Chapter 9: First Blood

To Reviewers: Thanks for the help. I'll include as many of your ideas as I can. Tell me what I can do to make the story better, I want you all to enjoy it.

The fleet had finished transiting to the new galaxy and were preparing for their first contact with the Borg. The Emperor had sensed the vessel probing near the fleet. He had let it go because he knew it would bring a large Borg fleet to him. He wanted to test the might of the Imperium against one of the most powerful races in this new galaxy.

He did not have to wait long. One of his Custodes bodyguards handed him a report. It stated that a Borg fleet numbering five thousand ships was heading for them. He knew the Borg were merely testing their defenses. "All ships to battle stations," he ordered. "The enemy approaches." The fleet began to move into divisions. The Emperor's flagship moved into a position in the center.

The Emperor's flagship was a magnificent sight. Many kilometers in length, it was shaped a double eagle. Its' wings spread wide and concealed many unknown weapons in their smooth golden armor. The two heads surrounded the muzzle to a mammoth cannon. The Imperial Eagle decorated the prow in bright silver. The entire vessel radiated power and vengeance. It was a symbol to anyone that the Imperium was here and it was here to stay.

"All ships report ready Lord Admiral," Commander Droven reported. The Lord Admiral's flagship, the Harbringer of Vengeance, a Retribution class battleship, took its place at the read of the fleet where its lance batteries and torpedoes would be most effective. New vessels called Longbow class cruisers were moving into postirion. They had been deigned as artillery ships and were armed with a dozen tri cobalt launchers each. They would weaken the enemy from long range, and then the rest of the fleet would finish them off. The Imperium would win this battle, of that the Lord Admiral was sure.

The Borg armada dropped out of Transwarp. It consisted mostly of Cubes and Spheres, along with two Tactical Fusion Cubes and the Queen's Diamond, which hung back. The Borg raced forward, firing as they came. Torpedoes and cutting beams lanced out at the Imperial armada. They responded with waves of photon and quantum torpedoes, phasers and Tri-Cobalt missiles. Hundreds of Borg vessels were destroyed in seconds. The Imperium task force took little damage. Their Void Shields were powerful, as well as their hull armor. The Borg Queen knew she was losing, but she didn't care. She could tell these ships were using far less than their true power. She sent in the two Fusion Cubes, hoping to draw out their true power.

"Lord Emperor, the enemy's two largest ships are moving up. Our fire is having little effect," a Custodes officer reported. The Emperor smiled.

"Prepare a volley from the starboard wing," he commanded. On one of his ship's wings, armor plates slid apart, revealing a massive battery of Lance Turrets and obalisk shaped projections. They glowed with a golden light and fired. The beams of fire pierced the Borg shields as if they weren't there. One Fusion Cube exploded from the Lance beams, the other from a single obelisk blast. The Vengeance Cannons, as they were called, fired a beam of enemy taken from the Emperor himself. He fed a piece of his power into the projector and the resulting blast was half lance beam and half warp energy. No shield could stop it. It was one of the Emperor's most closely guarded weapons.

The Borg Queen was stunned. The blasts from the golden ship had been like nothing the Collective had ever seen before. Sensors could make absolutely nothing of it. Suddenly, she was disturbed from her reverie by the beeping of a communicator. The enemy wished to talk with her. She responded. The face that greeted her reminded her of Picard's, only a hundred times grander. His eyes were afire with power and wisdom. He was clad in intricate golden armor with eagle heads forming the shoulder guards. He regarded her as one might a persistent Nat.

"I am the Immortal Emperor of Mankind. We are in control of this galaxy now. You will surrender and prepare for destruction." The Queen chuckled.

"The Borg will not be conquered so easily. We have the means to adapt to anything you throw at us," she retaliated. "Your biological and technological distinctiveness will be added to our own."

"You know nothing," the Emperor replied. "You have not yet seen eve a tenth of our true power. I already know all about your race." He decided he could indulge the Queen about what was in store for her. "Do you remember seven of Nine?" He asked. The Queen blinked. "It was from her we developed the means to resist you," he said, beckoning with his arm. A pair of Custodes brought Seven into the bridge. She was ragged and thin, many of her implants messily removed. The Queen hid her surprise.

"Seven?" She asked. The last she had known Sven was on Voyager, at her and the Collective's mercy. The ex-drone looked up with pain and hopelessness in her eyes.

"I am Seven of Nine, tertiary adjunct to Unimatrix zero one," she said in a monotone. "You have no chance against the might of the Imperium," she said, a flicker of light coming back into her eyes. "I have seen their capabilities. The Emperor speaks the truth. Their power is limitless. You should heed the Emperor's command." The Emperor flicked his wrist and she was taken away.

"You may have corrupted one drone, but you will fail with the Collective. Resistance is futile."

"Only for you," The Emperor said before cutting the connection. "All fleet elements report."

"All ships intact and operational Emperor. Several vessels damaged and currently being repaired," the reply stated. The Mechanicus had begun constructing a repair and construction facility on the Delta Quadrant side of the wormhole. It would be the main source of re supply in this galaxy. The Mechanicus were being very cautious with the replicator technology. It was their greatest discovery ever. Only their belief in the Emperor allowed the rest of the Imperial forces access to it. Now, the second faze of the invasion could begin. His communication with the Borg Queen had merely been a distraction. While she was processing what he was saying and showing her, he had been subtly probing her mind. He had learned the location of the primary Unicomplex. The best way to deal with the Borg he had discovered, was to terminate them at their center. Tech Priests were working on a virus similar to the one that had disabled Voyager. Only this one would send a single overpowering demand to the entire collective, one that would destroy them forever: Initiate Self-destruct.

So what do you think? In the next chapter we will find out what is going on in the 40k galaxy. Stay tuned and find out what Chaos and some Alpha Quadrant have planned for The Imperium. Until the review and you ideas may find their way int the story. Until then see ya!

P.S. How have I made the Emperor a phycopath liljimmyurine? I didn't realize it. Sorry. I haven't read much on teh Emperor, so tell me how he's supposed to be. Thanks.

ENTILZA