<USS Avalon> Re: "In Retrospect, Part Two"

In  Retrospect
Part Two
 
 
        In 2369, Starfleet officers assigned to  management of the 
Cardassian-built space station in orbit of the planet Bajor  encountered the 
shapeshifting Odo for the first time. Frank Scott heard about  the mysterious 
being 
through the usual means---Fleet gossip. He was mildly  interested, wondering if 
perhaps the genetic material of his daughter's 'sire'  might be related to Deep 
Space Nine's chief of security. As the Ireland  was not usually in that sector 
of space, he didn't give the matter much thought. 
        That is, until 2371, when the Fleet grapevine  went abuzz again about 
Odo. This time, the news was much bigger---he had  discovered his homeworld. 
Frank then copied every disclosed report he could get  his hands on and showed 
it all to his wife. They worried that Laney's upcoming  graduation from 
practical training might prompt her to ask questions no one was  prepared to 
answer---least of all the two of them.
        The beginning of active duty went smoothly  for Laney---while it was 
true that the Ireland had it's share of  adventures, nothing happened that 
would have prompted her to reveal her  extraordinary gifts. She had been living 
in secret for so long that using them  only in private or in the company of her 
parents had become second nature  to her. 
        At least, that was what  she allowed her parents to think. Frank and 
Marsha might believe she was content  to live a 'normal' life, but like her 
father, Laney gathered every available bit  of material she could concerning 
Odo 
and the Dominion Founders. They called  themselves Changelings, and they 
could shapeshift. She, too, could shapeshift to  a certain degree, though with 
nowhere near the complexity of Odo and his people.  Her abilities were limited 
to 
elasticity and preternatural good health, but  surely there was a connection. 
        A second Borg incursion into Federation  space was followed by 
all-out war with the Dominion and their new allies,  the Cardassians, both in 
2373. 
Two years of constant conflict for the most part  pushed the thought of 
Laney's origins from the minds of the Scott family, though  the questions of 
the 
youngest were never completely silenced. 
        Having been assigned to the Bajoran Sector  battle group in the last 
six months of the war, the Ireland stops at  DS9 after the cease fire 
agreement is signed...
 
 
Stardate  9912.27 
        Laney stopped outside her father's office  door. This was a 
moment---the moment, really---she had been dreading  for nearly four years. In 
truth, 
she had been dreading it all her  life.
        Taking a deep breath, she rang the chime, and  entered when she head 
his muted "Come in."
        "Laney! Sweetheart, to what do I owe this  pleasure?" Frank Scott 
rose from his chair, a wide smile on his face. He came  around the desk and 
wrapped his daughter in a snug embrace.
        She'd never been afraid to speak to her  father before. In fact, 
she'd always been able to talk to both her parents about  anything. But as he 
drew 
back and she looked into his eyes, Laney was suddenly  very afraid to speak.
        Clearing her throat, she stiffened her spine  as she said, "Daddy, 
I've come to ask you for a favor."
        "Sure," he said. "Whatever you need that I  can provide. What is it?"
        Laney swallowed. "A shuttle. Just for a few  days."
        Frank's eyebrows rose. "What do you need a  shuttle for? You know 
we'll be leaving tomorrow morning."
        "Like I said, it's just for a few days," she  said, hoping she 
wouldn't actually have to tell him why. "I need some alone  time."
        "You can get that in your quarters. Or the  holodeck." Frank backed 
way and leaned against the desk, his arms  crossed. "What's really going on, 
Laney?"
        "I just want to go somewhere. By myself." 
        Her father sighed. "Normally I'd just say  yes, and don't forget to 
file your flight plan. You also normally tell me right  off where you're 
planning to go. But I'm getting a feeling that not only  were you not intending 
to 
file one, you also don't even want me to know where  you're going.
        "I'm going to ask you again: What's really  going on?"
        Laney stepped away, then turned back to face  him. "Daddy, I want to 
go to the Gamma Quadrant. To the Changeling  homeworld."
        Frank could only stare. "You're kidding.  Right?" he said after a 
moment.
        She shook her head slowly. "No, Daddy, I'm  not."
        He stared again. Then abruptly rose and  returned to his chair. 
"Request denied."
        "What?"
        Frank shuffled padds strewn over his desk,  responding without 
looking up. "I believe you heard me,  Lieutenant."
