Chapter 58
"I don't know what to do," Janeway admitted once back on her own ship. She let herself flop onto the couch, despite the fact that Tuvok was in her living room, as well as her lover Chakotay.
"Can you believe that? The biggest known threats in the universe, and they control all of them. The Borg, species 8472, the Omega molecule. Forget about the Dominion, or the war as the biggest threat. Seven is Queen of the Borg Collective. The gain, the potential gain of that. Just imagine, the Federation is facing the Dominion forces, and if we manage to get Starfleet to talk to Seven and B'Elanna, they could ask the Borg for help. The war would be over within a day."
"Back then Tom was partially right," Chakotay said thoughtfully. "We were able to outmaneuver the Borg way too easily, in hindsight because we were training Seven for them. But, not just us, but others as well, have been able to defend themselves against the Borg. If we can believe the stories that they changed the Collective, that still doesn't make them perfect or unbeatable."
"Everyone is beatable, as long as there is a bigger or better player in the game," Tuvok noted. "However, the biggest player we know to date, that does not possess omnipotent powers, is the Borg Collective. The real heart of the matter is whether or not we can believe the stories, or if this is another way that the Borg try to conquer the Federation."
Knowing how much the Vulcan had always liked Seven, and appreciated B'Elanna's abilities, Janeway didn't bristle at the words, but she still asked him to explain himself.
"When we were walking through Unimatrix 01, B'Elanna told us clearly that the Borg did not trust us at all, but that they did trust B'Elanna and Seven," Tuvok reminded before explaining, "There is a chance that they actually also do not trust Seven and B'Elanna, but that they merely learned how to use people; manipulate them. I stated this before, and their explanations have not disputed the possibility. It is still a possibility that the Borg are using B'Elanna and Seven to gain our trust. Use us to gain the trust of the Federation, and once there destroy the Federation."
"I don't think they would bother with games like that," Chakotay said as he moved to the replicator. He asked Tuvok and Janeway if they wanted something, and after replicating them both a drink, he continued as he sat down beside Janeway. "That time has passed. We have seen individual thinking on that ship. Even if every single one of them was being played by the Hive, that individualistic thinking would long since have led to at least one of them wondering, 'why don't we just go there with Unimatrix 01 and simply blast Earth out of existence'. We now know that it was the old Queen's unexplainable way of thinking that made the Borg only interact with the Federation on the smallest of levels."
He shrugged before reminding, "You know Seven, you know B'Elanna, and you know them both well enough to know that if they had to deal with the problem that is the Federation, the option of simply destroying it all would come to their mind. Even if only as an option that should never be used. If they were not indeed totally free to think and act like they want then the 'should never be used' part would be considered irrelevant by the Borg, and the idea of simply destroying Earth would be a very valid option. Destroying Earth is a ruthless step, but on the scale that is the Borg Collective, destroying a simple planet that has no meaning to them other than being a potential threat is a quite effective way of getting rid of that threat."
"No, they aren't controlled by the Hive," Janeway said resolutely. "But they are controlled by the fact that the Borg Collective is their home now. Their home, their family, a place they'll protect with their life. There is no doubt in my mind that they would side with the Borg if there's a problem with the Federation."
"Then I would say that you have no choice left, Captain," Tuvok pointed out. "You have to work to try and mediate a contact between the Borg and the Federation, now that the Borg Collective is actually interested in such a contact because Seven and B'Elanna are interested in such contact. If we let this opportunity pass, then we will either lose a possible ally in the war with the Dominion. Or we will lose a possible ally in the war with the Dominion, and leave the door open for the Borg attacking the Federation in the future if they are under the control of a new Queen."
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"That was, um, interesting," Janeway said once they were all sitting around the large table in the Zamonan restaurant. Images of seeing a couple have sex on the table of a meeting area on deck sixty-nine, and six people sitting around it and enjoying the entertainment still burned in her mind. But something else that burned in her mind was the total respect that she had seen for Seven and B'Elanna. It was not like people dropped to their knees when the Queen passed by, or even stopped working or having conversations. Still, there was a certain atmosphere... eyes drifted in their direction, and... Janeway shook her head when thinking back to the visit of deck sixty-nine. Those people were in the middle of having sex, when the 'one on top' had seen Seven and B'Elanna and actually pulled out, and wanted to stop entirely. Until Seven had told her to carry on, and then added with a smile; 'it is not nice to leave a needing woman waiting.'
