DISCLAIMER: You all know the drill - Paramount is God. All hail Paramount. They own everything in the Star Trek Universe - I'm just
using my overactive imagination to take their characters where they refuse to go. All in the name of fun, not profit (I wish).
RATING: PG-13 Nothing my momma couldn't read.
<< BACK TO PART XVIII: THE RETURN
Although she heard the doors open behind her, Captain Janeway stared resolutely at the small courtyard outside her window and didn't turn around. She had never thought of it before, but she didn't even know what building she was being held in. She and Seven had transported here, and she had just assumed that she was somewhere near the main Starfleet complex. Looking out her window, though, she was unable to see any familiar landmarks and she had eventually determined that she was nowhere near headquarters.
"Perhaps today you're more willing to discuss your involvement with the Borg."
She turned around to face Admiral Blackwell with a defiant glare.
"I'm not discussing anything, Admiral, until I speak with Seven of Nine or Admiral Paris."
"I can't allow that."
She took a menacing step towards him. "How dare you treat a member of my crew like that! Seven of Nine is an individual now, not some science project for Starfleet engineers."
"Seven of Nine � you see? You claim she's an individual, yet you still use her Borg designation."
"That's her choice. I insist on speaking with her."
"I'm afraid you won't be seeing her anytime soon."
"Then you won't have my cooperation," she said, crossing her arms.
"That's unfortunate," said Blackwell with a frown. "I'd hate to see you in a general court-martial after you handled yourself so admirably during the Board of Inquiry."
She raised an eyebrow. "Are you threatening me?"
He didn't answer the question and looked at the PADD in his hands. "I've gone over your logs, Captain. So far, I've counted seventeen violations of the Prime Directive."
"I've already been through this at the Board of Inquiry."
"Of course�but that doesn't mean I can't have charges brought against you." He looked down at the PADD in his hands. "Seventeen counts of violating the Prime Directive. Five counts of violating First Contact procedures. Unnecessary risk to your ship and crew. Willfully engaging the Borg. Violation of the Omega Directive. Shall I continue?"
She stared at him in silence and he returned his gaze to his PADD.
"Negligence and reckless actions resulting in the death of Captain Rudy Ransom. Giving technology to the Hirogen. Losing possession of your vessel on three occasions." He looked up at her again. "The list goes on. Every time I read through your logs I find another charge to add. I think you get the picture."
"Oh, yes," she said, her voice cold.
"It would be a shame to waste such a stellar career."
Her only response was a raised eyebrow. Normally, the threat of a career-ending court-martial would have had a greater effect on her � she had worried about it a lot during the journey across the Gamma quadrant � but her devotion to Seven of Nine was far stronger than her devotion to her career, and the Admiral's threat failed to move her in the slightest.
His face clouded over at her lack of reaction and he frowned. "As a matter of fact, I came across something interesting the last time I went over the logs in my possession. Would you like to hear about it or are we going to discuss your agreement with the Borg?"
She turned away from him and looked resolutely out the window. "I've told you everything already. I want to see Seven."
"Very well � attempted murder."
She turned back around, incredulous. "What?"
"Something I came across in your First Officer's account of the Equinox encounter. Noah Lessing. You threatened to kill him and would have let him die if your First Officer hadn't intervened. That counts as attempted murder, Captain."
An expression of anxiety momentarily flashed across her face, but she quickly suppressed it and stared coldly at Admiral Blackwell.
"Perhaps you'd rather discuss the Borg if this makes you uncomfortable?" he offered condescendingly.
After her reaction to his mentioning the events surrounding the Equinox, Captain Janeway had regained control of herself and managed a smug grin.
"You say you've read my logs, Admiral, but you obviously don't know me very well. If you did, you'd know that you can't get anywhere by threatening me."
He looked at her carefully for a moment before realization dawned and he smiled. "Of course � the selfless martyr. I should have known better. I'll have to focus my efforts on your crew."
She stiffened immediately, her instinctual reaction to anybody threatening her crew. He noticed her react and his eyebrows went up. "Ah, I thought so. Let's see�the Equinox Five, as they're being called. They were dishonorably discharged. Perhaps I could arrange for a court-martial or a trial. And of course, the Maquis."
Her eyes widened and her breath caught in her throat involuntarily. Although the fate of the Maquis had seemingly been resolved to her satisfaction, their persecution had been something she had feared for many years in the case of their return.
"They're not going to be prosecuted," she said in a strained voice. "Admiral Paris � "
"Admiral Paris has no say in this matter. I'm sure my contacts on Cardassia could be persuaded to demand they be charged for their crimes." He looked down at his PADD. "Your chief engineer is Maquis�and she has a young daughter. It would be a pity if her mother was incarcerated. And her father�well, well � Tom Paris. I'm sure we can find something to charge him with."
