Scene: On Stardate 43997, Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the Federation Starship Enterprise was kidnapped for six days by an invading force known as the Borg. Surgically altered, he was forced to lead an assault on Starfleet at Wolf 359.
Locutus: Resistance is futile. You will disarm your weapons and escort us to sector zero zero one. If you attempt to intervene, we will destroy you.
Captain: Red alert. Load all torpedo bays. Ready phasers. Move us to position alpha, Ensign.
Ops Officer: They've locked on.
Sisko: Reroute auxiliary power.
Ops Officer: Our shields are being drained. Sixty four percent. Forty two.
Captain: Recalibrate shield nutation.
Tactical: Modulation is having no effect.
Ops Officer: Shields have failed.
Sisko: Full reverse.
Captain: Maintain all Argh!
Sisko: Damage report. Damage report!
Computer: Warning. Damage to warp core. Containment failure in five minutes.
Tactical: Direct hit decks one through four.
Sisko: Let's get the civilians to the escape pods, Lieutenant.
Tactical: Aye, sir.
Sisko: Leave everything. Get to your assigned evacuation area now.
Computer: Warning. Damage to warp core. Containment failure in four minutes.
Sisko: Doran.
Tactical: I'll take care of her. You go on.
Sisko: Have you seen Jennifer?
Sisko: Jennifer? Jake!
Computer: Warning. Damage to warp core. Containment failure in three minutes.
Sisko: I'm going to get your mom. You're going to be okay.
Sisko: Jennifer. Okay, Jake, we'll get your mom out and we'll get out of here.
Tactical: Commander!
Sisko: Help me. Jennifer, hold on.
Tactical: Sir.
Sisko: Just help me to get her free.
Tactical: She's gone. There's nothing we can do. We have to leave.
Computer: Warning. Damage to warp core. Containment failure in two minutes.
Tactical: Ensign, take the boy.
Ensign: Aye, sir.
Tactical: We've got to go now, sir.
Sisko: Damn it, we just can't leave her here.
Sisko: Jake. Jake, you're okay.
Crewman: Stand by to launch.
Crewwoman: Ready. Stardate 46379.1. Three years later.
Sisko: Jake, there you are. How are they biting?
Jake: Small fries. Threw them back. Want to go for a swim?
Sisko: Don't have time. We have to get ready. It won't be so bad. I've heard that Bajor is a beautiful world.
Jake: So why can't we live on the planet instead of some old space station?
Sisko: The station is in orbit of Bajor. It'll be just like shore duty.
Jake: Will there be kids there?
Sisko: Absolutely. Lots of kids.
Captain: Bridge to Sisko.
Sisko: Yes, Captain.
Captain: We're approaching Deep Space Nine, Commander. We'll be docking in seven minutes.
Sisko: Acknowledged. Come on. What do you say? We'll take the pond with us. Computer, end program.
Jake: Is that it? Commence station log, Deep Space Nine, Commander Benjamin Sisko, Stardate 46388.2. At the request of the Bajoran provisional government, Starfleet has agreed to establish a Federation presence in this system following the withdrawal of Cardassian occupational forces. The first contingent of officers, including my Chief of Operations, Miles O'Brien, arrived two days ago on the Enterprise.
O'Brien: I'm told the Cardassians decided to have some fun the day they left. Four Bajorans were killed trying to protect their shops.
Sisko: Why hasn't anybody cleaned this up?
O'Brien: We've got all available personnel assigned to repairing primary systems, sir. The Cardassians took every component of value. We're virtually defenseless. I discussed this with Major Kira, the attaché assigned here by the Bajoran government and we decided
Sisko: Understood. What about the civilians who operated these shops?
O'Brien: A lot of them lost everything they had. A few are trying to rebuild, but most are packing up to leave.
Monk: Welcome, Commander. Please enter. The prophets await you.
Sisko: Another time, perhaps.
Monk: Another time.
O'Brien: When my wife Keiko saw our quarters, she started talking about visiting her mother in Kumamoto. Sir, I wouldn't allow the boy to go roaming. We're still having some security problems.
Jake: Dad, there is nothing to sleep on in there except a cushion on the floor.
O'Brien: We can get you a real bunk off the Enterprise. I almost forgot. Captain Picard wants to see you as soon as possible.
Sisko: He does. Any word on our science and medical officers yet?
O'Brien: They're expected tomorrow.
Sisko: Jake, I want you to stay here until I come back.
Jake: Is this the food replicator?
