Was She Wrong?

“Prime Directive, bah,” grumbled the senior Klingon.  Grannon Trex took a swig from the flagon directly.  His mood soured as he placed the container back on the table to look at Admiral Tracy Kent and then pointed a finger at her.  “You know, there are still circles within the Empire that believes the Federation should be conquering planets.  Starfleet is a formidable navy, I should know.”  His aging, yet clean, beard dangled from his frown.

The Admiral smirked before taking a sip from her wine glass.  The flickering light from the torches on the outside deck reflected from her long, straight dark black hair.  “Maybe so … to be fair, there are circles within Starfleet that believe the same.”

Opposite the Admiral sat Commodore Matthew Calgar.  His barrel-chested build was betrayed by the sudden uneasiness of the conversation.  Matthew reached for his own glass and poured some of Grannon’s effective drink.  “Come now, let’s not change the mood of the evening.”

Kathryn dodged Calgar’s verbal negotiation and glared across the table to the venerable warrior.  “I’m curious General, what would you do if you stumbled upon a pre-warp civilization?  Are they ripe for submission or destruction in the name of glory?”

Tension at the table suddenly became thick, the surrounding patrons of the restaurant unaware of the discussions from the veterans in the corner.  Tracy looked between Grannon and Kathryn with a growing smile and then placed her glass quietly on the table.  Calgar’s discomfort continued and he placed both hands to either side of his plate, as if ready to separate the Klingon and Human from conflict.

Grannon leaned forward, the leather of his ceremonial jacket creaking as he moved.  “Admiral Beringer, you assume too much.”

An eyebrow rose on Kathryn’s forehead and she leaned forward as well.  “You have not answered the question.”

After a few seconds, the Klingon burst into laughter and slapped the table, capturing the other patron’s attention.  “Well done, Admiral!”  He gulped from his cup as he sat back into the chair.  “I accept your challenge.”  With that comment, everyone else returned to their hushed conversations.

Wiping his mouth, Grannon explained, “In the older days, before the Cardassian War, Captains were left to their own discretions unless ordered by the Council.  The Empire would not be what it is without expansion, and sometimes there are … growing pains.  You should know this?”

Matthew sighed with relief and Tracy calmly reached for her glass.  Kathryn continued, “That’s what history would say, but have you faced the decision?”

Grannon shook his head.  “Should I consider myself fortunate?  I’ve read some examples of when Starfleet handled pre-warp cultures and not all of those instances had a merry outcome.  So, is it flawed?”

Kathryn glanced at Tracy, who was inspecting her nails on one hand, clearly not interested in the conversation.  Looking to Matthew, the Commodore was drinking from his cup and did so for a few seconds.  She returned to the Klingon and shrugged.  “It’s relative.  Count yourself lucky.”

“Oh, really,” Grannon looked surprised.  “This night has been filled with tales of days long past.  Please, regale us with another story.”

Looking down at her plate, the half-eaten steak beckoned.  Kathryn cut a slice and chewed it quickly.

“Back in 2410, my ship was in the Delta Quadrant conducting chart work near the Outward Fringes.  We captured subspace distortions emanating from a nearby system and we bounced to the source: two planets seemed to be engaged in a planetary war.  Long-range scans suggested the cultures did not use warp-drives, at least not by Federation metrics.”

The others started eating while she spoke.  “We did discover they were able to harness nuclear power and their ships were fueled with it.”

Kathryn paused and then sawed into her steak.  “Several areas on both planets were scarred from nuclear detonations.  Clearly, they were at war against each other.”

Tracy lifted her glass to drink.  “If I had to guess, you logged the tragedy and moved on.”

Matthew sat straight still chewing on pasta.  “Is that what you would have done, Admiral Kent?”

Smiling from the question, Tracy nodded.  “There is an idea that Captains have a moral obligation to countermand the Prime Directive if a species faces extinction.  War is not a cause to go against the Directive, although it is terrible to witness, I suppose.”

Grannon growled.  “I prefer to let the dear Admiral finish her saga.”

Tracy lifted her glass to salute and acknowledge the Klingon General’s request.

