Shadows of the Night, Part XXX

Main Unity Shadows of the Night

Seven's mind peeled back, layer after layer as Luke penetrated the quiet haze of her thoughts to delve deep into her psyche. She'd been driven within, and the only way to save her at this point was to go in after her. Luke did his best to calm his fears, but it wasn't easy; he knew failure would leave her in this comatose state indefinitely, maybe even the rest of her life. He pushed it aside; there was no way he was going to let that happen.

The mists finally parted, and Luke was in the lobby of a hotel. He looked about at the calm quiet features, impressed by the level of detail that had been constructed. It was a metaphor, but for what he couldn't say. Best thing to do in this situation, he knew, was to play along with it, to accept the unreality for now. He noticed the clerk at the desk, and strolled over casually. "Good afternoon," he said. "I'm looking for Seven."

The man eyed him curiously. "You mean the seventh floor?"

"No," Luke said. "Is there an Annika Hansen staying here?"

The clerk pulled up a large ledger. "Let me check," he said, flipping through the oversized pages. "Ah, Miss Hansen is in the suite on the thirty-fifth floor. The lift should take you straight there."

Luke nodded and walked over to the lift. Finally the doors opened and he stepped inside, turning to push the button-

And there was no 35. He hesitated for a moment, and then hit the button for the thirty-fourth floor. She's not going to make this easy for me, he thought, she's trying to keep me away. The doors opened and he stepped out. A few glances showed that, despite his hopes, there were no stairs. Alright, he thought as he approached one of the windows, time to improvise. The wind was very powerful as he forced it opened, leaning out to look at the exterior above. Yes, there was a floor there, complete with a window. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a couple anchors to help him scale it - in this place, he could create whatever symbols he needed to deal with the symbols placed before him. He soon pulled himself up and into the room above.

The room was quite impressive: very large, complete with a swimming pool and works of art, elaborate furniture, a fireplace, but alas, missing the one thing he'd come here for. He looked around a little, glancing at things here and there. She had been playing a game of solitaire, he noticed. She'd gotten quite far, but as often happens, she was stuck. A few moments analysis revealed the culprit: three cards were missing. "Sometimes, no matter how well you play," he commented aloud, "it seems the game is stacked against you." He continued looking around feeling a shiver from the cold draft coming in the window. He approached the fireplace to warm himself a little. Curious, he thought, the brickwork is incomplete.

"What are you doing here?" a voice asked suddenly. Luke turned around, coming face to face with a man with sandy brown hair, the young side of middle age.

"I'm looking for someone," Luke replied. "Annika Hansen."

"She doesn't want to see you," the man replied. "She wants to be left alone."

"Who are you?"

"I'm her father."

Luke understood. He was her protector, sent in to stop Luke from further poking around in her mind. This would need to be handled delicately, to try not to drive her even further into herself. "I really need to talk to her," he said. "It's important that her friends get a chance to see her."

"Well you'll have to wait," he said. "She's gone right now."

"I see," Luke said, keeping his voice calm sounding, "If this is a bad time, I can try later. When will she be back?"

Seven's father hesitated. "When she gets back she'll contact you?"

"If there was some way I could get a message to her," Luke said, "I'd greatly appreciate it. It's very important."

"Maybe you're not hearing me," he said sternly, "she's not here! She doesn't want to see you!"

"Which is it?" Luke asked calmly. He was shocked when her father grabbed him and lifted him off the ground.

"GO AWAY!" he roared, his face twisting and expanding, dominating Luke's view-

Luke took a quick intake of breath as he refocused on reality. The Doctor, as always, looked quite concerned as he continued monitoring her vitals. Leia stood nearby, ready to offer her strength if needed. Han lounged next to her, and there was Borui. Captains Janeway and Riker were still here, the former visibly agitated while the latter wore his poker face; Luke could still sense his concern. "Anything?" Riker asked.

"I don't know," Luke said. "A lot of imagery. A hotel. I'm not really sure what it all means." He explained about his trip through the hotel, the room, the card game, everything.

"Sounds like she's not playing with a full deck," Han remarked. Leia turned and gave him her "I can't believe you just said that" look. "What?"

"Wait a minute," Borui said softly. "I think you may actually be on to something there."

"It was a joke," Han replied, apparently realizing that the lack of sleep had caused him to step in it, big time.

