Liberty For Wolves: Chapter 3
“We’ll have to abandon the bridge.”
“What?”
“They’re coming up Deck 2 here – “ Chakotay pointed to the schematic on the console. “Another group is coming in from this direction – “ He tapped a section on the other side. “If they get much farther – “
“We’d be boxed in. Damn it – “ Kathryn studied the layout. If the Hirogen occupied the briefing room and her ready room – and with the lift off line – that left only one way out. Into the same corridor the Hirogen would already be in. Except – “We’d still have the access tubes – “
“We would. However – “ He leaned closer. “Kathryn, have you ever retreated down a Jefferies tube with the enemy right behind?”
“No.”
“I have.”
“I know it’s not the best strategy.” There’d been endless lectures on avoiding the tubes during battle.
“We’d be sitting ducks – all they need to do is fire down the shaft at us. And a falling body – “ He left the sentence hanging. The look in her eye told him that she understood. “And weapons fire in the Jefferies tubes is the last thing we need right now.”
“Bad enough we have weapons fire in the corridors.” She winced. Several systems had suffered damage after phaser fire had blasted into a panel.
Kathryn rubbed her temple as she studied Voyager’s layout once again. They were outgunned and running out of options. The few they’d had to begin with.
When the Hirogen first boarded Voyager after connecting with her airlocks, her plan had appeared to work. The crew in transporter room 1 had beamed them off the ship as quickly as they came on board.
Unfortunately, there were too many warriors coming in at too many entry points – and the transporter had overloaded.
With nothing to stop them from boarding, the Hirogen were moving swiftly through the ship. Their body armor and heavy rifles were proving more than a match for the crew’s phasers and compression rifles. The Hirogen were even deadlier in packs than they were as individuals, and Voyager’s crew was being overwhelmed.
“Prepare to abandon the bridge.” Kathryn stood up. “We’ll retreat to the auxiliary bridge. Computer, this is – “
“Captain – “ Harry interrupted. “I’m staying here.”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Harry.” She waved a hand dismissively. “We’re not leaving anyone behind.”
“With all due respect, Captain – you need someone here to take the incoming reports and coordinate our defense.”
“Harry – “
“And you’re too valuable.” He finished.
Kathryn hated that – hated the idea that she was somehow more valuable than her crew simply because of those four little pips on her collar.
“Ma’am – “ Harry gave her a smile that was a million times more confident than he was. “They’re getting closer. You need to go.”
“Everyone – lock down your stations – command codes only.” She stepped up to the upper level and keyed a series of commands into the Ops console. “I want you out of here before they get in, Harry – do you hear me?”
“I’ll be right on your heels, ma’am.”
“Hit this – “ She pointed to a flashing icon at the corner of the console’s display. “And the entire bridge will lock down – don’t let them into our systems – it may be the only bargaining power we have.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He nodded.
“Captain.” Chakotay said softly. “We need to go.”
“Once the auxiliary bridge is secured – you shut down and get out of here.” Kathryn patted Harry’s shoulder. “No excuses.”
“Here, Harry – “ Tom tossed him one of the compression rifles from the weapons locker. “We’ve got a Captain Proton adventure tomorrow – don’t do anything heroic.”
“Or stupid.” Harry grinned at him.
“Didn’t I just say that?” Tom turned and followed the rest of the bridge crew into the Briefing room. His head told him as chief pilot he had to get to a more secure location – but his heart told him to stay and watch his friend’s back.
“Harry – “ Kathryn paused in the doorway. “Remember – no excuses.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Lock the doors behind us, Harry.” She walked off the bridge.
Chakotay was waiting in the doorway leading from the Briefing room into the corridor. He handed her a compression rifle and gestured for the group to move. “He’ll be all right, Kathryn.”
“You and Tuvok had your heads together – what’s the plan?”
“At this next junction – we take the access tubes down to Deck 2 – “ He told her. “There’s a group we’re going to join up with. We think we can pin the Hirogen between us and the Bridge.”
“I thought we were trying to get to the auxiliary bridge.” Kathryn watched as Tuvok opened the access hatch. “We’ve got to go a lot farther down than Deck 2.”
