AN: Here we are, another piece to this one.
I hope you enjoy! If you do, please let me know!
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"How can everyone just stand by and allow this to happen?" Seven asked. "How can you allow this to happen? You never would have allowed this before. You would have fought it!"
Seven's voice shook slightly with anger and frustration.
Kathryn tensed, and Raffi noticed the shift in her jaw.
There was practically an electric current running through the room, and Raffi thought that anyone might have been able to sense it. Her own anger had been growing since they'd left sickbay—perhaps being fed by Seven's storm of feelings—and now that they were in the Admiral's personal quarters, it felt like it was reaching a sort of crescendo.
Still, Raffi fought it down, for a moment, because the tempers and frustrations in the room were already running hot enough.
"Nobody owes you an explanation for every choice they make, Seven," Kathryn said, her tone taking on a touch of a maternal sound. "I certainly don't have to tell you why I make every decision I do. However, I am willing to try to explain a few things to you. Spalen has been steadily working to try to get permission for some of the things that he wants to do. He is, on the whole, an entirely unlikeable individual, but he's an eloquent writer and speaker when it comes to his scientific proposals."
"Causing more people to be assimilated and dismembering Borgs is not a scientific pursuit," Raffi said.
She might have responded quite negatively to the fact that Kathryn held her hand up at her to quiet her, but she caught herself, first, and realized that she was, indeed, being rather loud and, though she felt this was urgent and worth the upset, she could also recognize that simply yelling about it wasn't going to get any of them anywhere.
"Spalen and his team have presented all their information in a way that makes it sound as though they are addressing a very real safety concern," Kathryn said. "And, unfortunately, many beings from many species still harbor negative feelings and an overall distrust of the Borg, even if they are severed from the Collective."
"And, because of that, I just…I…just…"
Seven stopped talking and Raffi could tell that, very suddenly and very hard, the reality of things came crashing into her. Raffi saw the way her body moved—the expression on her face and the jerking motion of her chest. She was fighting it, but she wouldn't win.
"Seven—hold on…" Raffi said. "Sick," she said to Kathryn. It was all she could get out in a hurry, but Kathryn understood well enough. She gestured them toward the bathroom, and Raffi grabbed Seven by the shoulders, guiding her much like she'd done a number of times before Rori had been born.
They managed to make it before Seven violently lost everything she'd eaten that day and, from what Raffi could tell, possibly within the past week. Raffi rubbed her back, knowing she had nothing else to offer.
Kathryn lingered at the doorway.
"Seven—I never would have allowed this, if I had a choice," Kathryn said. "My hands are tied. It really has nothing to do with me. Spalen and his team are not Starfleet. They're not subject to my orders. And, technically, they've done nothing illegal, so I can't even invoke any vested rights to handle illegal situations while on a mission in the Delta Quadrant. For part of something that Spalen proposed, he was directed to speak with Beverly about her own discoveries in dealing with you. She was alarmed, and she was able to find out more about some of his theses and requests that have been submitted, without our knowledge, since our arrival here."
"They can't just read—anything—and be OK with harvesting parts off of sentient beings!" Seven said, when she could. Janeway stepped away long enough to offer Raffi some fresh linens and a new toothbrush, and Raffi dampened the rag for Seven to clean herself up. When she clearly felt better, Seven mumbled a thanks for the offered toothbrush, and quickly brushed her teeth in the company of her small audience.
"Spalen is calling into question whether Borg can be considered sentient beings. He's calling into question their biological and mechanical make-ups, and he's questioning whether or not the presence of their nanoprobes and other Borg-specific parts make them machines and nullify whatever remains of the organic part of their beings. Part of his argument includes the idea that, perhaps, they only appear sentient as part of an act of their mechanical parts. It's an act or a manipulation. Furthermore, if their mechanical parts overwhelm their biological selves, then he could further argue that, though they may believe that they are in control of their natures, they really aren't—whether they can be activated, again, or simply self-activate...and so on."
"You can't believe that…" Seven said.
As a small group, they all left the bathroom area and returned to the living area. Everyone, now, simply seemed tired and spent. Raffi could feel a weight in her muscles that made it difficult to put one foot in front of the other.
They would call for Kaya to bring Rori to them soon, but it was better that she not be present for all of this. Raffi didn't want her absorbing this energy, even if she couldn't possibly understand what it was all about.
"I don't believe it," Kathryn said. "Many people don't, but there are enough who do to make it a threat worth paying attention to, at the very least. Spalen has claimed that, by studying the parts, they can determine whether or not the mechanical make-up of Borg drones and ex-Borg is enough to move them from the classification of sentient beings into, essentially, machinery."
"And, once they're no longer seen as sentient beings," Raffi said, "then they can be treated like machines. Worse than animals."
"They can be broken down and destroyed without question, explanation, or remorse," Kathryn said.
"How could you let…what happened in there, happen?" Seven asked.
Kathryn laughed.
Raffi didn't believe the laugh, and she didn't believe Seven's semi-accusation that this was, in some way, Kathryn's fault. Seven was dealing with a situation that was too great, in a lot of ways, to simply sit and comprehend in the small window of time that had been granted to them.