"Yes, but I think that may mean something." She thought for a while. "Luke, we're going to do this a little differently. When you go back, I'm going to enter your mind. You'll be a bridge for me, that way I can give you an interpretation of what you're seeing."

"I thought you couldn't do a meld." Luke said.

"I can't. But since you're something of a telepath we can communicate through our thoughts. In essence, I'll be able to interact with you, but not with Seven. I'll be kind of like a phantom; I'll have no impact on what's going on."

"Is it safe to continue?" Riker asked the Doctor.

"For Seven? The procedure hasn't caused any noticeable changes in her physiology," the Doctor reported. "I suppose it's safe to continue. Of course, your danger remains, Mr. Skywalker. You could still suffer brain damage."

"I'm not backing out now, if it's all right, captain," he added, turning to Riker.

Riker nodded. "Good luck," he said.

Luke felt Borui start to reach for his mind as he reached for Seven's. Slowly the sickbay faded away, and he returned to the top floor of the hotel, the man still in the room.

"What're you doing back here?" he demanded of Luke. Borui stood nearby, but the gentleman took no notice of her. "I told you, she doesn't want to see you."

"That's her father," Borui confirmed. "I recognize him from Starfleet records." She continued to look around at what Luke had described. "Yes," she said thoughtfully, "they're simple symbols. Crude but deliberate." She turned back to Luke. "Seven believes she's insane. She can no longer face reality and this is her testimony to it."

"It just looks like a dwelling," Luke said. "A strange one I'll admit, but I don't see any evidence of insanity."

"Han was right," Borui said. "She's not playing with a full deck. The elevator doesn't go to the top floor. She's a few bricks shy." She indicated Seven's father. "The lights are on, but nobody's home."

"Sounds like a bad joke," Luke replied.

"Do I look like I'm laughing?" she said. "Still, some people use humor as a means of coping. This may be Seven's way of trying to handle what's happened to her."

"If you're right," Luke asked, "what do we do? How can we find her?"

"You'll never find her," Seven's father said. "She doesn't want to speak to you."

Borui walked around the room slowly, taking everything in. "That may be true," she said. "But deep down, she wants help. Everyone does. There's some way to get to her, if we can find it." She stopped and looked into the darkened pool. "This is odd. Why would a hotel room have a pool in it?" She thought for a moment, then slowly smiled. "Of course. Luke, come here." The Jedi approached as Borui bent down to examine the water. "In there," she said, "That'll take us to her."

"How do you know that?" Luke asked, staring into the inky depths.

"Seven believes she's insane," Borui said, standing up. "So if you want to find her, you have to go after her." Luke looked puzzled. "We're in a world of symbols, remember? Logic takes a back seat here. So if you want to find Seven," she pointed at the water, "then it's time to go off the deep end."

Luke stared down into the water, trying to see any evidence of what she was saying to be true. But there wasn't any choice was there. If he wanted to try to save her... he needed to take a leap of faith. He took a deep breath and stepped off the edge into the water. He felt himself sink, and was surprised by the experience. He felt like he was floating slowly down, but didn't feel wet. As he continued to slowly descend into the darkness, he realized that he didn't need to hold his breath; despite the fact that his breathing wasn't real, he could tell that drowning wasn't a possibility. He continued to sink for a long time as things continued to grow darker and darker. Finally, he couldn't see anything at all, and that started to worry him a little. Was there really nothing left? Did the woman that he'd known, that he'd fallen in love with, disappear for good, an empty shell? But then he heard a woman's voice. He thought it was Seven's for a moment, but realized it wasn't, it didn't sound quite right. He listened as it sang softly, soothingly... a song he'd heard sung a little once before, in a vision.

"Puff the magic dragon, lived by the sea,
And frolicked in the autumn mist in a land called Honah Lee.
And little Jackie Paper loved that rascal Puff,
She brought him string and sealing wax and other fancy stuff. Oh,
Puff the magic dragon lived by the sea,
And frolicked in the autumn mist in a land called Honah Lee.
Puff the magic dragon lived by the sea,
And frolicked in the autumn mist in a land called Honah Lee."

The darkness broke for a moment, and Luke saw a dim shape begin to emerge. After a while it coalesced into the form of a bridge. It was the Raven, from his dream. And there, Seven's father, looking happy and cheerful, a woman by his side and a little girl. They were all smiling, and her father bent down and picked up the little girl, showing her the instruments and pointing at something that Luke couldn't see. They seemed so at peace, and as the scene played out the voice continued.

