Kathryn remained soundly asleep when the chirp of a com badge interrupted Chakotay’s dreams.  “Commander?”  Spoken much softer than was usual on a com link.  Chakotay knew that the night bridge crew was aware he slept in the captain’s quarters, but he wasn’t sure how widespread that information was on Voyager.  He also wasn’t sure whether the captain knew.

“Computer, audio only.  What is it, Ensign?”

Captain Sisko is asking to speak to either you or the captain.  Shall I put him through?”

“Give me a minute and put him through to the captain’s console.”

“Aye, sir.”

A minute later, Chakotay activated the screen having hastily pulled on his bathrobe.

“Good morning. You’re up early, Ben. I take it this is an official matter?”

“Good morning. Sorry to wake you at 04:00, but it is rather urgent. I need a favor. A few hours ago one of the larger cargo carriers damaged our main docking port for cargo ships by pulling away before the clamps had all been released. Repairs will take at least 72 hours.  Normally we could have managed with the other ports, but we just received a message that a super freighter that wasn’t due for three more days will be here in three hours. I’ll give you one guess which port is the only one left that can accommodate the super freighter.”

“I take it you want us to move Voyager to another port? Or do you just want us to assume an orbit stationary relative to DS9? We can do either.”

“Unless you particularly want to stay docked to the station until the shuttle from Earth arrives, it would be easier if you move into the station’s orbit about five kilometers behind.  If you’re behind us in the same orbit, all you’ll have to do when you’re ready to leave is call us to say good bye.”

“OK. I’ll wake the captain and get her approval. Then I’ll have to get Tom up. It will probably be about half an hour before we’re ready. Go ahead and have your crew start the undocking procedures. Oh, Ben. Thanks for making it a request. I know you could have ordered us off with no explanation.”

“It was the least I could do since I had to wake you so early. Sisko out.”

Chakotay returned to the bedroom hoping he could convince Kathryn to stay in bed while he and Tom took care of this. He kissed Kathryn awake, but pulled back when she reached for him. That brought her to full alertness.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. At least not with us or Voyager. A cargo ship damaged the main cargo docking port and Ben needs our slot for a super freighter. I just wanted to get your approval to move Voyager into orbit behind the station until we pick up our delivery later today. I’ll get Tom to cover the helm.”

“Got it all figured out, don't you? I supposed your plan is for me to go back to sleep leaving my ship to your tender mercies?”

“I wouldn’t have put it quite like that, but yes, that would be my recommendation, Captain.  You’re going to have to trust me with your ship some time or I won’t be a very effective first officer for you. Now is as good a time as any and better than most. Permission to proceed, Captain?”

“Permission granted. But I want my husband back here within the hour or I’ll be hunting you both down. Is that clear?”

“Yes, Captain. Perfectly clear.”

Chakotay pulled on his uniform and headed for the bridge.  On the way he contacted Tom, hopefully without waking B’Elanna. Tom responded promptly to the hail and agreed to be on the bridge in a few minutes. When Tom arrived at the bridge, Chakotay told him to take the helm and filled him in on the situation. Tom started a pre-flight check while Chakotay alerted engineering that they would need thrusters on line in five minutes and to put impulse power on standby.  He then contacted the station that they were completing preparations and should be ready in five minutes. Tom completed his pre-flight check and confirmed that all hatches were sealed. At Chakotay’s signal, Voyager released the clamps holding her to the station.  When confirmed, Chakotay advised the station to release their clamps, which they did without incident.  Knowing what had happened only hours earlier, Tom engaged thrusters for a half second only allowing Voyager to drift slowly away from the station.  Once clear, he again used the thrusters to move them slightly above and five kilometers behind the station in the same orbit.  The entire procedure took 15 minutes, but only 15 seconds of actual maneuvering. The rest of the time was spent drifting into position. Once in the desired position relative to the station, Tom set the thrusters to station keeping relative to the station and turned the helm over to the Ensign who had been working the engineering station.  She was new to the helm and promised to call Tom for assistance if they drifted more than a foot relative to the station in the next hour.  Tom and Chakotay left the bridge together.

