#the borg queen could never

[isagrimorie]

Star Trek Voyager 4E09 - Scientific Method

The Janeway Moment for Seven of Nine. (The First of Many).

Part 1, 2

[quasi-normalcy]

Star Trek series rated by horniness (as rated by me, an asexual, so you know its objective):

Star Trek: The Original Series - what is there to say for the series that invented slashfic, fuck-or-die, and Thiess's theory of titillation in costuming? The universe is full of greased-up pecs and scantily clad women wondering what is this thing you call...love? It's easier to mention the episodes that *aren't* horny. 10/10, for how could it be otherwise?

Star Trek: The Animated Series - It's a Saturday morning cartoon series from the 70s, and yet... 3/10, for the surprising number of scantily clad muscular guys

Star Trek: The Next Generation - Oh, we *start* quite horny; Roddenberry is keen to let us know that the android has a penis in the second episode; but then Roddenberry dies, and by the final season even Troi is wearing a sensible duty uniform. 6/10 for Will Riker, though

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - We've got Quark's, where the women are scantily clad, the holosuites are for fucking, and the waiters give themselves ear infections from doing too much oo-mox on themselves. We've got Jadzia Dax, who has three hundred years worth of sexcapades in two genders and will tell you about them at the drop of a hat. We've got Bashir and his sad blue balls for the first two seasons. We've got Klingons breaking each other's clavicles to initiate coitus. And we've got an enemy power led by the perpetual mind-melting gangbang that canonically is the Great Link. 9/10

Star Trek: Voyager - Weirdly conservative in its sexual politics. I mean, it goes out of its way to stick poor Jeri Ryan in that body condom, and there's a whole episode about space whales wanting to fuck the ship, and another one about Janeway wanting to fuck an Irishman, and *two* episodes about Pon Farr...actually, you know what? 6/10.

Star Trek: Enterprise - You know what, let me tell you about this series; this series is like a 14-year-old asexual boy boasting about his supposed sexual conquests in the hopes that it will endear him to the cool kids. It doesn't work; there's nothing genuine about it and everyone knows it; no matter how many innuendos he throws in, it's clear that there's no joy in it for him and he'd be happier if he could just go off and read comic books. Secretly, he wishes his friends still wanted to play with action figures. -1/10

Star Trek: Discovery - The show presents us with wall-to-wall gays who just...never seem to shtup each other. Like, I of all people know that sex doesn't define queerness, but...really? I guess maybe they're afraid of being less than wholesome? Anyways, 2/10 for that time that the Emperor went off to fuck a couple of Orions in the middle of a dangerous secret mission on the Klingon homeworld.

Star Trek: Picard - A series so sexless that it can't even show its main canonical couple enjoying each other's company for more than 5 seconds each season. And yet the chaste Jurati/Borg Queen pairing manages to be the hottest thing ever in the history of fiction. Anyway, I guess they technically had Agnes sleep with Rios in the first season, so 1/10.

Star Trek: Lower Decks - Oooh boy, we're at the heavy hitter now, my god. Completely, unashamedly horny. Gene Roddenberry *wishes* he could have done that orgy scene that people on Twitter were freaking out about. 11/10

Star Trek: Prodigy- They're *kids*. 0/10

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds - Not really a lot, surprisingly given their TOS pastiche. Still, we get some stuff with Spock. 3/10.

[kncrowder88]

The other day, I was scrolling through Voyager and saw the familiar joke about Janeway, Picard, and the Borg Queen. It amused me, as always, because their interactions are interesting. But at the same time ... it has left this thing sitting with me in regards to the story of the Borg within Star Trek and how it was presented to us.

The Borg are first introduced to us in a Q episode, when Picard and his ship are tossed far into space (the Delta Quadrant actually) and exposed to dangers humanity is not ready for. That danger, at the time, specifically is a Borg cube. An entire section of the ship is just cut off and pulled away within the episode. Picard, ends up, by the end, asking Q to help them and get them back. The next time the Borg appear is "Best of Both Worlds".

Picard, at that point, is the face of humanity that the Borg know. Now, the Borg timeline in Trek is honestly a fun thing to look at. You do have the Enterprise episode and First Contact movie, this whole time loop that creates a sort of chicken and egg situation. But also, keep in mind ... the Raven - Seven's parents ship - has already been assimilated by "Best of Both Worlds". The Borg, at this point, have decided humanity needs a liason, someone to ease them into assimilation. And they pick Picard. We get Locutus. Then, after this, you get all that happens within the TNG episodes.

By the time Voyager happens, if you have watched TNG you have seen these episodes (Enterprise hasn't happened yet). First Contact is in 2373, Scorpion is in 2373/2374 ... these two events are within mere weeks/months/etc from each other. Yet, Janeway knows nothing about what Picard and Earth just went through. But, she was in Starfleet during Wolf 359, that battle was 2367. The USS Bonestell was her command - this ship was destroyed in this battle - memory beta says she was in command up till 2366. We dont know who was in command during the battle, for all we know it was Janeway and she is one of the few survivors of that destruction. Could be she just handed command over and the ship went off to battle.

"Scorpion" and "Best of Both Worlds" along with "Q, Who" are such vastly different means of bringing a character before the Borg. Picard is unaware and yet becomes a foil to them, becomes a focal point of the Queens plans. While Janeway, aware of the Borg - having learned previously through simply being part of Starfleet during those events, no matter how close she got to it -, is not clueless to this danger before her. She researches, reviews, looks over it all ... and then she offers up her own foil and focal point. The Borg Queen wanted a representative that could ease humanity into her clutches, and that failed her. Years later, Janeway looked the collective in the eye and said "give us a representative to ease this deal into success" and then she ensured it worked.

Janeway and Picard had two very different interactions with the Borg ... and honestly I will forever be obsessed with that (Janeway even willingly gets assimilated later on) and yet both of them are foils to the Borg Queen who will likely NEVER cease being annoyed that the two are still walking around Starfleet as reminders that resistance is possible.

[colesluvr]

REQ: THIS IS SO CUTE AND PERFECT 😭😭💖💖💖 alsooo could u write something with PIXAL?? like if y/n and PIXAL were siblings (cyrus borg's adopted/biological kid)??

Being Siblings With Pixal | Headcanons

tots not seeing this literally 4 months late :(

I TIP MY CROWN TO OUR QUEEN 👑

you were Pixal's sibling. you are Cyrus Borg's biological chhild. of course, with Pixal being a Nindroid you werent blood related, but Pixal and you grew up together.

when Pixal met you, you were nothintg but a mindless child who doesn't know better. You've grown a liking to Pixal, much to your father's surprise.

