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 12 - Traitors

Kathryn sat on a low couch in her quarters and leaned back against Seven who obligingly wrapped her arms around her Captain.

The current meeting was to discuss their predicament and Kathryn looked at her companions with affection. None of them betrayed any awareness of the changes in her but Kathryn remained painfully self conscious. She was embarrassed by the physical changes she had undergone and pathetically grateful that Seven was showing her some affection. They had hardly seen each other for several days and Kathryn had worried that Seven was avoiding her even though rationally she knew Seven was fully occupied by her work with Professor Derrish.

Nithqref's two bodies reclined elegantly against the wall resembling the delicate sylphs of Earth legends. Despite all the hardship, the prison clothing and the beatings which had left visible marks the Halquine retained an air of grace and calm.

The youngest Parath piglets Margil, Nilka and Siunaal played tag on the floor around them while the two older ones Balaan and Greka assaulted their father who feigned being frightened. Kraal's wife Makela regarded her husband and two litters of children with her usual amused exasperation and then returned to practising some peculiar Parath martial art which she did with surprising grace for such a large woman. When Kathryn had shown surprise, the woman had explained with characteristic bluntness that her oaf of a husband was not the only fighter in the family and anyway it came in handy when sorting out the kids. Kathryn had been a little shocked and not known whether to take her seriously but it was soon obvious to the human that the Parath children were indulged by both parents despite lots of bluster and threats.

"Somehow I never imagined giving a briefing like this." Janeway joked to her assembled team in Brenari (The lingua franca of the Free Alliance).

Seven tightened her arms around the small Captain as the meaning of Kathryn's words was conveyed to her by Nithqref.

"I enjoy these meetings more than on Voyager." Seven whispered in her ear in English. (Janeway was teaching the main languages to Seven who learned faster than any human thanks to her eidetic memory but without access to any language resources it was time consuming and Seven still had some way to go to fluency.)

Janeway tilted her head back against the Borg's shoulder and smiled up at her. A snort from Kraal brought her mind back to the business of the meeting.

She hoped that the Devore were not listening. Seven had accessed ship's sensors and masked the group's life signs, setting up false signals to confuse the monitoring equipment that was liberally arranged throughout their living areas. The ex-Borg was satisfied that they would not be overheard or the gathering detected so Kathryn supposed she should be also.

Seven reported that the design and build work on the mass delivery mechanism for the anti-assimilation project was now completed.

"... the project has now transferred to an engineering team. Professor Derrish has asked me to continue work on making the anti-assimilation nanites more adaptable. Better mimics. My work allows me to retain access to the computer systems."

"Thank you Seven," Kathryn then addressed the Halquine aloud for the benefit of the others "Nithqref - have you any idea where we are going and why?"

'We are accompanying the Revenge to some kind of weapon demonstration. I cannot establish any further details because only senior Devore officers have been briefed and they are too dangerous to scan.' The two androgynous halves of the telepathic being looked worried and Kathryn guessed at the cause.

"What about the prisoners?" she asked. "What is their status?"

'Some 96 prisoners were transferred and are being held in the brig. They include two very senior ambassadors from the Free Alliance. I have made contact and assured them we will do what we can to assist but conditions are very poor and several of the prisoners are seriously ill. The Devore do not appear to be feeding them or treating their sickness.' The distress felt by the gentle being was transmitted to everyone together with a sense of the pain that the telepath had experienced when contacting the prisoners. Janeway consciously ignored the shared distress. She needed to hang on to the facts she told herself.

"Where is the Farini girl?" she enquired brusquely.

'She is in sick bay receiving medical treatment and is still very weak. Again I have established contact with her but she is suspicious that we are Devore spies. Despite that she is willing to help rescue the prisoners. I have not revealed your involvement Kathryn, as you instructed.'

"Good. Keep trying to get her trust, find out what she knows about this ship Nithqref. We need any edge we can get. So the prisoners usefulness is at an end so I am surprised they have not been executed already. Okay we need a plan to rescue them as well as ourselves. What are our options?" Kathryn was deliberately hard to counteract the pervasive sadness.

