The BLTS Archive-Gravity Well #1: Revelation by monkee (wiecek@earthlink.net) --- Author's Note: This is a J/P story. Other pairings, past and future, and friendships, are touched upon, but for SoS purposes, it should be considered J/P. Disclaimers: Paramount owns Star Trek Voyager and all its characters. --- "I'm sure they're all right," Chakotay said, softly, as he looked over B'Elanna's shoulder at her console on the bridge. She sighed. "I'm sure they are, too," she replied, "but where the hell are they?" "Anything on long range sensors?" Chakotay asked, turning slightly towards Tuvok's station. "No, Commander," Tuvok said, sounding just a little bit disconcerted. "And I have completed a scan of everything within five light-years." Chakotay frowned. Where were they? He hadn't been too concerned several hours ago, when the shuttle failed to appear at the scheduled rendezvous point, but now he felt a lump of apprehension expanding in his chest. Nothing on short range sensors, nothing on long range sensors - no sign of them anywhere. They couldn't have gone much farther than five light-years in the time they'd had. There were only two solar systems in the area, and scans had revealed nothing on any of the planets -- no wreckage, no warp traces -- nothing. "I'll bet you're sorry you let her off the ship," B'Elanna murmured. He snorted wryly. "Not really. She has to get out occasionally. And it was supposed to be a routine reconnaissance mission. What could go wrong, right?" "Something always seems to go wrong," B'Elanna said. He could tell she was beginning to worry, too. Tom was an exceptional pilot, but sometimes even exceptional pilots came across something they couldn't handle. Chakotay turned and addressed the entire bridge crew as he made his way over to the command chair. "Let's see if we missed anything. I want to go back and take a closer look at both of those systems. We'll start with system 1174, and execute search pattern gamma along the way. Scan for warp residuals, anomalies -- anything." He heard scattered acknowledgements as he sat down and activated his own console. He was only looking at the data coming through at other stations, but he'd always believed that another pair of eyes couldn't hurt. --- Twelve hours later, they were no closer to a solution. They'd just completed an in-depth scan of the second solar system, and there was no sign of them, and no indication that they'd ever been there at all. Now they were just executing random search patterns in the area, looking for...anything. Chakotay looked over in concern when B'Elanna pounded on her console with her fist. "Shuttles don't just disappear into thin air," she snapped, to no one in particular. "There has to be something..." She was clearly frustrated, which was understandable, but she also looked terrible. He knew he had to order her to get some rest. He also knew she was not going to like it. "B'Elanna," he began, but his voice trailed off as he began to think about what she'd said. Shuttles didn't just disappear into thin air, yet it had happened before. He concentrated -- trying to remember the circumstances. B'Elanna was scowling at him, probably suspecting that he was going to order her to get some rest. But when he spoke, her eyes widened. "We could be looking at another subspace sinkhole," he suggested. "Can we modify the sensors to look for gravimetric shear?" "A gravity well," she said, as she turned back to her console with new purpose. "I can modify the sensors. Just a minute." Before she could complete her task, however, the ship rocked abruptly. Everyone managed to stay on their feet or in their chairs, but it was a substantial jolt. "Turbulence, Sir," Ensign Jenkins reported quickly from the con. "But I'm not sure exactly what..." "That," B'Elanna interjected from her own station, looking up from her display terminal, "was gravimetric sheer." "Source?" Chakotay asked. "I'm sure it's a gravity well," she replied, "but it's going to be difficult to pinpoint its location. I'll have to recalibrate the sensors. The last time this happened, we were barely able to detect the phenomenon." "Get on it," Chakotay said. "Use whoever you need." "I'll need Seven in astrometrics," B'Elanna said as she stood up. She was already barking orders to Carey in Engineering as she made her way to the turbolift. He ordered Seven to Astrometrics, then returned to the readouts on his console with renewed vigor. At least they had something to go on, now. --- Even with recalibrated and modified sensors, it had taken them another six hours to locate the anomaly. They were fortunate to have found it at all -- it