New Life
PG-13
Final Chapters
Chapter Twenty-five
Things were slowly getting back to normal on the station. Civilians and officers were returning and it was becoming business as usual again.
“I’m glad to be back,” Quark stated happily. “I was loosing some serious profits.”
“I’m just glad we’re all safe, Brother.”
“Rom.”
“Yes?”
“Get back to work and where‘s your wife? She still owes me another month without pay. Don‘t think she is getting out of it just because we were invaded.”
“Sarah, glad to see you out of the infirmary,” Deanna said cheerfully to the woman sitting alone at a corner table in Quark‘s Bar.
The woman did not say a word. Just briefly looked at Deanna with sad eyes.
“Would you like to talk about it?”
“I’m just missing Tov,” Sarah replied. “You think Sisko will be back with him soon?”
Deanna did not know what to say to her. Sarah had gone from anger to sadness and back again ever since she was told about her son. Deanna could tell Sarah’s mood was still cycling.
“All we can do is hope,” Deanna told her.
“Don’t worry about me,” Sarah told her trying to avoid the subject. “I’ll be fine. You should have dinner with your husband.”
Deanna sighed. “Alright. If you decide you need to talk, you know where you can find me.”
“OK,” she said sadly. “I just want to be alone for now.”
Deanna left her and went back to were Will was sitting. She could tell there was more bothering Sarah just missing her baby, but she was not willing to talk about it. At least not right now.
Repairs were finally finished on Voyager and the ship was on its way back to Starfleet Headquarters. Janeway was in the ready room with Chakotay discussing plans for their wedding.
“Shall we have a Joseph Sisko cater for us?” Kathryn asked her husband to be. They were both sitting together behind the desk as they looked over ideas for their wedding.
“I’m not too thrilled about having Gumbo for our reception,” Chakotay replied.
“Well, then what about Guinan?”
“Well, we’ll know the drinks will be good,” Chakotay said sarcastically.
“Chakotay, I have suggested five different possibilities and you have come up with some reason as to why they might not be a good idea,” Kathryn told him with irritation. “They all are very capable of catering our event.”
“I know,” Chakotay dimly stated. “I guess, I’m not in the mood to discuss wedding plans right now.”
“Well, then what would you like to do?” Kathryn asked. “It’s going to be a long trip back as it is.”
“Actually, Guinan might not be a bad choice,” Chakotay finally stated.
“Are you avoiding?”
“No, Kathryn,” Chakotay sighed. “It’s just…”
“Just what?”
“I can’t remember the last time I was as close to a Borg then when we were in Ops.”
“Nerve wracking?”
“It wasn’t until you were so close that you practically stepped on the Borg’s toes.”
“I knew what I was doing.”
“Did you really or were you tempting fate?”
The chime to the Ready Room bleeped. “Come in,” Chakotay ordered.
The person requesting entrance walked into the room. “Chakotay, Kathryn.”
It was the first time during the whole mission that Picard addressed Janeway on a personal level. During off duty hours it was not too uncommon for admirals to greet each other by there first names. Neither of them were really on duty currently, so it was no surprise to hear him address her in such a manner.
“Admiral Picard,” Chakotay greeted.
“Jean-Luc,” Kathryn greeted him equally.
Jean-Luc seemed a bit uncomfortable. “Do you mind if I speak with Kathryn privately?” He asked Chakotay. It was more out of respect for the man than it was using his seniority over Chakotay.
Chakotay wondered what Picard wanted to talk to Kathryn about. He was tempted to ask, but then changed his mind. He figured she would tell him if it were anything important.
“Certainly,” Chakotay finally replied. “I’ll be on the Bridge if you need me.”
Once the doors closed behind Chakotay, Picard finally stated his reason for wanting to talk with her. “I came here to apologize for my behaviour concerning the Borg on DS9.”
“Jean-Luc, it’s not necessary,” She waved her hand as though to say forget it.
“No, it is,” Jean-Luc insisted. “If for nothing else, just to talk to someone about my experience and feelings with the Borg.”
“Wouldn’t Counselor Riker be more suited to help you work through…”
“No!” Picard stated firmly. More firmly than he had meant to be. “She doesn’t understand. She can’t understand, because she has never experienced anything like it before.”