"Escape, Prison, Death" said Kraal succinctly, "but on a slightly less gloomy note we have the Faraday ..."

"Engines are non-operational." Seven noted.

"Can it be repaired?" asked Janeway trying to ignore the niggling irritation that clawed at her belly triggered by Seven and Kraal's negative responses.

Seven shook her head. "No and even if it were functional, we would not be able to launch it. It was transported inside a closed cargo bay."

"We could transport it out," Kathryn suggested.

"But it still won't fly." said the Borg with finality.

Kathryn couldn't control her annoyance. "Does anyone have any ideas, apart from giving up, which Seven seems happy to do?" She felt Seven stiffen and pull away a little.

"We could steal a shuttle from this ship" said Kraal.

"Does it have any?" Kathryn asked, still with an edge in her voice.

"Don't know" Kraal replied unhappily.

"Well at least that's something we can investigate, if any of you can be bothered" she added bitterly. Seven released her hold on the Captain abruptly.

Nithqref remonstrated 'Kathryn, we have no immediate opportunities awaiting us. We must be patient and look for weaknesses.'

"What about the prisoners, our patience may see them die," Kathryn snapped immediately. Flaming anger shook her even as she recognised the irrationality of her next words "If you are all too afraid or too lazy then you can all get out of here now. I will do better without you." There was a shocked silence and Janeway drew a deep breath to calm herself before glancing at her companions. Again she wondered if it was just her body that had changed.

Kraal was plainly furious and an ominous growl started in his chest. He was restrained by Nithqref placing a hand on his arm and no doubt a quiet word in his mind. The Parath subsided scowling, his wife looked scarcely less angry but she held her tongue. From the way Nithqref looked at her she knew the Halquine was also disappointed.

Nithqref was blunt. 'Kathryn please control your temper. This behaviour is not worthy of you.'

Janeway turned away from her friends, clenching her fists, digging her nails into the palms of her hands as she tried to regain control of herself. The Halquine then took charge. 'We will find a way forward. I suggest we find out as much as we can about this ship. We must ready ourselves to take action when the moment comes. I will further my contact with Morvius's daughter and try and reach a better understanding of how much she can or will help us. What other action would you like us to take Captain?'

Chastened and already regretting her impatience Kathryn was grateful for the Halquine deferring to her. With an effort of will she moderated her voice.

"I agree Nithqref that we need better intelligence."

The small ex-Captain turned to look at Seven. She could see the hurt in her love's face but maintained the facade of command.

"Seven continue your work with the Devore scientists but try and access the main computer, we need lockout codes, schematics of the ship, operational information, crew complement, shuttles, transporters, weaponry and security arrangements."

"I will obtain what I can Captain." Seven sounded distant and had withdrawn to the other side of the seat. Kathryn's heart shrank painfully but the habit of command was strong and she avoided reacting. 'A shame you didn't have that much control earlier Katie' said her inner voice. She ignored the voice and tried to concentrate.

"Kraal, I want you to try and get to know some of the Devore officers and men. There is a bar and entertainment area near the main crew quarters. Make yourself at home and see what you can dig up."

"But don't bring her home" interjected Makela. Her husband looked outraged but she just snorted and punched his arm. A little of the tension in the room eased.

"Okay let's find what we can," Kathryn said sounding positive. "Meeting over."

The small band split up, Kraal and Makela herding their small brood into the adjacent rooms. Nithqref was again made an unwilling accomplice, a gleeful Makela handed a squirming piglet to each of the Halquine's bodies.

"Two pairs of hands for the price of one - you would make a fortune as a mother's help" she chortled.

Kathryn watched them go and it occurred to her to wonder why the others had been so ready to ignore her behaviour. 'Almost as though they expected it' she thought uncomfortably.

After the others had gone Seven rose and started to leave also. Janeway said quickly "Seven are you going back to work now?" For a long second Seven hesitated before replying coolly.

"You wanted more information Captain. I am not required on duty at this time but ..."

"Don't go yet. I'm sorry Seven, I'm an ass. What I said in the meeting was uncalled for. No-one works harder than you." Kathryn Janeway passed her hand through her hair as she admitted. "No-one else deserved to be spoken to like that either."

