Could the Romulans' big secret in Star Trek: Picard be that they were responsible for creating the Borg? So far in its first season, Star Trek: Picard has been a relatively groundbreaking entry in the franchise's mythology - Data has (at least) 2 secret daughters, Picard resigned from a corrupt, conspiracy-addled Starfleet, and Romulan assassins are operating openly in Federation space and beyond. Unsurprisingly, Jean-Luc Picard finds himself at the center of events, after he was forced to watch one of Data's offspring get killed by her Romulan pursuers. The aging ex-Enterprise captain is now leading a hastily-assembled crew on a hopeless mission to find the other daughter before the pesky Romulans do.

In terms of mythology, Star Trek: Picard delves heavily into both Borg and Romulan lore. The story takes place in the aftermath of the Prime Timeline events from J.J. Abrams' 2009 Star Trek movie, where a giant supernova (halted by Spock) wiped out the planet of Romulus. Although Starfleet initially agreed to help the Romulan empire in their time of need, an ill-timed terrorist attack put paid to that, and this is the main source of the animosity between Starfleet and the Romulans. However, there is something more insidious bubbling beneath the surface, no doubt connected to the Romulans' new mission to deconstruct an entire Cube of Borg drones.

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With the histories of the Borg and Romulans continuing to intertwine with each episode of Star Trek: Picard, it's possible that the two races are more closely integrated that previously thought, and many are speculating (RLM, for example) that the Romulans might've actually been responsible for creating the Borg in the first place.

The Borg's Origins Are Unknown

One of the main attractions of Star Trek's cybernetic villains is their mysterious origins. As things stand, the Borg have no clear creation story; the Collective was said to have developed over many thousands of years, but records of Borg activity in the Star Trek universe only go back 1000 years or so, with the species gradually becoming more dominant during that period. The main feature of the Borg as life forms is their mixture of organic and artificial life - Borg drones are created by "assimilating" organic matter with technological enhancements and a connection to a hive mind. Although the artificial elements of their biology hints towards some kind of Borg creator, such a figure has never been revealed. The Borg Queen comes closest, but merely acts as a leader, rather than a progenitor.

The Borg seek living perfection by assimilating all artificial life into their own kind, and their entire purpose revolves around this goal, with individuality, emotion and relationships replaced by cold hard logic and a drive to spread as widely as possible across the universe. So long as their origins remain murky, however, the true history of the Borg could still be revealed.

Did The Romulans Create The Borg?

Star Trek Picard Dahj Soji

A major clue that the Romulans could've created the Borg many centuries ago comes from a prophecy spoken by a Romulan scholar called Ramdha. According to Romulan legend, the "Day of Annihilation" will come when "all the shackled demons break their chains" and are led by a "Destroyer" called Seb-Cheneb. Although not explicit, there are several Borg clues within this Romulan myth. Firstly, Ramdha recognizes Data's daughter, Soji, as Seb Cheneb and reveals that the Destroyer is one of two sisters. The pixmit card Ramdha holds during this scene depicts two girls, one in black and one in white. If Soji is the Destroyer, it would naturally follow that Dahj could represent the Creator.

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By "shackled demons," it's hard not to imagine Ramdha is referring to the disconnected Borg. With the returns of Seven of Nine and Hugh, Star Trek: Picard is diving deep into what happens when a Borg is separated from the Collective, and the Romulan Reclaimation Project is taking place on an entire Cube of inactive Borg drones. Since Soji is an android, she could be programmed to reawaken and control any Borg disconnected from the hive mind, and perhaps even the connected ones too.

It's unclear why Soji, or even the Borg, would seek to destroy all life, since this isn't the villains' prime directive. Perhaps, however, the word "annihilation" was mistranslated, and should actually read "assimilation." If so, the Romulan prophecy is warning of a day when the Borg rise up at Soji's command and assimilate all life, everywhere. Of course, the very fact that an ancient Romulan myth would predict destruction at the hands of the Borg hints at a deeper connection between the two species.

Romulans Have A Big Secret In Picard Linked To Androids

While the Romulan prophecy of Ganmadan has allusions towards the Borg, it doesn't necessarily suggest one is responsible for the other's creation, although that picture changes when considering the other areas of Romulan culture Star Trek: Picard has revealed. Jean-Luc and his Romulan housekeepers worked together to identify the group of assassins who attacked Dahj and concluded that they were most likely Zhat Vash, a more ancient, more secretive, deadlier predecessor to the Romulan Tal Shiar secret police.

