Just Between Above & Below
by B L Miller & G. L. Dartt

part 2 (conclusion)

Seven stepped out of the tunnel, pleased to see Naomi sitting right where she had left the child, the beeswax candle burning brightly before her. "Did you find a way out?" Naomi asked hopefully.

"The tunnel continues for several meters before the path is blocked by rocks," Seven said, sinking down to the sand across from the child. Her optical implant picked up the distinct tracks where tears had been hastily wiped away. Naomi did not mention it so Seven remained quiet, knowing the child would come to her for comfort when ready. Right now, apparently, Naomi wanted to appear unafraid, and Seven was struck by just how brave the young child was being.

"We must ingest nutritional supplements now and I will try the next tunnel." Day and night had no meaning in the pitch blackness, but Seven estimated they had been missing for well over thirty hours. Her searches of the previous three tunnels had produced the same result, and Seven added frustration to her list of annoying human emotions. Two waterproof pouches from an inside vest pocket made excellent canteens, and despite the dangers of the river, the water was quite drinkable. While they quietly nibbled on the ration bars, Seven mentally assessed the situation again. The cavern they were in seemed to lead to nowhere, though the Borg was aware that there were still two more tunnels to explore before the option of following the river became viable. The rock formations effectively kept them right where they were along the shoreline and the only way to continue downstream required them to use the Floop.

"Seven?"

"Yes Naomi?"

"You'll get us out of here?"

Seven set the waterskin down and looked at Naomi, the child's face shadowed by the flickering flame. "I will return us to our family," she said gravely, relieved when the worry lines on the child's face seemed to ease. "Our first course of action is to determine how to get out of this mountain. The ship's sensors cannot detect us here." The Borg knew she was merely repeating things she had said to Naomi before, but keeping the child involved in the situation seemed appropriate. After all, even at six years old, Naomi possessed a keen intellect and the maturity of a child twice her age.

"Seven, have you ever been lost before?"

The Borg allowed a faint smile. "Yes, more than once."

"Were you ever scared?"

"Yes. There were times that I was very frightened." Seven reached out and caught Naomi's chin with her fingers much the way Kathryn had done to her so many times. "But this is not one of those times. We will be rescued or find our way out of here." She looked into Naomi's eyes for another second before pulling her hand away.

"I remember once when I was very little," the Katarian said, pausing to take a bite of her ration bar. "I got lost."

"On Voyager?"

Naomi nodded, the candlelight helping Seven's optical implant to see the motion. "I was very young, only one or two." She took another nibble from the ration bar. "I just sat down and cried until someone picked me up, and then I was back with Mommy again." She paused and tilted her head. "Have you ever felt so lost you cried?"

Seven withdrew the ration bar before it reached her mouth and looked down at the single candle giving them light. "When I was first severed from the Collective. I was ... alone ... lost and very frightened. But I did not cry."

"What did you do?"

"I begged Captain Janeway to let me go back to the Collective."

"Why? Didn't you want to live on Voyager with us?"

"Not at first. I felt very lonely. For most of my life, I lived with the voices of the Collective in my mind at all times. Suddenly I was taken away from all that I had known and put in an inefficient vessel with people that were hostile to me and would not let me go back." The Borg paused and took a sip of water. "I was very angry with Captain Janeway then."

"But you love her now."

"Of course. We are married and I love Kathryn very much."

"When are you going to have children?"

Seven took another sip. "After we return to the Alpha Quadrant."

"What if it takes years?"

"Then Kathryn and I would have to consider having our children born on Voyager." Seven was used to Naomi's frequent topic changes, the six year old having a shorter attention span than most adults. However, the Borg was puzzled by the questions, not by the nature of them but that Naomi would be interested in her and Kathryn's plans for children.

"Do all the ration bars taste the same?"

"I am afraid so," Seven said gravely. "I believe someone with no taste buds is in charge of designing them."

Naomi quieted down for a moment, setting her food on her lap. "When you and the captain have children--" She let the question trail off, either afraid or unsure how to ask it.

"When Kathryn and I have children," Seven prodded.

"Will you still want to be my friend?"

The Borg blinked several times, startled by the question and trying to figure out what was behind it. "I will always be your friend, Naomi Wildman. You are very important to my happiness."

"But you can love someone and then not love them anymore when someone else comes along," Naomi said in a high pitched tone, tears building up in her eyes.

"Come here," Seven said, reaching over the candle between them and scooping Naomi up in her arms. Another stretch brought her fingers in contact with the large blanket and she wrapped it around them, cradling the child in her arms. "You must listen to me, Naomi Wildman," she said in a soothing tone, having learned from Kathryn how to give comfort as well as take it. "Even if Kathryn and I have a hundred children, I would not love you any less. Do you love Jake?"

"Of course," the child answered, though not as smartly as she usually did.

"And when you received Fluffy as a birthday present, did he make you love Jake any less?"

Naomi considered it. "No. I miss having Jake come in my quarters to play, but Mommy said the captain doesn't want to buy her any more boots." An extremely intelligent child, it took only seconds for her to figure out what once took Seven months. "I can love Fluffy and still love Jake, just like you can have children and still be my friend."

"Exactly," Seven said, pleased that she had been able to help Naomi work through it. From the way the child was holding on ot her neck, the Borg believed the thought had been bothering her young friend for some time. Of course it could also be the result of being stranded in a cavern on a strange planet with nothing but rocks and water, as well as a Floop which both were too terrified to get into again. Regardless of the reason, Naomi clearly needed to be held, and Seven did it without reservation, releasing her hold only when the six year old pulled back.

"Are we going to go into the tunnel now?"

"We are going to finish our ration bars," Seven said. "Then I will examine the remaining tunnels. You will maintain watch over our camp." The Borg was not sure where the idea had come from, but Naomi seemed happier to think she was 'watching the camp' as opposed to simply sitting in the sand with a candle waiting for Seven's return.

The last tunnel proved to be the longest, but in its favor, it was large enough that the Borg was able to stand erect in it. Seven traveled over a kilometer before coming upon a wall of rocks, further evidence of the cave-in indicated by the previous tunnels. Now all the options her analytical mind could come up with, lessened dramatically. Her well stocked vest provided thirty ration bars, giving them five days worth of food unless Seven cut their supplements back to twice a day. She knelt down next to the wall of rocks and frowned. While she could manage with one a day, forcing her nanoprobes to compensate, the Human/Katarian was a rapidly growing child who needed her full supplement of nutrients each day. Cutting back on Naomi's portion was out of the question.

Leaning against the smooth rock wall, Seven let her Borg enhanced left hand rest on the small rocks. The rock wiggled under the weight, catching her attention. Standing up and positioning herself in case the whole wall came down, Seven carefully began pulling the large stones from the top of the pile, sending them down the tunnel as the began the laborious task. Was that ... yes, a cool breeze began to waft from the small hole in the rock pile. There was an opening on the other side. Encouraged, Seven stepped back and removed her vest and sweater, giving herself more freedom of movement by leaving just a thin blue cotton Starfleet issued undershirt. The trip to the Barellan prison had impressed on her the need to wear layers of clothing, Janeway's sweater being sacrificed to construct a much needed torch. Seven had been unable to donate an article of clothing due to the openness of her vest and having only one article of clothing covering her upper torso. Having an undershirt made her away mission outfit more efficient, and she noted it would make an acceptable covering for Naomi if need be.

With no candle to work by and preferring to use her optical implants so she could keep her hands free, Seven felt around the large stones, making sure she had a solid grip before pulling one out. Her right hand was ready to stem any rock slides that might happen or at the very least, keep them away from her toes. One of B'Elanna's contributions to Seven's outfit was the pair of heavy black combat boots that laced up the front. Duranium hidden just beneath the outer covering of the toes provided some protection, but her foot was still smarting from the last rockslide, and Seven did not want to have to be idle while her nanoprobes were mending broken bones. Better to avoid an accident entirely than to have to recover from one, as the Doctor had stressed in the Starfleet classes he taught.

The work was slow, and blisters formed on her hands, but Seven compensated by using the sides of her hands and not the palms. She couldn't stop, but the lack of a dermal regenerator meant better care needed to be taken. Seven could not just simply work herself to exhaustion. Naomi needed her and above all else, Kathryn needed her. Seven could not fail.

It would be completely unacceptable.

Finally after what felt like hours, it happened. A rock fell not toward her, but away into the emptiness beyond. Seven was able to push her hand through the opening, feeling nothing behind it but cool air. With a renewed sense of hope, Seven began to move more of the rocks. Then a small sound drifted into her ears, and the Borg would have slapped herself in the head if her hands weren't so busy. Naomi, left alone with nothing but a candle for hours, was crying to herself. Setting the rock down and picking up her clothes, Seven headed back down the tunnel.

Voyager was in mourning. Samantha Wildman was inconsolable, hugging Naomi's favorite stuffed animal to her chest and crying long past the time her tear ducts should have dried up. Sek kept a careful eye on the grieving mother, but found herself looking out more than once at the river and wondering if there just wasn't something else she could do to help. The mobile emitter allowed her to be on the surface and to change her body mass by mental command, but her knowledge was limited to the memory capacity of the device rather than the unlimited databases of the Voyager computer. Sek felt a keen sense of loss whenever she had to rely solely on the emitter.

The counselor looked over at the crowd of women huddled around Ensign Wildman, pleased to see familiar bands of gold, red, and blue. Since the birth of nine babies several months ago, the Voyager crew had undergone a dramatic change. The daycare center, which had started out merely as a place for the parents to take their children during their duty shifts had changed in function. People who weren't parents would regularly stop by to visit with the babies, and thus a table and set of chairs were brought in to allow crewmembers to eat their lunch while spending time with the babies. Eventually one table became two and the day care center became almost as much of a center for social interaction as the messhall. As such, everything each baby did from cutting a first tooth to antics designed to test parents to the limit, was constantly relayed throughout the ship, drawing the crew into the village. Right now that village was torn between giving into its own grief over the strawberry haired girl with ridges down the center of her forehead, not to mention the Borg who was married to the captain, and working to the limit to find them. Offers to brave the mighty river were rejected immediately but they continued to come from both Voyager and Caron people. As the sun began to set on the first full day of searching, Sek let her mind focus on the river and the mountain which lay downstream.

Jake was upset because his mistress was upset. The one called Seven wasn't here yet even though hours had passed as Janeway tossed and turned restlessly in fretful slumber. The fresh air and the opportunity to explore a new planet meant nothing to the Irish Setter who continued to maintain his watch over Kathryn. A male, one that he recognized on some level as belonging to the greater pack, but not to his specific family unit, dared to poke his head into the tent after calling several times. Jake lifted his lip to bare his teeth, explaining with a low growl that his mistress needed her sleep. He took the hint.

"Maybe we should just let her sleep," Tom Paris suggested.

"She would want to know," Lt. Ro said firmly, looking at B'Elanna. The trio was standing outside the captain's tent where they had been debating for the last fifteen minutes about waking her up. Finally Tom offered to do it, earning a snort from B'Elanna when she saw him immediately scramble out of the tent and run behind her and Ro Laren, mere seconds after he had braved the entrance.

"I'll get her up," B'Elanna said, deciding that Jake would recognize her as the person who owned one of the B'Rethna, which he adored. No matter how many times she replicated her uniforms, B'Elanna apparently carried the scent of her pet with her, and Jake would become practically spastic in his enthusiasm to sniff her whenever she passed the captain and him on their evening walks through the decks of Voyager. As she expected, Jake gave a short bark and crawled off the cot, coming over to her as soon as she entered. "That's a good boy," she said, patting him approvingly. In a louder voice she spoke firmly. "Captain Janeway."

Janeway started and sat up, bleary eyed and clearly disoriented. "What is it?" The others, hearing the voices, stepped inside, not bothering to note the protocol violations in entering the captain's sleeping area unannounced. "Lieutenants," Janeway added, noting Paris and Ro.

"Uh, Captain, the final reports are in from the search teams," Tom said nervously, his boyish face clouded with emotion. "There's no sign of the Floop, Seven or Naomi." Had the captain been paying attention, she would have seen the Klingon's eyes shift away at the mention of her best friend.

"With the proper equipment I believe we can assemble an amphibious vessel that can follow the river," B'Elanna said quietly, aware that the redness of the captain's eyes was reflected in her own.

"Has there been any progress with the sensor array?" Janeway asked, her voice raw. The downcast faces relayed the answer. "I see," she said in a low tone. "How long will this vessel take?"

"The Carons have offered all their resources and equipment. We can use the equipment replicator from the Delta Flyer for whatever else we need. By modifying existing pleasure crafts from the Carons, we should be able to have something by the end of the day, tomorrow." The Klingon opened her mouth to say more but decided against it. Now wasn't the time.

"Captain, the texts from the library archives suggest that there are a great many caverns within the mountain, pockets where shelter could be taken," Ro said, having spent most of the day researching it despite orders to rest after the previous night's searching. The rest of the time had been spent holding B'Elanna as the Klingon cried over the potential loss of her best friend. It never ceased to amaze Laren that underneath the tough Klingon persona was a tender and compassionate woman who needed the soft touches and tender words that only Ro could provide. The Bajoran was running on empty but it wasn't the first time she had gone without sleep. Rest would come after they found Seven and Naomi. "There used to be mining operations within the largest mountain."

That got Janeway's attention, the dull gray eyes turning to lock with the Bajoran. "Are these mines operational?"

Ro's eyes never wavered. "No Captain. They've been closed for well over fifty years after massive landslides collapsed the inner levels. The entrances were all blasted shut to keep the children from going in and getting hurt after the mines were closed."

"Can we blast through that?"

