Unity III: Against All Odds, Redux (Complete)

[Sonnenburg]

very nice read. It's the little things you notice the second time that make all that more sense in the long run, especially with the stuff that you have added.

CERC

Thanks. I was surprised by how much detail was actually there. I knew I planned out a lot of it, but it was pretty surprisingly close. I think there was like one continuity error all told, and it simply had to do with a unit of time.

[CERC]

very nice read. It's the little things you notice the second time that make all that more sense in the long run, especially with the stuff that you have added.

CERC

Thanks. I was surprised by how much detail was actually there. I knew I planned out a lot of it, but it was pretty surprisingly close. I think there was like one continuity error all told, and it simply had to do with a unit of time.

Yeah, I'm really embarassed that I missed so much of it the first time, but when I was reading it, I was working on my undergraduate thesis.... so... yeah.....

CERC

[Arrow]

Ok, spoil me - what did the Romulans find?

[Sonnenburg]

Ok, spoil me - what did the Romulans find?

Well, since you could just look it up anyway, I'll tell you what we're going to learn on Friday...

It appears to be the body of Darth Vader.

[Sonnenburg]

First of two parts that will be posted today

Part VIII


With less than forty warships General Taar and his Imperial forces held the homeworld of the Krenim Imperium, a race whose worlds stretched over five thousand lightyears of space, captive. It seemed like an insane decision, given the numbers. Granted these ships, Imperator-class Star Destroyers mostly, were some of the most feared vessels in the galaxy, but the Krenim were capable of collecting enough ships from around the Imperium to easily overwhelm the fleet through numbers. That was obvious to anyone, including Gen. Taar, and if it had been the Klingons, the Federation, the Romulans, or the Republic he would never have considered this plan. But it wasn't. The Krenim had numbers but they were missing the most important element of all.

It's a simple military fact that the size and power of your ships, soldiers, artillery, armor, vehicles, aircraft, and all other military equipment was not the most important element of a battle or war. The speed of deployment, the ability to move the aforementioned ships, soldiers, etcetera to where the battle was was in fact just as, if not more so, important than power. It doesn't matter if your ships can shoot down whole battlecruisers with one shot if your ships are sitting a thousand light-years away from where the battle is. Tactics are all well and good, but a good general knows that strategic movements were essential to any successful campaign. And that gave the Empire the clear advantage here.

Ships, weapons, and numbers aside, it came down to the fact that it took a Krenim battleship a year to cross their space, and the Empire could do it in days. It had already been calculated that any fleet that could be assembled to equal the size of the one that had already been crushed by the Imperial forces here would take two weeks just to arrive. A force large enough to threaten Taar's fleet would take months. In short, unless Krenim's star exploded in the coming days nothing was going to be able to budge the fleet that had demonstrated its total control of the planet. And that pleased General Taar just fine.

Phase one was completed. It was time for the next step.
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On board the Federation starship Enterprise, quite oblivious to the invasion of the Krenim Imperium, Seven of Nine exited Holodeck Two, and found Lt. Comm. Borui waiting for her. “Doctor,” she said in passing.

“Mind if we talk?” Borui asked as she fell into step next to Seven.

“Yes,” Seven replied.

“I noticed you were running another gladiatorial simulation,” she said, ignoring the reply.

“Don’t you have any actual duties on board this ship?” Seven asked as they turned the corner. “Something besides watching me?”

“I just happened to notice as I was walking by,” Borui remarked. “Your emotions can be quite difficult to ignore sometimes.”

“Try harder,” Seven answered.

“Seven,” she said as kindly as she could manage, “I’ve been thinking about these holo-fantasies of yours lately-”

“They’re not fantasies,” Seven rebuked.

“All right,” Borui said. “Anyway, what I think this might be is a representation of something a little different.” She paused. “Something more personal.”

Seven slowed to a halt. “What do you mean?”

Borui took a deep breath. “I think this might be a manifestation of some repressed sexual frustration.”

Seven stared at her wordlessly for several seconds and then continued her walk, Borui rushing to catch up. “Seven-”

“I don’t want to hear it,” Seven cut her off and then sighed. “Do all you psychiatrists think about sex all the time, or is it just you and Dr. Freud?”

“Seven,” Borui pressed on, “You’re bottling your feelings up inside, and they’re manifesting themselves as hostility. You need to find a little release.”

“That’s what my workouts are for,” Seven replied.

“A healthy release,” Borui said. “Violence isn’t healthy.”

Seven shook her head in disbelief as they entered the turbolift. “I don’t believe this,” she remarked. “So according to you all the problems will just go away with one magical orgasm.”

“There’s no need to be crude,” Borui replied. “Anyway, that’s not my point at all. You need to find a chance to let some positive emotions show; that’s healthy.”

The doors opened and they stepped out into the corridor. “Sex isn’t my problem, doctor,” Seven said finally. “The problem is my fiancé is somewhere else in the galaxy, which makes the entire procedure rather difficult.”

“We’ve been over that before too,” Borui replied. Despite how long it had been Seven still insisted that Luke was coming back. It was a fine dream, but the problem was the reality she was allowing it to intrude upon. “I really think this would be good for you. The holodeck-”

“The holodeck?” Seven said incredulously. “Listen, I neither know nor care what your hobbies are, but for me the idea of-“ she shuddered as she briefly rolled it through her mind. “It’s a mockery of perhaps the most beautiful act there is. The very thought offends me.”

"I never thought you of all people would be prudish."

"You just don't get it, do you," Seven said. "If Q showed up right now and told me I could have Luke back on the condition that I could never have sex again, I wouldn't even hesitate. Luke was far, far more than my lover, he made me a whole person, you understand that? There were feelings he brought in me that were unimaginable, and that could be found with just a word, or even a look. I relished making love to him, but that was because it was about the ‘love’ part of it, about me showing how unique and special he was in my life, because I wouldn't share my body with anyone else. Anything else would be a hollow echo by comparison."

"But you could create a holographic Luke-"

"It wouldn't be real!"

"Okay," Borui said. "I see where you're coming from, but that doesn't change the underlying issue here. You need to find a healthy release; perhaps a member of the crew."

“No.”

“There certainly won’t be a shortage of volunteers.”

“This is so very close to being interesting,” Seven replied.

“Listen,” Borui said, “There’s nothing to worry about. There’s no possibility of diseases on this ship, and you obviously don’t have to worry about an unwanted pregnancy-“

She never saw it coming. Seven grabbed her and in one motion threw her into the wall like she weighed nothing. Seven's face was just inches away from her own, her lips pulled back in almost a snarl, her breath heavy with rage, the anger spilling out of her mind. “What kind of doctor are you?” she asked, seething all the while.

“Seven,” Borui said calmly. “Just relax.”

If Seven heard her, she didn’t show it. She just stood there, her chest rising and falling with each deep intake as her anger grew. “I am dead inside,” she hissed. “Can you possibly understand that? How DARE you speak of it like this?!”

“Seven-“

“Do you think I need you to remind me of that little fact?” she went on. “I can tell you the complete personnel files of every member of this crew from memory but I’ll forget the fact I’m sterile unless you point it out?”

“I was just being pragmatic,” Borui said.

“How touching,” Seven spat. “Way to be optimistic there, doctor. Hey, here’s an idea: why don’t you go find some poor fellow who just lost both his feet, and tell him ‘Look on the bright side, now you can start that sock puppet show you’ve always dreamed of!’”

“Seven-”

Seven pulled away as the members of security came around the corner. “You stay away from me,” she warned her. “I don’t want your help!” She ignored the officers and walked down the corridor with a stride that was just short of being a run.

Borui assured the security officers she was all right as she rubbed the back of her head where it had hit the wall. Borui had been hoping for more evidence of self-control, but obviously that wasn’t the case, at least not with that topic. She’s definitely not holding up well under the strain at all. She silently hoped she hadn’t just made things even worse. If she was right, then Seven’s emotional self was in severe turmoil right now, and she wasn’t sure what it would take to set things right again. She only hoped that she could figure out how before the young woman had an emotional episode or tried to kill someone. Well, Borui thought gloomily, someone besides me.
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Around the Krenim Imperium the same events began repeating themselves. There were spaceports, shipyards, repair facilities, orbiting defense platforms, communication relays, and other assorted artificial satellites in orbit around the planets of the Imperium. They were a necessary part of keeping the whole system running effectively.

Besides securing territory, the goal of any military operation was to either devastate the enemy or create as much confusion as possible. That was Phase 2.

Admiral Hellis deserved credit for this portion of the campaign. He had pointed out how the Chronaton torpedoes could be quite deadly in large numbers, and that to just send in ships to capture or destroy the targets was an unnecessary risk, given the goals of the operation. Star Destroyers were tough, but allowing torpedoes to beat on them when it wasn't necessary was a waste of men and resources. The man may be a pain, but he did have a point.

Two star destroyers emerged out of hyperspace just a few million kilometers away from the planet. As soon as they appeared Krenim warships and defense craft, having heard about the Imperial attack on their homeworld, moved to intercept. Before the first torpedo was even fired, the ships vanished back into hyperspace, much to the surprise and delight of the Krenim. Then their sensors reported that they weren't alone.

Four squadrons of TIE Bombers now swept in towards the orbiting structures, the Krenim uncertain of what they hoped to accomplish. Such little ships didn't have a chance of harming them. They fired at them as best they could, but their weapons were designed to combat larger vessels than the tiny, unshielded, one-man fighters that approached. A lucky shot managed to hit one of the vessels, causing an explosion that shocked the Krenim for such a tiny fighter. They veered in and fired, their weapons moving with surprising slowness through the sky. A few of the torpedoes were picked out of the sky by their smaller beam weapons, but most continued on towards their target.

The Krenim had successfully controlled this area of space, to the disappointment of several nearby races who languished under their control, because their Chronaton Torpedoes were so deadly. The ability to pierce any energy shield meant that no one could stand up to them. As the helium bombs passed through their energy shields and destroyed their installations, the irony of the situation was apparently lost on them. Some people just don't understand poetic justice.

The Krenim watched the explosions in utter shock as the TIEs raced away from the expanding debris fields. A few took some potshots at the bombers, but in fact more ships were lost to their own explosion than to enemy fire as they raced away. And then the Star Destroyers re-appeared, having turned around and made a micro-jump back. The bombers raced back towards the launch bay as the Krenim warships, now seeing a target they could deal with, moved in and began to fire. It was the Imperials' turn to suffer as the Chronaton weapons slammed into their armored hulls, but as the last TIE entered the ship it vanished again into hyperspace with minimal damage. Damage control teams rushed into action to deal with any serious problems while the bombers were re-armed for the next target, which would be coming all too soon.

Again and again and again, all across Krenim space the ships appeared, rained destruction and vanished. After a mere forty-eight hours the Imperials lost less than ninety bombers and two star destroyers; the Krenim had lost every fixed orbital platform they had. Day 21, and it was already time for the final phase to begin.

The Krenim resisted for a time, but without the means to support their ships they were like a plant stripped of its roots. With no central authority in place and the fleets uncertain of how to organize the kind of rebuilding effort that was necessary, chaos emerged. A few of the races that had suffered under the rule of the Krenim decided to take advantage of the situation, performing brutal attacks on their weakened foe. Many immediately accepted the Empire’s offer of protection; that was how it always started. Protection. People would accept a few changes if it meant they were safe, and it didn’t matter in the end that rule under the Empire would change little from rule under the Imperium, it was enough to know that they were safe from their “enemy” now.

And perhaps the part of it all that is the most humorous or the most pathetic, is that many of the Krenim would join the Empire for exactly the same reason. By the time Day 30 rolled around, the Empire had increased by over one hundred forty systems, with the number expected to continue to rise. Of those, almost none had been taken by force; it was merely the threat of force, or the fear of force, that was enough.
--------------------------------------------------------------

The Imperial capital of Bastion glittered in the darkness as the Star Destroyers pulled into orbit. Bastion wasn’t the name of the planet exactly, any more than Imperial Center had been the name of Coruscant, the previous capital. It was a name that had been assigned to wherever the government in exile of the Empire had been over the past few years. And now it seemed, it would never be able to return back to its true capital of Coruscant.

Whatever its name, Bastion was the seat of power now, and on that seat sat Darth Whind, now the most powerful of the Sith left in all known territory. And it was here, quite far away from where her fleets had been recently fighting and dying at her word, even farther from where the insignificant Republic had vanished to, that she sat in quiet meditation. The fact that it was quiet was known only to her; no one watched, not even Skywalker. When Darth Whind meditated the room became simply intolerable. It seemed to chill, as if even the thermal energy of the air was being drawn away by the darkness that appeared to engulf her whenever this happened. It was more than just being a Sith; she had gained knowledge that no one, not even the Emperor, had access to. At these moments her mind teetered on the razor’s edge between madness and inspiration, and given her dark thoughts few could truly separate the one from the other.

Her eyes sprang open as a crooked smile crossed her face. “At last,” she said to the emptiness, “It is time.” She rose out of her chair and pulled her cape around herself, and then she strode off. Minutes later she was in Gen. Delric Taar’s office along with her companion, Skywalker. That was the strange thing about Darth Whind, many had noticed. Unlike the Emperor, she had neither an office nor a throne room. She required none of the trappings that had been typical of his reign, and she did not concern herself with the day-to-day tasks that had been his routine. She was no politician, and she felt no desire to deal with them. She ruled her Empire by telling those in authority what they would do; that was government as far as she was concerned. No one needed to send her reports, she always knew whatever concerned her. She was less a leader than a herdsman.

“Congratulations on your success,” she commented to the general as he rose in her presence. That was the one thing she demanded: absolute respect. Those who didn’t figure that out got a quick lesson in proper etiquette and the finer points of pressure application. No one was ever taught twice. “I knew you would lead our fleets to nothing less than total success.”

Gen. Taar nodded in acknowledgment of the rare praise. “The Krenim have already begun to accept total Imperial authority. In fact, I understand that several systems outside Krenim space are now petitioning to join the Empire.”

“In due course,” she replied. “I must leave Bastion for a time, general,” she said getting down to business. “I need ships.”

“Certainly, my lady,” he replied. “You wish to use the Royal Shuttle and its escort?”

“No,” she said. “This is not a political campaign. I require three star destroyers to take me to Vulcan.”

Taar’s friendly smile vanished. “Vulcan? That’s Federation space.”

“Yes,” Darth Whind replied. “I will be launching this evening, as will my companion.”

“My lady,” Gen. Taar said quickly, “you can’t just take three star destroyers into Federation space. It would be construed as an act of war.”

“No, it would be construed as an invasion,” Darth Whind replied, “And when we leave, it will be met with confusion. But it won’t lead to war.”

