TITLE: THE RAIN CHRONICLES:
BOOK 1
AUTHOR: RFK
SERIES: VOY
CODE: Torres, Robinson and Janeway
RATING: [PG] For mild language.
Very mild.
SUMMARY: By some twist of fate,
Rain Robinson from Season 3's
"Future's End", ends up on Voyager.
Told from Rain, B'Elanna and
Janeway's POV. Book 1.
FEEDBACK: june_daley@rocketmail.com
- Be my guest. But please, be
kind.
DISCLAIMER: Tom, B'Elanna
and all other characters related to Star
Trek Voyager belong to Paramount,
Viacom and the usual Trek Powers to Be. Dammit!
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I've always
wondered if there would have been a
Paris/Torres romance if Rain Robinson
had ended up on Voyager. So
far, I haven't decided.
"THE RAIN CHRONICLES: BOOK
1" by RFK
RAIN ROBINSON - May 2, 1996:
It began with a simple touch.
Can you believe it? A simple touch.
One little act that would change
my life for good. Why did I do it?
Was it my natural curiosity, first
sparked by that ? signal I had
detected at the Observatory?
Or was it a pair of warm blue eyes that
led me to give in to such an impulse?
Maybe the latter. Who knows?
It was the signal started everything.
Signs of Gamma emissions that
drew the attention of my sponsor
at the Observatory and all-round
creep, Henry Starling. It
also attracted the attention of the owner
of those blue eyes - Tom Paris -
and his two oddball friends, Tuvok
and Mr. Leisure Suit. Thanks
to Tom and his friends, I discovered
that Mr. Starling could not be trusted
and wanted me dead. Tom and
Tuvok wanted him for another reason.
Something to do with a ship in
Starling's possession. A timeship,
I believe. Despite what Tom may
think, I was paying attention.
Tom and I eventually chased Starling's
pet thug into the desert, outside
L.A. The poor bastard ended up
blown to bits by some strange aircraft.
One that I suspect Tom was
very familiar with.
Tom Paris. I once told him
that he reminded me of Howdy Doody, but in
a sexy way. He still does.
Strange guy, very good-looking and
charming, but also very smart.
Nor did he seem turned off by my own
brains and my big mouth. In
short, I wanted him to stay. But he
couldn't. He had to return
to from wherever he came from.
So there we stood in the middle of
the desert, facing each other. Tom
said that he had never met anyone
quite like me and probably never
will. Then he kissed me.
Properly. Not like others who usually gave
wet, sloppy kisses or timid ones.
A real, honest-to-God kiss with the
pair of the warmest lips I had ever
felt. When he eventually turned
his back on me, something inside
could not give him up. A strange,
blue light enveloped him and with
my usual impulsiveness, I touched
his shirt and found myself caught
up in the light. One moment we had
been surrounded by the California
desert, the next inside the strange
aircraft, which had even stranger
technology. Before Tom or anyone
else could spot me, I ducked behind
some console and out of sight.
"Chakotay to Voyager," a soft, deep
voice called out. "We've picked
up Tom. All are accounted
for."
A husky, female voice that sounded
slightly familiar, responded,
"Acknowledged Commander. Report
to the Bridge as soon as you return.
Janeway out."
Voyager? The only other Voyager
I could recall was a satellite probe
that had ended up missing years
ago. Judging from Ms. Janeway's
voice, Voyager seemed to be more
than a satellite. Instinct also told
me that it was not on this earth.
Okay, actually it was my stomach
that conveyed the message.
Especially after the way it bounced to my
throat after the craft rose further
in the air. How far we traveled?
I have no idea.
We finally arrived at our destination
and I ducked my head behind the
console once more. Tom, Tuvok
and the others filed out of the
aircraft. The moment their
voices vanished, I decided it was safe to
leave my hiding place. Upon
leaving the aircraft, I found myself
alone, surrounded by similar aircrafts
- much to my relief. It looked
as if I was in the middle of an
airplane hangar. Or something
similar. I glanced to my left
and nearly passed out with shock.
