View source for We Are the Borg Special Assignments

''This article is an Out of Character article relevant to Bravo Fleet's second 2023 Fleet Action, 'We Are the Borg.' For an overview of Mission Briefings, please consult [[We Are the Borg Mission Briefings|the main article]].''
[[File:BorgCube.jpg|thumb|Special Assignments are ideal for writers who have limited time but still want to be involved in the FA's story]]
The briefings below are written to allow members to produce a complete Fleet Action story within 1-6 posts. As you may see, many of them have space for more writing, be it character development or going into more detail or adding complications if you find you’re writing a lot quicker than you expected. You are free to do that, including adding to the briefing as-written in a reasonable manner.

If you want to write your story in as few parts as possible, here are some suggestions:

* Start your story as close to the action as possible. You don’t need to include briefing scenes, you don’t need to include your captain reflecting on the challenge ahead. It’s okay to start as the mission kicks off - maybe even later! - and write through the events.
* Consider keeping a tight focus, such as following only one single character through the mission. It doesn’t have to be the captain. That means you don’t have to depict every step taken to completing the mission - characters can learn about it on sensors or by comms, for example.
* Set an achievable goal, be it writing a story every week or every 2 weeks or even less! A 3-part plan - beginning, middle, and end - supports the three phases of the FA perfectly.
* These stories don’t have to be twisty or turny. Your ship is playing a key role in understanding the Borg's activity. They can go in, get the job done, and go home.

The Special Assignments are as follow.

= Borg-der Interdiction =
The illicit acquisition, trade, and transport of Borg technology has become the hottest line of commerce in the black market. Starfleet knows that the Federation border with the Triangle region is a hotbed of smuggling, with Borg devices illegally and covertly moved into and out of Federation territory for sale or use. Your ship has been dispatched to patrol the region and intercept suspected smugglers.

== Briefing ==
Borg devices across the galaxy have activated their homing signal, but the Collective are not the only ones to respond to this. For decades, the black market of the illicit acquisition, trade, research, and use of Borg technology has thrived, especially on the roughest frontiers of the Beta Quadrant. Now that black market trade is resurgent. This is seen nowhere more than in and around the Triangle, the heart of independent and criminal enterprises in the Beta Quadrant, and an especially thorn in the side of Federation law enforcement. Starfleet knows that scavengers, traders, and illicit researchers are using the area for all manner of illegal enterprises with Borg technology, with reason to transport devices across either side of the border for sale or use. They will have killed the homing beacon on any Borg devices, but that doesn’t mean the technology is necessarily dormant or safe. Your ship has been dispatched as part of the border reinforcement to intercept smuggling.

Some of these criminals are hardened and violent, accustomed to years of work hunting down xBs and murdering them to harvest their implants. Some may be experienced, but are merely smugglers moving goods from one place to another. Others are scientists operating outside the bounds of Federation law, perhaps unethical but not necessarily dangerous in themselves. And still many new faces have flocked to this black market enterprise as demand has sky-rocketed alongside the fresh supply. Beyond that, many people living and working around the borders of the Triangle are perfectly innocent, perhaps distrusting of Starfleet but doing nothing wrong. Federation law does not allow Borg technology to be used or owned outside of extremely regulated circumstances, but it also does not allow Starfleet officers to harass travellers who have done nothing wrong. Your ship must stop this dangerous technology from falling into the wrong hands, while still upholding Federation law.

== Key Points ==

* This story is about stopping the black market trade of Borg technology on the Beta Quadrant border, not engaging with the Collective directly. Choose a different mission if you want to investigate or face the Borg. It is about the tension and uncertainty of trying to find elusive criminals with highly dangerous technology.
* However, any Borg technology does not have to be perfectly dormant or safe, or has been fully understood and de-activated by smugglers. The misuse or sudden activation of Borg technology, presenting a danger for everyone - Starfleet and criminal - is a valid twist.
* Not everyone transporting Borg technology is a hardened criminal. Even hardened criminals don’t deserve to get blown up without a trial or remorse. This is a story about law enforcement, not slaughter. Starfleet will want to stop and apprehend smugglers, even if they’re the worst murderers of xBs.
* Plenty of people live and work in the Triangle who may be unpleasant but are not criminals. This shouldn’t be a story about violating people’s civil rights. The tension of how to stop trade of dangerous goods while upholding Federation law is a valid theme.
* This mission should be able to be written in 1-6 Stories. You could tell it briefly with one short story about a border encounter shutting down smugglers. A couple of stories could show an encounter investigating innocent travellers before hitting a lead.
* If you need to expand this story, consider following up a lead from smugglers to another key location in their black market operations - a storage cache or a research lab.