        Shaken from his tone and the pointed  use of her rank and not her 
name, she stepped forward. "I'm not asking you  as an officer, Dad. I'm asking 
you as your daughter."
        "And as your father, the answer is still no.  Cease-fire or no 
cease-fire, the Gamma Quadrant is no place for anyone to travel  alone, and the 
Changeling homeworld is sure as hell no place for a Starfleet  officer to go."
        "Oh, come on!" Laney said,  exasperation creeping into her voice. 
"You had to know this was coming---you and  mom both. The Changelings could be 
my 
people!"
        Frank looked up sharply. "We are  your people, Laney. Me. Your 
mother. Your grandparents. Humanity itself is your  people."
        Laney narrowed her gaze. "Only in  part."
        Softening, she added, "Daddy, I may register  to a scan as a normal, 
run-of-the-mill Human female, but we both know  why---because of the chip you 
had put in my commbadge. And I'm not  normal! Never being sick a day in my 
life might not be so much a clue as my  ability to reach clear across a room!"
        She demonstrated by holding out her right arm  and allowing it to 
elongate, reaching behind her father's head and plucking one  of his 
certificates 
off the wall. She dropped it on the desk before returning  the arm to its 
usual length. 
        "That is not normal."
        Frank sighed. "Laney, I know you have  questions. I have questions. 
So does your mother. And yes, to be  honest, we've suspected ever since '69 
that your non-Human genetics could  be in some way related to Odo's species."
        "You also know that the Founders told Odo  that he was one of a 
hundred---one hundred---Changeling infants  sent out to explore the galaxy who 
would be compelled to return home  eventually," Laney pointed out.
        For a brief moment, Frank wondered if this  sudden request might be 
the result of such a compulsion. "Are  you...?"
        "No, Daddy. This is just me, standing here  asking you to let me find 
out who I am. You said even you and mom have  questions. Why not let me get 
the answers?" Laney said softly.
        He was almost compelled to let her go, but it  was just too risky. If 
anyone found out where she was going and why... not to  mention the fact that 
his greatest fear was losing her to the Changelings' Great  Link. 
        If she was even able to join the  link.
        "I'm sorry, Laney," he said at last. "I just  can't let you." 
        Laney stiffened again,  standing straight. "Then I'll  put in for 
immediate leave. You can't stop me on my own time."
        "Actually, I can," he told her. "If I believe  your intentions 
present a danger to yourself or others, I can have you  taken into custody."
        She was shocked to hear that. It rankled that  he was right. And 
pissed her off because she knew he would do it.
        Laney didn't wait for his dismissal before  turning on her heel and 
leaving. 
 
        Laney wandered around the Ireland  aimlessly for about an hour. She 
was still angry at her father, and didn't want  to even contemplate the fact 
that he had, in essence, threatened her with  confinement. And for what? 
Because 
she was curious? Because she just wanted to  know where the other half of her 
came from? What was he so afraid of,  anyway---even if she were to get to the 
Changeling homeworld, the chances  of her being able to join the Great Link 
were virtually zero. She might  have some of their genetic structure, but she 
already knew she couldn't turn  herself into a puddle of gelatinous semi-solid. 
        Her wanderings, either by accident or  subconscious design, had 
brought her to her domain---the shuttle bay. She  entered and stood silently 
looking over the miniature ships, knowing in her  heart that if she could just 
take 
one for a couple of days, she could get every  one of her questions answered. 
        Looking around, Laney saw that no one was  present. Taking that as a 
sign, she strode over to the controller's console and  entered her command 
code. She tapped in a series of commands, then  walked over to the closest 
Type-9, the Belfast, and got in. She brought  the shuttle's systems online as 
the 
bay door opened, and in mere minutes was on  her way out into space.
        When the opening wormhole swirled into view  outside his ready room 
window, Frank Scott initially paid it no mind. He'd seen  it often enough to be 
reasonably immune to the stunning view it presented each  time the vortex was 
approached. About an hour later, the message light on  his desktop terminal 
began to blink, and he keyed the message onto the screen  with a nonchalant 
air. His eyes grew wide and his breathing almost stopped when  he read the text 
message from Laney.
        I'm sorry, Daddy.
