At Any Cost- Ch.2- The Tok'ra
"Do you think that we should trust him?" Chakotay asked. He and the rest of the senior staff, with the exception of Tuvok, were sitting around the briefing room table. They let Neelix join in on this particular briefing along with Kes, with her medical tricorder. "I mean, he did leave us for dead. Then, he comes back after joining Hathor with her attempt to kill us. Now he wants us to trust us? For all we know, Tom could be crazy; he could be making up this whole story of the Tok'ra and all!" Chakotay stood up and Janeway walked over to him and put her hand on his shoulder.
"Calm down, Chakotay." Janeway looked at him then looked around the room. "That goes for everyone, calm down; I know most of you don't trust Mister Paris at the moment, but don't do something you'll regret. We need to hear him out."
"What if Chakotay is right? What if Tom's just making this whole thing up?" Harry said.
"He's probably making it up. We can prove he's making it up." B'Elanna answered.
"We can't prove he's lying." Janeway replied sitting down. "I want everyone to hear him out. Even though the possibility of him lying is very possible, he also might be telling the truth."
"But Captain..." Neelix was about to say more, then I walked in.
Everyone stared at me like I was a different person. I guess I was, in a sense. They finally learned I was a Tok'ra and now I'm probably going to die for that. Harry just shook his head. The poor guy thought he could trust me and now he thinks I'm a spy.
"Hello, Captain." I said.
"Mister Paris, please, take a seat." Janeway said motioning to a chair at the opposite side of her, away from the others.
"Actually, I prefer to stand." I smiled, stupid mistake, if the Captain says take a seat, take it, and don't question her.
"Mister Paris, you say that you're a member of a species called the Tok'ra. And the Tok'ra is against the Goa'uld, correct?" Janeway asked, folding her hands.
"Correct, Captain." I answered.
"Explain the Tok'ra to us." She was challenging me, wasn't she? Trying to see if I had a story and if I did then she was wondering if I could keep it straight.
"Sure, Captain." I said. "If Kes examines me with the tricorder, she won't find any symbiote, or any trace of the serum. Go ahead Kes, try." I said, letting her pass the devise over me.
"He's right, there's no symbiote, or any trace of the serum that Lieutenant Tuvok gave him." She said, sitting back down.
"That's because the Tok'ra, unlike the Goa'uld, don't want to be found out." I started; this was going to take awhile. "We have found ways to mask the serum and the symbiote. It's imbedded in the symbiote and it's like a cloaking devise. The serum is made undetectable because the host might have to go through a physical or something. Also, we do have previous hosts. They aren't specifically chosen like the Trills do, we just get whoever's nearest them that's either a human, Trill, or Bajoran. Those are the only species that won't reject the symbiote."
"What about Vulcan's? They are very much like humans." Tuvok asked. He had entered with me.
"Good question." I said, about to answer. "The Vulcans can be used as hosts, but, no offence, the Tok'ra would rather die than let a Vulcan be a host." Janeway looked taken back. "Once, a Vulcan was a host to a Tok'ra, and it didn't turn out that well. His name was Secan."
"Secan, was a very illogical man." Tuvok said. "He said that there was a species that existed, but they were in secret. He was a very unwise man. Do you intend to tell us that he was the host of a Tok'ra?"
"Yes, Mister Tuvok, he was a host. Now you see why we don't like having hosts that were Vulcan." I said, smiling my cocky smile. "My symbiotes name is Culnac. And my previous hosts date back to the late twentieth century. There's Jack O'Neill, a human that died in the early twenty-first century, and Enin Tameth, a Bajoran that died by chance at the hands of Gul Dukat."
"Is that what you meant by you having a vendetta against the Cardassians? Was it was Enin Tameth that was captured?" Chakotay asked, getting a little interested in this conversation.
"Yes, he was captured by Dukat and he escaped, only to be shot down and found by a Starfleet shuttle. I was on that shuttle and I was only fifteen when I became a host." I was looking up when I told them that, then, when I looked back down, they were all staring at me sympathetically. "Anyway, the Tok'ra had advanced to the point where they could keep the soul of the past lives in the symbiant. They could live in their own sort of Holodeck in the symbiant. They would know what was happening around them and would offer suggestions. Like right now, Tameth is saying, 'Shut up, what's wrong with you? Stop saying what I'm say!' The host could also use the past's hosts abilities, if needed.
Also, another advancement was that one of the previous hosts could take over when the current host has some physical or emotional problem. The current host would completely change appearance, voice, and mental capability. The host would look exactly like the previous host that took over in his or her prime. The host will recuperate in one of the mini Holodecks in the symbiant. When the host feels that he or she is perfectly fine, they can take over their body again.
Like Jack could take control of my body and could turn into him when I'm in some sort of depression, or I can relinquish control to Jack." I was about to continue, but B'Elanna interrupted.
"Prove it; prove it to us that you can change people." B'Elanna said.
"Lieutenant Torres," Janeway said crisply.
"That's alright, Captain." I interrupted. "I can understand why she wants me to prove it. Fine, I will, who would you like to meet?" I asked.
"I think that we would like to meet both Jack O'Neill and Enin Tameth." Captain Janeway said.