=== Borg Encounters ===
This story has no direct encounters with the Collective - no drones, no ships. It deals exclusively with Borg technology separated from the Collective, gathered from defunct ships, sites of Borg battles, or extracted from drones (including xBs), and the illicit trade thereof.

Borg technology is unpredictable and dangerous. Smugglers will have found new sources through the homing signal activation, but will have to have killed that signal to secretly move the goods. Tampering with Borg technology is dangerous; who knows what they did when deactivating the signal? If you want to deal with the Borg in this story, the best way is through the technology being transported.

Whatever device smugglers have could suddenly reactivate. What it does then is up to you and the nature of the device. The most obvious answer is that it would try to connect with a ship’s computer and either reactivate the homing signal or commandeer the ship to try to return itself to the Collective. Dangerous Borg weapons could activate or malfunction. The story could then become not just about apprehending the smugglers, but dealing with the Borg technology they’ve brought to the Federation’s door. This story should, however, remain localised in scope - the danger is to the smugglers and your ship, not the entire Federation.

= Research and Redevelopment =
Your ship has been sent to respond to an active Borg homing signal in deep space. Upon arrival, you find an abandoned and disabled Borg research facility some thirty years old. This is one of the locations where the Borg developed their time travel technology, a prize that cannot fall into the wrong hands.

== Briefing ==
A Borg homing signal has been detected deep in the Delta Quadrant, in territory the Collective withdrew from after the infection of Voyager’s neurolytic pathogen. Upon investigation, your ship discovers a research and development facility for Borg technology. It has been abandoned since the pathogen, most of its systems down-powered, with no sign of any drones aboard.

Upon boarding, you find this was the site - or one of the sites - where the Collective developed the time travel technology such as was used at Earth in the Battle of Sector 001 in 2373 (Star Trek: First Contact). Converting this technology to Starfleet’s use would be a massive and long-term project, as it employs similar mechanisms to Borg transwarp. Computer records aboard, if accessed, show extensive information about both technologies, though data has been lost to the pathogen and thirty years of system degradation.

It is up to your crew to decide what to do with this information. The Borg may come back in response to the homing signal, but it is likely there is nothing here they do not already possess. Perhaps allowing them to do so would distract them from visiting more vulnerable locations. But if the technology and records are left here, someone else might approach the signal and make off with this valuable and potentially dangerous knowledge.

The site could be destroyed, it could be left alone. It could be stripped of data and then left. The data itself could be destroyed so it doesn’t fall into the wrong hands.

== Key Points ==

* This is a simple story where your crew engage with the question of what to do with abandoned Borg technology.
* It is up to you to set the stakes. The issues above may drive themselves. You can add tension by, perhaps, detecting a Borg ship coming to answer the homing signal, setting a time limit on the crew’s decision. Or some local troublemaker (Hirogen, Malon, anyone!) could also be coming after the R&D site.
* The facility itself is dormant, with no drones aboard. The place is not dangerous itself - just the knowledge.
* No technology or data aboard is functional enough to be used here. The issue is what anyone, even Starfleet, might do with the records with time.
* What happens to the facility, and the information contained aboard, is up to you. If it ends up in Starfleet hands, that’s something to keep researchers busy for decades. It would be reasonable to destroy it so it doesn’t end up in the wrong hands - which may be necessary if vultures are circling.
* You should be able to write this story in 1-6 posts. Even 1 post of arriving, realising that the site is dead, and disabling the homing signal or destroying the facility before leaving would be a complete story. If you want to keep it simple, stick to a focus on the facility itself, and what to do with it. If you want to add complexity, add rivals or the Borg coming after the facility as well.

=== Borg Encounters ===
The R&D Facility itself is dead, rendered inoperable by the neurolytic pathogen and abandoned for a quarter of a century. There are no drones, computers will need power to access the records, and the facility’s connection to the Collective is dead. The place itself is more like a library than a danger. That doesn’t mean it can’t be creepy, and your crew could have a tense experience realising that the facility is definitely not a threat.