"Only if we wanted to cause more cave ins. The interior is unstable and any major vibration could cause a collapse." Ro knew she didn't have to say anything more. If there was even a chance that Seven and Naomi were trapped in the mines, Janeway could not dare do anything that could cause it to cave in around them.

"How long would it take to open the entrances by hand?"

"Too long," B'Elanna said. "We can't take any large equipment, and the force from the Delta Flyers thrusters could be enough to cause a cave in. Vehicles are not allowed on the old roads leading up the mountain."

"Captain?" Chakotay's voice called from outside the tent.

"Come in," she said, frowning and wondering just how long her first officer had been standing out there before making his presence known. Jake had taken the opportunity to fall asleep on the floor, content that the others were not there to cause his mistress harm, and relinquishing his guard duty over her for the time being.

"The Carons are bringing everyone who remembers or is familiar with the old mines here tomorrow," the first officer said. "The mountain is owned by over three hundred companies and groups, each owning a wedge like a large pie."

"Let me guess," Janeway said, holding up her hand. "Each group kept their own maps and records."

"And after fifty years," Chakotay said apologetically. "Such information would have long since been deemed useless."

"And no doubt maps of the inner structure were limited in number to keep spies at bay," Janeway said.

"Without our tricorders there is no way to tell which tunnels have collapsed until we actually come upon them," Tom said, apparently finding his voice again. Jake picked his head up, shot Paris a look, and lay back down again. "And if we do come up against a collapse, there's no way to tell if it's only a few meters thick ... or a few kilometers."

"We're hoping some of the older Carons remember the tunnels and if any had passages that led to the river under the mountain. I believe that's the best place to start before we sending thousands of people into the mountains."

"I agree," Janeway said.

"As did the Premier," Chakotay replied. "The Caron are bowing to our advanced technology, offering us whatever resources they can give."

"I can have the river vessel ready within eighteen hours," B'Elanna said, knowing it was impossible but demanding herself that she make it so.

"Make it twelve," the captain said. "Collect from the Carons all the data about the mines and get it into the ship's database. Cross-matching should give us a clearer picture."

"Aye, Captain," B'Elanna said.

"Captain, there is another matter," Chakotay said, his tone becoming more subdued. The lieutenants took the hint and made a hasty retreat, leaving the first officer alone with the captain. He was alarmed by the gaunt look on her face, although it certainly was not the first time he had seen it. "Kathryn, when was the last time you ate?"

"I don't need a lecture from you, Chakotay," she said, pulling on her boots. "The Doctor has made certain I'm receiving the proper amount of nutrients and vitamins. Is that what you needed to ask me?"

"No, Captain," he said, straightening and handing her the padd. "Sek has left the base and gone into the mountain according to the message she placed in the log. She seems to think she can get past the rock that stopped the search teams."

"So now I have three crewmembers to worry about?" Janeway said in an exasperated tone. "Dammit Chakotay, we don't need any cowboys out there."

"Sek is operating solely on her mobile emitter. She has perhaps twelve hours of energy left if she doesn't overextend herself, more if she's able to get some sunlight to power the cells."

"Did you order her not to go?" she asked, vaguely wondering why she cared, at this point, if a direct order was disobeyed.

"I was unable to reach her once the message appeared in the logs. Apparently she's learned a few tricks from Seven and managed to delay the log until she was out of reach by communicator."

At another time, Janeway might have smiled at that comment. Borg technology and Seven's unique ingenuity had changed the way many of the crew of Voyager looked at things; sometimes not always for the best but sometimes to the benefit of the entire ship. The latter had been the case when Seven's sharing of knowledge with Lt. Torres resulted in the Klingon being able to use Borg encryption codes to fool the Kunntarie into thinking Voyager was being invaded by the Borg. This time, however, Seven's little tricks had allowed Sek to sneak away on a rescue mission by herself, something worthy of a level ten Janeway lecture and confinement to quarters for the foreseeable future ... assuming Sek ever returned. Once the mobile emitter ran out of energy, it would simply store her matrix and wait for someone to recharge it or transfer the matrix into the ship's computer.

"So where do we go from here?" she asked tiredly, unable to focus for more than a few minutes.

"For now I let you get back to sleep. Lt. Kim is keeping Voyager in orbit and is undoubtedly still working hard on getting the sensors to scan through the ore. B'Elanna and the others are working on the vessel, and the Premier and his people are gathering the data about the old mines." His tone gentled and he put his hand on her shoulder, preventing her from rising from the bed. "There's nothing you can do at the moment, Kathryn. Rest now. There'll be plenty to do once they complete the river vessels and the maps."

As if Jake knew the word for 'rest', he yawned and lumbered back onto the bed, filling up the empty space where the Borg should have been. Too tired to argue and fight the images and emotions that threatened to take over, Janeway nodded and slipped back under the covers, boots and all.

Chakotay favored her with an affectionate look. "May your rest be gentle, Kathryn," he whispered, knowing the next few days would be pure hell for the captain.

"You must take care not to let the rocks pile up," Seven said as she handed the medium sized stone to Naomi, making sure the young girl had a firm grip of it before letting go. The larger ones Seven carried herself, lining them up neatly against the wall. She was pleased with her decision. By bringing Naomi into the tunnel to help, the young girl felt useful and her crying stopped. The extra hands also made the work go more efficiently, something Seven's tired body appreciated.

"I think we can get through," Naomi said excitedly, pushing up with her feet in an attempt to get through the larger hole that had formed.

"Wait," Seven said, reaching out and pulling Naomi back. The Borg's instincts proved correct as more stones gave way and spilled down. Seven turned around, shielding Naomi with her body. As she had suspected, when more stones were removed, several of the ones on the top came loose, filling up most of the hole they had created.

"All that work?" Naomi asked, unmindful of the very real danger she had just been in, dumbfounded by the thought of moving all those rocks again.

"Indeed," Seven agreed with distaste, reaching up with her hand to knock some of the dust off her vest.

It took another hour before the hole was big enough to Seven to wriggle through, her back flinching as more stones came loose and bounced off her before rolling down to the ground. Blinking, she adjusted her ocular implant and stared around in amazement.

"Seven? Can you see anything?"

"Yes," she answered, standing up and reaching through the hole to help the child through. "We need to light some candles," she said, reaching into her vest for the remaining ones. Her optical implant showed a flat surface before her and Seven arranged the candles carefully before using one match to light them.

"It's a room," Naomi said in amazement.

"Yes." Seven ran her finger across the surface, noting how much dust had built up. "It does not appear that anyone has been here in quite some time." The candlelight gave them little to go by, but it was enough for the Borg to see clearly when combined with Seven's implants. "We appear to be in an office or lab of some sort."

"So there must be a way out," Naomi said, anticipation coloring her young voice.

"It would indicate that," Seven agreed, not allowing herself to become excited. "A power supply does not appear to exist. You will stay here and consume your nutritional supplement while I search the area."

Tired from moving stones, Naomi was quite agreeable. Leaving only one candle burning for the child, Seven took another and stepped through the doorway into a large, cavernous room. An elevator sat in one corner, the thick cable dangling uselessly before it. Large boxes cluttered up another corner, the Caron symbols painted on them indicating that they were filled with ore from the mines. The room easily measured 100 meters in radius and rose higher than Seven's implant could determine. There were no stairs since everyone who used the room apparently had utilized only the elevator to get up and down. The only method of Seven ascending to where the exits would be, rested in a long straight ladder attached vertically to the wall. Rings of natural rock formed catwalks on each level, circling the room but providing no exit. Returning to the lowest level, Seven concluded their only way out was up where hopefully an exit would be found. When she returned to the room, she was surprised to see Naomi holding the candle in her hand and studying a large piece of paper with intense interest. "What are you doing?"

"I found a map," Naomi said excitedly. "It was rolled up in the corner. Are there one hundred and fifty-seven levels?"

Seven was not pleased by the number. "I was unable to obtain enough data to determine the number of levels," she said. "But that does seem to be an accurate number," she reluctantly allowed. Certainly the catwalks continued well past the Borg's visual acuity. "Does the map indicate any exits?"

"Oh yes," the child said happily. "There are exits on levels 40, 72, and 91."

"The closest one is on level 40?" Seven asked, even though her hearing was fine. Climbing a ladder for ten decks on Voyager was enough, but these levels were easily as high as three decks. To go the equivalent of 120 decks, with a child no less, was not appealing to the Borg. "It seems their dependence on their elevator was inefficient. We will have to utilize the ladder to reach the upper levels. Naomi, have you ever seen the inside of the turbolift shafts?"

Naomi set down the water pouch she had been drinking from. "Once Lt. Torres was working on the turbolift when my mother stopped by to talk to her. B'Elanna let me peek inside, but I couldn't get too close."

"It was a wise move on Lt. Torres' part," Seven agreed. "The interior of the turbolift is a dangerous place. Did you see the ladder inside the lift?"

"Yes, it went up and down the entire length."

"Yes. There is a ladder here that is similar. We will have to climb it in order to get out of here." She noticed a shiver go through the young girl. "You require heat."

Unlike the riverbank, the 'mining shaft' as Seven understood their location to be, provided an abundant amount of material for a fire. The office they had entered from the tunnel contained many rows of drawers filled with pulp paper, much like the type used to make the 'bodice rippers' that Kathryn was so fond of. Her Borg enhanced left hand quickly rolled several sheets into thick sticks that would burn for a longer period than would the loose sheets, much like the 'logs' Janeway found when they were stranded on an away mission burned longer than 'twigs'.

A metal can sitting next to a desk formed the necessary pit in which to make the fire. It took only a few swipes of Seven's left hand, altered to the razor sharp cutting tools, to cut the height of the bucket down to a more usable level. That task complete, Seven turned to Naomi. "Are you familiar with the proper techniques for starting a fire?"

"No."

"Then you shall learn," she said firmly. "It is an important skill to master. Captain Janeway taught me how when we were lost on an away mission. That knowledge has served me well in subsequent missions."

Seven took her time, explaining everything in clear, precise tones before handing Naomi the candle and letting the young child light the paper. "Now we must 'fan the flames'. She handed Naomi a paper which had been folded accordion style down the length of it. "Captain Janeway says that 'bellows' work better but 'fans' do well in a pinch. The goal is to push the fire so it catches these 'log sticks' that I have made." Seven held up the rolled up paper. "I believe if we use the Vulcan microfilament, we can fashion some sort of 'rigging' to carry the log sticks with us to the upper levels."

Time passed as the flames gave much needed heat as well as light, helping to ease Naomi's fear and, though the Borg may not have realized it at the time, some of her own fear as well. Seven waited until the fire was burning strongly before adding a few more fire sticks and looking around.

"Perhaps it would be best to rest now and begin again once we are refreshed."

Seven frowned at the lack of a comfortable place for her to put the child to sleep. In the end, the table was cleaned off, not to Seven's exacting standards, but enough that she felt comfortable letting Naomi sleep on it. The Borg took up residence in a large, if not particularly comfortable chair, waiting until the deep and even breathing confirmed that Naomi was asleep before allowing her own body to relax.

The advantage of being a hologram was that everything Sek had on her body was also holographic and thus able to be changed with a simple mental command. It allowed the counselor to generate a wrist light, and simply think it away into her matrix when she no longer needed it. At the moment, the light was a necessity despite the emitter energy it consumed. Sek was inching her way along the underbelly of a fairly long rock formation, the formation where the search party had to turn back. Sek understood now why they did. There was less than half a meter of space between the rock and ground, making it nearly impossible for anyone to traverse the area. It was almost a full kilometer before Sek was able to stand up and look around.

She was now in a large cavern complete with stalactites, the beam from the wrist lamp flashing over the rock spears formed by centuries of water and mineral buildup. A quick check of the shore showed no signs of the Floop or the missing crewmembers. Turning the light intensity down to a low beam, and thus conserving energy, Sek followed the course of the river, noting the raging water seemed to have died down somewhat.

The bank followed the river in a downhill slope which seemed endless, time going by with nothing but the constant sound of the river to keep the hologram company. Hours passed before the barest hint of color reflected back from the darkness.

Sek almost jumped for joy when her wrist beam landed on the overturned Floop. It was easy to recognize the large footprints as coming from the combat boots Seven wore with her away mission outfit, as well as the smaller ones which had to belong to Naomi. There were five tunnels leading off and while all five showed the Borg's footprints, only one showed Naomi's, with no evidence of return prints. While their exact location was still unknown, it was clear that both Seven and Naomi were alive and apparently well enough to look for another way out. Sek debated which to do first, go after Seven and Naomi, letting them know that a rescue was on its way or return to the outside and let them know what she had found. A glance at the tiny chronometer in her mobile emitter made the decision for her. There was just enough energy for Sek to get back before it needed recharging. If she waited too long, all the rescue teams would find of her would be the small emitter lying on the ground, assuming that they would be able to find her at all. As much as Sek wanted to explore the tunnels, she turned around and headed back the way she had come.

The data collected from the Carons proved to be of little use. Most who had worked on the lower levels were long dead, and any mention of tunnels leading to the river had died with them. Less than half of the groups had filed their maps in the city archives, and not one map indicated a path to the river. Voyager's best efforts narrowed the possibilities to sections on the river side of the mountain, but reducing the number of choices from 300 to 80 was not of great comfort. There were still far too many for them to send any teams in. Janeway sat in a low chair near the fire, the shadows flickering off the nearby tents. Kathryn had been there all day, getting information from her people and listening intently to the communication unit sitting on the table, monitoring the search teams' progress.

"Captain?" Janeway looked up to see Lt. Ro standing before her, a large cup in her hand.

