by Eric Kotani
“Was what you thought you needed to do,” Janeway said, shrugging. “Nothing more and I knew that. The minute you needed to help us, you did, risking your life in the process.”
“Well,” Tyla said, trying to regain her thoughts after that admission from the captain. “Thank you anyway. From me. And more importantly, from my people.”
Janeway nodded. “You’re welcome. It feels pretty good, I must admit, to save as many millions of beings as we saved today. Full systems’ worth.”
“That it does,” Tyla said, smiling. At that moment she realized for the first time how good it felt to help others. It was a feeling she would remember.
“Now,” Janeway said, “would you like to help us out one more time?”
“Anything.”
“It seems my pilot needs a little rest. Would you like to take Voyager into your home port?”
Tyla wanted to hug the captain, but instead managed to somehow tone her grin down just enough to say, “I would love to.”
“Tom,” Janeway said, smiling and patting Tyla on the back, “give her a quick lesson and let her have the helm.”
“With pleasure, Captain,” he said, standing and stretching as Tyla moved past him and into the Voyager’s pilot’s chair. She watched him carefully in his instruction, just to make sure there was nothing she missed in his quick directions.
There wasn’t. She’d already been watching him long enough to pick it up.
He stepped back. “She’s ready. Always was is my guess.”
“Are you, Tyla?” Janeway asked.
Tyla felt her heart flutter. Her stomach was clamped tight, but she knew that, without a doubt, she was ready to fly the most majestic and powerful ship she had ever seen.
“Ready.”
“Then take us in, Lieutenant Tyla.”
“Yes, Captain,” Tyla said.
“Voyager to Lekk system control,” Tyla said.
“On screen,” Janeway said, as she dropped down into her chair behind Tyla and sipped her drink.
“Lekk system control to Voyager, you are more than welcome. The entire system is in your debt. Stand by for orbiting instructions.”
“Word travels faster than we do, it seems,” Chakotay said from beside Janeway.
On the screen Lieutenant Grann’s face appeared, all business. Grann and Tyla had gone through the first few years of the service together. He’d ended up in control, she as a pilot.
“Thank you, control,” Tyla said, keeping her face very serious. “Standing by.”
It took Grann a moment before he looked up. Then it took him another moment to comprehend what he was seeing: a Lekk pilot at the controls of the human ship that had saved their system. And the pilot was Tyla.
His mouth dropped open; then he closed it. Then it dropped open and he let out a little squeak.
Behind Tyla, Janeway, Chakotay, and Ensign Kim laughed.
And Tyla joined them. A natural laugh, the first laugh she’d had in as long as she could remember.
But she knew at that moment, without a doubt, thanks to the humans and their wonderful ship, it would be only the first laugh of many, many to come.
We hope you enjoyed reading this Pocket Books eBook.
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons living or dead is entirely coincidental.
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Copyright © 1999 by Paramount Pictures. All Rights Reserved.
STAR TREK is a Registered Trademark of Paramount Pictures.
This book is published by Pocket Books, a division of Simon & Schuster Inc., under exclusive license from Paramount Pictures.
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ISBN: 978-0-7434-5383-7 (eBook)
ISBN: 0-671-00425-5
First Pocket Books printing March 1999
POCKET and colophon are registered trademarks of Simon & Schuster Inc.