Rest Now, My Warrior…

"You don't know how good it is to eat fresh food after months of emergency rations" said Naomi. Her eyes had rolled upwards at the sight of all of her favourite foods laid out in the wardroom of Deep Space Nine. The rest of the senior staff just sat and watched as Naomi and friends piled into the food until nothing was left.

"May I ask what Starfleet intends to do with us?" asked Icheb – wiping his mouth with a napkin.

"I have been in contact with Admiral Paris, and I have been told by him that his original orders stand. Once emergency repairs have been completed, you will take Voyager to Utopia Planetia for a full examination to decide her fate" Sisko said.

"I'd like a couple of people to come with us" Naomi said. "With just the five of us, it was hard to keep checking all the systems"

"There are a number of people due to rotate back to Earth for one reason or another" Sisko replied. "They will join your crew for the voyage back to Sector 001" and Naomi nodded.

"Captain to Captain… What do you think to our chances of keeping Voyager?"

"She's a broken ship - that much is certain" Sisko said. "Chief?"

"After you limped here, we conducted a complete sensor sweep over every single part of your hull, decking and support frames" the CPO said. "Every single deck has damage of some sort, that is repairable, but what is not is the damage to your space frame. We detected some cracks in the lateral members which may prove fatal. Normally, this would involve doing a whole load of gamma welding in spacedock for a year, but it might not be done because resources have to go towards the war effort"

"Our final cruise…" Mezoti said sadly.

"Seems so, Ma'am" O'Brian said.

"It will take two weeks for repairs to be completed, so you can continue to use every facility aboard the station" Sisko reminded them. "You're also welcome to sit in on any meetings that we h–"

"Ops to Wardroom"

"Wardroom"

"Captain, the transport ship Patrick Furlong is approaching the station. Captain Wildman's presence is strongly requested at Upper Pylon 1"

"She is on her way. Sisko out" and the dark skinned man looked at the girl. "We contacted your father and he jumped on the first transport here"

"Daddy?" Naomi whispered and looked out of the viewing port. "My daddy?" she hurried to the door and was almost there when Red Alert sounded.

"Sisko to Ops. Report!"

"Dominion vessel using some sort of energy and electronic cloak appeared on sensors" the voice of Kira said. "Defence ships scrambling to intercept"

"Give us a play by play as we go to Ops, Colonel. Ladies and Gentlemen…?" he gestured to the door and they listened to Kira speaking of the battle.

"Dauntless and Daring are firing. Direct hit to their forward weapons grid… Still coming on… We're targeting now… She's taking all the damage we throw out her… Prophets but this is one tough ship" and they could hear her grudging respect for any sip that could take this damage and keep on coming – Voyager excepted. "She's turning away… Moving off… CAPTAIN! She's going to ram the transport!"

"Captain Wildman to Patrick Furlong. Evasive action!"

"Copy that"

"All ships engaging…" Kira came back on the line as the turbolift came up the many decks and deposited them into Ops. "Evasive action not effective"

"Beam them off that ship!" Icheb said.

"Our shields are up" Kira replied.

"Tractor beam it away" Mezoti said.

"They are down for repairs" O'Brian said.

"She's closing"

"DO SOMETHING!" Naomi screamed.

"Too late" Azan said and they all watched as the Dominion Battleship accelerated right into the transport – turning both ships into a miniature supernova.

"Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo…" Naomi yelled. She had never met her father and was overjoyed that she could see him in person – only for that to be taken away from her.

"Captain, I am reading survivors in the middle of the Dominion wreckage" Dax said, reading her console. Naomi walked over to Worf's console, pushed him out of her way, brought up torpedoes, locked on and looked at the screen – showing the weakening fireball and debris field. "Dominionise this…" and hit the fire control. Every torpedo that could aim fired three torpedoes each and the remaining part of the ship was obliterated into nothing more than an inch wide. She looked over to Dax. "Scan for survivors on the transport"

"There are none detected"

"Captain, a word please" Sisko said.

"No" said Naomi. "I am going to oversee repairs to my ship. If you want anything, stuff it" and she entered the turbolift and left Ops.

#

"Computer, this is Captain Wildman – Commanding Officer, USS Voyager. Calculate, using the current damage reports for the ship, how long it would take Voyager to reach Cardassia Prime" Naomi sat in her quarters aboard the station. She refused to talk to anybody except Icheb – and that only happened because he threatened to relieve her of command.

"Calculating"

"What is the current armament of the ship?"

"Twenty two torpedoes, two phaser banks and one disrupter"

"Do the Self Destruct packages remain onboard?"

"Affirmative"

"Very well… When you have finished calculating, plot a course to Cardassia Prime the moment a vessel leaves the sensor range of this station"

"Acknowledged"

"What are you planning?" asked Mezoti.

