his chest. He tried to suck in a deep lungful of air, but
nothing happened.
"Kiram" he tried to say, but nothing came out. He
could only gaze up at her with growing panic.
Then he felt his arms and legs moving on their own,
shaking crazily, and his whole body began to con-
valse.
It was a short trip to Camalia VIII, Odo found, and
Auron and Selann made pleasant if innocuous (per-
haps too innocuous, Odo thought darkly) conversa-
tion along the way. He found himself growing a little
bored with their chatter about the weather on planets
he'd never visited and about people he'd never met.
At last, though, the planet came into sight through
the front viewport. Odo moved forward to see better.
It was the same planet on the hologram in the center
of the cabin, he realized, and he felt a growing sense of
excitement. Was this the new changeling home? If so,
the Federation would need to know its location.
Almost as if reading his thoughts, Selann came up
behind him and said, "We have a small outpost here,
with few of the comforts of home."
"And where is home?" Odo said.
"With us." Selann smiled faintly. "You don't be-
long with the Federation, Odo. You know that deep
inside."
"Perhaps," he murmured. He wasn't willing to give
them any more encouragement than that, he decided.
If he appeared too eager, they might catch on that he
was hiding something. He'd only been off the
Jem'Hadar ship for a few hours; Kira and Worf
wouldn't have had time to do much of anything yet.
The pilots brought the ship down to a soft landing.
Auron crossed to the hatch, opened it, and a sudden
flood of deep amber sunlight entered the cabin. Odo
followed Selann down the ramp.
They had landed in a cleared field, he saw. Thirty or
so small white domes clustered to the far left, amid
twisted treelike plants whose crowns held streamers
of red flowers. A series of broad pebble paths threaded
their way among the domes. He could see a number of
changelings walking about over there, and he sus-
pected that several of the trees might be changelings
as well. He couldn't say what sixth sense told him; he
just knew.
"Carnalia VIII," Auron said softly from behind
him. "Stay with us here, Odo. Learn to use the power
and influence that is your birthright."
"It's... tempting," he admitted. And it was.
When he thought about all his people had accore-
plished, when he thought about the proud place they
had made for themselves, he couldn't help but won-
der what it would be like to join them.
Then he forced himself to back away from those
thoughts. The changelings had accomplished a lot,
but at too high a price, he thought. They had virtually
enslaved an entire quadrant of the galaxy. That went
against everything he knew to be right and good. He
could never be a part of it. Never.
Selann smiled as they continued down the path to
the domes. "This will be yours," he said, pointing to
the third one.
The building had no door, Odo saw, just a large
round opening in one side. He ducked through
and caught his breath in amazement as he stared
at the strange assortment of objects before him.
Oddly shaped sculptures... intricate pottery...
weathered stones... pieces of driftwood. No human-
oid would like this dome, he thought, turning slowly
to gaze in wonder at everything around him, but for a
changeling it had a luxurious feel. On some level each
of these objects called to him, asking him to emulate
them.
"All this for me," he murmured.
"Yes," Selann said. "All this for you, Odo. You are
one of us. You belong here. Join with me, Odo. Feel
what it is to truly belong."
He opened his arms to Odo, and Odo came to him.
There was no way back to the Federation from here,
no way to help Worf and Kira for the moment, so why
not? He had joined with changelings before, when
he'd visited their Homeworld, and it had been one of
the most incredible sensations of his life. The nearest
thing he could compare it to was sex among the solids,
but it wasn't like that. It was... spiritual, he decided.
A joining of minds, a melding of thoughts and souls, a
surrender to a larger universe. You lost your individu-
ality and became part of something greater than
yourself.
As he watched his hands shifting, becoming golden,
luminous, and liquid--as he felt his body merging
with Selann's--his last thoughts were that he had
indeed come home.
CHAPTER
14
KIRA FLIPPED WORF over onto his back and put her
hands on his chest, trying to push him down. His
whole body strained violently, almost knocking her
off, and his arms and legs thrashed against the floor.
Foam began to pour from his mouth and nostrils, and
a weird pathetic wheeze came from his chest.
"Easy," she murmured, still pressing him down.
"Easy, Worf."
His teeth clenched. He gave a low moan and
relaxed, and for a second she thought the worst might
be over. Then he began to buck again, moaning, his
eyes rolling back in his head.
Finally his convulsions slowed, then stopped com-
pletely. Gasping for air, he lay still. Every few sec-
onds, his legs or arms gave faint spasmodic twitches.