When Chakotay reached his quarters, he found Kathryn sound asleep.  She really had trusted him with her ship.  He was glad of the trust but had hoped she would be awake.  Oh, well, he could use a few more hours sleep himself.  Stripping, he crawled back under the covers and pulled her to his chest.  She snuggled in her sleep and sighed.  Chakotay fell asleep content with his life.

The captain was pacing the bridge.  She had been pacing the bridge for more than two hours.  The shuttle from Earth was more than three hours late.  Its arrival time was supposed to be only an estimate, but most shuttles arrived within 15 minutes of their estimated time. The shuttle’s estimated arrival time had been pushed back a half-hour six times.  The most recent ETA was approaching and had not been pushed back yet again.  Perhaps the shuttle was finally approaching DS9.  Kathryn had been threatening to take Voyager to meet the shuttle but knew she wouldn’t.  Her orders had been explicit.  She was to stay at DS9 and wait for the delivery.  Finally, the shuttle broke out of warp and approached the station.  Kathryn immediately contacted DS9 for permission to beam aboard. Permission was granted and she left the bridge heading for Transporter Room 1. Chakotay remained on the bridge.  The entire crew was curious about the delivery. Captain’s privilege meant she would find out first.

Kathryn impatiently waited while the passengers from the shuttle entered the station and passed through security.  She had forgotten the aggravations of civilian travel.  She was very startled to see one Starfleet uniform by-pass security and head in her direction.

“Tuvok!  I didn’t expect to see you here.  What brings you back to Deep Space 9?”

“You do, Captain.”  Kathryn could not have been more surprised.

“I believe you are expecting something on the shuttle, Captain.”  That Tuvok knew she was meeting the shuttle for a reason was not a surprise. That Tuvok was handing her an envelope containing orders was. She opened the envelope and read the contents.

“I don’t understand, Tuvok. You turned down your own command? Is this Starfleet’s idea of punishment, to return you to Voyager?”

“You misunderstand, Captain. Starfleet only assigned me to Voyager when I threatened to resign my commission after I turned down my own command.  I am here by my own choice.  I have one request though, Captain.  Starfleet gave its approval, but you must agree as well.  I request that my wife T’Pel be allowed to join me on Voyager.  Our children are grown and being assigned so far from Vulcan means we seldom have an opportunity to meet.  Although not Starfleet trained, she is an able computer programmer.  She would be willing to assist in any way you deemed appropriate with Voyager’s computer systems.”

“Of course, Tuvok.  T’Pel is welcome on Voyager.  But are you both sure she wants to be part of this next mission.  I’m sure you read at least the summary report of the last one.”  Tuvok nodded.

“We are certain.  Thank you, Captain.”  As they spoke, T’Pel cleared security and approached Tuvok and Kathryn. T’Pel touched two fingers of her right hand to those Tuvok stretched before her.

“Captain, she who is my wife, T’Pel.  T’Pel, this is Kathryn Janeway, Captain of Voyager.”

“T’Pel, I’m honored to finally meet you.  I’m happy to welcome you to Voyager.”

“Thank you, Captain.  I too am honored to meet you.  I appreciate your welcome.  I am willing to work along with your crew at whatever task you deem appropriate.  In fact, after a few days, I will find inactivity tedious and will welcome some tasks.  As I’m sure Tuvok told you, I have some knowledge of computer systems and programming.  I could also teach some of your crew the language of Vulcan if they so desired, or possibly meditation techniques to control unwanted emotions.”

“Please, take a day or two to settle in on Voyager and learn your way around the ship.  Get to know some of the crew.  I’m sure all those who know Tuvok will want to meet you.

“Tuvok, there is one piece of unfinished business.  Your orders merely assign you to Voyager.  They do not designate a position.  What exactly did Starfleet tell you?”