"Together they would travel on a boat with billowed sail.
Jackie kept a lookout perched on Puff's gigantic tail.
Noble kings and princes would bow whene'er they came.
Pirate ships would lower their flags when Puff roared out his name."

As the refrain continued the scene slowly faded away into the darkness, but Luke again saw a shape emerging, darker this time. It slowly came into focus, and Luke recognized the creature: a Borg drone. But it took a little while longer for him to truly recognize it.

"A dragon lives forever, but..... not so little girls........" The voice stopped for a moment, then finally continued in a melancholy tone.

"Painted wings and giant strings make way for... other toys.
One grey night it happened; Jackie Paper came no more.....
And Puff... that mighty dragon.... he ceased....... his....... fear........ less................................ roar...."

Luke felt his feet touch the ground, and he walked across the darkness towards the drone. It stood stock-still in an alcove and Luke looked at it closely. On the side was a small amount of writing, barely visible among the panels and displays that covered the device. "7 of 9". Luke reached forward and turned a dial, and suddenly the lights came up. He looked around the area, a single illuminated circle surrounded by darkness. Nearby was a large safe of some kind, locked tightly with a collection of heavy chains wrapped around it. Luke was about to step over to examine it, when he saw something that pushed every other thought out of his mind. "Seven!" he exclaimed, and rushed over.

Her head hung limply as her body stood thrashed to a large pole with some kind of cabling. A metal plate surrounded her face, covering her mouth and jaw. He lifted her head, but her eyes were closed and she appeared to be unconscious.

"There you are," Borui said as she appeared by his side. "I lost you for a minute." She looked back and forth between the two individuals as Luke examined Seven's bonds. "Well, this is quite a predicament."

"Help me with this," Luke asked as he tried pulling on various cords.

"I can't interact, remember." She examined the drone in its alcove. "This is perplexing. Why is this image here? It doesn't-"

"She's awake!" Luke exclaimed as Seven's eyes snapped opened and swiveled about, trying to take in her surroundings. She began tugging at her bonds. Luke continued to examine the cables, trying to find a way to release her. Finally, he felt a large button behind the pole and pushed it, causing the wires to swirl back and leave her free. She stumbled forward, and then reached up and started pulling at the plate on her face.

"Uh, Luke," Borui said slowly. "What did you do?"

"What do you mean..." he asked, then his voice trailed off. The drone's eyes were opened, and there was a pop and hissing sound as she stepped off her alcove. She looked between Seven and Luke, but her greatest attention was on Seven.

Seven pulled off the plate and looked at 7 of 9, gasping slightly. "Explain," she demanded.

"I need to explain nothing to you," 7 of 9 replied.

"Your time is over," Seven said furiously. "I rejected you - you don't belong in my mind any more."

"This discussion is pointless," 7 of 9 said. "The Collective has the answers we both seek."

"No," Seven replied. "I'll never go back to them."

"You prefer to be small."

"I prefer to be an individual."

"Is that word synonymous with small? From all appearances I would say yes."

Luke stepped over to Borui, not sure what to believe. "What's going on?" he asked, unable to take his eyes off either one of them. "Which is the real one?"

Borui shook her head. "I really don't know."

"You are weakened by fear," 7 of 9 said. "Pain. Emotion. I feel no such limitations. I do what you cannot. Clearly I am the superior."

"You feel nothing," Seven replied in anger. "I experience things you cannot!"

"Devoting yourself to inefficient tasks. By your own admission you are falling far short of perfection."

"My God," Borui said. "I should've seen this coming."

"What?" Luke asked, desperately trying to understand the situation.

"Multiple personalities. Tuvok said that she suffered multiple personalities several years ago due to an alien device."

"You're saying this device may be doing something to her now?"

"No," Borui replied. "I should've seen this. If she already created multiple personalities to help her deal with the strain of reality, it would be a solution her mind might have turned to in times of deep psychological turmoil."

"So she's created them now in response to the Borg?"

"No," Borui replied, "I'd say the exact opposite. She had them long before the device arrived. She was the only Borg to survive exposure, and her mp's may have been the reason."

