#Iconian gateway

[sshbpodcast]

Episode 74: Gateway to a Living Hell

TNG: "Contagion" and "The Royale"

Remember when “Measure of a Man” happened last week and things were looking up? Yeah, forget that. This week we’ve got two clunkers in a row, starting with malware and middling Romulans in “Contagion��. After that we’ve got what feels kind of like “A Piece of the Action” with all the joy sucked out of it in “The Royale.”

Also this week: old-timey Tonic, schoolyard insults, and Jake has an announcement.

Note: spoilers for AI in this episode; but it's 17 years old and not very good.

Timestamps: synopses: 0:52; Contagion: 7:19; The Royale: 30:07

[colnerys]

brief rundown of my blog's timeline post ds9 before i update it on my dossier:

2376- takes command of ds9 in an official capacity as the "new year" (at least the standardized calendar they use or whatever says) comes. it's the same year she gets attainted (aka. excommunicated by the vedek assembly) for releasing an ancient semi-prophetic text that did not view the bajoran prophets as gods but rather, aliens. this is a rough year — oh also, starfleet decided to use ds9 as a rehab for ro so.... ensue headaches

late-2376 : they receive a distress call from europa nova, takes in a bunch of refugees whilst kira n co are also trying to find the source of the disaster. uh tldr: she ends up goin thru an iconian gateway, ends up in the DQ, gets hunted by the hirogen before yeeting herself into an escape pod and end up on some m-class planet. oh yes, and she straight up dies. dw, she comes home to ds9 alive (it's on the dossier im not typing this part again)

2377- happy new year! except, it's not so happy. bajorans on the station don't wanna be associated with her, and it's rough. ironically, kira has to play as a mediator between the bajoran government, starfleet, AND the cardassian government. she hates it. really, she does.

anyways, rumors begin to spread about a potential official summit between bajor, the federation, and cardassia. tensions on the station are HIGH. oh yeah, remember how kira uploaded a book? well, it sorta started a fringe religious movement that's sorta just brewing in the background

2378- another year another year of bULLSHIT! some starfleet admiral's picking on her (at least she believes it to be), shakaar and his governments being a bitch baby. she's so done. she just wants to be doing anything but THIS

oh yeah the defiant? right, so the current founders (aka odo & co) and ds9 (and ds9 only!) made an agreement to let them conduct exploratory missions in the gamma quadrant again. julian and ezri —— THE ONLY TWO PEOPLE WHO SHE TRUSTS AT THIS POINT —— gone out exploring.

oh yeah, also people started protesting on the promenade. some were anti-cardassian (one of ziyal's artwork gets vandalized) and some were anti-vedek assembly. a small group of people are beginning to speak frankly about how kira's been mistreated. you can say, she's once again, an icon and symbol —— WHICH SHE DOES NOT WANT ONCE AGAIN

oh yeah have we mentioned voyager's returned? yeah so it's... docked here for some time now being studied like an organism under a microscope. yep. ds9's tourism industry is THRIVING

2379- remember kira's lil religious movement she accidentally started? yeah that's why they haven't picked a new kai yet. imagine the chaos in the assembly. just imagine. well, it wasn't as bad as when winn adami was in charge but STILL.

guess what??? there's also talks about bajor potentially joining the federation. oh what great timing this all is.... cue kira looking longingly at the wormhole with her emotional support baseball.

oh yeah during this time she's also been visiting kasidy on bajor as much as she can and they're raising the sisko-yates kid semi-together. it's abt the only thing she looks forward to anymore. that and video calling the o'briens.

mid-2379: oh my! they found kai opaka and she's ALIVE?!?! gasp! hey guess what? opaka chastised the vedek assembly for not allowing kira to openly practice her faith. uh tldr: they kinda got bullied into letting kira back and thank fuck for that

late-2379: bajor's supposed to sign the treaty to join the federation but uh drama happens and they don't sign... again. (deciding if i wanna keep the whole trill unjoined plotline ngl) but yknow what... it's fine... right???

2380: honestly for the first time, it's a pretty tame year... thank fuck for that. bajor and the federation are still in negotiations on what it means to join the federation and what not. hey look! it's shaxs! and mariners mom lmao

2381: bajor joins the federation (yaaaay) omg ben sisko is that you??? oh thank fuck they can all relax for once... right? oh yeah kira gets the captain title and a bunch of belated as fuck commendations

late-2381: EEEE WRONG! oh yeah there was a jem'hadar sent over from the great link? well something Bad happened and he shish kebob'ed kira's heart and shattered ro's spine. welp.

2382: well she lives... again. had a prophetic vision during her coma, she has a new heart now. oh that attack? well... turns out the mirrorverse strikes again! (it's in my dossier i'm not typing it all up again lmao)

2383 - 2386: honestly it's been pretty normal though for years now at this point she's been trying to push for diplomatic negotiations with the dominion but uh starfleet back office sends any mail from kira straight to spam! oh yeah she and garak definitely still talk and talk shit abt their own governments

2387: so we know how the supernova happened right? well see... behind starfleet's back, she and a few romulans she's befriended during the dominion war have been sorta just... transporting people over little by little. some, by bribing whatever connections quark has; some, literally on their tiny little runabouts. needless to say, they've done more than the fucking federation lmao

2388 - 2398: at this point she's just tired of starfleet back office... THANK GOD THEY NEVER COME HERE! the only station treated worse than ds9 is starbase 80! zoinks! also, ro's been her first officer for a bit but at some point section 31 stole her away. another reason why kira hates section 31. all her homies hate s31.

2399-2401: you're here. in the present. see? kira was right but noooo starfleet doesn't negotiate with war criminals :/ (honestly depending on how the rest of the show goes... this might tweak)

[mazamba]

Boimler frowned when he recognized the coordinates, "227 mark 359? Where have I heard that before?"

"Iconia," Mariner was pale, "fuck. We need to move, fast."

"Wait, Iconia?" Rutherford recognized the name, "As in, abandoned, planet-sized factory Iconia!?"

"Most of the factories were destroyed," she reminded them, "but the ones that weren't are fully automated. All they'd have to do is load in the schematics and they'd have a full army within the week... unless their asteroid mining system is offline, but that's not the only problem.

"The Iconians used an unknown technology called gateways to move around that make our warp drives and your hyperspace look like a pedal bike. If Darth Khan figures out how to get them running, he'll be able to teleport entire armies to any planet in a seven-hundred-thousand lightyear radius in seconds.

"Khan just picked the perfect planet to stage war across the whole galaxy, all from the comfort of his home."

Closed RP w/@mazamba

Ahsoka Tano was dead. Or at the very least, that's what the galaxy assumes after finding her lightsabers where her ship crashed. Killing all her men onboard, including herself. However, this was not completely true.

Ahsoka survived Order 66, an order from the Sith Lord, who was the chancellor of the once Galactic Republic. The order caused the Clone army to turn on their Jedi commanders and kill them all. Ahsoka, despite not being a Jedi anymore, was still considered one by the soldiers. Thankfully, she not only survived, but saved one of her Clone friends, Captain Rex.

The two faked their deaths and went their separate ways. To avoid the other from getting hurt.

Ahsoka left onboard a ship and found herself traveling beyond the Outer Rim, before finding herself being transported through a portal. One that caused her to find herself adrift on her ship. In a new galaxy that she was unfamiliar with and was in need of some help.

@mazamba

[astreljourne]

USS Dyson: Give chase.

You find the gateway leads to another dyson sphere, which happens to be the same one the Enterprise-D discovered. It had jumped to a deeper part of the Delta Quadrant when the gateway network was activated though. There you find the USS Gold, which had been studying the Dyson Sphere when it jumped, leaving them stranded for a time. You also notice a Voth city ship chilling at the exit of the sphere. They seem to be waiting for something as they do not engage you.

[scififootball]

How #StarTrekDiscovery ep3 links to the wider franchise's events and themes, including Project Genesis and Kodos. scififootball.com/2017/10/06/mythos-in-star-trek-discovery-context-is-for-kings/

[corpsdedfensefrancophone]

STO - Patch Notes 05/11/2020

#STO - #PatchNotes 05/11/2020 #StarTrekOnline

STO – Patch Notes 05/11/2020

(more…)

[uncleasriel]

VIA @galileosballs

#the only other thing I can think of#is the surprise shot of Toronto City Hall through the Iconian gateway that one time#though I'll throw in my favourite filming trivia fact#which is that Sarek and Amanda's house in Disco#is Integral House in Rosedale#the math-themed luxury mansion built by James Stewart#the guy who wrote the Calculus I textbook that everyone always uses#turns out you can get a lot of money by writing a calculus textbook everyone uses

Star Trek series rated by Canadianness!

