 They discover a nearby planet that shows signs of a previous civilization but has been stripped of all industrial and mechanical elements , and are then met by a much larger cube @-@ shaped vessel which does not answer their hails . Guinan warns Picard that the ship belongs to the Borg , a powerful , cyborg @-@ like race that nearly wiped out her people , scattering the survivors across the galaxy , and again urges Picard to leave immediately . Though Picard orders the Enterprise 's shields raised , a single Borg transports into Engineering and begins to probe the Enterprise 's computer systems . Lt. Worf ( Michael Dorn ) initially attempts to incapacitate the intruder with his phaser set on stun , which has no effect , and is forced to increase power to kill the Borg instead . Immediately afterwards , a second Borg appears to continue probing the computer , and proves to be immune to phaser fire . Completing its mission , it strips several components from the dead Borg and disappears . The Borg ship then contacts the Enterprise and demands their surrender . When Picard refuses , the Borg use a cutting beam to slice into the Enterprise 's saucer section and remove a cross @-@ section of the ship , killing eighteen people . 
