Silence on the Bridge [✱19]

Posted on Sat Jun 20th, 2026 @ 5:01am by Major Victoria, Daughter of Kalath & Lieutenant Commander Alph & Lieutenant Akaar Zuul & Doc & Warrior Choq, Son of None & Major Klaang & Lieutenant Rujash & Sergeant Jepok & Dalin Noluks

1,308 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: UnderMind [4]
Location: IKS Praxis' Claw, Forward Halls
Timeline: After 'Let Slip the Dogs'

The Starfleet team made their way to the last door before the bridge, now joined by the three surviving Klingons from the Claw. Only a single security door stood between them and the command centre, or whatever remained of it. The Borg drones had fled this way, even in this soup of radiation that seemed to be originating from ahead of them, their sensors had confirmed it.

"Major, can you get us through this door?" Kalath asked Klaang. She was ready to phaser through it if not.

Klaang approached the interface and entered the command he expected would work. It didn't. He looked to Kalath and shook his head.

"Well, thanks for trying." Kalath said as she drew her phaser pistol, resting it against the handle of her batleth as she changed the settings. "Stand back." She instructed, before vaporising enough of the door for them to pass through comfortably two abreast.

Choq was expecting some sort of engineering solution. He was quietly impressed at the efficient approach.

A few meters beyond the door Kalath had just deatomised, the view was not as expected. Instead of the vessel's bridge, there was a barely curving, rippling wall of what looked like liquid suspended in zero-g. It was like a larger portion of a sphere seen from up close, reflective and unmistakably phenomenal.

"Holy Hera." Doc said with a whistle of admiration. "What do you suppose that is?" His medical scanning capability wasn't of much use.

Akaar pulled out his tricorder and began scanning the sphere. He wasn't sure he could determine what it was but he'd get as much sensor data as possible for someone who could. "You don't see that every day, as long as it doesn't get larger or moves," he really hoped it wouldn't do either of those things. "What do we do now? I don't want to say it but I don't think it wise to approach that."

"Perhaps not wise. But necessary. The Borg came this way. Allow me." Choq said, stepping suddenly forward and across the threshold, through the visible surface. It was dark beyond, and he couldn't see much. A moment later he returned, passing through it once more into the team's sight. "Anything?" He asked, expecting them to scan him. He didn't feel any different.

Kalath watched open-mouthed as Choq returned from the other side of strange shimmering surface. "You've got a pair on you, Mr Choq." She took her tricorder and gave him a sweep. "Against all odds. you look fine. What did you see?"

"It was dark. But I did not perceive any movement. I believe the immediate way forward is clear." Choq assessed.

"Major, someone comes." Klaang said, and the team moved into cover until their tricorders told them it was Commander Alph, and a Cardassian they hadn't seen before. They stepped out to meet him.

"Greetings. I see we both have new allies. This is Dalin Noluks, a tactical officer from the Omekla sent to provide assistance." Alph said. He knew it was not technically true, but it was an appropriately diplomatic explanation given the armed Klingons now within armed reach. He assumed Noluks would have the good sense to behave.

"You will need a weapon, Cardassian." Sergeant Jepok said to the new arrival, he took a Mek'leth from his belt and gave it to Noluks, who took it with a thankful nod and quiet appreciation.

"Major, Lieutenant, have you been able to classify this barrier?" Alph asked of the obvious impediment up ahead, the shimmering energy-surface that blocked the hallway.

"Not yet. But Mr Choq here is fine from having stepped through it. Looks like it's less of a barrier more of an... effect. You got any insights?" Kalath asked the Android. She had questions about the Cardassian, too, but they could wait.

Alph looked at the anomalous surface blocking their path. His hairline lifted, revealing a scanner/emitter assembly that tucked otherwise neatly into his cranium. He continued to walk past the others and stopped at the anomalous surface. He then took another step through it, and disappeared for a moment. Almost a minute later he returned.

"It is safe to proceed." Alph said. "I believe it is some manner of dispersement field operating in a zero-point state. The radiation source is likely within, it interrupts further sensor exploration." He turned to Major Kalath. "I volunteer my services to your team, Major."

"Good to have you, Commander. Alright then, let's get moving. Lights on." Kalath said, activating her wrist-lamp. She took the first steps through, bat'leth ready.

As they entered the bridge, Major Klaang looked confused. "This is not right. There was more damage than this. This was where the first reports of Borg drones and corrupted systems came from. This all looks like it was simply left tidily." Klaang said of the dark, empty bridge.

The suggestion made Alph think, and he activated his internal scanner once more. "I am afraid the radiation makes it impossible for me to make an accurate scan." He looked to the others in the hope one had an idea.

"Let's just eliminate a whole lot of possibilities at once." Major Kalath said, setting her phaser to its widest and lowest setting, before phasering the entire forward area of the bridge with as inoffensive a force as the device could muster.

As the beam scoured all the surfaces without damaging anything sturdier than an egg-shell, the bridge itself seemed to flicker. Green wireframes appeared for a moment, before what all would recognise as the failure of a holographic system. A small projector of obvious Borg design flickered weakly.

It was apparent now that the bridge was partly assimilated, the main terminals had been converted and long cords ran from them back to the viewscreen. The viewscreen itself had apparently been removed, the wall under and below it carved out cleanly by an energy weapon much as Kalath had carved through the door on their way in here.

Beyond the viewscreen, where there should have been nothing at all, the structure was obvious. It was a hallway on a Borg vessel, leading somewhere unseen.

"While I cannot commend your flagrant weapons fire ma'am, this is a fascinating development." Alph said.

"Borg use stealth, but they do not deploy distractions or deceptions. This is most uncharacteristic behaviour." Choq observed, his investigator's senses humming loudly in his ears.

"When do Borg not behave like Borg?" Kalath asked as though there was an obvious answer.

"When standard procedures have failed. Or when they are not seeking to deceive, simply to delay." Captain Three theorised, having the most experience with the collective of the group.

"If they would devote resources to simply delaying us, they must not need much time. And what they are doing may be precarious. We should not delay." Choq urged.

"Then we should get moving. Would you agree, Lieutenant Zuul?" Kalath said, knowing well enough to check with the tactical officer before letting her Klingon passions carry her away.

"Shouldn't we attempt to disrupt their stealth screen and expose their activity, your phaser had worked but more power could do the trick?" Akaar asked as he came to Kalath's side. "How many did you count being here? I couldn't quite get an accurate number." He added quickly holding his weapon at the ready, since they all had melee weapons they'd have to get in close and do great damage before the drones had a chance to grab them.

"Destroying the device may alert the Borg to the fact that we have discovered it. I did not perceive any drones as it faltered. I recommend we proceed with all due haste, Major." Alph told the Marine.

"Agreed. Let them think their trick is still working. Let's go." Kalath said, proceeding towards the edge of the illusion, into the Borg hallway beyond.

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