Pixal was your best friend growing up. You didn't need anyone else, Pixal made you feel like you didn't need anyone else. Cyrus, of course, was happy to see you and Pixal so close.

when ou turned preteen age, you would always ask her to style your hair. she may or may not know what she is doing, but she will damn well try.

even though you aren't related, that doesn't mean you don't love her like a sister. you would knock anyone OUT if they said anything otherwise. 

you bought yourself matching slippers cuz why the hell not, she thought it was adorable. 

as if you couldn't tell, Pixal's the oldest and your the youngest. also, no age difference cause...there's no need for any confusion. 

the other ninja grew a liking to you real quick, especially Zane. him, you, and Pixal would hang out and talk about new Borg tech. 

you would also tease the two Nindroid lovers and they would be oblivous to what the hell you were saying. Kai and Jay have taught you well 😊 (such proud older brothers) 

Pixal would always be there for you, she would never let you go through anything alone. and if she can't do it, you know damn well she'll march her nindroid butt up to you and ask for one of the ninja's help with you. 

you're never alone when your a Borg. 

she's stubborn. so when you two figth she'll expect an apology ASAP. your younger then her, she's not going to let you one up her. 

there are times when you argue, but at the end of the day you love each other <3

(sry this is a$$😁)

[grimecrow]

Below are some of the pros and cons of each faction as I seem them.

The Phyrexians: Magic's ultimate bad guy, and all assimilating, corrupting force that at it's peak began to declare war on all of existence across the multiverse, everywhere, all at once. Pro - Phyrexian Oil - Phyrexians bleed corruption, the ichor of their bodies will slowly contaminate those it touches. The very act of killing them can over time turn you to their side. Pro - The Reality Chip - Normally used to augment an individual it can also be applied to alter an individual making them easier to join Phyrexia via the process known as phyresis making you compleated. It is believed specific indivisuals can manipulate it in ways that streamline the process on those previous immune to it. Pro - Realmbreaker - The Invasion tree allows for multiple direct breeches into a single realm. Allowing for cross universe invasion. Pro - All Will Be One - In every battlefield everyone can become a part of the invading army. This includes the insects, beasts, birds, everything. The moment they land somewhere recruitment begins, they have even compleated actual Gods by corrupting the followers whose believe the Gods were connected to compleated as a result of that connection.

Con - Individual Reliant - There are few commanders in the vast Phyrexian forces known as the Praetors. Once these handful of individuals are destroyed Phyrexian forces turn into near mindless animals. Con - Realmbreaker/The Reality Chip - These are objects that in theory can be destoryed. Realmbreaker's branches do travel both ways and in theory can be tracked back to their source.

The Borg: Pro - Unlimited Leadership - The Borg Queen is a program installed into a drone. If she is destroyed another is instituted at near instant speed. There is no command post to destroy, no one person to kill that can actually halt the Borg. Pro - Adapt Negate Obstruction - The Borg are always learning and when a weakness or work around is found the required adaptation is shared with the entire collective and the adaptions made at the speed of thought. Pro - Assimilation - In the field the Borg can assimilate their opponents gaining knowledge of weaknesses and understanding of previously unknown technology.

Con - The Collective - What affects one Borg can in theory spread throughout the collective before the Queen is aware of it happening. If an enemy can figure out how to cause disruptions to the Collective the Borg fall apart.

Con - Underestimation - The Borg always tend to underestimate those they face at first. They never throw the required resources at a problem initially believing they can just adapt to whatever they run across.

Con - Fragile - The Borg have some shielding but that's about it. Overwhelming or properly implemented force over whelms them easily.

The Viltrumites Pro - Viltrumite Physiology - Capable of feats far beyond average creatures, tending to be on a scale physically where a single Viltrumite can overwhelm an entire planet. Their skin is near invulnerable. Pro - Interstellar Travel - Viltrumites can survive in space without aide. Pro - Healing Factor - Even if it takes time a Viltrumite can heal many things that would kill mortal creatures.

Con - Sound - There are sounds that cause Viltrumites great pain, or even paralyze them out right. In theory if the frequency of the strength is strong enough it could in theory kill them.

Con - Weaker On The Inside - Viltrumites are highly susceptible to internal attacks if you can somehow get past or around their skin. Their incredible healing factor also has as much trouble as a human dealing with disease if they can somehow become infected.

The Daleks

Pro - The Time War - Daleks have faced the Time Lords, a race that could manipulate time and were still on the brink of victory before the intervention of the Doctor. Pro - Exterminate - There are threats that exist in their universe that can phase out of existence if you look at them and yet the Daleks are considered the 'greatest fire in the universe' as there isn't a threat yet aside from the individual known as the Doctor that they have not been able to at least stalemate if not overcome. They even had the power to relocate specific planets to be used as the battery to a weapon that would erase all of existence outside of the little pocket they were hiding in that was one second ahead of the rest of existence.

Pro - The Dalek Body - The outer casing of a Dalek has been shown to be very resilient to many weapons. It can also survive in some pretty extreme conditions. Not only that but a Dalek free from it's casing can in theory highjack the functionality of a biological host it connects with.

Con - The Eyestalk - If you damage a Dalek's eyestalk you leave the Dalek blind.

Con - The Dalek Body - If a weapon is strong enough to over come the outer body they have no other defense. If the being inside the casing was to get infected with something they do not possess a strong or unique immune system.

[v-e-l-v-e-t-g-o-l-d-m-i-n-e]

You know, the thing that pisses me off the most about the Enterprise finale is not Trip's terrible death, or that the crew doesn't even have a proper POV during their finale episode. Sure, these things makes me very angry, but the one thing that makes me see red, you know what it is?

It's the presumption that if the franchise were to be given a goodbye to a not known lenght of time, the ones who had to send it off had to be the TNG crew and none of the other series deserved this honor, as if the other ones - even the Enterprise crew, the one show doing the goodbye - were not worth it.

I'm having a similar feeling watching the third season of Star Trek: Picard, considering they wrote off the entire cast of the series, with the exception of Raffi and Seven. It does feel like once again the TNG crew is kicking out the cast of the original show to insert themselves in there at the end.

But it's not the same because it's a Picard series and Picard was the main TNG character!

Yes, I see this point, somewhat agree with it but. It's not the same. Because this is Picard twenty years after his captain years, and it's about who he is now. We saw him make new friends, a new family in the two previous seasons, and this is now all cast out, as if it was all worthless.

And you see, I'm not actually against the inclusion of the TNG crew in Picard's last season. I think it makes sense to include them; they are Picard's family, after all, and Nemesis left several loose ends. What I'm against is the exclusion of the original cast, when they should have been kept IN ADDITION to the TNG crew being brought back.

But it's too many characters to write about!

Deep Space Nine had NINE main characters (Sisko, Dax, Kira, Bashir, Odo, O'Brien, Quark, Jake, Worf), three main antagonists (Dukat, Winn, Female Founder) and a TON of supporting cast (Garak, Damar, Leeta, Rom, Nog, Morn, Keiko, Kasidy, Ziyal, Martok, Weyoun, Vic Fontaine...) and they managed to juggle it all just fine. More than fine.

But they have to work with much less episodes!

I see this point. It's true; only ten episodes it's not a lot of time when there used to be 26 episodes per season, but you know what? It's still a body of work with almost ten hours of duration. This is just a little less than the hours of the LOTR trilogy, and see the size of the universe and the storylines you're capable of creating with roughly the same timeframe.

If they focused on what matters and if they were to write it well, it is more than possible to juggle many characters and do a good work while you are at it.

Elnor should have been in this season; he could be a foil to Jack, since he sees Picard as a father figure. So should have been Soji, especially now that Data is back; I think he deserves to know he has a daughter. They never should have gotten ridden of Rios. Borg Queen Agnes is very plot relevant, but she's nowhere to be seen.