"I hope that's for me," the captain said wearily, holding out her hand to gratefully accept the coffee. She noted quickly that it wasn't her wife's special blend, but the nutty coffee offered by the liter to the Voyager crew staying in the makeshift camp.

"Has there been any word?" the Bajoran asked, having just woken up herself only a few minutes ago.

"B'Elanna is testing her water craft but hasn't found a way to compensate for the river currents yet. You heard what happened to the first vessel?"

"Yes, Ma'am," Ro replied, having spent several hours calming the frustrated Klingon down after a simple design flaw allowed the ship to cave in on itself during the underwater tests. "I'm sure she'll compensate for the weak structural integrity." The comm unit sitting on the table crackled to life.

"Sek to Voyager."

Janeway practically stumbled out her chair in her frantic grab for the radio. "This is Captain Janeway. Sek?"

"Yes, Captain."

Janeway's command mask had slipped far too much in the last two days for her to compensate now. "Sek, where the hell are you? You know better than to run off like that."

"Captain, my emitter is about to run out," Sek said, no doubt, silently grateful that she only had a few more minutes to listen to her captain's tirade. "I found the boat."

Janeway stared at the radio, unable to ask the next logical question. To the counselor's credit, Sek answered it anyway.

"I found footprints leading into some tunnels. Seven and Naomi appear to be trying to get to the surface through the mountain."

"Did you find them?"

"Negative Captain. I had to turn back before my emitter's charge ran out." There was a short sound before Sek continued. "Captain, the emitter needs to shut down and be recharged now."

Janeway, operating on nerves alone, stared at the unit helplessly. Finally Ro reached over and plucked the device from the captain's numb fingers and pressed the transmit button. "Understood Sek. Give a full report as soon as your emitter is recharged."

"Aye, Lieutenant," Sek said, recognizing the Bajoran's voice. The channel went silent for only a minute as the word traveled throughout the festival grounds. Ro waited for instructions but none were forthcoming. "Captain?"

"Go down to the river and help B'Elanna," Janeway said. "I'm holding you personally responsible for making sure Sek's report comes to me the instant she gives it, understood?"

"Yes, Ma'am." Ro paused. "Captain, if I might point something out."

Janeway raised her head and weakly arched her eyebrow. "Lieutenant?"

"I believe this information, as sketchy as it is, would be of great comfort to Ensign Wildman."

Janeway's brain had been working on autopilot for so long that it took her a minute to figure out what Ro was trying to say. "Yes," she agreed finally. "Even a little news is better than none at all."

"Do you wish me to--" Ro began only to have the captain wave her off.

"I need to move about anyway." Janeway slowly rose to her feet, realizing how worn out she was. With the exception of a short nap the afternoon before, Kathryn and sleep had not seen each other in almost three days. Someone, she never asked who, had thoughtfully returned Jake to the ship, leaving him in the care of the various dog lovers who volunteered to watch him. The thought of crawling into her tent was tempting, but there was more important business to take care of. "If you would be so kind as to point out which tent Ensign Wildman is in," she said slowly. "I'll take care of it."

Ro pointed at the tent diagonally from where they were located. "Shall I accompany you?" she asked, concerned about how pale the captain looked under the firelight.

"Worried I'm going to collapse on the way?" Janeway asked with just a touch of humor in her voice. If she looked anything like what she felt, she must be a horrible sight indeed. Only the Doctor's insistence on her drinking a nutritional supplement periodically had kept her from keeling over hours ago. Janeway felt a slight twinge of unsteadiness but her equilibrium quickly corrected itself. "It's only a few meters, Lieutenant. I'm sure I can make it."

"Aye, Captain," Ro said, but remained in the shadows outside to monitor Janeway's progress, not leaving until she saw the captain enter Samantha Wildman's tent.

The distraught mother was sitting on her cot, three Voyager crewmembers and two Carons sitting or kneeling around her. "Captain," someone said, sending the four Voyager people to their feet.

"At ease," Janeway said in a gravelly voice, her eyes on Ensign Wildman, who at the moment seemed torn between screaming and crying. Samantha's eyes were puffy and rimmed with red, much like Neelix's, who sat next to her. With her eyes, Kathryn made Jennifer Delaney and Susan Nicoletti move, allowing her a place to sit down next to the biometrics scientist.

"H-have you heard something, Captain?" Samantha asked shakily.

"Yes I have," she responded. "Sek just reported back." Janeway continued on, mindful of the fearful look in Wildman's eyes. "She found the Floop. They weren't on it, but there were footsteps leading away. Ensign ... Samantha, they survived the river, and they're together. Rescue is just a matter of time now."

The solidly built science officer collapsed into tears. "She's alive ... my baby's alive." To Janeway's relief, Susan Nicoletti stepped forward and put her arms around Ensign Wildman.

"You'll be informed as soon as we find out anything else," Janeway said, forcing herself to her feet. To her surprise, Samantha stood as well.

"Thank you, Captain," she said, her voice far more ragged than Janeway had ever heard it before. "Seven will protect her and get her home. I know it."

"It really is good news, Captain," Neelix said, his eyes blinking rapidly. "If she's with Seven, they'll be back in no time at all."

"Yes," Janeway agreed. "Seven loves Naomi; she'll make sure they both get back."

"Chakotay to Captain."

Janeway pressed her comm badge. "Go ahead, Chakotay."

"B'Elanna has recharged Sek's mobile emitter if you wish to speak to her."

"On my way," the captain said, turning on her heels and heading out of the tent. It was several seconds before she realized that she had a determined mother on her heels followed by five supporters. Deciding it was better to let them follow than to waste energy arguing with them, Janeway crossed the makeshift camp, spotting B'Elanna and Chakotay standing next to Sek. "Report," she snapped, though it came out far less forceful than she intended. Ensign Wildman was not as gentle.

"Did you find her?" Samantha demanded, pushing past the captain and standing directly in front of the hologram.

"Ensign," Chakotay said, mindful of what the woman had been going through but also aware that she had just violated protocol. In times of crisis, discipline and order were of paramount importance lest chaos develop. However, one look from the captain explained what was going on. Mother apparently outranked captain when it came to missing children.

Sek watched the silent interplay carefully, learning a wealth of information. "I did not see them," she said. "I found the Floop and their footprints leading into a long tunnel."

B'Elanna explained quickly why Sek could not search out the tunnels, forestalling the distraught mother's question. "From what Sek says," the engineer said to Janeway. "The cavern is approximately twenty-two kilometers from where the search team was stopped. It's solid rock and will require substantial boring equipment to be shuttled down and assembled from Voyager. The vibrations from such an operation..." The Klingon stopped, knowing the rest didn't need to be said. It was the same reason Caron boring machines couldn't go through the softer parts of the mountain. Too much vibration could collapse the tunnels.

"Options," Janeway said.

"Not too many, Captain," B'Elanna said. "We can't bore through the mountains, and it will take weeks for the Carons to move all the rocks by hand so teams can get in through the old entrances." The Klingon sighed, wishing there were more possibilities available and trying hard not to think of her best friend. "We have to keep working on the water crafts and let the volunteers clear the entrances as quickly as they can."

"We don't have the luxury of time, Lieutenant." Janeway's voice was harsh, edged with exhaustion and fear.

"Perhaps we do, if only a little," Sek said, catching everyone's attention. "I noticed something on the shore when I was looking at the footprints. I didn't think much of it at the time, but it didn't seem right for it to be there."

"What was it?" Janeway asked.

"I believe it was a wax of some sort. There were drops scattered about." The hologram's eyes widened. "There was a burnt stick of wood, no longer than your finger and very thin."

"A match," the captain said, feeling a sense of relief rush through her. "A candle and a match."

"She has her vest," B'Elanna said excitedly, a very real fear put to rest. "Seven always keeps it fully stocked."

Janeway put her hands on Samantha Wildman's shoulders, knowing the biometrics officer was unaware of just how good the news was. "Ens ... Samantha," she began, mindful that the solid woman before her didn't need a captain, but a peer. "Seven's vest has many pockets and compartments. She designed it for away missions where she and others might have to survive for days only on what she has with her." Janeway felt the muscles beneath her hands relax, if only slightly. "Seven has a blanket, candles, medicine, simple tools, and ten days worth of ration bars concealed on her. Naomi has food, water, and Seven to protect her." Samantha looked as though she were about to cry again, and Janeway happily let Neelix take over at that point, guiding the relieved but still terribly worried mother back to her tent.

"Um, I'd better get back to the water craft," B'Elanna said weakly. "Lt. Ro, would you escort me please, so I don't get lost?" Not waiting for an answer, she grabbed the Bajoran's arm and tugged her away. Experience had taught Lt. Torres well, and she recognized the look on Janeway's face, having been the cause of it more times than she wanted to remember.

Chakotay seemed to recognize it as well, mumbling something about checking in with Harry and leaving. Janeway fixed Sek with a force ten look. "Counselor, in my tent, now."

It was not a request, it was not an order. It was merely the first step in a Janeway lecture guaranteed to peel paint off a ship's hull, and Sek was about to be the recipient of it. Sek, who because of her holographic existence could not use tiredness as an excuse, could only nod.

"Yes, Captain." Sek followed the captain to the tent, mentally wondering if her holographic matrix could withstand what was about to happen. Sek looked around nervously as the tents on either side of Janeway's quickly emptied of Voyager personnel, not wanting to relive their own painful memories of the captain's lectures. Some of her patients had gone into explicit detail of their beheading at the hands of the captain and an image of a dragon breathing smoke entered her mind. Sek wondered where that came from, deciding that it must have been another one of B'Elanna's contributions to her matrix.

Once inside, Janeway motioned for the counselor to sit on the cot, the glare in her gray eyes making it clear that it was not open for negotiation or even a token hesitation. Sek waited anxiously for several seconds as the captain seemed to compose herself before speaking. "Would you care to explain just what you thought you were doing out there?" The voice was calm and even, but Sek felt the edge lurking beneath the words, a lash that stripped away her holographic skin like a whip.

"I was ... utilizing my skills in the best way I knew in order to help my family," Sek said, starting off strong in the belief she had acted properly. "You would expect no less of any other command officer."

"I would expect my command officers to discuss their decisions and the ramifications of them before going off half cocked. What if your emitter had been damaged? Or you had found yourself in a situation where you couldn't have escaped to the outside in time?"

"I had considered those," Sek allowed, her determination faltering. "I altered my matrix density to compensate for the lack of space and watched my chronometer to make sure I could return before it required recharging."

"That's not the point, Sek," Janeway said angrily, pacing back and forth. "In all your studies, did you ever bother to review Starfleet protocol?"

Sek knew the captain was aware such information was basic to her matrix and that she had been attending the Starfleet classes regularly in addition to her counselor training. Clearly the captain needed to vent, and as ship's counselor, Sek was prepared to let Janeway do just that. "I was in error by not reporting my intentions prior to carrying out my actions," she tried.

"You deliberately delayed your report until it was too late for us to get to you!" Janeway said, raising her voice which she did so very rarely. It made it much more effective, and the hologram wondered why the room temperature suddenly seemed to be rising. "This isn't the Genesis planet, and you aren't Admiral Kirk. Too many things could have gone wrong and we could be worrying about three crewmembers instead of two right now." Janeway crossed her arms and glared at the counselor. Sek was certain now that the ore had disrupted one of her subroutines ... her body felt much too hot and holographic drops of sweat formed on her brow. So that was the look that gave the crew nightmares, she thought dazedly as steel gray eyes continued to bore through her.

"I understand that you are angry with me, Captain," she said finally, weakly, wondering why her voice sounded even higher pitched than usual.

"Angry is not the word and don't even think of turning this into a counseling session," Janeway warned. "We will deal with this matter back on the ship, you can count on that. How long does your emitter last?"

"Twenty four hours, unless there is some light for the solar recharges."  Sek was completely deflated now, unable to even keep her eyes from shifting away from the compact form looming over her.

"Did you see any light while you were off playing cowboy, Counselor?" the captain asked acidly.

Sek filed the reference away, determined to study it later but the meaning was clear. "No, Captain," she said meekly.

"Then we can assume you're limited to twenty four hours. What about the Doctor's mobile emitter. Are you able to use that in addition to your own?"

"Yes, I could merely switch from one to another," Sek said, starting to see where Janeway was going. It impressed her significantly. Even furious, the Starfleet captain never stopped thinking. "Captain, if Lt. Torres could make some replacement batteries, I can recharge one while using the other and significantly expand my time limit."

Janeway remained quiet but began pacing again, obviously working something out in her mind. She pressed her comm badge. "Janeway to Voyager."

"Lt. Kim here. Go ahead, Captain."

"Send down the Doctor's emitter, as well as a fully stocked medikit and a case of ration bars in the next shuttle."

"Excuse me, Ma'am. You want the Doctor on the next shuttle?"

"I want his emitter. He can handle being left in sickbay for a little while. Check with Lt. Torres to see if she has any replacement power cells for the emitters and send down as many as you can of those as well. That will be all, Lieutenant."

"Aye, Captain."

Janeway looked sternly at Sek. "You are to study every map available about the tunnels. You will take the medikit and go back in there until you find them or need to turn back." Her tone was clipped, as if trying very hard to keep herself from erupting with anger, like a volcano venting toxic gas before exploding in fury and deadly lava. Sek realized dazedly that it was the threat of what could happen that was truly defeating to a person's psyche when dealing with Janeway, not what actually did. "When you do find them, you are to take care of any injuries, make sure they are in a safe location, and return here immediately. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, Captain."

"When all this is over, Counselor, regardless of the outcome, you will be confined to quarters for a length of time to be determined. You'll be limited to your office and sickbay with the exception of a medical emergency only."

