Flushed out they are, and after some Borg beam aboard and swat Worf aside, they capture Picard and bring him aboard the cube, which now heads directly for Earth with the Enterprise in pursuit. Then the ship shakes the Borg are deploying space depth charges to flush out the Enterprise.

Picard tours the ship as it makes repairs and preparations, eventually discussing with Guinan about how this could be considered a pivotal moment in Federation history. During this latest brainstorming session Riker and Shelby clash yet again, and Shelby spells it out for Riker: What's happening with the Borg is far more important than his own insecurities, and she's not going to let him stop her trying her best. Inside the nebula, a plan is devised to modify the Deflector Array into a Wave-Motion Gun. The Cube is unaffected by everything the Enterprise throws at it, so the ship flees into a nearby nebula that looks suspiciously like the Mutara Nebula.

The Borg surprise everyone by contradicting Q's previous statements and addressing Picard by name, demanding that he surrender himself. Riker talks with Troi about this, considering whether he's become too comfortable, too 'safe' aboard the Enterprise.Įventually the Borg Cube is sighted nearby and the Enterprise intercepts it, hoping to keep it occupied while Starfleet assembles The Cavalry. Commenting on her style to Picard, Picard muses that this reminds him of how Riker was before the beard, and recommends to Riker that he take the position on the Melbourne. And worst of all, she beats his bluff in a poker game. It doesn't help that everyone seems to go to her for suggestions, even though it was Riker that was actually aboard a Borg vessel. She acts boldly, sometimes circumventing the chain of command to enact her ideas. Shelby rubs Riker up the wrong way as they analyse the remains of the colony and try to devise anti-Borg tactics.

In response to this, Admiral Hanson assigns Lieutenant Commander Shelby, leader of a dedicated anti-Borg taskforce, to the Enterprise, recommending to Picard that he assign her as First Officer, as Riker has been offered command of the USS Melbourne. They identify that this hole is identical to holes made near the Romulan Neutral Zone and the Star System J-25, so it appears that the Borg have finally taken an active interest in the Federation and have begun an invasion. The Enterprise responds to a colony's distress call, finding a hole in the ground when they arrive (an inverted Colony Drop?).

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