"I have no control over any of this," Kathryn said. "Beverly Crusher has always done what she wanted to do, within reason. She's notoriously a—a do first and ask forgiveness, rather than ask permission kind of person. The fact of the matter is that she has good reason, from her contacts, to think that Spalen could make some headway with his studies—at least with getting them cleared to take place. That, alone, would put the ex-Borg that do exist at risk. Spalen suggests that their remaining Borg parts could be removed for studies and that, if they can't be removed without killing the individual, that might be even more cause to believe him. Without spare Borg parts to offer him, to try to prove that they perform the same functions as organs and such, but are not dangerous on their own, nor do they cause someone to lose their humanity entirely, Beverly feared what might be deemed permissible. They want Borg parts, and she wants to offer them what they want without anyone else getting hurt."
"And you think it's a good idea?" Seven asked, the venom now gone entirely from her voice.
"I think it's a terrible idea," Janeway said. "And, yet, I agree that it may be the only idea we have."
"She's a doctor," Seven said. "She has to realize that she may die. And, even if she doesn't die? She will be changed forever."
"I think she's well aware of that," Kathryn said. "You forget that we have some experience with helping ex-Borg return to their former selves as much as possible—even I have a few spare Borg pieces we've discovered over the years."
Kathryn sighed and moved to sit beside Seven. She affectionately put an arm around her shoulders.
"If it makes you feel better, she started to make this decision some time ago. She's thought about it. She's worked with the Doctor to improve the anti-assimilation serum that he was developing ages ago. It's short-lived, but it was in her system when you…helped her. She'll be physically assimilated, at least partially, but she'll keep her personality—everything that makes her, her. She was willing to sacrifice anything else for Rori's sake. Those of us who won't see that many more decades at least want to know that we're doing what we can to leave a world for Rori, and for so many others, where she can thrive."
"You're going to contact Starfleet and let them know what's happened?" Seven asked.
"I'll have to," Janeway said with a laugh. "We're no longer cut-off in the Delta Quadrant, and the fact that Beverly Crusher has been assimilated will need to be entered into the logs."
"You'll tell them why?" Seven asked. "You'll explain that the fear of what Spalen might be allowed to do—what he might convince people that he should be allowed to do in the name of their safety, when they weren't being threatened—is what caused it?"
"I'm going to give them a full report," Kathryn assured Seven, "including my own personal logs that contain my personal records of conversations with Beverly prior to this."
"And you'll ask them who I should contact to lodge a formal complaint of harassment, threat, and…and mental…"
She struggled to find the words she wanted, and Raffi touched the shoulder that Kathryn wasn't rubbing, the two of them doing their best to wrap her in as much comfort as possible.
"I will be the best advocate that I can for you and Rori," Kathryn assured Seven. "And I will ask who you should contact to express your concerns."
"I want Spalen removed from the ship," Seven said. "I was asked to be here as a consultant about the Delta Quadrant and the species that we will likely encounter throughout the span of this mission. I want it on the record that I do not feel safe with Spalen here. I am concerned about the safety of myself and my family. What he is doing is not illegal—fine. But his proposed study makes this a toxic environment for me and for my entire family. I want him removed from the ship, and I want a different anthropological team assigned to the Soñador. The fact that Doctor Crusher felt cornered into doing what she's done should be enough to suggest that this particular team is not the best choice for this mission. What's to stop them from deciding to dissect a specimen from each species we encounter?"
"I don't think that they would do that," Kathryn said gently. "Nor do I believe that they would be allowed. However, I will present your argument, and I will formally introduce the request that we have a rendezvous to bring in a different research team. I think we have a suitable argument against the working conditions here."
"My baby is going to be growing up on the Soñador," Seven said. "We'll be here some time, if all goes according to plan. She'll be—taking her first steps. Learning her first words. I don't want her to do that on a ship where I'm having constant nightmares about what might be done to her to satisfy someone's…curiosity."
"If he touches Rori…" Raffi started.
Kathryn held a hand out in her direction with a gesture that was meant to settle her.
"He's not touching Rori," Kathryn said. "Still—I'll file my report as soon as possible. I'm waiting to hear from the Doctor. He's going to let me know when the first stage is complete—when we're ready to start informing Starfleet of what's taking place here. When I have the word from him, I'll contact them. I'll voice your concerns."
"Make sure you voice them well," Raffi said. "I'm not threatening anyone—least of all you—but I'm simply saying that…we're not going to stand around and let our family be threatened or harmed. I'm not afraid of the Brig, and I'm not afraid to face trial when we get back to the Alpha Quadrant, either. And if Elnor thinks there's a threat…"
Kathryn gave Raffi an almost amused look. She shook her head at her.
"Keep your head about you, Raffi," she said. "You don't want to rob Rori of one of her mothers or her brother. Let's give Starfleet and the Federation a chance to handle this in the most peaceful way possible. In the meantime, focus on your duty, your family, and that beautiful baby girl."
They both nodded their understanding, but the truth of what Raffi had said crackled in the air. It would be best for them to rendezvous with another ship and trade off scientific teams as soon as possible. The last thing they wanted on a diplomatic mission was vigilante justice, but the proverbial weather was right for it, if something wasn't done to remedy the problem. Spalen and his scientific proposals would be dangerous enough from a distance, but that distance was best.
"We'll give it time," Raffi said finally. "And we'll give Spalen and his team some space, but…"
"Understood, Commander," Kathryn offered, putting enough of an official tone behind her words to make it clear to Raffi that she was done discussing this for the time being. "Would you like me to call Kaya and have her bring the baby?"
"It is not necessary," Seven said. "I would like to return to our quarters."
"Take your time and enjoy your daughter—and your wife," Janeway said. "You're both entirely relieved of duty for the day."