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helisol · 3 years

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Wait so.. link to this quodo fic you mentioned in your tags?? I’m intrigued :DD

its only an idea but i will HAPPILY ramble about it in detail under this read more because i never finish writing fics but i do love sharing my notes.

they get Pretty Extensive considering this clocked in at 2k words. so strap in.

tl;dr: karaoke night gone wild leads to garashir and quodo setting each other up for holodeck shenanigans

so basically quark has acquired a karaoke program. everyone on ds9 is going mad about it and it's keeping the holosuites booked out for weeks

the main squad decides to try it out and they just jam to a mix of human, klingon and bajoran music. but lets be real it's mostly human music because i have a mighty need to see captain benjamin sisko tear up the dancefloor to Earth Wind & Fire’s September. so sue me.

anyway everyone has to sing, even odo, even garak and they all have a blast. the only person who is notably absent is Quark because Quark has a bar to run and Quark can't indulge in mindless fun activities when he has money to make.

Unless… Odo challenges him and he has to prove that Odo is wrong.

so yeah quark checks on the gang to see how they like this “Hooman Kara-oke” and if he can sell them some drinks and everyone is like “hey you should sing. just one song. we won't even laugh about your bad ferengi singing! we promise!"

and quark is about to say "ferengi voices arent that bad. im still not gonna sing tho."

but odo is ahead of the game and insults his grating voice and how it could only be worse in song. and because this is quark he’s like “actually fuck you. now I WILL sing.”

so he snatches the mic from whoever was about to go next and fucking Crushes It.

while odo starts Looking Respectfully everyone else is just going "woooooo! go quark!" which makes quark just get even more into it

Takes His Jacket Off, Drops It On The Floor, Dances With The Microphone Stand. The Works. and he's also enjoying himself like "haha! suck it odo! i'm a good performer, it's how I make money!"

until he actually looks at Odo and Odo is Looking Back and then he’s like “wait what the fuck why is he looking at me” and Promptly Messes Up A Step And Falls Off The Stage-

so now quark has a twisted ankle and julian has to take him to the infirmary, which bums out quite literally Everyone and the gathering disperses, leaving only Garak and Odo.

garak as we know is but a simple tailor, but he’s Observant and his little lizard eyes did spy odo looking at quark and making the soup-version of heart eyes. we also know he is the gayest bicth on this station so of course he’s going to poke and prod at odo to see how he reacts.

garak waits until everyone is out of the room and asks odo if he can walk the dear constable home to the ol’ bucket. because odo looked a little melty during quark’s performance, y’know. it’d be bad if he turned into soup on the promenade.

odo denies this, of course, so garak is like “oh great then we can have a Chat :)”

and odo goes "wait no i hate talking” but then they’re in garaks shop and drinking kanar and garak is getting drunk off his lizard ass and talking about Julian because, again, he IS THAT BITCH!

meanwhile in the infirmary, Julian is trying to take care of quark’s ankle, but since he’s nosy and kinda Knows that quark wouldn’t just mess up his steps for no reason he asks about that.

and quark loudly goes “NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS JUST FIX MY DAMN ANKLE-”

which of course turns the nosyness up to 11 and has julian going 👀

"no i mean uh- i was distracted" "distracted? by what?" "nothing" "distracted by nothing?" "FIX. MY. ANKLE."

so julian sits him down on a biobed and gets whatever medical thingie fixes ankles in the 24th century. and while he does that he offers quark some wine to loosen the tongue about what made him slip.

anyway one thing leads to another and before you know it quark and julian are wine-drunk sitting on the infirmary floor and talking about garak. which suits quark just fine because it means he doesn’t have to admit he fell because odo was looking at him like he just revealed all the secrets of the universe along with his bare arms when he took off his jacket.

so we have two sets of gay idiots getting drunk in two locations and the next morning two sets of gay idiots have hangovers. yes odo gets a hangover. being soup does not exempt him from it.

julian and odo do the right, logical thing and take some meds to go to work and be productive and garak shows up in the bar to fight fire with fire and finds quark Already Doing That.

so they just sit next to each other, beating their hangovers with more alcohol, and they get to talking.

garak goes on about how he took odo home and pretty much only talked about julian all night and quark is like “wow what a coincidence, the doctor and i only talked about you all night.”

and it's all downhill from there because basically quark and garak just figured out that the garashir pining is Mutual.

"wait, julian was looking at me???" "yes." "AND I WAS LOOKING AT JULIAN-" "Yes."

and then they hash out this elaborate scheme to trap julian and garak in one of the Spy holosuite programs until they make out. this is garak and quark planning. how could they NOT make an elaborate scheme involving holosuites.

anyway i promised quodo so i will keep the ‘garashir makes out in the holosuite’ section a lil more brief

so within the next two days these two gay bitches whip up a new “The Adventures Of Agent Bashir” program, but quark has ‘adjusted’ the program a little so that it only ends when the main characters kiss. fun stuff.

garak and julian go through the program, havin a blast being spies, but at the end garak’s character gets “shot”, and they are so immersed in the story that julian is Actually Concerned and garak Actually Acts like he's in pain.

they kiss, the program ends, and garak- not actually shot- goes “haha gotcha, you wanted to kiss me before i died”

so they walk out the holosuite one hour after their time is already up with a lot of hickeys and untied bowties. hooray.

But That’s Not What We’re Here For.

after garak and julian come down from the high of getting together julian asks Just How and Why quark would agree to help with this. quark Never helps Unless he’s helping himself.

and they realised Quark Has Played Them Like Cheap Kazoos. he just wanted to take attention away from himself and the unanswered question of why he suddenly fell off the stage.

so they go "wait, if odo and quark were both lying and obscuring facts and being weird about this, doesn't that mean- ohhh"

and it boils down to them deciding to help those poor fuckers because they are apparently off even worse than they were in terms of mutual pining.

they also hash out an elaborate scheme. this time it involves odo’s never ending hard on for finding reasons to throw quark into jail.

since quark technically violated the holosuite rules by locking garak and julian in there garak goes over to odo to report the “Crime”

after some back and forth about Why In The World Garak, Friend And Tailor, would report a crime to odo that doesn’t affect anyone’s safety Odo heads to the bar to investigate the holosuites and if there really was criminal activity.

he doesn’t ask quark for permission, mostly because he’d never ask permission to snoop around in quark’s property but also because quark is actually not there at the moment. for Some Reason he’s being held up in the infirmary. Weird.

so odo is looking through the holosuite recordings of the last few days, and he runs through what garak said was the illegal activity of locking them in there and just goes "Ah, alright, i can throw him in a holding cell for that.” but then he sees a message left by garak.

it was apparently left there today so garak must have prepared this which means something is afoot. and the message just reads "the karaoke session was recorded and you might wanna check what Actually™ made quark trip :)"

to which odo reacts with "hmph. why should i care. maybe hes just messing with me and quark tripped over a cable." but Odo looks at it anyway. respectfully.

and he watches the whole performance up until the point where quark falls. Multiple Times. until he remembers that this is a criminal investigation and he finally looks at the part where he falls from quark’s perspective, which is the important one.

and he just. looks right at himself. looking at quark.

and holy shit. he looked at him like he was going to shove him against a wall, not to beat him up, but to make out with him. he straight up looked like he was going to mess him up but not with his fists.

so he stands right in front of quark and replays that moment to see quark’s reaction and analyse how he fell. and sure enough quark Saw Him and his knees gave out.

after that he really just wants to walk out and spend the next 30 hours as a houseplant to cleanse his mind of any quark-related thoughts but uh oh. when he opens the holosuite door Quark Is Right There.

and odo panics and just pulls him inside, accidentally re-initiating the spy program.

“But how did Quark happen to be there at just the right time?” i hear you ask well it was OUR MAN BASHIR

while garak was at odos place telling him to investigate quark’s wrongdoings, quark himself got called to the infirmary for a check-up on his twisted ankle.

and julian kept him there, examining his ankle over and over, until garak came in to Insinuate that Someone is snooping around in the holosuites.

so quark, yelling "NO COPS IN MY BAR", hurries over to the holosuites on his totally fine ankle and bada bing bada boom, here we are.

with two idiots stuck in a locked holosuite.

odo is like "QUARK WTF" meanwhile quark is like "ODO WTF"

"YOU LOCKED US IN A HOLOSUITE" "NO YOU LOCKED US IN A HOLOSUITE" ”well it was you who pulled me in here" "but it was you who designed it like this"

anyway to get out they have to go through the program somehow. quark and garak programmed this very carefully. unless they follow the general story, there’s no way out.

and at first quark says "listen, its okay, we just have to kiss" to which odo replies with that kinda look you’d get from someone if you told them to swallow a cactus whole, for fun.

"you heard me" "quark if this is a joke-" "its not. i made rom pull an all nighter to put in the new sensors." "you paid him for this???" "no." "right of course."

and after a very quick cheek kiss doesn’t end up doing the trick the two actually go through the program properly. except quark knows the script, cheats a little, takes shortcuts and totally doesnt impress odo by shooting a few hologram guards on the way.

so they get to the end, where they believe odo is supposed to get “shot”, but turns out they mixed up the roles and quark is the one who gets shot.

And Odo Doesn’t Know. The Safeties. Are. On.

so he tearfully goes "WAIT NO- QUARK!" and quark is like "odo...odo come closer..."

"yes, quark?"

"kiss me"

"quark please dont die i'll kiss you and we'll beam you straight to the infirmary and-" "ODO JUST KISS ME"

and then they kiss. the holosuite controls unlock and quark thinks ‘oh great, now we can leave-’ but odo doesnt stop kissing him

and he doesn’t Stop kissing him until quark actually speaks up and has to go "HEY IF THIS WERE REAL I’D BE DYING BY NOW-"

"what?" "the safeties are on. I didn’t get shot. you just had to kiss me to unlock the controls-"

and odo is like "QUARK"

and quark is like "ODO"

and then odo gets up and is very convinced that he Must Turn Into A Houseplant For A Ferengi Lifespan To Atone For His Sins.

but quark says “no, wait. can you do it again?”

"yelling at you?" "kissing me."

anyway odo finally gets to fulfill his fantasy of pushing quark against a wall and quark finally gets kissed by odo like hes dreamed of for like 15 years or however long ago it was that they were first on terok nor together during the cardassian occupation.

the end.

#quodo #ds9 #deep space nine #look if anyone reads this whole thing. please talk to me about it. this is my pepe silvia.#ALSO IF SOMEONE WANTS TO *WRITE THIS*#GO AHEAD

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beatrice-otter · 4 years

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This started out as a reblog of this excellent reblog chain about racism and antisemitism in both Star Trek canon and fandom, but as a white gentile fan I didn’t want to intrude or take over. And I firmly believe that if you really love something, you should love it with open eyes, seeing its faults as well as its strengths.

The thing is, Star Trek is progressive ... but it’s a very white type of progressive resting-on-our-laurels type progressivism. Sure, TOS was very progressive for a TV show of its day, but ... that ain’t saying much, and the writers and directors and showrunners were all white men and it shows. So yes, it pushed boundaries by having Sulu and Uhura, and the first scripted interracial kiss, but that was the 60s. TNG/DS9/VOY/ENT ... uh. Still very heavily white and male. Still progressive, but nowhere near as progressive comparatively as TOS, nowhere near as groundbreaking. I mean, I’m glad they listened to Avery Brooks about how his character should be designed and written! When they made a show with a female captain, they should have at least done the same, and preferably had women in creative leadership roles (as DS9 should have had black people in creative leadership roles). (I mean, all media should have diverse creative leadership for a lot of reasons, but when you have a character of color or a white woman as lead, it’s even more important that the creative team not be a bastion of white cisheteropatriarchy.) DS9 was less racist and sexist than TNG or Voyager (but made up for it by being hella antisemitic, hello Ferengi) but the thing is, these are not exactly the Shining Beacons Of Progressiveness we white fans like to think of them as. Were they better than a lot of shows out there? Sure! Did they grapple with a lot of issues most other shows didn’t? Yup. But again, that ain’t saying much. (I haven’t watched Disco or Picard, so I can’t speak to those.)

As to fandom, just liking Star Trek doesn’t automatically make you somehow less racist. There’s this undercurrent among white Trekkers that “Star Trek is progressive, I am progressive, therefore all participation in the fandom is inherently progressive, therefore I don’t have to worry about racial issues in either my fanworks or my interactions with other fans.” It’s not that Trek fandom is the only fandom where white people want to assume that not actively hating black people is all you need to qualify as “not racist,” it’s that in Trek fandom we can use the perceived progressiveness of the show as additional armor against acknowledging the actual issues.

I’m white, but I remember how terribly the AOS fandom has treated both the character of Uhura (who DARED to break up the Kirk/Spock white male slash juggernaut) and fans of color. The argument was that it was homophobic to put Spock in a relationship with a woman. And that it was a betrayal of feminism for Uhura to have a romantic relationship. (A black woman getting to have a fulfilling romantic relationship is a step forward, not a step back. Nyota Uhura is not a white girl.) That whole discussion--which included fans of color getting attacked even in dedicated Spock/Uhura spaces, and ended up with the main Spock/Uhura LJ community doing a lot of educational pieces about racism and misogynoir and privilege and how not to be a dick--was back in 2009. Over a decade ago. And we are still having the same damned discussions and treating fans of color the same damned way. It’s exhausting for me as a white person; I can’t imagine what it’s like for fans of color. And the thing is, the reason we are still having the same. discussions. over. and. over. is that the majority of white fans do not learn. We don’t. We need to.

None of these issues are new.

Star Trek has usually been at least a tiny bit more progressive than the society around it. That doesn’t mean that the show is perfect, and it definitely doesn’t mean the fandom is. We can and should do better. If we are truly committed to the ideals of Star Trek, that shining world of the future where prejudice of all kinds is greatly reduced and people usually choose to do the right thing and act with justice and compassion for all ... that should be reflected both in how we treat one another, and in what stories we choose to write. And it isn’t.

Listening to fans of color and educating ourselves on anti-racism is a good first step, and then putting what we learn into action and working to treat fans of color better is a good second step, but there are a lot of other posts about those sorts of resources. I’d like to talk about fannish output, what we create.

You know how people say “oh, well, the reason fandom focuses on white men is because they’re a higher percentage of screentime, therefore they’re the ones most likely to be interesting.” Let’s look at DS9, shall we? A show with a black man in the leading role. As of June 30, there are 6725 fics tagged DS9 on AO3. Benjamin Sisko (you know, the LEADING MAN), is tagged in only 961 of them. If you look at how many fics each character is tagged in, he is the sixth person on the list.

But wait! you say, that doesn’t tell the complete story, because sometimes people only tag the pairings, not the individual characters, and therefore they don’t show up in the character tags! So let’s look at that. The top relationship is Bashir/Garak, with 2797 fics (almost HALF of all the stories in the fandom). You know what the second most popular relationship is? Platonic Bashir&Garak, with 372 fics! You know what the #7 relationship in DS9 is? Garak/Parmak. Parmak is a character from a book series who never appeared in the TV show. Sisko, the leading man of the show, doesn’t even APPEAR in the list of top ten relationships in the fandom! Julian Bashir is there four times, Garak three. (Jadzia/Worf is #6)

But wait! you say, the canonical pairings for Sisko were mostly recurring roles not main characters, and he didn’t really flirt with anyone he wasn’t canonically linked with, so maybe he does better when you go with only fics tagged “gen” i.e. not focused on romantic and/or sexual relationships. (I mean, I think it’s a stretch because Janeway gets paired with Tom Paris a lot, and she doesn’t flirt with him in canon, and she rarely gets paired with Tuvok despite how often they touch hands which for a Vulcan is ... wow. But for the sake of argument we’ll say that Sisko not flirting much with anyone besides his canon partners is the reason he’s not shipped much.) And sure, when you limit it to fics tagged “gen” he appears in the top ten list of characters! In fourth place, with 396 out of 1876 fics. (#1 is Bashir, with 822 fics. #2 is Garak, with 652 fics.)

And, like, I get that Bashir and Garak are certainly very slashtastic, the actors were going for that flirty vibe in earlier seasons until they were ordered not to. But it’s still ... pretty obvious that popularity of both shipping and gen fics is heavily influenced by racism and colorism.

I’m not trying to police fandoms or shipping or anything like that. I’m just saying that “but this is who resonates with me/this is who I like/this is who inspires me” doesn’t absolve us from looking at the reasons why some characters are more interesting to us than others. (It’s racism. We’ve all lived our entire lives in a world shaped by racism and colorism, and it’s shaped our gut reactions and our preferences even when we consciously believe racism is wrong.)

And you know what? You can influence your feelings. You can train your gut to be less racist. When you watch a show, pay conscious attention to the black characters. Take a few minutes after watching an episode to think up a piece of meta or a plot bunny or something for each character of color who appears in that episode. If you do this consistently over a period of time you will train your brain and your gut to be more interested in characters of color. Also, when you’re deciding what to write, actively choose to favor plot bunnies featuring characters of color. It’s not that you shouldn’t write white/lightskinned characters and ships, but that we should all be making a conscious effort to up the percentage of characters of color we write about. (And also, you know, do at least the bare minimum of work to not write racist or antisemitic tropes. @writingwithcolor has many useful resources.) That’s not the only anti-racism work we need to do to make fandom less racist, not by a long shot. But it is important work nonetheless.

And, above all, don’t be a dick to fans of color who point out what SHOULD BE obvious to everyone.

#fandom #racism

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starryoak · 4 years

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yo guess who already had this drawn and only had to finish it? it’s me. More of that Star Trek/Pokemon AU I posted about! Worldbuilding!

So, anyway, got bored one day, came upon the idea of a Pokémon/Star Trek AU where it’s kinda like ‘His Dark Materials’ and their daemons, but without all the spiritual stuff. Essentially, almost everyone, universally, has a Pokémon partner, like Ash and his Pikachu, to whom they share a special connection with.

