Alpha - Chapter 6
That night after her day with Picard at Starfleet, it dawned on Seven that she was absolutely exhausted. Not so much physically, but mentally. It was a new sensation that puzzled her. The events of the past few weeks had been extraordinary. First the lead up to the Gateway testing, the arrival home, the interrogation from Starfleet¼ all had taken their toll. Although the recent holiday had helped, Seven was unaccustomed to this feeling of strain on her emotions. However, the positive side of recent events had been seeing the joy on Kathryn's face when she saw her family and friends.
Even now as they lay in their bed, in their new home, Seven could sense the feeling of content radiating from her lover. Her current state was unlike any Seven had even seen Kathryn in. It gave Seven a great deal of pleasure to know it was she that got Voyager home. If everyone from the crew was feeling this good about their arrival home, then that was enough for Seven. Any future glory that might arise from the Gateway project was far from her mind. It was simply the joy of reuniting friends and family that would always be the highlight of her discovery.
'Too bad it was lost on me,' Seven thought out loud. After all, it would never bring her own parents back.
It had been nearly five years since her link was severed from the collective. The emotions she had experienced in that time were often overwhelming and confusing, yet they continued make her feel more human. In the beginning even the thought of this would have make Seven shudder. However now, and especially since embarking on a relationship with Kathryn, Seven began to embrace the wonder of humanity. Seven knew she would never be fully human, nor would she want to give up the many Borg attributes that have given distinct advantages over both her peers and enemies. Even though she didn't know it from the start, Seven was now aware that the opportunity to experience human emotions was a gift, and experiencing them with Kathryn only made it more special.
Seven was still getting used to the sounds outside as they slept, the waves nearby, the buzz of life on the streets. It was extremely different from the gentle hum of the warp core. As she laid there in the arms of her beautiful lover, she felt more alive than ever.
Then in the still of the night, a thought suddenly dawned on Seven. There was something she had to do. Something that might help her make sense of her existence. 'I must make contact with my family'.
As the chronometer showed 2am, Seven got out of bed and went into the next room to access one of the many computer terminals in the house. She bought up the Starfleet records on her parents, and then ran a search to bring up all information on her relatives.
Just after 6am the next morning Kathryn stirred to find herself alone in bed. She wandered down the hallway to find Seven sitting at the terminal in the next room.
"Darling, what are you up at this hour for?"
"I haven't been to sleep yet," answered Seven, still focused on the screen.
"Why on earth not Seven? Are you feeling OK?"
Seven pulled Kathryn close and gave her a hug.
"Yes my love, I am fine. I feel that I am finally ready to meet my family. I have been researching them and have discovered that all of my grandparents are alive and living on Earth, they are all in the Northern European sector," replied Seven, as she pulled Kathryn down to sit on her knee.
"Oh, I was wondering if I should bring that up with you. It had crossed my mind, but I didn't want to feel as thought I was pushing you into anything."
The last time she had discussed this matter with Seven was a few years ago on Voyager, and Seven's response had shown very little interest.
"What happened to change your mind?" asked Kathryn.
"I have determined that it was as a result of seeing how happy you have been around your own friends and family. I then began to wonder what it would be like if I were able to reunite with my own family. So the logical conclusion is that I make contact with them. However, I am puzzled: why did I not think to do this the minute we arrived home?"
"Maybe you weren't ready," mused Kathryn. "Seven, our minds work in mysterious ways. The time is now obviously right, otherwise you would not feel driven to do this."
"I am not accustomed to my mind working in a 'mysterious way'. However I believe you are right. The thought of meeting my human collective has never been appealing, but now it feels like something I have to do."
"I'm glad you have arrived at this decision, my dear." Kathryn embraced Seven.
Seven loved the feeling of security that she experienced when in Kathryn's arms. "Kathryn, this is something I must do alone. I know we have plans to travel elsewhere before starting at Starfleet headquarters. However I believe I must do this first."
"Of course, my darling. You know I am here for you no matter what, but if you want to do this alone I completely understand, if there is time we can still visit Jean-Luc. Anyway, Starfleet can wait. It's not like we haven't done enough work for the last eight years!"
"Thank you Kathryn."
Kathryn walked Seven down to the local transport station. She had never seen her lover so nervous, it was an emotion that no one would expect from the former Borg. However, Kathryn was privy to a wider range of emotions from the extraordinary women than most.
"Seven, please contact me if you need anything. I can drop whatever I'm doing if you need me, you know that don't you?"
"Of course. Please, do not worry Kathryn, I will speak to you tonight. I promise."
"I love you Seven."
"I know, I love you too."
