Uneasy Alliance Part II

Posted on Wed Aug 17th, 2011 @ 3:06pm by Captain Nathan Cowell MD

Mission: Tomorrow's Arizona
Location: Borg Unimatrix Complex, Former Administrative District, Archadia III
Timeline: Immediately following 'Uneasy Alliance Part I'

Commodore Nathan Cowell, now alone except for the drone that had led his team to various points of interest within the Unimatrix complex, continued through the narrow corridors of the pyramidal structure that dominated the once lush and verdant land that had been the Arcadian home world. That seemed to Nathan only a few days past, but the reality that hundreds of years had passed by was now taking hold in the old man's mind. No matter what had transpired before now, Nathan really hadn't believed that the floating doughnut could have actually sent them forward in time to such a dangerous place in the timeline knowing that they were outmatched, outnumbered and outclassed in every possible way. Now, however, as he traversed the humid and alien smelling corridors of a facility that was dominated by the Borg, the harsh truism that he had been trying desperately to deny couldn't have been any more real if he was laying on a table, about to have his body parts removed and replaced by implants.

The fact that he wasn't suffering the same fate that countless millions of his people had suffered at the hands of the Borg gave him pause. The fact that they were being so uncharacteristically open with him and his crew was a further blow to his skepticism. Though he wasn't anywhere near being on the verge of forgiving the Borg from the atrocities they'd committed in the name of their pursuit of a perfection he personally knew they would never attain... he was tempted to give them a bit of leeway. Even the old man couldn't deny that logically, their vast superiority over them technologically made it almost a given that if they had desired to assimilate the Arizona in the first place, they would have had no difficulty with it. The only thing still driving him absolutely up the wall was the reason they had deviated from every known behavior they had ever displayed? What angle were they playing that even he couldn't see? And worst of all, when did they learn to play angles?!

Those thoughts assaulted the Commodore as he walked nearly smack into the back of the drone that stopped at what seemed to be a dead end. It was only by the grace of sheer luck that he didn't collide with the thing, though it had the good sense not to turn around until the old man had enough time to move back a step or two. Once the old man was at a safe distance, the drone turned around and regarded the Commodore but didn't immediately speak. Nathan gave the drone a quizzical look before suddenly feeling the disturbing dematerialization effect of a transporter. Before the Commodore could even think to register a complaint, he was standing in the center of a room that he didn't immediately recognize. Looking around, the old man became aware of the strange lack of alcoves and drones, even though there were several large display screens littered about the room that made their presence seem out of place. The lack of obvious entry ways also stood out as Nathan scanned the seemingly vacant room...

"Welcome, Commodore Cowell," a voice called out to him. The very tone of it made Nathan's skin crawl at hearing it, the way it seemed so hypnotic and inviting... To put it mildly, it just pissed Nathan off.

"Yeah... I see you rolled out the red carpet and everything," the Commodore grumbled at the disembodied voice.

"Finery such as that is so inefficient, don't you think?" the voice practically purred at him. Any other man might have been fooled by the soft, soothing nature of the Queen's voice. Nathan, however, had no delusions that the 'woman' he was speaking to was heart... or perhaps the brain... of the Borg Collective in the area. As such, she was incredibly dangerous and wholly unpredictable given that she was as close to an individual as one could get inside the Collective. Such things were not lost on the angry El-Aurian, who's features were frozen in a look of disdain.

"Talking to air is pretty inefficient too," the old man countered, "So why don't you throw your bathrobe on and bring your ass on out here where I can scowl at you properly."

"You are an interesting specimen, Commodore," the voice said in amusement, "You don't seem to be afraid of us..."

"Why would I be? I'm more inclined to be pissed off at you for everything you've ever done," the Commodore remarked in a huff, "I know what you critters are capable of, seen it with my own eyes. You took my planet and tore my people's lives asunder. Can't exactly forgive and forget shit like that."

"We don't ask for forgiveness from those who haven't had a glimpse of the perfection we offer..." the annoying voice continued, "However, we are not here to discuss what has transpired in ages past. What we would like to discuss with you is the future, ours and yours..."