The fact that Pokémon have a very explicit supernatural origin leads me to believe they would be the first thing people had in common with each other when first contact was made; the fact that they share common species across the galaxy is one of the main things that connects people to other species in the galaxy. The different legendary Pokémon created different worlds, and all worlds have Pokémon. I have more, but that’s for worldbuilding posts if people are interested.

And now, the fun part. Alien Pokémon! Pokémon from other planets can vary just as much as regional variations; they can be different types, but they’re still technically the same Pokémon!, Since I did choose these Pokémon to match the character, I still wanted some essence of the Pokémon’s theme to remain, so yeah! Fun!

Every world has Pokémon on it, although each planet has different species distribution, there are 17 types and 896 individual Pokémon species known to exist currently. Pokémon can massively change over time from their environment, which means that a Meowth from Earth would look much different than a Meowth from Ferenginar.

(Ferengi Meowth shown here with an Alolan Meowth for scale. Click for image alone.)

Meowth on Ferenginar gradually became Bug type from a steady diet of nothing but bugs (this is Pokémon and I do what I want) and have grown in size slightly. Their most distinguishing feature is their headdress, which grew from the coin on a normal Meowth to a full crown, growing in their Persian rubies from birth (and becoming emeralds) instead of waiting til evolution.

I chose a Meowth for Quark because of the association with money, and then decided that most Ferengi would have cat associated Pokémon.

Ever since Grand Nagus Zek started keeping Incineroars, there’s been a trend among Ferengi to raise mostly cat Pokémon; Quark, ever the traditionalist, is no exception. His Meowth is named Greech, after a famous former Nagus. (who is not canon but whatever)

Greech is a complete gremlin beast of a cat, which is only fitting, considering who his owner is. He’s a wretched little thief who likes to pickpocket customers and has mastered using Payday to trick stupid people. (Payday generated money, in my imagination, works much like leprechaun gold in Harry Potter).

Quark claims no responsibility for any money lost by people stupid enough to fall for any tricks a Pokémon can perform. What his cat does with its fake money on its own time is none of his business and he can’t be held responsible for it, and he resents you insinuating he would use Greech as an accomplice in scams.

Greech has a lifelong rivalry with Odo’s Zoroark just like their owners have with each other. Actually, not really (for one, it’s not filled with sexual tension because they’re only Pokémon). Odo’s Zoroark just would straight up eat Greech if she was allowed to, and Greech is a little more genuinely terrified of Odo’s Zoroark. It’s mostly like a Tom and Jerry kind of situation.

God, I love drawing things. If anyone wants to suggest who I should draw next, or want to know more about the AU, just ask! (be aware I already have Pokémon for everyone besides the Star Trek Enterprise characters and will not be changing them)

#quark #greech the meowth #he is a terrible little gremlin cat #star trek #poketrek au #pokemon #meowth #regional variant #BUT PLANETS!#ds9 #deep space nine #star trek deep space nine #au #pokemon au #ferengi #mentioned odo and his zoroark #implied quodo

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5lazarus · 4 years

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Raktajino

Fear, rage, and craving pooled clammy at every crevice of her body, and Nerys stayed in motion to keep the cold sweat off. She joined Odo on his rounds of the Promenade, watching him torment Quark. They patrolled the Upper Pylons together, her phaser ready. She remembered who had built these halls, for what purpose, and how they died. Every electric flicker seemed to be a Bajoran ghost, slumped in a crevice, hung from an air duct, painted across the walls. Nerys had initially argued against keeping the station; she thought the Terok Nor resistance cell should have bombed it, just like the Shakaar had done to Gallitep. The provisional government had deemed it salvageable, and besides, they did not have the capacity at this point to allocate supplies for a space station during this reconstruction. The Bajorans had to make due with what they got--ruins of a lost civilization, a Cardassian space station built by their own slave labor, a few mostly-uninhabited moons, and the Federation. It didn’t seem enough.

They finished their patrol of Upper Pylons and took the turbolift back to the Promenade in silence. Nerys walked Odo to his office. As his doors opened, he turned to her. “Major, I hope you don’t think this forward of me--but please do not patrol the Lower Pylons alone. It isn’t safe. Not without an engineering and security detail. There are still some anti-terrorist measures left from the Occupation--I know we’ve disabled some of them, but--”

“It’s fine,” Nerys interrupted. “I won’t go chasing old ghosts by myself. I know better to go into the mining shafts alone, Odo. Even during the worst of the Occupation, we worked in pairs. I won’t do anything without you, and a few of those Starfleet engineers. Let them take the front lines for once.”

Odo nodded, satisfied. He reached a hand out, almost to her shoulder, but he saw how she tensed and dropped it. Awkwardly, he grunted, “We’ve lost enough good men to the vagaries of Terok Nor. We don’t need to lose Deep Space Nine’s First Officer and Bajoran Liaison, too. Good night, Major.” He turned to enter his office.

“Good night, Constable.”

He paused. “And, Major?”

“What?”

“Do try to get some sleep. This station needs you at full capacity.”

Nerys smiled. “Of course. Thank you, Odo.” Take care of yourself, Nerys. Don’t let nightmares of the Occupation overtake you. She walked away.

The Promenade was quiet tonight. Even Quark’s bar was slow, this late into the night, so very early into the morning. Nerys flashed to her first time there, harassed by Odo, stepping through a crew of Bajoran slaves stoned on the cheap chemicals the Cardassian overseers sold to keep them complacent, wondering if she had enough money to buy some smoke at the Ferengi’s bar. She closed her eyes as she passed and asked herself what she smelled: the acrid nothingness of Federation quality cleaners, not the stench of Cardassian sin. She asked herself what she heard: Morn chattering to a bored Quark about an old girlfriend who had joined up with some new border militia called the Maquis. She opened her eyes, and saw Deep Space Nine, a Federation-occupied space station in Bajoran Space. This was not Terok Nor anymore.

She didn’t like it when Cardassians were on the station. That pathetic collaborator, Marritza from Gallitep, had wound her as tight as a hara cat. She hadn’t wanted to think about Gallitep, the dead, the torment of it.

“Anything I can do for you, Major?” Quark interrupted. Nerys started, phaser already in her hand and chair kicked away. Quark threw his hands up, eyes wide. “Easy, easy--lost in reverie?”

Nerys snarled at him as she holstered her phaser. Picking up the chair, she said, “You could get lost--and bring me a raktajino, while you’re at it.’

“Nothing else in it?” Quark said. “Some smoke, perhaps? A shot of boton rye?”

“Smoke?” she purred, eyes narrowed. “Who do you think I am, Quark, some hopped-up Bajoran terrorist from the Dakhur Province? I’ll have you know, I am the liaison of the provisional government of the Bajoran system to the United Federation of Planets, our august saviors. And first officer of the Federation space station, Deep Space Nine. Normal space to the Bajorans, but this is Federation territory we’re talking about.”

Quark stared at her. “So I take it that’s a no, then,” he deadpanned. Morn stifled a giggle. Nerys grinned a bit dangerously at him. She hadn’t meant to snap all that at him.

“A raktajino with a shot of java, semi-sweet,” she clarified, “and fast. For Bajor’s liaison to Deep Space Nine.”

Quark shrugged and muttered something nasty and untranslatable as he moved behind the bar. Nerys didn’t need to speak Ferengi. She spoke seven Bajoran dialects and two Cardassian languages, and could get by in Vulcan without a universal translator. She grabbed her raktajino, just a little too hot, just like she liked it, and stalked to her table. For sentiment’s sake, she had staked out where she had met Odo for the first time, all those long years ago, when her hair was long, just before Elemspur, long after Gallitep. Nerys sipped her coffee, and wished fervently Quark had given her smoke anyway.

Klingon coffee was better by itself than the tincture of java the Musilla province produced. Bajor could not compete with raktajino outside of its traditional market. However, a shot of java swirled into a mug of fresh raktajino smoothed out the bitter edges and gave it an almost melon-cool aftertaste, like some Earth teas did. It was not as good as the cool, acrid clarity of a good dose of smoke, but it would get her through the next three hours, to her next shift in Ops. This was better than smoke, she reminded herself. Smoke might filter the mind and keep the body wired--perfect for a terrorist doing rounds in Dahkur--but for a diplomat and a bureaucrat and a professional soldier, it dulled color and taste and fucked with her circulation. She was not going to die young anymore, she had made it to maybe thirty years, no one had really kept track of star dates under the Occupation. She was older than her own mother now; why ruin her health with smoke? Nerys liked to see the world in color.

At Gallitep, even as the smoke cleared, she had seen everything tinged sepia with the dust of the mines. The piles of sticks that were the starving Bajoran slaves, the fragments of people left in the infirmary, even the blue-toned sponeheads were blurry and rose-colored. Even during the massacre of the Mine 3-Delta, the screaming and the raping seemed filtered through cotton. She saw a Bajoran woman with her baby half out of her belly and a stick stuck up her cunt, and even the flash of her blood, everywhere, soaking the dust, came out pink and amber. Nerys blinked. Latha had found her youngest brother’s ear, earring still attached, in the Cardassian officers’ barracks. He had always been pretty like their mother, too delicate for the mines. Nerys’ hands spasmed over her mug. Some things didn’t bear thinking about; the smoke and the dust had given his ear a healthy flesh-tone, they had never found the rest of his body--

“Is this seat taken?”

Nerys started, slapped her phaser, and gulped. It was the Emissary, it was Sisko, the Federation commander of Terok Nor, Deep Space Nine. Rapidly she blinked, resetting herself in time. “Oh, no, uh,” she pointed, “go right ahead, I was about to leave--what time is it?” She had been away with the Prophets. Marritza had gotten to her, more than a raktajino could fix. She downed the rest of it quickly.

“It’s 0400 hours, Major,” Sisko said gently. He slid across from her, his own raktajino (with jacarine peel) in hand. “We’re expected in Ops at 0600. Did you get any sleep?”

Nerys shrugged, uncomfortable. “After yesterday’s incident with Marritza, I thought it best that the Constable and I patrol the Upper Pylons, to check for any more Cardassian sabotage.” Sisko looked surprised. Nerys just wanted more raktajino.

As if on psychic demand, Quark came over. “Can I get you two anything?” His beady eyes jumped from one to the other. Nerys lifted her mug at him and gestured for two java shots. He shrugged at her, and silently took it away. Sisko looked at her questioningly. Nerys waited for her coffee.

“I take it with java. Just java,” she said, “though we used to cut it with smoke during the Resistance. But I don’t do that anymore.”

“Smoke?”

“A mild amphetamine. Easy to concoct, and the withdrawal’s not bad. And the side effects of an addiction aren’t too difficult to handle, if you’re a wanted criminal not expecting to make it to thirty.” She flashed him a smile. “And easier to get to during the Occupation than Klingon coffee. Boiled java, cut with smoke--that was a Resistance breakfast, I suppose.”

Sisko regarded her with sympathy. Nerys, ashamed, looked down at her raktajino. Sisko said, “But now we’re not under the Occupation. And there’s plenty of raktajino to go around, on Deep Space Nine. This isn’t Terok Nor anymore.”

Kira snorted. “Tell Gul Dukat that. The Cardassians still think they own this station, no matter how much we rehab the pylons and incentivize Bajoran trade.” She looked away, back to the bar, where a few Andorian traders were grabbing a meal before the passenger ship, due at 0530 hours. The Bajorans on Terok Nor could rarely afford to eat at Quark’s, not unless they were offering the Cardassians some sort of entertainment. Quark had always liked to play the benevolent pimp. He had played that to her favor, all those years ago. “You know that out of the few survivors from the Terok Nor resistance cell, none of them wanted to stay? They said they couldn’t see any way this station could ever be made to feel Bajoran, that there wasn’t any way even the Prophets could cleanse the blood that had been drained to wire these conduits, let alone shut down the mine shafts. Odo had to recruit the militia mostly from Ashalla--we wanted people used to fighting in highly populated, high tech corridors.”

Sisko said carefully, “Kai Opaka said, before we left, that it was now time for Bajor to--heal, to let go of the ghosts of the past. To lay Terok Nor to rest.”

Nerys snorted. “Terok Nor won’t let me rest. Odo thinks we’ve found most of the Cardassian traps left over from the capture of Terok Nor, but clearing the Upper Pylons wiped out the station’s entire resistance cell, so it doesn’t hurt to be too careful. Some of them might be--must be--time-delayed.” Stiffly, she took a sip of her coffee. Now it was just lukewarm. The java came out more strongly. She waited for the aftertaste to cool her dry throat.

“Surely you don’t think Marritza was a Cardassian plot?”

Nerys sighed, stretched. “No, no, I don’t, but he had me thinking about the traps they laid for us at Gallitep, and then I got worried we missed some on Terok Nor. At Deep Space Nine. You know, speaking of Marritza--ou know his family refused to claim him? They said he was a traitor to Bajoran sentimentality. And Cardassians are so private about their dead. Odo thinks they’re too afraid to bury him, the Obsidian Order has been looking for excuses to round up our informants and they think Marritza actually helped--you know there wasn’t a single turncoat at Gallitep?” She stared at Sisko. “We had Cardassian help breaking out of Elemspur, we had Cardassians working on Terok Nor, under Dukat’s very nose, not even Odo noticed all my contacts, but at Gallitep? No one had the courage. No one thought it was wrong enough, disgusting enough, to risk their own lizard-hides. They were turning Bajorans into soap, and mixing their bones into concrete! And for the women, what they did to the ones who couldn’t stop themselves from getting pregnant--” She swallowed, hard. “And there’s only one filing clerk who heard what was going on and couldn’t ever get the sounds of it out of his head. And he didn’t even try to make contact.” Sisko was watching her, concern in his eyes. She tried to shake it off, he was the Emissary of the Prophets, how could she burden him with this? Embarrassed, she flexed her hands, trying to rub the circulation back into them. She hadn’t had smoke in almost a year now, but the numbness still lingered. He was not her vedek, he was her commanding officer. A memory from Mullibok’s farm slashed her, weeping because now there were no clear sides after the Liberation, Sisko’s disgusted face against her suppressed scream, she had burned Mullibok’s house like the Cardassians had torched her father’s garden. Furiously Nerys stared into her raktajino. Kai Opaka told her it was time for Bajor to heal. Latha once told her it was impossible to heal in the place that hurt you in the first place. Everywhere in the Bajoran star system, there was some old hurt.

Sisko said slowly, “I got my spurs during the Tzenkethi border wars.” Absently he stroked the pips in his collar. “When they had occupied the Federation colony Krondstadt-2. I remember walking down the bombed-out streets of Caspian City, checking for life signs.” Sisko sighed, closed his eyes, sipped his raktajino, and winced at the taste. “The Tzenkethi believe that their gods are sustained by the blood of their enemies, not unlike the Klingons. Unlike the Klingons, however, prisoners of war still count as enemy forces. And they sacrificed a piece of every Federation citizen before we drove them off.”

The night shift was starting to lumber into the bar, and the tables were filling quickly with breakfast orders. Nerys scanned it quickly--the Starfleet engineering team, flustering Rom, some of Odo’s deputies, some of her militiamen, and that damn Cardassian tailor, the exiled spy, Garak. He caught her eye and smiled ingratiatingly. Nerys scowled and drank her raktajino. She hated the sight of Cardassians on the station. What were the sacrifices of the Terok Nor resistance cell for, if not to drive them all off? Gul Dukat had always liked to make an example of them. She knew she shouldn’t be so sharp when she saw a Cardassian, Marritza tried, but the Cardassians always considered every Bajoran guilty, every Bajoran was always a terrorist, always proven guilty. She turned away from him and grimaced at Sisko. He followed her gaze and sighed.

Nerys considered her cup, remembered the muted silver of her brother’s earring. He had been maybe eight years old. Kai Opaka said that her pagh was demanding her to heal, that they were no longer at war. Reparations for Bajor, reconciliation for Cardassia--that is what Marrizta wished, and she wished hard that it was him weaving through the tables instead Garak. She looked at Sisko. “We found a lot of pieces left behind at Gallitep, alright. Did you know, I had a brother at Gallitep, and--”

Garak’s shadow loomed over her table. She looked up. “Funny, Major,” Garak smiled, “so did I. Is this seat taken?” He made to sit, Nerys whirled around, ready to launch her mug right into his face, but Sisko grabbed his arm.

“Garak, you don’t have a brother,” the Emissary said. “Do you. And we were just about to leave.”

Garak chuckled. “Oh, but Commander, all Cardassians are brothers. We take fraternity very seriously on Cardassia, I’ll have you know.” Nerys looked at Sisko in disbelief. He motioned for her to stay. “Of course,” Garak’s eyes widened as he prattled on, “the family is the cornerstone of Cardassian society--for which we waged the liberation of Bajor--”

“I’m not going to listen to this,” Nerys pushed away from the table and slammed her raktajino down.

“--but,” Garak continued serenely, “when we consider the pieces we left behind, strip-mining of the Rakantha province aside, I cannot fathom that Gallitep did much for the average Cardassian family. Perhaps the High Court of Cardassia would disagree with me.” He waggled a finger. “But of course, this is not Cardassia. This is no longer Terok Nor.”

“No,” Sisko said sharply. “It’s not. We’re all just having a raktajino on star base Deep Space Nine.” Garak widened his eyes again and nodded. Why the fuck did he always do that, Nerys wondered. She contemplated sticking her thumbs into them. Cardassians didn’t blink much, it always creeped her out.

“No,” he echoed. “We have indeed come to the end of the Cardassian occupation.” He smiled inanely at her, then at Sisko. “I hope I didn’t come in at an awkward time? Sharing family stories?”

