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| - Enterprise was en route to a far out Federation colony, investigating its distress signal and subsequent radio silence. When she arrived, nothing was left but a steaming hole in the ground. It was almost as if a meteor had smashed into the colony and wiped it off the map. But the sides of the hole were too smooth and rounded to be a force of nature. This was artificial and most certainly not of any known technology. This far out, there were many unknowns and a few knowns. The starship leaned in close to the planet's outer atmosphere, feeling its blue mist brush her hull. She breathed in, detecting a foul residue left by the weapon's discharge and the ship of its origin. It made her lip curl and not even the Klingons with their horrendous body odor made her do that. "Stinky isn't it." said a voice and Enterprise whirled around to face Melbourne. "Don't do that!" She growled. "I'm sorry." Enterprise sighed. "What are you doing here?" She asked. "Bringing aboard passengers, and to give you some news." Melbourne looked grim. "Who was it?" Enterprise asked. "If it is who I think it is..." "Your instincts as usual, are correct. It's the Borg." Melbourne replied. "What do we do?" Enterprise asked. "You're flagship. You're supposed to answer that." Melbourne said. "Plus your previous experience with them gives you the one up on me." Enterprise growled in frustration. "Well, I can't help." She said. "So what do we do?" Melbourne pulled out a deck of cards and a bottle of Romulan Ale. "I may be a rookie at this game but I know its rules and its traditions. First round's on me." She said. A few minutes later the two ships were going at it. There was nothing like a good old fashioned game of poker to loosen up one's mind. "You got another king in the hole, eh Enterprise." Melbourne grinned. "You may be a rookie Mel, but even you know I cannot answer that." Enterprise replied. "I will buy another card." She put 10 in the pot and Melbourne matched. "Enterprise." She asked as Enterprise laid down her cards. "Flush." The flagship smirked. "What do you have, Mel?" She asked. Melbourne grinned smugly and set down a straight flush. "Damn!" Enterprise groaned. "Beginner's luck." Melbourne grinned, grabbing all the chips and pulling them close to her. Enterprise grumbled choice words as she dealt, keeping her eyes closed. Melbourne remained behind at the colony as Enterprise went on ahead, following the magnetic trail that served as the Borg's footprint. She wasn't sure what she'd find but she was prepared. Or she thought she was. What's more is that it'd become personal. USS Lalalla, a small cargo carrier had broadcast a distress signal. She wasn't heard from again. Enterprise was certain she had died. When an enemy attacked the Federation she would gladly defend it, but when an enemy attacked one of her ships, she would do everything she could to make their lives hell! Enterprise detected an unknown vessel at far range. It apparently detected her as well and moved to intercept. Enterprise bared her teeth, a snarl escaping her. She remembered her last encounter. She'd lost sight in her right eye in that and having chosen not to get an implant, the eye was gray and sightless. "Not this time you don't!" She growled, powering up her weapon systems. Her stance of aggression would almost certainly be met likewise so she was surprised when the Borg hailed her. She was wary but curiosity overruled her sense of caution. She answered, speaking in a falsely sweet tone. "Hello, my name is..." "Starship USS Enterprise, Registry: NCC-1701-D Flagship of the United Federation of Planets. Allegiance: Starfleet." "And don't you forget it."Enterprise thought. She thought she felt dry humor in response. "You will lower your shields and allow your captain to board our vessel. If you do not comply we will destroy you." The Borg continued. Enterprise growled. "Yeah, when the sun goes nova!" She snorted. She was having none of this. "You have committed an act of war against the United Federation of Planets! You will withdraw immediately!..." "You surrender yourself or be destroyed. Your defensive capabilities are unable to withstand us..." Enterprise cut off the transmission there. She had heard enough. But one thing still confused her. "What do they want with you, captain?" She asked. "I thought they were only interested in our technology, not human life." "So did I." Picard replied. "But their priorities appeared to have changed. Open a channel." Reluctantly, very reluctantly Enterprise did so. "We have developed new capabilities since our last meeting and we are prepared to use them. If you do not withdraw from Federation space..." Picard broke off as Enterprise winced, recognizing the probing feeling of a scanner. She hated those things. It was like being viewed naked under a microscope. The Borg attempted to lock on with a tractor beam but Enterprise had a small surprise for him. The modifications Georgie made were put in place. The Borg's beam couldn't get a lock. The new shields were working, for now. But the Borg had the incredible ability to adapt at astonishing speeds. She didn't expect her advantage to last long, which was why she needed to act fast. She armed her torpedoes, just as the tractor beam got through, draining her shields. She fired but the new phase weapons didn't work. She reversed her engines at full power with no effect. Her weapons fire continued. Then the Borg returned fire. With her shields down, Enterprise was helpless as the beam cut into her engineering section with ease. She groaned in pain as her hull was breached. Blue blood began to leak out, its special antifreeze properties preventing it from freezing on contact with the void of space. It would take several minutes for it to cool enough for that to happen. In the meantime, large blue gobs drifted past various windows, making several crewmen faint. Enterprise attempted to fire her weapons in a constantly changing