@constable sent a ⏪

His beloved Voice had given him an important assignment, and he would not fail.

It was shortly after the reconditioning of Kilana-2, an event which had also served to reinforce to the third of the Weyoun line what his own purpose ought to be— his worth was in his service to the Founders, and foremost to the one who had honored him with the position of Blessed Attendant. And she had taken a special interest in...

In something. She hadn't actually told him, and instead simply claimed that he would know what he was sent to retrieve when he saw it. But it was no matter. He would let his faith guide him. After all, his beloved Voice had given him an important assignment, and he would not fail.

So here he was. On the station referred to as Deep Space 9 by its inhabitants, trying not to think about how much more orderly and efficient things were on a Dominion starbase.

(like the Dominion starbase where he'd served with Kilana, before—)

Keep your mind on your assignment, Weyoun. This is your chance to prove yourself.

And then he saw who he was looking for. It was so obvious. The tall, sort of beige colored entity patrolling the corridor ahead of him was a Founder. He adjusted his pace to catch up, instinctively expecting some form of punishment for exceeding two paces' distance behind, but none came. After a while, he had caught up, and was attempting (with some success) to maintain the standard distance.

How does one get the attention of a god? Especially one who seems to be so unaware of their own divinity that they're working security on a station like this? Touching him seemed impolite. Speaking without being first spoken to seemed even more impolite. So instead he simply did what he would do with the one he served, and waited patiently for the Founder's acknowledgement.

it is time for. NOT a tng update. but a ds9 update!!! wednesday* we watched "emissary" and actually i'm not clear on if we watched both parts or just one since my website is wonky but either way whatever we watched FUCKING RULED. i'm dispensing w the normal bullet points so i can ramble as much as i want

*it was last night actually but it took me all day to type this up so i'm scheduling it to go up later. it got looooong lol

the first most striking thing i noticed about ds9, or at least the first half of what we watched, is that it FEELS like a video game. someone tell me if this is insane. you're playing as sisko. you get flashbacks of his backstory, you get thrown into this starbase that's in shambles and it's Your Job to fix it up. you go around meeting all the secondary characters who will be in charge of this or that gameplay aspect or upgrade system or shop: kira, o'brien, quark, odo, jadzia, julian, etc. the FOLEY in this was insane. all the noise in the back CONSTANTLY suggested a lively and whole universe outside of our direct line of focus - it felt so alive in the way not even the enterprise in tos did. i could picture myself in the opening gameplay/cutscene like slowly walking my character through what will become a hub area that i gradually upgrade over time while kira or o'brien narrates the list of problems. you're starting at the bottom rung and expected to fail, but you can FEEL the potential even in just one brief walk through the promenade. IS THIS INSANE? it feels like an insane thing to say. someone PLEASE write in if you have ever had similar feelings. if they haven't made a ds9 game yet, they should.

i also notice that not only is the quality of the ds9 episodes worse than that of tng and tos - no one has remastered them into 1080p, apparently - but the lighting is very different, as well. it felt WEIRD to see picard and the enterprise D shot this way. but it also lends, perhaps unintentionally, perhaps not, a really gritty atmosphere to what is normally a very clean universe. i guess since we mostly see it from the inside of starships, it would feel like a sterile place to us, but you know how everyone always compliments star wars on how lived-in it feels? the buttons are wearing, sand is stuck in their fancy thingamajigs, etc? this was how ds9 felt to me.

okay. the characters. let's fucking get into it. what's so fun about ds9 in general is that in all other trek shows i have picked out my specialest little guy in 5 seconds flat. tos was spock EASILY. tng i knew it was data before i started. i already know seven's gonna be my favorite voyager character, but i have NO IDEA!!! who my precious little baby in ds9 will be. what a fun surprise for everyone involved. if anybody wants to place bets go ahead.