Sisko sighed. “We were...just wrapping up.” He raised an eyebrow at Nerys. Finishing his coffee, he got up. “I’ll see you in Ops. 0600 hours. Goodbye, Mr. Garak”

“Good day, Commander. And Major Kira,” Garak grimaced at them again, his closest approximation to a smile. “Have a lovely morning.

“Uh, right,” Nerys said. She didn’t have it in her to fake it back at him. She caught Sisko smiling at her, amused, as she hurried off, raktajino turning melon-cool down her throat. That Cardassian seemed constantly drugged out; she was glad she had kicked the habit when she was given this assignment. Nerys bumped into Odo patrolling as she loped through the Promenade; he caught her before she fell, and she laughed for a second as the Bajoran shops opened up and the bustle of a new day in Deep Space Nine began.

“Anything the matter, Major?” he asked her.

“Oh, no,” she said, wiping her eyes. “Just giddy from lack of sleep.” She smiled at him, as the chimes from the temple down the way greeted the Bajoran dawn. She started to walk towards the turbolift. Odo followed her. “And too many raktajinos.” They waded through the morning crowd. In front of the lift, Nerys stopped suddenly. “Odo--does it ever strike you as funny, what Terok Nor’s become? How we blinked and suddenly this is no longer one of the worst labor camps in the Bajoran sector, and instead the church at the mouth of the Celestial Temple? A sacred site, where the ghosts of the Occupation are laid to rest and the Emissary walks among us?”

Odo set his shoulders and smiled thinly. “I never had your talent for poetry.”

Nerys laughed again. “Don’t worry, it’s a one time deal. I’m normally a disgrace to my d’jarra.” She rubbed her eyes again, and then realized she had never removed her mascara and eyeliner. Cautiously, she looked up at Odo, who had such a gentle expression on his face. She always appreciated his empathic side. “I’m glad I get to work with you,” she said impulsively. “That it’s not just me, from Terok Nor.”

Odo looked at her for a long time. One of the interesting things about making a shapeshifter uncomfortable, Nerys realized, was that she could watch him quite literally shift into a stony silence. “So am I, Major,” he said stiffly. “Now--if you will excuse me, I have my rounds to do. Please try to get some rest before you head to Ops, Kira. You’re getting sentimental with lack of sleep. You don’t want to slip up in front of the Federation.”

Nerys laughed. “Was that a joke?” she called to his retreating back. Shaking her head, she took the turbolift back to her quarters, and went to greet the day the Prophets had set to her.

#ds9 #fan fic #fanfic #deep space nine #kira nerys #odo #quark #sisko #season 1 #greeneli #hes5thlazarus #garak fucks with everyone #i love season 1 because they all hate each other #tension is the most fun to play with when it comes to ensemble casts

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relationshipanarchywithoutchaos · 4 years

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Review: A Geek's Guide to Unicorn Ranching: Advice for Couples Seeking Another Partner

I bought and read this book so that you don’t have to.

I'm going to preface this review with the disclaimer that I started reading this book actively wanting to hate it. The author* is the Facebook page admin for Poly.Land, which has some very cult-like tactics in its image posts, similar in style to scam pages such as David Wolfe, Vani Fari (the "Food Babe"), The Mind Unleashed and Free Thought Project. Most notably, the page is laced with universally agreeable tweets, tumblr posts and memes, some not even about ethical non-monogamy, interjected with the occasional privileged or problematic post about polyamory or swinging, sometimes with amatonormative or ableist perspectives.

Before I get started, allow me to clarify: while I and many others object to the principle strategies of "unicorn hunting" (or even "unicorn ranching", which makes it sound even more like animal husbandry than "hunting" does), the problematic issue of couples seeking a third is rarely the fault of the potential third (or "unicorn"). It is perfectly acceptable for an individual who understands the risks and dynamics to enter into an arrangement with one or both partners of an existing couple who finds them attractive. The problems are almost always from the misunderstanding of the unbalanced power dynamic the existing couple places on their targets, most often due to ignorance, greed, or socially-ingrained conceptions of the importance of the relationship over the members of the relationship as marketed by the western matrimanial society.

This book is a very short read: 73 pages, in large font, with a few appendixes for sample relationship agreements. The paperback is only 1/4" thick. I started it while waiting for a flight to take off and finished it before we reached cruising altitude.

The book is divided into "lessons" rather than chapters, none of them particularly long. The first ten chapters run as basically a Polyamory 101, or maybe even a "Pre-Polyamory" class. The chapters cover things like getting your existing relationship in order prior to opening up, different types of arrangements (vee vs. triad vs. square, etc), the basics of hierarchy, what a metamour is, all the basic stuff.

The only slightly geeky things in the book are a shout-out to the Ferengi meme ("FEMALES") and some minor stuff about math. The author later describes themselves as the geek; but the title aims to target geeks, and there seems to be no good reason jocks, nerds, goths, or preppies couldn't benefit from the information within.

There is good advice in the book. The idea of dating separately is explicitly floated, and I was glad to see it. The idea of a triad not being one relationship, but four or more possible relationships, is also included. Eschewing exclusivity, and looking for partners who are already part of other relationships and arrangements, is also mentioned. Being as "out" as safely possible is recommended for the emotional well-being of all participants. The "love us both equally" requirement is talked about as one set for failure. There is an acknowledgement that unicorn hunting is often looked at poorly by the greater community, and that it's a rookie tactic that many couples take. While introducing the unicorn as most likely to be a bisexual woman willing to entertain a relationship with a man/woman couple, the rest of the book uses gender-inclusive language.

But there are some major problematic issues in the book which raise red flags. More than once, the book talks about hierarchy and veto power as an option, but never once talks about the ethical implications. The words "couple privilege" never once appear. The descriptions of boundaries, and the appendices of relationship agreements, read more like rules than boundaries or agreements, and it's not talked about why that's a problem, how to amend agreements, and how to avoid building resentment. The recommendation is to be low-key and discreet at first, which can unfortunately encourage bad behaviors and abuse. How to deal with one's own children in this situation is never mentioned. Basic discussions about consent and the sense of a high need for emotional work and emotional intelligence is also lacking, and those are the things that unicorn hunting couples need the most. Jealousy and insecurity, as well as how to mitigate them, go undiscussed.

There's also a some statements of privilege. Recommending that a couple get their financial affairs in order before opening up and making plans for couples therapy are not particularly inclusive, as it suggests that only the financially stable and the mentally supported can join in on the fun. Intersectionality is mostly absent.

Only on the last lesson, "Proper Care and Feeding of Unicorns", is there a discussion about what it's like to be in a triad with someone who wasn't in the arrangement from the beginning, and only barely so; the lesson brings the conversation back to the individuals in the original couple.

The "additional readings" list Sex at Dawn, Stepping Off The Relationship Escalator (shoutout to my friend Amy Gahran), The Ethical Slut, and some other books not related to polyamory (e.g., books on communication and self-actualization). While I don't fault the author for not listing More Than Two among their additional readings, given recent developments, it seems like a blatant snub of the work that Eve Rickert put into the work, particularly given how comprehensive and universal the language of MTT was (even for exclusively monogamous couples). Not including Tristan Taormino's Opening Up or Elizabeth Sheff's The Polyamorists Next Door, however, seem like egregious errors in judgement and I wonder what the story behind that is.

A section of one lesson is dedicated to "don't bait and switch", e.g., being honest about being part of a couple and, if relevant, that you're looking for someone to join the existing arrangement. And yet, since there's very little here about the ethics of triad-seeking (or lack thereof), the book itself feels like a bait-and-switch. Maybe that's a good thing. After all, unicorns-r-us.com and freesexworkers.com do the exact same thing.

Unlike most books on the subject, this one references very few personal experiences/case studies, and no negative ones. The author's main argument that unicorns exist and are available, mentioned in the beginning, was that the author has had positive experiences as a unicorn. At no point is it ever stated that unicorn hunting is problematic. At the end, there's an assurance from the author that with the right kind of practice within one's an existing relationship(s), the right person will eventually join the ranch. I feel this is optimism is both dangerous and unwarranted; just going off of several Facebook and FetLife groups on the subject, any given community is filled with thousands of couples who try and fail for years or decades to find "their unicorn", tens of thousands of people who want couples to leave them the fuck alone and/or are angry about them invading queer spaces, and only a handful of unicorns willing to consider joining an existing couple's dynamic for free. Were I reading this from unicorn-seeking perspective, I would have liked to have seen testaments and stories of couples who were successfully open up and form a triad, and how they did it. The absence of these stories is telling.

So, like, I didn't hate it, but I can't recommend it. There are other books where you can spend a few extra dollars and receive significantly more information on the relevant subjects, as well as better guidance about the kind of emotional work one needs to do in order to eschew monogamy (A Geek's Guide is $8; Opening Up is $15, and The Ethical Slut is $18, both of which are way more than double in AGG in length). Some even contain workbook questions to think about individually, or with a partner. I think that if a couple read this book, and made no other efforts to read other works or join discussions online with experienced individuals, they would likely be set up for failure. The author puts all of the scary possibilities up front, which is probably a good thing if it actually makes couples do additional research, but not if it turns them off on the prospect of discovering more about it and just going off on their own, none-the-wiser.

* The author, Page Turner, notes themselves in the back as a polyamory, kink and sex councilor and coach. I do not dispute this, and I know people who have seen them talk at events on those subjects with expertise.

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captainstrekkinlog · 4 years

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Star Trek: Picard - 1x01 “Remembrance” In-Depth Analysis

Let me start this off by saying, I think this is the strongest series premiere of any of the live-action Star Trek shows to date.

There is a confidence in this episode that none of the other shows had. It’s no secret that every single Trek show has sometimes struggled in finding its footing in the beginning, it’s not easy to make these shows after all. But it seems that from the onset Star Trek: Picard was a show that knew what it wanted to be and what it needed to be. What struck me the most watching this episode is how very deliberate each action is taken. This story was crafted with meaning and intention, they knew what they wanted to convey and they’re going to take their time walking down the path they set.

If the rest of this season are at the level of this premiere, then this might just become one of the best first seasons of any Trek show.

Now with that out of the way, let’s get to breaking down the episode in all its delicious details. This will be a long one as I break down scene by scene.

SPOILERS AHEAD

So we begin with a dream sequence as Blue Skies (sung by Bing Crosby, grandfather of Tasha Yar’s actress Denise Crosby) plays. A wonderful shot of the Enterprise D with Picard and Data playing poker. Picard looks to be in civilian attire, while Data is seemingly in his Nemesis era uniform. The way this scene is set up immediately feels dream-like, especially with the song, which we heard Data last singing it at Riker and Troi’s wedding.

There is a feeling of melancholy in the scene, almost as if Picard’s own consciousness knows this is not real but he wants to keep pretending that it is. As he even says, he doesn’t want the game to end. He much rather wanting to cling onto the past than be awake in a present-day that he isn’t enjoying. As he even says later, it’s the waking up that he’s beginning to resent, and as we find out later on in the story, this dream world is probably a happier place for him than what life is like for him in the years since Data died.

Here in Picard’s dream, he gets to keep holding onto the past - more time with Data, more time playing the poker game that he never got to enjoy until the end, more time for all the things he was in many ways, robbed of doing.

One funny note, Picard offers Data milk, but we did see in one of the TNG episodes where Data comments that he hates milk.

Data is also holding 5 Queen of Hearts, which Picard frowns at. I’m not sure exactly yet what this may represent, it is possible that this could be a foreshadowing to something else down the line. As I said before, the writers and director were very deliberate with every single detail, so I would imagine this Queen of Hearts thing to have a meaning, we just may not know it yet.

This scene ends with the Mars attack that we saw in the Children of Mars Short Trek and leads to Picard awaking rather violently from his dream. Now if this is how all his dreams end, I can definitely see why he wouldn’t want to wake up because that’s rather horrifying.

Now one thing I have to mention, simply because it’s being made such a big fuss over, the whole thing with how Ten Forward isn’t in the right location. First of all, it’s a dream. Dreams never make sense. I dreamed once that my house had wings and was full of plants and my bathroom was outside. Dreams are weird because they are suppose to be. Secondly, this sort of fuss over technicalities, and rather pointless ones at that, are what I would like to call “missing the forest for the trees”, because what is mattering in this scene isn’t the location of Ten Forward, but rather the scene of Picard and Data and what this means for Picard’s state of mind. THAT is the story, THAT is the substance. The location of a place in a dream sequence really is not what should be the take away of the scene, nor should it somehow ruin a scene. Honestly, people need to realize that the STORY is what is important, any small technical things are not the point. We don’t watch Star Trek because we want to point out all the inconsistent and illogical and wrong continuity details. We watch Star Trek because of the stories and the characters. If I was to let every single of those technical details bother me so much that it ruined the story, I would never be able to watch any Star Trek because quite frankly, there’s a whole lot of it in Star Trek, and acting like that one detail is what ruins a perfectly written and acted scene that sets up Picard’s state of mind for his character development is quite frankly very disingenuous.

Now, moving onto the rest of our story. We have Picard waking up to Number One running to him. I imagine Number One is in many ways a service dog, especially given how he was immediately there noticing Picard’s disturbance. The most interesting part of this scene with Picard waking up and looking out into the vineyard where people are working is that he keeps saying to Number One “it’s alright”, but really, he’s not saying it to the dog, I think he’s trying to convince himself that everything is alright, even though he knows it isn’t, and we know he certainly doesn’t feel it.

Then we move locations to Greater Boston, where in the night time skyline, we notice some glowing light ads with the Federation News Network symbol, some Ferengi Alliance and ad products, a London Kings banner, and it looks like Kasidy Yates is still somewhere in the galaxy with a booming interstellar freights business. Good for her!

We finally meet Dahj with her boyfriend who is a Xahean, a nice link to our beloved Queen Po, whom we met in Discovery. I am now curious who is the ruler on Xahea at this time, after all, we don’t really know how Xaheans age. But it looks like Xahea is a part of the Federation, which also makes me curious if Po did eventually reveal her innovation for recrystalizing dilithium crystals. Oh and the eagle eyed folks at Trekcore noted from Dahj’s call logs later that her boyfriend’s name looks to be “Caler”.

So they’re having a great time, Dahj reveals she got into the Daystrom Institute and that she’s a fellow in Artificial Intelligence and Quantum Consciousness, which is an interesting field for her to go into given how she reacts later on to Picard calling them “soulless murder machines”, which seems to reveal her bias. Which also makes me wonder why she wanted to study something that would only be theoretical and she already had judgement against.

Oh and we also see in Dahj’s apartment is the flower, Orchidaceae Dahj Oncidium, that her father made.

This nice moment with the couple gets ruined, as usual, by Romulans. Always out there spoiling people’s fun. They immediately kill Dahj’s boyfriend and capture her. They put some devices on her head, likely to scan her and commenting on the fact that she’s not been activated yet. Somewhat hilariously, one of them gets admonished for speaking in their native alien language and to speak English. I guess it’s still called English? Or is it Federation Standard? Or is it both?

They ask her “where’s the rest of you” and where she’s from. She says Seattle. I guess if you’re from Seattle these days, you should check if you’re either an Android or a Klingon spy.

And just as she put a bag over her head and try to knock her out, she finally “activates” and kills them all. This was a very well choreographed fight scene where we got to see a good amount of the action. Now I’ve heard some people out there complaining about shaky cam, but that’s not what we have here. The camera didn’t shake, and it only does a minor tilt in one scene. Otherwise, this is one of the calmest camera movements in a fight scene. In fact, the directing for this whole episode is very steady and calm. Honestly, it’s a bad faith take to say this show is just all action crazy shaky cam, because it’s not true. In both of the fight scenes we get, there is considerable restraint on the camera work to make sure that we as the audience can still see what is going on and know what’s happening in the scenes at all times. The rest of the show is all steady cam work. I know that people often like to label “New Trek” to be all action and weird camera angles and “not real Star Trek”, but Picard’s camera work is much more in tune with TNG’s steady cam work than it is to anything else. Other than the two big fight scenes with Dahj, every scene is very steady.

So as Dahj is leaning over her boyfriend and mourning him (note that he is bleeding the same orange color that Po did in the Runaway Short Trek), and then she gets a vision of Picard. The interesting thing about this vision is that it looks to be the same shot from one of the very early teasers. I am curious why she keeps seeing this specific scene and if there is any meaning to it.

Now there is one issue I’ve seen pointed out that the first character to be killed on Picard is a character played by a black man. And this is a very valid thing to be concerned about considering the treatment of characters of color, particularly TV’s issues with black men that both Agents of SHIELD and The Walking Dead had gotten flack for before (the rotating door of black characters), and certainly horror movie tropes have been criticized extensively. So I definitely understand if someone saw this and was worried about this sort of thing becoming an issue. I can’t speak for how black people may feel about this, as I am not black and I do not know all the nuances of this problem, but I wanted to bring to attention what director Hanelle Culpepper commented on in a twitter conversation with someone who had brought up this very concern.

I think this is the thing that could sometimes feel like a double-edged sword. In our current entertainment and media, we are still not there in terms of fair and equal representation, and thus when female characters, characters of color, or LGBTQ+, and other minority group characters die or are treated badly in a story, we pick up on it. But I think with the Star Trek shows, both Discovery and Picard, they are trying to show vast array of characters and treating characters from various minority groups in a normalized way. They can be heroes, they can be villains, they can live and they can die. This kind of normalization in treatment of characters is what we hope for, but I just think the rest of TV have not caught up yet, so when characters of color in this case, do die, we notice.

But hopefully, as Hanelle Culpepper states, we will see more characters of color show up. And as we do know, we will be having more characters of color in lead roles joining us soon.