Was he dying? Kira bit her lip, then leaned forward
and put her head to his chest. His massive heart
pounded wildly, but the beat seemed erratic to her.
She sat back on her heels, trying to think. Battlefield
medicine didn't cover situations like this one. If only
Bashir were here. Should she try to get him to drink
something? Or would that only make things worse?
Suddenly he gasped and opened his eyes. The
pupils were bigger than she'd ever seen them before,
and they were shot through with red lines.
"Worf?" she said. He didn't seem able to focus on
her, though. "Can you hear me? It's Kira. How do you
feel?"
"The corridor..." he whispered.
"What about it?"
"It is spinning..."
He raised one hand to his head. For a second he
tried to sit up, but then he slumped to the side. He
couldn't even lift his own weight, Kira realized with
dismay. How was she going to get him down to
Daborat V in this condition?
Carefully she eased her pack under his head for a
pillow and dabbed at the foam around his mouth. The
best thing she could do for him, she decided, was wait
and hope for the best.
"Rest," she said softly. "I'm going to reconnoiter
and see what I can find. Just as soon as I take care of
our little friend here, that is."
Quickly she pulled a length of cord from her pack
and tied u
p the little alien. He was still unconscious
from the phaser stun, snoring loudly. Up close, he
didn't seem very dangerous looking, but those tiny
needlelike fangs and their venom had certainly done
their work on Worf.
Was it part of the ship's crew? Searching its pockets,
she found a brass ring, a few datachips, and some
scraps of paper; all were dusty, battered, and looked
like they had been lost for quite a while before being
scavenged. No, she decided, the little alien couldn't
possibly be a crewman... more like a mascot or a
pet. If the Jem'Hadar kept pets, which seemed doubt-
ful. Was it sentient? It had on a simple tunic, but that
didn't mean much. They wouldn't know until it
regained consciousness. Hopefully, whatever it was, it
wouldn't be missed right away.
"Water," Worf said hoarsely.
She dug out a canteen and gave him a sip. Maybe
that would help.
"How are you feeling?" she asked.
"Weak," he said. His voice was barely a whisper.
"Help me sit up."
She carefully pulled him forward, then had him
lean back against the wall. He had bloodstains on his
tunic, she saw. Peeling it back at the shoulder, she
found the two puncture marks which were still seep-
ing red. Hard to believe, but those two tiny wounds
had almost killed him.
"It seems he had some nasty venom in his fangs,"
Kira said. She pulled bandages from her pack and
dressed the wounds.
"Fortunately," Worf said, voice stronger now,
sounding more like his old self, "the effects do not
appear long lasting on Klingons."
"Then I'll leave you to watch him and rest," Kira
said. "I want to look down some of the tunnels. If
we're going to be trapped here for a while, we're going
to need to know the layout of the ship."
Worf nodded, wincing a little.
"I'll be back soon," she promised.
Rising, she turned and walked quickly back to the
large tunnel that led to the storage closet. It amazed
her how long and high they were. The access corridors
seemed to r un through the whole ship.
She explored, mentally mapping the place in her
mind. Several times she came to ventilation ducts,
and each time she peeked through. Once she saw
several Jem'Hadar lying on rows of hard-looking
bunks. Other times she saw empty rooms, or store-
rooms filled with crates.
She kept going and eventually came to the ship's
gailey. Through the ventilation holes, she could see
long metal tables and benches. They seemed to be in
the middle of a meal shift now; the benches were
crowded with every species but Jem'Hadar, all eating
what looked like nearly raw meat and some kind of
vegetable stew. The Jem'Hadar didn't eat, she re-
minded herself, so there would be plenty of real food
available. Perhaps they'd be able to sneak in during an
off-shift; fresh supplies would make a good supple-
ment to their protein bars, which they should hold for
emergencies.
She checked the time. She'd been gone nearly an
hour--time to get back to Worf. She didn't want to
leave him too long in his weakened state in case any
more of those savage little aliens showed up. He'd
lived through one bite, but she didn't want to risk any
more.
Retracing her steps, she neared to the corridor
where she'd left Worf. Then from ahead she heard
low voices. That could only mean trouble, she
thought, drawing her phaser. If the Jem'Hadar had
found Worf... she didn't want to think what it
would mean. They weren't exactly known for their
mercy or their compassion.
She crept forward cautiously, placing each foot
carefully. As silent as Death, she peeked around the
corrler.
It was Worf talking to the little alien, she saw. Woff
had untied their captive, and now the two of them sat
facing each other. She relaxed and felt the tension
drain from her shoulders. It seemed the alien was
sentient after all.
