VIRTUAL SEASON 7.5

episode 10

Colonization 101

by Julie Evans (Juli17)

Prologue

B'Elanna walked through Sickbay, deserted and silent except
for the humming of standby systems. She strode into the
doctor's office, where she found her husband's attention
focused on the desk console. He was using a manual
targeting device to move objects around on the screen,
though she couldn't quite make out from her altered view
exactly what those objects were. She watched his quick,
jerky motions and the frown of intense concentration on his
face for several moments before she spoke.

"Tom."

Tom jumped up from the doctor's chair. "B'Elanna..." He
moved around the desk, looking at her with concern. "Are
you feeling okay?"

"I'm feeling fine," she assured him. She patted the small
swell of her belly. "We both are."

"Good." Tom looked relieved, then a little confused. "Is
something else wrong?"

"Does something have to be wrong for me to stop by and see
you?" B'Elanna asked. "I'm actually on a break right now."

"Really? So things are going well in Engineering?"

B'Elanna smiled at the hopeful look in his eyes. "There are
still a few minor repairs to be finished, but Engineering
is basically back to normal."

"Does this mean I'll get to see my wife tonight, instead of
her falling into bed and passing out as soon as she gets
home? Not that you don't look beautiful unconscious, mind
you."

"That's flattering to know," B'Elanna said dryly. With all
the repair work to be done on Voyager after the damage by
the Borg drones and then the confrontation with the Trefla,
lately she'd gone straight to bed two nights out of three.
Half of the time Tom was already there trying to get some
sleep himself after a double shift. She knew he worried
about her working so much, among other things, but she
hadn't had any choice. "It looks pretty quiet here."

"There've been no patients at all today. That's a first in
over a month."

B'Elanna heard the relief in Tom's voice. He'd spent
whatever time he could be spared from the bridge helping
the doctor with the injuries after the Borg attacks, and
then helping deliver a cure to the disconnected drones on
the Trefla. If they never saw a Borg cube again it would be
too soon, though she didn't count on them being so lucky.
"So, where is the doctor, and what are you doing?" She
reached past Tom as she spoke, and turned the screen so she
could see it. She stared at the odd diagram of
interconnected channels that had some sort of small
semicircular icons moving through them, gobbling up little
dots in their wake--a geometric representation of
nanoprobes at work in the immune system, perhaps? "Is this
some sort of research?"

"Uh, well..."

B'Elanna's eyebrows rose as a small banana appeared and
began to move through one of the channels. She revised her
assessment; it must represent the digestive system--

"Actually, it's a game."

B'Elanna turned and stared at Tom. "A...game?"

"It's one of the earliest computerized video games from the
twentieth century. It's called PacMan. It's a fascinating
piece of historical--"

"Of course it is," B'Elanna interjected. She was familiar
enough with her husband's boundless fascination with the
twentieth century to know when to cut him off. "So this is
what you do when you're covering for the doctor--play
computer games?"

"Hey!" Tom protested. "I already updated the last files the
doctor left for me. These old two-dimensional video games
were great for improving eye-hand coordination and keeping
reflexes sharp, something critical to a pilot's
performance."

"Ah, so this is strictly a training application."

Tom grinned. "Exactly. With no patients at the moment, I
had to find something useful to do with my time." He put
his hands on her shoulders. "Of course, if you *are* in
need of a highly qualified medic, my expert services are
available."

"Are they?" B'Elanna trailed a finger over his chest. "And
just what sort of expert services does a 'highly qualified
medic' provide?"

"That depends. Where does it hurt?"

B'Elanna laughed. "That's a pathetic line, Tom. Generally
I'd get you for that, but I'm feeling a little too sweet-
natured at the moment."

Tom's lips quirked. "Hmm. So I've noticed."

"Enjoy it because it won't last." The doctor had said the
odd placidity she'd recently been feeling was a temporary
effect--from her Klingon hormones no less--and would wear
off by her sixth month.

"I know. I already miss scraping shields with you."

She smiled. "You do?" She slipped her arms around his neck,
and kissed him hard, just to prove there would still be
plenty of scraping shields ahead for them. Tom's arms
tightened around her and she sighed as he nuzzled her neck.

"I miss you period, B'Elanna. Hell, these days we're lucky
if we get to eat dinner together once a week, and it's been
almost that long since we did anything but sleep in our
bed."

"I know. But this probably isn't the right place to address
that issue."

"The supply closet has a lock, remember? It worked out
pretty well for us last time."

B'Elanna smirked. "As I recall you ended up with several
bruises, and it took us nearly an hour to put back
everything that fell off the shelves." It had also been
during the third shift, when Tom had worked a lot of those
shifts after his month in the brig. Right after, in fact,
so that probably explained why she'd been so willing to
forgo caution.

Tom grinned impudently. "I'm willing to take the chance."

B'Elanna shook her head. "I have to be back in Engineering
in less than ten minutes." She groaned as Tom's fingers
trailed over her spine in caressing strokes and drifted
lower. He knew it drove her wild when he was gentle, but
she steeled herself as his lips brushed hers. "Tonight I
promise we'll make the time--"

"Ah, Lieutenant Paris. I see you're keeping yourself busy."

B'Elanna pulled away from Tom as the doctor strode into his
office. She hadn't even heard him enter Sickbay.

"Back from the holodeck so soon, Doc?" Tom asked.

"Have I interrupted a patient consult? Or was that a new
method of treatment?"

"I was performing a massage," Tom said, not missing a beat.
"Pregnancy puts a lot of stress on the lower back."

"Indeed, it does. However, your hands were several
centimeters below the lieutenant's lower back. Perhaps a
remedial course in anatomy would be helpful. Lieutenant
Torres, if you are experiencing back pain--"

"My back is fine!" B'Elanna said sharply.

"Excellent." The doctor shifted his attention to the PADD
he was holding. "Then I can continue working on my plans
for the annual emergency procedures drill. I'm sure you
recall that it is my turn to organize it this year. I've
just been refining my holoprogram."

B'Elanna had completely forgotten about the annual drill.
With the events of the past few weeks, she suspected
everyone else had too. "Your drill is a holodeck program?"

"I believe two years ago your drill took place on the
holodeck."

"Well, I was hardly going to eject the *real* warp core and
reinstall it," B'Elanna said. "It was a standard training
simulation already on file."

"So, why do you need the holodeck, Doc?" Tom asked.
"Releasing some sort of virulent holographic plague for us
to contain?"

The doctor waved his hand dismissively. "We've contained
enough real plagues already. I decided my drill should
focus on something a little more challenging; a situation
for which we've never adequately prepared ourselves. It
will give the crew the opportunity to call on skills they
haven't fully utilized on Voyager, and learn a few new ones
that could be vital should we ever face this particular
situation."

B'Elanna thought it sounded like something that was going
to interfere with her work, but Tom said, obviously
intrigued, "Sounds interesting."

"Since it's not convenient for us to land on a class M
planet for several days, I've created one. In fact, it's
ready and waiting."

Tom looked at B'Elanna and she shrugged. He took the bait.
"Ready and waiting for what?"

"For habitation, of course." The doctor beamed. "I'm
calling my version of the annual emergency procedures drill
'Colonization 101'."

Act One

At the senior officers briefing two hours later, Janeway's
frown was directed at the doctor. "Doctor, I don't
think..."

"You haven't heard me out yet."

That was true. But the words "holodeck program" had been a
red flag when combined with the doctor's tendency toward
dramatics. Janeway glanced at her senior officers gathered
around the briefing table, then back at the doctor. "I'm
considering skipping the annual emergency procedures drill
this year." She actually hadn't had time to think about it
either way, but now it seemed like a good idea. "With
everything the ship has been through over the past few
weeks, it would probably be redundant. And we're still not
finished with all the repairs--"

"We've never skipped the drill before when the ship has
been in less than optimal shape," the doctor protested.

"The drill is a matter of protocol, Captain."

Janeway transferred her gaze to Tuvok. "That is true,
Commander. However, regulations do allow postponement or
cancellation should more critical matters take precedence."

"According to the latest reports, the major repairs are all
completed." Chakotay glanced at B'Elanna for confirmation.

B'Elanna nodded reluctantly. "But there are still more
repairs to be done in Engineering."

"Minor repairs," the doctor noted cheerfully. "My drill
won't interfere with that work at all."

"We're also traveling through dangerous territory where we
may need to defend ourselves at a moment's notice," Janeway
said. "We can't afford to let our guard down."

"I agree, Captain. That is the beauty of using the holodeck
for my drill. It doesn't tie up any critical ship's
systems, and it can be shut down at a moment's notice
should that become necessary."

Janeway frowned. It was difficult to refute the doctor's
reasoning. Generally, when their yearly turn to run the
emergency procedures drill arrived, each senior officer
applied the drill to his or her own field, as Tuvok had
conducted a counter-invasion security lockdown in the third
year, and B'Elanna a warp core ejection and retrieval in
the fifth year. "Am I to assume your drill will involve a
holographic medical crisis?" she asked. Not that they
hadn't just dealt with several, including one that hadn't
even been their own.

The doctor shook his head, and reiterated Janeway's own
thought. "We've experienced several real medical crises,
and I believe we are adequately prepared to handle them,
under my expert guidance of course. I've decided to focus
on a situation where we've had little real experience.
Quite honestly, Captain, it was our narrow escape from the
Borg recently, and our assistance to the Pozjan that
brought the scenario to mind. Had we not been so fortunate-
-"

"Tell me this isn't an evacuation drill," Janeway demanded.
Besides the fact that Tom had conducted an evacuation drill
in year four, complete with a recapture of the ship using
their aging pre-Delta Flyer shuttle fleet--a maneuver Tuvok
had deemed completely unfeasible though the crew still
remembered it fondly--they had faced too many attempted
takeovers of Voyager recently. She didn't like the idea of
going through an evacuation, even in a simulation.

"Well...not exactly," the doctor said. "Though evacuation
is admittedly a precursor in my particular scenario. My
drill deals with the crew colonizing a planet."

"Colonizing a planet?" Janeway echoed, momentarily at a
loss. The rest of the senior staff looked equally
surprised, except for Lieutenants Paris and Torres.

"As I said, it is the one eventuality for which we have not
completely prepared."

"Because it's not going to happen."

The doctor looked flustered at Janeway's snapped statement.
"Perhaps not, but the purpose of the emergency procedures
drill is to prepare the crew for any possible fate."

"The doctor is correct," Tuvok interjected. "Colonization
has always been a potential outcome of our journey should
the ship be lost, or rendered unsalvageable. It would be
reasonable to prepared ourselves to whatever extent is
possible."

"Voyager is fine," Janeway said shortly. "We've always
recovered from whatever fate has dealt us, including our
most recent confrontations with the Borg."

"The point is, we can't know the future," Chakotay said.
"We're still facing over twenty years of travel through
unknown territory, and we don't know what obstacles we may
encounter. We've almost had to colonize a couple of times
in the past."

"But we haven't," Janeway said, with a hard look at
Chakotay.

"Captain, I also believe the doctor's drill has merit,"
Seven said.

"Besides, it could be fun."

"Fun, Lieutenant Paris?" Janeway speared Tom with a
withering look.

Tom was unfazed. "It's been a tough few weeks, Captain. We
could all use an opportunity to think about something
else."

"Exactly," the doctor said. "The crew has been through some
traumatic events recently, and they need a chance to
rejuvenate."

"I agree," Neelix said, speaking for the first time. "This
might be very good for morale, especially since we had to
postpone our Olympics."

"It's too bad I couldn't cannibalize more of the holodeck's
power source," B'Elanna muttered, just loud enough to be
heard. Then she added reluctantly, "But the drill shouldn't
interfere with the repair schedule, if the crew
participates in shifts."

"That is my plan," the doctor said. "For six days the crew
can work shortened shifts, and spend several hours a day
taking part in the colonization drill on a rotating basis."

"Six days?" Janeway echoed.

"I never said anything about working *shorter* shifts,"
B'Elanna protested.

"It is workable though," the doctor prodded.

Janeway looked at her senior officers. She was familiar
with the generally positive status reports from all
departments, and she couldn't come up with a good reason to
refuse the doctor his turn at the drill. Her assembled
officers were clearly in favor of it, even if B'Elanna
would rather focus on her engines, and Harry's silence
signaled his assent. She knew the idea had some merit, if
only to broaden the skills of her crew.

Janeway returned her attention to the EMH. "Very well,
Doctor. You may conduct your colonization drill. However,
if it interferes in any way with the needs of the ship, or
the crew, it will be terminated."

"Understood, Captain."

