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Semil

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About Semil

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  1. The following is a joint log with Sorehl, taking place at the Avalon Colony below Camelot Station. My contributions are highlighted in green. "Hello," came the pleasant greeting, almost a drawl. Sorehl looked over his shoulder. He was struck by the incongruity of a simplistic, innocent salutation from a being capable of such unfathomable duplicity and deception. On a hillside near his home on Avalon, the Vulcan turned from his stooped position to look up at the slight form of the Vorta. He patted his son on the backside, encouraging him to join his older sister. "Go see T'Ael," he prompted. "Go climb." The Vorta's eyes followed the boy, not yet two years old, as he toddled up the hill toward a wooden structure. "Vulcan family values," Semil commented. "The 'next good thing' you moved onto?" Sorehl stood, brushing the blades of grass from his knees. "A pursuit no less, and perhaps more, worthy. And one that I never truly left." He wondered how the Vorta had come to quote words from a private conversation now several years old, but kept the question to himself. He had long since learned that there was little chance in learning the source of such detailed intelligence. Semil mused silently for a moment, then noted, "No doubt Commander Blair informed you of my coming." Sorehl nodded. Had the house's proximity alert failed to reach him, the Camelot Station XO made certain to advise him each time the Vorta requested beam-down to the colony. Especially when he didn't come alone. Sorehl resisted the temptation to look for the Jem'Hadar escort, who was doubtlessly shrouded, invisibly watching his charge. He found it mildly threatening to have a creature of such lethality near his children, but recognized the protection it also offered. Semil had enemies. In fact, he mused, the Vorta had little else. It had been two months since Blair explained that Semil wanted an unofficial audience with the Federation. Since the Hundred were not recognized as a distinct political entity, they could not exchange formal ambassadors. Semil had pressed for informal discussions with his retired foe, as proxy. This would be the third such visit. The Vulcan gestured toward the steps which led to the terrace overlooking the hill and surrounding trees. It was late enough in the day that the mists had burned off, clinging only to the lowest clefts and shadowed areas. The axial tilt of Avalon was negligible, providing a year-round uniformity. The weather was cool, moist, and temperate with little seasonal variation, so the forests grew wide and large, with abundant foliage. Climbing the steps behind Semil, his mind flashed back to the first diplomatic overture he'd been ordered to make to the Dominion, during the first months of the war. That encounter had led to his imprisonment, the lies and illusions they had used to confuse him, and the unfortunate necessities of his escape. Deception and loss seemed to swirl in the wake of the Vorta. But the informal meetings had been revealing, especially since it was clear Semil wanted Sorehl to report their conversations. Despite their low-key presence, the Hundred had broad awareness of events in the Quadrant, even supposedly secret ones inside the Dominion. Although his clearance was still active, Sorehl was no longer privy to Starfleet operations and briefings. In passing along intelligence from the Hundred, he had learned a great deal that his reserve status would have kept from him. During their first meeting, Semil admitted the Hundred knew about a classified mission Excalibur was conducting for the Dominion. He claimed to have confronted attaché Jeralla Ramson and Larell Tekyier, the ship's operations officer, about it months earlier. He noted that the Hundred had not exercised a threat to reveal the nature of the Founder's silence to the worlds of the Dominion, but they were observing Excalibur carefully. Indeed, the intimate level of detail they possessed suggested they either had an operative on the Vorta Council or aboard the ship itself. In their second meeting, Semil had expressed concern over escalations in the Scorpiad civil war, including the outright decimation of several Al-Ucard colonies. The Vorta had actually tried to argue a moral imperative for Federation intervention. Sorehl had noted this argument was probably intended for his wife, Ambassador T'Salik, who was serving as official liaison to the Scorpiad representative at Camelot. Since knowledge of the insurrection was limited to observations by exploratory craft, battle details were welcomed and confirmed by Tactical Command. During their last discussion, Semil had lauded Starfleet for frustrating an attempted Romulan incursion into the Gamma Quadrant. "During the war," he'd sneered distastefully, "we should never have shared our plan to create our own cross-quadrant wormhole with them." Sorehl had been forced to admit he had no knowledge of such an event, but if true, it was a testament to Romulan engineering. The Dominion attempt had ended disastrously, wiping out an entire system in Cardassian space. Semil insisted the event had happened, weapons fire and all, and asked compliments be sent to the starship Reaent when it eventually arrived at Camelot for repairs. In all, the teachings of Surak had proven wise. Although Sorehl knew what the