Chapter 4
I watched as Captain Janeway woke slowly, her mouth turning up at the corners in a slight smile almost as if she had forgotten about our predicament in those few moments before she became fully aware. I didn't know what it was about her sleeping form that I found so intriguing, though perhaps I was just fascinated by the notion of sleep itself, having no memories of being around sleeping individuals before. I nodded, convincing myself that that must be the reason. When her eyes opened they locked onto mine instantly. I blushed furiously, despite knowing that she was blissfully unaware of my prior watching.
"Good morning Captain." I said quietly, looking down at the floor from my position against the cool wall of our cell.
"Morning Seven" She answered, smoothly glossing over my behaviour. She settled herself next to me with a barely audible groan.
"Did I miss anything?"
"Yes as you can see, while you were asleep I escaped. I left you behind as a punishment." My eyes widened in surprise at the words tumbling out of my mouth; the Borg did not make jokes. My apology died on my lips as she laughed. In that moment it was as if the full throaty sound had just shut my entire body down. My lungs seemed to paralyze midway through a breath and I was acutely aware of a deafening hammering against my ribcage. She nudged me playfully with her elbow and my cortical node re-engaged, working furiously to understand what had just happened; clearly my humanity was trying to re-assert itself but was malfunctioning in the process.
"So you do have a sense of humour somewhere underneath the Borg façade," The last remnants of laughter faded from her deep blue eyes as she swept her gaze over my features and I saw her shift into her Captains persona, "Did you sleep?"
"No Captain. I did however lie still in an effort to conserve my energy"
"We'll get out of here Seven, the both of us." She said adamantly reaching over to squeeze my hand reassuringly. I was impressed at her ability to believe in herself so strongly that she thought she could overcome the impossible. Humanity certainly was interesting. I merely nodded in response, for once not wanting the debate as I focused solely on the feeling of her hand on mine. My mind was racing as I felt my body temperature jump up erratically and my heart rate quicken. I didn't know what any of this meant but I did know that I liked the feel of her hand in mine.
A sudden burst of heavy footsteps signalled the arrival of the guards. This time they motioned for me first but I was beaten to my feet by Captain Janeway.
"I want to speak to whoever is in charge here." She growled aggressively partially shielding my body from the men with hers.
"Move aside!" Came the surly reply from our captors. She didn't budge, her icy glare intensifying.
The guard closest to us chuckled briefly before he raised his arm swiftly bringing the butt of his gun into contact with Janeways' cheek. She let out a grunt but remarkably stayed upright, her hand coming up to her cheek to make contact with the cut now oozing blood.
"Captain!" I exclaimed, my body instinctively moving towards hers, my arm finding her waist. The guards pushed her aside and grabbed my other arm, hoisting me through the door, severing me from her.
Once again I was deposited efficiently in the large white room.
"Species 4458, specimen 2 are you ready for your second intelligence test?" The female voice asked once I had settled into the chair.
"No." I retorted stubbornly. I was sick of being someone's experiment or new toy. I was struck with a suddenly overwhelming urge to be my own person. An individual. I wanted to explore who I was, it irked my slightly that I owed this urge to the auburn haired woman awaiting my return in our cell. I was never going to admit to her that her actions might have been beneficial to me.
"Species 4458 specimen 2 please clarify."
"I'm not a member of species 4458. I am Seven of nine, formerly Borg not yet human. As a result, I do not yet sleep therefore I need to regenerate to function adequately. I am not prepared for my test" I had decided that rather than waiting for my Borg anatomy to shut down I would be upfront about my situation. I was sure that it was not something that the Captain would have wanted me to do but unlike her I did not believe in the power of blind luck getting us out of here. I had to try and control my own destiny.
"Species 4458 specimen 2 we are aware of your situation. Are you ready?"
"Explain." I demanded, wanting to know if that meant they had means for me to regenerate or if they were just seeing how long I would last.
"Species 4458 specimen 2, are you ready?"
I balled my fists, it struck me briefly that this must be how annoying it can be to converse with the Borg. The irony of it was not lost on me. I gritted my teeth and choked out a strangled affirmative response. The questions appeared on the wall. Chemistry. Despite my anger I allowed myself a small smile.
The 100 questions passed by quickly and I waited for my score.
"Species 4458 specimen 2, your test is over. Your score is 94." There was a beep and the first buzz of pain spread over my nerves, the second came a few moments later, a fraction more intense. The remaining episodes of pain barely affected me. I was more annoyed that I had gotten six wrong than I was about being punished for it. Though, I much preferred enduring the pain of six rather than twenty six. I felt a pang of guilt snake into my stomach, knowing that my six incorrect answers would get added to the Captains total and that she was sure to score far lower than I had.