"Leave my crew alone!" she snapped, no longer able to contain her anger.
"And Lieutenant Harry Kim," he continued, undaunted. "I've found quite a few questionable points on his record. I've read his psychological profile � I'm sure he'd be disappointed if he received a dishonorable discharge."
"Why are you doing this?"
He finally stopped reading the PADD and looked her in the eye. The iciness of his gaze made a chill run down her spine.
"You have information I want, Captain. I'm prepared to go to any lengths to obtain it."
"I've already told you everything I know," she said, exasperated.
"You're lying!" he yelled furiously. "You've been collaborating with the Borg for years."
"That's ridiculous!"
"Is it? On Stardate 50984, you entered into an alliance with the Borg. You exchanged technology with them and engaged species 8472. In return, Seven of Nine came aboard Voyager as part of your agreement."
"She didn't come voluntarily, and our alliance with the Borg was terminated."
"On Stardate 52095, you used Seven of Nine's nanoprobes and your EMH's 29th-century holoemitter to create an advanced drone. Your plan to advance the collective's capabilities backfired when the drone rebelled and had to be terminated."
"His creation was an accident. He sacrificed himself so the Borg wouldn't get their hands on his advanced technology."
"On Stardate 52342," continued the Admiral, undaunted, "Voyager attempted to prevent Species 6339 from using a virus they had developed against the Borg. On Stardate 52619, Seven of Nine was sent to Unimatrix One to assist the Borg in the development of an assimilation virus, in exchange for a transwarp coil. The attempt was ultimately unsuccessful, and your drone returned to Voyager."
"I've already explained that she was held against her will," she said angrily. "This is ridiculous, Admiral."
"On Stardate 53721, Voyager prevented the Brunali from infecting the collective with a genetically engineered virus, despite the directive given to all Starfleet Captains to take any opportunity to weaken the Borg."
"Icheb was being sent without his knowledge � I refused to let his parents sacrifice him."
A new thought occurred to her.
"You have Icheb here as well, don't you?"
He ignored her. "On Stardate 54010, you assisted the Borg Queen in her attempt to disable the resistance movement known as Unimatrix Zero. You were successful and although the drones were liberated from the collective, they could no longer communicate with each other, effectively neutralizing the resistance."
"Are you holding Icheb here?" she demanded again, ignoring his ridiculous accusations.
He finally stopped ranting long enough to look at her in silence for a few seconds. Meeting his cold gaze, she knew the answer before he spoke.
"You are, aren't you?"
"Our scientists are examining his remaining cybernetic systems, and we hope to be able to duplicate the virus integrated into his genome."
"How can you do this?" she whispered with disbelief.
"How can I do this? You're the one who's been collaborating with the Borg. You've been in league with them from the start, haven't you? That's why you were so anxious to enter the wormhole � the Borg wanted you in the Alpha quadrant for tactical surveillance. Or perhaps they merely wanted the two drones to infiltrate Earth."
"Admiral � my only reason for using the wormhole was getting my crew home."
He continued as if he hadn't even heard her, and she began to wonder if he was mentally unbalanced. "Maybe the Borg have decided that a direct assault would be ineffective. Perhaps your attempts to develop an assimilation virus were successful." He had been slowly pacing back and forth, and he abruptly stopped and turned on her. "Has the virus already been deployed? Is your drone carrying it? Or one of your crew?"
It was becoming more obvious to the Captain that Admiral Blackwell was irrational, so she tried to calmly talk him out his paranoia.
"Admiral, I'm not in league with the Borg, I'm not planning on releasing an assimilation virus, and I'm certainly not trying to help the Borg assimilate Earth," she said, hoping it sounded as ridiculous to him as it did to her.
"Still refusing to cooperate, I see," he said, unmoved by her arguments. "No matter. We can extract all the information we need from your drone's cortical implants, although it will take some time."
Her eyes widened in outrage. "That could kill her!"
He shrugged. "We'll still be able to examine her cybernetic systems, and we still have the other drone. It won't be a complete loss."
"Since when is Starfleet Command in the business of murder and torture?" she said, horrified.
He snorted derisively. "Starfleet Command! Those incompetent fools have no concept of the threats that face the Federation."
She looked at him in surprise � she had so far been under the impression that she was being debriefed with the full knowledge of Starfleet Command.
"Don't look so surprised, Captain," he said. "Admiral Paris and the others have no idea what's going on."
Beginning to understand, she scrutinized him carefully. "You're acting on your own?"
"Hardly. There are others who share my concern about your activities in the Delta quadrant. And in high enough places to be able to set things in motion if need be. Bringing charges against your First Officer, for instance." The threat against Chakotay got an instant reaction out of her, and she glared at the Admiral. "Or a criminal trial for the Maquis."