O'Brien: I'm afraid they're all offline. There's plenty of emergency rations. I could send some down.
Jake: Dad?
Sisko: We're going have to rough it til we get things up and running, Jake, okay?
Jake: Okay.
Sisko: Okay.
O'Brien: I'd like to ask the designer what he was thinking about when they built this place. I still haven't been able to find an ODN access. that's the Prefect's office up there.
Sisko: So all others have to look up with respect. Cardassian architecture.
O'Brien: Yes, sir. Major Kira's been using it.
Sisko: Is it my imagination or is it unusually warm?
O'Brien: The environmental controls in Ops are stuck at thirty-two C. We're working on it.
Sisko: I guess it's time to meet Major Kira.
O'Brien: Sir, have you ever served with any Bajoran women?
Sisko: No. Why?
O'Brien: I was just wondering, sir.
Kira: They've become meaningless.
Bureaucrat: I just don't agree, Kira.
Kira: You are throwing it all away! All of you!
Bureaucrat: You're being a fool!
Kira: Well then, don't ask my opinion next time!
Kira: Yes?
Sisko: I'm Benjamin Sisko.
Kira: I suppose you want the office.
Sisko: Well, I thought I'd say hello first and then take the office, but we could do it in any order you'd like.
Kira: Hello.
Sisko: Is something bothering you, Major?
Kira: You don't want to ask me that, Commander.
Sisko: Why not?
Kira: Because I have the bad habit of telling the truth even when people don't want to hear it.
Sisko: Perhaps I want to hear it.
Kira: I don't believe the Federation has any business being here.
Sisko: The provisional government disagrees with you.
Kira: The provisional government and I don't agree on a lot of things which is probably why they've sent me to this god-forsaken place. I have been fighting for Bajoran independence since I was old enough to pick up a phaser. We finally drive the Cardassians out and what do our new leaders do? They call up the Federation and invite them right in.
Sisko: The Federation is only here to help
Kira: Help us. Yes, I know. The Cardassians said the same thing sixty years ago.
Sisko: Major, when I was ordered here, I requested a Bajoran national as my first officer. It made sense. It still does, at least to me. Now, you and I are going to have to
Odo: Yes, Major?
Kira: Odo, are you reading something at A-fourteen?
Odo: My security array has been down for two hours. I'll meet you there.
Kira: We've been having a lot of break-ins lately. No need for you to come along, Commander.
Nog: Hurry up! Now.
Nog: Now!
Odo: All right, just stand where you are.
Kira: Hold it!
Sisko: That's enough!
Odo: Who the hell are you?
Kira: Odo, this is our new Starfleet Commander.
Odo: I don't allow weapons on the Promenade. That includes phasers.
Quark: Nog? What's going on?
Odo: The boy's in a lot of trouble.
Quark: Commander, my name is Quark. I used to run the local gambling establishment. This is my brother's boy. Surely you can see that he only has a peripheral involvement in all this. We're scheduled to depart tomorrow. If we could be permitted to take him, I promise you he will be severely
Sisko: That won't be possible. Take him to the brig.
Kira: Quark probably sent the two of them here to steal the ore samples in the first place.
Sisko: Major, there's a Ferengi legal tradition. It's called plea bargaining. I might let the boy go, but I want something in exchange from Mister Quark. Something very important.
O'Brien: O'Brien to Commander Sisko.
Sisko: Go ahead.
O'Brien: Sir, the Enterprise hailed us again. Captain Picard is waiting to see you.
Sisko: Acknowledged. This won't take long.
Picard: Come.
Picard: Commander. Yes, please, come in. Welcome to Bajor.
Sisko: It's been a long time, Captain.
Picard: Have we met before?
Sisko: Yes, sir. We met in battle. I was on the Saratoga at Wolf 359.
Picard: I assume that you have been briefed on the events leading to the Cardassian withdrawal?
Sisko: Yes, sir. I understand they've spent the last half century robbing the planet of every valuable resource before abandoning it.
Picard: They've left the Bajorans without a means of being self-sustaining. The relief efforts we've been coordinating are barely adequate. I've come to know the Bajorans. I'm a strong proponents for their entry into the Federation.
Sisko: Is it going to happen?
Picard: Not easily. The ruling parties are at each others throats. Factions that were united against the Cardassians have resumed old conflicts.
Sisko: Sounds like they're not ready.
Picard: Your job is to do everything short of violating the Prime Directive to make sure that they are. I have been made aware by Starfleet of your objections to this assignment. I would have thought that after three years spent at the Utopia Planitia yards, that you would be ready for a change.