Much like the previous day as soon as I was placed back in my cell, Captain Janeway was dragged out. Our eyes met and I could see the intensity of the fighting spirit that lay just beneath her surface. I mouthed the word six to her, trying to give her at least some forewarning.
"Seven of nine." A voice whispered some while later, jerking me out of my resting. I looked up into dark eyes in the cell opposite mine.
"Kerra." I acknowledged.
"Are you ok?" She asked, offering me a half-smile.
"I am functioning within normal parameters." I paused. "Are you?"
"Yes, I only got 14 wrong today. It wasn't so bad. I am er was an industrial chemist on Lodar."
"And your brother?" I enquired curiously. She laughed mirthlessly.
"He hates chemistry, he is a biomedical engineer. Hopefully he will do well later on."
"Kerra, may I ask you a question?"
"Of course"
"The rumours on your planet, do they allude to what happens at the end of what I presume are rounds of testing?" She met my steady gaze hesitantly, she didn't have to answer. From the look on her face I knew the answer to my query.
"I think the losing species is gotten rid of Seven of nine."
"Then I am glad both of our species are performing adequately enough." I stated quietly, offering her a wry smile.
Our conversation was interrupted by screaming. We leapt back from the bars and the tell-tale sound of boots started in the distance. The door to my cell opened and Captain Janeway walked through, aided only slightly by the guards.
"Captain, are you alright?" I asked, perturbed by her calm demeanour. She smiled at me despite our situation as she lowered herself to the floor in front of me.
"I'm fine Seven, it turns out all those years as the science officer on the Al-Batani paid off."
"How many did you get wrong?" My curiosity getting the better of me, although the competitive part of me was still hoping she had scored less than me.
"Ten." I couldn't stop my smirk. She noticed but instead of being angry at my pettiness she smiled taking me by surprise.
"Why are you smiling Captain?" I asked, shifting uncomfortably under her gaze.
"For someone who is so determined that they aren't human, you do exhibit our competitive trait rather well." Her eyes seemed to be filled with what looked like a spark of appreciation. Almost as if I had started to become whoever she had wanted me to be underneath the metal. Instead of the anger I would normally feel begin to bubble whenever my mind cast back to her severing me from the only family I had ever known ,there was a flicker of pride growing deep within my stomach. Her approval meant something to me. I cleared my throat, not wanting to dwell on my minds musings.
"Well that should be useful if we are to succeed here Captain." I filled her in on what Kerra had told me. At some point during our discussion she had taken to picking absentmindedly at the now scabbed over cut on her cheek gained from her earlier defiance. I watched as drops of blood begin to slowly trickle down her cheek.
"You are bleeding Captain." I cast my eyes around our cramped cell looking for something to mop up the blood with.
"Here." She shrugged off her red and black officers jacket , revealing her grey top that lay underneath, and offered it to me, "Use this." I moved to dab at her cheek with a section of the inner lining my other hand coming up to cup her chin, holding her face steady. Her skin was as smooth as silk under my fingertips and I marveled at its flawless nature. Getting carried away, I slid my finger along her jaw involuntarily and felt her shiver beneath my touch. Dark eyes flashed upwards holding mine in a questioning gaze, she looked like she was trying to figure out something that was puzzling her. The intense scrutiny unnerved me slightly and I shakily resumed my dabbing.
"Seven," She murmured quietly after a moment, "As we are to remain here for the foreseeable future I think we can drop the formalities, don't you? Call me Kathryn." Her breath ghosted over my face as I stemmed the flow of her blood.
"Yes Cap-…Kathryn." Her name felt strange in my mouth, my tongue curling around the letters. I could feel her eyes on me as I continued to tend to her face. Her blood was beginning to clot signalling that I would have to remove my hand soon. I was amazed to realise my disappointment over that train of thought and wished earnestly for my humanity to cease with its malfunctioning and instead function within its normal parameters.
/
Later after we had eaten we were once again allowed to use the bathroom. I had gathered that this would be a recurring daily pattern of testing, eating 3 small meals a day and visiting the bathroom. Despite my anger at being held captive I could appreciate the efficiency of our routine; so far it was easy to cope with.
Once we were back in our cell the Captain and I sat opposite one another. The Captain chuckled softly. I raised my eyebrow, silently asking her to explain herself.
"Nothing, Seven."