Instead of a solid wall, I faced
a blanket of space - namely outer
space. Good grief! Where
in the hell did I end up?
LIEUTENANT B'ELANNA TORRES - STARDATE
50316.95:
We did it. Believe it or not,
Voyager managed to save Earth's future
by preventing that greedy bastard,
Henry Starling, from traveling to
the 29th century and destroying
it. Idiot. The man was an idiot
whose greed led him to his destruction.
Well, the Captain actually
destroyed him and the timeship.
It was either that or allow him to
destroy Earth.
My adventures with Chakotay nearly
proved to be just as interesting.
It seemed that Voyager's two senior
ex-Maquis would end up meeting
their counterparts in 20th century
Arizona. Although I must say that
I found it difficult to consider
those Neanderthals as freedom
fighters. Their goals seemed
a lot less noble and more self-serving
than our own.
But I must remember that I'm no longer
with the Maquis. I'm an
officer and chief engineer aboard
a Starfleet vessel. And have been
for the past two years. That
scenario almost ended, thanks to Henry
Starling. Who knows how our
lives may have ended on 20th century
Earth. I remember Chakotay
expressing an interest in becoming an
anthropologist at some North American
university. I cannot imagine me
finding it so easy to blend in.
What in the hell could a half-Klingon
with forehead ridges do in the 20th
century? Before Earth had ever
made any contact with another alien
species?
I had no doubt how Tom Paris would
have fared. Probably spend his
time exploring his favorite period
in history. And with that Rain
Robinson woman he had befriended,
as his companion. I finally saw
her. While our shuttle hovered
above the California desert. I still
remember the way he kissed her before
we beamed him aboard.
Stop! What in the hell is wrong
with me? Why am I thinking about Tom
Paris, of all people? And
why would I even care about his latest
conquest? So what if he had
once propositioned me? Big deal! I had
immediately informed him on how
I really felt about a date with him on
the holodeck. Or did I?
Would an hour or two, sailing on Lake Como
had been that bad? Oh hell!
Why bother contemplating on that now?
Paris has not made an attempt for
another date, since. And he'll
probably spend the next few days
or so, remembering the charms of Miss
Rain Robinson. Yet, in the
end, he will forget her. Like he has
forgotten the other women in his
life.
"Senior staff to the Conference Room,"
I heard Chakotay's voice
announce over the Comm system.
Another senior staff meeting? We just
had one not long after our return
to Delta Quadrant. Oh well. Maybe
the Captain had decided to plan
a celebration for saving Earth's
future.
* * * *
Kahless! What a day!
A surprise awaited the senior staff when we
reported to the Conference Room.
Captain Janeway was furious! I have
never seen her look that angry since
the time the Vidiians had stolen
Neelix's lungs. I still remember
what those bastards did to me. But
I'm digressing.
Upon our return to the Delta Quadrant,
the Captain and Chakotay
discovered that Captain Braxton,
that stupid p'tak from the 29th
century, had failed to realize the
new passenger we had picked up
during our time travels. It
seemed that we - and I mean myself,
Chakotay, the Doctor and Tuvok -
had not only transported Paris to the
shuttle, but also another passenger,
while in the California desert.
That extra passenger turned out
to be none other than Tom's friend,
Rain Robins. Tom had no idea
that Miss Robinson decided to hitch a
ride when we beamed him up.
In fact, no one even spotted her on the
ship - until after our return to
the Delta Quadrant. A Security
detail caught her roaming around
Deck Seven.
Typical Braxton. The idiot
was so determined to return us to our
proper time and place in history
that he failed to account for a 20th
century woman aboard Voyager.
So much for his temporal magic. What
an idiot!
When I said that the Captain was
angry, I was not joking. She
castigated Miss Robinson for
sneaking aboard the ship. She almost
accused Tom of helping his friend,
until Miss Robinson took full
responsibility and insisted that
she had acted alone. Janeway,
however, did chastised Paris and
the rest of us for our "lack of
diligence" - her words, not mine.
Rain Robinson. What an odd
name for a Human! Now, she was a
permanent member of Voyager's crew.