The Original Series - Shatner's from Montreal; Doohan's from Vancouver; John Collicos (the guy who played Kor, the first Klingon) is from somewhere in Canada; and, um...yeah. 4/10

The Next Generation - So, in the episode "Lower Decks", Lavelle tries to bond with Riker over being from Canada (he's actually from Alaska). Also, Matt Frewer and Saul Rubinek are in episodes. 2/10

Deep Space Nine - I was going to rate this one pretty low since it has pretty much only Nicole deBoer and that one scene where Eddington mentions having a "lucky loonie" to go on, but then I realised that the series was literally premised on a brutal colonial project aimed at mineral extraction, and that's like...the *most* Canadian thing. 7/10

Voyager - WTH is this? No Canadians; nothing particularly Canadian. 0/10

Enterprise - Hoshi Sato wants to take leave in Canada after getting tortured with heat. 1/10

Discovery - Points for being filmed in Canada, and most of the extras and personality-less bridge bunnies being played by Canadians (though points off because the one Discovery novel that I've read keeps emphasizing that Detmer, who has the most personality out of all of them, is from Düsseldorf). Callum Keith Rennie's in the last season. 4/10

Picard - um...Alison Pill is there! 1/10

Lower Decks - Let's see...two of the ships have been named the Vancouver and the Toronto. The plot with Barb Brinson is riffing on having an imaginary girlfriend in Canada (one of our most famous exports). Also, I know this isn't canon, but the comics are done by Ryan North, which has to count for something. 4/10

Prodigy - Man, this series doesn't even air in Canada! -1/10

Strange New Worlds - Filmed in Toronto: actually *set* in Toronto in one episode; retroactively makes Khan Canadian (Khanadian?) which...sure. I'll accept that. Points for casting Edmonton's Bruce Horak as Hemmer, who comes from an ice planet and, as an Aenar, has a generally laid-back, pacifistic attitude towards life (which I think is how a lot of Canadians like to think of themselves); points off for killing him off 9 episodes into the first season. 9/10

[deepspacedukat]

The Only One - Part 2: Things Left Unsaid

So the more I write of this, the more evident it becomes that this is going to be much longer than I originally anticipated. I had thought this was going to be a quick three chapter ramble, but um...at the moment it’s looking as though it’ll be closer to like...five chapters? Maybe more? I really should make an outline when I have the time, because otherwise this is going to get really out of hand, but...like...who has the time? Not me lol. Anyway, here’s Part 2. Part 2 is also cross-posted to AO3 here.

Part 1 here. Part 3 here. Part 4 here. Part 5 here. Part 6 here.

~*~

Weyoun 5 (ST:DS9) x Reader

[A/N: Spoilers in this installment for DS9: S5E19 “Ties Of Blood And Water,” so if you haven’t seen that yet, beware! Also there will be smut in future parts, so 18+ ONLY, MINORS DNI!!!]

Warnings: Some angst and descriptions of recurring nightmares to start, but it gets a little better. Mentions of casual Dominion brutality, but like...that’s kinda on par for them, so...hopefully that’s to be expected? It’s not described graphically or anything. Feelings. Lots of feelings: the good, the bad, and the questionable.

~*~

Nearly a year had passed since the day the Vorta diplomat had so unceremoniously yet politely turned my world upside down. Not a day had passed where I didn’t remember the terror and helplessness in his eyes as he was removed from existence. Not a day went by where I didn’t wish that I’d been able to help him.

That morning, I jolted awake from a nightmare as I had so many times since that fateful day, gasping for air and trying to convince myself that the dream wasn’t real as I got up to pace my quarters. Violet eyes filled with fear and pleading for my help as one would entreat their gods for mercy...pleas for forgiveness and promises to be a more useful servant had scratched away at my sanity from the dreamworld as they now so often did.

“Computer, what time is it?” I asked in a shaky voice as I wrapped a soft robe around me in some semblance of protection.

“The time is oh six hundred hours,” the automated voice intoned, and I let out a quiet groan. That was the third time this week that I’d been awakened before my alarm. At least this time I’d gotten a whole four hours of sleep. I wasn’t meant to be on duty for another three hours, but I knew from experience that there was no getting back to sleep after one of those nightmares. Walking to the bathroom, I glanced in the mirror and sighed at the thought that I’d look exhausted again today. I really didn’t want to have to endure the looks from the officers in Ops today, but such is life.

I splashed my face with a bit of cool water, took a deep breath, and threw on a clean uniform. A walk would help clear my head. It nearly always did. Wandering the corridors of the old Cardassian station at such an early hour when the residents were only just beginning to wake gave me a feeling of tranquility that I seldom felt elsewhere. I’d never felt such placidity even back when I lived on Earth. Even with the Dominion threat, there was nowhere else I’d rather be.

Pausing at one of the viewports on the upper level of the Promenade - my favorite viewport - I leaned against the wall as I took in the familiar sight of thousands of sparkling stars. Letting my mind drift like a piece of space debris, I lost myself for a time in the limitless, endless expanse of the cosmos...in just how small and insignificant my problems were in the grand scheme of things. Distancing myself from my worries like this tended to make them feel less daunting when the time came to confront them, but this time there wouldn’t be a confrontation. There was nothing I could do about what was troubling me. I hadn’t been able to save the one person who had ever known who I was...what I was.

Weyoun could have answered so many of my questions had he survived the mission to destroy the Iconian Gateway. As it was, more questions had popped up in the wake of his demise. When the Defiant had returned to Deep Space Nine, Doctor Bashir had confirmed that I was in fact half-Changeling, with Odo’s own genetic structure as a base for comparison, of course. The Security Chief and I’d had a great many conversations since then. He’d even helped me figure out more about my own abilities as a partial Changeling, coaching me through several humanoid shifts and encouraging me in my practice sessions. I’d been able to hold my altered shapes for a bit longer, depending on the complexity of the form and how much of myself I was altering. The day he’d reluctantly admitted that I was better at noses than he was, I could hear more than a hint of pride in his voice.

“Trouble sleeping, Lieutenant?” A gruff, raspy voice called from my side as I stared into the illuminated darkness outside the station. I didn’t have to turn my head to know that Odo would be giving me an impassive look that he used to try and hide his concern - one that I’d seen before when I’d first told him about my nightmares regarding the Vorta. He was the only one I’d trusted with the full content of the private conversation between Weyoun and myself. I’d told Captain Sisko of my newly-discovered heritage, of course, but that conversation had some elements that I was reluctant to share with my commanding officer. There were some things I only trusted Odo with, like the hug...the horrifying willingness to allow me to take my anger out on him...his admission that the Founders did in fact require that sort of unthinking loyalty and deference from him and his entire race. Without uttering a word, I just nodded my head and crossed my arms loosely around my middle. Odo hummed beside me and fell silent for a moment. I knew him well enough at that point to know he was simply trying to determine what would be best for him to say. “I’m...not very good at this sort of thing, and I know I���ve said this before, but...Weyoun’s death was not your fault. There was nothing you could do. I highly doubt that he would want you to blame yourself.”

“You didn’t see the look in his eyes as he was vaporized, Odo. He was so afraid,” I whispered. “He looked to someone he regarded as the only child of one of his gods and...I let him down.”

“No, you didn’t. There was nothing you could have done. None of us knew that Omet’iklan was going to kill him. Otherwise, I’d have been right there beside you,” he said surprising me into looking at him. “I trust your judgment. If you thought he was worth saving and if you’d been given the chance to do so, I would have supported you wholeheartedly. The Jem’Hadar would have had to go through the both of us to get to that Vorta. But...you weren’t given that chance. I know it’s...difficult, but...it’s time that you try and forgive yourself. It’s been almost a year. You deserve some peace.”

One of his hands rested gently on my shoulder, and I felt a small, rueful smile stretch my lips. Odo might not think he was good at comforting people, but he was wrong. He had a way of cutting straight to the point. Like Major Kira had said many times before, there’s never any pretense with him. Perhaps that was another reason I trusted him so implicitly.

“Thank you, Odo,” I murmured, and he gave my shoulder a gentle squeeze before suggesting that I accompany him on his morning security rounds. With that welcome distraction, the two of us set off, making quiet conversation in the early morning stillness.

--

The next couple of days were busy. With the arrival on the station of Major Kira’s almost-father, Tekeny Ghemor, and Gul Dukat showing interest in the man’s deteriorating condition, the atmosphere on the station was one of suspicion. When a Dominion ship arrived at the station carrying Gul Dukat, I was on-duty in Ops. As the ship prepared for docking, the Captain called me into his office. We were still talking when I heard the door to the Captain’s office hiss open behind me. The Captain’s eyes shifted to whoever had just entered, and when he did a double-take, I turned in curiosity at who had caused such a reaction.