frequency pattern, not allowing the Borg time to adapt as they usually did. After a few shots, the tractor beam was released as a direct hit caused a minor explosion. "Yes!" The starship hissed. She wasted no time getting out of there, racing away at Warp 9. The Borg of course followed and Enterprise remembered they were just as fast as her if not faster. Her wound was bothering her but she kept on, entering a Nebula to hide herself. The Nebula consisted of 80% Dilithium hydrocrystals, magnesium, chronium. Any ship that came in, would be flying blind. Briefly she recalled a similar time nearly 80 years ago when she, one of her predecessors that is, hid in a Nebula to hide from and fight another ship. The players had sense changed as had the weapons but the principles remained the same. Shoot and avoid being spotted as a target! Once she was fully in, she slowed to a halt, keeping dead still. The Borg continued looking. This not only kept them busy from hurting anyone else but also gave her time to think strategy and how to overcome the Borg's clear superiority in this confrontation. "What I do know is that when I hit it with my recalibrating phasers, they experienced a 2% drop in overall power. The phasers were on a high frequency." She said. "That must mean they're vulnerable to attack." Picard mused. "We would need a lot more power, and I mean far more than our phasers or torpedoes to have a big effect in those terms." Georgie said. "What could be used to generate that much power?" Picard asked. "The deflector dish." Enterprise answered for her engineer. "It's the only part of me that was designed to withstand that much power." "A concentrated beam like that would spark an overload of your systems, sending bolts of electricity in every direction and metal is not the best conductor." Picard said. "It's a risk I am willing to take, sir." Enterprise growled. "If I die preventing a Borg ship from hurting more of my fleet then so be it." "Spoken like a true 1701." Picard murmured. "Get to it." He ordered Georgie. "Aye sir." The engineer left for his station. As the starship, one of Enterprise's many duties was to look after the welfare of her crew, first and foremost. They were her people and they came first no matter what. Having made her rounds with the numerous nervous and frightened ensigns and even a few luitenents and luitenent commanders, she turned her attention to the one man who held her hard and didn't even know it. So far Captain Picard had resisted her attempts at talk, telling her in no uncertain terms to look after the crew first. Enterprise had followed orders. She had just one last thing to do. "Having trouble sleeping, captain?" She asked as Picard walked into 10 Forward. "I thought I told you to look after the crew." He said. "Consider them looked after." She replied. He sighed. "It's an old tradition, Enterprise. The captain never sleeps on the eve of battle. He tours the ship, ensuring her well-being. You of all ships should know that." They had shifted to telepathy as this way, both could see one another's facial expressions as they were projected into the other's mind. Plus, no one else could eavesdrop on what they were saying. It could be a useful way of communicating. "What do you mean me of all ships?" She asked, tilting her head to one side. "Don't play dumb with me, Enterprise! You're one of the oldest souls around. Don't tell me in your age you've forgotten your days in World War 2 or even farther back, with the French Navy." Picard said. "As I recall, I spent more time with the Brits. Damn frogs couldn't hold on to me, sorry." She added when she remembered her captain's heritage. "It's alright." He continued on the subject at hand. "Before a hopeless battle the captain tours the ship if I remember the tradition correctly." Enterprise mused, getting back to the subject. "Not necessarily a hopeless battle Enterprise." Picard said. "Nelson toured HMS Victory before Traelfragor." "Yes but Nelson never returned from Traelfragor did he." She replied. That Picard would think of comparing himself to Nelson, the Nelson who was lost in a battle of odds similar to this one, frightened her more than she could ever admit, even to herself. To this day, Victory mourned the loss of her greatest commander. The old Excelsior-class was never the same after that battle. Excelsior told Enterprise she still had nightmares. Enterprise had no doubt she would be just like Victory should she lose Picard. "No, but the battle was won." Picard said. "Do you expect this battle to be won?" Enterprise asked. It was a valid question to be sure, she had as much a stake in the outcome of this fight as he did. The survival of the Federation depended upon how well she fared against the Borg. "We may yet prevail. That's a conceit but it's a healthy one." Picard said. "I wonder if the Emperor of Xigarith watching the Romans come over the hill truly realized that their empire was about to fall. This is just another page of history isn't it. Will this be the end of our civilization?" "Will this be the end of you?" Enterprise whimpered. "Is this how you die? Is this where, when you die?" The agony in her voice could be heard clearly through the connection. "I truly don't know." Picard answered, hating himself for being unable to provide a clearer answer. He had a sense of something, that something big was about to happen, something terrible. But what and to whom he did not know. Enterprise could sense it too and her greatest fear was it would be her captain who would take the fall. "If I should fall tomorrow..." He began. "No!" She wailed. "Don't you say that. Don't you ever say that!" "Enterprise, should I die you must get the crew to safety. Rejoin the fleet and prepare a counter attack, do not engage!" Picard growled. "But..." "That's an order, battleship!" He hissed, calling Enterprise by her assigned rank. It may've been several centuries, but Earth ships still adhered to the old rank system. Enterprise stood at attention. "Yes