Chapter Title: Reckoning
Chapter Synapses: Part two of two. Hyperion resorts to desperate measures to weaken the Borg swarm. A fleet led by the Enterprise arrives to assist in the fight, along with a ship presumed destroyed.
Written by: Seraph Koji
Previously…
"Odd…" Collins looked over to Starwind, "Why would a ship from another galaxy use Borg-inspired shield harmonics?"
VonBach's eyes grew in horror, "You mean to tell me one of those freaky galaxy-jumping look-alikes is still in our galaxy."
"I need you to tell Starfleet…" Shran stared at the screen, fear striking his heart, "That the Dominion has engaged the Borg."
"All it would take is for one cube to have used the projector before the Collective was wiped out here." Sen theorized, "No way they could communicate with the Collective so far away, so they started fresh."
"Transworp Event!" Talara said urgently, "Reading one ship Cube." She reported, than paused, "No, two. Now three…" She paused, taken aback, "Sir, reading seven Borg cubes on a course for Earth."
"Talara, get me Captain Smade of the Stragger, Captain Carter of the Concorde, and Captain Ralston of the Normandy." Starwind ordered, assembling the fleet.
And now, the conclusion…"I don't think you understand, Admiral Preebe, the gravity of the situation." Starwind screamed in his ready room.
"You prevented a war and got me demoted to Vice Admiral. I think you can handle the Borg." The woman replied scornfully, "Lockheed out."
Starwind felt a need to throw his computer across the ready room. This need was interrupted, however, when the door chimed. Frustrated, he hollered, "Come in!"
VonBach walked through, "Sir, I have a plan."
Starwind's face shot from frustration to an awe-struck look. He and VonBach spoke in unison, "The Fusion Catalyst!"
Starwind almost ran on to the bridge, "Ivano, reverse course, we're going to take the fight to the cubes. Talara, tell Enterprise to get that fleet behind us soon. I also want scans for Delphinous. Bridge to Engineering, divert whatever you can to shields and armor."
VonBach calmly drifted back to his station as Starwind energetically barked orders, "Battle stations."
"What are you planning?" Collins asked.
Starwind shook his head, "No time to explain."
"Exiting warp." The seven cubes appeared on the screen, "We've engaged the Borg."
"They'll ignore us until they consider us a threat." Collins informed.
VonBach looked up from his console, "Ready, Captain."
Starwind nodded, and paused a moment, "Fleet ETA, Talara?"
"They're on our tail. Maybe fifteen minutes out?" Talara read her instruments.
"Computer." Starwind sat in his chair, "Initiate Fusion Catalyst launch sequence. Recognize Captain Starwind, Victor."
On Hyperion's dorsal hull a large launch bay opened.
"What the hell are you doing, Vic?" Talara screamed.
Collins glared at him, dumbfounded, "This is insane."
"Desperate times call for – look, we don't have time for this. Turn the damn torpedo on, Dorian!" Starwind yelled, "Or we all die."
"By 'we all', the Captain means the entire Federation." VonBach added, indifferently.
She sighed. "Computer, deploy Fusion Catalyst. Recognize First Officer Collins, Dorian."
A giant torpedo flew slowly out of the launch bay.
Winters had taken a seat some time ago at one of the auxiliary stations and devoted it to tactical control. "Encoding target." She reported.
"Computer, arm Fusion Catalyst. Recognize Chief Tactical Officer VonBach, Joseph." He grinned.
The torpedo shimmered and hummed to life.
"Computer, transfer Catalyst launch commands to the Auxiliary Tactical Station. Ivano, set a course for the fleet and engage as soon as that thing goes off."
"Aye." Ivano's hands flew across his controls.
"Now, Miss Winters." Starwind ordered.
Winters pushed the button to start the detonation timer, "Assimilate this."
"Get us the hell out of here, Ensign!" Collins yelled at Ivano.
"I'm going to warp. We should be able to beat the EMP." Ivano said as the stars transformed from points of light to streaks of light.
"Send a word to the Enterprise." Starwind ordered Talara, "Have them drop to Warp 6 and continue on current course."
"Captain's Log, supplemental. The damage to the Borg swarm the Fusion Catalyst caused was extensive. Four cubes were destroyed, but that still leaves our fleet with three regenerating cubes to worry about. We plan to attack before the cubes have had enough time to regenerate."
"Captain, the Stragger, Normandy, and Concorde have joined the fleet." Collins reported.
"How long until we return to the blast site?" Starwind asked Ivano.
"A few minutes, sir." Ivano replied.
Talara's console blipped, "Concorde is hailing."
"On screen." Starwind ordered.
"Vic!" Captain Carter appeared on the viewscreen, "We read a massive explosion up ahead, I'm relieved to see you alive. Captain Smade and I were worried."
"You aren't rid of me that easily, Annabelle." He smirked, "You ready for this?"
"Depends," Carter asked seriously, "You think this is a Kobyashi Meru, Captain?"
"Only in that someday it will be taught in command courses at the Academy." Starwind said, assuring her, "Hyperion out." He then turned to Talara, "Open a channel to the entire fleet."