"Nothing"

"This hardly looks like nothing" said the Norcadian, gesturing at all of the PADDs on the coffee table in the quarters assigned to her on the station. "It looks as if you are planning a mission of sorts"

"Just… Just some research" Naomi replied, scooping them up and away from Mezoti. "I want to know everything I can now that we're with Starfleet"

"Did you consider your briefings inadequate?" Icheb asked as he stepped into the room with Azan and Rebi.

"Just leave me alone"

"You appear to be planning a mission to Cardassian space" Azan noted.

"In which case" his twin added, "We'd like to join you"

"What is the plan?"

"I was thinking of warping directly to Cardassia Prime, targeting the compound of the Founders and firing all of our weapons at it"

"Naomi, I fear your grief at losing your father so close to meeting him has unhinged you" Icheb said. "The course of action you suggest will get everybody killed. If we can tell the Dominion vessels that we're carrying a Founder…"

"They'd escort us all the way there" Naomi looked up at him. "But we would need to get to a patrol without getting shot out of the skies first"

"And I am willing to bet that Starfleet didn't tell you everything about Dominion patrol lines and areas" Icheb said. "They have told us much, but not everything… The war is going very badly for the Federation and its allies. More so than what is generally believed. I overheard Sisko and other officers talking and they said that the Federation might have to surrender in six months"

"We can't just steal the ship" said Mezoti. "The moment we changed course, we would be tracked down and stopped"

"Assuming we were able to make a good escape from Starfleet, what about the crew they have placed aboard us?" Azan asked. "We would stand a much better chance of actually surviving if we had their help"

"I don't want to risk more lives than is necessary" Naomi shook her head.

"Why not just use the cloaking device?" asked Icheb.

"Because that would involve breaking regulations and rules" said Rebi. "Add to that the fact we do not have a functional one…"

"We'll get one" Naomi said. "Okay… Lets plot us a course"

#

Two Weeks And Five Days Later

"Captain on the Bridge!"

"As you were" Naomi said. She and her friends stepped out onto the refurbished Bridge of Voyager to start what most assumed would be the way home. The temporary crew went about doing a number of odd jobs that needed to be done at the last minute.

"Not exactly how I remembered it last time" Mezoti spoke quietly. The whole Bridge had been refitted or repaired enough to make a safe journey – though huge panels were missing in the ceiling and some of the carpeting was missing. Also, the heavy smell of burning was evident in the air – mixed with a host of other smells and scents.

"Lets go" Naomi said and moved down to the centre seat. She was pleased to find it was the original one as most of the others were too. She reached down and hit the intercom and waited for the Bo'son's whistle to sound. "Attention all hands, this si the Captain speaking. All hands rig for departure"

"Bridge to Engineering. Bring main propulsion online" Icheb ordered.

"Aye, Aye"

"Operations. Power main deflector array and confirm our SIF is rigged for transit" Azan said.

"Aye, Sir"

"All stations checking in at departure stations" Icheb said.

"All systems appear to be working at optimum efficiency" Mezoti said, looking at the large MSD at the rear.

"That makes a change" Rebi laughed.

"Lets see what happens" Naomi warned them and sat in the Captain's chair. "Open a channel to the station"

"Channel open"

"DS9, this is Voyager requesting permission to get under weigh"

"Voyager is cleared to depart from Upper Pylon 1"

"But we're at Upper Pylon 2" Naomi giggled. "How many damaged Intrepid class ships do you get here? Voyager out. Operations, disengage capture locks"

"Aye Ma'am" Azan said. "Capture locks disengaged"

"Helm… Port thrusters. Move us away from the station nice and easy"

"Aye, Captain" Icheb said, taking the Helm for himself. Voyager slowly crept away from the Upper Pylon and hovered between the three.

"Secure thrusters, helm. One quarter impulse until we clear the station and then full impulse bearing 090 mark 15" Naomi said. "Bridge to Engineering. Standby for warp speed"

"Aye"

"We have cleared the station and are clear and free to navigate" said Icheb.

"Plot a course towards Earth" Naomi said. "Warp 4"

"Course plotted and laid into navigational computer" Icheb replied. Naomi looked at the station before giving the order to engage.

"All systems appear to be functioning normally" said Azan.

"Time until we leave sensor range of Deep Space 9?" asked Naomi.

"On this course and speed… Seven and a half hours" Rebi said.