had appeared as barely more than a blip on the read-outs. They'd sent in a multi-spatial probe and were now getting preliminary telemetry back. "They're down there, all right," Ensign Kim reported. "I'm reading two human lifesigns and scattered wreckage from the shuttle. There are other life form readings as well, a species we've never encountered. I can't pinpoint anyone's location, though." At B'Elanna's station, Chakotay let out a sigh of relief, and noticed her doing the same. He moved over to Tuvok's console. "Try hailing them," he said. There was no response, but he really hadn't expected one. "Our signal is not able to penetrate the distortion field," Tuvok reported. "Is there a temporal differential?" Chakotay asked. "The temporal readings are incomplete, but from the data that we've received thus far, it would seem that if there is a temporal differential, it is a minor one," Tuvok replied. B'Elanna crossed over to join them. "If I reconfigure the targeting scanners, we can use the probe as a transporter relay, like we did the last time." She studied the read-out on Tuvok's console. "The problem is that this gravity well is far more stable than the last one was. We may be able to beam someone in there, but I'm not sure we'll be able to get them back. And we won't be able to establish two-way communications, either." "We can send someone down with pattern enhancers," Ensign Kim piped in from his station. "I can boost the gain high enough to get through the interference. Once the enhancers are set up on the planet, and we detect the human lifesigns within the field, we'll be able to transport everyone up, no problem." Chakotay looked at B'Elanna. "With the pattern enhancers, I don't see any reason why that won't work," she confirmed. He considered his limited options. He would really prefer to wait until they had received complete data from the probe, and wished they had the time to try to establish communications, but without knowing the status of the away team, time was of the essence. One or both of them could be injured, and the life forms down on the surface with them could be hostile. "I'm going down there," he announced. "Ensign Kim, you're with me." He would need Harry to set up the enhancers and ensure that nothing went wrong on that end. He turned to B'Elanna, "Modify the scanners, we'll be beaming down in five minutes." He started for the turbolift, but B'Elanna put a hand on his arm. "Request permission to accompany the away team," she said. "Seven can modify the scanners." He hesitated. He knew that she was concerned about Paris, but taking another senior staff member along was an unnecessary risk. Still, it would be beneficial to have her there if anything went wrong with the enhancers, and she was damned good with a phaser if anything went wrong with the unknown aliens. "Permission granted," he said. Tuvok looked as though he was going to say something, but did not. B'Elanna grinned gratefully, and they followed Harry onto the turbolift. --- The Commander and his away team had just beamed down, and Voyager, as expected, could not raise them on the planet surface. "Continue monitoring all human life signs on the surface," Tuvok told the con officer. "And notify me when you detect the enhancers." "Aye, sir." Tuvok's console beeped. More telemetry was now coming in from the probe, including more extensive temporal data. He raised both of his eyebrows. --- The away team materialized in the middle of a small settlement. It wasn't primitive, exactly, but the shelters were made up of bits and pieces of old ships, and rough-hewn planks. There was an air of permanence about them, though -- they had been standing for years, perhaps decades. Chakotay stiffened when the first alien appeared suddenly in a doorway, and peripherally, he saw Kim and Torres do the same. Fortunately, no one over-reacted. Chakotay raised his hands in a universal gesture of good intentions. "Hello," he called out. The alien stepped out into the light, and several others joined it from some of the other shelters. They were large -- well over 2 ½ meters in height -- and bipedal. They looked somewhat reptilian, with brown-scaled skin and some kind of ridge going down their backs from their foreheads. There were both males and females, and they were all dressed in the tattered remains of what must have, at one time, been uniforms. They did not seem aggressive, merely curious. The alien that they'd first seen regarded them with his head tilted, recognition in his eyes. "You being voyagers," the alien stated. Chakotay exchanged a glance with Ensign Kim. "I am Commander Chakotay of the Starship