Vorta agent was capable of, overcoming his personal distaste had provided useful knowledge to the Federation - at the very least easing tensions with the Hundred. What would he learn today? Reaching the top of the steps, he dismissed the musing. On the terrace, he gestured toward an elevated flagstone bench and initiated the session. "What brings you to Avalon this morning?" * * * * * The Vulcan girl leaned against the cool plexisteel that separated the interior dining space from the terrace. She watched her father take a seat across the firepit from the alien visitor. After a moment, she heard a faint rustling behind her, marking her mother's transit across the room. "Mother," she asked, not turning around, "why does he keep coming here?" There was a pause, as if considering the answer. "It is no secret," T'Salik replied. "He comes to converse with your father." T'Kel turned away from the window. "But why? He hates him." The ambassador scrutinized her daughter uncertainly. "I am not certain one can ascribe emotional..." "But after what he did," she interrupted, "why would he think father will help him?" T'Salik folded her arms, resting them on her swollen belly. It would be only a matter of weeks before the next addition joined their home. "It is unlikely he is seeking help for himself," she explained. "He knows your father is not inclined to be a... charitable audience. Potentially, that makes him a more powerful advocate." "That doesn't make any sense," the girl protested. "Only Nixon could go to China." * * * * * "They have found it," Semil declared. When the Vulcan showed no sign of response, he elaborated. "The device for communicating with the Founders." He paused. "I can neither confirm nor deny facts of which I am unaware," Sorehl observed. Semil frowned. "The Hundred have no interest in preventing this," he explained, "but they will not allow themselves to be excluded from contact with the Great Link. If the Founders break the silence, their heirs will not be satisfied with the Vorta Council as their spokesman." Sorehl stared evenly. "Should you not be speaking to the Dominion about this?" "Don't be foolish," Semil scoffed. "They'll deny everything. Keevan denies they lost contact with the Founders in the first place. Taenix denies they even need contact. And Lexin is so desperate that he agreed to solicit secret help from Starfleet." He looked away. "The only reason the Hundred hasn't announced the Founders' absence is fear the Jem'Hadar will revolt and kill all the subjects they hope to rule. But if the Vorta try to keep the Founders to themselves..." The Vulcan shifted his weight, leaning an open palm against the rough, warm surface of the flagstone. "I don't understand," he admitted. "You have heard Eloi preach of tolerance and self-determination," Semil reminded him, "but you'd be wrong to think other members of the Hundred see the galaxy as he does." The Vorta looked conflicted, almost pained. "They see themselves as children of estranged parents who sent them out to be persecuted by the solids, then came back to an empty house and a languishing inheritance. They think my people have corrupted the purity of Founder rule. Worse, they think the Great Link has been polluted by Odo and the disease introduced by the Federation. "Until now, they've been content to lure worlds and converts, preserving the empire they intend to win. But if they think the Founders will come back," he paused, leveling his own stare, "they may be willing to destroy the whole Quadrant to keep the disease from spreading..."
  2. Sounds like you need an expert in shapeshifting technology.
  3. Well, I know I'd love to bring this character to other sims, but I can't figure out a plausible reason why anyone would let a Vorta run amuck in the Alpha Quadrant. So far, I've limited my contact to a cross-over log and some subspace communication. Still, it was fun.
  4. And a ruffled Vorta is not a pleasant Vorta.
  5. True to all good quests, it was a holy one. The Federation had quite clearly betrayed him. He had extended gestures of trust on behalf of the Hundred. He had been the one to tell the Federation that the Founders were missing – intelligence gathered at considerable cost. He had provided ships and leverage needed to help them retake the wormhole from the Scorpiad. This should have proven the Hundred as loyal allies. Instead, Starfleet had secretly run into the embrace of the Dominion, helping them restore contact with their masters. And what about their debt to the Hundred? Had they forgotten how the Dominion had abandoned them all? He could not let the Vorta Council re-establish contact with the Founders. At least, not exclusively. While his fellow Vorta had been content to let him languish in a cloning tube, the Hundred had called him forth. They had shown faith in him. They had asked, not demanded, his faith in them. Now he kept their secrets. And one of those secrets compelled him to find where the Founders had gone. Others might suspect sinister motives, but unlike the Federation, he had never raised a hand against his gods. The Hundred would never seek to harm their own kind, their progenitors, even if they had been corrupted. His ship had shadowed Excalibur for days. Semil still believed his own best leads remained in the Omarian Sector, but he wanted to keep an eye on what the Dominion was doing, on what the Federation was helping them do. Let them continue their pursuit. He would not waver in his quest, either.