Janeway thought back further, to the visit on deck fifteen. There the closest contact between people she had seen was when two hands came close while someone handed a PADD to another person. There too Seven had seamlessly adapted. When someone walked out of a room, not having seen the group, he had almost collided with Seven. It was Seven who had prevented this contact by taking a step back. It were extremely small things like this, Janeway realized, that made these people respect Seven.
Seven was their Queen, but the reason they respected her was not merely because she was the Queen, but because she had earned that respect. Seven had given respect to every person Janeway had seen her interact with, and as a result of that, these people were willing to do everything for her, Borg linked or not.
God, she had seen a Siill warrior in one of the corridors. He... she... it... just seeing it had sent shivers down Janeway's spine. But it had respectfully backed up to not stand too close too Seven and tower over the blonde. The contact had been small. Seven had touched it lightly on the arm. There had been no other interaction; simply a slight touch on the arm in recognition. The result had been immediate; the Siill had straightened. Janeway swore that if it had been a Human, the Siill would have been puffing out its chest. Later Seven had explained. All Siill were telepaths. As such direct contact was something not often done between Siill that were not Mated to each other. Because of that, touching a Siill in a deliberate, yet small and harmless way, was a way of showing clear appreciation for the fact that that Siill was there in that location where it could actually be physically touched.
Then another shiver had ran down Janeway's back when she realized that these people, both the Borg and the Siill, were willing to die for Seven because of how she treated all of them. She had realized that Seven was in control of a Collective ten times as powerful as the one the former Queen had ruled. Whatever the former Queen said would be done. But the drones couldn't have cared less. In earlier encounters Janeway had never seen a Borg drone run. They were told to go from point A to point B and they walked there or were beamed there. Now though. Now the drones did care. A drone would run, a drone would retreat a step or two so that they could regroup. These drones would know when to switch from phaser to hand to hand contact by themselves. They didn't need to be told by the Hive that using the phaser was no longer an option because of close quarters; they would know.
These drones did care. These drones cared for the place they would fight for. As such, they would dig deeper and fight harder than they would ever have if simply getting a command from the Hive and not caring if they lived or died. And on top of that, Seven had turned the Collective around and had made it a home for these people; a home that they would willingly die for to protect it.
Janeway looked at some of the Zamonan in the restaurant, and at their state of dress. All was just within the lines of decency, but it was even more revealing than the clothing she could remember seeing on Zamona. It led her to ask a question that had nothing to do with her musing, but was safer to ask. "Is there a reason why this restaurant is located on deck seventy, with a direct mini-lift to deck sixty-nine?"
B'Elanna nodded. "There is. There are quite some Zamonan that live on deck sixty-nine, and the decks close to it. They like the atmosphere there. Especially the ease with which they can find someone to spend the night with, that doesn't expect them to come back the next day. Or if they do go back on a regular basis, that doesn't expect a relationship."
"It sounds to me like the Zamonan are using the people that inhabit deck sixty-nine," Harry noted.
"They are," B'Elanna happily agreed. "Most Zamonan are fiercely independent and they're the ones that want to decide when to have sex. To have an entire deck with almost two million people that are willing to have sex pretty much so easily that all you have to do is say 'please,' is a Zamonan's dream come true. Deck sixty-nine is like a treasure trove to them. They can go there, look around, and wonder. 'Hmm, red, blonde, baled... dark skinned, light skinned, blue skinned. Tall, short... hey, should I try what the thing is about men?' They love it. But the thing to keep in mind is that the people that live on the deck also want that, otherwise they wouldn't be living there."
"You said that some Zamonan live on that deck themselves; does that not mean that they too have to say 'yes' to pretty much everyone that asks?" Chakotay noted.
Seven gave a small smile. "You are starting to understand the concept of the different decks. You are correct, mostly. They do not 'have' to say yes. Despite all, final choices are always left to the individual and should be respected. Granted, there are a few species that do not want to be in control of that final choice and they tend to get together with members of species that like to be in total control over their partners. But what they often do not realize themselves is that this is still making that choice. They make the choice to give the choice to someone else; but that is still their choice to make. But to come back to those Zamonan that live on deck sixty-nine. Though members of species tend to behave generally in the same way, there are still individuals that prefer things that the majority does not. This is the same with the Zamonan. There are a few that actually do want others to make the choice for them. But, in a society that is all about being independent, how do you stand up and tell people that they do not have to try, that it is almost certain that the answer will be yes? In this case, they go and live on deck sixty-nine."