“But, why?” he finally asked, unable to fathom her reasoning.

“Vulcan has something I need,” she answered.

“Then we’ll send a cloaked shuttle,” Taar offered. “Or even an ISB team. They can get anything you might want in no time.”

“No,” she answered. “I must be seen. I need to bait the trap if I’m to catch the bird.”

“My lady,” Taar almost pleaded, “Please reconsider. This could be a detriment to the Empire-“

“My decision is made,” she interrupted, getting slightly annoyed. “You will end this pointless drivel and get me my ships.”

Taar opened his mouth to reply but a tiny part of his brain, the part that knew what was best for him, forced it closed. He reluctantly nodded and she turned and left, Skywalker close behind. Poor Delric, she thought as she strode through her capital. Such a great military mind, and still his perception is so pathetically small. “You understand,” she said to Skywalker as they continued. “You know the threat that could come if we ignore Sisko.” She felt his assurance as they continued their stride. No, there was no doubt in either of their minds. The eve of the New Imperial Age was here, and no chance at failure could be ignored.

[Arrow]

Well, since you could just look it up anyway, I'll tell you what we're going to learn on Friday...

It appears to be the body of Darth Vader.

And then get sucked into reading the old version? Nah, I'm enjoying the surprises. I was just way to curious about that one.

And is Borui fucking stupid or what? I was waiting for Seven to smash her face in.

[Sonnenburg]

Second part for today; make sure to check out part 8 first.

Part IX


Leia Organa Solo, leader of the Republic by default, was what many would call “high bred.” She was royalty of the house of Alderaan by adoption and, as she had learned from her father, of the house of Naboo by birth. Not to imply that she was snobbish, but she certainly knew decorum and civility and what all thirty-two pieces of silverware around the dinner plate were for, and she was not the kind of person who spoke, well, like her husband. Nevertheless, she had a few choice remarks to make when she spoke with Dr. Crusher on board the Enterprise during her brief stopover to Romulus. “Damn,” was among them.

“No argument here,” Dr. Crusher said grimly.

“Not a single viable embryo?” Leia asked with hope.

“Nothing,” Dr. Crusher said. “The procedure just doesn’t work. We tried hundreds of times and in each case development stopped after only a few stages of division. I’m not sure what the problem is, but the fact is this isn’t going to work.”

Leia’s heart sunk as she thought about it. All those hopeful faces she’d seen on Sanctuary, wanting so desperately to get back a little something from what the Borg had taken. And that hope had now been dashed to pieces by the cruel hand of mother nature. Mother, she thought without humor; isn’t that an inappropriate choice for an anthropomorphic personification. “Are there any other options?” she asked finally.

“There’s one,” she admitted, “But I don’t know if you or they are going to like it.”

“What is it?” Leia asked, thinking that pretty much anything would be a consideration at this point.

Dr. Crusher seemed hesitant to even want to say it. “Cloning,” she forced it out. She must have noticed Leia’s stare. “You don’t like it,” she confirmed.

“No I don’t.”

“I don’t understand why your people have this opposition to cloning.” Leia looked at Dr. Crusher as if she’d just said “I don’t see what the big deal is about genocide.”

“There must be some other way,” Leia said finally.

“We can keep looking,” Dr. Crusher said. “Maybe a solution will present itself, but frankly I’m not optimistic. It took months of analysis and testing for this process, and obviously it’s an abysmal failure. We’ll probably have to start from scratch. We’re talking years of research, ambassador, maybe longer.”

“Then if that’s our only choice, we’ll just have to continue with the research,” Leia said with defeat in her voice. She would never, ever, take her children for granted after all this.

“Ambassador,” Dr. Crusher continued, “There’s no guarantee we’ll ever find an answer. At least with cloning-“

“Cloning is not an option,” Leia said emphatically. “It’s illegal and immoral, and the Republic will not be reduced to that.”

“You could be talking about entire species becoming extinct,” Dr. Crusher said. “Do you want that on your conscience?”

“Do I want it on my conscience that we violate our moral code because times are difficult?” Leia replied. “The situation, doctor, doesn’t make it any less wrong.”

“Sometimes we need to do the wrong thing if we’re going to help the greater good,” Dr. Crusher said. “Sometimes we have to amputate a limb to save the body. It’s horrible, but it’s also necessary.”

“No,” Leia was emphatic. “You don't know what cloning did to the Jedi and the Republic. We're not going back to that.”

Before anything further could be said the comm activated. “Riker to sickbay.”

“Sickbay,” Dr. Crusher said into the air.

“Ambassador Solo still there?” Riker asked.

“I’m here, captain,” she said.

“Ambassador, we have a situation. Apparently the early warning array has picked up Imperial ships heading into this portion of the galaxy. We’re not sure if they’re heading for the Klingons, the Romulans, or us, but this seems to be about the area. I strongly advise you to remain on board during this crisis.”

“The flagship is probably safer than my shuttle,” Leia agreed.

“Good. Riker out,” the voice cut off.

“Looks like I’ll be staying a little longer than I’d planned,” Leia remarked. “Maybe I can talk a little with Annika; we didn’t even get to speak when we went to Sanctuary, what with everything going on.”

“From what I hear, she could probably use it,” Dr. Crusher remarked.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, not that I’m one to gossip,” Dr. Crusher said, with the tone of someone who in fact does it frequently, “But I heard that she attacked our ship’s counselor. Caused quite a ruckus.”

“Annika?” Leia said with surprise. “That doesn’t sound like her.”

“No one really knows what happened,” Dr. Crusher admitted. “Obviously Seven’s not saying anything and Dr. Borui is hiding behind patient confidentiality, if you can believe that.”

“Well if that’s the case, then I’m sure it was nothing serious.”

“You don’t know our Borui,” Dr. Crusher continued. “She tends to push people a little too far sometimes. She gets so wrapped up in wanting to solve their problems she winds up creating new ones. Not that I would speak ill of a fellow physician,” she added quickly, “But I do think she might have pushed one of Seven’s buttons and caused the whole thing. Probably feels a little guilty about it.”

Leia mulled it over as she left sickbay to find her brother’s fiancée. Seven could be very emotional, but she was never violent, at least not to her knowledge. During the time she stayed with them her only negative thoughts were grief, sadness, nothing destructive, nothing hateful. Either it was a momentary lapse in judgment, or it was a sign things were getting worse. Either way, it would be good for her to talk things out with family.
--------------------------------------------------------------

There are many different types of meditation that exist in the universe. One earth sect sought spiritual consciousness through applied chants. A Jedi would clear his mind and open himself to the Force. There was a race, unknown to both galaxies, who believed that only through the concentrated application of pain could one gain the insights into existence. Another still believed that only through surviving death could one gain the answers to the questions they sought. Selvik, an elder spiritual leader of Vulcan, found all these methods unnecessary. True meditation consisted not in shutting out the world, but in truly seeing the world.

At the moment, he was seeing two Imperial shuttles land just outside his garden. Even for Selvik, this was not very helpful in finding great insights. He watched stormtroopers come rushing out, their blaster rifles held in quiet anticipation of resistance; they should have known better. He was quite intrigued when he saw a familiar face come down the ramp of one of the shuttles and approach him. He still wore his black outfit that he seemed to prefer, only now.... now it seemed that the darkness did not end with his garments; it had penetrated his soul.

“Luke,” he said in quiet greeting as the young man stormed up the path to where his former teacher sat. “What has brought you here with these?” he indicated the Imperials who were now busy near the entrance to one of the ancient temples. News of Luke Skywalker’s fall to the Dark Side was very limited thanks to Captain Riker's favor to Seven. Many thought he was simply dead. Looking at his soul, Selvik found it a position hard to argue against.

Luke said nothing, instead he grabbed the other by the arm and yanked him out of his chair. The old man came off balance and stumbled into Luke, and when he finally settled he gazed into his eyes, seeing the hatred burning within, feeling the restrained rage beneath the surface, rumbling about for release. “It seems you have traded your soul for power,” the Vulcan observed.

Luke yanked again and twisted, forcing him to walk along the path with him, presumably to the ship. A most perplexing situation, but Selvik knew better than to get involved in whatever was going on. With regret he reached up and placed a hand on Luke’s shoulder, squeezing and letting a small amount of energy flow into his former pupil to knock him safely unconscious. Or at least, that had been his intent. Instead Skywalker just stared at him, his anger starting to show through his stoic mask. It had been a mistake, Selvik realized. Skywalker held up his hand and snapped his fingers and two stormtroopers rushed over to where he stood. He pushed Selvik between them and they held him firmly, one with each arm. Skywalker reached down to one of their belts and pulled two thermal charges off. He pulled the pins and tossed, one on the left and one on the right. A small explosion and a hiss, and seconds later the gardens were being consumed in green and orange flames. Skywalker looked from left to right to admire his handiwork, then turned back towards Selvik, a wicked grin spreading across his face.

“I assume you’re trying to hurt me?” Selvik replied. “It is just a garden, nothing to become emotionally attached to. With time and effort, it can be rebuilt. It is in the building, you see, that the learning occurs.” He shook his head. “It seems all that power has robbed you of wisdom.”

Skywalker’s smile vanished, and he gave the old man a fierce slap and stormed past him. The troopers forced him with them onto one of the shuttles. Minutes later it was gone.

Darth Whind turned her attention back to Skywalker as he walked up. “Good,” she said as she saw the shuttle head for their star destroyers in orbit. “That takes care of the cargo. Now to set the trap.” She sensed his mood change, and it annoyed her. “You know what’s at stake here,” she rebuked him. “Sisko and the girl cannot be allowed to interfere! He is beyond even my reach, but her.... she is the weakness. He cannot succeed without her.” She walked towards the entrance to the temple, Skywalker close behind. “Forget what has happened,” she warned him. “She may try to use your feelings against you. Remember what she is, and remember what we are.” She stopped, his momentum carrying him just past her, and she leaned over and put her lips to his ear. “Remember what I can give you,” she said as her lips stroked his lobe. “Power, and pleasure... what more can you possibly desire?”

Skywalker turned and looked at her, then struck her in the face with the back of his fist. She stumbled and he grabbed her by the throat with his bionic hand, squeezing. Then he pulled until her bloodied lips were on his, kissing her passionately. His grip weakened, and she breathed again, panting as they kissed. She reached back behind his head and dug her nails into his flesh until blood flowed. Finally she pulled away, still panting. "Later," she said. "We'll have time later." A wicked smile passed her lips. "While we stand over the corpse of Seven of Nine."
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By the time the USS Enterprise and half a dozen other Federation ships arrived on Vulcan, there was no one left to fight, or so it seemed.

“Long-range scans,” Riker ordered.

“Three star destroyers, thirty light-years away,” Lt. Lightner reported. “Traveling at about Warp 12, sir.”

“According to the Vulcans,” Geordi said from his first officer’s chair, “The Imperials landed for just a short while, and then just left.”

“Where?” Riker asked. An area of the planet enlarged with a dot on it. “Magnify,” he ordered, and the scene grew larger. “This is nothing special,” he remarked. “Just an old Vulcan temple.”

“Wait a minute,” Laforge said, standing up and approaching the screen, his artificial eyes swiveling slightly. “Increase magnification.” The screen changed again and again, until he held up his hand. “Stop! Take a look at that,” he said pointing.

“What is it?” Riker asked, looking at the grey shape his first officer was pointing to.

“Lambda-class shuttle,” Geordi said. He turned around to face his commander. “The Imperials aren’t gone, sir; they’ve just withdrawn for the moment.”

Riker shifted uneasily as he thought. “Full scan,” he ordered.

“Sir,” Lightner said after a moment, “Sensors are unable to penetrate. There’s some kind of energy dampening field in place. Sensors, communications, even transporters can’t penetrate.”

“What could they be doing down there?” Riker wondered aloud.

“Sir,” Seven remarked from her science station, “this energy signature is not Imperial.”

“Well whose is it then?” Geordi asked.

She turned around, an uncertain look on her face. “Borg.”

“That’s impossible,” Lightner said, “There are no more Borg.”

“You’re probably right,” Seven conceded, “But whatever’s down there, we can’t penetrate, not without finding and destroying the device. From what few readings I can get from the shield itself, it’s a type-3AA generator with triaxilating photonic paths.”

“I take it that isn’t good,” Riker remarked.

“It means that not even active scans can penetrate,” Seven remarked. “If you want to know what’s going on in there, you’ll have to actually send someone inside and look."

“I don’t like that choice very much,” Riker said. “But I don’t particularly like Imperials running around uninvited on Federation worlds, either.” He considered for a while. “It’s too great a risk,” he said finally. “We don’t know what they’re doing down there, and for an away team to penetrate the shield, find out what’s going on, and get back out...” he trailed off. “No. It’d be better to secure the area and wait.”

“Sir,” Seven said, “there is another option. I can locate the generator and shut it down. That will allow our sensors to penetrate the entire area.”

“I thought you said it can’t be detected,” Laforge said. “Not even with tricorders.”

Seven hesitated. “Every drone is equipped with a locator that operates on a specially encrypted algorithm that can determine the energy sequence and penetrate. Otherwise it would interfere with our collective consciousness.” She seemed a little unhappy about resorting to using that particular piece of technology, but anything that helped her perform her duty would be used. “I can find it,” she said plainly.

Riker thought about this. “Take a well-armed away team,” he said. “And be ready for any Imperial ambushes. They have to know we’re here, and I’m sure they took precautions.”
--------------------------------------------------------------

As Leia returned to consciousness from the bliss of sleep, reality had the sudden effect of a cold shower and three pints of coffee. It's rather difficult to describe being a Jedi, but the awareness of the rhythms of the Force is so great it'd put the princess with the pea to shame. Without further thought she grabbed her Jedi robes and threw them on and rushed up to the bridge, much to the surprise of Captain Riker.

"Can I help you, ambassador?" he asked as she quickly walked down the ramp towards him.

"Luke's down there," she said, her voice slightly rushed in confusion. "And he's not alone."

"Slow down," Riker said. "Luke Skywalker's down there?"

"Yes," Leia said, watching the screen with obvious nervousness. "Scan the area, you'll probably see Imperial forces."

"We can't," Commander Laforge said. "There's an energy field blocking the area. We've sent down an away team to disable it."

Leia looked at him with horror. "You've got to get them out of there!" she said anxiously.

"Ambassador," Riker said, "calm down."

"You don't understand! It's a trap!"

"What do you mean?" Riker didn't seem too sure, but Leia didn't have much time to convince them.

"Luke's down there," she said as calmly as she could. "Except, he's been consumed by the Dark side. And he's not alone." She was almost pleading. "Will, you've got to get them out. They can't handle one Sith, much less two."

