Where It All Ends

Chapter 1: Perfect

"Torres to Seven of Nine."

Seven of Nine opened her eyes to the disruption from her normally silent surroundings. She had been regenerating prior to a planned away mission on the class M planet Voyager was now orbiting.

"Seven of Nine here."

"Seven, you were supposed to report to Transporter Room 3 at 0800," Torres stated with obvious agitation.

Though Seven knew Lt. Torres expected an immediate response, she would have to wait. Seven stepped out of her alcove,  with discernible confusion.

 "Computer, what is the time?"

"The time is 0814."

She quickly tapped on a few panels at the station which monitored her regeneration status. Seven felt slightly mortified, if that's really what the term meant. This had never occurred before. And such a blatant error of function as well. She had hoped to perform efficiently on the away mission, since Lt. Torres, of all people, was in command of the team. Taking a deep breath, she replied, "I am sorry lieutenant. My regeneration alcove's chronologic control is malfunctioning. I will join you shortly."  With that, the slighty disheveled (though no one would ever notice) young borg left her cargo bay to meet up with the away team. This was obviously bad beginnings for a morning.

Meanwhile, in Transport Room 3, Torres raised her brows in disbelief. She couldn't believe the lame excuse she just received from Seven. Was this the borg equivalent to "my alarm didn't go off"?  It was something her old academy roommate would say, but coming from the borg, Be'lanna snorted, it was probably the truth. Still, she smirked, it was good to know not everything about the borg performed perfectly. Perhaps, Seven was becoming a little more human, a little more flawed on occasion.

Torres had assembled and met with her away team yesterday.  Voyager had sent a probe to investigate the planet when they discovered it had been abandoned, apparently, by colonists.  Several small outposts were found, but  long range sensors picked up geological changes which indicated man-made structures underground. The structures weren't too deep but the hypoechoic, reflective properties of the sediment layer of the planet made it difficult to transport precisely into "caverns" detected.  However, the sensors did pick up deposits of deuterium within those chambers, possibly resources used to power the colonies' facilities.  The amount the sensors did detect seemed to indicate the deposits would provide Voyager with a surplus of energy to potentially utilize in barter. Torres really didn't want Seven along, since she always questioned her decisions when opportunity arose, but the borg's vast knowledge of the technology of other species might be useful once they get down there.

Carey and Vorik could manage engineering while she was gone. She picked Ensign Meli Johan, a young unjoined female Trill, from her engineering team. Johan was a pleasant technician to work with, fast with her hands and a quick, practical thinker.  She had long, dark brown locks, a pretty face, and hazel eyes. Torres also chose two science officers, Lt. Mitchell and Ensign Suzuki.  Both men were fairly capable when it came to away missions.  Chakotay or Tuvok might actually join them if the colonies proved interesting enough.  Now, if Seven could get her butt over to the transporters, they could be on their way and back before dinner.

A crisp, squared-shouldered Seven, dressed in her brown "skins," as Tom called it, entered the door, turned to the Lieutenant and said, " Seven of Nine reporting for duty."

Without further word, she stepped up onto the transporter pad, and with an expectant look, cocked that insufferable eyebrow of hers. Torres sighed and stepped up onto the pad herself.  This was going to be interesting.

"Chief, energize."

Chapter 2: The Planet

The away team transported twenty-five meters below the surface into one of the larger chambers Voyager's sensors were able to penetrate.  Several doorways leading to tunnels fanned away from the chamber. It was clearly an area of convergence. The walls were smooth, with a granite textured, and looked artificially carved out. Several computer panels were seen at the opening of some tunnels, all not functioning.

-chirp- "Away team to Captain Janeway," Torres hailed.

"Janeway here."

"Captain, we've transported into some sort of antechamber that connects several passageways.  Looks like there are several accessible computer panels at some of the passage openings.  We'll have to examine them. I'll keep you posted."

"Understood. Janeway out."

"No life signs," reported Ensign Suzuki while the young man tapped on his tricorder.

"Whoever was here, abandoned this area about 60 years ago, according to the scanners," Lt. Mitchell added in his rich New Orlean timbre.

"I could start a general sensor sweep and scout ahead. There seems to be deuterium radiation towards that direction ,"  Suzuki enthusiatically suggested.

"Alright, but Johan you go with him. None of us should be alone at any time during this away mission. We still don't know what's down here on this planet, and what the colonists left behind," Torres commanded.

"Yes, ma'am." Both Ensigns headed off towards the largest tunnel. Torres and Mitchell began to explore the chamber. There were several crumpled stone benches along the sides of the polygonal room. A few tiles patterns were noted on the floor. Clearly, a cultural, artistic species who took time to beautify even a more technical part of the station.

Seven had been examining one of the panels closest to her location at the time. She wiped the panel clean from the metallic and sandy dust that had accumulated. Most of the panel was still readable, with the keypads still well defined.

"Species 5161, Direelian," Seven noted.

"You recognize the technology?" asked Torres, as she stepped up behind Seven.   "Yes, this species ...."

Torres cut her off at that point, "Hold on, Seven. I liked the rest of the away team as well as the bridge to hear this." Tapping on her comm -chirp-, "Torres to Suzaki, report back here on the double. Torres to Captain Janeway."  Suzaki and Johan scrambled through the doorway back into the chamber.

"Janeway here. What is it Be'lanna?"

"Seven's just examined one of the computer panels. She recognizes the possible origin of the technology. I thought you might like to hear this."

