Words Mean Nothing

By Quew

Disclaimer: Paramount owns Voyager and all of her crew. I am just doing this for fun, not profit. This story also contains overtones of a f/f relationship: if that kind of thing offends you, please don't read.

Code: T/7.
Rating: PG13

Archiving: PM, if wanted, P&P. Anywhere else is fine too, just let me know please! ;)

Feedback: yes please, always welcome! *g*

Any feedback or other comments should be sent to quew4@aol.com

Rating: Overall a PG-13, although there are some bad words and violent scenes in later parts.
Notes: thanks to the group on VJB, who are very encouraging and welcoming. This is the first story that I posted to the list, and I thank them all for their encouragement.
Classification: T/7 time travel.
Summary: B'Elanna is the victim of a transporter accident, and she wakes up in a world where familiar faces are all around her but nothing is what it seems.

Parts 1 to 3

17 Jun 2002

Part 1

'Dammit, Seven!' B'Elanna growled with frustration as the ex-Borg invaded her space, ostensibly to check the lieutenants' work, but B'Elanna was sure the woman just loved to piss her off any way she could. Pushing the taller woman back, she tapped a few controls and set the commands in motion before Seven could read them all.

The blonde immediately straightened, her eyes wide. 'Lieutenant Torres, I believe I saw a miscalculation just as you-'

'No, you didn't Seven,' B'Elanna smiled, but there was no humour in it. 'I checked those figures at least four times, and you know what? They were fine. Perfect, even. Surely an ex-Borg can appreciate perfection?'

'Yes, Lieutenant, I could. But I do not think that was perfection. I noted a discrepancy in the field modulation. Left unattended it could create some extreme reactions in anyone who attempted to use the Transporters.'

B'Elanna placed her hands on her hips. They had been working together - Captains orders - in Transporter room one for about three hours, trying to recalibrate the modulation of the Transporters themselves and the Ensign behind the Transporter control panel had long since taken to cowering behind it in abject fear as the bickering continued to escalate toward outright fighting.

Seven placed her hands behind her back and straightened imperceptibly, looking down her nose at the older woman. 'If you wish to be responsible for a Transporter accident that could lead to a fatality I will not say another word.'

'Fatality? Fatality?! You're accusing me of putting the crew at risk?' B'Elanna bared her teeth.

'The discrepancy may prove a risk to someone, yes.'

'Look ...' Torres took a step closer and jabbed Seven in the chest with a finger. 'Astrometrics officer.' She hiked a thumb toward herself. 'Chief Engineer. I think I know what I'm doing!'

'That is not in question, Lieutenant. I am simply stating you made a mistake.'

'Mistake?' B'Elanna bridled. 'I'll show you mistake! Ensign!'

The terrified woman poked her head above the desk, and when she saw both senior officers staring at her, she stopped whimpering and stood straight, smoothing down her uniform and trying to appear business like. 'Yes-' the word came out as a squeak, and she cleared her throat quickly. 'Yes ma'am?'

'Power up the Transporters.'

'Yes ma'am.'

Within seconds the women were surrounded by the familiar hum of active machinery, and without hesitation B'Elanna stepped up onto the Transporter pad.

'Lieutenant ...I do not think this is a good idea.' Seven took a step forward. 'I merely meant that your data might have been flawed.'

'Flawed my ass!' B'Elanna spat back. 'Ensign, lets just take it for a test drive, eh? Just transport me to ...er, Cargo Bay Two.'

The woman nodded and started imputing commands. 'Belay that, Ensign,' Seven said suddenly, taking another step. 'Lieutenant Torres, please step down.'

'No way Seven! I'm going to prove that you were wrong and I was right!'

Seven raised her implanted eyebrow. 'Why are you being so stubborn? Would it do any harm to check?'

'Yes, Seven, it would! You're always so perfect and unattainable, why can't you just admit you're infallible like the rest of us?'

'Unattainable?' Seven asked, taking yet another step.

A look of shock wormed its way onto B'Elanna's face as her ears caught up with her mouth. 'I ...er ...I meant ...um .... Ensign! Begin transport!'