Like Neelix and Kes, she decided
to remain a civilian. The
Captain assigned her to Stellar
Cartography, since she was an astronomer.
Now I ask you, exactly what
good is a 20th century astronomer
aboard a 24th century starship?
Personally, I suspect that no one
has any idea, including the Captain
and Miss Robinson. I bet that
Tom Paris doesn't care. Now that he
has his ladylove by his side.
Of course, I must admit that Miss
Robinson seemed a little displeased
when the Captain ordered Tom to
act as her escort aboard ship.
Any other woman would be thrilled.
* * * *
RAIN ROBINSON - April 26, 2373:
Oh. My. God! Ohmigod!
I can't believe it! I'm on a spaceship
nearly 380 years in the future!
In the future, for crying out loud!
Oh God! What have I done?
No wonder that Captain Janeway was pissed!
Kathryn Janeway. Now
there is a woman Gloria Steinem would love to
meet. Personally, I think
she is a bit uptight. All right, she's a
little pissed that I decided to
hitchhike on her ship and I don't
blame her. But Jeez!
By the time she finished me, I felt like I was
seventeen again, being nagged to
death by my mother. I really think
that woman needs to get laid.
According to the Captain, what we
are traveling on is a starship.
Namely a space-traveling vessel
that is part of some organization
called Starfleet. And Starfleet
happens to be the military arm of
another organization called the
Federation of United Planets or
something. Like a futuristic
version of the United Nations, only it's
an alliance between different planets.
Although most of Voyager's
crew consists of Humans, there are
some who came from other planets.
Agen . . . uh, Lieutenant Tuvok
happens to be one. He came from a
planet called Vulcan. With
those ears and HAL-like personality, I'm
not surprised.
Oh God! This is wonderful.
I'm a 20th century woman stuck on a 24th
century space . . . starship.
And I'm attracted to a man who happens
to be over 300 years younger than
me. Great! Now I understand why
Tom's dialogue seemed a bit . .
. . well, dated at times. I mean, who
uses "groovy" in 1996? Or
spy against the KBG? I wonder if I was
just another assignment to Tom?
Or someone to be used to stop that
creep, Henry Starling, from blowing
up the future? I have a bad
feeling that I had stowed away on
that shuttle for nothing. And that
Tom Paris saw nothing more than
some loud, annoying woman whose
company he had to endure.
Just like the others. Damn!
As for my position here on Voyager,
Captain Janeway assigned me to
some place called Stellar Cartography.
Apparently, it's where the
crew map the unexplored regions
of space. Hmm, sounds like my cup of
tea. My first assignment is
to catch up on 377 years of astronomy,
astrophysics and Earth history.
Easier said than done. Then again, I
do like an interesting challenge.
Hell, it's a lot better than
roaming the ship with nothing to
do. Janeway asked if I would like to
become part of the ship's Starfleet
personnel. Let's just say it took
a great deal of effort not to laugh
in her face. Instead, I merely
smiled and said, "Thanks, but no
thanks." What the hell? I was never
the military type and I'll be damned
if anyone caught me wearing one
of those god-awful leisure suits.
LIEUTENANT B'ELANNA TORRES - STARDATE
50327.93:
I had not seen much of Rain Robinson,
following our discovery of her
aboard ship. Come to think
of it, I did not see much of Tom, either.
One can only assume he was busy,
getting her acquainted with Voyager.
On her third day aboard ship, the
two paid a visit to Engineering.
Personally, I would have preferred
if Tom had chosen someone else -
preferably Sue Nicoletti or Vorik
- to welcome the little newcomer.
Fate has a way; it seemed, of never
going my way.
"Hi B'Elanna," Tom greeted in his
usual affable manner. "You remember
Rain Robinson, don't you?
From the staff meeting, a few days ago?"
I gave them both a stiff smile.
"Oh yeah. Our time traveler." I
faced her. "So, is Tom giving
you a tour of the ship?"
Miss Robinson responded with a brief
nod. "Yeah." I noticed that her
eyes seemed fixated on my face.