"Go ahead."

"Captain," Seven began without waiting for indication, "I recognize this technology as belonging to species 5161, Direelian.  Phenotypically, they resemble the Hirogen, except, their body size are more similar to the Ferengi . Their home planet is approximately 3,200 light years away from this planet. They are a warp-capable species, however they lack the sophistication which would allow them to wander into deep space exploration.  This is probably one of the farthest colonies they have established, and they expand from one colony to the next.  Difficulty in replenishing supplies and establishing trade with the nearest colonies as well as possible hostilities from other species closer may have lead to their dissertion. However, the deuterium would be valuable enough for them to desire to return."

Torres sighed mentally. Though Seven understood the chain of command, she still didn't recognize the subtleties. 'Waiting for acknowledgement from me would have at least let me finish what I needed to say,... if I did have anything to say. Besides, it sets a bad example for the rest of the team, especially with another lieutenant present. And everyone wonders why we don't get along,' Torres thought to herself.

"I see.  It looks like we have an opportunity to strike a little gold, at the very least."

"Captain?" Seven asked, with a perplexed look passing.

"Nevermind, remind me to remind you to look up the California Gold Rush. A remarkable period of time.  Be'lanna, set up the transporter boosters so we can keep a better transporter lock on you at all times. And keep me posted."

"Yes, Captain, Torres out... Alright, Johan, begin setting up the transporter boosters and I'll assist you. Suzaki and Mitchell, continue scouting ahead. Seven you go with them and make sure none of you activate anything without notifying me first."  Torres was in her take charge mode. It was time to get the mission underway.  She watched her team walk off, Seven trailing last.  Her lithe figure seemed even more so with the deeping shadows. No argument from the borg so far to her relief.  It was tough enough to get back to commanding her own away missions.

Chapter 3: Working

With the last booster switched on with a twist, softly illuminating the chamber, the tunnels could now be explored. The scouts reported that the main tunnel descended eighty-five meters more underground to a much larger cavern. The walk wasn't difficult and a lighting system seemed to be in place.

With a few trial and errors, the lighting system was activated from the now functioning panels. Seven and Torres had been deciphering the panels to gain a full sense of their use. The team finally made their way down the eighty-five meters with relative ease. The outer doors to the main cavern had been outfitted with a few lock-outs, but short circuiting a few connections bypassed that. Light from the tunnels cut through the dark room as the team slow slid the doors open. The doors creaked with effort. Torres stepped in, tricorder raised, while the pebbles and sand crackled underneath her feet.

-Cough, cough- She waved her hand to fan the dust which had been stirred by the flooding of new air. The tricorder, buzzing with activity, indicated no life signs, only some faint reading of deuterium and other compounds not specified under the current parameters. The rest of the away team made their way into the cavern and spread out to scan for any danger or discoveries.

Torres reached the main computer station on the far side of the cavern, which was fairly extensive, stretching across the wall at about 30 feet. The view screens, operative panels, and desk terminals all seemed intact and undamaged. 'Everything seems secure. Open for us to access. Then why does the hair on the back of my neck stand?' contemplated Torres.

"Lieutenant Torres, should we start accessing the computer, and find the location of the deuterium?," asked Seven.

"Yes, find the diagnostics systems first. Meli, take out the energy packs and start looking for possible adaptors. Watch out for other lock-outs or traps."

                        *       *       *       *       *       *       *       *

"This looks like the diagnostics, lieutenant," Suzuki pointed out. Seven walked over to confirm.

"He is correct. These panels indicate diagnostics as well as maintanence."

"Mitchell, help Ensign Johan set up the energy packs to the diagnostics, that over station over there which controls communications, and this mainframe here. Seven, take a look at this," commanded Torres.

Seven walked over to the mainframe. After a few moments analyzing the panels, she looked up.

"This station monitors the computer functions of all the operations in this part of the underground structure.  We should be able to find the records of what had occurred prior to the abandonment of this colony."

"Good, try to gain access to those files, I want to know what happened, and any information on the condition of the deuterium sources here."

It had been a while since they had worked so closely together on a project, probably since the doctor's brilliant daydreaming fiasco. Now standing side by side together, Torres wondered how long they could remain civil to each other in front of the rest of the away team. Nevertheless, Seven proved informative on this mission so far, Torres had to admit to herself. The computer was operational in no time once the energy packs were outfitted. The away team busied themselves, each to their own tasks. Torres and Seven began to decipher the last few weeks of the colony's history, while Mitchell and Suzuki scanned for the location of the deuterium through diagnostics and maintenance. Ensign Johan maintained the communications to Voyager and monitor the status of the transporter beams, the only reassurance that they were still connected to the outside world.

This was the fifth time Seven hand had brushed against hers. Both of them had been working intensely to pull up the files on mining operations, command communications, and staff logs. Torres had begun sweating several minutes, not knowing whether it was because of the temperature of cavern or because of something else. The something else addressed her.

"Lt., I have retrieved the logs for the last few days of this station from the records. I should finish my readings shortly. Perhaps, I can continue my analysis while you... "take a break," suggested Seven.

"I'm fine.  We still have hours of work to do," dismissed Torres. Her ridged forehead beaded with sweat, but she wasn't about to look feeble in front of the artic princess.

"Your body temperature has risen 2.3 degrees, you are diaphoresing, and you have not consumed enough fluids to compensate. I believe you need rest. You have been monitoring everyone's productivity and made several trips back to our tranport location to check on our transporter boosters."

