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Seven of Nine awakens from a "nap"
in an uneasy state. She dreamed of a beautiful forest with trees
and flowers. In this place people knew her as Annika and she was
almost human. Seven is not used to "dreaming" so she is
unsettled by the experience.
Paris, thinking he is being
reprimanded by the crew for being late, is surprised by being
awarded an Officer's Pip. He is then reinstated to Lieutenant by
Captain Janeway.
Seven retires again to her alcove wearing the cortical monitor
the Doctor gave her and closes her eyes. She finds herself back
in the beautiful forest. She tells herself that this is "not
real" when suddenly a voice is heard assuring her that it is. It
is the voice of Axum, someone she has seen before in this
environment. He calls this place Unimatrix Zero.
Axum explains to Seven that Unimatrix Zero is a place where the
Borg Drones go during regeneration so they can exist as
individuals. The Collective knows about this place but cannot
find it. The Drones who visit Unimatrix Zero have the recessive
mutation that the Borg Queen is trying to find and destroy.
Axum informs Seven that she used to visit Unimatrix Zero before
she escaped the Collective. She too has the recessive mutation
that only one in a million Drones has. Axum tells her that the
Collective has found a way to detect them, so it is only a
matter of time before they find enough of the Drones to isolate
the interlink frequency and demolish Unimatrix Zero.
Axum begs Seven for her help, even though she is no longer a
part of the Collective. Seven is their only hope because unlike
her, after the Drones complete their regeneration they have no
memory of Unimatrix Zero.
When Seven awakens she informs the crew of what she encountered.
The Doctor confirms that she was not just having a dream, she
never reached REM, therefore what she is telling the crew is
real. Seven asks the Voyager crew for their help to save
Unimatrix Zero.
Meanwhile, the Borg Queen is coming closer and closer to finding
Unimatrix Zero. She has continued to dismantle other Drones in
order to observe their parts and find a way into Unimatrix Zero.
Janeway feels that the crew should help, because it is a new
aspect of the Collective and a potential weakness. They begin
coming up with a plan to help the Drones.
Tuvok suggest a Vulcan technique known as the "Bridging of
Minds," Janeway agrees. Janeway, Seven, and Tuvok will be hooked
up to monitors. Tuvok will oversee their thoughts and Janeway
will go with Seven back to Unimatrix Zero.
Upon their arrival they find Drones, sent by the Borg Queen,
trying to destroy Unimatrix Zero. A battle ensues and Janeway
defeats the last of the Drones. The Borg Queen has seen the
fight through the eyes of a regenerating Drone and does not like
what she sees. Janeway assures Axum that they will help defeat
the infiltration of the Borg Queen's Drones into Unimatrix Zero.
Janeway and Seven begin working on a plan to help Axum and the
others. The crew is trying to find a way to deploy a highly
experimental "nanovirus" designed to target all the Drones with
the recessive mutation and reprogram their memory centers. That
way, when they leave their alcoves they will retain their
memories. Janeway tells Seven to go back and reassure Axum that
they are working on a plan and will be there as soon as they
can.
Seven arrives at Unimatrix Zero and things have gotten worse,
however the Klingons have banded together and are fighting off
the Borg Queen's Drones. Axum confesses to Seven that they were
involved before she escaped the Borg. They had promised not to
leave one another, but as things got worse Axum insisted that
she leave him behind and save herself. Although Seven feels
familiar with Axum and Unimatrix Zero, she still does not
remember what he is talking about.
Back on Voyager, Janeway is preparing to transform herself into
a Drone in order to implement the nanovirus, Chakotay does not
think it is a good idea. While they are arguing, the power
beings to flicker and the command center becomes dark and foggy.
The Borg Queen appears on the screen and threatens Janeway and
her crew by informing them that she knows they have been in
contact with Starfleet. The Queen informs Janeway that if she
becomes involved with helping Unimatrix Zero, Voyager will have
a difficult time making it home. Janeway does not back down,
frustrated, the Borg Queen disappears and the crew knows they
are going to have a fight on their hands. |