"They did not." Seven seemed unforgiving and Kathryn suddenly felt very tired.

"I don't know what came over me. Seven is it possible that more than just my body changed when I was assimilated. I feel... different. I am a Starfleet Captain, trained to be tough, even ruthless when necessary but not brutal and not out of control."

"It is possible that you are not yourself," said Seven quietly adding more hesitantly, "Kathryn, your behaviour has occasionally been erratic, impulsive and emotional. Nithqref believes you are suffering from traumatic stress."

Kathryn's hackles rose with her voice as she stated icily "You have been discussing me." Seven pulled back, instantly wary. With considerable effort the former captain moderated her tone. She continued carefully, "No matter, but I want to know something. Seven, if this... instability results from my assimilation, can you fix me, can you... adjust me?" She rubbed her eyes, angrily determined not to cry. "I feel like a damned engine, I just want to know, do we have the right spare parts to put bloody Humpty Dumpty back to work?" She realised that her voice had risen further and she was almost shouting.

Seven studied her quietly and Kathryn turned away from the steady gaze, clenching her fists and digging her nails into her hands again as she struggled to retain some mastery of her emotions.

"I do not believe that the Borg components are malfunctioning." said Seven honestly. "Captain you were kidnapped, imprisoned and tortured."

"I am a Starfleet officer, I have been trained to withstand..."

"You are a human being, stranded in the Delta quadrant for five years with sole responsibility for 150 people. And now your remaining friends and your ship have been taken away." Seven was relentless. "Does it really surprise you Kathryn, that you are showing signs of strain?"

Kathryn Janeway silently stared at the tall blonde woman for long seconds before saying. "I don't have time for this Seven."

"You must make time."

"Don't take that insubordinate tone with me Seven. I am your commander."

"No, you are not! Nor do you command Kraal or Nithqref except by their consent. We accept your orders because we choose to. You are not in Starfleet now Kathryn, allegiance must be earned."

For a moment Seven thought the small red-head might hit her. Kathryn's face twisted with rage and Seven flinched away, dismayed by the uncontrolled fury in the pale face. As fear flickered over Seven's face Kathryn's anger collapsed. Now she was scaring the person she loved best in the Universe. Her clenched fists dropped and she slumped down on a chair.

"Seven I don't know how to be anything else" she whispered in a low voice. "Without my command what am I? Without Starfleet what am I?"

"You are Kathryn Janeway and it is enough."

Seven awkwardly squatted down beside her, put her arm around Kathryn's shoulders.

Kathryn wrapped her arms around Seven, buried her face in Seven's shoulder and began to cry, softly at first and then the sobs became louder and more painful. Seven was beside herself with guilt. It had never occurred to her that she could make Kathryn so unhappy. It was not a power that she enjoyed. She tightened her hold and drew Kathryn closer, stroking the soft hair but the helpless sobbing continued against her chest. Almost desperate to ease her love's pain she tried to think of something to say.

"You are... the captain of my heart" she said stiffly. A phrase remembered from the romantic reading material given to her by Voyager's doctor. It was apparently successful as the sobbing stopped but after a short while Kathryn's shoulders began to shake again. Seven regretted that her efforts had been so ineffective until a less than elegant snort alerted her to the fact that the ex-Captain was not crying any more. She raised Kathryn's chin and looked at the tear stained face suspiciously. Kathryn gazed into the china blue eyes and bit her lip, trying to stifle the rising laughter.

"A little mushy for a Borg?" she choked out and began laughing openly, hiding her face again in the beautiful ex-drone's shoulder. Embarrassed Seven tried to push her away but she hung on tightly and whispered "I'm sorry Seven, so very sorry, forgive me... again. I'm sorry, I love you. You deserve better than me." Kathryn was not laughing when she raised her face to kiss the full lips.

Seven tried to hold back but couldn't withstand the soft determined mouth on hers. Resistance crumbling, she began to respond to the insistent kisses.

She swept her captain off her feet, stupidly pleased that she could still effortlessly carry the smaller woman. Kathryn snuggled her head against Seven's breast and shut her eyes. Seven carried her to the bed and laid her down.