"You can work with Commander Chakotay to rearrange the duty
shifts to accommodate your drill. We'll start tomorrow."
The sooner it was completed the better, as far as Janeway
was concerned. "Commander Tuvok, please make the
announcement to the crew. The rest of you, work with your
departments to make sure systems will be monitored
adequately during the exercise. Dismissed."

The officers rose and began to file out, the doctor talking
animatedly to Seven, Tom saying something quietly to
B'Elanna that elicited a shrug, and Tuvok and Harry
following in silence. Chakotay remained behind as the door
closed, and Janeway sighed. "Is there something else,
Commander?"

"This is one of those rare occasions where I agree
completely with Tom."

"The stars must be aligned," Janeway said.

Chakotay ignored her sarcasm. "Besides the skills the crew
will learn, or relearn as the case may be, they could use a
diversion after the stress of the past few weeks. So could
you."

"Is that your way of telling me you're putting me in the
rotation?"

"Since when doesn't everyone on the ship participate in an
emergency procedures drill, including the captain?"

Unfortunately he had a point. "Still, a holoprogram..."

"Well, this is Voyager," Chakotay noted, flashing a brief,
wry smile. "Now that we've hopefully seen the last of the
Borg for awhile, there's nothing like a holoprogram to give
everyone a sense of normalcy again."

"That's one way of looking at it," Janeway said, thinking
that Chakotay was being a overly-optimistic on the first
assumption, as was often his nature, though he understood
reality as well as anyone. "I hope you're right about the
Borg." She turned to reach for her PADD when Chakotay spoke
again behind her.

"Kathryn..."

Janeway straightened and met his direct gaze.

"This is only a holodeck simulation, you know."

Her eyebrows rose. "I know."

Chakotay nodded and slipped out the door, leaving Janeway
staring after him, wondering why he'd felt motivated to say
that.

^*^*^*^

Chakotay stood next to the doctor, looking over the chosen
settlement site for the colony. It had potential. The
ground was flat and grassy, with widely scattered trees.
The surrounding land was arable, and a river less than a
kilometer away would provide fresh water, as well as lumber
from the denser woods along its bank.

"Good choice, Telfer and Henley," Chakotay complimented the
two, whose combined geology and surveying backgrounds had
been valuable in locating the best site on the doctor's
simulated planet.

"We didn't have time to check for every potential problem,
but this does seem to be the most suitable site. We're in a
temperate zone, so the weather should remain mild, and in
the middle of a tectonic plate, so the chance of quake
activity is minimal."

"Each planet is unique, Mister Henley," the doctor said.
"Since this is a training drill, I have added in a few
difficulties to challenge us all. Weather variations, local
wildlife, that sort of thing."

Telfer looked alarmed. "Local wildlife?"

"The initial biological survey showed a variety of animal
life from insects to mammals, Crewman, typical on a class M
planet. We'll take appropriate precautions."

Telfer still looked worried despite Chakotay's assurance.
Henley appeared less concerned, no doubt aware that the
holodeck safeties were engaged, so any encounters wouldn't
result in real injuries.

"This looks like a pretty decent site for a colony," Tom
said as he approached with B'Elanna and Harry. "So, what's
the plan?"

The doctor studied the PADD in his hand. "I took the
initiative of drawing up a blueprint for the settlement."

"That's pretty elaborate, Doc," Tom said as he peered over
the doctor's shoulder.

From the doctor's other side Chakotay saw that it did look
like a draft for a small city rather than for a fledgling
colony. "Perhaps we should start out a little simpler,
Doctor."

Tom stabbed at the PADD with one finger. "What's this? 'EMH
Music Hall'?

Chakotay looked at the spot Tom had indicated. He noticed
the buildings were labeled in small print with names like
"Mess Hall" and "Granary." Sure enough the one Tom had
indicated read "EMH Music Hall."

B'Elanna snorted. "Are you kidding? A music hall?"

"Culture is vital to the well being of any sentient
population, Lieutenant. The hall will serve as a location
for gatherings similar to the music nights we now have on
Voyager, when Lieutenant Kim plays the clarinet, and Mister
Tuvok the Vulcan lute, among others. Perhaps your husband
can debut that 'rock and roll' band he's been threatening
us with."

"And you'll no doubt be singing your favorite opera
selections," Tom said.

"As well as other selections in my repertoire," the doctor
replied, his smile smug.

"How modest of you to name the building after yourself,
Doctor," Harry said sarcastically.

"Actually, there are thousands of EMH's in the galaxy now,
so the name is a tribute to the combined loyalty and
unselfish service of all my brethren in Starfleet--"

"Where is the sickbay?" B'Elanna demanded, pressing against
Tom for a closer look. "I hope you're planning to provide
medical care sometime inbetween your opera performances,
not to mention provisions for the children who will be born
as the colony expands."

"Of course." The doctor pointed to a spot on the PADD
screen. "The infirmary is right here. Don't worry,
Lieutenant. I've already considered the needs of a growing
colony, including expanded child care. Your baby will be in
good hands."

"If she's born in the next six days," Harry said. "This is
a just a holoprogram."

Chakotay decided it was time to get things back on track.
"Doctor, fascinating as your detailed plans are, Mister Kim
is right. This is a simulation encompassing the first six
days of a colony raising, so I think we should concentrate
on the basics. We need protection from the elements first
of all, so we'll start with the dormitories that will
provide initial shelter for everyone, and a storage
building for our food supplies. The rest of the buildings
are secondary." Some more so than others, but he left that
unsaid.

"We don't have much to work with," Harry noted glumly,
looking at the small pile of prefab materials and tools
that had been "salvaged" from Voyager, along with a single
portable power generator.

"I've worked with less," Chakotay replied. "If we can get
the first dormitory up by tonight, it will save us having
to sleep crammed under the emergency tarps."

Harry frowned. "No one is really going to be sleeping here,
are they?"

"No," Chakotay replied. The captain had ordered that the
program run only seventeen hours a day so it wouldn't tax
the crew or compromise the running of the ship. "But we are
acting as if we would be sleeping here, so we need shelter
built within a day. We'll divide by tasks. Chell and Megan
Delaney have already consulted with Neelix on teams to
handle food storage and procurement. Part of their job will
be foraging in the local area for edible fruits and plants,
since our food stores will only last a month, even with
careful rationing."

Several crewmembers who had been wandering curiously nearby
drifted closer as Chakotay spoke. "Lieutenant Torres has
put together engineering teams to deal with setting up a
power grid, and locating local energy sources to serve our
needs, as well as adapting the energy from one of the two
Class 2 shuttles we were able to recover. We'll keep the
other shuttle intact for future use."

"It's too bad the Delta Flyer was lost along with Voyager,"
Tom said, giving the doctor an aggrieved look. "It would
have come in a lot more useful than a Class 2 shuttle."

"It seems a little arbitrary," Henley agreed. "We could
just as well have kept Voyager in orbit and salvaged
everything. It would at least be nice to have some portable
replicators and one of the computer cores."

The doctor shrugged. "In this scenario, Voyager sustained
too much damage from the anomaly to land. Starfleet
protocol requires an abandoned ship be destroyed rather
than allowing its technology to potentially fall into the
wrong hands."

"You're right, Ensign, it is arbitrary," Chakotay said. "So
is reality. If we ever do have to colonize, we'll just have
to take the nearest class M planet available, if there is
one. And there's no way to predict what we'll be able to
salvage. If you recall, several years ago we were almost
forced to colonize a planet with nothing but the clothes on
our backs, thanks to the Kazon. In this case, the doctor's
scenario has provided us with a little more than that. So
let's work with it."

"I'll take my team and get started," B'Elanna said, and
Chakotay threw her a grateful look.

"I can enhance the systems of the existing shuttle for
atmospheric flight," Tom said.

"A good idea, Tom, but not a concern at the moment. Right
now the priority is getting the first buildings erected and
our food supply stabilized. Have you ever used a saw or a
hammer?"

"Once or twice," Tom admitted, reluctantly.

Chakotay smiled. "Well, now you'll be getting some more
practice. Everyone here who isn't part of Lieutenant
Torres' engineering team, you're part of the construction
team. The tools we were able to salvage from Voyager's
cargo bays are gathered next to the prefab materials. Grab
the saws, because the first thing we have to do is cut down
some trees."

Several groans greeted that statement. B'Elanna, who looked
amused, spared a murmured word or two for Tom, and quick
pat on his backside before she led her team away. The
doctor turned to Chakotay once the rest had moved toward
the prefab materials and tools, looking peeved. "This is my
drill. Shouldn't I be giving the orders?"

"This will be a Starfleet colony, Doctor, at least in the
building stages, and I am the highest ranking officer here.
I also have some experience with colonies."

"New Earth?" the doctor asked, his tone dismissive.

"Among others. I also grew up on a colony world, Doctor, in
case you've forgotten."

The doctor's only reply to that was "hmmph," a good sign.

"Shall we join the others?"

The doctor looked at the group of a dozen or so now picking
through the tools. "Join them?"

"Of course, Doctor. When a Starfleet team erects a colony
site, there are no sideliners, not even the captain or the
senior officers in charge. Everyone pitches in." He smiled
and slapped the doctor on the back. "Come on. Let's get to
work."

^*^*^*^

Nearly six hours later, Janeway approached the colony site
where a good number of her crew were busy at various tasks.
The new settlement boundaries had been marked, and two
foundations had been poured, presumably with the duracrete
from the empty bags discarded nearby. There was a river a
short distance away if she recalled the doctor's brief
description of the chosen site accurately, probably where
she could see a line of trees to the west. She skirted a
large pile of yellow lumber and prefab panels, and watched
a dozen of her crew hammering at the frame of the first
building. Some, like Gerron and Michael Ayala, looked like
they were very comfortable with the job, while others, like
Tal Celes and William Chapman, looked less at ease. She
noted offhandedly that Chakotay was visible over at the
second building, looking like he was in his element--

"Captain! You're here!"

Janeway turned and met the doctor's pleased smile. "This is
the time you assigned me, Doctor." Actually, she was a few
minutes early.

"As you can see, we've made quite a bit of progress."

She supposed so. Though she had little experience to judge,
she knew her crew had learned to make quick work of any
necessary task.

"We?" Harry grumbled loudly. He was working close enough to
overhear the doctor's words. "You've barely hammered in a
nail, Doc."

Before the doctor could speak a loud "Ouch" erupted over
the steady pounding and low murmur of conversation,
followed by a colorful curse in Bajoran. Tal Celes, who was
working on the other side of Harry, was cradling her hand,
a grimace of pain on her face.

"Again, Crewman?" the doctor asked, heaving a long-
suffering sigh as he pulled out his field medical
regenerator and stepped into the open frame building, still
directing his conversation to the captain. "Lieutenant Kim
thinks I've been loafing, but I've treated two dozen
smashed thumbs now, and a nearly equal number of bruised
toes from dropped power saws. It's amazing we have made any
progress, and it's clear the crew needed this drill even
more than I thought."

Celes rolled her eyes at the doctor's bent head as he ran
the regenerator over her thumb, then caught the captain's
gaze. "I guess some of us aren't cut out for carpentry,"
she said sheepishly.

Janeway smiled. "Just do the best you can."

"It's a good thing the safeties are at full capacity," the
doctor said as he shut off the regenerator. "They correct
for anything but minor injuries. If this were a real
planet, there wouldn't be any such reprieve. Try to
concentrate on what you're doing, Crewman, and be more
careful."

"Lucky for you, we're done for now," Tom told Celes, as he
set down his hammer.

Celes gave him a droll look. "And how's your foot, Paris?"

Tom grinned. "Fine, now."

Janeway was glad to see Celes smiling and showing so much
spirit. She and Billy Telfer had become close to Mortimer
Harren after their shuttle mission, and Harren's death had
been difficult for Celes.

"Captain," the doctor spoke, and Janeway gratefully shifted
her attention from the ache that had settled in her chest.
"What do you think of this site? It is a rather pleasing
vista, aesthetically speaking, isn't it?"

"It is sufficient to serve a colony's needs," Seven said as
she stopped next to Janeway. She looked at the doctor and
raised an eyebrow. "That is the only requirement, is it
not?"

"An aesthetically pleasing environment may not be strictly
necessary, Seven, but humans and most other sentient
species consider it an important qualification." The doctor
spoke in his most professorial tone. "In fact, I used an
amalgamation of all the uninhabited class M planets we have
catalogued in the past three months--eleven in total--and
combined their characteristics into an 'average' planet
waiting to be colonized."

"Perhaps you should have programmed the most difficult
planet to colonize rather than an average planet, if your
purpose is to challenge the skills of the crew."

