Star Trek: Dateline Dominion-Database News Report

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Roving Reporter on Karemma

Stardate 53141.5

Stardate 53124.4

Roving Reporter on Risa

Stardate 53014.2

Contact the staff of Dateline Dominion:
Editor-in-chief Rallanah

BioTech Exclusive: Creating a New Weyoun

Subsurface, Cardassia Prime-Since the general announcement was made here on Cardassia Prime detailing the Federation's culpability in the razing of this planet, activity at the Dominion's sole remaining top secret base has flourished. Staffed primarily by loyal Cardassian and Jem'hadar soldiers, this installation has been little more than a holding facility for the Dominion's vast stores of highly sensitive biotechnology. However, with public opinion now fluctuating back towards the Dominion and away from the Federation worlds, the Dominion troops here foresee the possibility of rejoining their comrades and are eager to bring this installation back to full functionality.
.......When the Dominion withdrew from Cardassia Prime following the defection of the Cardassian military, all top Vorta and Founder personnel were withdrawn to safe territory. Without these supervisors the Jem'hadar are unable to make the command decisions necessary to the top level functionality of the facility. Thus the Jem'hadar First, Par'kalan, several days ago announced his decision to attempt to clone Vorta commander Weyoun. Presumed assassinated by the Federation after his capture along with the entire Dominion staff at the command center in the capital city of Cardassia Prime, Weyoun was unable to be reincarnated in a new clone due to a lack of access to the critical biological measurements and materials necessary to the cloning process. While the Jem'hadar still closely guard the biotechnological secrets detailing the cloning process, Dateline Dominion has been exclusively granted limited access to the steps involved in creating a Vorta clone in order that our readers may understand the sophistication of this sensitive process and the unique challenges involved in creating a new Weyoun clone.
.......Traditional cloning procedures which have been used for centuries by even such primitive races as the Terrans, use a single parent cell nucleus implanted in an egg cell followed by forced division to create a clone. This traditional technique was long ago eschewed by Dominion scientists because, while it produces a new individual genetically identical to the parent, the clone is forced to mature at the standard rate for its species and is imparted no knowledge of the previous clone's memories and experiences. The problem of memory retention was solved over six centuries ago when Dominion scientists discovered that the brain tissue of the clone could be forced to reassume the convolutions present in the previous clone's brain when subjected to certain top secret chemical and physical stresses. This process of memory recreation was used for years on mature clones allowed to grow to adulthood at the normal rate before Dominion scientists made their most crucial breakthrough, the discovery of the critical Rapid Growth and Alstitial Birth (RGAB) system. This revolutionary system has not only accelerated our ability to produce Vorta clones but has allowed us to create the indomitable Jem'hadar.
.......The RGAB process, known affectionately to those scientists who work most closely with it as "the box" because it is housed within a neutral buoyancy cloning tank, is in fact a series of sophisticated retroviruses which attack the genome of the clone, prematurely activating segments of DNA responsible for growth and maturity. By triggering these genes in a closely timed sequence while providing the clone with a steady flow of nutrient rich protein medium, the body is able to reach maturity in a matter of weeks rather than scores of years. Some, primarily disreputable, scientists have suggested that the RGAB viruses eventually produce premature senescence in clones. However, even if true, this price seems small enough to pay in exchange for virtual immortality.
.......In the case of Weyoun, however, traditional approaches to both memory recreation and RGAB are thwarted. The balance of stresses necessary to push the brain tissue into its old configuration is often determined by examining the brain tissue of the deceased clone. However, when this is not possible, the determination can sometimes be made by examining a recent transporter trace. While a transporter trace for Weyoun is available, the Jem'hadar performing this procedure have never before acted in this capacity and so have no previous experience in deriving the proper chemical balance from the information contained in a transporter trace. Compounding this dilemma, viruses used in RGAB must be uniquely sequenced for each clone. This procedure is performed at an advanced genetics laboratory at an undisclosed location deep within the Gamma Quadrant. The store of virus used to accelerate the growth of the Weyoun clone was exhausted during his last resurrection. The Jem'hadar have valiantly attempted to recreate these delicate genetic sequences using their theoretical knowledge of RGAB and data on file providing the sequence of Weyoun's genome.
.......Taken together, these hurdles in the path of successfully creating a new Weyoun clone are formidable. However, Jem'hadar here on Cardassia Prime are cautiously optimistic and believe they are adequate to the task. The cloning process has already been initiated and even now a new Weyoun grows inside an RGAB tank. Whether this Weyoun will be competent to retake the reigns of Dominion command here in the Alpha Quadrant, only time will tell.

From Cardassia Prime, Eruth.