B'Elanna grinned and continued where Seven had stopped. "It helps them by the way. People go to the deck, wonder which person to approach to sleep with... and then they see a Zamonan there. They're ecstatic; here is their chance to sleep with a Zamonan without first having to spend weeks to get them to the point where they say yes. But there's more to it than that. So this Zamonan that actually wants to give control to a partner is living on deck sixty-nine. And this fiercely independent Zamonan that wants to be in control goes to the deck to find someone to have sex with that night. They see a Zamonan there... could it be? A Zamonan that wants others to decide for her? They hook up, and stay that way. The fiercely independent Zamonan that wants to be in control finds a partner that wants her to be that way. That on top of that, understands and appreciates all Zamonan customs down to the last detail. And that Zamonan that wants to have a partner that is in control can have that partner, and still from then on be a full part of the Zamonan society and have a partner that prays to the same gods as she does."
"There are by now over two million people here on Unimatrix 01 alone that have ended up in couples, and groups, that are considered steady relationships," Seven added. "Because they wanted to see what this or that way of living was about, and then found that they liked it. Or that found people of their own species to start a relationship because living here enabled them to admit things that they would never have admitted in their own society."
"Do you have any suggestions, or should we pick blindly," Janeway asked slightly amused as she looked at the menu and realized that it was written in only one language; Borg. It made sense, she guessed, because every single person in the Borg Collective would be able to read that language as soon as they had regenerated for the first time.
"Do you all appreciate Human food?" Katzi asked.
"In various degrees," Tuvok spoke up, slightly amused when the other non-Terrans in the senior crew of Voyager nodded their agreement to his words, even Neelix.
"Then allow me to order a Zamonan Spring Festival platter for you. It's a lot of smaller dishes and you pick from them. You may not like some things, but the others will still be to your liking." After getting agreeing nods from several people, Katzi did so.
Once food was ordered, Chakotay asked, "You said that people of the same species like that they could pray to the same gods as their partners. I wonder what exactly your stand on this is. As you know, in the Federation believing in gods has diminished to basically non-existent after finding out that a lot of those gods were actually omnipotent beings like Q that happen to cross the Federation's path."
B'Elanna thought about that for a moment before explaining, "I think that one of our most important rules is the one of 'do what you want, but respect what others want'. Within reason of course. Some of the species in the Collective don't believe in gods, while others believe that every single move is governed by gods. We let them both be. We have places of worship, but those people don't go attacking other people because they don't believe in their god. We have many different belief systems, just like we have many systems having to do with society that cover the same thing, but are done differently. For instance, take marriage. We have species where a marriage is for life, and we have species that never marry but still live together for life once they are in a relationship; the Siill come to mind. We also have things that are now done by many species even though it was originally not part of their normal society. They became acquainted with the system in the Borg and liked it. For instance, the Zamonan Mate system. Even if they are not Zamonan, it has become a norm for people in relationships to call each other Mate to indicate how serious they are. Most people like the fact that it can be for life, or can be ended after days with hardly any problems at all."
"To be fair, the fact that B'Elanna and I do use that system does add to the popularity," Seven added. "If people of different species start a relationship, do they use the bonding system of one species, or the other, or both, or none? Especially because they do not know if their species are compatible for a long life together. Many of those couples prefer the Mate system because it does cover it all. It makes clear that it is a serious relationship, to be taken just as serious as marriage, yet it can be ended on a minute's notice. And though the Zamonan did not use it this way, the Mate system has also been adapted by species that live in groups. Now a 'Mate' stands for a person you love, that you are physically intimate with, and with whom you strongly believe that you can spend a loving romantic relationship. It is irrelevant just how many Mates there are in the group, just as long as you love them all."
"That's quite complex," Gazec noted. "As you know, I'm from a species that sees sex separate from love, so I for one would actually prefer to live on deck sixty-nine, but we won't because I know that Harry won't like it."