"Right…" Naomi closed her eyes briefly and made her decision. "All hands, this is the Captain. There will be an observance of strict radio silence by this ship until further notice. All senior officers report to Astrometrics in twenty minutes. Captain, out. Lieutenant" she looked at the officer that regained the Helm from Icheb. "The Bridge is yours"

"Aye, Captain"

"You lot are with me" Naomi said flatly and the group of friends headed for the turbolift

#

"Thank you all for coming" Naomi said. "Computer, seal the doors to this room"

Doors are sealed

"What I am going to say here is to be treated as top secret for the next few hours" Naomi said. "As you are aware, we have one of the Founders aboard for transport to Starfleet Command on Earth. Our orders are to travel directly Sector 001 without stopping, but I am disregarding those orders. We have the opportunity to end this war, and I assume you would take that chance too"

"Captain?" a middle aged Lieutenant Commander frowned. "I don't think I understand you"

"We are going to travel to the Cardassian system and orbit Cardassia Prime. Once we have done that, we will demand the surrender of the Dominion forces in the Alpha Quadrant. If they don't, we'll beam the Founder into space with a wide beam so as to scatter the atoms. The Jem'Hadar will kill themselves for failing to protect their God and that will leave just the Cardassians to worry about" Naomi explained her plan.

"But I thought our orders were to proceed directly to Headquarters"

"That is true" said Icheb. "However, Starfleet's General Orders also require us to engage the enemy wherever we find them"

"Oh" said the officer.

"Now that we have your seal of approval…" Naomi chuckled, "Lets get down to the plan. Some of you may have read the logs of the time in the Delta Quadrant and I hope you took notice of one point. Sat in my quarters, in a sealed box, is a fully operational Cloaking Device"

"A cloak?" asked an Engineer. "Only the Defiant is allowed to carry one as per treaty regulations"

"Yeah? Well I never signed that" Naomi said. "I need the cloak installed and tested inside seven hours. I also need you to do as much of the repairs as possible and have damage control parties deployed around the ship. Pass the word for them all to be in suits when they deploy – I am not losing anybody through a hull breach" and Naomi and her friends went over the plan with the senior officers.

#

"We have left the area covered by Deep Space Nine's sensors" reported the Helm.

"Very well" Azan pressed a button on the chair arm. "Bridge to Naomi"

"Naomi"

"We have left sensor coverage" Azan reported. "Would you come to the Bridge?"

"On my way"

"Understood. Azan out" and he looked towards the Helm. "Helm, bring us to a full stop and hold this position. Put all sensors to passive only" and the crew quickly complied. Within three minutes Naomi, Icheb and a slightly grimy looking Mezoti entered the Bridge.

"Report!"

"The ship is at full stop with sensors set to passive only. We are holding this position and awaiting orders" Azan said. He spoke crisply for the sake of the Starfleet crew.

"Very well" Naomi looked around the Bridge. "Helm, set course for Cardassia Prime - Warp 6. Computer, open a channel to the entire ship"

Channel open

"Attention all hands, this is the Captain. We are currently at rest outside sensor range of Deep Space Nine. The reason for this is located in the Brig – we have a Founder aboard this ship. Our orders are to return to Sector 001 with no contact with the enemy. However, as Captain of Voyager I am electing to disregard those orders in favour of something else. We will shortly begin a high speed run towards Cardassia Prime where upon we will fire upon and take out their Central Command and also the Dominion Headquarters. The command staff believe that we may take out high ranking Vorta and maybe even some Founders too. Once we have started our salvos, we will broadcast to every vessel in range visual footage of the prisoner. We hope that the Vorta and Jem'Hadar will stand down their vessels or even formate around us and defend Voyager" Naomi paused, thought and then continued. "No member of Starfleet has ever been Court Martialed for following the Captain's orders. However, if you wish to speak up in protest I will so note in my log and give you a shuttle to return to DS9" but there was no reply from anyone. "Very well… Engineering?"

"Standing by"

"Bring the Cloaking Device online"

"Aye"

"In one hour and seven minutes, we will cross the border into enemy territory" Naomi said. "Until then, the Mess Hall will remain open. I highly suggest that you take the chance to get something good to eat and drink. Also, until the time we reach the border, Holodeck 1 will be operational for those that may wish to make some sort of prayer to a deity or deities of their beliefs. Bridge out. Helm, engage. Yellow Alert!" and the ship turned to starboard and then shot off into warp.

"Cloaking Device online" Icheb said.

"Activate the cloak" and the ship darkened slightly as the masking effects of the device took effect. "Listen up people… All we have to see ahead of us is the Helm's NavHaz sensor. This course should take us directly to Cardassian central space, but we have no idea what is ahead of us. If you have nothing to do, I want you to keep an eye on the sensor feed at your stations. For now, though, I want you to all go below and get something to eat and visit the Holodeck if you want. Dismiss" and Naomi's friends took over the key stations as the officers left.

"Do you want me to load torpedoes into the tubes now?" asked Rebi. He had been quietly working at the Tactical station on a complex firing pattern for orbital bombardment.

"Yes" Naomi sighed and sat down in the Captain's chair. "Icheb?"

"Yes?" he turned to look back at Naomi from the Helm.

"Increase speed to Warp 9.99. Mez… Is the package ready?"

"Yes" Mezoti replied. "It is in a warhead and ready to be used"

"Good. Commander Icheb?"

"Captain?"