"Threats won't get you anywhere, Admiral," she said coldly. "I'm not hiding anything."
He glared back at her, but made no answer and turned to leave.
"I urge you to reconsider that, Captain," he said as he walked towards the door. "It would really be very easy for me to cause trouble for your crew."
With that, he left her alone, and she turned back to the window, brooding. She turned over in her head the revelation that Admiral Blackwell was acting without the knowledge or approval of Starfleet Command. She had been wondering that since she had first encountered the guards outside her quarters. What mystified her, though, was that he wasn't acting alone. Was there some kind of vigilante group within Starfleet? She had been out of touch for so long that she couldn't completely rule it out, especially after the chaos of the war with the Dominion. She sighed and squeezed her eyes shut. She hoped Seven and Icheb were all right.
* * *
Chakotay rubbed the side of his head in frustration.
"Do you have any idea when I could talk to her?" he asked.
"I'm afraid not, sir," replied Lieutenant Statler on the other end of the comlink. "She's unavailable."
Chakotay sighed. That was what Admiral Paris' aide had been telling him for days now.
"Well, could you tell her I'm looking for her."
"Yes, sir. I'll see that she gets the message."
He nodded and cut the channel, leaning back in his chair with a sigh. Statler's tone had made it clear that he didn't expect Captain Janeway to be returning his call anytime soon.
Getting up and walking away from the desk, he moved into the living area and walked over to the window of Tom and B'Elanna's apartment. They were sitting on the couch with Miral in between them, working on some updated specs for the Delta Flyer. Starfleet was interested in their design, and was considering producing some as a new class of shuttle for the starships that were currently in production.
B'Elanna looked up as he entered the room. "No luck?"
"She's 'unavailable' right now. I'm getting sick of talking to that Lieutenant Statler."
Tom noticed the way Chakotay was pensively gazing out the window. "I'm sure my father has a good reason for keeping her so busy, Chakotay."
Chakotay put his arm against the large window and leaned on it, looking out at the view of the Mediterranean spread out in front of him. The apartment was on one of the upper floors of a high rise, so the view was spectacular, but his eyes roamed over the horizon without really taking any of it in.
"She'll call," said Tom reassuringly.
"Hm," grunted Chakotay, still staring out the window.
It had been nearly a week since he had talked to Kathryn. She hadn't returned any of his calls the past few days, and he hadn't been able to reach her. At first, he had been able to tell himself that she was just busy, but the longer he went without hearing from her, the more he began to wonder if it was more. Months ago, when she had been having doubts, she had started avoiding him�and that was exactly what she seemed to be doing now. Despite all that had happened between them since then, he couldn't shake the nagging doubt that she had changed her mind once she was back at Headquarters, immersed in Starfleet rules and protocols.
"Come on, Chakotay," said B'Elanna, interrupting his thoughts, "You don't think she's avoiding you?"
He pulled away from the window and looked at her, surprised � that was exactly what he was thinking.
"I don't know," he admitted. "You'd think she could find five minutes to talk to me."
Sensing his hesitation and doubt, B'Elanna tried to reassure him.
"Chakotay, I've seen the way she looks at you when she thinks nobody's watching. She's not avoiding you."
He turned back to the window and looked out at the ocean for a minute before he responded. "You know, it's funny�Before we became involved, I always used to hope that things would change once we got home. No more ship, no more crew, no more protocol. Now, here we are, and we haven't spoken in over a week."
"She's probably just busy," B'Elanna assured him.
"You know better than anyone how she gets when she's working," added Tom.
"Mm-hmm," he mumbled absentmindedly.
Tom looked at his wife and they shared a concerned look.
"If it'll make you feel better," offered Tom, "I'll give my father a call tomorrow and see why she's so busy."
Chakotay nodded. "Thanks, Tom."
Turning back to the window, he stared out at the view. Despite the assurances of his two friends, he couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.
* * *
Chakotay was leaning back in his chair with his hands clasped behind his head, staring at the ceiling, when he heard Tom enter the room. He pulled his hands away from his head and sat up.
"Still unavailable," he said as Tom moved towards him and raised an eyebrow in question. "Your father?"
Tom shook his head. "In a meeting. I'm going to try him at home later."
Chakotay frowned. "This is just like what happened when the Captain was trying to track down your father after we found the wormhole. Kind of suspicious, don't you think? I talked to her mother � she hasn't heard from her either."
Tom shrugged. "I don't know. My father's usually a little hard to get a hold of. I can remember my Mom when I was younger wanting to strangle more than one of his aides. Some of them she saw more often than my father."
