Don't Fear The Reaper
Chapters Fifteen and Sixteen
Chapter Fifteen
Picard, Janeway, and Seven returned to the Conference room to finish the meeting with Janeway's look alike, Boothby, and the doctors. When they entered the room the three were suprised to see the four of them were all smiles and laughter.
"Ah, Picard, Janeway. Glad to see you have returned." Boothby greeted. "Your doctors have explained to us their techniques in returning Borg Drones to their former states. I think we can work something out, if you don't mind sharing your techniques with our doctors and scientists."
"Of course, it will have to meet with our superiors' approval." The Janeway look alike stated. "But I see no problems, if you are willing to let us take the information back with us to use. We could work together in eliminating the Borg in this manner."
Janeway was surprised by their sudden change to Picard. They had stopped insisting he was a Borg, but they have not said a word about Seven.
"Annika, we are sorry we put you through all of this discomfort." The Janeway alias apologized.
It had been a long time since she had heard that name. Seven was not sure how to respond. "Who told you my former name?"
"Your doctor gave us all the information we needed to know."
"Maybe a little too much." Seven grumbled.
"Even so." Boothby began. "We realize you are no longer Borg. Everything has been severed from the Collective, so what remains is of little value. Who knows, maybe our doctors can come up with a way to remove what remains and make you completely human again. Then you would not need a, what is it called, a regenerator?"
"An alcove." Seven replied, still a little perturb about being called Annika.
"Ah, yes." Boothby remembered. "Then you could be fully human again."
"That's very good." Picard stated. "I am pleased we have been able to work something out by way of a begining in diplomatic talks. Hopefully, we can one day work out a peace treaty again. For now, we still have a Borg ship outside our port. Given the current circumstances, I'm not sure how much longer the cease fire will last. I think we all need to return to our ships immediately."
"What has happened?" Alias Janeway asked demandingly.
"I can't give you the details, but it seems we are about to be invaded by the Borg Collective." Picard stated. "I urge you to return to your ship incase they begin to fire on all of us again."
"Do you have engines again?" Boothby asked.
"Minimal." Picard answered. "According to our best engineer, we only have impulse drive."
"We so far have had very little damage on Voyager." Janeway informed them. "We'll need all the help we can get, though, in fighting this Borg cube if we are to return safely to Earth."
"Yes, I see." The alias Janeway stated. "Maybe it is wise we return."
"I agree." Boothby stated.
"What of the Borg?" Beverly asked with concern. "Are you still insistant on annilating them?"
"Not if our superiors agree to this plan of removing Borg parts from them and rehabilitating them." Alias Janeway stated. "You have my full assurance, the people will be return to their home planets once the Borg parts are removed. We will do nothing to harm them."
*"Titan to Admiral Picard."* Came Will's voice.
"Picard here."
*"I think you need to return to the Titan now."* Will stated. *"We have a problem with the Borg. There's been a breech."*
Will was not too clear on what or where the breech was, but Picard had his ideas. He did not need to ask. "I'm on my way."
*"We'll be waiting. Titan out."* The comm went silent.
"If you'll excuse us." Picard said and proceeded to head for the transporter room. Doctor Crusher-Picard followed behind him.
"We'll be on our way also." The alias Janeway stated.
"I'll see you to the transporter room." Janeway stated. It was not that she was afraid they would run into a Borg, but she did not want to take any chances either. So, as though she were seeing a guest to the door, she escorted their guests to the transporter room.
Seven and the doctor returned to their duties.
The Picard's materialized onto the Titan. To their surprise, there was a Borg drone at the transporter counsole.
Due to the nature of the meeting and where it was being held, neither of them had a weapon. They stood there trying to decide their next move.
"I am Hugh. Do not fear."
Both Picard's breathed a sigh of relief. Then Admiral Picard realized something was not right.
"Where is my transporter officer?" He demanded.
"The Collective assimulated him just as you two returned." Hugh explained. "After he was removed I came in and saw you returning. I mean you no harm."
"Why were you at the console?" Picard asked.
"To insure everything was running efficently." Hugh stated. "I meant no harm."
Picard somehow saw Hugh was being honest. His demeanor changed slightly. "I guess I owe you an apology. If you had been reassimulated, you would not be discussing this with us right now."
"That would be a correct assumption." Hugh agreed.
"Let's get to the Bridge." Picard said to Beverly as he reached for the weapons compartment. "Hugh, you think you can help us fend off the Borg?"
"I have been efficently defending against them thus far." He stated. "I will not allow them to harm my friends."
"That's all I need to know." Picard stated. "Let's go."