  6. And just how did you locate my personality profile on MySpace? Yes, I'm hot on your trail now, although I must admit the Hundred have known about the missing Founders for some time. After all, I was the one who told your Federation they were missing in the first place. Of course, Captain Corizon probably kept the source to himself when he leveraged that information against the Dominion and made them help you liberate the wormhole. And you think *I'm* the grass snake...
  7. Hmmm, I wonder if these guys have better eyesight and a sense of aesthetics? The Founders seemed to think we could do without them. Then again, I better they aren't immune to poison...
  8. You think I'm less righteous than Weyoun and Keevan? Why, you haven't seen annoying yet!
  9. Since long before your sun burned hot in space I have awaited... a question. You only had to wait a day for the reply. When Odo discovered his own origins, he learned that the Founders had sent out one hundred infant changlings, with no memory of who they are, to explore the galaxy and eventually return to the Great Link. He later met one at DS9, named Laas. It has since been learned that Laas went on to locate and organize several more of these infant changelings. This group, styling themselves as "The Hundred", feared that the Great Link had been corrupted by Odo and the genocidal disease that almost killed the Founders. After the war, the Founders withdrew direct leadership and left running the Dominion to the Vorta. Three years ago, the Hundred revealed themselves, starting to sway the allegiance of some Vorta and Jem'Hadar, and began challenging leadership of the Dominion. The Dominion sought Federation assistance in helping them prevent the wholesale defection of their forces and worlds; this seemed like a good idea to your people, since the Hundred demonstrated clear hostility toward the Alpha Quadrant. Thus, Excalibur's extended mission and Camelot Station were born. The Scorpiad came later and are best described by others. As for the Hundred, there's a couple of older logs that do a better job of providing backstory than I can, so here's the links for newer players. The Hundred: This was a log written by Sorehl, explaining the origin of the rebellious Hundred, when they were first introduced. I even get a mention in this one, although that clone was loyal to the Dominion. Admiral Day was briefly kidnapped by two of the Hundred and learned a few things about them in Fate of the Admiral, Part One and Part Two. Just to confuse things, the Hundred have successfully gained control of their own cloning facilities and perhaps some shipyards. My previous clone, a loyal servant to the Dominion, was killed in the line of duty. The Hundred decided to restore my line, cloning my current incarnation. This is described in :Rebirth. Since then, I have served the Hundred, helping improve relations with the Federation by alerting them to the disappearance of the Founders and by saving the fleet at DS9 from an ambush by the Scorpiad. This is described in Determination and Free Will. And I didn't even get a medal.
  10. Of course, my character hasn't yet revealed to the galaxy at large that the Founders aren't just in "splendid isolation". :::rubbing hands together::: But just wait until he announces that the Vorta have lost them entirely!
  11. Of course not! You should quickly switch allegiances and encourage the peoples of the Dominion to accept benevolent leadership under their rightful heirs, the Hundred. The children of the Founders have no interest in conquering the galaxy. They just want to establish a New Link to govern the diverse cultures of the Gamma Quadrant, share the enlightenment they experienced as individuals on many different worlds, and usher in a new era with greater free will. True, they'd resist species who'd seek their death - like the Scorpiad and the Federation - but only in self-defense. You could be a principal architect of the pax centuria. Just swing by my office in the Hundred Wing on Camelot Station, my dear. I'll have some pamphlets ready for you.
  12. And so, the Hundred do their part in maintaining balance, honoring commitments to their allies, and bringing new order to the Gamma Quadrant. I'm touched you noticed.
  13. Yes! There's a couple of older logs that do a better job of providing backstory than I can, so I thought I'd give links for anyone who's interested. The Hundred: This was a log written three years ago (yikes!) by Sorehl, explaining the origin of the rebellious Hundred, when they were first introduced to Excalibur. I even get a mention in this one, although that clone was loyal to the Dominion. Admiral Day was briefly kidnapped by two of the Hundred and learned a few things about them in Fate of the Admiral, Part One and Part Two. The civil war put a great strain on the Dominion, as described in Night of the Long Knives. Things were ripe for an outside threat. The Scorpiad: Although alluded to for months beforehand, our current baddies were introduced in the log Valdrex and the follow-up Fulcrum of Irony, in which a Romulan diplomatic mission saves the Vorta Council from a decapitation attack by the Scorpiad. These guys took advantage of a weakened Dominion, but their arrival ultimately caused a truce between the Hundred. Of course, there have been battles since and my own return as an agent of the Hundred, but these links are probably enough backstory to fill a weekend...