I'm glad that Raffi has been in this season and its a joy to see her with Worf, but it leaves such a bitter taste in my mouth that her romance with Seven seems dead to me. Trek has a terrible record with queer characters, and Seven and Raffi are the first lesbian couple in the whole franchise (and the only main ones apart of Jennifer and Mariner in Lower Decks), and even if they had highs and lows, at least season two bothered to give them time together and interactions. They barely were in the same room together during this season.

The constantly barbs to the early seasons like the way Troi and Riker talked about their home life, the way they ignore Borg Queen Agnes whole existence... this season seems do disdainful of its predecessors, and even if they were full of flaws, this seems so unfair to me. Especially when this season have such a a weak plot being held together only by the talent and the charisma of the TNG crew, it's really not a good look. The story is weak, it's repetitive, it doesn't make sense when you think about it for too long.

And you know what it's sad? Man, I LOVE the TNG crew. In fact I love TNG; apart from Deep Space Nine, it's my favorite Star Trek series. I prefer it even over TOS. It makes me sad to see them being brought together again so messily, and in detriment of everything the Star Trek: Picard series had previously established, especially when you can see the ways it could have been good.

[thesevenwondersofawitch]

Watching Star Trek Picard s3 ep9 Vox

"No one has seen or heard from the Borg in over a decade" Guess Picard and friends didn't tell anyone about Jurati😂

Oh shit, Deanna having to bring up the protocols Starfleet has in place has me alarmed

Damn, Beverly really can't catch a break when it comes to her sons

Poor Jack, now he has a distrust in betazoids

"What about the protocols of a father? Or you never issued those?" Well damn

I would be angry too

Oh shit, he's taking over people's minds to escape

Poor Beverly

She's hugging herself 😭

I forgot Data was alive 😂

Oh shit what more could there be to Jack?

OH HELL

IT'S THE BORG CUBE

OH SHIT STARFLEET IS ALL IN ONE PLACE

"Um, smack dab in the middle of frontier day, where pretty much every Starfleet vessel is running exercises with our faces pinned to their dartboard?"

'Its our only option Captain."

"Of course it is

Oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god

IT'S THE ENTERPRISE

Wait, i feel like we've seen Shelby before

It's beautiful 😭(all the fireworks)

Ooooooh now I remember her😂

Regenerati😂

Oh shit, it's the Borg Queen 👀👀👀

Damn, he can't kill her

RESISTANCE IS FUTILE HELL YEAH

Oh no

Oh no no no

JACK'S BEEN ASSIMILATED

Huh, guess Lt Broccoli was right to fear transporters

HOLY SH-

OOOOOOO it's so so pretty( the green orb)

SEVEN

My poor baby 😭(her head must hurt so bad)

Oh shit

Poor Mura

Shit, La Forge's daughters are being assimilated

This has to be one of Geordi's worst fears

Oh my god, my heart is shaking with how awesome Seven looks as she fights

Also, where the heck is Raffi? I just want them to reunite again 😭 Is that too much to ask for?

I'm cackling that Seven said to shaw about all the gray hair and how assimilating must have skipped a generation 😭😂

Guess we'll never know what the dude wanted his family to know

"I've never been so happy to see so many wrinkles." I love Deanna 😂

RAFFI!!

"The Robot's right." I'm cackling

Data and Geordi look so offended

"Data can you try to be a little more positive?"

"I hope we die quickly.😃"

Oh fuck

Shaw got shot

Seven said Raffi's name😭 she wanted her safe

"it's it's not my ship anymore. It's yours."

He said her name😭

Her real name

Annnnnd Shaw's dead

The way her eyes keep darting towards Raffi

Oh my god

Are they gonna use voyager

THEY'RE USING THE ENTERPRISE-D

"Obviously we can't use the Enterprise-E." The way everyone turned to look at la forge and worf😂

Oh my god

I'm getting hit with those memories watching Next Gen for first time

They're back where it all started

I love how Deanna chastised Worf

I love how Data said hello to his chair

Picard missed the carpet the most😂

IT'S THE VOICE OF MAJEL BARRETT! Oh how I missed it

"Jean-Luc, wherever you go, we go." I have chills

Annnnnd now I have to wait for next week's episode to find out what happens with Raffi and Seven 😭 but I'm holding out hope they'll end up together in the end

This episode was awesome

[worflesbian]

expanding on prev post by assigning the voyager crew a kate bush song each. obviously the whole of the ninth wave is voyager-coded so it'll have to have its own post and be excluded for this one

janeway: all the love is a very janeway song it's literally about pushing away all the people who are deeply concerned about you - 'the first time i died it was in the arms of good friends of mine'. i'm very torn bc there's So many from the red shoes that are janeway coded but i have to say the wedding list is probably the only one that captures her level of unhinged violence like that's janeway when she's out for blood

chakotay: james and the cold gun is about begging the person you love not to sell their soul to an empty vendetta of violence (see above!). i also quite like reaching out as a chakotay song - 'see how the child reaches out instinctively, to feel how fire will feel, see how the man reaches out instinctively, for what he cannot have... the pull and the push of it all'

tuvok: leave it open! it's such a cerebral song but also kind of guttural at the same time? 'harm is in us, harm in us but power to arm' sounds like something he would say to kes about controlling her telepathy.

b'elanna: under the ivy as mentioned but also hounds of love but ALSO love and anger! i can't even quote a single lyric bc the whole thing is So her and specifically her relationship with tom

seven: immediately i think experiment iv but also mother stands for comfort seems very seven and the borg queen and/or seven and janeway. 'it breaks the cage and fear escapes and takes possession, just like a crowd rioting inside (make me do this make me do that)... am i the cat that takes the bird, to her the hunter, or the hunted?'. i also think suspended in gaffa may not be a seven song tonally but it works lyrically for her relationship to her humanity: 'i won't open boxes that i am told not to, i'm not a pandora, i'm much more like that girl in the mirror, between you and me, she don't stand a chance of getting anywhere at all' 'but sometimes it's hard to know if i'm doing it right, can i have it all now?'

harry: i think army dreamers is a brilliant harry song, it's literally about a golden boy dying young because he dreamed of being in the military. from the perspective of his beloved mother. 'give the kid the pick of pips, and give him all your stripes and ribbons, now he's sitting in his hole, he might as well have buttons and bows'. rocket's tail kind of works as a harry and janeway song - 'and it seemed to me, the saddest thing i'd ever seen and i thought you were crazy, wishing such a thing' (tries going out in a blaze of glory himself) '...was it me said you were crazy?'

tom: night of the swallow!! literally about a criminal pilot - 'oh let me fly, give me something to show for my miserable life, would you break even my wings, like a swallow?'

neelix: I actually quite like never be mine for Neelix, it feels like it could be about all the lives that he could've lived, if his family hadn't been killed, if he'd stayed with Voyager and gone to the alpha quadrant - 'this is where I wanna be, but I know that this will never be mine'. also moments of pleasure seems to capture his attitude to life I think - 'just being alive, it can really hurt sometimes, these moments given, are a gift from time'

the doctor: i want to say deeper understanding bc it is about an ambiguously sentient computer program but on a character level i think he's more sat in your lap, which is about wanting to understand everything and being limited by the capacities of your own mind - 'i must admit, just when i think i'm king, i just begin'

kes: I will admit I'm not a kes scholar but I quite like the big sky for her just for the line 'you never understood me, you never really tried' and this idea that she's always looking up for something larger than herself that other people might not pay attention to

[lady-sci-fi]

Hi hey hi so

I just finished your Electric Organisms fic series on ao3 and i just wanted to express some sentiments towards your work "^^

1. The fics are so damn good aaa it infected my brain so much i would regularly tell my best friend all about it even though she doesnt watch star trek

2. The fact you dug up unused scenes and scripts and wrote them into fics is so damn cool!! Also may i ask where you found those?

