The fact all the Starfleet ships are connected and the whole fleet is there at Frontier Day is the whole point of the evildoers plot. A plot to wipe out the whole fleet once and for all. The thing in hanger bay 12 is the only thing not connected. I think the E-F is the one that will spread whatever it is to the rest of the fleet. As to how Picard plays into all this, his speech, his corpse and Jack, I haven’t figured it out yet.