"Seven, you've just described my typical daily activity level in the engineering," stated Torres, rolling her eyes in the process. "Besides, I'm not tired. Just finish the logs, and I'll go check on the others."

Seven raised her eyebrow and sighed as she looked after the departing Torres. The lieutenant was stubborn. She merely suggested that Torres regenerate after having performed more than efficiently, if that were possible, for over several hours.

"How are the diagnostics going? Have you found any inklings as to the location of the deuterium?" Torres inquired.

"It looks like we've been given the run around, Lt.," replied Mitchell.  "We keep trying to run a few diagnostics and access the maintenance records to find the deuterium stores, but so far there is no indication that the deuterium is here except for our own scans."

"Shit...., It's got to be here. Look for any records of any reconstruction or reinforcement of any storage facility or tank in this station. Seven should be able to corroborate this info with the officer's log."

*       *       *       *       *       *

"Mr. Kim, any luck with the sensors?," inquired the captain, walking over to ops. The bridge complement was a bit larger today as various crew members worked to sustain links to the away team and monitor equipment. The miriad of blue, red, and gold blended in a flurry of activity. The captain watched as her youngest bridge officer's hands glided over the panels.

"No ma'am. I'm able to maintain transporter lock and use the relays on the boosters to monitor basic life signs of our away team. But I haven't been able to pinpoint the deuterium's location either, even after adapting the deflector dish. Our sensors just can't seem to penetrate beyond the superficial layers. The sediment seems to contain a variety of heavy metals, many crystalized with high refractive indices," replied Kim, as they both look over the ops screen.

"I know you're doing your best. Keep at it, and if you need a hand, recruit a few crew members. Chakotay, you have the bridge."  Janeway turned and asked Commander Tuvok to join her in her ready room.

"Have a seat Tuvok. Coffee? <nod> It looks like the away team's having trouble locating the deuterium. I'm inclined to sit on this for another hour before I suggest you join them. A security system seems to be in place, which they haven't been able to circumvent. It's more than just an engineering problem now," noted Janeway as she replicated two cups of black coffee.

"Thank you. I agree. I was about to make a similar suggestion myself. Although I am not familiar with this species' technology, I may be able to provide some tactical insight. However, I do not wish to supersede Lt. Torres' command of this mission."

"Well, I'm sure Be'lanna wouldn't mind a new perspective on the matter. The data she sent on the computer system indicates the Direelians were quite stickler to protocol. They might have a few fail-safes for intruders like us."

Janeway's expression changed almost imperceptible with the last statement now that her concern had been openly voiced. Only her long-time friend would have been able to notice such a subtle gesture; a down-turned corner of the mouth and a small indurated furrowing of the brow. Though he could not empathize, he understood the implications and offered his Vulcan response.

"Logically, it would be a prudent course of action considering the amount of deuterium alluded to by our scans, thus far. It would be wise to presume that several of these protective measures will be hostile in nature. I will analyze the Lt. Torres' data again and beam down to the surface without further delay."
 
Chapter 4: Shit Happens

"Lt., we are having difficult engaging the computer to comply with our commands," Seven announced. Her tall figure stood at in front of the main console. It had been...frustrating. After hours of work with little progress, even the borg had problems maintaining her composure. As a borg, it would have been easier to assimilate the technology with a crew of 10,000 drones. Several times she found herself wishing she had joined the lieutenant in kicking the machinery, though she failed to understand why that would have succeeded where their efforts have not.

"Yes, Seven. Thank you for stating the obvious. Again!" Lt. Torres paused. With a mocking snort, she asked, "If anyone has a new suggestion, please say it now, otherwise..." She looked around the cavern at her team. Each dishevelled in their own way, tired, dirty, and sweaty, except for that damn borg. She sighed, "Alright everyone, let's take a break, open up a few of the rations, and maybe we'll come up with a new perspective on things."

With no argument, the away team shuffled their way to their packs, far from the hum of the computers.  The day had started out with huge prospects, but now it seemed as though they may never access the deuterium storages. It had been a major disappointment. Torres was surprised Janeway hadn't called the team back to the ship for a new meeting to re-evaluate the situation. She slid against the wall as she plopped her butt down on the ground. She watched as Seven sat across from her, sharing her rations with Ensign Johan. Her attention was called away when Lt. Mitchell spoke.

"Lieutenant, what is our next objective? It seems as though that no matter what we do, the computer will not recognize our commands. "

"I know, Mitchell, I know...," Torres replied. She took a deep breathe, silently cursed in Klingon, and leaned back. She stared at the ceiling, needing time to think. There had to be a way to access the location of the deuterium. The only data they had gathered revealed that the Direelians had abandoned the colony 67 years ago. Their last supply ship had been hijacked by another species, the Tak, and their only way of surviving was to leave and head towards the nearest colony.  The few days before the last ships departed, several sites had been refortified or refitted with new command codes, new  "locks" in several facilities all over this part of the station.  The diagnostic and maintenance consoles were reprogrammed to keep out intruders. Everything had been secured well prior to departure.

"There has got to be a way in!"  Suzuki exclaimed. His short black hair now stood on end after hours of pulling on it in frustration.

"Ensign, it is unproductive to state what everyone here desires. I suggest we discuss new ideas while we are regenerating," responded Seven, with her eyes fixed on the overly excitable Ensign.

"You mean brainstorming...?" interrupted Ensign Johan.
 

