Star Trek - Voy - Mosaic

by Mosaic

  Kathryn felt the blood drain from her face. Hand in a thesis proposal in four days? Was he crazy? Even if she worked on nothing else she couldn't finish; and she had classes to attend and work for those courses and- "Understood, sir," she said crisply. And she gave him her most confident look. For suddenly she was on firm ground. Do the impossible? Meet an outrageous deadline? Solve an insoluble problem? If anyone could do it, she could. She'd show him. She wasn't afraid of him, she wouldn't be bullied by him, and no matter what task he set for her, she'd do it-better and faster than he'd expected.

  Hadn't she been doing that all her life?

  When she returned to her dorm room, her roommate, a beautiful, patrician woman from Boston, Lettie Garrett, had an uneasy look on her face. Kathryn noticed it immediately, because Lettie never looked uncomfortable. She seemed to be one of those people who were born with poise and moved serenely through life without mishap, taking in stride any bumps one might suffer along the way. She had long dark hair pulled off her face in the simplest of hairstyles, and huge dark eyes ringed with long lashes. Kathryn suspected she'd dated every available man at the Academy at one time or another. "Kathryn... what do you have planned this weekend?"

  "This weekend? Staying up day and night to get a thesis proposal ready."

  "Couldn't you take an hour or two off?"

  "Lettie, what's going on?"

  "I met someone I think you'd really like."

  This was what Kathryn had suspected. Lettie couldn't understand her ascetic way of life and was forever trying to arrange dates for her. Kathryn had gone along with this several times, but nothing had ever seemed to work out; if a young man followed through and asked her out again, she began to feel pressed and rushed, and so retreated further into herself. There had been one young man-she couldn't even remember his name now-she had thought might be an interesting friend, but he had never called and after a day Kathryn had thought better of it and declined to call him. "Lettie, it's sweet of you, but this isn't the time. I have to have a proposal on Admiral Paris' desk Monday morning."

  Lettie's eyebrows lifted, a sight that gratified Kathryn. She'd pulled off something astonishing in getting Paris to work with her, and it was pleasurable to know that Lettie was impressed. "I understand. But you have to eat. One hour, Saturday evening. A sandwich and a cup of coffee."

  "I can have a sandwich and coffee right here at my desk. Which is what I'll be doing."

  "You'll regret this for the rest of your life. He's handsome, charming, very intelligent-he's exactly the kind of man you'd be attracted to."

  "That's what you said about that last one. The exobiologist? The one who wanted to practice his homework on me?"

  "But he was handsome and charming and intelligent."

  "I have to work. Absolutely, positively, irrevocably, inextricably have to work."

  "I'll check with you around six on Saturday. Maybe you'll need the break. Maybe it will be the best thing you could do for yourself, and you'd come back refreshed and eager to sail in again."

  Kathryn sighed. Lettie was as tenacious as a rat terrier. There was no point in fighting about it now; come Saturday she'd be deep into her work and would simply refuse to go. "Okay. Check with me then."

  Lettie smiled, pleased. She had a generous heart, Kathryn knew, and truly wanted to help her friend expand her narrow horizons. She had no way of knowing that the world inside Kathryn's head was so rich and complete that she had little need of any other.

  So no one could have been more surprised than Kathryn that she found herself walking with Lettie to a coffee bistro near campus on Saturday at eighteen hundred hours.

  "Why am I doing this?" she asked Lettie. "How did I let you talk me into it? I'm not half done with my proposal; I have no business going anywhere."

  "You'll thank me. You'll be down on your knees, bowing to me. This one is special. his

  Kathryn sighed. She'd been persuaded only because she'd run into a wall with her proposal, and there actually was some validity to the idea of taking an hour-not one minute more-and getting some fresh air, a decent cup of Tarkalian coffee, and something in her stomach. She'd come back to her desk with renewed vigor, which she certainly needed; she'd had only two hours' sleep the night before and couldn't look forward to much more tonight.

  They entered the coffee bistro, which was nearly empty. Kathryn wondered how it stayed in business; almost no one drank coffee anymore, and while this place served good food, most of the student crowd preferred the tea bars that had sprung up on just about every corner. But Kathryn loved coffee: loved the taste, loved the aroma, loved the mild "kick" it gave her. She was as disciplined about drinking coffee, however, as she was in the rest of her life; two cups a day, a formula she usually stretched to four by making a half-decaf blend.

  Lettie was leading her to a corner table, where two cadets were sitting, backs to them. "There they are."

  "Is that Howie? Your beau?"

  "Yes, and his friend. The one you'll thank me for." They had reached the table and as they did so, both the young men got to their feet. And Kathryn found herself looking right at William Riker. She didn't even hear the introductions Lettie was making. Her mind swirled, trying to think of some way to get out of this. Say she was sick? That she'd forgotten she had to make a transmission to her mother? Nothing that made sense came to her, and she found herself sitting opposite the handsome young man with the dark hair and blue eyes. And he was talking to her. "I'm sorry... what did you say?"

  "Do you like to be called Kathryn? Or is there a familiar form you like?"