Voyager," he said, carefully. "Yes, yes, voyagers," the alien said, nodding vigorously. "I being Grkzyklk." The name obviously couldn't be translated by the universal translator, and came out as a rather guttural set of clicking sounds. "You not should come. You being now trapped." Chakotay smiled, "Perhaps not. We are looking for some..." "There being here other voyagers," Grkzyklk interrupted, enthusiastically. "Trapped they being, too." "Where are they?" Chakotay asked. "Are they injured?" "Injured?" the alien asked, confused. "No injured, no. They being there." He gestured down a pathway toward the outskirts of the settlement. "They there live." Chakotay thanked him, and he, Kim and Torres hurried their way down the rocky path. The language of the aliens was obviously difficult for the universal translator to handle, and the exchange had made him feel a little uneasy. He was not certain that the aliens had truly understood what 'Voyager' was, and it bothered him that he still did not know the exact status of the Captain and Paris. He tried to keep calm. He knew they were down here -- he just had to find them. He hoped that they would go around a bend in the path and find them unscathed - he knew he'd feel a whole lot better when he saw them, as would Torres and Kim. But when they rounded a bend in the path, there was no sign of them. There was, however, a shelter in a clearing. A late summer vegetable garden was thriving off to one side of the structure. He couldn't see the river, but he could hear it, and a primitive irrigation ditch led from the garden off into the trees. The path ended here. "Captain?" he called out. "Tom?" There was no answer. He headed for the door of the shelter, and only then did he notice that one of the shelter's outer walls had been patched with a piece of metal. It was clearly part of a Starfleet shuttle. He stood staring at it for a moment, his mind not able to process what was going on. There was no answer when he called their names again and knocked, so he opened the door and stepped inside. Torres and Kim followed him in. It looked...lived in. Not as orderly as he would expect from Kathryn, but perhaps neater than he would expect from Paris. It was small -- there was a general living area in the middle with a couple of tables and some chairs, and there was a small alcove off to each side. He could see a sleeping mat in one of them. B'Elanna was inspecting some equipment on one of the tables. "This is the replicator from the shuttle. It's non-functional," she said, confused. "But how..." Her voice trailed off -- she was obviously putting the pieces together, just as he was. Ensign Kim was the first one to say it. "I think they've been here for more than a day." They were going to find out soon. Chakotay heard voices approaching the shelter. At first it was impossible to distinguish the quiet murmuring, but then he recognized Kathryn's laughter. The door opened, and they walked in. Kathryn was leading the way, and she stopped short when she saw them. Her face froze in an expression of complete shock, and she grew pale. "What's the matter..." Paris' voice trailed off as he saw them, too. He came to a halt just behind her right shoulder, his hand moving to her waist to steady them both. The pieces of the puzzle all snapped instantly into place. Kathryn's hair was much longer, and there was more gray in it. Paris' hair was a little longer, too -- definitely not regulation anymore. Both of them were tan and lean. He realized that they had been here for at least a couple of years. He also realized, with certainty, that their relationship had changed and was more than platonic. It wouldn't have been obvious to many people, but he knew, just by the way she had been laughing, and the way he stood beside her now. He stepped forward and forced himself to smile. "How long?" he asked, gently. She stood there a moment, nodding, tears in her eyes. "Three years," she finally said, in almost a whisper. "How long has it been for you?" Paris asked, his voice subdued. He shook his head sympathetically. "A little over one day." Kathryn covered her mouth with her fingertips and closed her eyes briefly. "Oh God," she said. He watched the expressions flicker across her face and through her eyes like a kaleidoscope -- joy at seeing them, shock, a gradual realization of some of the implications, and finally, guilt. She exchanged a quick glance with Paris and they both looked at B'Elanna before they could stop themselves. Chakotay looked at her, too, suddenly realizing what this would mean to her. No one in the room looked as stunned as she did, and distressed. She