"We've lost contact," Laforge said. "We'll have to wait for Seven of Nine to shut down the generator."

Leia' head jerked over at the mentioning of the name. "Annika's down there?"

"She's the only one-"

"Captain," she said to Riker anxiously, "You've got to get me down there."

Riker shook his head. "If it's as dangerous as you say, then I can't let you go down there. We can't risk it."

"Captain, I'm a Jedi; I've got the best chance to try and stop them."

"We can't do it ambassador."

"Captain, those are your people down there!"

His mouth opened a little at the words, and now she could see how much this pained him. He wanted her to go down, he wanted to save his crew, but duty came first. "I'm sorry," he said finally.

Leia turned away. "So am I," she whispered, then closed her eyes. He wanted her to go down, he wanted her to help. He just needed... persuasion. Her voice was so quiet no one could hear it. "I suppose we have no choice."

"I suppose," Riker said as he looked at the screen, "we have no choice."

"Transporter Room 1, beam the ambassador down."

Riker pressed his communicator. "Transporter Room 1, beam the ambassador down."

"Captain-" Geordi began.

"As you were."

"As you were, commander," Riker said. And the bridge vanished, replaced by the world of Vulcan.

"Forgive me, Will," she said as she pulled out her lightsaber and ran towards the entrance to the tunnel. "But I can't let this happen."

[Sonnenburg]

Part X


With a group of security officers in tow, Seven of Nine rushed through the moldering remains of the Vulcan temple, wondering all the while what could be going on. Why were the Imperials here, and why would they use Borg technology? While it was true that their former leader -Thrawn- had been working with the Borg, rumor had it that one of his own subordinates killed him as a result. So what was their purpose in coming here? That began to gnaw away at her. There was nothing logical about this move, and despite what you might want to say about the Imperials, foolishness like this wasn’t tolerated for long.

Naturally, there'd been an ambush when they tried getting in, but these were some of Louis' handpicked troopers, and the stormtroopers were quickly dispatched. Seven led the way further into the heart of the temple, always alert for the clicking of plastoid boots on the stone surface. The ancient smell down here caused images of the Borg citadel to drift through her mind, but she ignored them as they pushed closer and closer to their target. She could still sense it, even after the Collective was gone... she hadn't liked that thought, but the pips demanded that she do things she didn't always like. She suppressed a chill; she'd swapped her standard uniform with her old blue one for this mission, in case she needed to do some close-quarters work on the Imperials, but she hadn't anticipated how cool it'd be down here. She was wondering if she'd made a mistake.

There was a sudden rumbling sound, and the ceiling caved in right as their group walked through. Seven and two other members of the away team were stranded on one side as stone and dust settled behind them, with everyone else either under the rubble or stranded on the other side. Seven hit her communicator in a vain hope, but even this close they couldn't send the signal. She shouldered her phaser rifle and signaled for the others to follow. The best choice was to shut down the generator and let the Enterprise beam them out. With determination, they continued through the temples.

Strange, Seven observed as they went. Despite the age it seemed that the lighting of this ancient building was still functioning. The Imperials must have repaired it, but what could be down here to interest them?

Before any further thought could be devoted to the subject she saw the generator up ahead. She quickly screeched to a halt, carefully checking the area for any guards, and growing even more worried when she saw none. This is too convenient, she thought as she finally stepped up to the device, the two security officers a little ways behind watching for an Imperial ambush. Nothing looks wrong, she finally admitted to herself. Maybe they were just confident it was safe. After all, she was the only one in all of Starfleet who could find it.

“Can you disable it, sir?” one of the officers asked.

“Yes,” Seven said. The device exploded as she shot it with her phaser. “It’s disabled.” Immediately a wall slid down, and before she could move it cut her off from the other two guards. “Hodge,” she said as she tapped her communicator.

“Sir,” came the reply.

“Everything’s working,” she said, realizing you often had to point out the obvious to some people. “Tell the Enterprise to start beaming up members of the away team, especially anyone who might be trapped under that cave-in. I’m going to check out the area.”

“Sir? Are you sure that’s wise?”

“There’s something not right here,” Seven said. “I don’t like not knowing what’s going on. In the meantime, we need to get the team out of here.” She reset her phaser rifle to pulse mode and set off down the corridor in the only direction left open.

Seven of Nine stepped around the corner, her pulse phaser ready to target any Imperials she might need to eliminate. She saw, in the middle of the wide room, a woman in black. A woman she recognized immediately, even though she’d seen her for less than a minute years before; but that was one of the advantages of an eidetic memory. The last time they faced off she'd beaten Seven into unconsciousness without even getting near her; Seven wasn’t going to give her a second chance.

Seven blasted at her with the phaser rifle on sight, but just like against the Emperor, the shots were absorbed without any sign of damage. She got off four shots before Darth Whind gestured and the phaser was yanked out of her hands into the air between them, and she stared at the Sith; the smile on her face making Seven shiver. “So little cyborg,” she said with a fairly sweet voice, unable to disguise the menacing undertone, “I’ve been wondering how long it would take you.”

Seven said nothing, her mind quickly trying to go through her options. Run? Not much of a strategy. Maybe call for help? As if in reply her comm badge flew off her chest and skidded across the room. So much for that, she thought grimly. Should she try to take her on single-handed? If so it’ll have to be hand-to-hand combat; energy weapons clearly weren’t working. What she wouldn’t give for her slugthrower right about now.

“Nothing to say?" Darth Whind continued. "Pity, I wanted to hear some of your witty banter. You used to talk Luke’s ear off, or at least that’s what he tells me.” Her smile grew a little larger. “Nothing to say to that?”

“You’re not worth the effort,” Seven said simply. Underneath, her hatred grew. Exploiting her feelings for Luke was hitting below the belt. Still, it was a mistake; Seven knew without a doubt that Luke would always be hers, that this Sith was just trying to goad her. She wouldn't give her the satisfaction.

“No,” Darth Whind replied, “you’re not. Why Luke would take any risk for you is beyond me. Still, I suppose I should thank you for that. If it weren’t for you, he never would’ve come to me.” Seven ground her teeth but said nothing as the Sith continued. “It was destiny, of course, that he and I would be together. After all, you’re nothing compared to him. You’re not a Jedi; you’re not even a woman... not in the sense that really matters.”

Not since she’d faced the Borg Queen had she felt such a rage, but Seven knew better than to let her emotions take control of her during a dangerous situation like this. She seethed as she watched her phaser rifle slowly turn in the air towards her. She could hear the quiet whine of the weapon charging, but apparently Whind's self-absorption prevented her from hearing a quiet crunching sound. “You’re pretty fast,” Darth Whind admitted. “How fast are you? Faster than light?”

The weapon fired; Seven never moved. The shot struck center of mass, and a green torso-hugging field flashed as they were stopped by Seven's adaptive shielding. Several more shots rang out, all with the same result, until finally the phaser dropped out of the air. "Nothing's faster than light," Seven said back in a quiet voice, the hint of a smirk on her face. "Don't you know that... you ignorant bitch?"

Darth Whind’s stare seemed to drill into her soul, but Seven refused to back down. Then she felt the tingling in her throat. So, it was time; she'd asked Luke about the Force choke, but apparently there was nothing a non-Force user could do to stop it. She swallowed, a little nervous about what she knew was coming, but refusing to show the Sith any fear. Surprisingly the sensation stopped, and she opened her eyes, watching Darth Whind pull out her lightsaber, holding it loosely in her hands, and then tossing it aside. “You,” she said with a chilling voice, “are nothing. Your technological advancements are pitiful toys next to the power of the Dark side. And I want you to learn that lesson before I snuff out your miserable life.” She held out her arms to show she had no weapons. “You have ten seconds,” she said with a small grin. “Take your best shot.”

It’s a trick, Seven thought as she quickly considered the situation. But why? She can kill me right now. Maybe she’s overconfident; maybe I can use that to my advantage.

“One,” said Darth Whind.

While Seven lunged there was a crunching sound as several small nubs erupted from her knuckles, hoping to down the Sith with a quick blow. But her fist passed through empty air as Darth Whind ducked and stepped off to Seven’s left. Seven swung back with her elbow to catch her off guard, but now the Sith stepped backwards out of the way.

“Two.”

Seven twisted clockwise as she dropped, bringing her foot out to catch her behind the ankles; but Whind jumped over the swing, as well as Seven’s quick reversal. Seven jumped back to her feet and gave a quick snap kick that Darth Whind avoided with only the smallest movement of her head.

“Three.”

Seven finally tried to grab her; with her strength there was no way the Sith could break the grip and she could finish this. But with each attempt the Sith managed to twist out of her way.

“Four.....five....” Darth Whind continued her count as Seven made her lunges.

There were two very loud cracks as Seven held out her palms, ten-inch spikes extending from the surface. She swung with all the fury she could in her desperate state, but it met with the same result as the Sith twisted and turned out of each and every thrust and swipe, never forgetting to continue her taunting count.

“Six....seven....eight.....”

The blades withdrew into her flesh as she brought her fists together and tried a haymaker to knock the Sith’s head off. Again, it was for nothing. There was a rattling sound as the lightsaber began to shake on the floor nearby. Seven made several spearing motions with her hand to try and hit Whing's solar plexus, but again she slid out of the way.

“Nine,” said Darth Whind as she stepped back once again to avoid the blow. She turned just slightly to her right and reached towards the lightsaber, which began to slide across the floor towards her. Now, Seven thought, she’s distracted. With all her strength and speed she swung a reverse roundhouse kick towards the Sith’s face while the lightsaber flew into her hand.

“Ten!” said Darth Whind as she ducked under Seven’s kick, igniting her blade and swinging it around in the opposite direction, slicing through the other woman’s leg a short distance below the knee. Seven screamed as she fell over, looking up in fear as the purple blade hovered over her. The Sith allowed a small chuckle of amusement as she saw Seven sliding away from her, and laughed as the Borg grabbed the fallen limb where it lay nearby. “What do you plan to do with that?” she asked with amusement.

Seven ignored her, concentrating as the nanoprobes swam through her body on her command. She held the limb over the wound and let out a small scream as two metallic spikes pierced the seared flesh to connect to the separated bones, pulling and aligning the limb with the remains of her leg. Darth Whind stepped back, with still more laughter. “Bravo!” she said as she clapped her hands. “What an adorable trick!” Seven ignored her as she focused on the task. Okay, repair the damaged tissue as best you can. You need to restore blood flow to the limb as quickly as possible...

“Entertaining to the end,” Darth Whind spoke as Seven continued. “I can see why Luke took a passing interest in you. Unfortunately, that’s all it was.” Her laughter stopped, but the smile remained. “We were destined to be together. You can’t possibly understand what you’ve tried to interfere with.” Her voice became slightly distant. “The transporter showed me... You cannot imagine what happens when you transport through hyperspace. Other worlds... Other realms beyond ours... I saw a million dimensions laid out before me; possibilities you can’t imagine. Things that might have been, things that might very well be....so many different histories.”

Seven barely heard her speaking as she continued focusing on repairing her damaged limb. The cauterization had spared her severe blood loss, but it also caused massive tissue damage. The pain was excruciating as the nanoprobes pricked at her nerves, and all the while the Sith prattled on.

“I saw the realm where our galaxies never met,” Darth Whind continued. “I saw Vader and the Emperor destroy each other, with only Luke to survive. I saw another realm where Luke struck down his own father and became the servant of my master.” She didn’t even seem to notice Seven was there as she continued. “I saw the realm where those Solo brats, the ones you’ve cooed over, invade and enslave your pathetic Federation. I saw the realm where you and I fought over the skies of Skynet’s Earth; and you fell for his tricks and perished – foolish drone. I saw a score of realities where the same names and faces play different parts in the war between our kingdoms, where the result is always the same: we crush your insignificant worlds. Others I’ve never heard before: Xris, Nasevel, Stark, Solaris... one by one they picked your galaxy apart.” Seven refused to be distracted by her insane rantings. “I saw realms where your trivial ship, Voyager, is destroyed, where you are never retrieved from the Collective, where you die a lonely and pitiful death, as you will here. I saw realities where the Federation locked you up like the freak of nature you are. You don’t get what you want, little cyborg. Oh, sometimes you do get Harry, sometimes Chakotay, sometimes even that stupid android, Data; but you never get Luke. Never. I saw in hundreds of thousands of realities the same thing. It was a constant; destiny’s choice for what must be. Skywalker is mine. He always is; and don’t think for a second that some delusional drone is going to stand in the way of fate. You are nothing,” she leaned down towards Seven, whose face was in a tight grimace. “You were only a stepping stone for him to come to me; a convenient tool of fate, nothing more.”

Seven’s teeth were clenched from the pain but she looked up, her face shaking with the agony but still allowing her hatred to show through. “And... Luke said... I talk too much?” She leaned back as the blade hovered in front of her face. Darth Whind’s smile was gone, her face a mask of pure malice. Seven flinched as the Sith moved quickly, expecting to once again feel the burning sting of the blade. Instead she saw the Sith whirl around, and there was a loud crashing sound. Leia stood with her teeth clenched as her blade and Whind’s stood locked together, then quickly jumping apart to continue.

Seven pushed herself across the floor and grabbed her communicator while they fought. “Enterprise,” she said with a choke of pain in her voice, “Medical emergency; two to beam out.”

“Stand by,” came the response. As the words came a shadow appeared over her, and she turned and looked up.

“Luke?” she said in quiet amazement. He said nothing, and she began to fill with hope. “Luke!” She tried to get up but her leg wasn’t up to it, and she toppled over. She turned and looked up at his silent form. “Luke, it's me! It's Annika!” She jumped as she heard the snap-hiss sound, and watched the red blade slowly lifted into the air. She died inside as she watched him. “No,” she said with grief. “Please, sweetie... it's me..." She sobbed. "I love you, Luke!” But there was no sign of Luke there, just a monster. Without a sound he lifted his blade up over his head, and with all his strength brought it down, passing through the empty space that until a fraction of a second before she had been. He looked over at Mara, who had turned off her lightsaber when her opponent vanished.

“To the ship,” Whind said with anger, and together they walked back along the corridor; side by side, as was their destiny.

[Chris OFarrell]

Taar: "My Lady, precisely what is your plan when you get to Vulcan?"

Mara: "I am going to place seven in overly elaborate and easily escapable scheme while I prattle on about my plans for Galactic domination!".

Taar: "Ah...well...fair enough I guess. See you later!"

Mara: "Why? Whats the problem?"

Taar: "Uhh can't we just put a high yield explosive there and detonate it when-"

Mara: "Shh"

Taar: "You see its just they have transport-"

Mara: "Shh"

Taar: "...SHe's gona get awa-"

Mara: "Knock knock."