Kathryn finished chewing.  “Tracy is technically correct.  We had no idea how much further the war was to continue, yet we noticed a flotilla in the heliosphere with nuclear-tipped projectiles inbound to a planet.  I decided to use a tight-band subnucleonic beam to the projectiles in an attempt to neutralize the atomic matrix of the cores and to remain hidden.  From long-range the effect was mostly successful.

Matthew raised eyebrows.  “Mostly?”

“Yes.”  Kathryn became somber.  “A few made planetfall.”  She looked into her lap and after a small sniffle looked up.  “It seems the waiter is a little late with refills?  I’ll go see the maiter d.”  Standing, she pushed a strand of grey and burgundy hair, and excused herself from the table.

Tracy shook her head and loudly landed her glass on the table with some impatience.  “My queue to drop the conversation must have been too subtle, gentlemen.”

Grannon was startled.  “What do you mean?”

Looking to the General, Tracy’s eyes narrowed.  “Kathryn followed the Prime Directive by leaving the system after she failed to stop the missile wave from destroying several cities.  Several more cities were still intact from her subtle action.  There are always winners and losers in war and someone was going to win.  It’s not Starfleet’s place to interfere in that tragedy because there was going to be a winner.”

She paused for some effect before continuing.  “So when I ‘guessed’ what Kathryn would do, it is because that is what happened.  Looking at options, the only proper course of action was to index the system, document readings, and catalogue actions taken … then leave. “

Matthew looked around and then leaned forward to loudly whisper.  “You mean she just left the system without further investigation?!”

Tracy nodded, “in order to follow the Directive, yes.”

---
Cast For Crew:
Kathryn Beringer - Katheryn Winnick
Matthew Calgar - Conleth Hill
Grannon Trex - Orlando Jones
Tracy Maxwell Kent - Monica Belluci

Flint and Steel

Unofficial Literary Challenge 14 - The Sound of Q-sic, Prompt 3

---

Club 47 in Earth Space Dock had reopened from extensive renovations and Kathryn was invited to its first day reveal. She was not too sociable on her ship and she felt that appropriate. Although she had friends on Solaris, and had good rapport with the crew, it was also a place of duty. Yet, for this occasion, Kathryn decided to let her hair down, literally.

Her hair flowed from a short part along the right side of her head, with a slight wave, over her left shoulder revealing a long segmented ear ring to the right. Staying on the conservative side due to the other attendees being either diplomats or higher-ranking members of Starfleet and the Federation, her azure dress extended to the floor and covered her arms. Not being overly modest herself, she allowed her back to be exposed with the dress hanging from her neck and waist. From her hips, the dress exhibited her bare legs behind a wrapped curtain of lightweight sheer material which shimmered in the light. At just under six feet tall bare-footed, her dark burgundy high heeled shoes made Kathryn feel like an Amazon relative to other guests, even if it was only three more inches.

Multi-colored beams of light streaked from a rotating ball that floated around the cavernous room. It orbited a larger device blaring loud music, mostly from human origin. The room itself was plainly ornamented to allow for strobe lights to serve as constantly moving decoration. From that effect, shadows were stark and changed constantly. Although every corner of the dance room was visible, it was intermittent. The point was that privacy was not possible.

But that is what Kathryn wanted. After dancing with changing partners for a few exciting songs, she decided that was enough. Carefully dodging past other dancers, she reached the edge of the brightly lit dance floor and lifted her dress to allow for safe climbing up the stairs to the bar-room. Passing a force field between the rooms, the music instantly muffled to a dull warble or rhythmic thump. Kathryn pulled at her hair to keep it on her left side as she strolled to the bar and ordered a drink. Seconds later, a teal-colored drink appeared in a short clear glass with ice cubes floating within. She took a sip and looked toward the lounge area of Club 47. Knowing that area was the antithesis of the dance floor (while sharing a beautiful view of the Earth), she smiled slightly and walked toward peace and quiet.

