- Part 2 -
B'Elanna first became aware of gentle warmth against her cheek, followed by a soft touch on her bottom lip. She struggled to focus, her mind all jumbled up, almost overloaded with information, thoughts, feelings. A soft whisper cut through the panic that was starting to form as B'Elanna realised that she did not feel quite … right in her own body.
"My warrior. I wish you would wake. I would like to know that all is well with you."
B'Elanna's hearts clenched at the heartbreak and love audible in the quietly spoken words. She had yearned for so long to hear that depth of love spoken to her, love to equal that which she felt for her love, her third heart. B'Elanna slowly realised that her love, her Soch, was gently washing her face, then her hands.
Fighting through the confusion and the almost alien feel of her mind, B'Elanna slowly opened her eyes, squinting them at the stab of pain that caused an instant headache … that faded as soon as it had started. This went unnoticed as the beautiful, breathtaking face hovering over her transfixed B'Elanna. She had never seen so much naked emotion on Seven's face, though she had learnt to read the subtle signs that Seven had been unable to conceal completely. The soft, blue eyes almost glowed with love and concern, a gentle frown creasing Seven's forehead as she concentrated on her task. Seven's beautiful blonde hair has totally escaped the confines of her bun and framed her face, softening her features considerably.
A soft, incredulous smile crept over B'Elanna's face as she watched how lovingly Seven was taking care of her. Perhaps the love she felt was not as one-sided as she had previously thought. Taking one last moment to memorise the vision before her, B'Elanna gently squeezed the hand gently holding her own.
Seven's reaction was immediate. Her head whipped up and her eyes zeroed in on warm, brown ones, filled with emotion.
"B'Elanna! You are awake! How do you feel?" Seven's joy was obvious, as was her concern.
"I feel as weak as a targh kit. What happened? And where are we? The last I recall, I was being bounced around the cabin while I was trying to secure myself in a seat." That was when B'Elanna realised that she was definitely not on board the shuttle anymore. And this definitely wasn't the Sickbay on board Voyager. If she was not very much mistaken, this appeared to be an emergency shelter.
"You lost consciousness as result of a blow to your temple, due to a flying hyperspanner. We were forced to crash-land on the planet surface, making use of a large body of water. I managed to get a distress signal off before the shuttle crashed and was submerged in the lake. You were gravely injured and I had to take extreme measures to save you. I then secured the campsite and scavenged for food. I have just recently returned and was proceeding in cleaning the blood and dirt off you when you awoke."
Seven's reply was as cool and efficient as one of her reports at the senior staff meetings, no emotions showing through. B'Elanna could read between the lines, as it were, and could see the fear lurking in Seven's eyes.
"Okay," she said slowly. "What extreme measures were you referring to? And why do I feel not quite myself?"
Seven's eyes dropped to her hands, which were tightly clenched around one another. She visibly swallowed before slowly bringing her eyes back up to B'Elanna's quizzical brow eyes.
"I …", Seven's voice gave out, forcing her to clear her throat. After another pained moment, she continued.
"I assimilated you", came the soft, fearful whisper. "Your body was so badly damaged that your secondary systems were starting to give out. I did not have the necessary tools to repair you, so I did the only thing left to me. I modified my nanoprobes and assimilated you."
B'Elanna was shocked to say the least. Her wide eyes took in the pale face of Seven, before the blonde head ducked down, avoiding eye contact. What Seven had said ran through her head. That would explain why she didn't feel quite the same as she had before. As she concentrated, she became aware of all sorts of data. B'Elanna sat up abruptly, startling Seven.
"I have a cortical node, don't I? What other implants do I have?" With that, B'Elanna quickly ran her hands over her body, relieved to find that nothing had changed. It was only as she was examining her face that she discovered the only external implant. Gently running her fingers over the warm metal, she turned her attention to Seven. She stopped her examination as she became aware of Seven, or more exactly, her behaviour.
As B'Elanna had checked her body for implants, Seven had stiffened in fear, then shrunk into herself, arms wrapped around herself, preparing for the outburst that was sure to follow. She braced herself for the hate and disgust she was sure that was going to be hurled at her, her heart slowly breaking at the thought.
B'Elanna's hearts clenched at the sight before her. She had never in her life before seen such heartbreak and fear. And her twin hearts ached for the vulnerable soul that was being revealed to her. B'Elanna couldn't believe that Seven thought that she would hate her for saving B'Elanna's life.
Realising just how deep Seven's fear was, B'Elanna slowly eased to her knees and reached out to Seven, resting her hand lightly on a hunched shoulder. Seven flinched at the gentle touch, so deeply had she withdrawn form her surroundings. Wide, teary, blue eyes flickered up to briefly meet B'Elanna's before dropping to the ground again.
"Oh, Seven"
The utter heartbreak in the quick peek into Seven's soul tore through B'Elanna and she quickly scooted up to Seven and wrapped her up in her arms, tightening them when Seven made a move to break free. The terrified ex-drone stilled, fine tremors wracking her body.