Taar: "Who's there?"

Mara: "Shh! Shh! And before you ask that was a pre-emptive Shh! I have a whole cargo bay full of Shh right here! So Shh!"

[consequences]

"I have a Helium Bomb right here. We can do it together, it'll be a Sith Lord-Hapless Puppet thing, it'll be fun"

Ah, Borui. I was so hoping for Seven to pull her heart out of her chest .

[Crazedwraith]

This isn't this the chapter where you previously had the quotes from all the other crossovers going is it? I noted the Conquest reference there at least.

Very nice set of chapters. Though Borui comes across as frikkin idiot with no tact.

[Sonnenburg]

Mara: "Shh! Shh! And before you ask that was a pre-emptive Shh! I have a whole cargo bay full of Shh right here! So Shh!"

Chris, ya, ya just don't get it do ya? You don't.

[Sonnenburg]

"I have a Helium Bomb right here. We can do it together, it'll be a Sith Lord-Hapless Puppet thing, it'll be fun".

Oy, I give you two hot chicks having a catfight, you guys make with the Austin Powers.

Ah, Borui. I was so hoping for Seven to pull her heart out of her chest .

I've come to embrace people's dislike for her.

[Sonnenburg]

This isn't this the chapter where you previously had the quotes from all the other crossovers going is it? I noted the Conquest reference there at least.

This isn't that chapter. The references remained the same for the most part here; the only changes was the revisions to Seven's mates (which reflects what happened in the real series and what could have come given what we saw in this series) and the addition of a reference to Seven's fate in the Homecoming novel I just read, a story which renewed my belief that an Imperial conquest of the Federation could only be a good thing.

Very nice set of chapters. Though Borui comes across as frikkin idiot with no tact.

Thanks! Oddly enough, that was exactly what I was going for.

[Sonnenburg]

Part XI


The world of Vulcan is one of quiet serenity, its population millennia ago learning that the strict application of logic over emotion is the best method to promote peace and expand understanding. At this particular moment, while the Sith and Borg on this very planet wage a fervid battle, the gathered ships of the Federation engage three star destroyers in the skies overhead. It is a fine example of fate’s twisted sense of humor, and goes a long way towards explaining things like the platypus.

The Enterprise shook violently as a turbolaser blast hit home. “Fire at will,” Riker ordered. In response, the much smaller Galaxy-class ship raced along the surface of the star destroyer, it’s phasers jabbing at it as turbolaser bolts filled the skies around it.

“Enterprise,” came Seven of Nine’s strained voice over the communicator. “Medical Emergency; two to beam up.”

“Stand by,” Laforge replied automatically.

“As soon as we can,” Riker said, “Drop shields and beam them up, then quickly get them back up again. We won’t have much time.”

“It might be safer on the planet,” Laforge pointed out.

“If the ambassador is hurt, we’ll need to get her to Sickbay immediately.” Riker still couldn’t believe he’d actually let her go down there. What had he been thinking?

“Shields are down,” Lightner ordered. There was silence as the crew held its breath, wondering if the Imperials would score a hit during this, their most vulnerable moment. “Transport successful,” he said finally, “Shields at full.”

“Take us about,” Riker ordered. “Let’s teach them to not drop by uninvited, shall we?”
--------------------------------------------------------------

Dr. Crusher grabbed a hypo and ran into the main room of Sickbay as the sound of the transporter filled the room. Leia Organa Solo stood with her lightsaber in the middle of a swing, but fortunately her Jedi instincts stopped her before she bisected some equipment or killed somebody. She shut down the weapon and turned over to the other person who had just arrived. Seven lay on the floor quietly, quivering. “Help me lift her,” Dr. Crusher ordered, and the two hefted the young woman up onto a bed. Dr. Crusher ran a tricorder over her quickly. “She’s in shock,” she said as she slammed it shut, then plugged the tube into the hypospray.

From the table, a single tear ran down Seven’s cheek as she lay shivering. Her voice was barely audible as she spoke. “Why Luke?” she asked. “Why didn’t you let me die?”

Dr. Crusher pressed the hypospray to her neck, and mercifully she fell unconscious. Dr. Crusher moved down the bed to her leg, noting the perfectly burned line across her uniform. She scanned it with her tricorder. “Well, it worked,” she remarked to herself as she ordered a nurse to bring over the tray with her instruments.

“What worked?” Leia asked.

“Seven and I have been working on using her nanoprobes to help her repair life-threatening injuries,” Dr. Crusher remarked as she quickly sliced away the leg of Seven’s uniform to get at the wound. “Amazing. She’s already well underway in re-attaching her own leg... she might even succeed, but I think we’ll do it the old fashioned way, just to be safe.”

“Sickbay this is the bridge,” Riker’s voice came over the comm. “Is the ambassador all right?”

“I’m fine, captain,” Leia said. “Sorry if I gave you a scare.”

“Not at all, it’s good to hear you’re all right. What’s the situation?”

“Commander of Nine is seriously injured,” Dr. Crusher reported. “Don’t expect too much out of her for the next day or two.”

“Understood. Ambassador, could you report to my Ready Room. There's a few questions that need answering.”
--------------------------------------------------------------

Captain Riker, Commander Laforge, and Ambassador Solo sat in the ready room, wondering what to do now. The star destroyers, having picked up their last shuttle, just vanished off into hyperspace without a word, despite the fact that they were definitely hurting the Federation ships. Nothing was making any sense, and what Leia had to say only added more confusion to the mix.

“Let me see if I understand,” Riker said. “You’re saying they came to Vulcan and set up this entire thing just to lure our science officer down to the planet to kill her?”

Leia hated to admit it, but it sounded even worse when said aloud. “I know it seems crazy, but honestly, that was the reason.”

“Why would they go to that much trouble?” Laforge asked. “What possible threat could she pose?”

“I don’t know,” Leia admitted. “I’m only telling you what I know. But I’m afraid that that’s not the worst part.”

“The Federation has been invaded and one of my officers is being pieced back together, I’d hate to hear the bad news.”

“There’s a Sith in charge now,” Leia said. “A dark jedi like the Emperor who has mastered the forces of evil and now seems to be setting her sights on your galaxy. I fought her once before, years ago. We thought she was dead... I felt her die," she said quietly. It didn't make any sense.

“Regardless, it seems that she’s very much alive and has some interest in us, which isn’t very comforting.” Riker pinched the bridge of his nose as he tried to think. "Luke was there as well, you said?"

Leia looked at him and hesitated. "That person tried to kill Annika," she said finally. "There is no force in heaven or on Earth that could make my brother raise a hand against her. A body that once was called Luke Skywalker was there, captain... that's all."

Riker and Laforge looked at each other; they had been there their own way themselves, with Locutus. "We realize that... we were there, we saw what he did to protect her. What I'm wondering is what his role in all this is."

"Sith do not share power if they can hoard it," Leia said. "Darth Whind is definitely in control, and the instigator. He's merely a servant."

Riker nodded, though he wasn't all that thrilled regardless. "Why Vulcan?" he asked. "And I still have no idea why a Sith would want to kill Seven, nevermind going to that much trouble to do it. And if she wanted her dead so badly, why not just capture the Enterprise, they had us outgunned."

"I wish I could give you some answers, captain," Leia said.

“I hate dealing with the Imperials,” Riker finally muttered. “They’re always operating two steps ahead of us. They’re probably on their ship right now having a good laugh at all this.”
--------------------------------------------------------------

Mara Jade stormed back and forth in her quarters like a caged tiger, her fury almost tangible. "She's escaped!" she roared as she kicked over a table, the impact shattering it as it hit the wall. "All of this planning, and I let her escape!" She pulled out her lightsaber and brutally attacked an unarmed wardrobe, reducing it to smoldering pieces. Her frustration having found release, she turned and saw Skywalker, sitting quite still on a chair nearby. "And here I thought you might fail us," she said. "You kept the goal in mind, while I played with her instead of just killing her." There was no hiding her disgust with herself.

"I know she's insignificant," she replied to Skywalker's look. "But still, it would have been better if I'd just killed her and been done with it." She shook her head. "I don't know. Maybe I wanted to prove beyond all doubt to the universe that I deserve you, that she's nothing. I waited so very long to have you at my side... I suppose I wanted to make her suffer a little for taking what I wanted." Her lips brushed his. "I'm a rather jealous woman, if you haven't noticed," she said with a dark smirk.

Mara sighed. "It was foolish of me," she said, getting back up and pacing again as she thought about it. Skywalker's look changed slightly. "I suppose you're right," she finally conceded. "Destiny is on our side. But I still don't like it. She could still pose a threat to what we're doing."

Skywalker leaned back in his chair, twirling his lightsaber absentmindedly. "No!" Mara replied emphatically. "The whole point was to lure her somewhere so I could know she was dead. Destroying their ship would leave room for uncertainty. Besides, it would lead to a war with the Federation, and we're not prepared for that. I will not correct one mistake by making an even greater one." She scowled at him. "For the last time, no! Sisko is watching her; he'll make certain that such an effort would fail. I'm surprised he didn't interfere on Vulcan." She thought about Skywalker’s opinion of the whole affair. "I hadn't considered that. It was rather convenient that your sister happened to be there just in time to stop me. Perhaps I underestimated his cleverness." Her face drew into a scowl. "It is a mistake I shall not make twice."
--------------------------------------------------------------

Leia sat in sickbay next to her brother’s fiancée, wondering what was going through her sleeping mind at the moment. She could probably poke around a little and find out, but that would be an invasion of her privacy, and she couldn’t betray her trust like that. She looked down at Seven's leg, seeing that the uniform had been cut away from her knee on down for the operation. Amazing work; you couldn’t even see a scar, even though it had been seared clean through by a lightsaber. What’s happening? she wondered. Why would Darth Whind go to this much trouble to get to you, Annika?

And Luke; that was another piece of the puzzle too. He was obviously on her side; she could sense the link between them during that brief confrontation. He was so different it made her want to weep. After all that had happened, to see him reduced to this shadow, it broke her heart. She put a comforting hand on Annika’s forehead as she lay asleep. And he tried to kill you, she thought mournfully. That only further proved that something was wrong with him. Even Annika didn’t know how much Luke cared for her; whatever darkness had entered his soul had completely transformed that good man into a demon. She tried to imagine what it must have been like. She pictured Han pointing his blaster at her, his face showing that he was going to pull the trigger. It didn’t work. It was just beyond her imagination to see her loving husband transformed like that.

“Ambassador,” came the voice over the comm.

“Yes,” she replied. It sounded like Geordi Laforge.

“Ambassador, there’s a message for you from you husband. He says it’s urgent.”

Speak of the devil, Leia thought, and then wished she hadn’t. “Thank you.” She stepped over to the panel and keyed up the comm, seeing Han’s worried face. “Good to see you,” she said.

“Same here, believe me.” She could see the concern in his eyes.

“I’m all right, if that’s what you’re wondering.”

“I figured as much,” Han answered. “Listen, something’s come up; you’d better get back here.”

“It’ll have to wait,” she replied. “Annika was hurt; she’s going to need someone to be here when she wakes up.”

“I’m afraid this can’t wait.” Han quickly explained, Leia’s face filling with horror as she spoke.

“Are they sure?”

“I don’t think it’s the kind of thing they’re likely to screw up,” Han said. “Take your shuttle back here and we’ll head over in the Falcon; it’ll be faster.”

Leia looked over to Annika’s unconscious form and then back to Han. “I’ll be coming as soon as I can,” she said.

“Better hurry,” Han said. “We don’t want this turning into a freak show.” The signal cut off soon after and Leia, giving one of the last members of her small family a brief embrace, left, unable to wonder if this was somehow related to what had happened on Vulcan. If not, she thought as her shuttle left the Enterprise for Earth, it’s an amazing coincidence.
--------------------------------------------------------------

Annika opened her eyes and turned as the world seemed to spin slowly around her. She stood amongst a sprinkling of autumn leaves. There was a slight chill in the air from a passing breeze, and a gray sky hung overhead. In the distance she saw a black metal fence extending along the length of the area and then turning to run just past her. There were several small, carved rocks. A cemetery, she finally realized. She hadn’t actually seen one before, but it looked so natural, so correct; and it fit her somber mood. She finished turning and saw the last stone. It was gigantic, two meters tall and nearly as wide and deep, carved in a beautiful gothic style of black stone, polished to an almost mirror-like shine. So little contrast was shown between the shadows and the rock that she could barely read it until she got up close. But she finally read his name, and she knew. She had always known really, she had just never accepted it. He’s gone Annika; he’s really gone.

“How are you doing?” a concerned voice asked from behind. She turned around and saw Ben, wearing a long brown leather coat and leaning against the fence.

Seven turned back to the headstone for a moment and then looked away. “Take a wild guess,” she said quietly, her heart breaking with each passing moment. It was overwhelming; the fear and anger and passion and jealousy and horror and, and betrayal...

“I’m sorry this has happened,” he said as soothingly as he could. “Your pain is so great right now Annika-”

“Don’t call me that!” she shouted, turning towards him. “I am Seven of Nine!” she yelled. “Tertiary Adjunct of Unimatrix Zero One! And your human sympathies are irrelevant!”

Ben showed no sign of surprise at her sudden outburst; in fact his only response was to seem even more sorrowful than before. “I know what you’re trying to do,” he said. “But it’s not the answer.”

“You know nothing,” she remarked with barely restrained contempt. “You are small. I see now the error of my ways, in relying on humans to provide me with stimulation. Emotions are pointless, useless things. They interfere with efficiency and weaken perfection, that is why the Borg eliminated them.”

He shook his head sadly. “I knew your will would be broken by this,” he said with grief. “It’s the next step for you unfortunately. But the pain of transformation is a great strain on the soul. It will be difficult for you to see what will come from all this.”

“What has come is that my eyes have been opened,” the Borg replied. “I tried to become more human, and what happened? I became just another mindless drone. I slept, I ate, I engaged in irrelevant conversation, I participated in pointless tasks. I thought about unimportant things like my fragrance, or the way my body looks, or how to wear my hair... none of them matter. All they did was stand in the way of my perfection. No more.” She looked with contempt at the headstone. “No more!” The tombstone shattered like glass, and then the entire cemetery, leaving nothing but an empty void.

Seven of Nine opened her eyes and sat up in sickbay. She heard the sound of the nurse summoning Dr. Crusher, but she was already out of bed and heading towards the door when she arrived. “Hold on,” Dr. Crusher ordered, “Where do you think you’re going?”

She stopped only long enough to speak. “I must complete my regeneration and continue my duties,” she said simply.

“You’re not ready to leave just yet,” Dr. Crusher remarked, looking at her oddly. Seven’s demeanor, her voice, even the way she stood was all very different from normal.

