A big hello and welcome to all you SK fans out there. It's me, Keith
Nickeas, and this this is my masterpiece of a story. I'm having a few problems
with my "Brave New World" series, so in the mean time, here's something for
you to be getting along with.
   Now, as to the plot; I'm a BIG Star Trek fan, mostly of "The Next
Generation", but "DS9" is good and "Voyager" is getting better, for a reason
I'll explain in a minute. Now, one of the Federations main foes is the Borg
Collective. They were in the latest Star Trek film, "First Contact", and have
been in numerous STTNG episodes and now are in Voyager. This is my own Borg
story, set in the SK world.
   No, Chance and Jake are NOT in command of a starship. (Not yet... ;-) ).
In this story, we see the rise of the Borg collective and what happens
afterwards. It starts 7 years before the very last episode of SK (Kill tED,
kill tED), but part one is the start of the Borg collective in Megakat City.
You'll also find that I've included a few special guests, so that you know
that it's set in the SK world.
   Well, I've rambled on enough. Time to let you read and enjoy. (I hope.)
P.S. If any of you fan artists out their want to draw a picture of anything
in this story, please do so. I think that this story could offer challanges
to anyone who likes to draw pictures from fanfics. If you want to send me the
picture as a sort of look over, send it to nikata@dccl.net. Note - if you use
hotmail, please don't send anything, since i can't recieve anything off
anyone using hotmail. Thanks.

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Swat Borg Part I

Pumadyne, Megakat City,
1990.

   Doctor Leopold Borgus was, to put it simply, more nervous
then someone on their first date. His tail swished
impatiently from side to side. This would be his big break,
the one he had been looking for. Ever since he joined the
"Inventors Department", he had been looking of a way to
move up and into fame. Now he had the perfect ammunition, for
Borgus had done what others thought was impossible: melding
biology and technology together.
   Over the past three years, he had and his faithful
assistant had toiled and slaved to met their dream. Borgus
had discovered Hugh, his assistant, while he worked on the
interviewing panel and found that his special knowledge was a
new field called cybernetics. Borgus had used his influence
to get him hired and the two had worked together ever since.
This project was their brain child and dream and when he
became famous, Borgus would make sure that Hugh would get the
credit he deserved.  
   Hugh came into Borgus' lab then, carrying his lab coat,
which he handed to the doctor
   "You look nervous," Hugh commented.
   Borgus looked at him. "You have to be kidding. This is it
Hugh, the moment we've worked so hard for. This is make or
break day."
   Hugh smiled. The doctor was always so melodramatic.
Though, he knew was he was going through. His nerves were on
edge as well.
   "You'll be fine, sir. You have nothing to hide and
everything is working fine. Horborg 7's systems are all in
perfect order, no sign of deterioration. Everything will go
fine, you'll see."
   "I wish you could tell my tail that. The stupid thing
won't stop moving." Just to prove the point, it lashed about
faster. "There, do you see that?"
   "Perhaps if its owner calmed down?" answered Hugh.
   "Argh!" Borgus walked across to the window and looked out
over Megakat City. He could see from here the renovations
being done to the Enforcer's Headquarters. Borgus decided
that get his mind of the matter in had and changed the
subject.
   "Have you heard about that new commander?" he asked Hugh.
   "Yeah. His name's Feral, from the Feral family. Youngest
kat to made commander yet."
   "Feral! There's a Feral on the board, whose coming here.
Argh!" With that idea out of the window, he walked over to
the mirror to adjusted his hair, for the millionth time.
   "Sir, your going to give a heart attack."
   Borgus looked at Hugh. He looked back at him with a look a
hopefulness. Borgus walked over to him and put his paw on his
shoulder.
   "You're right, as always. Everything will be fine. I will
not end up like Hackle."
   "No, sir. You'll be running this city within seven years."
   "I wish," replied Borgus.
   Just then, the doors to his lab opened and in stepped six
very important looking kats. The seventh was Professor
Pebble, head of Inventor Department. He was talking to the
kats as he came in the room.
   "... one of our best here. I hope that you will enjoy
seeing his work, since his work is the best. Simply the
best."
   "Wish me luck," Borgus whispered to Hugh before walked
over to the group.
   "Good morning, ladies and gentlekats. I'm Doctor Leopold
Borgus. This," he indicated behind him, "is my assistant,
Hugh. Well, let us begin." He led the group into the middle
of the lab were six chairs had been placed. A seventh was set
facing them. The six board members sat down, followed by
Borgus. Pebble stood at the back, near the door.
   "Now, you are probably wondering what the "Horborg
Project" is. But before I tell you, let me start off by
asking you, if you have ever seen "The Six Million Dollar
Kat"?"
   There were six nods, all synchronized.
   "Good. Now, how far do you think anybody on the planet is
closed to that program, melding kat with machine?"
   "Not very far," answered one with the name-tag that said
"Feral".
   "That is what I expected you to say. But I'm here to tell
you different. For that past three years me and my assistant
have been working on a way to melding kat and machine. And
now we have achieved it."
   This sent a murmur through the group. "Are you saying,"
asked Professor Feral, "is that you have made a bionic kat?"
   "No, we have made a cybernetic life-form."
   This sent more murmurs through the six again. "Explain"
asked Professor Feral, the voted speaker of the group.
   "Certainly. Cybernetics is a very new term for what we
have done. It basically means melding metal onto living
tissue. It can also cover implanting a computer inside a
subject."
   Professor Feral raised his eyebrows and stared at Borgus.
He leaned forwards.
   "You have made a kat into a machine?"
   Borgus looked back at him with a look of shock. "No of
course we haven't. With have done this to a cow."
   "A cow?"
   "Yes. It was the only animal I could be granted to
experiment on. Would you like to come see for yourselves?"
   Professor Feral turned to his colleagues, then back to
Borgus.
   "Please, lead to way."
   The seven stood up and Borgus took the led, with Hugh and
Pebble joining them. They reached a metal door with the words
"Do Not Enter" on the front. Borgus ran a card in a slot and
punched in a code on the door, which then opened.
   "This way please."
   The nine kats walked into a large room filled with
computers, consoles and tubes running from one side of the
room to another. In one wall was large metal window covering.
Borgus walked over to a computer and keyed in a command.
With this, the metal doorway slowly opened, making a loud
grinding sound. When it had opened, Pebble and the six board
members gasped in surprise.
   The room they saw was just as large as the one they were
in. In the centre was something that looked slightly like a
cow, expect that most of its body was covered in metal and
had tubes running from one place to another. Above this cow
was a large upside down cone that came off the ceiling. Wires
from the cows head went into this cone, which buzzed and
flashed with many coloured lights. Lining the wall were many
computer consoles and at intervals was a circle that had a
flashing arch of electricity. From various points, tubes and
wires lead from the wall into the cone. All these wires and
tubes looked like some perverted spider's web. The cow turned
its head and from the side was a red laser beam, which hit
Borgus.
   "Good morning, Doctor Borgus," came a voice into the
control room. It was strange, having no evidence of gender,
but not flat either. It was... pleasant.
   Borgus pressed another key. "Good morning, Horborg 7. How
are you feeling today?
   "I am very well thank you doctor." The beam moved to a
female member of the group. "Are these the kats from the
board?" the voice asked.
   "Yes they are. Say hello, Horborg 7."
   "Good morning, ladies and gentlekats of the board. I hope
that you are well."
   "My I introduce you to Horborg 7, the world's very first
cybernetic life-form."
   The six members looked at each other, then back at the
cow. "That's Horborg 7?" asked a male member of the board.
   "Yes, I am Horborg 7," said the voice
   Professor Feral gasped again. "Are you self aware?" he
asked.
   "Yes, I am fully self aware and functioning."
   "What exactly is contained within your memory banks?"
   "My data banks contain information from countless sources
that cover a large field of subjects, such as history,
science and social aspects of life. I understand everything
that I learn and it is stored inside my vast data banks. My
speciality is that of Megakat City."
   "What do you mean, speciality?"
   "I know everything about there is to know about Megakat
City, dating from the time of Megalith City to the installing
of the new commander."
   "Thank you Horborg 7," said Borgus. "Now, will you follow
me back to the main lab. We have much to discuss."
   "Good bye," came the voice of Horborg 7.
   The group left to room and went back to the lab. They
sat back at the chairs. Borgus smiled at the six. "I suppose
you have many questions."
   Professor Feral was the first to ask. "How did you do
that? How did you turn that cow into a computer?"
   Borgus' smile widened. "Well, I won't give away trade
secrets. But it's a lengthy operation that involves actually
going into the brain. But I have the technique now so we have
no more mishaps."
   "What mishaps?" asked a female member of the group.
   "Well, as the name Horborg 7 suggests, he is not the first
one. He is in fact the ninth attempt. The first two did not
survive that operation. The third, Horborg 1, was the first
to survive the operation. However, its body could not stand
the strain and died after a few hours of life. Horborg 2 and
3 were both the same.
   With Horborg 4, we tried a different approach. Before, we
would convert the cow completely. This lead to a cascade
failure 1, 2 and 3. In Horborg 4, however, we did the primary
operation first, then added components afterwards. This
worked fine, until there was a power failure, which shut off
the whole system. It turned of its brain. We solved this by
powering the lab with a small hydrogen reactor, that I
might add in no harm of blowing up.
   Horborg 5 was again a success. However, when we tried to
install information onto the hard drives inside its head, it
overloaded and died. Horborg 6 was the same, but this time it
actually communicated with us. But unfortunately, it, too
failed and died.
   We tried a different way with Horborg 7. Instead of
putting the hard drives inside its head, we put them
separate, connecting them into Horborg 7's brain. That was
seven months ago and so far there is no sign of failure."
   "It is pretty amazing work you have done. You have
certainly broke many records here and have most probably
entered the history books as well. But what do you think will
be the benefits of this technology?"
   "There are many benefits," Borgus answered. "Think of
this: A kitten is born with serious brain damage. The only
way is to bring it up, looking after it, knowing that there
is no way it could ever understand anything. The only
alternative is to abort the foetus into before its born.
   But now, with a simple operation, that kitten could grow
up to live an ordinary life, going to school, making friends,
falling in love. Without the implant, that kitten is doomed
to a life of emptiness.
   Another example would be for a kat who has lost both arms
and legs. With a simple implant, that kat could have
artificial limps that would work just like, or even better,
then the originals. A bionic kat!
   But what I think could be the most interesting and
beneficial to society would be implants in criminals."
   "What? In criminals? Why?" stuttered Professor Feral.
   "Simple," came Borgus. "With an implant, a kat who is a
mad killer could be "re-programed" to act in a different way,
to be productive member of society."
   "Re-programable kats? That raises a lot of social
questions."
   "Such as?" asked Borgus.
   "What would happen if a would-be dictator got hold of
these implants. They could implant everybody in a country,
have them vote for them, then have them as an army."
   "That's why the re-programing would be in the hands of the
government," replied Borgus. "It would be up to them who has
to be re-programme and who won't. There would be strict
guild-lines that would have to be followed.
   This leads me onto my request; to start experimenting on
kat subjects. The technique is safe, I just need to see how
well it can be done a subject that is already self aware."
   Professor Feral looked back at his colleagues. "Well, I
think that we have heard all we need to hear. Thank you for
your time, Doctor Borgus."
   "Thank you for your time. And please, take this folder,"
he added as he handed Professor Feral a gray folder. "This
has documents that contain more information that you can read
and discuss."
    "Thank you again doctor. We will discuss your request."
With this the two kats shook paws and Pebble lead the group
out of the lab. Hugh walked up to Borgus and put is paw on is
shoulder.
    "You were great, sir."
    "Thanks. Now, we sit and wait."