  "Kathryn. Just Kathryn."

  "I've always thought that was a beautiful name."

  William Riker smiled, and if he was handsome before, he was gorgeous now. Just like Cheb.

  Kathryn desperately felt the need to control the situation. She couldn't sit like this, addled, and let her feelings become engaged. She'd been caught off guard, momentarily stunned, and she was perfectly capable of regaining her equilibrium. She'd spend the requisite hour with this person and that would be the end of it.

  "How about you? Is it William?"

  "I'm usually called Wit."

  "Then Wit it is."

  "I'm surprised we've never met. We're in the same class; you'd think we'd have run into each other before this."

  That's because I've gone out of my way to avoid you, thought Kathryn, but she simply smiled and said, "I've been on a science program. We've probably just been in different classes."

  "I hear you landed the Scorcher for your junior thesis."

  "Is that what he's called? I'd never heard that."

  "He leaves only scorched earth in his wake. No prisoners."

  "He's demanding, but I thought he was awfully nice. Very devoted to his family. Are you doing a junior thesis?"

  "I'm focusing on exopaleontology. Someday I want my own ship, and I think a broad educational base with an emphasis on the evolution of galactic cultures is the best background I can have."

  "Your own ship-as captain?"

  ."...Right.gg*thorn],

  Kathryn was impressed. You didn't often hear people with those lofty goals expressing them so comfortably. She had no doubt that Wit Riker would get what he wanted.

  "I've never had any interest in command. I'd like to be the science officer on an exploration into deep spacesomeplace no one's seen before. That would be thrilling."

  He smiled easily at her. "Maybe we'll end up together. You as science officer on my ship."

  There was nothing arrogant or self-involved about Wil Riker. He was low-key, comfortable, easy to talk to. Charming, as Lettie had said. Dangerous.

  Already, she'd been drawn into amiable conversation with him, her guard dropping in spite of herself. His blue eyes held her like lasers, and she realized she didn't want to look away. Her fingertips began to tingle. Time to take control.

  "My thesis is on massive compact halo objects. Are you familiar with them?" A long dissertation on her part about a dimly u
nderstood space phenomenon would put him to sleep. Hardly the subject for sparkling conversation and certain to dissuade any desire for him to see her again. But, to her amazement, he was nodding. "A little. One of my science teachers at home in Alaska has done some study of them. She got me interested. What tack is your thesis taking?" Kathryn was genuinely flustered now. Beyond his charm, beyond his good looks and courteous demeanor, he was also a serious student. She stared at him, wishing she could find warts on his nose, something, anything that would make him something other than the most attractive man she'd ever met. Because she wasn't going to get drawn into something as potentially painful as another love affair. There was too much to do, to learn, to accomplish, to waste emotional energy like that. Feeling panicky, she rose. "I'm so sorry-I just remembered, I'm supposed to be at my terminal in twenty minutes to retrieve some research materials I've requested from the astrophysics laboratory." She was vaguely aware of the bewilderment in Wil's eyes, Lettie's shocked face, her friend Howie's surprise. She knew she was babbling, but kept at it, hoping to sound plausible. "It's on gravitational lensing, and I can't risk losing the transmission, it's a part of my proposal and I don't dare turn it in to the Scorcher"-a goofy smile toward Will at this-"without that research. You understand. Well, so nice to meet you, and I wish you the best. I'm sure you'll get that ship. Goodbye. Howie, Lettie-thanks for everything. It's been delightful. Truly."

  She was backing away as she went through this litany, smiling and nodding as though what she was doing was the most natural thing in the world. Only the three faces she was retreating from told her otherwise.

  Kathryn's back was to the door of the dorm room; she was hunched over her terminal, doggedly inputting information. The doors opened and she heard Lettie enter.

  "How could you? How could you have embarrassed everyone like that? I can't believe it-it's not even good manners!" Lettie was outraged. She marched over to Kathryn to continue berating her.

  And saw that Kathryn's face was streaked with tears, eyes swollen from a long bout of crying. Lettie melted immediately. "Kathryn-what is it? Tell me, please.... I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have come in here like that...."

  "You had every right to," said Kathryn miserably. "I was awful. I know. But I couldn't stay there a minute longer."

  "But why? What happened? Was he rude to you?"

  "No, no, he's very sweet. Just like you said-charming, attractive, intelligent. He may be the most wonderful man I've ever met." And with that, Kathryn once more broke into tears.

  She was never able to explain fully to Lettie the complexities of her despair-probably, she thought ruefully, because she didn't understand them herself-but Lettie finally claimed to understand her feelings, and promised never to rope her into a blind date again.

  She also made Kathryn go to bed for three hours, at which time she woke feeling much better and stayed up the rest of that night, the following day, and all the following night.

  And at eight hundred hours on Monday morning there was a padd waiting on Admiral Paris' desk containing her thesis proposal. It was the beginning of a remarkable relationship.

  CHAPTER 15

  JAL SITTIK LISTENED AS MISKK SPAT OUT HIS ACCOUNT OF THE debacle in the fruit grove. One man dead, everyone else injured, some critically, from a horrific battle with reptiles that dropped from the trees. Miskk himself had nearly been killed, and would have been were it not for his prodigious strength, which allowed him to kill a serpent with his bare hands.