“The damage has been repaired,” Seven of Nine said matter-of-factly. “Once I complete my regeneration cycle I will be operating at peak efficiency again.”

“Her latest scans do show a full recovery,” the nurse pointed out.

Dr. Crusher rechecked the figures, knowing that they would be right of course. In truth, it was a stall so she could try to assess the situation, as bizarre as it seemed. “You seem different,” she finally remarked.

“Indeed,” 7 of 9 replied.

“What do you think of that?” Dr. Crusher asked.

“It is irrelevant,” she said. “I am fit to leave?”

“Yes,” Dr. Crusher finally admitted. Without another word 7 of 9 turned and walked out, leaving her to mull over the situation. “Crusher to Captain Riker,” she finally said as she tapped her communicator, “Please come to Sickbay.”

“Problem, doctor?” came the electronic reply.

“I’m not exactly sure,” she admitted, “But I think you’re going to want to hear about this.”

[Sonnenburg]

First of two parts that will be posted today

Part XII


Han’s held Leia's right shoulder as they walked into the Romulan’s chief military hospital, and Leia found herself reaching up and gripping it tightly. She didn’t know if she wanted it to be true or not. At least knowing that it was over would give them some relief, and yet she couldn’t help being disgusted at her selfishness. But after they entered the room and the chief medical examiner pulled it out, there was no denying the truth.

“That’s him,” Leia confirmed, her voice quiet with just a slight shake to it. After all this waiting father, this is how we meet again.

“Could you give us a moment alone please,” Han asked the doctor in a surprisingly gentle manner. As the medical staff exited Leia stepped over and put her hand on her father’s chest; she didn’t know why, she just had to. Maybe to know for certain that this was really real.

“How did it happen?” Leia asked Han.

“They don’t know,” Han mumbled. “Just found him dead on a planet somewhere, no explanation.” He pointed to his face. “Obviously he was in some kind of fight.”

She looked up at it. She hadn’t at first, she didn’t really want to see it. The entire lower right half of his mask was gone, and cracks extended from the opening in various directions. Beneath it she saw her father’s face for the first time. He skin was very pale, although whether that was from being trapped inside that suit or just from being dead she couldn’t say. The strangest thing was his expression under that mask. He looked so calm, even satisfied, as if glad it was finally over. She wiped away her tears, doing her best not to cry at this man she’d barely known as a father.

“What do you suppose could have done that?” Han asked. “If I gave Chewie a sledgehammer maybe he could have done something like this, but only if Vader let him.”

“I don’t care,” Leia said sharply, and immediately regretted it. She felt her husband’s hands take her arms, rubbing her in quiet comfort. She felt her resolve break down, and the tears -uncalled though they were- came, and she surrendered herself to them as Han offered what comfort he could.

Darth Vader had come into her life as the symbol of evil. He was the source of more fear and dread in the galaxy than almost anyone. She suffered torture at his orders twice. But he had seen the light, eventually. If even he, the darkest of men, could change, maybe there was still hope for her lost brother.
--------------------------------------------------------------

Darth Whind sat just to Gen. Taar's right during the staff meeting. No, it wasn't the position of highest authority, but it wasn't necessary in this case. They were here to discuss Imperial military policy, and that was his expertise. Mara hadn't gone to all the trouble of putting him in this position to ignore his experience, and she knew the generals and admirals would be more inclined to listen to him instead of her. It was grating, of course, but she would deal with them in time; for now, it was the campaign that mattered.

"The issue before us," Gen. Taar said as the meeting came to order, "is an assessment of threats in the Milky Way. With the Krenim eliminated a major delta quadrant power has been removed. We need to consider other potential adversaries."

"The delta quadrant," reported Admiral Sunhaf, "is fairly open now. The Kazon are no real danger, and the Malon are a greater threat to themselves than we are. The only real danger we have to face at this point are attacks by Hirogens on under-defended areas." Sunhaf had been leading several campaigns into various parts of the delta quadrant during Thrawn's initial war against the Borg. He had an insight that Taar appreciated in his subordinates.

"Overall they shouldn't be too great a problem," Taar said. The assembled group seemed to agree. "It looks like this area should be easy pickings, even if they decided to start banding together."

"They lack sophisticated weapons or propulsion," Sunhaf replied. "I can't foresee them being any greater threat than the Krenim were."

"Good," Taar replied. "Beta Quadrant?"

"Romulans and Klingons," Admiral Hellis said. "Fortunately the two are no longer aligned, but both have hyperdrives and have experience fighting with or against us. They could be dangerous."

"I find that hard to believe," Gen. Wallace said. "Their control is limited to a rather tiny corner of the quadrant, and neither trusts the other enough to devote a significant force to any kind of war against us."

"I think it would be a mistake to underestimate them," Hellis replied. "They are rather resourceful." That was the infuriating thing about Hellis. He was ambitious and stubborn, but he had a keen grasp of tactics. It would be much better for everyone if he was an incompetent they could discard, but the Empire needed men like him, even pompous politicians.

"But hardly comparable to Imperial resources," Wallace replied.

"Of course not you fool," Hellis answered hotly, "we control an entire galaxy. No one can compare to our resources. But what we can afford to bring against them is the question at hand, general. It's not a matter of having more, it's having more at the battlelines that counts. I think the Krenim campaign proved that quite well."

"The Klingons and Romulans should be taken seriously," Taar finally said, stepping in. "But they're not an immediate threat." He keyed his datapad. "alpha quadrant?"

"Federation is a major influence," General Yutain said. "The remnants of the Republic are strongly aligned with them, even moreso than the Romulans. I believe any war involving one will guarantee the involvement of the other. A potent threat; the Federation has numbers and the Republic obviously has technology on par with are own, and I've no doubt the two have been working together to further advance themselves." Darth Whind noticed the rotund general was sweating despite the cool temperature of the room. She tried not to smile when she realized why he was sweating. His fear was delicious.

"What of the Cardassians?" General Taar asked.

"No real threat," General Yutain continued, dabbing at his forehead with a handkerchief. "The only aggression is coming from pirates, and the largest remnant is far too weak to pose any danger. The Federation will definitely be the problem."

"You seem rather insistent on that point," Adm. Sunhaf said.

"I just want to be clear," General Yutain said stubbornly. "They have a knack for retrofitting technology, especially thanks to the generous help of the Emperor. They are not to be underestimated."

"Noted," General Taar said. "And that leaves the gamma quadrant."

"There is only one power in the gamma quadrant," General Wallace said, having recovered from Hellis dressing down. "The Dominion. They are by far our greatest threat at this point."

"Definitely," Admiral Sunhaf agreed. "Especially considering their recent activities during the Borg incursion."

"You have some support for this belief?" Taar asked General Wallace.

Wallace nodded as he activated the hologram in the center of the conference table. "The Dominion controls a significant portion of this galaxy. In fact, now that the Borg are gone I believe they are the largest single power besides our own. The Dominion is controlled by a race of shapeshifters called the Founders." The gelatinous-like appearance of a Founder appeared in the hologram. "We, of course, have had our experiences with them in the past. They prefer to exist in a goo-like puddle on their homeworld in something called the Great Link."

"Where is their homeworld?" Admiral Hellis asked.

"We don't know," Wallace admitted. "The ISB has been trying for years and has still failed to locate it. They either find some dead world or disappear." He looked to the other leaders and, seeing there was nothing further to add, hit the button, changing the image to a greenish-brown skinned alien with horns. "The Jem'hadar," he said. "The soldiers of the Dominion, they are Stormtroopers and TIE pilots all rolled into one."

"What do you mean?"

"They are highly skilled warriors and pilots, well-armed, and completely devoted. In fact, they are on par with the Royal Guards as far as dedication goes. Fanatical, merciless. They'll perform suicide runs without a first thought, much less a second. They can use a personal cloak, but our stormtroopers should be able to locate them nevertheless. Their weakness, however, is a dependency on a chemical called ketracel white. Without it they'll go mad and die."

"That would be the most effective means of stopping them," Taar observed.

"Yes sir." He keyed the control panel again and the shape shifted to a humanoid with vent-like shapes on the side of its head. "The Vorta are like an intermediary between the Founders and the Jem'hadar. Not exactly commanders, but they will usually be listened to by their Jem'hadar troops. They provide the ketracel white. They, like the Jem'hadar, view the Founders with awe, even as gods, if you can believe that."

There was a general scoffing at that. Any species that viewed another as deified was by definition inferior in their eyes. Religion didn't have a place in the New Order, especially the worship of bits of slime.

"There's more," Wallace continued. "The Vorta and the Dominion are created through genetic engineering and cloning, which unfortunately means a rather large number of troops and pilots at their disposal. A war of attrition, even one fought with the full resources of the Empire, is a war that won't easily be won."

"Yes," Taar agreed. "What are the chances of negotiating with them?"

"They distrust outsiders vehemently," Wallace answered. "They went to war with the Klingons, Romulans, Cardassians, and Federation because of their distrust."

"All of them?" Gen. Yutain asked with surprise.

"Yes. They are a potent enemy. They have stayed for the most part out of the way of the Empire, but I don't think that will last forever."

"Obviously they're concerned about us," Taar said. "I think we're all in agreement that the Dominion is, for the moment, our greatest concern." There was a chorus of assent around the table.

After the admirals and generals filed out Taar remained with Darth Whind. "Do you approve, my Lady?" he asked.

"Yes," she said after short consideration. "The Dominion are most definitely a threat. Too great a threat in fact."

"We'll begin drawing up plans for an assault against them right away," Taar said.

"No," Darth Whind said, surprising him.

"My Lady?"

"Leave them to me," she said. "Just be ready to protect our worlds against them, should they decide to launch an attack on us."

She could feel Taar's uncertainty. "I mean no disrespect, but I feel I must point out how dangerous this Dominion is. A war with them could severely weaken our forces if it is not properly planned out. We must tread very carefully."

"I know," she replied as she stood up, "That's why I will be overseeing it personally."
--------------------------------------------------------------

There was no answer when she pushed the chime but Lt. Comm. Borui could sense that 7 of 9 was in her quarters, and after a short consideration, let herself in. The Borg showed an annoyance at her presence, but that was all as she went back to working at one of the panels.

“I thought we might talk,” Borui said, finally sitting down. Waiting to be invited by 7 of 9 would pretty much mean holding this discussion standing up.

“There is no need,” 7 of 9 answered. “We have nothing to discuss.”

“People have been talking about you,” Borui went on. “They’re wondering what has happened.”

“They may think what they like,” 7 of 9 replied, “It is irrelevant.”

“What has happened?” Borui finally asked.

“I have set aside my worthless human frailties,” she answered, “and embraced my own perfection.”

“You believe you are perfect?” Borui asked.

“I am far closer than anyone else on board this ship,” 7 of 9 said. “I am no longer restricted by the minutia of their everyday lives, and thus can devote more time to investigation and improving myself. And I do not need to squander my time eating and sleeping.”

“So you’ve given up sleeping,” Borui remarked. “You used to enjoy it, even if you did regenerate once in a while.”

“I was thinking small,” 7 of 9 said. “It was a malfunction, one which has been corrected.”

“You prefer the new you to the old?”

“There is no issue of preference. I am infinitely superior to the weak version of myself I had become. I am no longer distracted by her foolish priorities.”

“Her,” Borui noticed. A sign that her personality disorder is manifesting itself, or just an attempt to distance herself from that life? “Well, they may seem foolish, but they were kind of wonderful.”

“It was romantic nonsense,” 7 of 9 replied. “Stupid and unrealistic. She failed to think about the way the universe truly functions, as if she could fix all problems and right all wrongs.” She sneered, “Pathetic.”

“I wouldn’t call it pathetic.”

“You probably share her naive outlook,” 7 of 9 went on. “Looking towards the future as if it should automatically be better than what it is now. The universe is not so accommodating. Despite all our struggles and all that have died nothing is any better. The Empire can still just enter the core of Federation space and leave without repercussions, because there's no one with the power to stop them.” There was no hiding the disgust as she spoke. “Battles and sacrifices and nobility... these have been seen in great numbers these past several years, and yet things are as bad as they have ever been. Can you not see that?”

“Yes,” Borui admitted. “But if we work hard and remain dedicated, they’ll get better.”

“Do you really know that? No, you just pretend that you do so you can go about your insignificant daily routine, lying to yourself that there is going to be some happy ending. Well, life does not work that way. Sometimes evil wins and the good people die and that is just the way it is, and hoping that tomorrow will be better will not change that immutable fact.”

“But it’s better to hope than do nothing.”

“No it’s not!" Seven exclaimed. "It’s just something you say to make yourself feel better, but it doesn’t change a thing! You hope, and innocent people die. You hope, and worlds are destroyed. You hope, and a good man gives in to evil. All you have are words, and words are irrelevant!”

“Hope, Seven-”

“HOPE – IS – IRRELEVENT!!!” she shouted. “Hope cannot move mountains! Hope cannot right wrongs! Hope is just refusing to admit your own impotence!” She seemed almost out of control as she ranted on. “Do you believe the Borg rose to be the most feared species in the galaxy through some dream or vision? No! It was because they refused to look at foolish fantasies for their direction and embraced true logic.”

“But emotion destroyed the Borg,” Borui said.

“No, necessity destroyed the Borg. Luke did the only reasonable thing, he destroyed the invaders to ensure I would reach my target. Perhaps he was motivated by emotion, but in the end he did it because he had no choice.”

“Yes,” Borui said, “he did have no choice. Because he loved you too much to let you die.”

“No,” 7 of 9 said. “If what you say were true he would not have tried to kill me, which he did. Therefore, your logic is flawed.”

“You don’t want to admit it, Seven,” Borui said. “You have this tendency towards extremes. Before you refused to admit he was gone, now you refuse to admit there was ever anything there.”

“Whatever I might have felt,” 7 of 9 went on, “was a sign of my malfunction.”

“Love is not a malfunction.”

“I beg to differ. Love leads to pain and irrationality and mistakes; it is a malfunction of the highest order.”

“I don’t think you believe that; deep down anyway.” Borui shook her head. “I’ve been around you a long time, Seven, I know what you feel. You kept that torch burning inside you for longer than most would have.”

7 of 9 glared at her. “The mistake,” she said without emotion, “has been corrected.”

“Very well,” Borui said finally. “You’re content to continue without love and hope. But tell me, what is there left to dream about?”

7 of 9 stopped what she was doing. “I don’t sleep any more,” she said emphatically.

“No, but you still dream. You can’t hide things from me, Seven, so you might as well just admit it.”

The Borg refused to look at her. “I do not dream.”