Gazing at the blissful face and closed eyes it occurred to Seven that the Captain had escaped too easily. Apologies alone were insufficient.

"You are correct Kathryn. I deserve better..." Kathryn jerked her head up and the blue-gray eyes opened wide with consternation. Seven smirked a little "... but as there are currently no available alternatives I will make do." She smothered any attempted comeback with another kiss and ignored the grunt of protest.

When the team met again the following day in Kathryn's quarters to report their findings, the Captain was in a much better mood.

Seven had infiltrated part of the Fearless' computer records and gathered a great deal of knowledge about the ship but she had been unable to discover anything about the purpose of the current mission except the final destination which appeared to be an unremarkable M-class moon circling a large gas giant.

Kathryn had used the time to familiarise herself with the layout of the ship and to get some understanding of it's impressive abilities. She had found that the Devore crew seemed less than happy to demonstrate and explain the vessel. A few words with Controller Goff had changed all that. The controller did seem to be genuinely interested in recruiting Janeway for the job of captain.

Nithqref had also made some progress with Morvius's daughter Atara. The girl was prepared to assist and claimed to be able to obtain command codes for the ship.

Of more immediate concern to everyone was Kraal who had been missing since the previous evening. His wife was hiding her fear behind a steady drip of low level sarcasm and mild invective.

"What time did Kraal leave?" asked Kathryn.

"After dinner of course - he needed his strength. The great lump."

"Did he say where he was going?" Kathryn was patient, a few days with Kraal and Makela and she knew they were fond of each other despite the constant mutual bickering.

"After a lot of fatuous nonsense about doing his duty and suffering for the cause the oaf admitted he was going to the bar to 'make friends'. You picked the right man for that job Captain. My husband has more friends in bars than most people have blood cells."

"I hear your voice sweetness," boomed the large Parath who had appeared in the doorway. He leaned heavily against the frame, "but a little quieter please my angel. My head is full of pounding beasts, pounding."

The Parath's normally ruddy brownish complexion was pale and his eyes, always reddish, seemed about to leak blood.

"You are drunk." said his wife in the tone of an offended grand-dame speaking to an especially lowly serf and loud enough to be heard through duranium reinforced walls.

"Captain you must excuse me while my wife and I settle our differences... with disruptors." His voice rose to a shout. The sound punched through his skull and he drooped against the door again and covered his eyes with a large hairy paw.

"Do you have anything useful to report," said Kathryn unsympathetically.

Raising himself slowly he whispered "I obtained this from a friend who I do not believe will miss it for some days." In his large hairy paw he held a Devore padd that he proffered to the Starfleet captain.

Kathryn took the stolen padd and activated it. She read the contents with mounting disgust. "Where did you get this?" she asked Kraal who was accepting a large mug of black chealath from his wife. (Although from the latter's expression it could equally have been poison.)

"From a senior gunner." Kraal pulled his lips back painfully in a grin. "He and I are good buddies with a mutual interest in the finer points of adMe." Kraal took a large gulp of his drink and gasped in relief. "When the bar closed we went back to his quarters with some other 'friends' to continue our game and he couldn't resist telling me about what a big day he was going to have tomorrow. Sadly it required some considerable time and several jugs of Devorean brandy to part him from the padd."

"You say this happens tomorrow! We don't even have a glimmer of a plan." Janeway re-read the document and closed her eyes. Why is there never any time?

Seven arched her cortical implant in a question. So far she didn't have a clue what was going on. Janeway translated the contents of the padd.

GUNNERY CREWS ARE TO REPORT FOR DUTY AT 0475 DST. AT 0510 THE PRISONERS WILL BE TRANSPORTED TO THE SURFACE. AT 0530 THE TEST WILL COMMENCE ON THE PLANET SURFACE. ESTIMATED COMPLETION 0560. SENSOR ASSESSMENTS OF TEST ASSIMILATIONS WILL THEN COMMENCE. ESTIMATED TIME FOR DATA COLLECTION 20 DST. AT 0578 FEARLESS AND REVENGE WILL LEAVE ORBIT. AT 0580 FEARLESS GUNNERY CREWS WILL OPEN FIRE AND DESTROY PLANET.

