Chapter 3 – Return to Voyager
Voyager sat idle in space awaiting the return of Commander Chakotay's shuttle. They expected him sometime later in the day. It was an opportune time for the engineering crew to work on the plasma manifolds and complete some maintenance of the warp engines. There was not much else to do, so Captain Kathryn Janeway sat in her command chair on the bridge reading a book. A chime sounded at Lieutenant Commander Tuvok's tactical station and he studied the sensor readings. "Captain, Commander Chakotay's shuttle is entering sensor range."
"He's early," Captain Janeway remarked, folding up her book.
"There's a second vessel keeping pace with his shuttle," Tuvok continued. There was something familiar about the energy signature of the second craft, and Tuvok cross-referenced with the ship's database. He looked up sharply. "Captain, it's a Borg shuttle of previously unknown configuration. Tetrahedron shaped."
This got Janeway's attention. "Red alert!" she called out. The alarm started blaring throughout the ship.
"Captain, Commander Chakotay is hailing Voyager." Ensign Kim said from his station at operations.
"On screen." A visual link was established. Chakotay sat in the pilot's chair, but it was the passenger who sat next to him that commanded Janeway's full attention. A Borg drone. A host of thoughts raced through her mind. Had Chakotay already been assimilated? Janeway had known ever since entering the Delta Quadrant that an encounter with the Borg was possible. The two of them appeared too relaxed, however, so something didn't quite add up.
"Captain," Chakotay said, "I'm sorry to alarm you." He must have noticed Voyager already on high alert. "This is Seven… ah, Seven of Nine. A human recently disconnected from the Borg Collective. I met up with her about three light years from here. She has requested asylum aboard Voyager."
"Asylum?" Janeway replied, still trying to process the information.
"Yes Captain," Chakotay continued. "Request permission to dock both our shuttles. We can either meet you in the docking bay or come to your ready room for a debriefing."
Janeway was about to suggest the Brig as another alternative, not only for the Borg, but for her First Officer for not having anticipated their reaction and planned his return accordingly. She motioned to Tuvok who cancelled the red alert. "A security detail will meet you at the shuttle bay and help you secure both vessels. Then report to my ready room immediately. Janeway out." The transmission ended. She turned to Tuvok shaking her head. "Go to the shuttle bay personally. The Borg. I don't like this."
"Nor I," Tuvok concurred. He stepped out from behind the tactical station and headed for the turbolift.
On the shuttle, Chakotay turned to Seven when the transmission ended. "In retrospect, we should have contacted Voyager immediately and described the situation before our arrival," he mused.
"Captain Janeway trusts you," Seven observed. "I think it went fine. I will follow your lead when we arrive. What should I divulge about you and me?"
"Currently, in this universe, there's nothing between you and me. I expect you to be as honest and forthcoming as you can."
"Of course," Seven replied with the quick nod. She sounded disappointed.
Chakotay maneuvered the shuttle to a position just outside Voyager's open shuttle bay doors. Seven's tetrahedron, on autopilot, positioned itself beside. The shuttle bay's tractor beams took over and started moving both ships into the bay.
"There's one thing that puzzles me," Chakotay said, as they waited for the ships to be secured. "Of the countless individuals in these alternate universes, and billions of years of time, why does most of your knowledge pertain to just you and me?"
"I have thought about that," Seven confessed. "I don't have a good answer. I do know some details about others. I know your friend Ayala serves as best man in many of our weddings. He's an avid birder. Joined the Maquis when his wife was killed by the Cardassians. And there's someone on Voyager, Marina? She and I are close in many varied realities and is often my maid of honor. But it is true. Most of the knowledge of others besides the two of us stems from their relationship with us."
"Marina Jor," Chakotay said idly, referring to the second person Seven had mentioned. The shuttles were now entirely within the shuttle bay and the doors were closing. Magnetic anchors locked them into place. Chakotay stood and moved to the rear of the shuttle and Seven followed. Soon enough the bay was pressurized and the shuttle door opened. Chakotay and Seven stepped outside. Lieutenant Commander Tuvok and two security guards stood waiting for them near the entrance. Chakotay was relieved that none of them had their phasers drawn, although all three were armed.
"Welcome back sir," Tuvok said, addressing Chakotay. He turned to Seven with a slight nod. "Welcome aboard, Seven of Nine." He lifted a tricorder and showed it to Seven. "If you don't mind, I would like to scan you."
"Of course," Seven replied.
Tuvok stepped around Seven and scanned, adjusting the tricorder every so often. "There is no evidence of any connection to the Borg Hive Mind. In fact, the transceiver I was expecting to detect has already been removed from your cortical array."
Seven appeared perplexed. "I was not aware of that," she said. "It is possible, when Unimatrix Zero was taken offline, the transceivers on all affected drones were removed by another means."