"As Senior Officer aboard, as Commanding Officer of the USS Voyager and as Senior Officer in Theatre, I am authorising the use of Nuclear Weapons"

"Aye, Captain. May I ask for confirmation of the order?" they had agreed to act like this for the Bridge records.

"I concur with Captain Wildman" said Azan.

"I concur with Captain Wildman" said Rebi.

"I concur with Captain Wildman" said Mezoti.

"I concur with Captain Wildman" said Icheb finally. "We are in agreement, Captain"

"Prepare to Arm the nuclear warhead" Naomi said. "Maintain course and speed. Steady as she goes. Computer! Not counting Deep Space Nine, what is the nearest Starbase to our position?"

Starbase 375 at a distance of 30 light years

"What is the travelling time if ship's moved at Warp 9.95?"

38 hours

"Computer, record the following message for dispatch to Starbase 375 and repeated to Admiral Paris at Starfleet Command. Message begins: By the time you hear this message…"

#

"By the time you hear this message, it will already be too late to stop me. We are already on our way to Cardassian space and on course for Cardassia Prime. Once there, we aim to take out the Dominion leadership with one strike. You should know that I gave the crew the chance to either object to it and push on or leave the ship make return to DS9 via shuttle. None of them wished to do so. Therefore, we are going to attack the Headquarters as soon as possible. A full pla–" Sisko cut off the rest of the message before looking up at the other officers in the room.

"Our best guesses place Voyager somewhere around twenty four hours away from Cardassian home space. If we took every ship capable of Warp 9.99, we will still arrive too late"

"What do you propose, Captain?" asked Captain Picard. He had been pulled from his patrol route near Orion and ordered to proceed with all dispatch to the station to get a briefing.

"We need to send some ships not just to support Voyager but also to relieve Captain Wildman of command"

"Have you tried contacting the ship to relieve her by remote?" asked Picard.

"Several times, Sir" Sisko replied. "However, either she has sustained damage to her comm systems, been captured, destroyed or, and this is my theory, is maintaining radio silence"

"Ops to Sisko"

"Go ahead"

"We're receiving a message from Voyager" Kira said. "Text only"

"Lets have it"

"Its just ten words, Captain - Captain Wildman to Starfleet Command. I have engaged the Dominion"

"She must have encountered them before she reached the central core of Dominion controlled space" Picard said. "I will take the Enterprise, Kim Jong-Un and the Patrick Furlong and head there at maximum warp. You gather as many ships as you can in two hours and follow us as quick as you can"

"And then what?"

"Knowing Captain Wildman from all of the reports I have read, we shall assume guard duties over the surrendered Dominion forces" Picard stood and left Sisko's office and headed across Ops to use the transporter pad.

#

"RED ALERT! ALL HANDS TO BATTLESTATIONS!" Azan shouted. "Drop the cloak and divert all power to shields and weapons. Tactical, target leading vessel and return fire"

"Aye, Aye"

"Bridge to Naomi. Your attendance on the Bridge is most welcome"

"Already here" Naomi said. "Report"

"Three attack ships on an intercept course. They must have detected us through the cloak"

"Flood the area with radiation" Mezoti said. "That way they can not communicate to other ships and they can not generate a stable warp field and leave"

"In range"

"Fire" and phasers and torpedoes lashed out and struck the first attack ship – blowing it to pieces in seconds. "So this is what happens with working weapons" Naomi said loudly and in a mock amused and curious tone.

"Helm, bring us about and follow that second ship" Icheb ordered.

"Thank god this was just a routine patrol" said Rebi "Otherwise we would have more ships on the way" and as he spoke, the trained officers brought the ship around, targeted the remaining enemy vessels and dispatched them.

"Orders, Captain?" Icheb asked.

"Resume course for Cardassia Prime – maximum warp. Forget the cloak… We're done hiding from them now. Take it offline and divert all power to the shields" Naomi said. "Maintain Red Alert and Battlestations until otherwise ordered. Computer, send a subspace message to Starfleet. 'I have engaged Dominion scout force'. Encode and send. Helm – engage" and Voyager turned round and then shot to warp.

#

"I don't know if that girl should be Court Martialed or awarded a medal" Picard said, shaking his head in disbelief.

#

Nearly a full day later, Naomi was called to the Bridge and reached it after a few minutes.

"Report"

"We have entered the Cardassian system" Icheb reported.

"Very well" Naomi looked at the plot that was displayed on the main screen. "Captain to all hands: Stand To Battlestations. Helm, bring us out of warp and continue in at full impulse. Science. Tactical. I want sensor data – what am I facing?"

"I am reading over two thousand ships and defensive orbital platforms" said Azan.

"Damn… Okay then. We are committed from here on out. Helm, adjust course to place us in orbit directly above the Cardassian Central Command. According to Starfleet Command, that's where the Dominion is being headed up from" Naomi took a few calming breaths before looking over at Rebi. "Open a channel to the Dominion"

"May I remind the Captain that it will reveal our location?"

