Two of Eleven <Kaito Moore> - We're Your Family Now, Welcome Home

[Lieutenant j.g. Kaito Moore]

((Deck 36, Weapons Room - USS Kitty Hawk))

Two-hundred and twelve. That was the number the Collective had added to itself through the minds of the assimilated crew of the Kitty Hawk. Kaito, the being that was Kaito, was just one of them.

Seven and Two of Eleven advanced on the scattered position of the unassimilated, Two’s group of eight subordinate drones joined by the ten that had gathered to Seven from across the decks. They faced off against a group of Starfleet half their number - the remainder of the small Marine detachment and several officers who had so far managed to survive the onslaught. As soon as the door to the weapons room had been opened, the unassimilated surged for it, attempting to beat a hasty retreat to a more defensible position within.

But the Collective was ready. The drones without phasers shifted to the front, shielding Two and Seven with their bodies. Seven of Eleven felt an irrelevant shudder of dread from an unimportant part of its mind as it watched the subordinate drones jerk and stagger under the bursts of phaser fire hitting them. Right next to Seven, Two was using the former Moore of Rahman’s skills to great effect with returning fire. One drone fell, the host body overwhelmed by the damage.

Two of Eleven: Fill the gap, maintain formation, keep moving.

Another drone took its place as Two marched forward, past the fallen drones.

Marine Kinnear: Watch your fire! We’re not trying to kill them!

Marine T’vaa: Sir, they will imminently overrun our position if we do not reduce their number!

As if the Collective was sending a message, Two of Eleven tapped into Kaito’s skills and sent a bolt downrange, hitting Marine T’Vaa in the side of the head.

Seven of Eleven: Eliminate all unassimilated.

Two of Eleven: Eliminate all unassimilated.

‘Resistance is futile’ wasn’t merely a catchphrase to the Borg Collective. It was inevitable, immutable fact. Standing against the perfection and unity of the Collective was like trying to resist nature itself. It was becoming clear to Kaito that perhaps this was it. As he stood there in his mind’s eye, looking at his sister, Nora, he could feel her. She was a part of the Collective.

Moore: oO Nora! What are you doing! Fight it! Oo

She turned to look at him, she was in almost a blissful state.

Nora: oO Kaito! Isn’t it wonderful? There are so many here, so many voices, all of them inviting and warm. There are even our people here, other El-Aurians. Oo

Kaito was almost unaware of his body now. He could sense the fight going on, but his focus on his sister kept him in a fog. As Two of Eleven marched forward, firing off shot after shot, one of them hitting a security officer, eliminating him. A pair of officers in blue caught the drone’s attention. He quickly fired three times, two shots hitting true, killing the officer before they hit the deck. The third shot hit the second officer, leaving them wounded. As suspected, one of the Marines tried to pull the wounded officer to safety, a mistake Two of Eleven exploited as he was eliminated. Kaito, the whole time, was helpless to resist. He was too focused.

Moore: oO No, it’s not wonderful. Listen, Nora. You have to fight it. Oo

Nora: oO I tried, I did try, but I was wrong. I couldn’t resist, and why would I? This feels right. We are home. Oo

Moore: oO The Borg destroyed our home, destroyed our people! Oo

Nora: oO No, they’re here. So many of them. Don’t you feel them? Oo

Two of Eleven vaporized a security officer as he grappled with an injured drone, before moving to defend against a Marine wielding a shock baton. Kaito’s years of training allowed him to keep up with the Marine, but not without taking a few hard hits. Normally this would put someone down, but not Two of Eleven. Pain was irrelevant. He quickly countered, and then put his phase pistol into the Marine’s gut, pulling the trigger and ending it.

Kaito winced as he felt the pain surge through him, and then felt the pain start to soothe, as if something or someone was trying to take it away. He started to feel a connection, not the unnatural one that he was fighting, but instead a calm peace, as if more people, similar to him, came to his mind.

Moore: oO No! This isn’t right. This can’t be real. Oo

“It’s real, El-Aurian. This is where your people belong, with me... with us... Join us.”

Nora: oO It is real. If you let go, you can see what our old home was... I wish Mom and Dad were here. Dad would have liked it. Oo

Moore: oO Nora! They’re killing our parents as we speak! They’re killing everything and everyone we love! Oo

Two of Eleven, now armed with a baton and a phaser, proceeded towards the next target, a Saurian who was putting up a fight. He had taken out two drones and needed to be eliminated. Two of Eleven moved to engage as Kinnear of Rahman seemed to get the upper hand against Seven of Eleven.

Two of Eleven: **Tactical assessment: Saurian’s robust body due to birth on 5G world makes Saurian a credible threat to the Collective’s goals. Engaging. Seven of Eleven, eliminate unassimilated Kinnear.**  

Marine Kinnear: ::spitting with fury:: You %()@& monsters! Give them BACK! GIVE THEM ALL BACK!