The woman behind the desk jumped into life, finishing the commands she'd just been prevented from completing within a few seconds. Seven leapt forward, and the Chief Engineer saw her lips form the word 'B'Elanna!' when the world disintegrated into blue sparkles.

~~~~~

'Hey! Hey! HEY!' Someone shaking her by the front of her uniform rudely jerked B'Elanna awake. 'That's better. Sheesh, you were dead the world!'

Her vision remained black despite the fact she knew her eyes were open. 'You wanna tell me what the hell you're doing here?' The voice said, still hidden by the absence of light. The hands released her jacket as soon as it was apparent she could sit by herself.

She opened her eyes wide and tried to penetrate the darkness, to no avail. The voice, however, sounded familiar and B'Elanna's eyebrows rose in recognition. 'Seven?'

'Seven what?' The voice said.

Suddenly light blazed and B'Elanna hissed, covering her eyes with her hand. 'Hey!'

'Sorry toots, light too bright?' The voice was mocking, and B'Elanna snarled. Removing her hand immediately, she waited for the pain to disperse and her sight to focus.

The first thing she saw was a wall. It looked old, decrepit, and it certainly didn't look like the bulkhead from a starship. The next thing she saw was the light source; one naked bulb hanging from a fraying cable. A shadow moved in the corner of her vision and she whirled to meet it, moving fluidly into a fighting crouch. Her hair flew across her face, but she didn't lift a hand to move it, not wanting to leave herself open to attack.

'Hey, hey, no need for violence. If you want to try, go ahead, but if you calm down we can all play nice.'

B'Elanna's jaw dropped, and her eyes widened. Her self-control was lost and she sat down heavily, staring at the only other person in the room ...it couldn't be!

'What's the matter with you? You look like you've seen a ghost!' The woman said, relaxing against a wall and, after sparing B'Elanna a bored glance, turning her attention to the threadbare carpet, which she picked at.

'Seven?!' B'Elanna gasped.

The woman did look like Seven ...screw that, she could have been Seven, except ...

'Look, Seven what? What the hell is with you?' The woman pulled a strand of tangled blonde hair away from her face in a movement that screamed exasperation, and B'Elanna took a moment to look her up and down.

She was wearing a pair of black trousers and a black T-shirt that was tight fitting. More than that, her implants just ...weren't there, and the expression on her face - very annoyed curiosity - was one that Seven never would have worn.

B'Elanna blinked, and then rubbed a hand across her eyes. When they refocused, the woman was still there, still staring at the same piece of floor.

Okay ...okay, don't panic ...what's the last thing you remember? Transporter room one ...okay, that's good. I was in Transporter room one. I was working with Seven - God sometimes she pisses me off - and she said I made a mistake ...So what happened next? Oh, yeah. I might have maybe got a little annoyed, just a little, and I decided to prove to her that I hadn't. Then what ...?

'Are you gonna tell me how you got in here or not?' The woman asked, stretching her legs out in front of her and yawning. 'And what's this seven thing?'

The woman was Seven and yet not Seven, remarkably similar in structure, but quickly shaping up to be another person. B'Elanna was having difficulty adjusting, and so she fell back on what she knew. Anger.

'Never mind how I got in here! Where the hell am I? And who the hell are you?' Torres risked movement and pulled the hair that blocked her vision away in a quick swipe. The woman looked up as B'Elanna moved and gasped.

'Your forehead ...' She murmured. Before B'Elanna could react she'd moved forward, reaching out delicate fingers to touch the ridges.

B'Elanna couldn't stop herself as her arm snaked out, catching the hand before it could make contact. 'What the hell are you doing, haven't you ever seen Klingon before!?'

The Seven woman looked perplexed. 'What the hell's a Klingon?'

Part 2

B'Elanna's mouth opened, but no sound came out. She tried once, twice, three times, but she could not produce words.

They stayed frozen for a few seconds, the woman reaching out on hands and knees, and B'Elanna blocking her, holding her hand in a grip that was warningly tight but not painful. Finally, B'Elanna's indignation at her predicament gave her words.

'Who are you?' She asked, her tone verging on rough.

'Let me go,' the other woman countered, a fire lighting in her eyes. 'I'm asking the questions here, not you.'

'Who are you!' B'Elanna repeated, the woman's fire stoking her own before she could stop it.

'Let me go!' The woman ripped her hand out of Torres's grasp and overbalanced, landing on her butt with an angry grunt. 'Who the hell are you?'

'My name is Lue ...Torres.' B'Elanna's Maquis instincts had told her rank might not be the card to play ...yet.

The Seven woman, however, had caught her slip. 'What were you going to say?'

'Nothing.'

'Liar,' she countered, narrowing her eyes. 'Who do you work for? Did the Government send you?'

B'Elanna felt her short fuse coming to an end. 'No! I have no idea what you're talking about, okay? Look, I want to know where I am, how I got here and who the hell you are! Now!'

The woman raised an eyebrow and a vision of Seven crossed B'Elannas' mind. 'Fine,' she stood, crossing the room to a door the same colour as the walls that the Klingon had not previously noticed. She knocked and the door was opened from the outside. 'My name is Anna.' And with that, she was gone, leaving B'Elanna confused, angry and alone.

After a few hours of solitude, B'Elanna had checked the walls, door and floor. The walls were made of some sort of plaster construct, crumbling easily when excessive force was applied it but hiding hard brick underneath. The door appeared flimsy but one or two tentative shoulder-bashes proved it was solid. So, in the end, B'Elanna had time to think.

She thought about where she was - the construct suggested a lower technological level than Voyager, but how could she be sure without going outside?

She thought about how she'd got there - the only answer she could think of was a Transporter malfunction, which meant Seven had been right. But ...she was obviously far away from the ship ...how could a simple malfunction have sent her this far?

She also thought who she was with - the Seven woman, Anna. It occurred to B'Elanna that maybe the similarity wasn't a mistake.

Time travel! You're actually thinking about time travel? Yeah, right, like that would ever happen! A voice said in her head.

Do you have a better explanation? She shot back.

Could be some wacky new training thing the Captain and Chakotay have cooked up on the Holodeck ...or maybe Seven's messing with your mind, trying to teach you a lesson ...or something. It could be anything!

Shut up, she growled at herself