One Week Later

   Professor Pebble was playing with his claws, waiting for
Borgus. He had just received the answer to Borgus' request.
And it wasn't good. Pebble was disappointed, not just for
Borgus, but for Pumadyne. Borgus' project could have changed
the world, but it had fallen through. Now he, Borgus' close
friend, had to tell him it was a no go.

   Doctor Borgus walked to Pebble's office, again nervous
about the outcome of a weeks talks. The board had had more
then enough time to go over his plans. This long could only
mean that they had excepted his ideas. Even that Feral had
said how record breaking his project was.
   He knocked before he went into Pebbles office. They maybe
friends, but authority was still in place.
   "Come in," came the voice inside.
   Borgus stepped into the office. He always thought that
this office was the most tidy in the whole place. Even his
office was cluttered and he was a methodical kat. Behind
Pebble were framed pictures, one which showed Pebbles shaking
hands with Professor Hackle, his predecessor. Hackle's genius
was legendary in Pumadyne. No one knew exactly why he left,
he just did. Pebble was next in line and took the office
before Hackle was even out the building. Hackle spent most of
his time in the lab, while Pebble spent most of his in this
office. Still, he was a good kat.
   "Sit down, Leo."
   There was an uncomfortable silence in the room.
   "Well?!?"
   "I'm sorry Leo. They turned down your request."
   "They... they... they what!?!?" Borgus stammered.
   "I'm sorry. They believed that your project had too
many... well... moral implications. They thought that
programing a whole community could be too risky. That's why
they... uh... they want you to... uh... to..." Pebble became
lost for words.
   "What? What?!?"
   "They want you to cancel the Hoborg project and turn all
ideas over to the board so that your project can never be
used by other scientists."
   Borgus just stared at Pebble. He could not believe his
ears. Not only had they said no to his request, they wanted
him to give up his dream. He got up and headed to the door.
   "Leopold. It wasn't my decision. I had no say," Pebble
called after him. Borgus turned to him, his face blank. "I
know." With that, he left. Pebble hoped his friend would be
able to get over this let down.