"Um, maybe we should actually talk about that," Harry said with a blush. "It would not be fair for me to deny you something that's part of you."
Everyone around the table understood the real reason for Harry's words, and most partners would be upset at the mere suggestion, but Gazec smiled broadly at it. "What are you saying, my love? That you don't want to deny me, or that you don't want to deny yourself? Are you thinking about the possibility of living on deck sixty-nine because you're in a relationship with someone that you know for sure won't mind one bit if you were to sleep with someone else?"
Harry lowered his eyes when he realized that he should have talked about this in private. But he loved Gazec, and he was not about to deny the truth simply because people were around them. He looked back up and looked at his wife to be before stating boldly, "I don't want to deny either of us. If I know for sure that I won't lose you or hurt you, then I would be interested in living on deck sixty-nine, and going along with what it means to live there."
"You won't lose me, nor hurt me," Gazec assured. "If you're truly open to this possibility then I thank you for it. I was willing to have sex with only you because of your beliefs, but if you're truly able to understand that I'm still fully faithful to you, even if I'm having sex with someone else at the moment, then I would love to live on deck sixty-nine."
"It's part of who you are," Harry said, taking the last step of fully accepting his wife-to-be for what she was.
Gazec leaned in and kissed him passionately before saying softly, "Thank you for accepting me fully. Believe me, you won't be sorry." Then she winked. "Remember, we're in an equal relationship. Don't ever hesitate if you want to have sex with someone else. As long as I know that it's me that you're coming back to for love, then I'll be happy that you enjoyed some extra pleasure."
"And with all respect, I think that this conversation has turned much too private," Janeway interrupted. "Gazec, were you using your species as an example for a reason?"
"I apologize, captain. Yes, I did."
As Gazec started to explain, Janeway couldn't help but think about the other things that were said. About Gazec and Harry living on deck sixty-nine. For them to live there they had to leave Voyager. Voyager wasn't even back in the Alpha Quadrant and the splitting of the crew was already beginning. She knew that Seven and B'Elanna would gladly accept them on Unimatrix 01, and probably others of the crew as well. It hurt Janeway to know that maybe she really could bring her family, the Voyager crew, home this time. But that she would be doing it only so that the family could be split apart.
"What I meant was," Gazec continued, "That because our species sees sex separate from love, we can actually take the, for other species, complex level of sex and things that go along with it, out of the equation. Like jealousy or a feeling of being denied because the partner is not in the mood because they already had sex that day. The thing is that our species only bond to one person; having love relationships with more than one person is absolutely unheard of in our species. But what would happen if Harry is my Mate, and he falls in love with someone else and wants that person to be a Mate as well? Because I love Harry I simply cannot love this other person like that as well. Sure, I could, and probably would, have sex with that person. But love? The thing that would make me say that Harry is my Mate... no. So, how does that work? Does that mean that Harry has two Mates, and I have one? And to take this further. Let's say that this other person has someone else he or she loves as well. Does that mean that I'm one Mate of Harry, and that he has a second Mate, and that this second Mate also has a second Mate that neither Harry nor I have a relationship with, or maybe even know? That's what I wonder about. I can see the Mate system between two people, but more? What if three people are Mates, and one stops loving the second while the third still loves the second. Does that mean that the first only has one Mate while the second and third person still have two Mates? Or how about,"
B'Elanna interrupted with a chuckle. "It is clear to see that you're a scientist; you think things through to the tenth level. And you do have a point; anywhere else this would be an almost impossible system to have with more than two people in a relationship. But here we once again have the Hive mind, and personal links between the people involved. Yes, it can, and does happen, that a person has more than one Mate, but that these other Mates are not Mates to each other. But because of the link between them they know what the other thinks. And they can ask to have the standard mind scan, which is done with every regenerating cycle, to be adapted. It's possible to feel feelings then as well. Then it'll no longer be a case of thinking jealously, 'what does that person have that I don't'? Then it will be, 'I see, so that's what this person makes my Mate feel'. And because of that they can either accept that their Mate has another Mate, they and this other Mate start to get along better and become Mates as well. Or the person can accept their Mate having a different Mate that the person themselves only becomes friends with at best. Or the person can still not accept that the Mate has another Mate and decides that ending the relationship is the best thing to do. Bottom line, and most important, is that they know, for sure, what the feelings are and it helps in keeping relationships going, or to find a point where they can stop the relationship but still be friends."