"Unimatrix Zero?" Tuvok repeated.
"Part of the debriefing we need to provide the Captain," Chakotay interrupted. "It is related to how Seven was severed from the Collective."
Tuvok nodded curtly and closed the tricorder. "I see." He motioned to the door into Voyager's interior. "I will escort you to the Captain's ready room now." He moved off first and Chakotay and Seven followed behind. The two other security guards remained in the shuttle bay, presumably to examine the tetrahedron more closely with similar scans. The walk up to the bridge and the ready room was passed in silence.
Tuvok and Chakotay moved over to sit in their usual spots around the central table. Seven followed Chakotay and sat down next to him.
"Welcome aboard, Seven of Nine," Janeway said cautiously.
"Seven is sufficient Captain," Seven replied.
"Seven it is then," Janeway said diplomatically. She adjusted herself in her seat to get more comfortable. "Why don't you start from the beginning?"
Seven glanced at Chakotay and then leaned forward, placing her crossed hands on the ready room's central table. "The Borg Collective is currently in a consolidation phase where outlying colonies of previously assimilated species are being identified and acquired. About thirty light years distant from here was a Brunali colony world of approximately six hundred million that was assimilated eighteen days ago. Among those was an individual who referred to himself as a Steward who possessed detailed knowledge of alternate universe histories. Approximately eleven thousand such alternative realities that I'm aware of." She glanced at Chakotay and then back to Captain. "Curiously, each history is not a complete history, but rather detailed vignettes as it pertains to Commander Chakotay and myself."
Captain Janeway raised her eyebrows and turned to Chakotay.
"You say, that you're aware of," Tuvok remarked. "Is it possible there is information the Borg assimilated from this individual that you are not aware of?"
Seven frowned. "I have only recently been considering this possibility," she replied. "For the past ten days I've been so focused on finding Chakotay, I did not think to question the scope of the knowledge concerning these alternative universes. As a drone, however, I only perceive a portion of the Hive Mind's consciousness. Individual drones would be overwhelmed otherwise. It is possible, and perhaps even likely, I only obtained a portion of what was assimilated from the Steward."
"The portion related to us," Chakotay added, completing her thought.
"Or the portion the Hive Mind wanted you to have," Tuvok mused.
"And so how did you get disconnected from the Hive Mind?" Janeway asked.
"One thing the Hive Mind learned of was a separate consciousness sustained by regenerating drones called Unimatrix Zero. In this construct, the drones kept their individuality. I was part of Unimatrix Zero and was severed from the Hive Mind when it was terminated by the Collective ten days ago. Unimatrix Zero was perceived a threat because it figures in a number of alternative realities. In some, the Voyager crew was assimilated at the end of the alliance with the Borg in combating Species Eight Four Seven Two and Chakotay and I use Unimatrix Zero to instigate a Borg Civil War."
Janeway held up her hands in protest. "Now hold on. Species Eight Four Seven Two? An alliance with the Borg?"
"Apparently two years from now," Chakotay chimed in. "In the majority of alternative universes it is at that point when Seven joins the Voyager crew because she was the Borg liaison with Voyager during the alliance."
"I thought you just said the Voyager crew was assimilated," Janeway protested.
"Only in about ten percent of those instances," Seven amended. "And in all those cases, the insurrection Chakotay and I instigate is successful in freeing us from the Borg and the Borg descended into chaos."
Janeway shook her head. "How many different alternative universes do you have knowledge of?"
"Approximately eleven thousand," Seven replied.
Janeway turned to Tuvok. "We're not going to be debriefed on all of that today. Work with Seven to get what she remembers recorded. Particularly information we might make use of now."
Tuvok nodded. "Understood."
Janeway turned back to Seven. "There's one last thing I don't understand. Why do you remember details of alternate realities involving just Commander Chakotay and yourself?"
Seven glanced over to Chakotay and he cleared his throat. "Well, you see Captain," he began and shifted a bit in his seat, "in most of these realities, according to Seven, the two of us are, well, involved with the other."
"Involved with the other?" Janeway repeated, not quite grasping the implication.
"We get married and have a family," Seven clarified flatly. "In ninety-two point three percent of the universes to be precise."
Janeway sat up straighter and opened her mouth. "Okay." She glanced back and forth between Chakotay and Seven and cracked a smile. "I think I've heard enough for now," she finally said. "What do you suggest our course of action be in addition to Tuvok documenting what Seven knows." She again glanced back and forth between Chakotay and Seven, but then settled on Seven.
"The Doctor can remove seventy five to ninety percent of my Borg implants," Seven responded. "At least according to the other universes where that is an option. I would like to get that completed as soon as possible."