Seeing that Chakotay still seemed deep in thought, Tom left him alone and went to go help B'Elanna with Miral.
* * *
"And Jeannie says to say hello," said Mrs. Paris. "She'll be back next week and says she'll drop by to meet her niece."
"Great," said Tom. "Tell her she can look after Miral while B'Elanna and I have a night out on the town."
She laughed. "So, how is my granddaughter? If you don't bring her by soon, I'm going to have to come over there and track you down myself."
Tom chuckled. "Okay, okay. Listen, Mom, that's not why I'm calling. Is Dad around?"
His mother smiled. "Well, you two are getting along better. Used to be you'd ask that at the beginning of our conversations so you wouldn't have to talk to him."
"It's important," he insisted.
"It always is," his mother sighed. "I'll get him."
She moved away from the screen, and Tom glanced at Chakotay with a raised eyebrow as he moved around the desk to pull up a chair beside Tom. After a few minutes Admiral Paris' face appeared on the screen.
"I'm surprised to find you at home, Dad," said Tom as his father sat down at the other end of the comlink.
"Why?"
"Aren't you busy with Captain Janeway?"
"No," said Owen with a puzzled frown. "She's busy in debriefings."
"You haven't seen her at all?" asked Chakotay.
"No � not for a week or so."
"Lieutenant Statler said you were busy this afternoon � weren't you with the Captain?" said Tom.
"Busy? That's ridiculous. I was doing paperwork all day."
"I tried to call you this afternoon," insisted Tom.
"Lieutenant Statler's the one who's been telling me the Captain's unavailable," said Chakotay. "I've been trying to reach her for days."
"He shouldn't have anything to do with her," said Admiral Paris. "That's odd�I'll look into it for you."
"Thank you, Admiral," said Chakotay.
* * *
Kathryn was pacing back and forth in her quarters again when she heard voices coming down the hallway towards her room. Recognizing the voice of Admiral Blackwell, she moved over to the door and could vaguely make out what was being said when she put her ear next to the door.
"Was there something else, Lieutenant?" That was definitely Admiral Blackwell's voice.
"A minor problem, sir."
She started back from the door in surprise � that sounded like Admiral Paris' aide, Lieutenant Statler.
What's he doing with Admiral Blackwell? she wondered.
"Well, what is it?" demanded Blackwell.
"It's her First Officer, sir. He's tried three times already today."
"So? Tell him she's unavailable."
"He's not taking no for an answer," replied Statler.
She sighed with relief and a small smile crossed her lips. She could always count on Chakotay.
"I think he's contacted her family, too," continued the Lieutenant. "Her mother tried to contact her this afternoon."
"You have your orders � tell them she's busy with debriefings and isn't available to talk."
There was a slight pause, and she thought she heard Blackwell approach the door. Before he reached it, Statler called after him. "We may have another problem, sir � they've reached Admiral Paris."
She vaguely heard Blackwell curse under his breath. "How did they manage that? You take all his calls."
There was another pause before Statler continued in an abashed voice. "Lieutenant Paris tried this afternoon, and I told him the Admiral was in a meeting. I was monitoring his comm channels, and he reached Admiral Paris at home about five minutes ago."
"Damn. Owen will know that this isn't official."
There was a slight silence while Admiral Blackwell thought.
"At least he won't be able to find us," he continued after a moment. "Make sure everyone knows to encrypt the transporters and to make sure they're not followed. And be sure you mask the cortical implant frequency of the drones � they've tracked them down that way before. We can't have Starfleet finding out about our little facility here."
"Yes, sir."
The Captain backed away from the doorway, but was relieved when the voices moved farther away. At least she wasn't going to have to deal with more paranoid accusations right now.
* * *
The Captain sat forward with her elbows on her knees and massaged her temples. Admiral Blackwell's unreasonable accusations and threats were giving her a pounding headache.
"You assisted in the reassimilation of an entire colony! Admit it, Captain!"
She groaned in frustration. "For the last time, Admiral, I refused to help them reestablish their link but they found a way to do it anyways."
"With the help of your First Officer."
"He was coerced," she insisted. "They used the residual link to force him to help them."
"I don't believe you," he snarled. "You were trying to reassimilate them into the Borg collective."
She didn't dignify his accusation with a response, and his pacing back and forth was interrupted when the doors opened and Lieutenant Statler entered. He waited near the door patiently.
"What?" snapped Blackwell.
Statler raised an eyebrow but said nothing, and Blackwell sighed impatiently and joined him over near the door. Although they tried to speak quietly, the Captian was able to catch most of their conversation.
"He tried to bypass my comm system," she heard Statler say quietly, "But we encrypted the pathways and he wasn't able to reach her."