With that, Seven was gone in the blink of an eye. Kathryn hoped with all her heart that a welcome reception awaited her. Against her better judgement, she resisted the temptation to tell her partner how to handle this situation. Seven was determined to just turn up and take them by surprise, as opposed to contacting them first. It was her opinion that one way or another they were going to find out, and she would rather be there in person to answer their question, not over a comm link.
As she set off from the Oslo transport station Seven felt quite alone. For perhaps the first time ever she was without any familiar faces nearby, and she felt completely foreign. Seven wondered how Naomi was feeling and if she arrived back on Earth yet, if Seven was uncomfortable on the wide expanse of a planet, as opposed to the confines of a Starship, she wondered how Naomi was feeling. After all, she had known no other life. Seven remembered her promise to Naomi that they would both learn to "adapt". It gave Seven a greater feeling of confidence as she approached the home of her mother's parents.
'I am Borg. I have faced hundreds of life threatening situation. I am not scared.' Seven tried to remind herself.
Seven admired the house as she approached. All of a sudden a wave of memories dawned upon her. She had been here before, there were many people around her, giving each other presents. That were all she could remember.
Seven accessed the communications device at the front entrance to announce her arrival. A tall elegant woman, in her late sixties answered the door. Again, a wave of memories came rushing back to Seven. She knew this woman.
"Ingrid Andersson?"
"Yes, can I help you?"
"Ingrid, I do not know where to begin..." Seven was lost for words, she truly did not know what to say to this woman. "My name is Annika Hansen..." her voice trailed off. It was so hard to say those words, Seven was not comfortable using her human designation. However for perhaps the first time, she felt it was appropriate.
Her grandmothers was instantly startled. She reached out to the side of the doorframe to steady herself. "Kris!" She called out. "Kristian!"
Seven stood there confused, then Ingrid threw her arms around Seven. A familiar man came to the door.
"Kris, it's Annika."
"Annika?"
"Yes, although I have not been known by my human designation for twenty four years." Seven spoke in her usual precise manner, and had no idea why she chose this moment to utter those words. It produced an odd look in the eyes of Ingrid and Kristian.
"Where are Erin and Magnus?" asked Ingrid as they ushered Seven inside the house.
Seven was struck by this odd question. Did they not know her parents were dead? Not known for her tack in these situations, Seven struggled to find the right words. As she sat down on the couch she began to recount the story¼
"The last memory I have of them was when the Raven crashed on a planet in the Delta Quadrant. They were trying to escape a Borg Cube that was firing on us. We didn't make it; they were too strong."
"When was this?"
"I was 6 years old. We were all assimilated".
Her grandmother began to cry. Seven reached out and placed her right arm around her shoulder. After a great silence Kristian was the first to speak.
"How did you escape?"
"I did not escape. I lived as a Borg drone until five years ago. I had been working with a Starfleet crew to defeat Species 8742, and they severed my link to the collective. The ships Doctor removed my Borg implants, and my human physiology began to reassert itself. I will never be completely human. I need the remaining implants to function." Seven held out her left hand as she spoke.
"I continued to live on board the ship, and served as the head of Astrometrics. Voyager became my new collective."
"That was the ship that was lost in the Delta Quadrant. I saw it on the news link. You got home through a wormhole?"
"Yes." said Seven, careful not to divulge the classified information on the Gateway project.
"Head of Astrometrics? You must have inherited your flair for science from your parents. It was one of the proudest day of my life when Erin was accepted at the Daystrom Institute." Her grandfather seemed greatly impressed.
"I must ask, why did you think my parents might still be alive. It has been nearly twenty five years since they left?"
Ingrid composed herself as she began to speak.
"Annika, when your parents crossed the Neutral zone to pursue their research, they turned their back on the Institute and the Federation. In the last communication we received from them, Magnus was determined to travel for as long as it took to complete the research. They warned us it might take them away for a very long time. We never heard from them again, but we have never given up hope, even when your return became more unlikely... and now here you are..." her voice trailed off as she embraces Seven.
It hadn't occurred to Seven that they had been waiting for her to return as well, as she had little or no memory of these people, why should they remember her? 'Because I am their flesh and blood,' Seven thought to herself.
Seven sat there with Ingrid and Kristian, there was so mush she wanted to know and didn't know where to begin. So the questions began to pour out of Seven. She sat and talked for hours with her grandparents, finding out about her aunt and cousins, and what her family had been doing for the last twenty-five years. As she listened, more and more from her childhood came flooding back. Having never been to Earth Seven realised that these memories were those of her parents that she had gained when they were all assimilated by the Borg.
Seven woke alone the next morning. It was a strange sensation not waking up next to Kathryn, one she never wanted to get used to again. On Voyager they had both been on the same duty rotation, so it was only during an emergency or an away mission that they had been apart. The previous night Seven had told her mother's parents about Kathryn. Nothing bought out Seven's human side more than talking about her lover.
