A/N: Standard Disclaimer...

Chapter 25

Rene finished repelling into the hole, let go of the rope and turned around. He always felt in awe when he saw a stargate. Just knowing that this level of technology had been around for hundreds of thousands of years left him reeling.

This particular gate was dusty and clearly hadn't been used for a very long time, but there was an intact DHD set up near it. Tessa reached the bottom a moment later, and stepped to his side. "I suppose it would be too much to ask for there to be power to it," she said wistfully.

"Probably," he agreed, "but didn't you say Colonel O'Neill and SG-1 once powered one off of, what was it called, an alternator?"

"Yes," she said warily.

"What if we jump started this gate with a phaser power pack?"

"Do you really believe that there's enough power in a phaser to open a stable wormhole to Iconia Prime, or Earth?"

"No, but we'll always wonder if we don't try, won't we?"

"I have a better idea," she said, starting up the rope.

He watched her start up, then said, "Are you going to try it the way it is now?"

She stopped climbing and looked down at him. She was only a meter and a half up, so simply dropped back down. "I s'pose that would be a good idea, wouldn't it."

"I'm not sure about you, but I'd feel kinda silly if I pulled apart my phaser only to find that the gate had power already."

She nodded and walked to the DHD.

Deep Space Nine...

Janus flashed into being just outside his parent's suite. He had kept an eye on his aunt until she and Dr. Weir disappeared into the past. He had tried to follow them, but had been unable. They had gone to that three hundred thousand year period where the Q's power did not work. Now, he had to explain to his father, and he really was not looking forward to it.

Hesitantly, he reached out and pressed the door chime.

"Come!"

His father was obviously home. He reflected that twenty years ago, he would have flashed directly into this man's room, and started some mischief. Now, however, he was glad to show his respect for both his parents.

"Janus!" his father said in surprise. Picard had been playing his flute, and he now set it on the table in front of him.

"Hello, Father." He turned to address the two women seated across from Picard "Mother. Janet." He was amused by how much this incarnation of his sister looked like their mother, even though, in theory, her genetic makeup now had no relation to either of their parents.

"Hello, Janus. What are you doing back so early?" his sister asked.

Picard indicated a chair beside him, and Janus sat down. He didn't relax into it, however. He seemed tense. "I watched as Weir's ship took off for the delta quadrant. As it accelerated, it entered a wormhole, quite by accident."

Picard felt a sense of dread. "It went back in time, didn't it?"

"Yes, Father. We can only take the long way around to them."

"When are they?"

"Approximately two thousand centuries ago."

"Where we can't get to them without sitting powerless for a hundred thousand years," Picard said, clearly disgusted.

"If I may," Janet interjected.

Her parents both turned to look at her. "I've seen your futures. I don't think this is something you'll be able to change."

"Why is that?" Picard asked.

"I think this is just something that will have to play out."

The gamma quadrant...

The planet killer had been systematically destroying worlds on which jem'Hadar were trained. It had been a hard decision, to turn the machine off, but it was decided that it should be shut down and returned to Iconia Prime. It was in space between star systems when it received the signal. It digested the information, then made a leisurely turn while still in warp, and headed toward the alpha quadrant.

It slowed, and dropped to sublight, then seemed to gather in on itself and jumped into hyperspace.

It was now travelling several times the speed it had been while at warp.

Iconia Prime...

When the planet killer stopped sending material to the stargate in the sphere's manufacturing plants, Sarah shut that gate down, in favor of the Camelot gate.

Once news that the Dominion was not going to attack, people started returning to the sphere, and Camelot once more became the transportation hub it had been.

The gate was designed to report the address on the other end, and when it came up with an unknown, or even unlikely address, the shield automatically came up. Such it was, approximately two months after the war officially ended. An alarm sounded and called the gate tech's attention to the address.

Merlin was in his office as the tech called for him. The wizard reached out with his mind and felt what was happening on the other side of the gate. He contacted Daniel Jackson and asked him to do him a favor, then flashed away.

A moment later, Picard and Beverly arrived in his office, unsure what was happening.

Jean-Luc, however, was not someone who remained in the dark for long. He stepped across the bridge which took him to the control room and asked for the situation.

"Hello, Sir. I saw Merlin disappear. Am I to assume that you are Admiral Picard?"

Picard smiled and answered, "That would be a fair assumption."

It made little difference to the tech whether he was speaking to Picard or Merlin in this situation. As an Admiral in Starfleet, Picard was fully able to command the city of Camelot. He could not make policy decisions for Iconia Prime, but that should not be needed here.

"We have an unlikely origin point for a wormhole, Sir. The incoming travelers have been shunted to a buffer, and we're awaiting your orders regarding their disposition."

"How unlikely?" Beverly asked.

"It's Orban," the tech answered, ignoring for the moment, that she wasn't actually part of the chain of command. "All the cities on the planet were destroyed during the Ori war, so it's not a very likely origin point."

"They did it!" Beverly exclaimed, smiling triumphantly.