"Yes, Captain." Those words seemed to be all Sek's matrix would let her say, and she was completely unable to halt the foolish bobbing of her head.

"Report to Lt. Torres." The dismissal was given but not before Sek received another force ten Janeway look. The hologram left as quickly as possible, disappointed that the interference with the ore kept her emitter from being able to simply transfer her matrix to another location. The extra split seconds of escape would have been most welcome.

"Are you sure it will hold us?" Naomi asked, holding her candle close to the ladder and looking at it with no little trepidation.

"It is crude but effective," Seven said. "I checked it while you were sleeping and found it to be capable of supporting my mass up to the tenth level. At that point, I decided that it would more taxing on my physical reserves than the usefulness of the information which could have been provided." Seven looked up again, her optical implant being strained to the limit in her attempts to see ahead in the total darkness. "Still there is a matter of your safety to consider. You are not as strong as I am, and it certainly would be quite damaging to your lifeform if you were to fall from an extended height. We must make some kind of safety harness."

"Agreed," Naomi said earnestly. "What can I do to be of service?"

"I am not sure," Seven said honestly. "Perhaps we should look at this more carefully."

Sitting down together on the floor, Seven and Naomi pooled their candlelight to examine the contents of the Borg's vest again. Seven looked at the small lengths of rope and the Vulcan microfilament, trying to fathom how the two could be used to make a harness. "It is an oversight that we did not take the rope from the Floop with us," Seven said, annoyed with herself for not thinking of it. "That would have provided us with sufficient rope to make a harness. I must return and collect it."

"Can I go with you?" Naomi asked.

"It would be preferable if you stayed here." The Borg's implant caught the subtle shiver. "Are you cold again?"

"I am functioning adequately," Naomi said in her best imitation of her mentor.

"I do not believe you," Seven said. "Obviously there is a matter more pressing than the safety harness. We must make another fire." Since the vest was lying on the ground next to her, Seven took only a second to retrieve the blanket from its compartment and wrap it around Naomi's shoulders. "I shall make a fire with our fire sticks, and make more when I come back from collecting the rope from the Floop." Seven looked around the large cavern and frowned. "It would be more efficient to try and heat the office rather than this large space," she explained, picking up her candle from the floor. "We will return to the room where you will warm up until I return with the rope."

She instinctively reached out for Naomi's hand, settling the smaller one within her own. It struck her, as it always did when she had this tactile sensation, just how much smaller and fragile a child was when compared to a full adult. She felt the shiver go through Naomi and didn't hesitate, scooping the child up in her arms and holding her close, mindful of the candle still in the girl's hand. "I will have you warmed up in just a few minutes," she promised as she carried her back to the office. "Do not fear, Naomi Wildman. I shall return us to Voyager as soon as possible."

Seven knew that faith was something extremely fragile, easily broken and sometimes irreparable. The maternal instinct in Seven forced its way to the forefront, refusing to allow anything to break that fragile bond between Naomi and her. "We will get through this," she said, hugging Naomi closer and going so far as to brush her lips over the child's brow. It was the first time she had ever kissed her. "You must trust me."

"I do," the child replied, clinging to her tightly. "I know you'll get us home safely."

Seven was pleased to note that even in her fright, Naomi did her best to help, holding the candle out before them to illuminate the way, albeit a very dim illumination but enough to allow the optical implant to make out what was before them.

"Yes," she swore, "I will." Setting Naomi down, Seven collected the metal bin and the paper sticks and proceeded to make her fire.

Seven let her analytical mind ponder over the possible knots and designs while she fished out two ration bars, mentally calculating how many were left. Food was going to become a serious concern soon if she didn't find a way out of the caverns. Fortunately Naomi didn't notice that Seven ate only half of her ration bar, tucking the rest back into the foil, even as she knew the dry, crumbly bar would taste even staler by the time she finished it.

"The fire is burning sufficiently now and will last for several hours thanks to this 'bonfire' design. There is no need to add more log sticks to it at this time." Seven handed Naomi the waterskin. "Please drink as much as you want and use the rest to wash your face." While talking she pulled out one of the cloths tucked in her pocket. She had a great many useful items in her vest, but quantity had been given up for the sake of diversity. Where Seven's vest had once been able to store almost a yard of cloth, the larger blanket and other supplies forced her to limit it to only two square decimeters of cloth. The rag now being used by Naomi to wipe the dirt from her hands and face would be the only one they could afford to use for such a purpose, the rest required to be kept clean in case of injury. When Naomi was finished, Seven took the pouch, along with the other, and tucked them neatly into her belt. "I shall be back in precisely thirty-four point seven minutes."

"Understood. I shall maintain my post," Naomi said seriously.

"As any good Captain's Assistant should," Seven said, reminding the child of her position, even if it was one which didn't exist in proper Starfleet regulations. "Captain Janeway will no doubt be quite proud of you."

The memory of Naomi's beaming face kept her warm as she headed back to the river.

Sek found she couldn't look at Janeway the next morning when they assembled just at the edge of the precipice which had stopped the rest of the crew from going any further. The hologram was forced to carry the medikit with her, requiring her to devote more energy to keeping her hand mass dense enough to carry the object while defusing the rest of her body enough to sink into the sand and go beneath the obstruction. Because of that, B'Elanna's last minute modifications gave Sek only fifteen hours per charge, but extra batteries provided her with a total of sixty hours. Captain Janeway's tone made it clear that results should be found in less than that time. Standing next to the engineer and the captain, Samantha Wildman, with dark half moon circles under her eyes, was clearly ready to cause bodily injury to the next person who tried to keep her from jumping into the river and swimming her way to the cavern herself. There had been a late night order that the worried mother was to be treated gently, thus the effort by Tuvok and Lt. Ro to try to reason with her. Sek wondered if deep inside, Janeway wasn't tempted to join Samantha in braving the raging river with nothing but their will and love for the missing females.

"Remember your orders, Counselor," Janeway said in a tone that made the other officers within earshot practically tremble. Indeed, many were wide-eyed or deliberately looking away from the Captain and the hologram.

"I will, Captain," she said before jumping off the precipice and kneeling down before the obstruction.

"When you see Seven," B'Elanna said, "Make sure you tell her that I'm going to kick her Borg ass in Velocity next time we play."

Sek nodded, understanding the special relationship the Borg and Klingon had, both women having talked about it extensively in their private sessions. B'Elanna provided Seven with a best friend, a partner in crime, whose view on things was vastly different than Kathryn's, giving the Borg the balance she sometimes needed with her strong-willed wife. Seven provided B'Elanna with someone to display her more playful side to, the naive friend who brought out many more emotions in the Klingon than the engineer would admit.

"I will," she promised. Before she ducked under the obstruction, Sek dared to look back at the captain. Janeway stood there, arms crossed, eyes a steely gray under the bright illumination of the artificial lamps constructed by the Caron. When Sek found Seven, she would tell her that Kathryn loved her more than life itself and had said so with every fiber of her being, if not her speech.

Seven carefully moved her left foot off the ladder and onto the catwalk, certain of her footing, but always compensating for the child strapped to her back. Convinced she would not fall backward into the opening surrounding the ladder, Seven stepped forward and knelt down, pulling the rope straps off her shoulders and freeing Naomi from the harness. Both slumped to the ground, physically exhausted. "I'm so tired," Naomi said, using much of her remaining energy to open the waterskin strapped to her body.

"It is ... exhausting work," Seven agreed, wiping her brow with the sleeve of her sweater. In her biometric outfit, Seven barely noticed the weather, the suit always compensating and adjusting to keep her comfortable accordingly. Without it, her nanoprobes took over the function, keeping the skin cool without the need for sweat, and giving the Borg the extra strength she possessed.

But Borg strength was more brute than endurance, as Seven learned from several lengthy lovemaking sessions with her imaginative and insatiable wife. With her nanoprobes constantly working to give her the strength needed to ascend the ladder with the added weight of Naomi hanging on her back, they were too busy to keep her skin temperature at its normal level. It was by choice that Seven allowed the nanoprobes to restrict the sweat glands, disdaining the feeling, although a trip to a planet dubbed Hellmouth by B'Elanna had been so oppressively hot that even the nanoprobes couldn't keep it completely under control. In this situation, the Borg had no choice but to let the sweat glands take over and perform the function they were intended to do.

Lying on the dusty rock catwalk, Seven questioned her reasoning behind keeping her hair at its current length, which at the moment was sticking rather uncomfortably to her head, face and shoulders. The one time Seven had required it be clipped to a very short style, Kathryn had expressed approval, but the Borg knew it pleased Janeway to be able to release it from its usual confines at the end of the day and play with it. So, in the end, Seven had let it resume its usual length to keep Kathryn happy. At the moment, however, she was seriously debating as to whether she should use the stiletto tucked in her boot to give herself a quick and significant haircut, regardless of what Kathryn might think when they finally saw each other again.

"You'll be cooler if you take that sweater off," Naomi said, the water and time having restored some of the child's natural vigor.

"That would require energy," Seven said, not lifting her forearm from across her eyes although she noted from the corner of them that the child had used a match to light the candle. She felt Naomi move closer and almost jumped when she felt a wet cloth being pressed against her forehead.

"Mommy does this when I have a fever," Naomi explained. "It helps cool me down, but it works better with cold water."

"It feels wonderful," Seven admitted guiltily, taking the cloth and using it to wipe her sweaty, dirty face. "But we need to conserve our water until we find another supply." She handed the now damp rag back to Naomi. "You need to consume your nutritional supplement now."

"You too," Naomi pointed out, moving back until there was a little space between her and Seven. "I'll get the fire going."

"You will arrange the fire sticks, but do not light it until I can check it," Seven instructed, remembering their stop the night before on level thirteen where a fire stick came loose from the burning stack and almost reached their blanket before Seven could catch it. Not that fire would harm the blanket since Starfleet used flame resistant material but still it was a safety precaution that could not be overlooked a second time. Slowly the Borg sat up, shrugging out of her vest and sweater, immediately feeling a change in temperature. "You are correct," Seven noted. "I do feel cooler now."

Using the candle for light, Seven carefully checked the 'bonfire' and deemed it to be acceptable after moving a few of the fire sticks so as to minimize the chance of them rolling away from the space provided for the fire. "You may light the fire now," she said, watching with pride as Naomi used the candle to ignite several balled up pieces of paper surrounding the stack of fire sticks. Naomi used the rumpled paper, folded accordion style, to fan the flames, granting them a strong source of light and heat for the night ahead. Not that they truly had any sense of what night and day were in this land of perpetual darkness.

"What would you like to do before regeneration time?" Seven asked, handing over one of their ration bars and fishing out of her pocket, the remaining half of the one she had opened earlier for herself. Seven knew that after she regenerated there was no choice, she would have to increase her intake of ration bars to at least one full bar per day. The strain of climbing a vertical ladder was doubled by the weight of Naomi being supported by two ropes strapped across Seven's shoulders. The young child did all she could, using the length to climb at times several rungs below Seven, but still tethered should the child slip. When Naomi indicated she was tiring, Seven would always stop at that level and position the child on her back before continuing for at least ten more levels until exhaustion would threaten to overwhelm her.

"We don't have to do anything," Naomi said. "We can just talk until we fall asleep like last night."

"That will not take long, I assure you," Seven said, wearily dragging the blanket out from its compartment. The normally fastidious Borg barely glanced at the dusty ground before laying the folded blanket down it. "We should lie down and regenerate soon."

"Just a few more minutes?" Naomi asked, having napped on the Borg's back during the last six levels.

"Very well, but if I fall asleep, you are to come to bed, and do not leave to perform biological functions without taking your candle." Seven said, untying the strong laces of her boots and forcing them off her feet.

The Borg's nose crinkled at the definite odor coming from the dark insides of her boots, discovering that the aroma, a side effect of her sweat, was not a pleasant one ... which was odd because Kathryn's perspiration always held a certain appeal to her, especially when the Borg was the cause of it. Seven allowed her mind to drift briefly to that of her beloved wife, letting Naomi prattle on about what she was learning in school. The Borg used much the same techniques as she did when having to listen to Harry Kim drone on about one subject or another, filing the information away in her eidetic memory, able to call it up in an instant. Although truth be told, Harry's conversations had become much more interesting lately, mostly involving the antics and accomplishments that Harry Jr. had undergone. Seven listened to those tales with rapt fascination, to the point of actually initiating the conversation on several occasions.

"Seven, are you listening?"

"I am," Seven said, not entirely truthfully. "What do you wish to talk about now?" she asked while reaching for the water pouch.

"Do you think Mommy and Neelix are going to copulate?"

Seven was glad the pouch had not reached her mouth as the air left her lungs in a sudden rush. She had never been shy about this sort of thing with Kathryn, so why was such a question coming from Naomi so startling and discomforting? Yet, she could not deny that it was. Utilizing a tactic she had learned from Tuvok, she carefully avoided the question by asking one of her own. "Why do you believe this will be the case?"

"Because Neelix and Mommy are always up past my bedtime talking, and they sit very close to each other when they don't think I'm watching them," Naomi said. "Mommy plays with his whiskers, and he is always making her 'special dinners' where I have to go stay with Susan Nicoletti or the Chapmans."

"I see," Seven said, unwittingly using a phrase Kathryn used when she obviously needed to buy time to think of a proper response. Apparently the rumors had some truth behind them after all. "And would this bother you?" she asked carefully, fully cognizant that she was still avoiding any speculation with the six year old daughter of the biometrics officer.

Naomi shrugged, letting her young eyes stare at the fire. "I'm not sure," she admitted. "Mommy's very happy when Neelix is around, and he is happy when he sees her. I like it when they're happy."

