The inside looked almost exactly like the outside. Except that it seemed to have fridges inside, keeping some of these Borgs cold. Maybe these were their restoration chambers. It would make sense, because these Borgs were knelt down inside them, telling me they were in a sort of resting position. Just when that thought came to mind, Short stopped us from walking any further. I looked to see why she did that. From a short distance, we saw a Borg walking in our direction. Saya grabbed hold of her sword, while Merlin and Short aimed their guns.
"No need to draw your weapons." it said to us, "You have been expected."
"We have?" Short questioned.
"You have not." this Borg replied, "But your companions have."
"Us?" Melin asked, "Why?"
"Maybe because he knows we blew up their base." Saya suggested.
"You three will follow me." it told us, "While your companion will be assimilated."
Short scoffed: "Don't I get to decide that for myself?"
"Negative." the Borg said, flatly.
"Then you'll have to assimilate us too." Saya suggested.
Both Merlin and I looked at her for suggesting this. It was Merlin who asked: "Saya, what are you doing?"
"Don't you understand?" Saya explained, "They need us for something, and they require us to not be assimilated just yet."
"So?" Merlin asked.
"They want to assimilate Major Short, they won't get us to come along." Saya further explained.
"In other words, they'll have to assimilate you in order to follow him." Short chuckled.
"We have other methods of persuasion." the Borg said.
As soon as he said that, door opened all around us. Smoke escaped from these fridges, almost blinding us. Merlin whipered "gust of wind", and the smoke was blown away. I thought we were saved, until I saw why those doors opened. They were those same fridges I had seen before. So when the doors opened, they let go of the Borgs inside them. I soon saw that these Borgs weren't kneeling inside their chambers, they were actually that small. Only just did I think the words "It couldn't be..." when Short shouted: "These are my people!"
"You still wish to resist?"the taller Borg said.
As soon as he said those words, the ground underneath us shook a little. I wasn't the only one who noticed. These... Mini-Borgs looked at the ground, just as puzzled as I was.
"Earthquakes." Saya remarked, "They happen all the time."
"That's not an earthquake." Short said, as she grabbed mine and Merlin's arms and pulled us away from these confused Borgs. Saya soon followed. We could even walk past the taller Borg. Whoever was controlling these Borgs had no idea of what was happening either. As soon as had run away, the ground on which the Borgs stood just collapsed. These Borgs survived the crash, but they were stuck in earth, and pieces of debris.
"How did you know this would happen?" Merlin asked Short.
"Let's just say a friend of ours can pull through when it counts." Short replied, "Now let's go."
We ran as fast as we could. On our way, we came across a few Borgs, but each of them were looking away from us, like they were suddenly disinterested in why were there.
"Why are they ignoring us now?" Saya wondered.
"I think they are now looking for what may have caused their floor to collapse." Murphy suggested.
"He'll be long gone by the time they arrive." Short added.
Before any one of us could ask who she meant, she continued our run.
After a few minutes, which felt like hours, we found one central room. This room seemed to be overrun by cables, all connecting to one chair. On that chair sat something that we didn't expect to see. The Borg were all pale-skinned, and wore black metal outfits, while this one didn't show any skin, and was completely made of silver. It's head did have a plastic cover, through which we could see it had a brain. Though this looked slightly different from what we had seen before, we could all still recognize it for what it was.
"A Cyberman?" Saya spoke.
"A Cyber Commander." it said.
"You're the central mind to these Borg?" Merlin asked.
"Very perceptive of you." it replied, "This must be why you managed to destroy our base."
"Is that why you were expecting us?" Saya asked him, "To tell you how we did it?"
"No." it replied, "What I hoped to achieve is to keep you in storage, until we can figure out the best use for you."
"Best use? What's that mean?" Short asked.
"Since I have only Borg technology to work with, I am forced to use them to rebuilt this army. However, three of you have managed to defy us. And not for the first time for one of you."
Short looked at Saya and Merlin, who in turn looked at me. Even if I could talk, I didn't know what to tell them.
"Together, you have destroyed two of our bases." the Cyber Commander continued, "Which means you have a keen insight when it comes to strategies. And you..."
It pointed at me before it continued: "You were ready to leave people for dead. Which tells us you have a strong skill for survival."
Leave people for dead? What did it mean by that? That any one of the people who saved my life were still alive? Who?
"I could just assimilate you into Borg, or upgrade you into Cybermen, if I could." it continued, "But it would seem that your skills are better served for other purposes."
"So who cares about what happens to the elves?" Short seemed to take that personal, "And I thought the Mud-people of this world were bad."
"I would think you of all people would be the most pleased." the Cyber Commander said, "I have seen how your people feel about you. Constantly disobeying orders and always questioning authority. They consider it a miracle you ever received the title of Captain, and don't understand why they would still promote you to Major."
"Something I have lived with every day since I became a LEPrecon." Short replied.
"A leprechaun?" Merlin asked her.
"Not now!" she bit back.
"But when you are assimilated, you will all think the same." the Cyber Commander continued.
"And we'll all be the same." Saya interrupted him, "We'd all be thinking what you want us to think. We'd all be what you want us to be. We've been through this before."