Naturally, very little is known about this group, including whether they truly exist, but Laris and Zhaban reveal a few key details. Apparently, the Zhat Vash were formed to guard a secret that would affect the very foundation of Romulan culture if it were to be exposed. Thanks to the covert operations of Commodore Oh and her underlings, it can also be concluded that the Zhat Vash have a deep hatred of synthetic life and A.I., and for this reason are seeking to destroy Dahj, Soji, and all similar beings. Adding together a shared Romulan/Borg myth, a deep dark secret and a burning hatred for robots, the most obvious conclusion is that the Romulans were somehow integral in the creation of the Borg.

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Although any further details would be purely speculative, it fits with the established canon and timeline that the ancient Romulans could've started experimenting with artificial life forms, accidentally created the Borg and realized the terror their experiments had given rise to. Finding their new cyborgs couldn't be controlled, the Romulans might've subsequently launched their fledgling creation into the Delta Quadrant (where the Borg are first discovered) and established the Zhat Vash to ensure the secret remained covered, both from Romulans and from other species. Centuries later, after those early Borg experiments had developed and spread across the galaxy, the Romulans and Borg have now come into contact again, spelling disaster for all.

The Borg Cube/The Romulan Artefact

Star Trek: Picard revealed previously that the Romulans attained their Borg Cube when a Scout Ship from the Romulan empire was attacked by Borg and its occupants were assimilated. Strangely, however, this process ended up severing all Borg on board from the Collective, and drove the assimilated Romulans insane. This is said to have been the first time the Borg attempted to turn Romulans into their own kind, although the accuracy of this statement is a topic of debate, but exactly why Romulan biology proved so resistant to Borg control remains a key mystery of Star Trek: Picard.

This natural resistance to assimilation provides another intrinsic and ancient link between Borg and Romulan kind. And if that latter had created the evil cyborgs, it's logical that they might build in fail-safe procedures that would prevent successful assimilation. Similar reasoning would also explain how Ramdha recognizes Soji as Seb-Cheneb - her Romulan side knows the myth, but her Borg enhancements recognize Data's daughter as the leader who will break their chains. As for Dahj, if she truly was the "creator," she might've been built to house the original Romulan blueprints used to birth the Borg, giving the Zhat Vash another motivation to kill her.

Star Trek: Picard's Romulan Attack On Mars Was To "Protect" The Federation

Star Trek Picard Synth F8 and Mars Attack

Romulan mythology aside, there's an entirely separate side to the mystery of Data's daughters and the Starfleet conspiracy - the attack on the Mars shipyards, and Bruce Maddox. If Soji is designed to lead the Borg, why would've Maddox created her as such? And how does the Borg/Romulan connection factor into the Martian incident?

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Having created a race of cyborgs that now threaten all organic life, the Zhat Vash would be keen to not only conceal their own secret, but also to ensure no one else makes the same mistake. Thanks to Data, Maddox and Starfleet's advancing scientific exploits, Star Trek has charted a gradual progression in the Federation's artificial life, and the Zhat Vash might've finally taken notice. However, the secret Romulan cabal couldn't very well just send Starfleet a letter warning them not to meddle in synthetics any further. A high-profile terrorist attack, on the other hand, would likely be enough to halt any such experiments, and so it has proved, with Starfleet halting all work into and production of Data's kind. Therefore, the Zhat Vash have "protected" the galaxy from another Borg creation incident, albeit at the cost of both Federation and Romulan lives.

But how does Bruce Maddox factor into such a shadowy plot? Star Trek: Picard has confirmed that Maddox was still working at the Daystrom Institute prior to Starfleet's synth ban, but took the change of legislation very badly and has barely been seen since. Nevertheless, Bruce was a clever boy, and if he could somehow make the connection between the Romulans and the Borg, he might've been tempted into creating the perfect android life form that would not only complete his life's work as a technical achievement, but would also succeed in bringing down both the Romulans and the Federation, gaining revenge upon those who thwarted his research in the first place.

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Star Trek: Picard continues with "Stardust City Rag" February 20th on CBS All Access And Amazon Prime.