Seven was decidedly nervous about the day ahead. Having met her mother's parents, the next step was to meet the Hansens. She had discovered that her father's father was a senior exobiologist at the Daystrom Institute. Seven was curious why she had not uncovered this information in the Starfleet records. She had been pre-warned by Ingrid and Kristian that Anders Hansen and her father had a very troubled relationship. This information did not make her feel any better about meeting her grandfather.
The Daystrom Institute's Earth base was in Stockholm. As Seven did not have an appointment she had to negotiate her way into the facility. When it became apparent that she was going no further than reception, she placed a priority communication through to her second biggest fan, Admiral Harris. After explaining the situation she only had to wait a matter of minutes before gaining entry to the building. There is nothing like going straight to the top. From there she only had to wait a short while to see her grandfather.
A small Vulcan woman ushered her into his office.
"Dr. Hansen. Thank you for taking the time to see me." said Seven.
"I was not given much choice. Could you please tell me who you are and why you are here. It better be worth it, because I was pulled out of a lecture for this."
Seven was a bit shocked at his manner. She waited a little too long to respond.
"I don't have all day, apparently you have some information on the recent biological studies done on Jem'Hadar prisoners after the war, it's about time Starfleet shared this information with us."
"Doctor, I'm afraid you were misinformed. I have no such information. Admiral Harris was merely trying to get you to meet with me."
"Excuse me?" he choked the words out in disbelief.
"My name is Seven of Nine. I recently arrived in the Alpha Quadrant on board Voyager. I was a member of the Borg, until the captain of Voyager severed my link to the collective four years ago."
"I still don't see what this has to do with me."
Seven took a deep breath, "I, along with my parents, was assimilated when I was six years old. I am Annika Hansen, your granddaughter."
"Annika?" breathed Hansen.
"Yes."
The older man sat across the desk and simply looked at Seven. It took a while for him to speak.
"And you have proof of this?"
"Yes my DNA matches that on record for Annika Hansen. I also have some childhood memories. Some are my own, others my parents. I acquired them when we were assimilated."
"You'll understand if I ask to see this proof?"
Seven reached into the bag she was carrying and handed over a PADD to Anders.
"This is a record of the DNA analysis. If you require anything further I would be willing to submit to a test."
Anders glanced and the PADD, and then back at Seven. "No I'm sure you are telling the truth. It would be typical of my son to take his wife and small child into space and then get assimilated."
"I understand that you did not have a good relationship with my father."
"That would be an understatement. The last time I saw him was when he left Earth to continue his research from a base on the Tendara colony." "That was where I was born. So we have not met before?"
"No, neither my wife nor I had a chance to see you before..." He did not finish the sentence.
"May I ask, did you ever wonder what happened to us?"
"Yes of course, but you were all officially listed as dead ten years after the Raven left."
"I see."
There was another long pause until Hansen spoke. "Do you still require those implants?" he pointed to her eye.
"The Doctor on Voyager removed the majority of them. Those left are necessary for me to function."
He looked at her, "You are very beautiful. You look a lot like your mother," his voice trailed off for a moment, "She was one of my most promising students."
Seven nodded, not really knowing how to respond.
"I don't think I will ever be able to forgive my son for taking Erin and yourself on some wild goose chase."
"I have recovered what the research my parents were working on when we were assimilated. I was intending to give this to you."
"I'm not sure how relevant it would be." said Dr Hansen, looking away.
"It may give you an insight into why they left, and how they spent their last few years. There is an extensive amount of research on the Borg."
"Perhaps you are right. Although, I'm sure no amount of research would surpass the knowledge you have of the Borg."
"You are quite right."
There was another long pause, neither one knowing what to say. Eventually Seven broke the silence. "I met Ingrid and Kristian yesterday."
"Ah, how are they?"
"They appeared to be well."
"That's good."
"Dr. Hansen, would it be-"
"Please Annika, call me Anders".
"Certainly... Anders. Actually I do not use my human designation, most people call me Seven."
"Very well... Seven."
"I would like to meet my grandmother. Would that be possible?"
"Yes, that would make sense."
Hansen touched the view screen on his desk, and put a communication through to his home. "Asa, I'm coming home early, I have someone you might want to meet. Never mind who, I'll see you soon."
Seven and Hansen walked to the on site transporter and materialised moments later in her grandparents home. Asa Hansen was a standing in front of them, she was a small but imposing woman, and had the clearest blue eyes. She wore the expression of a woman who wanted to know what the hell was going on.
"Asa," began Anders "This is Seven, she was Annika." He didn't have the right words to describe what was going on. Asa stood there in shock. Seven felt this was a slightly inaccurate introduction. She stepped forward and took Asa's hand.