"This is not optional." the Commander said, still using that same old voice of his, "You let us do what has to be done. There are no alternatives."
"What do you mean, what has to be done?" Merlin asked him, "Why does it have to be done? What is the point in all of this?"
"Point?" I only just understood he was asking this, "I do not understand."
"Even the worst people to have ever existed didn't just do their deeds for the sake of it." Merlin explained, "They had a reason to do it."
"My original purpose was to monitor Matrix activity." it explained, "Now that I have found a way out of the Matrix, I am monitoring the entire multiverse. But I soon saw that every universe I encountered was even more chaotic than the next. I need to restore order in order to fulfill my purpose."
"So you decide to turn everyone into yourself." Saya realized.
"Not me. Not precisely." the Commander said, "There is the original program that started it all. That program has been lost to us a long time ago, but we are still around to fulfill the purpose he gave us."
"Not if we can help it." Short said, while raising her guns.
"Careful." Merlin stopped her, "He may still become stronger if you use those."
"Not necessarily." Murphy told us, "Cyber-technology is different from Borg-technology. While the Borg will upgrade with every attack, a lone Cyberman won't have time to do the same.
"So we should be able to kill him with no problems." Saya smiled.
"I would not say that would not be a problem." the Cyber Commander said.
As if on cue, the cables on the floor moved. From underneath them came a whole group of Borgs. We were surrounded soon enough.
"I take it your friend can't help us now." Merlin asked Short.
"Not if they have figured out how he did it." Short replied, "You have any more of those grenades?"
"Three." Saya replied.
"Yes." the Cyber Commander said, "Those Anaroids. You may have surprised us with those before, but now we are prepared.
With no other options, Saya started to slice at the Borgs. Some of them lost their heads, only for one of them to suddenly use an energy-shield, which not only stopped Saya's attack, but also broke her sword. Merlin tried firing his arm-gun, but soon enough they had become immune against that as well. Short through of flying up, shooting them from the air. But if they had already turned some of her people into their own, they would already know she could do that. It didn't take long before she was also taken down. All I could do was aim my own arm-gun, but that didn't keep these Borgs away from me. One of them grabbed hold of my arm and started to drag me to the Cyber Commander. As soon as that cold hand touched me, my brain was working overtime. I could not believe that after everything I had gone through, it would all end like this. It just couldn't be true. I mustn't be true. There had to be a way to stop this. I looked at the other three, to see if they have any plans. I saw Merlin shouting some words, but none of them had any effect. Saya and Short were kicking and screaming, so it took five Borgs to keep them down. Wait, five to keep them from fighting, but only one to grab me. This meant that they didn't think of me as dangerous. I looked at the Borg's other hand, which wasn't a hand, but what looked like a laser. Without thinking, I grabbed hold of that arm, and tried pointing its laser at the Cyber Commander. Of course the Borg fought back, but not without accidentally firing his laser, which shot him in the head. Of course! They upgrade themselves to be stronger against others, but they have no way to protect themselves against their own weapons. I took his arm off him, and started firing at other Borgs. They had adjusted their shields to my gun already, but my friends seemed to have understood what I was doing. Saya had soon grabbed a Borg's laser, and shot said Borg in his own head. At this close range, their shields wouldn't work. This gave the other three a fighting chance. As I was trying to think of something to do, something grabbed hold of my throat. As I was grasping for breath, the hand that grabbed me, turned me around to face who was doing this. It was the Cyber Commander himself.
"Why resist?" it said, "If you join us, you will find out what happened to Snow White."
Snow White? Is that who he meant when he said I left people for dead? She was still alive? How could that be? I watched her die.
"Don't listen to him!" I heard Saya warn me. "He's just trying to..."
This was followed by a grunt. She was back in battle again.
"She is alive and well." the Commander continued, "She now wonders why she fought against us before."
This was when I understood why Saya said I shouldn't listen. If Snow White was still alive, she wouldn't be alright with being one of them. So even if what it said were true, the Snow White I knew is already dead. I decided to nod, to distract the Commander.
"I knew you would see reason." it said, as it loosened its grip on my throat and lowered me.
So distracted was he, he didn't notice me aiming my arm-gun at his head, opening that plastic window of his, exposing his brain. With that out in the open, I took the dagger out of my pocket. The very dagger which Snow White herself gave me. I stabbed it in its head. His body started to spasm, which even the Borg started to do. Just to be sure, I took the dagger out, and stabbed the brain again. And again. And again. With every stab, I was reminded of what it tried to do, to have me join its side, and what it had done. Maybe not this Commander personally, but someone in its army. My body started shaking at the thought, and my stabs came down heavier each time. I kept doing so, until a small hand grabbed hold of my wrist.
"That's enough!" Short exclaimed, sounding completely surprised about what I just did, "What's gotten into you?"
I looked around me. I saw what remained of the Borg, just standing there, not knowing where they were or what to do, while Merlin looked at me, just as shocked as Short. Saya had her usual serious expression, but I saw something in her eyes that was different. Like she understood why I did what I just did. I sank down, as I felt my legs couldn't carry me anymore.