None of its technology aboard, again, is operable or usable. There aren’t riches here or dangerous weapons, only knowledge.

If you want to raise the stakes, a Borg Cube might be coming to answer the homing signal. If the homing signal is disabled, the Cube may turn away - or it may approach anyway. This should be used to raise the tension and force your crew to make a decision quickly, with the expectation of escaping before the Cube arrives.

If the Cube arrives before your crew leaves, they will ignore your ship unless you intervene (don’t intervene - the Borg will destroy and assimilate the ship), and strip the area of what they deem to be useful technology or equipment or records before leaving. This could be a creepy encounter, and evidence how the Borg are reverting far more to their old behaviours of ignoring something if it’s not useful to them.

= The Toxic Sky =
[[File:Borgshroud.jpg|thumb|Usually it's best to not engage the Borg, but hide from them]]
Starfleet has received a planetary distress beacon from the fledgling Federation colony on Matsu, which has been overtaken by a radiation field that's spreading across the stars.  Your ship has been assigned to evacuate the colony before the radiation levels become lethal.  Because their sensors, communications and transporter are inoperable through the radiation, the colonists of Matsu haven't even noticed the Borg sphere stalking through the star system.

== Briefing ==
Located between the Ryton Nebula and Kzinti space, the planet Matsu was colonized by the Federation within the past decade.  The population is small enough to be more or less within the evacuation capacity of your starship, depending on how much of a problem you want that to be for your crew.  A couple of weeks ago, Starfleet detected Matsu's planetary distress beacon being transmitted from a probe that was launched in the direction of Deep Space 5.  The distress signal reported that a radiation field had spread across the Matsu star system.  Their initial research into the radiation field found the radiation to be at levels lethal to humanoid life on the uninhabited outer planets, closest to the field's point of origin.  At the time when colony leadership launched the distress beacon, the radiation field was only starting to disrupt communication, sensors and transporters on the planet Matsu.  Colony leadership has requested evacuation before the radiation levels increase, as they only have a small handful of two-person shuttles.

Starfleet will identify the origin of the radiation field at the coordinates of a known Borg transwarp conduit.  This conduit was thought to have been decommissioned by Admiral Janeway's attack on the Borg's transwarp network back in 2378.  It has shown no sign of use or activity since that time.  Either by design or by decay, the highly-advanced mechanisms within the transwarp conduit have begun emitting radiation.  Considering how little the Federation understands about transwarp technology, your ship's orders are simply to evacuate the Matsu colony and to keep your crew safe through the evacuation.  By the time your ship arrives at Matsu, the field has engulfed the planet, preventing any transmission of communications, sensors or transporter beams to or from the planet.

== Key Points ==

* This story is about creeping uncertainty and paranoia while undertaking Starfleet heroics in the dark. Your crew will be challenged to evacuate a planet using only word of mouth and shuttlecraft.  A passing Borg sphere may play a role in your story, but only through glimpses to cause rumours and panic among your crew and the colonists.  There will be no direct conflict with the Borg in this story; choose another mission if you want to face off against the Borg.
* As you start your mission, the radiation field on the planet Matsu is still weeks, days or hours away from becoming deadly.  The exact timing is up to you to decide based on the planned length of your story.  The radiation field has entirely engulfed the planet and your ship's orbital position, preventing any use of communicators, sensors and transporters by the time your ship arrives.  Anti-radiation medication will be required for your crew and the colonists to avoid symptoms of radiation sickness.  Some members of the colony may already be succumbing to varying degrees of radiation sickness, should you want a medical focus for your mission.
* The Borg sphere should only appear after your crew is fully engaged in the evacuation efforts.  The colonists of Matsu previously had no indication that the Borg could be involved.  Initially, the sphere should only be seen by the naked eye, from a distance, through the viewport of shuttles.  The idea is to spread rumours between colonists or between factions of your crew.  Create a sense of paranoia that the Borg are nearby to generate stakes for your crew to speed up their evacuation efforts before the Borg sphere intervenes.  This may also elicit distrust of the members of your crew who were assimilated by the Borg's Jupiter transmission at Frontier Day.
* This mission should be able to be written in 1-6 stories.  You can tell it briefly with one short story about your away team landing on the planet and explaining their presence to the colony's leadership, and then a few more stories of your crew making multiple shuttle flights to evacuate the planet.  Starfleet Command can have already identified the source of the radiation field as the transwarp conduit and can have included that information in their mission orders for your captain.  In the end, your crew can victoriously carry the colonists to safety.
* If you need to expand this story, you could send a runabout (or a secondary squadron ship, if you have one) to explore the origins of the radiation field.  Perhaps the origins remained a mystery and it's your crew who tracked the radiation back to the critically damaged transwarp conduit.  