“Nothing, Captain.  Needless to say, Starfleet was not pleased to issue my orders.  They merely said I was assigned to Voyager.  Everything else was at your discretion.”

“Well, Tuvok.  I finally have a first officer who is also a full commander.  His commission date is before yours, so he would be the senior officer on that basis.  I’ll be honest on this point.  For reasons of my own which I won’t get into at this point, I would not remove him as First Officer even if your commission predated his.  I can give you your old assignment back as Chief of Security.”

“That is more than acceptable, Captain.  I look forward to meeting Voyager’s first officer”

“That’s settled then.  We rearranged quarters when we got back from our last mission. You will be in the cabin I occupied when you were on board. The first officer is assigned your old quarters and I have the next cabin.    The other cabins on Deck 2 are still unoccupied.  Where are your personal effects?”

T’Pel pointed them out along a nearby wall.  Kathryn had been expecting cargo, so she slapped the locator badge on their luggage.

“Chakotay, lock onto the locator and beam three parcels to the quarters assigned to the Chief of Security.”  Chakotay nodded to Harry to carry out those instructions who in turn nodded when the transfer was complete.

“Transfer complete, Captain.”

“Chakotay, meet me in Transporter Room 1.  Three to beam aboard.”

Kathryn was talking to Tuvok and T’Pel when Chakotay entered Transporter Room 1.

“Commander, I believe you know Commander Tuvok.  This is his wife, T’Pel.  Tuvok is resuming his former position on Voyager as Chief of Security.”

“Tuvok, T’Pel.  This is my First Officer, Commander Chakotay.”

“Commander.  I was pleased to learn you had survived your encounter with the Cardassians.  I was not informed that you had joined Voyager’s crew.  I look forward to working with you again.”

“Tuvok, it’s good to see you again.  I’m honored to meet you, T’Pel.  I look forward to getting to know you.”

“Chakotay, T’Pel has expressed an interest in working while on board Voyager.  I’d appreciate it if you would work with her to find something appropriate.  T’Pel, please take any questions or problems to Chakotay.  If he can’t solve the problem or answer the question, he’ll find someone who can.”

“As you wish, Captain.”

“Aye, Captain.  Shall I escort them to their quarters?”

“Yes, Chakotay.  Get them some com badges and have Tuvok set up their access codes.  Then the three of you join me on the bridge.”

“Aye, Captain.

“Aye, Captain.  This way, Commander, ma’am.”

Over the next eight months, Voyager made two more journeys into the Badlands finding more than 100 people on each trip.  As they neared Deep Space 9 at the end of the third trip, Kathryn knew this was their last trip.  There would be no survivors even if they found more camps.  Those found most recently were barely alive and eleven did not survive long enough to reach DS9.  As concerned as Kathryn was about the people rescued from the camps, she was more concerned about her crew.  The despair and disregard for life evidenced by the prison camps had taken its toll on the crew.  Morale was low and everyone showed signs of the stress they had been experiencing.

T’Pel was working with Chakotay to teach meditation techniques to the crew to help them deal with what they saw and felt, and the stress they were under.  It didn’t solve the problems, but it helped reduce them a little.

Kathryn didn’t know what she would have done if Chakotay had not been there. Just knowing he was somewhere on the ship gave her added strength when she viewed yet another prison camp strewn with corpses. They had been together just over eight months, but to Kathryn it seemed as if they had been together for a lifetime. They had struck a working balance between personal and professional issues. Voyager’s first officer often questioned the captain’s ideas and initial reaction to a situation, providing her other opinions and options.  The captain always heard him out and considered his questions and concerns.  The first officer had never challenged the captain once she had made a decision.