        
        Kira Nerys had quite enough to deal with. She  didn't need another 
request from yet another Starfleet captain to locate a  missing crewman, who 
was 
probably at Quark's getting drunk still celebrating the  war's end.
        Captain Frank Scott's expression upon  stepping into the office she 
had reluctantly taken over after Ben's departure  sobered her very quickly. He  
spoke first, and floored her with the nature of his request. 
        "Colonel Kira, I need you to take me to the  Changeling homeworld." 
        She blinked rapidly for about ten seconds.  "I'm sorry... what did 
you just say?"
        No one went to the Changeling  homeworld who didn't have to. For that 
matter, there weren't too many who knew  where the Founders had resettled 
after the attack on their first world by  Romulan-aided forces a couple of 
years 
ago. What could possibly have possessed  this man to want to make the trip?
        "Colonel, I have every reason to believe that  my daughter has taken 
a shuttlecraft to the planet," he went on, as if she  hadn't spoken. "I don't 
know how or where she got the coordinates, but I'm  certain that is where she 
is headed."
        Kira cleared her throat. "May ask why she  would go there?"
        "She believes her biological father was a  Changeling."
        Nearly repeating her first statement, Kira  shook her head to dispel 
the urge. "I mean no disrespect to you or your  daughter, Captain, but is she 
suffering from any sort of mental illness?  Post-traumatic stress disorder?"
        "No, Colonel."
        The Bajoran frowned. "Then what could  possibly make her think---"
        "She might be right, Colonel," Frank said. "I  haven't the time to 
explain just now. If you go with me, I will explain on the  way. If you don't 
want to go, I still need you to tell me where it is. Time is  of the 
essence---if we hurry, we might be able to catch her before she reaches  the 
planet."
        Kira was speechless for several seconds, then  simply nodded. She 
next reached up and tapped her commbadge.
        "Kira to Bashir."
        "Bashir here, go  ahead."
        "Doctor, I've an inescapable  conference I need to attend on Bajor. I 
don't know how long I'll be gone,  but it should only take a few days. You're 
in charge until I get  back."
        "Understood, Colonel. Take  care."
        Kira came around the desk. Frank walked  behind her as they exited 
the office and she said, "We'll take a runabout. It'll  get us there much 
faster."
 
*****
        Materializing on a small spit of rocky  land, Laney looked with 
wonder at the shimmering sea of  relaxed-state Changelings. Only a small 
handful of 
people from her side of the  wormhole had ever seen this sight, and she 
wondered if any had been as  awe-struck as she was right now.
        She was startled when the 'sea' began to  shift, and a rising form 
began to take shape. She instantly recognized Odo as he  came toward her. 
        "Why have you come here?" he  asked.
        Laney suddenly didn't know how to answer  that. "I... I think I might 
be one of you. At least half of me might be," she  said nervously.
        Odo smiled even as he shook his head. "That  can't be, Lieutenant. 
There are no half Changelings. It isn't even  possible."
        "It must be. Look." Taking off her commbadge,  she dropped it on the 
ground, then pulled a tricorder from the case on her belt  and handed it to 
him.
        "Scan me," she instructed. "Without my  commbadge, a scan will show 
you I'm not completely  Human."
        Humoring the girl, not believing the scan  would show him anything 
other than a Human bio-signature, Odo flipped the  tricorder open and keyed the 
command for a biological scan. He held it in front  of her just long enough 
for the device to get a reading, and then brought it  back to himself to look 
at 
the screen. And was shocked to see the result. 
        On one half of the tiny display was a Human  double-helix. On the 
other, the unmistakable genetic marker of his own  people.
        Odo glanced up. "You are one of us.  How... how is this possible?" 
        His eyes strayed back to the tricorder  screen, still not quite able 
to comprehend how he could be seeing a dual  Human-Changeling bio-signature.
        "Twenty-two years ago, there was a meteor  shower in the Verdana 
system. A capsule containing an unknown organic  compound was found among some 
meteorites that had landed on Verdana Two. The  thing ceased it's molecular 
activity within three days of the capsule being  opened, because of damage to 
what 
was later determined to be a stasis capsule. A  civilian microbiologist, 
working on the Starfleet vessel that had sent  officers to study the fallout of 
the 
meteor shower, decided to experiment with  the compound. She injected a 
sample of it into the nucleus of a Human cell---one  of her own cells, in fact.
