Chapter 12
The two Borg Cubes blazed forward, continuing on their route to Federation Space. They were mere minutes away and the Borg Queen was getting excited. Locutus will be mine again, she reassured herself. The Cubes increased their speed, leaving trails of flashing light behind them.
=====/////=====
The time had come; the formation of the blockade. Each ship was stationed in their given location and waited. It was the most terrible experience any of the Starfleet officers had ever experienced. Seconds felt like minutes, minutes felt like hours, and hours felt like days. The starships' crews watch on their main viewing screen as the two Cubes rocketed toward them. Many officers felt sick while others forced themselves from having a nervous breakdown. The U.S.S Voyager was the lead ship in the Gamma Team. The Gamma Team was Earth's last line of defense against the Borg. It was up to them to make sure nothing reached the planet. Admiral Janeway had had many encounters with the Borg before but she still felt unprepared. Janeway's first officer, Commander Tuvok, recognized Janeway's worried look and gave her words of encouragement.
"Do not worry, Captain. We will prevail."
"I know Tuvok. We have no other choice. Losing is not an option." informed the Admiral.
Meanwhile Captain Picard stood on the Enterprise's bridge and watched the main viewing screen. The screen displayed the two Borg Cubes approaching Federation Space. The bridge crew was silent as the image of the Borg Cubes traveled toward them. Picard could feel his pulse rising. The Enterprise was one of the hundreds of ships that formed the Borg Blockade, but for some reason Picard felt alone in this upcoming battle. No one could understand what he was going through. The Borg haunted his dreams and now, his dreams had become a reality. The sound of the Borg crackled in his ears. Picard could hear the Borg Queen speaking to him. She called for him to join her and to be part of the collective. Her feminine voice hissed in his eardrum. Picard could almost feel himself wanting to give in to the temptation.
==// Come to us, Locutus. Resistance is futile. //==
Picard shook his head defiantly. He would never rejoin the collective.
"No! I won't" he shouted.
Everyone on the bridge looked at the Captain. His sudden outburst had completely shocked his crew. Lieutenant Commander Data stared at the Captain blankly. Whatever had caused the Captain's outburst was making everyone on the bridge terribly nervous, including Data. This was no time for Captain Picard to be acting irrationally, thought Data.
"Captain Picard, are you alright?"
Jean-Luc took a deep breath. He knew he should have tried harder to block out the Borg Queen but she always managed to slither into his mind. Picard was defenseless against it. He had to pull himself together quickly.
"Yes, Mr. Data. I'm fine. I'm just a little tired that's all. I'll be fine."
"Captain, I must insist that you"
"I said I'm fine Mr. Data! Get back to your post." interrupted Picard.
Data froze. He had not expected the Captain to snap at him like he did. Captain Picard was not himself.
"Aye, sir." replied Data, as he took his seat in the second-in-command's chair.
Lieutenant Commander Data made a mental note to keep an eye on Picard. If the Captain continued to act peculiar, he would have to relieve Picard of command. Picard clinched the bridge of his nose and gathered his thoughts. Get a hold of yourself Jean Luc, he thought. Meanwhile, the two Cubes steadily approached. It was mere minutes before they arrived. Every crew on every ship was on edge. Their doom was certainly coming.
=====/////=====
Admiral Jellico gripped the arms of his chair tightly. He was nervous. His heart was pounding fiercely under his chest. He watched the two Cubes approach on the Cochrane's main screen. He did not want to fight the Borg. Jellico had lost his first son to them and now he may lose his second son to them. Hell, I may even lose my life to the son's of bitches, he thought. It did not matter anyway. Andrew did not want any relationship with Edward. This made the Admiral sick to his stomach. Jellico quickly rose from his command chair. He could not think about Andrew or death right now. He had to focus on his mission and that was to stop the Borg. That was all that mattered now.
"Lieutenant Breeze, what is the Borg's current time of arrival?" he asked.
Breeze tapped a few keys on his consol and then looked up at Jellico with fear in his eyes.
"Their current time of arrival is three minutes and fourteen seconds."
