Atonement Page 29

  “Where did they come from?” Chakotay asked.

  “At least one Devore cruiser and as many as three small Turei vessels,” Torres replied.

  “Lsia has already sent ships out here,” Janeway realized.

  As difficult as Mattings found this to believe, the evidence was impossible to refute. It was projected on that massive screen, larger than life.

  Chakotay looked at Mattings. “How?”

  Mattings sighed. “As you know, there are several streams that access our space other than the Gateway. We protect all of them, but the Gateway takes priority because it leads directly to the First World. If Lsia was telling the truth and her knowledge of the streams predates our own, it’s possible she found some we haven’t detected or was able to slip a few of her ships past our sentries.”

  “But if she could do that, why waste so much time and resources attacking the Gateway?” Chakotay mused.

  “These ships couldn’t handle the stresses of the wastes,” Torres suggested. “They weren’t destroyed in combat. They met their match when they tried to breach that energy field we’re about to enter. Maybe one of the reasons Lsia decided not to destroy Voyager when she had the chance is because she already knew that the other ships in her alliance were incapable of helping her find Seriar.”

  “Then Voyager can’t enter that field,” the general said. “We need to take more time to study it. I won’t have you people running the risk of destroying yourselves for us or the Seriareen.”

  “It’s a little late now, General,” Chakotay said wryly. Mattings welcomed the captain’s return to form. He doubted after what had transpired at Lecahn that the two would ever again enjoy the easy familiarity that had marked their initial meetings. But, finally, Chakotay no longer seemed to see him as the enemy, and that was a step in the right direction.

  “I don’t think we’re going to have the same problems the Devore and Turei did,” Lieutenant Kim noted.

  “Why not?” Janeway asked.

  “The energy field is buffered by thousands of protectors,” Kim said. “That’s why the dispersal pattern at the edges is so unusual.”

  “Where did they come from?” Chakotay wondered aloud.

  “The wastes are filled with subspace instabilities—places where normal space and subspace have been permanently inverted—which means any protector in existence has access to it,” Kim replied.

  “The composition of the field is similar to, though not an exact match for, the internal dynamics of a subspace corridor,” Torres added. “We know that protectors in their natural state are drawn toward this energy. The Confederacy has been churning them out for hundreds of years; those who first discovered them and the means to create them, longer still. The protectors live in subspace, when they aren’t being utilized in normal space. They could be attracted to this area, and nothing here would have to call them forth to allow them to enter it. The wastes contain thousands of open portals. All the protectors have to do is move through them at will.”

  “And given the way we saw the ancient ones develop, it’s not a huge leap to suggest that they would act under their own initiative and come here if they detected it,” Kim agreed.

  “Can we communicate with these protectors?” Chakotay asked.

  “We can try,” Kim said. “But it probably won’t be necessary. Should they misunderstand our intentions and attack, we know how to disperse them. All we really need to do is find an area of the field where they aren’t present and slip past them.”

  “I’ve already found several good possibilities for that,” Torres noted.

  “And you’re sure we can survive crossing that field?” Janeway confirmed.

  “As long as our shields hold,” Torres replied. “The Doctor should replicate hyronalin, and I wouldn’t want to be out there in a shuttle or an escape pod. But Voyager should be fine.”

  • • • • •

  Counselor Hugh Cambridge had been expecting the Doctor’s call, though not so soon. The hologram’s comments about Seven had been a calculated deflection. The Doctor was worried about something and must finally be ready to share it.

  Whether the Doctor had been right about Seven was a matter the counselor was not inclined to explore. To hope was to become vulnerable and Cambridge’s continued existence had long been predicated upon limiting his exposure to that condition.

  He was surprised, however, when he entered sickbay and found the Doctor standing near a biobed at the rear of the suite behind a crackling energy force field. Lieutenant Barclay stood outside the field at the main data control panel.

  “What do we have here?” Cambridge asked immediately.

  The Doctor seemed to steel himself before he said, “I have a confession to make.”