like, i thought tng had a pretty solid lineup (hence my eternal frustration with its wasted potential) but they're not anywhere as eclectic as ds9's core cast. iirc, sisko and o'brien are the ONLY humans who for once are outnumbered by trek's cool aliens. i'm saving sisko for last because that was the part of ds9 that touched me most profoundly, but for o'brien - it was a little sad to see him leave the enterprise, because picard was right, it WON'T feel the same without him, but i'm really excited to see why everybody says he suffers more than jesus and to find out if the eyepatch is a permanent thing or if it's just mirrorverse fuckery. either way, i win. like, o'brien is cool, and i always miss him when i don't see him in tng, and i'll continue to miss him in tng from here on out, but he could never shine in that show. it's too stiff and too reluctant to put its characters through any real development. it's a shame they can't ALL move to ds9, tbh.

the next person we met was kira, who was WONDERFUL. it took me a minute to warm up to her, not because there was anything wrong with her, but because i figured at first glance she was ds9's version of ro laren, the obligatory bajoran cast member to connect us with the bajoran/cardassian plot - which would of course be good because ro is awesome, but it's not necessarily anything new and i already love ro. BUT I WAS WRONG! kira's personality is very distinct from ro's; really the only thing they have in common is not liking cardassians which lmao Yeah. my favorite thing about kira is that she smiles when she's upset or angry. that's Such an acting choic, to have her grinning at the cardassians when she's almost certain they're about to blow her whole space station to smithereens. all love light and respect to ro laren my beloved, but i think i actually like kira BETTER.

odo: WHAT is that thing he can do oh my god...is this a changeling?? i got that result in a star trek quiz once. i really loved when he snuck aboard the enemy ship posing as a bag to hold gambling winnings. i was like oh they showed us the bag to show us it will get stolen soon BUT NO it was odo!!!!!!! such a fun surprise. the exposition on his backstory was a little slapdash but i enjoyed it all the same, i cannot wait to learn more

i was most nervous to meet quark because i hate hate HATE the ferengi in tng, but he was actually so entertaining! like, you're never gonna be able to entirely remove the antisemetic undertones from the ferengi as a whole, but he was smart, practical, and endearingly longsuffering. i love his wryness and deadpan humor. i have a feeling he is gonna be so much fun to torture lovingly.

meeting julian bashir felt like meeting a famous person. for the longest time all i knew about ds9 was that cardassian guy wanted to FUCK that gay little doctor, so it was a little hilarious that in his first scene he was asking a woman* out on a date. sir do you not know you're gay?? even funnier was the fact that out of everybody in the pilot he had the least lines. we barely know him, but we finally met him. relatedly, i can't to wait to meet more cardassians, especially The cardassian. so far, they're still all gay.

*jadzia!!! gnc/trans queen! the trill stuff is SO interesting and watching that worm slither in and out of people during those flashbacks was so wonderful but also made me wince. i love that she used to be an old man and the jokes about it are actually really funny without feeling transphobic or anything SO FAR. who knows if that changes. i feel like we haven't gotten much yet from her either but i cannot wait.

SISKO. damn. where do i even...first of all, he should be allowed to bite kick kill picard. i say this as someone who experienced a genuine THRILL of pleasure upon seeing picard's borged self again. i loved that whole thing, i'm obsessed with the borg. that it comes back in this small way in ds9, and has such a HUGE impact on the storyline, was so so so fucking good. i always say tng tells and not shows, but even after just knowing sisko for a few moments i felt keenly how much it devastated to find his wife like that and THAT WAS JUST FROM THE FIRST SCENE. and it only gets better! he's a great dad. he's FUNNY. he is not above manual labor. he wants to tear picard limb from limb. and he exists HERE.