"Understood. Channel please"

"Open"

"This is Captain Naomi Wildman of the Federation Starship Voyager. You are ordered to stand down and surrender. Failure to comply with that will result in my firing upon you. You have…" she looked at a timer, "Three minutes and thirty seconds to comply"

"In the name of the Gods, you will die for your defiance of the galactic order"

"Well I did warn you" Naomi said. "Wildman, out"

"Reading over three hundred vessels moving to intercept us" Mezoti said.

"Let them" said Naomi. "Azan, divert auxiliary power to the forward shields, lock on photon torpedoes and prepare to fire. Bridge to Engineering"

"Aye"

"Vent the nacelles"

"Captain?"

"I have an idea. Bridge out"

"Entering firing range" Azan said.

"Helm, evasive manoeuvres on a central line to the planet. Azan, return fire when…" the ship trembled with the immense weapons fire. "Mr Azan, you may return their fire"

"With pleasure"

"Engineering"

"Aye?"

"Access Main Computer Core and have the computer place Action 666 on standby from either your end or from the Bridge"

"Acknowledged"

The battle lasted for many minutes as the lone Starfleet vessel battled the incredible odds it faced. It was helped mainly by the skilled crew aboard, mainly Naomi, twins, Icheb and Mezoti, and also by the fact the Jem'Hadar ships had no shields. This was, Naomi thought, most likely because they could simply clone the crew again in a few days. It did not go all their way, however, and a lucky shot hit Voyager and the shield grid went down. Increased firepower was about to cause hull breaches when Naomi taped at her chair arm console.

"Computer, initiate Action 666"

Acknowledged

"Captain! Shields just went fully up" the Engineering officer said.

"I know" Naomi smiled. "Azan, as Commanding Officer, I order you to load the nuclear warhead into the forward tubes. Return fire with disrupters only"

"Disrupters?" asked a Starfleet officer.

"You don't think we were just armed with snowballs, did you, Lieutenant?" Naomi said. "Azan, target facility and prepare to fire"

"Torpedo guidance offline" Azan replied mournfully.

"Damn" Naomi watched as more fire impacted the shields. However, the Borg shields simply took the fire as if it was water off a duck's back. The returning disrupter fire simply blew them apart. "Helm, plot a course 000 mark 02. Ahead one quarter impulse power"

"That takes us directly into the atmosphere" Icheb said.

"I understand that, but we need to get closer so the torpedoes can lock on with sensors" Naomi said.

"I believe your plan to be reckless and endangering the ship" Icheb looked around at Naomi.

"Yes?"

"I like it" said Icheb and worked his console to prepare for atmospheric entry.

"Shield status?"

"Between 99% and 100%" said Azan.

"Just as we expected it to be" replied Rebi. "Your work seems to have served us well" he added towards Mezoti.

"Thank you"

"Azan, lock onto the complex with the portside torpedo tube"

"Can I ask why?" asked an officer.

"Because I am not insane, Mister. Despite our orders to destroy the enemy no matter what the means, I will not use a nuclear weapon on the planetary population. However, they must appear to believe I would do so…" Naomi blinked at a sensor reading.

"I am reading seven more vessels entering the system" said Mezoti. "Federation heavy cruiser and some light frigates… Cruisers might be a Sovereign class ship"

"Open a channel"

"Channel open"

"This is Captain Wildman of the starship Voyager. Identify yourselves"

"This is Captain Picard of the starship Enterprise. You are ordered to surrender your command to your First Officer"

"Are you serious?"

"Very, Miss Wildman. We will move in to support your retreat back to Federation space where you will face a Court Martial for violation of orders and disregard for the safety of your ship"

"This is Commander Icheb, Naomi's First Officer. If you think I am relieving Naomi of command in battle, you have another thing coming. Voyager, out" and Icheb closed the link just as the ship entered the atmosphere.

"One minute and twelve seconds until we get through the atmosphere" Mezoti reported.

"Shields at full power" Azan said. "Naomi, I still am unable to bring targeting sensors online"

"Just be ready to fire them directly in front of us" Naomi said.

"Aye". The ship shook heavily as smaller vessels chased after Voyager and fired at it. After a few shots, the Borg shields adapted and there was no danger to them.

"We're through" Mezoti said.

"Target dead ahead"

"Torpedoes ready to fire"

"FIRE!" and Azan pressed the button and a salvo of torpedoes hurtled out of the tubes and slammed into the building housing the Cardassian Central Command. What was once an imposing building vaporised and turned into scrap. As the ship flew over the ruins of the once mighty building, Icheb did a victory roll and Azan targeted and fired upon ground based weapons systems on his own accord. "Take us back into orbit" Naomi ordered. "Bridge to the Brig. You see that, Founder? Solids took out what you thought impregnable… This is your last chance to surrender your forces or I will toss you into the sun"

"Very well" the Changling's voice sounded heavy with defeat. "Allow me contact with the fleet above, and we shall surrender all Dominion forces in the Alpha Quadrant"

"No" said Naomi. "ALL Dominion forces where ever they may be"

"Agreed"

"Guards. Toss her a communications pack tuned to the Dominion comm channels. Bridge out" and a few moments later, Mezoti reported the Dominion vessels standing down – freeing up the Federation vessels for combat against the Cardassians.