   Hugh was busy cleaning out specimen trays when Borgus came
back. He expected his boss' face to be a picture of triumph,
but instead, it was completely blank. Oh no, Hugh thought.
   "They cancelled the project," Borgus said. Before Hugh
could say anything, Borgus raised his arm and swept it across
the top of the nearest bench top. Everything smashed on the
floor, glass breaking, chemicals spilling. Borgus then lifted
up a stool and brought it crashing onto another bench. The
air was again filled with sound of breaking glass. Hugh
rushed over and slapped him around the face.
   Borgus was so surprised by this he fell to the ground.
Hugh stood over him.
   "Destroying your lab won't solve anything, sir."
   Hugh held out a paw and helped Borgus to his feet. He
rubbed the area of grey fur that Hugh had hit. "You're right,
you're right." He sat down on a stool and stared at the mess
he had made. Green katalysts ran into red katalysts. They
all ran together, mixing now that they were free.
   Watching the freed liquids, an idea came started to form
in his mind. He grabbed Hugh by the arm and pulled him into
Horborg 7's room.  He opened the window and Horborg 7
targeted him with his laser.
   "Good afternoon, Doctor Borgus, Hugh. How did the request
go?"
   "It was denied and I have to terminate the project. In
other words, kill you."
   There was silence form Horborg 7. Finally he asked "Why?"
   "Because of social problems, such as making a whole
population into machines. Not only that, they want me turn
the whole thing over to them, so that in five or ten years,
they can make the project public and stick the Pumadyne label
on it. Forgetting us.
   "What'll we do?" asked Hugh.
   "Simple," said Borgus, smiling a smile that dripped of
cunning and evil. It scared Hugh. "We will continue the
project... by ourselves."
   "How can this be done?" asked Horborg 7. "Pumadyne is the
only facility can houses the equipment you require."
   Borgus smile widened. "I thought ahead, incase of such a
refusal. At home, below my house, runs a large underground
system of caves and tunnels. There, I built a computer
control centre like this one. Horborg 7, activate programme
35.79."
   The lights on the cone flashed faster. "Accessing," came
Horborg 7. "Running outside linkup programme to Remote one.
Stand by. Please give access code."
   Borgus typed in a code on a nearby keyboard. "Thank you.
Running command 35.79. Connecting to outside link. Link
enabled."
   "Horborg 7, run command 777.78. This will allow you to
copy your programme into the new Mainframe. Your body will be
of no use here. I've created a new body for you. Do that now,
they'll be here soon to tear you apart."
   "Acknowledged. Downloading. Downloading. Downloading.
Down... load... ing.... Down..." The lights stopped flashing,
the hum ceased. Horborg 7 had been shut down. Borgus walked
over to a console and read the information. He smiled again.
   "It was a success. Horborg 7 is now in the new Mainframe.
This will enable me to continue the project."
   "You? What about me?" asked Hugh.
   "Hugh," Borgus said putting his paws on his assistant's
shoulders. "I will not be defeated. I will continue this
project, free lance. Looks like I did end up like Hackle."
   "You mean..."
   "Yes, I'll resign here. But I can't expect you to. You
have a promising career here.
   "Yes, but who will help you. Only I know how it's done. I
will not let you leave, unless you allow me to keep helping
you. This is our project, remember?"
   "Yes it was. Still is. If that is what you wish, then I
can't stop you. It would be a big help."
   Just then three security guards entered the room, followed
by a hand full of scientists. The scientists headed over to
the computers, while the guards shoved Borgus and Hugh out of
the room.
   "Sorry sir. You aren't allowed in there now."
   "Yes, I know," said Borgus in a voice of defeat, but when
he looked at Hugh, his eyes twinkled with knowledge and
resistance. And just a touch of madness.

   "It's such a shame. Are you sure you want to resign?"
Pebble asked Borgus. Their were in Borgus' lab, which was now
empty, Horborg 7's room had now been stripped of everything.
   "Yes. It seems that my talent is not needed here. I'll do
a Hackle and go free lance."
   "You do know that Pumadyne still has the right to recall
you if you are needed? And that you hold some very sensitive
information that you cannot tell anybody?"
   "Yes," answered Borgus, completely calm. Everything was
under control. "I won't move out of Megakat City limits and I
won't give out the information, upon pain of death. Yes, yes,
yes. Besides, I'll be busy on my new project.
   "And that is?" enquired Pebble
   "Artificial computer intelligence, without biological
additions."
   "Interesting. Your assistant is helping you then, since he
resigned this morning?"
   "That's right. We make a good team."
   "Well, I wish all the best for the future. Good bye Leo.
And good luck." Pebble shook Borgus' paw.
   "You too." With that Borgus walked out of his lab for the
last time.