"Well, can we do it face to face?" the old man asked impatiently, "Can't get a feel for a deal if I can't see the person I'm making it with."

A figure suddenly appeared, stepping into view from a hidden alcove just on the edge of Nathan's peripheral vision. The Commodore turned to regard the 'woman' that stepped out. She looked every bit the part of the Borg Queen; she had an air of nobility and grace to her that normal drones simply lacked, and she endeavored to use it as effectively as possible. Again her 'charm' was lost on an ire filled Nathan, who simply watched her with a look of utter disgust. If the Queen was offended by his expression, she didn't show it. A coy smile graced her lips as she regarded the El-Aurian before her.

"How old are you, Commodore?" the woman asked, catching Nathan off guard for a second with the absurdity of the question.

"I'll be six hundred and six next year," the old man replied, giving her a cold glare.

"Ah... you must be from Species 5473. I believe you called yourself the El-Aurians. We gained much with your assimilation," the Queen surmised.

Had Nathan been thinking clearly before he'd left, he'd have packed his service revolver in his coat. As it stood, he had left the thing in his desk, something he lamented dearly as he stood before a creature that could so casually speak of the destruction of his people and his home world. All he could do is ball his fist in rage and stare menacingly at the Queen. His ire was not lost on her this time, which brought about a new line of conversation.

"I can see that I have upset you, Commodore. I assure you I meant no disrespect to your Species," the Queen offered up in the way of an apology.

"I give less than a damn what you meant, lady. Fact is, you killed them... even if you didn't kill their bodies you killed their spirits and that's enough to make them dead. That's something you Borg never could get through your damn thick skulls! Individuality isn't something that needs to be stamped out. You might have more luck in the universe if you didn't go killing off the great thinkers and scholars and poets and dreamers of the Universe that open new doors of exploration that you'll never get to enjoy because you don't value something that doesn't make you feel more perfect!" the old man fumed.

"I agree," the Queen said bluntly, and Nathan recoiled as if she'd just punched him in the face.

"Wait... you agree?! With what?" Nathan asked in shock.

"That our Collective is flawed in that respect. We have no individuals... even I am not truly an individual as you are. That is why we asked you here, that is why we wish to forge an alliance with you. We have not encountered anyone from any of the Species groups that are represented aboard your vessel in nearly two hundred years in this part of space. You seem to have just... appeared out of nothing. This intrigues us greatly. You may be just the random variable we need to change our fortunes," the Queen explained.

The Borg Queen admitting to a flaw in the Collective was tantamount to inheriting an entire planet... shit like that just didn't happen! Nathan's head began to spin at the information, so much so that he genuinely couldn't comprehend what he was hearing anymore. Part of him was just waiting for her to turn around and scream 'got'cha!' and turn him in to a drone... But the annoyingly rational part of him cried out for him to dig deeper into this unusual turn of events.

"What fortunes could you people have? You're the god-damn Borg..." Nathan argued in confusion, "The only misfortune to be had is by anyone that meets you!"

"There is an evil in this galaxy far worse than us," the Borg Queen said somberly, her tone reflecting the seriousness of what she was saying, "And though we have resisted extermination, even our efforts seem futile."

"What the hell could pose a threat to you?" Nathan asked, honestly concerned with the revelation that something in the Universe other than the Q stood as a threat in the minds of the Collective.

"Species 8472," the Queen said in a blunt manner.

Nathan had read about them, but the last thing he'd seen had pointed to them being on relatively decent terms with Janeway and her crew. He hadn't heard of them having any other contact with the Federation since Janeway back in the '70s... Things just weren't adding up.

"Did you piss them off or something?" Nathan asked, trying to get some details.

"They came unprovoked into our dimension and waged a campaign against all life in the Delta Quadrant. This nebula is our last outpost here in the Quadrant, even if we have pockets of resistance in other corners of the quadrant. We are, however, cut off from our Alpha and Beta Quadrant drones... I could not begin to tell you the level of devastation those drones... anyone on that side of the galaxy has had to endure," the Queen answered.

"Why don't' you just take a Transwarp conduit over there?" the Commodore inquired.