"Efficient," Seven stated baldly. "It accounts for the continuing existence of the prisoners. They required test subjects for the mass assimilation programme."

Janeway looked pained. "Seven try to be a little less impartial!"

"I did not imply that the situation was acceptable, simply that their actions were..." Seven could not think of an alternative, "...efficient."

Janeway winced. "Okay we have to think. What advantages do we have?"

There was a moment of quiet while the ill-assorted band tried to think of something in their favour.

"Well... the fools don't know that we know..." offered Makela breaking the silence unexpectedly. Kraal growled approvingly at his spouse.

'An advantage we must retain.' agreed Nithqref. 'Also the Devore are still allowing Seven access to the science station computers. Perhaps she can access the main computer from there.'

Seven shook her head. "The Farini design does not depend on a single main computer. It is highly diversified and each system seems to watch the others for signs of interference. I have gained limited access to the Fearless internal sensor controls - enough to falsify life signs. We can move about relatively freely"

"That will certainly help." Kathryn smiled encouragingly at her lover.

Kraal was still suffering, semi-reclining on the floor where he had slid down. Suddenly he sat upright and shouted in triumph "The Faraday!" He recoiled in pain and resumed speaking in a much more stifled voice. "Kathryn! The Faraday..."

"Can't fly - I know."

"It has a transporter. We could transport off this ship and escape!"

Kathryn was sceptical but mindful of her argument with Seven she controlled the sharp comeback merely asking. "We wouldn't be able to transport through the shields and where would we transport to?"

Kraal's face fell and he snorted. "I've not worked out all the details human and when are you going to have any ideas?" he asked aggressively. "I haven't heard anything from you."

He was satisfied to see the small human look chastened and then surprised when Kathryn suddenly grinned at him. Not immune to the Janeway charm, or beautiful women in general, Kraal felt the sun come out.

"Got it." she announced and exploded to her feet, striding up and down the small room, gesturing as she explained her plan to her comrades. When she finished talking she stood looking at them expectantly.

"You are mad Kathryn Janeway" said Kraal.

"I don't think so but I need you all on board with this. If we fail then the Devore will execute us." She looked pointedly at Makela. It was asking a lot to expect the woman to risk her children. The initial excitement faded and Janeway said soberly "It's all or none, if anyone disagrees then we won't do it."

"You are mad," said the Parath "but I like it." The rest of the small team signalled their agreement one by one. Janeway relaxed. She wasn't sure what she would have done if anyone had refused.

0450 found Kathryn pacing up and down in the confined space of the shuttle Faraday. She was feeling worried and missed Seven. The latter had been gone all night having persuaded Professor Derrish that she was working on some unforeseen problem with the mass assimilation program when actually she was working on disguising the Faraday's transporter signal as a random fluctuation in the power signal from the Borg alcove.

Kraal and Nithqref were sitting waiting patiently for the signal from Seven. This was to take place at 0510 to coincide with the transport of the prisoners to the planetoid's surface. The massive hulking Parath and the two slender, elfin Halquine bodies were in stark contrast huddled together on the small shuttle transporter pad. Kraal was relaxed and jovial. The imminent action and impossible mission did not seem to worry him. Nor was his wife even slightly concerned to human eyes but Kathryn guessed from the unusually affectionate way they had parted that there was some anxiety under the cheerful exteriors. Nithqref was more obviously subdued and she could feel the tension whenever the Halquine's mind touched hers.

Kathryn decided to check the transport control signal one more time and was hovering over the console when she observed Kraal watching her, his hog-like features contorted with amusement. 'Too obviously nervous Katie. Get a grip.' she told herself. She deliberately dropped her hands from the controls and smiled coolly at the large hog with as much command distance as she could muster.

"Ready Kraal?" she enquired.

"Ready Kathryn." he asserted.

"Nithqref, are you maintaining contact with Atara?"

'She understands what she has to do Captain' The Halquine sounded almost impatient.

"Well let's hope she can bring it off or this is going to be a very short and inglorious rescue attempt."

