Welcome aBorg, Part 2

Posted on Sat Jun 6th, 2026 @ 12:46am by Commander Rin & Cadet Sophomore Grade Melan Aris & Captain Gary Taylor & Commander Sthilg & Commander Kyle Reece & Commodore Phoenix Lalor-Richardson & Civilian Two of Eight & Lieutenant Commander Nicholas Reece [Reece] & Cadet Senior Grade Gérard Dirsye [Reece] & Cadet Sophomore Grade Arthur Tyrell & Cadet Sophomore Grade Miran Lalor [Lalor] HRH & Cadet Sophomore Grade Marmaduke Marshal & Nicholas Mathias & Lieutenant JG Calista Haelant & Cadet Senior Grade Triston Montgomery [Lalor] & Cadet Junior Grade Elaria Carlyle

Mission: Interlude
Location: Shuttle Bay, Elysium
2085 words - 4.2 OF Standard Post Measure

SHUTTLE BAY - ELYSIUM

Outside the shuttle, Phoenix waited until everything was secure. "Cadets and Crew first. Get them out and into Medical for quarantine." She ordered. "Then the drone."

Two of Eight remained aboard the shuttle, waiting for instructions how to proceed, something it was more than used to, the Collective and its captors told it what to do, and Two of Eight obeyed, given that obedience was all it knew.

Nicholas stood, addressing the rest of the away team. "Alright folks, you heard the Commodore. Let's get moving." He stood by the open hatch, having the entire team exit first, before he gave Two of Eight a final look. "Don't worry. Once you are scanned and are found to be harmless, you should be allowed to exit the runabout."

Aris didn't need to be told twice. She filed out with the other cadets questioning whether Starfleet was really for her. Not that she had a choice at the moment.

Heading across the bay toward medical, she crossed paths with Commander Rin. Whatever the Chief of Intel was thinking or feeling, she had it locked down tight. Or maybe that's just how the commander was. Aris had never spoken to her, and, honestly, today would be a terrible day to change that.

Marmaduke gave a cheery wave to Two of Eight and said, "Good luck." He was among the last to leave.

When the order was given, Arthur stood, hurriedly stowing his PaDD away, following the rest of the Cadets out of the shuttle. As he passed Two of Eight, he gave the Drone a small smile, and a slight wave of his hand, before heading to the designated meeting point.

TAG exiting cadets

After the last cadet exited, Rin stepped into the runabout. She really didn't know what she was feeling, or if she was feeling much at all. Was she supposed to feel something? Empathy? Fear? Horror? Kindred soul?

And then she saw it. The drone, and she did still see it as a drone. Someone had mangled it. A bunch of pieces were missing. She was confident it wasn't done by someone with the drone's best interests in mind. This was a dissection. They had cut out the weapons and whatever bits they found interesting.

Sorry, not a dissection. A vivisection.

She felt a twinge of anger. People afforded animals more dignity than that.

And not a hint of emotion on its face, a blankness few other races managed. Vulcans were calm, studious and aloof, but all of those things still reflected in their expressions. This... was nothing.

Anticlimactic, really. This was a job.

She glanced at her tricorder. As Nicholas had reported, it possessed no weapons. Nanites still coursed through its blood, of course, but she couldn't pick up the ones specific to assimilation. She didn't 100% trust her interpretation of the data, however. The tech was *old.* Older than what Federation databases were familiar with.

She approached the drone, giving them 2 good steps between them.

"Hello, Two of Eight. I am Commander Rin," she said. "I understand you've been detecting my presence for some time. Do you still possess the ability to assimilate?"

Two of Eight studied Commander Rin, certain this was the xB it had been detecting for quite some time.

"All Borg current for former have the signal that identifies us to others such as ourselves," Two of Eight confirmed "Yes we have assimilation tubules, even you, but no we cannot assimilate, our nanoprobes are ineffective," it added.

She have a nod to Nicholas. "I agree they're safe to bring out." And then to Two. "Let us introduce you to some of the other crew."

As they exited the runabout, she continued to speak. "You are correct. I still have the tubules, but I no longer produce the nanoprobes required for assimilation. They were a drain on resources, and we, as a group, decided they were unnecessary, even detrimental. There were better ways of interacting with other people and other technologies than forcing them to be exactly like us. There are benefits to diversity. And we could not continue to develop our own individuality if we did not accept that people not like us have the same rights to independence."

Sthilg stood at a distance running his medical scanner at the drone. The animal part of his brain was telling him to run, but his sentient thinking part was curious.

Gary watched closely as Rin spoke with the Borg done, Two of Eight. As the two xBs talk, he wondered if it could lie. Give false statements to lull them into dropping their guard.

"I am glad you understand that I am former Borg. I was fortunate in that I escaped the Collective with numerous others. I wasn't alone. We helped each other through it. You've been alone for a very long time. You don't have to be alone anymore. You have me, and you have the crew of the Elysium. It will be a different life, but I think in time you'll find it is better. I did, as did the other xBs."

Two of Eight understood what Rin was saying, it understood, but was not yet fully comprehending what was on offer, with time and patience it would come to understand.

She came to stop a few paces from Gary and Phoenix. "This is Commodore Lalor-Richardson and Captain Gary Taylor, our CO and XO. " She pointed to Sthilg. "That is Dr Sthilg, our Chief Medical Officer. He will assess how damaged your systems are, and, with your permission, provide necessary repair. There are a few things that will not be repaired, such as weapon systems. CIvilians on board the Elysium do not carry weapons. There may also be things we simply cannot repair."