“You’re lying, Seven of Nine.” There was an undercurrent of dread there now, replacing the anger. Anger, it seemed, was the only emotion 7 of 9 allowed herself now. “If your goal is to learn the truth, why lie?”

“You are attempting to twist the truth to serve your own purposes,” 7 of 9 said. “You want me to go back to being the way I was.”

“Yes, I really loved it when you tossed me into the bulkhead. Regardless, Seven, this isn’t about what I want; it’s about what you want. What you really want.”

“I want to be left alone to perform my duties and pursue my goal of perfection.” Borui could feel her mood shifting into despair. She was tempted to continue to see where it led, but realized it might do more harm than good at this point. Best to leave it for now and speak with the captain, she decided as she left. She didn’t know how she could explain it, but there was one undeniable truth: 7 of 9, deep down where she didn’t want to admit it, was still human; and a person living in denial could be very, very dangerous.

[Sonnenburg]

The second part for today (make sure to read Part 12 first)

Part XIII


Two years ago the Dominion began taking an interest in the Empire. The Imperial forces, so close to being wiped out forever, had actually managed to begin rebuilding again, and that became a natural concern. As they always did with any adversary, the Dominion investigated their rival with care, learning as much as they could about this group of displaced aliens in their galaxy. And when the time came, several of the Founders infiltrated their ranks.

And that was their mistake. They failed to consider that they were facing an adversary who was even more skilled than they at finding out what potential rivals were up to. Thrawn managed to locate every single Founder agent in their midst, and deal with them. He said he knew it was only a matter of time before they arrived, and had taken precautions. And they learned what those precautions were.

Every day for the last... eternity, as far as the Founder was concerned, it had been forced to remain the same shape. The accursed device the Imperials had interfered with its ability to alter its form, and thus it was trapped, weak and helpless like a solid. They kept it in some kind of nutrient bath to keep it alive, but for what purpose it didn't know. At this point it didn't matter. Being trapped in this shape was like an itch that was impossible to scratch, and over time it had grown maddening.

The door to its cell opened and it turned away from the sudden light. Two stormtroopers grabbed it forcefully and dragged it out, a third just behind them holding one of those damn devices; not taking any chances with it apparently. It was half drug, half led to a room located elsewhere on Bastion, although where didn't particularly matter; besides its brief transfer here months ago it had never left its cell, and had no references to know where it was being led. It was deposited in a chair in a room and tightly secured to it as two other solids walked in. The female sat down opposite it, a smile that conveyed that this soul had a wonderful sense of humor, and you had better pray she didn't show you what she thought was funny. "Good afternoon," she said. "Let's talk a little about the Great Link, shall we?"

The Founder refused to even acknowledge her presence. It may be bound in this form, trapped and at their mercy, but there was no way it would lower itself to answering the questions of a solid.

"It must be wonderful," she went on. "I always wondered what it would be like to be part of a greater whole like that. What thoughts go through your mind as you are connected to so many others? It must be a paradise." She shook her head. "You haven't seen it in a long while, or so I'm told. That's sad. Even I can empathize with that. Would you like to go back?"

It knew it was a trick, but at the same time, it wanted so badly to believe her. The Great Link was all it could think about during this horrible captivity.

"You blame us for this," she continued. "And yet, you fail to realize that we were only defending ourselves from you. You were the ones who came to us remember. If you had wanted to learn about us, we would have been happy to have a dialogue with you. However," she went on, her smile fading to apparent sadness, "I think you've been punished enough. I'm prepared to let you return to your world and your people, but I need you to do something in return." It looked at her. "Tell your people we mean them no harm. Make them believe that we only want peaceful coexistence with the Founders."

It considered for a while. "I will tell them," it said finally. "What they believe is another matter."

"It's all I ask," she said, her smile returning. "Where is your homeworld?" she asked. "We need to know how best to return you."

"You may deliver me to Carosa 5," it said. "There I will be transported to my homeworld."

"Not good enough, I'm afraid," she replied. "We can't take any chances of you not making it home to deliver our message. I insist that you tell us so that we can deliver you personally."

"No," it replied.

"Then you leave me with no choice," she said, a sound of deep sorrow in her voice. "Return it to its cell."

"Wait," the Founder replied. "I'll tell you." Anything was better than being trapped here. "My homeworld is Alpha Regalian 3," it said finally.

"It is?" she asked.

"Yes," it said bitterly.

"Are you sure you're not lying to me?"

"Quite sure," it replied. The Founder had no organ systems that other species possessed that showed what was going through their minds. They had the best poker face in the galaxy; in fact, lying to people was a talent their race had honed to an art form.

"Unfortunately," she replied, "You are lying. I'm not surprised really, just hoping that maybe we could do this the easy way, not the hard way." She turned to her companion, a sandy-blond haired man with a bit of growth around his face and a look in his eye of a man who was staring back from the cliffs of madness. "Why don't you show it the hard way?"

"Torture won't work," it said simply as he approached. "I don't perceive pain as you do."

"No," she replied, "We know that already. But there is more than one way to get the answer from you."

The man bent down on one knee slowly, putting his hand on the left side of the Founder's face. After a moment, he repeated it with the right hand on the other side. He closed his eyes and seemed to be concentrating deeply, and his lips moved silently. It seemed ridiculous at first, until the world fell apart.

Its perspective shifted wildly, jumping from one alien scene to the next, unable to grasp what was happening. It saw another woman, one with mechanical components attached to her fleshy body; she was hitting some small object with a racket, smiling at it as she moved around. It saw its hands, solid hands, performing a diagnostic on a small squat machine that warbled at it. It saw the woman again, playing a game of chess, grinning as another piece was plucked off the board. It was shaking hands with a dark haired man in a flight suit. It was standing next to a large hairy beast, a bow-like weapon held in its powerful grip as it looked about and roared a warning.

It was on a spaceship, a thrill of power passing through it as it grabbed ships with its mind. The ships were gigantic, even bigger than Jem'hadar warships, but they were like nothing in its grip. It grabbed them and slammed them together like a giant, smashing them to tiny pieces, the insignificant little minds on board unable to comprehend what was happening to them. The power... it was incredible; life and death truly was in its hands. It grabbed another and another, reveling in the destruction, savoring each and every impact, feeling the confusion of the drones and the awe of its comrades. This was power that it had never known, and it wanted more.

And then, something happened that wasn't quite right. A person was running at it, running through space as if there were a solid surface. As he got closer it noticed that it looked very much like the solid who had put his hands on its face, except it had no facial hair and the look of insanity was replaced by an expression of concern. "This isn't real!" he shouted at it. "Don't look at it! Don't listen! Don't think about anything, just let your mind drift. You can't let him continue or he'll learn all your secrets."

It grew slightly hesitant, wondering if it was making a mistake. But then it felt its mind tighten around another ship, and its lip twisted in a sinister grin as it crushed it with minimal effort. It wanted the feeling to continue forever, to be a true master of nature, to command destiny itself!

And then it was back in the chair, powerless and suffering, the solid standing nearby with a smirk on his face. He tapped a few commands onto a datapad, and a diagram of a system appeared on the screen, a planet highlighted. It looked at it with horror; the Founder's Homeworld. Somehow, somehow he found it.

The woman, smiling as she looked on with approval, pushed a button on the table, and several stormtroopers returned. "Take that thing back to its cell," she said with contempt. The Founder was grabbed and dragged from the room, struggling in its weak desperation. When the door closed, Mara looked over at Skywalker. "Most impressive," she remarked as she stepped over, running her left hand up his chest. He grabbed a handful of her hair and tugged, hard, pulling her lips to his. After a while she stepped away and slapped him, but she giggled all the same. "You broke the Founder easily enough," she remarked, getting back to business. "But can you break the Vulcan?" He nodded slowly. "Good. Everything is moving exactly as it should." She looked at the slowly spinning world where the Founders were. "And it can't end soon enough," she whispered.
--------------------------------------------------------------

Do androids dream of electric sheep? asked the whimsical title of an ancient tale. A nonsensical thought to anyone who has spent time around androids, at least that would have been the opinion of 7 of 9, if anyone had asked her. As a Borg, she knew that there was no dreaming in electronic minds; there is only silence. That is the way of mechanical efficiency.

Unfortunately, she still dreamed, and the thought of it infuriated her. She had abandoned all those human priorities that Annika had embraced, but even though she stood in an alcove instead of laying in a bed she still found her mind descending into the realm of Morpheus. It did nothing to hamper her efficiency, but she despised it all the same. It was a connection to humanity she wanted to sever, and what was worse was that she was not only failing, but found the dreams actually becoming stronger.

7 of 9 kicked and swung at the dark woman in her sleep, trying in vain to defeat her, to wipe that smug look of self-confidence off her face and show her that she was small, inferior. But the woman easily avoided her blows, time and time again. And what infuriated her the most was her laughter. And then, Darth Whind struck; one blow, that was all it took. 7 of 9 fell to the ground in a tangled heap, crushed by her mocking opponent with ease.

Not strong enough. Not yet.

7 of 9 kicked and swung at the dark woman in her sleep, trying in vain to defeat her, to wipe that smug look of self-confidence off her face and show her that she was small, inferior. But the woman easily avoided her blows, time and time again. And what infuriated her the most was her laughter. And then, Darth Whind struck; one blow, that was all it took. 7 of 9 fell to the ground in a tangled heap, crushed by her mocking opponent with ease.

Still not strong enough.

7 of 9 kicked and swung at the dark woman in her sleep, trying in vain to defeat her, to wipe that smug look of self-confidence off her face and show her that she was small, inferior...

Not strong enough yet.

7 of 9 kicked and swung at the dark woman in her sleep, trying in vain to defeat her, to wipe that smug look of self-confidence off her face....

Just not strong enough. Not yet.

7 of 9 kicked and swung at the dark woman in her sleep.....

Still not quite strong enough.
--------------------------------------------------------------

Lt. Commander Sullice looked up at the power distribution display as a small alert came up. She furrowed her brow as she looked over the readings, trying to make sense of it. "Bridge," she finally asked as she pressed her comm badge.

"Laforge, here."

"Commander," she said, not taking her eyes of the displays, "Are there any experiments being conducted that are out of the ordinary?"

"None that I'm aware of," his reply came. "What makes you ask?"

She watched the numbers steadily increase. "Something's not right here."
--------------------------------------------------------------

Not strong enough yet.

7 of 9 kicked and swung at the dark woman in her sleep.....

She's still too strong.

7 of 9 kicked and swung at the dark woman in her sleep.....

I must become stronger.

7 of 9 kicked and swung at the dark woman....

Strength.

7 of 9 kicked and swung...

Energy.

7 of 9 kicked....

Power

Swing.

More.

Punch.

Stronger.

Kick.

Faster.

Jab.

Better.

Strike.

I must become stronger.
--------------------------------------------------------------

"The power drain is increasing," Sullice reported.

"Is it a threat to the system?" Laforge asked.

"No, it's fine, but a drain like this isn't normal; if someone's running some unauthorized experiments..."

"I understand," Laforge replied. "Trace the problem."

"Checking.... Deck Eight..... Section 10..... well, what a surprise."

"What?" Laforge asked.

"Our resident prima donna."

"Seven?" Laforge asked.

"Yes. She's drawing a colossal amount of power. I can't imagine what's she's doing with it."

"Laforge to Seven of Nine," he said. There was only silence. "Lightner, you have the bridge," he said as he went to the turbolift. He had every sympathy for the commander but this was starting to wear a little thin.
--------------------------------------------------------------

7 of 9 kicked and swung at the dark woman in her sleep, trying in vain to defeat her, to wipe that smug look of self-confidence off her face and show her that she was small, inferior.

She's still too strong. I must become stronger.
--------------------------------------------------------------

The door to Seven's quarters opened on Laforge's command, and he stepped into the darkened room, expecting to give her a dressing down. "Lights," he ordered, and recoiled in shock.

7 of 9 stood in her alcove, stock still as she always did during her regeneration cycle. At first glance it looked as if someone had electroplated her, but as he got closer he saw the shapes. Every available surface of her body was covered with an implant or metal plate or metallic threads. Even her face was covered with the metal, giving her the appearance of some kind of battered robot in a wig. As he reached forward he saw three new implants burst through the others to spread across the metallic shell.
--------------------------------------------------------------

Still not strong enough.
--------------------------------------------------------------

"Sickbay, medical emergency," Laforge said. He saw the implants continue to burst from beneath her metal skin. He watched with fascinated horror as metal strands began extending across her torso like some tiny highway system. He looked with relief as Doctor Crusher and a nurse entered the room.

“What happened?” she asked quickly as she pulled out a tricorder and ran it over 7 of 9’s unmoving form.

“She was like this when I found her,” Laforge said quickly. “She’s drawing a huge amount of power though.”

Crusher quickly looked over the options. As four more implants appeared she made her decision. “Computer, end regeneration cycle. Authorization Crusher Beta-One-Eight.”

The hum of the alcove stopped and 7 of 9 stepped weakly out of the alcove and fell to her knees. Dr. Crusher grabbed her arm to keep her falling to the floor. “Seven,” she said with worry in her voice. Her head lolled about weakly, back and forth, and then her eyes opened beneath all the metal. Those eyes... Geordi hoped he would never see a look like those eyes gave him at that moment. It was pitiful and horrifying all at once. “Seven, you’ve got to reabsorb your implants.”

The woman fell forward onto the floor, one hand weakly supporting herself while Dr. Crusher gripped her other arm tightly. The sound that followed was like that of a giant chewing on a piece of tinfoil. He watched in awe as the devices withdrew into her flesh in clumps here and there, finally, after what had to have been a minute, revealing the real woman underneath. “Revealing” being the operative word; the implants had shredded her uniform. When Laforge had planned to give her a dressing down, this wasn’t quite what he had in mind.

7 of 9 gripped her head and those eyes focused on him again, making him squirm uncomfortably until they rolled up into her head and she collapsed onto the floor. “Let’s get her to Sickbay,” Dr. Crusher said.

“Transporter Room 1,” Laforge said, “Beam us directly to Sickbay.”

“That’s not necessary, Geordi,” Beverly said.

“I don’t want people seeing her like this,” he said emphatically. “She’s a Starfleet officer; she doesn’t deserve it.”

They reappeared in Sickbay a moment later, the nurse pulling a dressing gown onto Seven while Dr. Crusher prepared a hypo. “Keep me informed,” was all Laforge could think to say as they went about their business, "I'll inform the captain." Of what, he thought, I've no idea.

[Ghost Rider]

This with the others are very enjoyable. It's fun reading that Seven is mostly as character and not a being with "happy, sad, lust". Also enjoying the way that Luke just degenerates.

[Crazedwraith]

Heh. A nice mix of character development and humour at the end.