“They’ve cut us off.” He waited until a moment until both Tuvok and Tom had entered the access tube before motioning for Kathryn to enter as well. “We can’t get any lower than Deck 4 at the moment.”
“But Harry – “ Kathryn stopped. Chakotay was blocking the hatchway. It was clear he wasn’t letting her back out into the corridor. “Chakotay, we can’t just leave him there!”
“We have to – he knows the risks.” This was a part of his job that Chakotay loathed. Not only having to accept the cold logic of a bad situation – but forcing Kathryn to accept the same conclusion. “We need him there to coordinate our defense for as long as he can.”
It was the correct decision – but it tore at her heart. Leaving one of her crew behind and in danger went against everything she believed in. The needs of the ship and the rest of the crew, however, forced her to agree with Chakotay.
She began moving down the ladder. “Did you know about this before we made the decision to abandon the bridge?”
“No.” Chakotay climbed in after her, moving down the ladder quickly so that Ayala could secure the hatch. “The situation changed while we were leaving the Bridge. Harry knew before I did.”
Of course he would. Harry was coordinating everything, taking in all the reports, and passing the information along. “Janeway to Kim.”
“Kim, here.” Came the quick response.
“Hang in there, Harry. We’ll do our best to get you out of there.”
“Don’t worry about me, Captain – there’s serious fighting on Deck 4 – the situation may change in the next few minutes.”
“Let’s hope so.” She dropped the last foot to the deck outside the hatchway leading onto Deck 2. “When this one is over, I owe you a couple of days off.”
“I’ll take you up on that, Captain.”
“Janeway out.” Kathryn looked to where Tuvok was studying his tricorder. “What next, gentlemen?”
“Our group is approximately twenty five meters to port – the Hirogen party, consisting of twenty hunters – “ Tuvok snapped the tricorder closed. “Is one hundred meters to starboard.”
“Our people are expecting us?” She asked as he opened the hatch. “I’d prefer not to get shot by one of my own crew.”
“I believe Voyager’s crew should be able to distinguish between one of their own crewmembers and a Hirogen hunter.” He informed her.
“Good – because I left my Starfleet name badge at home.” Tom joked as he stepped out in the corridor.
They met up with the group waiting for them, and together they advanced on the Hirogen force attempting to cut through the bulkhead that sealed off Deck 1.
The corridor offered little in the way of protection, and they decided to make a quick sneak attack just at the curve of the corridor. If they attacked and retreated, the Hirogen would follow, and they’d be able to step back into the protection offered by the intersection and cut down the remaining hunters.
It was a good plan. It almost worked.
Their initial attack took down six of the Hirogen and critically injured two others. The Voyager crew retreated as the surviving hunters began returning fire. Kathryn ducked around the corner of the intersection, panting for air and raising her rifle into position. Beside her, Chakotay did the same.
“Kim to Janeway!”
“Janeway here!”
“They’re forcing the Ready Room door – I’m shutting the Bridge systems down!”
“Get out of there, Harry!” She sighted down the barrel of her rifle as the first hunter came into sight.
“Captain – Engineering is under attack – “ Harry’s voice rose. “B'Elanna says they’re cutting through the doors!”
“We need everyone in that area to defend Engineering at all costs!” Pulling the trigger, she dropped one of the Hirogen to the deck.
“Aye, Captain.” He acknowledged. “Just let me – “
“Harry, get off the bridge – I can issue the orders from here!”
There was no answer.
“Harry – Janeway to Kim!” She bit her lip and continued firing at the approaching hunters. “Chakotay, we’ve lost Harry.”
“We don’t know that.” Grimly, Chakotay fired his rifle in steady bursts. “If he’s going down the access tube – he may be too busy to answer.”
Hoping that were true – but fearing the worst – Kathryn continued to fire until the last Hirogen was downed. “We can retake the Bridge – “
“Captain – “ Chakotay grabbed her shoulder and pulled her back as more hunters came around the curve of the corridor. “There’s too many.”
“Fall back!” She signaled for the group to retreat. “Head for Engineering!”
