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Starbase 67
Utopia Planitia Shipyards
Jupiter
Project Pathfinder Briefing
Stardate 41627.3
Captain Janeway took her seat in the briefing room, glancing around at the assembled officers. Among them, she recognised Admirals Jellico, Paris, Nechayev and Hayes, as well as Commodore Decker and Commander Harkins. In fact, the only person she didn't recognise was the blonde-haired woman seated opposite her.
'Alright,' Jellico said. 'Thank you all for coming. Let's get started. Commander Shelby...'
'Thank you, Admiral,' the blonde-haired woman said, standing up and crossing towards the viewscreen, Janeway watching her with interest. With her brown hair pulled back into a tight bun, she had always tried to present a serious, no-nonsense demeanour. However, Commander Shelby took it to a different level. Her blonde hair was regulation length, her jaw set firmly and if that was how neatly pressed her jacket always was, Janeway would have killed to see her dress uniform. Stopping in front of the viewscreen, Shelby pressed a button on the console next to her, an image of an angular vessel with two blocky 'arms' extending from it's primary hull.
'Approximately six months ago,' Shelby said, standing at ease, with her arms behind her back, 'the U.S.S York, under the command of Captain Henzi, encountered this vessel on the edge of Sector 141. Following no response to their hails, Captain Henzi ordered an Away Team to beam over, as per General Order 47. The Away Team consisted of Lieutenant Sam Bowers, Ensign Chy Carver and Petty Officer Runame Nilv.'
Shelby tapped another command into the panel and the image of the vessel was replaced by a darkened corridor.
'This is the visual log of the mission from Lieutenant Bowers POV, reconstructed from his tricorder readings...'
Shelby pressed another button and the footage began playing.
'Bowers to York,' a voice said, sounding faintly distorted. 'We're onboard. Main power seems to be offline and we've seen no sign of any crew...no, hold on...'
Bowers raised his wrist beacon, illuminating a humanoid figure slumped against the wall. His skin was a pale grey, his body encased in a dark metal exoskeleton and his left eye had been replaced by a glowing green ocular implant.
'We've encountered what appears to be a humanoid male,' Bowers reported. 'He's encased in some sort of... exo-skeletal armour and his right forearm has been replaced with some kind of prosthetic. We're checking on his condition, now. Standby. Carver...'
'Yes, sir,' the dark-haired human to his left said, kneeling down next to the humanoid and pulling out his tricorder. 'The tricorder's having trouble identifying his physiology, but I'm detecting some faint life signs...ahk!'
'Carver!' Bowers exclaimed, the humanoid's arm having shot up, two tubules plunging into Carver's neck. Equally as fast, Bowers drew his phaser and fired, the blast burning through the humanoid's chest plate, the tubes coming free.
'Carver,' Bowers yelled, scrambling past the dead humanoid to kneel at his side. 'Can you hear me...?'
Carver gave a gurgling choke, clutching at his neck. his skin rapidly becoming the same pale grey as the humanoid.
'Bowers to York. Medical emergency. Code 6. Emergency beamout...'
Shelby tapped the keypad, freezing the recording.
'Ensign Carter was rushed to Sickbay and immediately placed in isolation, as per Code 6, with Bowers and Nilv undergoing screening. They were given the all-clear, but Carver had been infected with a previously unknown form of nanites. By the time he reached Sickbay, they had already invaded his bloodstream and were replicating through his body. Over the next few hours, his body began developing techno-organic "growths" similar to those on the humanoid that Lieutenant Bowers killed. However, there were more than just physical changes occurring. His sense of self seemed to be being erased or subverted. He began referring to himself in the plural, identifying himself as 'Borg', as well as repeatedly referring to 'assimilation'. Carver was placed in confinement, with the deck being evacuated as a precaution. The full report of what happened next is on your PADDs, but this is the condensed version. Over the next 48 hours, a dialogue was established with Carver and the picture began to come together. Carter revealed that the Borg originated from the Delta Quadrant, although they have now established a foothold here, in Sector 142. The vessel that York encountered was damaged by a plasma storm and most of the crew were killed. The last survivor was barely alive when they found him and just enough of it's cognitive functions remained. When it detected Carver's presence, it transferred the nanites to him. The process is called assimilation and the nanites form part of a vast computer network that seems to operate across subspace. By injecting them into his system, Carver became part of this collective consciousness. Through Carter, the crew of the York were able to establish a dialogue with the Borg, learning that their intention was to assimilate the crew of the York. According to information provided by Carter, there are two 'castes' within the Borg collective. The majority are 'drones', very similar to Earth bees, which are cloned from stored genetic data. Some, however, are lifeforms or individuals assimilated into the collective, such as Carver. However, the genetic data that they use to produce their drones is starting to degrade, forcing them to assimilate new species. For them, this was about their survival. According to Carter, other Borg vessels were already on their way to assimilate the York. However, Captain Henzi was able to offer the Borg an alternative. In exchange for a non-aggression pact, the Federation would provide the Borg with new genetic material from our own medical databases. This was relayed through Carver to the Collective, who managed to convince them to accept the terms.'