At that moment, I wished so desperately that I’d been seated. Gul Dukat was there, but what had stunned both myself and Captain Sisko was the man who’d accompanied him. I felt my breath hitch in my chest as my eyes met the familiar, bright purple irises of a man I’d watched die right in front of me - a man who looked just as surprised at our reunion as I felt.

“Captain Sisko. Thank you for the kind invitation,” Dukat started. “This is one of my Dominion advisors-”

“Weyoun,” I murmured still in shock, and I was vaguely aware of the Gul turning to look at me curiously. Paying him no mind, I took a small, halting step toward the Vorta. “I don’t understand...You died. I-I saw you die.”

“That wasn't me, my dear. At least...not exactly,” Weyoun said with a small smile spreading across his features. “It is an honor to see you again, Founder.”

“‘Founder’? The Lieutenant isn’t a Changeling, she’s just a metamorph,” Dukat said with a scoff, and I gave Weyoun a small smile of my own that I hoped communicated more than I was at liberty to say in front of Dukat. There was so much that needed to be said, but I couldn’t do it here.

“I should go, but...for the record...I really did believe you,” I murmured to the Vorta, and he gave me a slightly surprised, joyful look before nodding his head respectfully as I took my leave of the Captain’s office. I felt Dukat’s eyes follow me out of the room, no doubt wondering what the hell was going on.

I wasn’t about to tell him a damn thing. At the moment, it was all I could do to force myself to slow my pace to a moderate speed-walk on the way to Odo’s office. I felt so many conflicting emotions. I needed to talk with someone about this. Hell, I needed to talk to Weyoun about all this, but at the moment I just needed somebody patient enough to help me untangle my thoughts to the point where I could decipher them.

--

Odo had been just as surprised as I was when I had nearly talked his ears off about Weyoun’s sudden reappearance. Bless the man, he listened patiently and curiously as I let my thoughts spill out in all their chaotic glory. Asking questions where needed and adding in small comments or noises of acknowledgment where appropriate, Odo managed to corral my thoughts into a more manageable ball of clutter rather than the random yarns of emotion and threads of possibilities unrealized that they had been previously. We’d talked for nearly an hour before he managed to convince me to go back to my quarters and try to relax before I wore a hole in the deck plating of the floor in his office.

I followed his advice, reaching my quarters in almost a daze. When the door hissed closed behind me, I nearly collapsed onto the sofa in the middle of my living space. How does a person apologize to another for not being able to save them? What was I supposed to say? My guilt had been consuming me for nearly a year, and I’d been trying to do as Odo suggested and forgive myself, but...it wasn’t that simple. Nothing worth doing was ever that simple.

After some indeterminable amount of time spent lost in swirling thoughts of over-analysis, my door chime sounded. Reflexively, I called for whoever it was to enter, only looking up when the person paused silently in the doorway in my peripheral vision. I couldn’t disguise the emotions that washed over me when I realized it was Weyoun. A soft, nervous smile spread across his lips, and I couldn’t quite make my mouth work for a moment. 

“Forgive me for interrupting your solitude, but may I join you, Lieutenant?” He asked with a hopeful expression. I could do no more than nod my head quietly and gesture to the open seat beside me on the sofa. Looking as tentative as I felt, the Vorta walked slowly over and perched delicately on the cushion facing me. Clearing my throat quietly, my voice came out as a shaky, broken rasp full of emotion.

“What can I do for you, Weyoun?” I asked quietly, and I couldn’t help but feel like this interaction carried some unspoken meaning...some extra weight that felt ready to burst forth from both our chests like a butterfly from its chrysalis.

“‘Do’? Oh no, my dear. I was just hoping that we could talk,” he said, and all at once, the significance hit me. Our interaction in the mess hall of the Defiant. He was mirroring my own words back at me from that day. Something was cracking in my chest.

“Of course. If you wish to talk, then talk we shall,” I said repeating his own words back at him from that day so long ago and drawing a warm, joyful smile to his lips - one that met his eyes even as my own began to brim with unshed tears. My voice came out as a whisper when I forced it to work. “Weyoun...I’m so sorry. If I’d known what Omet’iklan was planning, I’d have never allowed him near you.”

The Vorta looked absolutely bewildered as a few tears finally began sliding down my cheeks, and he took up my hands carefully with his.

“You couldn’t have known. No one could have known, except Omet’iklan. You have no reason to apologize to me,” he said as though it should have been obvious, and perhaps it should have been. “Besides, it doesn’t matter if I die. I’m a Vorta - a clone. As I explained to Captain Sisko after you left his office, the Weyoun on the Defiant was the fourth of my line. I am the fifth.”

His explanation made sense, but...there was something so casually callous about a life being considered expendable. That troubled me deeply. Before I could think better of it, I’d dropped my lips to his wrists, placing a soft kiss on both before looking back up and meeting his astonished gaze.

“But it does matter. Your life does matter, Weyoun. Every second, every breath...all of it matters, no matter what the Founders have told you,” I said in a tone that brooked no argument. The look on his face was adorable as he slowly nodded his head. He was so innocently trying to accept what I was saying that I almost forgot for a split second that it was his own life that he was trying to accept as being non-expendable.

“Why are you being so kind to me?” He asked in a curious, yet slightly suspicious tone. At my look of confusion, he licked his lips quickly and explained. “Everyone has a reason for being kind - usually it’s a desire for something in return. What is it you really want from me?”

I couldn’t disguise the confusion that lanced through me at his question. Had I done something to come across that way to him, or was this behavior so commonplace for him that this suspicion was his knee-jerk reaction to someone being kind to him?

“What are you talking about? I don’t want anything from you, Weyoun. I never have.” I searched his eyes for some form of an answer and was met with something not so surprising. There was vulnerability beneath his suspicion. He was trying to protect himself. “I’m kind to you because you deserve kindness. There’s no ulterior motive. I have no reason to want to manipulate you, and even if I did, I respect you too much to ever try. Like I said on the Defiant, we’re equals, and I intend to treat you as such. I apologize if I’ve ever given the impression that I was only being kind so that I could get things from you. That was never my intention with any of our interactions, nor will it ever be.”

Was that too honest of an answer? Probably, but even as I finished speaking something changed in his expression. There was some slight shame in place of the suspicion from before.

“Forgive me. I should be the one apologizing to you. Being a diplomat working alongside the Cardassians naturally makes one more suspicious than is normal. I forgot to whom I was speaking for a moment,” he murmured as a lavender blush colored his cheeks. “I...really did come here to talk, not to accuse you of...unpleasantness.”

I noted that he was still holding my hands in his, and I gave his fingers a gentle squeeze as I smiled at him.

“Of course. I’m always happy to talk with you,” I answered in a quiet, much-too-open tone. “Was there something in particular that you had in mind?”

“You mentioned in the Captain’s office that you believed me, and...well, I couldn’t help but wonder if you’d had your parentage confirmed?” He asked, and I nodded my head. A proud sort of glee trickled over his face, and he looked at me expectantly.

“I had the station’s doctor compare part of my genetic structure with Odo’s, and he was able to confirm that I am half-Changeling. It was pretty big news when it was discovered, but obviously, word hasn’t left the station yet. Otherwise, Dukat would know,” I said, and Weyoun gave a small smirk.

“Your Captain explained it to him once you’d left, and he was rather surprised when I confirmed he was telling the truth. He’s accused me of withholding vital information, but it wasn’t vital that he know who you really are. If...I may ask an impertinent question?” He asked as his tone turned slightly more hesitant. “You needn’t answer if you feel that it’s too personal, but...I’ve been curious ever since my activation.”

“Go right ahead. If I have an answer that I can give to you, I will,” I said wondering what could have plagued him for so long, assuming he was activated not long after the clone preceding him was killed. Weyoun took a steadying breath and looked almost sheepish as he opened his mouth.

“On the Defiant...When I first beamed in with the Jem’Hadar, you changed your eyes to look like mine,” he said, and I nodded my head encouragingly. “May I ask why you did that? Please do not misunderstand, it is an honor to be mimicked in such a manner, but usually circumstances are rather more dire when such an action occurs.”

It was my turn to blush. I knew the answer damn well, but I didn’t know if he’d be offended by it or not.