looked from face to face, her mouth open in shock, then drew in a deep breath. "I...I can't..." She pushed past him and shouldered her way past Paris and Kathryn, just needing to get the hell out of the room. She burst through the door. It didn't close behind her -- just bounced back and clattered open again. "B'Elanna..." Paris called after her, but it was too late. They heard her running back up the path that they'd come in on. Paris took a step toward the door, but then apparently thought better of it. He was probably the last person that she wanted to see right now, and he knew it. He looked helplessly at Kathryn. Chakotay glanced at Harry, communicating with a movement in his eyes and a tilt of his head. Harry nodded, but was already heading for the door. Someone had to go after her, and Harry was the most likely candidate at the moment. He was one of her closest friends. Paris grabbed his arm as he passed by. "Harry, maybe you'd better leave her alone for a little while..." Harry grasped his shoulder briefly. "No," he said. "I need to go. It's all right." Paris nodded briefly, gratefully and watched fondly as Harry walked out the door. He must have missed Harry, Chakotay realized, and it brought back the reality of what had happened. They had been here for three years. Kathryn was still staring at the door, biting her lip and shaking her head. Chakotay recognized the look -- she was blaming herself for everything. Paris was concerned for her as well. He reached out to put a sympathetic hand on her shoulder, but she stepped away from the contact. Deliberately. Chakotay saw the expression of stunned hurt cross his face. Kathryn stepped toward him and he could almost hear her command mask slamming back into place. After a moment, her inner turmoil forced back, she smiled and embraced him. It was a fond embrace; a genuine embrace -- he knew she had missed him, too -- but she immediately began asking him professional questions, about the gravity well, the ship, the transporter enhancers, the plan. As they spoke, he watched as the look on Paris' face altered from hurt, to fear. Chakotay knew just how he felt. --- Harry found her about halfway back to the settlement. She was pacing back and forth on the path like a caged Targ, her eyes unfocused, her hands extended as if she didn't quite know what to do with them. She was shaking her head and muttering angrily to herself. She didn't see him. Lulled by her rhythmic motion, he was startled when she suddenly crashed into the woods. She picked up a large stick and began swinging at the nearest tree. She struck the tree twice, three times, four times and the stick splintered into sharp wooden shards. She bent down to pick up another one and he finally shook himself and stepped forward. "B'Elanna!" he shouted. "Stop!" She whirled around to face him, wildly, still clutching the branch with both hands. For a moment, he was sure she didn't recognize him, but then she sputtered, out of breath, "Get out of here, Harry! Just get away from me!" He stood his ground and hoped the Doctor would be able to put him back together if this strategy backfired on him. "B'Elanna," he repeated, holding out his hands. "I mean it, Harry!" she shouted. "Go away!" "B'Elanna," he said, once more, looking directly into her eyes, willing her to stop, to just...stop. Her face contorted, and she dropped the stick. She put her hand over her mouth, but a single sob escaped. He closed the distance between them and wrapped his arms around her. In the years that he had known her, he had seen her furious, desperate, surly, depressed -- but he had never seen her cry. Ever. Now the fact that she was hurt enough to be shaking in his arms was enough to make his eyes tear up as well. He was clutching her head so tightly against his chest that he thought for a moment that she might not be able to breath, but she was still crying, and was not pulling away, so he didn't let go. She struggled to control her breathing, and finally managed to say, "God, Harry. For the first time in my life, everything was so...clean. So right. And now...Oh God." She started crying again, and he just stood there and held her, swaying back and forth, gently. He wanted so badly to make her stop hurting, to make everything all right for her, but he knew that he couldn't. All he could do was just...be there. --- In the end, they transported up separately. After meeting briefly with the aliens from the settlement, Chakotay, the Captain and Paris beamed directly to sickbay. He and B'Elanna followed about an hour later, with salvaged shuttle components and hastily packed personal items. --- TBC