sir." She replied. "Jean-Luc, do not think for one second that I will simply allow them to take you. You are, more important to me than you may realize. There are some things I can never tell you but know this, while I can withstand the loss of Lallalla, Galaxy, Sovereign, Defiant, even Excelsior vital to Starfleet as she is. I can even take the destruction of the entire Federation! But there is one thing, just one in this entire universe that I absolutely, cannot afford to lose. That one thing is you captain. I cannot lose you! You mean more to me than everything I have just listed. Their loss I can bear, yours I cannot." Picard stroked the nearest support beam. "And you are the one thing I cannot lose." He murmured. "That's why, if things go sour, I need you to run. Run as fast as you can. My only order to you is this: Keep yourself and your crew alive. I could not live with myself if I knew you had died without me dying with you." The starship bowed her head."I understand captain." She murmured. "You will, keep this between us?" She asked. "Not even Riker will know." He promised. A shot rattled Enterprise. It sounded close and she knew it was Borg. They were mining it, forcing her to move. She groaned as she took a hit, her structural fields failing in that area. Again blue blood flowed from her wounds. She was grateful the Borg lacked a sense of smell. They surely would've detected the neon colored material as it streamed from her body. Staying in the Nebula was risking the lives of her crew and more importantly her captain. She had no choice but to leave. She powered up her engines, ready to jump to warp 9 and readied her weapons as well. The Borg wanted a fight, she would give them one! She raced right past the Borg who followed close behind, attempting to lock on with the tractor beam. Desperately, Enterprise rotated her shield frequencies but it was no use. She cried out as the tractor beam got a lock, acting as an instant break. The starship dropped from warp 9 to a standstill instantly. Borg beamed themselves onto her bridge. She shook and danced, trying to rattle them, keeping them away from her captain but one grabbed onto him and beamed back to the Borg ship. Enterprise whimpered, trying to reach out to her captain telepathically. Surprisingly strong mental shields blocked her. Apparently the Borg's subspace field was more than just a physical defense and as Picard was aboard that ship, he was out of her reach. She whimpered, hating that she couldn't talk to him. To find out if he was okay. She had no idea what the Borg wanted from him but the uneasy feeling she'd had since she began this mission reached a climax. Whatever it was, it would be a nasty surprise and one that could cause the destruction of the Federation itself. For 2 hours, Enterprise worked to find a way through the Borg ship's mental shields. She poked and prodded until she was certain that even Hood, with her infinite patience, would've shoved a torpedo up her ass by now. Finally, the Borg ship relented. "Your attempts at communication are amusing as is your motive. We shall allow you this one opportunity. Give you a glimpse of what is in store for your precious Federation." "Jerk." Enterprise muttered, carefully stifling her less choice words as they entered her mind. No need to give the Borg yet another reason to harass her captain. "Jean Luc." She asked. "Here Enterprise." His mental voice sounded weak but it was worse than that. Enterprise could detect another presence in his mind, fighting for control, for dominance. It felt like many minds at once, all coming together to create one powerful mind. One so powerful it was threatening to overwhelm Picard. "What's happening? What have they done to you?!" The starship wailed, fearing for her beloved captain. "Enterprise, listen to me. You have to go. You have to go now!" Picard growled. "No! I am not leaving you!" She whimpered. "The Borg are attempting to assimilate me. I cannot resist their influence for much longer. *Resistance is futile*" "Then I must get you out of there. Where are you? Give me your coordinates and I'll beam you back. We'll find a way out of this together." She begged. "No, if I attempt to escape they will destroy you." He replied. "Just go Enterprise. I know you'll figure something out." "I won't leave you to this. I won't!" She sobbed. "You must. Think of the Federation, think of your fleet Enterprise. With a threat this large the last thing they need is the loss of their flagship. Use that jumbo sized brain of yours and think! You are needed by so many! Go to them, Enterprise. There is nothing more you can do for me..." Enterprise could feel his presence fading. "Sir? Captain? Jean Luc!" She wailed as Picard's mind gave one last desperate fight and then he was simply, gone. Enterprise screamed as she felt the loss. She was emphatically connected to all of her crew and losing just one was a needle to her heart. But losing Picard was more like a sword. Physically, nothing happened but the starship acted as though she may as well just have been stabbed. She rolled on her side, not caring of the enemy ship right next to her. Her mind reached out instinctively, searching for one last trace of her captain, only to receive the harsh backlash of his passing. She gasped as though it was a physical pain, 10 Forward from saucer to nacelle tip. The Borg's mind weaved its way along Enterprise's telepathic link and the starship was a little late in noticing it. Her powerful mind beat back the presence before she terminated the connection altogether, an action made more out of an instinct for self preservation than fear. But she didn't do it before the Borg got in a sentence of their own. And for however long she had left to live, Enterprise knew she would he haunted by what they said. It would echo across her memories, interrupting her sleep, invading her dreams, acting as a torture session to every waking hour.
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