  Cambridge stepped closer to the field. “Did you raise this force field for your protection or mine?”

  “When you asked me to explore ways to ‘rest’ my program, I thought it was absurd. However, I did my best.”

  “You said your first attempt at meditation went well,” Cambridge encouraged him.

  “It did. What I experienced with Commander Glenn’s assistance was unexpected. It is also not the point. After my meditation had concluded, I experienced two very vivid memories. I don’t know if they were triggered by the meditation or not.”

  “What did you remember?”

  “The first thing I saw was me, only moments before the energy surge that destabilized my program. I was suffering intense emotional distress at the thought of Seven’s death, quite beside myself with grief.”

  “Literally?”

  “Actually, yes. I saw myself from outside, almost as if it was through someone else’s eyes. The second memory was not my own. In it, I saw an alien standing before me. He demanded that I ‘release him’ and at his request, I took the dagger he held in his hand and attacked him, slicing his chest open.”

  “And to what did you credit this extraordinary memory?” Cambridge asked.

  “I didn’t know,” the Doctor replied, almost pleading. “Given the damage to my program, I had no idea what to think. It could have been an old holographic program, maybe a corrupted artifact from the ship’s database.”

  “You didn’t entertain the notion that it might have been a genuine memory?”

  “Not mine,” the Doctor insisted.

  “And given all you’ve seen on the front lines of insanity we call the Delta Quadrant, it didn’t occur to you that experiencing someone else’s memories might be something you’d want to report?”

  “I’m reporting it now.”

  “Because it’s gotten worse, hasn’t it?” Cambridge guessed.

  The Doctor bowed his head. “A few minutes ago, I went to the brig to examine Emem. It happened again. This time, I saw myself on an alien vessel that was under attack. I saw Lsia and the rest of them. The alien I ‘killed’ was called Obih. He was Seriareen. The memory was not mine. It was Xolani’s.”

  “Xolani was one of The Eight,” Barclay interjected. “Lsia told us he was dead, that his consciousness did not survive the transfer out of containment.”

  Cambridge crossed his arms at his chest. “So you have concluded that the energy surge Commander Torres described—her virus—was another Seriareen essence that was planted in the shuttle Lsia stole. He moved into Voyager’s systems when the shuttle was returned and eventually attacked your program.”

  “And took it over.” The Doctor nodded. “I am Xolani,” he said gravely.

  Cambridge shook his head. Turning to Lieutenant Barclay, he said, “Drop the force field.”

  “No!” the Doctor shouted.

  “Calm down, Spartacus,” Cambridge insisted. “Lieutenant?”

  “Do you really think that’s wise?” Barclay asked.

  “The Doctor isn’t Xolani,” Cambridge said.

  “How can you know that?” the Doctor demanded.

  “Because unlike you, I was actually listening to our last briefing. After Xolani attacked your program—and
you are likely right about that—he moved on and attacked several other holograms. If you had become his host, that would not have been necessary. Some of his memories were clearly stored by your program during your brief contact with him. Lucky for us, we are forewarned that Lsia’s agenda is even more complicated than we suspected. But you need to stop flagellating yourself so you can help us determine whether, as Commander Torres believes, this Xolani destroyed himself, or found another, more suitable host somewhere on this ship.”

  The Doctor considered this. Finally he said, “I would be more comfortable agreeing to this request if we could confirm that Xolani is not, in fact, sharing my program right now.”

  “Oh, for the love of . . .” Cambridge began, tapping his combadge. “Counselor Cambridge to Lieutenant Decan. Please report to sickbay immediately and bring a security team with you.”

  “Acknowledged,” Decan replied.

  “A wise precaution, Counselor,” the Doctor said.

  “I didn’t call him here to check on you,” Cambridge said.

  “Then . . . who?” the Doctor asked.

  Cambridge turned to Lieutenant Barclay.