"All you have told us this far sounds very positive," Chakotay noted. "It makes it sound like the Collective is a perfect place to live, where nothing bad ever happens. That's not realistic. So, what are the bad parts?"
"The bad parts?" Seven repeated. "You mean like the fact that there are indeed instances where we have to prevent people from becoming Individuals again because they want to harm the Collective for their own gain? Or like the fact that because of decisions I made, orders I gave, 7,290,161 drones have died? Drones, that means not also counting people that were not part of the Collective. I would make those choices again today, but the fact remains that because I said yes, literally millions have died. Or that no matter how hard I try not to, sometimes I look at my daughter and think of the babies that died that were younger than my own daughter, because I gave orders. Or like how because I approved experiments that eventually went wrong, I now have to live with remembering the screams and feelings I felt over the Borg links as 15,683 drones literally melted into a bloody puddle. Or how because of my orders we replied to attacks which resulted in wars, which on its turn resulted in millions of deaths on non-Borg side, and one destruction of an entire planet? That kind of 'bad parts'? I apologize for only wanting to show you the positive side of the Borg Collective. But if you really want to experience the negative sides, you can join the Hive for one day and we can let you feel the pains of the Borg drones that die every single day because of decisions I make."
"You feel that?" Janeway spoke up to get the attention off a clearly uncomfortable Chakotay.
"Not all the time," Seven admitted. "There is an option to filter out those feelings and that is normally active. We do not want to make the life of every drone miserable simply because how they feel how a drone fifty light-years away died."
"But," B'Elanna spoke up, "Seven believes that one of the things that made the old Queen so ruthless, and unpredictable, is the fact that she never felt the results of her actions. Because of that Seven sometimes deactivates this filter to actually feel it all. She's the only one though. I don't do that; I don't think I could feel all that and not go insane."
"The reason why I do not go insane is because I feel all," Seven explained. "Yes, I feel the drones dying, but at the same time I feel the joy of other drones when they hear the person they love say 'yes'. It balances out. I feel the negative result of my actions, but I also feel the positive result. I feel how millions have died, because of my choices. And I feel how billions have a better life than they had ever dreamed of, because of my choices. Also, I do not do this every day, and when I do I first spend a few hours to prepare myself for it."
"And the Hive loves her all the more for it," B'Elanna added. "For the old Queen, drones were tools to be used. Now the Hive feels how Seven mourns the loss when voices go quiet." B'Elanna hesitated for a moment before explaining, "Voices going quiet, is what we call people dying. Because of the Borg link those people could have been light-years away, but you still can 'hear' the death right here if you want by there suddenly being one voice less in the Hive."
They were interrupted by the food being brought, and Tom decided that a different direction for the conversation was needed. "So, tell me, how does one fly a Borg cube? I mean, I saw that you have a bridge on Unimatrix 01, but it's more of a centralized command thing. Don't you have ships that are really piloted directly by a pilot?"
"Why, do you want to be the first Federation pilot that flies a ship that's bigger than a Sovereign class?" B'Elanna asked amused.
"Well, yeah," Tom admitted a bit sheepishly.
B'Elanna grinned. "If you're really interested in flying a big ship, we can give you a little time behind the helm of Unimatrix 01 later. Centralized command or not, that's still where Unimatrix 01 is steered. I don't think that any Federation pilot will be able to beat that."
B'Elanna's grin turned into a laugh when she saw Tom making a move as if wiping away some drool. "Fine, you get your shot later. But just so that you know, we're very happy with our Senior Staff pilot, so there's no way that you'd ever be able to get that job, so don't start dreaming."
"Oh, but I wouldn't mind serving on the Beta shift," Tom assured. He had been joking, mostly, but he was not about to say that out loud when Seven spoke up.
"There is an option there. We have a pilot on the Beta shift as well, but she could be very suited, and is interested in, becoming an Alpha shift pilot for one of our X-cubes."
"I'll be in touch," Tom assured with a broad grin.
"X-cubes?" Gazec asked.
"Ah, right we didn't tell you that yet," B'Elanna said. "Gazec, you as a scientist might find this approach very interesting. You see, what we do now if we want to test something is..."
Continued...