The three of them left the transporter room and headed to the Bridge as quickly as they could.
On the Bioship, Species 8472 were having their own problems. They were being fired upon by the Borg.
"Return the one called Guinan immediately to the Titan." Alias Janeway ordered. "Then fire all weapons on that cube!"
The three legged, nontransformed 8472 complied. Almost simultaniously, Guinan was returned and the Bioship was firing upon the Borg cube.
Their ship was receiving heavy damage. They were lucky that the Borg had not received the remodified Borg nanoprobe specifications, yet.
Guinan was beamed onto the Bridge to Will's surprise. At first he thought it was another Borg assualt. Then she appearred.
"Guinan, bad timing, but we're still glad to see you are back." Will stated.
"I'll go to my quarters." She said softly.
"No, the Collective are aboard." Will informed her. "You're safer here."
Guinan nodded. "For now."
Will was not sure what she meant by that. He wondered if she had trust that they would do their best to protect her and everyone else on the ship that they could.
He had no time to concern himself with that. He had to also assist the Bio-ship that was being attacked.
Voyager was already firing upon the Borg ship and assisting the Bioship in distroying it. The Titan followed suit.
Picard was about to turn a corner when he saw two drones walking mechanically down the hall they were about to turn on to get to the Bridge. He quickly pushed himself against the wall and pulled Beverly back also.
Hugh was unsure what they were doing, but saw the drone also and acted as though he had been reassimulated. He walked down the hall and passed them without incident. Then he turned to see where the Borg were headed.
They walked straight past the Picard's corridore and continued going straight. For the moment, Hugh's friends were fine.
He walked back into their direction to tell them all was safe. As he turned, Beverly gasped as they bumped into each other. Her hand went up to his chest in a defensive maneuver. It was as though she were about to push him backwards.
"I am Hugh." He reassured her.
"Yes." She said as she removed her hand from his chest. His amour did not feel any different from any other Borg, but as she removed her hand, she gently patted him with relief.
"Let's get out of here." Picard said as the ship rocked from weapons attack.
Admiral Janeway was making her way back to the Bridge. It was then she spotted a Borg. She did not care which Borg it was. Individual or Collective. She just wanted to avoid it for now, so she could get to the Bridge and help Chakotay.
Voyager shook from weapons fire once more. She was hoping that was not Species 8472, but yet she did not want to deal with the Borg again either.
However, she knew it was one or the other. Or both. Given how things went with Species 8472, she seriously doubt it was both. She was almost certain it was the Borg.
The Picards and Hugh finally made it to the Bridge. However, when Worf saw Hugh, he drew his phaser.
"At ease, Captain." Picard said to Worf. "This is Hugh and he is not reassimulated."
"Yet." Worf growled.
"He helped us get here safely and alive." Picard stated. "Now, let's destroy that Borg cube."
The last Picard said was with determination. This was one Borg ship he did not want around any longer.
"If we destroy that ship, the drones should be individuals again, if my theory is true." Picard stated. "Their link will be severed again. Fire torpedos!"
"Captain." Seven said to Chakotay as Voyager shook again. "We must destroy the cube. It will sever the link between the drones and the Queen."
"We're working on it, Seven." Chakotay replied.
Kathryn made it to the Bridge. "Well, I've not been assimulated again, thank God, but that Borg Queen is gone, if I have anything to say about it."
Kathryn Janeway was determined to end this current war. She did not appreciate being attacked on her ship, nor did she appreciate her ship being attacked.
"Chakotay, launch our surprise attack on them now." Janeway ordered as Voyager was again attacked with weapons fire.
Chakotay did not question what surprise she had in mind. They had discussed it privately before her meeting with Species 8472 in case the Borg attacked during that meeting. It was similar to "Scorpian", but this time, not only did they short circuit the Borg cube's systems, but it also injected a virus that was deadly to the Borg in their systems. If the ship was not destroyed first they would all be dead Borg, in a matter of a few hours.
Again the ship convulsed from Borg attack and Janeway fell to the deck.
Janeway took comfort in the fact that the Borg would be greatly weakened before their deaths. She hoped they would be too weak to retaliate. She alse knew that when the Queen was dead, the drones on Voyager and the Titan would be individuals again.
"If the Borg Queen wants to attack from within Voyager and the Titan, as well as outside them, I can play that game too." She stated with anger as she tried to pull herself up from the deck of the Bridge.
"Admiral." Paris said. "There's another ship approaching. Klingon and they are firing on the Borg ship also."
"Worf, your ship is here." Will informed him.
Worf looked up to see Krosis. The ship he was currently commanding.