   Hugh had never been to Dr. Borgus' house. He had only ever
spoke to him at work, sometimes on the phone after work, but
had never had to go around for anything. As he walked down
the street, he couldn't help but notice the empty houses that
lined the road. Each looked the same, empty, soulless,
without purpose, but serving Borgus' in one way: seclusion.
   As Hugh walked up the drive, he couldn't help but notice
how empty Borgus' house looked. It was a two storey wooded
and stone building, with windows that looked like eyes of
zombies that looked down on Hugh. He wondered if he had the
right house, until he saw Borgus standing on the doorstep.
   "Good. I'm glad you found the place." He held out a paw to
take Hugh's baggage. "This it?"
   "Yeah. I don't have many belongings."
   "Well, now your living here, everything I have is yours.
It's the least I can do."
   He allowed Hugh into the hallway, closing the door behind
him. He lead him up the long flight of stairs and to his
room. Hugh was glad the inside looked better kept for then
the outside. And his room was no exception. A large four
poster bed, the walls down in a dark red and wood effect,
deep rugs and fireplace where a log fire roared away.
   "Don't mind the log fire. It's the cheapest way to heat
this place."
   "No its... this place is perfect."
   "I'm glad," said Borgus with a smile. "Now, when you've
unpacked, meet me in the hallway and I'll give you the grand
tour."
   Hugh didn't take long to unpack and found the doctor
waiting by the stairs. Borgus lead him around the rooms
downstairs, going from the kitchen to the lounge to the music
room, finally to the library.
   "Now we're here, time to see Horborg 7." He walked over to
a bookcase and beckoned Hugh over. Borgus put his paw on a
book and invited Hugh to look. The title read "ADVANCED
MECHANICS BY PROFESSOR HACKLE".
    Hugh looked at Borgus with puzzlement. "I never knew that
Hackle wrote a book?"
    "He didn't," replied Borgus, smiling and pulling the
book. The entire wall open like a door and  Behind it were
some metal stairs going downwards.
    "After you," said Borgus. The two kats entered the
opening and the bookcase closed behind them. There was light
that ran all the way down, and there echoed a soft thumping
sound. The two walked down the stairs, the thumping got
louder, like a giant heart beat. They came to a large metal
door that looked like the one back at the lab. Borgus walked
up to it and said "Borgus, 9537.001"
    "Code accepted," thundered a loud voice and the door open
with a large grinding sound. The two entered the room and the
door closed behind them.
    Borgus couldn't help but be amused at his assistant's
reaction at the room that they were in. It was twice the size
of the lab and Horborg 7's room put together and was
completely square, with computer consoles and screens lining
every wall. The middle of the room was taken up with a large
four sided consoled that reached up into the ceiling, if that
could be called a ceiling. It was completely covered in metal
panels, with tubes that lead form various points to connect
into the top of the main console. The main console was the
same each side, with a chair and faced a large keyboard,
above which was a massive view-screen. To each side of this
were two other, smaller screens. All of the were angled so
that looked down on whoever sat at the chair. The main ones,
all four, showed a electronic wave that stayed steady. The
whole room was dark, lit only by spotlights that were hidden
in the mass of tubing.
   "So, what do you think?" asked Borgus
   "It's amazing! How did you do it? Where did you find all
this equipment from?"
   "Well, as for the room, it quite an accident. As I told
you, there are a series of caves and tunnels that run under
this entire estate. I simply changed this one to my needs,
plus one through that door," He pointed at door that Hugh
had not seen, since it was on the opposite side of the room,
hidden by the main console. "As for the equipment, I...  have
a "friend" who was kind enough to give me this."
   "Who was this "friend"?" enquired Hugh.
   "To tell you the truth, I don't know. All I know is that
he is one large kat, has a deep voice that scared me and has
the initials D. K. Other then that, I don't know anything
else about him."
   "What did you tell him you were doing with all this?"
   "Updating the Enforcer computers. I made a bargain so that
in seven years, he could come and take control of the
system and I would help him. It seems that there was a
programme built into the computer allowing anyone with the
right remote frequency to take control of the whole system."
   "Aren't you worried that this D. K. could take over the
city? At least take control of this computer system?"
   "To tell you the truth, it never bothered me. And as for
controlling this system, Horborg disabled it."
   "Horborg? He's here?"
   "Yes, I am." The voice made Hugh jump. It sounded very
loud and evil and very male.
   "Horborg 7?"
   "It is just Horborg now. And yes, it is me."
   One large monitor flicked and a large head looked down on
Hugh. The head was green and very blocky. But the eyes looked
threatening, menacing, as though there was feeling behind
them. But Horborg was a computer. It, he, couldn't feel
emotions. Could he?
   "Horborg, show Hugh our little surprise."
   Instantly, the image changed. It showed kats dancing in
evening wear. The place was very lavish and the kats were
very important looking. In the background was Mayor Manx with
his deputy mayor, Mr. Dickens. Sat on Manx's left was
Commander Feral, who looked like he was in deep conversation
with the mayor.
   "Where is that?" asked Hugh.
   "That's the Megakat Ritz. I can tap into the security
camera in any building anywhere in the city. That's all I
can do... for the moment." The image flicked back to Horborg.
"Well the question is now, do you still want in or not?"
Borgus and Horborg looked at Hugh, who felt slightly
uncomfortable. At looked at Horborg, then back at Borgus.
"When do I begin?" he asked.
   Borgus smiled. "Tonight. I have found the perfect subject
to begin on, if he's still there. But I doubt he's moved.
Shall we?"
   "Led the way, sir." The two kats walked out of the room.
Horborg watching them as they left. He smiled to himself, a
smile that dripped complete evil.

   Des was tired, hungry and cold. He had been living on the
streets of Megakat City for the past seven months, ever since
he came here to make his fortune. But that fortune never
came. Within two weeks of his arrival, he had been conned by
landlords and empty job promises. Now he had nothing. No
life, no possession, nothing other then the clothes he wore.
Worst of all, he had no hope.
   He walked down the street, seeing all the other bums and
lowlifes. They couldn't get money, they'd mug some poor kat.
He, however, begged politely. In this, many kats just walked
by and didn't see him, least give him money. He continued
down the street, passed a locked up shop. What he didn't
notice, was the way the security camera followed him as he
walked...
   Des settled in for the night, in his makeshift home. The
night was cold, so he rubbed his paws together, but that made
little difference. Oh, how he wished he could get out of this
pit he had dug himself! But without a home address, he could
never get a job. And without a job, he could never get a
home. A vicious circle, to which there was no escape. He had
even tried the Enforcers, but had the same result. He felt
like a drone, made to perform the same task over and over
again, without success.
   Suddenly, he heard footsteps coming up the ally, towards
his box. By the sound of it, there were two of them, and they
didn't sound as if they were friendly. The sound stopped
right outside his box. Then, with a rip, the top came off one
two figures looked down on him.
   "There, what did I tell you ? A perfect subject," said the
one on Des' left.
   "He looks very thin, sir." said the other one.
   "That doesn't matter. After we've done with him, he won't
need food - ever again."
   Des was now very frightened. At first he though they would
come to beat him up and take what little money he had. Now
they said he didn't need food again. They were going to kill
him!
   "Please, please don't kill me."
   "Kill you?" said the first one again. "Kill you?!" He
laughed, a cold, heartless laugh. "I don't want to kill you.
In fact, after I've done with you, you'll be more famous then
you could possibly imagine." With that, the figure grabbed
Des' arm and stuck a needle into it. Des struggled, but it
was no use, the effects of the drug overwhelmed him...

   Des woke up slowly, his head hurting with the side effects
of whatever had been pumped into his system. As his vision
cleared, he realized that he was no longer in the alley. He
was strapped down to bed in a large computer room. The buzz
of machines busy doing calculation invaded his skull.
   He lifted his head to have a better look. In the centre
was what looked like a large computer, with screens that had
a large, green looking head on it. To his left and right was
hospital equipment.
   "Ah, you're awake. Good." The voice came from the opposite
side of the room. It was the same voice that had spoken to
him earlier. At last, he saw its owner.
   The kat that walked up to him was quite small, probably
five ft. and had gray coloured fur. He looked at Des through
gold rimmed glasses that looked quite old, not like the new
high-tech ones that kats wore nowadays. Des couldn't see what
clothes he was wearing because the kat was wearing a lab
coat. A second kat came up behind the first. This one was at
least four inches taller and had light brown fur. He too had
a lab coat on.
   "Where am I?" asked Des, sounding more confident then he
felt.
   "My lab. I'm Dr. Borgus and this is my assistant, Hugh,"
said the doctor, pointing to himself, then to the other kat.
"You, my dear subject, are to become the first in the line of
cyborgs that will grace this world."
   Des was now very much afraid of this doctor. He struggled
against the restraints. The doctor laughed.
   "You don't understand. Ah, well, soon you will. You have
no choice. Like I had no choice. Hugh, get "the black
sleep"." Hugh got a needle and gave it to the doctor. Des
struggled more, to try and stop this mad kat from sticking
the needle into him. But Borgus managed to stick it into the
his arm. As sleep came over him, his last memory was Borgus
looking down at him and his last words as Des stopped
struggling: "Resistance is futile...."