"Incoming message" said Rebi.

"From who?"

"Cardassian vessel"

"On screen"

"Yes, Ma'am" Naomi glared at Rebi before turning back to the screen. The image of the smoking crater that once housed the Central Command was replaced by the face of a heavily injured Cardassian. Smoke filled his Bridge around him as his crew battled to take fires under control.

"I am Gul Langton. Commander of the Cebo and assuming command of all Cardassian military forces wherever they may be"

"Naomi Wildman. Captain, Federation Starship USS Voyager"

"A child? This was caused by a mere child?" Langton asked in disbelief.

"This mere child just handed you your arse on a platter, Gul" Naomi said, adopting her best 'Stern Janeway' look. "Your ships are outnumbered, your allies have stood down… I suggest that you do the same and issue the surrender orders"

"I will not surrender to a child"

"Mezoti, scan his ship. Give me a current status report"

"Scanning… Damage to all decks. Main power offline, shields and weapons are down and life support is failing"

"Do the honourable thing, Gul Langton, and surrender whilst you still can"

"Never. Helm, ramming speed!"

"We have no impulse drive" an officer was heard to say.

"Then target the Enterprise and ram into her"

"Commander Azan. Lock all weapons onto the Cebo and prepare to blow her out of the skies"

"Naomi?"

"Do it"

"As you wish"

"Daddy" a young Cardassian girl came running onto the Bridge and hugged her father's legs.

"Commander, are we locked on?"

"Affirmative"

"You would kill innocent children, Captain?" he spat the last word out.

"You have Gul… You have... Well, I can see you don't want to surrender. Azan, fire at wi–"

"WAIT!" Langton screamed out. "I will do as you say, Captain. I will issue the surrender orders. The fate of our world lies with the Federation. Cebo out"

"Cardassian vessels are coming to a halt… I am reading multiple messages of surrender" Mezoti said. "All fighting has ceased…"

"Thanks be to the Prophets" a Bajoran officer said.

"I'm sure they played a part" Naomi assured her.

"Stand down weapons. All stations Yellow Alert" Naomi fell back into her chair. "Rebi, open a channel to the Enterprise"

"Channel open"

"Wildman to Picard. The war is over and both the Dominion and the Cardassians have surrendered to Starfleet. As we have a appointment to make, I turn over command of the Cardassian Theatre of Operations to you. Out. Icheb, set course for Earth – Warp 9"

"Aye. Course plotted and laid in"

"Engage" and Voyager jumped to warp and resumed her passage home.

#

The news of the surrender caught everyone by surprise and small starships found themselves in charge of ships dozens of times their own size. There was even one notable case where a Dominion Battlecruiser had surrendered to an escape pod. Starfleet Command had attempted to have Voyager lay over at Starbase 212 for a debriefing, but Naomi replied only that her orders had not changed from Admiral Paris.

"Attention all hands, this is the Captain" Naomi spoke as the last trace of the traditional Bosun's whistle silenced. "We are on course for a return to Utopia Planetia in just under a day's travel. I may not get an opportunity to say this, so I'll take it now. Although you have been aboard a few short days, I think you have done this ship, her crew and their joint legacies proud. I have been informed that upon our return, its likely that we'll be decommissioned and turned into a museum vessel, so lets get the old girl looking her best. I want all repair and cleaning work completed by 01:30 for Captain's Rounds at 05:00. That is all. Bridge to Engineering"

"Engineering. Azan here"

"Azan, do we have any black hull paint in ship's stores?"

"Manifest shows we have seven large drums of it"

"Have them taken to the airlock and get the computer to replicate some stencils in the shape of all the ships we have encountered and defeated"

"Naomi? I do not und– Oh… I see" Azan realised what Naomi was thinking of. "I will tie the other articles to the aft bridge structure"

"Sounds good to me, Naomi out. Helm, all stop"

"Aye, Captain. All stop"

"Tactical. Science. I want you to be on the lookout for any Dominion vessels nearby. Although there is a cease fire and an upcoming surrender, we might have hostiles still thinking we are at war" Naomi said.

"Aye"

"Aye"

"And while we're sat here doing nothing for two hours, run a series of battle drills, decompression alerts, fire in main engineering… You know the sort of thing. Mr Furlong" the Helm officer turned round to look at Naomi. "You have the Bridge"

"Aye, Captain. May I ask where you are going, Ma'am?"