3. Your character writing is so well done, i was so disappointed they didnt explore Geordis personality more in the show. I love that you went into his family background and mental health properly also I honestly love that he just gets to be happy a lot of the time, the show constantly made him suffer for some reason

4. The drawings are such a nice addition to the fics and theyre sooo well drawn <3

5. The way u handled the Fajo&Borg queen assualt implications was so well written. Im still angry the movies and show basically dropped the whole thing and never went into what it would do to datas mental state

6. The romance was so well written i cant- i dont usually read romance but maaan was i invested in this one <333

I swear you basically rewrote the entire series while fixing all the shitty parts and making the good parts *sparkly*

Also just the raw amount of stuff you wrote is crazy impressive!!!!

Unrelated your blog is really cool ive been following for a couple of months or so and it delights me whenever you show up on my dash.

Anyways you're a great writer and artist and i hope my ramble could express that your work is very very appreciated :)

Thanks so much for telling me all this! It does indeed make me feel warm and fuzzy. 🥰

The full series link if anyone else is interested.

While I have written the start and end points for the series, there are still more ideas I'm going to write for it, so stay tuned.

1- That's a huge compliment.

2- It's great to find those little nuggets that were cut out from final script to aired episode for whatever reason. You can read them at Star Trek Minutiae.

3- I like to think I've watched too much TNG to get them too wrong in character 😜. I would've definitely appreciated more Geordi episodes.

4- Thank you. In addition to a fic list, I also have an art list, and DaForge is taking up most of it 😅

5- I'm glad you think so. I don't really blame the show for that, since mostly "one-and-done" episode stuff was the overall structure of shows in that time. A few character things get mentioned or used later, but not everything.

6- The boys deserve a well-written romance 😊It's great to know you think I'm achieving that.

Believe me, I'm also surprised how much I've written for this series since I started it in June 2022. I didn't expect a one-shot fic that came from Brent Spiner saying he much rather would've found Geordi instead of Spot in the Enterprise-D wreck to have led to all this.

It's nice to know you think I'm cool enough to follow on here 😜

Thank you again for saying all this. I'm glad you really like this series.

[only-lonely-stars]

A Bride for the Prince (Chapter 1 - The Hairclip)

[Prologue] // [Chapter 1 of 9 - you are here!] // [Chapter 2 of 9] – (FFN) (AO3)

Part of the @ninjago-fairy-tale-au!

Summary:

Once upon a time, there lived a faithful and hardworking girl named Pixal Borg, who worked every day to satisfy her demanding stepmother. For years, she cleaned and cooked, giving no argument, until the day came when she met the prince. A Pixane Cinderella retelling.

Chapter summary:

Pixal Borg is a dedicated student and a creative problem-solver, but her life never seems to get any easier...

In the Borg household, life progressed in its norm, as every family member expected it to.

Cyrus Borg worked long and hard, creating inventions and conferring with inventors from every corner of the Central Commonwealth. His second wife, Amaryllis, lived as a queen and headed their estate, doting on her daughters Begonia and Columbine as if they were incarnate angels. Pixal, for her part, toiled daily to do the chores and housework, eager to please the spirit of her mother even as her stepmother and sisters tormented her. In the little free time she had, she worked on her own sorts of inventions and sciences in the safety of her basement, to which she had been cast when Columbine had taken custody of her old bedroom.

One day, as was his habit, Cyrus gathered the women of his household before he left on yet another business trip. He asked each of them a question.

"My dearest, what gift would you like me to bring home when I return?"

Each gave a separate response.

"I would like for you to bring home a bolt of fine western silk brocade, so that I might have an evening gown made from it," Amaryllis requested, gently smoothing the taffeta fabric of her skirt.

"I want many strings of pearls!" Columbine demanded, pulling on the chain of her gold necklace.

"I want the most beautiful set of combs you find, with gold and silver inlay," Begonia cried, stroking her long locks of auburn hair.

Pixal was silent when Cyrus came to her. Concerned, he took her hands in his. "Pixal, my daughter, what gift would you like? Your sisters and stepmother have asked for such beautiful things. Would you like me to bring you those, too?"

Pixal shook her head. "No, Father. I do not want gold or jewels. My only wish is that you might find something small and rare– a flower, or a locket. Something with a story, that I might hear it."

Cyrus smiled and kissed her forehead. "Of course, Pixal. I promise, I will bring you a rare treasure, with a magic all its own."

Once all his goodbyes had been said, Cyrus departed from the Borg estate, and the women went back to their lives, with even more resentment toward Pixal because of Cyrus' greater love for her.

-----

After several weeks of travel, Cyrus Borg eventually returned to his estate, laden with gifts. Just as he had promised, he brought back fine fabrics, stones, accessories, and garments for them, all paid for with the money he had earned from selling yet another invention. When he parceled them out, he gave each many things. One such item was a beautiful purple dress with white and red embroidery and matching shoes, given to Pixal. Along with it, he also placed a little box in her hand.

"What is inside?" she asked, opening it.

"It is a silver clip. I searched far and wide to find it for you, my daughter. The man who sold it to me promised that it has a magical property, but he could not explain it. You will have the pleasure of learning from it."

Pixal took out the hairclip and examined it. It was plain silver, with no adornment of any kind, save for a tiny engraving of an ancient symbol. She smiled and put it in her hair, which it seemed to blend with, the color nearly identical. "Thank you, Father. I will cherish it." Once he had given out his gifts, Cyrus and Pixal talked for a long time about his travels.

When he had gone to bed, Columbine and Begonia came to see Pixal in her basement. She had laid her new dress and shoes safely away, hidden behind a loose wall panel, but still wore the clip. Her stepsisters came up to her, smugly adorned in their new finery, fingering them with pride.

"Your clip is so dull, Pixal," Begonia said. "I've never seen such a useless hairpiece."

"Why would you ask for something like that?" Columbine asked incredulously. "At least the dress makes sense."

"I do not want finery," Pixal said, meeting their eyes with eerie intensity. "I wish for utility instead, even though you do not understand why."

"No wonder you are a maid, Pixal. Nobody in their right mind would ask for something so useless and claim it's useful."

"With that strange name, could she be anything else? Really, Pixal, it's a wonder Father puts up with you."

The two stepsisters snickered to themselves. Pixal only watched them and was unafraid. Eventually they tired of her and left, claiming to have other things to do. Only then did she take out her hair clip so she could examine it.