Janeway sighed. She supposed listening to him could not hurt. She had listened to many a person’s problem when travelling through the delta quadrant. ‘What’s one more,’ she thought.
She laid the PADD that she had been holding down on the desk. “Alright,” she told him and gestured for him to sit down. Then she stood and walked over to the replicator. “Coffee, black,” she said to the computer.
Then she turned to Jean-Luc, “Would you like anything?”
“Earl Grey would be nice.”
She finally handed him a cup of tea. Then she took her seat behind her desk with her coffee in hand.
“When I was Locutus,” he began telling her his experience after she settled into her chair. “I was one with Borg, yet also equal to the queen. She wanted to use me not only to destroy the Federation, but also her lifelong partner. I still had a sort of individuality, but only as Locutus of Borg. When my crew sort of kidnapped me from the hive, I could have easily assimilated all of them, but I didn’t.”
“The queen impressed me as a person who always got what she wanted, no matter what,” Kathryn stated. “But why you? Why didn’t she just make you into another drone like everyone else?”
“She wanted a partner, a mate, who could help her take over the Federation,” Jean-Luc stated as his emotions began to build. “I had all the knowledge to do that and to her, I was also the perfect mate. I was connected to her every thought as well as the hive’s. I had no mind of my own, but what she allowed me to have. I fought to keep my identity as Jean-Luc Picard, Captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise. Every time, Jean-Luc emerged, she would try hard to destroy that man and create the man she wanted. She was in control of my every move and everything I said.”
So far, except for the queen wanting a mate, none of what Jean-Luc told her surprised her in the least. She, B’Elanna, and Tuvok had to fight to keep from giving themselves completely to the Borg. She and B’Elanna managed to keep from listening to the drones’ thoughts, but Tuvok could not. After the neural suppressant wore of for him there was not enough Vulcan control in the universe to help him not listen to the Borg. No matter how hard he tried, he heard their voices plainly and clearly.
“Once my crew rescued me, I managed to sever my link to her and the hive by telling them to sleep,” Jean-Luc explained as he tried to contain his emotions. “Counselor Troi was the only one of my crew who seemed to be able to distinguish Locutus of Borg from Captain Jean-Luc Picard. Even as a Borg, I was relieved when they were asleep. I felt so violated by the Borg Queen, that I did not care if the Borg were destroyed. I wanted every Borg I saw dead. To this day, I can still hear the Borg and I want to be free of that horror.”
“Still?” Kathryn asked with shock.
“Yes, every time I am within a certain radius of the Borg.”
“Does Doctor Picard or Counselor Riker know about this?”
“Yes, they do,” he told her sadly. “But we have yet to figure out why or even how to keep me from hearing the Borg.”
“Why didn’t you know the Borg wanted the baby and why?”
“Oh, I knew they wanted the baby. It’s just I can’t always understand them,” Picard informed her. His voice had a hint of irritation in it. “I don’t want to understand them.”
‘He must have been as much of a Borg as Seven was after he was assimilated,’ Kathryn thought to herself. ‘Is it possible the queen is capable of breaking down a person’s will? Even Jean-Luc Picard’s?’
“It took me a while to believe that Hugh had developed a sense of individuality,” Picard admitted. “I wanted to use him, just as the queen used me and I did not care if he died with the Borg. Until I spoke with him. I took on my role as Locutus of Borg with him and still he persisted as an individual. He even informed me that the people on the Enterprise did not wish to be assimilated.”
“What made you change your mind about him?”
“I guess his undying concern for Geordi.”
“That’s why you were willing to help him and the Uni-matrix Zero Borg?”
“Yes, until I heard the Borg again,” he told her. “Then I just wanted to kill everything that was Borg.”
Kathryn was silent for a moment. She could understand his feeling of being violated by the Borg Queen. She knew without a doubt, the queen had complete control over him and there was not a thing he could do about it. It also explained his fear of loosing himself every time he heard the Borg. Which would be a big blow to his ego, to say the least.
“I can fully understand your reactions after the Borg invaded DS9,” she began sympathetically. “I guess, if there were a Borg King who did that to me, I would feel the very same way. Oh, Hell! Who am I fooling! I would feel exactly same way. I’d be trying hard to get revenge any way I could and no one could stop me.”