"It's a good day to die." Worf said with even more determination to vent his revenge on the Borg ship.
The Titan continued to shake wildly as the Borg assault continued. Consoles exploded. People tumbled to the floor. Some got back up to continue with their duties. Others did not.
Suddenly, all four ships fired simultaneously. All four weapons hit the Borg ship dead center and it exploded. The Queen and her drones were no more. The Borg Cube was completely distroyed.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Then they set about repairing the damage to their ships and attending to their wounded. They were glad they had very little loss of life on each ship.
Away teams were set up to find the drones on each ship. Seven lead one on Voyager, while Worf and Hugh lead one on the Titan. They all hoped that the link had really been severed and they were Individual Borg again.
Chapter Sixteen
The search for Borg was not very difficult for it seemed like they had manage to reach most of the ship after they broke out of the cargo bay. The worst of it was that some were dead or dying.
It was hard to tell which Borg had had their homing devices activated and which ones did not. Picard and Janeway's assumption held true. They were once again all Individual Borg again. Those that were still alive at least.
Worf could not believe all the distruction a Borg "civil" war could create. The door to the cargo bay had been completely destroyed. He cautiously continued into the cargo bay. Dead Borg laid scattered everywhere.
Worf surmised that this was where the majority of them had expired. Their lives taken away from them in a heartbeat.
"My friends." Hugh said with a note of sadness in his voice. "Clara, Fred, Carlos, T'Plak, Seros,"
Worf could empathize with the Borg. It almost looked like the Khitomer massacre. Memories of his early childhood flashed through his mind as he walked through the mass of empty shells that laid on the deck of the cargo bay. He fought the tears from seeing the loss of souls on the cargo bay, for it was not warrior like to cry.
Suddenly, he heard a soft moan. It was Korok. Worf quickly ran over to him and examined his visible wounds. He had taken a hard blow to his face, which knocked the Borg implanted eyepiece off his face. His right arm was also broken. Worf guessed in about three places, but the obvious one protruded through his skin.
Worf cringed at how much strength it had to have taken to do this much damage to a person. The Borg Korok fought had to have been stronger than any Klingons Worf knew.
"You fought well." Worf complimented. "I'll see about getting you to Sickbay."
"No, let me die and go on to the after life." Korok insisted.
"You will not die." Worf insisted. "It is not your time to go to Sto-Vo-Kor nor will you go to Gre-thor. You fought well, but it is not your time."
"No, I was Borg too long and did too much dishonour." Korok insisted weakly. "I will not be seen in Sto-Vo-Kor."
"Save your strength." Worf told him. "Worf to Sickbay."
*"Sickbay here."* Came Beverly's voice.
"We need medical assistance in cargo bay nine."
*"We're on our way."*
The line went silent.
Worf moved on to see if more survived. He came upon another Klingon. This one was dead. He knew the warrior was forced into being dishonourable, but he wanted to believe that at one time this warrior had been honourable.
Worf knelt down and openned wide the one eye that the dead Borg Klingon had left. Then he let out the cry to Klingon's passed that a warrior was about to arrive.
"neH taH Kronos." Worf lemented. "Hegh bat'lhge Hoch nej maH. neH taH Kronos. yay je bet'lh manob Hegh."
Worf then kept a moment of silence as he contemplated the loss of what might have been a good warrior if it had not been for the Borg. A Klingon Borg who fought to be an individual, but only lost in the end. An honourable cause in Worf's eyes.
Just as Beverly and her crew walked into the cargo bay, Worf stood. "He's over here." He told them and then showed them where Korok was.
Beverly cringed at the damage done to the man. She could tell there had been a battle in the cargo bay and she hated the fact that she would have to sign so many death certificates. Some certificates would have the name Jane or John Doe, for she did not know the names of all the people who were Individual Borg.
She did not dare take a body count at this time. It was too traumatic for her. Instead, she thought it best to just assist those who still had life in them. Korok being the first.
"This man's spine is fractured." She stated. "Worf, you did not move him did you?"
"No, I didn't." He replied. "I saw the arm and thought it best to let him lie there until you arrived."
Beverly nodded her approval. "Let's get an anti-grav stretcher and get him to Sickbay."
Two of her assistance came over with the stretcher and took Korok to Sickbay. They were very careful not to make his injuries any worse as they transported him.
"Worf, we can take it from here if you would like to continue the search." Beverly told him. She could tell he was struggling with what he was seeing.
"If you are sure." He said.
"We're fine here."
"Then I will continue else where with our search." He replied and then left with Hugh.