   For the next five hours, the two kats worked on their
first kat subject. They performed the procedure just as they
had done with all the other times. the black sleep kept the
subject unconscious, since it was a more powerful, and highly
illegal, drug that worked the same as anaesthetic, except
that it kept the patient asleep until the antidote was used.
It was a chemical induced coma.
   First was the brain area. The electrical components were
added, plus other bits of metal that Horborg had insisted had
to go in. Then it was the outside of the head, the attachment
of metal plates and tubes that would soon feed fluid from one
part of the brain to another.
   At seven o'clock in the morning, the two kats had
finished. Borgus injected the antidote and stood back to
admire their work. The new cyborg stood up and looked around.
Borgus walked up to it.
   "Who are you?" he asked it. The cyborg looked at Borgus
and Hugh was sure that it would attack him. But instead, the
cyborg simply walked past the two kats and up to the main
console. Suddenly, a wire came down from the mass on tubing
and connected into the side of the cyborgs head. The main
view-screen changed from Horborg's head to files that ran
down the screen. Borgus and Hugh walked over and looked at
the screen.
   "I don't believe it!" exclaimed Borgus.
   "What is it?" asked Hugh
   "Look. This kats entire memory is being downloaded into
Horborg's memory banks. Horborg, what are you doing?"
   There was silence, then a voice that Borgus had not heard
before thundered in the room.
   "Cyborg designation one of one. Serve, protect, destroy."
Borgus now began to worry. What had he done? Horborg's head
reappeared on the big screen.
   "What I have done is evolved, doctor," its voice was
sounded as though two people speaking. Two joined together.
"Using the memory of this cyborg, I will expand. And you will
assist me in this action. Continue with your project. Increase
the ranks of cyborgs. By doing this, I will become the most
superior lifeform on Katopia."
   "What about us?" Hugh asked Horborg.
   "You both have helped me by making me be, and saving me
from Pumadyne. You two will be spared.
   "So let me get this straight, Horborg," said Borgus. "Each
time we make another cyborg, you will absorb the memory
into your system. Then each cyborg will be controlled, by
you?"
   "That is correct doctor. Each cyborg will add another
dimension to my programing, helping me evolve beyond a mere
computer. I will add their biological distinctiveness to my own.
And each cyborg will be controlled by me, yes. But do not worry,
doctor. As long as you are loyal to me, my cyborgs will not harm
you or Hugh."
   There was nothing the two kats could do. they had to
comply to Horborg's wishes. For the next two weeks, they
worked on the cyborg, One of One as it was now called. After
two weeks of working on one, they would go out and get
another, spending two weeks on this one. Horborg would
absorb them into his system, giving them a designation and
what action they would perform.
   After eighteen months of working, thirty six cyborgs later,
Horborg requested that access points be bit built for the
drones to use as rest and re-charging areas. With the help of
the drones, thirty six access points were built. They were
taller there a cyborg, with a electrical globe above the
cyborg. When a cyborg stepped into a access point, they began
to re-charge their metallic parts. It also gave them access
to Horborg's "collective conscious", as he put it. Horborg's
voice was now a collection of different voice, all combined
into one.
   The thing that gave the cyborg's any sense of
individuality was the way they looked. Every cyborg was
different. Each had a hard body armour, some had only one
functioning paw while others had none or both could be used.
The arm, or in some case both arms, had been replaced will
long instruments, either for construction or assisting in the
assimilation of others. Each cyborg had tubes that fluid
travelled through. Some had many, while others had only a
few. Around the heads, apart from any existing facial
features, there were metallic parts that were bolted to the
head and that had wires that travelled deep in the brain.
Other one eye they had a disk or covering that gave them heat
seeking capabilities. Each had a red laser attached to the
side of their had. Most of the fur had dropped out, leaving
the skin looking pale and death-like.
   Two years passed. Two years and forty eight cyborgs since
Borgus and Hugh started down the road to destruction. One
that wasn't theirs.

Megakat city,
Late 1992.