=== Borg Encounters ===
In this story, your crew may observe a Borg sphere passing through the area, but its storytelling function is that of a ghost ship.  The sphere appears in the distance, its intentions are unclear, and it takes no direct actions against your ship or the planet Matsu.  The radiation field at Matsu and at the transwarp conduit would prevent your ship from locking sensors, communications or weapon targeting-scanners on the sphere directly.  The sphere can only be identified by the naked eye through viewports.  This story has no opportunities to communicate or interact with the Borg Collective or any Borg drones.

If you decide to expand your story by visiting the origins of the radiation at the transwarp conduit, you may observe the Borg sphere at that location too.  This, your crew can deduce, was its intention in passing through the Matsu system; the sphere was also investigating the source of the radiation.  Your crew may observe the Borg sphere opening the conduit long enough to retrieve broken technology from within, which ultimately stops the radiation emission from continuing.  Should your crew attempt to attack the Borg sphere, it will simply ignore your ship.  The Borg sphere would then swiftly jump to warp.

Alternatively, if you choose to investigate the transwarp conduit alone, you may have a brilliant Chief Science Officer or Chief Security Officer who can conjure up a destructive force greater than simple phasers or quantum torpedos to destroy the remains of the transwarp conduit once and for all yourself.  However, the mechanics of the transwarp conduit are too complex for your crew to attempt repairs for yourself; you can only destroy its remains.

= We Are Strong =
[[File:Pakledclumpship.jpg|thumb|Pakled clumpships should not be underestimated]]
There have been reports of Pakled clump ships hunting Federation shipping lanes again.  A couple of Starfleet Auxiliary supply vessels have had their holds emptied by the trio of clump ships.  Further, a Starfleet tanker exploded with all hands lost in the Pakleds' attempt to drain their deuterium tanks.  Survivors from the other supply ships report seeing the remnants of a Borg sphere fused to the outer hull of each of those three clump ships.  Your crew's mission is to protect Federation space lanes from this pack of Pakleds and to uncover how (or if??) it was even possible for the Pakleds to overpower a Borg sphere.

== Briefing ==
In the past three weeks, two Starfleet Auxiliary supply vessels have been raided by a trio of Pakled clump ships: the Aerie-class SS Montasmery and the Antares-class SS Tomtibl.  Their cargo bays full of supplies --due for re-stocking Starbase 227-- were stolen by the Pakleds.  A further Monarch-class tanker was destroyed when its deuterium tanks ignighted not long after they transmitted a distress signal about clump ships attacking.  While the Pakleds' tactics are outdated, their numbers have more than made up for it.  Not only is this trio's aggression towards the Federation notable, the shattered remains of a Borg sphere clumped onto each of their hulls demonstrates a new level of technological advancement for the Pakleds.

Your ship has orders to protect the Constellation-class SS Partheous, a Starfleet Auxiliary supply vessel under attack by the same pack of Pakleds.  Your mission is to protect the crew of the Partheous and to investigate the origins and workings of the Borg sphere these Pakleds have claimed as their own. Depending on the nature of your captain, an important thread of the mission may be protecting the Pakleds from themselves.  Starfleet Command has received reports of increased Borg activity from all over the galaxy.  The Borg seem especially fixated on reclaiming all of their spare parts that have fallen into the hands of other galactic powers.  While these Pakled raiders may believe a Borg sphere makes them strong, it could make them a target of the Borg.

Ultimately, your crew discovers the wreckage of a Borg sphere is only a contrivance.  It's a ruse to elicit fear in their victims, taking advantage of galactic fear of the Borg after Frontier Day.  While your crew defends your ship from the attack of the Pakleds, your science officer's analysis confirms that the Borg spheres are only forgeries, like dazzle camouflage.