"You have more to say," Seven noted, trusting her still developing 'instinct'. "Kathryn would say 'but' at this point to encourage me to continue."

"But Daddy is the only one who is supposed to copulate with Mommy." Despite how mature the six-year-old had been forced to become, she was still a little girl and a great deal of her bewilderment came through. "It would be a violation of their marriage contract. Lt. Jamison told Ensign Nicoletti that he thought Mommy and Neelix were already copulating, but she told him to mind his own business."

"Lt. Jamison is second only to B'Elanna Torres in terms of being the 'mouth of the ship' as Kathryn calls it. I believe the common term is gossiper and rumor monger," Seven said. "I agree with Ensign Nicoletti. It is not any of his concern as he is not involved in a personal manner with any of the parties. However, Ensign Wildman is your mother so her actions directly affect you. Have you told your mother of your concerns?"

"No."

"And is this the first time you have had this concern come to mind?"

"No."

"Then why have you not talked with your mother about this?" Seven leaned forward, forcing Naomi's eyes away from the fire and at her instead. "You must voice your concerns and fears to your mother so she may explain them or help you to accept them. Do you remember when you quit being Captain Janeway's Assistant?" Naomi nodded. "You did not have the proper information to form that conclusion nor did you understand your feelings until you talked them out with the Captain. You must talk to your mother about your feelings and fears, but you must also make sure to tell her that you love her."

"I do love Mommy, but I also love Daddy," Naomi said. "I love Neelix too."

"And your mother copulating with Neelix will cause you to lose this love somehow?" Seven realized that all her late night talks with Kathryn and her sessions with Sek gave her many useful tools when dealing with Naomi's questions. They often mirrored her own in terms of trying to understand complex emotions. "Your thought process is unsound. I believe your next course of action is to talk to your mother."

"I will," Naomi said, covering her mouth as she yawned.

Seven breathed a sigh of relief. She really did not want to get into a discussion about Ensign Wildman and Neelix's sexual activities. Perhaps this was what Kathryn meant when she offered the occasional opinion that too much truth could be as bad as a lie. "And now I believe it is time to regenerate," she pointed out, not wanting the child to become overly tired. Naomi was very much like B'Elanna when it came to waking up, and the Borg was certain Ensign Wildman was unaware of just how colorful a vocabulary her young daughter possessed.

"I will go perform my biological functions now," the child said, carefully moving the candle near the fire until the wick ignited.

"No more than twenty paces," Seven reminded, unsure that she needed to repeat her instructions so many times to the child but not wanting to let anything be forgotten. She imagined it was much the same way when she needed to remind Kathryn to be careful whenever her spouse left the ship.

"I remember," Naomi said with what Seven recognized as a touch of reproach in her tone. It was the same tone that Janeway got whenever reminded to eat on a regular basis. Seven busied herself with rolling her sweater in such a way as to make a comfortable pillow for Naomi. The vest was a stiff yet effective substitute for herself, but Seven truly missed the comfort of her bed at home on Voyager. As her muscles continued to protest her abuse of them, Seven hoped Kathryn would allow her to take two days to just sleep on the comfortable mattress, a certain auburn haired woman by her side. Perhaps if she pushed herself hard enough they could make the fortieth level tomorrow and be out by nightfall. Seven certainly hoped so. The ration bars were rapidly disappearing. Naomi was barely under the covers before Seven's arm went around her protectively. "Good night, Naomi," she said.

"Good night, Seven."

Sek scaled the ladder, her holographic mass keeping her light on the rungs and thus expending as little energy as possible. Still she kept a close eye on her emitters, not wanting to take a chance on running too low. Already she was up to the thirteenth level and was pleased to see signs of a recent fire in a small ring only a few meters from the ladder. It was the same fire pattern the counselor had noticed in the office at the end of the tunnel. They were up there in the darkness, she knew, perhaps even in earshot. "Seven, Naomi," she called again.

"Sek," the cool voice answered from far above. Hope renewed, Sek increased her energy output and scampered up the ladder. It took only minutes for her to reach the level Seven was at, the Borg greeting her as if they were just passing each other on deck five.

"I see you're both doing well," the hologram said, her light spotting the tuft of strawberry hair poking out from beneath the blanket.

"We would prefer to be out of here," Seven pointed out. "I assume you are our rescue?"

"Not quite," Sek said, opening the medikit and noticing for the first time the lack of any energy dependent equipment such as tricorders or bone knitters. "I have to assess the situation and report back to the captain." To her surprise, Seven reached past her and snatched one of the ration bars sitting in the compartment where the hyposprays were usually kept.

"We have been conserving," Seven pointed out, gobbling up the ration bar in only a few bites. "Did you bring water?" she asked hopefully.

Sek frowned. "No, I didn't but I have enough energy left to go back to the river and refill your containers before I report back."

Seven cast a glance at the ladder. "I would very much appreciate that," she said. "It is a long way down."

"That is because you are not a hologram," Sek said with a smile, handing Seven the wrist beam taken from the Delta Flyer's supplies rather than her own holographic matrix. "Where are your canteens?"

"They are here," the Borg said, reaching over and collecting the two fairly flat pouches. "I will empty them before you leave." She did just that, drinking heavily from one before using the rest of the water to soak the dingy cloth. "How long will you take?"

"If I triple my energy output, I should return within twenty minutes," Sek said. "That will still leave me with an hour before I must use the rest of my energy cells to return to camp."

"Very well, we shall wait here." Seven leaned her head back against the rock wall, the wrist beam catching the side of her face, albeit distorting it with shadows. Sek noticed the darkness under Seven's eyes. Like captain, like captain's wife, the counselor noted. Obviously just as Kathryn was placing the rescue above her own personal needs, Seven was clearly placing Naomi's over her own. Sek handed the Borg another ration bar.

"Go ahead. Now that I know my way it will be easy for me to return with more." With that, Sek stepped onto the ladder and adjusted her mass to the lightest amount she could before moving her feet out of the way and sliding down the ladder in a controlled fall, adjusting her mass to compensate just before touching the sandy shaft floor.

Naomi was awake and munching on a ration bar when Sek returned. The young girl reacted with a broad smile and outstretched arms. "Sek!"

"Hello, Naomi," the counselor said, her presence obviously a surprise to the child. She collected a hug from her, surprised by how it made her feel. "It is very good to see you."

"Are you going to get us out of here?"

"I'm going to try. We are having trouble finding a safe way in, and there aren't many maps to help us with the tunnels."

"I have only found the tunnel that led us here," Seven said. "These levels are nothing more than catwalks that end up back at the ladder again. It is most inefficient."

"They can't drill through the rock because of the structural integrity of the mountain," the hologram explained. "The Carons took too many minerals out without taking into account the weight of the rock. They finally had too many cave-ins to continue, and eventually had to blast all the entrances shut."

"That is not good news," the Borg pointed out, knowing that relying on man rather than machine to get the heavy labor done was an exponential increase in time. "We are heading to level 40 to try and escape through the exit indicated on the map we found. It is on the table in the room by the tunnel."

The ship's counselor, always concerned about her crew, was pleased to see that Seven had finished her second ration bar. "I will relay the information to the captain. Perhaps with what I've seen of this place, we will be able to figure out which map belongs to this shaft. Then they'll know which entrance to clear."

"Agreed. Their assistance at that time would be most appreciated."

"Naomi," Sek said, turning her attention the child. "You mother wanted you to know that she loves you very much, and she will be waiting for you as soon as we get you out of here."

To Seven, she relayed B'Elanna's remark and the captain's expression, which seemed to satisfy the Borg who only insisted that someone make sure Kathryn ate and that she be made aware that they were both physically fine. One thing that Sek had learned from her counseling sessions with Seven was the Borg's utter devotion to her wife. Seven had spoken of her frustration when the captain was being stubborn, refusing to look at logic and reason, of her fears when Janeway took off on an away mission without her, of her desire to raise their children together once they returned to the Alpha Quadrant. Even the most hardened of hearts could not help but be touched by the deep love the two women shared. Sek assured Seven and Naomi that they would be watching the mountainside for evidence that Seven had made it through the entrance. If she did not, then the combined efforts of the Voyager crew and the Carons would find the correct entrance. In either event, Sek promised to see them on the outside or at worst, back here on the inside within two days time. Seven informed her that they would try the entrance on level 40, and if unable to open it, would await further instructions.

B'Elanna didn't look up when Sek returned, the Klingon far too busy trying to get the reinforced rudder assembly calibrated. Since no one knew exactly what time Sek would return, only Lt. Ro, Ensign Wildman and Janeway were waiting at the edge of the precipice. Wildman was the first on her feet.

"Did you find them?" she asked anxiously.

"Yes, they're fine," Sek assured, noting the look of relief on Janeway's face. "They found a map and are trying to get to one of the exits indicated on it." She took the offered padd from Laren and began to punch in data. "I told them we would be in contact with them in two days time if we didn't find a way to rescue them before or they couldn't get through one of the entrances."

"Good thinking, Counselor," Janeway said, surprising the hologram. "Did they indicate that they were in need of anything?"

"Other than a change of clothes and perhaps something other than ration bars to eat, they are doing fine." Sek looked directly at Samantha. "With the exception of a little dirt on her face, Naomi is perfect. I didn't see a scratch on her."

"What about Seven?" Janeway asked.

"She's tired. They have to go up a vertical ladder and the strain is showing. If they can't get through the exit at level 40 I don't know if she'll have the strength left to make it to the next entrance."

Hearing level 40 was enough to make Janeway's muscles ache in protest. "Where is the next entrance?"

"Level 72," the hologram answered, noting B'Elanna and Laren's visible cringes.

"And how much space is between levels?"

"Twelve meters." Three times the distance between decks on Voyager.

"Let's concentrate on figuring out which rock formation is the entrance to level 40," Janeway said. "B'Elanna, how goes your water craft?"

"I have the propulsion and structural integrity under control but the navigation seems rather shaky. I'm afraid the operator will need a really strong hand to keep the rudder going in the right direction."

"Captain, if I may point out," Ro said. "I not only am a pilot, but only Tuvok has been able to defeat me in arm wrestling."

"Seven's beat you," B'Elanna pointed out.

"Only when she uses her Borg arm. What I'm saying is; I believe I am the best one for the job," Ro said respectfully.

"I'm the engineer."

"Yes, engineer. The engineer doesn't steer the ship, the pilot does."

"Who cares who goes as long as someone does it?" Samantha said. "Save your lover's quarrel for later. My daughter in there."

Janeway wasn't sure how or by whom, but the word of Sek's arrival had reached the rest of the Voyager camp if the mass of Starfleet uniforms heading their way was any indication. Perhaps that was why B'Elanna was so slow to pick her head up when Sek arrived, the captain speculated. Perhaps it was time to toss Lt. Torres into a pool of water again.

"Lt. Ro will operate the craft but you're taking a safety line."

"What?"

"I'm not taking any chances. We don't know if this is the part of the river that goes to the falls or not and that ship couldn't possibly survive going over." Janeway turned to Torres. "How long would it take for the replicators to make enough cable to tether the ship from here to the cavern?"

"You're not talking about a simple tether here, Captain," B'Elanna said. "Twenty two point three kilometers is the minimum we'll need. At that distance we'll need a spool on the bank to feed it. There's no way we can take that much with the boat."

Janeway thought about it a moment. "Agreed. We'll attach the cable to the boat and feed it from the shore. Use the Edison's replicators and send the Delta Flyer to Voyager for the remaining amount. The replicators can handle an order like that in a matter of hours."

"Aye Captain."

Whatever else the captain wanted to say was lost as crewmembers gathered around for the good news. Janeway quietly disengaged herself from the crowd and worked her way back to the camp.

Seven studied the mass of rubble before her and frowned, mindful of the dwindling energy she had left, but also unable to completely accept what was before her. At level 38, the ladder ended in a twist of rock and metal where level 39 and possibly more had fallen on top of it. Freedom was only a few meters away but those meters might as well have been kilometers to the Borg.

"Maybe there's another way," Naomi said from behind Seven's shoulder, the child securely strapped to the Borg's back.

"We shall find a way," Seven said, using the light of the wrist beam to carefully scan the catwalk as she made her way to the other side. From that vantage she could see the actual damage. The catwalks above level 38 were broken in several places, making most impassable. Still, careful examination from all angles showed Seven that the levels above 44 appeared to be complete and thus hopefully secure. Now the problem was figuring out how to advance to the next level without using the ladder.

Now the strands of Vulcan microfilament became more important than ever. Seven set up camp and practiced the knot with Naomi several times until she was certain the young girl was able to master it. They tested the knot as best they could, Seven making sure not only that it held but that the angle was such that Naomi could keep the candle, their only light source, in her free hands. Seven would not be able to check it before pulling Naomi up from the level below and she explained that to the child when questioned about the repeated practices. Now the problem of Seven getting to the next level needed to be solved. The rail ringing the catwalks solved that problem, giving Seven a place to plunge her Borg implants in for leverage and vaulting up to the next deck. Once Naomi was safely there, Seven would go back and collect their belongings before bringing the process all over again It was slow going but bit by bit they tucked away the levels, resting several times before they reached level 48 where Seven felt they could safely use the ladder again. While the intact ladder was a welcome relief, the knowledge that their chance for freedom at level 40 was gone, made it a bitter pill to swallow. Seven's hands were blistered from the stones in the tunnel and climbing the metal ladder, making the thought of having to go to level 72 before their next chance of escape, disconcerting at best.

At worst, it might be beyond her altogether.