Now, onto this opening credit sequence. There is a lot of unravel here and I could probably talk for hours about what this opening makes me feel. Let’s first talk about the music. Jeff Russo deserves an award. Seriously. He does. If you guys have not seen the Ready Room aftershow where Jeff Russo talks about the choices made for this theme, you really need to. Because you see the care and attention to detail that he brings into even just choosing what instruments to add to the music and what chords used to call back to the past. The flute at the beginning alluding to Picard’s time in The Inner Light, representing his past. And then the cello and the occasional chords of the TNG theme, just slowed down and slightly in a different tone, all building up to what feels like a triumphant rebirth. The flute sneaks back in showing the past and present coming together for Picard. The use of the cello and strings is just perfect. It really gives a melodic and somber feel to it. And as a violin player myself, any time I hear the strings, it’s like coming home. I’ll be very excited to get back on my violin at some point and play this.

The imagery of the opening credit sequence also tells a story. We see a piece of the sky breaks off like glass, it floats down to the vines in the vineyard, then to the quantum archive, which forms into a borg cube, and the broken piece falls through the cube and forms into fractals, and the pieces float around seemingly becoming like a neuro-pathways which becomes like the iris of an eye, and then it becomes a borg eye maybe, and then the planet Romulus, and finally the cracks form back into Picard’s face. It’s all very beautiful imagery and clearly very deliberate as no doubt all these elements will somehow come into the story that we are seeing.

And also interesting to note that only Patrick Stewart, Allison Pill, Isa Briones, Harry Treadaway from the main cast are credited, with Brent Spiner as “special guest star”, which means that I guess actors will only appear in the credits if they actually appear in the episode, much like how Discovery season 2 did the same with Shazad Latif and Wilson Cruz, and how Game of Thrones used to do this with their cast members too. So this should make it easy for us to notice which characters will appear in an episode or not.

Now back to the Chateau in France, Picard is walking through the vineyard with Number One and joking with him in French. I’m pretty sure this scene existed to poke fun at the people always saying why is Picard so British if he’s French. So LOL, now he speaks French finally!

We get to meet Laris and Zhaban, two Romulans who seem to live with Picard and basically be his attendants. Some people may not know, but Laris and Zhaban both appear in the Picard Countdown Comics, the three issue comic series shows us their relationship to Picard. Long story short, they are former Tal Shiar agents who broke the rules falling in love and wanted to leave because they wanted to help people instead. They feel indebted to Picard for helping them and sees him as their rescuer/savior. I also thought it was funny that Laris jokes about Number One being “our little assassin”, given what she and Zhaban used to do for a living with the Tal Shiar.

It is also interesting to note that Laris doesn’t have ridges on her forehead but we do see a slight bit of ridges on Zhaban, making this the first time we see both types of Romulans on screen together. Usually, it’s either one or the other. But it’s nice to see finally some variety even within one species.

Zhaban comments that Laris heard Picard talking in his sleep, Laris notes that he’s not sleeping and wonders if it’s bad dreams, which leads Picard to comment that his dreams are lovely but it’s the waking up that he’s beginning to resent, connecting back to the moment at the beginning of the episode with Data where he says he doesn’t want the game to end. His dreams are happier than his present.

So it seems that Picard has to get ready for an interview, and as he enters, Zhaban says that Number One still won’t take breakfast from him with Picard joking “old dogs”, to which Zhaban replies “which one?”

The relationship between Laris, Zhaban, and Picard is very well established even in these early scenes. There is an unspoken bond, camaraderie, and care. Even if Picard says sometimes Zhaban treats him as if he was “a benign old codger”. They act like a family, a family that’s found each other since Picard no longer has his old Enterprise crew family anymore. Also Picard is drinking decaf Earl Grey tea.

Now as all three of them are talking though, the news report plays on in the background. I couldn’t make out all the words because of the dialogue on top of it, but it looks like something about disturbances continue across the Alpha and Beta Quadrant due to the commemoration of the destruction of Romulus, so there seems to be some unrest still even to this day about what’s happened. And there is also something about a new Romulan capital, and maybe some three state council or something like it that declared it an interplanetary day of mourning for all citizens. I thought this interesting because we do not really know yet what the state of the rest of the galaxy is feeling about all of this, or how Romulan politics may have changed since then, so this news report is giving a tiny glimpse of the status of the galaxy. It’s good background world building, which is always a good thing, and sometimes Star Trek tends to falter at doing things like this beyond just details about Starfleet and its ships. It’s nice to get a look at the civilian part of life, which is the majority of the galaxy after all.

As the first of the visiting news crew arrives, Laris reminds Picard to not forget to wash his hands, and that ten years and she still has to remind him. She also jokingly calls him “your highness”, which I think it’s a funny nod to both the Romulan culture and also her being aware of herself being a “butler/housekeeper” for Picard as if this was a royalty sort of thing. The ten years mention though seems to point to Laris and Zhaban having stayed with Picard from at least 2389 to current day 2399.

Among the news crew doing set ups is a Tellarite, the first we see on screen in the 24th century outside of just archival footage. There is also a Trill among them as well. It also looks like there is some screen projection thing that does make up touch-ups? Oh man I would love to use one of those instead of having to put on real make-up. I really hate make-up, well, I should clarify that my skin hates make-up, SO MUCH. Someone please invent these screen projection make up things! I need it!

Picard is all dressed up and insisting that he’s not nervous, and asks Zhaban if he went over the terms with the news people and Zhaban says “three times, sir” that they wouldn’t inquire about his separation from Starfleet. Laris says that she thinks sometime he’s forgotten who he is and what he did but they haven’t, and Zhaban reminds him to “be the captain they remember.” These two clearly care about Picard a lot, genuinely. And it’s a really lovely moment as they send him off to this interview.

It’s kinda of fun to see the intro to his interview is showing off a bunch of TNG promo photos and episode screencaps. I always find this funny because I’m like, wait, there were no cameras there in those moments, how did they get those pictures!

So we learn in this scene that Picard has never agreed to an interview before until now, and that he’s been writing books on various historical analysis, and that he’s very passionate about working on raising awareness of the lingering impacts of the supernova. It’s clear from the beginning of this scene that the interviewer is looking for something else, that all this stuff they agreed to talk about is not what she actually wants to hear, she very deliberately steers the conversation to things about the Mars attack and why Picard left Starfleet.

Through her, we also start to see the view point of perhaps people who aren’t a part of Starfleet, the civilian side of the galaxy, which she noted that many felt there were better uses for their resources than aiding the Federation’s oldest enemy. And I have no doubt that there were people who did think that. This plays to exactly the sort of sentiment we saw in ENT, when after the Xindi attack, humanity shrank back and started to be xenophobic towards all alien life, not just Xindi. Terra Prime and that whole “Earth First” mentality are all playing again with what we see from this interviewer and her implications. She deliberately pokes at Picard calling for the massive relocation of Romulans. She points to Romulans as an enemy, and she points to the mass number of 900 million Romulan citizens they had to relocate, and how 10,000 warp-capable ferries had to be constructed for the rescue fleet. All of this is clearly a roundabout way of saying that it was a waste of resources, that those resources shouldn’t have been used, and the implication that if they hadn’t build the rescue fleet, then maybe Mars wouldn’t have been targeted and thousands of people wouldn’t have died.

Now, I’ve seen many bad faith takes saying “oh they are making the Federation behave like Nazis!!” or “they are making the Federation into xenophobic racists!!!!” but all of that is disingenuous and ignores what the story actually says. Picard was able to persuade the Federation to help the Romulans, and we know clearly that Spock was also working on the matter to help. The Federation intended to help but only stopped after the rescue fleet was destroyed and thousands upon thousands of people died. There is a HUGE DIFFERENCE between outright refusing to aid and stopping aid after you’re attacked and your rescue fleet got destroyed. There is a HUGE DIFFERENCE between maliciously deciding you don’t want to help someone and just watch them drown, and trying to help but you got injured and you are tired and you gave up.

Of course we all want the Federation to keep going and never give up. Of course we want the Federation to always stand up to its ideals of hope and justice. But giving up when you’re hurt is not the same as outright xenophobia, and it certainly doesn’t make you a Nazi. We KNOW from previous Trek shows AND films that the Federation isn’t perfect, that sometimes the Federation makes mistakes, and even has a hard time letting go of grudges and prejudices. I’ve said it many times before, utopias are pretty to look like but they don’t just magically grow out of a vacuum, a perfect world needs work. The moment you become complacent and you don’t put in the effort, a utopia can easily fail. Hell, in this very moment, we are seeing exactly how democracy CAN fail if we don’t work hard to maintain it. And I get it, some people are mad about political allegories, some people are mad that the perfect utopia of escapism isn’t happening. But Star Trek has always held up a mirror to our own world, it has always pointed out our own failings and how we can be better. And THIS is no different. The Federation gave up and shrunk from its duties, yes. They gave into grief, pain, and fear. But it does not mean they are evil. It is telling us that very same thing. We are not evil if we give into fear, but we can also be better, and do better. The world isn’t just magically built, democracy didn’t just happen one day out of the blue, we worked at it, even if it’s sometimes one step forward and two steps back.

Anyways, as we go on with this interview, there’s the bit where the interviewer says it’s only “Romulan lives” at stake and Picard counters her with “No. Lives.” Picard’s very powerful statement that we are all lives, doesn’t matter Romulan or not, is something that is necessary to say not just in the context of the plot, but also in the context of our current society. Right now in this very world we live in, people of color, people from minority groups, are all being dehumanized and otherized, and a populace is basically being fed propaganda hating on people not like them, dismissing people not like them, and somehow forgetting that we are all living breathing beings. So what if our skin pigmentation are different? So what if we speak different languages or have different cultures or beliefs or love different people? We are all still breathing, still living. And this continued otherization has only caused more harm to not only the groups being oppressed, but also to all of us as a species. And yes, I know some people don’t want to hear it, they don’t want “leftist politics” in their Star Trek, but this message has been the same message that Star Trek has been sending out for over half a century. You understood it as kids, you took all that in, so where along the way in your growth did you forget that message?

As Picard stated, lives were at stake and the Federation and Starfleet understood that, they had all those ships out there in the shipyards because they had every intention to help. And if not for the attack on Mars, it would have happened. If 92,143 lives weren’t lost, and 10,000 warp capable ferries weren’t gone, they would have been ready to help. Instead the galaxy mourned, and Starfleet and the Federation withdrew because they too were licking their wounds.

The interviewer compared this logistical feat to the Pyramids, which Picard calls vanity. He points out Dunkirk, the rescue of 400,000 troops on the beaches done through calling in civilian boats. And it’s a more than apt comparison.

We learn that the planetary defense shields were dropped, and Mars’ defense net was hacked, all of this indicates that I think something more than just the synths themselves were involved. Picard says they still don’t know why the synths went rogue. So I think that the synths were nothing more than someone’s means to an end. Either someone in the Federation wanted a reason for the Federation to pull back from helping Romulus, or Romulans from the Tal Shiar wanted to prevent the Federation from helping because they didn’t want to be indebted to Starfleet and the Federation. Whatever it is, it’s covert, and the synths were just the scapegoats for the attack.

And as if the 9/11 analogy isn’t more complete, we know the Mars attack was the reason that synthetic life-forms are now banned. And just to give it some sort of scale that we can understand, it is said that 2,977 victims died from 9/11, the attack on Mars had casualties at least 30 times that of 9/11. Not to mention the shipyard and all the vessels. It would have shaken the Federation, and especially those on Earth, to their core. The fact that the interviewer points out that Mars is still on fire to this day is another thing to note of the effect that is still lingering, much like how 9/11 still is a collective trauma for those who lived through it, even to this day.

Now we see the interview becoming more and more heated, in many ways, the interviewer bringing up Data and asking if Picard lost faith in him, to which Picard says “never”. And we also know that Picard thinks that banning synthetic life-forms was a mistake. The interviewer finally gets to what she clearly wants to ask, why he left Starfleet and what was it that he lost faith in. And Picard answers that he left because “it was no longer Starfleet”, he angrily states that Starfleet had slunk from its duties, and that the decision to call off the rescue was not just dishonorable because they had sworn to help, but also downright criminal, and he wasn’t going to be a spectator about it.

Now, there is something interesting in this moment that I don’t see mentioned much, and it’s that you see Zhaban and Laris watching the interview, and they hold hands. This is clearly something that hurts them too. You can see the emotions on their faces. And while this interview is focused on Picard, we should not forget that this matters to them too. This was Laris and Zhaban’s home that was destroyed, probably people they knew too that died, their families and friends. They are watching an interview that is not just disparaging their race but also discounting the meaning of their lives. And this moment will speak to anyone who has been part of any oppressed groups seeing themselves dehumanized by their lives being an “other”. Picard is standing up not just for Romulans or synthetics, but he is also standing up directly for the two of them, two refugees who have lost everything except each other. It’s a small moment, but it really meant a lot to me watching it, because I understood those feelings. And it made me connect to Laris and Zhaban so much more as characters.

Picard at this point is ready to tear into the interviewer, stating that she has no idea what Dunkirk is, because she’s a stranger to history and stranger to war. And how it isn’t easy for those who died and those who were left behind. Now this moment is very powerful, and clearly the meaning of this scene is meant to be also calling us as viewers to realize how much of our own history that we are a stranger to, and how forgetting that history is the reason we get into the sort of messes that we have today. And I am sure that the writers and director didn’t intend for this to be viewed as anything other than Picard giving all of us a lesson. However, as is with the case of the Xahean boyfriend who died, it is noticeable that it is a white man lecturing a black woman about history. Of course, in universe this isn’t an issue, and as with the issue from before, this is no doubt them wanting to cast actors of color in as many roles as possible, and this is a big scene to have with Picard so of course they cast a brilliant actress for it. But nonetheless it is something noticed, and I think if people make a criticism of that, I would understand, even if I understand also that this is clearly not the intention of the writers or the director.

By the way, the interviewer’s name is credited as Richter, which is a german word meaning “judge”, though I was reminded of the richter scale for earthquakes, and giving she looked to be causing her own little earthquakes during this interview, and being a judge in many ways, both meanings are appropriate.

Finally, Picard walks away from the interview, and this interview is going down, we see Dahj walking in the rain, seeing Picard on the screens nearby doing the interview and recognizing him.

There is also a sign in that scene that says “behold the future, preview next year’s padd tech today” so I guess even in the future, we still get new tech updates like those Apple iPhone conferences and whatnot.

We get a “commercial break” and we’re back at the Chateau. Picard is sitting with Number One quoting "there is no legacy as rich as honesty” from Shakespeare's All’s Well That Ends Well. Number One barks at Dahj approaching, runs over, but seems okay with her. Picard wants to know what she’s doing here and Dahj says she saw his interview and wants to know if he knows her. He does a “what????” expression that kind of made me chuckle because I can just see the question marks in his head. He’s just so confused.

Now there is an interesting thing to note here, Dahj immediately comments “you’re not sure, how do I know that?”, as if she is reading his mind somehow. So could this mean she has some sort of mind reading abilities too? Or is it just that she can read people really well?

Dahj describes all the things that’s happened, saying that her abilities came to her like “lightning seeking the ground” and she’s clearly very upset. Picard, who has every reason to turn away someone who could be rather alarming, instead takes her hands and tries to calm her down. I’ll expand on this later in another scene, but the kindness that he immediately has towards Dahj’s situation is just such a good thing. Compassion is something so lacking right now in the world, and having him being kind to her and not push her away even though he doesn’t know her, is so important. And when Dahj says “everything inside of me says that I’m safe with you”, we the audience certainly believes that.

We cut to Laris healing up Dahj’s cut, and Zhaban puts a blanket on her. Again, showing how kind these two people are, and the caring and kindness that surrounds Picard. No wonder Dahj feels safe. Picard gives her Earl Grey tea and says it “never fails”. The whole scene that follows is just a really sweet and lovely scene of two people connecting. Picard never treating her as if she isn’t to be believed. She asks him if he’s been a stranger to himself, and he answers “many, many times”, which we have seen throughout TNG. If anyone knows how Dahj is feeling, it is Picard. And I love that he connects with her, never dismissing her feelings.

Picard also comments on Dahj’s necklace, saying it was unusual. Dahj said that her father gave it to her. Now some have wondered why it would be an unusual necklace as it doesn’t look unusual, but I don’t know, I guess it looked kinda strange to me. Or maybe Picard recognized the symbol from somewhere and thought it was strange. Dahj says she doesn’t just know Picard because he’s famous, but she knows him from something older and deeper, and Picard says she may be right, clearly feeling like maybe he does know her from somewhere. He again reiterates that he believes her, joking that if she were dangerous, Number One would let him know.

Laris takes Dahj to her room, and she thanks Picard before she goes, clearly very grateful for someone believing in her. Dahj does leave the necklace behind on the table, which Picard looks at.

Next day, he opens up the window and nobody is working. I realized at this point immediately it must be another dream sequence and sure enough Data is in the fields painting. Both him and Picard are in their TNG era uniforms, and Data asks if Picard wants to finish the painting which has no face and is a hooded figure standing overlooking an ocean. Picard says he doesn’t know how, but Data says that’s not true. The moment Picard takes the brush, he’s awoken by the clock, and he immediately turns around to look at the painting behind him hanging up on the wall, which is almost exactly the painting from the dream, only the head is turned away. Obviously his dreams are a way for him to work out things he’s busy thinking about when he’s awake. God if only my dreams work out life’s problems for me. It would be so useful!

Laris comes in to say that Dahj is gone. Now this scene is logistically a little bit oddly placed. I don’t know when Picard wakes up from his dream, but it doesn’t look like 5am. And Laris comes in rather calmly to tell Picard that Dahj is gone, so did Laris just get up at 5am, saw Dahj gone, and went about her day until Picard woke up? Now Picard could have woken up just minutes before too. They just didn’t exactly make it explicitly clear. She did note that Dahj’s door was open, Number One was on her bed but she was gone, and they checked the feeds and she’s not on the property.

Picard, who now has an idea of what to look for, says he has to go but for them to contact him if Dahj returns.

