Equinox - Diane Carey [64]
Caught by the intrigue of moral turmoil, Chakotay leaned forward with his fists on the desk. "You've seen bad types before in this quadrant, Captain. Why are you so worked up about Rudolph Ransom and his crew?"
"Because they're humans! They're not just other 'bad types'!"
"So? Are you so race-conscious that they're any worse than Klingons or Borg or any other thousand races who might spawn a bad egg? Somehow we have to hold humans to a higher standard? Or are you afraid," he roared, "of how it reflects on you?"
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"It means you know the same survival instinct might get a grip on you someday, and you have to crucify Ransom in order to beat off your own inner ghosts. I think you have to make the law of civilization win or you might break down like he did. You can't let him get away with this because you see too much of yourself in him, the same dark side that every commander has to possess in order to command effectively. Are you overreacting because you don't like the image Ransom lays on humans or are you afraid of what you might become?"
Itching in her stained and t orn uniform, throbbing with muscle strains, bruises, and a pounding headache, Janeway slammed the desk chair out of her way so hard that it struck the viewport rail. "Chakotay, that's damned well enough!"
His lips drew back with conviction and his black eyes blazed as he turned for the door. "Aye, Captain, but remember while you're on this witch hunt... the witch is in the mirror."
CHAPTER 12
"WHY'D WE STOP?"
"This planet has a pathogenic atmosphere. It'll keep us from being detected while we make repairs."
Ransom responded as Max Burke came back onto the bridge and saw that they were in orbit around a peaceful looking planet that was entirely fern-green except for the poles, which were silvery.
Noah Lessing looked up from his station. "We also found a few deuterium deposits."
'Take an away team," Ransom told him. "See if you can localize the ore."
Burke squared with Lessing as the latter stood up. "You won't be protected from the aliens. Arm yourselves with phaser rifles. At the first sign of trouble, we'll beam you back."
"Aye, sir."
When he left, Ransom took his place in front of Burke and asked, "How're things going with the codes? Has that girl decided to talk?"
"No, she's decided not to. And with a Borg, that's a permanent fix. Their doctor is dissecting her Borg mechanics. He seems to be enjoying himself. Last time I was in there, he was actually singing."
"Singing?" Ransom chuckled. "You mean, like music?"
"You know ... 'De ocular node's connected to de sensory node, de sensory node's connected to de cortical node ... de cortical node's con-' "
"Max! Stop while we're both sane. Our doctor never sings, does he?"
"No, he's not half as much fun as this guy."
"Let's go down there," Ransom said, leading the way. "I want to talk to her."
Burke kept up with him easily as they hurried through the ship. "It won't do any good. Janeway's got her completely brainwashed. Seven doesn't know how to be logical anymore. She's just completely loyal."
Ransom shrugged. "A captain could do worse in a crew member, Borg or not."
Smiling, Burke shook his head. "I wish you'd make up your mind if you're going to hate Janeway or not, so I know what to do!"
"I don't hate her. Hell, I hardly know her. She's just the obstacle I have to get past right now, Max. How that happens is up to her. I'll do what I have to, whatever it takes to get us home. If she gets in the way, I'll run over her." He held up a hand as they approached the re-
search lab. "Don't talk about it in front of Seven. Let's see if we can move her."
They strode in to an admittedly disconcerting sight- The Doctor had Seven strapped to a table, and he was dissecting her brain by going through her Borg eye socket.
The Doctor was