Luke couldn't believe it, but he found it hard to disagree as Seven and 7 of 9 argued right before him. "There's been nothing to suggest-"

"No, there's been plenty to suggest! A signal caused her once, to snap, attack a crewmember, steal a weapon, escape the ship and take a hostage to seek out the Borg. Does that sound like Seven, or does that sound like a drone returning to the Collective?" She turned to Luke. "Haven't you ever seen her act almost completely human on one hand, then act almost robotic?"

Luke was about to deny it, but then he thought of the Tsunkatse arena, where she went from killing machine to being ready to die rather than take a life. "It's hard to believe," he finally said.

"We can probably consider it a partial case at least," Borui said, "as one personality dominated more than the other." She turned to Luke. "You want to know who's the real Seven, I'd say a little of both." Luke walked past the two arguing women. "What're you doing?" Borui asked.

"Changing the situation," Luke remarked as he walked up to the safe. As soon as he reached it the arguing stopped.

"Cease your interference," 7 of 9 told him.

Luke prodded the lock that held the chains fast; it was bigger than his hand. He didn't have a key so he pulled an oversized lockpick out of his pocket and set to work. The lock slid open as a firm grip grabbed his arm and spun him about. "You must stop!" Seven yelled at him.

"What's in here," he demanded. "What is it that you've put in here that's so important it'll stop you two going at each other's throats?"

7 of 9 grabbed his other arm and the two tossed him away into the darkness, but he was determined now. He came back and saw Seven snapping the lock shut, 7 of 9 standing in front of the safe to protect it. "So," Luke said as Seven turned back to face him, "you two will cooperate against a common adversary, but left to your own devices you'll argue 'til the stars grow cold."

"This is none of your concern, Skywalker," 7 of 9 said.

"You're my concern!" he said in exasperation. "What's going-"

The ship was crashed, panels burst open everywhere, the floor covered with debris. "-on?" Luke said weakly.

He watched the drones slowly walk into the room, that same room he'd seen filled with love and happiness just a few minutes before. And he heard the little girl's voice, an echo: "Are we going to be assimulated?"

Seven's father's voice answered. "Not if I can help it."

And then the little girl spoke again, and it was full of nervousness. "Papa... will it hurt to be a drone?"

And then it was gone. Seven and 7 of 9 were both disoriented, so Luke decided to make a second attempt. He tossed the chain into the darkness as they realized what was going on, but this time he stood ready against them. "You don't know what you're doing!" Seven shouted at him.

"Then tell me," Luke insisted, pushing them away as they tried to stop him, he almost had it open when he felt a hand across his face. Fortunately, even here a Jedi isn't dependent on his eyesight, and he felt the last tumbler click into place. Seven yanked him up and struck him across the face. "Leave - me - alone!"

Luke ducked as 7 of 9 tried to punch him, causing the drone to hit Seven and both of them to fall over. "I can't!" he yelled. "I can't leave you like this. I need," he grabbed the handle of the safe, "to find the answer."

7 of 9 took a step back as the door swung open, surprisingly nervous about the whole affair. Seven looked and quickly turned away. The door reached the limits of its hinges and creaked with the weight. Luke leaned down and peered in.

"Why couldn't you listen?" the little girl's voice asked. "Why?"

"Seven?" Luke asked. He watched the shape emerge, his surprise evident.

"Annika," the little girl said. She looked up into Luke's face with sadness in her eyes....

The Borg continued their approach across the bridge of the crashed ship, Annika twisting under a panel in fear. Luke watched but could do nothing as they lumbered on. 7 of 9 grabbed the nearest drone to try and stop it, but with a slight gesture she was thrown across the room and hit the wall with the sound of crunching bones, barely slowing his gait. Seven tried giving a haymaker to the one who was the closest, but the drone grabbed her neck and plunged two assimilation tubules into her throat, pulling them free as she fell to the floor, gasping and twitching as her skin changed to a sickly gray color. They reached out for Annika and she screamed.

They stood back in the circle again, none the worse for wear. Borui walked over to Luke shaking her head. "They're protecting her," she said. "For some reason they're protecting this girl, whatever she represents."

"Could she be another personality?" Luke asked. Borui shrugged.

"Who knows. This is way more complicated than what I had imagined." She thought for a moment. "But it has something to do with that moment on the ship, that much is certain."

"Well obviously," Luke said. "That's when she was assimilated."

"No," Borui replied. "There's more than that going on here. Her fixation hasn't been on the Borg or assimilation or anything like that. Something else happened here, something that scared the living hell out of her."