the wormhole alien sequence was. so good. it was SO GOOD. explaining linear time to aliens. the aliens using his memories to talk to him. HE EXISTS HERE. back and back and BACK to finding his wife in the rubble because HE EXISTS HERE. he CHOOSES to exist here. he existed there when he applied for a transfer to earth. he existed there when he confronted picard. he never left the ship because HE NEVER LEFT THE SHIP. they dragged him out but they COULDN'T DRAG HIM OUT. he exists here because he won't leave her to exist here alone because damn it we can't just leave her here. that was the most insane series of events i ever watched. like, because at first you DO think it's the aliens taking him back there BUT IT'S HIM. HE IS DOING IT TO HIMSELF. when the penny dropped i got literal chill bumps and when the aliens said "it's not linear" and he, openly weeping, replied "it's NOT linear," i genuinely, truly, shed a tear along with him. TNG COULD NEVER. none of those miserable fucks EVER cry!!! sisko did it in the god damn pilot!!!!!!!

and like, the fact that he can choose to stay at the space station at the end, to shake picard's hand, to exist SOMEWHERE ELSE. AAAAAUGHGHGHG

i really loved the final confrontation, too. kira is so so so so good, again, i LOVE that she smiles when she's angry, when she's sad, and it's not a fake smile, it's genuine and honest emotion, and she's genuinely and honestly going to start eating the cardassians for sport if they don't leave her alone. it was very scrappy, them pretending to be bigger and badder than they actually were because they had no other choice. you get the feeling everybody on the station and indeed the station itself is barely holding together, and what little togetherness is present comes from sheer spite.

anyway, absolutely 10/10. i was so worried ds9 wouldn't be good but it not only met my most furtive hopes it surpassed them with flying colors. it's gonna be REAL hard to go back to tng after this.

[Semi-plotted?? starter for @constable]

"Please, Founder, allow me to— this is known to happen from time to time, field training is never an easy period for anyone. I will tend to him, as his instructor, and he will be fit for service in no time at all."

With a respectful and contrite bow, as if to say I am so sorry for this, please don't let this affect your view of either of us, Weyoun turned away from the elder Changeling to whom his student had been attending and led Rivan to a secluded alcove close to the security office.

Far from his usual gregarious, lively self, the young Vorta seemed to have all but completely retreated inward. That wasn't good. He thought of calling Ezri, but she was far from competent in dealing with Vorta in a clinical capacity, even with how long he'd been seeing her. And Odo... Did he really want to burden Odo with this?

(On some level, he knew that Odo wanted to be burdened. But he couldn't bring himself to do it.)

As he attempted to comfort Rivan, his instincts battled with the knowledge that he was way out of his depth. Aspirancy left scars on every Vorta. It was part of the point. He had no idea how to comfort Rivan if he himself was still wounded.

He'd have to bring Odo into this, wouldn't he.

"Weyoun to Odo? We have a... a situation. Can you— can you please come help?"

For @constable

Really, Weyoun should have done this a long time ago.

He'd forgotten how it felt, the process of selecting the most appropriate prayers and scriptures, the meditative quality of repeating the phrases quietly to himself as he engraved each gently curving line of each word. It was one of the few areas in which Vorta were allowed to be artistic.

The lack of aesthetic appreciation that he usually felt seemed to vanish in his pursuit of this task. This was a ritual he knew well— he'd done it twice for his beloved Voice, when he was still in her service. But doing it for Odo was different. It demanded more thought, more intention. The selection of sacred words was less about power and might, as it had been for her, and more about understanding and responsibility— the sense of wonder that could only come from watching a young Founder discover his place in the order of things, the kindness he continually showed to the Link's servants, the loving patience with which he guided Weyoun's own steps. The symbolism, too, was very different. The Voice's vessel had a pattern of waves around the edge, symbolic of the unrelenting advance of the Dominion's grand design. Odo's vessel, on the other hand, had a pattern more akin to rays of light shining from the bottom.

It was perfect. Or, as close to perfect as it could ever be— if he didn't stop now, he'd be adding things to it until the death of this iteration.

He took the vessel to Odo's quarters, fully prepared to ceremonially present his gift. After he rung the door chime, he knelt on the floor, the bowl lifted above his head in offering.

