From: tlb2665@usl.edu (Burleigh Thomas L)
Newsgroups: alt.startrek.creative
Subject: ST:USS Cavalier, Chapter 16, "Borg Barratry"
Date: 5 Oct 92 15:02:53 GMT
Organization: University of Southwestern Louisiana


(C) Copyright 1992 by Thomas L. Burleigh. The following are the property
of Paramount Pictures, Inc: the characters of William T. Riker, Jean-Luc
Picard, D'Tan, and Spock; the Borg, Romulan, and Vulcan races; the
StarFleet organization; and, the USS Enterprise. This story is an original
work of fiction base on Star Trek: The Next Generation, a registered
trademark of Paramount. All rights reserved.

                         ST:USS Cavalier
                           Chapter 16
                         "Borg Barratry"

   "Yes," answered the perplexed Borg, "I am Hugh. How do you know me?"
   Riker paused for a moment.  Thinking back, he remembered that Hugh never
met him back when they were both on the Enterprise.
   "Yes," Riker replied, "we were on the..." Riker caught himself from
saying the name Enterprise (Captain Picard had ordered that Hugh not learn
that name for security reasons.), " ... on the ship with your friends
Geordi and Beverly."
   "I see." replied Hugh. "In that case, Federation Captain, friend of...
mine.. through Geordi and Beverly, I surrender sixty-three percent of this
ship and crew to you, and request assimiliation to you."
   (Sixty-three percent?) thought Riker.
   Hugh must of read the slightly-puzzled look on Riker's face. He
continued, "Captain, not all of the crew on this ship wish to be
assimilated with you. They have cut off those of do from the remaining
thirty-seven percent of this ship. Also, our home planet is preparing to
open fire on us."
   (One problem at a time!) Riker said to himself. Then to Hugh, "We need
to get out of here first. Can you leave this system at maximum speed and
rendez-vous with us outside of the home-planet's range?"
   Hugh's expression went blank for a moment, then lights blinked on his
eyepiece. He stayed like this for a good moment."
   "Sir," said First Officer Thompson to Riker, "Hugh is probably
interfacing directly with his ship and crew. I noticed that he is not
consulting any displays or the like."
   "Yes, I think you're right. Any recommendations on their defection?"
   "Aye, Sir. We should have them head out on this course to a nearby star
system. Then we can begin..."
   Thompson was rudely interrupted when the Cavalier rudely shaked everyone
inside around.
   "Incoming fire from the home planet!" yelled Shaw from his Engineering
station. "Shield's holding!"
   "Full power to shields and all weapons except particle beams!" barked
Riker. "Thompson, lay in the course you suggested and lock weapons on the
planet!"
   The Cavalier crew climbed back to their stations and carried out their
orders. Riker the yelled, "Hugh!!!"
   "Captain, we took fire from our home planet to.  Our damages won't let
us return heavy enough fire or to enter warp space."
   The Cavalier took another hit.
   "Shields down by five percent!" yelled Shaw.
   "Hugh, pull back five astronomical units. We'll return fire to cover
you. Then we'll pull back ten while you fire to cover us. We'll keep
repeating until we're out the home planet's range."
   "Agreed." Hugh replied calmly.
   The image of Hugh disappeared from the screen and was replaced by that
of the Borg ship pulling away from the Cavalier.
   "Thompson. Target known weapon positions on the home planet and fire all
weapons."
   "Change of targeting confirmed," replied Thompson, "Firing!"
   The Cavalier vibrated slightly as it cut loose on the Borg home planet.
Phasers, photon torpedoes, and heat beams lanced out and danced along the
planet's surface.  Here and there, small explosions appeared on the planet.
   "Signal from the Borg ship, sir." said Lt. Auora at Communications.
   "They are firing on the planet." add Thompson.
   (Good!) thought Riker. "Helm, pull back ten A.U.s, full impulse."
   The Cavalier shot back away from the planet and passed Hugh's ship. On
the view screen, Riker and his crew watched as the Borg ship let loose an
impressive array of phaser fire on the planet.
   (Not bad,) Riker thought, (for heavy damages!)
   "Sir," said Lt. Comeaux at the Helm, "we're in position."
   "Very well.  Hold here.  Thompson, fire again. Comm, signal the Borg
ship."
   The Cavalier opened fire again on the planet as Hugh's ship pulled back.