“I...To tell you the truth, I...was curious,” I admitted. Taking a steadying breath, I continued on in a quiet, slightly embarrassed voice. “Your eyes are so striking...so beautiful. I was so focused on the shape and the shade that I...I’d meant to wait until I was in my quarters to see what it felt like, but...well...”

I trailed off with a sheepish shrug, averting my eyes.

“I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable,” I muttered, and one of Weyoun’s hands lifted up and tilted my chin up.

“You didn’t. I promise. What...What did it feel like?” He asked with curiosity and a hint of reverence in his tone. I was a bit taken aback. Nobody ever asked what it felt like before.

“Oh. I...Sorry, nobody has ever asked what changing feels like before now,” I stammered for a moment trying to gather my thoughts. Weyoun gave me a patient, encouraging nod, and I had a thought. “I...may be able to answer you better, if...Would you mind if I tried again?”

He looked as though I’d just offered him some form of holy sacrament. With a silent nod of his head, Weyoun lowered his hand from beneath my chin. Before it could drop entirely, I caught it in mine and looked up into his eyes. I felt my heart speed up a little as I focused on the shape and color of his eyes. I willed away the natural shade of my irises in favor of the ones so focused on my face. From my own experience watching my transformations in the mirror, I knew the second my eyes began to change in a way that Weyoun could see. He gasped quietly and I tried with all my might not to blink so he’d be able to see the full transformation process.

I’d never showed anyone the full process before, only the before and after. Being this open with the Vorta felt like I was baring a wound to him and just trusting that he wouldn’t pour salt in it.

“I-It feels...” I blushed at how unstable my voice had come out. “It feels new...soft...”

Weyoun’s breathing sped up slightly when I brought his hand to my lips.

“It’s exhilarating,” I breathed, but when I looked back up I found him closer than I’d expected. My own breath stuttered as I searched for the right thing to say, for some other way to describe what the transformation felt like.

“And intimate?” Weyoun asked in a tone that suggested he hadn’t really meant to say it out loud. His face went a slightly darker shade of purple, but I didn’t give him a moment to regret what he’d done. I nodded my head and reached carefully up to cup one of his burning cheeks, feeling my heart clench when he leaned into my touch.

He was so gentle...so beautiful when he was encouraged and safe. Feeling like this about a Dominion ambassador could be dangerous. Slowly, carefully, as though I might shy away, Weyoun leaned forward and touched his forehead to mine. His breath fanned softly against my skin as he spoke so lightly that his words would have been easily carried off in a slight breeze.

“Founders, I missed you.” His voice was rough with emotion as both our eyes fluttered shut.

“I missed you too. I-I thought I’d never see you again...that I’d lost you forever,” I admitted in the same quiet tone he’d used. There was so much more that I needed to say, but my words didn’t feel like they were strong enough. Weightlessly, all I could do was take shaky breath after shaky breath, reveling in the nearness to a man of whom I should be much warier. He worked for the Dominion. I should be distancing myself from him, not wishing I could take away all the pain the Founders had inflicted upon him.

“You’ll never lose me. No matter how many of me are activated, I’ll always find my way back to you,” he muttered, and his words sounded uncomfortably like a confession of something that neither of us could afford given the circumstances. But...I couldn’t deny the effect his statement had on me. Silently, I brought my other hand up so I was cupping both his cheeks in my palms.

“You’ll always have a place with me,” I whispered, and it was his turn to let out a trembling exhale of a breath. A few short moments of silence passed comfortingly before my door chime sounded, startling us out of whatever spell we’d fallen under. Reluctant to move, I lowered my hands carefully to Weyoun’s chest, keeping my touch as light as a feather. “Who is it?”

“An old friend.” I groaned quietly as I recognized the voice. Dukat. Leaning back a bit from Weyoun, I gave him an apologetic look that I hoped said more than I could safely voice at that moment. Lowering my hands from his chest back into his grasp, I gave the Vorta’s fingers a gentle squeeze as I called for him to enter. There was enough distance between us now that we looked like we’d been doing nothing more than having a rather intense discussion as Dukat strode in, arrogance coloring his every step. I remembered just a split second too late that I’d yet to change my eyes back to their normal shape and color. Dukat smirked as he obviously saw the remnants of purple fading from my irises. “So...when do I get a...personal demonstration of your abilities, Lieutenant? If you are servicing the Dominion’s most important members, then you should remember that Cardassia is now a vital part of the Dominion.”

“There’s no need to be crude, Dukat. We were just talking,” Weyoun said with a hint of poison in his tone. His grip tightened almost imperceptibly on my hands, and it occurred to me that the Vorta was attempting to protect me.

“The Lieutenant and I used to talk quite often when I was here on the station, but never so...intimately,” Dukat murmured. “We spent months together bonding over Ziyal’s care, and yet you never once sought more. What has the Vorta promised you? Hm? What is he giving you in exchange for your...kindness?”

“Nothing. Good people don’t need a reason or incentive to be kind to others, Dukat. That’s something you’ll never understand,” I answered with a defiant tilt of my chin. The Cardassian let out a raspy, mischievous laugh at my tone, cutting my patience off at the source. “Either tell me what you want or leave. I’m busy.”

“I can see that,” he taunted as he walked slowly over to the sofa where we were seated, stopping only a few feet away. “I came to see for myself if what the Captain and Weyoun told me about your heritage was true.”

“About one of my parents being a Changeling, you mean?” At his nod of confirmation, I gave Weyoun a glance. “Well, it’s true. I didn’t know myself until about a year ago. Now, if that’s all, I’d appreciate it if you’d-”

“Not quite. You see, an ability like that could be quite useful to the Dominion...to Cardassia...to me...” he trailed off with the insinuation, and I felt my stomach turn. “I’m sure you’d like to spend more time with the Ambassador, here, and Cardassia is quite lovely this time of year. You’d have every luxury that your position affords you...”

“Not a chance, Dukat. Now get out of my quarters while I still allow it,” I snarled, and his eyes narrowed.

“Are you threatening the head of the Cardassian government?” He asked in a quiet, dangerous tone.

“No. Just giving some life-saving advice to a man who claims he’s an old friend,” I answered as I reluctantly released Weyoun’s hands and brought myself to my full height. There was no way in hell I was going to allow Dukat to intimidate me in my own quarters. “Now. Get out.”

With a last smirk, the Cardassian gave me a half-bow dripping with sarcasm.

“As you wish...Founder.” Having uttered his sardonic parting jibe, Dukat strode out of my quarters every bit as arrogant as when he entered. I let out a breath that I hadn’t been aware I’d been holding. Trust Dukat to spoil a moment like that so spectacularly. A quiet call of my name from the Vorta still seated on my sofa knocked me out of my thoughts, and I turned to see him looking up at me with concern written across his features.

“Are you alright?” Weyoun asked quietly, and I took my seat again.

“I’m fine. Dukat just takes some sick sort of joy in trying to get under my skin. I’m sorry. I’ll tell the computer not to allow any interruptions in future,” I muttered, regretting that the two of us had gotten so close only for Dukat to trample the moment to dust under his standard-issue Cardassian uniform boots.

“There’s no need to apologize. I know quite well how tactlessly he can behave,” Weyoun commiserated, and with a small, warm smile he looked into my eyes. “Thank you for allowing me to witness something so miraculous and personal. Would you consider having dinner with me tomorrow night, my dear?”

I hated how effortlessly he could make me smile.

“Only if you promise Dukat won’t be invited,” I said with a playful wink so it would be obvious that I was teasing. He let out a surprised laugh and placed a hand gently over one of mine.

“That is easily accomplished. Nothing turns the stomach more than that man droning on and on during the main course about how he was Bajor’s savior,” he said in a conspiratorially low voice, even though there was nobody who could have overheard us. A quiet chuckle escaped me at the mental image of Weyoun’s beautiful eyes rolling in exasperation when Dukat wasn’t looking. “I...I’ve taken up too much of your time tonight as it is. I should let you rest. No doubt it has been a long day, and my reappearance was most likely a shock.”

“A pleasant surprise,” I corrected turning my hand palm up to grasp his. I looked up to his eyes and felt my questions die in my throat. I couldn’t have feelings like this for him. “Thank you for taking the time to come and speak with me.”

“Always, my dear. I look forward to dinner tomorrow,” he said bringing my hand to his lips. I echoed the sentiment, and with a soft smile, Weyoun made his way out of my quarters. With a sigh, I dropped my head into my hands. What the hell was I to make of all this? I’d spent a year mourning a man I barely knew who’d done me the singular kindness of telling me about my father. Now he was alive again...able to answer questions again...and he wasn’t angry at me for not having been able to save him. Not for the first time, I wished this station had a counselor I could talk to. As it was, all I did - all I could ever do - was talk to Odo and spend more time staring out the viewport in my quarters as I contemplated what to do.