It didn't feel right at all.

[semi-plotted starter for @constable and eventually also for Julian once the intro's out of the way]

Almost there. Just need to reach the Founder's office, and he'll— he'll help me, just like he helped that defective Weyoun. Just need to find him, tell him I'm looking for work, he'll— no, shut up, you deserted, you should have died with Rondac III, but you dishonored your purpose with that escape—

Vanath tightened her hood. Being recognizable as a Vorta so soon after the end of the war couldn't possibly be a good thing. Even with how hungry she was, and how disoriented she was, she had enough presence of mind to know that.

She flagged down a passing civilian. Tall, reddish hair, probably a man. Human or possibly Bajoran, she couldn't tell from this distance. "Excuse me, sir, I'm in need of— I've only just arrived, would you be so kind as to—"

He approached, and she saw the nose ridges as he came into view. So my second guess was right, she thought, noting the lack of an earring. If he'd been wearing one, the gentle chimes of moving metal would have alerted her. "You're in need of directions?" he asked.

She lowered her head. Not out of respect, as she would with a Founder, but because it would be dangerous for her to let anyone see her eyes. "Yes," she said quietly. "I'm trying to find the... the constable's office." The title was unfamiliar to her. It felt wrong in her mouth, in her very bones. "I'm looking for work, and I, well, I heard he could help me find it."

That wasn't a lie. She had heard that he could help. She'd heard that the Founder had risked his own life to save the life of a Vorta who had been declared defective, slated for termination, and chose to escape rather than face his punishment. Such a blatant violation of the order of things— it inspired her, and scared her, at the same time.

The Bajoran nodded. "Oh, Odo's office? Sure, just keep going straight on this floor, past the temple, it'll be right next to that Klingon restaurant. Don't know how he stands the noise," he said. "My daughter was one of his deputies during the war, can you—"

The good news was that the office was much closer than she thought. The bad news was that this stranger was getting a little too friendly. She had negative interest in his family troubles, especially not at the moment. "I'd love to help with whatever that is, but things are a bit urgent right now. Maybe we'll see each other around, if I stay." She gave an obligatory smile that probably looked out of place on her very much not diplomatically specialized face, then darted off, ducking and weaving through the crowds before finding herself at the Founder's door.

Upon being allowed entry, she removed her hood and bowed in full ceremonial fashion. She didn't want to only go halfway, she wanted to make a good impression. "Founder, I present mys—" she began, then paused, "wait, why's it not translating right?" She shook her head, then decided to carry on as if it were and hope that the spirit of her intent came through. "Founder, I present myself to your custody and offer my service. If it is your will, let me follow you above others, and follow you I shall, from the first to the last."

@constable

Another day, another round of debriefings, and he couldn't tear his mind away from the fact that he was endangering his Gods with each new piece of information he gave. Starfleet Intelligence, for its part, was intent on divesting him of every piece of even remotely relevant information he possessed on the Dominion. He supposed he'd signed up for this, but this... was quickly turning into something other than what he'd signed up for. He wanted to end the war in the Alpha Quadrant, still did, but when they started asking about the Gamma Quadrant, about central Vorta and Jem'Hadar cloning facilities, even about exploitable vulnerabilities in the Link itself—

He was grateful that the Founders had taken the care to implant safeguards into his conditioning to keep any of that knowledge from being disclosed unwillingly, but more than a bit worried about his debriefers' future attempts to crack those safeguards.

And that wasn't even getting into the efforts, by several of his debriefers, to "deprogram" him (their words) of his religious convictions, and make Odo out to be some kind of exploitative abuser. No, Odo was kinder to him than he deserved. Uncomfortable with his role, perhaps, but he could hardly be blamed for that, considering how new it was to him to be a recipient of devotion.