~~~~~

She awoke with a start, unaware she'd been asleep, and was shocked to find Anna staring at her, sitting back in her space on the floor.

'Are you ready to answer my questions?' She said, running a hand through her blonde hair.

'No.' B'Elanna forced herself to wake up quickly and sat up facing the other woman. 'No way.'

Anna shrugged. 'Fine.'

She stood up and had knocked on the door again, one foot out when B'Elanna called out. 'Wait!'

'Yes?'

'Am I a prisoner?'

Anna sighed, a look of almost regret passing over her fine features. 'I don't know.'

'What do you mean? I thought you were in charge?'

Laughing short and bitter, Anna shook her head. 'Far from it.' Then she looked around, as if ashamed to be talking so candidly to her charge. 'I mean, if you answer my questions, we'll see about getting you out of here.'

'Okay.' B'Elanna sat back, gritting her teeth. 'What do you want to know?'

Anna hiked an eyebrow toward her hairline. 'Worried? Don't be. This isn't major surgery, I'm only going to be asking you a few questions, so stop looking at me like I'm about to jump on you and start pulling teeth.'

'I'd like to see you try,' B'Elanna muttered as Anna shut the door and sat back on the floor, but instead of looking at the carpet, she looked straight into the Klingons' eyes.

'What's your name?'

'B'Elanna Torres.'

'Where are you from?'

'A ...colony.'

'What do you do?'

'Engineer.' The questions continued thick and fast, and B'Elanna tried to be vague, but they were so quick she sometimes let answers go before she could think about them, like the next:

'What's your rank?'

She hadn't been expecting it, and her lips said half of the word before she could shut them. Half was enough, however.

'Lieutenant, hey? I knew it.' Anna's eyes became guarded and cold. 'You were sent to infiltrate us?'

'Yeah, 'cos I'm so inconspicuous!' B'Elanna snapped, pointing at her forehead and uniform.

Surprising them both, Anna snorted laughter through her nose. She quickly wiped the expression of amusement off her face and stood.

