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Disclaimer: A sad, depressing love story that TPTB would never allow to be told. So I have defied law and took their characters for a spin in my own little AU!! This story is mine, but the rest belongs to the all Mighty Paramount!!

The Class M planet had looked so inviting, that shore leave was so tempting, that every one thought nothing could go wrong. But as in cases like this, these conditions almost set a pre-requisite for something bad to happen. And it did. The patchy call was heard by everyone on the bridge, with growing dread and despair..

"Shuttle Tiderian.....Voya.....Comman.....Kotay....ing down......ight dead....our seriously woun....."

The ensign at Ops couldn't filter out the interference, and all they could get was patches of the message.

"....Captain....vok.....L'anna.....ris........Lany......final call.......nothing...n do......"

The line went dead.

"We lost it Sir."

Harry looked dead ahead at the screen.

*************************************

Chakotay blinked and moved his head. The world spun, and her put his hand to the back of his skull. His fingers came away wet, with dark liquid. His blood, and by the amount, he couldn't afford to lose much more. Damn the electrical and plasma interference. It hadn't shown up on initial scans, and a quick away team to survey the site had seemed like such a good idea. Everyone had been crawling with Cabin fever, and so many people had instantly offered for shore duty that Chakotay's office, at one point, had looked like a war zone, with walking wounded and casualties everywhere.

Talking about casualties, Chakotay lifted his head, and looked around. Kathryn was still unconscious on the main console, B'Elanna was sprawled behind him, Tom beside her, hand outstretched, trying to reach her, both Delany sisters, still forms behind them, and further back was a mess. Somewhere amongst there, was Tuvok. Chakotay avoided that area, and tried to
get up.

That wasn't working.

Not only couldn't he move his feet to get around, neither were his legs moving.

*Oh no...*

He reached backwards, confident of reaching the med-kit, but failed dismally, falling on the ground, in a sprawl of limbs. His fall created enough energy and sound for B'Elanna to open her eyes, and for the shuttle to move on it's precarious limb, sitting halfway between a tree and the
gorge below. It was a long way down, Chakotay had noticed. B'Elanna blinked a few times, registered on Chakotay, then turned her head, and saw Tom. Her face lit up silently and briefly in amusement, before expression died, along with her heart. Chakotay crumbled inside. There was nothing her could do, being the only conscious person aboard, and unable to reach the med kit. He
pulled himself over to her, and cradled her head in his arms for a few moments, bending down and kissing her forehead, much like a father wishing a child well on their journey. He spoke the words to speed her spirit to the other world, then lay her back down, and placed his head in his hands.

Then Kathryn cried out.

Chakotay looked up, and met Kathryn's pained face.

Kathryn felt her head throbbing, and a sharp pain in her chest whenever she breathed. She sat up, only to cry out in agony. She looked around, and noticed Chakotay bent over B'Elanna's ominously still body. He raised his face and looked at her. She looked at him properly, as she got up, and moved over next to him, and saw that his legs were twisted in the worst way.
Looking up in panic, he shook his head.

*Oh god...*

She crawled over to sit behind him, and the shuttle moved, not well. They looked at each other as the shuttle failed to stop its slow decent towards the bottom of the ravine, and Chakotay lent back in Kathryn's arms. Strong arms encircled strong mind, body and soul, and the shuttle flew it's last
journey.

**********************************

"Sir...we are sensing movement in the vicinity of the shuttle's last transmission."

"Can you get a visual reading?"

"Only just Sir."

"On Screen."

Through patchy cloud, and worse static, the skeleton bridge crew watched, as the Shuttle Tiderion fell over the edge of the cliff, and bursting into a massive fireball at the bottom, scorching the sand and melting it around the debris.

"Oh my god."

In disbelief, the only remaining ranking, senior staff member stood up from the Captain's chair.

Former Lt. j.g., now Captain Harry Kim, tapped his commbadge.

"Kim to all crewmembers...."

end.

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