   Borgus was hard at work down in Horborg's room, being
assisted by two cyborgs. He was working on another cyborg.
The bed that had been used originally was had been replaced
by a metallic table with more attachments that allowed
Horborg himself to perform operations on the subject. Hugh
had the night off since he had been up late working on the
new cyborg.
   "Crud," Borgus said suddenly.
   "What is it?" asked the multi-voice of Horborg.
   "I've run out of BX 2 chips and copper wiring. I'll have
to go and get some more. Make sure that the subject's vital
signs are stable." With that, Borgus walked out of the lab
and back up to the house.
   While he rode in the back of a cab, he thought of what he
was doing. He was helping a mad computer expand, and most
possibly take over the planet. But he had no choice. This
project had become his life. Yet he was afraid, not only of
discovery, but of Horborg. He was more then just a machine.
He lived as long as he had his cyborgs, his drones.
   He paid the cab driver and entered the shop. It was here
that he got all of his supplies. He was glad that is uncle
had died and left his entire $1 million dollar fortune to him
when he was sixteen. Now he was a millionaire, he could mix
with the rich Feral and Manx families if he wanted. But he
was not the type.
   Borgus got the chips and wiring, plus some other bits and
pieces that caught his eye. Paying for it, and getting a look
of surprise off the kat behind the counter, left for home.
   He realized that finding a cab at this time of night would
be difficult in this neighbourhood. Borgus wrapped his lab
coat around him and set off for the main street of the city.
He didn't fancy the seven mile walk back to his house. Being
so caught up in his thoughts he didn't see six shadows start
to follow him...
   Suddenly, he was grabbed from behind and pulled into an
alley way. Borgus was spun around and stared into the face of
a very rugged looking kat wearing a leather jacket. Around
him were five other kats, all wearing leather jackets. The
kat holding his coat was roughly six ft. and glared at the
poor doctor
   "Who 're ya?" asked the one who had a hold of his lab
coat.
   "I-I-I'm Dr. B-B-Borgu-s-s," Borgus stuttered.
   "Do ya know 'ho we 're?"
   "No."
   "We're the Street Kats. And this is our patch. No one
comes 'ere without paying up." The kat pushed Borgus into the
wall.
   "I don't have any money. I spent in all ju..." Borgus was
cut off. The led kat had produced a switch blade and slashed
in across Borgus face, cutting his cheek open. Blood gushed
from the cut onto his cost. Borgus grabbed his face to stop
the bleeding.
   "That's not what we wan' ta hear." The led kat placed the
blade against Borgus' other cheek.
   "Help me. Please, someone..." He was stopped by a kick to
the stomach. Borgus dropped his bag and fell to the ground.
   "Now, ya going ta pay for that."
   "Why don't ya pick on someone your own size." All seven
pairs of eyes turned to the alley entrance. There stood two
kats. One was as tall as the led kat, and more muscular. The
other was smaller and very thin.
   "Yeah, leave that poor kat alone," said the smaller one.
   "That's it. No one tells Butch what ta do." He signalled
the others and all six attacked the two. Borgus cowered on
the ground, one paw on his still bleeding face, the other on
his bag. He saw that the two new arrivals were making short
work of the gang, since they were using karate moves. Within
minutes, all six were in a heap on the ground.
   The two kats dusted their paws off, then turned their
attentions to the kat on the ground. The helped him up and
lead him out of the alley. Borgus was still in shock and
showed little resistance. They helped him to the main street
and called a cab.
   "Megakat hospital," said the bigger kat.
   Cab lurched forward, just below the speed limit. Now that
his eyes were cleared of dirt and dust, he regarded his
saviours.
   The bigger one had orange coloured and the smaller one was
caramel coloured. Borgus was in the middle, feeling very ill
and faint. He took his paw off his face, only to receive the
feeling of blood running down his face.
   "Here," said the smaller kat, giving him a tissue.
   "Thanks," said Borgus, taking the tissue and wiping his
face. The blood had matted his fur and felt very hard. "And
thank you for saving me."
   "Ah, it was nothin'," said the smaller one. The bigger kat
just grinned.
    "I'm Dr. Borgus," said the doctor, wiping more blood off
his face.
    "I'm Jake Clawson. This is my buddy, Chance Furlong,"
Jake introduced. Borgus smiled and shook paws with the two
kats.
   "What were ya doing in the rough part of town?" asked
Chance.
   "Buying... computer components. I'm a... computer
specialist. The shop that I get my stuff from is there. I
usually send my assistant Hugh, but he has the night off."
   "Yeah, maybe next time you won't go out at this time to
get your computer bits," said Jake.
   "Yes, maybe," said Borgus smiled. "But what were you two
doing there?"
   "We went to a friend's party who lives there," answered
Chance. The conversation ended as they arrived at the
hospital. Jake paid the driver, while Chance helped the
doctor in the hospital. They got to the desk and explained
what had happened. Borgus cut in, saying that he couldn't
stop the bleeding, then suddenly collapsed as the blood loss
got to much.
   Borgus was rush into the emergency room. Chance and Jake
rang their parents and said what had happened and that they
would be later getting home then they thought. An enforcer
got a statement from the two kats as to what had happened.
   Jake and Chance stayed until they got word about the
doctors condition. They were worried about the doctor, even
though they had only know him for a few minutes. Six hours
later, a nurse came along and said that the doctor was out of
surgery and was asking for them. They followed the nurse to a
room, where lay the doctor. His left cheek was matched up and
most of the bandage covered his face.
   The doctor smiled and beckoned them in. The nurse closed
the door, while Chance and Jake sat down, Jake on a chair,
Chance on the bed.
   "How are ya?" asked Chance.
   "Well, I've been better. But I'm not in to much pain,"
said Borgus, smiling, then wincing in pain. "Well, only when
a laugh anyhow."
   Jake and Chance chuckled. Borgus continued. "I wasn't sure
whether or not you'd left. After all, I am a grown kat."
  "Yeah, well, we had to make statements to the enforcers.
Also, we don't make a habit of leaving strangers after we've
rescued them."
  "In case they give rewards," Chance chipped in. This made
Borgus smile again.
  "Ah, Chance. There's no need for that." It was more to
Borgus then to Chance, but the doctor suddenly had a look of
determination.
   "No, you do deserve something. After all, you did save my
life." He reached for his wallet and took out some notes,
plus a few coins.
   "Here. $300 each, for saving my life. And take it, I'm not
hard up. Could you also do me a favour and ring my house. Hugh
will be very worried by now."
   He shoved the notes into their paws. Chance took the coins
and after Borgus gave him his number, went to use the phone.
Jake and Borgus were left in the room together.
   "Well, perhaps we can get to now each other a bit more.
I'm a free lance scientist, working on a... very interesting
project."
   "What's that?" asked Jake.
   "I can't tell you. But I can say one thing though, after
it's done, it will change the world - forever!"
   "Must be big then."
   "Very. Now, what about you?"
   "Not much to say really. Taking a course in advanced
mechanics at collage. Me and Chance go out a few nights a
week. As I said, not really much."
   "How long have you and Chance known each other," asked
Borgus.
   "Since kittengarten doc," replied Jake.
   "Please, call me Leo," said Borgus.
   "Leo? What's that short for?"
   "Leopold. Don't laugh! my parents were very old fashioned."
   Chance returned then. He saw his friend trying to hide a
smile and Borgus looked as though he was unsure whether to
frown or laugh.
   "What's so funny?"
   Jake and Borgus looked and Chance, then each other.
Finally, they burst out laughing, while Chance looked at the
two. After a few minutes, they calmed down enough for Jake to
tell Chance that he would explain later.
   "I called your house and Hugh said he would be over as
soon as he can. Oh, he said that three of nine was growing
unstable. Said you'd understand."
   Borgus' face grew serious. "Crud. I thought I told Horborg
to keep him stable," he said under his breath.
   "Whose Horborg?" asked Chance.
   "Oh... ah... nobody. He's... he's just a friend."
   "Oh, okay," replied Chance.
   "Well, we better be off, doc... ah, Leo. Probably see
again in the future?" said Jake, getting up out the chair.
   "Yes, you can count on it."
   "Bye doc," said Chance.
   With that, the two kats left the room. Borgus sat and
stared at the wall until Hugh came to pick him up. All the
way back to the house, he remained silent. When they get
back, Borgus went straight to his room and didn't came down
until the next morning. When he did, he acted as though
nothing ever happened, explaining he had been lost in
thought.

   Three days later, Dr. Borgus received a call from the
hospital. They wanted him to go back for further tests. When
he asked why, they said that couldn't say over the phone.
   With Hugh in charge of the lab, Borgus set off for the
hospital. When he arrived, they still wouldn't tell him what
was wrong. They simply took another blood sample and asked
him to wait in the waiting room.
   Two hours later, a nurse arrived and said that the doctor
would see him. She lead him to an office that had the name
"Dr. Elrod Purvis" on the front. Borgus went in, sat down and
waited for the doctor. A few minutes later, the doctor
entered the room.
   He was a very small kat, being a good five inches smaller
then Borgus. His fur colouring was black, and his black hair
was swept back across his head.
   "Dr. Borguss, I pressume," said Purvis. Borgus couldn't
help noticing that he had a slight lisp.
   "Yes," said Borgus. "Can you please tell me why I've been
kept in the dark for the past hour?"
   "Yess, I can," replied Purvis. "But firsst, do you know
what Bitouss Disseasse iss, doctor?"
   Borgus thought back to his time in medical school.
"If I'm right, isn't that something to do with the brain
shutting down?"
  "Almosst, doctor," replied Purvis. "Actually, it iss a
chemical imbalance in the brain that causse a blockage in the
cerebral cortex. Bassically, yess, the brain shutss down.
It'ss a very rare disseasse, effecting one kat out of ten
thousand million, roughly."
   "And what has this got to do with me?" Borgus asked, while
a nagging feeling started to grow in the pit of his stomach.
Why is he telling me this, he thought, if I haven't...
   "We've down tesst after tesst, double checked our
ressultss. I'm very ssorry to inform you, doctor, but have
Bitouss Disseasse."
   Borgus just sat and stared to Purvis. The world melted
around, all that remained were the words "You have Bitous!
You have Bitous!". He didn't hear Purvis speaking to him.
   "... guss. Dr. Borguss? Are you alright?"
   "How long do I have to live?" Borgus asked in a weak voice
that was more of a whisper.
   "Ssix monthss. Nine at the mosst."
   "I see. Thank you doctor for your time."
   "Are you ssure you're alright?" asked Purvis, concerned
now. "If you need to sspeak to any..."
   "That won't be necessary doctor. Thank you again for
your time." With that Borgus left his office.
   Elrod Purvis looked at the door that Borgus had just gone
through. Shrugging his shoulders, he opened a draw in his
desk and took out his application form for Megakat
Biochemical Labs. Finally, he might get somewhere where his
intellect could be used.
   Taking one look at his pet lizard, he settled down to fill
out the form.