Kathryn knew their arguments were few and far between mainly because Chakotay refused to argue with her, and the few they had were always about her.  About her not sleeping enough, not eating properly, drinking too much coffee, not delegating enough responsibility to him, Tuvok and the rest of the senior staff.  Chakotay was always right, but the captain always won the argument.  Chakotay quickly learned that the captain’s husband had influence the first officer did not when the issue was captain’s personal health and welfare.  Eventually, the first officer learned to skip the argument and just let the husband convince Kathryn to follow his wishes.  The captain would never yield, but the wife would and didn’t care.  It made life very interesting for them both.

While she may not have known what she would do without Chakotay, what Kathryn did know was that Voyager’s next assignment had to have a more positive goal.  A strictly scientific investigation would be ideal.  She had been discussing with Chakotay possible suggestions to send to Starfleet for several weeks now.  She happened to mention in passing the coherent tetryon beam picked up by Voyager’s sensors when they found the Élan.  When he mentioned that they had picked up the same type of beam just before one of the Cardassian scouts had disappeared, her ears perked up.  Here was an anomaly that could be natural or artificial.  Voyager's crew was ideally suited to investigate it because of their familiarity with the Badlands.  The time spent could be as long or as short as Starfleet felt appropriate.  Kathryn sat back and began writing the proposal for this assignment.  It would be submitted with at least four other proposals.  If properly written, it would be the one selected by Starfleet.  She’d get Chakotay to help her with the final wording for all five proposals.

Kathryn finished the final draft of the fifth proposal three hours before reaching Deep Space 9.  She filed the requests four hours later and received the orders she had hoped for five days after arriving at DS9.  Voyager was to leave in two days.  The crew was kept occupied restocking food, changing many of the plants in airponics, making final systems checks, and completing all the other myriad tasks necessary before a long mission.

The crew experienced an unexpected increase when two newly qualified medical assistants were assigned to Voyager.  One of them was married to an ensign in engineering.  The other had lost her family in a Cardassian raid near the Badlands.  Both appeared to be fitting in well with the rest of the crew.

Chakotay found Kathryn wandering the corridors of Voyager.  She was reassuring herself that all was ready for their departure in 36 hours.  She was in a mellow mood.  “How many of the crew know you sleep in my quarters every night?”  Her question surprised him.

“I’m not sure.  I’ve never actually asked anyone if they knew.  B’Elanna knows so Tom probably knows, too. The rest of the senior staff must suspect if they don’t actually know. I’m sure Tuvok knows. The night bridge crew probably all know. If you’re asking whether the crew is gossiping about us, I don’t think so.  If they were, Tom or B’Elanna would have said something to us by now. I don’t honestly think the crew cares one way or the other.”

They turned into the deserted mess hall on Deck 2 while he was talking and sat on the couch under the viewport.

“Good.  Do I know everything I should about you?  Have I told you everything I should about me?  I don’t know. I think you have; I think I have.  Has one of us unintentionally omitted something that could tear us apart?  How will we ever know?”

“How does any couple ever know that?  If it makes you feel better I don’t mind telling you that I can’t imagine anything you say to me would ever make me want to let you go.  There is one thing I haven’t told you, not because I didn’t want you to know, but because I have such strong feelings about it. I probably should have told you months ago.  It doesn’t affect us, but it does affect the way I feel about some things.  Seska took great pleasure in taunting me on the Cardassian scout.  About ten hours after I awoke from my first lesson in proper behavior, she paid me visit.  One thing she told me was that there was another spy on the Élan, a Federation spy.  I know now that was the truth.  The second thing she told me was that she had been pregnant with my child but had the pregnancy terminated as soon as she beamed aboard the scout.  I knew she had been to sickbay because she had had her appearance changed back to her natural features.  I grieved for that child even though I thought she was lying just to hurt me.  I’ll never know whether there really was a child, but I still feel as though I lost one.”