Sisko: I have a son that I'm raising alone, Captain. This is not the ideal environment.
Picard: Unfortunately as Starfleet officers, we do not always have the luxury to serve in an ideal environment.
Sisko: I realize that, sir, and I'm investigating the possibility of returning to Earth for civilian service.
Picard: Perhaps Starfleet Command should be considering a replacement for you.
Sisko: That's probably a good idea.
Picard: I'll look into it. In the meantime however
Sisko: In the meantime, I will do the job I've been ordered to do to the best of my ability, sir.
Picard: Dismissed.
Sisko: It's really quite simple, Quark. You're not going to leave.
Quark: Not going to leave? But we're packed and ready to go.
Sisko: Unpack.
Quark: I don't understand, Commander. Why would you want me to stay?
Odo: I'm curious myself. The man is a gambler and a thief.
Quark: I'm not a thief.
Odo: You are a thief.
Quark: If I am, you haven't been able to prove it for four years.
Sisko: Please. My officers, the Bajoran engineers, all their families depend on the shops and services of this Promenade. If people like you abandon it, this is going to become a ghost town. We need someone to step forward and say, I'm staying, I'm rebuilding. We need a community leader and it's going to be you, Quark.
Quark: Community leader?
Odo: Seems reasonable. You have all the character references of a politician.
Quark: How could I possibly operate my establishment under Starfleet rules of conduct?
Sisko: This is still a Bajoran station. We're just here to administrate. You run honest games, you won't have any problems from me.
Quark: Commander, I've made a career out of knowing when to leave, and this Bajoran provisional government is far too provisional for my taste. And when governments fall, people like me are lined up and shot.
Sisko: There is that risk but then, you are a gambler, Quark.
Odo: And a thief.
Sisko: You know, Quark, that poor kid is about to spend the best years of his life in a Bajoran prison. I'm a father myself. I know what your brother must be going through. The boy should be with his family, not in some cold jail cell. Think about it. It's up to you.
Odo: You know, at first, I didn't think I was going to like him.
Sisko: Major?
Kira: Everyone else is busy repairing the primary systems. I suppose Starfleet officers aren't used to getting their hands dirty.
Kira: In the refugee camps, we learned to do whatever needed to be done. Didn't matter who you were.
Sisko: I was just talking with our good neighbor, Quark. Te's laying odds that the government's going to fall.
Kira: Quark knows a good bet when he hears one. This government will be gone in a week and so will you.
Sisko: What happens to Bajor then?
Kira: Civil war.
Sisko: You think it's inevitable?
Kira: The only one who can prevent it is Opaka.
Sisko: Opaka?
Kira: Our spiritual leader. She's known as the Kai. Our religion is the only thing that holds my people together. If she would call for unity, they'd listen. Leaders of all the factions have tried to get to her, but she lives in seclusion, rarely sees anyone.
Monk: Commander. It is time.
Opaka: I apologize for the condition in which we greet you.
Sisko: The Cardassians?
Opaka: Your arrival has been greatly anticipated.
Opaka: Have you ever explored your pagh, Commander?
Sisko: Pagh?
Opaka: A Bajoran draws courage from his spiritual life. Our life-force, our pagh, is replenished by the Prophets.
Opaka: Breathe.
Sisko: Kai Opaka, if we could discuss
Opaka: Breathe! Ironic. One who does not wish to be among us is to be the Emissary. Please, come with me.
Opaka: You are correct that Bajor is in grave jeopardy, but it is the threat to our spiritual life that far outweighs any other.
Sisko: Perhaps, but I'm powerless until
Opaka: Commander. I cannot give you what you deny yourself.
Sisko: I'm sorry?
Opaka: Look for solutions from within, Commander. Come with me.
Sisko: What is it?
Opaka: The Tear of the Prophet.
Sisko: What the hell? Opaka?
Jennifer: Hey!
Sisko: I'm sorry. it's just that this. Jen?
Jennifer: Yes?
Sisko: Jennifer?
Jennifer: I'm sorry did we meet last night at George's party?
Sisko: George? Jennifer. Wait a minute. This is impossible.
Jennifer: Are you okay?
Sisko: I know this place. This is Gilgo beach, where we met.
Jennifer: We met here before?
Sisko: I was carrying three lemonades. The sand was burning my feet, and I stopped here to. Ow! Do you realize how incredible this is? No, of course you don't. I. Jennifer, have a lemonade.