Kathryn was interrupted by Seven's voice on her communicator. "Test program completed. I will return for breakfast after the second test in five minutes."

Kathryn looked at her two companions. "Seven is ready. Five minutes."

There was a bang on the shuttle door and Makela stuck her head inside. "Kathryn. We have company. A couple of Devore soldiers are at knocking at your door."

Kathryn Janeway kept her voice steady despite the sudden jump in adrenaline. "Makela take over from me here. Keep to the plan. Nithqref can you keep me linked to everyone?"

'It should be possible. What are you going to do?'

"Improvise. I'll see you all later." She left the shuttle and exited from the storage bay into the main corridor. She could see the two soldiers further down the corridor aggressively pushing the buzzer on her door.

"Can I help you gentlemen?" she drawled walking briskly towards them.

They jumped at the sound of her voice. "You are required on the bridge. Orders of Controller Goff." said the more senior of the two, still obviously puzzled by her appearance behind him. "Sensors indicated you were in your room Captain Janeway. Why are you out here?"

"Deficiencies in your systems are not my problem. Now let's not keep the Controller waiting soldier" she snapped. "I'm sure he would not be amused at being delayed by you."

Without another look at the two soldiers she marched quickly towards the nearest elevator cubicle. The two soldiers fell into step behind her. Fear of the Controller outweighed any curiosity.

Nithqref she thought. I am going to find it difficult to play an active part - they are taking me to the bridge. Carry on as we planned and I will try to get to a more favourable position.

'Understood Kathryn. Take care.'

As she entered the bridge the Master of the Fearless was giving the command to transport the alliance prisoners to the surface of the planetoid. At the same moment Nithqref informed her that the Halquine and Kraal had transported to the armoury.

Controller Goff and Inspector Kashyk were both standing behind the Ship's master. The controller was looking particularly relaxed, even merry, almost a small Father Christmas figure if you ignored the coal black uniform and the chilling pale eyes. Kashyk was scowling and Kathryn guessed at the reason. Goff took a certain amount of pleasure in reminding him of his precarious career and likely future as a junior officer on a prison ship.

"Ah Captain Janeway," said Controller Goff. "Glad you could join us. I thought you would be interested in the weapons test we are about to conduct on the planet." His fat jowls wobbled around a small smile.

She inclined her head and answered politely.

"I am extremely interested Controller. Inspector Kashyk, I am glad you are still with us." Her voice hinted surprise that the Inspector was present and she was pleased to see him frown uncertainly. Controller Goff was plainly amused and his small smile grew a little bigger. In Kathryn's head a jubilant Nithqref reported the successful theft of a dozen disruptors and a successful transport to sickbay.

Kathryn smiled back at the fat controller. So far so good she thought.

An operations officer reported. "Master there are some unusual energy fluctuations. They appear to be emanating from the Borg's regeneration alcove in storage bay 5."

The ship's master looked at Janeway enquiringly. The ex-Captain shrugged, apparently unconcerned.

"Seven has been experimenting with increasing the output efficiency of her alcove" she lied smoothly. "That may be the cause."

She could now hear the voices of Seven and Kraal being relayed to her directly by Nithqref. Seven was monitoring the status of the prisoners on the planet from the command console in the Faraday where she had returned to relieve Makela.

Kraal and Nithqref were in sickbay and judging from the conversation Kraal was rounding up the Devore on duty with extreme efficiency. Nithqref reported that the three Devore present had been successfully disabled, captured and tied up.

It was increasingly difficult to listen to the reported activities of her team and concentrate on what Controller Goff was saying to her as he explained the nature of the weapons tests. She noticed that he made no mention of the prisoners. Clearly she was not meant to know of their presence on the test planet. A surreptitious glance at her chronometer revealed that there was only seven minutes before the test assimilation was to take place. The Farini girl, Atara, would have to really fly if she was going to obtain the ship's command codes.

Kashyk watched Kathryn closely as he always did and noticed her distraction with interest. 'Odd' he thought. Janeway was usually so focused.

He kept watching while considering the puzzle. If Janeway was going to make a move then he would catch her...

TBC