We then change locations to Starfleet Archives, which uses the same museum symbol that the Star Trek Tour folks have. So that’s a nice little touch, nodding to the fans. It’s really sweet. Star Trek Tour is canon now! :D

Now at this moment when we see Picard approaching the archives, the Jerry Goldsmith theme from the Motion Picture plays a little in the background. Again, a beautiful addition from Jeff Russo knowing exactly where to add in the music to make everything feel perfect.

Picard is with a program called Index, who seems to keep an eye on the quantum archive. Picard wants to be sure that his archive is locked in stasis and no one has access, Index makes a joke about selling tickets with Picard noting the humor and saying “don’t give up your day job”. I love funny snarky holograms.

We then see Picard going into his archive and this is certainly a room full of easter eggs, so I’ll just note the items I saw and double checked with Memory Alpha to make sure I had the correct names:

USS Stargazer model

USS Enterprise D and E models

Captain’s yacht from Enterprise E model

Kurlan naiskos – ceramic figurine statue made by Kurlan civilization – gift from former mentor Richard Galen?

TNG era Bat’leth and D’k tahg

Captain Picard Day banner

Picard’s edition of The Globe Illustrated Shakespeare: The Complete Works, usually seen in his ready room/quarters – book is opened to first two pages of Act III of All’s Well That Ends Well – quote from earlier

It was noted from the Ready Room aftershow with Hanelle Culpepper and Michael Chabon (the showrunner), that the Captain Picard Day banner is an interesting way to tell the story of Picard’s change. He used to not like that day at all, and now he keeps that memento as if to remind himself that he maybe should have had more of those moments, showing a bit of his regret.

We get some updated LCARS, which the Picard production crew did give a shoutout to Mike Okuda on twitter. It’s always great to see these original designs get a little update with the times. It’s got more muted colors, which I quite like. And also, the object that covers the painting and retracts back is similar to the mechanical hood device that they used in the Ask Not Short Trek that Pike wore.

Index notes that this painting, which we see has Dahj’s face, is item 227.67, painted by Data in 2369, one of a set of two, gifted to Picard on the Enterprise, and the other is hanging on the wall at the Chateau. And the title of the painting is called Daughter. This confirming that Dahj somehow is Data’s daughter, which makes sense given her resemblance to Lal.

Picard asks Index to be sure that no one has been in the archive, not even for servicing. This means that no one else could have known Dahj’s face unless they were someone who actually knew Data or somehow had access to Data.

Back in France, Dahj seems to be hiding in an alleyway. She contacts her mom who tells her to get somewhere safe. Dahj notes that she did tried but she couldn’t stay because she didn’t want to put anyone else in danger. Her mom says she has to go back to Picard, Dahj frowns because her mom couldn’t have known. We see the image of the Mom glitching somehow? At this moment we don’t know if she’s a hologram or a memory or maybe a person who is being used or coerced? Her mom insists for her to find Picard and that he can and will help her. I can’t be sure if the mom is good or not, but her insisting that she goes to Picard does seem like she wants Dahj to be safe. So maybe the mom is also Dahj’s own defense mechanism? A program that makes sure she stays on course and doesn’t stray? The mom tells Dahj to close her eyes and focus, as if giving her directions on what to do. Next we see that the transmission has terminated and Dahj pulls up new information to find Picard’s location.

We also note that in her call list of favorites, there’s Soji’s name too, which connects to the later scene we see.

Back at the Starfleet Archives again, Picard sees Dahj and is clearly relieved that she’s okay. Dahj points out that she knew how to track him here, “I know stuff now, I can hear conversations a block away.” She then tries to insist that she did research and that she must have schizophrenia or something. Picard says she doesn’t have that and tries to assure her that she isn’t a freak, and instead that she may be very special. He starts telling her about Data, and you can hear the emotions in his voice about what Data meant. Dahj doesn’t know why Picard is telling her that and Picard gently tries to let Dahj know that she may be like Data and that the attack may have acted like a positronic alarm bell. But Dahj doesn’t react well to that, comparing synthetics to the ones who attacked Mars, even at one point calling synths “soulless murder machines”. We can see from Dahj’s comments that resent and fear still exists in the Federation towards android/synthetic life-forms, which from what we know, the attack was only about 10 years ago, so it would still be rather fresh on everyone’s minds.

Picard tells Dahj that Data painted her over 30 years ago, she still tries to resist, stating that she’s from Seattle and that her dad was a xenobotanist who spliced two genuses and named the offspring after her. Dahj clearly feels like she’s losing her sense of self if she is not real, but Picard tells her that her beautiful memories are hers and that no one can touch it or take it away. Picard’s insistent kindness and compassion are just SO VERY IMPORTANT. It is not always in entertainment media that we get these unabashedly kind characters, especially with male characters. And sometimes I think Star Trek is the only kind of show where truly kind and loving male characters are allowed to thrive because that’s the world we expect it to be. But even so, having characters like Picard, an older white male in a place of authority, still being so kind and caring and willing to help people instead of judging them, is important. Because this allows younger generations watching this to have someone good to be their role model, to teach and instill in them that kindness is what you need to have more of in this world. I am especially thankful that new Trek has been able to bring forth these kinds of kind characters, and especially white male characters. We see it with Picard, and we saw it with Christopher Pike in Discovery season 2. Both of these characters’ kindness is what allows others to not only feel safe, but allow people a place to grow and learn, and to have people standing in their corner even when they feel alone. That sense of safety and love, like having a safety blanket over you, is so essential to characters that are eschewing the toxic masculinity that is often very prevalent in entertainment media these days. In many ways, Star Trek, through Picard and Pike, are pointedly stating that men, especially white men, being kind and understanding, is not something to be belittled or dismissed, but rather important things because kindness is its own super power, and it’s with that kindness and love that they can stand up to institutions’ whose ideals have gone astray. Picard standing up to Starfleet is really no different than the scene of Pike calling out Starfleet’s use of drones and stating that “giving up our values in the name of security is to lose the battle in advance.”

Principled and kind lead white male characters are what we need more of these days.

Picard insists to Dahj that she was “lovingly and deliberately created” and that “You are dear to me in ways that you can’t understand, I will never leave you.” And adding that they will go to Okinawa to the Daystrom Institute and get this all figured out. He brightens up when Dahj mentions her having been accepted into the institute, happy for her even if Dahj is no longer happy anymore after all that’s happened. Picard reminds her “You are the daughter of a man who was all meaning, all courage, be like him”

This whole thing of him talking about Data to Dahj is just really emotional, you can see how much he wants to protect her, and how he genuinely means it that he will not leave her. And you can sense the guilt that still clings to him about Data dying for him.

Of course, nice moment again gets interrupted by Romulan assassins, because Romulans just love to ruin your nice moments. Dahj notices someone coming after them and runs with Picard, who can’t really keep up with her. They get to the roof and the assassins start shooting. Dahj tells Picard to stay down and gets on with some serious ass kicking. Again, as I said earlier, this whole fight scene is just so well done. The action is steady that you know exactly what is happening at all time and what she is doing and who she is fighting. You’re not lost, it’s not shaky and blurry.

One of the assassins gets his helmet taken off and as he falls down the stairs, Picard notices that they are Romulan. Another assassin gets knocked over a railing but seems to beam away. Dahj is about to shoot another one when this assassin bites down on a capsule and spews out some kind of liquid acid which gets on the gun and on Dahj’s face and her clothing. She and Picard exchanged a horrified look, she screams and Picard tries to reach for her as the energy gun blows up and Picard is knocked back and blacks out.

Now this moment was certainly a surprise. Through all the marketing, they kept talking about Dahj being the mysterious girl, they never mentioned someone else, so we just always thought it was one character. And I remember looking at the trailers and thinking, did Dahj get out of the cube and run to Picard and then gets taken back to the cube somehow and Picard has to go get her again? But it looks like they were just hiding the surprise of the twins in plain sight and we just didn’t have the information to realize it until now. Dahj’s death is certainly very tragic. Though I don’t know you could call it fridging a female character given that she was always meant to be a catalyst role so they could get to saving her sister? I’m not sure, simply because the story is set up in this way and I’m not sure it would work as well if they told it another way simply just to avoid character death. But perhaps someone would disagree.

But we get back to the Chateau where Picard wakes up after having numerous flashes of previous scenes that’s happened. We see Laris and Zhaban worriedly leaning over him as he’s laid up on the couch. He’s got a bad knock but other than that he’s okay. Picard reveals that Dahj is dead and Zhaban and Laris are surprised because the police didn’t mention her. They only said that Picard was alone when they found him on the roof. There was no one else on the security but him running. Zhaban suggests Dahj could have had a cloaking device and that’s why she wasn’t seen on their property feed either, and Picard thinks it may have activated automatically. So this explains why Dahj couldn’t be seen. But this doesn’t necessarily explain why even the Romulan assassins weren’t seen either or why the police said he was found alone. Which means that between the time the police found him, someone, possibly Romulans, could have wiped all the traces of what happened, and maybe even administered some healing stuff on Picard. OR as some have suggested, it could be that the Federation police could be involved in it, maybe it is some massive cover up. Maybe the Federation is infiltrated somehow by Romulan agents. This certainly wouldn’t be unusual tactics for the Tal Shiar, and we know even back in Discovery, the Klingons made one of them look like a human just so he could be a sleeper agent. So there’s no reason to not think that Romulans couldn’t do the same.

Picard tells Zhaban and Laris that Dahj was a synthetic and that the assassins were Romulans, which surprises both of them, given that they are Romulans, can’t be easy to hear their people are up to something shady. Of course Laris and Zhaban wants him to rest and that he’s done a lot for everyone. But Picard delivers a really powerful and brilliant line that really explains a lot of things.

He says: “Sitting here, after all these years, nursing my offended dignity, writing books of history people prefer to forget, I never asked anything of myself at all. I haven’t been living, I’ve been waiting to die.”

If you look back to the interview when the interviewer asks him why he left Starfleet, that he left in protest, and how angry he got. I think Picard left Starfleet to try to force their hand to help, essentially doing a last desperate bid of if you want me then you better go help these people. And Starfleet basically called his bluff and let him go. That is the “offended dignity” that he’s been nursing. That he tried to do something, using his reputation and importance, and Starfleet basically said, yeah okay, you can go then. I think, more than just Starfleet and the Federation deciding to withdraw, he felt a personal betrayal. The organization that he had given everything to didn’t even bother to fight for its ideals or fight to hold onto him, they gave up on their ideals and they gave up on him, so therefore, he lost faith in them as well. And all this time he’s been wallowing in anger, guilt, and essentially being the spectator that he said he didn’t want to be. He’s been wallowing in self pity, and in that moment, he’s realized that’s not what he wants to do, he’s not going to just slink away from his duties like Starfleet did, he’s now going to do something about it.

We then go to a new location, finally the Daystrom Institute on screen for the first time, in Okinawa. There is this little orbital station in the sky, it looked like one of those stations from The Girl Who Made The Stars Short Trek that young Michael and her dad were on.

Picard meets up with Dr. Agnes Jurati, and asks if it’s possible to make a sentient android out of flesh and blood, she laughs. I find her to be very adorable, a quirky scientist type but not entirely socially awkward, so it’s not the full on nerd girl trope. Once she realizes that he’s serious, she tells him that “even before the ban, a flesh and blood android was in our sights, but a sentient one, not for a thousand years”. She also notes that a sentient synthetic inside and out was the grand slam they were hoping for.

She leads Picard into the Federation’s Division of Advanced Synthetic Research – now a ghost town - because the Androids that attacked Mars came from this very lab - so now they can only operate theoretically – study, publish, run simulations, but they can’t make anything because it would be a violation of galactic treaty.

Jurati shows the drawer containing B-4 to Picard, says he was an inferior copy of Data, but noting that Data tried to download the contents of his neural net into B-4 before his death, almost all of it was lost. Note that she said ALMOST all of it. Which means that they did have some pieces of Data to create things from him. She also brings up Bruce Maddox, whom we saw in the TNG episode “The Measure of a Man”, and despite him trying to get Data to be declared property, we know that he and Data did keep in contact afterwards. Jurati says that Maddox recruited her out of Starfleet, and apparently they came close to create other synths like Data before Data died, and then when they got shut down, it crushed Maddox and he disappeared after the ban.

Now, I suspect that someone may have taken Maddox, and maybe used him to somehow get the synths to go rogue and attack Mars. Maybe even got him to somehow bring down the defense nets. And maybe Maddox could have even created Dahj and her sister Soji for whoever is controlling him as well? Agnes does say that if they had Data’s neural net, then making a flesh and blood body is relative simple, but Picard says Data’s neurons died with him, and thus Jurati says that’s why she kept telling Picard it wasn’t possible to create any other synths. Picard then shows Jurati the necklace from Dahj, and Jurati recognizes that the symbol is for fractal neuronic cloning, an idea of Maddox’s where the theory was that Data’s entire code, even his memories, could be reconstituted from a single positronic neuron.

So given that Jurati said they almost lost all of Data, I assume Maddox took that bit of Data they still had from B-4 and somehow got his theory to work to make Dahj and her sister, modeled from Data’s painting.

Picard learns that the cloning would be created in pairs, twins, realizing that there is another one. And showing us who were surprised at Dahj’s death that the rest of the season must be with the sister instead.

I’m still not entirely sure if Jurati knows something more about what’s going or not. I also don’t know if maybe she helped Maddox create the twins? It’s possible but maybe she is also just a good person and I’m being way too suspicious. But who knows. Anything is possible. TV is making it hard for me to trust people.

Then we get this beautiful transition shot from Dahj’s necklace symbol to a similar shaped rings of light in space as a new looking Romulan warbird flies through space and reaches the Romulan Reclamation Site.

We get the first shot of Narek walking through some smoke with purpose as the Romulan theme from TOS episode “Balance of Terror” plays on in the background like the Imperial March every time with Darth Vader. I LOVE this newly updated rendition. Honestly, someone please give Jeff Russo some awards because his music in this episode is just SO SPOT ON!

Narek is clearly the president of the Romulan division of the Emo Spock Fashion Fan Club? I’m just waiting for him to actually be Spock’s secret son with some Romulan, I mean, we know Spock was on Romulus for a time. And Narek sound close to Sarek. (I’m secretly hoping for this because it would just be hilarious to me!)

He meets with Doctor Soji Asha, Dahj’s twin. I noted that Dahj sounds like an Indian name perhaps? And Soji is a Japanese name. Which seem to be appropriate given that actress Isa Briones is also Asian, being part Filipino, and having spoken about Asian representation in entertainment.

Narek comments on her necklace, which Soji says her father made it, one for her and one for her sister. There was some confusion as to if only Soji knew about her having a sister, but as the earlier call list from Dahj shows, she knew about Soji too. They clearly just held it back from showing it for this reveal. Narek says he had a brother and they were really close but that he lost him last year very unexpectedly. I have a feeling we will get to see what went on with that, or maybe we even know who his brother may be? I originally thought it was Elnor, but I don’t think it works with what we know about both characters, as Elnor was said to have been raised by female warrior monks? So the “last year” comment wouldn’t work for timeline purposes. So the brother is likely someone else who died in 2398, again I don’t know this may be a character we know from any other of the older Trek shows.

He’s clearly trying to flirt with her and get close to her. He also notes that she spends her day fixing “broken people”, so is she fixing Borg survivors or androids or maybe both? We do see in the this season promo of her with Hugh somehow, and other people who look like they got implants, so are the Romulans kidnapping Borg survivors and trying to use them to make androids or something?

Anyways, Narek seem to succeed in ingratiating himself to Soji, looking like they’ll be spending some time together. And the camera then pulls back to reveal the site is in a Borg cube. Meanwhile, that beautiful Romulan theme comes back and plays til the end of the episode.

There’s a “this season on” promo that I’ll probably talk about maybe in a separate post. But YAY we have reached the end of this LONG analysis. If you’ve managed to get through all of it. I commend you and thank you for reading my ramblings.

This episode was a really solid start, setting up great characters and mystery, and reminding us why we love Jean-Luc Picard.

I can’t wait to see where the story will take us next and meet the rest of the cast!!!!!!!!

#star trek picard #star trek picard spoilers #in depth analysis

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weerd1 · 5 years

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Star Trek DS9 Rewatch Log, Stardate 1909.22, Supplemental: Missions Reviewed, “Treachery, Faith, and the Great River,” “Once More Unto the Breach,” “The Siege of AR-558,” “Covenant,” and “It’s Only Paper Moon.” (For Aron.)

“Treachery, Faith, and the Great River” begins with Odo receiving word from a Cardassian informant he thought was executed that they need to meet. He informs Kira (while massaging out her sore muscles after spingball, godamighty) that he’s going alone, and take a Runabout to see if he can find the man. Meanwhile repairs are behind on the station and the Defiant, and Sisko demands O’Brien have them all completed when he gets back from a conference on Bajor. O’Brien is stymied, not having the parts he needs, when Nog offers to get them.

He just needs Chief’s access codes to make the right trades to make it happen. Odo arrives at the rendezvous to find Weyoun, who wants to defect. While they are heading back to DS9, they are hailed from Cardassia by…Weyoun and Damar. Turns out the Weyoun of the last couple of years died in an transporter accident. The Weyoun 6 clone is the defector, and Weyoun 7 wants him hunted down. Damar says they must destroy the ship, but Weyoung 7 knows the Jem’Hadar will never fire on Odo. Damar mentions they don’t have to know he’s on board. Kira calls on O’Brien to explain why the Captain’s desk is missing, and Worf and Martok want to know why their bloodwine is gone. Confronting Nog, the Ferengi explains that the universe is governed by the Great Material Continuum, running like a river from places with too much of a thing to places with not enough of a thing. He is counting on the river to get them their parts, with a little help from Ferengi trade practices. After one Jem’Hadar ship is defeated with Weyoun 6’s command, the Female Changeling confronts Weyoun 7 and Damar about what’s going on. Damar notices that the Changeling doesn’t look right, she looks dried out. As soon as he mentions it, she changes and demands they get Weyoun 6. Six meanwhile, with Odo and cornered by Jem’Hadar reveals that the Founders are sick, all of them. He defected to make sure Odo was ok, and tell him that HE will be the last Founder, and de facto leader of the Dominion if the other die; and opportunity to reconstruct the Dominion as an organization of cooperation and peace. To Weyoun 7 to call off the attack, Six activates a built in suicide pill, and Seven is true to his word. Six asks Odo for his blessing as he dies, and indeed the clone dies in the arms of his God, his faith rewarded.