He could tell she understood. It was not like talking to Counselor Riker about his experience with the Borg. Instead, it was more like finding a common bond between two friends.
“I was angry for a while when the neural suppressant wore off with Tuvok and the Queen used him to capture me,” she continued. “She is a very formidable woman, but I can be very cunning. I spent a better part of seven years trying to outsmart her.”
“And you succeeded without letting it change you,” Picard tried to compliment.
“I don’t know,” Kathryn said sadly. “I think about my older self and can’t help but think that it did.”
Jean-Luc shook his head, “No, not from what I hear. She was just as protective as the woman I see before me now. Even tried to rescue those she cared about.”
“No, there was something different about her,” Kathryn informed him. Then she smile, “Not just the fact she had quit drinking coffee. Although, before it was over, I did get her to drink some." Then she lost her smile. "What really changed about her was that she had become very cynical over the years. Yet, she went back in time, just to save those she cared about. Somehow, I think she knew she was going to die in order to save us, though. I don‘t know if I would do it again.”
“You would do it again, if you had to,” Jean-Luc told her with a nod. “Still, you did not allow your encounter with the Borg to change you. However, my encounter with the Borg has changed me. I never use to take pleasure in killing another person, but as someone pointed out to me once, I actually did enjoy killing a Borg and he happened to have been a former crew member. Before him, I shot another crew member, who begged me to help him after being injected with the nanoprobes. I just shot him and didn’t think twice about it. I‘m not the same man that I used be.”
The usually strong man began to cry as he remembered all he had done in order to get his revenge on the Borg. Kathryn was not sure what to do, but she did sympathize greatly. She sat quietly and allowed him to release the emotions that he tried hard to keep bottled up all these years.
After a few minutes Kathryn asked, “What kept you from shooting Sarah?”
“I don’t know,” he sadly replied. “I guess I realized that she was not my nemesis.”
*Bridge to Admiral Janeway,* they heard Chakotay call over the comm system.
Jean-Luc took that opportunity to wipe the tears off his face and collect his emotions. He had a feeling they were about to be called to the Bridge.
“Janeway here.”
*Deep Space Nine is hailing us.*
“We’re on our way. Janeway out.” Then with concern for Jean-Luc’s pride she said, “You can stay here if you like. Take a few minutes to collect your thoughts.”
“No, I’ll be fine. I assure you.”
“Suit yourself.”
They both stood and started to head for the door. “Kathryn?”
She turned to face Jean-Luc.
“Thank you for listening.”
“Anytime,” she finally told him and then she approached the doors to the bridge. The doors slid open to allow them to enter the Bridge.
Chapter Twenty-Six
“Is she going to be alright?” Will asked Deanna as she sat down at their table.
“I don’t know.” Deanna observed Sarah from a distance. The young woman was looking out of the portal towards the wormhole.
“Well, why don’t we just relax and enjoy ourselves,” Will suggested. “As of now, you are officially on R&R.”
“Will,” Deanna began thoughtfully. “Where do you think Sarah will go? I mean, she has no family.”
“Probably anywhere she wants. Now will you just relax and forget about work for a while?”
Deanna sighed. “You’re right. I do need a break after all that has happened.”
“So, you want to see if we can get a romantic holo-program from Quark?”
Deanna smiled. “Why not?”
“Well then, let’s go.”
“You think he will make it back?” Kira Nerys worriedly asked Odo.
“I don’t know.”
“If they do, where do you think Sarah and Tov will go?”
“With a baby that has nanoprobes in its system?”
“Why should that matter? The baby is still Bajoran.”
“Don’t forget, he is also human.”
“You didn’t call him a Borg.”
“What?”
“You’ve been calling Tov a Borg all this time,” Kira reminded him.
“I thought about what you said, as sarcastic as it was, and I decided you are right. I am not a Founder. I never will be. By the same token, that baby will, hopefully, never be truly Borg.”
Kira smiled. “That’s one of the things I love about you, Odo.”
“What… What did you say?”
“You always try to listen to both sides and then try to make a decision that is fair and reasonable.”
“Oh.” Odo was disappointed. He kept hoping that Nerys would one day reciprocate his feelings for her, but it never happened. “I must admit, as much as I hate that cutesy talk, you would make a wonderful mother.”