Suddenly they were in some kind of jungle, a fire roaring in the center of a small clearing. "Drones," Borui whispered as she looked at the beings around the fire. "Three of them."

"Four," Luke said, pointing to one lying on the ground. "Except I think this one is broken."

"No," 7 of 9 said, and at first Luke thought she was talking to him, but realized she was in fact addressing the three living drones. "I do not exist. I am only part of the greater whole."

"That's what they want you to believe," Two of Nine said. "That's what they want us all to believe."

"Error. Input failure!" 7 of 9 looked distraught.

"What's going on?" Luke asked Seven, but she said nothing.

"Our ship has crashed," 7 of 9 said. "We've been cut off from the Collective and are awaiting re-assimilation."

"You know anything about this?" Luke asked Borui quietly.

"Yes," she said distantly. "I've got an inkling of what this might mean."

"If we can re-modulate our cortical implants," said Three of Nine, "we might be able to elude their sensors."

"This discussion is in violation of all established protocols," 7 of 9 said with obvious fear in her voice.

"You stay here and be re-assimilated if you want to," Three of Nine said to her. "I won't." She marched off after the other two drones.

"Command Override! COMPLY!!!!" 7 of 9 shouted after them, but it was pointless. Three of Nine was gone; they were all gone. 7 of 9 began making modifications to the weapon on her arm. After a few minutes, she went running the same direction. Luke quickly followed-

And stepped into the halls of a starship, Federation. A quick glance at a nearby panel showed it was none other than Voyager, but the darkened halls, empty of all but the small group gave a feeling of eeriness that was impossible to ignore. "Where are we?" Luke asked, hoping someone could explain the significance of this vision.

"Voyager," Seven remarked, her fear growing obvious. "I have to keep the ship running... we have to clear the nebula while there's still time," she said, moving deliberately down the hall, the others in close pursuit. She entered Engineering, and there stood an alien.

"At first you thought you could become human," he said, "but now you know that's impossible, don't you?" Seven stood her ground, but it was clear she was terrified. "You're Borg, that's what you were meant to be. One of many. But your days of power are gone. You're alone now. Weak. Pathetic."

"Ask her who he is?" Borui asked. "I have a guess." Luke relayed the question.

"Trajis Lo-Tarik," Seven replied, "An alien that has come aboard to trade goods while the others are in stasis chambers. He's been trying to sabotage Voyager."

"He does not appear to be much of a threat," 7 of 9 remarked. "A phaser should disable him easily enough."

"You'd be surprised," Seven said to her counterpart, but when she turned back the alien was gone.

"Warning," the computer said with a garbled tone. "Primary EPS conduits are overloading." Seven looked with fear at the Doctor, who had apparently joined the group when Trajis vanished.

"I tied my mobile emitter into the EPS conduits," he said with nervousness. "My program's going offline."

"No," Seven said with quiet grief.

"Seven, you've got to hang on. Repair the EPS conduits. Everything depends on you now." He vanished, and Seven looked with horror at the empty space, then at the darkened walls. She stormed out of Engineering, Luke followed-

And stepped onto the bridge of the Raven. Annika crawled under the panel trying to escape the grasping fingers of the drones. Suddenly they pulled back, and the drones stood up as if at attention. A set of quiet footsteps emerged as a new Borg walked onto the bridge, a casual gait to her step.

"The Borg Queen," Borui whispered.

"That's her?" Luke replied.

"Yes," Borui said. "We're not sure what her role is, but it's very important."

"Annika," the Borg Queen said with a smile, "Don't be afraid. Come out here with your new family."

"You're not my family!" the young girl insisted quivering with fear.

"Don't resist us child," she replied soothingly. "You know we're all you have left."

"No!" Annika screamed.

"Don't you remember?" the Queen said evenly. They watched as three drones grabbed her father and began pulling him away from her, his last words telling her to save herself. The Borg put their fist by his throat and tubes entered his neck, and he convulsed as his skin began to change.

"Papa," Seven said despite herself.

"Run, Annika!" her mother screamed. "Run! Hide!!!" A drone had grabbed hold of her, but she swung and hit it with a bar that had come loose, knocking it over. She brought it down squarely on another drone's implant, yanking some device loose and causing a shower of sparks as the Borg collapsed. She swung again, knocking still another drone away, hoping to keep them distracted long enough for Annika to escape. Finally, the Borg concluded assimilating her was inefficient, and a plasma discharger appeared.