“Someday, Chakotay.  I promise.  Someday, we’ll have a child.”  Kathryn pulled him close.  They held each other for long minutes before Kathryn spoke again.  “Before we leave DS9, I’m going to tell Ben to enter that document into the station’s files five days after our departure. We’ll be out of communications range by then.  I’m not ready to tell the crew just yet, but I want Starfleet to know in case anything happens on this mission.  Is this all right with you?”

“You know I was willing to admit that document’s existence from the day it was created.  As for the child, whenever you’re ready is fine with me.  If you change your mind, that’s OK, too. Yes, I’ll be disappointed, but I will still have you.  Come on, Kathryn, let’s go home.”

Kathryn slept soundly that night in Chakotay’s arms.  But her restless mood was still with her when she woke the next morning.  Something was telling her that this mission was not going to be what she expected.  Voyager was prepared and stocked with enough food and spare parts to last a year. They would only be gone six months at the most.  When she tried to explain her unrest to Chakotay, he merely said they should ask for more food and supplies from the station’s stores and perhaps take on more of the materials ships did not routinely carry for themselves.  Kathryn told him to do that and to request seeds suitable for airponics and hydroponics that would also provide fresh food to the crew.  Ships normally carried only ornamental or flowering plants so the areas could be used as a recreation spot for crew.  She then contacted the bridge and told them to contact the various Federation facilities and get updates on all their research and data that had been made available to Starfleet personnel and ships.

When Kathryn joined Chakotay for lunch in the main mess hall, most of her instructions had been completed.  With only the senior staff assigned to the mess hall on Deck 2, Kathryn had decided that serving meals was a waste of personnel and food.  They could as easily eat on Deck 6.  The mess hall on Deck 2 was only be used for hosting small parties or by the senior staff if they were willing to use their replicator rations.  Eating on Deck 6 also gave the senior staff more of an opportunity to interact informally with the rest of the crew.  Kathryn had come to value that, and Chakotay agreed wholeheartedly.  Even Tuvok was beginning to see the benefits to the crew and senior staff.  Kathryn and Chakotay talked quietly near the door for a few minutes.

“Feeling better, Captain?” They had been maintaining an image of distance among the crew, so Chakotay was surprised when Kathryn put her hands in his and smiled.

“Yes.  As silly as it is, getting more supplies on board has helped.  I guess I feel that Voyager is as prepared as she can be for whatever we encounter.  Thank you, Chakotay.”

“For what?”

“For not telling me I’m imagining things.  For taking my irrational concerns seriously.  For knowing me well enough to know how to put my mind at ease.  For being you.”

“If I do say so myself, I am pretty good at being me.  Now, how about some lunch?”  They joined the line of crew.  Chakotay wondered if he should tell Kathryn how broadly he had interpreted her orders to stock up on supplies.  He had managed to talk Ben Sisko into releasing an additional 50 torpedoes to Voyager.  The torpedoes had completely filled the weapons storage bays as well as another small bay normally saved for samples collected during away missions.  He had also managed to get additional storage packs for the main computer and phaser arrays.  He decided that telling her if they ever needed those extra supplies was soon enough.

The next morning Voyager left Deep Space 9 without incident.  As the station grew smaller on the main view screen, Kathryn’s feelings of unease surfaced again.  She felt as if she would not see the station again for a very long time.  She shook off the feelings and increased their speed to warp 6.  An hour out, she increased the speed to warp 9.  She was going to give Voyager and her crew a bit of a shakedown run on their way to the Badlands.  Tuvok seemed to understand her motives.  He asked permission to run security drills for all departments the following day.  As minor problems were detected and repaired, every department was generating more reports than they were used to writing in a week.  Chakotay and Kathryn were kept busy keeping up with the ship’s status.  By the time they reached the Badlands, Kathryn believed Voyager was as ready for anything as she could be.

Once in the Badlands, they were forced to reduce speed to one-quarter impulse.  Sensors had a very limited range so they proceeded with caution.  Voyager was headed for the area where they had found the Élan.  They hoped to locate the coherent tetryon beam for further study or analysis.  Simply establishing its source would be useful.  After three days of fruitless scanning, Kim finally reported something unusual on sensors.  A few minutes later, he confirmed it was another coherent tetryon beam.  Shortly thereafter sensors picked up a huge displacement wave approaching.

