Distant Shores - Marco Palmieri [21]
The commander’s next comment was interrupted by Paris who cried out, “They’re backing off!”
Chakotay glanced briefly at Tuvok, a look of triumph on his features. He then called out, “Execute!”
The ship dipped and then seemed to bank as it accelerated. Tuvok felt the inertial dampeners compensating, then he glanced at his board to note that the five Dresh ships had fallen out of phaser range.
“Bridge to engineering.”
“Engineering, Carey.”
“Secure from warp-core buildup. Stabilize the engines and keep us at warp.”
“Tricky at high speed, sir.”
“Have B’Elanna show you how we did it on our old ship. Bridge out.”
“Distance now seven hundred fifty thousand kilometers and gaining,” Paris called from the helm, a tone of delight in his voice.
“We atop the field, Paris?”
“Aye, sir.” He looked over his shoulder and flashed a big grin at the commander. Chakotay just nodded, his face still grim.
“Kim, did you ever determine a way to set off the devices at a distance?”
The ensign hesitated before answering. “Ah, no sir, it was a little distracting back there.”
“So it was. Sorry for the noise,” he said, looking directly at Tuvok. The Vulcan read no friendship in Chakotay’s expression, no apology for following what the commander considered the proper course of action. Tuvok had much to consider once things returned to normal.
That turned out to be six hours later as Tuvok, finally relieved at his post, visited Janeway in sickbay. She had recovered and was resting, eating a bowl of soup that Kes managed to turn up. The holographic doctor was nowhere to be seen, which boded well for the rest of his visit.
“Captain, you are looking well.”
“Since Vulcans don’t lie, I’ll take that for the truth.” She smiled warmly at him. “Thank you.”
“Of course.”
Then her face changed, shifting from relief and friendship to one he recognized as a captain about to do something unpleasant. He remained impassive, waiting for her to begin.
“Chakotay was here before and filled me in on what I missed. We have a problem, Tuvok.” She held up a hand, cutting off his reply. “Don’t say a word right now. I gave the situation a lot of thought before making Chakotay an offer to merge crews. You should know me well enough by now to know I wouldn’t make such a decision lightly or hastily. He split from the Federation over something that he believed, to the core of his being, was wrong. He’s a man of principle and has always followed his beliefs. When Chakotay rejoined Starfleet by rejoining this crew, when he accepted the position of this ship’s first officer, he renewed that oath to our principles. I gave him my trust. And I expected you, of all my crew, to follow my lead.”
She adjusted herself on the bed before continuing and to his eye, she still seemed in need of rest. The steel in her voice belied any exhaustion. “I need to count on my command crew to work together, especially in times of crisis. What you and Chakotay engaged in undermined our authority with the rest of the crew. By now they’ve all heard of the argument and will look for more cracks, some looking to use them as wedges against us. The animosity between some of the Maquis and the Federation isn’t going to vanish overnight just because we’re forced to live together. It’s going to take time, years perhaps. And until we’re all in this together, heart and soul, then it’s up to the command crew to lead by example.
“I never would have allowed you to disable his command codes. That’s not only disrespecting him but me. I thought you knew better, Tuvok.”
“Captain, I apologize for showing a lack of faith in your trust. Having served with the commander, I knew he was a tenacious fighter, and I knew he would fight for his beliefs. I was less certain if those beliefs as yet included the whole crew. I acted in what I thought was in our best interests until the commander had refreshed his skills