Worlds Without End, Part VI

Even after six days, Picard still couldn't get over the eerie feeling he had whenever he looked out the window of the Enterprise. Instead of the familiar streak of stars, there was an unnatural flow of...something. He didn't know how to describe it; hyperspace is what Seven of Nine called it. Whatever it was, it felt wrong. Still, that was the price that came from crossing the galaxy at such fantastic speeds, and if a journey of decades can be reduced to days, Picard conceded hyperspace could look as ugly as it liked.

Lt. Commander Data's voice brought him back to the present. "We'll be approaching the wormhole in fifteen seconds, captain." Picard acknowledged, and waited, then on Data's order helm shut down the hyperdrive, and hyperspace turned to starlines, then collapsed back into the familiar view of real space, fifty thousand light-years now behind them.... and one very massive object in front of them.

"All stop." Picard ordered. "What is that?"

"It appears to be some kind of space station sir," Data informed him. "Although I am not familiar with any of its design patterns."

Seven of Nine turned to the captain. "It's similar in size and appearance to the Imperial station where Voyager was repaired. It's likely the Empire constructed it to guard the passage to the wormhole from future Borg attacks."

"Captain," Data continued, "I'm also detecting a vessel, 1.6 kilometers in length."

Riker turned to Picard. "Big ship."

"It is an Imperator-class Star Destroyer," Seven of Nine informed him. "We encountered three such ships when we first made contact."

"Star...Destroyer?" Picard asked hoping that wasn't meant to be taken literally.

"Merely its designation captain. Its weapons output is insufficient to destroy a solar body."

Picard acknowledged and turned to Lt. Thomas McClure. "Use the modifications to the deflector you were given. Open a channel." McClure gave Picard a nod. "This is Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the USS Enterprise. I'm here on behalf of the United Federation of Planets. Is this the Galactic Empire?"

Finally, there was a response. "This is Commander Crovix. State your business Enterprise."

"Not exactly friendly," Riker commented.

"But understandable under the circumstances, Number One," Picard replied. "Open the channel again." McClure did so. "We are here to open negotiations with the Empire. We wish to use the wormhole to travel to meet with your leaders."

"Stand by Enterprise," was their only response.

"Captain," Lt. Travis spoke, "a ship -possibly a shuttle- has left the station and is heading for the wormhole."

"No doubt to check with their superiors on the other side," Picard noted.

Data turned to Picard. "Captain, sensors indicate familiar energy signatures coming from the Star Destroyer. The energy signatures are consistent with those left behind by Borg weaponry."

Picard turned to Seven of Nine. "Could this have been one of the vessels that battled the Borg when Voyager was here?"

"Possibly," Seven admitted. With that, she got up and strode towards the viewer. "Focus on the ship and magnify by a factor of 27," she ordered.

Data looked to Picard, who nodded. A close up view of the plate revealed a very faint pattern on the ships hull.

"This is not the same ship," Seven stated. "The markings on the hull are not the same."

"It seems that the Empire has had more run-ins with the Borg," Picard said. "Data, any similar signs of damage to the station?"

"No, sir. It would seem that this was not a defensive battle."

"Which leads us to only one conclusion," Picard said. "This station isn't the front line of defense, it's their fallback point. They've come to fight the Borg."

"Who seeks out the Borg?" Riker asked. "It's bad enough when they come to you, why go looking for them?"

"That certainly is a good question, Number One. One I hope to find an answer to."

Before the discussion could continue a communication came in from the station. "Permission has been granted to enter the wormhole. Once you pass through, you are to rendezvous with the Star Destroyer Incaciad."

"That is the command vessel of Admiral Thrawn," Seven informed the captain, taking her seat.

"Janeway's savior," Picard said. "Acknowledge the transmission. Set course for the wormhole half impulse. Engage."

And with that, the Enterprise proceeded to the wormhole, and disappeared from the galaxy.