--

When the next night rolled around, I got changed out of my uniform as soon as I got off-duty. Throwing on one of my favorite comfortable yet still presentable outfits, I tried to make myself look a bit more casual than my usual pin-straight, professional, on-duty self. Normally, I was quite a private person, choosing to spend most of my downtime in my quarters or in the company of a select few friends. This - having dinner with a Dominion ambassador-turned friend - was entirely new to me. Was friend the right word? Could it ever be considering how Weyoun’s genetic coding practically forced him to think of me as better than him? I had been thinking about that a lot since the night before. Had his offer of dinner come from his own desire to get to know me, or was it a desire forced on him by the Changelings’ alterations to his DNA? I’d have to be careful. I couldn’t be as casually intimate as I would be with my own friends, because it wasn’t yet clear to me how consent would work with him. If I asked permission to hug him, would he accept because he wanted the hug, or would he accept because he thought it would make me - a being he saw as the child of his gods - happy?

The door chime shook those thoughts away, and as I straightened my outfit one last time, I called for my guest to come in. Taking a small breath, I turned just in time to see Weyoun walking gracefully through my door. The moment his eyes fell on me, he drew a surprised breath. Right, he’d never seen me out of uniform before. He smiled warmly and began a slight bow before stopping himself.

He remembered.

“My apologies. Habits are rather hard to break. I must ask your patience,” he said, and I smiled as I shook my head.

“Don’t apologize. I know from experience how long it can take to break a pattern of behavior that you’re used to. And Weyoun...you’ll always have my patience,” I promised as I walked over to him. A slight purple blush colored his cheeks and he raised one of my hands to his lips.

“I hope you don’t mind, but I thought you might like to have dinner together in a more private setting than Quark’s or the Replimat,” he said as he ushered me out of my quarters toward some destination known only to him. We chatted a little on the way, and soon we came across one of the empty conference rooms. Weyoun opened the doors, and when I looked at him in confusion, he just smiled. “I asked Odo for a favor.”

My curiosity got the better of me, and I walked inside. The table was set rather nicely, and there was a tray of various drinks from Quark’s at the side. Trust a diplomat to set up a lovely evening like this. He was used to schmoozing other ambassadors, so why had I expected anything different?

“Weyoun...this is lovely, but you didn’t have to go to all this trouble for me,” I stammered as I turned to face him. The soft, hopeful look on his face froze me in place as he moved slowly toward me.

“Oh, it was no trouble, I assure you. Do you really like it?” He asked with a tentative smile, and it almost hurt to see just how much he wanted to make me happy. I took his hands carefully in mine and smiled as I looked into his eyes.

“Of course I do, but...all this...is it what you want too? I want you to take your own desires into consideration when we socialize, not just what you think mine might be.” At my words, Weyoun gave my fingers a gentle squeeze.

“I am taking them into account. You told me that you’d rather have my honesty than my devotion, and to be entirely honest with you, this is what I want this evening, as well as what I thought you might want,” he said with a tone of sincerity that I thought - and hoped - was genuine. “I may not know what some of this food is, but Quark assures me they are dishes you’ve ordered before in his establishment. I’ve not had the opportunity to sample many Alpha Quadrant dishes outside Cardassian cuisine.”

“Well, I’m certain we can find something to your liking,” I said with a smile as the two of us took a seat at the table to explore what he’d obtained for us. As we sampled dishes, Weyoun explained that the Vorta hadn’t the ability to taste things as I would perceive it. He could experience textures, but flavors themselves were severely dulled. When he mentioned offhandedly that it was part of how the Founders coded the Vorta, I tried my very best to hide my frustration and indignance on his behalf. It was such a pleasant evening that I didn’t want to ruin it with my philosophical musings about a situation I could do nothing to change. Weyoun must have been able to read some of my conflicting feelings, however, because he gave me a little smile.

“We can taste rippleberries and kava nuts, though. They make excellent snacks and there are some rather complex recipes that the Vorta have developed over the years,” he explained, and that at least made me relax somewhat. They weren’t totally denied food-based pleasure, then. I’d have to find out if there was a way I could get some of each. Perhaps I could find a way to make some Alpha Quadrant style dishes out of them...

Once we’d finished eating and were engaged in conversation, I finally got up the courage to ask something I’d been wondering about since the day we’d first met. Biting my lower lip nervously, I took a deep breath and gave voice to my nagging curiosity.

“Weyoun? I...I know you said the Dominion had followed my father’s trail in the Alpha Quadrant, and...well, I was wondering if there was anything you could tell me about him?” My voice came out shakier than I would have liked. “It’s just that...all my life I’ve thought he was dead. I thought there was no chance I could ever know anything about him because the only one who could have answered my questions was my mother. She died when I was little, so I really have nobody else I could ask.”

Weyoun gave me a look that I couldn’t quite decipher before clearing his throat quietly.

“I’m afraid I don’t know his current whereabouts - I’d have to speak with the Founders about that - but I can tell you what little I know of him if you like?” He offered, and I gave him an encouraging smile and nod of my head. “Very well then. I suppose I should begin with the fact that his name was Meris. Not many Founders choose names, but ones who enjoy spending time both in and out of the Great Link do sometimes make a selection.”

Meris. When the Vorta paused, I almost subconsciously muttered the name, testing the syllables as I processed the information.

“From what I understand, your father had always been rather willing to take risks. He was wise and patient until his curiosity was piqued. Once that happened, he had a one-track mind. He would hunt down his answers with a singular determination. Anyone who stood in his way was done away with.” At that last sentence, I could practically feel my blood freeze in my veins. My eyes widened a bit and I thought I’d misheard him - surely I had, right?

“Wh-What do you mean?” I stammered, and Weyoun looked at me curiously as if he couldn’t understand what had startled me so completely. He tilted his head and his brows furrowed together, but he answered my question nonetheless.

“Well, he was biologically curious. Meris was one of the main reasons that the Vorta cloning process was made possible. Experimental genetics fascinated him, hence his interest in the process which allowed Changelings to have offspring with solids,” he explained and I felt a singular growing horror.

“He...H-He’s the one who started the Vorta cloning?”

“Well, not entirely, but he did make the final breakthrough that made the process possible,” Weyoun said, and even though I wanted so desperately for him to stop - for this all to be an elaborate lie - I knew I had to hear the full story. Not knowing might be easier, but if I were ever to fully comprehend where I came from - what might be lurking in my DNA - I had to make it through this. I had to hear it all. “The cloning would have been entirely useless if future clones retained no memories, so your father managed to create the final step that allowed clones to keep their memories.”

“...And...how exactly did he test his theories?” I was terrified of the answer. There was no way it could be anything ethical.

“Meris activated and...well, de-activated several dozens of clones until he observed successful memory retention,” Weyoun said, and I felt my stomach turn.

“‘De-activated’? Y-You mean he killed them?” My words came out as barely a whisper.

“Well, yes, but they were just clones. There was no harm done,” Weyoun said calmly, and all at once, it became almost impossible to breathe. Before I realized it, I’d pushed out the chair I’d been seated in and paced the length of the room, trying in vain to corral my thoughts into something more manageable. I’d been under no delusions that the Changelings had done some horrible things, but this...I knew somebody would have done it, but my father? I hadn’t been ready for that. Vaguely I was aware of Weyoun calling my name before his hands came to rest on my shoulders. When had he gotten up? His purple eyes bored into mine and he looked visibly worried for me. “What’s wrong? I thought you’d be proud to hear of your father’s accomplishments.”

“‘Accomplishments’?” I barely breathed the word. “Weyoun, my father was a murderer. To throw away lives simply to satisfy scientific research...that’s not ethical. That’s not right. Every life is precious and important, and the Vorta’s lives are not any less significant just because they’re clones.”

I hadn’t realized I was crying until Weyoun’s hands moved carefully up to cup my cheeks as his thumbs brushed away my tears. After a moment’s silence, he spoke quietly.

“You really aren’t like the other Founders, you know. You’re gentle...so full of love, even for those whom you will never know,” he sounded deep in thought, as if he hadn’t really meant to speak at all. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you. I forget how unfamiliar you are with the Dominion’s practices and how jarring this all must seem.”

“That’s one way to put it,” I said quietly. “But you...Weyoun, you really don’t need to apologize. I’m the one who asked and I suppose I should have been more prepared for an answer that I didn’t want to hear. You were just trying to be helpful.”