Jellico swallowed hard and nodded to officer. This is it, he thought.
"Thank you, Mr. Breeze. Everyone get ready." he ordered.
The U.S.S Cochrane's entire crew stiffened. They were prepared for battle and the time was closing in on them. Admiral Jellico tried to remain focused but suddenly thoughts of Helen Yurovick weaseled into his mind. The Admiral had not acted on his desire to date Helen. It had been a mistake. When I get back to San Francisco, I plan to ask Helen out, Jellico thought, I just hope I get a second chance. The Admiral looked back at the main screen and saw the two Cubes approaching. He suddenly felt as if that second chance would never come.
=====/////=====
Captain Riker cracked his knuckles nervously. The suspense was killing him. I would rather be fighting the Borg then waiting for the damn things to arrive, he thought. Riker would sit in his chair for a few minutes, get restless, and then stand. He continued this cycle repeatedly. His crew was beginning to think his chair was on fire. Riker stood from his chair again and scratched his beard. He turned to his operations officer, Lieutenant Neea Devlin, and was surprised in what he saw. The Bajorian was sitting up straight in her chair. Her face was expressionless. She seemed to be at ease with the hellish situation. It was as if her entire demeanor was prepared for the upcoming attack. Devlin's mind, body, and spirit were nothing but focus. Riker knew he had a great crew even though he had not seen the things they could do. Suddenly, Lieutenant Commander Knight's eyes opened widely as his tactical sensors beeped.
"Captain, the Borg are coming out of warp."
Riker turned to the main screen to confirm Knight's information. It was true. The Borg Cubes came out of warp in a flash of spectrum color. Suddenly, there was a moment of silence. Everyone on the Farragut waited for Riker's command. Suddenly, Admiral Hayes' voice came over all the Federation Starships' com systems. His voice was firm and powerful.
"All ships are ordered to fire."
Captain Riker's face formed a lopsided smile. He was eager to hurt the Borg. They would not make it passed the blockade.
"You heard the Admiral, Mr. Knight. Fire!"
The two Borg Cubes blazed forward, continuing on their route to Federation Space. They were mere minutes away and the Borg Queen was getting excited. Locutus will be mine again, she reassured herself. The Cubes increased their speed, leaving trails of flashing light behind them.
=====/////=====
The time had come; the formation of the blockade. Each ship was stationed in their given location and waited. It was the most terrible experience any of the Starfleet officers had ever experienced. Seconds felt like minutes, minutes felt like hours, and hours felt like days. The starships' crews watch on their main viewing screen as the two Cubes rocketed toward them. Many officers felt sick while others forced themselves from having a nervous breakdown. The U.S.S Voyager was the lead ship in the Gamma Team. The Gamma Team was Earth's last line of defense against the Borg. It was up to them to make sure nothing reached the planet. Admiral Janeway had had many encounters with the Borg before but she still felt unprepared. Janeway's first officer, Commander Tuvok, recognized Janeway's worried look and gave her words of encouragement.
"Do not worry, Captain. We will prevail."
"I know Tuvok. We have no other choice. Losing is not an option." informed the Admiral.
Meanwhile Captain Picard stood on the Enterprise's bridge and watched the main viewing screen. The screen displayed the two Borg Cubes approaching Federation Space. The bridge crew was silent as the image of the Borg Cubes traveled toward them. Picard could feel his pulse rising. The Enterprise was one of the hundreds of ships that formed the Borg Blockade, but for some reason Picard felt alone in this upcoming battle. No one could understand what he was going through. The Borg haunted his dreams and now, his dreams had become a reality. The sound of the Borg crackled in his ears. Picard could hear the Borg Queen speaking to him. She called for him to join her and to be part of the collective. Her feminine voice hissed in his eardrum. Picard could almost feel himself wanting to give in to the temptation.
==// Come to us, Locutus. Resistance is futile. //==
Picard shook his head defiantly. He would never rejoin the collective.
"No! I won't" he shouted.