[Sonnenburg]

This with the others are very enjoyable. It's fun reading that Seven is mostly as character and not a being with "happy, sad, lust". Also enjoying the way that Luke just degenerates.

Thanks! In my mind Luke is so easily drawn to the dark side (like Yoda said, "much anger in him") even though he wants to do good; now that that's gone, there's really nothing to keep him in check besides the tiny bit we see resisting here.

[Sonnenburg]

Heh. A nice mix of character development and humour at the end.

Thank you. I realize this chapter had (by design) a lot of repetitive elements, but I think Seven's the kind of character who hates feeling helpless. Like Luke observed in SotN when her hands were tied, it was a special message to him that he was the only person she really truly trusted, because she'd allow herself to be vulnerable before him.

[Sonnenburg]

Part XIV


The only sound was the quiet crunching of leaves. Step, crunch, step, crunch. 7 of 9 walked through the cemetery without direction, her arms wrapped around herself to keep away the chill of the light breeze. There was no guiding force, she just walked about randomly, but there was never a doubt where she would arrive; some things are simply inevitable. And yet, she continued onward, wondering silently why she was here and what was to be done.

She stopped as she stepped into shadow, and looked up at the black tombstone. You; it's always comes back to you, doesn't it. That irrational past with you; what had I been thinking? She reached out absentmindedly and touched the smooth black surface.

She felt her lips touch his, gently at first and then a little more firmly. It felt so natural, as if she had done it a thousand times before, and yet inside she quaked. She tasted him; she had never really understood that phrase until it happened now.

Seven of Nine jerked her hand away from the tombstone, looking down at it stupidly, and then back to the stone. For some reason, the air didn't seem quite so chilled now. Slowly, hesitantly, she reached back towards it, allowing her fingers to brush the cool stone.

Their lips gradually pulled away and she slowly opened her eyes. Her first real kiss, and it had been so wonderful, so warm. She noticed she was holding his right hand with her left, and she gripped it tightly. What a day this had been, she said to herself. Nothing in her life had been as glorious as this day had, with so many new experiences and discoveries; it was like being born again. But distantly, she had to wonder if it could possibly last. Life isn't about first kisses, it's often about hurt and mediocrity. If she gave herself over to him, would she regret it? "Can it work?" she found herself asking him. "A Jedi and a cyborg?"

"We can make it work," Luke said with reassurance. A smile tugged at her lips; he knew just what to say. "Besides," he continued, "I'm a cyborg too."

"No you're not," she replied.

His right hand released hers and he pulled up the sleeve of his shirt, and he touched a spot on his arm that looked like any other spot, and a panel opened. She peered inside at the circuits and rods and wires, amazed. "Your hand?"

"I lost it in a lightsaber fight years ago," Luke said as he closed the panel. "But that makes me a cyborg too."

"I guess it does," Seven admitted. "It's astonishing. I could swear it was real."

"Most of the time I don't even remember it isn't," Luke said. "It feels just like my real hand."

"Now I know you're lying," Seven said. "No one can make prosthetics that are that good."

"It's true," Luke said.

"Alright then," Seven said. "Let's do an experiment." She took his hand in her own. "Close your eyes." He smirked but closed them anyway with that look of obvious patience at another's ridiculous behavior.

"Can you feel that?" she asked with innocence although the gesture was anything but. She was testing the waters... she had learned over the years that people were stealing glances at her, which had never really mattered to her. So long as it performed optimally, the details of her body were irrelevant. But for the first time, that had changed; she wanted to share it with someone... not like with Harry, when she was simply curious about the experience that he declined, but to let Luke become as close to her as he possibly could. So she held his hand near her heart, but not quite... close enough to show this was love, but also to show that there was no doubt about what she was proposing. She tried not to laugh as his eyes sprung open. "I'll take that as a yes," she said with a smile, and then moved closer to him, never taking her hand off of his. "And you can take that as an invitation," she said quietly. Her eyes closed as her lips slowly brushed his.

Seven wasn't sure what to think as she stood in front of the headstone. These memories... so distant now... they were all that she had left of him. It was torture to think of what she had lost... and yet, she found herself wanting more. She reached out and touched the tombstone again.

She felt his hot breath on the back of her neck, and sighed with pleasure. His breath moved down her spine a short ways as his hands moved up her abdomen. She squirmed a little; "You're making me shiver," she said as his breath suddenly turned from warm to cool.

"Sorry," he said absently, and then he realized something. "You don't have any goose bumps," he observed.

"Of course not," she replied. "I am Borg, I don't have body hair."

"Oh," Luke replied, understanding. "I thought you were just really into hygiene."

She laughed and turned around grabbing his face and kissing him, wrapping her arms around his muscular frame and falling backwards. Yes, it was a strange contrast, his skin on hers, but it was wonderful. The light touches of the hairs tickled just a little, but she relished the sensations. His hands moved over her skin as she caressed his back, then she wrapped her arms tightly around him and squeezed him to herself. The embrace was so warm and sensual, the feeling of his heart beating next to her own. It was like being in the Collective again, only better. She felt complete, part of a greater whole, but there was such a rich depth to it that she had never found among the Borg.

Annika thought about that again as her hand left the tombstone. She had asked Data to give her unrestrained emotion, and he had, and that's what this meant. She could feel, good and bad, but at least she felt... at least she knew she was alive. To be able to feel as good as Luke made her feel in every possible form also meant that sometimes it would hurt that much too. You had to take the bitter if you wanted to taste the sweet.

"You're back," that familiar deep voice observed.

"Yes," she said as she continued thinking on what she had had, and what she had been fighting for. "You were right, it wasn't the answer."

"I knew you'd figure it out," Ben said. "You're a very smart woman, Annika." He was quiet for a moment. "A lot has changed; I can tell just by looking at you."

She finally turned back towards him, where he stood leaning against the fence. "I don't want to do this," she said. "I don't have the heart for it."

"Yes, you do," he replied. "You've seen your own limitations now, and you've accepted them. That is the first step in your development."

"No," she replied, but it was devoid of emotion. "I don't want to fight any more."

"Good," he said. "You shouldn't want to. That doesn't mean that you won't have to."

"No," she repeated, and looked back to the tombstone.

"Annika, I can tell you've lost something." She didn't answer. "It's hope, isn't it. I can see how empty you look."

She closed her eyes to stop the tears, succeeding some. "I've been waiting for him for so long." She sniffed quietly. "God, what a fool I was."

"You trusted your feelings," Ben replied with sympathy. "And your feelings were right on the mark."

She scoffed at him and turned around. "Don't you get it? He tried to kill me."

"No," Ben said, "He didn't. Luke would never hurt you."

"You weren't there!" she insisted.

"No, but I know what happened, and I know what's happening inside." Ben came off the fence and stepped over to her. "Luke's family has a history with the Force that's very complex. In time I'll explain it to you, but for now know this: they are easily drawn to the Dark side, but the good in them is very powerful. It cannot be driven from them completely, no matter what it seems." He took hold of her shoulders in a reassuring way. "Luke's still in there, holding on, waiting to return."

Annika looked up at the man, his face surprisingly comforting, but she couldn't accept it. "I looked into his eyes, Ben. There is no good in there."

"That's because Luke's not in his eyes," Ben replied. "He's about here," he touched a point behind her ear, "Holding on firmly to the last refuge he has."

"You expect me to believe that?"

"Of course," he said, and then smiled a little. "Why else do you think Skywalker can't talk?"

She wanted to believe it, but she knew that it was all just a fantasy. She pulled out of his grip and turned away. "Stop it," she said quietly. "Stop dangling hope in front of me. Luke's dead," she said as she looked at the tomb. "He's not coming back."

"The proof is in the putting," Ben said with a nod of his head. "I understand. Even hope needs something tangible to believe in sometimes." He considered for a while. "Yes, I suppose you've earned it."

"Earned what?" she asked, her patience starting to wear thin.

"Give me a moment," he said, and vanished.
--------------------------------------------------------------

Far, far away from where Annika lay unconscious, the Sith called Skywalker lay asleep. He was unaware of the man who slipped into his room and reached into his mind, to a shadowy corner that he kept locked away. Inside the good man waited in trembling fear; but then the door opened, and for the first time in eternity, Luke saw the daylight.
--------------------------------------------------------------

Ben wasn't gone long, and when he came back she was filled with mixed emotions. Her heart lept in her chest when she saw Luke, but at the same time she wanted to explode. "How dare you," she said to Ben. "You think you can manipulate me with these fantasies?"

"It's not a fantasy," Ben said, "Or, I suppose you can say everything here is a fantasy-"

"Just leave," Seven interrupted. "I don't need your pity."

"Annika..." Luke began.

"And take your phantom with you," she said, turning away.

Luke watched her for a time, then walked up and put his hand to her head. They melded, and she knew... she knew this was Luke, her Luke, the real one. The meld ended, and she looked into his eyes. "How..." she began, and stopped herself. It didn’t matter how; it only mattered that it was.

"I'm so sorry," Luke said with deep sadness. "I never wanted to hurt you."

"I know," she answered. "I should have always known."

"I need you to hold on Annika," Luke insisted. "I need you to be strong."

She tried not to cry. How many tears have been shed over you Luke, she wondered. How many more would be coming? "I'll try," she said. "But it's so hard sometimes." She wiped the moisture away. "I miss you so much."

"I know," he said. He had felt what she'd been through these long months, and it killed him to see how much his decision had hurt her. There were so many things there that she had ached for that he never even thought about, but that had become such a part of her life that their absence filled her with grief.

She missed waking up in his arms. That never stopped being comforting to her. She was strong and smart and had combat training, not to mention her nanoprobe abilities, but she always felt so safe in that situation, even though physically she was probably three times as strong as he was. But it came back to the Raven, and being a lone girl facing the Borg with no one to keep her safe; that's why Luke always came back to that, always kept saying that he'd protect her. It wasn't male egotism, that she needed him to do that. It was a promise: I'm not leaving you to face this alone; anyone that wants to hurt you has to go through me first.

She missed his interest in her. Luke was in every way a living legend. Destroying a Death Star single-handedly was only the start of his career, and his list of accomplishments staggered the mind. He was almost like something out of a myth come to life, such were his abilities. And yet, he looked at her as if she were actually important. He was interested in her, and what she liked, and what she did. He would let her ramble on about things that had to be dull, or just beyond his education, and he would still listen, try to ask questions so he could understand the world she inhabited. He could have been off with some exotic individual like a fighter ace or infiltrator, but instead he was with someone in the least glamorous of all Starfleet departments.

She missed the little things. She missed the way his eyes came back from whatever far away thought was on his mind, and they suddenly said that she was the most important thing in the universe. She missed playing, those little moments of roughhousing where she could feel close to someone in a completely innocent way. She missed walking at his side, knowing that people were looking at them, and the way his body language said that as far as he was concerned, he was the lucky one of the pair. She missed hearing him say the words "I love you" in his way, which filled them with promise and worship and intimacy, so that they said more than any poet could hope to achieve.

"Thank you, for waiting for me," he said. "I know it's been hard, but I'll come back. I promise. If you'll be waiting for me, then I know it." He must have seen the pain in her eyes. "Have faith, Annika. My love brought me to the Dark side.” He stroked her face. “Your love can bring me back."

Ben was already gone when they stood there together in the cemetery, the gray clouds finally moving on. For the first time in these long months, she had a ray of hope, and it renewed her spirit. But that was hope for the future, the wait was still going to be unpleasant. But let that worry about itself, she thought. Don't squander this time. "Just take my hand, sweetie," she said teary-eyed despite the smile. "So I can feel you again."

Luke held out his hand and she took it, gasping a little at the touch. She quivered, then grabbed onto him, embracing him tightly. She could feel his breathing as she clung to him, his arms wrapped around her as they had so many times before; as they had a lifetime ago. How she had ached for this moment. “Promise you’ll never let me go,” she said quietly.

He said nothing for a while. “I can’t,” he said with pain in his voice. “You know-“

“Lie to me,” she insisted. “Promise you’ll never let me go. Make me believe, if only for a little while, that you won't have to go away... that I can find you there when I wake up.”

When he spoke again there was a choke in his voice. “I’ll never let you go.” She gripped him even tighter, letting herself hope that it just might be true. They stood alone in the cemetery for some time after that, neither allowing their hold to loosen for fear the other would vanish into the fog of imagination.

Seven rested her head on Luke’s shoulder as she closed her eyes. They rocked gently as the breeze blew a few fallen leaves past, only to stop at the black fence. For the first time in a long while, she finally found that completeness she needed; and it was in his arms. She lifted her head and looked into his eyes, and she closed them as she slowly pulled forward, her lips finding his. Her heart pounded as the kiss stretched on for an indefinite period.

Then her eyes opened as she felt Luke convulse slightly. "Luke?" She saw him trembling, and it broke her heart. "Oh no..."
--------------------------------------------------------------

Mara Jade held Skywalker’s unconscious head in her hands, her lips pulled back in a sneer as she seethed. “Enough!” she roared. “You - are - mine!!!”

As she gripped his head in her hands his arm reached out for empty air, and for the first time in a long while, Luke Skywalker spoke. Just one word, but it said everything.

“ANNIKA!”
--------------------------------------------------------------

Doctor Crusher saw Seven’s arm flash out, knocking over a tray of instruments as she screamed Luke’s name. She grabbed the hypospray from off the floor, but saw the young officer was still unconscious. “What’s going on in there?” she wondered aloud.
--------------------------------------------------------------

Annika held onto Luke’s hand as best she could. He was locked in the grip of a dark beam of energy, and it was pulling him at an upward angle away from her. She stood at a bizarre angle, her feet braced against the side of the tombstone as she gripped his wrist with all her strength. His eyes had glazed over and he seemed powerless to move or speak, there was no sign of anything as she spoke to him. “Hold on,” she begged. "Let me save you, Luke." She adjusted her position as she stood with her feet bracing at the top of the tombstone, just under the stone edge. She kept her grip but she could feel herself losing the battle. “Not this time,” she said to Darth Whind, wherever she might be. “You’re not getting him from me without a fight!”

The pull grew and she found herself pulled off balance, and she reached back and grabbed the tomb with her left hand while she clung to his wrist with her right, hanging in the air over the tomb as she pulled. “Please Luke,” she pleaded. “Come back...” Her hand slid onto his palm, and she gripped it until her knuckles turned white. The polished black stone cracked as her fingers dug deep handholds in it. She gritted her teeth with the strain, looking up into his eyes, seeing his sadness in his frozen face. “Please...” The pull was so great. “Never let me go.”

His hand slipped out of hers. She fell, then opened her eyes and looked up at Dr. Crusher.

“Seven of Nine?” she asked with worry.