"He's persistent, I'll give him that," growled Blackwell. After a pause, he added, "Perhaps if he talked with the Captain, we'll be able to throw him off the trail."
She took a deep breath. It sounded like Chakotay was getting increasingly suspicious.
"Are you sure that's wise, sir?" Statler said. "It's unlikely he knows about our involvement."
Blackwell glanced in her direction, and she pretended she wasn't listening.
"I think we've got enough leverage to ensure her cooperation," he said.
With that, he approached the Captain, who raised her head and met his gaze as he drew near her.
"Captain � it appears your First Officer is determined to speak with you. I'm going to allow it, but if you tell him anything about what's going on here, I'll have him and the rest of the Maquis still in the sector in custody for extradition to Cardassia by the end of the day. Is that clear?"
She glared at him for a few seconds. "Perfectly," she responded, her voice deadly.
Statler was over at the desk, working at the comm terminal. When he nodded at them, Blackwell indicated for the Captain to move over to the desk, and she rose slowly and complied. Settling herself in the chair in front of the terminal, she glared furiously at her two companions. Blackwell stood on the opposite side of the desk across from her, out of sight of the screen. Statler reached over and opened the comlink, and after a minute the screen lit up and she saw Chakotay's face on the other end of the link. After what she had been through lately, it was a relief to see his face, but she tried to suppress it quickly.
"Kathryn!" he said as he sat down.
She could tell by the tone of his voice that he was also glad to see her, and she was sorry that she couldn't return his warmth. She had to figure out a way to let him know that she, Seven, and Icheb were in trouble without alerting Admiral Blackwell, who was watching her from the other side of the terminal like a hawk.
She gave Chakotay a friendly smile, but it purposely lacked its usual warmth. "Sorry I haven't returned your calls," she said formally. She could see that he picked up on her cold demeanor immediately, and she rejoiced. Only Chakotay could pick up on such a small difference that quickly.
"It's been over a week, Kathryn," he said, smiling but watching her carefully.
"I know, I know, I'm sorry. You know how thorough Admirals can be. How are Tom and B'Elanna?"
"They're fine," he said, too busy scrutinizing her to think of a more lengthy response.
"And the rest of the crew?" Talking to him was so comforting that she was unable to stop some of her usual warmth from entering her question, and she could see that he relaxed a little.
"Good. Mark's back from Betazed, and Neelix has decided to open a restaurant. The Doctor's boring us all with his latest paper � apparently he's been asked to speak at a medical conference. We'll never hear the end of it."
She chuckled, forgetting herself momentarily, but it was a sad laugh. She missed her crew. The cold stare of Admiral Blackwell from across the terminal brought her swiftly back to reality, though, and her face fell.
He noticed the change in her demeanor immediately. "Will you be joining us anytime soon?" he asked carefully.
She stiffened. "I'm afraid I'm going to be held up here indefinitely," she said, trying to put meaning behind her words. She thought she had succeeded when his eyes narrowed slightly and he seemed to become more suspicious.
"It's not the same without you, Kathryn. The crew's been asking for you."
"Give them my regards."
She had hoped that she was getting her meaning across, but when she saw the suspiciousness on his face replaced with disappointment, she realized she hadn't succeeded � that she was giving him the wrong message. It dawned on her in a flash that he wasn't suspicious that something was wrong � he thought she was trying to back out of their relationship, and she kicked herself for not thinking of that possibility earlier.
Give them my regards. How well he remembered that phrase. That was how she had brushed him off three years ago when they had been in the void. To him, it meant that she was pushing him away and withdrawing into herself. All his suspicions about her pulling away from him and their relationship returned with a vengeance, but he held out just enough hope to try again.
"Tom's arranging a get together for the crew at the real Sandrine's. He's tried to get as many of the crew as he can to attend. He was hoping you'd be able to make it."
"I'm afraid not." Come on, Chakotay, she added to herself. He had always been able to read her in the past, but he wasn't picking up the right signals yet. She was fairly certain that he thought she was pulling away from him � that was why he wasn't suspicious yet. She had to quickly try and figure out how to tell him she was in trouble without Admiral Blackwell picking up on it. His comment about Sandrine's gave her a sudden inspiration.
"I really don't have time to be socializing with the crew, Chakotay," she said coldly.
That got his attention. Although he had always had to convince her to associate with the crew off duty, it had been more because she felt she had work to do than because she didn't want to at all. Here, she was making it sound like she would rather do anything than hang out at a bar with her crew.
He began to wonder if something else was going on and his earlier suspicions again rose to the surface. He had assumed she was being aloof because she had changed her mind about their relationship, but that wouldn't explain all her behavior. He wondered if she was in some kind of trouble.