Or to be exact, my forehead.
Kahless! Where is a scarf
when one is needed?
"You find something interesting?"
I growled slightly.
"Sorry. I didn't mean to stare.
It's just that . . . well, to be
honest, I've been staring at a lot
of people, lately." Translation:
she had been staring at all the
odd-looking aliens. Non-Terrans. "I
guess everyone has a good reason
to stare at me, as well. Considering
I'm from the past. But I've
got to be honest, that forehead of yours
really looks exotic. I know
a good number of men who would probably
fall for you like crazy."
She must be insane. Or a bad
judge of character. A lot of men fall
over me? Huh! I still
remember how that Arizona terrorist had stared
at me. Like some animal that
had escaped from a zoo.
Miss Robinson continued, "What exactly
are you? I know that Tuvok is
from some place called Vulcan."
"She's half-Klingon, half-Human,"
Tom answered before I could. He
gave me a fond look. For some
reason, it warmed me considerably.
"There's no one in this universe
quite like her."
Miss Robinson murmured in an acid
voice that took me by surprise,
"That sounds familiar." Unless
my senses were deceiving me, there
seemed to be a hint of jealousy
in her eyes. Or resentment.
"Did you say something?" Tom asked.
Apparently, he had not heard her
last remark. Nor did Miss
Robinson bothered to answer.
I continued, "I suppose you require
a tour of Engineering?" Both Tom
and Miss Robinson nodded and I proceeded
to give them the guided tour.
While I rambled on about the
ship's functions, I noticed a few things
about my two visitors. One,
Tom made every effort to express his
continuing friendship toward Miss
Robinson with every look or gesture
he could muster. As for our
intrepid time traveler, she continued to
either reject or ignore his attempts.
What the hell had brought on
this sudden coldness?
When the tour finished, Miss Robinson
thanked me and asked if we could
meet for breakfast or lunch, one
day. My first instinct was to say
no. But a small part of me
felt a little curious about her and what
she had to say. Besides, I
also wanted to learn what made her tick.
Get to know the opposition.
So, I said yes.
* * * *
RAIN ROBINSON - April 29, 2373:
"There's no one in this universe
quite like her." That is what Tom
said about that engineer, B'Elanna
Torres. Hmmm. Sounded familiar.
Very familiar. Hell, if one
changed a few words, it would sound
exactly like, "You're like no woman
I've ever met." The very words
Tom had spoken to me, when he said
good-bye to me in the California
desert. Only in Lieutenant
Torres's case, I suspect that Tom had been
more sincere.
I saw the look he gave her.
And I don't blame him. The lieutenant is
a very beautiful woman - in an exotic
way. So, why did I bother to
make plans for breakfast or lunch
with her? To learn about the
competition? What competition?
I already knew whom Tom preferred.
It seemed useless to put a fight.
Besides, I rather liked Lieutenant
Torres. She seemed a little
more livelier than most of the jokers on
this ship. Her and a few others
- like Tom and Neelix.
Neelix is this strange-looking guy,
who looks like a warthog with
spots, whiskers and a Mohawk haircut.
Despite his strange appearance,
he is very nice and a lot of fun.
Unlike the others, he is a native
of this part of the galaxy - the
Delta Quadrant. He's from this
planet called Talax. About
two years ago, he was a junk trader, who
joined the ship to act as a guide
and cook.
His girlfriend, Kes, is also a native
of the Delta Quadrant. And
Ocampan. Like Neelix, she
is also nice - but in a quiet way. Kes is
a pretty blonde with ears that made
her look like an elf. She serves
as the medical assistant to the
ship's doctor. And like Tom, Neelix
and Lieutenant Torres, she doesn't
seem to possess this smug air that
permeates the majority of the crew.
In other words, she doesn't look
upon me like some savage or Neanderthal
from the past. Because the
rest of them do.
* * * *
B'ELANNA TORRES - STARDATE 50353.16
It's over. Between Neelix and
Kes, I mean. It took the malevolent
spirit of some dead warlord to break
up Voyager's only permanent
couple. Only, they are no
longer permanent. Is it any wonder that I
try to avoid relationships as much
as possible?