"Will Korok be alright?" Hugh asked.
"He will live." Worf replied. He did not know what else to tell Hugh, for he did not know if Korok's injuries would heal completely.
"I hope so." Hugh said. "He is my friend."
Worf continued in silence as they searched for more Borg Individuals. Hugh did not push the conversation, for he too was struggling with the loss of so many friends.
Seven and Tuvok arrived at cargo bay three to a similar scene as that on the Titan. Bodies were everywhere. Some dead and some still alive.
Seven wondered about the young girl Picard did not allow her to rescue. She searched among the bodies and came upon Axum. Her heart skipped a beat with fear of what might be. Then she heard him groan.
"Annika." He groanned.
Her heart leapt with happiness. "Axum!" She crouched down beside him. "Your alive!"
"Just barely. The others?"
Seven shook her head. "I don't know."
"I'll call Sickbay." Tuvok stated. He walked past the rest of the bodies as he called for Sickbay.
As he looked through the carnage he saw what looked like a Vulcan. He felt sadden by the loss, but did not show his feelings. He kept them to himself just as all Vulcans do.
"His Katra." Seven asked as the EMH arrived to attend to Axum. "What will happen to it?"
"It will be spread across the winds." Tuvok stated flattly. "There's nothing I can do about it now."
"That is sad."
"A most unfortunate event for a Vulcan. Yes." He tried hard to keep the emotions he felt out of his voice.
Suddenly, they heard sobs of a child coming from behind the storage containers. Seven rushed over to see who it was. To her joy it was the little girl who had been rushing towards her for protection.
"Annika!" The little girl cried. "Why did you leave me?"
"I did not want to, Sela." Seven replied. "I had no choice. The doors closed too quickly and were sealed shut."
Seven knew it was not the whole truth, but it was the best she could tell the young girl. She did not want to upset her further. The girl had been through enough.
Seven squated down to reached out for her and the girl accepted her offer for a hug. She accepted Seven's excuse without question.
"Don't leave me again, Annika."
Seven remembered when she saw the girl in Uni-matrix Zero. She was about four years old then, but she was still in Uni-matrix Zero. How or why she was in Uni-matrix Zero, Seven did not know, but she was glad to see her now.
In Uni-matrix Zero, the girl had no Borg implants. Instead, she had long blonde hair and sky blue eyes. Her tiny features stoled Seven's heart even then. Now, a few years later, she still had Seven's heart.
"My parents?" The girl asked.
Seven's heart broke again. She hated to tell the young girl what she knew of her parents. "Sela, I'm sorry. They are dead."
The girl's head fell against Seven's shoulders and she began to cry again. This time she cried harder than before. "All I have is you now. Please don't leave me again!"
Seven did not know what to say to her. She did not know if the girl had family on her home planet or if she truly had no one. Seven could not promise the girl that she could stay with her. Seven's heart ached for her. It ached so badly that for the first time in years, Seven felt as though she too could cry.
"My crew and I can handle things from here." The doctor stated as he approached them. "Since the girl appears to be fine, you can take her somewhere else for now. I'll check on her later."
"She can stay with me. There's an extra alcove there." Seven stated.
"Very well." The EMH stated. "We'll take care of things here."
"Then we shall continue with our mission." Tuvok stated. He wanted to get away from the death that surrounded him in this cargo bay. Then thinking about the girl he added, "After we find some place for her to wait, while we continue the search."
Meanwhile, the Bridge of the Titan and of Voyager were addressing the Bio-ship.
"I believe a new day has come for us and the Federation." Janeway's look alike stated. "The supervisors have agreed to this proposal and we will not declare war on the Federation today."
"We are glad to hear that." Janeway stated.
"We would also like to state our graditude for assisting us with the Borg collective." Picard stated.
"As would we." Boothby replied. "We could not have done it without your help."
"It was our pleasure." Janeway said.
"Well, we must be off." Alias Janeway stated. "Your last two crew members should be returned to you soon, Captain Riker."
"Thank you." Riker replied.
"Oh, and please thank your doctors, for us, for sharing the plans to remove Borg implants and rehabilitating people." Alias Janeway requested.
"Will do." Riker replied again.
"Rest assured. Any Federation people we find, will be returned to you as soon as possible. As well as any improvements we might make on the process of returning them to their former state."
"I'm sure I speak for the whole of the Federation when I say we will very much appreciate that." Janeway stated.
"You're very welcome." Boothby replied.
"Well, we shall take our leave of you." Alias Janeway stated. "Species 8472 out as you say."