“Why thank you, Odo! Why don’t we go to Quark’s and harass him a little? Could be fun.”
“What for? What has he done now?”
“Nothing yet. I just thought it would be fun that’s all.”
“Is this your way of asking me out, Nerys?”
“Maybe.”
“Leeta, where have you been?” Quark scolded. “You were supposed to be here an hour ago.”
“I’m tired of working for free.”
“You still owe me!”
“Leave her alone, Brother.”
“Rom, get back to work.”
“No, not this time. You’ve pushed us around too many times.”
“Is there a problem?” Odo asked. He and Nerys had just entered Quark’s and noticed the three arguing.
“Just a little family dispute,” Quark replied. “Nothing to be concerned about.”
“Poor Kasidy,” Jadzia sympathized.
“I know what you mean,” Julian Bashir agreed. “This is the second time since they have been married that he has disappeared into the wormhole. She’s probably wondering if he is going to come back this time.”
“Less talk,” Worf growled. “More synthohol.”
“He’s right,” Jadzia stated. “We need to be enjoying ourselves and not worrying about whether or not Sisko is going to make it back. He’d want it like that.”
“He’s not dead!” Julian strongly reminded them.
“Looks like I got my story,” Jake excitedly told Nog.
“Look!” Nog suddenly shouted and pointed out a portal.
Jake turned around and saw the runabout.
“It’s him!” Kasidy happily exclaimed and hurried out of Quark’s.
Sarah saw the shuttle and immediately understood what Kasidy was talking about. She anxiously left her table and followed after Kasidy.
“It’s Sisko!” Jadzia proclaimed.
“Well, the least we could do is greet him and Tov when they step off the shuttle,” Bashir stated excitedly.
A few minutes later, Sisko stepped off the shuttle with the infant in his arms. He walked over to Sarah with a smile, “I believe this little bundle is yours.”
Sarah had joyful tears in her eyes as she took her son from Sisko.
“Dad!” Jake greeted happily.
Kasidy gave Sisko a big hug.
“Welcome back, Captain. We need to contact Voyager,” Jadzia said with contained excitement. “Let them know you have return.”
“What has Starfleet said?” Sisko asked as he and everyone else walked out of the docking port and onto the turbo lift. “Ops.”
“Well, it seems they have accepted that we had the baby in protective custody,” Jadzia informed him.
“Protective custody?”
“Well, it worked.” Bashir told him.
“I gather you know about the baby’s nanoprobes?” Sisko asked.
“Yes, Sir,” Bashir told him. He was not very surprised that Sisko knew. It seemed the prophets had a way of giving Sisko information that most would have had to search for. “It was our basis for telling Starfleet the baby was in protective custody and from the Borg I might add.”
“I’m impressed,” Sisko told everyone.
They exited the turbo lift and entered Ops.
“Mister O’Brien,” Jadzia said happily. “See if you can hail Voyager.”
“Aye, Sir and welcome back Captain.”
“Good to be back.”
“I have Voyager.”
*Admiral Janeway. Good news!*
“Jadzia,” Janeway greeted. “I take it this means Sisko has made it back safely?”
*Why don’t I let him tell you.* Jadzia smiled.
*Admiral* Sisko greeted.
“Glad to see you’re back, Captain Sisko. How is Tov?”
*Mother and child are back together again.*
“Wonderful, I look forward to your report.”
“As do I,” Picard added.
*Deep Space Nine out.*
“That‘s good news,” Picard asked with a smile. “Can anyone tell us where we can get some non-replicated food?”
“Should we tell him?” Paris asked.
“Nah, I think we should let him and his wife find out for themselves,” Harry Kim said jovially.
“I believe,” Janeway began to tell the Picards, “They are referring to Neelix’s cooking.”
“Uh, oh. She’s going to tell him,” Paris playfully grumbled.
“No Tom. You can tell him,” Janeway informed him suddenly.
“Well um,” Paris stammered. “His food has been known to cause gastro distress.”
“Or worse,” Harry added.
“Well, I guess we could always replicate something in our quarters,” Beverly suggested.
“Better yet,” Chakotay started to suggest. “Why don’t you two have dinner with Kathryn and me? I‘ll do the cooking.”
Jean-Luc looked at his wife, who just smiled. Finally he said, “We’ll be honoured.”