== Key Points ==

* This is a short mission that's intended to be written in 1 - 6 stories.  You could start with your ship warping in to defend the SS Partheous when it's already under attack by the Pakleds.  Alternatively, you could start earlier, with your ship assigned to escort duty of the supply ship and then the Pakleds attack in part two.  You may write a subplot about your crew investigating the reports from the previous raided ships or all of those details could be provided to your captain with their orders.  It may be worth telling a couple of stories about your ship under attack by the Pakled clump ships.  Perhaps the clump ships overpower your ship immediately or you lead the Pakleds on a chase through a nebula or asteroid field.
* You can choose the precise location of the shipping lanes where the supply ships were attacked and the location where your mission takes place.
* If you enjoy satire and camp of the Pakleds as portrayed on Star Trek: Lower Decks, we propose the Borg sphere remnants launch starship-sized assimilation tubules into your starship or the SS Partheous.  While the tubules contain no nanoprobes, they are equipped with industrial replicators that replicate the appearance of black and green Borg tech, spider-webbing over the hull (like the USS Voyager in "Scorpion, Part II").  If you really want to go for it, maybe the Pakled captain is even masquerading as a Borg?  However, if you prefer your Pakleds peculiar and menacing like in TNG's "Samaritan Snare", you can skip this point entirely.
* It's up to you to decide how challenging it is to discover that the Borg parts of the clump ship are fake.  Maybe your starship has advanced sensors and your science officer just needs a little time with short-range sensors trained on the clump ships.  Or maybe the forged Borg sphere are well-designed and your ship has to disable the Pakleds shields until the fakery is discovered.  Moreover, maybe you have to go so far as to beam an away team onto one of the clump ships and you can't confirm the Borg spheres are fake until your away team examines them from the inside.
* Ultimately, the end of the story is for you to decide.  Do the Pakleds overpower or destroy the SS Partheous and then you hunt the Pakleds to a second location?  Does your crew outsmart or outgun the Pakleds?  Do they manage to destroy the fake Borg sphere parts?  Let your imagination decide!

=== Borg Encounters ===
This story contains no true involvement of the Borg Collective.  Rather, your opportunity here is to play with the Pakleds' interpretation of Borg tropes, along with Starfleet and the Pakleds' shared fears of the Borg.  Choose another mission briefing if you want your crew to face off against the Borg directly.

= Graveyard Robbery =
[[File:Borgdebris.jpg|thumb|Even Borg debris may provide key intelligence]]
Deep space telescopes have detected what appears to be the debris field of several small Borg vessels on the far edges of known space in the Alpha and Beta Quadrants. This is an excellent opportunity for Starfleet to search through what is left and gain any intelligence or technology that is left behind.

== Briefing ==
On the opposite side of the Typhon Expanse, long-range scans have picked up what appears to be the remains of a small Borg task group compromising of Borg scouts and probes. So far, no other ships, including the Borg, have approached it. Starfleet is keen to send a ship to go through the remains and find anything valuable. 

Scans show that the debris field is dead - there doesn’t appear to be anything working, and everything is broken into pieces. Though the Borg are known to collect the remains of their dead, they have yet to send any ship. This mission requires a crew to act fast - they need to get in, find anything that is helpful and get out before another Borg ship arrives. 

== Key Points ==

* This mission should be a simple search and retrieve. Arrive at the debris field, determine what is left that is worth taking and then head home without being caught.
* This mission should be able to be written in 1-6 stories.  You can tell it briefly with one short story about your ship arriving at the Borg Graveyard. Another one could be your crew sifting through the dead Borg ships to see if there’s anything of value. A couple of stories could be around away teams heading over to certain larger parts that they can search. Another story could be around finding data nodes that contain information that is heavily damaged but could be recovered. Your final story should be around the ship hi-tailing it after long-range sensors finally see a Borg ship approaching the graveyard. Your crew returns to the Federation with valuable data/information and low-level tech that are pieces to the puzzle in understanding how the Collective has changed.

=== Borg Encounters ===
In this story, your crew does not engage the Borg in any combat - but the sifting through the dead debris field is what creates the tension and eerie feeling. Everything is silent in the field - there is no life here. Even when away teams board parts they can go onto, all of the drones are dead. 

When your ship detects the incoming Borg ship, this is the signal for your ship and crew to leave. By this time, they should have the information/intelligence that will make Starfleet satisfied. 