"Attention! Borg ships approaching. Prep all TIEs for immeditate launch."

Delric Taar blocked out the redundant commands echoing throughout the hangar and headed for his ship. The launch crews had been on constant alert, and Taar knew his interceptor would already be set for launch as soon as he reached it. He checked the rest of his squadron before sealing the hatch, then fired the twin ion engines and roared out into space, his squadron close behind. They slipped into formation, Taar taking the point while his wingman slipped into his eight. As they swept around, he counted no less than seven Borg cubes. Numbers were still on the Empire's side, but the Borg had a knack for bringing something new to the party; apparently Piett had decided it was time to do the same.

"Grey leader this is Ebony leader," Taar said. It was time to put theory into practice, and hope they didn't kill themselves during the experiment. "We're going to cross the tee on cube three port."

"Acknowledged," was the response from Lt. Starrunner. As the TIEs approached the cube, their ranks broke, shifting to a four-point diamond pattern. Ebony 1 took the point of the lead formation, leading the way towards the right-hand side of the Cube. At a kilometer out the fomations broke away from one another, looking for targets of opportunity. The ships began taking random dips and slides as they approached, trying to reach that age-old balance of being evasive while staying on target. "Prime target located," Grey 3 said as the coordinates were sent to his targeting computer. The small formation made a slight course change and continued - Ebony 1 still in the lead with Grey 3 at the rear of the formation. It was a risky situation; the Interceptors were only flying at a fraction of their top speed at the moment to allow him to keep in formation. But it was the best plan he had for the moment.

The cube loomed through the transparisteel window at the front of his TIE. This is nuts, he thought to himself. You don't go after blockade runners with Interceptors, nevermind something like this! "I have a visual on the target," Taar said aloud. It seemed to be a weapons array of some kind. They raced towards it, then on cue, the two TIEs on his eight and four accelerated forward, guns blazing. Their laser cannons splashed across the surface of the array, but there was little to show for it. The Borg fired back, narrowly missing Ebony 2. It had been random luck that he'd survived, but turning back wasn't an option, so they continued to fire at the array for all the good it seemed to do.

"Break formation!" Taar ordered, and the three ships split off from one another. Grey 3, now with a clear shot at the weakened structure, launched three concussion missiles before pulling away. The missiles slammed into their target, vaporizing it.

"Ebony 2 and 3, form up," Taar ordered. "Grey 3 strafing run, we'll cover." The others acknowledged as he swung away from the cube for the moment. Beyond it he saw the Avenger and Devastator advancing on the Borg's right flank. Turbolasers and Borg energy beams crisscrossed space, putting their puny fighter attacks to shame. Did I say this was nuts? he thought. I mean this is pointless! It's not like the Empire isn't going to win this fight regardless of the fighters, why did Piett tip our hand?! But it didn't fall to grunts like him to make those calls, so instead he executed a tight spin to join in on this suicide run.

The diamond formation quickly formed up and raced over the surface of the cube at a mere fifteen meters. The three Interceptors tried providing cover fire for Grey 3, who was pelting the surface with proton bombs. Half-way across the cube he pushed them to full throttle, leaving the bomber behind but hopefully providing more of a distraction by firing at targets of opportunity. But one problem with the Borg was they just didn't take to distractions, and a green torpedo rose up from the surface and hit the bomber, sending the two pods spiral away and crashing into the surface of the cube. "Pull up!" Taar ordered, but this time an energy beam came up and caught Ebony 2, disintegrating it. Adrenal flooding his veins, Taar put the ship into a Korvel Spiral as he raced away, torpedoes filling the air around him. Finally he pulled clear and formed up with Ebony 3. "Ebony Leader to Grey Leader, we've lost our bomber." The command was acknowledged, but apparently things hadn't been going well for Starrunner's boys. As Taar brought the ship around he saw that the Borg were laying into the Avenger and Devastator, much like they had against the Tyrant. Taar's stomach tightened at the sight. The Borg didn't care how much damage they suffered so long as they continued to wear the Empire down. They could lose ten ships for every one they destroyed, and it wouldn't matter. How do you fight someone like that?

