Shore Leave
"Are you sure, Naomi?" Kathryn Janeway asked the nearly grown-up girl infront of her a fifth time. "Yes, Captain, it's not the first time I've done babysitting. And Viv is such a nice girl, I won't have a problem with her." "Come on, Mom, we'd like to go now. Dad's already waiting." Eight year old Scarlett Malu Janeway was like a whirlwind. Kathryn handled her two year old daughter to Naomi and followed her daughter Scarlett. "Daddy, may I take a tricorder with me?" "Yes, Shanna, darling, do you know where Scarlett is?" "Perhaps she's with Viv and Mom." The door opened and Kathryn came in with Scarlett. "Has everybody everything? Come on, lets hurry a bit, Shaneen, Scarlett, for today you'll get comunicators. But don't loose them." Finally all four, Kathryn, Chakotay and the twins left the room.
Kathryn and Chakotay had decided that this day of shore leave on Kathan V would belong only to their twins. The girls had had not much time to spend with both their parents since Viviane Fianna was born two years ago, and this should be their chance. They had chosen this planet and the place to stay together in a hard discussion. It wasn't easy to find something for two adults who liked some time to do nothing; a very active girl, well known as DESIGNEE of tricks; and a shy girl, living for reading and science. The girls finally made an ALLIANCE and won over their parents. Suddenly all four materialized near the opening of a cave.
"Mom, may we go inside?" "Later Charly, later. Let's go down to the beach and swim first. Later we'll have lunch and in the afternoon we'll go and see what's inside the cave." It was a funny morning, with swimming and diving competitions and shell searching. After a while, Kathryn sat in the fine sand, her wet hair LACKLUSTER, and Chakotay beside her, watching their kids. "We can be happy they we have them, can't we?" "Oh yes, look at them, playing with the water. They may be identical but they are so different and they're ours!" With these words, he kissed her softly. She smiled back and shouted: "Hey girls, what do you think about lunch?" "Okay, and then the cave!"Scarlett's voice answered. Neelix had filled a big picnicbasket for them and after eating it up, Kathryn laid down on her towel, closing her eyes. The girls giggled and ran down to the water another time. Chakotay watched them for a while whispering and then he fall asleep, too. This was the moment Shaneen and Scarlett had waited for. "Come on, Shanna, now we can go." Scarlett reached out for her sisters hand. "But, perhaps we should wait?" "They told us after lunch and now it's after lunch." Shaneen followed her sister into the cave. It was dark and cold in there. "Charly, please wait a moment. We need a light and some clothes." "Shanna, don't be so afraid. we won't stay long. Just let's see what's behind this wall." So both girl went on. But behind the wall was a BENDY corridor. "Come on, let's go this way." "Charly, please, let us go out, it's so dark here, and ..." "Funk!" Scarlett was going on and Shaneen followed her.
At the beach Chakotay woke up. A cloud covered the sun and it was getting cold. Where were the kids? He stood up and went to the water. There were their footprints still in the sand, but no other sign of Shaneen and Scarlett. "Scarlett, Shaneen, where are you?" "Chakotay? Why do you shout?" "I can't see the twins!" "Oh no, they wouldn't go inside the cave alone, would they?" "Scarlett perhaps, but Shaneen?" Kathryn was up and packed all her things together. "Janeway to Scarlett" She tried to contact her girls, but there was no answer. "Janeway to Voyager" "Tuvok here. What can I do for you?" Now the sky was covered with more clouds and it started to rain. There, the first lightning. "Can you scan..." The rest of her sentence was covered by a loud clap of thunder. "...tain please answer." "Tuvok, can you hear me? We can't find Scarlett and Shaneen." No answer. "Voyager, please respond." "Kath, we're cut off. Come on, take this and go inside the cave. We'll find them." "Charly, please stop." Shaneen was nearly crying. "Okay, let's go back." Scarlett was uncomfortable. Who had known that it would be so dark and so cold? "Shanna, do you know the way?" She could barely hear her sister's quite "No." What should they do now? Scarlett tried to go with one hand on a wall, but this wasn't the way they had come. "Charly, look, there's light!" Shaneen nearly ran to the bright crystal. "Wow, look at the walls, they're full of HIEROGLYPHs." The girls stood there with open mouths for a while, glancing at the colorful paintings, until Shaneen opened her tricorder and tried to work.