"This planet will do," Janeway said quickly. The doctor was
right. It was a pleasant enough place, with its bluish
grass and scattered wide-branched trees, and gently sloping
hills melting into the distance. The last thing she wanted
was a planet where they had to clear land in a swamp or
fight heatstroke in a desert.

"I made sure to include an obstacle or two so the crew will
be well tested."

Janeway didn't like that cryptic comment. "Doctor, maybe we
should stick with a standard scenario, without any
extra...bells and whistles, as Lieutenant Paris would say."

The doctor was saved from a reply by Chakotay's arrival.
"Captain, ready for your rotation?"

Janeway looked at the hammer Chakotay held out to her, and
cocked an eyebrow. "I'm sure I won't have any problem. I
have handled a hammer before."

"Of course," Chakotay said, in a smooth tone Janeway
decided was just a little patronizing as she snatched the
hammer from him.

"Those will house the entire crew of Voyager?" Seven asked.
Her attention was focused on the two unfinished
dormitories.

"Temporarily," Chakotay answered her. "I know that doesn't
afford anyone much privacy but the first order is to ensure
that our basic needs of food and shelter are met. Once that
is taken care of, then we will build individual
residences."

"I don't think B'Elanna and I can wait too long for that,"
Tom commented as he joined them, earning an annoyed look
from the doctor, and a snort from Harry.

"This is a limited simulation," Janeway said, a little
sharply. "You'll be going back to your quarters every
night, Mister Paris."

"I know. I'm just trying to play along with the program,
and six days would be a long time to--" Tom stopped
abruptly at Janeway's warning look. "Never mind."

"Doctor, what is my assigned duty?"

The doctor looked pleased Seven had asked him. "Lieutenant
Torres is returning with her engineering crew right now.
She can brief you on their progress with the power grid."

Seven nodded and strode toward B'Elanna and her group, who
were gathered near the pile of salvaged materials.

"You can also join the engineering team, Captain," the
doctor suggested.

Janeway glanced at Chakotay, and shook her head. "I'll
leave that to the actual engineers, and stick with the
construction crew." If nothing else, hammering nails would
provide the physical release she hadn't had time to pursue
lately in her Velocity program.

"Samantha Wildman just arrived, and she is a trained medic
in case you do miss with that hammer."

Janeway gave Chakotay her best freezing look, though he
just flashed her a grin in return. She saw Joe Carey, Sam
and Naomi approaching the settlement, looking around with
open curiosity.

"As a hologram I don't need to sleep or eat, so I will be
staying in the program for the duration," the doctor said.
"Unless I am needed in Sickbay," he added hastily.

Janeway could see the doctor was already captivated by his
own program. "As long as you are aware of your priorities,
Doctor."

"Of course."

B'Elanna approached, rubbing her arms and frowning. "Is the
weather changing?"

Janeway glanced up at the sky, where fast moving gray
clouds were starting to gather.

"Ah, we may get some rain," the doctor observed. "I believe
it occurs frequently here in the summer."

B'Elanna rolled her eyes. "Great. A planet where it rains
all the time. I'm glad I'm leaving."

Tom put an arm around her shoulders, and they headed toward
the open holoarch with several others. Janeway looked up at
the sky again. She figured if she got really lucky, she
would be hammering together the rest of the dormitory frame
while soaking wet. Everyone else had moved a few meters
away so she said in a low voice to Chakotay, "If I open a
direct comm line to you, think of some sort of emergency on
the bridge that requires my attention."

"I'm sure I can handle any emergencies, Captain. You've
trained me well."

Janeway gave him a disgusted look.

"Have fun," Chakotay said cheerfully, before he turned and
headed for the open arch.

Several fat drops of rain fell on Janeway's face and arms,
and she sighed as she lifted her hammer and walked toward
the first dormitory. The sooner she got started, the sooner
they'd all get through the doctor's drill and back to their
real lives.

Act Two

The first rotation of the second day was underway, and the
doctor was complaining. "We're falling behind schedule."

Tom snorted. "Yesterday you said we were making good
progress." He bit into a ration bar and grimaced, glad he
only had to eat one meal a day in this program. He was
already anticipating a good steak for dinner.

Harry glared at the doctor. "Most of us are new at this,
Doc."

"Which is exactly the reason for this drill, Lieutenant."

"You could have made the weather more cooperative," Tom
groused. The rain had stopped for the moment, but he was
still damp. It could be worse though. After the third
rotation of colonists yesterday had endured a downpour,
he'd figured out that wearing his uniform wasn't a good
idea, even stripped down to the regulation t-shirt. Today
he was wearing a non-regulation cotton shirt and pants, and
quite a few others had chosen more comfortable clothing
also. The doctor had immediately questioned the likelihood
of salvaging their clothing, but a hastily packed duffel
wasn't impossible in the time frame of his evacuation, so
he'd let it stand.

"Weather is a changeable phenomenon, Mister Paris. If
you're going to be an asset to a colony, you should be able
to function under even the most uncomfortable
circumstances, and a little rain is far from that."

"That's easy to say when you're a hologram," Pablo Baytart
said sourly. "You don't really get wet."

The doctor shrugged. "I realize that I am superior to
organic beings in virtually every area, but I can't help
that, Mister Baytart."

Tom wasn't the only one who rolled his eyes.

"At least the rain does cool things off," Lora Jenkins
commented, seeing the bright side as usual.

"And we had the mess hall foundation poured before the rain
started."

"Good thing," Tom agreed with Marla Gilmore. Duracrete set
almost immediately, but it would have been impossible to
pour it in the middle of a rainstorm.

"We have constructed two buildings in twenty-three hours,"
Icheb said. "Given the lack of prior experience, I believe
the crew's performance has been commendable."

"Yeah." Tom grinned as the doctor gave Icheb an annoyed
look. Icheb had joined the construction crew today, and had
taken immediately to it, as he did to virtually all things.
He was one of those people who were annoyingly proficient
at everything they did, but Tom still couldn't help liking
him. And he was also glad to see Icheb looking more relaxed
after the displaced guilt that had weighed him down just a
few weeks ago. "You seem to be enjoying this."

"I always appreciate broadening my knowledge with new
experiences, Lieutenant Paris," Icheb said. "Besides
benefiting physical health, did you know that strenuous
physical activity releases endorphins in most humanoid
species that relieve emotional and mental stress?"

Tom grinned. "I do recall that fact. A few things the
doctor has taught me have actually rubbed off."

"Nice to know my efforts have not been completely in vain,"
the doctor said dryly.

"Are you also enjoying the program, Lieutenant Paris?"
Icheb asked.

"Ah, Mister Neelix and his party have returned," the doctor
noted, diverting everyone's attention. "It looks like they
are bringing something to garnish the 'blocks of cinder' as
I believe you called the Starfleet rations, Mister
Baytart."

Neelix, Naomi and Renley Sharr were headed their way, all
carrying full sacks. They'd gone to the woods near the
river to scavenge for edible plants and fruits and
apparently they'd been successful.

"Bringing us gifts?" Jenkins asked eagerly.

Neelix let the sack he'd been carrying drop to the ground.
He smiled widely as he pulled it open. "We have berries we
found on bushes by the riverbank, and this lovely yellow
fruit that grows on some trees in the same area." He held
up the item in question, a plump yellow fruit the size of
an orange. "I have it on Naomi's authority that it tastes
like a cross between a peach and a strawberry."

Naomi grinned and nodded, but the doctor spoke before she
could. "I assume you analyzed the fruit before you allowed
Naomi to eat it."

Neelix, who'd been foraging for foodstuff to supplement
supplies on Voyager for years, looked offended. "Of course
we did. We know better than to eat anything that isn't
thoroughly tested."

"Excellent," the doctor replied. "Be frugal," he added, as
Neelix began passing out the yellow fruits while Naomi and
Sharr offered everyone handfuls of the lavender berries.
"We have limited rations and grain stores, and it will be
many weeks before any crops are produced from our seed
stock."

"I sure wish someone would cure the doctor of his Napoleon
complex," Harry muttered under his breath as Naomi offered
him some berries.

"How likely is that?" Tom murmured, then returned Naomi's
grin as she handed him his share of berries.

"How is the mess hall coming?" Neelix asked eagerly, though
he could see for himself.

"If we apply ourselves, it should be finished by the end of
the day," the doctor said. "For the moment it will also
serve as a general meeting place until we can add another
building to serve that purpose."

"Don't start decorating too soon," Tom told Neelix.

"Can't we think of a name more better name than 'mess
hall'?" Marla asked. "Something more suitable to a
planetary environment?"

"Right," Baytart agreed. "On a planet an eating
establishment is a restaurant, and it usually has a name.
Maybe we could call it something like 'Neelix's Place'." He
grinned at Neelix.

"A restaurant," Neelix repeated, clearly pleased with the
concept. "I suppose that's what it would be."

"My aunt in Wyoming has a restaurant called 'Monica's
Grub'," Jenkins commented.

"Neelix's Grub..." Naomi, who had settled herself next to
Icheb, tried out that title.

"On Rynax it was common to name a restaurant after its most
popular dish," Neelix said.

"Anything but 'The Leola Root,' Neelix," Marla begged.

"Unfortunately leola root won't be available on the
colony." Neelix shook his head sadly, though nobody else
looked particularly heartbroken. "But I do remember a
little cafe on Rynax called 'The Grilled Intestine.' The
food there was quite tasty--"

"Yuck!" Naomi practically shrieked. "That is *not* a good
name for a restaurant, Neelix. You won't get any
customers."

"That would not be the case, since it will be the only
place to eat in the settlement--"

Naomi rolled her eyes, and Tom rescued Icheb from his
literal nature. "Maybe you should go with something less
body part oriented, Neelix. You could always stick with a
classic, like 'Chez Neelix'."

"Chez Neelix," Neelix repeated. He smiled. "It does have a
certain ring to it."

"Speaking of names, Doctor, is there going to be a name for
our colony?" Sharr asked.

The doctor pursed his lips thoughtfully. "That is a very
good question, Crewman. I'll let you know as soon as I come
up with one."

Tom snorted. "If it's going to take as long as it has to
come up with your own name, don't bother."

"What on Earth!"

Everyone turned at Jenkins's exclamation to see several
people running toward the settlement site from a small rise
just to the north. It took only a moment to recognize one
of the engineering teams that had gone in that direction
earlier to check out some nearby mineral deposits.

"What is the great rush, Mister Mulcahey?" the doctor
asked, as the ensign reached him and doubled over with his
hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath.

"We saw a...thing!"

The doctor's eyebrows rose. "A...thing?"

"An animal," Freddie Bristow clarified as he stopped next
to Mulcahey, breathing hard himself. "It was huge, at least
three meters tall, maybe four, and it was bipedal and very
hairy. It looked like those pictures of an ancient animal
on Earth called Bigfoot."

Tom let out a bark of laughter, then covered it with a
cough. "Uh, Bigfoot was a myth, Freddie."

"Maybe on Earth, but you should have seen this thing. It
was huge!" Mulcahey spread his arms for effect.

"Is this true, Lieutenant?" the doctor asked as Joe Carey
arrived at a more leisurely lope, with Vorik following a
few steps behind at an equally unhurried pace.

Joe shrugged. "I didn't see it. Neither did Vorik."

"Mulcahey and I were a few meters away, finishing our
readings on some rocks, when it suddenly appeared in front
of us," Freddie said.

"Did it try to attack you?" Jenkins asked.

Mulcahey frowned. "I don't know. We ran."

"Maybe it just wanted to ask for directions."

Sharr and Baytart sniggered, while the doctor shot Harry a
quelling look.

"It could be a sentient species." Tom grinned. "We should
try to make first contact, and shake its hand or
something."

"We did a complete survey of the planet, Mister Paris," the
doctor said tartly. "There are no sentient species."

"We did not catalogue any animals of this size either,"
Vorik pointed out.

"Standard surveys do sometimes miss small populations of
flora and fauna. In any case, it was probably more
frightened of you than you were of it."

Mulcahey and Bristow gave the doctor a look a pure
disbelief.

"You have phasers with you as a precaution when you leave
the settlement boundaries. If anyone encounters such an
animal again it should be a simple matter to stun it if it
makes a threatening move."

Tom wondered if the doctor knew more about the animal than
he was revealing. He'd programmed the simulation after all,
even if he claimed he'd used general parameters and had let
the computer fill in the specifics.

"I hope I don't run into it," Jenkins said a little
nervously.

"This is a holoprogram," Harry reminded her. "It can't hurt
you."

"I think we should go look for it, like Tom said."