"Yes." Seven turned to addressed Meli. "Or another option would be to request assistance from Voyager."

"You mean we should cry for help...," Mitchell noted as he propped his stocky figure against the packs.

Torres decided to redirect the team, "Enough, guys. Let's just start throwing out ideas and see if we can come up with a new plan." The lieutenant looked exhausted to Seven. Her brow knitted in concentration, and dirt smudged her cheeks and uniform. Seven was disappointed in her own inability to solve their computer problems.

"How about going over what we've attempted so far?", suggested Johan.

"An orderly course of action, " agreed Seven.

Lt. Mitchell began, "Well, we beamed down, examined the computer panels and found that the technology belonged to the Direelians. Seven of Nine was able to uncover more information about this species.  We know the Dieelians are very protective of what they consider their property, and the property of the entire Direelian population. in our first step, we reactivated their computer system by adapting our energy packs."

"And we have searched through their officers' logs, diagnostic and maintenance records for any information on the location of their deuterium supply in this station.  We haven't been able to pinpoint the specific location of the deuterium. Several primary systems accesses have been blocked by lock-outs which we haven't been able to decipher," added Johan.

"It's almost as if we're hitting a blank wall," grumbled Suzuki.

"I apologize for not being able to bypass the lock-outs. My knowledge of the Direelians has been insufficient," Seven confessed.

Be'lanna had been quiet all this time. She was battling her own doubts. Seven's comment brought her out of her reverie. "If we can't bypass the lock-outs, what else can we do?"

Everyone turned their attention towards her now.  Johan seemed engaged, Suzuki was puzzled, and Mitchell looked ambivalent.

Seven raised her brow and asked, "Do you mean if circumventing the lock-outs was no longer an option?"

"Yes, we've been pretty passive in our approach so far towards the computer system.  We've only tried to elicit data. We need to take a more aggressive approach." Torres got up and started pacing away from the group.

"Can we alter the spectrum of our scanners? Perhaps we can enhance the deflector dish using our transporter boosters and have Voyager locate the deuterium", suggested Suzuki.

"They have been unsuccessful thus far. It's quite possible that the deuterium would still be well-sealed from the ship's long range, broader spectrum scan even if we adapted the dish. Once we locate the deuterium, we still need a way to open their storage containment," replied Seven. "We need to deceive the computer into opening the containment."

"Right!", exclaimed Ensign Johan. "If we could trick the computer, especially through the less secure secondary systems, we should have a better chance of finding the deuterium."

"The secondary maintenance systems," proposed Mitchell. "Diagnostics would not help us open the containment."

Torres stopped in her tracks and turned. Her mind was flipping through a ton of ideas. "I think we can try a few tricks. One, we can alter the maintenance schedule and make the computer think a maintenance run is needed for all the different storage units. Two, we can trick the computer into thinking it has a deuterium containment break. Three, we could trick the computer into thinking some part of the containment circuitry is malfunctioning.  Now think, what is usually needed to contain large amounts of deuterium, people? What systems, field generations, energy sources, waste disposals are all necessary...."

*       *       *       *       *       *

"Chakotay, we're trying a few new ideas. I know we haven't given you good news so far," hailed Torres.

"We know it's been difficult, Be'lanna. Tuvok would like to join your little party. And he'll bring down a few more energy packs," replied Chakotay. He stood up from his seat and made his way up the steps to the upper tier of the bridge.

"We'll be expecting him."

"Good, give him a few minutes.  Chakotay out." He nodded to the Lieutenant Commander. "You'd better get down there to help them. It sounds as though they could use a relief."

*       *       *       *       *
"Lt., I believe I have been able to create a false reading of a general containment break. It sould elicit a response from the diagnostics system," announced Seven. With Johan's assistance, they both entered the mainframe's core and tampered with the internal sensors. They had squirmed toe to toe in a shaft smaller than even Voyager's tiniest a jeffries tube.

Suzuki was monitoring at the diagnostic console. "I believe the sensors have been reactivated. It's running a level two diagnostic. I'm trying to isolate the signals to specific locations within the station."

"Good, keeping tracking the system, I'm going to run our own equipment scans," ordered Torres. The progresses fueled her with new conviction.

"Lt., the maintenance systems have initiated a new sequence," Mitchell informed.

Torres quickly moved over to his console.  The system had been activated and was now running standard maintenance checks in an effort to repair the containment breach. All of the systems seemed to come alive, flashing panels everywhere, like one of Neelix's Risian flambe desserts.

-chirp- "Seven, Meli, get back here. Something's going on. We might need you're help."

"On our way, Lieutenant. Johan out," responded Meli.

Seven acknowledged Meli's gesture, and headed back towards the entrance of the shaft. Seven slid her long legs out first and the rest of her body followed the brief drop. She took the step forward to make room for Johan. The ensign had been in excellent shape to handle the hot, stuffy confinement. Seven appreciated such efficiency.  They found the others working furiously at the computer consoles.

"State our current situation," demanded Seven.

Torres didn't even bother to glare at her.

"Whatever you guys slipped the computer, it caused a damn chain reaction. The diagnostics have been running multiple scans and the maintenance system seems to be going through a series of containment leak protocols. So far we've narrowed it down to five possible storage locations. Johan, go help Mitchell with the maintenance console. Seven, come take a look at this."

Seven stepped over to the main console. The diagnostics did indeed indicate the locations of several storage units after Lt. Torres had modified for specific sensor sweeps.  It seemed as though they were getting closer to finding the deuterium. The maintenance system, however, seemed to be performing an excessive amount of activity.  Accessing her borg data on Direelian protocols, she realized something was in error.