On DS9, O’Brien expects to be derided when called to Sisko’s office, but Nog is there, as is the captain’s desk, and the repair parts are in the hanger. As they leave ops Worf and Martok appear. Somehow Nog as replaced their bloodwine with vintage 2309, far better quality than what they had before. O’Brien is amazed, but Nog cites the Great Material River, HIS faith rewarded.

The A and B stories here almost get equal time, but there are a lot of great reveals here. The fact the Founders basically uplifted a group of timid tree apes to create the Vorta; the Vorta’s cloning practices; the fact the Founders are ill (there will be some more dire revelations about this later). All those heavy moments balance well with the Nog/O’Brien storyline. Now, I have to tell you. This episode as a toy and nerd collector affected me deeply, and to this day, it is my policy that if someone really takes a shine to something in my collection, I pass it on to them. I like to call it, “casting it into the great material river.” Whenever there is a hole on my shelf, something show up to take its place. I have faith my toys end up in the hands they should.

Kor comes to DS9 to ask Worf to help him go “Once More Unto the Breach.” Kor has been marginalized in the war, and has not been able to seek glorious combat. Worf asks Martok if there is place for Kor, but Martok is incensed. Years before, Martok’s career was almost derailed before it could begin by Kor because the House of Kor was a great one, noble, and Martok was little more than a farm boy. Worf convinces him to allow Kor on as Third Officer in a mission to raid a Cardassian base.

When Martok describes the plan, Kor states it was the same one he and Kang (last seen with Kor in “Blood Oath” way back in season 2, and before that on TOS) against the Federation in the previous century. The crew is overly respectful of Kor, D’Har Master, much to Martok’s chagrin. When the actual fight happens though, Martok and Worf are incapacitated, and Kor takes over, losing himself and thinking he is back in battle against the Federation and Kang is on his way to help. When Worf and Martok retake control, Kor is shamed and abashed, but their small fleet is also being pursued by ten Jem’Hadar ships. Worf devises a plan to stop them, but it will cost a ship. If that ship can stop even a few of the enemy ships, the others might escape. Worf plans to take command, but Kor knocks him out with a hypo, beaming to the bird of prey that will face the Jem’Hadar. Martok monitors the battle, amazed at Worf’s bravery, but Worf appears on the bridge, informing him it is Kor in battle.

They watch amazed, waiting for whatever ships Kor cannot stop to pursue them. None do. Though it cost his life, Kor destroys all ten Jem’Hadar vessels, leaving Martok’s crew—and Martok himself—to drink and sing songs of Kor’s victory, knowing they will see him in Sto-Vo-Kor.

Another great Klingon episode, and a great end for the always entertaining, and slightly mad, Kor. This it turns out was also John Colicos’ final acting role, and what a note to go out on. The heroic battle is pure Klingon here too. The tension between noble houses and minor houses on Qo’noS is interesting, as it will also factor heavily into “Discovery” in its first season, specifically with the House of Kor dealing with Voq, son of none. There are also a few nice moments between Kor and Ezri, who seems to immediately accept Dax as Dax. Perhaps he adapted better having already dealt with the change from Curzon to Jadzia, however even then he was rather quick to accept her. An interesting quirk for someone so adherent to Klingon noble traditions.

“The Siege of AR-558” has the Defiant bringing supplies to a Starfleet outpost in the Chin’Toka system, which has not been easily held. The outpost has captured a Dominion communications array, and hope to crack it, but have been too busy defending it against repeated attacks. On the mission is Quark at the behest of the Nagus who wants a report on the state of the war. It isn’t good. These people have been defending this outpost for five months; two months longer than a tour is supposed to be. They were 150 people, they are now down to about 40. They are constantly falling victim to “Houdini mines,” small floating explosives that hang in subspace and randomly appear and explode, perhaps somewhere you’ve walked a hundred times.

Nog is impressed by the battle hardened humans here, but Quark warns him these are not the cuddly Earthers he knows. “…take away their creature comforts… deprive them of food, sleep, sonic showers… put their lives in jeopardy over an extended period of time… and those same friendly, intelligent, wonderful people will become as nasty and violent as the most bloodthirsty Klingon. You don't believe me? Look at those faces, look at their eyes…" When the Dominion attacks the Defiant, Worf pulls back, leaving Sisko, Bashir, Nog, Dax, and Quark on the surface to help defend the base. Ezri befriends Kellin (played by Lost in Space and Babylon Five’s Bill Mumy) who is trying to crack the mine problem, and they start to work. Sisko sends Nog out on a scouting mission with two of the Soldiers here, and though they get a good look at the Jem’Hadar base, one is killed and Nog loses his leg. Bashir plays Vic Fontaine music as they await the attack, but when Ezri and Kellin get control of the mines, Sisko uses them on the Jem’Hadar, thinning their numbers before the attack. One of the Jem’Hadar makes it to where Nog lies wounded, Quark himself shoots him down.

When all is said and done, Kellin is dead, but reinforcements and engineers arrive, allowing the one survivor of the original group to leave with the Defiant.

A grim and powerful episode that aims to look war right in the face. Quark’s speech I quote here is really fantastic, but comes back to haunt him when he too, put in the corner, is willing to shoot to kill, to protect. Ezri questioning Sisko’s decision to turn the mines they were just condemning on the enemy calls into question what is fair in war, but also leaves you as a viewer to decide if it was the right decision or not. The Starfleet trooper with Jem’Hadar Ketracel White bottles, ripped from his enemies’ bodies, brings to mind the Klingon was saw in “Soldiers of the Empire” with Cardassian neck bones as a necklace. At least it isn’t body parts, but DS9 does not flinch here, and it is a better story for it. Nog losing his leg will come into play again very soon as well. Back on TOS, Kirk would occasionally refer to himself and other Starfleet members as “Soldiers.” Here we see that’s true; makes you wonder if they plan to bring back the Marines we saw in STVI: The Undiscovered Country (the Colonel of course was played by Rene Auberjonois!).

Kira is visited by an old friend, Vedek Fala, in “Convenant.” He gives her a gift which turns out to be a transponder that allows her transport across the sector to the previously abandoned sister station to DS9, Empok Nor. There she finds her Vedek is actually part if the cult of the Pah-Wraits, who feel the Prophets turned their back on Bajor. In charge of the cult, she finds Dukat, who feels since he once housed Kost Amojan that he now has been touched by the Pah-Wraiths, and chosen to lead their people.

Fala shows her the Bajorans here are completely under Dukat’s sway. Indeed there is one pregnant woman, who with her husband have only been allowed to have kids because Dukat has allowed it. Kira is less than convinced, but Fala persists telling her the Prophets have lied about the Pah-Wraits and they are peaceful. Dukat meanwhile tells Kira he has changed, and he loves his people. She points out he has set up some weird simulation of what he lost, commanding a station like Terok Nor, with a horde of Bajorans who love him. This proves startlingly true when the pregnant mother gives birth to a half-Cardassian baby. Dukat claims it is a miracle and a sign, but there are some doubters. He meets with the woman, apologizing for the “weakness” that allowed him to father her child, but when she says no one else knows, he tries to flush her out an airlock.

Kira and Fala come along and save her, but now Dukat must act. He locks Kira in her room and is going to take poison with all of his followers so they can “shed their bodies” to help the Pah-Wraiths enter the Celestial Temple. Kira breaks out and tackles Dukat just as he was going to take the first pill, knocking his from his hand. When Fala hands him just another one out of the box, Dukat won’t take it, and they all realize he was going to let them die and go on. He tells them it was what the Pah-Wraiths wanted, but they aren’t having it, and he has to beam away. Fala meanwhile takes his pill and dies in Kira’s arms, telling her it was because of “faith.”

Dukat going full blown cult-leader is right in line with his arrogance and his ego. It’s just another example to me though that one of the bets DS9 misses is having Kira kill Dukat at the end of the series. Yes, this sets him to as a vessel of the Pah-Wraiths, an Anti-Emissary, but I thing all the personal grudges with Kira deserve a better resolution. And for those who freak out over Scotty building an interplanetary transporter in the Kelvin Timeline, here’s one at work with Dominion tech in 2374, 13 years BEFORE Spock will go back in time and teach KY Scotty how to finish his. For that matter, before the Voyager will show up in just a couple of years with Borg Transwarp tech too. The Kelvin Timeline works if you just look at the details.

Finally, fandom tonight watched “It’s Only a Paper Moon” as a tribute to Aron Eisenberg’s passing, so I made sure I got this far. Nog returns to the station with his new bio-synthetic leg, but it hurts him and he must walk with a cane. All his medical checks show fine though, and he is interested in doing nothing but lying in bed and listening to Vic Fontaine sing “I’ll Be Seeing You,” the song Bashir played in “The Siege of AR-558.” When Jake can’t take more than three days of that song on repeat he confronts Nog, who leaves and goes to the Holosuite to hear Vic sing it. Nog decides to stay and live in the holosuite for a while. Ezri is skeptical, but Vic mentions he will take care of the kid. Indeed, Vic helps wean him off his cane, and gives him something to do by letting him do the casino’s “books.” Nog though seems so comfortable he won’t come out. Ezri asks Vic when he’s going to be done with him, and Vic seems to realize he too has become dependent on Nog; usually, he’s only on for a few hours at a time, but with Nog there 26 hours a day, he is now constant.

Realizing he’s putting his own needs first, Vic shuts down the program himself. Nog tries to get it running again, but can’t, but Vic appears to ask him about it. Nog says he doesn’t want to go back to the real world because he’s afraid, as anything could happen. Vic tells him that’s life, and why you have to seize it when you can, and indeed why he was happy to have Nog there. It’s time though, time for Nog to seize it for real. Nog leaves without his cane, and reunites with his family. Later, back in uniform Nog visits and tells Vic he has a present for him. Nog has made a deal with Quark, and this holosuite will continue to run full time, allowing Vic a life. Nog knows it’s the least he can do since Vic helped him get his own life back.

Bittersweet to watch tonight, but a great episode that takes a long look at the trauma of war and the mental scars that can be far worse than the physical ones. The continued development of Vic Fontaine as a sentient lifeform is interesting, able to control who does and does not use his program. Still self aware though that there are times he is “off.” Aron Eisenberg is of course terrific and this is an important episode for Nog, demonstrating why this was the episode his friends, fans, and family chose to commemorate him.

NEXT VOYAGE: The Orion Syndicate has come back for O’Brien, and somehow the Tigan family is involved. The Tigans are Ezri’s family before she was joined; she comes home in “Prodigal Daughter.”

#Star Trek #Star Trek: Deep Space Nine #DS9 Rewatch #aron eisenberg

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startrekwintergiftexchange · 6 years

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Je vous entends

🎉✨Happy Holidays everyone !✨🎉 This is my gift for @reflectingiridescent, for the @startreksecretsanta exchange of 2017. Had a hard time choosing which ship to do since I loved them all (you have good taste 👌), but I had to give in for Jean-Luc/Beverly/Jack because they make me weak. For a bit of timeline context, the story takes place in 2350, meaning Beverly just graduated from Starfleet Academy after getting married to Jack in 2348. Lastly, if you’re wondering about the title, “Je vous entends” means “I hear you” in French. Hope you’ll like it 😳🤞, and Happy New Year ❤️!

Author: @a-flower-crown-shark

For a Starfleet captain, concentration is primordial.

You always need to be at your best, mentally and physically. In space, a second of inattention can cost the life of your crew or compromise the security of the ship. You can be the cause of great, unfathomable damage.

That is why First Officer Jean-Luc Picard, of the Starship Stargazer, is always doing his very best to maintain his focus on every single thing happening around him. He may not hold the position of captain yet, but Starfleet Command has given him the rank, and acting as such seems necessary. And by all means, it does seem to be an excellent exercise for reflexes. There is however a small problem.

Will you stop, he grumbles in his head for the fifth time in the last hour. The voices ignore him, yet again. He lets out a small sigh and continues to work on the console with nimble fingers. A small surge occurred ten minutes ago in one of Engineering’s main conduits, making a few wounded, and though it was quickly put under control, he preferred verifying it, and verifying it himself. He’ll have to overcome his difficulty to delegate if he gets promoted to captain, but for now-

“Merde”, he mumbles when he accidentally hits the wrong button. The ensign next to him (a Vulcan, of course it had to be) hears him and turns around with a blank yet slightly worried expression, that only seems taunting at the moment.

“Sir ?”

“I’m fine, Ensign, thank you”, he smiles as he looks at the young man. “Just a bit of headache this morning”. Thankfully, the ensign does not insist, and they continue their work in silence.

///

As every other night as of the last few months, the walk back to his room is not an easy one; it seems like the voices take pleasure in getting louder when he gets ready to sleep, like they don’t want him to forget them. As if he could. He sits on his bed with discomfort, lets his head fall on the pillow, and grabs a pad by his nightstand, trying to decipher its content while a tambourine drums on his temples.

Ensign Warrick, Jules – In Sickbay for severe plasma burns on legs, torso, and right arm – Status: Stable – Relieved of duty for five days

Ah, the wounded of the power surge then. He tries to focus on the list, for the sake of the suffering crewman, but he can barely read the letters in front of his eyes.

Ensign M’lyoo, Kiku – In Sickbay for severe plasma burns on arms, neck – Status: Stable – Relieved of duty for three days

Ensign T’lennk En’tgai, Vorak – In Sickbay for severe plasma burns on legs – Status: Stable –Relieved of duty for three days

Lieutenant Crusher, Jack – In Sick Bay for light plasma burns on neck, torso, and left arms – Status: Stable – Relieved of duty for two days

Lieutenant Sevol-De La Cruz, Illyan – In Sick Bay for lig-

The pad falls on the bed, and he lets out a broken moan of pain.

They’ve been here for six months. Two voices, a woman and a man, speaking in Standard. At least he thinks they are: he has no idea what they’re saying. The voices are there, always, constantly under or over his own thoughts, and he distinguishes the fact that they are pronouncing words; but as soon as he tries to listen more closely to what exactly they’re saying, it all becomes a confused jumble.

When he first heard them, he put it under the stress he was under, only having recently been promoted to First Officer and overwhelmed with new duties. That peculiar day, the captain was receiving new crewmembers from a sister ship (a rumoured talented engineer, a security lieutenant, a science officer who specialized in novae, and a young command officer and his wife, a medical ensign who had recently graduated from the academy. He did not meet any of them, but he surely would do so later, when he’d have the time), and as such, was obligated to spend time with its captain to discuss details of the transfer. Meanwhile, he was in charge of a secret meeting with a Ferengi ship to share classified data, of a crucial maintenance exam at Starbase 35, of the proper delivery of a cure to a plagued colony planet … It seemed as if there was no end to the list of things he needed to do, and even with his natural calm, it definitely was tiring. He was very glad to go to sleep that night, and dozed off peacefully a soon as he laid himself on his bed.

And then, the two voices begun screaming.

He’d later recognize their high pitched tone to be less characteristic of fear than of unbelievable despair, though at the moment it only felt like pure, simple screaming. He held his head with two hands, trying to diminish the pain, without result. Needless to say, Jean-Luc didn’t get much sleep that night, nor the next, nor the nights of the week after. If the voices sometimes calmed down to only become a small mumble, they would very often jump back up at the most random moments, making him feel nauseous.

Of course, the data bank turned out empty. It was not a question of mental health, he was and is still certain of it; something about the voices seemed way too real, way too distinct for them to only be products of his mind. Jean-Luc Picard being Jean-Luc Picard, his next try was with alien cultures, for which he held enormous passion and respect: Many of them had such stories in their myths and legends, and there would surely be something worthy of note there. However, surprisingly, he found nothing of use, if not the knowledge that he may not have been the only individual to hear voices in his mind. Refusing to let himself be examined, as the “sickness” did not seem threatening to either him or others, he took the decision to continue living with the voices (Yes, he knew, he knew it was not the healthy thing to do, but something about the voices felt so profoundly private, so very personal, that he just couldn’t bring himself to risk losing the strange connexion he had with them, and if that was childish of him then damn it, he could not help being flawed and he could not help being human). Who are you?, he’d often ask in his mind. What do you want with me? What is causing you such sadness?. But the voices never answered. Are you seeking something?, he’d try again. Someone?. And still the voices would ignore him.

It actually was possible to live alongside them: The both could speak so low that he forgot their existence, and their constant hum became a sort of soothing song. I anything, they were friends of some sort. Bodiless, incomprehensible companions, but companions none the less, for which he somehow gained affection.

Except when they’re doing that, he thinks bitterly, as the voices yell their hearts out with abandon. He moves around his head for comfort, without success. Months ago, supporting them did not seem insurmountable. Lately however his stock of patience was running quite low, as, so very, very tired of hearing them, the voices were starting to interfere with his work.

Jean-Luc shuffled a bit in his bed, trying to chase away the thoughts that were slowly finding a way to his mind.

For a Starfleet captain, concentration is primordial.

In the messy covers, partially on the ground, Jean-Luc turns his head yet again, annoyed. “I can do this”, he murmurs out loud. “I just need to try a little harder. Just a little more.”