That's not exactly what he'd said, but Tom grinned at
Naomi. "You name the time, and I'll bring my bat'leth just
in case." When Harry rolled his eyes he added, "I'm sure
Harry will want to come too."

"At the moment we have more pressing matters to attend to,"
the doctor reminded them. "Break time is over. This is an
official drill, don't forget."

"I think I would rather hunt Bigfoot than pound any more
nails," Harry muttered.

"Only three more hours, Har," Tom said encouragingly. The
look Harry sent him for that reminder wasn't one of
gratitude.

Tom rose with everyone else, and stretched. His back
protested a little, though not as strenuously as it had
last night. The back rub B'Elanna had given him had
alleviated most of the ache. He had a feeling he'd need
another one tonight, though it would have to be late, since
B'Elanna would be in the program during its third rotation.

As he followed the rest toward unfinished mess hall, he
realized he hadn't answered Icheb's question. Raising a
colony was a lot of physical work, but he had to admit
there were benefits, like fresh air and sunshine--when the
sun peaked through. He also felt a sense of satisfaction
helping to build something, much the way he'd felt
designing and helping build the Delta Flyer. Besides, once
the initial construction was completed, there would be
other things to focus on, like the existing shuttle. He had
already thought of several ways to upgrade it, at least
until he could get together the materials to build another
version of the Flyer. It wouldn't be able to sustain warp
drive and transporters, since those required energy sources
that weren't available here, though with B'Elanna's mind,
and Seven's, no doubt that hurdle could eventually be
crossed--

Tom stopped and shook his head, reminding himself that this
was a simulation. It was surprisingly easy to forget and to
get immersed in the surroundings, even for just a few
hours. Colony life had never before held any intrinsic
appeal to him, but the truth was, when he thought of
everything the crew had gone through over the past several
weeks, and the losses they'd endured, for the first time he
could see some distinct advantages in the concept of
colonization.

^*^*^*^

Janeway finished her last check on the wiring, satisfied
with her work. When dusk fell in another thirty minutes or
so, the women's dormitory would have light. It would be
fundamental wired electricity, but it would suffice. It
would also be a tight squeeze, with seventy-one women and
one teenage girl sharing the two-story space, sleeping four
or six to a room, on woven mats on the floor for the time
being. At least they would be able to see where they were
going when they went outside to attend to basic needs in
the temporary lavatories, since the plumbing wouldn't be
completely functional until tomorrow.

That would all be if any of this were real of course, which
thankfully it wasn't. The lighting wouldn't even be much of
a factor, since the program was running only seventeen
hours a day--coincidentally from dawn to dusk at the
simulated colony site, where it was early summer. That had
been one of her conditions, since she needed her crew well
rested to carry out their duties on Voyager, emergency
procedures drill or not--

"How's it going?"

Janeway looked up at her first officer, and rose to her
feet. "The women's dormitory has electricity."

"Did anyone ever explain why the women get electricity
first, and the men won't have it until tomorrow?"

Janeway couldn't help grinning at Chakotay's wry look. "I
don't know. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact
that the person in charge of the energy allotment schedule
is our chief engineer."

"You women always stick together, don't you?" Chakotay
joked.

Janeway smirked, but didn't bother to answer. "I thought
you were working on the mess hall roof."

"I'm on my way back there. I was just taking a break to
stretch." He pressed his hands to his lower back. "The
ship's standard fitness programs don't really prepare you
for this kind of physical work. I guess I'm not in as good
of shape as I thought I was."

From Janeway's viewpoint there wasn't a noticeable problem,
though she'd had a few unexpected aches herself. She was
grateful for the bathtub in her quarters, since she'd
indulged in a long hot soak last night. "Believe me, it's
not any more fun installing this wiring."

"What makes you think I'm not having fun?"

"This is an emergency procedures drill," Janeway reminded
him. "They aren't supposed to be fun."

"Most of the time they're not, but I have to give the
doctor credit for putting a new twist on it."

"Still, building a colony from scratch isn't something most
people aspire to, or find an entertaining pastime."

Chakotay's eyebrows rose at her dismissive tone. "I
wouldn't say that. So far I've heard a handful of
complaints, mostly weather-related, but most of the crew
seem to be finding this the diversion we hoped it would be.
According to the doctor stress levels are down, and it also
gives everyone something else to talk about in the mess
hall--the real mess hall--other than our recent
confrontations with the Borg."

Janeway had noticed that most of her crew seemed
enthusiastic about the drill, despite some initially voiced
doubts. That bothered her in some way she couldn't quite
fathom.

"Captain." Tuvok's deep voice rang out as he approached.
"Commander," he also acknowledged Chakotay. "I believe we
should install a defense perimeter around the settlement at
the first opportunity."

"Heard about the 'Bigfoot' incident?"

Tuvok's eyebrow rose at Chakotay's jaunty question. "Yes,
though the accuracy of the eyewitness description is
questionable."

"Have there been any new encounters?" Janeway asked.

"Not to my knowledge. However, several large felines have
also been spotted in the distance. Though everyone is
carrying phasers outside of the settlement boundaries, it
is not feasible to always be armed within the boundaries,
nor is a phaser a reliable defense in darkness or in the
event of an attack from behind. It would be prudent to
protect ourselves, and our supplies, to every extent
possible."

"Check with B'Elanna," Chakotay suggested. "She's been
finalizing the installation of the power grid. If there is
enough power to divert to a limited ground-based force
field, that would probably be the best option."

"I will suggest that the field be given the highest
priority. Excuse me."

Janeway watched Tuvok leave in search of B'Elanna, and
Chakotay said, "I wonder what priority B'Elanna will place
on a force field?"

Janeway shrugged. "Whatever B'Elanna and Tuvok decide, it
won't matter in four days."

Chakotay looked at Janeway silently for several moments
before he spoke. "The point of a drill is to act as if it's
real, but you're right; it is only a holoprogram. So why
don't you relax and enjoy it?"

Janeway frowned. "I told you, this really isn't my idea of
fun. Though you seem to be enjoying it enough for both of
us."

Chakotay's eyebrows rose at her sardonic tone. "Maybe I am.
I seem to recall you enjoyed a similar situation once, on
New Earth."

Janeway had some cherished memories of New Earth, but the
two situations had nothing in common, and not just because
this was a holoprogram. "That was different."

"Right. Voyager was back on its way to the Alpha quadrant,
as far as we knew. You could let go because you believed
you'd kept your promise to get your crew home, with the
bonus of having martyred yourself for your cause."

Janeway's mouth dropped slightly open. "What?"

Chakotay gave her a crooked smile that displayed his
dimples, and dropped a hand on her shoulder. "Self-
sacrifice is a noble thing, sometimes."

Sometimes? What the hell was that supposed to mean? Janeway
shook his hand away. "I made a promise to get them home,
Chakotay. And I plan to keep it."

Chakotay's expression sobered, and he nodded. "I know. But
home is a word that can have a lot of different meanings,
Kathryn. It's not always a matter of place."

Janeway stared after Chakotay as he walked away. Her
promise to her crew wasn't one that was open to
interpretation. Home was the Alpha quadrant, nothing more
or less, where families and friends were anxiously awaiting
their return. If achieving that goal meant she had to make
sacrifices...well, she was a Starfleet captain, and
personal sacrifices came with the territory. As for New
Earth, she hadn't exactly felt like a martyr there...

She glared at Chakotay's departing figure as he strode
toward the mess hall. Then she smiled at the thought that
hit her as she watched him. If nothing else this program
was giving her crew a physical workout, which only improved
the view of a certain backside in a tight pair of jeans.

Janeway watched that backside until Chakotay turned the
corner of the men's dormitory, and her smiled widened at
the frivolous direction of her thoughts. "So take that,
Number One."

^*^*^*^

If B'Elanna turned around from her work at the now gutted
shuttlecraft Sagan's exterior starboard engine nacelle, she
knew she would see the Sacajawea twenty meters away from
her, on the flattened patch of grass that would eventually
be a landing field for the fleet of shuttles Tom had
already started planning. But she didn't have to look to
know the other shuttle was there, and that her husband was
working inside. Music--loud and cacophonous--spilled out of
the open door. It was the rock music Tom often favored, and
even at this distance she could make out some of the words-
-"I feel good...I knew that I would..."

A small smile touched B'Elanna's lips. She knew that was
one of his favorites, and as long as she was far enough
away, the screeching vocals and blaring music didn't bother
her. They hadn't talked in detail about it, but she knew
Tom was enjoying himself in this program--not that there
was a holoprogram in existence he didn't find enjoyable. On
the other hand she'd been far less enthusiastic, since
there were still a substantial number of minor repairs to
be completed in Engineering, and she was frustrated at the
current status of her personal project. But once she'd
gotten involved in this program, she'd found it
surprisingly appealing doing something so removed from her
regular work. It was a challenge installing the power grid,
and figuring out how to convert the raw materials around
them into useful energy, all without the high tech
resources she was used to having at hand. Well, she wasn't
thrilled about Tuvok's insistence that she allocate time
and resources to setting up a security perimeter, but she
supposed that could be considered part of the challenge
too.

Tom had been right. The crew had needed the distraction,
and it showed in her engineering staff's renewed
concentration on their work despite their extra hours on
duty because of the drill. Now she realized she had needed
the distraction too, after weeks of red alerts, invasions,
emergency repairs, then more red alerts, more invasions,
more emergency repairs, in what had seemed like a never-
ending loop. She would never admit it, but she also felt a
sense of total relaxation here that she hadn't felt in
awhile, and she welcomed it.

The doctor wanted them to take this program seriously, and
certainly if it were real there would be dangers to
consider, but they were straightforward and easily handled
dangers. On Voyager the lives of the entire crew often
hinged on her split second decisions and fixes, not to
mention the lives of those serving directly under her in
Engineering. And when her decisions resulted in losses, in
the sacrifice of some of those lives...

B'Elanna loosened the nacelle power converter panel with a
vicious tug. She knew she wasn't alone. Janeway felt the weight
of her decisions even more keenly, since hers was so often
the final word. And they all felt the weight of their
recent losses. She'd never give up her beloved Engineering
or Voyager willingly, but she realized that she might
actually miss this program a little when it ended in three
more days--

"Hey, hon, can you toss me that spanner next to you?"

B'Elanna looked at her husband, who had poked his head out
of the Sacajawea's doorway, and she cocked a meaningful
eyebrow at him. The tools she'd been using, some of which
he'd been sharing, were scattered on the grass near her.
She shouted back at him, "I'm at a critical juncture."

Tom hopped to the ground, wiping his hands on his jeans as
he strode toward her. A few moments later he picked up the
spanner. "Never mind. Got it."

B'Elanna rolled her eyes at his insouciant grin. "So I see.
And don't call me that in public."

He gave her a bewildered look before realization dawned on
his face. He sometimes slipped and addressed her by the
kind of endearment she didn't like him to use outside their
private quarters. He glanced around, where there was
obviously no one close enough to have heard. Then he said,
"Sorry, sweetheart."

B'Elanna's mock glare didn't even budge the shameless smile
off his face. He crouched next to her. "How's your work
coming?"

"The rest of these power packs should improve the power
grid's performance," B'Elanna said. "Though once I add the
parameters of Tuvok's security force field, it will be
strained to the limit. Harry should be here any minute to
help me--or now."

"Hey, Harry," Tom called, as Harry approached with several
tools in hand, accompanied by Jenny Delaney and Tran
Nguyen. "When you're done helping B'Elanna, I could use a
hand in the Sacajawea."

Harry shrugged. "Sure."

"You're lucky you're not assigned with us," Jenny said.

"What are you two doing this lovely morning?" Tom asked
them.

Nguyen grimaced. "We get to help construct the storage
building. Commander Chakotay decided it should take
precedence over the infirmary, since the doctor can treat
his patients on location as he's been doing, or set aside a
corner of the mess hall for any serious injuries."

Tom snorted. "I bet the doctor was thrilled to find out he
has to make house calls."

Nguyen grinned. "He argued with Commander Chakotay about
it, but I guess the commander won."

"I'd just like to know how soon we get to build individual
housing," Jenny said. "There is no privacy at all in those
dorms."

"But there is protection from the elements," B'Elanna
replied, though she didn't think she would last very long
in a dormitory environment either. She'd become to used to
her private quarters, and later to Tom's presence.

"Easy for you to say. You two will probably be the first to
get your own house here because you're married."

Tom gave Nguyen a complacent smile. "True. It does make
sense that the first to get some privacy will be those who
are married or in a committed relationship. And we have a
baby on the way."

"That's still not fair," Jenny wailed. "It's discrimination
against the unattached."