Odo's praise soothed his worries for a moment, even if he didn't quite believe it. "You were there," Weyoun said quietly. "I nearly lost my composure, with the things they implied about you. But thank you—" Founder, he nearly finished, correcting himself before the title of veneration left his lips. "If you believe that I'm doing well, I accept that with gratitude."

@constable

"Don't shut me out. Let me help."

Help? He wanted to help? It felt like a trap. Founders did not help, any help they offered was thinly veiled punishment. Weyoun tensed up involuntarily, as if bracing to be hit.

This wasn't Odo. This was the Voice, his original handler, the one who first saw fit to use him as a signifier of her power. And he wasn't on the ship he'd come to call home anymore— he was in her quarters in Cardassian Central Command, folding under her scrutiny, the air in the room freezing even by Founder standards.

The scene seemed to flicker. He shivered and briefly looked up at Odo— something that would have brought swift punishment if it had been her. When none came, he relaxed slightly. But only slightly. This could still be some kind of test.

"Apologies," he said, ducking his head. "I'm... not myself right now."

Continued from here with @constable

[Vanath] ❛ please don’t leave me alone again. ❜

Odo looked up with surprise. Where had that come from? After a beat, he held out a hand to her, encouraging her into his embrace. "You are in my service and I care a great deal for your happiness. I won't turn you away if that isn't what you want."

Vanath was ashamed. She was... many other things, but mostly, she was ashamed. She'd allowed herself to slip in her duties, and in the course of explaining her mistake, something in her had broken. Almost without realizing it, she'd lowered herself onto her hands and knees, her already small Vorta frame seeming smaller and more vulnerable in this position, and was blinking quickly to avoid any tears showing in her eyes.

She hardly even noticed the extended hand. But even in the state she was in, Odo's words helped her return, at least somewhat, to reality.

"My duties require me to be conscientious," she whispered. "And... I wasn't. You're well within your rights to dismiss me for that error."

❝ when is the last time you ate something? ❞ ~constable

The question interrupted something that resembled a prayer, whispered almost inaudibly (though loud enough, almost certainly, for Odo to catch bits and pieces.) "May this suffering purify me in your sight, may it remind me that I am nothing apart from–"

"...couple days ago," Weyoun murmured, looking up nervously. He was visibly weaker than usual, shivering slightly even in the temperate air of the station as he hesitantly got to his feet and bowed in the traditional Vorta fashion. "I– I apologize for you having to see me like this, it's not something that– um. You honor me with your presence. May I be worthy of it in time."

@constable

" forget  me ,  forget  all  of  this . " ~constable

@constable

"I– I never could. We both know I never could." Weyoun turned away, blinking rapidly to hide the tears that came at the thought of being rejected in such a way. "But if that's an order, then I suppose I don't have a choice."

[ PRAISE ] : To praise or congratulate the work of my muse.

"Thank you, Weyoun. You did well." He said it almost grudgingly, anticipating an uncomfortable reaction, but the praise was certainly deserved.

~constable

@constable

Weyoun looked up with a wide-eyed expression, whereas before he'd appeared more lost in thought than anything else. He'd said a lot of things during his debriefing, and he'd been turning every last one of them over in his mind since it ended. As a Vorta, he had one sacred duty: to work towards the good of the Founders. He thought that he could do this better from outside Dominion control, believing that the Dominion's campaigns of conquest and war had begun to work against that sacred duty rather than for it. The subject on his mind since his debriefing ended was whether he was right to think so, or whether everything would have been better off if he'd…

But all of those anxieties were settled by the sound of Odo's voice. Saying that he'd done well. Thanking him. His first impulse was to doubt, but he couldn't bear to. How long had it been since the last time he received genuine praise or encouragement from one of his gods? It was a cruel irony that this was the thing that warranted it. "Carrying out your will is its own reward," he said once he recovered his words, bowing his head and hoping on some level that the attitude of reverence he displayed, genuine though it was, would distract Odo from noticing the conflicted waver in his voice.