"Major," Worf said, "I want you to meet Snoct
Sneyd. He'd an Iffalian. Snoct, this is Major Kira."
"Hello," she said cautiously.
"Hello, Major Kira," Snoct said back, head cocked
to one side in what might have been an almost
comical manner in different circumstances.
"It seems I scared him when he stumbled upon us,"
Worf said. "He was part of a cleaning crew the last
time this ship was serviced--"
"Six long months ago!" Snoct said.
"--and he fell asleep in our closet after a long shift.
When he woke up, they were already in space."
"The Jem'Hadar have been trying to catch me ever
since," Snoct said, "only I escaped."
"What do you mean, trying to catch you?" Kira
asked. That didn't make much sense to her. "How
could you elude the Jem'Hadar aboard their own
ship?"
"I think it is a game to them," Snoct said. "They
hold hunts for me, using primitive weapons like nets
and spears."
"Have they never caught you?" Worf demanded.
"Once," Snoct admitted.
"What happened?"
"They let me escape."
"They let you escape?" Worf's knobby forehead
furrowed.
"That makes sense," Kira said. "If it's a game to
them, why let the fun end?"
"Because when the prey is caught, the game is
over," Worf said.
"Haven't you ever wanted a game to keep going
once it ended?"
"No," Worf said. "That would defeat the purpose
of a game, which is victory."
Kira shook her head. Sometimes Worf just didn't
understand. To Snoct, she said, "Do you know when
this ship is due to visit Daborat V again?"
"I don't know," Snoct said.
"Can you take a guess?"
He mewed plaintively. "It could happen any time
now. Today, next week, or six months from now. They
don't confide in me, after all. I just hope it's soon. If
they dock at any space station for servicing, I'll finally
be able to escape!"
Without warning, a strange sound echoed through
the corridors--a low, almost inaudible drumbeat,
thumping just this side of subsonic. Kira felt the hair
on the back of her neck start to bristle. Then came a
drawn-out wail like the cry of someone being disem-
boweled.
Snoct let out a low moan.
"What's that noise?" Worf demanded, leaping to
his feet. He balanced himself against the wall with one
hand. He hadn't completely recovered from the ef-
fects of Snoct's bite, Kira realized.
"The Jem'Hadar have begun their hunt again," the
little alien said with a shudder. "We must flee!"
CHAPTER
15
S^r,N, Ot)o PULLEt) himself away from Selann and
reassumed his own humanoid form. He had never
known such peace, such tranquillity, as the
first time
he had joined with another changeling. It had left him
weak from euphoria, almost giddy.
But this time it had been different. This time it
hadn't been so novel, and he had been able to sense
Selann's thoughts as they drifted between their collec-
tive consciousness... thoughts that bewildered and
at times enraged him.
Thoughts of peace through conquest.
Thoughts of bending lesser races to his will.
Thoughts of a great destiny for their people and a
vision of the future which Odo did not believe in--or
want to share nothing less than the conquest of the
entire galaxy.
He took a step back, then another, then a third.
All he wanted to do was separate himself from
Selann, to put as much distance between them as he
could.
Selann regarded him solemnly from the other side
of the room. "Odo--" he said.
"Leave me!" Odo cried. "I cannot face your
thoughts!"
Silently, Selann left the dome. Odo gazed at the
statues and the driftwood, at the rocks and the
pottery assembled around him. He no longer felt
like emulating any of it. He just wanted to go
home.
He heard a light step behind him and whirled. Had
Selann returned? No, he saw, Auron had appeared in
the doorway.
"Come with me, Odo," the changeling said softly.
Odo didn't know why, but he obeyed. He walked
out with Auron onto the curving pebble path, and
they passed in silence between the domes, through
the trees, then onto a beach covered in glistening
black sand. Low waves lapped at their feet, and the
air held a faint tang of salt and brine. Far across the
water, two huge orange suns sank toward the ho-
rizon.
"You are still not happy among us," Auron said, as
they gazed into the distance side by side.
"I'm sorry," Odo said. "I cannot accept what
you're doing. It isn't right--"
"Do not apologize," Auron said. "You are still
young, Odo. You have not seen all the horrors of the
universe. You do not understand why we must stand
united against the solids. But you will, Odo, in time.
We are a very ancient and very patient race. We will
wait for you to change, to see things as we do."
"It's just that my heart tells me all of this is
wrong," Odo said. "Why can't all sentient life-forms
find nonaggressive ways to live in peace everywhere
Star Trek - DS9 - Heart Of The Warrior - Book 17 Page 12