B'Elanna rolled her eyes at the stellar cartographer's
dramatics, and Tom said unsympathetically, "Sorry, Jen."

Jenny refocused her gaze on Harry. "Hey, Harry, want to get
married?"

Harry's eyes went wide, and he stared at Jenny, appalled.

"We'd get our own place a lot faster."

Harry finally found his voice. "That's hardly a reason to
get married!"

Nguyen snickered. "I can just see the captain performing
hasty ceremonies for everyone who wants to be on the fast
track to their own lodgings."

"So, would it be okay if my sister moved in with us?"

Tom guffawed, but Harry glared at Jenny. "This is a
holoprogram, Jenny! You live in your own quarters on
Voyager."

Jenny shrugged. "I was just speaking hypothetically. But if
you're refusing my proposal, fine. Come on, Tran."

"Give Harry a little time to think about it," Tom called as
they walked off. "He might change his mind."

Jenny looked back and grinned, but Harry scowled at Tom.
"Don't encourage her."

"She was just joking, Harry."

B'Elanna smiled. "It was kind of funny, Starfleet." She
sometimes found Jenny's absurd brand of humor a little
annoying, but Harry's expression had been priceless, and
Jenny hadn't been serious, probably.

"I have to get back to work," Tom said. "I'm almost
finished optimizing the Sacajawea's systems for atmospheric
flight."

B'Elanna shook her head at him. "Here I had always wondered
how a free-spirited flyboy like you would possibly handle
being planetbound."

Tom grinned back. "Atmospheric flying does have its
thrills. Imagine all the surveys that will need to be made.
We'll need a whole shuttle fleet. I meant to ask you, do
you think there are enough raw materials here to build a
new Flyer?"

B'Elanna nodded. "At least a modified one, though it will
take a few months to get the materials together. There's no
dilithium here, so the propulsion will be limited to--"

"I don't believe this!"

Tom and B'Elanna both stared at Harry, who looked agitated.
"Don't believe what?" Tom asked.

"You're planning a new Flyer, the doctor's creating his
dream concert hall, Neelix is about to instigate a lottery
to name his 'restaurant.' This is a six day emergency
procedures drill! What is it with all of you?"

"We're...having fun?" Tom suggested blandly.

B'Elanna gave her husband a sharp look, though she wasn't
sure why Harry was so upset either.

"You're acting like this is real!"

Tom shook his head. "I think we know the difference, Harry.
Though if it was real, there are some things I could get
used to here."

"What about getting home?" Harry demanded. "After how far
we've come, and everything we've been through to get to
this point, you'd be willing to give up and colonize a
planet?"

"Who said anything about giving up? Nobody has yet, but
considering everything we have been through, our luck could
run out one day. I'm just saying if we were forced to
colonize, I could probably learn to accept it."

"You don't care how disappointed all our families would be,
including yours, if we didn't get home?"

Tom sighed heavily. "I didn't say that. Though if it ever
happens, we could probably rig a satellite to access the
datastream so we could keep in contact with our families.
Heck, Starfleet might invent a new warp technology, or find
a wormhole and send a ship for us. Either way, we wouldn't
be completely cut off--"

"But it wouldn't be the same!"

B'Elanna decided it was time to intervene. "Hey, this is
all a moot point. Right now Voyager on a direct course for
the Alpha quadrant at warp eight."

"Right," Tom agreed. "This is only a holoprogram, Harry, as
you've reminded us about a dozen times now."

"Right," Harry said. "We're still committed to getting
home, most of us anyway."

Tom stared at Harry silently for a moment, then shrugged.
"I've said it before, Harry. Getting back to the Federation
is not that big a priority for me. I'm going back to work
on the Sacajawea."

B'Elanna put a hand on Tom's arm before he could turn away.
"Tom--"

"Uh, sorry, am I interrupting something?"

"Nope," Tom said easily, though B'Elanna could feel the
tension in him. "What's up, Gerry?"

"I wrenched my shoulder so the doctor took me off the
construction crew for today." Ensign Culhane rubbed the
affected shoulder. "He told me to check and see if you
needed help on the Sacajawea."

"I could use some assistance." Tom slipped his arm from
B'Elanna's grip and kissed her on the cheek. "See you in a
while. Harry, if you have time later I could still use your
help on the Sacajawea's engine manifold."

Harry nodded stiffly, and B'Elanna watched Tom and Culhane
walk to the Sacajawea before she turned to Harry. "What was
that all about?"

Harry frowned for a moment before he spoke. "This is a
holoprogram, and everyone is acting like it's real. We're
constructing all these buildings, Tom's upgrading a
shuttle, you're installing a power grid--it just seems like
a waste of time and energy for something we're going to
turn off in three days."

B'Elanna shrugged. "That's the point of simulations, Harry.
Design engineers build simulated engines all the time and
test them before they build the real thing. The experience
they gain is still valid."

"But we're practicing something that we don't plan on
really doing," Harry said. "And everyone seems a little too
happy in this program, especially Tom."

B'Elanna could tell that last part was what was really
bothering Harry. "We've had it pretty grim the past month
or so. I can't even remember the last time we had shore
leave." Actually she could remember, since she'd picked up
some promising parts for her project, and there had been
that quaint little restaurant where she and Tom had eaten
dinner. Even if it had been less than two months ago, it
seemed longer, as if their lives had totally changed in the
interim--again. "This is just a break for everyone. And
look at it this way, Harry. At least there aren't any Borg
here, or duplicitous ex-drones, and no real damage or
casualties to deal with."

Harry nodded. "I know. But Tom, for one, apparently
wouldn't care if this were real. He's always so blasé about
everything."

B'Elanna frowned. "He's not blasé when he's flying Voyager
out of danger," she said sharply. "Or helping the Doctor
treat our shipmates when they're injured. He's not blasé
about his friendship with you, Harry."

"I didn't mean--"

"Tom doesn't have the same priorities you do, and he's also
very adaptable by nature. Whatever situation he's in, he'll
always find some opportunity in it, some way to make it
work for him." B'Elanna smiled faintly. "That's one of the
things I've always admired most about him."

Harry sighed. "I guess I do too. I know as long as Tom has
something to fly, and a shuttle or a car to tinker on--and
you and the baby--he's happy."

"It's a good thing you added that last part," B'Elanna
growled good-naturedly. "The truth is, I feel a lot like
Tom does. As long as I have him, and her..." she pressed a
hand to her belly briefly, "and you and the rest of my
friends on Voyager, that's what really matters most to me.
A lot of the Maquis feel the same way. We know where we
stand here."

"B'Elanna, you don't have anything to worry about," Harry
said vehemently. "The Maquis will be pardoned. The captain
all but said so."

The captain was optimistic, but B'Elanna knew there were no
guarantees. "Probably. But a lot of the Maquis on Voyager
lost friends and family because of the Cardassian massacres
and the Dominion War. Not everyone has people waiting for
them back home, Harry."

Harry was silent for several moments. "I'm being a jerk,
aren't I?"

B'Elanna tried to look stern; instead she ended up smiling.
She wondered if it was Harry's shamefaced expression or
this calm stage of her pregnancy that had her suddenly
acting like a Betazoid counselor. "Maybe just a little. Not
everyone wants the same thing, Harry, and there's nothing
wrong with that. You and Tom are very different, and that's
probably why you're best friends. Aside from that, this
*is* just a holoprogram. Nothing's changed. I'm still going
to do everything I possibly can to get us all home."

Harry gave her a shrewd look, the same one she'd been
getting from various senior officers for weeks now about
her secret project that wasn't so secret anymore. "I know."

"Good." B'Elanna cuffed him lightly on the shoulder. "Let's
get back to work."


^*^*^*^


"I think I'm still fondest of the first rotation," the
doctor said conversationally. "This third rotation does
have a nice sunset, but I love the fresh scent of morning,
with the dew still on the grass, and sound of birds
singing..."

"The birds we have observed all emit a high-pitched
screech," Seven reminded him.

The doctor shrugged. "The sound of birds screeching..."

"There, Seven."

Icheb pointed to a hill approximately a kilometer away, and
Seven nodded. "That is the location Lieutenant Carey
indicated in his initial survey." She glanced at his
tricorder. "Sornonium, and gold. The gold is of little
value since it can be manufactured--"

"Not here," the doctor said. "At least not yet."

Seven glanced at the doctor and nodded at his correct
observation. He had decided to come along on their
expedition because he wanted to experience every aspect of
their colonization effort. She had also noticed he was
quite proprietary about his program, and though his
presence on this assignment was not essential, she'd
accepted it, along with his tendency to talk endlessly.

"The distance is one point one three kilometers," Icheb
said. "We've already traveled quite far from the
settlement."

"We may not make it back before dusk," Naomi said.

Before the end of the third rotation, when the program
would close down, Seven amended in her own mind. She did
not find it as easy to "pretend" as those around her, since
it was something with which she had very limited
experience. Lieutenant Paris's Captain Proton program had
not convinced her of the supposed charms of suspending
disbelief, though many of the crew clearly were enjoying
the "make believe" element in this program. She avoided
making any comparisons to Unimatrix Zero, since that
situation was not directly analogous. "Very well. We will
return to the settlement. If we proceed in a southwest
course, we will cover some ground not fully surveyed."

"Pretty soon Tom can fly us around in the Sacajawea," Naomi
said. "Then we won't have to walk everywhere."

"The Sacajawea is currently functional," Seven pointed out.
"However, it is advisable to fully familiarize ourselves
with the local terrain and resources before we move further
afield."

"Exactly," the doctor said, approval in his voice.

"Icheb, inform Lieutenant Nicoletti's team of our heading."

Seven led the way while Icheb used his commbadge to contact
Lieutenant Nicoletti. Naomi moved in step with Seven as the
doctor and Icheb fell in slightly behind.

"After the drill is over maybe we can still keep building
the colony," Naomi said, sounding a little wistful.

"There would be no practical reason to do so," Seven said.

"We could just do it for fun, like we do other
holoprograms."

Seven gave Naomi a curious look, wondering what prompted
her inclination. She had noted that many of the crew seemed
intrigued by the concept of colonization, though she'd
assumed it was due to the novelty factor of the program
rather than an interest in actual colonization. "Do you
wish this was more than a simulation?"

Naomi looked thoughtful, then she shrugged. "I don't know.
I love Voyager, but..."

"It has been a difficult past few weeks," Seven finished
for her.

Naomi nodded. "My mom was working in Sickbay after the Borg
invasion, and she was the one who sat with Ken Dalby when
he died. They became pretty good friends, since they worked
together in the biolab sometimes. She was really upset."

"You believe if the crew had chosen to colonize a planet,
Crewman Dalby would be alive today?"

"Probably. I know my mom would be safer, and I wouldn't
have to worry about her every time there's a red alert and
I don't know where she is or if she's okay. Or if Icheb's
okay, or you, or Neelix, or B'Elanna, or Tom..."

"I understand. However, a colony can also have dangers, and
it is vulnerable to attack from space. The Borg have
assimilated hundreds of colonies, some in the sector we are
traveling through right now."

Naomi nodded glumly. "I know you're right, Seven."

Seven thought Naomi still looked uncertain. "Should Voyager
be successful reaching the Alpha quadrant, you and your
mother will see your father again, and the other members
your family. Do you not desire that outcome?"

"Of course," Naomi said immediately. "It will be different
than just talking to my father through letters, but I
already love him, and I know how much he misses me and my
mom. I think Icheb wants to get there too, since he wants a
career with Starfleet. We both want to stay in Starfleet,
so we can be...well, anyway."

Seven knew the reason for Naomi's evasiveness and her
flushed skin. She had recognized the strong attraction
between Icheb and Naomi, despite their youthfulness. It
wasn't an area where she could give much advice. She had
missed that stage of her individual development, and she
still didn't completely understand her feelings for Axum,
which had resurfaced in a strong manner when she'd
contacted him again recently. She did know that she was
experiencing a persistent desire to explore those feelings
in more detail--

"Seven, to your left!"

The doctor's shout alerted Seven, and she shoved Naomi
behind her as a large feline animal appeared from behind
the small outcropping of rocks two meters in front of them.
It was the size of a Bengal tiger though its dun fur was
matted and scruffy. Its green eyes met Seven's and held.

"Move back and let me handle this, Seven. I'm a hologram,
so I can't be injured."

Seven refrained from noting that this was a holoprogram, so
none of them could be seriously injured. She held out a
hand. "I can handle the situation, Doctor," she said, as
she placed her other hand on her phaser.