"Who did what?" Picard asked, unsure what his wife was talking about.

"Just bring them in, Jean Luc. They're no threat."

Picard raised his eyebrows and turned to the tech. "Bring them in," he told the man.

He turned to take in the gate as the shield was lowered, and two bedraggled people stepped through. He recognized them, immediately.

"Rene!" He hurried down the steps and caught his nephew in a bear hug.

"Hello, Nephew," Rene said, grinning like a cheshire cat.

Beverly had hurried to joined them, and she gave Tessa a hug. "I'm glad you made it."

Picard was saddened by the fact that his sister-in-law had left before her son returned, but realized that she was still in the vicinity. He excused himself, then flashed away.

The gamma quadrant...

Picard appeared on a Borg cube. It had been watching the founder's homeworld, making sure that Oberoth kept his people home.

Marie's borg body was receiving some work, while her head, shoulders, and spine were suspended by communication cables. When she saw Picard, she had her body reintegrated. "What do you want?" she asked, barely civil.

"I want to show you something," he replied.

"I am not interested in anything you wish to show me."

"Understandable, however, I believe you will find this interesting."

She glared at him, and he said, "Rene returned."

"You are lying," she replied.

"Would you like me to prove it?"

She didn't reply, so he waved his hand. They found themselves in Camelot.

Marie was speechless. She looked at Rene and tears started to roll down her cheeks. It took him a moment to recognize her, but when he did, he stepped forward. "Hello, Mother," he said. "We made it back."

She took a step back, then turned away, covering her face with her hands. She stood sobbing for some time, then finally looked up at Jean Luc. The look on her face was furious.

"Why didn't you tell me! You are Q! You could have gone to when we emerged from the time warp. I didn't have to spend the last two thousand centuries as a Borg!"

Now, it was Beverly's turn. She stepped toe to toe with the Borg queen. "You're right. You didn't have to spend that time as a Borg, but that was the choice you made. You want to blame someone for what happened to you. Fine, but realize that it was your own fault, not Jean Luc's."

No one had spoken to her that way in a long time, and she jerked back as if slapped.

"Beverly is correct," Picard said in a much softer tone than his wife had used. "The Q cannot operate in the time that you travelled to. The destruction to hyperspace prevents us from flashing in and out of that time."

"So I have myself to blame for being stuck as only a small fraction of who I used to be?"

Daniel Jackson had been watching from the stairs. "No," he interjected, "you're not stuck."

He had been leaning on a rail, and he pushed himself away. "I've met a much later version of you, and she wasn't Borg."

"There is no way I can go back. No matter what, I will be mostly artificial."

Tessa shrugged her shoulders. "What does that matter? If you are mostly artificial, who cares? You're still the same person."

"But that's not what you are like in your future. You are ascended, are you not?" Daniel asked.

"Yes, I am, and I would simply become energy, but I do not believe enough of the organic me exists to do it."

"Are you asking for help?"

She nodded her head, and looked down at the floor. Daniel looked at Picard, and when Marie looked up, she followed his gaze. "I am sorry for what I've done, Jean Luc."

"How many people have paid the price for your grief, Marie?"

She hesitated, then said, "I could give you the number of assimilations I have performed, but you do not wish that information. Besides, you could get it yourself."

"Not long ago, I stood in judgement of Oberoth for what he had done, and for what I had caused by sanctioning his creation," Picard said. "I blamed myself for his actions. My wife and son pointed out that I did not have the right to kill him. I look at you, and see that you have blamed me for your actions. Do I look at the situation the same way? Am I to blame, or not?" He shook his head. "I could not blame Annika for her being Borg, but unlike her, you chose this. I am not to blame, Marie, much as you would like to think I am. Many people have lost children in war but not resorted to the things you have."

Marie stared at Picard for several moments, then abruptly told him, "Take me back to my people."

"No."

She recoiled as if he had slapped her. "Why?"

It was Rene who answered her. "I had no idea what you had done, Mother. If I understand the situation, you are a much later version of you than I last saw. It would be very simple for you to run back to the Borg and forget about the life you once lived. But you aren't a quitter. You won't take the easy way out."

"You don't know me anymore, Rene." Her voice was soft when she spoke to her son.

He gazed at her for a long moment, then said, "If you run from what you have done, rather than face it, then I don't wish to."

Later, in Iconia Prime…

Marie Picard, the Borg queen, looked around her room in Camelot. She debated trying the door, but she was quite certain it would be locked, and she wasn't sure she really wished to face the people she used to know.

"Sarah?" she finally asked the room.

"Yes, Marie?"

"Am I allowed to exit my room?"

"You may travel to anywhere in the sphere that you wish."

"And may I leave the sphere?"

"I am quite certain that you are not a prisoner."

Marie cocked her head at that, then asked, "Why?"

"The First has made peace with the Empress. Unless you are contemplating assimilation of the people of Iconia Prime, there is no reason to restrict your movements."

"He forced peace, you mean."

"Regardless of the terminology, there is no reason to restrict your movements."