To add further ‘graveyard robbery’ feel to the plot - one story could be focussed on your medical crew, perhaps identifying the corpses of some of the drones found among the debris field. Almost like how the Hansens (Seven’s parents) did when they were studying the Borg. If you take this approach, the drones remain dead, and they do not reactivate. 

= Hunter or Hunted? =
[[File:Borgspheremission.jpg|thumb|A Borg sphere on a scouting missions is a cause for serious concern]]
A Borg Sphere has been detected at the periphery of Federation Beta Quadrant territory. Its purpose is unknown as it skirts the Federation border, perhaps on a scouting operation. Your ship is assigned to observe the Sphere’s activities, in case it turns hostile. Do not engage.

== Briefing ==
At the edge of known space in the Beta Quadrant, a Borg Sphere has arrived and begun to skirt Federation territory. Your ship has been assigned to investigate, observing the Sphere without engaging, to understand its purpose and - should it turn hostile - give early warning. 

How you choose to approach is up to you. You do not have access to a cloak, but could choose to hide in stellar phenomena and watch the Sphere from a distance, or perhaps use innocuous shuttles or probes to monitor, or simply try to keep your power levels low and avoid drawing the Sphere’s attention even if it does spot you.

As you observe, the Sphere stops near stellar phenomena, within sensor range of inhabited worlds and facilities, and pauses for a time before proceeding. It appears to be on some sort of surveillance or scouting operation.

The climax comes when the Sphere encounters some minor opposition. Perhaps it crosses paths with a local spacer who panics and opens fire. If so, it will ignore this like a human might ignore a fly, stopping only to run a scan - and leaving. Or perhaps at some point your ship’s efforts at staying hidden fail, and the Sphere doubles back at intercept speed. When it does so, it will run a thorough scan of your vessel, perhaps even sending a drone aboard to investigate (as per the first drone to board the Enterprise in TNG: Q Who). If your crew or ship resist, the Borg will respond, but only by killing or incapacitating an attacking crewmember, or shooting merely to disable your ship’s weapons. Once it seems to have taken stock of you - it will leave, and at that point depart the frontier, setting a course for the border.

What did it want? You don’t know. But you do know that the way the Borg behave has changed.

== Key Points ==

* This should be a story of quiet tension as your ship observes the mysterious behaviour of a Borg Sphere, not knowing if it will become a threat at any moment.
* The assumption here should be that the Sphere could be the prelude to an attack, and is gathering strategic information. While there turns out to be no immediate threat, this fear is important to the story.
* How your ship avoids the Sphere’s attention is up to you. You may realise early on that you aren’t its priority anyway, and so long as you don’t engage it, it will leave you alone.
* This mission should be told in 1-6 Stories. Start as close to the end as possible if you’re worried about having free time (using a captain’s log instead of a whole sit-down mission briefing can save you some work). You could write 1 Story about how to stay hidden and observe the Sphere, 1 about watching it sweep areas, and 1 about its confrontation with you or another ship. To expand the story or add tension, talk with locals about their encounters with the Sphere, have a near-miss where you think it’s detected your ship, or see the Sphere rapidly approach an inhabited world you think it might be attacking - only for it to break off or stop at the last moment for reasons unknown.

=== Borg Encounters ===
This story is all about watching a Sphere. It will turn out to be on a scouting mission with unknown objectives, but the way the Collective operates can seem mysterious or unpredictable. It may linger near an uninhabited system running scans, ignore what looks like a strategic target completely, or, as above, race towards an inhabited world on what could be mistaken for aggression only to arrive and merely run another scan.

It will ignore your ship, or any ship, until or unless it thinks it may be an impediment to its mission. This is where the climax of the mission comes in - an encounter with a local, or something your ship does, gets the Sphere’s attention. If your ship was operating on lower power to try to look like less of a target, perhaps these efforts at obfuscation fail.

Whatever presents itself a possible threat, the Sphere will respond. But it will act as if the other vessel is not a serious danger; it will only open fire in response to an attack, only if the weapons are a challenge, and only to disable the ship. It may send a drone aboard, which will access the ship’s computer records - only for its recent operations, to ascertain the ship’s intentions - and then leave. If your crew hunker down and wait for the Borg to leave them alone, they will. If your crew try to fight back, they will be incapacitated as a threat - but not slaughtered, not abducted, not assimilated. The Sphere will then leave, its overall intentions a mystery.