Chakotay came into the cave, and a big rock-fall closed the entry behind him. "Chakotay, are you hurt?" "No, I don't think so." Kathryn took a light out of the picnicbasket and switched it on. The girls weren't in the first cave. They held hands and went on.
"Shanna, let's go on." "Yea, let's go. This stupid tricorder isn't working." "Sure?" "Who's doing science? You or me?" "You." "So don't tell me how to use a tricorder. I already know it!" "Don't yell at me. Come on, let's go." The girls started to walk again, this time with light. Scarlett was first and then Shaneen, holding the crystal. "Ahhh!" Scarlett screamed . She had fallen over a stone she hadn't seen. "Charly? Please, answer me, Charly!" Shaneen was kneeling next to her unconscious sister.
"Did you heard that?" "The scream?" Chakotay answered. "Let's shout for them." Together they shouted. "Charly, Shanna! Shaneen, answer me! Scarlett, Shaneen!" There, wasn't that an answer? "Mommy! Daddy, we're here!" "Shaneen, Scarlett!" All three were shouting to lead the way. "Kath, switch the light off." She did it and they could see a shimmer in a corridor on the right hand side.
"Charly, wake up! Mom and Dad are coming, please wake up!" Slowly Scarlett's eyes opened. "My head, and my ankle. It hurts so much." "Psh, Mom and dad are coming, and they'll know the way out." "Shaneen, Scarlett, can you hear me?" "Mommy, we're here!" This time the voice was near them, and then their parents were standing before them. Shaneen was waiting for an angry speech from her mother, but Kathryn put only her arms around her lost daughters. "Mom, why do you cry?" Shaneen said, crying herself. "I was so afraid that something had happened to you. Please don't do this again." "We won't Mom, it was so dark, and then we found the crystal, and saw the hieroglyphies and then Scarlett fell, and was unconscious and then I heared you..." "Hush, my girl hush. We're here now." While Kathryn was calming down Shaneen and herself, Chakotay cared for Scarlett. "Kathryn, can you come now? It would be better if we try to go back in the first cave. Then they'll find us faster."He carried Scarlett the whole way back, and with a light it was no problem to find the right way. Then the next shock for the girls came: The opening of the cave was closed.
"Mom, where's Mommy?" "She'll come back later, Viv." "Now!" Naomi was going to scream. This day with Viviane had been terrible as the little girl had started to ask for her parents after lunch. But now Samantha Wildman's working time has ended and she'll help her daughter with Viviane.
"Mr Kim, can you get any sensor infos from the planet?" "I'm sorry Commander, but the thunderstorm makes more interferencen than I can compensate." "Perhaps I can take a shuttle down?" "This is not a possibility at the moment, Mr Paris. We'll wait until the storm ends."
Two hours later on the bridge. "Commander, I can get first scans. No lifesigns." "Is it possible to beam down?" "Yes." "Paris, Torres, you'll come with me. Two security officers to transporter room 2. Mr Kim, you've the bridge."
When all five materialized, the first thing they saw was the rock-fall. "They said something about a cave, perhaps they're inside." Paris suggested. "I can't get any tricorder scans done, there's something in the rocks giving me a feedback." Torres answered. "Then we'll have to put the rocks away to make sure no one is inside." They started to fire on the rock-fall with their phasers.
"Shh, be quiet. Can you hear that? It sounds like rocks falling down." Chakotay tried to give them new hope. "Perhaps it's a team from the Voyager." The girls started to shout. "Help! We're inside! Help us!"
"Stop! Did you heared that? It sounds like human voices. Go on, but be very careful!"
"Daddy, I can see light there!" Shaneen became very happy. They were trying to rescue them!
"Captain, are you there?"
"Yes, Tuvok, we're all inside." Kathryn was happy, too. She trusted her crew, but she had no idea how fast they would find them. Scarlett was unconscious again.
Finally there was a way to come through the rockbarrier. And Tuvok came in first. "Captain, are you okay?" "Yes, but Scarlett is hurt." They all followed Tuvok out of the cave and then they beamed up to the safety of the Voyager.
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