Marie sat on a comfortable couch in the room. "And what would my illustrious brother-in-law do were I to leave the sphere?"

"I could not speculate."

The queen suddenly changed the subject and asked, "Are you capable of site-to-site transportation within the sphere?"

"Certainly"

"It has been millennia since I have taken in a beautiful view. Would you transport me to a place where there is one? Also, I would like a bare minimum of people there. I am feeling a touch of agoraphobia."

Marie dematerialized, and suddenly she was standing on a cliff, overlooking Paris. To her right was a huge ocean, and on her left stood Daniel Jackson and Vala.

"I was hoping to be alone," she said, then louder, "Sarah!"

"You specified that you didn't want a crowd. There are only two other people here."

Marie sighed, and sat down on the grass at her feet. "I suppose that is what I said."

Vala had been leaning on her husband's shoulder, but when she realized who had appeared beside them, she sat down beside Marie. "I understand you are having a tough time. Would you like to talk about it?"

"How could you possibly relate to what I've done?" the queen asked.

"Well, let's see. I used to be host for Qetesh, a rather sadistic Goa'uld. During that time, I performed many involuntary atrocities."

"The difference is that I chose my path. You didn't choose yours."

Vala nodded. "That's true, but then I also chose a criminal path after Qetesh was removed."

"And did you assimilate millions of people? And kill those who resisted assimilation?"

"Are we going to have a contest to see who was the worst person? Because if we are, I'm sure I can find a more suitable opponent." Marie had been about to speak again, but she seemed to think better of it. "We can argue about who was the biggest badass, but it's really not necessary," Vala continued. "My point is that there is always redemption."

"Even for the Borg Queen?"

"Why wouldn't there be?"

"I would have to spend the rest of my life earning it."

Daniel shrugged his shoulders. "If you think that, then do it. Rene was right. You're not a quitter. Look at the technology you developed with the Borg. Put that drive to good use."

Marie was slowly nodding. "I would like to," she said, wistfully.

Betazed...

Riker, Bra'tac, and the young Klingon lieutenant they had first encountered on board the Ganges, beamed down to the surface of Betazed. They took stock of the situation even as the transporter effect faded. They stood on a flat plain, pockmarked with fumaroles spewing smoke, steam, and toxic gases. The terrain was smooth, like obsidian. The weapons from the two ships were formidable, and had razed the planet's surface effectively. Kim Anderson utilized the latest in weapons afforded to Iconian 305s. Saratoga was a Defiant class vessel, and as such, was overpowered for her size.

The place the trio had beamed down to, used to be the capital of Betazed, however, virtually none of the city remained. Where there had once been majestic buildings, and beautiful gardens, there was now nothing but black glass, and smoking holes.

They approached one such pit, and Riker told the other two to stay back. He walked forward, oblivious to the acrid smoke billowing up. When they could barely discern him in the haze, he descended into the pit. He climbed down debris that was, in some cases, still smoldering.

He looked down, and could see a glowing, amorphous blob of something. As he got lower, he recognized it as metallic naquadah, a nuclear reaction within it running unchecked. The heat from it would have burnt his body to a cinder had he not been Q.

He stepped into the glowing metal. It had once been molten, and had spread out on the floor of the room that had once existed in this underground chamber. He took a step forward, and realized that not all of the naquadah was solid. As he picked up his foot, some of the molten metal adhered to his boot and splashed off of it as he moved it forward. He quickly adjusted his solidity to where it wouldn't stick to his clothes. He started forward again, but stopped. Making one more adjustment, he made his clothing unable to pick up the smells of this chamber of horrors.

He moved to the perimeter of the room and took in the carbonized remains of workers on a walkway a few feet above the main floor.

A bit farther, and he came to a blast door, set into the wall. It had once provided a refuge for the government of Betazed, should the unimaginable ever happen. Unfortunately, the unimaginable is exactly what happened, and the design engineers had been caught off guard. They hadn't been able to conceive of the power of these modern warships. The door had warped from the heat produced by a runaway reaction in naquadah. Those behind it had been baked when the heat came through.

He looked back at his feet, submerged in the molten material. Why had it not exploded? He looked further down, through the liquid, to the floor. It was made of an energy absorbing substance that had converted some of the energy into electricity. He shook his head. The explosion that could have come, was stored in what amounted to a huge battery.

He waved his hand, and was suddenly standing beside Bra'tac and the Klingon. He told them what he had found. There was nothing left of the government of Betazed.

When he finished explaining, Riker sensed something. He glanced up and tapped his communicator, "Riker to Enterprise."

"Worf here, Commodore."

"Make sure Ho' pach knows who you are, then contact me. I'll send you the coordinates of anyone we find on the ground."

"Aye, Sir."

The search turned out to be a heartbreaking exercise. Lwaxana informed Riker of the locations of twenty shelters, and of those, fifteen were deep enough to have survivors. In all, Enterprise ended up rescuing fewer than four thousand people. Most of the Betazoids who were still in existence had been off planet when the attack came.