The clip was indeed simple, as if it were a cheap gift. For a moment, Pixal wondered if it had been a scam. However, her father had trusted, the vendor, so perhaps it was true. With her nail, she traced the engraving. It was a complex character of an ancient script, perhaps Old Shintaran. She went to the library with it and pulled out a book of history, which she opened to a section on Shintaro, the elusive northern kingdom.

It was as she had thought. The symbol was magical, with an incantation to match. Slowly, she sounded out the symbol, which was a word.

"Salva me in opere..." The clip began to glow in her hand. Pixal's eyes widened, and she glanced at the translation again for guidance. The symbol was used for tools to help the user in work. Magical items that used it would be able to do all sorts of things– saddling horses, cleaning dishes, and lifting heavy furniture were all examples. Knowing this, she looked back at the clip. "Close the book," she told it.

The clip began to shine brighter, and an apparition of light burst from it in the form of a hand. The hand went to the book and closed it gently, then disappeared. Once it did, the clip laid still and silent once again.

Pixal beamed at it, knowing her father had spoken truly. She re-fastened it in her hair and asked it again. "Salve me in opere. Put the book away and dust the shelf."

Just like before, the clip began to glow, and two apparitions burst from it. Just as she had instructed, they did the work asked of them, disappearing into the air when they were finished. Pixal gazed in amazement as they worked, faster than she ever could. This tool was more invaluable than anyone could tell her, but clearly more valuable as well. She could not tell her family– not even her father, who would entrust the knowledge to her stepmother. Instead, it would be her secret.

-----

Days and weeks passed, and Pixal slowly learned more about her magical tool. Just as the book had told, the clip could do incomparable things. It washed dishes, cleaned, retrieved things, and more. However, it was not infallible, so she eventually composed a mental list of restrictions, which she kept in the forefront of her mind. The clip could not be used without the trigger phrase, could not lift or move anything weighing more than fifty pounds, and could not be used more than twenty times per day. If she commanded it to do something it could not, it would do nothing, as if it were never magical at all. Knowing this, she began to use it well.

Over time, Pixal learned to use the clip for the most time-consuming work, so that she might use her energy for the quicker things. With the time it afforded her, she began to read copiously, learning as much as she could about mathematics, the sciences, histories, the arts, and politics. Whenever her father would ask her what she desired after his travels, she would ask for literature and heavy tomes, such that he carried a trunk just for her gifts during each journey. Her thirst for knowledge was great and rarely abated, such that she would often spend her nights reading by candle light. In envy of her father's love, however, Begonia and Columbine began to tell Pixal to do more and more work for them, so that she would be unable to educate herself so thoroughly. Amaryllis encouraged them, and slowly, Pixal took on all the work of the hired help, who were thus dismissed.

Unbeknownst to everyone, however, Pixal began to learn from her tomes the quiet ways of magic. She learned of wards and spells, hexes and curses, and all manner of charms, and slowly became a novice mage, even as her workload grew.

-----

NOTE:

For the rest of this fic, underlined sections are meant to be "magic words." (That is, things translated into Latin with Google Translate, because I was being lazy. If I wrote this fic today, instead of 4 years ago, I'd go the J.R.R. Tolkien route and actually make up a fictional language... but I'm not about to go back and change my old works just to fix it.)

Salva me in opere = "Help me in my work"

[isagrimorie]

So I scoured the Voyager transcripts— turned out contrary to what fanfics and fandom claims. You can count the number of times Seven says “Tertiary Adjunct of Unimatrix 01” in one hand.

After her initial introduction Seven hardly uses her full Borg designation. The few times she does is when its to address another Borg and establish seniority.

Or with the EMH Doctor in season 6, Virtuoso as a formal way to end her “fan letter”.

Most of the time other people use it, especially, the Borg Queen whenever she wants to call Seven to her.

The Borg Queen’s done it in Dark Frontier, and Endgame. Alt!Borg Queen also does this to Seven in the alternate timeline in season 2 of Picard.

Also, Seven uses her birth name,“Annika” in a specific way— as a Shibboleth, to remind herself of herself when her individuality is under attack. Usually around the Borg Queen.

But Seven’s preferred name will always be “Seven of Nine” or, imprecisely but more acceptable, Seven.

(Some people who have never seen Voyager are baffled why Seven prefers Seven despite it being a name given to her by the Borg. But this is because emotionally Seven of Nine doesn’t feel a connection to the Human who was Annika. Now, if Unimatrix!Annika, the Human entity survived the Severance its another matter.

Also, if Seven ever saw the TV show Severance, during her both in 2024, I feel like she would feel such an affinity with the characters).

I did notice that when Seven references her parents, she calls them “The Hansens”.

Which might have added to Seven’s annoyance to being called “Commander Hansen”. Despite that one weird slip where Seven claimed the Borg killed her parents* in season 2 of Picard— Seven is still IMO, not fond or forgiving towards them.

*(Always funny to me that Seven blamed the Borg for killing her parents… because while her dad was an assimilated drone in the Dark Frontier, she could have also tried to save her dad. Told Janeway about her dad, but nope, Seven told no one.)

Seven occasionally used “Annika” for specific things but I think it’s the “Hansen” name that annoyed her more.

This is why, if there is a Star Trek Legacy show one of my wish list is that it turned out Dr Erin Hansen survived and is now an ex-Borg.

It would he such an interesting story for Seven dealing with the reality of a parent being alive. She would also have the satisfaction of confronting her mother.

Also, for me, finally, having Erin have more focus than Magnus.

[quasi-normalcy]

Maybe I’m just missing an obvious detail because I’m not from America but I thought Picard season 3 was the only good one? The first 2 seasons felt like bland slop that you could watch hundreds of hours of from any American network but the third at least felt like they were using Picard as a captain rather than a mouthpiece for the writers. I remember watching the original series when I was younger and the show under Alex Kurtzman felt like it had such a distain for the original I found it almost petty

(1) I am not American.

(2) I've already expressed my opinion in a great deal of detail in a great many places, but basically it boils down to this: When I think about TNG and what I liked from it, I don't just think about the characters. I think about the moral dilemmas; about the social commentary; about the thought-provoking science fiction concepts; about the contemplation of the human condition. The first two seasons, for all of their flaws--and I agree, they had flaws in absolute spades--offered all of these things. The third season, by and large, did not. It was an action movie, complete with quips, morally weightless violence, and a plot that was resolved simply by killing the bad guys. And you know what, I did enjoy seeing the old crew again; I grew up with TNG, I was literally obsessed with it for my entire childhood. I had comic books and action figures of the entire crew. But it all just felt so hollow.

And you say that the first two seasons felt disdainful. I entirely disagree. But I absolutely think that the third season was completely disdainful of the first and second. 80% of the original cast was pushed out and never even mentioned, not even when they were plot relevant. Data comes back to life and no one tells him that he has a daughter; that there's now an entire planet of Soong-type androids and he's no longer alone in the universe. The Borg come back and no one even mentions Jurati, who spent the entire second season becoming a Borg Queen. Raffi learns to swordfight from Worf and never feels the need to mention that her adopted son is a Romulan swordmaster. Rios's ship, La Sirena, is just casually dumped somewhere after the fifth episode, presumably alongside his chorus of holograms; the script can't be arsed to tell us what became of it. Laris tells Picard in the second scene of the first episode of the season that she will be waiting for him at some café. She's never seen or even mentioned again. Disdainful? The third season is positively contemptuous of the first two, of their characters, and of all of us fans who liked them.