Yes! she thought when she saw him react.
"Besides," she continued, "I'm really not very good at pool. I never really got the hang of it."
Now he looked much more alert, and she heaved an internal sigh of relief. He knew as well as she did that she was an excellent pool player, and had picked up the game almost without instruction.
"Another time, maybe," he said, eyeing her carefully.
"Yes," she agreed. "Give Tom my apologies. I'm sure he'll understand that there's no way I can get away right now." She emphasized the last part of her statement, hoping he would take it in the way it was meant � literally. She glanced momentarily at Admiral Blackwell, and when she looked back at the screen she was relieved to see that Chakotay had obviously caught the glance.
He thought for a moment, wording his next comment carefully.
"You could tell him yourself, except he and B'Elanna have gone out. I'm all by myself here." As he said it, he watched her carefully, a question in his eyes.
She had to try not to smile � he had picked up that she was trying to tell him something and wanted to know if she was alone.
"Sorry I missed them," she said, shaking her head almost imperceptibly.
He nodded, understanding that she wasn't alone. He waited for her to take the lead since she obviously was trying to tell him something.
She had to tell him that Seven was in trouble somehow. His comment about Mark gave her an idea.
"When you see Mark and Cassandra, tell them Annika says hello. I spoke with her just after he left for Betazed."
She gambled that Admiral Blackwell wouldn't recognize Seven's given name, and to her relief he showed no reaction. Chakotay, however, did, and he leaned forward.
"Oh?" he said, waiting for her to elaborate.
"She's sorry she missed seeing him," she said carefully. "But she's busy at the lab. Completely tied up with research." She watched him with each word, and she saw him slowly process her meaning.
"I'll tell him."
"She really wanted to get away," she added.
"Just like you."
She barely concealed a grin � he was on the right track now. "You could say that," she said meaningfully.
She wanted to say more, but she saw Admiral Blackwell motion at her to cut the transmission.
"I have to go," she told him.
He nodded. "I'll see you soon, Kathryn."
She squeezed her eyes shut at the promise behind his words. When she opened them again, she whispered, "I hope so."
With that, she cut the transmission and leaned back in her chair with a sigh.
On his end of the comlink, Chakotay frowned before jumping up and walking into the other room where Tom and B'Elanna were playing with Miral on the floor. They looked up when he entered the room and noticed his dark expression.
"What is it?" asked B'Elanna. "Who was that?"
"Captain Janeway."
"What?" said Tom. "You talked to her?"
He nodded.
"And?" prompted B'Elanna.
"We need to talk to Admiral Paris. I think she's in trouble."
"What kind of trouble?" asked Tom.
"I don't know," he admitted. "But whatever it is, it's bad."
* * *
"You allowed yourself and two of your officers to be assimilated! That's proof that you were in league with the Borg."
"Admiral � "
"Nobody in their right mind would allow themselves to be assimilated otherwise!"
Kathryn almost laughed despite herself � that was almost exactly what Chakotay had said when she had told him her plan. She was getting tired of Admiral Blackwell's paranoid rantings, but she defended herself more as a reaction than anything else.
"Check our medical logs. We were treated with a neural suppressant � we weren't connected to the hive mind."
"No!" he yelled. "You're lying! Tell me about their plans to assimilate Earth."
"We weren't connected to the hive mind," she said tiredly.
"Your chief of security was � he must have told you what he found out."
"Tuvok was trying to resist it, so he wasn't completely connected either."
He moved over to where she was sitting and leaned in close. "Tell me about their plans."
She sighed and rubbed her forehead. "For the last time, Admiral, all I know about the Borg's plans to assimilate Earth is what the Borg Queen revealed to Seven of Nine during her time in Unimatrix One."
"Where she stayed because she chose to!" he snapped. "She wanted to help assimilate Earth."
"She was coerced. If she didn't go with them, the Borg threatened to assimilate us. She only cooperated because we were being threatened." She sighed, then added in a low voice, "An approach which I see isn't limited to the Borg collective."
He ignored her comment and continued. "We'll be looking into her involvement once we figure out how to extract the information from her cortical node."
Her head snapped up. "That will kill her! She's not hiding anything from you."
He looked at her suspiciously. "You trust her?"
"Implicitly."
He stood up. "Then you're a fool. She's Borg!" He began pacing back and forth, and she watched him for a few minutes before he stopped and looked at her carefully.
"Perhaps I'll have to use more drastic measures," he said quietly.
The Captain frowned, wondering what he was talking about.
"Statler!" he yelled towards the door. When the lieutenant entered, he spoke quietly to him. Statler seemed to object, but Blackwell silenced him, and the young man nodded and moved out the door.
"We'll just have to find out for ourselves the extent of your cooperation with the Borg," he said with a cold glare.