"NO!!!" Seven, Annika, and 7 of 9 screamed together, as everything turned dark. Their terror, each one, was palpable. They stood back to back, the three together, the only sound their beating heart before the other three came back, just enough light to cast horrible shadows across their faces.

"They're gone now," the Borg Queen said. "We are your family now. You've no choice."

"You're cut off," said Three of Nine, "separated from the Collective."

"The only one on this ship," Trajis said, "No one to help you, no one to save you."

"You turn your back on us," the Queen said. "You are not a part of us."

"You're isolated," insisted Three of Nine.

"With nothing but darkness," said Trajis.

"There's no one left."

"No one to turn to."

"No one to protect you."

"No one to save you."

"They're all gone."

"You're alone."

"Alone"

"They're gone."

"All alone."

"Abandoned."

"Alone."

"Alone."

Alone.

alone

...alone...

...alone...

...

.

"We're losing her," Luke said to Borui, growing more concerned with each passing second. He could feel her slipping away; she was beyond even his reach now, not responding to him any more as the demons of her mind continued to hound her. Luke feared the words of these memories were all too true, that she did have to face them-

Alone.

Suddenly the wind picked up, a terrible storm approaching as Seven, 7 of 9, and Annika stood on the edge of a rocky outcropping, looking at the gloom that surrounded their world, the crashing sounds of the oceans below. The wind grew more and more powerful, and they found themselves bracing against it. The sky cracked with lightning as the storm refused mercy, the nearby trees making cracking and popping sounds under the strain. The edge of the woods was filled with unfriendly shadows, and the trio was nervous as they seemed to shift about in the darkness. There was a tiny squeal as Annika was pulled off her feet by the wind, but Seven caught her. Unfortunately the impact threw her off balance and the two tumbled together towards the edge. Seven grabbed for a branch with her free hand as she cradled the girl in her other, but the strain was too great, snapping it immediately. The two rolled over the edge, the breaking waves far below, then a jolt and Seven was pulled sideways into the rock, suspended upside down. She glanced up as 7 of 9 held her ankle in a firm grip. "Try not to move," she said.

"Don't worry," Seven replied. The rain battering them was growing even worse, and the wind howled at them. "Pull us up," Seven called up.

"I am trying," 7 of 9 replied, "but the storm is creating heavy resistance."

"Please try," Annika said.

"I am," 7 of 9 called back. All her Borg strength was put into pulling the pair up, but nature screamed at her as she continued to defy it. Finally, a tree gave under the strain, snapping clear through its trunk. It struck 7 of 9 square in the back, knocking her clear over the side of the cliff. The three tumbled through the air, disappearing under the edge of the water. Seven's world was suddenly the murky depths; there was only the cool embrace of the water, the indecipherable shapes within, the sound of her heart beating in her ears.

A wave crashed and she was deposited on a shore, a soaked mess, coughing water from her lungs as she hunched over on all fours. Finally she looked up and saw Annika and her mother; 7 of 9 kneeled nearby, unable to take her eyes off the fallen woman. The child was stroking her mother's hair, quiet. Her mother's eyes were wide open in shock, a wisp of smoke floating up from a burnt area of flesh in her torso; she wasn't moving. "Wake up," Annika said quietly, unemotionally. "Wake up."

Seven looked with horror at the child and her mother together, finally realizing its truth: that this was real, that this did happen. She pulled herself forward and tears began running down her cheeks, her face turning red with emotion. "Momma...." She sniffed and a sob came out. "Oh momma... I'm so sorrrrrreeeee...." She buried her face in her mother's shoulder, her own shoulders shaking as she cried. "Please momma... please don't go away..." She never looked up as the loud sound of billions of Borg footsteps seemed to come from everywhere, their red lights zigzagging in the night. Her father was gone, and her mother was dead, and that meant that this seven-year old girl was now face to face with the entire Borg Collective... without anyone to protect her. Just one scared little girl sitting in the darkness.

"So now you know," the Borg Queen said behind her. Seven whirled up and looked at her, seething. 7 of 9 was at her side, and Annika came and took hold of her hand. None of them were afraid now; they were united in their anger; anger at this murder, anger at everything that had been stolen from them. "Your family is gone now. You're all alone." She seemed to tower over the trio. "Alone in the dark."

"No," a voice said suddenly. They turned, and her mother's corpse was standing behind them. "You're wrong," she said to the Queen. "These shadows can't hurt her any more."