You always need to be at your best, mentally and physically.

He painfully opens his eyes, gazing at the crème celling.

In space, a second of inattention can cost the life of your crew or compromise the security of the ship.

He thinks of the Vulcan ensign, looking at him with worried eyes. The truth is the most painful when it’s staring at you like that, with the eyes of someone who can’t lie.

You can be the cause of great, unfathomable damage.

Tomorrow, he’ll go to Sickbay.

///

The walk to get there is the most painful thing he’s ever felt.

As soon as he left his room, the voices begun rising to impossible levels, and now they’ve reached a point that no word could possibly describe, only growing higher and higher as he limps in the corridors.

He thinks of himself in bar, surrounded by Nausicaans and falling to his knees, and laughing, laughing at the horrible feeling that propagates itself from his heart. He tries to tell himself that the pain he’s in now is much less greater, that he should be roaring of laughter now more than then. But he can’t even mutter the force to push anything other than small, desperate whining sounds, and deep down, he knows that the pain is worse.

People notice him, try to intervene, but a quick dismissing move of the hand keeps them in place. Somewhere in his mind, he feels them staring at him with evident worry. And though he’s too preoccupied with the deafening sounds to reassure them, he tries to stand a little bit straighter as he continues his route. He was never good at showing others his pain.

Ironically, as he slowly loses the ability to produce any human thought, a part of his brain, far, too far for him to register, realizes that the voices sole purpose was for him to follow them. That now, without realising it, he’s being guided by their sound towards an unknown force, an unknown power that he was destined to meet.

He keeps walking.

Finally, finally, he gets to Sickbay’s doors, and tears are strolling down his face. He’s practically crawling to get there, because he knows, feels the thing, the person behind the doors, and he needs them. He can’t take it, he can’t take it anymore, but he’s there and the doors are opening, but it’s too much, it’s too much, and he starts yelling in the middle of hell “Arrêtez, je vous en supplie! Je vous entends! Je vous entends! Je vou-”

It stops.

Everything is silence.

There’s nothing. Absolutly nothing.

Perhaps, a buzzing noise can be heard, somewhere, from the tools or the computers. Perhaps a light buzz of discussion can be heard, somewhere, from the medical staff in the room. Perhaps the fabric of space itself is making noise, somewhere, as the Stargazer slides upon it, but he can’t tell. Around him, it’s only silence. And it’s only them.

Tears are streaming down their faces too. He makes out every single darker strands in her red hair, every single crease of smile around his mouth.

They’re beautiful.

None of them dares to move, afraid of breaking the moment, this thing out of time and space, only for the three of them. Nothing else exists anymore. The man, who’s pale, slender neck is covered with bandages, is the first one the move, getting up from his biobed. Before he makes a step forward, Jean-Luc speaks without thinking, as a name he’s only read on reports before escapes his lips.

“Jack”

The world collapse. Jack runs towards him and both of them fall on the ground, wailing in abandon and gripping each other with desperation. Red marks of strong fingers start to appear on his body, and he only holds Jack tighter. He feels so alive.

A hesitant hand places itself on his shoulder. He looks up to find the blue watery eyes of the woman, looking unsure if she should interrupt. He detangles a hand from one of Jack’s and takes hers in his palm.

“Beverly”, he smiles.

A hiccupped “Jean-Luc” slips before she falls to her knees with a smile so bright he can’t take it, and joins their entanglement of limbs as it becomes impossible to see where one ends and one begins. Jack grins and starts laughing, and she does too, because Jean-Luc’s has never seen them once and they’ve been right there for months, because they don’t know him but they do, because thousands of questions are left unanswered. He starts laughing with them, because this is space, this is what he’s been dreaming of since a child, this great unknown that can never be truly understood and that sometimes does inexplicable things. And one day, he’ll be captain, ready to explore the galaxy at the helm of a ship, with two soulmates given by an incalculable amount of stars at his side. But for the moment, he holds their hands tight in the middle of Sickbay’s floor, surrounded by people who feel miles away from the three of them, and he replies to the voices in his mind and the two people they belonged to : “Je vous entends”.

#Star Trek: The Next Generation #Beverly Crusher #jack crusher #jean luc picard #beverly x jack x picard #fanfic #submission

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pb1138 · 6 years

Text

Custody Arrangements

So, don’t ask me why because I really don’t know, but I just seriously needed to write this headcanon I have about Odo adopting a daughter. (I blame this episode. It’s the one where Odo and Dax are helping find 22 missing people and Odo is having to “interrogate” a little kid.)

Quick summary: Odo recalls different points in his daughter’s life as he walks her down the aisle at her wedding.

Warnings: Some minor gory details in the 3rd paragraph.

OC with Dad!Odo, OC x Jake Sisko

This came out like 10x longer than I thought it would and I am very not sorry. (It’s 9 pages in Microsoft)

Out of everything Odo could turn himself into, one thing he never in a million years thought he would be was a father. He certainly never thought he would be a single father, on top of that, not that he was interested in romantic relationships anyway. Or children. Maybe once or twice had the very minor thought of maybe procreating if maybe they were able to find others of his species and maybe he could find a mate and maybe that was something his species did anyways.

It was a routine day, a handful of petty thefts and a minor altercation between Quark and an angry Bajoran. Nothing too out of the ordinary. That is, until 14:65 when a damaged Klingon vessel came to the station and Commander Sisko called Odo and Bashir to the docking bay. One very injured Klingon had woman stumbled out of the doors and promptly collapsed into Bashir’s arms, fading fast. Bashir called for backup medical teams and then had Ops transport him to the infirmary. Odo nodded to Sisko and Major Kira as they all drew their phasers and entered the ship.

It was utter carnage.

There were multiple hull breeches barely held together by weak shields. Dozens of systems were offline. And the bodies. There were at least a dozen Klingons strewn about the place, thrown over consoles or under chairs. Sisko and Kira went around, checking pulses and Odo pressed deeper into the vessel. More bodies, some of them not Klingon, decorated the hallways and other rooms. The dining hall was the worst. The Klingons had obviously been carrying passengers, although to where Odo couldn’t fathom. There were a handful of other species involved here, Bajorans, a few Cardassians, even a Ferengi, and several humans. Families, Odo noted with dismay, including children. He walked through the bodies, looking for signs of life among the massacre, but seemed to find none.

He was joined moments later by Sisko, who upon seeing the destruction, brought his wrist up to his mouth, perhaps to stifle a bout of nausea. He looked at Odo, his eyes filled with a mixture of concern, sadness, and expectation. Odo shook his head slightly and Sisko let out a heavy sigh. “Well, I suppose we should begin reviewing the system logs before this whole ship falls apart.”

Odo nodded and started after Sisko. He was almost out of the room when he heard it: the smallest of coughing. He spun around, eyes darting around the room, searching for the source. “Commander!” he shouted, spotting the small hand moving behind an upturned table. He ran towards the child, sliding to his knees as he found her. It was a child, seemingly human, female, approximately six years. She was injured, but alive. “It’s ok, it’ll all be ok,” he said to her.

Sisko came running into the room, medical team on his heels. “Odo?” He ran to the other man, dodging the obstacles in his way.

“A child, Commander,” Odo called. The girl opened her eyes and for a moment, time fell apart. Odo was met with lovely, deep chocolate brown orbs that looked straight into his soul. He smiled down at her and told her she’d be fine again. As the medical team set up around her, her eyes drifted shut again and he handed her to them ever so gently. They immediately transported to the infirmary with her, leaving Odo and Sisko in the dining hall alone.

Sisko clapped Odo on the shoulder. “Good work, Constable,” he breathed. “Let’s go see about those logs.”

The logs had revealed that the transport was a passenger ship on its way to the Gamma quadrant to establish a colonial settlement. They had had the misfortune to come across a small band of pirates who had made quick work out of scanning and attacking them. The Klingon vessel had managed to severely damage two of their ships and even completely destroyed one before they had retreated, but the damage had been too severe, damaging all major systems including navigation, life support, and basically everything but the emergency beacon and the shields covering the hull breeches. It’s a miracle anybody was left alive.

A few days had passed, and with them, the Klingon captain. The girl had almost pulled through, needing just another day or two of rest and treatments. For some inexplicable reason, Odo felt compelled to visit the infirmary multiple times a day to check on her progress. Everyone, even Dax was surprised by this sudden outburst of concern, but most found it endearing.

On the fifth day, Odo had been having a disturbingly quiet day at work, so he decided to visit the girl a while longer than usual, not that Bashir minded. Odo had been reading through reports when he heard the smallest of voices from the bedside, “You have a funny face.”

Odo looked up in surprise and immediately stood to cross closer to the bedside. “You’re awake. Do you feel alright?” He tapped his combadge, calling Bashir to the infirmary.

The girl looked up at him, her gigantic eyes looking into his soul again. “What are you?” she chirped out.

He folded his arms behind his back and leaned down slightly. “That is a very impolite question. But to answer, I am a shapeshifter.”

She only blinked once in response and turned her tiny head to look around. “Where am I?”

“You are on a space station, in the infirmary. Doctor Bashir is on his way to check on you.”

“Are you sick?” she had taken the tricorder from the table near her bed and was looking at it.

“No. I just came to see that you were alright.” He stopped her from reaching for the laser scalpel, pulling the table away from her.

She didn’t answer again, pulling herself to sit up in the bed. He watched her for a few moments as she observed the room around them. Odo felt that she had an unusual maturity for a child her age. Probably to be expected, given what she had just been through.

Bashir finally arrived to the infirmary and beamed at the girl. “Well, look who is awake.” He started on his barrage of medical questions, confirming that she is, in fact healthy and well.

Once he got the all-clear, Odo began on his basic security questions. “What’s your name?”

“Talyssia, but I don’t like it very much.”

“Oh? And what do you like to be called instead?”

“Tali.”

“Ok, Tali. My name is Odo. It’s very nice to meet you. How old are you?”

She had to think for a moment, putting a tiny finger up to her chin. She pulled her messy mop of brown curls away from her face and into a weak ponytail. “Seven.”

“My, you’re practically a young lady.” She giggled at that. “Do you know where you’re from?”

“No, but I know we were going to the Chamma Quadrad.”

He chuckled slightly. “The Gamma Quadrant. Yes, we know.”

“Where are my Mommy and Daddy and K’oroll?”

Bashir took the girl aside and explained what had happened to her as gently as he could. Odo felt that the doctor was better suited to handle this situation, so he left them alone as the girl wept.

And then the question of custody arose. They had managed to figure out that the girl’s “K’oroll” was the Second in Command upon the vessel, a close family friend by the girl’s explanation. They were able to find through the manifest logs that the child’s parents were a Betazoid male and a human female, but nobody could find through any of the computer databases if there were any surviving family members. Sisko was forced to contact the governments of both Betazed and Earth to attempt to establish next of kin. When none could be found, both planets insisted custody belonged to them.

Odo and Sisko had been listening to the two dignitaries argue over vid-com for what felt like years before Odo finally snapped. “We are getting nowhere. I think it’s time we bring the child into this. She might know the names of some family friends that can help us establish new guardianship.”

Begrudgingly, the two dignitaries agreed. Odo had retrieved her, and they attempted to see what the girl knew, but unfortunately she knew nothing.

Finally, after several more hours, it was decided that she should remain on DS9 until proper arrangements were agreed upon. Which then led to the next big question: with whom would she stay? O’Brien was the first logical choice, what with Molly. Tali insisted she would not go with him. The next best guess was Bashir, as the doctor had spent a considerable amount of time with her. Again, she insisted she would not go.

This went on for three more names before Sisko finally conceded and asked her with whom she wanted to go. She turned her deep brown eyes to Odo and a smile crept upon her face. “Him,” she said, a tiny finger pointed at him.

And that was that.

Tali came to stay with Odo, who had arranged for a small bed to be put in his room in Security. Odo tried to keep her busy outside of his duties, but was forced to bring her along once or twice when no suitable babysitter could be found. Never anything serious, of course, usually just a minor discourse with Quark (who the girl seemed to thoroughly enjoy, much to Odo’s dismay.)

Several weeks had gone by, and still there was no word on new custody arrangements. Indeed, Odo had almost forgotten about them when Sisko called him to Ops one day.

“Odo, I’m afraid I’ve got some news,” the Commander began.

“What is it?” If Odo’s hair were real, it would have risen along the back of his neck.

“I’ve just been in contact with Earth and Betazed.”

“Oh?”

“They’ve been able to find nobody who is related to Talyssia, nor anybody who was acquainted with her family. It seems all their friends were upon the K’aghto when it was attacked.”

“Where does that leave us then? An orphanage?”

Sisko heaved a great sigh. “That’s an option. There was another option, suggested by the Betazed representative…”

Odo quirked his brow, head tilted. “Yes?”

Sisko smiled slightly, intertwining his fingers in front of his face. “Well, it was suggested that we, or more specifically you, be granted custody.”

Odo’s eyes went wide and he let out a stammer, trying to find words, any words.

“I--.”

“Of course, you don’t need to decide right this second. Take some time, think it over. See what Talyssia thinks. Take all the time you need.”

When Odo went home that night, he tried very hard to hide his indecision, but it seems that either Tali is very observant, or she is able to feel even his emotions. “What’s going on?” she asked, looking up from her coloring.

Odo furrowed his brow, considering how to ask. He sat beside her on the ground, his arms up on his knees. “Well. I’ve been given an option. We’ve been given an option.”

“Option?”

“It means a choice, a decision. You can either go to one of your home planets to live with other children or…”

“Or what?”

“Well. You could stay here. With me. If you want to, that is.”

She set her crayon down and put her hands under her chin, squinting her eyes and pursing her lips in concentration as she thought. She nodded to herself and smiled up at him. “I want to stay with you, Odo.”

Odo smiled back at her and nodded in response. “Well alright then. I will inform Commander Sisko immediately.”

…

The guests’ music was starting. Odo was standing in front of a mirror, straightening the flower he wore in his lapel. He took a few steadying breaths. Nervousness was not something he was accustomed to.

“How are you feeling, Odo?”

Odo turned to O’Brien. “Oh, I’m. Well. I’m a lot of things. I’m nervous, excited, ecstatic, worried, and—”

“I understand.” The Chief smiled at him and patted Odo’s shoulder. “I would be, too. I’m terrified for Molly’s. I can’t even imagine what it’s like to actually be going through with it yet.”

“Mostly I just keep thinking, ‘Where did the time go?’ It feels like yesterday I signed the adoption papers, and here I am today. Where did it go?”

O’Brien smiled knowingly. “If you could drink, Odo, I would give you a nice tall glass of whiskey.”

Odo smiled slightly. “I appreciate the sentiment in any event.”

…

In the blink of an eye, Tali was 14 years old, and Odo had never felt such pure agitation before.

“I just don’t understand what happened, Talyssia. You were doing so well.”

She sat on the couch of their small apartment, arms folded, eyebrow raised in agitation as she looked anywhere but at him.

“I mean. I understand skipped homework every now and then, even an hour or two playing hookey, but this? Now I have just about had it, young lady. You had better explain yourself this instant!” He hated yelling, but after finding out that you hadn’t been to class once in the last two weeks and you had been ignoring a considerable amount of schoolwork for far longer than that, he went straight into Constable mode.

He was met with moody silence, which only furthered his anger. “Talyssia, I am speaking to you.”

She glowered at him for a moment before sucking her teeth and looking the other way.

“That is it, young lady. You are confined to your quarters every day for the next three months except for school which I will personally be escorting you to.”

She gaped at him. “You can’t do that!”

“Oh, I can and I am, missy. If I need to I’ll even assign an escort to you to ensure you stay in class. Now, march it missy, straight to your room.”

She growled in frustration and threw herself off the couch, stomping angrily to her bedroom.

Odo shook his head in dismay and rubbed his face. “They weren’t kidding when they said teenagers are difficult.”

…

“How are we doing, gentlemen?”

Odo and O’Brien turned to Sisko.

“Ah, Commander. We’re doing just fine.” O’Brien smiled at the C.O.

Sisko smiled and reached for Odo’s hand, clasping it in a firm handshake. “I never in a million years would have thought it would turn out this way, my old friend.”

Odo returned the handshake. “Nor would I, Commander.”

“Please, Odo, in light of the circumstances, maybe Benjamin?”

Odo chuckled slightly. “Pardon my French, but there’s no way in Hell.”

The three of them laughed at that.

…

19 years old, Tali had taken on a job in the security office. As what, Odo still wasn’t quite sure, as she did little more than study while she was on duty. Every so often, she would complete out a small stack of reports, to make it seem like she was doing something. Odo didn’t really mind, though. He enjoyed her company, as did many of the others in the office.

That day had been extra busy for security, between Quark attempting to cheat Morn and several Bajorans out of their latinum, a visiting Klingon transport, and the arrival of Lwaxana Troi. When Odo had heard she was coming, he seemed positively flustered. He even went so far as to darken his hair a little bit and lighten his clothes. Tali had watched in fascination before she suddenly remembered the name and a wide grin spread across her face. “This is the elevator woman.”

Odo turned to her, eyes wide. “’Elevator woman?’”

She smirked. “Dad, I know you know who I mean.”

He cleared his throat, straightening the Padds on his desk. “Well, if you must know, yes.”

She squealed with delight. “This is so exciting!”

“What’s so exciting?” Dax had entered the office, her pockets flush with winnings probably from Tongo.

Tali beamed at her. “Dad’s girlfriend is here.”

“Lwaxana Troi is not my girlfriend,” Odo blurted.

Dax looked at Odo then at the girl. “Wow, I’m not Betazed and even I know he’s bluffing.”

The two women laughed and Odo shook his head, grumbling to himself.

“So, what’s the story?” Dax had sat beside Tali, nudging the younger girl with her shoulder.

“Apparently they were caught in an elevator for like six hours, right?”

