they are gone. The Kirrin were home to one of strongest resistance cells in the Imperium. All lost. If you can help to stop the Borg then you must. Feel the truth of what I say.'

"This is not my fight. I have no right to interfere. I am a Starfleet Captain and I pledged to uphold the Federation's prime directive."

Nithqref cut her off abruptly. 'Please do not quote your prime directive to me Kathryn, this fight is yours as much as mine. Your quadrant is far away but if we defeat the Borg here then perhaps your people will not have to fight them again. Not to mention the thousands of peaceful worlds in between.'

Nithqref had kept Kraal up-to-date with the argument so far and now the Parath spoke up, quite gently in his terms.

"Kathryn, stop whingeing! You are one of us now. Your ship has gone and your old life with it. You are no longer a Federation captain but a prisoner of the Devore Imperium. It is time to accept that and move on. Your life is here and your friends are here." He added with complete certainty in his gruff voice "We will defeat these Borg and then we will overthrow the Imperium."

Kathryn exploded to her feet and shouted "I will not assist that murdering monster Kashyk, even if the future of the Galaxy is at stake." As she said it the smallness and unimportance of her feelings overcame her and she sank back to her knees sobbing and put her head in her hands. Kraal walked slowly to the small, crumpled human, lifted her up with ease and held her weeping face against his warm furry chest. After ten minutes, the helpless crying gradually subsided and her red rimmed eyes looked up at the Parath guardsman's face. There was a suspicion of a smirk curling his hoglike features.

"How very feminine Captain Janeway. Your Federation must be an unusually gentle part of the galaxy."

"Let me go." She was angry and unbelievably embarrassed. The Parath set her down on the floor gently and she straightened her back and glared at him with a full force ten Janeway special.

Nithqref, sensing the impending storm, intervened hurriedly and clumsily tried to divert Kathryn's attention with the first thought in mind 'You are surprised that Seven of Nine tried to rescue you. Perhaps she is not as indifferent to you as you feared.'

"What!" Janeway's inner wall of denial and suppressed emotions shook and crumbled as though impacted by a cannon ball.

Nithqref mentally cringed at the inadvertent disclosure of such intimate knowledge. I am sorry Kathryn but your feelings for her are very strong and hard for a telepath to miss. I did not mean to intrude.

Kraal was now looking very interested.

"What's all this?" he asked, a grin rippling his features, "Do not tell me that our fearless Captain has the hots for another woman." He roared with laughter, the folds on his face shaking violently.

Kathryn gritted her teeth. "Nithqref I may have to kill you but only after I have disembowelled this pig with a dinner plate."

"Fine words, my weeping lover of women." Kraal collapsed laughing again, leaning his huge, quivering, bulk against the sodden wall.

"I am not a lover of women," she blustered and then realised that denial to a Halquine (and by extension Kraal) meant nothing. "I mean I have never loved a woman before, and anyway even if I did have feelings for her, nothing ever happened. It wasn't appropriate. How could I act? I was her commander, goddammit, not a potential lover." Aware that she was babbling, and babbling loudly at that, Janeway shut up. Kraal continued to guffaw uncontrollably.

'Do you care for the Borg?' In her mind she had sensed Nithqref smiling before feeling the question and she couldn't understand why the telepath bothered asking, her inner feelings were plainly known to the strange being. She answered anyway.

"Yes. I love her." And was shocked to hear the words from her own lips. She tried to ignore Kraal who was busy stuffing half his jerkin in his mouth while apparently having convulsions.

"Always - from the very beginning." She looked around her at the dark, damp, grimy cell. "This is a fine place to admit aloud what I had barely acknowledged to myself."

'Seven of Nine is here and you are here. You may have a better future than you realised.' suggested the gentle Halquine.

"But only if the Borg are defeated and we escape the Devore, not a very promising scenario for future bliss," she murmured cynically. She felt Nithqref's disappointment like a whiplash and was ashamed. Kathryn Janeway squared her shoulders, shaking off the fear and doubt. Nithqref experienced a surge of total determination, powered by a duranium will, being focused on one end only, the defeat of the Borg. Suddenly the telepath had a moments pity for the unfortunate Collective.