"Grey Leader to Ebony Leader, head to point 03." Taar pulled him and his wingmate around to return to their cube, joining up with another set of TIEs to provide cover for the next bombing run. The new formation -five Interceptors and two bombers- once again skimmed the surface, weapons lashing out at the cube. Again, as if out of nowhere, weapons fire struck at the tiny ships, vaporizing two TIEs instantly. To avoid being struck by the weapons and debris, Taar pulled a split-S, pulling away from the cube momentarily before his spin brought him back thirty meters behind his bombers, who continued their strafing of the cube despite the attack. Taar planned to increase speed and overshoot the bombers to provide further cover when he passed over one of the craters formed by a proton bomb. Taar frowned at the information his targeting sensors were telling him.

"Ebony 3 do you see what I see?" he called over the comm.

"Yes sir," ES-13-3 replied. "What do you want to do?"

Ebony 1 pulled into a tight loop and began heading for the crater. "Put some plasma up their collective port," he told him as he opened fire on the crater. The weapons' fire managed to destroy the unshielded bottom of the crater, opening up a passage into the heart of the cube. Throttling back, the two TIEs dove into the entrance to the Borg ship, firing at their unshielded surfaces. The cubes may have had the power to adapt to their laser cannons, but the raw power was too much for the helpless drones inside.

After about seven hundred meters the two TIEs blasted their way into a large opening inside the cube. In the center of this space was a large, hour-glass shaped structure with several openings along its sides. Taar looked at his instruments. "What do you think Ebony 3?"

"Looks like a target to me, sir," ES-13-3 called back to him over the comm.

Taar smiled inside his pressure suit. "Agreed. Fire at will." The two Interceptors continued their approach, their weapons blowing away huge chunks out of the shape. Manueverability was difficult, even at low speeds in this confined area. Finally, their weapons sheared through the construct and Taar watched the huge structure collapse in on itself. Immediately, explosions began occurring throughout the cube. The two TIEs turned to continue their volley, when a nearby explosion knocked Ebony 3 off course and into the wall, exploding on contact. Figuring he'd done enough damage in here, Taar headed for the opening to go back to the surface. The series of explosions were getting worse, and he started pushing the ship faster and faster. This proved to be a near fatal mistake as the passage suddenly narrowed ahead. Quickly he twisted his ship on its side and dove into the opening, his lower port solar panel scraping the edge of the passage. It seems that even during that short battle, the Borg had managed to repair some of their ship. Alarms were sounding and in desperation he pushed the ship to full throttle and hoped like hell he'd get out before the TIE or the cube blew.

Finally he rocketed out of the cube and launched back out into space. Looking back, he saw explosions consuming various parts of the cubes, and TIEs pulling away from its surface. A stardestroyer, the Stalker actually, was finishing it off with a full barrage of turbolaser fire. Moments after he had escaped, the cube exploded. A single piece of debris, just a meter or so long, struck his TIE, completely searing the struts that held it to the starboard solar panels. The ship had been on its last legs before, now it was completely out of control. The Interceptor wouldn't respond to his controls and an energy surge was arcing through some of the panels. Systems were failing, and in an act of desperation he tried to shut down the engines. As he touched the panel, a surge of energy passed through his pressurized suit and into his arm, flooding his body with pain as he seized up. His eyes glazed over, and the universe, dark as it was, became black.

War has been described as long periods of boredom interrupted by short periods of excitement. At the moment, Picard felt that peace didn't seem that different. After all the time he'd spent waiting for his ship, and then all the time prepping for this meeting, the ambassadors had taken over, and he was left twiddling his thumbs at an Imperial station. It was the dawn of a new age, perhaps the most exciting time for humanity since the discovery that we weren't alone in the universe. At the moment, Picard felt like he was stuck in a hole with his sensors off-line.