   "Sir, the Borg ship is hailing us." said the Comm officer.
   "Captain," said Hugh, "the home-planet will not be able to return fire
for approximately two minutes. However, we need to be at full stop for five
minutes as to effect repairs to make us warp capable."
   Riker consulted the holo-screen in the middle of the Bridge, then
replied, "Hugh, move to the opposite side of the asteriod belt. Hide behind
the cluster at 135 mark 12 system's true position. I'll cover you while you
make repairs. But, hurry!"
   "Understood, Captain." replied the still-calm Hugh. And he cut the hail
again.
   (This guy is taking "grace under pressure" to an extreme!) Riker thought
sacrastically to himself.
   "Helm," said Riker, "bring us just inside that asteroid cluster to give
us some cover also."
   "Aye, sir." replied the Helm officer.
   The Cavalier and Hugh's ship moved into their positions. Just then the
home-planet started firing again. Huge yellow beams leaped from the
planet's surface and picked off asteroids uncomfortable near the Cavalier.
   "Thompson, Shaw?!" Riker barked and pointed to the screen.
   Shaw took one hard stare at the view-screen and said, "They must be
trying to emulate our heat-beams. Science station, what do you make of
it?"
   The Science officer said, "they appear to be phase-shifted beams of
anti-protons."
   "Great!" Riker thought out loud. Then he said, "Shaw, if we
point-detonated some zero-point torpedoes ahead of us?"
   Shaw nodded his head as he consulted with the Engineering station, "Yes,
sir. I see what you're thinking. It would proabably screen us from their
sensors. But, it'll screen them from our's also."
   Riker thought hard, the commanded, "Let's do it."
   The Cavalier cut loose with a spread of it's zero-point torpedoes. The
explosions caused a standing distortion between the ship and the planet
about the size of a large gas giant.  In appearance, the planet was blurred
as if one were looking at it through heat waves from a hot highway.
   Just then, a large section of Hugh's ship blew apart.
   "Hailing frequencies!" Riker ordered.
   "No response." replied the Comm officer.
   "Keep at it!" Riker barked, urgency rapidly rising in his voice.
   "Aye, sir!" said the Comm officer.
   A couple of very nervous minutes were going by.  
   "Thompson, any ideas?" Riker asked softly.
   "I haven't a clue, sir." was his response.
   A minute later Riker was literally on the edge of his seat.  Then Lt.
Auora said, "Open channel, Sir!"
   "Hugh!" Riker barked, jumping from his command chair, "what happened?"
   "Captain," replied Hugh, "the dissenting faction of this ships crew have
been eliminated.  However, their fraction of the ship was eliminated with
them."
   "Good God," Riker said softly, thinking out loud.
   "Who?" 
   "Never mind, any chance you can steer you ship out of the system?
   "Yes, but this ship's bulkheads will collapse in three minutes.  It will
explode."
   Riker thought to himself for a second and then ordered, "Hugh, assemble
your people into large groups.  We will teleport you aboard. Can you
program your ship to drop shields and move to your home planet?"
   "Yes." replied the insanely calm Hugh.
   "Then do it!" Riker barked.  Turning to Shaw he ordered, "beam them into
the shuttle bays. Thompson, have security teams clear and secure the bays."
   Group by group Borgs materialized on the Cavalier.  They looked around
their new surroundings with curiosity.  Especially at the heavily armed
security personnel, armed and aiming heavy phaser rifles at them.
   Back on the Bridge, Thompson said, "all Borgs we can detect are on board
and secured, sir.  Hugh is requested that he may beam in here."
   "You have you phaser, Louise?" Riker asked.
   "As always, sir," Thompson said, pulling it out of hiding from under his
uniform jacket.
   "Very well, beam Hugh to the Bridge."
   A familiar field of blue light appeared on the Bridge and took the form
of Hugh. Hugh then stepped forward slowly to Riker, looking almost
slightly distrustful or uncertain. Behind him, on the viewscreen Riker
could see the flaming Borg ship.
   Hugh then stopped walking, standing face-to-face with Riker. Hugh held
out his hand.
   Riker took it.
   Hugh smiled. Then the Borg ship shot up, then forward to the
home-planet. A volley of yellow beams decemated the ex-Borg ship.

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