"Sh, Seven. It's all right … it's okay … sh, now. It's all going to be fine. Please don't cry. I can't stand to see you cry, my Soch"
B'Elanna's tender words washed over Seven, calming her, as did the gentle rocking motion. The feel of B'Elanna's body pressing along her side and arms wrapped protectively around her, the warmth of her higher body temperature, the pure emotion in B'Elanna's voice seeped into Seven and served to warm her heart, previously frozen with fear and self-loathing. They stayed that way, B'Elanna murmuring comforting words, Seven slowly realising that B'Elanna's reaction was sincere and heartfelt until the emotional storm had subsided.
By the time Seven had stopped trembling in B'Elanna's arms, both of them had relaxed against the side of the shelter, comfortably wrapped up in each other's arms. The light was slowly fading outside as the sun sank below the horizon, signalling the end of a very long day.
B'Elanna was the first to break the peaceful silence.
"Thank you, Seven. I'm not sure exactly how you did it but thank you for saving my life. I shudder to think how bad my injuries must have been but I know that you took the best course of action available to you. So, thanks."
B'Elanna's voice was soft, her breath hitching at the enormity of the whole situation. Seven just burrowed her head deeper into the crook of B'Elanna's neck where it had come to rest once the two of them had settled against the side of the shelter. She could feel B'Elanna's lifeblood surge through her jugular as she pressed her forehead closer to B'Elanna, the unique pulse of the half-Klingon reassuring her that all was well with her love.
B'Elanna softly smiled as Seven snuggled closer, finding the thought of an ex-Borg snuggling impossibly endearing. She brushed a feather soft kiss across the top of the blond head before asking for more details of her assimilation.
Seven reluctantly drew back from her comfortable shelter, wishing to see B'Elanna's face when she explained the procedure she had done. She explained the modifications to the assimilation nanoprobes she had sent coursing into B'Elanna, how she had limited the level of assimilation, emphasising the fact that there was no way that any Borg could ever simply just sweep into B'Elanna's mind and take control of her actions. As she made this perfectly clear, the last of the tension remaining in B'Elanna's body drained away.
How like Seven to realise the heart of her fears of assimilation, the loss of her free will. And how very like her best friend to make sure that nothing would take that away from her, directly or indirectly through her actions. The relief flooded through B'Elanna's body, leaving her temporarily light-headed. This was quickly rectified, something that wasn't lost on the engineer.
"So, I have a cortical node, like you do, that monitors my body and nanoprobes and keeps everything running at optimal levels, right?"
Seven nodded her head, her eyes fastened to B'Elanna's face, reading every thought and emotion that passed over her very expressive face. B'Elanna's reactions to the whole situation were really not what she had expected. Oh, she was mightily relieved that B'Elanna was taking the whole situation so well. She was just surprised. Although B'Elanna's curiosity was to be expected. Her fascination with anything to do with engineering was well known, as was her curiosity.
Seven reached for the medical tricorder and showed B'Elanna exactly what changes had been made to her body. Other than the cortical node, the temple implant and other internal implants to do with the manufacture and maintenance of her nanoprobes, nothing else had been changed. She was still the same Human/Klingon hybrid she had been before … she was just sporting some additional hardware.
"This is fascinating, Seven. The intricacies of what you've done are amazing. And with the time restraints you had … it's amazing. You're amazing! I don't know what I would have done in a similar situation. All I can say is that this was a most elegant solution to the problem. I sincerely doubt if the doctor would have been able to do better were he in a similar situation."
The admiration in B'Elanna's voice washed over Seven, lightening her heart. She was finally accepting the fact that B'Elanna had no regrets about what she had done, that she hadn't lost her best friend. She let this thought settle in her mind and breathed easy.
Seven quirked her implant when a loud grumble erupted from B'Elanna's middle. Her corner of her mouth twitched up into a half-smile as a blushing B'Elanna grabbed at her stomach, a sheepish expression crossing her face.
"From the echo in your stomach, I'd have to say that you must be starving. I have collected some of the local vegetation that is compatible with our digestive systems. Hopefully we will be able to have a palatable, and filling, meal." Seven's voice was very dry, her amusement at B'Elanna's embarrassment quite obvious.
"Yeah, I'm hungry enough to eat a targh, fur and all. Let's get food started and get settled for the night."
"Acceptable. I have set up the perimeter sensors and collected sufficient water for our immediate needs. Tomorrow we can investigate the wreck of the shuttle for salvageable goods and improve our campsite. By my calculations, the ion storm will keep Voyager from receiving our distress signal for a week. It will take at least that long for the strength of the storm to subside to that level. I'd calculate an additional 2 or 3 days before Voyager will be able to pass through the remainder of the storm to our location."
"All right, that sounds about right. We have enough rations in the emergency packs you rescued to last us well beyond that but quite frankly, they taste like targh crap and the emergency would have to be pretty damn dire for me to eat them willingly!"