Everyone on the bridge looked at the Captain. His sudden outburst had completely shocked his crew. Lieutenant Commander Data stared at the Captain blankly. Whatever had caused the Captain's outburst was making everyone on the bridge terribly nervous, including Data. This was no time for Captain Picard to be acting irrationally, thought Data.
"Captain Picard, are you alright?"
Jean-Luc took a deep breath. He knew he should have tried harder to block out the Borg Queen but she always managed to slither into his mind. Picard was defenseless against it. He had to pull himself together quickly.
"Yes, Mr. Data. I'm fine. I'm just a little tired that's all. I'll be fine."
"Captain, I must insist that you"
"I said I'm fine Mr. Data! Get back to your post." interrupted Picard.
Data froze. He had not expected the Captain to snap at him like he did. Captain Picard was not himself.
"Aye, sir." replied Data, as he took his seat in the second-in-command's chair.
Lieutenant Commander Data made a mental note to keep an eye on Picard. If the Captain continued to act peculiar, he would have to relieve Picard of command. Picard clinched the bridge of his nose and gathered his thoughts. Get a hold of yourself Jean Luc, he thought. Meanwhile, the two Cubes steadily approached. It was mere minutes before they arrived. Every crew on every ship was on edge. Their doom was certainly coming.
=====/////=====
Admiral Jellico gripped the arms of his chair tightly. He was nervous. His heart was pounding fiercely under his chest. He watched the two Cubes approach on the Cochrane's main screen. He did not want to fight the Borg. Jellico had lost his first son to them and now he may lose his second son to them. Hell, I may even lose my life to the son's of bitches, he thought. It did not matter anyway. Andrew did not want any relationship with Edward. This made the Admiral sick to his stomach. Jellico quickly rose from his command chair. He could not think about Andrew or death right now. He had to focus on his mission and that was to stop the Borg. That was all that mattered now.
"Lieutenant Breeze, what is the Borg's current time of arrival?" he asked.
Breeze tapped a few keys on his consol and then looked up at Jellico with fear in his eyes.
"Their current time of arrival is three minutes and fourteen seconds."
Jellico swallowed hard and nodded to officer. This is it, he thought.
"Thank you, Mr. Breeze. Everyone get ready." he ordered.
The U.S.S Cochrane's entire crew stiffened. They were prepared for battle and the time was closing in on them. Admiral Jellico tried to remain focused but suddenly thoughts of Helen Yurovick weaseled into his mind. The Admiral had not acted on his desire to date Helen. It had been a mistake. When I get back to San Francisco, I plan to ask Helen out, Jellico thought, I just hope I get a second chance. The Admiral looked back at the main screen and saw the two Cubes approaching. He suddenly felt as if that second chance would never come.
=====/////=====
Captain Riker cracked his knuckles nervously. The suspense was killing him. I would rather be fighting the Borg then waiting for the damn things to arrive, he thought. Riker would sit in his chair for a few minutes, get restless, and then stand. He continued this cycle repeatedly. His crew was beginning to think his chair was on fire. Riker stood from his chair again and scratched his beard. He turned to his operations officer, Lieutenant Neea Devlin, and was surprised in what he saw. The Bajorian was sitting up straight in her chair. Her face was expressionless. She seemed to be at ease with the hellish situation. It was as if her entire demeanor was prepared for the upcoming attack. Devlin's mind, body, and spirit were nothing but focus. Riker knew he had a great crew even though he had not seen the things they could do. Suddenly, Lieutenant Commander Knight's eyes opened widely as his tactical sensors beeped.
"Captain, the Borg are coming out of warp."
Riker turned to the main screen to confirm Knight's information. It was true. The Borg Cubes came out of warp in a flash of spectrum color. Suddenly, there was a moment of silence. Everyone on the Farragut waited for Riker's command. Suddenly, Admiral Hayes' voice came over all the Federation Starships' com systems. His voice was firm and powerful.
"All ships are ordered to fire."
Captain Riker's face formed a lopsided smile. He was eager to hurt the Borg. They would not make it passed the blockade.
"You heard the Admiral, Mr. Knight. Fire!"