As they retreated, Kathryn caught Chakotay’s eye. He looked as grim as she felt. The unexpected Hirogen reinforcements had to have come from the Bridge. Had Harry made it out before they’d gotten in?
There was no time to ask the question as they fought a running battle, with Kathryn’s group slowly making its way through the ship. On Deck 4, they settled behind a hastily erected barricade of storage containers with another small group.
“Please tell me these are full of leola root.” Kathryn joked as phaser fire struck the containers.
The ensign crouched next to her grinned. “Sorry, ma’am – they’re shuttle parts we picked up on our last trade mission. We were in the middle of moving them to the storage bay when this happened.”
“Never look a gift horse in the mouth.” She fired off a shot at the Hirogen who were trying to move down the corridor toward their position. “How much time, Tuvok?”
“Ten minutes.” Tuvok made a swift revision in his head. “However, if repairs have been slowed by the Hirogen – it is possible that Lieutenant Torres’ estimate is inaccurate.”
“This is no time to be pessimistic, Tuvok.”
“I was merely pointing out the probability – “
“Torres to Janeway!” B'Elanna’s frantic call cut his reply off. “We’re losing Engineering – they’re almost through the doors!”
“What’s the status on the warp engines?”
“We need more time!” She snarled. They could hear the whine of phaser fire over the comm link. “They’re through! Damn it!”
“B'Elanna, can you hold them off?” Kathryn looked to Chakotay. He shook his head. They were too far from Engineering to mount a rescue effort. “All hands – proceed to Engineering!”
“Captain – we can’t – “ B'Elanna cried out and the comm link fell silent.
“B'Elanna! Paris to Torres!” Tom fell back against the bulkhead. “Paris to Torres! B'Elanna, answer me!”
“Tom – “ Chakotay put a hand on his arm. “We’ll get to her – we’ll save her.”
“Janeway to Engineering.” Kathryn turned away from Tom’s anguish. “Janeway to Engineering.”
“Vorik here – “ The Vulcan’s voice was calm as always. “The Hirogen have entered Engineering.”
“Can you hold them off until help can get there?”
“I do not believe – “ He paused, and there was the sound of phaser fire. “I do not believe that will be possible.”
“Retreat, Vorik.” She slammed her hand against one of the containers in frustration. “Get out of there and we’ll regroup!”
“Yes, Captain. Vorik out.”
She looked up as Chakotay moved to crouch next to her. “We’ll have to regroup, Chakotay – take back Engineering – “
“Kathryn – “ He said softly. “I’m not sure that’s going to be possible. They’ve got us outgunned and we’re spread out all over the ship.”
“And we should just give up? Let them use us for trophies?”
“No, I’m not saying that. But the situation – “ Chakotay leaned closer so that only Kathryn could hear him. “There’s nowhere to run and hide on a ship – at some point, they’ll catch us. They’ll pick us off one by one.”
“I know.” She sighed. “But we have to try to retake the ship. We have to at least try before we order the self destruct.”
“I agree. We have to give it a try, but we can’t wait until it’s too late. They’ll butcher us.”
“I have to wonder how they managed to survive to the point where they could develop spaceflight.”
“A good hunter builds new tools and weapons to hunt his prey.” Chakotay shrugged. “Bow, gun, phaser – canoe, aircraft, spacecraft.”
“Isn’t evolution wonderful?” She laughed bitterly. “Well, Chakotay, let’s at least give them a run for their money. Don’t your people have a saying for this situation?”
“We do.” He nodded. “The grass and sky go on forever and today is a good day to die.”
An auburn eyebrow arched up. “I was hoping for something a little more inspirational, Chakotay.”
“For a warrior going into battle, it’s very inspirational to know that life continues on even if he falls.”
They regarded each other for a long moment. Kathryn reached out and laid a hand on his arm. “Thank you, Chakotay – for everything.”
“It’s been an honor, Kathryn.” He laid his hand over hers.
“I hate to interrupt this touching scene – “ Tom gestured with his phaser rifle. “But reinforcements are coming.”