Sek's description and drawings made from memory were of no use in trying to pinpoint Seven's location. The best they could do was narrow it to six sections owned by private families that feared the government and kept few records. The scouts reported no less than forty different entrances sealed by controlled explosions. Further discussion narrowed the choices down to ten. With those numbers, large crowds of men and women began making their way up the mountain, intent on giving whatever strength they could to the rescue of the two Voyager people. In the meantime, B'Elanna worked on her idea of reaching the missing crewmembers via the river.

"River Buster ready," Ro said, her eyes reviewing the primitive dials one last time. The ore from the mountains made almost all of their equipment useless, forcing them to rely on a blend of Voyager and Caron technologies. The result was a crude but hopefully effective tube with turbine powered thrusters in the front to counteract the force of the river and a rudder in the back to control direction. The Caron equipment was bulky but B'Elanna's ingenuity had made the craft a mere three meters tall, enough to get over the precipice and through the chasm to the caverns beyond, even taking into account the low overhangs that Sek had reported.

"Confirmed, River Buster," B'Elanna's voice came over the Caron communications system. "Safety cable is attached. You are cleared."

Ro flipped the toggle switches, firing up the turbines and electrical systems. Slowly the tube lurched forward, teetering slightly on the very edge of the precipice before falling into the chasm. Ro kept the engines minimal, knowing it would do no good to try and fight the current at this point. Within minutes the Buster was back on course, guided by the currents under the overhang and stalactites. After several kilometers Ro came upon another overhang, this one barely more than a meter above the surface. "Ro to Janeway."

There was a static hiss as the Caron communication system relayed the message. "Janeway here, report Lieutenant."

"Captain, I'm approaching the second overhang that Sek mentioned. I have to dive now."

"Confirmed. Maintain contact."

"Aye Captain." Laren turned dials and flipped switches, watching the vision in the front screen change from dark mountain walls to the crystalline depths of the river. The front lights gave enough illumination for her to see several meters ahead as well as the location of the rock ceiling above her. When she spotted the outcropping beneath the water, it took all of the thrusters power to keep the Buster from being smashed into it by the currents. "Ro to Captain. We have a problem."

The Bajoran swallowed as she waited for the delay. "What is the problem, Lieutenant?"

"There's a rock formation one and a half meters below the surface. It runs the width of the river."

"And are you still under the overhang?"

"Yes Captain. I have just over one meter of clearance above the water. I don't have enough room to go further."

There was another interminable delay as Ro waited for Janeway's answer.

"Understood. We're attaching a winch to the safety rope. Use your thrusters and we'll do the rest. Janeway out."

Laren felt the tug of the safety rope and increased thrusters until she felt the Buster moving backward. She was in no hurry to return. Janeway would be in her captain mood and no doubt severely disappointed at this failure. B'Elanna would be worse, furious over a factor she had no control over, upset that her best chance to help her friend turned out to be for naught, and too stubborn to give up. Ro was certain that by the time she returned, Torres would already be working on a smaller vessel.

"I can't believe how hot it is," Chakotay grumbled, exchanging his sweatband for a dry one for the fourth time that day. Bare chested and darker than usual thanks to the sun, he reached down and steadied himself. "Ready, Crell?"

"Yes," the Bolian said, the two of them lifting a rather formidable rock and pushing it over to other workers who put the rocks and stones in a way that wouldn't come crashing down on people working on the lower entrances.

"I just hope one of our teams finds the right entrance," he said. So far four entrances had been opened, none leading to the shaft where Seven and Naomi were trapped. Sek had been the only contact with the missing crewmembers, but her reports were always encouraging. Both were fine, dirty and wanted permission to reprogram the ration bar program in the replicator. It gave the teams hope, and that gave them energy enough to brave the hot sun and cold nights to move countless tons of rock.

Chakotay heard the sound at the same time a mesh covered hand poked through a small hole and moved the stones aside. "Seven!"

"Commander Chakotay," the Borg's even voice came from the other side of the rock pile. "I require your assistance to clear these stones immediately."

The First Officer laughed and gave a salute before reaching for the nearest stone. "I will gladly comply with that request, Seven. It's good to see you," he said, although all he could see was her left hand.

"It is good to be seen," Seven said. "But I wish to be out there instead of in here." Muffled in the background Chakotay could hear Naomi talking excitedly.

Janeway's teeth rattled as the fossil fuel powered land vehicle bumped up the dusty road. The safety harness did nothing to ease her nerves as the unevenness of the road made her stomach lurch and flip over several times. In the back seat, the Premier and Ensign Wildman encouraged the Caron driver to go even faster than he was now.

Samantha was the first one out of the vehicle, her safety harness disconnected almost half a kilometer before they saw the crowd. Janeway was only seconds behind her, nearly losing her footing after jumping from the vehicle before it came to a complete stop. Seeing their arrival, the crowd parted easily, revealing two dirty and disheveled forms. Ensign Wildman broke into tears again, this time with the great joy that only a mother reunited with her child could know. Naomi accepted her mother's hugs and tears happily, understanding from Seven what to expect when they were finally rescued.

Sek had checked on their progress on the second day as promised, then again on the fourth and sixth. The counselor could never stay long, their increasing level causing the hologram to expend more energy to refill their water pouches before returning to the command center. Still, her visits to check their progress reassured them that Voyager was indeed still trying to rescue them, that it would only be a matter of time before they would be home. For the outside, Sek's reports eased fears and renewed hope among the people working so hard moving the stones. She was standing next to the pair, using a dermal regenerator to heal a rather nasty looking gash on Seven's shoulder, when Janeway and Wildman arrived.

Janeway stopped two paces from Seven, her eyes drinking in the sight before her. "It is good to see you," she said, voice raspy from the strain.

"It is good to be seen," Seven replied, taking a step forward to place her hand on her wife's elbow. It was a private signal between the two indicating that Seven wished to touch the captain in an affectionate way in a public setting. She did not need to ask twice.

"Oh, darling," Janeway said, wrapping her arms tightly around Seven, her spouse ... her Annika, who was finally where she belonged, back in her arms. It took all of Kathryn's indomitable will not to break down in tears. Instead she clung tightly to her wife, breathing in the scent of musty dust and a body that desperately required a shower, listening to the strong heartbeat pounding beneath her ear, feeling the heat of the woman whose continued existence was vital for her own. There was a time when Kathryn would have held her feelings back, saved her emotions from showing until they were alone but not now, not this time, not after waiting almost two weeks to have Seven back in her arms. This time Wife pulled rank on Captain.

The pilot found something else to do when he saw the Captain arriving with Seven and the Wildmans, Neelix a step behind and carrying the strawberry haired child. Janeway gave a brief nod of thanks before guiding Seven to the head. Moments later her wife returned, looking as if she had just arrived for her regularly scheduled shift in Astrometrics instead of spending half a month trapped in a mine shaft. If she was a bit thinner, a little gaunt around the eyes and mouth, it was something that perhaps only Janeway would notice and not anyone who knew the Borg casually. As Samantha woke Naomi and guided the child into the ensuite, Janeway glanced at her partner, who had taken a seat beside her.

"And not a hair out of place," she said, a tiny smile coming to her lips.

"Explain," Seven remarked, with but a fraction of her normal precision. "Why would I want a hair to be out of place?"

"You wouldn't, darling. It's an expression. When I come back from an away mission, I usually look like I've been ejected from the plasma shafts for a week before I look normal again."

"This was not an away mission," Seven reminded. "Plus, Naomi Wildman was much more agreeable to logic and reason over impulses and risks, thus allowing me to be more relaxed in my approach to escaping the tunnels."

"Yes, well..." Janeway presented a neutral expression as the Wildmans walked past them and took their seats on the bench next to Neelix. The pilot returned and at the captain's nod, fired up the engines. Seven buckled into her seat but not before making sure Janeway had buckled herself in first, which both exasperated the captain and filled her with such tenderness, she wondered if she would be able to make it back to her ship without breaking down in tears. The ride back to Voyager was eerily quiet, everyone lost in their own thoughts and impatient to return to their private quarters to spend much needed time with their loved ones.

There were a few more formalities to be taken care of before Janeway was able to escort her spouse back to their quarters. Though outwardly the Borg looked both composed and immaculate, Janeway was easily able to detect Seven's weariness and soreness which lingered from her ordeal. Once they reached deck three and the empty corridor, the captain slipped her arm around her partner's slender waist and felt the woman immediately slump a little, accepting the support. That alone, told her how tired Seven really was.

"Two days off for you, my love," she ordered as they entered their quarters, preceded by Jake who immediately went over to his foot dish and began to gobble up the output of several day's automatic feeding. Janeway winced as she saw it, realizing that whoever had retrieved Jake had forgotten to deactivate the device which had been designed to feed the Irish Setter whenever his mistresses were gone longer than his dinnertime.

"I'll clean that up, darling," she said. "You go to bed."

"You will join me?" Seven asked in a subdued tone.

"As soon as I'm done," Janeway promised as she hauled Jake away from the unexpected windfall and forced him to go over to the couch, having to speak rather sharply to him to make him stay.

Seven disappeared into the bedroom and Janeway quickly cleaned up the excess nuggets of doggy nutrition. She did leave one serving for him, deciding that he deserved a bit of a treat for his undeniable comfort on the planet's surface. Once that was done, she went into the ensuite and stripped off her uniform, replicating a new one for the morning which she placed on the sink counter. She showered and dried herself off, then went into the bedroom, climbing thankfully into the bed next to her beloved spouse.

"Kathryn?" Seven mumbled, wrapping her up in her arms.

"I thought you'd be asleep by now," Janeway said lightly.

"Not until I had the chance to hold you," Seven responded, pulling the captain to her as if trying to absorb her into her body. "When I was most cold and uncomfortable, I thought of this moment, of being here with you, of the warmth of your body next to mine, and it gave me the strength to continue."

Janeway felt a lump rise in her throat. "Oh, darling," she whispered, kissing the hollow of the Borg's throat. "You really scared me this time."

"I know, Kathryn," Seven responded. She paused. "I scared me, as well."

Janeway closed her eyes and hugged her partner tightly. "Don't do this again," she ordered.

"I do not anticipate taking a ride on a 'Floop' ever again," Seven said somewhat dryly. She nuzzled the captain's hair. "Did they discover why the accident occurred?"

"Just a weak partition on the chute," Janeway explained painfully. "It could have gone at anytime but for some reason, it decided to splinter when you and Naomi contacted it." She hesitated. "Sometimes I think the universe is deliberately perverse when it comes to you and me."

Seven chuckled softly. "Not entirely," she noted. "After all, the Floop could have taken the right fork where the river branched."

Janeway remembered the view she had of those falls, rivaling those of Niagara on Earth. Neither the tube or its inhabitants would have survived that, and she clutched at her partner spastically. Seven ran her hand over Janeway's back, rubbing it soothingly as she sensed the captain's agitation.

"It is over, Kathryn," she said. "We are all safe, including Naomi."

"Especially Naomi," Janeway said. "I knew you would keep her safe, no matter what, love. Samantha knew that as well." She nestled her head in the crook of Seven's shoulder and rubbed the Borg's belly gently. "Sleep now, darling. Replenish yourself."

"Kathryn?"

"Yes, darling?"

"Will you remain with me for the next two days?" Seven lowered her tone. "I know it is a lot to ask..."

"No, it's not," Janeway said immediately. "I'll need to supervise our leaving orbit tomorrow morning, after finishing off the few remaining diplomatic gestures, but I'll leave duty as soon as that's done and join you here. All right?"

Seven looked relieved. "That will be sufficient," she said.

"Sleep," Janeway instructed again, then smiled as Seven finally surrendered to her drowsiness, her breathing smoothing out and deepening. Then the captain let herself go, burying her face into the warm hollow of her partner's neck, weeping silently. It was a measure of the Borg's pure exhaustion that she did not rouse ... even for this, though it seemed Seven's arms tightened in a purely unconscious reaction, holding her close in the night.

Seven opened her eyes and discovered she was clutching a pillow tightly to herself and not her partner as her sleep-clouded mind had initially thought. She released it and rolled over ... then groaned as the deprivation she had imposed on herself for the last while declared itself loudly, with a series of twinges and aches that made it difficult for her to move with any of her accustomed grace and athleticism. She inhaled slowly, and lay on her back, looking up at the ceiling and wondering if she should stay where she was or attempt to make it into the ensuite to soak in a hot tub for an hour or so. Kathryn had always raved about the soothing properties of a bath and right now, Seven felt like that was exactly what she needed.

She heard the door hiss open in the outer living area, and carefully shifted her eyes in time to see her partner appear in the doorway of the bedroom.

"Still in bed?" Janeway asked, leaning against the doorframe with a slight grin on her face.

"I just woke," Seven explained. She attempted to move and again, was stymied by the pain in her muscles. "I hurt, Kathryn," she added, with perhaps a bit more pathetic tone than was required. However, it seemed to work, Janeway sobering suddenly and immediately coming over to the bed.

"Oh, darling," the captain said, sitting on the edge. "I'm sorry, I should have made sure you had a bath before you went to bed last night."

"I was too tired to take a bath," Seven said. She raised an eyebrow hopefully. "But I think that if you assist me, I could manage one now."

"Stay there," Janeway said, bending down to brush her lips over her brow. "I'll fill the tub, then help you in there."

Seven sighed with pleasure as her partner slipped off the bed to go into the ensuite, hearing the rush of water as the huge, whirlpool tub filled. "Have we left orbit?" she asked, then realized the hum of the background sound indicated that the warp engines were engaged.

But Janeway did not seem to notice that Seven should have already known the answer to the question.

