Perfection, 24 of 28
"PERFECTION"
by Jim Smith
Fine print: I don't own Star Trek and I'm not claiming to. I just own the story. Ask me before you do anything with it.
Chapter Twenty-four.
A Xhiryptyr'x carrier was nearly as large as a Borg cube, though far less maneuverable. But its greatest tactical strength was its crew, generating massive neurogenic fields for use in attack and defense. So when thirty-seven of them arrived at Intercomplex 934, and encountered several hundred Borg vessels, they showed no trepidation in launching a direct assault.
With Unimatrix Zero defending a stationary target and the Xhiryptyr'x unable to reach that target, the Borg fleet was effectively caught in a crossfire. The Collective's strategic directives deemed this scenario irrelevant particularly given their superior numbers. But these directives were obsolete in between the Zeroes' omega mortar and the Xhiryptyr'x's psionic blasts. While Korok blasted cubes away one by one, the formerly mysterious "Species 10538" tore through the rear echelons to get to their enslaved people on the intercomplex.
The Stormwind held its position just outside of the fray, still under cloak to avoid detection by any of these combatants. The Federation starship would be unwelcome by any of the three forces. And yet, somehow, its crew had to find a way to put a stop to the battle.
On the bridge, Kreighen was speechless as he witnessed the carnage on the viewscreen. Although he had briefed the crew about the dangers they faced, he alone knew the true scope of the disaster beginning in front of him. The Q Continuum believed that Janeway's aggressive pursuit of the war would embolden the Zeroes, which would increase tensions between the Borg and the Xhiryptyr'x, until the Borg discovered that the Xhiryptyr'x represented a nascent cosmic power. The Q believed that if the Borg assimilated such a transcendent race, the Collective might overrun the entire universe. They were so afraid of that possibility that they didn't dare intervene directly. So they recruited Kreighen to act on their behalf, to prevent the conflict that had just begun.
"It appears your plans for defusing this crisis are no longer applicable," Captain Lancaster told him, concealing any traces of concern for the fate of the Federation. "Suggestions."
"The cloaking device is working perfectly," Narb-Uzek began, "but based on what Commander Kreighen has told us about the Xhiryptyr'x, it won't hide us from them for long. We can't stay here."
"Well, we certainly cannot get any closer to the Intercomplex," Mindek added. "Any course we take would put us in the crossfire...to say nothing of passing by at least fifty Borg ships."
Ben-Aharon offered her input. "Without access to a starbase, it'll be days before I can restore the crew's immunity to Borg nanoprobes."
"Preliminary scans of the Unimatrix Zero weapon are inconclusive," Robinson chimed in. "Whatever it is, it's changing the laws of physics as we understand them. We'd never get close enough to it to shut it down."
Lancaster held out his hand, signalling to his officers that he'd heard enough. The case for withdrawal was clear. "Do you see any alternative, Number One?"
He had failed, and there was nothing left to do. But Kreighen couldn't give up. He already had once today, and Ijhel's response to that still resonated within him. Whatever happened, he had to see this through.
"Just one, sir," he announced. "The original plan will still work."
Mindek was dubious. "With all due respect, Commander, the original plan was to distract the Zeroes with a squad of attack fighters while two dozen heavily armed officers beamed into Korok's command center."
"That was when we were hoping to force the Zeroes to stand down," Kreighen argued. "We obviously can't do that now, and we can't win this one with attack fighters and a full-scale raid. But the Stormwind can still get an away team through the intercomplex's shields with a near-warp subspace transporter beam. Its just gonna have to be an away team of two: Sergeant Ajax and myself."
Lancaster hadn't dismissed the idea yet. "Explain."
"The away team has to be protected from Borg assimilation and whatever telepathic attacks the Xhiryptyr'x can launch against the station. I'm immune to both right now--Doctor Ben-Aharon found enough keniclizene and similinhibitizine in my system to take care of that. And Ajax is a hologram, so for him it's a moot point."
"Granting that's true," Mindek replied, "suppose we beam you down there while we speed off at maximum warp. What can you accomplish?"
"I'm still working on that," Kreighen admitted. He didn't dare let those words hang in the air long enough for Lancaster to sour on the proposal. "I know it's a longshot, Captain, and a half-baked one. But it's either that, or get out of here right now. At least this way I'll be down there, with a chance to salvage this mess."
"I'd be more inclined to agree," Lancaster countered, "if you had the faintest notion of how to 'salvage this mess.'"
Kreighen shook his head. "To be blunt, Captain, I feel like I'm making this up as I go along, every day, twenty-five minutes to midnight. But it's gotten me this far. You said it yourself, sir--you'll get the best out of me when I don't have a way out. I don't know what's waiting for me over there, but I'm willing to bet Janeway left my shuttle in one of the docking bays. And if I can get to the Hrunting, I can take on the world."
Lancaster stared him in the eye, searching for some other way. "Very well," he finally relented. "But to be clear: This is not a suicide mission, Commander. Do no mistake yourself for a man with nothing left to lose."
Kreighen spared a thought for his crew--Ijhel, who would be left behind on this ship; Tirava, who he could only hope to find, and Jimenez, who he didn't dare hope to save. "Understood, sir."