   Hugh was busy cleaning the kitchen when Borgus came back.
He was pleased with the work that they were doing, even if it
was a little macabre. It was all in the name of science.
Also, he was scared of Horborg, since he controlled killer
cyborg drones.
   Borgus walked into the kitchen and found Hugh. He was now
shaking very badly. Hugh saw this and helped him to a chair.
   "Brandy. I need brandy," whispered Borgus. Hugh got the
brandy bottle and was about to get a glass when Borgus
grabbed the bottle and took a large gulp form it. Wiping his
mouth on his arm he took another swig, then gave it back to
Hugh
   Taking Hugh's arm, he pulled him down to Horborg's
chamber. Hugh was now worried that Borgus was drunk and was
going to damage Horborg. Not that Horborg didn't deserve it,
Hugh didn't want anything to happen to his friend.
   Borgus and Hugh came into the chamber. Horborg's face
appeared on the monitor and watched them both as they came
towards him.
   "Doctor, Hugh. What is the problem?"
   "I'll tell you the problem. It's me. I'm too weak. One day
I get mugged and actually have to be rescued by members of
the public. The next, I'm told my damn body is to weak and
that I'm dying."
   Hugh's mouth dropped open. Even Horborg looked surprised.
   "Dying? You're... you're DYING?!?"
   "Yes Hugh, dying. In six months, maybe nine if I'm lucky,
I'll be dead." Borgus was now getting very angry, under the
influence of the alcohol.
   "I am very sorry doctor. Perhaps there is..."
   "No Horborg. This time YOU listen. I am sick and tired of
taking orders. This time you will obey me." He walked up to a
cyborg drone and tapped its body armour. "See this? This
THING no longer has to worry about death or bills or being
discovered. All this THING has to worry about is serving you!
Immortal, invincible... immortal."
   Borgus walked back up to the main monitor and stared
Horborg in the eyes.
   "I have been thinking about this for a long time. Now that
my time is up, it is the only option open: Make me into a
cyborg."
   "You?" asked Horborg.
   "Leo! Sir, please think about what you're saying," Hugh
rushed up to the doctor. "Look at the others. Their mindless
drones. They have no purpose. Do you want to be like one of
them?"
   "They're only like that because of HIM!" Borgus spat out
at Hugh, pointing at Horborg. "You will make me cyborg, like
them. But I do NOT want you to be like them. Mindless,
soulless. Do you understand me Horborg?"
   "Yes, doctor. You do not wish me to implant code 876.001
into your brain after assimilation. Then that is what will
happen."
   Borgus turned to Hugh. "Prepare for the operation. This is
going to be a total assimilation, Hugh. Every part of my body
must become mechanical. If not, they will simply die within
six months, along with the organic part of my brain."
   "Yes sir," Hugh answered Borgus. "I just hope you know
what you're doing.
   "So do I, Hugh. So do I."
   Horborg watched this satisfaction. Now he would join with
his creator and finally achieve his dream; total domination
of the world...

   Hugh prepared for the operation with a sadden heart. His
tail swished restlessly. Not only was his boss, his friend,
dying, but it seems that working for a computer had driven
him over the edge. But if that was what the doctor wanted,
then that was what he was going to get.
   Borgus entered the operating room, followed by three
cyborg drones. He was wearing a white night gown, instead of
his usual lab coat. He laid down on the bed while Hugh put
the restraints on him.
   "Remember Hugh, do not wake me until the operation is
complete. Every part of my body must have at least some
mechanical components."
   "Yes, sir," Hugh answered his friend.
   "I know you're worried Hugh, but it's for the best. If the
procedure is a failure, there's an envelope on my desk. That
will tell you what to do."
   "Yes, sir."
   "Don't worry Hugh. Everything'll be fine. Now, send me to
black sleep."
   Hugh injected the drug into the doctor. Within seconds, he
was unconscious. He and the three cyborgs got to work, while
Horborg assisted with the more delicate work in the brain.
   First off was total brain assimilation. The skull was
plated with metal, was were the insides of his eyes, nose,
mouth and ears. Micro receiver were also put into the ears,
so that the doctor would be able to pick up more sound then
would be possible.
   His body was completely replaced, all internal organs
either exchanged with metallic parts or had so many bits
added to them to they were unrecognizable. The bones were too
metal plated, and the muscles were enhanced. Finally, the
body suit itself was fastened onto his body. The only organic
part of him visible was his head. Even his tail was
implanted with microprocessors, as with the other cyborg
drones.
   The whole operation took three weeks to complete, since his
body was radically altered, it had to have more time to
adjust to the new implants. The very last alteration was to
his face. A metal plate was bolted to the right side of his
face, running from the bottom of his cheek to the tip of his
right ear.
   When it was complete, two cyborg drones carried the new
doctor to Horborg's main chamber. Standing him upright,
Horborg connected a wire into the back of his head. Images
appeared on the main screen as the doctor was absorbed into
the collective.
   Hugh ran forward to stop Horborg, when he realized what he
was doing, but his stopped by two other cyborgs. After a
minute of downloading, more images appeared on the screen,
ones that did not seem to have any meaning. Finally, Horborg
disconnected the wire.
   "Awaken him," Horborg commanded. Hugh was released and
given a needle with the antidote inside. He injected the
doctor, hoping that the past three weeks had not been in
vain.
   At first, nothing happened. Then, slowly, the doctors eyes
opened. They were silver and shone in the light. He turned
his head first to the left, then to the right. He started to
move his fingers, then his arms, then his whole body.
   "Amazing," was the first word he said. His voice was load,
grating and slightly metallic. He turned and walked towards
Hugh.
   "It was a success. I am now more superior then before.
Thanks to you."
   "You seem... different, sir," said Hugh, with a touch of
fear in his voice.
   "Yes, I am Hugh. You cannot believe what it is like. I can
hear things that you could not passably hear. Voices. I hear
voices, all saying the same. Oh, how sweet they sound."
Borgus turned to Horborg. "You connected me to the collective,
didn't you?" he asked.
   "Yes, I did. You are my voice. You are the voice of the
collective. And now we..."
   "... are joined," Borgus finished. "It's all clear now.
Each conscious has added their distinctiveness to your
program. They exist here, combined together, working in
unison. The collective... I am the collective, you are the
collective."
   "We are the collective," said Borgus and Horborg, as one.
   Borgus turned around and faced Hugh. "I am no longer to be
know as Leopold Borgus. I am now... Locutus. I am Locutus
of... Borg. I am to be known as Locutus of Borg."
   "Locutus? Of Borg?" asked Hugh, very puzzled.
   "Yes. Locutus because it is Latin for "He who speaks". I
am like the other drones, yet I am an individual. Borg
because, well, look at the names: Borgus, Horborg, cyborg.
Borg is the one word used throughout. It is quite simple."
   Locutus turned back to Horborg. "You are to be know as the
Borg collective conscious, since this is where all the other
Borg drones will connect to. There will be a new goal. The
assimilation others into our collective is our primary goal.
Our other goal is the complete assimilation of the entire
population of this world, starting with Megakat City. We will
make Megakat City into Megaborg City and used it as our
central hive. From here, we will control everything."
   Locutus was now walking over to the monitor that was
hooked up to the cameras of the city. He watched as kats went
busily to and fro in Megakat Mall. "We will add their
biological and technological distinctiveness to our own. Their
culture will adapt to serve as ours."
   Locutus turned towards Hugh. "Hugh, I want you to find a kat
that has some resemblance to me."
   "Why sir?" asked Hugh walking over to Locutus.
   "Because I need someone who looks like me so that we can
make it look like I am dead. I cannot go out into the public
now, can I?"
   "That's true, sir."
   "Good. Now go."
   Hugh left with a little resistance. Locutus turned and
looked at Horborg. The smiled at each other, knowing exactly
what the storm that was brewing would soon done. They spoke
to each, not with sound, but with computer codes, making
plans for the time ahead. So, everything will be Borg. And
resistance is futile.