The cat crouched as if to pounce, and Naomi drew an audible
breath behind Seven. Seven considered her options in a
split second, and chose the one she deemed appropriate. She
raised her arms and let out a loud, long bloodcurdling
scream.

The cat paused in mid-motion and took several steps
backwards before it turned and loped away. Seven looked at
her companions, who were all staring at her in stupefied
amazement. It was several seconds before anyone spoke.

"Wow, Seven. That was the loudest scream I've ever heard!"

Naomi's voice was full of admiration, and Seven raised an
eyebrow. "It served its purpose."

"Why didn't you just stun it?"

The doctor sounded irate, and Seven considered his
question. "I concluded that a loud scream had a high
probability of success, while avoiding any possibility of
unforeseen injury to the animal." She saw the doctor's
expression soften, and knew he was recalling the last time
she'd used a phaser set to stun, on the ex-drones on the
Trefla. Though she appreciated the doctor's occasional
moments of perception and empathy, her reaction here had
been entirely based on reason. "Had the animal kept coming,
of course I would have used my phaser."

"Of course," Icheb echoed as Seven's commbadge beeped.

"Nicoletti to Seven."

"Go ahead, Lieutenant."

"We thought we heard a scream a minute ago. Is everything
all right?"

"Affirmative, Lieutenant."

"Good." Nicoletti sounded relieved. "It seemed to come from
your direction, though you're pretty far away from us. It
sounded human, but I guess it must have been an animal."

"It was my voice you heard," Seven replied. "However there
is no cause for alarm. The situation is under control."

"Okaaay..."

Seven heard the mixture of doubt and curiosity in
Nicoletti's voice. She offered no further information. "We
will rendezvous with you back at the settlement. Seven
out." She turned to the doctor. "I believe we should
proceed now, and with greater urgency."

Naomi's eyes widened. "In case we meet Bigfoot?" she asked,
though her grin belied any fear of such an encounter.

Seven shook her head. "No. Because those clouds coming from
the west are moving swiftly."

A few minutes earlier there had been only an indistinct
haze on the horizon, but now billowing dark clouds were
visible, and clearly headed in their direction. They all
heeded Seven's suggestion and began to move quickly, as
Icheb asked with his typical ingenuous curiosity, "Is there
a particular reason you have such a fondness for rain,
Doctor?"

Naomi giggled under her breath, and shot Seven a gleeful
look as the doctor began to lecture Icheb on the variables
of climate. Seven acknowledged Naomi's grin with a slight
upturn of her lips. She had learned that social skill from
the doctor, and though she'd found it very awkward at
first, and had quite often neglected to employ it while
focusing on more practical matters, she'd become more
comfortable with such social gestures recently. They were
particularly easy to perform with Naomi.

Seven glanced at the clouds again and increased her pace,
knowing the others would follow her lead. Though she was
not good at pretending, she did find aspects of this drill
intriguing, even challenging in their unpredictability. For
instance, she considered at this moment whether, even at
the fast pace she had set, they would make it to the
settlement before the rain began to fall.

Act Three

As he entered Holodeck one, Chakotay nearly ran into Harry
Kim and Jesse Molina. He did a double take as he looked at
their wet, muddy clothes and generally disheveled
appearance. Harry had a cut across his cheek. "What
happened to you two?

"You haven't heard?" Harry asked. "There was a hurricane."

"A hurricane?" He glanced up at the leaden sky, and wiped
several raindrops from his face. He'd heard from Tabor last
night that rain and wind were settling in as the program
closed, but a hurricane? "The colony site is at least six
hundred kilometers from the nearest sea."

"That's what I told the doctor!" Harry shook his head. "It
didn't make sense, but we just spent six hours soaking wet
trying to save what supplies we could after the roof
collapsed on the storage building."

Damn. They'd just finished that building.

"You missed all the fun, Commander," Molina said, sounding
like he'd actually enjoyed it. "I think the hurricane's
over now."

"Yeah. But it's still raining." Harry gave Chakotay a
commiserating look. "Have fun with the clean up."

Chakotay watched them go. It was still raining lightly,
though the wind had ceased. From the holoarch's entry spot
at the settlement's eastern boundary he couldn't see the
storage building, since it was hidden by one of the
dormitories--both of which looked completely intact--but he
could see the debris scattered around, including some of
their building materials, supplies and torn seed bags among
the broken tree branches and uprooted chunks of mud.
Several crewmembers were wandering among the debris,
retrieving what they could. A few steps brought the storage
building and mess hall into view. The mess hall appeared
undamaged, and the duraplas reinforced walls of the storage
building were standing, but the roof had indeed collapsed.
He supposed it was a good sign that the other buildings had
withstood the storm.

He didn't see Janeway until she was right in front of him.
"Captain..."

Chakotay's voice trailed off. Kathryn Janeway was a mess.
Her hair was tangled and it hung in wet clumps. Though most
of the crew had abandoned their uniforms for casual
clothing that was less restrictive--and more fitting to the
scenario of building a permanent colony--the captain had
elected to continue wearing her uniform. Chakotay figured
it was a statement, but at the moment that uniform was
rumpled and dirty, and there was a smudges of mud on her
forehead and cheek. He cleared his throat. "I heard there
was a hurricane."

"Now you can see that it's true," Janeway said dryly.

Chakotay plucked a leaf out of her hair and turned it over
in his fingers.

"Are you finding this amusing, Commander?"

Chakotay shook his head. "No, ma'am."

Janeway's eyes narrowed at that address. He couldn't
remember the last time he'd called her ma'am. He was still
managing not to smile, barely. She finally gave a small
snort of disgust. "I have to go take a shower before I
start my shift on the bridge."

"Good idea."

Chakotay managed to keep his expression as neutral as his
voice. Beneath the dire warning in Janeway's gaze he
thought he detected a glint of humor before she turned and
stalked off.

"Chakotay!"

B'Elanna was striding toward him, with the doctor right
behind her.

"How long have you been here?" Chakotay asked. Since she
was scheduled for the second rotation it couldn't have been
too long.

"A few minutes. Long enough to find out that the power grid
is seriously damaged." B'Elanna glared at the doctor and
wiped moisture out of her eyes. "I hate rain."

"Be glad you weren't here at the beginning of the last
rotation, Lieutenant," the doctor said. "Everyone walked
right into the middle of the hurricane. Then you would have
had something to complain about."

"Be glad my temper is tempered at the moment," B'Elanna
shot back.

The doctor smirked. "I suppose it is fortunate for me that
you are a kinder, gentler Lieutenant Torres these days."

Chakotay spoke before B'Elanna could return another in what
had probably already been a long line of verbal shots.
"Doctor, what's going on? A hurricane is not a very likely
development in this inland environment."

The doctor shrugged at Chakotay's observation. "When I
programmed the colonization scenario I instructed the
computer to create a small natural disaster to test the
crew's skills. I did not include any topographical
parameters, so this is what we got."

"That's the kind of detail Tom wouldn't have forgotten,"
B'Elanna said, probably just to annoy the doctor.

It worked. The doctor scowled at her. "The only relevant
factor for this program was to give the crew an opportunity
to overcome a typical obstacle that might face a fledgling
colony. Colonizing is not always a picnic, you know."

B'Elanna rolled her eyes. "So I see. I've got to get to
work on the power grid, Chakotay."

"How bad is it?"

"With Gilmore and Vorik's help, I can probably have it
fixed by the end of my rotation."

"If it's not, Joe Carey's on the third rotation. I'm sure
his team can finish up."

That was Chakotay's way of telling B'Elanna not to push
herself too hard. Even though she was more amenable than
usual--a characteristic of midterm Klingon pregnancies
apparently--nothing ever affected her determination when it
came to her job. She nodded reluctantly at his "suggestion"
and strode off.

Chakotay heard a chorus of groans behind him, and turned to
see several new arrivals surveying the damage. Michael
Ayala was shaking his head. "Molina said there was a
hurricane. Guess he wasn't kidding."

"I'm afraid not," Chakotay replied. "It's not quite as bad
as it looks. Only one building was damaged, but it was the
one containing our food supplies, unfortunately."

Neelix waved a PADD. "Chell gave me an update before he
left. We lost approximately two-thirds of our food stores.
That leaves us about a week's supply right now. There
shouldn't be any problem supplementing with the local
fruits and tubers," he assured everyone. "I found some
edible roots yesterday that will also make a nutritious
soup. We won't starve."

"We might wish we had," Ensign Ashmore muttered.

"What about hunting?" Several pairs of eyes fixated on Sam
Wildman. "We'll need more protein in our diet soon."

"There must be other ways to get protein besides killing
animals!" Megan Delaney protested.

"Grubs are an excellent source of protein," Neelix
announced cheerfully, to no resulting show of enthusiasm.

"There are also plant sources," the doctor said. "However,
animal protein is the most beneficial for humanoids, except
Vulcans."

"Without a replicator we can't reproduce meat, so hunting
will probably become necessary." Chakotay could see from
several faces that the prospect wasn't to everyone's
liking. He imagined few on Voyager had ever eaten
nonreplicated animal flesh. Some, like him, were also
vegetarians, and would forgo eating actual animal flesh in
favor of those other sources of protein.

"Domestication of local animals would also be an eventual
alternative," the doctor said.

"True," Chakotay replied. "However, we won't be pursuing
either in the next two days." There were several relieved
sighs. "The rations we have left and whatever we can forage
will be enough to sustain us. You'd better put together a
foraging party, Neelix."

"Those who aren't assisting Mister Neelix can head over to
the storage building," the doctor announced. "Mister
Tessoni has a team already working on the roof repairs."

Angelo Tessoni had turned out to be an excellent carpenter,
and as often happened in such situations, others naturally
looked to him for guidance since he possessed the greatest
skill. Over the past several days many of the crew had
found their comfortable niches, though not a few were
intent on trying their hands at as many different tasks as
possible.

The group split up, some going with Neelix, while the rest
followed the doctor toward the storage building. Chakotay
went with the second group, glad to note that everyone
seemed to have adjusted to this setback with relative ease.
No one really needed much direction anymore to find
something useful to do, especially since there were no end
of tasks to be done--not so different from the situation
they often found themselves in on Voyager. Of course, this
was a simulation, and an incomplete one at that,
considering they all returned to the comfort of their own
quarters at the end of the day. He knew better than anyone
that no number of simulations could completely prepare one
for reality, but he also knew that this crew had always
responded with aplomb to every situation that had been
thrown at them. Whatever they might face in the future,
that wasn't likely to change.

Their captain might be another matter. Kathryn's promise to
get the crew home was the beacon that kept her going.
Should that beacon be lost, he wasn't sure how she'd handle
it. If the glint of humor he'd seen in her eyes before
she'd left hadn't been his imagination, maybe she was
starting to take this program for what is was though,
rather than as a refutation of her objective.

"Hey, Commander, are you just supervising today?"

"Nope," Chakotay answered Ayala's sardonic question. He
took the hammer Ayala offered, and then returned the
lieutenant's grin as they joined the rest of the
construction crew, who were already hard at work.

^*^*^*^

Tom hefted his full sack over his shoulder and grunted as
the weight hit his back. It had to weigh twenty-five kilos.

"I believe this will be satisfactory for the moment," Tuvok
said as he slung an equally heavy bag over his shoulder
with no apparent effort at all.

"It will have to be, since I can't carry any more back to
the settlement. We should have brought the Sacajawea."

"We are only two point two four kilometers from the
settlement," Tuvok pointed out.

Tom groaned, and started walking. "Only. Why did we have to
draw the most distant foraging area?"

"There was no random element involved. I am a Vulcan and
you are a tall, able-bodied human with a higher than
average strength index. Thus we were the logical choice."

"Right." Tom pushed a hanging tree branch out of his face
with his free hand. The surrounding foliage was dense,
since they were right by the river. He could hear the rush
of water to his right, though they had foraged into an area
where the river was in a small canyon below them rather
than right next to them.

Tuvok spoke from behind him. "I suggest caution,
Lieutenant. The ground in this area is uneven."

"I just hope we're on the path."

"We have drifted from the original path, though it is of
little consequence since they are only poorly marked animal
trails. When the river turns, the path will become
clearer."

To Tuvok maybe. Tom doubted he would even be able to tell.
He'd know where he was going once the trees thinned and the
settlement was visible across the grassy flatland. He'd
never had much sense of direction on land, the way he did
in space. Still, he did appreciate the scenic value of
these woods, not to mention the beautiful waterfall just
upstream. He could think of a few advantages to finding a
secluded glade here where he and B'Elanna could be alone.
Thanks to this drill this was one more week when they'd
spent too little time with each other. He wondered if he
could trade rotations with someone tomorrow so he and
B'Elanna could be in the program together. Then they could
sneak away for an hour and find the perfect spot in these
woods--

"Lieutenant, you are straying too far to your right."