He continued pacing back and forth impatiently until Lieutenant Statler returned with the two security guards, McCarthy and Phillips. Ensign McCarthy was carrying a computer terminal, and the Phillips approached Captain Janeway with a small round piece of equipment that looked like a cortical inhibitor.
"What is that?" she said, pulling away from him.
"Something that will tell us whether you are helping the Borg."
He motioned to Phillips, who attached the round device to her temple.
Blackwell, Statler, and the two ensigns gathered around the station that McCarthy had carried in, and they busied themselves for a few minutes before Blackwell looked up and glared at Janeway.
"Do it," he growled.
She looked at him in puzzlement before a wave of dizziness came over her and there was a bright flash of light.
* * *
Captain Janeway looked up from the PADD she was reading and glanced uneasily around her ready room. It was quiet, and the stars were streaking by out the window, but she had the distinct feeling she wasn't supposed to be here � that something wasn't right.
She shook it off, attributing it to nerves, and returned to their analysis of the Borg cube they were trying to infiltrate. She made a few changes to their plan that would cut precious seconds off their theft of the transwarp coil, then looked up again. A sharp feeling of unease came over her. For some reason, she had the distinct impression that she should be back on Earth. Images of Starfleet Headquarters, San Francisco, and her mother's house came vividly to her mind. This was odd, because it had been a long time since she had felt such an intense longing for home.
Her malaise was interrupted by the blaring alarm of a red alert and Chakotay's voice over her commbadge.
Captain to the bridge.
She rose from her desk and strode out the doors. "Report," she said as Chakotay rose from his chair.
"We've detected a transwarp corridor fifty thousand kilometers ahead of us."
She frowned and took her chair. "Raise shields. Let's see it, Mr. Kim."
The viewscreen was activated, and the greenish distortion that was a transwarp corridor was forming in front of the ship. After a few tense seconds, a Borg sphere emerged and the corridor closed behind it.
"They're hailing us," said Harry with surprise.
The Captain looked at him with a raised eyebrow. She was about to tell him to put it through when her eyes fell on the single pip adorning his collar. She had a nagging feeling that was somehow wrong � that he should be a lieutenant. She considered that for a moment before Chakotay's voice interrupted her thoughts.
"Captain?"
She brought herself back to the situation, mentally criticizing herself for considering a promotion for Harry when the safety of the ship was at stake.
"Onscreen," she ordered, turning her gaze back to the front of the bridge.
Instead of the usual view of a cube, a woman's face appeared on the screen. She was obviously Borg, but she had an expression of curiosity and cleverness that Captain Janeway usually didn't associate with Borg. Her appearance was almost reptilian, and although her face was devoid of implants there was something protruding from the back of her skull.
"Captain Janeway," said the woman in a purring voice.
She gripped the arms of her chair while the rest of the crew stared speechless at the image on the screen.
"Who are you?"
"I am the Borg," said the Queen. To her surprise, the Captain realized that she knew that, although she didn't know how. As far as she was concerned, there was no hierarchy in the Borg collective�yet she somehow knew instinctively that she was looking at the single mind that controlled the collective.
"You disappoint me, Captain. I had expected something more cunning from you," continued the Queen in a menacing voice.
The Captain froze, and it took her a few seconds to answer. "I don't know what you mean."
The Borg Queen cocked her head. "You're planning an assault on one of our vessels. You want a transwarp coil. You will fail."
Captain Janeway felt like she had been punched in the stomach. Yet another way home pulled out from under them.
"I'm prepared to give it to you," continued the Queen.
"Oh, really?" she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. She rose from her chair and stood closer to the screen with one hand on her hip. "In exchange for what?"
"Your assistance." Seven was standing behind the command chairs, and the Queen turned her gaze to her. "Seven of Nine, tertiary adjunct of Unimatrix zero one. Your experience will add to our perfection. Your knowledge will be invaluable." She returned her gaze to the Captain. "You will assist us in developing an assimilation virus for the assimilation of Earth. In exchange, we will supply your vessel with a transwarp coil."
"No," said the Captain icily.
"Your goal is to return your vessel to the Alpha quadrant. You will be able to achieve that goal if you cooperate with us."
"Not at the price of assimilating humanity."
The Queen's demeanor became cold. "You will comply or we will destroy your vessel."
"Go ahead. We won't help you assimilate Earth."
"Comply or be assimilated," repeated the Queen. "Resistance is futile."
The Captain cocked an eyebrow. "We'll see about that."
"You can assist us as individuals or as drones, Captain. It's your decision."
"Ensign, cut the channel," she ordered over her shoulder. The viewscreen went blank, but not before she saw the look of pure anger on the face of the Queen.