"I am Annika Hansen, your granddaughter. However for the last twenty years my designation has been Seven of Nine."
"Why would Magnus and Erin call you Seven?"
"Asa, I think we should sit down. There is a lot to tell you."
Many hours later Seven came up for air. Anders had returned to the Institute, and Asa had fired many questions at Seven. She was an extremely intelligent woman, and even at the age of 75 she was still an active leader at her company that manufactured specialised scientific instruments.
She informed Seven that she had two Uncles, an Aunt, and many cousins, all living on earth. This added to her mother's sister made Seven's immediate family quite large. Asa was a strong matriarch of the Hansen family. However she also shared Anders' disappointment in Magnus. Of all their children he was the most brilliant, but this came with an unstable side to his personality that his family had found hard to understand.
From what Seven could ascertain the Hansen's had given up all hope of their son and his family ever returning home alive. This differed greatly from her mother's family, who had never give up hope.
Asa had many questions about Seven's time in the collective. It did not seem to frighten her, and she was particularly interested in Seven' transition back to humanity.
"It was difficult at first. I found many aspects of humanity and the motivations and emotions if the people around me¼ irrelevant. It wasn't until I embarked on a relationship that I began to understand the beauty in my own humanity. There seems to be no limit to what Kathryn continues to teach me."
"Kathryn?"
"My partner, Captain Janeway. I mentioned her earlier."
"You are involved with the woman who severed you from the Borg?'
"Yes, we've been together for over three years now."
"Well, when are we going to meet her? I have an idea, I'll contact the whole family and get everyone over here tonight - she can come too."
"I can ask her-"
"Seven there will be no asking, you can just tell her when to be here."
"Very well."
Seven knew Kathryn would like this woman.
Many hours later the Hansen house was full of people. If it were not for her eidetic memory, Seven would never have remembered the names of all her relatives. Although Seven was unable to disclose much information about what she will be doing at Starfleet Command, the family could see she had the 'scientist' blood in her. Seven was relieved to find that not all members of her family were this way inclined however. Claudia Hansen, her aunt, was a holo-novel writer. She was the youngest of the Hansen children, and, as Seven noted, not much older than Kathryn. Seven was relieved when Kathryn finally arrived. She had been spending the day with Mary and her children. Asa greeted Kathryn at the door, "So you the woman my granddaughter is crazy about? You're a little older than I expected", said Asa as she threw her arms around Kathryn's shoulder, "Oh well, we owe you a great debt of thanks for bringing her home."
"Seven!" shouted Asa above the noise, "Your girlfriend is here!"
Kathryn looked thoroughly amused when Seven arrived. She was immediately taken by how good Seven looked. Her hair was down, and slightly messed from playing with the children outside. She had a loose shirt and black pants on, but more than that she looked relaxed and like she was having a great time.
Seven gave her beloved Kathryn a big kiss, "Look Kathryn, I have such a large collective, isn't it amazing?" There was something so beautiful and childlike about her response. "Come on Kathryn, there are many people I want you to meet."
Kathryn followed Seven around the room, and tried very hard to remember all the names. She noted that there were quite a few same sex couples among Seven's family. In particular Karl Hansen, Seven's uncle was extremely sweet. He immediately asked Kathryn and Seven if they would like to see a new holo show playing near his home in London, "Lesbian Singers of the 21st Century"!
There was one rather conspicuous absence. Kathryn had been particularly interested in meeting Anders Hansen she had thoroughly enjoyed studying his early work in exobiology at the Academy. "Seven, is you grandfather here?'"
"No. I believe he has been somewhat unenthusiastic about my appearance."
"Oh," was all Kathryn managed to say before Asa pulled her in another direction.
The following day Seven took Kathryn to meet Ingrid and Kristian. While there Seven was able to speak to Isabelle, her mother's sister, who lived on Mars. Kathryn was struck by the contrast between Seven's two families. On one hand the Hansen's were all extremely intelligent people, but quite loud and brash, yet the Andersson's were very simple, down to earth people who were genuinely thrilled about Seven's return. However, they had now been able to start the grieving process for their daughter, Erin, as they never gave up the hope that she would one day return.
It also amazed Kathryn that she was able to recognise many of Seven's personality traits in her relatives. Not to mention some of the physical similarities.
Jean-Luc Picard had invited Seven and Kathryn to join him at his vineyard in France for a couple of days. Seven desperately needed the time to reflect on the events of the previous few days, and welcomed the chance for another short break before starting her job at Starfleet Command.
After the last few days Kathryn was sure she and Seven would not get another minute to themselves as long as they lived. How many times the previous night had she heard Seven say, "We must have you over soon..."
They were not needed at Starfleet Command for another week, so Kathryn relished the idea of spending more time alone with Seven before they really began their new life in the Alpha Quadrant.