"Lieutenant, I believe I have detected a silent alert program! We may have inadvertantly triggered security measure that is providing us with a false fascade. Though we may have located the deuterium stores, we..."

"Are you saying it's a trap?!"

"Something to that effect."  Seven voice became urgent.

"Johan, Suzuki, Mitchell, get back to the antechamber! Meet up with Commander Tuvok and inform him of what's happened. Seven download, the diagnostics' data we do have, then beam out. I need to inform the captain."

"Lt., we won't leave you here!," Johan exclaimed.

"Damn it, that's an order, Ensign. Now go!"

The away team grabbed their gear and double-timed up the tunnel. Seven began downloading the data. Perhaps with the information they have gained Voyager can now confine their sensors and beam the deuterium from the surface of the planet. In the background she heard Torres hail the captain.

"Captain, I regret to inform you that we have to abandon the surface mission. We may have triggered some sort of security protocol. I don't think we know enough to stop it. Keep a transport lock on Seven and me."

"Understood. We'll try to monitor your situation as best we can. Harry will beam you out at the first sign of trouble," Janeway replied with a motion to Harry, which he acknowledge.

"Transport lock is stable, captain."

"Torres out."

Torres began pulling out the energy packs, trying to shut down the security circuitry to buy them time. Unfortunately, the computer had already tapped into its own generator it seemed. It was too late for anything else. Seven grabbed Torres' arm as an alert sounded. Torres had one second to glance at the main console before Seven removed her.

"Voyager, be...!!!" yelled Torres. She launched Seven several feet away from her, almost through the doorway. Then suddenly all became silent.

Chapter 5: Conviction

Seven turned around. The alert quieted and the room stopped flashing yellowing. She was staring through the green wall of force-field into the face of Lt. Torres.  She reached out with her cyborgnetic hand, and jerked it back when she felt a painful sear.

The silence was broken with a hail. "Lieutenant, what's happened? <pause> We're beaming you out now," Janeway ordered as she gestured to very tense Harry Kim.

"Wait, Captain!"

"Seven? What's going on, and where's Be'lanna?"

"The security alert went off. We attempted to escape. Lt. Torres...is trapped behind a force-field after she pushed me away."

Tom turned to his captain upon hearing the news. Their eyes met briefly to convey all their unspoken thoughts.

"Harry, can you transport Be'lanna out of there?"

"I'm trying,...but I can't penetrate the field. The energy pattern is unfamiliar. I...I can't seem to even get her life signs," informed Kim after tapping in all of his transporter tricks.

Just then, voices approached and the away team returned through the tunnel with Commander Tuvok in the lead. He immediately assessed the situation and took command.

-chirp- "Captain, I am now with Seven and the rest of the away team. Lt. Torres is as Seven says. I believe the situation is what humans call a "booby trap." Sensors indicate no further hostile activity beyond the force-field," informed Tuvok.

"Any ideas on how to drop the force-field and get Be'lanna out?,"  Janeway asked.

"We will need to run a few scans. I will notify you once we have a working hypothesis," replied Tuvok.

"Is there a way to communicate with her through the forcefield?," inquired Chakotay.

"I am unsure. We will make it a priority to try and establish communications with Lt. Torres. She may be able to assist us in disengaging the force-field."

"Alright, give me good news.... Mr. Kim, keep a lock on the away team, and hope we can get all of them out next time. Maintain strict orbit Mr. Paris," instructed Janeway.  Harry felt uneasy. He wanted his friend down below to know that he had been ready to beam her out. He pushed his self-doubts aside, and focused his attention on the five life signs he could detect.

On the planet, the away team tried several times to drop the force-field with their phasers to no avail. Torres was only able to mouth a few sentences, telling them she was going to work with the computer to establish communications.  Finally, her silence was broken.

-chirp- "Torres to Commander Tuvok," hailed Torres. She walked over from the computer console to the force-field, and stood with her hands on her hips. She was none the worse for wear, but annoyed as hell.

"Lieutenant, we can hear you. Are you alright?," responded Tuvok. Seven and the others stopped what they were doing, and approached the force-field. It was good to hear from their fearless leader again.

"I'm fine, although I'm starting to get a little claustrophobic. I'm going to try to disengage the field generators in mainframe panels." -cough-

"I would advise you to be cautious. Further tampering with the system could prove dangerous. Ensign Suzaki and Lt. Mitchell will try to find another access through the computer core and disengage the systems from there as well. The rest of us will continue to analyze the force-field and work with Voyager to boost transporter range," commanded Tuvok.

"Understood. I'll keep in touch -cough, cough-."

An alert suddenly sounded on the computer screen. Torres whirled around and ran back to the console. The computer began to display several readings. She began to tap furiously on the keys in an attempt decipher the information.

"Lieutenant, what is happening?!," demanded Tuvok, as the rest of the away team figeted nervously.

"I'm not sure, Commander. There seems to be an environmental leak of some sort into this chamber, behind this force-field. Readings indicate a mixture of gamma radiation and gaseous substances unfamiliar to me. The levels are high enough to be detected at about 4%. I can't seem to contain the leak," Torres replied.

"Then there is no time to lose. We must find a way to deactivate the field. I'll inform the captain."