Tom had been so engrossed in his thoughts he hadn't noticed
that the ground had begun to slope sharply on his right.
Just as he started to take a step back his foot slipped,
and he followed. He slid over the sloping ground for
several meters, just missing a tree, until the ground
abruptly flattened and ended. He reached out futilely but
his momentum carried him, and he hit open air for a heart-
stopping moment. That moment passed into the next as he
remembered with relief that he was in a holoprogram. Then
he landed with a thud.

Tom cursed and rubbed his hip. Safeties or not, the sharp
rock he'd landed on had hurt. And it had ripped his pants.
He looked at the river, approximately forty meters below
him. Then he looked up some five meters, where the uneven
slope he'd tumbled down ended in the sharp precipice above
him. It was not a great cliff as cliffs go, but big enough.
He stood gingerly on the jutting bit of ground where he'd
landed. It was no more than a small ledge in the cliffside.

"Mister Paris."

Tom looked up again, and saw Tuvok staring down at him
impassively. "I'm fine, Tuvok."

"Indeed. You are however in a precarious position."

Tom could see that. The wall of the cliff was smooth, with
nothing he could use as a handhold. The spot where Tuvok
stood at the top of the cliff was two meters beyond his
reach. "Did you happen to bring a rope?"

Tuvok didn't bother to answer that rhetorical question.
"Glibness will not rescue you from your predicament,
Lieutenant. Your carelessness will one day be your
undoing."

Tom rolled his eyes. "It's a holoprogram, Tuvok." If he
fell, he'd simply float to the rocks the lined the river
directly below him. This wasn't even the kind of program
where he'd be penalized or eliminated from the action if
the safeties activated.

"The drill is intended to simulate reality. If this were a
real situation, your life would be in jeopardy. A fall onto
the rocks from this height would likely be fatal. You have
a history of taking your life lightly, but it might be
provident to remember that you have a wife and a child now,
and they are affected by your actions--"

"All right, Tuvok! I wasn't looking where I was going.
Geez, first Harry, and now you. Can you find a vine or
something and pull me up without the lecture?"

Tom's tone was snappish, but Tuvok merely raised an
eyebrow, then disappeared from view. Tom sighed and shook
his head. It wasn't like he'd fallen on purpose. And it
wasn't like he took that many crazy chances with his life.
Not anymore. Nowadays it seemed that had become B'Elanna's
specialty--

Something slapped Tom lightly in the cheek. He looked at
the vine that hung nearly to his feet, and up at Tuvok, who
was on his haunches gripping the other end of it. He didn't
know how Tuvok had managed to find one so fast, but he
didn't question it either. He simply wrapped the vine
around his hands and turned to face the wall of the cliff,
bracing one leg against it.

"Ready."

Tuvok pulled, and Tom used his legs to help hoist himself
up. With that effort, and Tuvok's Vulcan strength, he was
over the edge and sitting next to Tuvok in only a few
seconds. He winced at minor rope burns on his palms as he
unwound the vine from his hands. Then he looked at Tuvok.
"Thanks."

Tuvok tossed the vine aside. "You are welcome. I suggest
caution as we ascend the incline."

Tom followed Tuvok, noting that the incline was short and
not particularly steep. If he'd been paying attention he
could have easily saved himself from a fall. His sack of
berries was still at the top--on the path such as it was--
right next to Tuvok's. Fortunately he'd dropped it the
moment he'd slipped, and only a few of the orange berries
had spilled out. He picked up the sack and slung it over
his shoulder, adjusting his grip a little to put less
pressure on his reddened palms. "Why don't you lead,
Tuvok."

Tuvok nodded. "Very well."

After a minute or so of silence as they walked, Tom spoke
to Tuvok's back. "I'm sorry I was a little...hostile back
there." He smiled inwardly at his own choice of words,
thinking of his one time accusation to B'Elanna. Hostility
was probably more attractive coming from her than he
suspected it was from him.

"An apology is unnecessary, Lieutenant. Vulcans do not
experience offense at human emotional outbursts."

"Right," Tom muttered. "But even if this isn't real, I'm
admitting that I should have been more careful."

"Agreed."

Tom sighed. Tuvok was such a conversationalist. "Speaking
of real, Harry seems worried this colonizing thing might
become a reality some day. It's silly. I mean, at this
point what are the odds that we won't get all the way
home?"

"The odds are, to quote a popular human phrase, fifty-
fifty."

Tom stopped in his tracks and stared at Tuvok's back.
"What?"

Tuvok paused and turned. "There is no way to calculate
precise probabilities since we are traveling through
unknown territory and have no idea what future hazards we
may face. Thus, the odds can be no more accurate than
fifty-fifty."

Tom had never thought of it like that. They began walking
again, side by side, since the path had widened. "Well, I
can't say it matters all that much to me either way."

"So I have surmised. You have never expressed a great deal
of enthusiasm about returning to the Alpha quadrant."

No, Tom didn't suppose he had.

"I know that there are others among the crew who have found
more stability on Voyager than they experienced in the
Alpha quadrant, or expect to find there if we return
successfully."

Tom knew that was true for some of the Maquis, and
certainly for those who'd been on the Equinox. For quite a
while it had been true for him. Now, though he had minor
concerns about his reception by Starfleet, and about
B'Elanna's Maquis past, those concerns were secondary.
"It's not that anymore. It's the cost of getting there.
That cost has been running pretty high lately, and like you
said, who knows what the future holds."

Tuvok was silent, since they both knew the future could
quite possibly hold more of the same. Tom shook his head as
they moved through the trees. "Even a year ago I would have
scoffed at the idea of colonizing, but I'm married now, and
my wife is pregnant. After the way the past few weeks have
gone--well, it could have easily been B'Elanna who was hurt
or killed trying to keep Engineering safeguarded from the
Borg drones." He pushed away the image of Marla Gilmore as
she'd been for two weeks in Sickbay, comatose and barely
clinging to life. He'd transposed B'Elanna's face onto
Marla's too often during those weeks. "The truth is, if we
had to colonize, I don't think I would object much anymore.
I worry about my wife and baby. If that's wrong, well, I
can't help it."

"Concern for your wife and child is commendable,
Lieutenant," Tuvok said. "However such concern does not
give one the right to dictate the actions of others. To
allow them independence despite that concern is a hallmark
of maturity, as you have recently exhibited."

Tom blinked. Was that actually a compliment? "Are you
saying that I'm growing up, Tuvok?" he asked lightly.

Tuvok studied him dispassionately. "So it would appear,
Lieutenant Paris, belated as that development may be."

Tom grinned. Now, *that* sounded more like Tuvok. "After
all these years, it seems that you and I finally have a lot
in common."

Tuvok's eyebrow rose. "'A lot' would perhaps be overstating
it."

"We're both married, and we're both fathers. Well, I will
be a father soon." Tom shook his head. "I never realized
how that would change my priorities." He was still amazed
how much those priorities had changed recently, for him and
B'Elanna. "I can't always goof off in my spare time now,
though I still run my Captain Proton program once in a
while, for Harry's sake."

Tom noted Tuvok's skeptical glance with a wry smile, and
shifted the sack on his back. "When I had a couple of free
hours recently, I actually spent the time designing and
replicating a mobile for the baby's cradle. It's a mobile
of different starships, including Voyager, and a Klingon
Bird of Prey. Considering her parents, I don't guess she
can help but be fascinated by starships flying above her
head, huh? I suppose it's just a question of whether she'll
grow up to be an engineer or a pilot. Though if she wants
to do something else, that's fine too." He wasn't going to
burden his daughter with rigid expectations. He knew too
well what that felt like. "Whatever she chooses, I'll be
right there to support her. She'll have to get used to
having me around, but I plan to let her wrap me around her
little finger so she probably won't protest--"

"We are approaching the edge of the woods. Less talk and a
quicker pace on your part will enable us to reach our
destination sooner, Lieutenant."

Tom was momentarily taken aback by Tuvok's brusque
interjection, and then he had to rush to keep up as Tuvok
increased his pace. The bag was definitely getting heavier
as it bounced against his back. Okay, so he'd been talking
a lot, but that wasn't a reason for Tuvok to try and kill
him. He was about to demand that they slow down, when
something occurred to him.

Besides his three sons, Tuvok also had a daughter. If Tom
recalled correctly, she'd still been a child the last time
Tuvok had seen her. Since then Tuvok's only contact with
his family had been through the datastream letters they'd
been able to send back and forth this past year. Even
though his own daughter wasn't here yet, Tom tried to
imagine being separated from her for so long, and missing
all those years watching her grow up. Not to mention being
separated from B'Elanna for all that time...

It wasn't something he wanted to imagine, or ever
experience. Whatever hardships they all might still face on
their journey, he had his wife and child with him, while
Tuvok's wife and children were still twenty-seven thousand
light years away.

As they stepped beyond the last of the trees Tom could see
the four buildings that now marked the settlement no more
than a kilometer away. Between them and the settlement,
Jurot and Kashimuro Nozawa were staking out the field where
the first crops from the seed stores they'd managed to save
would be planted in a few days. Would have been planted.
Since they only had one more day in the program, they
wouldn't get that far.

"Tuvok."

Tuvok slowed down--finally--and looked at Tom inquiringly.
Tom had to take a couple of breaths before he could speak.
"Despite any ambivalence I might have personally expressed,
I do hope we get back to the Alpha quadrant."

Tuvok met Tom's earnest gaze. "I too, hope we are
successful in that endeavor, though personal preferences
have little influence on the outcome."

"Oh, I don't know, Tuvok," Tom said. "What about the
captain? It's certainly her preference to get us there.
Look how far her determination has gotten us, despite the
odds, which now that you can look back must have been truly
horrendous."

Tuvok's eyebrow rose at Tom's dramatization. "In retrospect
the odds were not in our favor by a substantial margin. If
one employs typical human hyperbole, the odds against us
reaching this point in our journey might well be considered
horrendous."

"Right! So if we're true to form, you'll probably being
seeing your wife and kids again in no time."

"Your reasoning is specious, Lieutenant," Tuvok said.
"Though perhaps it will be so."

Perhaps it would. If B'Elanna's transwarp project worked
out Tom knew it would shorten the trip considerably, and
hopefully lessen the dangers. But she was still struggling
make her theory workable, so he didn't say anything as they
began to walk toward the settlement. If they did make it
back, he figured he could handle whatever waited for him,
and B'Elanna, as long as the cost of getting there didn't
get any higher.

^*^*^*^

Tuvok pressed the announcer, and at the captain's muffled
"Enter" stepped into her ready room. Captain Janeway was
seated on the couch, concentrating intently on a PADD, and
she didn't look up immediately. "Captain, I have the
current status reports for you, if you wish to review them
before your rotation in the colonization drill."

"Thank you, Tuvok." Janeway gestured with one hand. "Just
put them on the desk."

"Commander Chakotay stopped by Engineering to consult with
Lieutenant Torres on scheduling matters. He expects to
return to the bridge within the half hour."

"I'm sure you can handle it in the meantime." Janeway
glanced at the status reports. "No problems?"

"It remains...quiet." It was their first lengthy period of
such respite in the six weeks they'd been in this sector,
and Tuvok saw from Janeway's expression that she was no
more eager than he was to let down her guard because of a
few calm days. "Sensors remain at full alert for presence
of the Borg."

Janeway nodded, then studied her PADD again for several
moments. Tuvok was about to turn and leave, when she spoke.
"Do you think this colonization program has been a
worthwhile investment of time, Tuvok?"

"I do, Captain."

"The crew seems to be enjoying it, despite the
unpredictable weather patterns, and another sighting of
Bigfoot yesterday, this time by Ensign Golwat."

Tuvok saw the rueful twist of her lips, and heard the
subtle undercurrent of tension in her voice. He had not
spent so many years with humans without being able to
recognize their emotional nuances, and he knew no human
better than Kathryn Janeway. "Enjoyment is incidental to
the purpose of the drill, though distraction does appear to
be a likely explanation for the crew's...lighthearted
approach in the colonization program in contrast to the
generally more somber demeanors of the preceding weeks."

Janeway nodded. "Yes, I'm sure that's part of it. Commander
Chakotay theorized a holoprogram is just the thing to give
the crew a sense of normalcy again."