Thanks to Tieran, the warlord who
possessed Kes, the latter finally
discovered her dark side.
Kes also realized that she had outgrown
Neelix and her gratitude toward
him for saving her from the Kazon.
Apparently, her feelings toward
him had stemmed from gratitude.
From what Harry told me, Neelix is
feeling desolate over his broken
romance. Once we left the
Ilari homeworld, I decided to offer my
condolences to him. Since
Neelix has always proven to be one of the
few willing to befriend me, I decided
to offer my condolences. Cheer
him up. Only, upon my arrival
at the Mess Hall just before lunch, I
found him deep in conversation with
Rain Robinson.
She stood next to the counter, contemplating
dishes that Neelix had
set out for lunch. "What's
this again?" she asked, pointing at some
kind of custard pie with brown sticks
protruding from it.
"Alarian pie," Neelix replied.
"It's quite delicious. Made with
Alarian eggs and Cancus mushrooms."
Miss Robinson pointed at the brown
sticks. "And what are those?"
Neelix replied, "Hagellian roots.
It gives the soufflé its flavor."
Eyeing the dish warily, Miss Robinson
continued, "It doesn't taste
like Leola root, does it?"
"You don't like Leola root?"
Unlike the rest of us, Miss Robinson
happened to be a little more
blunt. "Neelix, don't take
this the wrong way, but your Leola root
stew is awful! I took one
bite and nearly gagged. Hasn't anyone else
told you?"
"No," Neelix ruefully answered.
"Well, I do recall that Commander
Chakotay had once expressed distaste
of it. But he hasn't said
anything since." He paused
and glanced at my direction. "Ah!
B'Elanna! A bit early for
lunch, are you?"
Miss Robinson also glanced at me
and nodded. I returned the nod and
glanced at the display of food on
the counter. "Hi Neelix," I
greeted. "Did I just hear
you tell Miss Robinson that you had some
pie for lunch?"
"Alvarian pie." Neelix cut
a slice of the pie and served it on a
plate. "Try some."
I hesitated. Mind you, I really
like Neelix. He is a sweet man and a
wonderful friend. But I have
never been able to truly enjoy most of
his Delta Quadrant delicacies.
I like to use the replicators, unless
I have no other choice. Which
happened to be the case, today. "I, uh
. . ." I began, trying to find words
that would not insult him.
Miss Robinson suddenly volunteered
in my stead. "Give it to me,
Neelix. I'll try it."
She gave me an understanding smile. "I don't
mind being the guinea pig, today."
Then she took a bite. Her eyes
lit up with delight. "Hmmm,
this is great! You should try it."
I did. Not bad, but I found
the pie a tad too spicy for my taste.
"Doesn't this spice bother you?"
I asked the other woman.
Dark eyes stared at me in disbelief.
"This is too spicy for you?"
"Well, I'm not used to so much spice,"
I replied, trying not to sound
defensive. As much as I like
our guest, she seemed to have a habit of
questioning a person. Much
like Tuvok in the middle of an
interrogation.
Miss Robinson's eyes continued to
penetrate mine. "Where is your
family from?" she asked. "I
mean, your Human family." I told her.
Mexico. From the province
of ?, not far from Mexico City. "And
you're not used to spicy food?"
"I was mainly raised by my Klingon
mother," I coolly replied.
"Klingons do not eat spicy food.
As for Humans, they're more inclined
to eat healthier food."
Miss Robinson seemed horrified at
the thought. "Good God! What is
the fun in that?"
Neelix added in a conspiratorial
manner, "To be honest, I have to
agree with you, Miss Robinson."
"Call me Rain. All of you."
Orange-yellow eyes brightened considerably.
Already, Miss Robinson .
. . uh, Rain had managed to wrap
the cook around her little finger.
"If you insist," Neelix added happily.
"As I was about to say,
between you and me, I like my food
with a little spice or zest. I
didn't think there were any Humans
who felt the same."