        "Almost instantly the sample and the  cell nucleus fused, and then 
began to divide. Over the next two days it  continued dividing in the same 
exact 
fashion as do Human reproductive cells  after conception. Impulsively, some 
might say stupidly, the woman decided  to transplant the cell cluster into her 
uterus, effectively becoming  her own science experiment. The cluster 
implanted, and after a standard-length  Human gestation cycle, I was born."
        Odo continued to look her over with wonder,  as were the dozen or so 
Changelings who had taken shape while she recounted her  origins. 
        "It is most incredible," said a female. "We  have never reproduced in 
such a fashion before. I do not see how this could have  happened."
        "In twenty-one years, I've never been sick,"  Laney went on. "I've 
been injured numerous times, but I've always healed either  instantly or within 
days, depending on the severity. And I can stretch myself  way beyond the 
capacity of normal Human beings."
        She demonstrated this latter ability by  standing absolutely still 
and lengthening her arm to pick up her commbadge.  "There's a microchip in 
here, 
designed by my mother, that emits a signal  whenever I'm scanned. It's 
designed to make the scan read me as completely  Human. I've worn this almost 
since 
birth."
        "Have you ever...?" Odo started to  say.
        Laney shook her head. "I've always had a  solid body."
        "Then what made you come here?"
        Laney smiled softly. "As I've known since I  was very young how I 
came to life, when I first heard about you, I began to  wonder if we could be 
related somehow. But being a military brat---daughter of a  Starfleet captain, 
a 
graduate of Starfleet Academy myself---I couldn't just go  around asking the 
wrong kinds of questions."
        "Seems to me they would have been the right  questions," said the 
female.
        "I mean no disrespect, but when word got out  that the Dominion 
Founders were Odo's people, it made them the wrong ones. I  also knew I 
couldn't 
just disregard the people who raised me, the love they had  given me or all the 
risks they had taken on my behalf."
        Laney's eyes found Odo's again. "But the war  is over now. The 
Changelings and the Federation may not be allies, probably  never will be, but 
we 
are at peace. I thought it was time to find out who I  am."
        Odo smiled. He knew that feeling all too  well. Closing the 
tricorder, he handed it over. Laney returned it to  the carrying case on her 
belt. 
Next, Odo held out his hand.
        No one knew what would happen when their  hands touched. All were 
surprised and elated when, as Odo began to convert to  his gelatinous state---
        ---Laney began to change with  him.
 
*****
        They had been in orbit for two days, three  days out from DS9, and 
were taking turns getting sleep. They had discovered  Laney's empty uniform and 
equipment abandoned on the shore of the Changeling  sea. Frank had been 
devastated, and was only marginally comforted by Kira's  reassurances that 
Laney was 
almost certainly alive and well in the Great Link.  His concern was whether 
or not his daughter would come back to him. 
        So they waited.
        Kira was almost surprised there had been no  activity for so long, 
not even from Odo. She contemplated that nearly every  waking moment.
        She had just  relieved Frank on the eve of the third day, and he had 
been gone only a few  minutes when there was activity at last.
        She slapped her commbadge. "Frank, get back  down here! Something's 
happening!" 
        By the time Frank had fully rematerialized  next to her, Laney was 
standing in front of her, looking none the worse for  wear. The younger Scott 
did not look surprised to see them.
        "Hi, Daddy."
        "Laney, are you alright?" Frank asked  cautiously, eyeing the uniform 
she had appeared in, knowing the one they had  found was up on the runabout.
        "I'm fine, Daddy. You don't have to worry, I  haven't been harmed."
        Not taking her word for it, he opened up a  tricorder and scanned 
her. "Still half-Human, half-Changeling," he muttered. 
        "Did you think they would erase my Human  DNA?" she asked.
        "Quite frankly, yes," he  answered.
        Laney shook her head. "Daddy, Mom's  experiment---though it may have 
been unethical and possibly immoral---gave me  life. There's no escaping that 
and no changing it, because if she  hadn't, the Changeling I was would have 
died and they never would have known  what happened to her. Although they have 
the ability to remove my  Human DNA they didn't, because being Human is part of 
who I am."
        "I know they did something to  you."
