Death of a Neutron Star - Eric Kotani [72]
"Go ahead."
"We're ducking in behind a large asteroid. Dr. Maalot thinks it might help us ride through the first wave of gamma-rays. That will buy us an extra ten minutes before the plasma wave hits."
"Understood," she said. "Good idea. But stand ready. We're going to try two warp fixes before that point."
"Standing by."
B'Elanna crawled out from under the panel.
"Ready to give it a shot," she said.
"How hard?" Janeway asked. "Warp one for ten seconds won't get us out of the way. Warp six for ten seconds will help a lot."
"Warp six," she said, glancing up at the clock. Janeway followed her gaze. Less than two minutes. This had better work.
Or Dr. Maalot's idea had better work. Right about now they needed one last miracle.
"Janeway to bridge."
"Go ahead, Captain," Chakotay said.
"Warp six. Hit it."
Beside them the panel sparked as the craft jumped to warp six.
"Hold on," B'Elanna said. "Hold on."
A small wisp of smoke drifted up from the panel, but it seemed to be holding.
"Eight seconds," Janeway said.
"Nine."
"Ten."
"Eleven."
"It's holding," B'Elanna said, smiling as the warp drive continued to take them safely away from the impending exploding destruction.
Janeway glanced up at the clock. "Forty-five seconds is all we had left. We cut that very, very close."
"We sure did," B'Elanna said.
On the bridge, Tom glanced around at Chakotay. "Commander, now that we're moving again, exactly where do you want me to go?"
"Away from that neutron star," Chakotay said, smiling and dropping down into his chair. "Just away. We'll circle back to the Lekk home system after we're at a safe distance."
"Sounds wonderful," Tom said.
His hands danced over the control board. "Away it is."
A DAY LATER, LIEUTENANT TYLA STOOD ON THE Voyager bridge beside Tuvok, watching as Voyager dropped out of warp on the outskirts of her home system. It seemed as if it had been centuries before that that the Qavok had kidnapped her and Dr. Maalot. In her wildest imagination, she never would have thought she would come home in such a fashion. And after having done so much.
The neutron star would soon be a thing of the past. Their tampering had worked. The neutron star wouldn't go near an inhabited system before leaving the galaxy. They had succeeded.
Actually, as Captain Janeway had said, they had gotten very lucky.
Captain Janeway moved up beside her and stood, watching the Lekk system appear on the main screen. She was sipping that foul-smelling liquid they called coffee. It was the only thing on Voyager Tyla didn't like, but it was sure making the captain happy.
"Beautiful home you have here," Janeway said between sips as the blue and reddish planet appeared on the screen.
"I've missed it," Tyla said.
"I can imagine," Janeway said.
Tyla noticed that for a moment, Janeway's eyes were distant, as if imagining her own home system so far away.
"Captain," Tyla said. "I don't know how to thank you."
"No need," Janeway said.
"Oh, I must respectfully disagree," Tyla said. "There is a need. You trusted me after I showed you I shouldn't be trusted."
Janeway laughed. "Oh, you could always be trusted," she said, "to do what you needed to do, plus more."
"But my escape attempt?"
"Was what you thought you needed to do," Janeway said, shrugging. "Nothing more and I knew that. The minute you needed to help us, you did, risking your life in the process."
"Well," Tyla said, trying to regain her thoughts after that admission from the captain. "Thank you anyway. From me. And more importantly, from my people."
Janeway nodded. "You're welcome. It feels pretty good, I must admit, to save as many millions of beings as we saved today. Full systems' worth."
"That it does," Tyla said, smiling. At that moment she realized for the first time how good it felt to help others. It was a feeling she would remember.
"Now," Janeway said, "would