"Tom, get us out of here."
His fingers started moving over his console, but before the ship could escape, the bridge jolted.
"What was that?" asked Chakotay.
"They've locked onto us with a tractor beam," said Harry urgently. "I'm trying to disrupt it."
The Captain watched him for a few seconds before he shook his head. "It's not working, Captain."
"Maybe we should cooperate with them � or at least pretend to until we can figure out another option," said Chakotay, leaning over towards her chair.
She shook her head without looking at him. "And what if they manage to get the information they need from Seven, or from us? We could be putting the entire Alpha quadrant at risk."
"If we don't we're putting ourselves at risk. We should do whatever it takes to survive."
She turned her head to face him, and studied him quizzically. The way he was looking at her seemed unfamiliar, somehow. His gaze lacked the usual spark in his eyes, the warmth that he usually had when he looked at her.
"I'm not going to trade our safety at the cost of the Borg assimilating humanity," she said coldly. "We're not going to cooperate with them."
"Our shields are losing power," announced Tuvok ominously before the lights started to flicker on the bridge.
"Harry, any luck on that tractor beam?" she asked without looking at him.
"They're adapting too fast," he pronounced. "I can't break us free."
The lights on the bridge went out, and the only illumination came from the blinking red alert lights.
"Shields are down," announced Tuvok.
"Arm yourselves," she barked, reaching for the phaser behind her chair. "Set your phasers to a rotating frequency."
Before she could even turn back around, she felt herself engulfed in a transporter beam and when the greenish glow cleared, she found herself in the interior of a Borg cube along with the rest of the bridge crew. She raised her phaser, but found that it wasn't functioning. She looked around the dark confines of the cube and saw drones approaching them from all sides.
They attempted to fight them off in hand to hand combat, but they were easily overpowered. Instead of being instantly assimilated, though, the drones merely held them in place. Captain Janeway had a drone on each side of her, holding her firmly by the arms. She could see Chakotay and Tuvok nearby her, also being held in place, and the rest of her staff was off to the side, similarly restrained.
The crowd of drones parted to admit the Borg Queen as she slowly approached Captain Janeway.
"Welcome, Captain. Now that you're in my territory, perhaps you'll be more cooperative."
"Go to hell."
The Borg Queen's face became a mask of anger. "Comply and I will spare you and your crew."
"We won't help you."
This seemed to puzzle the Queen. "You would sacrifice yourselves to protect a people halfway across the galaxy?"
"Innocent people. And yes, I would."
"Then you leave me no choice," answered the Queen. She tilted her head to the side with a demonic smile on her face.
She saw the drone holding Harry react first. The drone reached his hand up to the young ensign's neck, and two assimilation tubules sprang out of his hand and into Harry's neck. He gasped weakly and tilted his head back as the nanoprobes flowed from the drone into his system and began to assimilate his tissues. Tuvok was next, and the tubules were injected into his neck as the Vulcan's eyes widened.
The next of her staff to be assimilated was her First Officer. Kathryn saw the hand of one of the drones holding Chakotay approach his neck, and the tubules were plunged into the soft flesh. He gasped as the nanoprobes slowly began to take over his system, and his knees gave out from under him. The drones holding him released him as he fell, and he lay on the floor of the cube as his skin slowly started to turn pale.
"No!" she screamed as she saw her crew, her friends, her family, being assimilated before her eyes. Chakotay was staring at her from where he lay on the floor, and his gaze was almost accusatory.
The Borg Queen stepped closer to her. "Assist us or join them," she hissed.
Kathryn looked at her staff as their eyes glazed over and their skin turned slowly to the familiar chalky color of Borg drones. Tears filled her eyes at their blank stares, but the despair on her face was soon replaced by fury. She turned to the Borg Queen with a ferocious glare.
"I will not comply."
The Borg Queen's eyes narrowed, and she took another step towards Janeway. "Then you will become one of us."
She reached her hand towards Kathryn's neck, and the Captain stiffened but gazed stoically ahead. She felt the tubules plunge into the soft flesh of her neck, and closed her eyes as she waited to feel the nanoprobes coursing through her body. After a few seconds, she still felt the same, and she opened her eyes and looked around in puzzlement. The assimilation of her staff had been nearly instantaneous, but she couldn't feel anything.
"It's not working. Reset the simulation."
She looked around for the source of the detached voice for a few seconds before she remembered. That was Admiral Blackwell's voice. It all came back to her in a rush � her and Chakotay, the Yukon, their return to Earth, the interrogations.
"It's not real," she whispered with relief, looking at her assimilated crew. Before she had more time to consider this, the scene before her disappeared in a bright flash of light.
>> ON TO PART XX : INVESTIGATIONS
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