Jennifer: I'm afraid I don't accept drinks from strange men on the beach.
Jennifer: So tell me the truth. Have we really meet before?
Sisko: No.
Jennifer: Then how did you know my name?
Sisko: I, er, George told me, at the party.
Jennifer: Are you going to tell me your name?
Sisko: Oh. Ben Sisko. I just graduated from Starfleet Academy. I'm waiting for my first posting.
Jennifer: Ah, a junior officer.
Sisko: Yeah.
Jennifer: My mother warned me to watch out for junior officers.
Sisko: Your mother is going to adore me.
Jennifer: You're awfully sure of yourself.
Sisko: It's not every day you meet the girl you're going to marry.
Jennifer: Do you use this routine a lot with women?
Sisko: No. Never before and never again.
Jennifer: Sure.
Sisko: How about letting me cook dinner for you tonight. My father was a gourmet chef. I will make for you his famous aubergine stew.
Jennifer: I don't know.
Sisko: You're supposed to say, yes!
Jennifer: I'll probably be sorry.
Sisko: Jennifer!
Opaka: Nine Orbs, like this one, have appeared in the skies over the past ten thousand years. The Cardassians took the others. You must find the Celestial Temple before they do.
Sisko: The Celestial Temple?
Opaka: Tradition says the orbs were sent by the Prophets to teach us. What we have learned has shaped our theology. The Cardassians will do anything to decipher their powers. If they diskover the Celestial Temple, they could destroy it.
Sisko: What makes you think I can find your Temple?
Opaka: This will help you.
Sisko: Kai Opaka.
Opaka: I can't unite my people till I know the Prophets have been warned. You will find the Temple. Not for Bajor, not for the Federation, but for your own pagh. It is, quite simply, Commander, the journey you have always been destined to take.
Jake: What?
Sisko: I was just thinking how much you look like your mom.
Kira: Kira to Sisko.
Sisko: Go ahead.
Kira: Sorry to disturb you, Commander, but there's something on the Promenade you might want to see.
Sisko: On my way.
Pit Boss: Step up, step up. Fortune's fates are with you today, friends.
Girl: Dabo!
Alien: That's fine. I'll be right back.
Girl: Dabo!
Quark: What'll you have, Commander?
Sisko: How's the local synthale?
Quark: You won't like it. I love the Bajorans. Such a deeply spiritual culture, but they make a dreadful ale. Never trust ale from a god-fearing people, or a Starfleet Commander that has one of your relatives in jail.
Girl: Dabo!
Sisko: Captain's log. Stardate 46390.1. The Enterprise has been ordered to the Lapolis system. They're scheduled to depart at zero-five hundred hours after offloading three runabout class vessels. Meanwhile, our medical and science officers are arriving, and I'm looking forward to a reunion with a very old friend.
Kira: Commander, if you'd like me to give them a tour of the station.
Sisko: You and Doctor Bashir go ahead. I'm afraid I have to put Lieutenant Dax to work right away.
Bashir: Jadzia, maybe we could get together later for dinner? Or a drink?
Dax: I'd be delighted.
Sisko: He's a little young for you, isn't he?
Dax: He's twenty-seven, I'm twenty-eight.
Sisko: Three hundred twenty-eight, maybe. Did you tell him about that slug inside of you?
Dax: Yes, but Benjamin, he knows I'm a Trill. He finds it fascinating. He's never met a joined species before.
Sisko: I wonder if he'd've been as fascinated if you still looked the way you did the last time I saw you.
Dax: Perhaps not.
Sisko: This is going to take some getting used to.
Dax: Don't be ridiculous. I'm still the same old Dax. More or less.
Kira: I'm afraid we've had some security problems. Looks like looters got in here.
Bashir: This'll be perfect. Real frontier medicine.
Kira: Frontier medicine?
Bashir: Major, I had my choice of any job in the fleet.
Kira: Did you?
Bashir: I didn't want some cushy job or a research grant. I wanted this. The farthest reaches of the galaxy. One of the most remote outposts available. This is where the adventure is. This is where heroes are made. Right here, in the wilderness.
Kira: This wilderness is my home.
Bashir: Well, I, I, I didn't mean.
Kira: The Cardassians left behind a lot of injured people, Doctor. You can make yourself useful by bringing your Federation medicine to the natives. Oh, you'll find them a friendly, simple folk.
Sisko: We do have one advantage. The monks have been studying these things for ten thousand years. I've had our computers set up to interface with their historical data banks.
