Durandal_1707 wrote:Not so. Even if she doesn't trust them one bit, if making a deal means Odo can over in a runabout to cure your people, it's worth it. What comes next is a bridge to be crossed later, but whatever hypothetical thing the AQ might do to your homeworld later is inconsequential compared to the certain death that it faces now.
Exactly. Survive now, then they can have the luxury of toying with trusting the AQ once they have more time and distance.
It is well within the Founders thinking that they could give them a chance now that their survive isn't an issue, but expect that to ultimately fail and result in another war. The best thing for the AQ is that the Founders just realize that the AQ isn't worth the trouble and that they should do their best not to provoke the more aggressive species while working with friendlier states like the Federation to keep them in check.
That's why I think something they NEED to do in any post-Dominion War series would be to have them finally touched borders with the Borg and find themselves outclassed. Suddenly they will need allies, have a common enemy shared by the AQ and give the AQ chances to prove their trustfulness, or at least that their interests intersect more with the AQ than they diverge, by seeing them fight alongside the Dominion.
The effect of that is spotty in real life national relationships, national interests and values being much the same are larger deciders of that (and hence why it was inevitable that the US and UK would be so close once they got over the bad blood from Independence), but within countries it was the major factor in destroy racism in places like the US when all the Archie Bunkers had their prejudices tested in war and realized they had no real issue with other Americans.
If she believes the Federation isn't out for conquest or annihilation and wouldn't allow the other powers to retaliated then there is no worry.
You assume the Federation would be capable of doing that, much less willing. Sticking their neck too far out for the Dominion could result in their alienation in the AQ. At best they'd cripple their influence and hegemony in the AQ placing their other relationship beneath that of trying to prove their trust to a paranoid, ruthless power that had already tried to invade and decimate the AQ, at worst they'd find themselves playing the role of Cardassia and suffer the brunt of a war between the Dominion/Federation and the rest of the AQ.
The Federation may be trustworthy enough for the Dominion to do that, but is the Dominion trustworthy in turn? I'd say the legacy of the Dominion War is absolutely not, right down to the reasons why Weyoun wanted Earth wiped and never mentioned any other AQ homeworlds. That began the moment the Dominion became aware of the AQ given that they consider any aliens not under their boot an existential threat that must be conquered or exterminated.
You also have to consider that inclination to psy-ops and screwing with the minds of their enemies that is a consistent MO of their. Their paranoia rightfully breeds paranoia in others. It makes you wonder exactly who started the "Solid vs Changling" dichotomy in the first place, I'd say it was them doing things that would rightfully freak Solids out if they suddenly say it without context and was touched upon by Quark the evolutionary causes of fear (which ironically justified themselves against in fearing the Founders and their original motives).
Now they've been checked in war, they might try coming to terms with that and learning to live and trust others, but they're starting from square one and will have to spend a LOOOOONG time proving they've changed.