        Laney smiled again. "They have given me a  gift---the ability to 
shapeshift, and if I so desire, to join the Great  Link."
        Kira tried not to be offended when she saw  the crestfallen look on 
Frank Scott's face. After all, she'd known Odo for many  years, and he was the 
finest example of the Changeling race she'd ever met. On  the other hand, he 
had legitimate reason to fear losing his daughter---not to  death, perhaps, but 
to the very people who had until just a few days ago tried  to decimate the 
Alpha Quadrant.
        "Obviously your father has filled me in on  everything, so we won't 
hash out just why I'm here," she said, speaking for the  first time since the 
Scotts had reunited. "What I don't understand is how a  tissue sample from a 
dead Changeling infant embryonized with a non-reproductive  nucleus."
        Laney looked at her. "We believe  that the cellular structure of that 
particular infant, a female, was  not entirely devoid of electro-molecular 
activity. Even Human cells  maintain some electrochemical activity for months 
after death. Apparently, once  introduced to my mother's cell nucleus, the 
genetic material of the Changeling  sample bonded with the DNA contained in the 
nucleus in order to preserve  it's life. There was enough information contained 
in the twenty-three  chromosomes of my mother's cell nucleus for it to 
determine what  bio-molecular pattern it would need to form."
        "So... as a final act of  self-preservation, it chose to become 
Human?" Kira asked  incredulously.
        "It is just a theory, but the only one that  seems to make sense to 
any of us. Even the Changelings are astounded. They don't  reproduce the same 
way Solids do, so they've never encountered anything like  me," Laney 
explained. "I still retain my half-Human genetics, but by coming  here and 
joining the 
Great Link I'm also a true half-Changeling."
        Frank couldn't believe what he was hearing.  "Don't tell me you're 
happy about this?! Laney, what am I supposed to  tell your mother?"
        "That she is still my mother. The Changelings  have no desire to take 
that distinction away from her---in fact, they hold her  in high regard 
because she gave me life, and it was out of deepest respect for  her that they 
didn't remove my Human DNA and make me a full Changeling. That,  and I asked 
them 
not to. I was given life by a Human and I have lived my life as  a Human, so 
Human is what I am. I just happen to also be a  Changeling."
        "You're a bloody Founder, Laney!" her father  exploded. "You might as 
well have given up your Human DNA if you can do  everything they can do!"
        "But I can do things they can't, Daddy!  I'll need to. My Human DNA 
will require me to eat, I will still bleed,  and if I want to reproduce, I'll 
have to do it the old-fashioned way! Daddy,"  she stepped closer to him, her 
countenance imploring. "I had to do  this. Whether you want to admit it or not, 
being half-Changeling has always been  a part of who I am. I had to come here 
to find that out for sure, yes, but now  we know why I've always had those 
unbelievable abilities. I had the right to  know. And really, all the 
Changelings 
have done for me is given me the ability  to join the Great Link and 
shapeshift like they do."
        "Will you have to regenerate?" Kira wondered  out loud. 
        Laney nodded. "Yeah, but  no more than an hour will be required. I'll 
still be able to sleep in a bed for  rest otherwise."
        Frank Scott shook his head vigorously and  paced away. He turned back 
a moment later, his expression now schooled, hands on  his hips and his mouth 
set in a grim line. 
        "Laney, I don't think you have any  idea of the position you have put 
me in," he told her. "Or Colonel Kira, for  that matter. I cannot ask her to 
remain silent, and I doubt she would even if  asked. The truth is going to 
have to come out now, do you get that? I mean, can  you comprehend that you 
have 
put not only your career, but mine and your  mother's, at risk? Could you 
think of no one but yourself and this insane  personal quest of yours?"
        Laney's expression tightened and her eyes  narrowed. "Daddy, this 
quest, while it may have been personal, was not  insane."
        "You can think that if you want, Delaney. You  got what you wanted. 
Now you have to face the consequences."
        "What consequences?" she asked, already  suspecting what he was going 
to do. Strangely enough, the Starfleet officer  inside actually agreed.
        "I'm afraid you have left me no choice,"  Frank said. "You may have 
made a personal request as my daughter, but the fact  remains that I am a 
captain and your commanding officer, and you disobeyed a  direct order not to 
come 
here. I'm also going to add an insubordination charge.  You are, as of now, 
under arrest."

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