Dax: That should give us something.
Sisko: Soon as possible, Dax. The eight other orbs are probably in some Cardassian laboratory, being turned upside down and inside out.
Dax: Benjamin, I was happy when I heard you accepted this assignment. I've been worried about you.
Sisko: It's good to see you too, old man.
Dax: Computer, create a data base for all historical references to the Orbs, including all reports of any unexplained phenomena in Bajoran space.
Computer: Time parameters?
Dax: Ten millennia.
Computer: Initializing data base. Requested function will require two hours to complete.
Dax: Curzon.
Lieutenant: The Captain's in the Ready room, Chief. Should I tell him you're here?
O'Brien: That's okay. Thanks.
O'Brien: Transport me to the Ops pad, Maggie.
Maggie: Yes, sir.
Picard: Mister O'Brien? I understand that I just missed you on the Bridge.
O'Brien: Yes, sir. I didn't want to disturb you, sir.
Picard: Ensign.
Picard: This is your favorite transporter room, isn't it?
O'Brien: Number three. Yes, sir.
Picard: You know, yesterday, I called down here and I asked for you without thinking. It won't be quite the same.
O'Brien: It's just a transporter room, sir. Permission to disembark, Captain.
Picard: Permission granted.
O'Brien: Energize.
O'Brien: Message coming in from their commander, Gul Dukat.
Kira: Dukat. He used to be the Cardassian Prefect of Bajor.
O'Brien: He's requesting permission to come aboard to greet us. Surely a coincidence that the Enterprise just left.
Sisko: Mister O'Brien, tell Gul Dukat I look forward to meeting him.
Dukat: Good day, Commander.
Sisko: Gul Dukat.
Dukat: Excuse my presumption, but this was my office only two weeks ago. I'm not used to being on this side of the desk. I'll be honest with you, Commander. I miss this office. I was not happy to leave it.
Sisko: Drop by any time you're feeling homesick.
Dukat: You're very gracious. And allow me to assure you that we only want to be helpful in this difficult transition. You're far from the Federation fleet, alone in this remote outpost, with poor defense systems. Your Cardassian neighbors will be quick to respond to any problems you might have.
Sisko: We'll try to keep the dog off your lawn.
Dukat: So, tell me, what did you think of Kai Opaka? I know you went to the surface to see her. I understand you brought back an Orb. We thought we had all of them. Perhaps we could have an exchange of information, pool our resources?
Sisko: I don't know anything about an Orb.
Dukat: We will be in close proximity should you wish to reconsider my suggestion. In the meantime, I assume you have no objection to my men enjoying the hospitality of the Promenade. Commander.
Dax: What do you know about the Denorios Belt?
Sisko: Your basic charged-plasma field. Nobody gets anywhere near it unless they have to.
Dax: In the twenty-second century, a ship carrying Kai Taluno was disabled for several days in the Denorios Belt, where he claims he had a vision.
Sisko: Let me guess. He saw the Celestial Temple of the Prophets.
Dax: Not quite, but he did say that the heavens opened up and nearly swallowed his ship.
Sisko: Are we reduced to chasing metaphors to solve this?
Dax: That's not all. At least five of the orbs were found in the Denorios Belt. There were also been twenty three navigational reports over the years of unusually severe neutrino disturbances in the same area. I've correlated all these reports in one analysis grid. Our Celestial Temple?
Sisko: Worth a look, but we've got Cardassians on our back doorstep. We need to get by them undetected.
Kira: May we have your attention, please? This establishment is being closed.
Quark: What do you mean? You can't do this.
O'Brien: If you have a problem, sir, you'll have to take it up with Commander Sisko.
Quark: I intend to. This is outrageous. Friends, my apologies. A minor misunderstanding that will be rectified shortly. Give them something to put their winnings into.
Cardassian: Because we were winning too much, of course.
Cardassian 2: Leave it to Starfleet to ruin a fine day.
Sisko: Rio Grande to Ops. Initializing pre-launch systems.
Kira: Confirmed, Rio Grande.
O'Brien: Scanners are picking up fluctuations in the Cardassian's energy distribution net.
Kira: Their computers are crashing. Shields and sensors are down. Odo's done it. Ops to Rio Grande.
Kira: You're in business.
Sisko: Beginning launch sequence.
Kira: Odo's reached the transport site.
O'Brien: Trying to lock on. I've never done this with a Cardassian transporter. Damn it, what's the problem.
Kira: Nice work, Constable.
Dax: Approaching grid perimeter.
