Unworthy - Kirsten Beyer [118]
Hundreds of voices ceased their internecine dialogues and focused a single thought upon her.
You are Borg?
I was, Seven corrected them. I come bearing the collective wisdom of billions. Hear me.
As the Indign hung breathless upon her next words, Seven opened her mind to them, showing them Voyager’s initial confrontation with the cube on which Seven had been stationed when she was assigned to act as an intermediary between the Borg and humanity. She shared with them Kathryn Janeway’s unfathomable request for alliance, and the Borg’s acceptance of her offer. She showed them the results of that alliance, the defeat of their mutual enemies. She showed them Janeway severing Seven from the Collective.
The Indign began to lose their cohesive quality. Each cooperative had its own questions. Soon hundreds of voices were peppering her mercilessly with individual requests for guidance and information. They stood face-to-face with their god, having tasted of the fruit of knowledge, and hungrily began grappling among themselves for the rest of the apple.
Seven had intended to use her memories as a means to convince the Indign that they should ally themselves with Voyager as the Borg had. Amid the chaos she realized that this would be too complicated for the Indign to accept.
Cease your hostilities against the Federation vessels, Seven ordered, cutting sharply through the chorus of frightened and shrill voices bombarding her.
Why?
Why?
Why? Why? Why?
Part of Seven hated to answer their question in the only way she knew they would understand. But she also recognized that this was probably the first of many such discussions she would inevitably have with the Indign and her only goal now was to end the fighting so that the more productive work could actually begin.
The Borg are pleased with your offerings, Seven replied. They have sent me to assure you of this. If you would be worthy of our continued attention, you would do well to heed my words. Cease your attack and return to your homeworld. I will find you there.
Seven knew the power of a superior voice, but the infinitely greater power of that voice’s silence.
She imagined herself seated once again in the Galen’s sickbay. As she opened her eyes to find Counselor Cambridge, the Doctor, and Commander Glenn staring at her with wide-eyed wonder, she terminated her connection with the Indign.
The Doctor immediately moved forward and began to scan her with a medical tricorder as Cambridge offered her the inhibitor.
“What did you do?” Glenn asked.
A dull throbbing in the front of Seven’s skull quickly sharpened its assault until it felt as if someone were pounding upon it with a hammer.
“Have the Indign retreated?” Seven asked as the strength that had briefly sustained her limbs dissipated and her arms and legs became heavy as tritanium weights.
Glenn advised her gently. “Eden’s last report just came in. They broke off the attack and set course for their system.”
“And not a moment too soon.” Cambridge smiled even as he studied Seven’s face intently.
“What did you do?” Glenn asked again.
Seven didn’t know if her reluctance to answer was the result of the many levels of physical discomfort now washing through her, or the reality that though she had succeeded, she had failed to uphold Starfleet ideals.
“I lied to them,” Seven finally replied.
Glenn appeared to be puzzled, the Doctor shocked, but Cambridge nodded almost gleefully.
“Well done,” he said, and smiled.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
You did what?” the Doctor shouted, dropping the padd he’d been using to update Ensign Sanchez’s chart with a clatter onto a tray of surgical tools.
Galen’s triage center had gone from chaotic to controlled insanity over the last several hours as the wounded from Voyager and Hawking had been prioritized and treated both during and in the immediate aftermath of the battle. Doctor Sharak and Doctor Lamar had tended