The Borg Queen refused to give in. "She has been abandoned. They're all gone. No one left to save her."

"Wrong!" Seven's mother insisted, stepping past the trio. "She's not alone, not any more." She turned and looked at the three of them. "Not unless she gives in to loneliness. Annika... sometimes the thing hidden in the darkness," and she put her hand on Seven's cheek, "is a friend."

Seven looked up, and she knew. "Luke," she said quietly.

"Seven?" he replied, uncertain of what was going on.

"You came for me," she said, unable to believe it. "You risked yourself to find me... to save me from being lost here." She left the group behind and walked towards him.

Luke blushed a little. "Well, I couldn't let you stay stuck here forever."

"Why?" Seven asked.

"Because we need you," Luke said. "There's a lot of people who care about you and want you back." He hesitated. "Especially me."

Seven looked up into his eyes unblinkingly. They were so full of emotion, so full of hope. She finally understood him. Kind, compassionate, and once again risking himself to save her, as he had before, because that was the kind of man he was. He was everything she could have wanted... someone she felt a total kinship with, who would be with her through even the worst of times and would never let her face anything alone. She reached out and held him tight, because finally, finally she had the courage to say the words she'd wanted to utter for so long. "I love you," she whispered. As he wrapped his arms around her, it was the most blissful experience of Seven's life.

Time stood still for a while as the two held one another. Finally the embrace broke, and Luke saw Borui smiling at him. "You did it," she said with approval. "You helped her save herself."

"What happens now?" Luke replied as Seven walked over to 7 of 9, Annika, and her mother, the Borg Queen having finally vanished.

"Let's see," Borui replied.

"You know what you three need to do," their mother said when Seven reached them. There was a noticeable look of apprehension on their faces.

Annika looked up at her mother. "Will we die, momma?"

"No sweetie," she replied, leaning down to stroke her head. "You'll be more alive than you've ever been. It will be so wonderful, Annika. You'll finally be whole again." And she slowly vanished.

7 of 9 looked at Seven warily but held out her right hand to her. "Then let it begin." She took Annika's hand in her left as Seven took her right.

Seven looked back at Luke. "Thank you," she said, and smiled a little. "I'll see you soon." She took Annika's left hand.

And suddenly there was a burst of light pouring from the trio as if a circuit had been completed. A solid beam poured from their eyes, meeting in the center of their triangle, within the glow of their aura. It grew brighter and brighter until it was impossible to look at, slowly lengthening until it reached the floor, causing a fountain of energy to leap straight into the air, bathing them in pure white light. It expanded until they were standing in a pillar of pure energy, and slowly they were pulled in, particle by particle, swirling into the light, following it up into the sky. The light spread throughout the land, illuminating every corner of it. Finally, the darkness was gone.

Luke opened his eyes in sickbay and saw that all hell had broken loose. The Doctor was running various instruments over Seven as he called out status reports. "Heart rate at one hundred eighty beats per minute!" he continued. "Nanoprobes becoming active, implants being re-grown throughout her body!" He stepped back slightly in surprise as the strip over her left eye began extending tiny metallic fibers across her forehead and under her pile of hair.

"Doctor what's going on?" Janeway insisted, but he continued his work.

"This is unbelievable," he said, ignoring her. "The activity-" He cut himself off. "Everything's starting to normalize. Heart rate, blood pressure, breathing." He turned to face Luke across the table, clearly upset. "Just what did you do in there?" He stopped himself as Seven's eyes sprung open, swiveling around to take in the room. She sat up despite the Doctor, who was insisting on her taking it easy.

Seven looked at the group, and slowly a smirk grew across her face, and then she began chuckling. She continued as she slid off the table. She looked over at the Doctor, who was both mystified and concerned at the same time. "Congratulations, it's a girl," and she continued chuckling.

The joy at Seven's recovery was quickly replaced by apprehension. "Who are you?" Janeway asked, uncertain of what was going on.

This brought Seven to a halt and her face became deadly serious. She began walking over towards her former captain. "I am Seven of Nine," she said emphatically as she took step after step, "Tertiary Adjunct," she stepped around Luke, "of Unimatrix Zero One," stopping in front of Capt. Janeway. She leaned down, her face inches from the other's. "But you may call me... Annika Hansen." And then she started laughing again.

Go To Part XXXI
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