'Thank you, Commander Shelby,' Admiral Jellico said, glancing around the room as Shelby returned to her seat. 'I know that most of us had already been briefed on these developments, but I felt that it would be helpful to ensure that everyone was on the same page before we move onto the main focus of this briefing. As you know, the Collective has agreed to permit access to their Transwarp Hub in Sector 142, which will allow us to begin exploring the Delta Quadrant. Admiral Nechayav...?'
'Thank you, Admiral,' Nechayav said, rising from her seat and crossing to the viewscreen, punching up a grid that showed three sectors, with an orange line passing through them. 'This is our final course for our initial survey of the Delta Quadrant. The mission will last three months and will explore the three sectors around the Transwarp Hub, as well as launching several probes that will gather data for future exploration. We have also identified around a dozen potential M-class planets and 14 G-type star systems that will be surveyed en route...'
'Thank you,' Jellico repeated. 'Captain Janeway, your report, please...'
'Yes, Admiral,' Janeway said, standing up and adjusting her tunic. 'Voyager will be ready for departure in 48 hours. We're just awaiting our last shipment of medical supplies and stores, as well as our remaining crew appointments...'
'I still have reservations about this,' Admiral Hayes said. 'We've already seen how the Borg react. How can we be sure that we won't see a repeat of the York incident...?'
'With respect, Admiral,' Janeway said. 'We can't let the fear of the unknown stop us from exploring...'
'Thank you, Captain,' Jellico said, interjecting quickly. 'Admiral Hayes does raise an important point, however. When you go through the Transwarp Hub, you will be as far away from Starfleet as any Captain has been. If anything goes wrong, you will be on your own...'
'I understand, Admiral,' Janeway said and Jellico nodded.
'Very well. Unless there is any further business, this briefing will be adjourned...'
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'Coffee, black,' Janeway said, as the door to her ready room closed behind her, the faint hum of the replicator greeting her as she made her way to the curved couch underneath the curved viewport. Instead of the starfield, she was looking out onto the spacedock of Starbase 67. Grabbing her coffee from the replicator, she sank onto the couch with a sigh, inhaling the spicy aroma. Reaching for her terminal, she was about to take a sip when her door chime sounded.
'Come,' Janeway said, putting down her cup as the door hissed open to admit Commander Chakotay. Tall and broad-shouldered, his black hair was cut short, revealing the thin, blue-lined tattoo on his temple.
'Sorry to disturb you, Captain,' he said, taking two PADDs from under his arm as he strode towards her. 'I've got the manifest from the last supply run and Engineering has just completed the final Warp Core diagnostic...'
'Thank you, Commander,' Janeway said, gesturing for him to add the PADDs to the stack on her desk. 'I keep forgetting how much paperwork is involved with a deep space mission...'
'Starfleet likes to have everything done by the book,' Chakotay agreed. 'We're just waiting on the final crew transfers and then we'll have a full complement...'
'Any changes...?' Janeway asked, without looking up from the PADD she was reading.
'Two updates, Captain. Ensign Kim has been selected as Operations Officer for Alpha Shift...'
'Computer, display personnel file for Ensign Kim,' Janeway said, reading the file as it popped up on her screen. 'Graduated in the top 5% of his class. Expert in subspace communications...very impressive...who's the second...?'
'...B'Ellana Torres...'
Something in Chakotay's voice made Janeway look up.
'Is this another of your recommendations, Commander...?'
'Yes, Captain...'
Suppressing a sigh, Janeway called up her file, her lips tightening at what she read.
'...three reprimands for insubordination, one demerit, as well as a count of striking a superior officer. Commander...'
'She's also received three commendations for creative problem solving and composure under fire. She has...an unconventional approach and I think she'd make a fine engineer, provided I can rub off some off her rough edges...'
'...very well, Commander,' Janeway said, authorising the transfers with her thumbprint. 'See that I don't regret it...'
'Thank you, Captain...'
Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed it. Any reviews, comments or constructive criticisms are very welcome.