Throughout the evening, Kathryn had been involved in various conversations. All of them generic small talk; the kind you would expect to have with unfamiliar people or higher-ranking officers. A polite, and sometimes professional, distance was maintained in the dialog. She didn’t expect salacious propositions as if she were at Drozana Station or even Risa, even if Club 47 was a bar, lounge, and dance floor inside Earth Space Dock. Although an “official” event, it was comforting not to have to talk “business”. On board a starship, most conversations tend to be toward its proper maintenance, or the specification to handle this-or-that duty.

Passing another force field, the already muted music from the bar area was almost eliminated completely. The serenity of the lounge, coupled with an expansive view of nearby space dominated by the Earth to the side was breathtaking. The lounge had plenty of available seating, especially for an event like this. Kathryn mentally shrugged off the curious fact and sat at an empty table closest to the main window. On board her ship, she enjoyed sitting at window seats to enjoy a drink. Her reverie swam through histories, reminders and nonsensical thoughts until a starship floated into view. The graceful, and intimidating, form of an Odyssey-class ship captured her attention until it disappeared.

“The USS Orion.”

Kathryn was startled as the speaker was standing near her table. Looking, the human male was clearly Asian and aged well. Dark grey hair worn long and to the shoulders, the Fu Manchu was also dark grey and made his distinguished presence intimidating. He wore the Command colors on his Admiral’s tunic. Kathryn noted she did not see anyone else in Club 47 wearing a uniform, other than the woman standing to his side and a step behind.

Her dark hair fell straight to the middle of her torso. Cheeks seemed to flow straight to the jaw accentuated by thick lips, even wearing a neutral expression she exuded a sexy friendliness. The standard-issue uniform’s white shoulders revealed her as a starship captain. Looking at the woman, Kathryn could not help but smile, partly out of relief for a friendly face between the two visitors.

Clearing her throat, Kathryn stood and saluted. Efficiently, the Admiral waved to brush aside protocol, have Kathryn sit back down and invite his female partner to sit down at the table. Kathryn was compelled to sit in her chair and wait for the next move.

The Admiral spoke first, “Captain Kathryn Selena Beringer, please meet Captain Tracy Maxwell Kent”.

Tracy nodded and smiled as she sat into a nearby chair, crossing her legs. Kathryn felt more relaxed and lifted her glass. She then watched the Admiral sit into another seat.

As he sat, the Admiral became more congenial, “my apologies to interrupt your festivities, I hope you are enjoying yourself?”

“Yes, indeed, Admiral Marik.”

The man smiled stroking his moustache. “Let me be brief: what is your opinion on orbital bombardment?”

Kathryn could not hide her surprise at the query. “Excuse me, sir?”

“I know this may not seem the place or time to discuss official business, but it is necessary.”

He did not ask the question again, nor did the Admiral explain it. Kathryn arranged her thoughts and took a sip to help buy time to craft an effectual answer.

“It’s not Starfleet’s best tool in the box to solve problems.”

Tracy and Marik exchanged glances and Kathryn felt as if she had just answered a word-problem with a number.

Captain Kent leaned forward enough for her hair to fall past her shoulders. “Of course. Let me be blunt, the Corps of Engineers have been working on projects focused on kinetic weapons, of all types. Torpedo technology has improved greatly since the days of Kirk. Yet, with everything happening in the galaxy, our negotiators need more force available to them, so to speak.” Her silky voice matched her beauty, yet Kathryn heard an edge in her words.

Kathryn’s raised an eyebrow. “Negotiators shouldn’t need firepower.”

Smirking, Kent replied, “normally we’d agree with that statement. The Iconians proved time and again Starfleet was not prepared …,” her countenance changed as her lips trembled for a moment second before she found her place again. “Well, let’s say it’s better to have a box with tools you may not need. Wouldn’t you agree, Captain?”

“I suppose.” Kathryn glanced at her drink before taking a sip to respect whatever loss Tracy remembered.

Admiral Marik spoke next. “Have you seen the new Jupiter-class yet, Captain?”

The change in topic was abrupt. Maybe the Admiral was pushing aside ‘work’ for a moment to help Tracy? “Yes. Very impressive. She will be the pride of the fleet, I’m sure.”