"Indeed," Tuvok agreed. On other Starfleet ships where he'd
served, nearly three-quarters of holodeck time was
generally slotted to training simulations and standard
calisthenics programs, and the remainder given over to
personal use. It was the opposite on Voyager. Shore leave
was an irregular and infrequent occurrence in the Delta
quadrant, and the crew often spent weeks on end without
outside contact or interaction, a difficult situation for
social species' like humans. The lure of something besides
the close walls that had been surrounding them for seven
years was irresistible to many. Whether it was a
planetscape, a favored bar, an adventure program, or a
holonovel, the holodeck provided variety, and that kind of
escape was the norm on Voyager, even when it served a
training purpose.

"After all, there were a few times we could have colonized,
but there was no desire."

Tuvok's eyebrow rose at the captain's softly spoken
statement. He surmised she was making a correlation between
the positive reaction of the crew to the doctor's
colonization program and their attitudes in reality. Though
he'd heard many positive opinions about the drill, no one
had expressed a desire to make the program a reality. Even
Lieutenant Paris's position expressed this morning could be
considered neutral. "Affirmative. You offered them the
opportunity to colonize once, and the crew as one gave you
their answer. They have never shown an inclination to halt
our journey."

"Of course, some are no longer here to give an opinion,"
Janeway mused, her eyes still focused on the PADD in her
hand. "It occurs to me that they might still be here if we
had chosen to remain on the Briori homeworld with Amelia
Earhart and her group, or had stopped somewhere else along
the way before we encountered the Borg and made them more
dangerous enemies than they already were."

Tuvok knew Janeway had a difficult time dealing with deaths
among her crew, though she took care to conceal her
distress in public. This latest round of deaths--after a
period of two years, ten months and thirteen days during
which they'd suffered no casualties--had been traumatic for
the crew, and perhaps more so for the captain. Two weeks
ago she had borne the personal responsibility of informing
the deceased crewmembers' friends and family--in one case
including wife and child--of their fates, via the
datastream transmission. Such a task took an emotional toll
on a human, especially one who held herself partly
responsible for those deaths.

"Your assumption is thoroughly illogical, Captain."

Janeway's head jerked up, and her gaze met his.
"Thoroughly?"

Though she spoke with soft irony and was smiling faintly,
Tuvok observed the stiffness in her posture. "There is no
way to know how the crew might have fared on a colony,
whether the Briori homeworld or a later chosen location. A
large natural disaster, or an attack from the Borg or
another hostile race, like the Kazon or Hirogen, might have
killed even more."

Janeway gave Tuvok a skeptical look. "Maybe."

"We do know that had we remained on the Briori homeworld,
or colonized later to avoid the confrontation between the
Borg and Species 8472, Seven would still be a Borg drone,
and the children we rescued from the Collective, including
Icheb, would certainly be dead now. Civilizations we've
contacted and affected in various ways wouldn't have known
our presence, perhaps altering their future courses in an
unknowable manner. Without our intervention it is also
possible that Species 8472 would have gained the foothold
they were seeking in this galaxy and, as was their original
intent, would be engaged in systematically destroying
numerous planets and civilizations in their path,
eventually reaching the Federation."

"So it's all just a tradeoff?" Janeway asked wryly.

"It is simply what is, Captain. You could as well wish
Voyager had never gone after the Freedom, resulting in both
ships being pulled into the Caretaker's anomaly. Such
speculation changes nothing, and you still do not know if a
different decision at any point would have boded more well
or ill for all involved in the end. Undoing the negative
consequences also means undoing the positive, and
predicting those consequences accurately is far beyond even
a Vulcan's abilities."

"What you say is completely logical, Tuvok." Janeway gave
him a rueful smile. "But knowing that doesn't erase
regrets."

"Regrets are a useless expenditure of time, Captain." Tuvok
refrained from noting that even Vulcans experienced that
particular state of mind on occasion. "The only reasonable
course available is to continue moving forward, basing your
decisions on the conditions of the present moment."

Janeway nodded. "I'm sure you're right, Tuvok. I'll even
try and remember it." She stood, and placed her PADD on her
desk. "Meanwhile, you have the conn. I'll be in holodeck
one, where hopefully the weather has improved."

"That was the case during the first rotation. Commander
Chakotay reported that the infirmary is now being raised,
and the food supply is stabilizing."

"I see." Janeway strode toward the door. Well, as long as
there are no more hurricanes, floods or earthquakes, then
I'll try to...enjoy myself."

Tuvok considered that a reasonable plan. "Captain."

Janeway turned and looked at him questioningly.

"My door is open, as always."

Janeway nodded, and a ghost of a smile touched her face for
a moment. "I know, Tuvok. Thank you."

Tuvok followed Janeway to the bridge, and took the command
chair as she entered the turbolift. He had no idea if she
would accept his most recent appeal. Her inclinations in
that matter were not very predictable. He had offered
assisted meditation early in their journey, and over the
years the captain had occasionally accepted that offer,
sometimes at his reiteration, though other times she had
simply shown up unannounced, seeking the solace and peace
that meditation briefly gave her.

Since the captain was not a Vulcan meditation could not
completely suffice to ease the emotional stresses inherent
in her position, or in the unique responsibilities she
shouldered while they remained isolated in the Delta
quadrant. Though there were various measures that could
reduce such emotional stress, for humans the presence of an
intimate confidant who could share the emotional burden was
the most beneficial solace. But Janeway chose to carry her
burden alone, for reasons that were logical if to his mind
not entirely necessary.

Captain Janeway was amazingly stubborn, even for a human,
and Tuvok knew she would deal with her recent losses and
doubts in her own way and in her own time. In the meantime
he would continue to offer what he could to his oldest and
closest human friend, and hope it helped to ease her
burdens in some small way.

Act Four

Harry entered Voyager's mess hall for breakfast and
immediately spotted Tom sitting at a corner table. B'Elanna
wasn't with him and Harry remembered that she was in the
colonization program for the first rotation today. He
hadn't seen Tom outside of the bridge over the past couple
of days, and though they'd traded a few casual greetings
there, Harry knew that last conversation in the program was
still between them.

Neelix was busy, so Harry poured himself a cup of coffee,
and walked toward Tom's table. Tom looked up as he
approached and smiled. "Hey, Harry. Have a seat."

Harry accepted the invitation, and looked at the half-eaten
pancakes on Tom's plate as he sat down. "That actually
looks pretty good."

"It is. Neelix outdid himself today, apparently in honor of
the final day of the colonization drill. I'm sure you're
glad that's almost over."

There was no rancor or derision in Tom's voice. Harry
shrugged. "I guess it hasn't been too horrible as
holoprograms go."

Tom looked surprised. "Really?"

Harry grinned. "Well, it certainly isn't Captain Proton."

Tom grinned back. "Hardly."

"But it's been...educational. I learned a few new skills."
Skills Harry sincerely hoped he'd never have to use, but he
didn't have to tell Tom that. He took a sip of his coffee,
and set it down. "Tom, I'm sorry. I know I was out of line
the other day--"

"Forget it. I understand."

"I know it's just a holoprogram. It's not like we're really
colonizing, or--"

"Giving up?"

Harry smiled sheepishly. "I didn't mean that exactly
either. I know you've always been ambivalent about
returning to the Alpha quadrant, and seeing your father and
all."

"It wasn't just him. I left the Alpha quadrant persona non
grata, and I could name dozens of people who wouldn't have
shed a tear if I'd died."

"No one thinks that anymore!"

Tom smiled. "Probably not. If we get there--and I'm sure we
will--that's fine with me. There are some fences I'd like
to finish mending. If for some reason we have to stop short
somewhere though, I can't lie and say I'll be completely
devastated. That doesn't mean I want to stop right now and
find a planet to colonize--"

"I know. It just means that you've already got everything
you want, whichever happens."

Tom stared at Harry thoughtfully for a moment. "You're
right. It took a while for me to figure it out, but I have
got everything I want." He smiled ruefully. "I even
appreciate it for a change."

Harry smiled back. He couldn't help but be happy for his
friend, even if he felt a small twinge of envy.

"Seven of Nine to Lieutenant Paris. Report to Astrometrics
immediately."

Harry's eyes widened as the comm line closed with a click.
"Wow, she didn't even wait for a reply. What did you do?"

Tom grimaced and pushed his chair back. "I'm a day late
delivering my navigation reports. I'll just blame it on the
colonization drill."

Harry smirked. "Like Seven will buy that."

"Well, it is partly true. I'll also thrown in some roguish
charm and sincere remorse."

"I'm sure that will work too," Harry said sardonically,
though knowing Tom it just might.

Tom shrugged. "Hey, it's worth a shot. By the way, enjoy
your last day in the program. At the very least, I can
promise you it won't be raining."

Harry's eyes narrowed at mischievous gleam in Tom's eyes.
"You altered the doctor's program, didn't you?"

"Who, me?" Tom asked innocently. "Nope. I just kept watch."

It took only a moment for Harry to recall how much B'Elanna
disliked rain. "I sure hope the doctor never finds out."

"Harry, Harry...this is B'Elanna we're talking about."

"Right." If anyone could conceal sabotage completely it
would be B'Elanna. Harry grinned. "Guess I'll enjoy the
sunshine then."

Tom grinned back. "You do that. I'll see you
later...Lieutenant."

Harry watched Tom stride out of the mess hall. He had to
admit he really liked being addressed by his new rank--and
Tom did it often, partly in his typical Paris teasing
manner with that drawled delivery, and partly because he
knew Harry liked hearing it, even if being a lieutenant
hadn't turned out to be everything he'd thought it would
be. It was *almost* everything, but he'd realized soon
enough that achieving lieutenant rank hadn't improved every
aspect of his life. It didn't keep him from missing his
family back home, or from sometimes being lonely among a
hundred and fifty other people he now considered his second
family.

He definitely envied his best friend. In his early days on
Voyager Tom had insisted that there was no one he wanted to
ever see again back home. He'd changed on that score, but
Harry knew that wasn't the issue for Tom anymore. It was
just as Harry had recognized, and as B'Elanna had said.
Here or in the Alpha quadrant, Tom already had exactly what
he wanted. And so did B'Elanna. To Tom, "home" was B'Elanna
and the baby, and vice versa.

It was so easy for them.

Harry frowned, chasing away that ungracious and slightly
bitter thought. He knew better than anyone that it hadn't
been easy for them. Tom and B'Elanna had worked hard to get
where they were. They'd stuck it out together through the
toughest times, when most people would have just quit. But
Tom and B'Elanna certainly weren't most people. They
deserved their happiness. If he had what they'd found with
each other, he might not care where he ended up either, as
long as that one other person was there with him.

Unfortunately that hadn't happened for him, not yet, and
perhaps it never would on Voyager. Despite his attraction
to Seven, which had evolved into a simple if solid
friendship, his brief fling with Tal, and even his strong
feelings for Lindsay Ballard--which he'd later admitted to
himself had perhaps been a little idealized--when he woke
in the middle of the night it was still Libby he sometimes
missed--their easy conversation, their shared history and
experiences, their laughter over the same jokes no one else
understood. There'd never been anything official between
them, but there would have been, in the neat, clearly
defined life he'd planned out before he'd ended up in the
Delta quadrant. Now she'd gone on with her life, as he had
with his.

Harry sighed. Maybe he and Libby hadn't had the kind of
fireworks that Tom and B'Elanna had, but he was the type
who could be very happy in a relationship based on easy
conversation and comfortable companionship, with someone
like Libby. Or like Marla...

Lately, that was just where his mind had been wandering. To
Marla Gilmore. When it did, he cut that speculation off
ruthlessly. Or at least he tried. He couldn't deny his
attraction to her, but he was tired of appearing desperate
for love--and he knew that's how the crew saw him. He was
wise to be wary of his feelings, considering his abysmal
track record. And why should anything change now--

"Lieutenant Kim, you're looking particularly solemn. Can I
cheer you up with some banana pancakes? Well, its posha
fruit actually, but according to Lieutenant Torres the
flavor is quite similar to bananas."

Harry looked at Neelix's smiling face and couldn't help a
smile in return. Maybe breakfast would take his mind of his
numerous failures at romance. "Sure, Neelix. Why not?"

Neelix set the plate of steaming pancakes on the table.
"What rotation are you on today?"

"Second."

"Ah, me too. It's been an experience, hasn't it? The
settlement is shaping up to be quite livable. A bit crowded
certainly, but with plenty of room for growth. Of course,
you can't have more room for growth than an entire
uninhabited planet, can you?"

Harry supposed not, though he was saved from replying as
Neelix rambled on.

"I've been working on some great decorating ideas for my
restaurant, and a marketing campaign--"

"Neelix, you'd have the corner on the market," Harry
pointed out dryly. "Besides, you're planning for something
that will be gone tomorrow."

"Oh, I know," Neelix replied. "