She felt the hurt again, that deep emptiness inside that can only be filled by someone else. Except now it was different; she had hope again. He was still in there somewhere; he wasn’t dead. And somehow... somehow it would all be all right. There really was a chance for a happy ending. She looked over at Dr. Crusher, seeing the concern on her face. “My friends,” she said a little hoarsely, “call me Annika.”

[Sonnenburg]

First of two parts for today

Part XV


In movement around a yellow sun drifted a world like a frosted lump of amber, traveling in the lazy path it had kept for eons out of a simple application of basic inertial and gravitational principles. What made this world unique was that it was the home of a group of shapeshifters called the Founders, who preferred a united existence on this world in their natural fluid-like state. And as the Founders commanded the Dominion, one of the most feared powers in the entire galaxy, it was no wonder that this world should be so important in the galaxy.

Few knew about this world. Oh, they knew about it in general terms, that there was some planet somewhere where the Founders lived united in the Great Link, but it was the abstract knowledge that was, on the whole, useless for tactical purposes, and that suited the Dominion just fine. The Founders were naturally paranoid, and they would quickly kill anyone who appeared to be a threat to their continued existence. And thus, the location was known only to the Founders themselves. At least, that's the way it had been.

Nothing special was in place around this planet; no defense platforms, no shipyards, not even an orbiting vessel. The fewer things to attract attention to this planet, the better, the Founders had felt. But alas, that failed, as one ship after another de-cloaked over this world, revealing a fleet of warships. Fifty-four of them, nine sector squadrons of Imperator-class Star Destroyers, each one painted pure black with speckles of white across their uneven surface. Their slow paths in the permanent night gave the illusion of space splitting and rearranging itself like a kaleidoscope. Distress signals were immediately sent to nearby Dominion warships, but against so much firepower it was a futile effort. The Imperials moved into predetermined locations with careful ease as the Founders awaited their fate. They never thought to ask for mercy, because in their long and bitter experience, no solid was capable of it.

The Dominion fleet arrived less than an hour after the distress signal was sent, but it was too late. All that was left was the cracked surface of a world that had been the center of their universe, continuing its lazy path without the masters that had called it home. The Founders were not extinct, a few having been off planet to oversee some events, but a significant blow had been rendered to them. It was only a question of what their response would be.
--------------------------------------------------------------

Seven of Nine entered her quarters and found a stranger waiting for her. It was that kind of day. A plasma discharger appeared on the back of her hand and she pointed at him. "You have three seconds to state your business," she said darkly.

"Annika," she heard Ben's voice, "We've been waiting for you." Seven didn't move. "Please put the weapon down; you really don't want to hurt him." The strange young man had never moved, though his eyes had been glued to her the moment she walked in.

There was a quiet crunch as the implant began to reabsorb. "You are really starting to wear out your welcome," she remarked with annoyance.

"I'm sorry, but we need to talk," Ben said as he sat down on the edge of the bed.

"What now?" she asked with impatience.

"This is an old friend," he said, indicating the young man. "His name's Sebastian, and he's going to be assisting me in your training."

"Hello," Seven said to him with a voice that was designed to make it very clear that she wasn't pleased to meet him. "Before this continues, I think we need to set up a few ground rules."

"I understand," Ben said. "But unfortunately I have something that demands my immediate attention, but we will speak of it soon enough." He stood up. "Sebastian is currently between residences-"

"You mean he's a vagrant," Seven remarked.

"-and he needs a place to stay for the moment," Ben finished, ignoring her remark. "Fortunately I still have some friends in high places at Starfleet Command. Sebastian's been given quarters for the time being on the Enterprise; I'd appreciate it, though, if you could help him get a little adjusted to the situation."

She sniffed in annoyance but she looked over to Sebastian and felt a little sorry for him. Who knows what Ben has him hooked up with, she wondered distantly. "I'll find some time," she said finally.

"Thank you," Ben said. "I'll be back in a short while, so you two can get better acquainted. I have to speak with an old friend." He vanished.

"Another old friend, huh?" she said to the air as he vanished.

"Yes," Sebastian said. "I think Ben actually knows everybody in the universe."

"Wouldn't surprise me," Seven said with disinterest.

"You could probably put him into a photon torpedo, launch it deep into space, and when someone finds and opens it he'll say 'Good afternoon Mr. Hfgaahlik. How're the methane crystals growing this season?'"

Seven laughed despite herself. "I'm sorry if I came off a little...." she trailed off. "Bitchy."

"No problem," he answered, "Ben tends to do that to people sometimes."

"You're a Jedi?" she asked.

He looked at her curiously. "How'd you know?"

"I noticed your lightsaber," she said. "Don't take this the wrong way, but aren't you a little young?"

"Jedi training is started very early," Sebastian said. "You'd be amazed in fact."

"Luke and Leia were in their early-twenties when they became Jedi," Seven observed.

"They're more of the exception that proves the rule."

"I thought all the Jedi were extinct?"

"Hm, now's the part where I disappear in a puff of logic, right?" Sebastian said.

Seven laughed. "Fair enough," she said. She sat on the edge of the bed and looked at him. He seemed to be about ten years younger than her and he had a nervous edge to him. She suddenly became self-conscious, realizing that he probably knew she was thinking about him like that. She never felt uncomfortable around Luke or Leia because they were family, and her feelings towards Borui didn't require empathic skills to decipher, but this was different. He did make her curious though. It was the way he looked at things with a sort of disbelief, almost as if he wasn't sure they were real. He stood up and walked over to where a crystal of Han and Leia sat behind some equipment. It had belonged to Luke; one of many things of his she didn't know what to do with.

"This is cracked," he observed. "Did you drop it?"

"No," she said dismissively. "The crystal was fractured by a resonant frequency."

"What?" he asked, turning back.

She considered for a moment. It was broken anyway. She took a deep breath and let out a high-pitched note that caused Sebastian to cover his ears. The crystal formed two new fissures. "I see," he said as she stopped. "You do that often?"

"Not as often as I used to," she said, allowing the remark to speak for itself. Sebastian must have decided not to pursue it and returned to his chair. "May I see your lightsaber?" she asked.

"Why?" he asked with uncertainty.

"I'm just curious," she said. "It seems different then the ones I've seen."

After a short consideration he unhooked it and passed it over. "I thought so," she said as she looked at it. "Two blades."

"Yes," he said. "It's quite difficult to master. I'm still not comfortable with it."

"Then why did you build it?" she asked. Luke had explained that all Jedi built their own lightsabers. It was part of their passage into the order. Their weapon was very important to them.

He opened his mouth to answer, but then he looked into her face and stopped. He seemed to consider for a while and then sighed. "I didn't," he admitted. "My lightsaber was lost in a battle recently; I've had to make due with this."

"Probably makes you uncomfortable," Seven said, passing it back. "I can supply you with materials to fashion a new one."

"That's very kind," he replied. "But I'll probably just hold onto this. It belonged to someone important to me."

Seven saw the look on his face and recognized it. She had seen glimpses of it in the mirror often enough. "She was someone special," she remarked.

Sebastian smiled a little, not even looking at her. "One of a kind," he remarked.

"I understand," she said sympathetically. "I've... I've lost someone too."

He nodded. "Ben explained it to me," he remarked. "Although I think in your case 'temporarily misplaced' would fit better."

She smiled at him. "Thanks for the vote of confidence." She allowed her mind the luxury of thinking about Luke for a little while, then remembered. "We should probably get you set up in your new quarters. Have you spoken to Commander Laforge?"

"No, we just... appeared in this room."

"Ben Sisko, the only way to travel," she commented. "I'll get this squared away, and we'll get you set up. Maybe we can do something later to help you get settled in."

"I'd like that," he replied. "Do you play katiskat?"

She smiled at him. "It's my favorite game."

He picked up a large bag and pulled it over his shoulder; it produced a deep rattling noise like a sack of pots and pans. "Mine too."
--------------------------------------------------------------

The Imperial invasion of the Federation and their brief occupation of Vulcan did not go unnoticed. The Federation complained loudly about the unprovoked violation of their space. The Empire showed all the interest of an elephant being ranted at by an irate ant. The Federation had no real influence on Imperial space, nor was it all that likely to affect who would and would not support the Empire in coming conflicts. It was, as Darth Whind predicted, a rather minor event that created more confusion than anything else.

That being said, it did have other unanticipated results amongst the forces of the Milky Way. Both the Romulans and the Klingons began stepping up their military presence on the chance that the Empire would try to repeat this stunt in one of their systems. This also resulted in a growing strain between the two powers as their ships skirted the boundaries between their two areas of space. The fact was, the galaxy was so small now thanks to hyperdrive that the two long-time agonists were like two large men crammed in one small room.

Romulan-Klingon hostility is quite inevitable when you come right down to it. Romulans, to the Klingons, are duplicitous and deceitful. They will say one thing but do another. They will seize upon the tiniest weakness if given the opportunity. And the Romulans accepted this by and large. After all, why not kick a man when he's down? Your foot's just that much closer to his stomach. The Klingons, on the other hand, were seen as brutes and idiots. They were as well suited to diplomacy as a hippopotamus is to hopscotch, and they were just as likely to turn their disruptor on a passing cloud that offended them as anything. They had all the subtlety of a board with a nail in it.

In other words, Romulans versus Klingons was like an unarmed Jedi versus an ankylosaurus; neither is well suited to fighting the other, and both find the entire arrangement rather frustrating. Romulans viewed it as being a grand chess master who faced an opponent who enjoyed eating the pieces. Klingons saw it as being in a brawl with a shadow. They despised each other, and it's no great surprise that their relationship, even during the height of the Alliance, was strained. Now, with the two sides split, the loss of Republic support, the weakened condition of the Federation fleet, and the absence of the Borg threat, the Beta Quadrant was a powder keg. The ISB saw this, and lit the match.

A Klingon transport vessel traveling quite close to Romulan space exploded. That corner of the Beta Quadrant soon followed.
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Talon Karrde enjoyed a quiet afternoon on the distant moon of Tenaris, allowing himself to relax just a little for a change. It was a well-earned rest; his recent enterprise's had finally begun to make enough of a profit for them to upgrade their equipment and ships, an investment he hoped would be worthwhile. It had been a difficult couple of years. Under the Republic things had been flourishing; his smuggling operation was strong enough to compete with the best in galaxy. Then the Borg came.

War is normally good for smugglers, but when one side produces all their own munitions as they go and absorb anyone they cross into their organization, setting up trading alliances can be a mite difficult. And of course, after the first few ships were assimilated, no pilot was ever willing to try to run through Borg space for a price that could allow Karrde to break even, much less make a profit. That had been a crippling development, and then the Empire swept through, causing even more disruption and headaches. It had taken him months to rebuild what he'd lost, but he finally succeeded. Quite amazing actually; his smuggling group was one of the only ones left in the galaxy, and the largest by far. Still, never check a free dewback's hide they say.

His relaxation was interrupted by a voice he hadn't expected to hear ever again. He whirled around as he looked up at the familiar face. "Sisko?" he said with some shock.

"Hello, Mr. Karrde," he remarked as he slowly crossed the room. "Mind if I sit down?"

Karrde gestured to the chair as he wondered how the hell he'd manage to sneak in here. How had he even found him for that matter? "I was starting to wonder if you were dead," Karrde said finally.

Sisko smiled. "I had other business to tend to. I'm sure you could appreciate that."

"Oh yes," Karrde replied, rolling over the situation in his mind. Must tread carefully, he thought with the typical degree of paranoia that had allowed him to survive for this long. "May we get down to our business, if I may be so bold?"

"You seem rather rushed today," Sisko observed. "I'm sorry if I've put you on edge."

"I was just enjoying a brief moment of relaxation," Karrde said as non-chalantly as he could, "And I'd like to get back to it as quickly as possible."

"You've been working quite hard," Sisko agreed. "You've succeeding in building quite a successful trade empire." Sisko never called Karrde's work smuggling; it was one of those strange things about him, a preference for euphemisms.

"Quite amazing," Karrde found himself admitting, "considering how many others are being crushed by the return of the Empire."

"Oh, not really," Sisko remarked. "I'd expect nothing less."

"You are most kind," Karrde remarked.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Sisko went on. "I didn't mean you, although your group is well organized and you are a very capable leader. Actually, you are succeeding because the Empire is letting you."

"Really," Karrde said, curious to know where this was going. "And why would they do that?"

"You wouldn't believe me," Sisko said with a smile.

"Oh I'm not so sure about that," Karrde replied. "Let's hear it.

"All right." Sisko paused. "In many other realities you showed kindness and faith in the woman who is now the head of the Empire. This is her way of showing thanks to you."

"I see," Karrde said, wondering if Sisko was just joking with him or not. He was just strange enough to actually believe what he was saying. "Well I'm quite grateful for her involvement. But I think it's time we truly got down to why you came."

"I understand," Sisko said as he closed his eyes and nodded slowly. "I need to call in that favor you owe me."

Karrde had been waiting for this; it was obvious this was why Sisko had come. How could he ever forget really? If it weren't for Sisko’s warning some... eighteen months had it been? His convincing Karrde that the Borg were coming, and that he had to leave. If it hadn’t been for him... well, he certainly wouldn't be sitting in this fine home drinking brandy that was for certain. "I always repay my debts," Karrde said. "What do you want?"

Sisko pulled out a datapad and passed it over. "I need you to find this man right away," he said. "I know your people have had contact with him. Convince him to travel to Sanctuary; tell him the time is now."

"What time?" Karrde asked as he glanced over the datapad's readout.

"He'll understand," Sisko said.

Karrde continued to scan through the dossier. "This will take some time, Sisko."

"I'm afraid that, in this case, time is of the essence. You must move on this immediately."

Karrde grimaced but knew he had no choice. He owed Sisko his life, and in keeping with the ancient proverb, there really is honor among thieves. "Very well," he said. "But understand that after this I consider my debt to you paid in full."

"Naturally," Sisko said as he stood up. "And your efforts are appreciated. I'll leave you to your recreation, Mr. Karrde." He walked past him as Karrde continued to look over the dossier. He turned to ask him a parting question, but saw the man had already vanished.

"I'm certainly glad you're not an assassin." Karrde muttered.

[Ghost Rider]

I will say I really do enjoy your Annika points. You have fleshed her out and made her grown beyond, two orbs bouncing on the bridge.

Of the older, well it's funny to see Sebastion and your description of the Klingons is definitly TNG onward...which is sad. Given that we saw that Klingons can be as duplicitious as Romulans, but ah well...dreams will be dreams . Still the Hippo hopscotch is a perfect analogy of what they became in any department requiring subtle touches.

[Crazedwraith]

Very nice. IIRC though shouldn't Seven recognise Seb's lightsabre?