Picard had been lamenting the situation with Riker when the door chimed. It was Seven; it seemed to always be Seven. She wasn't a Borg, not really, but nevertheless, he had trouble letting his guard down around her, despite how much advice she'd provided throughout the mission. Maybe I've become set in my ways, he wondered. I can't stand hyperspace, I can't stand my advisor, maybe this new age isn't for old men like me. "Yes?" he asked, trying to sound neutral and failing.

"Admiral Thrawn has asked me to deliver a proposition to you," Seven informed the captain in the matter-of-fact way she had. "He suggests that, to help bridge the gap between our civilizations, we have an exchange of cultural history."

"What exactly does he mean by that?" Riker asked. Riker had been spending the time scanning comm channels, and the longer they were delayed, the more he became suspicious of the Empire. Perhaps he wasn't ready for this new age either, Picard thought.

Seven looked at the PADD. "'Poetry, art, important historical events, literature' were the specific examples he gave."

Picard nodded; this was exactly what he needed. "Extend the admiral our thanks, and begin assembling a historical/cultural database to give to the Imperials."

"Are you sure that's wise, sir?" Riker asked. "We really shouldn't be exchanging any information with them while the negotiations take place."

Picard smiled slightly. "I'm not giving them the access codes for Starfleet Command, Will. An exchange of culture would be a healthy way to start this meeting, not to mention give us a chance to get to know the Empire a little better."

"Honestly, sir, I think I'm getting to know them quite well."

"Will, there's healthy skepticism, and there's paranoia. I'm sure there's nothing to fear in letting Admiral Thrawn examine our works of art."

On board the Redemption. Mon Mothma stepped up to the central platform. The high-ranking members of the Alliance were present; they knew only that something urgent had come in, and rumors were it wasn't good. From her grave tone, it seemed that would prove to be true. "We've all been wondering what is going on lately, why the Emperor has diverted ships and changed his personal agenda so much over the past two months. We now have an answer." A hologram of a section of the galaxy appeared, focusing in on one particular area until the whole sector was revealed. "Located near the Napuli System is a wormhole to another galaxy. The wormhole was discovered when ships from the other side invaded our galaxy."

A small murmur of discussion began. Mon Mothma had to speak up in order to be heard. "One is an antagonistic race called the Borg, who attacked and destroyed one of the Star Destroyers in that area."

"I take it that's not the good news we'd like to think it is," Lando said.

"No. The data our spies have gathered shows that they will attack anyone without provocation. They're extremely dangerous to everyone, regardless of what side they're on."

"Dangerous enough that we should be worried?" Leia asked. "Is there a chance that they'd destroy the Empire and threaten all of us?"

"It's not likely," Mon Mothma said.

"Will we help the Empire, if the situation comes down to it?" Leia asked.

Mon Mothma hesitated. "Let's hope we won't have to make that choice."

"Well, regardless of whose side they're on, at least it's something to keep the Empire busy," Han pointed out.

"Yes," Mon Mothma replied, "and it's doing just that. The Empire has sent a fleet in to deal with the Borg threat, and greater security has been set up in that area of the galaxy."

"You said 'one,'" Wedge said. "I take it the Borg weren't alone.

"No," Mon Mothma said. "The Empire has had some dealings with another group from the other side of the wormhole. They have already given information and technology to the Empire, and our spies indicate they are planning on opening diplomatic relations with the Empire."

Leia finally spoke up. "What exactly is the position of this group?" she asked. "What do they want in return for their aide?"

"From what our sources have gathered, an alliance," Mon Mothma answered. The members of the Alliance looked at one another. The Empire alone was bad enough. If they had new allies, allies with new technology, then it was grim news for the struggling rebellion. "It seems that we have a new enemy," she said, "and it's called the Federation."

Go To Part VII
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