*       *       *       *       *       *
 
The away team had worked feverishly for nearly an hour. The field had been weakened several times only to have it reinforce itself. Lt. Torres was also unsuccessful, with a few singes as evidence of her efforts. She was able to enter a few command lock-outs of her own however to slow the progression of the leak. But they knew now that the leak was no accident. The Direelians had created the trap to prevent outsiders from pirating their most valued deuterium stores. Unfortunately, the atmospheric conditions were increasingly poisonous, and began to take its toll on Be'lanna.

Seven felt uneasy. She experienced strange sensations from her abdomen and throat. And her palms were sweaty. Every time she thought about the present situation, her thoughts would turn to Be'lanna. And she watched the now weakened Klingon move from panel to panel, struggling to maintain some sense of control. She remembered the disconcerted look on Be'lanna's face when the force-field separated them. Be'lanna had called out to stop her from touching the field. Perhaps, she thought, she would be more of assistance if they had been trapped together.

"She's been lying about her condition. Since the tricorder was modified, I have been able to scan for some of her physical findings. She's starting to suffer from mild radiation burns. However, I'm more concerned with her respiratory function. She's demonstrating some signs of inhalation injury, and I don't need a tricorder to see it!," the doctor noted with some hysteria, as he trailed Tuvok from scanning equipment to computer portables.  Ever since he beamed down, he had been monitoring her status.

"Doctor, we are working as fast as we can," Tuvok noted.

"It would help if I could get her this hypospray. It would delay the effects of the radiation, and increase her surfactant production."

"Doctor, if we could penetrate the field to give hypospray to her, we would not be in this situation," Tuvok replied logically.

Seven stepped in to interrupt the discussion, "Doctor, Commander Tuvok, I believe I have a solution."  Now she had their attention.  "With borg shielding, I should be able to penetrate the field and bring the hypospray to Lt. Torres."

Tuvok and the Doctor looked at each other in surprise, however, the Doctor quickly recovered. Shaking his head, he refuted, "Seven, you no longer have borg shielding. And besides, it's a huge risk. You could be injured in the process, and then be exposed to the substances in there as well."

"The doctor is correct, Seven. Even if you do have the capability, there is no logic in risking both your lives," Tuvok noted.
 
"Then you have already doomed this mission to failure. You assume Lt. Torres will not be rescued," Seven accused angrily, her bright blue eyes glaring at the two men.

"No, Seven, of course not," the doctor placated.

"If I can deliver the hypospray to Lt. Torres, it can prevent further damage to her, until the force-field is dropped."

"How do you propose to restore your borg shield matrix?," asked Tuvok, curious in her conviction.

"Do you recall when my parents' ship reactivated my dormant assimilation nanoprobes. I recovered my borg shielding in the presence of its transmission. Voyager could mimic such a signal, and the Doctor and Ensign Johan can program my nanoprobes to reactivate only my shield functions," reasoned Seven.
 

Tuvok lifted his brow.  Perhaps, she was able to convince him of the merits of her plan. The Doctor frowned, his face mirroring his concerns, but he remained silent. He understood why it was necessary to take such a chance.  Lt. Torres, though Klingon and exceptionally fit, was already showing signs of respiratory distress.  He turned to Tuvok and nodded. Tuvok reached for his comm badge.
 
*       *       *       *       *       *

Ensign Johan finished her modifications to Seven's nanoprobes which had been extracted. The Doctor would monitor her neurotransceiver at the time of transmission from Voyager. He took the hypospray from Johan and injected the newly programmed nanoprobes into Seven.

"Take this medical kit. It contains a supply of the hyposprays. I'm going to innoculate you with a dose now. You will have to administer the spray for yourself as well. The effects should only last for about an hour or hour & a half for each dose.  Here's the engineering kit as well. Be'lanna may be able to use some of instruments. Good luck," wished the Doctor.

"Tuvok to Voyager. We are ready to proceed. "

"Acknowledged," Janeway answered. "Harry, begin transmitting the borg signal now."

The sensation was overwhelming again. The response of her entire body, her thoughts once again turned to the borg. However, this time she remained an individual. She winced, and almost dropped the kits when she felt the sting of an implant surface on her wrist, then her forearm, and then the rest of her body.

"Voyager, stop the transmission. Seven, are you alright," inquired the Doctor as he ran a tricorder scan over her neurotransceiver and cortico-transplant.

"Yes, Doctor. Captain, I am proceeding as planned. I will attempt to activate my borg shielding now."

Once again, her entire body was encased in the confining box of an energy field. She stepped towards the green wall nervously. She hoped this would work. Lt. Torres was waiting for her on the other side. She had initially refused the idea, perhaps because it was Seven's. Or perhaps, she didn't want Seven to see her in such a decrepite state.  Or maybe she didn't want to condemn Seven to the same fate.  But now, Be'lanna could barely catch her breath, exhausted, and felt like she was struggling to hanging on. Her chest felt tight and her airways constricted. In the end, she gave in because she knew she would not be able to survive longer without their help.

Chapter 6: Ends Before It Begins

Seven braced herself, expecting backlash from the momentary contact, and then calmly stepped through.  The instant she passed through, her shielding winked out, like an old earth light bulb.  She made it but her shield matrix had been overloaded, and was now offline.  She would solve that problem later. For now, her priority was to deliver the contents of the hypospray to Lt. Torres. Seven found her leaning against the mainframe console, where she had been watching the entire proceedings. With her hair disheveled, clothes dirty and singed in several places, small radiation burns over her hands and face, the Klingon looked sicker than she had ever been, including the time she had been on the Malon freighter or when the "bug alien" had latched on to her. Her alert, penetrating eyes belied her present condition.