Anyways, that's why I don't like it. Hope that helps.

[peachviz]

I finished Picard so you know what that means. It’s a Picard wrap up post:

(this one may contain hot takes bc ik the series is split on mixed reviews)

Season 1 - beautiful. Made me ugly cry. Sucks that i saw Data die twice (but if i had a nickel for every time that happened…)

- Picard still dealing with PTSD of being Borg i love that continuity

- Seven is a badass but seven did not have to have character development at the risk of killing Icheb. Out of all the deaths in Season 1, that one was so pointless. But given the previous actor of Icheb’s conduct i think that may have been a benefactor idk im not a conspiracy theorist

- Data has daughters??? We love to see it

- Narek was useless we could have done without the male manipulation

- Riker being a happy dad (idk wtf was going on in season 3. We didn’t have to forget him making pizza. He and Deanna always have a kiss and makeup storyline can’t we just have the Riker that makes pizza and smiles)

- I cried the most with this season, out the gate just full on ugly cried. Data getting a beautiful ending, Picard overcoming death, Seven returning, good elements

So then why was Season 2 lowkey a clusterfuck. Random and confusing at times

- seven is still a badass, but oh no Star Trek is starting to suffering from Star Wars syndrome. It’s the one where they overcorrect their wrongs by making women bad asses, but then that’s all they are, badasses with suffering

- Q dying was dumb sorry im with de lancie on this one they could have involved Q without the weird dying storyline just kiss and make up, Picard “you matter” “all gods have favorites, and you’re one of mine” too much yapping not enough hugging like come on (i did love that line)

- Seven and Raffi are the couple of the season

- Elnor dying almost made me turn it off

- I found Rios boring sorry

- Wesley is in his River Song era, really didn’t understand it but ok I’ll bite

- Laris and alter ego not Laris was also boring really don’t understand it and did not see chemistry with Picard and clearly pointless bc she never shows up again at the end of s3 (once again too many cooks in the kitchen with too many characters. Star Trek is still suffering from that thing they do where they introduce a character and then phase them out or quit talking about them abruptly)

- Jurarti showing the Borg queen the power of friendship and love…….just for the Borg queen to retcon all that in season 3 but I had to sit through that was unbearable

Idk overall I didn’t really like Season 2. I thought it was the weakest season with the weakest storylines and characters. And as much as it pains me to say this, Beltran was right (just threw up in my mouth a little) in rejecting a Chakotay involvement. It’s just unnecessary fascism and he was right Prodigy is the superior storyline for Chakotay

Lastly, Season 3

- I just want to start out by saying I liked it I genuinely thought it was gonna be a lot worse than it was bc of the way people were so split on it

- I’m not mad about Soji not being in this season. While I feel like it is necessary for her and Data to connect and finally have that interaction, it would have been overshadowed by everything else going on in this season. Same with Elnor. There wasn’t really a place for them.

- Sidney and Jack are kinda cute af a Picard/LaForge pairing would be something to see

- They lowkey sidelined Seven, but once again she was getting overshadowed

- Not really thrilled with what happened with Ro Laren. I’m not even gonna get into it bc I’ll just get pissed off.

- Jack did read as a self insert at times BUT I found him compelling. I don’t really find him a Mary sue, people said the same thing about Wesley way back when too. Idk Beverly is just blessed with arrogant perfect children

- His storyline was the finale after all the show was about Picard and Picard passing on the baton and what he learned. The theme was constant, it made sense with the whole Locutus storyline. Maybe that’s controversial but idc I liked it. Picard would have been a good father.

- There wasn’t enough focus on anyone else, but I think that’s was at the request of Patrick Stewart. There were terms he agreed on to return it’s in his book. He withheld on having the entire TNG cast return because he wanted something fresh and something focused on Picard. And honestly? There wasn’t room, everything was overshadowed by this storyline.

- After this, we don’t have to touch the Borg. We are so fed on Borg shit we don’t ever have to come back to the Borg. I’m so over the Borg

- Wish the changelings had kept their old form. It was cooler. I miss Odo. Rip René

- We are still underutilizing Worf but I forgot he can’t have too many scenes when Riker’s around.

- I know it hurts to see something change from what you used to know and love. I just don’t want to deal with the same discourse as I do in the Star Wars fandom. It’s exhausting and I miss civil discourse. There are some critiques to be had for new Trek but I’m always wanting new content. Maybe it’s time to explore a new ship and crew. No callbacks to old characters idk. There’s an edge to starfleet that has changed over time that I find interesting, that I found interesting in DS9.

Overall, it brings interesting concepts. It’s not all perfect, but it’s starting a conversation. Some of the gore was unnecessary and there were a few deaths that didn’t have to happen as a literary device. Im really hoping once the Picard movie is off the ground, we can have a lighthearted mission or something bc bro yall clowned insurrection saying it was “just another TNG episode” like we don’t need that rn

As much as I love the Janeway content and mentions, and appreciate that voyager fans are finally being fed there is so much untapped content in DS9. I just don’t understand why we can’t incorporate it. I’m begging you on my hands and knees, writers, please please please everyone wants it give the people what they want please please I need to see Kira I need to see Bashir I need to see Garak like come onnnnnn

Most of this is pretty scrambled bc it’s a lot to process bc each season is its own storyline.

Current Captain ranking:

1. Sisko

2. Janeway

3. Picard

4. Pike

5. Seven of Nine

6. Kirk

7. Freeman

8. Riker

9. Shaw

Current Series Rankings

1. DS9

2. TOS

3. SNW

4. TNG

5. PICARD

6. LOWER DECKS

7. VOYAGER

Some changes in the rankings for both. Picard brought the TNG ranking up from last place. Voyager sank lower for me because the longer I sat with it, the more I realized I didn’t connect with it like I did the others.

(THESE RATINGS WILL CHANGE SIGNIFICANTLY ONCE I FINISH PRODIGY)

now to finish prodigy, start discovery and then take a break before enterprise

[wcrpbubble]

❝ slow down, start from the beginning. ❞ raffi @ seven

seven doesn't dream. there's no real medical reason for it, but she's long assumed that it's a lingering effect of her days as a borg. with no need to sleep, drones did not dream. the unimatrix had been a close approximation of it, but not truly a dream since it could be easily manipulated. she's never really minded not dreaming - it's hard to miss something you'd never had. while she no longer relies on an alcove to regenerate her implants and can essentially function as any human might by sleeping in a bed, her mind stays strangely blank for the most part, an endless darkness.

but things had changed, after dealing with the borg again.

she doesn't know if it's an aftermath of interfacing with the borg cube, temporarily becoming it's queen, or the return of her implants. either way, however, when she closes her eyes at night seven is granted images, vivid and detailed imagery that plays out while she sleeps. sometimes it's a memory from voyager, sometimes distorted, other times it's something she's never seen before and there's an eerie uncanniness to it that makes the dream version of herself wary.

but just as she'd come to terms with dreams, the nightmares had started.

mostly there're of the borg. the borg queen, the hissing voice in her ear that sounds like the queen, or other drones. dark things that have never even happened play across her mind so terrifying and vivid that the she can't process them fast enough, until she's awake, gasping for air, face wet from tears. the nightmares haven't let up since that first one - they've only gotten more detailed.

tonight is the first time she wakes up and immediately seeks out raffi, almost desperate to ensure her safety, that she's in one piece, asking and demanding if she's alright, if she's safe, if she's real, in a rapid fire pace that would make anyone dizzy. raffi is never far since they share quarters now, and as seven's clammy fingers find the warmth of her skin and she can lock in to the sound of her voice, only then does she seem to ground herself back into reality.

swallowing thickly, she tries to find her voice again - her mouth is dry despite the sweat against her skin.