I placed my hands over his and forced a smile through the last of my tears. I could hardly believe that my father was responsible for the perception that Vorta’s lives were expendable. What else had he done? Had he taken away their sense of taste? Encoded their unwavering loyalty? Previously I thought I wanted to meet my father if he was still alive, but after Weyoun’s disclosure, I wasn’t so sure anymore.

“Is there anything I can do to ease your mind?” He asked in a quiet, almost intimate voice as his eyes searched my face for answers I might be unwilling or too afraid to give. It struck me that despite whatever horrors my father and the rest of the Changelings had subjected the Vorta to, Weyoun had still managed to hold onto some sort of kindness. Whether he pitied me, thought kindness would get something out of me, or if it came from the goodness of his heart, Weyoun had shown more consideration and concern for me than anyone in his position would reasonably be expected to. The child of the person who caused so much of his suffering...I deserved his hatred, not his compassion, and yet he still gave it to me seemingly freely.

To be frank, I was in awe of his strength. He endured so much from the beings he thought of as gods, yet he never complained. I had to find some way to fix this or to at least right some of my father’s wrongs. I refused to turn out like him - like the rest of the Changelings. I was so lost in thought that I’d nearly forgotten that Weyoun had asked me a question. Turning my head just far enough that I could press a soft kiss onto his wrist, I heard his breath catch.

“I’ll be alright. That just wasn’t what I was expecting, to be honest. It’s just a bit of an adjustment from assumption to reality.” My words came out quietly, and Weyoun gave me a silent nod. “Thank you for asking me to dinner tonight and for putting up with my rather ill-timed curiosity. I really have enjoyed the time we’ve gotten to spend together.”

“My dear, it has been my pleasure. You make wonderful company. I only wish my stay here could last longer so that I might have the opportunity to spend more time with you.” I couldn’t help but agree with him. I knew that his position within the Dominion meant that he would be headed back to Cardassia as soon as the situation with Ghemor was resolved, but...I wanted so badly for him to stay. As odd as it was, there was something comforting about his presence. He made me feel safe and seen in a way I’d never experienced before.

“Then we’d better make the most of what little time we do have,” I said with a warm smile, and Weyoun looked positively elated.

“Oh, we shall! Make no mistake, there is a multitude of things I’d like to experience on this station before I return to Cardassia. Perhaps you could assist me?” At his question, I agreed readily. I could easily indulge some of his more innocent interests, assuming they didn’t compromise security of course. “Excellent! Simply delightful! Thank you, my dear. Now, it is getting late, and I fear that if I don’t bring you back to your quarters soon, I might be tempted to keep you here all night. May I escort you back to your quarters?”

“Only if it’s no trouble. I don’t want you to worry about it if you’re tired,” I said, and he waved a hand to dismiss my concerns. Offering me his arm, Weyoun gave me a playful little wink. Judging by the blush that heated my cheeks, I was in trouble. He shouldn’t be able to get to me this easily. I continued to muse on that as the Vorta walked me back to my quarters arm-in-arm. This was quite the conundrum. Once we reached my door, the two of us stopped, and I turned to face him.

“Thank you for the lovely evening, my dear,” Weyoun murmured as he brought my hand to his lips as he had at the start of the night. “I hope you sleep well.”

“Thank you. I hope you do, too,” I said with a smile, and all too soon, he was bidding me goodnight with a soft expression on his face and walking gracefully toward his own quarters. There was still so much to say...too much for one visit alone.

[pluralzalpha]

Galactic Gazetteer: Iconia

Class: M

Quadrant: Beta

Location: Romulan Neutral Zone

Appearance: TNG "Contagion"

Fun fact: Once the centre of the vast Iconia Empire, which ruled the galaxy using bespoke wormholes called Gateways. The Iconians were wiped out 200,000 years ago (unless you believe Star Trek Online).

[usstrekart]

“To the Death” (S04E23, Stardate 49904.2) is a fantastic action piece that gives some long overdue character building for the Jem'Hadar. We get continuity connections with TNG, the introduction of Weyoun and a lot of battle that isn't just stunning people with phasers. High stakes all around.

I was going to include the Iconian Gateway inside the Defiant and then put the weapons inside that in my poster, but it just felt too busy. 

[thegreaterlink]

Reviewing Star Trek TNG - S2E11 "Contagion"

I'd like to note that this is the first episode to mention Captain Picard's fondness for "tea, Earl Grey, hot."

THE PREMISE

The Enterprise receives a distress call from its sister ship, the USS Yamato, and rendezvous with them (for realsies this time) in the Neutral Zone, only for the other ship to suddenly suffer a warp core breach and and explode. A Romulan Warbird decloaks and demands that they retreat, but Captain Picard refuses to leave until they've determined what happened to the Yamato.

Picard reviews the logs made by the Yamato's Captain Varley to see if the Romulans were connected to the Yamato's destruction. However, he discovers that Varley believed that he had found the fabled planet Iconia within the Neutral Zone, and that the Romulans might have been trying to acquire Iconian technology.

MY REVIEW

If I had a nickel for every episode where the Enterprise encountered for the Yamato only for it to disappear, then I'd have two nickels, which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice, right?

Plus, after the so-bad-it's-goodness of the previous episode, I was almost reluctant to return to normality.

Anyway, immediately after what happened in the plot summary, Wesley Crusher visits Picard in his office. The scene's primary purpose is Wesley asking about the Iconians - a highly technologically advanced race which were rumoured to be able to magically appear throughout the galaxy - but Picard quickly sees through this façade and asks Wesley why he's really there. Wesley reveals that he can't stop thinking about the deaths of the Yamato's crew, and asks Picard how he and the senior crew can handle such things so easily. Picard makes it clear that it is not easy to deal with such things, but they have been trained to do so, as he will soon be. It's a good scene that lets us see past the polished veneer of the senior crew.

The scene ends with Picard ordering a certain type of tea at a certain temperature from the replicator, and receiving a potted plant. This is the first of many system malfunctions aboard the Enterprise reminiscent of those on the Yamato. And so we have our plot - the crew have to find out what happened to the Yamato so they can fix the Enterprise and get the hell out of Dodge before the Romulans attack again.

The Enterprise enters the planet's orbit and a probe is automatically launched from the surface, but Geordi recognises a similar incident from the Yamato's logs and races to the bridge - enduring a turbolift malfunction on the way there, in a scene where I think Levar Burton did some of his own stunts - to tell them they need to destroy it, which they do, since the probe had been carrying the same computer virus that destroyed the Yamato. But the Enterprise is already infected because part of the virus was stored in the Yamato's logs - wouldn't it have been simpler writing-wise just to have the probe scan the Enterprise for a bit before Geordi realises what's happening, and have the ship get infected that way?

Anyhoo, they send an away team (I wonder how many times I've had to write some variant of that) consisting of Worf, Data and Picard - yes, for once Picard himself is going on the away mission instead of Riker - down to the planet’s surface, and discover a gateway which allows for instantaneous travel to different locations - that reminds me, I need to watch Treasure Planet again at some point - including the bridges of both the Enterprise and the Romulan ship from earlier, which is how the Iconians were able to seemingly appear out of nowhere.

How is this gateway able to access the bridge of the ships? Is it because they're nearby? And why would the Iconians design it to constantly cycle between the locations? You could make an argument for Treasure Planet stealing this idea, but at least that movie had a concrete explanation for how the portal worked!

And oh yeah, immediately after the away team beamed down the Romulan ship comes back. The crew aren't sure if the Romulans arming their weapons is intentional or part of the system failures cuz of the Yamato's logs, but either way they have to keep the shields raised, which prevents them from beaming the away team back. Also the Iconian computers infect Data with the virus and reduces him to his most basic functions.

Can you tell I'm getting bored? And this episode started out so well, too...

Picard orders Worf to use the gateway to take Data back to the Enterprise while he activates the auto-destruct - they're still not sure if the gateway even works properly at this point, so why it never occurs to them to just throw something through first is beyond me - then Picard uses the gateway to go to the Romulan ship but finds it's set to auto-destruct and he can't stop it cuz of the virus.

Meanwhile on the Enterprise, Data reboots himself to get his systems back online, and they realise that they can just do the same with the Enterprise's systems to fix the ship. So they do it, it works, they beam Picard back aboard, send instructions to the Romulans on how to fix their ship, then get the hell out of Dodge in case they can't fix it fast enough. Roll credits.

And the moral of the story is: if your device isn't working, just turn it off and on again. If it works on your Android, it’ll work on your computer. It still applies in the 24th century.

Thanks, I’ll be here all night.

5/10 - Good opening and some decent ideas here and there, but not much else.