"The Transwarp Hub was destroyed... most of our grand complexes were destroyed. This planet is one of only a handful that we still hold," the woman said, a shred of sadness seeping into her voice. If Nathan hadn't been caught with his pants down by anything else that day, the fact that the Borg Queen was showing genuine remorse did a good damn job of yanking his skivvies down around his ankles. In a twisted sort of way, Nathan could actually empathize with them... He'd had a good majority of what it was to be El-Aurian taken away from him when his home world was destroyed. The Borg had, in a strange twist of karmic fate, tasted the same. Nathan's original ire was all but gone...

"Ok, let's get down to brass tax here," the old man changed the subject suddenly, "What is it you're offering us versus what you hope to get from us?"

"We offer you the ability to survive," the woman said as she turned toward a screen that had been dark a second ago. On it was the Arizona, floating in a leisurely manner in orbit around Archadia. Nathan got the impression by the sensor telemetry being displayed that she was trying to show him just how weak and helpless his ship truly was.

"We have scanned your vessel. Much of our offensive technology is incompatible with yours. You are simply too primitive as weapons technology stand to benefit from our knowledge. Your shields and hull, however, are much easier to modify and adapt. We offer you our defensive technologies, Commodore Cowell, in exchange for knowledge we can not attain ourselves," the Queen continued.

"What is it we know that you don't?" the old man asked.

"How you got here," came the curt response.

"You mean how we got from the Beta to the Delta Quadrant?" Nathan attempted to clarify. Thankfully, when the Queen nodded, Nathan was instantly relieved to find that they didn't even seem to register that the Arizona and her crew were not from their timeline. Even more so than that, Nathan was grateful that she had asked him something he could readily answer.

"Hell, that's easy... that damn floating disk out on the other end of the system," Nathan said as if it were blatantly obvious.

"You mean the Iconian device?" the Queen asked, a bit perplexed, "How is it you could discern its function? We lost two spheres to the investigation of the device without success..."

"Yeah, Iconian technology is more ruthless than yours, isn't it? Well, our scientists found a way to trigger the portal without destroying a whole bunch of boats to do it. I'd be glad to shoot you over the specifics... that is... after you foot your part of the deal," Nathan said, narrowing his eyes a bit.

"Of course," the Queen said, her head twitching slightly for a brief second, "I have asked my Collective for volunteers to board your vessel and make the modification. I have several drones more than willing to aid you."

"Since when did you become a democracy?" the Commodore asked, giving the woman a surreptitious look.

"Even among the Collective, there are those that resist leaving the confines of the Unimatrix. Call it an after effect of the losses we have suffered... A survival instinct we have only recently adapted. Boarding your vessel has a certain risk attached to it, given that you might very well be members of Species 8472 in some elaborate guise," the Queen remarked with a strange twinge of paranoia not common among the Borg.

"You have my word," Nathan said, despite the words sounding utterly foreign coming out of his mouth, "I will extend to your drones the same courtesy you've shown my crew. As long as they come back unmolested, yours will come back to you in the same condition you sent them in."

"Bargain struck, Commodore," the Queen nodded, "Knowledge for knowledge... and perhaps before you leave this system, we will be able to discuss another deal. But for now..."

The woman turned just slightly, and at her silent call, a drone appeared from another hidden alcove and approached their position. Nathan noticed that it was a different drone than the one that had brought him to the Queen... or was it? All drones looked the same to Nathan...

"This drone will escort you back to your ship," the woman remarked, "And it will serve as my adjunct to you. It will speak for those that board your vessel and it will report to me the progress of the upgrades to your vessel. Once they are complete and you have provided us with the knowledge we wish in return, my drones will return. If you find yourself willing to listen to my second request, we will speak then."

Before Nathan could speak again, the drone that had been summoned... now recognizable as female as she approached them... grabbed Nathan's shoulder and activated her personal transporter, taking them from the Unimatrix Complex back to the Arizona. Specifically, they rematerialized in Nathan's Ready Room, which at least afforded him just enough time to gather his wits before he had to deal with the fact that he had just agreed to let a group of Borg on his ship... and all the backlash from that decision...