   Professor Pebble sat in his office at Pumadyne, thinking
about what had happen over the month. He was surprised that
his friend had been attacked, shocked to learn that he had
terminal illness, and just couldn't believe that he had
killed himself a few weeks later. Or to him, four days ago.
   He had kept tabs on him, as was the policy. Pebble was
glad that he was not pursuing his cybernetic project, and was
getting on well with his new project. He had hoped that Borgus
was doing okay. But when he learned from a associate that he
had Bitous Disease, he simply couldn't believe.
   Now he was dead. Blew his own brains out at home. Hugh,
his live in assistant had said that since the news, Borgus
had become a recluse, staying in his room. One day, he found
him dead, a bullet in his head.
   The funeral was simple. Pebble, Hugh and a few others
attended. Borgus had no family that Pumadyne knew of, and
they were certainly no family members there. In his will,
Borgus had left everything to Hugh. The house, the money,
everything.
   Now that Borgus was dead, there was no need for Pumadyne
to spy on the house. Though Hugh was a former employee, he
was no threat. All that Pebble had of Borgus now, were
memories.

Megakat City,
Early 1993.

   Locutus stood in his control room, just off from the main
chamber. For the past six months he had had the drones
working, tunnelling and building under and around the main
chamber. The base now had seven floors, in which, at the
moment, nothing much happened. The first floor was the main
chamber, where his control room was. The second floor was the
assimilation facility. The next four floors had no real use,
since they were mostly still in the stages of development.
the only problems that Locutus had was where to get all the
materials from. Though it was a difficult, it wasn't
impossible.
   The only main problem was with the assimilation procedure;
it took to long. Two weeks per drone. There had to be some
way to speed it up. He had been going through medical
entries had come up with a possible solution.
   He went back to the main chamber, where Hugh was working
at a console, trying to create a data link into the Enforcer
main computer, without being detected.
   "Hugh, I need you to do a job for me."
   Hugh sprang up and went over to Locutus. "Yes, sir?"
   "I need some virus samples from Megakat Hospital and
Biochemical Labs. I need you to take group Delta 7 and get up
the samples on this list," he said handing Hugh a list of
virus'.
   Hugh looked at the list, not believing his eyes. "Katalyst XY7?
Ebola? Why do you need these lethal diseases and chemicals?"
   "You will see, my friend. Get them tonight." With that
Locutus went back to his control room.
   That night, Hugh and Delta 7 group broke into the
hospital, with much success. Locutus was controlling the
cameras, so their entrance was ignore by security. They went to
the main chemical storage lab and got the vials that contain
the virus' that Locutus needed. Now, it was only Megakat
Biochemical Labs.
   It was much more difficult to get in, but with the cameras
turned away from them, they avoided detection. The main
storage lab was filled with bottles of different coloured
katalyst. Thankfully, they were labled. On his way out, a
bottle labled "Viper Mutagen 368" caught his eye. He though
about taking that too, but decided against it.
   Returning to the central hive, Locutus set about
immediately with the diseases and chemicals. For nines days,
he tolled in his work shop, just off from the main chamber.
On the tenth day, he emerged from the room, holding vial
containing a gray, metallic looking liquid.
   "This is future of assimilation," shouted Locutus, holding
the vial high in the air.
   "What does it do?" asked Hugh.
   "Come and look, Hugh."
   The two entered the lift and went to the next level down.
There, on the table, was another homeless kat, female this
time, struggling at the restraints. They walked over to
Locutus filled a needle with the gray liquid. He then
injected it into the struggling kat.
   At first nothing happened. Then, veins over the kats face
started to bulge and turn gray. Her fur started to drop out,
and the bare skin continued to change. It took on a mottled
pattern and become very slick. Then, without warning, a
metallic spider-like object burst from her right cheek and
fastened onto the skin. Within minutes, this homeless kat had
become a Borg. Other drones moved forward and started the
alteration procedure.
   Hugh was shocked beyond belief. What usually took hours
was done within minutes. "How did you do that?" he asked.
   "Simple," Locutus answered. "By combining certain
chemicals and katalysts together, I came up with a chemical
that can do exactly what have been doing, not in days, but in
minutes. This way, we can assimilate a kat in an hour, not
two weeks. But think of this, each drone could have this
capability, since it attacks the blood. Yes! One drone could
assimilate an army. One drone could become two, two become
four, and so on. An army! We now have the means to attack."
   "Shall attack soon, then?" Hugh asked, quite eagerly.
   "No. We still the Central Hive to finish. We also need to
gain more technology, and weapons. Perhaps Pumadyne could
provide them." At that, Locutus lead Hugh up to the main
control room and began to tell him his plan.

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