“Evasive maneuvers. Maximum impulse.”

“Aye, Captain.”  Tom had the course change laid in before he replied.

“Captain, the beam has changed course and is following Voyager.”  Kim spoke from Ops.

“Get us out of here, Mr. Paris”

“I’m trying to, Captain, but that beam has locked on to us somehow.  Every time we change headings, it changes with us.  Without warp, I can’t out run it.”

“Shields at maximum.  All hands, brace for impact!”

Voyager rocked with the impact of the displacement.  The lights faded for a few minutes before returning to normal but no one on the bridge noticed.  They had all been knocked out by the impact and were lying on the floor or slumped over their stations.  If they had been awake, they would have seen an extensive array appear on the main view screen.  Voyager was slowly being drawn to a position near one arm of the array.  Once in place, Voyager was anchored in place by mooring beams.  Then, one by one, the crew of Voyager disappeared.

Kathryn slowly regained consciousness.  She realized she was lying on a hard surface and that the familiar hum of Voyager’s bridge was present as well as the steady breathing of several other people.  She blinked at the brightness of the bridge lighting when she opened her eyes.  When she moved to sit up, she bumped against someone on either side.  As soon as her eyes adjusted to the light, she saw the entire bridge crew of Voyager lying in a row on the deck near the turbolift door.  They were all starting to wake up.

Chakotay, who was at the end of the row nearest Ops, ever the morning person, made it to his feet before the others.  He reached for Kathryn’s hand and pulled her to her feet before assisting the others.  Almost simultaneously, they all looked at the main screen and saw the array.  It dwarfed Voyager.  The bridge crew made their way back to their stations.  Kathryn gave them a minute before asking for the status of the ship.

“Status reports, everyone.  Mr. Paris?”

“We are at full stop and stationary with respect to the object on the main screen.  Warp and impulse engines are off-line.  Thrusters are on-line.  We appear to be anchored to the object by mooring beams that do not resemble anything in use in the Federation.  I’d like Mr. Kim to check our location.  I don’t trust the readings I’m getting at the helm.”

“Thank you, Mr. Paris.  Mr. Kim?”  Kathryn was following the book to the last detail right now.  She was severely shaken by what they had experienced and knew the others would be as well.  She hoped the structure and familiarity of the report process would aid everyone in calming down and dealing with the situation.

“Based on the visible stars and known galactic markers, I place Voyager roughly 75,000 light years from our last position.  We appear to be on the far side of the Delta Quadrant.  Captain, this is a very rough calculation.  I will be able to refine it significantly when we move away from the array and I can scan the other half of the sky.”  Kathryn was glad she was following the book because she would not have known what to say otherwise.

“Tom, does that confirm your readings?”

“Yes, Captain.”

“Commander, do you have anything to add to the reports so far?”

“Only that by the ship’s chronometers, it has been three days and six hours since we were hit by that displacement wave.”  Everyone was taken aback by this comment.  No one else had bothered to check the dates, only the time.  They had all just assumed they had been unconscious for only six hours.

“Commander Tuvok, have you had the opportunity to assess damages yet?”

“Yes, Captain.  Voyager sustained minor damage on all decks.  There was significant damage to decks 12, 13 and 14 in the area that made initial contact with the displacement wave that accompanied the tetryon beam.  There is minor damage to the external hull and several internal walls in the same area.  Power has been disrupted along the starboard corridors on those three decks but has been rerouted automatically.  Structural integrity for the hull in that section is stable for now, but should be repaired as soon as possible to avoid risk of a breach.  Internal sensors indicate that the ship was scanned three times shortly after we encountered the tetryon beam and once about 15 minutes before we regained consciousness.  Security personnel are making a physical inspection of all decks checking for additional damage and injured crew.”