'Food will come in an hour. More questions later.'

~~~~~

'You know, I've been thinking. As far as you know, I'm a complete unknown, and yet you wander in and out like you own the place, not obviously armed and not afraid to sit and let your guard down. Why?' B'Elanna asked the question through a mouthful of bread. Anna shrugged, nibbling on her own food, obviously uncomfortable.

'You don't beat around the bush do you?' She asked.

'You didn't answer my question.' B'Elanna retorted. 'And I think it's only fair, since I answered all those questions for you.'

'Fine. Fine, whatever,' Anna sighed, 'I just ...I just don't feel like you'd harm me. That's all.'

B'Elanna's Klingon sensibilities raged, saying things like so she doesn't think I'm a threat? But she swallowed them, somewhat pleased by her captors candour. And yet, it didn't help her situation.

'I want out of here.' She said eventually.

'I can't do that.' Anna's voice held the smallest hint of apology, but that was it. It was almost monotone, like Seven's.

'I want out!' B'Elanna lost her temper, captivity weighing down on her. 'I haven't done anything wrong!'

Anna stared at her for a long minute, searching B'Elanna's gaze with her own, and then she leaned forward like a conspirator, her voice low. 'Look, keep your voice down. I believe you.' Then she stood abruptly, ashamed to have admitted that, it seemed. Her hard mask fell back into place and before B'Elanna could move, she was gone.

'What the hell is goin' on?!' B'Elanna leant her head back and yelled, letting out all of her frustration.

As if it was an answer to her shout, a huge explosion rocked the building she was in. She looked on in horror as the roof and walls shook, plaster flaking off in huge chunks. She thumped her hands against the door, yelling, but her shouts were swallowed by another explosion, and then a third.

The forth one blew out the wall of her room, and the last thing she saw was a huge chunk of brick sailing toward her face.

Part 3

'Wha?!' B'Elanna awoke with a start, sitting straight up and immediately smacking her head on something cold and hard.

She screwed her eyes shut and started swearing under her breath, getting louder and louder until someone clapped sweaty hands over her mouth. 'When I was trying to get you to wake up just now, this was not what I had in mind.'

Torres jerked her head away and tried to raise her hands to rub her sore forehead but they stopped half way, tight chains digging into her wrists. 'What the hell ...'

That finally made her open her eyes, and for the first time she noticed the sensation of movement. She was sat in the belly of some sort of vehicle, surrounded by bodies, most groaning or unconscious. She'd hit her head on one of the bars caging them off from the centre of the vehicle, where a stern looking man with a weapon she didn't recognise was crouched, looking wary.

'Don't draw attention to yourself, if you want to get through this in one piece,' the voice said, and B'Elanna looked sideways.

Anna was sitting next to her, a dirty gash across her face and her hair matted with dirt. Her clothes were ripped and filthy, and B'Elanna looked down at herself. Her clothes were just as tattered and dirty, and she bit her lip to keep from swearing again.

'What the hell happened!' She hissed.

'Why don't you tell me?' Anna hissed back.

'What?' B'Elanna's eyes widened incredulously. 'What the fu-'

In one quick movement, Anna stretched her arms out as far as they would go, ripping B'Elanna's com-badge from her tunic. 'Is this how they found us? What is this, some sort of tracking device?' Anna's eyes were full of rage. 'I can't believe I was starting to believe you!'

'Give that back!' B'Elanna reached out, but Anna held it out of range and B'Elanna's restraints stopped her short.

'I saw you, playing with this on our base...but I didn't think anything of it!' Anna raged, but B'Elanna got the feeling that she was talking to herself more than she was talking to the Klingon. 'I should have listened to Michael! He said you were trouble from the minute we found you unconscious in the basement!'

'I don't know what you're talking about! But I need that!'

'Why? What does it do?' Anna turned her gaze to the other woman, and B'Elanna wanted so desperately to lie to her. But...she couldn't. For some reason, she just couldn't.

'It's...it's a com-badge. A communicator. Please, I have to have it back.'

'No. No way. It was you, you sold us out!'

'No! If I did, why would I be riding back here with you?!'

'Maybe you're a deep cover agent,' Anna hissed, her eyes begging B'Elanna to argue, which she did happily.

'Why won't you listen? I'm not whatever you think I am!' B'Elanna went mad then, sheer undeniable fury bubbling up from her hopeless situation. She ripped her at her chains, and Anna's angry demeanour started to crack as she saw the rage on B'Elanna's features. 'I didn't know where I was! I don't know what's going on! Fuck!' She started to thrash in her restraints, and the guard in the centre took notice.

'Calm down!' He barked, raising the weapon. B'Elanna spat at him, and it landed in a gooey mess on his jacket.

'Go to hell!'

Her snarl raised a like one from him, and without preamble he shoved the weapon through the bars. It touched her arm, and she went rigid, convulsing violently as the strong electrical current passed through her body. She lashed out, strong limbs flailing, but as the electricity continued she became weaker, and with one last, muscle agonising jerk she was rendered unconscious, a snarl still on her lips.