  Sittik doubted this tale, but thought it unwise to challenge Miskk given the turn of events. It was he who had sent the men into the grove, and Miskk could easily make an issue of that, one which he would bring to Maje Dut. Sittik longed briefly for Miskk's own death in the coils of the reptiles, but accepted that fate had decreed he would live on to provide an ongoing obstacle to Sittik's quest for success. So be itovercoming obstacles would only make him stronger.

  "You acquitted yourself well, Miskk. It is unfortunate that Pelg did not survive, but his death will be spoken of as a sacrifice to the great victory we will achieve today. His name will be praised."

  "Your great victory seems to elude you, Sittik. Have you even located the Federations yet?"

  Sittik smiled. He'd been waiting for this. "Of course." He stomped his foot on the ground. "They're underground. Just beneath us."

  There was a flicker of confusion in Miskk's face, and Sittik indulged himself in a small gloating laugh. He made a mental note to reward the man who had detected the Federation life signs beneath the surface, but saw no reason to acknowledge him to Miskk. "There are subterranean passageways-caves, perhaps-where they have taken refuge. We haven't yet found the opening, but it's just a matter of time."

  "Why not simply blast an opening with weapons?"

  "That's precisely what I intend to do, Miskk, if you'll stop prattling on about your mishap." Sittik strode away from him and toward the others, snapping orders at them, wishing even more strongly that Miskk had met his death-a slow one, preferably-within the snake-infested grove of trees.

  Neelix had stayed with the injured at the main staging area of the underground structure. Greta Kale was feeling better and LeFevre fully recovered, though all of them remained somewhat shaken by their gauntlet through the reptiles.

  Neelix thought briefly of the cake he'd made, still waiting on Voyager for Tuvok's delectation. The thought of the nocha confection was comforting to him somehow; at the least, thinking of it was better than thinking of those noxious snakes, and a lot better than thinking of the Kazon who were prowling above them, looking for a way down so they could slaughter everyone they found.

  Captain Janeway, of course, would be looking for them, and undoubtedly effect their rescue. Eventually. Unless she had her hands full with the ship those Kazon soldiers came from-a distinct possibility, as Neelix saw it.

  He made himself focus on the Grissibian cake, remembering the explosion of flavor as the nocha detonated on the tongue. Kes would love it. He looked around, wishing she would come back. He knew not to appear overly protective of her-she hated that-but he couldn't help but be uncomfortable that she had so few compunctions about exploring this alien structure. There was no knowing what might be here. But Kes' curiosity always outweighed her fear, and nothing he could say or do would change that. Suddenly a fierce explosion rumbled through the underground tunnels, and all of the crew instinctively drew phasers. Tuvok came running from a passageway, weapon drawn and tricorder scanning. "They are firing from above. Trying to break through."

  "That shouldn't take them long," Neelix replied, eyeing the ceiling of the structure with apprehension.

  "We can't be certain of that. We're unfamiliar with the building material of this structure. It may be durable and quite resistant to weapons fire." Another explosion rumbled, then another. Dust and dirt began to fall from the ceiling.

  Tuvok hit his commbadge. "Tuvok to all personnel. Regroup in the main staging area at once."

  Neelix took this as his cue to hit his own communicator. "Neelix to Kes. Did you hear that, sweeting?"

  Only silence answered him. He hailed her again, then hailed Kim, with whom she had left. No one answered. He turned to Tuvok in some alarm. "I wouldn't be concerned yet, Mr. Neelix. Ensign Kim informed me that they were investigating a stairway they had found. They may simply be blocked from communication."

  "But-where are they? And if they can't hear us, how will they know to come back? I don't like this at all."

  "Please don't succumb to panic. We must all do our best to think clearly. Are the wounded able to travel?"

  "Yes, everyone's basically all right. Where are we going to travel to?"

  "I want to locate a position that is strategically advantageous, one from which we can defend ourselves most effectively."

  The rest of the crew was beginning to collect in the chamber, and Tuvok gave them orders. Soon, they all began moving collectively down one of the passageways, and Neelix hoped desperately they were moving t
oward Kes and Harry.

  Harry and Kes were exploring the chamber in which they now found themselves. Harry estimated it to be perhaps ten meters square, with neither windows nor doors, and its walls were of a material significantly different from that of the underground tunnels and rooms they had seen so far.

  It looked metallic, of a blue-purple hue which was the same color as the ambient light in the room. Harry scanned the room and read that the walls were composed of a metal that was unknown to the Federation database. No surprise there. But unlike the corridors they had investigated, Harry found no indications of an organic component in these walls. He glanced at Kes, who was looking around in puzzlement. "The clicking noise is gone," she said.

  Harry was relieved that she was making rational statements; whatever trance had gripped her had seemingly released its hold. He continued to scan. "Now I'm reading energy signatures. There's technology of some kind at work here-was He stopped abruptly, for he had detected a more curious reading on his tricorder. Life signs.