  • • • • •

  Lieutenant Barclay didn’t know whether to be insulted or complimented by the counselor’s accusation. Decan arrived within moments, along with an armed detachment of six officers. Once he understood the nature of the counselor’s question, the Vulcan advised him that Reginald Barclay’s mind was his own. Cambridge then ordered Barclay to lower the force field and Decan assured the Doctor that he sensed nothing unusual from his program.

  As the group made their way to the astrometrics lab to put their commanding officers to the same test, Cambridge explained. “While I would have been surprised if Lieutenant Barclay had been compromised, it was possible. It was safe to assume, Doctor, based on your actions before the energy surge, that your program was functioning as best it can. Since then, Lieutenant Barclay is the only officer who has worked on your program and had you been housing an entirely separate consciousness, I can’t imagine that it would have escaped his detection. Had he been taken by Xolani, however, he would likely have attempted to cast doubt upon you, particularly given the emergence of these new memories, in order to buy himself some time. He did not, but I had to be sure.”

  “By that logic, you might have easily come under suspicion as well,” the Doctor suggested to Cambridge.

  “Were I the imposter, do you think I would have brought one of the only people on the ship who could unmask me to sickbay?”

  The discussion ended abruptly as the group entered astrometrics. Admiral Janeway, Captain Chakotay, Commander Torres, Lieutenant Kim, and General Mattings were all present. Before the counselor responded to their obvious question, he waited for Lieutenant Decan to observe each of them silently for a few moments.

  “Patience, please,” Cambridge requested.

  When Decan shook his head, Cambridge finally said, “It appears that the virus Commander Torres found was a Seriareen consciousness known as Xolani.”

  “What?” Torres demanded.

  The Doctor quickly explained the chain of events that had led to this conclusion, to the mounting horror of everyone assembled.

  Chakotay had just raised his hand to tap his combadge when Admiral Janeway said, “Wait.”

  “We need to take the ship to red alert, Admiral,” Chakotay said. “Decan and Lasren should begin an immediate search. Nothing takes priority above finding this potential intruder.”

  “You’re right,” Janeway said. “But, you were also right when you suggested that Lsia is many moves ahead of us. It won’t take long for rumors of this search to spread throughout the crew, possibly alerting this intruder to our suspicions and forcing him to take some precipitous action before we can find him.” Turning to Decan, she said, “Begin your search with the senior officers. Captain, take Lieutenant Kim and the general back to the bridge, provide Lieutenant Lasren with a security team, coordinate with Decan. Lasren should start with the bridge officers. But let’s do this quietly. It’s our best chance of finding Xolani without tipping our hand.”

  Chakotay nodded. “Let’s assume the worst for a minute. Let’s say Xolani has compromised a key crewmember. If his intention was to turn control of the ship over to Lsia, he may already know we found his program and deleted it.”

  “He’d be looking for another way to accomplish his goal,” Janeway said.

  “And if he found it?”

  Janeway said, evenly, “We analyze whatever modifications he’s made.”

  “B’Elanna and Lieutenant Conlon are our best hope for finding a technological solution. Should worse come to worst, I’m going to leave that in your capable hands, Admiral.”

  Janeway smiled. “While you focus on our tactical response?”

  “Yes.”

  “Agreed,” Janeway said. “The only way to eliminate this Xolani is to force him out of the body he is currently inhabiting and back into containment. But as it stands right now, we can’t do that without exposing the rest of the crew to possible possession.”

  “How many canisters did Commander Glenn give us?”

  “Five. Lieutenant Barclay has the spare.”

  “Okay,” Chakotay said.

  “I’m going to have a little chat with Lsia,” Janeway said. “There might still be time to convince her of the error of her ways and enlist her aid in separating Xolani from anyone he might have taken.”

  “Doctor, Counselor, Lieutenant Barclay, return to sickbay,” Chakotay ordered. “I realize, Doctor, you’ve given up hope of separating Emem, Tirrit, or Adaeze from their hosts, but we’re talking about one of our own. Whoever it is, they might not have been compromised for long. The general discovered some ancient references that suggested individuals might have had some success in fighting Seriareen possession. I’d be willing to bet that any of our people who were attacked would have resisted. If it’s only been a few days or less, the consciousness might still be struggling to control its host. We have baseline scans on the entire crew. I want this thing removed from the body it has taken immediately.”

