Tuvok looked around, and saw steam coming from the nearby bathroom area. He also heard a noise that seemed horrible to him. It was Neelix singing. Walking forward, and trying to ignore the noise, Tuvok soon found Neelix in a bath, having a good time playing with the water.
Seeing that Neelix was naked, Tuvok averted his gaze. Making a coughing noise, Neelix was soon aware of Tuvok's presence, even through the massive amounts of steam.
"Ah, Mister Vulcan! Good to see you again! You have a wonderful ship here!"
"Judging from the appearance of your quarters, I would say that you have never had the use of a replicator before.", said Tuvok.
"Yes.", Neelix replied. "I've never known anyone to waste water like this before! The best I'm used to is a good old sand scrub!"
Sighing silently to himself, and wondering what they had let themselves in for, Tuvok continued.
"We have entered orbit around the desert planet. Captain Janeway would like your presence on the bridge."
"Good. Can you hand me that...that...towel?"
Tuvok handed the towel to Neelix. Wrapping it around himself, he began to give Tuvok instructions.
"Scan the northern continent.", he said. "There you will find a dried-up river-bed. Two kilometres to the east you will find a settlement."
"And our missing crew members will be there?"
"Yes...possibly...maybe not. Anyway, we'll find them! You can count on it!"
Sisko was pleased to be back in the more familiar surroundings of Deep Space Nine. Stepping out of the airlock, with Bashir, Dax and O'Brien not far behind him, he smiled. He then began to wonder why he was pleased to see this Cardassian eyesore. Sisko was soon greeted by a smiling Admiral Nacheyev.
"It's good to see you again, Commander.", she said. "Your work in this matter is most appreciated by Starfleet Command. Indeed, President Servalan herself will be here shortly to witness the talks for herself."
"I suppose I should feel honoured.", Sisko replied.
"So you should. One of the Founders is here also. He would like to speak with you."
A few moments later Sisko entered his office to see the Founder. He turned around after looking out of the window and smiled when he saw Sisko.
"Welcome back, Commander. I am Borath, one of the Founders."
Borath extended his hand, and the two of them shook hands.
"I believe I've already met one of the Founders.", said Sisko.
"You are referring to Eris, of course, Commander. But please do not judge all of us on one unpleasant encounter."
The two men seated themselves.
"Tell me, Borath, how far have the talks between our two governments gone?"
"It is hard to say, Commander. I am hoping that a treaty between our two peoples will be signed shortly."
"Are you sure that's wise? We know very little about each other."
"We know more than you expect. You must trust me, Commander, when I say that this treaty will be beneficial to both our governments. There is a lot we can offer each other."
Sisko then stood up. It was obvious to Borath that Sisko was not liking what he was hearing, although he knew Sisko wouldn't say as much.
"Please excuse me. I'm tired, hungry and dirty. I would like to clean up."
"By all means, Commander. It's been good talking to you."
Sisko soon left the room. Borath knew he would have some trouble with Sisko in the future.
Suddenly, Harry Kim rose. He had no idea where he was, or how he got there. He was no longer in his uniform. The walls around him were white, and several figures stood near and around him.
"Where am I?", he asked. "How did I get here?"
There was no reply to his questions. Then, from the next bed, he heard a groan. Suddenly, the woman arose. To Kim she looked like a Klingon, but different from other Klingons. Immediately he could see the rage in her eyes.
"What have you done to me?", she cried.
Suddenly she jumped off the bed and ran for the door. Two of the people tried to grab her, but they were not strong enough to hold her. She knocked them aside like flies.
She soon reached the door, but found two others outside. This time they managed to get a hold of her. Struggle as she might, she could not get away.
Then, as she struggled, she saw her arm. There was something on it, as if something was growing inside her. This made her hysterical, and she fought even harder than before. Only the intervention of someone with a hypo-spray stopped her struggle.
Then, Kim looked down at his arm. He didn't know why he did this. Perhaps it was just pure instinct. To his horror, the same sort of growth he saw on the woman was also on him.
Ever since he had returned to the Time of Legends as a Federation criminal, Magus had wanted to return to his home on Craigmillar Castle. But circumstances had kept him away. Now he had to be there, if things were to proceed as they should have done. The first room Magus went into was his vast library. Straight away he found the book he was looking for, took it to his desk, and studied it intently. He had hoped that this time would never come, that things would somehow go differently. All the same, he knew that soon he would have to travel back through time, to keep time on its proper course. All because Travis' pursuit ship destroyed Admiral Calevicchi's transport.
The female changeling took Odo by the hand, and led him into the garden. It was much like any other garden Odo had seen, yet somehow, it was different. Odo didn't know why. It just was.
"What are we doing here?", he asked.
"It is simple. To be a Changeling is to know what being a Changeling is about. Look at all of the items in the garden. Do you know anything about them?"
Odo looked around. He was slightly confused.
"It looks like a lot of rocks and plants to me."
"Ah, but it is more than that, Odo. To take the form of a rock is to know its true meaning, to know what it is all about."
"But I still don't understand."
"But you will, in time, Odo. And when you do, you can then take your place in the Great Link. I will leave you now. Please, make full use of this garden. Become the forms in it. In time, you will come to understand everything about us."
She then left Odo on his own, to find out about his fellow Changelings, to find out about himself.
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