“Captain Kent is slotted to receive a ship from the first wave. The redesign is a perfect platform to test new weapons.” The Admiral stroked his beard again. “It’s going to replace the Galaxy-class in that regard.”

Marik’s dovetailing the topics made Kathryn feel uneasy. Sitting a little straighter in the chair she cocked her head to the side and looked to both officers. “Forgive me Admiral, but what’s going on here?”

Tracy sat back into her chair and looked to Marik as if to receive permission. He didn’t look away from Kathryn. She glanced over her shoulders before explaining. “One of the new Jupiter-class vessels will be the platform to test a new catastrophic weapon. The Javelin Lance uses kinetic technology at its simplest form. Essentially, a large Decatritanium ‘spike’ will be launched from orbit via electromagnetic rail at a ground target. The planet’s gravity takes over, pulling the ship-long missile to target.”

Kathryn’s eyes widened as she imagined the weapon and it’s causing fantastic destruction. In her mind’s eye, a large nail dived into the heart of an average-sized city and everything melted from amazing heat and explosion from impact. Cognizance whirled as she griped with the weapon’s feasibility and disagreed with the concept.

“Energy-based attacks are more accurate … a hell of a lot more accurate. The Javelin is simply indiscriminate.”

The warmth of Tracy’s smile was cooled by the mischievous look in her eyes. Admiral Marik cleared his throat. “Regardless of the details, the purpose of our meeting is to recruit your ship to assist with finding suitable testing grounds. Simulations prove the weapon is viable, but there’s nothing like the real thing. Captain Kent will be commanding the vessel. Myself or Admiral Takashi Kurita will be your contacts.”

“I …,” Kathryn paused. Being a starship Captain, she had a lot of leeway with decisions. Sometimes though, orders were orders and Kathryn had yet to be faced with a situation that pushed against her own moral judgment so much as to jeopardize her career. Admiral Marik was not overtly giving an order, yet it was undeniable that he was doing so.

Ships have increased in their lethality, and every cruiser on the line had orbital strike capabilities. Solaris was no different; the fact she has yet to use it may be either luck or fortune. But the power to obliterate a city was always at her command. From another point of view, by joining Starfleet, she accepted the possibility to do something against the fringes of her own professional morality.

Did this weapon, and this discussion, breach some personal code? The Federation was at full war with the Iconians. Before that, the Vaadwaur, Undine, Voth and Klingons. Starfleet was a military, after all, and weapon development was sure to take many turns. So, was the Admiral really asking for more than what was expected from a Starfleet Captain?

Kathryn decided he wasn’t. Before Kathryn could finish responding, Admiral Marik raised a hand to interrupt. He smiled as spoke.

“Don’t get me wrong, Captain Beringer. Your ship will not have this mission alone. Although the project is still in development, the prototype is ready. Coupled with the current state of affairs, targets are to be discovered rather than sought after; targets of opportunity, so to speak. We want to test on remote, desolate worlds with no chance against any form of life. COE plans this project will not be fully operational for several months, due to the Jupiter’s rollout, maybe more years before we see production onto capital ships. Yet, there is some secrecy involved, and that’s why we are discussing this with you personally, in a setting that would not be expected by prying eyes and ears.”

And that cleared the way for Kathryn.

“Yes, sir. I understand. Solaris is ready for this task.

---

Cast:
Kathryn Beringer - Rachel Nichols
Captain Tracy Maxwell Kent - Monica Belluci
Admiral Janos Marik - Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa
Mentioned but not seen:
Admiral Takashi Kurita - Ken Watanabe

Apologies

Literary Challenge 61 - The Final Battle
---

Solaris banked around the shattered dedication satellite at Wolf 359. Bright beams followed him and impacted against the debris between the Federation ship and the shooters. Once the sleek Excelsior Refit-class ship appeared from the other side, return fire laced from the saucer section, followed by a salvo from missile pods within the hull. Shileding from Fek'Ihri and Elachi ships lighted up against the barrage, some beams finding their way past the energy defense fields, then missiles slamming against unprotected sections. Internal explosions sprayed metal away from the ships, adding to the growing flotsam of the battle space.