"About two hours ago," Janeway said. She popped her head back through the door and regarded her partner indulgently. "You must have really been tired to have slept for so long, but then, you have every right to be."

"I hope that the Ginsians did not feel too responsible for what happened to us," Seven said as she eased out of bed and staggered to the tub. "It was an accident."

"Well, it got us a load of free dilithium," Janeway informed her as she helped Seven lower herself into the hot water, which was like a balm to the Borg's muscles. "Everything has a silver lining."

"Ah," Seven remarked. She relaxed into the soothing heat and closed her eyes. This was a sensation learned from her spouse and at the moment, she considered it one of the more useful and pleasant lessons she had acquired by having fallen in love with the captain. She was vaguely aware of Janeway leaving the ensuite and returning a little later. To her surprise, when she opened her eyes, the captain was bearing a tray full of finger foods, vegetables, cheeses and pastries, along with a large pitcher of some reddish liquid and some glasses.

Seven groaned. "Are you attempting to seduce me?" she asked with dismay, feeling for the first time as if she were not exactly up to it, which embarrassed her profoundly.

Janeway laughed. "Oh, no, love," she said. "You wouldn't do me much good in the shape you're in. I just wanted to replicate food that would be light on your stomach after all those ration bars, and that I could feed to you in the tub."

Seven brightened at this. "That will be acceptable," she allowed.

Janeway curled up on the mat by the tub and placed the platter next to her. For the next hour, Seven basked in absolute luxury, a far cry from the dusty and dank mining shafts where she and Naomi had been lost. Janeway fed her the morsels of food, piece by piece, interspersed by swallows of the liquid which was some kind of fruit juice, cold, thirst-quenching, absolutely a perfect counterpoint to the rest of the meal.

"For someone who claims not to be domestic," Seven noted lazily, after she had cleaned the platter completely, "you do have your moments."

Janeway leaned over and kissed her softly. "I can be domestic," she told her firmly. "Especially when my love needs pampering."

"You do it very well," Seven complimented. She stretched experimentally. "I believe I am ready to get out now." The hot water seemed to have done its job in draining the stiffness from her muscles, and many of her aches were nothing but a memory now. Her belly full and completely rested, some of the Borg's energy was beginning to return. It was even possible that her nanoprobes would begin to speak to her again after all the abuse she had put them through.

Her energy underwent another increase as Janeway used a big, fluffy towel to dry Seven off, soaking up the droplets which slipped over her body and down to the floor.

"I like this," she offered softly as Kathryn dabbed at her skin, still flushed from the heat of her bath.

"I enjoy doing it," Janeway told her with a gentle smile and Seven realized that the captain must have really been worried about her to be indulging her in this manner. Usually, Janeway reacted with anger when Seven's life had been endangered. Seven supposed that she and Naomi had been missing long enough that the captain had surpassed her anger and was now into catering to her partner's every whim.

"Why don't you go back to bed and I'll scratch your back," Janeway offered.

That pretty much confirmed the Borg's suspicion and Seven quirked an eyebrow. "That is an offer I shall never refuse," she remarked and returned to the bedroom, noting that the bed had been stripped and remade with fresh linens. Janeway was definitely being far too domestic for Seven's comfort level at the moment. She would have to address that and ease her partner's mind .... after she received her back scratch, of course.

Seven shifted beneath her and Janeway lifted up, allowing the young woman to roll over. There was a happy smile on the Borg's full lips, as there always was after indulging in one of her favorite pleasures. Janeway flexed her fingers, her hands having received a decent workout while scratching the young woman's back. Seven could derive more enjoyment from this particular caress than most Humans, and Janeway thought there had actually been a danger of taking off the first few layers of epidermis before the Borg was completely satisfied.

Janeway straddled her partner, settling lightly on Seven's groin as she looked down at her with a fond smile. "Enough?" she said.

"Yes," Seven replied, returning the affectionate expression. "You are being too good to me, Kathryn. I was temporarily out of contact with the rest of Voyager but once Sek contacted us, we were no longer in any real danger. It is hardly worth all this."

"This is not some kind of reward for surviving, Annika," Janeway told her seriously. "This is to show you how much I love you." She paused. "I almost lost you."

Seven grasped the captain's wrists in her hands gently, stroking the pulse points delicately with her thumbs. "But you did not," she said softly. "And while I appreciate all you are doing, I feel that you are becoming solicitous to me to the point of not being yourself. That indicates that you still are experiencing a certain amount of fear. I wish to allay that."

"But perhaps you can't, darling," Janeway said soberly. "Maybe it's just something that you'll have to put up with it until I get it all out of my system. If that means I pamper you shamelessly for the next few days as I get over my fear for your safety, then that's just what's going to happen."

Seven raised an eyebrow and wiggled, as if testing her freshly scratched back.

"In that event, I shall ... try to accept it," she said in her most put upon tone and Janeway laughed, feeling a little of the tension in her shoulders disappear at her partner's unexpected attempt at humor, a tension she wasn't even aware she had until it eased.

Seven smiled and used her grasp to pull her partner down onto her so that she could kiss her. "Kathryn, if I am to receive this pampering," she murmured against her lips, "then I will require you to remove your clothes."

"Oh, you do?" Janeway responded, quirking her brow. "I think that could be arranged." She sat up again and peeled off her sweater, her tunic having been removed earlier and now lying on the lounger across the room. The sweater was tossed over the captain's shoulder to join it, the sound of pips flying off at random to disappear into various corners of the bedroom. She removed her bra, then smiled as she saw Seven's appreciative expression.

"You like?"

"Very much," Seven assured her gravely, reaching up to place her hands over the firm little breasts. "I missed them."

"Just them?"

"All of you," Seven corrected. "Every square millimeter."

Janeway purred and leaned into the gentle grasp, using her partner's strength to support her as she rose to her knees and wiggled out of her trousers and undergarments. They were dropped on the floor next to the boots she had taken off prior to starting Seven's back scratch.

Seven squeezed gently and arched her hips, pressing into Janeway's moistness with the provocative tickling sensation of her blonde triangle as the captain settled back onto her. Janeway inhaled slowly, intrigued by the sensation, and aroused by it, as well, undulating slightly to increase the tantalizing pleasure.

"Are you positive you're not too sore, love?" she asked, looking down into Seven's pale eyes, a touch of concern coloring her gaze.

"Absolutely," Seven assured her. "You have healed me completely with your wondrous touch."

"Well, now, you're just being sarcastic," Janeway complained. Then she smiled and leaned down as Seven's hands slipped around to her back. "But I promise to be gentle."

"You are always gentle," Seven remarked, with a certain puzzlement.

"More than gentle," Janeway elaborated. Softly she kissed her partner, a bare brush of lips over her mouth. "Like this."

"I suspect such a method shall quickly become unbearable."

Janeway quirked an eyebrow. "That's the upside of it," she explained.

"For whom?"

Janeway merely smiled and Seven eyed her partner narrowly as the captain chuckled. With languid joy, she proceeded to become completely unbearable to her beloved Borg, tender touches that inflamed rather than satisfied, kisses and caresses that teased rather than promised ... until finally, Seven groaned and grasped her partner in an almost desperate embrace.

"Love me," she demanded.

Janeway laughed once more and did so, trailing her fingers down the warm body to find moisture that was far greater than mere need would have produced, and she realized how much she had enticed her partner almost to insanity. With firm hands and a possessive mouth, she took her partner, relieved the aching, questing urge, pleasured and healed her all at once. Seven cried out, shivering from the sensation until there was practically nothing left of the energy reserves she had built up from her food and bath, leaving her limp and sated on the twisted sheets.

Then the captain sought out the full lipped mouth, kissing her with all the delicate tenderness she had started with.

"You amaze me," Seven whispered.

"I intend to keep doing so," Janeway promised her. "Forever." She spread her legs over one lanky thigh, pressing deliciously against the smooth skin and sat up once more. "Lie back."

Seven rested her hands on the captain's hips, watching passively as Janeway undulated forcefully over her. There was a vaguely skeptical expression in her pale eyes and it turned out that the skepticism was accurate ... unlike the Borg, Janeway had never managed to satisfy herself in this manner. Aroused herself tremendously, rose to heights that trembled on the brink ... but never, ever, managed to achieve that final push over the edge. The young woman observed this for a while, seeming to take pleasure in her partner's striving, a small smile hovering over her lips. Then finally, Seven granted mercy upon Janeway, abruptly rolling them over as she reached down with strong fingers to take the captain with authority, just as Janeway needed, slipping deep inside to find that spot. Seven kissed her partner forcefully, reaffirming her absolute and passionate hold over this feisty redhead who submitted happily with loud appreciation and urging that held absolutely no concern for any aches and pains the Borg might still be feeling.

"Oh, darling," Janeway whispered in the boneless relaxation of afterglow, cradled in loving arms, her body collapsed limply over her partner. "You don't take any prisoners."

Seven, from the silence, obviously required a certain amount of time to work her way through that one, and the captain smiled and kissed her languidly.

"I mean," she elaborated, "when you put your mind to doing something, it's just full speed ahead and nothing, not even recovering from being lost for several days, will keep you from accomplishing it."

Seven nuzzled her. "You do not benefit from a passive partner," she noted. "Not sexually, not intellectually, not emotionally. I have come to realize, for me to be a truly suitable match for you, I cannot remain passive to your will, but instead, equal it both in intensity and passion."

Janeway considered that for a moment. "You certainly are quite profound at times, love," she said. "And usually after we've made love."

"It is the positive energy," Seven informed her. "It enhances my capability for reason and enlightenment."

Janeway chuckled. "Whereas, I'm lucky just to remember my name after you pleasure me so well," she said. She kissed the soft skin of the young woman's chest beneath her. "I hope I'll always be able to inspire you to such heights of introspection."

"You will," Seven said softly. "I am sure of it ... as sure as I was that you would never give up on me and Naomi." She hugged her. "Thank you, my Kathryn."

"Don't thank me," Janeway murmured. "You're as necessary to me as breathing, darling. I'll never give up on that."

The captain exhaled audibly, feeling peace and contentment spread through her with warmth and the inevitable sense that all was finally well with their worlds. It had been a hard challenge placed upon them but as always, they both managed to find the strength in their love to carry them through.

In the end, that was all either of them could ask of themselves.

Jake happily lounged on the sofa, his head resting comfortably on Janeway's feet and his tail thumping in a happy rhythm. Seven, dressed only in her short black robe, puttered about the kitchenette putting the final touches on their dinner. "Do you want to try some of the new wine?" she asked, holding up a bright blue bottle.

"I suppose we should," Janeway said. "After all, there's still two more cases of the stuff in the cargo bay."

"The Ginse were rather ... generous," Seven allowed. "I am amazed at your restraint, however."

"Hmm?" Kathryn looked up from her padd.

"You refused the box of smokesticks," the tall Borg said. "Perhaps you are trying to get rid of some of your bad habits after all."

Kathryn rose from the couch, letting the padd bounce harmlessly on the cushion. "My darling," she said, crossing the room and wrapping her arms around Seven's waist. "I love you. I would never do anything to make you uncomfortable." She moved her thumbs idly back and forth, slowly moving upward until they were captured in a strong but gentle grip.

"You know better than to try and seduce me while dinner is heating," Seven warned, eyeing her with a touch of misgiving. Janeway suspected that she had gone a little overboard in her attempt to divert her partner's attention. The door bell chimed, causing the couple to look at each other questioningly, and Janeway to heave a sigh of relief for the interruption.

"Any guesses?" Janeway asked as she took a step back and adjusted her own, more sedate robe.

"B'Elanna is on duty and Lt. Ro would not arrive without her. Commander Chakotay is also on duty and Tuvok only comes when invited."

"Well that takes care of any dinner guests." Janeway patted her wife on the back. "Go put on something less comfortable. I'll see who it is."

"Very well." Seven turned the heat off on the cooking unit and walked into the bedroom while Janeway went to the door.

It was not one of their usual dinner guests but rather a bright and smiling Naomi Wildman. Upon seeing the captain, she jumped to attention. "Good evening, Captain."

"Miss Wildman," Janeway returned. "Come in."

"Thank you, Captain," the young girl said, moving under Kathryn's arm and directly to the couch where she showered Jake with pets and hugs as was his due. "Is Seven here?"

"I am," the Borg said as she stepped out of the bedroom, dressed in her thigh length shorts and a light blue Starfleet undershirt. "Have you eaten dinner?"

"Mommy said dinner will be ready at 1900 hours."

"That is still thirty minutes away." Seven shot a questioning glance the captain.

"Would you care to join us, Naomi?" Janeway asked, earning an approving smile from her wife.

Naomi's eyes lit up excitedly. "Oh yes, that would be most acceptable."

"We need to ask your mother first," Kathryn said. "Computer, locate Ensign Wildman."

"Ensign Wildman is in Neelix's quarters."

Janeway hesitated, her imagination giving a more prurient explanation for the biometric officer's location. "Janeway to Ensign Wildman."

"Wildman here."

"Ensign, would it be all right with you if Naomi joined Seven and myself for dinner this evening?"

There was a pause before Samantha answered. "That is most generous of you, Captain. Thank you."

"Thank you, Mommy," Naomi said happily. She gave Jake a final pat on the head and ran to Seven's side. "Are you making dinner?"

"Yes," Seven smiled. "The Captain--"

"Loves the way Seven cooks," Janeway interrupted, flashing her wife a warning look. "What would you like to drink, Naomi?"

The strawberry head turned to where a wine bottle and two glasses sat on the table.

"Not a chance," Janeway said firmly, if a touch amused. "We've had this discussion before. There are certain beverages that a child your age should not have."