"So," she mocked calmly, "you made it through. Come bearing gifts?"

"Yes, the Doctor has instructed me in administering the hypospray.  May I proceed?," inquired Seven.

The lieutenant nodded.  Seven opened the med kit and took out the first of several hyposprays to come. She lifted it to the left side of Torres' neck and injected the contents. But instead of moving her hand away, Seven brushed the lieutenant's opened collar aside. Seven frowned. A raw burn on her left shoulder had begun to bleed.  Lt. Torres pushed her hand away, fixed a cold stare at her.

"Let me, take care of that, lieutenant," Seven said softly.

There was no trace of the usual pretentiousness in her voice. In fact, it sounded very sympathetic. And the look she gave Be'lanna with her bright blue eyes was warm, even kind. Perhaps, that's why for the first time on this mission, Be'lanna felt comforted.  She sat herself down in one of the chairs, a little resigned, and allowed Seven of Nine to attend to her. Be'lanna closed her eyes for they had begun to droop, as Seven moved over her body. She drifted off, listening to the quiet communication between Seven and the Doctor.

The next thing Be'lanna remembered was opening her eyes to see Seven walking from console to console.  She shook her head to clear her mind, and peered at her surroundings. She could see the away team on the other side of the force-field, experimenting with the various equipment. Seven was busy working with the away team on some sort of disruptor beam.  The effects of the gas and radiation were starting to take their toll on her as well.  Be'lanna leaned forward to stand, but it took a great deal of effort. Her muscles felt so tired and cramped. She steadied her hands on her knees and slowly straightened up out of the chair, fighting the kink in her back doing so. Seven did a double-take when she saw the lieutenant move.

"Lieutenant, you are awake. I have been assisting the away team in finding a weak section within the force-field. They believe they can disrupt the field with a refined, high-energied burst."

"How long have I been out?," asked Be'lanna.

"Approximately, one hour fifteen minutes." Seven cut her off before she could object.  "The Doctor felt you needed to recuperate. It was appropriate for your body to regenerate at the time."

"Forget it. What can I do now?"

Over the next few hours, the away team worked without much success on freeing the two. The Doctor became increasingly concerned as the health of the two women began to decline, especially Lt. Torres' condition. It became exceedingly difficult for her to perform tasks when she wasn't able to catch her breath. Seven's own breathing had also become labored. Shots from the hyposprays were more frequent now.  Be'lanna and Seven were working closely together on the security panels when the Klingon glanced over to Seven's hand.

"Seven,...hah... your right hand's...bleeding," noted Be'lanna with some concern.  "I'll get...the dermogenerator and...fix it."

Be'lanna grabbed the med kit. When she opened it, she noticed that only two of the hyposprays were still full. As she ran the dermogenerator over Seven's skin, she found more than one source of bleeding. In fact, Seven's wounds seemed worse than hers at the moment. And she looked paler than usual.

"Seven, have you...been dosing yourself?"

"Yes, I have, though not as frequently.....My suit protects me more than your federation uniform protects you."

"Seven, you need the hyposrpay...as much as I do. You're having difficulty breathing.....You may have injured your lungs!," Lt. Torres said angrily. -cough-cough-

"You have been in here longer than I have, lieutenant,...and have sustained more damage...I wanted to conserve our supplies....I've had to administer the sprays with...greater frequency. The scans I ran indicate that the concentration of toxins... -cough- and radiation in this chamber has increased by 25%. I'm sorry, Lt.,...I did not bring a sufficient supply," explained Seven.

"Well, there's no arguing now...You're going to have another dose." -phiss- "Let's see if we can locate the conduit that...links the security system the force-field controls....If we can shut that down, we both might be able...to get out of here."

If things were that simple it might have worked. But time dragged on, and the systems were hard to crack. The away team led by Tuvok took over most of the tasks. By the next hour, Lt. Torres was already too incapacitated to stand and work. She laid on the cavern floor among some packs, gasping, watching Seven of Nine stagger from panel to panel, and at times crawl. Even reassuring hails from the captain and crew could prevent the grim thoughts that were going through the lieutenant's head. She never thought that she would die on some godforsaken planet, separated from the people she cared about. But she was brought out of her reverie by Seven of Nine, giving her another hypospray injection.

"I have sent the last of the data...to the away team. I can no longer function...in the capacity to assist them....They must proceed from here," Seven informed.

"Seven, -cough- take another dose. That's an order," commanded Torres.

"We must conserve the hyposprays....I do not require one at this time," Seven countered, as she moved closer to the lieutenant to conserve their voices.

"Seven, let's face it. -cough- I'm not going to make it out of here....Don't inject me anymore. Keep it for yourself....You'll have a chance at getting out of here,' Torres said with conviction.

"I will not abandon you, Lieutan..., Be'lanna," said Seven as she looked into Be'lanna's eyes, into a face she had been observing for some time now.

"I'm sorry I dragged you into this," whispered Be'lanna.

Seven moved over to Be'lanna's side. She took Be'lanna in her arms and pulled her against her chest, as she leaned back against the packs. Perhaps, she wanted to give the lieutenant comfort, or perhaps, she wanted it for herself, but in any case it was the sweetest gesture that she could have made.

"We make quite...a pair don't we," joked Be'lanna, as she took Seven's hands into her own, and examined their condition.