Previous Episode | TNG Masterpost | Next Episode

[defconprime]

Skybox 30 Years of Star Trek Phase Three trading card number 230, "Iconian Gateway," 1996.

[stay-neurotic]

found this post on reddit, very well written and sums up my feelings perfectly about the tragedy of the jem'hadar. transcript under the cut

A Devil, a born Devil on whose nature, nurture can never stick, on whom my pain, humanly taken, all lost, quite lost. -Prospero, speaking of the monster Caliban, in The Tempest. -- My childhood boogeyman was the Borg. They'd make an appearance in late night syndication, and I'd be glued to the screen- but only through the holes in the blanket. They can still make me shiver, in the way that only childhood anxieties can. Body horror runs deep, and the Queen, in her first appearance- the devil given flesh as bondage temptress- is a delight.

But as an adult, among Trek's roster of villains, they aren't the ones who get under my skin and stay there. There's something hyperbolic about the Borg that makes it possible to set them aside. Metaphors for the all-consuming socio-political system of your particular nightmares aside, no ravening thousand-year-old robots are coming for my brains. The Borg are bad in a pure, Manichean sense- one imagines that whatever runs in all those extraneous tubes is some kind of spiritual ooze, black pile or demon tears or the agitated telekinetic snot from Ghostbusters II. They seem to have no conception of interacting with the universe save for the elimination of me-ness, via death or worse, and that's a proposition it's not challenging to morally frame. Picard's injunction that we not hesitate to fire at our formerly assimilated friends is naturally chilling- but also not a hard sell. It's the Jem'Hadar that have the power to unsettle me now. From one angle, this is a surprise. The Jem'Hadar are mooks, members of a class of character whose uniformity and separation from the business of living is purpose-built to ease the conscience of an audience watching their heroes gun them down in droves; death machines endowed an with unwavering loyalty to the bad guys that can only be cured with a ray gun. They're kith and kin to Imperial stormtroopers and Terminators- ugly mugs with bad aim. And yet. The writers were never more than an episode or two away from stripping away that balm, forcing characters and audience alike to stew in the unsolvable moral swamp of bad guys with worse parents, of good guys in the service of those who don't deserve them, of people bound to foul destinies, both by heritage and the conviction that heritage couldn't be helped on the part of those best equipped to help them. The Jem'Hadar have no one in their corner. The qualities that make the Jem'Hadar formidable- their easy devotion, their quick intelligence and curiosity- are rendered more valuable to the Founders because they have no intention of paying for them in the currency of social life in which they evolved. They are the plastic waste of sentient life, valued for a durability made more valuable to their owners by the ease with which it can be thrown away. They fight with the zeal and talents of people defending their families, their future, their ideals- but their lives, brief and uncultured and unsexed, have had those bits of autonomy excised. The only people who could help them are their enemies, and their efficacy in battle means those opponents have few opportunities to aid them amidst fending for their own lives. Assuming those opponents indeed cared to offer such aid. Feedback loops abound in the tragedy of the Jem'Hadar. O'Brien sees one infant Jem'Hadar filled with rage, and subsequently takes it upon himself to put an end to Bashir's experiments to free them from their white addiction- despite having an example in front of him suggesting both the biochemical possibility, and that Jem'Hadar so freed can at least contemplate a life without the Founders, with less casual brutality- a regime of self-destructive violence that Goran'Agar identifies as being the rules of the Vorta, and not their own. What would they be without the Vorta?

Nothing, of course, because no one would breed them. Rules seep in, and the Jem'Hadar, with no culture and no family, have none of their own to replace those of the Vorta. Conditioning is an inevitability. First Ramata'Klan can find no way to organize his short life around any notion but obedience to his Vorta, despite his full knowledge his contributions to the war are over, and the Vorta wants him dead, while Starfleet would let him live.

Assuming First Ramat'Klan believed the stories of Starfleet benevolence to people like him; it would be understandable if he did not. We saw a Jem'Hadar rebellion, attempting to secure an Iconian gateway, and our Starfleet crew, ostensibly heroes to underdogs elsewhere, instead saw a rabid beast off the chain, buying into a narrative that these were madmen securing a weapon of mass destruction, and not slaves securing the means to flee to freedom. And so they sign on with the slavedrivers.

Which was perhaps not an unreasonable play, given the view. Sisko and Co. spend a few days cuddled up with a Jem'Hadar squadron, and in that time they regularly threaten their rescuers, before murdering their commanding officer. Blood, at any price, it would seem.

Except, of course, when Ikat'ika refuses to beat Worf to death in 'By Inferno's Light' and is vaporized for his decency. He understood Worf, and there he found something kindred that he was loathe to destroy. History is replete with instances of fighting men coming to realize they share more in common with their opponents in the trenches than they did with their commanders- the WWI Christmas Truce comes to mind- and we see over and over the Jem'Hadar reaching towards the Klingons. Pity the Klingons never seem to reach back.

Much like the replicants of Blade Runner and BR 2049, their value to their captors is based around human qualities that, given a chance, would blossom into a longing for freedom and connection- but where would they find that chance, when their lives are so brief, and their ideas are not their own?

And that's why the Jem'Hadar bother me, now. My life is thankfully free of homogenizing swarms like the Borg. But the Jem'Hadar? They're a sci-fi amalgamation of every instance in life where a person who certainly deserves your humane pity may not deserve your trust- drug addicts and enemy soldiers and fellow citizens across political divides and family members in the grips of strange ideologies or mental illnesses, each with a laundry list of disadvantages and bad turns, heredity and circumstance and round and round. Those are adult fears, and adult problems, and adult sympathies.

And so, I watch on. What about you?

[aion-rsa]

Star Trek: Discovery Season 4 Episode 5 Easter Eggs & References

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This Star Trek: Discovery article contains spoilers for Season 4, Episode 5.

Following in the footsteps of Season 3, the first batch of episodes in Star Trek: Discovery Season 4 do two things: The overall story of the season-long arc is explored, but, the episode itself presents a standalone story in the classic Star Trek tradition. Last week, Tilly got her “Galileo Seven” moment, but this week, in “The Examples,” DISCO tackles a classic Trek ethical dilemma.

As Burnham and Book navigate the morality of saving prisoners on a doomed colony, “The Examples” front-loads the episode with a ton of callbacks and Easter eggs to the rest of the franchise. Here’s every Easter egg and big reference we spotted in Star Trek: Discovery Season 4, Episode 5…

USS Janeway

Right away, the episode hits us with a few starship names that sound familiar. The first is the USS Janeway, an obvious reference to Captain Janeway from Star Trek: Voyager, and more recently, Star Trek: Prodigy. Interestingly, however, the USS Janeway doesn’t appear to be of the souped-up 32nd Century “Intrepid Class” ships. Instead, it looks like it’s one of the new Constitution-class ships, kind of like the USS Armstrong, which was referenced in Episode 4.

Interestingly, although the Voyager-J is a 32nd Century Intrepid Class when this style of ship was incorporated into the game Star Trek: Online, a variant class was called “Janeway-class.”

The T’Pau

The other ship, which is almost certainly from Ni’Var, is called “the T’Pau.” This references the character T’Pau, first introduced in the TOS episode “Amok Time,” and later appeared in the Enterprise three-parter which began with “The Forge.” In the TNG episode “Unification I,” Geordi and Riker are also trying to analyze the wreckage of a Vulcan ship called the T’Pau, proving that this is one Easter egg Star Trek loves; naming Vulcan ships after the lady who officiated Spock’s wedding. 

Vance name-drops a lot of god-like alien species

If someone asks you if you are a space god, you say…yes! In trying to figure out various candidates as to who could have constructed the DMA, Admiral Vance throws out some very deep cuts to aliens who might have had the super-advanced tech to cook up this artificially constructed space wave of doom. Although the DMA kind of looks like V’ger from The Motion Picture, nobody mentions V’ger,and V’ger continues not to get the love it needs. 

But, Vance does mention the following four groups

Metrons– These were the god-like beings who forced Kirk to fight the Gorn on Cestus III in the TOS episode “Arena.” 

Nacene– A tricky one. This is the formal name for the “Caretaker” species from Voyager. Does DISCO love referencing Voyager or what?!

Iconian Empire- This one is such a deep cut, that, when it comes to actual visual canon, we’ve not even really seen the Iconian Empire. They originated in the TNG episode  “Contagion,” and in terms of onscreen canon are technically extinct. The big thing they’re known for is their “gateways,” which can instantly transport people across space. Not to be confused with the Tkon Empire, another super-powerful extinct empire from “The Last Outpost.”