"Seven let me have brandy," Naomi pointed out, earning the Borg a look from Kathryn which made Seven blink at the severity of it.

"For medicinal purposes," Seven defended. "But in this case I do agree with the captain," she said to Naomi. "You will have something nutritional to drink. Milk perhaps?"

"That would be acceptable," the young girl said in her best imitation of Seven's precise tones.

"You may help Kathryn set the table while I finish preparing our meal."

"I will comply," Naomi said happily, running over to Janeway's side. "I've never had dinner with the captain before."

Kathryn smiled indulgently at the child, noting the miniaturized version of the Starfleet comm badge still on her chest. Apparently once created, no one saw a need to take it away from the child, a fact she was sure Ensign Wildman appreciated. More than once the ship's sensors had to be used to hunt down the wayward Katarian, using her genetic coding. With the comm badge, that was a lot simpler "Well it is a special privilege for senior officers and only the best Captain's Assistant, especially one who behaved so well in a dangerous and frightening situation."

Naomi beamed at the praise from the captain, which caused Seven to smile as well. Janeway took the plates from their drawer beneath the replicator and handed them to the Katarian. "Do you think you can handle these?"

"Oh yes, Captain. Mommy lets me set the table all the time." Naomi took the plates and carefully walked to the table, gingerly setting them in the appropriate places. It would not do for the Captain's Assistant to chip one of the captain's dinner plates.

Seven sidled up to Janeway and spoke in a low whisper. "She is very excited."

"Yes, she is," Kathryn replied, amazed at how much life seemed to be in their quarters at the moment. Even Jake was sitting next to the table, happily taking pats on the head as Naomi walked by him.

Naomi played the little helper for Seven as well, jumping up and taking the bowl of bread sticks from the Borg before Janeway had a chance to move from her seat. Soon plates were filled and everyone was seated. Naomi looked skeptically at the food in front of her but took a small bite, then another before declaring it fit to eat. "This is most adequate," she said.

"It is nutrition that Kathryn appreciates, since her mother made it when she was growing up."

"You mean when she was a little girl?" Naomi looked at the captain, clearly not able to envision her as a child. Janeway squirmed under the look and poked her fork at her food.

"It's called Hungarian Goulash," Janeway said. "It's very good, Annika."

"Why does the captain get to call you Annika?" Naomi asked, putting another bite in her mouth.

"Because that is the name my parents gave me when I was an infant," Seven said. "I prefer that most people call me Seven, but here in our quarters, Kathryn calls me Annika, just as I refer to her by her first name."

"Why?"

"Because we're married and I'm allowed to," Janeway said, not wanting the conversation to continue into the realm of pet names which she had bestowed upon the Borg at one time or another, particularly in the heat of the moment. A captain had to have some secrets.

"Is it like a special name?" Naomi persisted.

"Yes. Were you able to catch up on all your studies?" When one route did not work, try another, Janeway thought.

"Oh yes, Captain," the child said smartly. "I have been studying very hard. Seven says if we apply ourselves we can do anything."

"She's very right," Janeway said.

"Seven's very strong too," Naomi said. "She carried me lots of times when we were in the Bastardrock."

Food decided to go down the wrong chute, causing Kathryn to cough frantically. Seven was quickly behind her, thumping her back.

"Kathryn, should I call the Doctor?"

She waved Seven away with her hand and took a deep breath. "No, just went down the wrong way." She reached for her wine glass, then looked up at her wife. "Actually would you mind getting me a glass of water?"

"Are you all right, Captain?" Naomi asked worriedly.

"I'm fine, Miss Wildman," Kathryn said, patting the child's hand. "Is that what you call the mine shaft you were trapped in?"

"Yes, Seven named it."

"Apparently." She shot a look at her wife who simply smiled back and handed Janeway the glass of chilled water. The captain was uncomfortably aware of where Seven must have picked up the term to describe the tunnels they had been in.

"It was a most physically challenging experience," Seven said as she returned to her seat. "I do not believe my body was intended to be abused in such a manner."

"I didn't mean to kick you," Naomi said apologetically. "Mommy says I move more in my sleep than I do when I'm awake."

"It was all right," Seven assured. "I am used to it." She gave Janeway a fond smile, causing the captain to stare intently at her meal to hide her blush.

"It sounds like quite an adventure," Kathryn mumbled.

"It was," Naomi agreed. "Seven and I talked a lot about all sorts of things." She turned to Seven. "Mommy is with Neelix right now."

Janeway's eyes widened, not at all sure she wanted to know where this conversation was heading.

"That is where the ship's sensors found her," Seven agreed blandly.

"I think they're having a special dinner."

"Indeed?" Seven, who obviously knew what was going on, casually took a sip of her wine. "And did you talk to your mother?"

"Not the first night after we got home, because she was too busy hugging me and crying like you said she would."

Janeway looked at her wife and offered a shy smile, knowing that was exactly what she had done once Seven was back in her arms.

"But you did speak to her?" Seven asked.

Naomi nodded. "She said they aren't copulating."

This time it was the wine which refused to go down the right tube, and Janeway decided to give up any plans on dinner since it most likely would end up with her choking to death.

"I think I've had enough," she said, rising to her feet.

Seven tried not to look disappointed at the amount of food remaining on Kathryn's plate. It was rare Janeway failed to finish a dinner prepared by Seven. Naomi apparently decided dinner was over as well, standing up and collecting her dishes as well. Seven took a few more quick bites and put a stasis lid on the remaining food. If Kathryn would not eat her dinner then it would become lunch tomorrow. Jake obligingly moved off the couch as they approached, allowing Seven and Janeway to sit down while Naomi took the chair, her legs dangling above the floor.

"If you take your shoes off, you may put your feet up," Seven told her.

"Would you like the footstool, Miss Wildman?" Janeway asked, seeing it nestled under the coffee table.

"That would be acceptable, Captain," Naomi said. "Susan lets me put my feet up on the couch when I stay with her."

"Susan?"

"Ensign Nicoletti," Seven explained. "Naomi stays with her from time to time."

"Oh." Janeway knew she didn't want to ask why. "My mother had a fit when I put my feet up on the furniture," she revealed. "Of course I was usually wearing boots covered in dust from the farm."

"Yes, you grew up on an agricultural collective," Naomi said. "Your family are Traditionalists."

"Yes, they are."

"My great grandmother was a traditionalist," Naomi said, scooting back in the chair and sitting cross legged. "Mommy showed me pictures of them. Do you have pictures of your family?"

"Uh, yes I do," Kathryn said cautiously.

"Would you like to see them?" Seven offered. "I have organized them according to date. It was much more efficient than Kathryn's attempt at sorting them."

"All I had to do was call up the general file and flip through them until I found the one I wanted," Janeway protested. "It didn't take that long."

"You spent seven point six minutes looking for the picture of Phoebe I wanted. I can now find it in less that one point three seconds."

"Well then it's a good thing I keep you around, isn't it?" Janeway teased, rising to her feet. "I'll get the padd. What time do you have to be back at your quarters, Naomi?"

"2100 hours is my bedtime," the young girl said. "What time is your bedtime?"

"Captains don't have bedtimes."

"However, if the captain does not get sufficient sleep, she is very much like you are in the morning," Seven said, taking the padd from Janeway.

"I take it young Miss Wildman doesn't like to get up in the morning?" Kathryn said as she resumed her seat.

"She is second only to B'Elanna in terms of waking up in a foul mood." Seven pressed a few buttons on the padd and handed it to Naomi. "There is Kathryn with her sister, Phoebe. Kathryn is the one pulling Phoebe's hair."

Naomi got out of her seat and sat down on the cushion Janeway had vacated, the child now sitting next to Seven. "Show me another one."

"We do not have many," Seven said, pressing the button to change the picture. "Kathryn only had a few, and Phoebe may send only three images at a time." She pointed at a brightly colored print on the wall. "That is an image of a painting that Phoebe has done."

Kathryn walked over to the replicator and programmed a whiskey and soda for herself, and two ice cream floats which were happily accepted by Seven and Naomi. Janeway settled into the chair, smiling when Jake ambled over and rested his head on her leg. Looking around, she noticed just how homey the scene was. Naomi was practically on Seven's lap, the two of them happily looking through the images on the padd and enjoying their dessert. It struck her, as it always did when they were babysitting Harry Jr., how Seven's face took on a glow that simply was not present any other time. Someday, Annika, she promised. A devious thought entered her mind. Could she get away with it? Did she dare? "While you two are looking at the images, I'm going to take Jake for a walk."

"That would be a good idea," Seven remarked, looking up. "He requires more exercise now than when he was a puppy."

Janeway practically jumped from her seat. "Well then, a nice long walk around the ship is in order. Where's your leash, Jake?"

Epilogue

Janeway carefully lit the thin cigarillo between her teeth and leaned back comfortably in her seat, shaking the match to extinguish the tiny flame. She was currently cloistered in the cockpit of her Captain's Yacht, a vessel which had not even left Voyager in the entire time the ship had been commissioned because of its lack of weaponry, shields and warp capacity. It was easier to rebuild a shuttle than it was to upgrade this little planet-hopper designed for diplomatic displays, and most people had forgotten that it even existed, tucked snugly beneath the saucer section of the ship.

For her, it was her new haven away from Voyager and a sanctuary that hopefully no one knew about ... including her wife. Janeway had spent more than a few enjoyable hours down here in the past few weeks while she was supposed to be taking Jake on his nightly walk, having transferred all her illicit smokesticks to the various compartments scattered about the vessel.

With a deep sigh of smug achievement, she put her booted feet up on the navigational array and inhaled happily, drawing the smoke deep into her lungs. She wasn't sure why she enjoyed the sensation so much, but it was something that she found she almost needed as time passed by, looking forward to this quiet hour after dinner with a longing that would have been disturbing if she had let herself really think about it. The best part was that no one would ever know, particularly Seven. Along with a replicator, there was a fully equipped head at the rear of the vessel,  enabling the captain to replace her smoky clothes and take a shower before she returned to her quarters. The fire suppressants had been disengaged the first night she had decided to do this, and at the moment, the lights were lowered to a comfortable level, making a cozy atmosphere within the tiny control center as music played softly from the speakers, a jazzy tune which evoked hot nights in New Orleans. All that was missing was a nice glass of brandy and when she had finished this cigarillo, she was going to rectify that before smoking her second.

Curled up on the floor, Jake sneezed and shook his head as the blue tendrils of smoke reached him, offering her a bit of a disgusted look. She made a face at him and sucked deeply on the tube, smiling happily as the smoke slowly escaped from her nose. She took another puff, pursing her lips to allow the smoke to escape in a shimmering, round ring. It was absolutely perfect.

Her eyes, slitted with pleasure, flew open as the door to the tiny hangar opened and Seven of Nine strolled in.

The Borg regarded her through the yacht's viewports, linking her hands behind her back as she lowered her head, an somewhat obscure expression on her face that Janeway could not identify as she desperately attempted to formulate some kind of explanation.

Seven did not give her the time.

"This is unacceptable behavior, Kathryn," she said firmly, her voice echoing in the room. "And one, that for your own good, I simply cannot tolerate."

A quirk of Seven's cranial implant was all the warning Janeway had before the fire suppressants, which she thought she had turned off, activated in the cockpit. How Seven had managed it, the captain doubted she would ever know and in the meantime, she wasn't able to think about it as a thick, white, very chilly foam began to shoot from several nozzles situated randomly around the vessel. The first wave completely doused the small ember at the end of her smokestick, and the captain, who choked, sputtered and otherwise flailed around in the mass filling up around her, found that her outrage was being similarily extinguished. In space, fires were nothing to take lightly and the sensors were designed to make sure any hint of it was put out as quickly and as thoroughly as possible, even as the properties of the foam protected delicate equipment and retained enough oxygen to allow anyone trapped in the area to breath. Jake yelped, deciding he had quite enough of this and scurried for the hatch which had been left half open, shaking vigorously to get the foam out of his long, red hair. He skidded to a stop in front of Seven and looked mournfully up at her, trying to convey that he had absolutely nothing to do with this particular incident at all.

When the sensor finally detected no more hint of spark, the spewing of the foam ceased and the ventilation system began to suck it out as it dissolved into a fine, greasy mist which left the interior fixtures shining and Janeway completely soaked. She stood in the middle of the cockpit, her hair plastered flat to her head and glared at her partner through the transparency of the viewport.

Seven merely raised her head with an expression of abject satisfaction, smiled faintly, and with a gesture to their dog who had quite enough of his other mistress, the pair turned and left the yacht hangar.

Totally and completely defeated, Janeway spat out the drooping remains of her cigarillo, and had the very uncomfortable feeling that, while she was the ultimate Starfleet influence in the rest of the Delta Quadrant, Seven had grabbed the sovereignty in the marriage. The captain just couldn't quite figure out when the transition of power had occurred. Around her feet, the remains of the rest of her cigarillos had been forced out of their various hiding places and lay strewn about the deck like corpses after a devastating battle, with no one to mourn them but a captain who was beginning to wonder if perhaps her sense of loss was a little too strong for what should be basically a desire to light up now and again. There was a craving growing within her that she had not expected as she realized all the smokesticks were now gone.

It would be something to consider ... once she had cooled off. Right now she was furious, yet without any kind of outlet. She honestly didn't think she should really attempt to argue with Seven in the manner she wanted to since the Borg would probably just hold her upside down over the nearest catwalk until the tantrum had burned itself out. It was bad enough for a chief engineer to be treated with such public disregard. For the captain ... well, she had enough private problems just with trying to figure out how to deal with her newly authoritative spouse.

Where would they go from here?
The End

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