Back on DS9 Sarah approached Kira, “Kira, I’ve made a decision, but I need your help.”
“Decision? My help?” Kira questioned.
“Yes, I’ve decided to live on Bajor.”
“What? Why?”
“I don’t have any family, but Tov may have relatives on Bajor that are still alive,” Sarah informed her. “We never knew Bob’s real name, but if there is any possibility that he has family here, I think it is only fair that Tov get to know them.”
“And that is where you need my help?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t know. That maybe difficult since we don’t have any information on Bob,” Kira informed her. “No DNA, no real name. Nothing, except that he was Bajoran.”
“That’s where you’re wrong,” Korok stated as he appeared out of no where. “Not only does the child share Bob’s DNA, but he was also on the Enterprise a time or two before we went into battle. If you’re lucky, you might find something that will identify him there.”
“It would be like looking for a needle in a haystack,” Kira told him. “Besides, how much DNA can a Borg, even a Neo-Borg leave behind?”
“I’m not sure, but it is possible,” Korok insisted.
“It would be easier if we just try and find a relative by way of the child’s DNA,” Kira insisted. “I’ll speak with Doctor Bashir and see what we can do to help. I’m sure there will be someone who will take the two of you into their home.”
“Even though I am Terran?” Sarah nervously asked.
“I don’t see why not.” Kira told her. “We don’t have much to go on, so it will take time find anyone related to your Tov. I’m sure we can accommodate you some how until then.”
“Thank you, Kira.”
“I’m glad you came with us,” Seven told Axum.
“So am I.”
There was an awkward silence between them. Seven had invited Axum to return to Earth on Voyager and with Captain Chakotay and Admiral Janeway’s permission, he joined them for the trip home.
“So, where do we go from here?” Seven asked.
“We could start from the beginning. Get to know each other again,” Axum suggested.
“That is an idea or we could just be friends.”
“Whatever you want to do.”
“Would you…” Seven nervously began to ask. “Would you like to have dinner together?”
“You cook?”
“Yes, you really don’t want to try Neelix’s food.”
“Whatever you want.”
“Well, for the sake of your stomach and your first meals,” Seven informed him. “I’d try something easily digested. You may want to try something from the replicator.”
“Whatever you suggest.”
“Then I’ll see you at 1800 hours.”
Epilogue
Editorial by Jake Sisko
It was once thought that once a person was assimilated by the Borg, they would doomed to be a Borg forever. Then came those were had been assimilated then were rescued from the Borg. Some were rescued before they were completely severed from the Borg and some were rescued after they had been severed from the hive. The latter are called Neo-Borg.
Neo-Borg are individuals who happen to look like Borg, but they are not. Their adamant statements about not being Borg include the words I and me. There is rarely a ’we’ unless they are talking about everyone in the group. They speak about themselves like anyone else of their species.
No one ever dreamed that a Borg would have child, so it was a complete surprised when a Neo-Borg did. When the baby decided to come into the world, Starfleet doctors assisted the Neo-Borg mother.
When he was born the baby did not look anything like a Borg, but rather an average child that was from Bajor. His mother was originally human and when all the Borg technology was stripped away from her body, she looked almost like any other human.
His father was also a Neo-Borg and a Bajoran. No one knew his former name, so after he was severed from the Borg collective, the other Neo-Borg gave him the name Bob. He died while protecting his new born son from the Borg.
Given the baby’s parents’ stories, it would seem that anything is possible, even for those who have been assimilated by the Borg. A person can not always judge another just because of a stereotype, especially those who look Borg, but have been severed from the hive and have discovered their individuality once again. They may look Borg, but are they really still Borg? That is the question that still remains in many people’s minds.
Then there is the child who was born of two Borg parents. He was born with nanoprobes, yet he was not Borg. While it’s a long and difficult story to explain, the child arrived in the alpha quadrant like any other child. He was born healthy and had no outside features that said he was a Borg.
His amazing story continues with a blessing from the prophets of Bajor. His mother has decided to raise him on Bajor and teach him Bajoran ways in honour of his father. There are still mysteries that have yet to be uncovered concerning this precious life, this child will grow up to be as extraordinary as those who helped him come into this world. Something tells me that one day Tov will become a great healer.
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