Q Continuum – Vance says there hasn’t been contact with the Q in “600 years.” By this, we have to assume reported contact. The events of Picard take place over 700 years prior to Discovery seasons 3 and 4. So that checks out. But does this mean the Q have ignored the mere mortals of the galaxy for six centuries? Why?

Working with Aurelio

We’re told hotshot scientist Ruon Tarka (Shawn Doyle) is “working with Aurelio,” on research about the DMA. Aurelio is the human scientist, formally working for the Emerald Chain, introduced in Discovery Season 3. Although he doesn’t appear in this episode,  is played by longtime Discovery star, Kenneth Mitchell.

No Owosekun or Detmer up front

Notably, this episode is one of the first times we don’t see Owosekun and Detmer in their usual positions at the ops station, and at the helm. Instead, there are two new characters, upfront. This isn’t an Easter egg exactly, but it does mean that the crew of Discovery seems to finally be on some kind of sensible shift rotation. 

Tig Notaro in opening credits

Although Tig Notaro’s Jett Reno has appeared as a semi-regular since the start of Discovery Season 2, the opening credits for this episode seem to give her a promotion to series regular! Cool.

“Not harming the jahSepp”

Stamets mentions that he’s been giving notes to Ruon Tarka about “not harming the jahSepp.” This references the alien species, the jahSepp, who live inside of the mycelial network. The jahSepp were first revealed in Discovery Season 2, and for much of that season, took the form of May Ahearn (Bahia Watson), someone Tilly had known as a child. 

“The Examples” and the Prime Directive 

The premise of this episode of Discovery presents a somewhat classic Star Trek ethical dilemma. Although the government of this colony doesn’t fall under the Prime Directive, the people themselves are not Federation citizens. In all of Star Trek canon, the idea that a planet can be contacted, but not messed with is murky, and it almost always has to do with the planet being a non-Federation world. In Deep Space Nine, Sisko often had to take a step back from internal affairs on Bajor, even though he didn’t want to. In The Next Generation, Picard couldn’t directly influence the political affairs of the Klingon Empire, even though he totally did. But, on the other hand, when Worf murdered Duras, Picard was in a legal grey area; by Federation law it was illegal, but under Klingon law, it wasn’t at all.

Book’s negative reaction to Burnham granting autonomy that results in suicide isn’t an intentional Easter egg, but it does echo Lwaxana Troi’s reaction to ritualistic suicide in the TNG episode “Half a Life.” Interestingly, that planet, Kaelon II, was also a non-Federation government.

TLDR: When non-Federation planets are involved, Starfleet tends to get kind of Prime Directive-y, even if the exact rule doesn’t apply.

A reference to Battlestar Galactica, 1978?

This is probably a stretch, but the idea of symbolic prisoners, serving out entirely unfair sentences vaguely echoes an episode of the 1978 Battlestar Galactica called “The Long Patrol.” In it, Starbuck (Dirk Benedict) crashlands on a planet populated by prisoners who are in jail for crimes committed by their ancestors. As such, they all have names like “Bootlegger 137.” It also leads to the classic question: “what kind of crime is star-bucking?” Okay, BSG digression over.

“Counted Cards at a Tongo Club”

One of the prisoners in “The Examples,” mentioned that their crime was that they “counted cards at a tongo club.” Tongo is a game that first appeared on Deep Space Nine, and is, seemingly, a Ferengi game. Like many sci-fi card games (see, sabacc in Star Wars), the rules of tongo are a little odd. It is a card game, but it also has a spinning wheel element to it, too. In DS9, Dax was a tongo shark.

Culber’s burden…bridge crew always come back

In a show-stopping therapy session, David Cronenberg’s Dr. Kovich reminds Dr. Culber — and the audience — of a somewhat unresolved plot point. “You died,” Kovich says to Culber, and then mentions that his official file was fairly generic in terms of how Culber recovered from that experience, emotionally. This references the events of “Saints of Imperfection,” in Season 2 as well as “If Memory Serves…” But, more broadly, this addresses an interesting trope in Star Trek, which Lower Decks interestingly tackled this year, too. Very often in Trek canon, major characters come back from having died. In LDS Season 2, this was turned into an inside joke; insofar as junior officers would often be entirely in the dark as to why a dead character returned to life…and active duty immediately! 

With Culber and Kovich’s conversation in this episode does something similar: address a very common Star Trek trope, with a new level of scrutiny. This time though, what Kovich says is pretty smart: If someone did die and come back to life, they might develop a martyr complex right away. Which, oddly enough, explains quite a bit of Star Trek narratives from a physiological point of view. 

It’s a lot to unpack, but Kovich’s 10 minutes are up! 

Phaser beams 

When Burnham and Book disable the force field surrounding the prison, their phasers emit solid beams. This is a small thing, but this rarely happens in Discovery. Although solid beams from phasers are a staple of the franchise before the 21st century, the post-Abrams era has seen most phasers fire little pew-pew bolts. In the Season 2 finale of Discovery, “Such Sweet Sorrow Part 2,” we did see the Enterprise fire solid blue phaser beams, as it often did in TOS. In DISCO Season 3, we saw Burnham’s new phaser fire a solid blue beam when she was using it to cauterize a wound in her leg. And here again, Burnham and Book’s phasers are emitting solid beams, kind of like an old-school TNG effect.

It’s a small thing, but for longtime Trekkies, it’s pretty cool.

Risa

The biggest news in this episode is easily the introduction of Ruon Tarka (Shawn Doyle). While we have no idea what the deal is with that thing that Book spotted on his neck, we do know that the tattoo on his head means he’s from the planet Risa. In “The Examples,” he jokes dismissively about being from “the pleasure planet.” Risa was first introduced in the TNG episode, “Captain’s Holiday,” and has subsequently been referenced throughout the franchise.

Interestingly, there’s never really been a major character on Star Trek from Risa though. As Tarka implies, it’s a place people visit, but we haven’t ever really heard of anyone leaving there. It seems unlikely that Discovery is going to take a holiday to Risa anytime soon, but if Tarka sticks around this season, we could see the planet again. For him, Risa isn’t a vacation. It’s home.

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Star Trek: Discovery airs new episodes on Thursdays on Paramount+.

The post Star Trek: Discovery Season 4 Episode 5 Easter Eggs & References appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[mylittleredgirl]

My first thought once Control started taking over was the Borg. I know the first time the Federation encountered the Borg was with be Picard much later on but do you think it’s possible Control could have been an earlier version of the Borg? Or maybe the Borg encountered Control later on and took on the similarities? Like the nanoprobes and resistance is pointless stuff?

Okay, I’ve only seen the season once, and spent most of that time going “oh my god, it’s star trek, ohglaksj;lgmy gOD” and crying about Michael Burnham, and I usually have to watch something twice before critical thinking kicks in. (In this case, critical thinking may also require charts and graphs to keep track of the various AIs, time is a fluid, distance has no meaning, etc.)

That said, I don’t think the Borg are either the direct cause or effect of Control, because:

as far as we know, the Borg are hecka ancient, and 

have had assimilation technology for a long long time, and

always exist as partly organic entities, whereas Control didn’t have a host until Leland. 

Plus, Control itself is a singular rather than collective intelligence, and doesn’t seem to be interested in assimilating technology or people it encounters except as a means to get closer to the Sphere data. 

So What Is It?

Control doesn’t seem like it could be purely a random result of Section 31 giving a computer too much power and turning the holodeck safeties off. It’s so wildly different from Federation tech that it has to be either an AI of external origin that just took over Section 31’s Threat Assessment system as a way to develop itself, or some kind of unique hybrid AI that developed within the Control computer as a result of alien influence. 

It reminds me of the Iconian probe from the TNG episode “Contagion” that destroyed the Yamato by virulently rewriting its software. The Iconians are also hecka ancient and traveled everywhere in the known galaxy via the Gateways, so the chance of something Iconian being assimilated by the Borg early in their development? Totally possible, and my new ~vast and far-reaching theory~ is that the Iconians were indirectly responsible for the Borg.

And Section 31, being in the business of gathering as much information as possible and telling nobody about it, may have encountered an Iconian device and been like “Control examine this thing” and then Evil Foreshadowing Music starts to play. 

Emergency Backup Theory that takes up way less space on your dash: The NX-01 Enterprise encountered a handful of Borg that were thrown back in time from First Contact. Information about them has apparently been lost by Starfleet In General by the 24th century, but Control could have data about nanoprobe-style assimilation of an organic host in its systems from that for the AI to exploit. 

[astreljourne]

USS Juice: Enter the gateway.

You cross the threshold of the Iconian Gateway into the Solanea Dyson Sphere.