"you're on."
"This is Captain Victor Starwind of the Hypeion. We've hurt the swarm, but we still have an uphill struggle. May fortune favor the foolish." He wished them luck, "Hyperion out."
"Exiting warp." Ivano reported.
The Borg now knew the fleet was a threat, and the remaining cubes responded. The comm. was overtaken, "We are the Borg. Lower your shields and surrender your ships. You will be assimilated. Your biological and technological distinctiveness will be added to our own. You will be adapted to service us. Resistance is futile."
"Red alert." Starwind ordered, "Power phaser arrays, load all torpedo tubes with Transphasics, and deploy armor. Winters, rotate frequency of our phaser arrays and initialize the Point-Defense matrix."
"Already done, sir." Winters reported.
"The Borg have opened fire!" Winters called, "The Grissom has been hit."
"All ships, attack pattern Alpha. Focus on Cube 886." Picard's orders came across Hypeion's comm.
"Okay." VonBach glanced at the viewscreen, "Which one is Cube 882?"
Starwind, with no satisfactory answer, responded with a simple, "The one the others are shooting."
"Alpha Position is taking heavy fire." An unknown female officer called across the comm.
"57 dead, 93 wounded on the Normandy." A frantic Ralston cried.
"Normandy, fall back to Delta Position, Concorde will move to the front line to replace you." Carter replied.
Ralston called back, "We've lost shields and propulsion. Core breach is imminent."
"Normandy, this is Hyperion." Starwind rose to his feet, "We're beaming survivors aboard."
"Firing Multiphasic Cannon." VonBacxh watched the blue sphere crash into a Cube, dealing visable damage.
"Transphasic Torpedoes are having an effect." Smade informed the fleet, "It's not profound, but it works."
Winters added, "They haven't adapted to our armor either. If you're listening, Admiral Janeway, good work."
"The Normandy has been destroyed." Winters reported.
"We beamed off 63 survivors. Among them were Captain Ralston and Commander Lockheart." Talara grimly informed the Captain, "Over two hundred officers were still aboard."
"Critical damage to the first cube!" VonBach smiled, "Firing Transphasic Torpedoes."
"We have a positive kill on the first cube." An officer called over the comm. as the cube exploaded.
"Target this juncture on Cube 181." Picard ordered.
VonBach's hands moved with inhuman speed, "Target locked. Firing."
"Cube 329 has moved to defend Cube 181. They bore the brunt of the attack." Smade stated what the viewer made obvious. The cubes were defending one another.
"Reading another ship entering the battle. It's splitting into three."
"A Prometheus? Could it be Nixon?" Collins asked.
Talara's eyes widened, "It's the Pendargon, ma'am."
"Pendragon just unloaded a payload of torpedoes into Cube 181. The cube is losing structural integrity." Winters cheered.
"Pendragon to Enterprise, sorry for being late to the party, Jean-Luc." Pendragon's captain, Trevor de Ayora, hailed.
"One cube left, Jean-Luc." Starwind called, "They aren't so tough now that we have Transphasic Torpedoes."
"Severe damage to Bata Position. The Lexington has been boarded." A voice screamed.
"Target and destroy the Lexington." Another ordered, "The Borg cannot get their hands on our Transphasic technology."
"The third cube is beginning to move off. We've got them!" A third officer called.
"Transphasic torpedoes, maximum yield. Fire at will." Starwind ordered.
"The three best words in the universe." VonBach grinned as he unleashed a barrage of torpedoes.
"Concorde has taken serious damage. Falling back to mobile position two." Carter called.
"Hyperion will cover you, Annabelle." Starwind motioned to VonBach.
"All ships, target one grid with the Transphasics. It should do enough damage." Smade called.
Torpedo after torpedo crashed into a single spot on the cube, pulverizing the hull.
"Firing the Multiphasic Cannon." Winters reported.
The blue sphere crashed into the final cube, destroying it.
A few hours later, the captains of most of the fleet's ships met on the Enterprise.
"It's a victory." Smade grinned happily, "We defeated seven Borg cubes! They'll think twice before attacking the Federation again!"
Ralston, still upset over the loss of the Normandy, weighed down the tone of the celebration, "But they will come back eventually, Jesse." He addressed Smade, "And they'll have found a way to adapt. And we'll be back to square one with them."
"Can we just enjoy this, Wes?" de Ayora asked.
"Wesley is right." Starwind chimed in, "Their Queen has died thee times and their entire race has been obliterated before. Don't underestimate the Borg."
Picard entered the mess hall, "Welcome, esteemed colleagues, to the Enterprise-E."
"For now, Victor, let's be content with victory." Carter smiled and went to go fetch a drink.
"Victor." Picard approached, "I have no idea what you did prior to our arrival, but you alone took out four Borg cubes."
"A surprise attack I'm sure they'll be ready for next time." Starwind said modestly.
"Nevertheless, our victory is in many ways owed to your ship and crew." Picard earnestly complimented.
"Thank you, Jean-Luc."