"Our finest hour," Seven deadpanned. Weary herself, Seven rest her cheek against irrepressible Klingon.

*       *       *       *       *       *

"Commander Tuvok, have we made any progress yet?!," demanded the Doctor.

"We are still analyzing the data that Seven sent us," replied Tuvok as he continued to work.

"Doctor, we are working as fast as we can. We want our fearless leader back just as much as you do," Ensign Johan said calmly.

"I'm sorry, I can't be so cool about it. My two patients are dying in there!"

The two young Ensigns became silent with the last comment. Though they were Star Fleet officers, they were still unused to the tragedies that befall their leaders and fellow crew members. Lt. Torres tended to be gruff and ran a hard schedule in engineering, but she could also be patient and was eager to teach and share her ideas. She rewarded her team generously, and worked hard if not harder than the rest of them. Under her command, they learned more than others in their position on other ships, no doubt in their minds. Seven of Nine had been an odd addition to the crew. She quite often kept to herself and certainly wasn't gifted in the manners department, but she had also saved the crew on several occasions. Her escapades, especially those that involved Lt. Torres, were top of the line rumors and quite entertaining. It just felt wrong that they should lose them both now, despite their efforts.

"I...I didn't mean it that way. I apologize for my outburst. I should be setting a better example. Give me something to do. I can't stare at this tricorder," the Doctor admitted.

"Come help me over here, Doctor," suggested Mitchell.

*       *       *       *       *       *       *

Despite the injection of another dose, Be'lanna was robbed of her breath to speak. She only struggled now to maintain the in and out movements that were once instinctual. Seven felt helpless. She wanted to scream outloud, and beg the captain for some way to beam them away from here. She could only bite back to the tears that threatened to fall, and hope that her arms would keep their strength so that she could her hold onto her lieutenant. Be'lanna listened to the heart beat that laid under her. Sometimes she was foolish enough to think that she could hear her own heart beating in tune with Seven's. But her own faltered.

Be'lanna thought back to all the times she and Seven argued. Sure, she felt the borg sometimes made things difficult on purpose, but at least it made her feel something. Because for a time, she didn't think she did.  And the things Seven pulled off, like electrocuting that Hirogen fella when he would let them use their communications array, or like the time Seven recorded for a whole month each and every time she and Tom...well, whatever. If it had been her Maqui self that pulled those stunts, you could be sure Janeway would have had her ass in the brig for a few days.  And then there were those bizarre moments when Seven affected her in the strangest ways like the time she bit her as the Son of Kavok, or seeing Seven after One died. She couldn't bear to think that Seven would die for her in this stupid place.

"Seven," whispered Be'lanna. "Seven,...I want you to save the injection for yourself."

"You don't know what you are asking."

"No, Seven, listen to me...<cough, cough, cough, coughgakk, cough, gasp>...there's no reason for it anymore....Please, this is my...last request....Give me this honor, please..."

"I can't...." Seven replied, with tears streaming down her face openly, her face contorted in pain. "I can't watch you leave me, alone...."  And she lost her voice with the last words. She lifted Be'lanna hand and pressed it to her wet face. Be'lanna closed her eyes to shield herself from the emotions that were now spilling out from the beautiful borg. She would not back down this time. For Seven's sake, she would not.

-chirp- "Tuvok to Seven of Nine. we've found the main circuit link to the force-field. Ensign Suzuki and I are headed to that location. Please hang on."

Seven gasped and turned her head in acknowledgement.

"Tuvok, you have to hurry. They don't have much time. That circuit's at least 60 meters away," the Doctor warned.

Tuvok nodded. He and Suzuki ran through the doorway and disappeared before another moment was lost.

She was pale, clammy, and her heart and lungs were failing her. Seven could do nothing. They spent the last few minutes looking into each other's faces. They were past the tears now. Be'lanna was dying, and still nothing from Tuvok. Seven's own strength was leaving her. She had tucked her right hand under Be'anna's arm, against her ribs to keep it in place. The only strength left was in her Borg enhanced hand which held the last hypospray, and the last dose.

*       *       *       *       *       *

They ran down corridor after corridor, twisting and turning, and crashing into each other at every corner.  And when Suzuki thought they were lost, Tuvok would lift his face from the tricorder and start sprinting again. At last they reached a large cavern which contained a vast array of computers and catwalks.

Mitchell and Johan brought the transporter boosters from the surface to enhace the transporter locks. And if the field was taken down, they would be exposed to a sudden, large blast of toxins and radiation.

"Over here, Commander! This is it!," yelled out Suzuki. He grabbed the edges of the access panel and yanked with all of his might.

Be'lanna shook her head silently, pleading with Seven through her eyes not to give her the last dose. Seven had begun to cough up blood. It was over, both of them knew it. Seven put Be'lanna's hand against her cheek her cheek for one last time. Be'lanna caressed it to signal her final request.

"Tuvok to Doctor."

The Doctor stood up. "Doctor, here!"

"We've found the access panel."

"Tuvok, Be'lanna dying. If you are going to do something do it now!"

Suzuki pulled the panel out and threw it aside. Scanning the opening, he found the link. Tuvok pushed him away and fired his phaser into the opening. The blast threw them tumbling down the catwalk.

Seven lifted the hypospray, and made her decision.

Just as suddenly as it had been established, the force-field fizzled out.

"Doctor to Voyager! Medical emergency! Beam us out!"

As Seven began to move her hand, their bodies dematerialized.
 
 

The End

for now...