"I am going outside to admire the scenery"

"Yes, Captain" but it was until several minutes later that the officer realised that he had been teased.

#

"Approaching the orbit of Pluto" the Helm officer reported.

"Very well" said Furlong. "Bridge to Captain"

"Captain"

"We're approaching Pluto"

"Very well. Be up there in a minute. Maintain course and speed"

"Aye. Bridge out" and the group of friends came to the Bridge.

"Its not too late to reverse course" said Mezoti.

"If only…" Naomi replied with a emotion filled sigh. "Lets get this over with. Stations" and the other four took their accustomed places on the Bridge. "Take us out of warp" Naomi ordered.

"Going to impulse" Icheb said and he smoothly brought Voyager out of warp.

"Attention all hands, this is the Captain. Dress Ship" and at Naomi's order, all of Voyager's running lights, pennants and spotlights were illuminated. "Mr Icheb… Indulge yourself"

"Aye, Ma'am" and he brought them around and piloted them into the solar system.

"Tactical, keep your eyes open for traffic. Science, give long range sensor data to Helm"

"As ordered"

"It will be done"

"Rebi, you may disengage the warp drive and secure it"

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah… She's earned her rest" Naomi fingered the armrests with affection.

"Naomi, I am reading a contact on the extreme edge of sensor range" Mezoti frowned and adjusted her console controls. "It is moving with us – keeping maximum distance"

"Open a channel" Naomi said. "Could be a ship with busted nav gear"

"Channel open"

"Unknown vessel, this is the USS Voyager. Identify yourself" but there was no reply. "Maybe a broken comm set as well… Anybody object to a last hurrah?" and nobody did. "Adjust course accordingly to intercept them. Maintain full impulse. Raise shields and warm up a phaser bank"

"You anticipate trouble?" asked Rebi.

"Just for a few warning shots" Naomi laughed. "Get some full scans and run it through the computer – see what it comes up with"

"I have already done so" said Mezoti. "Size and tonnage matches a Dominion Battleship. However, I am detecting huge amounts of radiation that negates this possibility"

"And if it was one of those, then it would have an escort of smaller Fighters" Naomi said. "If it wasn't because of the surrender, I'd say it was a sui…" the teenager suddenly stopped paled. "ALL HANDS STAND TO BATTLESTATIONS" and the Red Alert klaxon sounded and the lights darkened slightly as the alert status panels flashed their aggressive red. "Azan, send a message to Starfleet Command. Tell them we have engaged a lone Battleship and give our position and request support"

"All stations manned and ready" Rebi said.

"Right"

"I am reading over nine thousand torpedoes fully armed" said Mezoti. "If you include that to the power of a detonating warp core, the Earth could be fully destroyed if not severely damaged"

"Starfleet reports no ships able to assist" Azan said.

"The heart of the federation and we've not got anything?"

"It always confused the Borg" Azan shrugged.

"Naomi, I do not believe that we will be able to cause enough damage to cripple or destroy the enemy" Rebi said, reading the sensor data Mezoti was sending him.

"Message from Utopia Planetia. They are scrambling some ships in drydock. They ask if you can occupy the Dominion for a little while"

"Lets try" Naomi said. "Rebi, fire at their engines"

"Firing"

#

"First. Set course for the planet Earth. Maximum warp"

"As the Founder wishes, so the Vorta Commands"

#

"Naomi, they have gone to warp"

"Tell me we still have warp"

"Yes"

"Then maximum warp – overtake them"

"And then what"

"They'll be stopped" and one minute later, Icheb brought them around and parked them directly in the path of the incoming Battleship.

"All power diverted to the forward weapons array" Rebi said.

"Good" Naomi knew that there was only one way to end this and save the Federation from chaos. "All hands except the senior staff to the escape pods"

"Captain?" Furlong breathed.

"Abandon ship" Naomi said. "That is a direct order. Computer, arm Self Destruct. Authorisation Flotter T Water III"

"This is Commander Icheb. Authorisation Three Seven Nine Eight Gamma"

"This is Lieutenant Commander Mezoti. Authorisation One Two Three Four Five"

Self Destruct is armed. State method

"Override protocols by Captain's order. Detonate on my command"

Acknowledged

"So… whats the plan?" asked Azan.

"We fire all of our weapons at one spot and then ram right into it at full speed. Then we detonate the charges and win" Naomi said. "Mind you… It'll mean the end of us, but we're ready for that – aren't we?"

"Aye"

"Yes"

"I am"

"Of course"

"Good show…" Naomi wiped a tear or nine from her eyes.

"All escape pods away" Rebi reported.

"Here she comes" Mezoti said.

"Aim for the biggest part at the front" Naomi said.

"Icheb, all power to the engines. Give me ramming speed"

"Aye, Aye, Captain" Icheb said, giving his friend the fullest respect she deserved. Voyager darted forwards like a cork out of a bottle as the Battleship dropped out of warp and hurried towards the planet.

