Meanwhile, Data and Worf launch their shuttle, cutting their engines when it looks like the power's been sensed, and penetrate the EM field. Once inside the field, they beam in close to Locutus, subdue the few Borg near him, stun him, beam back to the shuttle, leave the Borg field, and are beamed off milliseconds before the Borg destroy the shuttle. The saucer has sustained impulse damage, and the Borg power back up and leave, heading for Earth again, as the Enterprise reconnects and pursues. Meanwhile, Bev studies Locutus, whose DNA is apparently being rewritten near all the implants. Data finds that Locutus is linked into the Borg consciousness via a transporter-like subspace field.
Data then decides to try to access the machine.
Meanwhile, Shelby reports that the Borg have entered sector 001, as we see the Borg swing by Saturn. Planetary defenses are up and functioning, but aren't expected to do much good. Worse yet, the Borg are only 27 minutes away from Earth at current speed, and the Enterprise is at least 42 minutes away from intercept. Meanwhile, Data tries to establish a neural link between himself and Locutus, with Bev checking Picard's vital signs, O'Brien monitoring Data's stats, and Troi scanning for any sign of Picard's consciousness. Bev picks up increased neural activity, and Deanna finds that, despite no real success on Data's part, Picard's consciousness is starting to revive.