"you were dead." it's not the beginning, it's the end. and it's the short version of it. because if she thinks too hard about it, lets the image back into her mind, some part of her mind stupidly assumes it still might come to fruition. that raffi will be methodically ripped to pieces by the borg for the sake of seven's torture, and put back together into a monstrous drone set to kill her.

it's suddenly the worst possible thing she could ever face in the universe. to lose raffi, to be faced with her destruction, and assimilation.

but the borg are gone, the rational part of her mind says. but her grip on raffi does not cease, anchoring them together while she swallows back emotions that sometimes she still feels too ill equipped to handle.

"you were dead." seven repeats, quieter. "i lost you."

@stcrdate

[procrastinatorproject]

I was talking to some friends about the PIC season 3 finale yesterday, and I had a bit of a realization. I have since rewatched the final two episodes (and also the end of season 2), and am now newly felt with so much rage and sadness.

Here's the thing: the Big Dramatic Climax that season 3 gave to Jack Crusher? That is what was missing from the "arc" they wrote for Agnes Jurati during season 2.

Let me explain!

I have talked many times about how I think Jurati was served extremely poorly by her storyline in season 2. It was bad then, but it is apalling when contrasted with Jack Crusher's story in season 3.

Both of them share a similar conflict: we are told that they feel lonely and long for a form of connection they have never been able to find. At the same time, we see both of them surrounded by people who clearly love them and care deeply about them, but apparently that is not enough to break through their feelings of isolation.

Both of them are more or less told that the Borg are their way out of loneliness. With Jack, it's the Borg Queen's motherly voice talking to him in his head since he was a kid, with Jurati, it's another Borg Queen, telling her seductive tales of grateness. But they both don't primarily let themselves be assimilated to escape their loneliness.

Jack runs to the Borg Cube in a lone wolf, impulsive manchild effort to Get Answers For Himself despite the fact everyone around him is trying to help and he is playing exactly into the Queen's hands. Jurati first let's the Borg Queen into her head to get information out of her that will save her friends. It's risky, and there's definitely an element of hubris there, but it's more the self-sacrificial kind.

Jack runs into the Cube to shoot the Queen, but the Queen tells him that joining her is the only way he will ever stop feeling that terrible loneliness. She taunts him: "If you could shoot me, you would have done it already." And she is right. Jack drops his phaser, has a big scream of manpain, and then accepts his fate.

With Jurati, the Borg Queen is holding a French cop hostage and promises the only way Jurati will ever be anything but utterly and completely lonely is to give herself over to the Queen. Jurati is tempted and torn and deeply intrigued. And then she shoots the Borg Queen. Dying and desperate, the Queen tells Jurati that if she dies, the part of her that is already in Jurati's brain will die, too, and Jurati will know nothing but gnawing emptiness and loneliness forever. They could be great together! And Jurati believes it and is visibly so tempted - and then she shoves the Queen's hand away and tells her "We are nothing together!"

And only then, with her dying breath, does the Borg Queen offer the one thing that has kept her alive this whole time, the one thing that finally convinces Jurati to let herself be assimilated: "You need me to get home."

Jack Crusher is faced with the Borg Queen offering to fulfill his deepest, most painful desire, and he allows her to assimilate him. Agnes Jurati is faced with the Borg Queen offering to fulfill her deepest, most painful desire and even though she wants to give in, she pushes back and pushes back, but finally allows herself to be assimilated when it's no longer just about her.

(And yes, the Borg Queen keeps insisting that Jurati is lying to herself when she says she "only" allowed the assimilation to rescue her friends, and that seems fairly true. It's very clear that Jurati is feeling inadequate and lonely and believes the Queen's words about greatness and connection. But whereas Jack gives into that pull pretty much immediately, Jurati does resist it until it becomes about more than herself. Would she have eventually given in if the only thing on offer was a promises the Borg Queen made her, and her alone? Maybe. But what we actually see on screen is her rebuffing the Queen twice despite being extremely tempted. So maybe not.)

Once they are assimilated, we get an insight into both Jurati's and Jack's experience with the Borg hivemind (though a very small hive in Jurati's case).

Jack's mind is in blissful limbo, finally at peace. He is happy. He has found the connection he has always longed for. He is loved and his way of seeing the world is finally validated as The Correct Way. Meanwhile, his assimilated body is raining down destruction on countless Starfleet ships and stations.

Jurati, on the other hand, is resisting and fighting the Borg Queen every. step. of. the. way. She gives her more control because she needs help to save her friends, and the Queen lies to her and manipulates her, all the way until she can fully take over Jurati's body. But even then, Jurati still repeatedly wrests control back, desperately trying to stop the Queen every chance she gets. There is no togetherness, no connection, no blissful loss of self in a greater whole.

I really want to emphasize this: We do not get to see a single scene where Jurati feels any real benefit from her connection to the Queen, which isn't then immediately revealed to have been a deception. The one moment of glory, the one moment that could have been a "see how great we are together?" is her big musical number at the Europa gala (and to a lesser extent the evening leading up to it, though in my opinion, Alison Pill very much acts it like Jurati is serious when she tells the Queen that none of this is fun or enjoyable. We've seen Jurati when she's conflicted. This is not that). But every. single. positive. experience. at the gala is immediately made moot when it's revealed it was all a tactic the Queen was using to manipulate Jurati. Any connection or togetherness that might have existed throughout the evening is immediately turned against Jurati and she is basically shown that believing in those things was a mistake, because they were a lie.

So, how is it, that when it comes to the climaxes of their stories, Jack is the one who leaves the Borg behind and Jurati is the one who chooses to stay?

When Picard links himself up to Jack and tells him he isn't alone and Picard loves him and understands his loneliness, Jack rebuffs him. He rejects the hand Picard is reaching out because Jack is "where he belongs": one with the Borg, finally at peace. He makes it clear that he sees the person who lovingly reaches out to him, but it's not enough.

The one time, the only real time, somebody reaches out to Jurati, it's Rios at the gala. He tells her that he sees her, he cares deeply about her, he's here to listen and wants her to talk to him so they can connect. But we don't actually find out how Jurati feels about that. She's using her glib deflecting, jokey persona to isolate herself from real emotion, but she seems to melt a little when Rios tells her "I care about you. You know that." And then the Borg Queen destroys the moment by kissing Rios before Jurati herself has a chance to take a position on what he's been saying.