The screen went back to a mass of stars and two ships. One was the Bioship of Species 8472 flying away towards the Delta quadrant. The other was Worf's ship. A large green Klingon ship called Krosos.
"Times have change." Picard told Will. "There's was a time, when we had to worry about a Klingon battle cruiser outside our ship. Now, we can look upon it as a Federation ship that will be our friend rather than a possible foe."
"Yes they have." Will replied with a smile.
"Lieutenant Craig, hail the Krosos." Picard ordered. "I want to thank them for their assistance."
"Yes, Sir."
"This is Admiral Jean-Luc Picard."
"Commander Tang here." The man growled as his contenance appeared on screen.
"We want to thank you for your assistance." Picard stated.
"No thanks is necessary." Tang stated. "The Borg is our enemy as well as yours. Besides, I'm not too anxious for Captain Worf's position today. It can wait until a more honourable time. Today was not a good day to die."
Picard almost laughed. "Agreed."
"We'll be awaiting for Worf's return." Tang stated. "That is, when he has finished assisting you with the situation."
"That could take a while." Picard informed.
"We have time and if you'd like, we have the manpower to lend you also."
"That would be most appreciated." Picard answered.
"We'll send our best engineer and other specialists over as soon as possible to assist you."
"We'll be waiting. Picard out."
"That was nice of them." Will stated.
"Yes it was."
"Times have changed." Will said with a smile.
"Twenty-six Borg dead!" Beverly exclaimed to Picard when he arrived to check the situation in Sickbay. "Over half of the people we rescued! Most of them died in the cargo bay! It was nothing but a death trap in there for them!"
"Beverly." Picard said calmly.
"God knows how many more died on Voyager locked in the cargo bay!"
"Beverly." Picard said more firmly. "We had no other choice."
"Really!" She replied sharply. "You could have just evacuated that whole section and let the Borg have that section. Maybe more would be alive right now!"
"They were Borg!" Picard growled. "I can not have Borg running around on my ship lose!"
"Were Borg!" Beverly yelled back as she stood up from her chair and was suddenly almost in his face. "Not all of them had their homing beacons reactivated! The space would have given them more room to get away from those who did and maybe it would not have been such a bloody war down there!"
"We could not have known that!" Picard sternly insisted.
"Maybe not, but I have twenty-six death certificates to write now, all because you left them confined to just the cargo bay!"
"Oh, so that's my fault now?" Picard asked feeling as though he had just been tried and convicted by his wife.
"Yes!" She yelled. Then wanted to retact it as she sat back down in her chair remorsely. "No! I don't know!"
"Beverly, we have been through a lot these last few days." Picard stated. "I think now is not the time to take our frustrations out on each other. I understand your feelings about writing out death certificates. I know you abhour the idea of filing them out when a person dies. I also understand your feelings on rehabilitating people who have been Borg. However, you can not save everyone. I can't save everyone."
"I realize that, Jean-Luc." She said sadly.
"Sometimes I have to make choices that I don't like." He stated. "Locking all the Borg in that cargo bay was not what I wanted to do. However, I did not know if all of them would have their homing devices activated at the time. Neither did Deanna. We both did what we thought was best for the ship."
"I understand, but you aren't the one who has to write out all those damn death certificates!" She stated. "The majority of them are going to be Jane or John Doe unless Hugh, Seven, Axum, or Korok can tell me who they all are! That's even harder for me to stomach. These people died without names. They were people before they were Borg and they were again when they were severed from the Borg Collective!"
Jean-Luc reached out for her hand and held it sympathically. "I'm sorry, Beverly. I'm truly sorry, but Janeway and I did what we thought was best for the crews of the Titan and Voyager."
"I understand." She replied, only half meaning what she was saying. "I'm sorry I yelled at you."
"It's alright." He accepted her apology. "You have a tough job. I certainly would not want it."
"That's why I'm the doctor." She said as she kissed him on the cheek. It was luke warm, but there was still love in her kiss. "Well, I guess I should get back to the drudgeries of my job."
"Good luck." He told her.
As she started to leave, she began to feel truly guilty for what she had said to Jean-Luc. "Jean-Luc." She said as she turned back around. The remorse for her accusations was begining to hit her hard. "I am truly sorry for accusing you of killing all those people."
"Beverly."
"I am sorry, Jean-Luc."
"You don't need to apologize." Picard stated.
"I feel like I should. I'm really sorry."
"I accept your apology."
She was not sure if he did, but she accepted his answer and went back to Sickbay. She still felt very bad for what all she had said to Jean-Luc. She wanted to take her accusations back so badly, but there was nothing she could do now, but go on from here and do her duties.