"This.." Rin, with a flash of anger breaking through her stoic facade, indicated the broken cables and missing implants, "Will not happen here. You will not be disassembled. You will not be a science experiment. You will not be seen as a collection of parts. You are a sentient individual, and sentient individuals have the right to consent or not consent to such things."

Two of Eight studied the newcomers, so many new faces and designations/names to process, but Two of Eight added them to its growing new database of names and faces and roles.

"We have no weapon systems, but we understand," Two of Eight informed Rin "If we had our captors would have removed them for their own purposes," it added.

Rin nodded. Her expression softened, just a bit. She allowed herself to be a little sympathetic as she tried remembering what she needed when she went through this.

"What can we do for you, Two?" she asked, her voice softer. "How do we help you get through this? 83 years is a long time to be alone and still yearn for the Collective. I have a theory. Maybe you could help me understand. I wonder if you did start asserting your independence, but you retreated into your Borg identity because it made it easier to bear whatever happened, whether at the hands of your captors or in the long silence afterward. A drone shouldn't be a drone after 83 years, but people don't often survive 83 years of isolation either. Is that what happened? Tell us what you need, Two. Or want. Needs, wants... What will make you more comfortable here?"

Two of Eight studied the doctor "We have known no other existence since our assimilation, we survived because they refused to allow us to cease to exist, why we do not know," it replied "We wish to get a better understanding of what has changed in that time, to understand where we might fit into our new timeline and surroundings," it added "We know we cannot rejoin the Collective, it is futile to believe that possible."

Rin was not thrilled with the answer. Of course it *could* rejoin the Collective as soon as a cube came into range. Which was unlikely so long as they were in the Circinus galaxy, but eventually....

"I remember very little of my life before assimilation, even 18 years later," Rin replied. "A memory here and there. I remembered nothing for years. I made a new life, rather than trying to return to an old one. I don't regret that choice. 'Rin' is my fourth designation. It didn't make sense for me to adopt an older one. So, don't feel you *have* to remember."

She inwardly shuttered at the memory of her own assimilation, which had suddenly risen to the surface just hours ago.

"Would you like me to accompany you?" Rin asked.

"Yes, your presence would be welcomed," Two of Eight replied.

Phoenix took a breath. "Escort Two to the secure Medical bay" she instructed.

Gary continued to watch Two of Eight and its interaction with Rin. He hoped they could help Two of Eight become an individual again but they needed more tests and more time to get that to happen.

Two of Eight noted that the tone towards it was quite different to that it was used to in captivity. As much as Two of Eight might long for the voice of the Hive Mind to fill its mind once again, the likelihood of that was remote, the Collective had for want of a better term abandoned it to its fate.

Kyle and his security team surrounded Two of Eight, Kyle leading the small group out of the shuttlebay and to the secure medical bay, located on the outer edge of the deck that Main Sickbay took up.

Nicholas looked at Phoenix, Gary and Rin. "I'll get all the tech we gathered down to the blister, and start getting it all sorted and identified."

"Did you happen to grab whatever was being used as their alcove?" Rin asked. "I....don't even know the power requirements of a unit that old. Medical and Ops are going to need to work on that."

She looked...tired. Exhausted, mentally anyway.

" It may be in the medical databassse." Sthilg added. The fleet had dealt with a good many drones in the past.

Rin nodded in acknowledgement. "I trust your expertise. Just remember this one predates Wolf 359 by 40 years, and we don't know what modifications its captors may have made."

Nicholas nodded slightly as replied. "We grabbed everything that we could carry, Ma'am. We took scans of the entire compartment that the drone was in. It was as if it had been brought to that space specifically to be studied." He glanced back as the numerous items were carried out of the runabout and loaded onto several hoversleds. " Once medical clears me, I'll get my report written up and in your desk, Commander."

Welcomed, Rin thought. Two had stated her presence would be welcomed. Rin's question had been asked to give Two a choice. A small choice, but a choice. Two's answer went beyond that. Her presence wasn't merely acknowledged, or acceptable, or useful. It didn't merely address a need. She was welcomed. That was a want driven by an emotion. Rin didn't know what that emotion was. Scared? Lonely? Confused? Overwhelmed? But it was there. Two probably wasn't even fully understanding what it was feeling. Feelings are hard. But they were there.

Rin's gaze followed Nicholas's to the unloaded cargo. Short of having an active Borg cube, this was about worst case scenario. Borg tech had been in Circinus for decades, and it had been accessed and studied.

"I'll get Medical to clear you first. Send your report to Sickbay," Rin replied to Nicholas. "I may be down there a while, And I'll need temporary clearance to the report. I cancelled my standard ones in case...interfacing with Two might be helpful. I have firewalls, but I'm also the Chief of Intel, and I believe in contingencies."

Nicholas nodded to his department head and friend. He knew that he could not imagine what she was going through right now. All he could do, was perform his duties as best as he could, and be there, to offer her support, if she requested it. "Aye, Ma'am." He then turned and made his way to medical isolation, to await his clean bill of health.

Gary watched and waited to see what was going or not going to come next. He trusted Rin but this new XB filled them all with questions and he hoped they could get answers.