posted
I often wonder what happened to Tom, and it's a shame that DS9 never got round to delivering Kira's promise of 'getting him out' (from whatever Cardassian labour camp he was being held at).
Also, this may have come up before, but I haven't heard a concrete explanation, and I've never figured it out to any satisfatory conclusion: In the DS9 episode 'Defiant', precisely what was the reason Tom snapped at O'Brien? He said something along the lines of 'I've got nothing to say to you, O'Brien! I think you know why...'
He seemed genuinely upset with him for some reason. Because of his transporter accident did he have some kind of grudge against him for once being a transporter chief or something?? Sounds implausible, but I don't have anything else.
-------------------- "To the Enterprise and the Stargazer. Old girlfriends we'll never meet again." - Scotty
posted
Since O'Brien knew Will Riker the best, to be successful in his trickery, Tom had to keep O'Brien from getting too close ... personally, I think he made the whole thing up just to keep O'Brien confused, off guard, and AWAY.
And Tom Riker's likeliest fate was intensive interrogation by the Dominion followed by execution. (Unless they managed to get him to switch sides, and used him as a double agent. Or released a Founder in his place.)
Registered: Mar 1999
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posted
I'm kind of up in the air on the fate of W. Thomas Riker.
On one hand, he was in a Cardassian labor camp -- not a friendly place by anyone's standards. On the other hand, he was also given a life sentence where they were going to make him suffer longer instead.
And finally, the Dominion has often shown the inclination to hold on to their prisoners for some potential purpose rather than just kill them -- just look at Martok, Bashir, and Garak.
I'd say there are a few various possibilities:
Still alive in the camp, surviving interrogation and Cardassian hard labor.
Killed shortly after the Dominion annexed Cardassia. (There are several variations of this: the Cardassians might have killed Riker themselves in order to eliminate every Maquis inside their space as per Dukat's pledge, or because Riker's non-death sentence was only a concession to the Federation, and they decided they didn't have to pander to those spineless lackeys anymore; or Riker could have died during Dominion interrogation to get information about Federation strategic data -- not that he'd be likely to have that kind of knowledge since he was stuck on an abandoned planet by himself for eight years!)
Died in an "accident" at the labor camp some time before the Dominion arrived -- for the same reason above, that the Cardassians wanted him dead and didn't want to pander to the Federation.
-------------------- “Those people who think they know everything are a great annoyance to those of us who do.” — Isaac Asimov Star Trek Minutiae | Memory Alpha
Registered: Nov 2000
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posted
I don't think he was necessarily on Cardassia Prime - maybe like Li Nalis he was on another planet. Maybe he was executed as being a Maquis by the Dominion? I would think they would have kept him to use some-how against either the Real Riker or The Enterprise.
-------------------- "Bears. Beets. Battlestar Galactica." - Jim Halpert. (The Office)
posted
Remeber though - less than a year after his episode, the Cardassians swapped governments, became all nice-like, and began getting lots of help from the Federation. Now, the Feds probably still didn't like Tom all that much, and woldn't mind leaving him there as long as he got humane treatment... Thus he may have been there up to and through the Dominion War. However, if the Cardies had been nice and all they may have turned him over to the Federation, and he sat out the War in that picturesque penal colony in New Zealand.
posted
I think he must still be alive. The Cardassians made a deal - his life would be spared if Sisko handed over the sensor telemetry on the Obsidian Order's secret military build up. Also, I seem to recall the Seldonis Convention which protects prisoners of war. It is conjectural whether this applies to Tom and other Maquis prisoners or not.
Secondly, snapping at O'Brien wouldn't keep him off the track, it would totally confound him, enough perhaps for him to start asking questions, and even digging.
Thinking about it again, maybe it was because Tom wanted to quickly get rid of him, rather than engage in nostalgic small-talk, where perhaps Tom's homework on O'Brien's relationship with Will, wasn't up to scratch.
-------------------- "To the Enterprise and the Stargazer. Old girlfriends we'll never meet again." - Scotty
posted
While neither is canon, the Dominion Wars computer game has a mission to rescue Tom Riker. Admiral Ross even gives you the orders personally. The DS9 Millenium books brought Tom back as a double agent for the Federation, but that was in a horiffic future timeline where the Federation is beten and Kai Weyoun is about to use a second Bajoran Wormhole to destroy the universe.....
-------------------- Justice inclines her scales so that wisdom comes at the price of suffering. -Aeschylus, Agamemnon
Registered: Aug 2002
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posted
Chain of Command made it pretty clear that anyone being treated as a terrorist (as opposed to the agent of an enemy government acting under official orders) would not have the benefit of the Seldonis Convention. So, my guess is that Will was made quite uncomfortable for awhile.
His thing with O'Brien has long tormented me as well... but my guess is, he just wanted O'Brien gone long enough for him to steal the ship.Who cares if he started asking questions after that.
I think the fate of Tom was definitely one of the plot points they should have tied up before the series was over. Along with Kai Opaka. She had too much of a connection to Sisko to just be let go like that.
Registered: Oct 1999
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posted
What do you do after you destroy the universe? Laugh maniacally?
As for O'Brien, Tom just wanted to get rid of him. O'Brien was spooked and cofused and then took off, as was the idea. Anything after that would have been too late - Tom only needed to get aboard the ship for a few minutes.
posted
Yes, but I still wonder why need Kira in stealing the Defiant?
-------------------- "It speaks to some basic human needs: that there is a tomorrow, it's not all going to be over with a big splash and a bomb, that the human race is improving, that we have things to be proud of as humans." -Gene Roddenberry about Star Trek
Registered: May 1999
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posted
Weyun was possesed by a Pah Wraith during the whole "Destroy the Universe" thing. They're just nuts.
I think the whole incident with Tom stealing the Defiant had to hurt Will's reputation. Tom is exactly all the crappy things you hope people never see in you.
-------------------- Justice inclines her scales so that wisdom comes at the price of suffering. -Aeschylus, Agamemnon
Registered: Aug 2002
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