Accelerating, the Federation vessel flew between the conglomerate of enemy ships and vented a green-colored cloud from the nacelles while firing broadsides of orange-yellow beams of havoc. At point-blank range, Solaris raked destruction across multiple ship prows, the gas infiltrating the interiors and killing crew, slowly crippling the enemy further.

"Well done, McKinnon!" Kathryn could barely contain her excitement from the command chair, her knuckles white against the arm rests. She sat at the edge of her seat as she heard the crew around her execute the attack pattern flawlessly, but it was her Helmsman that made it all come together. "Aye, Captain" was his response. She looked around the bridge: red warning lights flooded the room, every console lit up like Christmas trees revealing information in real-time and everyone was sweating from the prolonged combat. Glancing toward S'Rel's station, Kathryn looked at the damage report display of her ship above the Vulcan engineer, pulling a stray strand of hair back into the bun on her head. Not too bad, she thought to herself before returning to the main viewscreen.

As the ship turned away from the exploding wreckage, the stars slowly streaked past. Kathryn noticed a burning Federation escort in the background drifting away from the battle. "Tactical, identify the vessel on the viewscreen."

Karl Melango looked up, then quickly tapped against his console before responding. "USS Rodimtsev, Matthew Calgar as Captain. Sensor scan reveal all escape pods released, but one life sign aboard."

Kathryn's eye's widened. "McKinnon, turn to intercept the Rodimtsev. Anthi, patch me through, audio only."

As the static cleared from the speakers, a male's voice was coughing. "This is Captain Calgar of the USS Rodimtsev, who is calling at this dreadful hour?"

"This is Captain Beringer of the Solaris, can we assist?"

"No, I planned to ram an enemy when it gets nearby, I sent my crew packing after the cannons became disabled."

Kathryn looked to S'Rel. The Vulcan shook her head. Data scrolled at Kathryn's chair of the escort and she knew it wasn't flying anywhere. An idea sparked and she needed to see if it would work.

"Captain, you'll have to forgive me later." She motioned for the line to cut. "Omazei, transport him off that ship."

"Aye, Captain." The Trill tapped a few keys. Moments later she reported Calgar was causing a ruckus in Transporter Room 3 and was on his way to the bridge.

Smirking, Kathryn turned to her Chief Engineer. "Thel, can our tractor beam tow the escort at high turn velocity?"

The Andorian nodded, "it could be done but the emitters might burn out at the attempt."

Kathryn smiled. "Good. Capture that ship. Mr. McKinnon, once the Rodimtsev is one thousand meters from us, plot a course back into battle and get us to the nearest battleship."

"Aye, Captain." Ian's fingers danced across his console as the hum of the tractor beam mingled with the thrum from the quad impulse engines. The damaged escort was washed in the blue of the beam and was pulled toward Solaris. At the designated range, both ships turned back toward the fray.

The doors to the bridge opened and Matthew Calgar stormed through. "Captain, I demand to know what you are doing!"

Kathryn motioned to the empty seat on her left. "Welcome aboard Captain Calgar. The Rodimtsev must have been a fine ship for her Captain to stay aboard. Sensors revealed she was dead in space, but she has not used her last breath yet."

Calgar sat down and scowled as her surveyed the bridge, then quickly took the seat offered. "What do you mean?"

Kathryn looked forward. The viewscreen showed a large Voth dreadnought ahead. "Ian, come about positive z-axis forty-five degrees, impulse at seventy-five percent. Make a parabolic arc toward the dorsal side, then turn to face." She looked at Thel, "is the tractor beam holding?"

"Aye, Captain"

"We need a diversion. Omazei, hail the nearest Federation vessel."

The line opened. "This is Captain Ael t'Kazanak of the Vanguard. This is not a good time to talk."

"Pardon the intrusion Captain. Would you mind getting the attention of the enemy at bearing four-two-four mark four-seven? I have a surprise for them."

Ael looked toward a tactical display. "Acknowledged." The screen switched to viewing. The Vanguard changed course and expelled orange beams and torpedoes toward the dreadnought. In return, dark red lances missed and found their mark against Federation shielding. The two ships exchanged fire for a few seconds before the Vanguard turned away, fulfilling the role. The dreadnought slowly turned to follow.

