Star Trek Voyager: Relative To Time

2

Seven of Nine was working with quiet precision in her Astrometrics laboratory. She had her day planned out as per usual. Seven stopped working for a moment as she lightly touched the console interface and brought up her timetable on the small computer screen in front of her. Presently, she was working the last hour of her eight-hour shift in Astrometrics, and was tutoring Icheb. In turn, Icheb had invited Naomi Wildman so he could tutor her in basic algebra. Seven was annoyed to have her plans altered by a 16-year-old boy but what could she do. Looking back at her agenda, she noted a 30.7-minute project with Ensign Kim and then 18.4 minutes assisting Lt Torres with a warp coil, and then at 1700 hours, she would have a nutritional supplement in the mess hall after releasing the children to have leisure time.

She watched Icheb and Naomi converse and was pleased they got along so well. Icheb was like an offspring to her, while Naomi was a friend. As she returned to her calculations, Icheb looked up and whispered to Naomi, "She's back at work now, we can talk - briefly". Icheb and Naomi were both sitting on the floor of the lab, the large Astrometrics screen as a backdrop. Naomi was struggling with her math problem while Icheb held a ancient text book called Astrophysics and Popular Science. Harry Kim, who had used it at the Academy, had lent it to him. Rumour has it that Albert Einstein may of owned it once but Icheb knows better not to believe rumours. "I don't get this, Icheb." Naomi said in an almost whiny voice but she tried to hold her tone so she would not annoy him. Icheb took the PADD that Naomi was complaining about and sighed, "It's a simple calculation. You are missing the obvious''. He tapped the controls of the PADD and handed it back to Naomi, ''Look at it again from this view point.'' Naomi nervously took the PADD and stared at the revised version o the problem. She thought for a moment and smiled, ''Oh!'',she muttered happily and solved the puzzle. Icheb looked at it and nodded, ''Next time, you find the variable.'' Naomi gave Icheb a thankful smile and put the PADD beside her other finished work. Icheb was about to begin his pre-test for the temporal mechanics course Seven had tutored him in last week when their mentor looked up from her work and eyed them with suspicion. Seven left her station and walked with purpose towards them. Both children cringed when as they watched her come towards them at warp speed. However, before Seven could utter a word, the quiet chirp of the laboratory's door sounded and the door opened. Kathryn Janeway, Captain of the USS Voyager, entered the tranquil room and looked around until she could see both Icheb and Naomi sitting under the huge astral screen. She smiled when she saw Seven, who had turned around quickly when she heard the door chime. "How are my future first officer's doing?" Janeway said happily, as she made her way towards the three. She found it amusing that all three had the looks of 'deer in front of headlights'. It still amazed her, after so many years in the delta quadrant; the crew still found her intimidating. True, it worked to her advantage at times, but mostly it made her feel isolated. She continued to smile even though she held these depressing thoughts. Seven stood tall and instinctively held her hands clenched behind her back. She looked at the children and forgot why she even walked up to them. Icheb stood up quickly to show the Captain respect while Naomi waved at Janeway with a warm smile. "Captain, we are studying," Icheb said rather breathlessly. Seven nodded and gave the Captain her attention, "The Astrometrics Lab is quiet and facilitates learning." Janeway smiled, "Well glad to see the three of you working so hard but Seven's shift is almost over and I believe it's time for Naomi to have her dinner with Ensign Wildman." She looked at Icheb with a look of importance, "Icheb, it seems Lt Torres has been looking for you." She could not help but smile when she saw Icheb blushed slightly and stumbled over his usual colloquial speech, "Er...B'Elanna...er...I mean Lt Torres? Me?" Seven gave Icheb a stern look but he took no notice, for Lt B'Elanna Torres was looking for him, not Lt Paris. Before he could utter something silly, Janeway saved him and handed him a PADD from Torres, the Chief Engineer of Voyager. "I guess she has a situation she feels would be educational for you, something do to with the old slipstream drive we shelved a few months ago. Seven's eyebrow arched and she had a look of mild perplexity, "I was under the assumption that the slipstream drive was never to be accessed again. Has some new data surfaced that makes it a viable option for us to utilize?" Janeway shrugged noncommittally, "B'Elanna thought the mechanics of it would be interesting to Icheb. You don't mind, do you?" Seven felt her face burn with the annoying human response of blushing with embarrassment, "Of course not. I approve of any activity that will assist Icheb in attaining his goal of joining the Academy." The Captain smiled and slapped her hands together happily, "Wonderful. We all approve then. Naomi, it is time for supper. Please take your work back to your quarters so Samantha can see what you have accomplished. Icheb, Lt Torres will be expecting you in the mess hall in fifteen minutes." The children scrambled to gather their homework and ambled out of the lab with grins and whispers that only they would understand.