Janeway nodded. "That sounds reasonable. Tuvok, why don't you escort Seven down to sickbay while I talk to Commander Chakotay for a little while longer."
Seven and Tuvok stood and started moving towards the door, but Seven hesitated and turned back. "Could Chakotay be the one with me in sickbay during the operation to remove my Borg armor and implants? I could wait outside until you are finished here and he could bring me to sickbay."
"You go to sickbay, and I'll send Chakotay along shortly," Janeway responded. "After sickbay, Chakotay can also arrange some quarters for you."
Seven nodded crisply and followed Tuvok out of the room. The door swished shut behind them.
Janeway placed her hands atop the ready room table and turned to face Chakotay, her eyes blazing. "Do you believe any of this?" she asked.
Chakotay rubbed his chin. "Some," he finally confessed. "She knew why I was out there in the shuttle alone. She somehow knows details about some of the people here on Voyager. Ayala. Jor."
Janeway narrowed her eyes. "You believe her," she observed.
Chakotay shrugged. "I'm not sure I believe all of it," he said. "Multiple universes? Different realities? I just don't know what to think. For now, I'm willing to give her the benefit of the doubt."
"And do you believe the two of you are destined to be married?" Janeway asked incredulously. She leaned back and placed her hands back in her lap. "I think in the past few months, we've become friends, and so I'm going to be honest with you. I think you are smitten with this woman." Chakotay started to protest, but Janeway raised her hand to stop him. "I'm not saying she's lying. And I'm not saying we're not going to try and help her. I'm just saying, as your friend, to be careful."
Chakotay sighed and then nodded slowly. "Understood. Thank you Kathryn."
Janeway frowned, and then waved him away. "Go along. You're dismissed."
Chakotay left the Captain's ready room and made his way directly to sickbay. When he entered, Seven was laying on a biobed with the Doctor scanning her with a medical tricorder. Tuvok stood close by. When Chakotay approached, Tuvok turned to face him. "I'm going to head back to the Bridge," he said. "Advise me when Seven is completed here and I will contact her to set up an interview schedule." Chakotay nodded his concurrence and Tuvok left.
The Doctor continued his scans, all the time frowning. He adjusted the instrument and rescanned. "And you say my programs in other universes were able to remove ninety percent of your implants?" He sounded surprised.
"Seventy five to ninety percent," Seven corrected.
"Ah," the Doctor replied and nodded. He placed the medical tricorder back onto a small table beside the biobed. "It will take a little bit of time, and some precision surgery on my part, but I believe I'll be able to remove eighty five percent. On the upper end of your scale. We can begin immediately." He turned to Chakotay, as if seeing him for the first time. "Are you here to assist me?"
"If I can be of any help?" Chakotay replied.
The Doctor nodded crisply and held out his right hand palm up. "Twenty cc's of hydrozene."
Fortunately, Chakotay had had some emergency medical training and knew how to program a hypospray. But before handing it to the Doctor, who appeared irritated that he had to wait, Chakotay looked down and addressed Seven. "Are you okay to start this now?" he asked.
"The sooner the better," Seven replied, so Chakotay gave the hypospray to the Doctor who immediately administered it and handed it back to Chakotay. Seven closed her eyes, unconscious. "Micro-scalpel."
Removing the Borg armor went relatively smoothly. Most of those components were grafted directly onto the skin and could be separated relatively easily with the micro-scalpel. After each piece was removed, a dermal regenerator was administered to the resulting exposed skin. Most other external components were removed included the majority of the ocular device. The Doctor was able to fashion and artificial eye to replace the corresponding Borg component that retained most of the ocular device's function, but had a more natural appearance. Only some of the device about her eyebrow remained visible. He also reduced and adjusted the Borg nanoprobes in Seven's bloodstream to return her skin pigmentation to a more natural color, suppressed their replacement properties, and enable other bodily functions such as digestion to start functioning again. Many of the Borg internal components could also be removed, but not all. The carbon-fiber skeletal components which had replaced a number of her bones of course had to remain in place. Finally, he stimulated hair growth on her scalp to provide her a head of short hair. When the surgery was completed, she was awakened. She was on the same biobed but now covered by a loose fitting garment and not a Borg exoskeleton. All of the removed Borg components were laid out on a nearby biobed.
Seven looked around and squinted. "My eyesight has been modified."
"Only slightly," the Doctor assured her. "You will get used to it in time."
She sat up and then touched her upper arm. "My skin still feels irritated."
The Doctor nodded. "I'm afraid that might persist. I could generate clothing that would mimic your Borg armor and would not irritate the remaining implants," he suggested.
She rubbed her arm over the implant and then swung her legs over to the side of the biobed. She felt so much lighter than before. "No, this is sufficient. Thank you Doctor." She looked over to where Chakotay stood nearby. "How do I look?"