Dax nodded. “I remember something like that.”

“Well, Dad tells me that it was ‘a surprisingly eventful and pleasant experience.’ I don’t want to think about what exactly that means, but I’ve never before in my life heard dad refer to anything as ‘pleasant.’”

Dax ‘oooo’ed this information and smirked at Odo. “Well isn’t that something?” she mocked.

Odo let out a large, exasperated huff and promptly left the office, leaving the two women laughing after him.

…

“Odo, are you ready?”

Odo looked towards the door where Dax stood in very fine clothes. Tali had asked her to officiate since Curzon had been ordained, at least as a Klingon officiator. He looked at O’Brien and Sisko who both smiled at him and gave him little, ‘good lucks’ before leaving the room to take their places.

Dax smiled at Odo who looked himself over in the mirror once more before nodding. “As ready as I am ever going to be, I think.” Dax beamed at him and took him by the shoulder, leading him out of the room.

…

Suddenly, Talyssia was 27 years old. She had taken a job working under O’Brien so she could avoid the larger crowds of people. She was an unexpectedly gifted engineer, taking to the job with an ease that surprised even her. It had been a few months since taking the job in the first place, so when she came home beaming, Odo had expected to hear she had been promoted or something of the sort.

“Dad, you’ll never guess what happened today!”

“Were you promoted?”

She rolled her eyes. “No, Dad, but nice to know that’s immediately where your mind goes. No.” She walked over to him and took her hands in his, guiding him to a chair. “You’ll want to be sitting for this.”

“For god’s sake, just tell me already,” he grumbled.

She stood back and shook her hands out, a common gesture meaning she was nervous. “Now, don’t pass out or freak out or anything like that.” She grinned at him again, her chocolate eyes alight. “I’m, well, Dad, I’m engaged!”

It had been a very good idea to have Odo sit, even moreso that the chair was plastic and bowled so when he liquified, he was caught in the chair.

She gaped at the puddle, dropping her hands. “Well, god Dad, let me know how you really feel.”

She turned to walk away but was enveloped in strong arms. He laid his head on her mess of curls, shaking slightly. She looked up at him and saw something that amazed her—he was crying. Smiling, but crying. Her own eyes teared up and she threw her arms around him, laughing with him. He pulled back and gripped her shoulders, beaming down at her. “I’m so happy for you, my darling.” He pulled her back to him and held her for as long as she would let him.

…

“Talyssia?” There was no response at the door for one or two minutes. “Tali, darling, it’s time. We’re all waiting for you.”

“Just a second, Dad!”

Odo relaxed slightly. He had begun to fear you were getting cold feet. He certainly would have hated to have to arrange for the Promenade to be cleared out again. This time nearly killed him. When the door opened, however, everything else melted away. If Odo breathed, he would have held his breath.

She was beautiful. Her curls had been pulled back and pinned with elegant crystal pins, her makeup was stunning and accentuated her eyes, the dress was just perfect. She was perfect. Odo felt tears come to his eyes again.

“Oh, geez, Dad, don’t start. It took me thirty minutes to get this eyeliner right.” She chuckled at him.

He breathed a laugh and wiped his eyes. “You look absolutely beautiful, Talyssia.” He pulled her to him in a hug, rocking them ever so slightly. “I love you, sweetheart.”

She smiled up at him and pressed a gentle kiss to his cheek. “I love you, too, Dad. Now, we better go before Quark starts a bidding war on whether or not I’m coming.”

“Too late!” Quark called from the hallway.

Odo and Tali laughed before Odo took her arm in his, clasping his hand over hers. Instead of traditional bridesmaids, Tali had enlisted Morn to be her bridesman and Quark as her man-of-honor. It was a little awkward, considering that Nog was the best man, but Tali felt that only made it funnier.

Odo and Tali approached the end of the walkway and he glanced at her. “Are you ready?” he breathed.

Tali patted his hand, smiling at him. “You’re not getting me to back out now, Dad. No such luck for you.”

He chuckled. “No such luck.”

They started down the aisle, and Tali caught the eye of her step-mother, Lwaxana, who winked at her and projected into her head, “You look stunning, kiddo, absolutely a knockout.”

Tali giggled slightly and winked at the older Betazed. She turned to look up the aisle and breathed a soft sigh when she saw Jake, looking very regal in his fine clothes next to Nog who had borrowed one of Quark’s smart suits. Jake was absolutely beaming at her, and even with her half-Betazed-ness, she could feel the warmth of his love as if he were standing right next to her.

She blinked, and suddenly she was standing a few feet away. Dax was smiling widely at all of them, this mashup of a bridal party before she asked, “Who is chosen to give this amazing young woman away?”

Odo smiled at his daughter, all the pride in the universe in his heart. “I, her father, am.”

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conducting-cardassia · 7 years

Text

Character Development

BASICS

Full Name: Ekor Laset Nicknames: none Sex/Gender: Male/male

Sexuality: Ekor is bisexual, although he leans towards men a little more than towards women. He has had relationships with people of either sex, both purely physical and emotional.

Right or Left: He’s ambidextrous, though not by birth but rather through training.

Age: tending towards middle age (in his main timeframe, which takes part during the culmination of the Dominion War)

Height: tall-ish.

Eye Colour: Brown

Hair Colour: Black

Distinguishing Marks: There are multiple small marks visible on his hands from using them to play instruments: calluses that would not occur from normal, everyday use, the odd scar from a cut handling repair tools, etc.

Paragraph Of Physical Traits: Perhaps his most distinguishing physical trait is Ekor’s hearing: it’s very astute for Cardassians, although it doesn’t rival Vulcan, and much less Ferengi hearing. Other than that: Ekor is on the lean side of Cardassian male beauty, owing perhaps to the fact that when his workload is high, he tends to forget to eat or sleep. He keeps fit, although not excessively so. When he wants to challenge himself, he likes to run barefoot in the desert. His build is lithe and wiry rather than heavily muscled.

FAMILY/RELIGION

Parents: Ekor was his parents’ only child. Ekor’s parents were unable to conceive more children after his birth due to complications. It’s perhaps for this reason that his parents are especially dedicated to his welfare, if strict. (I don’t know what their names are yet)

Siblings: None.

Marital Status: Ekor is bonded, though not in the exact modern sense, to Elim Garak. They share a somewhat obscure traditional bond that isn’t widely in practice throughout the Union anymore, but that uniquely suits their needs.

Significant Other/s: Current: Elim Garak. Past: several, including a Vulcan woman he was apprenticed to after finishing his studies at the Cardassian State Conservatoire for Music.

Children: None.

Other Relatives: Ekor has cousins on both his mother’s and his father’s side. Due to the fact that his musical hearing was discovered when he was very young, Ekor started his education at an exceptionally young age and barely remembers some of his cousins -- a state of affairs that he is ashamed of and hopes to remedy some day, once the War is over.

Pets: He was too young when he started school, and the Conservatoire doesn’t allow pets. There’s one other, but mentioning that here would be playing rather fast and loose with the definition of pet.

Friends: Ekor is friends with (and deeply indebted to) a Cardassian woman named Orma Kovok; she became his sponsor for the Conservatoire, and during his time there, remained one of his few allies. During Ekor’s stay, she became instrumental in him finding his true purpose, although at the time, he was very hurt by her action. Later, hindsight being what it is, Ekor asked her forgiveness for shunning her in the wake of her wake-up call. She is now an old woman and long since retired from her duties as an Instructor of Hebitian counterpoint at the Conservatoire.

Ekor often meets new people due to his professional duties as conductor of the Cardassian State Orchestra; sometimes, friendships evolve from such opportunities, but he mostly keeps a tight circle of friends, a somewhat wider circle of appreciated acquaintances, and a great many political alliances.

Enemies: He certainly has competitors, but actual enemies are rather rare. At one point during his years at the Conservatoire, an instructor almost got him expelled from the school for reasons he still does not fully comprehend. Ekor was allowed to finish his studies, but has been wary of that man ever since.

Ethnicity: Cardassian.

Religion: None, although he is educated about the Hebitian religions, since most ancient music used to be religiously informed.

Beliefs: Ekor believes that loyalty to the homeworld is one of the most important services a person can render. He does not necessarily agree with all the State decisions, but he isn’t radical enough to become subversive. Not until Cardassian policies become such that he cannot in good conscience serve the State while still serving Cardassia. The discovery of the fact that he does not equate the two, and that there is a part of him that overrules State sanction in favour of a more idealistic view of Cardassia came at a time of great turmoil and forced Ekor to reexamine a lot of the tenets he has held.

Superstitions: None.

Diction/Accent: None. In fact due to his musical hearing, learning the melody and diction of languages in general is easy for Ekor to achieve. Grammar is a different matter altogether.

SCHOOL/WORK/HOME

Education: Cardassian State Conservatoire for Music

Degree(s): Conducting, Vulcan Ka’athyra, History of music

Occupation: Conductor of the Cardassian State Orchestra; when the Union formed the alliance with the Dominion under Dukat, the Orchestra was disbanded and its people reallocated to more essential duties. When that happened, Ekor was outside of Cardassian space, giving a series of solo concerts on the Ka’athyra. He did not return to Cardassia upon hearing the news, but rather looked to find ways of serving her from outside her bounds.

Own or Rent: Ekor owns a small house with a garden in Lakarian’or. Due to his often being absent, the garden tends to become overgrown, which gives Ekor a guilty conscience, but there’s nothing he can do about it, living alone.

Living Space: Varying: while on tour, Ekor stays in State guest housing facilities, spare rooms available from musical institutions, or even mobile homes. His house in Lakarian is modest but tasteful, not excessive and ultimately very practical

Work Space: Varying. Concerts usually take place in concert halls or Council facilities, although they do take Ekor off-world and often even out of Cardassian space. Other than that, Ekor often works in musical archives to revive ancient musical practices, travels a lot to review instrument makers’ progress on recreating forgotten sounds, and of course there is a lot of political work that must also be done.

Main Mode of Transport: whatever gets him where he needs to be. Cardassians are an eminently practically oriented people, and Ekor is no exception to that rule.

PSYCHOLOGY

Fears: To have to choose between Cardassia and another love. To harm Cardassia under the best intentions.

Secrets: He has them. Every Cardassian has them.

IQ: Ekor’s is an analytic mind with a love for music underlaying it all. He’s intelligent and it usually shows, for instance by the way he speaks.

Eating Habits: Ekor comes from poverty, and sometimes this shows in his eating habits. He never wastes food, even sometimes consuming it when it has already gone off. Replicators of course take care of that, but it’s a habit one doesn’t easily leave behind. Other than that, Ekor often tends to forget to eat, especially when he’s engrossed in something work related. That’s why he loses weight when there’s much work on his plate.

Food Preferences: He likes typical Cardassian foods, although he did once overeat on yamok sauce as a kid, when he came to the Conservatoire. That experience made him lose his taste for that somewhat. Ekor does have a bit of a sweet tooth though, something his classmates used to tease him mercilessly about.

Sleeping Habits: Nothing particularly peculiar, except that he tends to forget to sleep when there’s much work to do. It’s only lately that he has occasionally had trouble sleeping at all, with some nightmares disturbing his sleep. He never quite remembers them the next day, but he always wakes up feeling guilty.

Book Preferences: I don’t actually know. He’s well-read in the classics, though; the Cardassian school system is very thorough.

Music Preferences: ... where do I even begin. Since Ekor is a musician by profession, his tastes are, in a word, refined. He does not simply prefer some music over other kinds, but actually understands what makes music good. Of course that is in part a matter of personal taste, but there are objective measures that distinguish interesting music from the mundane, the ever-same and the trivial. He tends to come across as a bit of a snob about it sometimes, at least where his own musical taste is concerned -- but he honestly loves seeing people enjoy music; even music he doesn’t like himself. In that, he’s very indiscriminate. If pressed, Ekor would state that he is particularly fond of Hebitian music; this preference was formed early in his years at the Conservatoire, as his sponsor and instructor of Hebitian counterpoint, Orma Kovok encouraged him to study it.

Groups or Alone: Alone.

Leader or Follower: Due to his profession, Ekor has very rarely been a follower -- the closest he came to that was his apprenticeship, but even then, he was learning from a better, more experienced leader. One of the most formative experiences for Ekor was when he first instructed a fellow student on how to play a the piece he was practicing at the time. Ekor’s style developed from there, became more exact and distinctly his; and it informs his leadership as well. Being a conductor -- that is, essentially, leading a bunch of often complicated, head-strong musicians to become a whole, Ekor is used to mastering challenging situations as a leader.

Planner or Spontaneous: He tends to be a planner, but sometimes can be ridiculously impulsive; this has recently led to getting to know Elim Garak, which Ekor considers one of the very best things to have happened to him.

Journal: None, but he writes letters.

Hobbies: Sauna, and running in order to keep fit.

How Do They Relax: A good hot stone and or hot bath, massages, being served a nice meal, being sexually pleasured.

What Excites Them: Creating an engaging musical interpretation, studying musical scores, a submissive partner.

What Stresses Them: Being unable to return home for prolonged periods of time, the process of applying for licence to perform, being uncertain how to be of use to Cardassia.

Pet Peeves: Indecisiveness, unreliableness.

Prejudices: Ekor subconsciously shares the belief that Cardassians are superior to most other species, although he wouldn’t claim that as a rule; it’s just something of a doctrine, and while Ekor appreciates foreign musics a lot -- one of his degrees is in Vulcan music -- and has learned that other species are just as able to contribute to the universe, it is still something that he wasn’t able to rid himself of entirely.

Attitudes: dominant, sometimes domineering, ambitious, hard-working, kind, flirtatious, sensitive, irritable, analytic, understanding, unforgiving (this rarely happens, but when it does it’s final), exacting, caring, protective, assertive, meticulous, committed, domestic.

Obsessions: None that I’m aware of

Addictions: None.

Ambitions: Have Cardassia’s music recognised more widely throughout the alpha quadrant, reviving as much of her forgotten musical history as possible, constantly improving his own skill, taking care of those he holds dear; also has a deep seated wish to have a good home.

ASTROLOGY/PHISIOLOGY

Birth Date: I don’t know... the vri’keth of mapoc, Stardate... no, honestly, I really don’t know. I’m skipping most of this whole section. Western Astrological Sign: n/a. Traits Associated with Western Sign: n/a Chinese Zodiac Sign: n/a Traits Associated with Chinese Sign: n/a. Handwriting: n/a

Sexual History: Ekor has had several partners of either sex, althoug there are a couple more men than women among them. He prefers to be dominant in his sexual encounters, but occasionally he likes to switch. When he was younger and still learning the ropes (so to speak), especially during his apprenticeship on Vulcan, he used to be submissive to his partner, a middle aged Vulcan woman named T’Paran (she was nearing 90 years at the time, which counts as middle aged, as Vulcans get much older than Cardassians). He doesn’t see dominance and submission as strictly confined to sex and/or play, however, but rather as a general mindset to adhere to. This has caused conflict with some partners in the past. Ekor has a lot of sexual appetite, in general. He’s adventurous, likes to try out things and push limits, including his own.

General Health: I think it’s unremarkable, I guess? Healthy, Cardassian male.

Allergies: scattle fish.

OTHER

Halloween Costumes: wouldn’t be caught dead in one. Especially not one of the “sexy something specific to Terra” ones. He’d have to lose more than a bet to be put into one of those. Such as, his mind.

Talents: Listening. No seriously, I mean it. Ekor has very fine hearing that enables him to discern nuances that others simply miss. Through that, he often knows a lot more about people than they want to let on. That fact has not gone unnoticed lately, either.

Politics: Ekor has some sympathy for the neo Hebitian movement -- although he isn’t part of it, having been under public scrutiny for most of his life. Generally speaking, Ekor is rather on the progressive side, but not extremely so. As an artist, he is generally allowed a little more political leeway than most Cardassian citizens, as the government has acknowledged that some limited form of freedom can be good for creativity. Ekor walks that line very closely. Furthermore, during the Dominion War, he is very critical, though not openly so, of Dukat’s decision. Ekor believes that it was perhaps the greatest mistake in recent Cardassian history.

Flaws: Keeps a lot to himself, to the point of being closed off, extreme competitiveness and ambition, territoriality, jealousy, tends to streamline his more daring thoughts, sentiment, underlying Cardassian supremacist mindset.

Strengths: Extremely loyal to those dear to him, dependability, protectiveness (will make sacrifices to protect others), emotional stability, self knowledge, owns up to mistakes, hard-working, openness to other perspectives.

Drugs/Alcohol: not important enough to him to write about. He does have a fondness for liveta oil, which is a regulated substance on Cardassia, but non-addictive.

Passwords: he uses them, but I won’t tell where he keeps them.

Prized Possessions: As his parents were quite poor, Ekor prizes all his possessions, to the point of appearing obsessive. There is one in particular that he holds dearer than anything else he owns, but this is not the place to name that special one.

Time and Place:

Time: Mostly during the end/culmination of the Dominion War so far, although some stuff takes place in the past (e.g., meeting Corat Damar after a concert at the Akleen Concert Hall in the Tarlak sector of Cardassia City).

Places:

Deep Space 9 (although he sometimes thinks of it as Terok Nor still) for periods of a couple of hours up to several days

Lakarian -- Ekor’s home is there (and I know what happens to Lakarian, and I’m truly sorry because that’s going to be a very hard blow)

Undisclosed location in the alpha quadrant -- that’s where he is working during the Cardassian/Dominion alliance

East Torr -- He was born there, and his parents still live there.

Special Places: Cardassia. Simple as that.

Special Memories: Being discovered as a talent, learning the Ka’athyra, the first time he has conducted a musician through a piece, the first time he fell in love, Vulcan, creating his bond with Elim Garak. (nicked from @guldamargotdabooty without permission)

#ekor laset #oc development #ekor #conducting cardassia

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