Calgar looked to Kathryn. "You don't seriously plan to do what I think you plan to do?"

"Again, I'll have to apologize later. Ian, accelerate to full impulse, prepare attack pattern sigma. Thel, set tractor beam to full. On my mark, cancel the beam."

The two acknowledged as Calgar sat back into the chair. Solaris lurched forward, dragging the helpless escort behind it. As the Voth dreadnought turned, its dorsal side was fully exposed to Kathryn's charging vessel. Bright orange beams belched from every emitter available with missiles erupting from tubes, each shot weakening the Voth shield facing until it collapsed from the weight of fire.

At her command, the Excelsior-class ship turned away within several kilometers, the tractor beam silenced and the escort ship continued on it's destructive trajectory. Antiproton beams fired into both ships. The escort slammed into the Voth ship near the engines, it's hull buckling from the kinetic impact.

"Come about, burn that ship from below," Kathryn whooped.

Solaris arced toward the Voth vessel whose guns were silent. As phasers fired into the crippled ship from below, more beams, both green and teal-colored, came from nearby ships as allies discovered weakened prey. The dreadnought's remaining shields failed visibly from the onslaught, then beams and torpedoes tore into the hull. It bubbled before exploding and Allied vessels scattered from the debris, each resuming the battle against other foes.

---

In the future ...

The Klingon's eyes widened. "By Martok ... that was you?!"

Admiral Calgar frowned toward Kathryn who was grinning behind a wine glass. "That was a fine ship you destroyed, you know. They may have been able to salvage the Rodimtsev."

Kathryn shrugged. "We'll never know. So I'll say it again with witnesses this time, Admiral Calgar: I'm sorry."

---

Cast:
Kathryn Beringer - Rachel Nichols
Anthi Ythysi - Katheryn Winnick
Karl Melango - Jeremy Renner
Thel Ythysi - Kevin Sorbo
Ian McKinnon - Ben Browder
Omazei - Gemma Arterton
S'Rel - Morena Baccarin
Matthew Calgar - Conleth Hill
Grannon Trex (Klingon in the end scene) - Orlando Jones
Tracy Kent (not mentioned but in the scene at the end) - Monica Bellucci
Ael t'Kazanak - Cobie Smulders

Borg Are Borg

Literary Challenge 55 - We are the (Mirror) Borg
---

"So, the Captain said, 'In Starfleet, sometime you have to pick the lesser of two Zeebles."

The table of retired Admirals erupted in laughter, much to the annoyance of nearby patrons at the restaurant. Risa's suns had passed the horizon hours ago, but the restaurant was as lively with various groups now as it had during the sunset hours. The Admiral who had told the last tale was still wiping tears with his napkin as the laughter turned to chuckles.

The Klingon at the table placed his drinking glass on the table with a heavy hand, achieving his goal of gathering the group's attention. "Excellent tale Calgar! I think it's time to hear from Admiral Beringer. You were the last of Starfleet's active Captains to fly an Excelsior-class ship before they were decommissioned. Tell us about an interesting mission with her."

Kathryn's mirth faded and she looked into her wine glass. "Him, my ships were always referred in the masculine tense." She turned away and looked toward the view of the deep, silent complete blackness of the ocean. "Solaris was my finest ship and I fought hard to keep him that way for as long as I could." She raised her glass, "if I may, esteemed colleagues, a toast to our ships and crew of the past. May they forever fly among the stars."

The other three Admirals raised their glasses. Admiral Matthew Calgar further added, "until they burn their last lights". He smiled at Kathryn and his grey closely trimmed beard revealed a clean row of white teeth.

Admiral Granon Trex, the Klingon, slurped his glass empty before admonishing Kathryn. "I hope you are not dodging your story telling this evening Admiral."

Having returned Matthew's smile with one of her own, Kathryn looked to Granon. "Patience is a virtue in the rest of the galaxy. If you learned it earlier you may have had your rank bar quicker." Kathryn beamed as the others almost spit up their drinks. Granon grinned as he wiped the corners of his mouth.

