Prologue
Most of the staff of the U.S.S. Enterprise-E was sitting in the conference lounge. Commander Deanna Troi could sense the feelings of uneasiness and concern among the senior staff. Captain Picard was very rarely late for a staff meeting and Lieutenant Commander Data had never been late since Deanna had known him. Despite their mixed feelings no one in the room spoke; they all waited respectfully for their captain.
Suddenly, the doors to the conference lounge hissed opened and Lieutenant Commander Data and Captain Jean-Luc Picard entered. Data proceeded to the first chair to the captain's right, his usual position. Data's gold-skinned face rested very seriously, as if his emotion chip was off. Since Data almost always kept the chip active, it was quite clear the mapping mission to Liguinn Eight had been cancelled and something else had come up. Captain Picard also took his usual position at the head of the table. He set down two pads and studied them carefully. Then he looked up making eye contact with the crew for the first time. As he slowly looked around the table, his eyes rested on Data.
"I apologize for the delay. As you may have guessed we have a new mission." Picard looked very tense, his face was stern, his words clear. He continued to move the pads on the table around, a sure sign that he was uncomfortable. "One our probes aimed toward the Delta Quadrant has detected a faint signature of a Federation transponder code. After some study Starfleet has decided that this could only be the starship Voyager, which was lost several years ago. Our mission is to retrieve the vessel and bring it into Federation territory as soon as possible. The information the ship has gathered will be extremely valuable to the ships ready to go and explore the Delta Quadrant. Mr. Data."
The android officer made a brief motion similar to what a dog does when its master speaks of him or her. Even though he was just as uncomfortable as Picard was, Data was able to stop his body from making minute movements that are involuntary to many humanoids. "Although the signal received is very weak it is clearly the U.S S. Voyager's transponder code. The ship's basic design is similar to what Voyager was like before it was lost in the Delta Quadrant. It is plausible to assume species in the Delta Quadrant helped enhance the ship's technology. Starfleet Command has found a Trans-Warp conduit that will take us very close to where the ship should be in three days seven hours forty two minutes and seventeen seconds. That is assuming it does not alter course in that amount of time, but the probability of that occurring is very low. The Trans-Warp conduit we will be using is an older conduit and may not be as stable as others we have traveled through."
"The chances of actually making contact with the Borg are very slim. We were chosen for this assignment due to our experience in traveling through the conduits and because of the stability of this vessel." Picard could see that his senior staff was beginning to understand. He turned his chair sideways, took a deep breath, and straightened his uniform before turning back to tell the officers one last thing. "These people must be very homesick, untrusting, and maybe even apathetic to the point where they may act hostile. Counselor, I want you to start looking for information that may make our first contact with the ship easier. Their families are already upset with Starfleet, who has promised them that the Voyager's crew would be safely delivered home sometime within the next month, and some of the family members are believed to be capable of committing terrorist acts if Starfleet disappoints them any more. The Delta Quadrant is no place for a Federation starship. Now, this mission could have serious repercussions if we fail. Starfleet Command considers it a Priority One assignment. We cannot afford to make any mistakes. Dismissed."
As the officers exited they began to realize the seriousness of the situation. Starfleet Command had not issued a Priority One assignment since the U.S.S. Hubbell's famous espionage mission at the end of the original Klingon-Federation War. Everyone silently went back to work, but each individual knew that they would have a difficult time keeping their mind off the new mission to the Delta Quadrant.