~~~~~

'Hey! Let go of me! Where are you taking me!' Someone screamed. The voice reverberated around B'Elanna's head, and her headache reached a new level of pain. The screaming became wordless, projecting only terror, and the Klingon opened her eyes. The first thing she saw was a solid looking brick wall. She tried to sit, and immediately regretted it as pain lanced through all her muscles at once. Gritting her teeth, she blocked it out, sitting painfully and turning around.

Jail, was the first thought she had. I'm in jail.

All the walls were made of the same uniform grey bricks, and the only thing that stood out was a very thick steel door. She stood painfully, air hissing through her clenched teeth as pain overrode her brain for a second, and then tottered to the door. Set in the door was a small barred window, and she held onto the thick bars, checking out the hallway outside. She could see a door identical to her own directly opposite, and then one down from that, and another, all the way down to a thick pair of double doors at the other end of the hall.

'Hey!' She yelled, but her voice was thick and painful. Clearing her throat, she tried again. 'Hey! Why am I here? I don't belong here! What's going on!'

'B'Elanna?' Someone groaned.

'Se ...Anna! Is that you?' B'Elanna asked.

'Who else would it be? The ...' Anna had seemed to be about to make some sarcastic comment, but then a wet cough bubbled up from her throat.

B'Elanna winced. 'What happened to you?'

There was a scrabbling inside the cell opposite, and then a delicate hand grabbed the bars of the door. With a heave and a grunt, Anna rose into view. 'You did.' She said.

'What?'

Anna raised an eyebrow and coughed again. 'You happened to me. When they shocked you, you started convulsing, and I think you broke my damn rib.' Anna gripped the bars with both hands, her angry gaze locking B'Elanna in place. 'Ever since I met you it's been one damn thing after another!' She tried to say more, but once again a cough came up instead of words.

'So now you're blaming me for all your problems?' B'Elanna growled. She was secretly devastated that she had hurt the woman, but she would never admit it to herself or to the obstinate, stubborn, self-assured Anna. 'Just once, I would like to be in the know! I want to get out of here! Goddammit, I want to go home!' She banged the flats of her hands on the bars in a futile gesture. It didn't help, and B'Elanna felt her Klingon rage bubbling up.

'Why am I here!' She screeched, running at the door and crashing into it shoulder first. 'Get me out of here!' Again and again she slammed against the unmoving metal, until she felt something tear in her shoulder. She howled in pain, but more in frustration, and started kicking walls, punching the door ...anything to get out.

'What the fu ...?!' Anna gasped. 'Stop it! Stop it! Do you want them to take you away? Don't you know what they'll do to you?!'

'Don't you understand?!' B'Elanna snarled, grabbing the bars and pulling them toward her with all her Klingon/human strength. 'Anything is better than THIS!'

B'Elanna stopped struggling as Anna just stared at her, her jaw hanging slack and her face pale. 'My God ...' She whispered ...'You really don't know what they'll do to you, do you?' She spoke with such disbelief that Torres felt part of her anger start to drain away. 'You really don't work for them. You really don't know how you ended up at our base. You really ...Oh.'

Anna's eyes were so wide, B'Elanna felt the need to reassure the woman bubble up inside her. Whatever was going on here was obviously big; bigger than Anna or B'Elanna or the other prisoners ...but, before she could say anything, the big double doors began to open. They transferred their gaze to them as they heard the locks click and whirr, and B'Elanna's eyes opened wide as she saw the person come through.

'Oh no ...' Anna choked.