"On Earth . . . well, 20th century
Earth, I'm from the Southwest. A
Southern California girl.
Spice is almost like table salt to us."
While the two chatted happily, I
did not have the heart to inform Miss
. . . I mean, Rain that 24th century
Humans also try to avoid salt.
Oh well. She will eventually
learn.
As for Neelix, judging by his happy
countenance, I could see that he
no longer needed any consolation
from me or anyone else. Whatever he
may still feel over his breakup
with Kes, Rain has managed to put him
a better mood. For the moment.
* * * *
KATHRYN JANEWAY - STARDATE 50388.37
Damn that Q! What an exasperating
man! To be honest, I could say the
same about him, his mate and the
entire Q Continuum.
Not only did Q try to mate with me,
behind the female Q's back, he had
also dragged me into the Continuum's
civil war. I nearly got killed -
first by shells and gunfire, while
dressed in some ridiculous 19th
century dress. Wait.
Perhaps I'm being a little harsh about the
dress. I rather liked it.
It would have been a perfect outfit to
wear in my Gothic holonovel.
But I digress. Not only did he and the
Continuum drag both my crew and
me into their war, he had refused to
do me a favor in return for helping
him settle the war.
Following the Continuum's civil war,
Q returned to Voyager, with his
new son in tow. To my surprise,
he named me as the child's godmother.
Image that - Kathryn Janeway,
a guardian of an omnipotent being. I
faced an even greater shock after
I asked Q to return Miss Robinson to
20th century Earth. He refused.
Q had the nerve to inform me that he
could not do as I had asked.
"May I ask, why?" I demanded.
For once, Q looked serious.
"I'm sorry Kathy. I may be capable of a
lot of things, but tampering with
the timeline is a no-no in the
Continuum."
"Pardon me? Is this the same
person who sent the Enterprise-D into
the Delta Quadrant, forcing the
Federation into a premature contact
with the Borg?"
Q sighed. "And look what that
has brought me. The Continuum punished
me for my . . . " the man actually
managed to pout, ". . .
irresponsible behavior. Now
that the civil war is over and I'm a
father, I must learn to be a little
more prudent."
"Prudent? Don't you consider
returning Miss Robinson back to where
she belong, prudent?" I cried.
Not that I disliked the young lady,
but Miss Robinson has a tendency
to be a little . . . direct. Or
should I say, blunt! She has
become a strong reminder of Humans from the past centuries. Quite
frankly, it is a reminder I could do
without.
A cryptic smile touched Q's lips.
Damn the man! "Now Kathy, how do
you know that Miss Robinson doesn't
belong here? Has her presence
upset the timeline in any way?"
Right after we learned of Miss Robinson's
presence, I had Tuvok and
Tom Paris examine the ship's database
for any discrepancies in the
timeline. Apparently, neither
man was unable to detect any.
"Of course they haven't!" Q retorted.
"Miss Robinson's presence on
this ship has not changed anything.
If she had not sneaked aboard
Voyager," I winced at the imagery,
"she would have been dead."
Hands on hips, I glared at Q.
"What do you mean?"
With a sigh, Q explained that after
parting from Helm . . . uh,
Lieutenant Paris, Miss Robinson
was destined to be killed in a crime
that occurred at some store on her
way back to Los Angeles. "And if
that idiot Braxton had not sent
you screaming into the 20th century,
she would have been killed by your
favorite entrepreneur, Henry
Starling."
"So, you're saying . . ."
The omnipotent being smiled grandly.
"She's all yours, Kathy. Don't
worry. I'm sure that Miss
Robinson will put a little zest in your
humdrum lives. Especially
Helmboy's. That is, if your little Klingon
engineer doesn't get her hands on
him, first. I must say that I
rather like Miss Robinson.
She reminds me of how you Humans used to
be . . . before you became dull
and self-righteous."
"Q!" I gave him my deadliest
glare. Unfortunately, the scamp ignored
me. With Q Junior squirming
in his arms, he said good-bye one last
time and vanished. I sighed.
It looked as if Miss Robinson was here
to stay.
END OF PART I