"This was in the Mirror Universe -", Kathryn was interrupted by the collective groan from the group. "Oh, be quiet. If you read my report, then nothing I'm about to say is new."

"My crew had just foiled an attempt by the Terran Empire to use the Bajoran Wormhole as a stable gateway between 'Verses. I ordered Solaris to enter the wormhole to conduct various scans and probes, you know, standard protocols -"

"Let me guess," Admiral Tracy Kent interrupted. Her bright red lips a stark contrast to her white-powdered face and long, straight, dark black hair. She looked more Vulcan than Human at her advanced age, and certainly spoke like one. "Your ship mysteriously found it's way into the Mirror Universe by some technical means only your Chief Science officer could explain rationally."

Kathryn feigned surprise, "you knew Omazei too?" Both women chuckled. "Yes, the details escape me now and I don't recall how much I cared to know then. All I knew is the Wormhole not only dropped us off in the Mirror 'Verse, we were also at the approximate coordinates in the Delta Quadrant where the tunnel ends." She shrugged, "or begins depending on your point of view."

"How did you know you were in the Mirror Universe?" Granon refilled his glass as he spoke.

"Easy. There was nothing on the other side. Except a Borg Cube."

Granon coughed into his drink, Matthew's eyes widened, and Tracy crossed her arms with a grin. Kathryn calmly took a sip from her own glass.

Tracy broke the silence. "Well, you are sitting with us, so you clearly survived the encounter."

"Don't spoil it Tracy," chided Matthew.

Kathryn raised a hand to calm Calgar  "It's understandable. As you all know, spending time with Omega Force means you get training and equipment. Needless to say, we made it back. Beat up, but we did it."

Granon wasn't satisfied. "How are the 'Mirror Borg'?"

Kathryn frowned as she recalled the event. "We actually considered they would be radically different from our version. You know, being in an alternate Universe. After several minutes in silence, we decided to scan the Cube for anomalies or differences. Then they responded over the comms."

Matthew and Granon were clearly involved. Tracy still had her arms crossed. Kathryn continued, "It was a little disappointing to hear the monotone voice saying, 'Hello Captain. We are the Borg." She opened her eyes wide and twisted her lips to mimic a robot talking.

"Did they really say 'Hello Captain'?" Tracy looked skeptical.

Suddenly looking annoyed, Kathryn said, "of course not." She relaxed. "My senior staff started making suggestions, but once the Borg beams started flashing, there was only one logical course of action."

"Fight?" Matthew grabbed his glass and drank a gulp.

Kathryn shook her head.  "Run. We dodged, weaved and rolled as Solaris would allow. My Chief Engineer yelled Andorian curses at every maneuver I ordered. Meanwhile, my Science Chief worked frantically to find a way back home without bringing these Borg with us to DS9."

"Nothing a simple interphasic shift couldn't solve, right Admiral?" Granon finished his glass again.

Tracy chimed in, "indeed. If I recall, align the deflector dish to emit a Tachyon burst and -".

"No, not this time." Kathryn interrupted and continued without pause. "I ordered our entire payload of Nukara web mines deployed and when the Cube was slowed we came about and poured as much firepower available. We probably burned out a few emitters in the process. The Cube fractured and that's when we knew we won. They fought back hard though." Kathryn finished her glass. "When it was done we took our time licking our wounds while also finding our way out. We also reviewed combat logs and scanned the debris field."

Matthew finished his glass and quickly raised his hand at a passing waiter to order more wine for the group. "What did you find?"

Kathryn huffed. "Our scans proved the Borg were not from our Universe."

"But how are the Mirror Borg different from our Borg?" Tracy repeated Granon's earlier question finally showing interest in the tale.

"From the entire experience, I can't say they are different at all. We concluded that Borg are Borg, no matter what 'Verse you're in."

---

Cast:
Kathryn Beringer - Rachel Nichols
Tracy Kent - Monica Bellucci
Matthew Calgar - Conleth Hill
Grannon Trex - Orlando Jones