"Unacceptable, I wish to know."
"Alright." She held her hands up in mock surrender and I couldn't stop the corners of my mouth curling upwards in a small smile, "I was just thinking that I'm bored and I almost wish I back in the testing room." I didn't understand why that was funny but I nodded in agreement.
"I too, am bored Kathryn. Perhaps we should find a way to stimulate each other." Her eyes widened almost comically at my words and then darkened with an emotion I did not recognise before they returned to their normal shade of blue.
"Why don't we get to know each other a bit?" She said in a voice that was half an octave above her normal pitch. I had no idea what was going on but I decided not to push for an explanation; something told me I would not get an adequate one out of the older woman.
"I find this an acceptable proposal. What do you want to know?"
"Um, why don't we start small? What is your favourite colour?" I found it hard to believe that such information was in any way interesting to her but I acquiesced to her questioning anyway.
"I do not know Cap-Kathryn. I have never thought about it." Such thoughts would not have been high on the Borg agenda. Colours were irrelevant.
"Well why don't you pick one?" She replied, grinning at me warmly. I considered her words. What was my favourite colour? After casting my eye over our cell I quickly decided that it was most definitely not brown, my gaze settled on her jacket, which lay discarded beside the Captain.
"Red. My favourite colour is red."
"You don't have to pick a colour you can see Seven. You can pick any colour."
"I know." I said in a hushed tone. Red was synonymous with her and our time together was strangely pleasing to me, not that I would ever tell her that.
"Okay. Mine's purple. There were these beautiful purple flowers that grew on the edge of some woods near my Aunt and Ellie's house. When I think of home, they're one of the things I miss the most." Her tone was wistful, as she lost herself in what I assumed were memories of her home planet. It was my home too technically, though I had no memory of Earth at all.
"Did you spend much time with your Aunt Ellie?" I found myself asking. Apparently I was more interested in the Captains past than I thought I was.
"My Aunt AND Ellie." She said emphasising the connective. "My Aunt is called Sarah. She and Ellie have been married for as long as I can remember."
"Why?"
"Why, what?"
"Why are they together? They can yield no offspring, it is inefficient." The Borg had not had any information available regarding same sex coupling and I found myself intrigued by the turn of our conversation. The diversity of humanity was complex.
"Because love is more important than efficiency Seven. They love each other immensely and love transcends traditional gender roles and evolutionary protocol"
"I see." I stated, nodding my head as if I understood. Of course, I understood her words, but the concept of love itself was very alien to me. I wondered briefly if that would always be the case before a sudden thought struck me.
"How do they copulate?" At my question Janeway flushed a colour reminiscent of her tunic and groaned audibly her hand coming to rub at her temples in a gesture I was very familiar with despite our short history together.
"Perhaps we should discuss that at a later date." I could see the hopeful look in her eyes and I smirked, not having pegged her for shy.
"Very well. What else do you miss about Earth?"
We talked about Earth for the rest of the evening. I watched her as she talked animatedly about her home and her family. She looked different, and it occurred to me how beautiful she was when she was relaxed. Her body radiated a happiness that I had never seen her express before and probably wouldn't see again until we made it back to Earth. If we made it back. If we made it out of here.
I noticed her terrible attempt at stifling a fifth yawn and realised with a pang of guilt that my curiosity had kept her awake.
"My apologies Captain, I should let you sleep."
"I'm fine." She protested her eyelids drooping as she spoke.
"You are tired." I said firmly, reaching over to gently push her down until she was laid upon the ground. "Goodnight Kathryn."
"Night Seven." She muttered in a voice heavy with sleep. I observed her sleeping form for a while as the final remnants of daylight faded and my optical implant adjusted enabling me to see in the darkness. It was colder than the previous night and it didn't take long for her to start to shiver; her jacket was still discarded next to her. I placed her jacket over the top half of her body but it didn't look like it made much difference. Tentatively I shuffled my body towards hers, pressing mine against her slender figure. It made perfect sense to me to try and warm her with my own body heat, I just hoped the Captain would agree with my reasoning when she woke up. I imagined that in any other situation this would have been taboo. To my surprise she shifted sleepily and curled into me her arm ending up over my stomach holding me firmly to her. Her head came to rest against my shoulder and my body tingled, a sudden rush of heat expanding in my chest. I lay perfectly still as my mind raced. What had I done?
A/N:- Thanks for reading. Any reviews would be greatly appreciated as I would love feedback about the first person style as I'm still not sure about it. All thoughts are welcome! Hope you enjoyed it xx