Chakotay smiled. "You look beautiful," he replied truthfully.
Seven appeared satisfied with his reaction and hopped off the biobed and turned to the Doctor. "Am I discharged Doctor?"
The Doctor nodded. "Yes, of course. Now remember, your various human bodily functions will start functioning soon enough. Get something to eat and drink. You'll also need to regenerate your Borg components as soon as possible. Do you have a means of doing that?"
"In the tetrahedron," Seven confirmed.
"What is the tetrahedron?" the Doctor asked, irritated.
"It's the Borg spacecraft docked in the shuttlebay," Chakotay replied.
"Why wasn't I informed of this?" He didn't wait for an answer. "Go there immediately after you get something to eat and drink." The Doctor looked about sickbay, but he had no other patients. "I will turn myself off now," he said, and in a shimmer, disappeared.
"Hmm," Seven exclaimed and shook her head.
"What is it?" Chakotay asked.
Seven shrugged. "In many universes, apparently, the Doctor and I become close friends. He even develops a romantic interest in me."
"The Doctor?" Chakotay was genuinely surprised.
Seven shrugged again.
"Come," Chakotay said, motioning to the door, "I'll take you to the mess hall, and then to the shuttle bay so you can regenerate."
Seven followed Chakotay to the door. "I think the Captain asked you to requisition me quarters after sickbay," she protested. "The alcove from the tetrahedron could be removed from the craft and installed in my assigned quarters. It wouldn't take more than an hour or so."
Chakotay nodded. "I'll have to see what's available," he said.
"I have an idea about that," Seven said with a grin.
Chakotay shook his head. "I don't think that would be appropriate," he replied.
Now Seven smiled. "What exactly are you thinking, Chakotay? I was going to suggest perhaps doubling up with Crewman Jor, if she agrees to the arrangement."
It just so happened that Marina was in quarters by herself and it would have the necessary space. "That's actually a possibility. I'll speak with her. I think for this first regeneration cycle, however, it will have to be in the tetrahedron."
They arrived in the mess hall. It was a little late for lunch, and early for dinner, near the start of the next shift, but Neelix and a few other crewmembers were present. Neelix brightened when they arrived. "Welcome," he said. "The Captain informed me we had a new member of the crew."
Seven smiled back. "It's agreeable to finally meet you Mister Neelix."
Neelix waved his hand dismissively. "Oh please, just Neelix. What can I get for you?"
Seven turned to face Chakotay. "Just a glass of water Neelix," Chakotay said. "And something bland. This is her first meal after…" He quickly turned to Seven, "I'm sorry. I don't even know how long ago you were assimilated. You said you were assimilated when you were very young."
"I was assimilated sixteen point two three years ago when I was six years old."
Chakotay cocked his head.
"So, chronologically, I'm twenty two years old and you are forty three years old," Seven continued. "During the first six months after my assimilation, however, I was in a Borg maturation chamber where my body aged twelve years, so biologically, I'm a thirty four year old woman." She smiled and patted Chakotay on the shoulder, "the age difference has never been an issue between us in any of the alternative realities."
Neelix had overheard the whole exchange. "How fascinating."
Chakotay simply sighed and motioned over to an empty seat. "Come on, we'll sit over there."
As they approached the table Chakotay had indicated, the person seated at the next table turned to greet them. Ironically, it was Crewman Jor, and there was mirth in her ink-black eyes. "Chakotay," she said. "An interesting pakra this year, eh?" Marina had been one of his Maquis crew. A pilot on the Val Jean. She was half-human and half-Betazoid, the daughter of a Betazoid diplomat in fact. Marina turned to Seven. "Welcome to Voyager. Another wayward soul."
Seven smiled back. "You're Marina."
"I am."
Seven looked at Chakotay, and he shrugged, so she returned her attention to Marina. "I'm in need of quarters and I was wondering if you wouldn't mind having me join you in yours."
Marina smiled. "Fine with me," she said amiably. "There's plenty of room. I'm heading off to relieve Paris on the bridge right now. Won't be back until late, but we can get to know one another tomorrow morning."
"That would be satisfactory," Seven replied.
Marina smiled again and stood up. As Seven and Chakotay were taking their seats, Marina punched Chakotay's shoulder such that Seven wouldn't notice. Marina and Chakotay caught each other's eyes, Chakotay expressing the equivalent to 'what?'. "See you two tomorrow," Marina laughed, and moved off to recycle her plate and utensils.
Just then, Neelix approached the table and placed a glass of water and a plate with what looked like two pieces of toast. "Bon appetite," he enthused, and then returned to his station behind the counter.
Seven smiled smugly. "Everything seems to be working out perfectly."
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Author's Note: Not spending much time editing these chapters. I apologize if they're a bit clunky.
