TheOriginal-Part 3

TheParty

Well, some things remained exactly the sameand some things had definitely changed.

The Vorta clones remained the same, demanding no justification for their being brought back for the possibility of war, otherthan knowing the Founders wished it.

And while Weyoun was happy to be alive and inhis former position again, he had to admit to himself that he felt somewhatfoolish for leading yet another war for the same reason as before, when they hadn’t even won the last time.

However the Founders were very clear in theirinstructions to stall for as much time as possible before actually going towar, unless of course the Federation were to declare war first, for theFounders’ violation of the terms of the Dominion surrender.

Meanwhile, what had changed was the lack ofJem-Hadar, Breen, Cardassians… basically anyone that could be considered asoldier…. At first Weyoun was very concerned, wondering just why they wouldneed so many Vorta and no one else. What was the point of cloning all thosefield supervisors and military strategists if there was no one to carry out themissions?

Finally after days of noticing thousands! of newly cloned Vorta emerge from the cloning facility, many of whom appeared to come from the same original, it became obvious what they were for. They were to become the new soldiers of the Dominion. Mindless, Ketracel-White addicted soldiers.

"Unethical!" his mind screamed at him. That’s odd. Where had that thought come from? It wasn’t even his thought…

"Unethical! Unethical! Unethical!"screamed the professor and several of her students at the top of their lungs.

It was hard to say exactly when the party,which was supposed to be a celebration of Lucond’s declaration that clonedVorta were to have the same rights and free will as anyone else, had turned into such a catastrophe.

Practically the same hour the dozen or sosuccessfully cloned Vorta were freed from the stasis they had been in, peoplewere in the streets, protesting. True, cloning had always been a controversialconcept, but hardly a new one. Kurill’s science community had been working oncreating the perfect clone for nearly a millennium. They tolerated no less thanabsolute success in their experiments before the completion of fullyindependent, intelligent clones-as much of an oxymoron as that may have seemed to some.

There was absolutely nothing unethical aboutit.

Lunatic, self-righteous professors andstudents who threw bottles of liquor and other objects in a party hall, on theother hand, had far more questionable ethics in Weyoun’s opinion

"Get them out of here!" he heardLucond sneer in a furious tone that few could miss, despite his being as calm and quiet and possible. He knew all too well how highly publicized this public protest would become. …And how in the names of the Gods did they get in?

Suddenly out of the corner of his eye, amidstthe chaos of hundreds of guests-invited and not- running around screaming andtrying to avoid being hit with heavy objects, Weyoun spotted Keevan hiding under a table, absently sipping his drink and…smiling.

That brat! Anything to get even with hisfather for paying more attention to oh-the entire planet’s population instead of him alone.

As if his fury alone was propelling him, Weyoun stomped over to where Keevan wascrouched and out of harm’s way.

"Keevan!" Weyoun whispered harshly. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Not everyone thinks my father is the perfect God that you do," Keevanwhispered back in a much calmer, smug tone than Weyoun’s. "They have a right to their opinion, don’t they?"

"You’ll regret this, Keevan," Weyoun said, equally calmly, in an attempt to atleast look like he wasn’t ready to run out of the room in fear of Keevan’s new friends.

However as soon as he turned to find out if Lucond was all right, a shattered half of awine bottle struck him in the side of his head. Weyoun stumbled back slightly,although the attempt to… stand up again...wasn’t quite successful…

Weyoun woke up groggily in a comfortable, familiar bed. The first thing he noticed wasthe intense pain in his head. The second thing was that he was naked… andalone… in Kilana’s bedroom. How had he gotten there? Weyoun got out of the bed,clutching his head as soon as he attempted to sit up. Attempt being the keyword-the pain made him flinch and lie back down. After breathing slowly anddeeply for a few seconds, he got back up. Now where were his clothes? He didn’t remember getting undressed… Well, he didn’t remember anything after the party…the angry mob… Keevan… and …oh, yes, that bottle from out of nowhere. That explained the pain.

But that didn’t explain the rest of his situation, thought Weyoun, as he dressedhimself as quickly as possible, after finding his clothes neatly folded over achair.

Weyoun walked as quickly as his injured state would allow, into Kilana’s living roomwhere she sat sipping some off-world drink and eating breakfast… with Keevan!

"What’s going on?" asked Weyoun. Hewas far too confused to pretend to be polite.

"Ah,beloved, come join us," said Kilana, making room beside her on the couch.

"Yes,come join us," agreed Keevan in the sweetest voice he could manage, whichsomehow still sounded sarcastic.

Had Weyoun not been so dizzy, he would have certainly refused. However, in thiscase… he sat down, although he looked as if he had lost his balance and fallennext to Kilana.

"Poordarling." Cooed Kilana. "You had a nasty accident at the party, soKeevan and I brought you here before that woman with all the bottles couldfinish you off. You know, I’ve seen that lunatic before. I swear all she everdoes is go to protests so she can get away with throwing heavy objects at menshe’s attracted to."

"Attracted?"asked Weyoun in shock and embarrassment at the fact that Kilana could readpeople’s emotions far better than he could.

"Hmph,"she replied. "I won’t even get into some of the thoughts she’s had aboutyou lately. The party was nothing. You should have seen her at last week’s demonstration at the University."

"Attracted,"repeated Weyoun numbly. "She has an… interesting way of showing it… Almostas interesting as yours. Why was I…?"

"Naked?"asked Keevan, jumping on Weyoun’s words before Weyoun could think that therewas any discretion between Weyoun and Kilana as far as this scenario was concerned. "You were sweating in your sleep," Keevan purred with asuggestive smirk on his face.

Weyoun looked at him in horror. "How do you know that?"

Keevan shrugged. "Kilana asked me to check on you during the night…. You moan inyour sleep, too."

Weyoun remained silent at that. He wasn’t about to admit how vulnerable and… violatedthis little episode was making him. He had to change the subject. Immediately.

"None of this explains why you’re here," he said to Keevan.

"I asked him for his help," said Kilana. "You had passed out, and therewas such commotion-I didn’t want to wait for the medics and emergencyassistance to arrive."

"Commotion-becauseof HIM!" sputtered Weyoun. "Just wait until Lucond finds out aboutthis, you… you-"

"Lucond isn’t going to find out about anything," said Kilana firmly, lookingdirectly into Weyoun’s eyes. He knew then that she was quite serious. But why?

Unfortunately she obviously wasn’t going to tell him the truth, at least not then with Keevanwatching and listening intently. Even the spoiled brat seemed curious as to why Kilana didn’t turn him over to his father and her superior.

"Oh come on, Weyoun," she said playfully. "You know you wanted to get outof that dreadful party one way or another. Keevan just… made thatpossible."

Keevan smiled ingratiatingly.

Weyoun was too tired for this.

"I’m going to bed," he said, getting up. "And I don’t want to wake upnaked," he added, giving each of the two troublemakers an angry glarebefore returning to the bedroom.

If he hadn’t been so tired from his injuries… he’d… he’d… sleep! Yes, that wasit…sleep…

To be continued…