  “I will do my best, Captain,” the Doctor said.

  “Reg, Hugh,” Chakotay added, “make sure nothing compromises the Doctor’s program.”

  “Understood,” Cambridge replied as Barclay nodded mutely.

  Chakotay, Kim, and Mattings moved briskly to the doors. The Doctor and Cambridge followed. Janeway was speaking quietly to Decan. Barclay paused, waiting for their discussion to end.

  “Decan?” Torres interjected softly as soon as the admiral dismissed him. Barclay noted how pale and still her face had become. She looked like someone who knew they were about to receive terrible news.

  “Yes, Commander.”

  “We’re going to start your search in main engineering.”

  Decan looked to Janeway, who nodded.

  With that, they departed, leaving Barclay alone with the admiral.

  “Admiral,” he began hesitantly, “I know you understand how dangerous Lsia is.”

  “I think I do,” Janeway replied.

  “I have already placed a containment canister in her cell. An intense enough electromagnetic charge within the cell would overload her holographic matrix.”

  “You’re suggesting I kill her now?” Janeway asked.

  “She’s a hologram,” Barclay replied. “The only part of her that’s real can’t be killed.”

  “But the charge would also disable her cell’s force field and the anti-psionic field. If they fall, there’s no way to ensure that Lsia’s consciousness would move into containment. Any of us would become vulnerable.”

  “As plans go, it has its limitations,” Barclay conceded. “But she’s done enough damage, hasn’t she?”

  Janeway nodded. “Yes. But I’m not willing to risk more than I have to in order to destroy Lsia.”

  “I am,” Barclay admitted.

  “Focus on taking care of the Doctor, and leave the rest t
o me,” Janeway ordered.

  Barclay nodded and followed her out. They parted ways at the turbolift as he hurried to join the Doctor in sickbay and prepare for the worst.

  • • • • •

  The moment Admiral Janeway entered the brig, Lsia knew that the end had come. She had seen the admiral angry, disappointed, and defiant. This was the first time she had seen Kathryn Janeway pushed beyond the possibility of mercy.

  The admiral came right to the point.

  “You’ve lied to me,” she said simply.

  Behind her, Emem had risen to his feet in his cell. Lsia suspected that Tirrit and Adaeze had already done the same.

  “I have done what I thought best to secure my people’s future,” Lsia replied. “Surely you cannot fault me for that.”

  “I agreed to help you. We’ve discovered an interesting energy field out here in the wastes, along with the wreckage of the first ships you sent out here to try and locate Seriar. Our people assure me that we can safely traverse the field. We might be only hours away from finding the answers you are seeking. But that wasn’t enough for you.”

  “Admiral, your courage is undeniable, and your crew’s ingenuity does you credit. But you have yet to live a single full life. I’ve lived dozens, as have my companions. Don’t take it too hard. There are limits to what you can conceive. In time, we will show you the truths that lay beyond your limits. You need not fear us. But you will follow us.”

  Janeway smiled mirthlessly. “I’ve been told by my superior officers that I sometimes have difficulty following orders I don’t agree with. I don’t see that changing under new management.”

  “For your sake and that of your crew, you should reconsider,” Lsia said.

  “My crew,” Janeway said calmly. “There’s a great deal I might be willing to come to terms with, but an attack on my people is not one of them. You promised me that the slaughter of innocents that you refer to as a ‘consciousness transfer’ had come to an end. But that wasn’t true. You have compromised one of my officers. I can’t allow that to stand. Our former agreement is hereby rescinded. You presided over the transfer of Xolani’s consciousness into the bioneural systems of the shuttle you stole. That means that the word you would use to sever the connection between him and any host is known only to you.”