“Reinforcements?” She looked down the corridor behind them. Hirogen hunters were moving steadily toward them. “Too bad they’re not ours.”
The group that had been protecting their backs must have been overrun. Now they were caught between two groups of Hirogen with nowhere to go. The nearest Jefferies tube was ten meters away. It would mean a rush across open space and keying open the hatch – suicide.
Kathryn looked up at Chakotay. “I guess today is a good day to die.”
“So long as we take them with us.”
“My feelings exactly.” Glancing around the group that was with her, she smiled sadly. “I wish this had ended better.”
“You did your best, Captain.” The ensign smiled back. “Without you, we wouldn’t have lasted a week out here.”
Without me, you wouldn’t be out here. Kathryn kept the thought to herself. It wouldn’t lessen her guilt to bring it into the open. “Computer, initiate self destruct sequence.”
“Self destruct sequence requires proper identification and security codes.”
Chakotay frowned. That wasn’t the correct response. The computer should have asked for rank and security code. He looked at Tuvok, and the Vulcan shook his head slightly. There had been no changes to the security protocol.
“Computer, initiate self destruct sequence.” Kathryn ordered again.
“State your rank and security code.”
“That’s better.” She smiled grimly. “Captain Kathryn Janeway – security code – into the valley of death rode the five hundred.”
“Are you kidding me?” Tom looked over his shoulder at her. “And everyone says I’m the one with the flair for the dramatic?”
“Security code not recognized.” The computer informed them. “Self destruct sequence aborted.”
“What?” Glaring at the ceiling, Kathryn repeated her order for the third time. “Computer, imitate self destruct sequence!”
“State your rank and security code.”
“Captain Kathryn Janeway – into the valley of death rode the five hundred.”
“Security code accepted. Further authorization required to continue self destruct sequence.”
“Computer, this is Commander Chakotay – security code north winter sunset.” He glanced at Kathryn. “I’d have made up something snappier if I’d known – “
“Security code not recognized.” The computer interrupted calmly. “Self destruct sequence aborted.”
“The computer core may have sustained damage.” Tuvok stated into the sudden silence that fell over their group.
“You think so?” Tom snapped. “And what was your first clue?”
“Anger will not help us in this situation, Lieutenant.”
“This isn’t the time – “ Kathryn interrupted.
“No, it isn’t – “ Tom ducked down as a round of phaser fire hit the bulkhead above them. “Just do whatever you’re going to do – I don’t want B'Elanna’s bones decorating these bastard’s ships!”
Kathryn nodded in agreement. She didn’t want anyone’s bones used as decorations – her crew was not prey. “Computer, if you value your gel packs, you’ll listen to me. Initiate self destruct sequence. This is Captain Kathryn Janeway – into the valley of death rode the five hundred.”
“Security code accepted. Further – “
“Commander Chakotay – “ Taking his cue from her, Chakotay didn’t wait for the computer to finish. “North winter sunset.”
“Security code accepted. Further – “
“Lieutenant Commander Tuvok – “ The Vulcan followed their lead and gave the mathematical code that served as his security code before the computer had time to accept or reject his name and rank.
“Lieutenant Paris – “
“Security code not recognized. Self destruct sequence aborted. Initiating security code procedure SD-Alpha.”
“What does – “ Kathryn closed her eyes. “Hoist by my own petard.”
“What the hell is SD-Alpha?” Tom fired over the top of the containers at the steadily approaching Hirogen.
“Something I put into place in case anyone tried to initiate the self destruct sequence by running through several sets of codes.” She sighed. “Now the only way to self destruct is by manually inputting our codes.”
“There’s a panel a few meters behind us.” The ensign told her. “We can fight our way there, Captain.”
“They have to be input at the console in my cabin.” Kathryn told her.
“Your cabin?” Tom turned around. “It might as well be on Mars! What the hell were you thinking?”
“Paris!” Chakotay snapped at him. “That’s enough!”
“It’s a situation I – it doesn’t matter now.” Checking the energy left in her rifle, Kathryn found it was half gone. “All we can do is take as many of them with us as we can.”
When the others nodded in agreement, she smiled grimly.