“I guess it could have been worse.  Bridge to Engineering.  Lt. Torres, report please.”

“Captain.  Half my staff is still groggy.  We all woke up in a circle around the warp core.  The core is stable but the warp engines and impulse engines are down.  Impulse engines should be available within half an hour.  We’re still trying to figure out why the warp engines are off-line.  There doesn’t appear to be anything wrong with them.  It’s possible there is a dampening field we haven’t been able to detect.  Environmental systems are stable.  Except for a portion of Decks 12, 13 and 14, the power grid sustained only minimal damage and should be at full capacity in ten minutes.  We’re still assessing the damage on those three decks.  We’re keeping an eye on the structural integrity fields to make sure it is steady.  The transporters, com system and turbolifts are on line and stable. Sensors are functioning but I’m not sure how accurate the readings are.  I’ve sent two crewmen to sickbay with possible fractures.  I’ll file a more detailed report as soon as I can if that is acceptable, Captain.”

“Thank you, Lieutenant.  Your report is fine for now.  Please keep me informed of any significant developments.  Coordinate restoration of impulse engines with the helm.  As soon as you have someone available, please send them to the bridge to act as liaison for engineering.”

“Aye, Captain.  Engineering out.”

Kathryn had avoided asking for the report of crew injuries for as long as she could.  Voyager had been hit pretty hard and the damage on three of the lower decks was extensive enough to have caused  serious injuries to any crew in the area.

“Commander, have you a report on the status of crew injuries from the doctor?”

“Yes, Captain.  The doctor reported that he came on line about the time those of us on the bridge woke up.  He found the bodies of eleven crewmen lying in a row on the floor of sickbay.  I checked the computer records from the time we hit the displacement wave and confirmed that all eleven had been on the damaged decks in or near the area of greatest damage.  Preliminary reports are that they all died instantly from blows to the head; most likely they were thrown against a wall or other solid object.  Security found four people with significant injuries in the same area that have been transported to sickbay.  None of their injuries are life threatening but two will take some time to recover.  The other two will probably be released to their quarters sometime tomorrow.  Departments have reported minor injuries, including broken bones, but nothing that can’t be handled easily by sickbay.  Those individuals should all be back on duty in a few hours.  With the exception of the eleven individuals the doctor found, the rest of the crew is present and accounted for.  Captain, for purposes of my report, I have included T’Pel as a member of the crew.  I hope that is acceptable.

“I will post the names of the eleven deceased crew in the mess hall before noon tomorrow after I’ve notified their closest friends and department heads.  With your permission, I will arrange memorial services for the eleven crew.”

“Permission granted, Commander.  Do you have any good news for me?”

“Not exactly.  I have been advised that the mess hall will be closed for the next three hours.  Evidently our lunch from three days ago is on two walls and the floor; and anything not tied down in the food prep area ended up in the dining area.  They hope to have the place cleaned up and soup and sandwiches available at the end of the three hours.  At my suggestion, I asked them to send two people to the mess hall on Deck 2 and set up the soup and sandwiches as soon as possible.  We can rotate people in for a quick meals until the main mess hall is ready to reopen.”

The bridge crew knew that there would be at least one friend was among the list of casualties and that Chakotay had intentionally omitted names in his report.  After his verbal report was finished, Chakotay sent a list of the dead crew members to the captain’s screen.

“Ensign, hail that structure.  Let’s see if they can tell us anything useful, like how we got here or how to get home.”

“Aye, Captain.”  After three attempts, “No response, Captain.”

“All right, Ensign.  Keep trying at regular intervals.  Let me know if they respond.  Tuvok, can you spare any of your security team to take a couple of bushels of fruit up to Deck 2 to add to the soup and sandwiches?   Forward any updates to the reports we have to me.  I’ll be in my ready room.  Chakotay, you’re with me.  Tuvok, you have the bridge.”