The expression of utter disgust on B'Elanna's face was reflected on Seven's as she rummaged through the edibles she had collected. She passed a couple of pear-like fruits to B'Elanna before slicing the vegetables she'd found into a pot of boiling water. Vegetable stew was on the menu tonight.
"B'Elanna, how do you feel?" Seven had been observing B'Elanna as she had explored their shelter. She didn't seem to be in any pain and all the cuts and bruises had fully healed by this time.
"I don't really feel any different. There's just this … feeling I have, as if there's something that I'm just not remembering. That's the best way I can describe it. Other than that, I feel fine. In fact, other than being ravenous, I haven't felt this great in quite a while! I still cannot believe how badly injured I was. If I hadn't seen those readings on the medical tricorder for myself, I really wouldn't have believed it. These nanoprobes of ours are quite the handy little buggers, aren't they?" B'Elanna flashed a quick grin before turning back to her inspection of the contents of the emergency packs.
Seven sat back, stunned. With that one sentence, those two words, B'Elanna had totally demolished any further doubts Seven had harboured about B'Elanna's true feelings on the subject of her partial assimilation.
'Our nanoprobes'
After taking a moment to swallow the lump that had grown in her throat, Seven answered in her best Borg voice.
"Yes, they are most efficient. They will keep your body at peak performance."
At this, B'Elanna whipped around to stare at Seven, before bursting out in delighted laughter. B'Elanna's humour was infectious and Seven found that she couldn't keep the smile off her face, her eyes softening to a bright sky-blue at the sight of B'Elanna's joyful face. She wasn't sure why B'Elanna found what she said so funny but her heart warmed at having made her laugh.
B'Elanna eventually calmed down, the odd chortle still trickling out. She noted the puzzled smile of Seven's face, the warm affection in the bright blue eyes.
A stray thought tickled at the back of her mind but didn't surface. B'Elanna pushed it away, knowing that these thoughts often percolated for a bit before coming more fully to her attention. Instead, she answered Seven's unspoken question.
"I've always maintained that you would assimilate my engines if you could. I've managed to keep you out of them all these years so you did the next best thing … you assimilated me!"
B'Elanna burst out laughing again at the look of pure shock on Seven's face. The realisation that B'Elanna was actually joking about the whole situation made it's its way through her shocked mind and Seven saw the humour in the whole situation. A small smile eased across her mouth, slowly growing until she was softly laughing along with B'Elanna.
The two of them eventually collapsed in front of the cooking unit, weakly struggling to get their breaths back, grinning madly at each other.
Seven quickly examined the stew and proclaimed it ready for consumption. She dished up a healthy portion for B'Elanna, a smaller one for herself, and they both settled back to replenish their bodies' diminished reserves.
The meal was a quiet affair, with many quick glances and soft smiles between the two.
"Thanks for that, Seven. It was actually quite tasty. It certainly hit the spot."
B'Elanna collected the dirty dishes and stacked them together by the exit of the shelter with the intention of washing them in the morning.
"I don't know about you but I'm quite tired now. I think I'll turn in and get some rest. Tomorrow promises to be another long day."
"I agree. I find that I am also quite weary. I do believe that I will have little trouble achieving sleep tonight."
"Seven, how long was it since your last regeneration? And when would you need to regenerate again?" B'Elanna's concern was immediate, the frown on her face indicating her worry.
"I had completed an 8 hour regeneration cycle just before reporting for our away mission. If I get sufficient sleep and sustenance, I will not need to regenerate for another 8 days. After this, I will quickly lose efficiency."
"Kahless! So if Voyager doesn't rescue us in just over a week's time, we are really going to be in a jam, aren't we? Is there anything else we can do? Is the shuttle salvageable?" B'Elanna started pacing; her agitation quite obvious as she ran her hands through her hair and rubbed at her ridges.
Seven quickly stepped up to the agitated half-Klingon and rested a hand on her shoulder, bringing her to a halt.
"Do not worry, B'Elanna. There is plenty of time yet. The ion storm may subside sooner than I predict or Voyager could get here sooner that I think. There are many variables we have not taken into consideration yet. We will work on this tomorrow. For right now, we need to get some rest. Sunrise will be in another 8.5 hours."
At Seven's words B'Elanna slowly relaxed. She stared into brilliant blue eyes, reading the reassurance there. With a soft smile, she brushed her knuckles across a soft check.
"Don't go troubling trouble, hey?"
"No. Not until trouble troubles us."
With a quick smile at Seven's dry comeback B'Elanna settled down into her sleeping bag and watched as Seven settled down next to her in her own. Once they were both comfortable, B'Elanna turned out the camp light and snuggled down, listening to the gentle sounds of Seven's breathing.
"Good night, Seven, sleep tight."
"Hope the bedbugs don't bite"
"You've been spending too much time around Naomi, I can tell", B'Elanna chuckled.
"Sweet dreams."
With that final wish, two tired souls slowly gave in to sleep.
Continued...