Striding toward them, dressed in a severe black suit and with her hair tied back so tightly it looked almost painful, was Kathryn Janeway.

~~~~~

Without hesitation she used a key card to open Anna's cell. The once self-possessed blonde woman was huddled in the far corner, and B'Elanna watched in horror as the-Kathryn-woman wrapped slender fingers around the injured woman's throat, hauling her upright.

'Where is she!' She snarled, her familiar tones carrying to B'Elanna's cell. She shook Anna once, and the prisoner cried out in pain.

'Stop!' B'Elanna yelled. 'Stop it!' She slammed into the door again and again, unmindful of her injured shoulder. 'You're hurting her!'

The-Kathryn-woman dropped Anna like she was on fire and span to face B'Elanna's cell. Her face, so harsh seconds before, was softening slowly.

'Is that you?' She whispered. 'Is that really you?'

She came close, opening the door to B'Elanna's cell and entering quickly. Before she knew what was going on, B'Elanna was being hugged tightly, her arms pinned to her sides and her breath pushed out of her chest. Then the woman looked up, and a murderous look the Captain never would have worn crossed her features.

'What did they do to you?' She thundered, her eyes on B'Elanna's ridges. Then her face softened one more, and a smile passed over her lips. B'Elanna couldn't be sure, but she thought she saw tears quickly blinked back in the woman's eyes. 'Are you okay?'

'I ...I ...I ...' B'Elanna managed.

'I understand,' the woman nodded, sighing. 'You've been gone so long ...You're in shock ...come with me, will get those ...those things removed.' The tone was meant to be comforting, but B'Elanna stepped back in horror.

'What ...? No!'

'I ...don't understand ...' the redhead looked shocked, and the Klingon could see a hint of suspicion in her eyes. 'What's happened to you? What did they do to you?'

C'mon, B'Elanna, think fast, this could be your ticket out of here ...Your years in the Maquis had to have been good for something! You gotta take every opportunity you can! Think, dammit, think!

'They're ...scars. Scars. I don't want them removed.' It'll have to do, B'Elanna thought, but before she could say anything else, she realised she might have made a huge mistake.

'I don't see any residual damage ...no obvious scar tissue ...' The woman's expression was mixed parts trepidation and suspicion. B'Elanna snapped.

'Look, I've been gone a long time like you said! They've had time to heal!' She didn't know what was going on, and the similarity between the woman and Janeway was freaking her out, more so because the similarities were all physical. The Captain would never have acted like this...or would she? Janeway had lost her temper once or twice, but usually only when protecting a member of...B'Elanna swallowed hard, a horrible suspicion forming in her mind.

For a moment after B'Elanna's outburst, it looked like the woman would just leave her in the cell - slam the door and just leave, but then acceptance, followed by dark rage came into her eyes. 'They did that to you. What the hell could they do to give you scars like that?'

'Err ...No! No, they didn't do it. No. This was an accident.' She looked at the other woman, eyes roving over her clenched fists and taunt shoulders and ...finally, a break! A nametag flapped from the woman's lapel, telling B'Elanna her name was ...

'No ...Claudia. No. In fact ...' She glanced across the hall where Anna was huddled, carefully watching them. 'They treated me. Healed me.'

'Did they hurt you at all?' Claudia asked, her anger dissipating somewhat.

'No.' B'Elanna shook her head. 'Not at all.'

Claudia shot her a look, but then smiled, taking B'Elanna's elbow and leading her out into the hall. Despite feeling unbelievably overwhelmed, she couldn't help but smile a little as she left the cramped confines of her cell.

'Lets get you cleaned up, hey? The guys in Unit Seven are going to be so happy to see you. And I tell you, I'm going to murder whoever mistook you for one of them and locked you up in here. No one treats anyone under my command like that,' Claudia said as they paused to let her close and re-lock both B'Elanna's and Anna's cell door.

Under my command.. B'Elanna's stomach sank.

The Klingon was thinking hard about what to say next when she caught movement out of the corner of her eye. Her small smile faded as she saw Anna watching her through the bars on her door, a few proud tears dripping down her cheeks. B'Elanna suddenly realised how it must look to her; after convincing her she wasn't working for who-ever it was Anna was fighting, here she was being led out of the jail by someone who was obviously happy to see her, and obviously not on the same side as the blonde.

'Unit Seven,' Anna whispered, so low B'Elanna almost didn't hear. 'That's what you meant. That's why you kept saying seven.'

'Anna, I ...' B'Elanna made the mistake of looking straight into Anna's eyes, and what she saw there froze the words in her throat. Hurt simmered in her eyes. Hurt, hate, betrayal ...

B'Elanna was silent the rest of the way down the hall.

Continued in next part ....