  14. Since it occurs in Cardassian space not far from your sim's neighborhood, I thought I'd post a link to this log written about a Vorta associate. What They Didn't Know Thanks to Vatel for pointing out the original link was going to the wrong place! Typical Federation technology...
  15. What they didn’t know... was what they should do. The Alpha Quadrant end of the Dominion’s covert pan-galactic communication array had been roused by a curious set of information and instructions. An entire legion of Jem’Hadar soldiers had been left to sleep deep inside this barren planetoid beyond Cardassian space, ready to awaken and support the Dominion in its eventual return to the quadrant. Klewin, their Vorta commander, had been charged with overseeing this secret, treaty-violating facility. He knew there were other, smaller sleeper cells out there, continuing to sow discord in this region of space. But the secrecy of this base had been maintained at the cost of all news from the outside. Since they didn’t know, they could not take pride in the fact that, seven years after the end of hostilities, the Cardassian homeworld was still not a sovereign government. They did not know that Breen privateers, encouraged with technology and tactical advice, had been willing pawns in helping to destablize the region. They did not know that other Vorta had made contact and forged friendships with new worlds and species. What they knew was that the Gamma Quadrant end of the array had been activated. Given the energies involved, such messages should have been limited to announcements of pending invasion and their upcoming role in it. But the invasion was not theirs. And their role, it was now said, was to prevent it. Semil, a Vorta colleague, had appeared on the screen with a Federation ambassador. Initially thought to be human, their limited database had identified the diplomat as one of several Mudd-type androids encountered during the war. Together, Vorta and android had offered surprising news. Mentally, Klewin reviewed what the transmission had told him: The Founders remained in their splendid isolation. The Vorta remained their loyal stewards of the empire. An ancient enemy called the Scorpiad had launched devastating attacks on the Dominion. They now controlled one side of the wormhole. Federation, Klingon, and Romulan ships were working with the Dominion to repel the invaders. The Allied forces were about to suffer a surprise attack at Deep Space Nine. Klewin had been instructed to relay a message to warn them of the impending attack. Of course, he had no way of knowing Semil had conveniently omitted information about the emergence of the Hundred and their attempt to wrest control of the Dominion during the Founder’s absence. He was unaware that neither the Founders, nor the Vorta Council, had sanctioned the use of their covert communications relays to issue this warning. They did not know that Semil was, in fact, an agent of the Hundred and was unconcerned about revealing the secret base’s existence. In their silent waiting, there was no way to have learned any of this. What the message instead implied was that his fellow Vorta had accepted the Federation as allies in their struggle against the Scorpiad, which was generally true. It also implied that the surprise attack was substantial enough to hurt those allies and thus, the Dominion itself. This was also true, although for reasons other than the obvious. Klewin did not know that his beloved Founders were missing from their own homeworld, although the Federation had learned this fact. He and his Jem’Hadar host did not know that the Vorta Council had only agreed to help retake the wormhole to keep this secret intact. In essence, they didn’t know the reason for any of the things they were being asked to do. The whole request ran counter to everything Klewin had imagined. At the outset of the war, the Founders had once planned a similar ambush of a combined fleet near Deep Space Nine, intending to trigger a subnova detonation of the Bajoran sun to wipe them out. Bitterly, he remembered a Founder had even been killed in the attempt. And now, he was supposed to betray their own existence to preserve the cursed base that’d defied his gods? If only he’d received some sort of undeniable confirmation. Perhaps he could find a way to transmit it secretly through the Breen, or route it through some supposedly-dead agent of the Obsidean Order. Maybe he could bounce a relay that would be intercepted by those meddlers on Aegis. The fate of his former enemy’s fleet might lie in the timeliness of his response. Klewin wondered if there were reasons this message had come without authentication. Perhaps it was the will of the Founders that their message would arrive, but too late to save the Federation space station. All it would take was a delay in the precious warning. What they didn’t know, Klewin considered, could hurt them very badly indeed.