"Do you think that we should trust him?" Chakotay asked. He and the rest of the senior staff, with the exception of Tuvok, were sitting around the briefing room table. They let Neelix join in on this particular briefing along with Kes, with her medical tricorder. "I mean, he did leave us for dead. Then, he comes back after joining Hathor with her attempt to kill us. Now he wants us to trust us? For all we know, Tom could be crazy; he could be making up this whole story of the Tok'ra and all!" Chakotay stood up and Janeway walked over to him and put her hand on his shoulder.
"Calm down, Chakotay." Janeway looked at him then looked around the room. "That goes for everyone, calm down; I know most of you don't trust Mister Paris at the moment, but don't do something you'll regret. We need to hear him out."
"What if Chakotay is right? What if Tom's just making this whole thing up?" Harry said.
"He's probably making it up. We can prove he's making it up." B'Elanna answered.
"We can't prove he's lying." Janeway replied sitting down. "I want everyone to hear him out. Even though the possibility of him lying is very possible, he also might be telling the truth."
"But Captain..." Neelix was about to say more, then I walked in.
Everyone stared at me like I was a different person. I guess I was, in a sense. They finally learned I was a Tok'ra and now I'm probably going to die for that. Harry just shook his head. The poor guy thought he could trust me and now he thinks I'm a spy.
"Hello, Captain." I said.
"Mister Paris, please, take a seat." Janeway said motioning to a chair at the opposite side of her, away from the others.
"Actually, I prefer to stand." I smiled, stupid mistake, if the Captain says take a seat, take it, and don't question her.
"Mister Paris, you say that you're a member of a species called the Tok'ra. And the Tok'ra is against the Goa'uld, correct?" Janeway asked, folding her hands.
"Correct, Captain." I answered.
"Explain the Tok'ra to us." She was challenging me, wasn't she? Trying to see if I had a story and if I did then she was wondering if I could keep it straight.
"Sure, Captain." I said. "If Kes examines me with the tricorder, she won't find any symbiote, or any trace of the serum. Go ahead Kes, try." I said, letting her pass the devise over me.
"He's right, there's no symbiote, or any trace of the serum that Lieutenant Tuvok gave him." She said, sitting back down.
"That's because the Tok'ra, unlike the Goa'uld, don't want to be found out." I started; this was going to take awhile. "We have found ways to mask the serum and the symbiote. It's imbedded in the symbiote and it's like a cloaking devise. The serum is made undetectable because the host might have to go through a physical or something. Also, we do have previous hosts. They aren't specifically chosen like the Trills do, we just get whoever's nearest them that's either a human, Trill, or Bajoran. Those are the only species that won't reject the symbiote."
"What about Vulcan's? They are very much like humans." Tuvok asked. He had entered with me.
"Good question." I said, about to answer. "The Vulcans can be used as hosts, but, no offence, the Tok'ra would rather die than let a Vulcan be a host." Janeway looked taken back. "Once, a Vulcan was a host to a Tok'ra, and it didn't turn out that well. His name was Secan."
"Secan, was a very illogical man." Tuvok said. "He said that there was a species that existed, but they were in secret. He was a very unwise man. Do you intend to tell us that he was the host of a Tok'ra?"
"Yes, Mister Tuvok, he was a host. Now you see why we don't like having hosts that were Vulcan." I said, smiling my cocky smile. "My symbiotes name is Culnac. And my previous hosts date back to the late twentieth century. There's Jack O'Neill, a human that died in the early twenty-first century, and Enin Tameth, a Bajoran that died by chance at the hands of Gul Dukat."
"Is that what you meant by you having a vendetta against the Cardassians? Was it was Enin Tameth that was captured?" Chakotay asked, getting a little interested in this conversation.
"Yes, he was captured by Dukat and he escaped, only to be shot down and found by a Starfleet shuttle. I was on that shuttle and I was only fifteen when I became a host." I was looking up when I told them that, then, when I looked back down, they were all staring at me sympathetically. "Anyway, the Tok'ra had advanced to the point where they could keep the soul of the past lives in the symbiant. They could live in their own sort of Holodeck in the symbiant. They would know what was happening around them and would offer suggestions. Like right now, Tameth is saying, 'Shut up, what's wrong with you? Stop saying what I'm say!' The host could also use the past's hosts abilities, if needed.
Also, another advancement was that one of the previous hosts could take over when the current host has some physical or emotional problem. The current host would completely change appearance, voice, and mental capability. The host would look exactly like the previous host that took over in his or her prime. The host will recuperate in one of the mini Holodecks in the symbiant. When the host feels that he or she is perfectly fine, they can take over their body again.
Like Jack could take control of my body and could turn into him when I'm in some sort of depression, or I can relinquish control to Jack." I was about to continue, but B'Elanna interrupted.
"Prove it; prove it to us that you can change people." B'Elanna said.
"Lieutenant Torres," Janeway said crisply.
"That's alright, Captain." I interrupted. "I can understand why she wants me to prove it. Fine, I will, who would you like to meet?" I asked.
"I think that we would like to meet both Jack O'Neill and Enin Tameth." Captain Janeway said.