As the fight raged on, Kaito drifted further away, becoming more unaware of the fight, and struggling less.

Moore: oO Nora. These are not our people, they are gone, assimilated. Oo

“Yes, we are... Come home, Kaito.”

Kaito did his best to ignore it.

Nora: oO But, they feel like family... They’re... all of us, are family. A perfect family. Oo

“Come with us, Kaito... Come with us. Come home.”

Nora: oO They’ve shown what our homeworld looked like, it was beautiful... So much light and warmth. You should see the art, Kaito. It’s wonderful. Oo

“Come see, Kaito. Come see it.”

Moore: ::tears coming to his eyes:: oO It’s not real, Nora! The Borg destroyed whatever beauty our homeworld had... Oo

Nora: oO No... It’s preserved here... in us. Oo

“All of us.”

Two of Eleven looked his enemy in the eye, holding him by the neck as the Saurian was forced to his knees. By all accounts, Kaito shouldn’t have won this fight, but Two of Eleven was a different story. Between ignoring the pain and now unhindered by Kaito’s struggling, the Tactical Drone was able to get the upper hand. He finished off the brief fight with three shots to the Saurian’s chest.

The fight had been intense, but brief. Two of Eleven and the drones had eliminated all but one fleeing officer at this point. Seven of Eleven finished off the fleeing officer. Six of the drones that had begun the assault were too damaged to move or entirely unresponsive, including the one formerly of Kinnear. A sizable loss for the Collective on the Kitty Hawk, but a price well paid for what it gained.

(OOC: Combadge tag used for formatting, but assume only assimilated characters hear this!)

Seven of Eleven: =/\= ::to Collective:: Weapons room secured. Arming Collective. =/\=

The drones began to file into the weapons room, equipping themselves with the armaments of Starfleet. With eerie, robotic synchrony, they removed Type-3 phaser rifles and Type-2 pistols from the racks. Other scattered drones across the ship that weren’t already engaged soon arrived as well. Some grabbed more than one, carrying them with the intent to pass them along when they found an unarmed Borg. It was far from a fully stocked armory, considering the Kitty Hawk had been slated for decommissioning, but there were still some weapons left behind.

Two of Eleven: =/\= ::to Collective:: Sending weapons to bridge, Type-4 phaser cannon usable by Eleven of Eleven. Probability of unassimilated retaking the bridge negligible. =/\=

Two drones moved to remove the cannon, before turning to leave for the turbolift. Two and Seven of Eleven spread out with the rest of the Borg, taking up an evenly spaced pattern around the racks. A hail of phaser fire began, raining down upon the leftover equipment. The intent of the Collective was clear - they weren’t going to leave much of anything behind for Starfleet.

Once the destruction had reached a satisfactory level, the drones turned in unison toward the door as the deck of the ship briefly rumbled deeply, their bodies swaying as the distant explosion was felt.

Collective: =/\= Excelsior eliminated. All vessels secure. Fleetwide assimilation complete. =/\=

Kaito felt that, felt the disconnect of hundreds of drones, hundreds of voices.

Moore: oO Don’t you see, they’re killing us! Oo

Nora: oO Yes... I... know.. But... Oo

“They resisted us, resisted perfection, resisted your family.”

Nora: oO If they didn’t resist, they would be alive. Oo

Moore: oO Mom and Dad are going to resist. They’re not going to join us. Oo

“We’re your family now. We’re all you need.”

Nora: oO No... they can... They just need to not resist. Oo

“They can join us in perfection too.”

Moore: oO You know Dad will resist... If he’s still alive, he is resisting. Mom too. Oo

“Resistance is futile, Kaito. Embrace us, and find peace. Find your new family. You’re not alone. We’re here.”

For a brief moment, Kaito didn’t feel alone. He was flooded with the blissful voices and thoughts of the Collective, warm and inviting. They called him to let go. Images of a beautiful world came before him, and the haze that was the Kitty Hawk gave way to a beautiful and lush world. He was standing in a plaza, surrounded by white marble buildings with blue accents, all blending with nature. He could feel the warmth of the sun, smell the fresh air mingling with unknown yet familiar flowers, and feel the spray from a nearby waterfall. He could see Nora standing with him, and around them were others, all here in this moment with him.

Nora: oO It’s wonderful. Maybe it isn’t so bad after all. Maybe we were wrong all along. Oo

Tears welled up, and then started to stream down his face. Kaito felt like he betrayed everything with his next words.

Moore: ::Tears streaming down his face:: oO It’s... beautiful. Oo

“It’s home. Welcome home, Kaito.”

Seven of Eleven: =/\= ::to Collective:: Weapons room secured. Proceeding to Engineering. =/\=

Two and Seven marched with the drones towards the nearest turbolift, towards their next objective: Engineering.

Two of Eleven < Kaito Moore >

Tactical Drone

Borg Collective

A240006KM1