Does she not believe Rios when he says he cares about her? Is Rios's care not enough? Is it only romantic love that would make her whole? Would even romantic love never be able to live up to the Special Relationship the Borg Queen is dangling just outside Jurati's reach? We never find out. Jurati is never allowed to reject the hand that is held out to her.

And then, there's the actual climax.

Imagine you're writing a story. Your character has been getting seduced by this enigmatic, sinister force and has finally given in and joined them, even though that could mean destruction not only of themselves but of everyone and everything they love. What is the endpoint of that story? What is the decision your character needs to make for their arc to feel satisfying? What has it all been building up to?

In the vast majority of cases, that decision, that central question at the core of their story, will be: "will they decide to remain with the seductive force and fully give themselves up (maybe changing the force for the better along the way)? Or will they reject them and return to their humanity?"

Jack gets to make that decision. We see him feel connection, acceptance and peace, finally, for the first time in his life, when he joins the Borg. And then Picard comes and offers Jack an alternative. Tells him that there is another way to escape the loneliness, and demonstrates it through his willingness to die for/with his son. And Jack Crusher, being presented with these two options, chooses to go with Picard.

We never see Jurati make that decision. We never get a moment where the narrative acknowledges that maybe, just maybe, there might be another path for Jurati to not feel lonely anymore. The writers might say it's what they're doing, but they don't show us that. When Rios tells Agnes she's not alone, we don't see her agree or disagree, it's entirely left hanging. And after that, there is no moment where anyone steps between Jurati and the Borg Queen and says: "She is lying to you about this being the only way forward, there are other paths out of loneliness and isolation. Please, choose to come with us."

We don't even see Jurati struggle with the conundrum of "should I give in and let the Borg Queen take over or should I try and stop this in some way?" (Which, incidentally, was pretty much Agnes's big turning point in season 1, where we very clearly see her trying to decide whether to follow the mission Oh assigned her or to put an end to it - and then pick the latter path by dosing herself with the hypospray, disabling the tracker at the risk of her own life.)

Instead, in season 2, we are only shown the outcome of Jurati's decision. Her choice to make the Borg Queen an offer happens offscreen. We don't have any insight into Jurati's thought process, we don't see her agonizing over her different options. Hell, we don't even get confirmation that she knows she has options!

Jack Crusher has his dad standing in front of him and the Borg all around, and he gets to choose which of them he trusts to help him feel less alone. Jurati has the Borg Queen, who has been deceiving, manipulating, and abusing her all season, and no other alternative. And she doesn't choose, she is shown to have chosen.

I know I've said this before, but it bears repeating: the character who does make a decision, who is offered two clear paths and gets to pick one, based on everything that has happened to them throughout the season, the real focus of the Borgati storyline, is the Borg Queen. What the season 2 writers give us is not Jurati's character arc, it's the Queen's.

Jack Crusher is a main character. He gets to learn and change and grow, and, in the end, he gets to make a decision about his fate (on screen, which is what counts in this kind of Holywood-adjacent storytelling). Jurati is a supporting character in someone else's story.

We don't know why she ends up choosing the Borg. Is it because she hopes creating a voluntary collective will eventually give her that feeling of connection? Is it because she did actually feel something other than annoyance, dread, and betrayal while she was sharing her consciousness with the Borg Queen, and she wants to keep that feeling? Is it because she thinks assimilation is going to be terrible, but at least it's better than what she was feeling before? Is it a desperate tactic to save her friend, who is currently bleeding out at her feet? The writers never tell us.

Jurati's passionate speech to the Borg Queen about creating a new collective never touches on what she, Jurati, actually wants. At no point does she say that she thinks doing this will be good for her. She explains how it will benefit the Borg Queen, she lays out how it is a net positive for the world. But never once does Jurati say that this new collective is what she wants for herself.

Don't get me wrong, Jack Crusher's story is written terribly! His motivation is weak, his growth is minimal, he faces absolutely no consequences for his actions, his reasons for running to the Borg in the first place are childish (and while the character is supposed to be 23, that is undercut by casting an actor who is just way too old for the role, not just in looks but also in how he acts), and the fact that Picard, the man who spent two seasons learning to find purpose, joy, and familial and romantic love, tells Jack Crusher that the only thing that has given him a real reason to live is the bio-son he met half a week ago? Is an insult of such magnitude I will still be yelling about it in a decade.

But this one thing the writers got right: they allowed Jack the space to actually make the defining decision of his own character arc. And the fact that they were capable of this all along and chose not to do it for Jurati? That hurts incredibly deeply.

Would I have liked Agnes's story in season 2 if it was actually hers and we saw her being offered the choice between the Borg and humanity and choose the Borg? No, probably not. In my opinion, it goes against everything that defined Agnes's story in season 1 and warps her character in a way that I, personally, find deeply hurtful and troubling (hence why I usually distinguish between season 1 Agnes and season 2 Jurati). But at least I wouldn't be so angry every time I saw a reviewer point to "Jurati's arc" as something season 2 got right.

And now, after rewatching the finale of season 3, I finally have a much clearer way to illustrate what was missing and why it makes me so angry and sad. The writers had it in them to tell a story about a lonely person seeking connection and being made to choose between finding it with the Borg or wihtin humanity. They wrote exactly this story for Jack, and had him choose humanity. With Jurati, they might have intended to write a story about a lonely person seeking connection and have her choose the Borg in the end. Instead, they wrote a story about the Borg that has a lonely person in it, but in the end that person's feelings, characterization, and choices aren't all that important.

And seeing that praised as "Jurati's arc" will never be anything but devastatingly painful to me.

[negative-speedforce]

🤍💔💖💕💀

Gonna answer this one for Star Trek because I can-

🤍: Which character is not as morally bad as everyone else seems to think?

The fandom demonizes Agnes Jurati a lot, and I kinda can see why. She killed her lab partner/ex, then willingly joined the Borg Queen and started her own Collective. However, the murder thing was under partial mind control, and with the Borg thing, again, you could also count that as partial mind control, and also, she looked so sexy doing it! God forbid women do anything!

💔: If you had to remove one major character from the series, who would you choose?

Wesley Crusher. God fucking damn it that kid annoys me so much. Any episode of TNG featuring him makes me want to claw my own eyeballs out.

💖: What is your biggest unpopular opinion about the series?

As much as I love Ezri Dax, they should have never killed off Jadzia. Remember that poll that was going around about "Did you ever stop watching a show because they killed off a character?" That was me with Jadzia Dax my beloved (I picked up DS9 again later when I wasn't pissed off anymore). Nonbinary Worm Queen, you will live forever in my heart.

💕: What is an unpopular ship that you like?

Borg Queen/Agnes Jurati. God, they're so horrible and toxic but at the same time, they're the only two people who seem to truly understand one another. Yeah, my taste in ships is weird, but I don't really care.

💀: If you had to choose one major character to die, who would you choose?

Harry Kim. Not because I don't like him, but because of the tragedy and angst potential. Just think about it... a young man on his first mission, trapped 70,000 light-years from Earth and everyone he ever loved, dying alone and afraid in the void of space... that'd be some good angst.