"Open up, Rebi. Let them have everything you can throw at them" Naomi smirked. "Aim for the point directly in front of us"

"Aye, Aye". The ship shuddered as impact after impact hit them – shields were soon lost and Rebi had no chance to raise the Borg shields before a one in a million shot hit their secondary computer core.

"Report"

"Shields and weapons offline. Auto Destruct has been aborted" Azan said.

"Damn… We've got to stop them… Icheb, set course 000 mark 0 – Maximum Warp"

"Too late!" Mezoti cried. The Battleship loomed in the screen and there was a terrible shudder and groaning from the very bowels of Voyager as metal was torn by metal. The five on the Bridge were thrown heavily around the deck as Voyager ploughed its way inside the Dominion vessel.

"We appear to be lodged inside the enemy vessel" Mezoti said as she clawed her way back to her feet. "I am reading power reductions from them. I believe their transporters are offline"

"What about ours?"

"Ours are functional"

"We are being boarded" Rebi said. "Deck 3 Section 13 Gamma"

"We have to stop them before they can reach Earth" Naomi said.

"We could detonate the core ourselves" Icheb said. "If we can get to the armoury, we need just a few charges to blow up the core"

"Lets go"

"No" said Naomi. "Something I have to do on my own"

"But we can help you" said Azan.

"Get to the escape pod and abandon ship"

"Not without you, Captain" Icheb said.

"The Captain goes down with the ship. Leave!" Naomi coughed up blood to her hand. "This… This is still my Bridge, Commander. Go… And tell them to watch. Tell them Naomi Wildman knew how to die. Computer, load Naomi Three Seven Gamma Echo – execute"

Acknowledged and her four friends were beamed off.

"Is impulse operational?"

Yes

"Very well. Disregard all safety protocols. Full impulse power, 40 degrees left rudder. All warheads armed"

Acknowledged and Naomi watched as the crippled starship pushed further inside and then stopped as she propelled the pair of them away from Earth orbit.

"Rudder amidships – maintain current course and speed. Seal the Bridge and transport me to the armoury. Fill all areas except Bridge, Armoury and Main Engineering with the most lethal gases we have. Prepare to link torpedo detonation on my command"

Unable to comply. Boarding suppression systems are offline

"There has to be someway of blowing the core" Naomi sighed and kicked the abandoned helm – helping to put a new though in her mind. "Computer, override core safeties. Lower the containment fields on the Anti Matter pod and ramp up the core"

Acknowledged

"Surrender!" a cry came up from behind her and Naomi turned to see a Jem'Hadar group piling up from the turbolift. The girl raised a phaser and fired several times before diving for cover behind the Helm console – popping up and firing until she could no longer do so. there was just one last duty to perform…

"Computer, it was an honour to serve with you"

Acknowledged and Naomi thought that the computer knew it was about to die, if one could call what was about to happen to it death, and seemed resigned to its fate.

"You are trapped" an older sounding voice spoke. Naomi looked at her phaser that was displaying no charge left in the battery. "Surrender this ship, human scum"

"That'll be the fucking day" she spat back in defiance, stood and charged the enemy with a blood curling scream. "Computer… NOW!"

#

"Are you alright, son?" asked the distinguished looking man.

"Yes, Sir… But we have to–" Azan was cut off by a blinding white light and a shockwave that slammed into the ship most of the crew had been brought aboard.

"Sir. We have lost Voyager on our sensors" a voice called from the Bridge. The group looked at each other with a mixture of confusion, horror and dread on their faces.

"Icheb to Naomi. Naomi, please respond…"

"Might be your badge. Mezoti to Voyager – come in please. Naomi Wildman, you will comply" Mezoti kept calling Naomi but her desperate attempts ended in a breakdown of the girl.

"She… She took them out" Azan said, his body shaking from the grief and tears the four had.

"Naomi saved us all" Rebi said.

"What was that?" asked the man. Nobody gave him a reply until Icheb turned round to face him – eyes red and raw from the tears that streamed unashamedly down his face.

"Naomi Wildman, Captain, USS Voyager" and then turned back to the view port and looked out. "She never lost a member of the crew under her command in the six years she was commanding Voyager. She saved not just us, but the entire Federation. 'What was that?' you asked…? That… That was my friend, Mr President" the four stood watching the spinning wreckage before turning and leaving. They had to make sure the rest of Voyager's crew was safe and sound. It was, Mezoti reasoned as they walked to the shuttlebay in silence, exactly what Naomi would have wanted.

A/N:

And that, ladies and gentlemen is how we end a story in style.

Hope you enjoyed it very much over the last few months and we look forward to seeing the finals reviews for this story which has been a privilege. It would not be a final chapter without quotes, so there are a few quotes from old tv shows in there. Points to those who can identify them…

Regards

Pixel and Stephanie