Sisko: Slowing to one quarter impulse.
Dax: Computer, give me visual bearing two three mark two one seven. Range thirty one hundred kilometers.
Dax: Sensors are picking up unusually high proton counts.
Sisko: Setting a new course to those coordinates.
Dax: All external wave intensities are increasing rapidly, but checking. Confirmed. There is no corresponding increase inside the cabin. How is that possible?
Sisko: Sensors are not functioning.
Dax: We've lost all contact with the space station.
O'Brien: Scanners are reading major subspace disruption at their last known coordinates.
Kira: What the hell is happening out there?
O'Brien: I don't know. They're just gone.
Sisko: Are your navigational readings going crazy?
Dax: I'll recalibrate when I have a moment.
Sisko: Take your time.
Sisko: Can you get a fix on our coordinates?
Dax: There is a star just under five light years away. No M-class planets Computer, identify closest star system.
Computer: Idran, a ternary system consisting of twin O-type companions.
Sisko: Idran? That can't be right.
Dax: Computer, basis of identification.
Computer: Idran is based on the analysis conducted in the twenty-second century by the Quadros-One probe of the Gamma Quadrant.
Sisko: The Gamma Quadrant? Seventy thousand light years from Bajor? I'd say we just found our way into a wormhole.
Dax: It's not like any wormhole I've ever seen. There were none of the usual resonance waves.
Sisko: Could this be how the Orbs found their way into the Bajoran system?
Dax: Not an unreasonable hypothesis.
Sisko: If it's true, that would mean that this has been here for ten thousand years. Dax, we might have just diskovered the first stable wormhole known to exist. Bring us about, Lieutenant.
Dax: I'm modifying the flight program to compensate for the spatial diskontinuities. We should have a smoother ride this time.
Sisko: Did you reduce impulse power?
Dax: No. Why?
Sisko: We're losing velocity.
Dax: Forward velocity down to eighty kph.
Computer: Warning. Impulse system overload. Auto shutdown in twelve seconds.
Sisko: Disengaging engines.
Dax: Velocity at twenty kph. I'm picking up atmosphere.
Sisko: Inside a wormhole?
Dax: Capable of supporting life. We've just landed.
Sisko: On what?
Dax: It's beautiful.
Sisko: You have a strange eye for beauty, Dax.
Dax: You don't think this is one of the most idyllic settings you've ever seen?
Sisko: We are standing on a rock face. Do you see the storm?
Dax: It's as clear as a summer's day.
Sisko: You see it, too?
Dax: Yes. Low level ionic pattern. It's probing us.
Sisko: Someone's idea of shaking hands, maybe. I am Commander Benjamin Sisko of the United Federation of Planets.
Sisko: Dax!
O'Brien: Another neutrino disruption.
Kira: Scanners are picking up an object near their last known coordinates. It isn't a ship.
O'Brien: Major, there's something inside it, some kind of lifeform.
Kira: Are the Cardassian sensors picking it up?
O'Brien: They should be back online by now. We have to assume they know everything we know.
Kira: Yellow alert. Secure Ops. Beam it aboard, Mister O'Brien, but put it in a level one security field.
O'Brien: Aye, sir. Locking on.
Sisko: Who are you? Jennifer and Sisko kissing. A newborn baby. Jake fishing. Doran on the Saratoga.
Sisko: Who are you?
Jennifer: It is corporeal. A physical entity.
Sisko: What? What did you say?
Picard: It is responding to visual and auditory stimuli. Linguistic communication.
Sisko: Yes, linguistic communication. Are you capable of communicating with me?
Opaka: What are you?
Sisko: My species is known as human. I come from a planet called Earth.
Jake: Earth?
Sisko: This is what my planet looks like. You and I are very different species. It will take time for us to understand one another.
Jake: What is this time? First Officer's log, stardate 46392.7. We're preparing to launch a rescue mission to find Commander Sisko, but first our navigational sensors must be recalibrated to work under the conditions reported by Lieutenant Dax.
Dax: It is no ordinary wormhole. My analysis suggests that it isn't even a natural phenomenon.
Bashir: Not natural? You mean it was constructed?
Dax: It's very possible whoever made the Orbs also created this wormhole.
O'Brien: The Cardassians are leaving their position on a course toward the Denorios Belt.
Kira: Mister O'Brien, what would it take to move this station to the mouth of the wormhole?
O'Brien: This isn't a starship, Major. We've got six working thrusters to power us and that's it. A hundred sixty million kilometer trip would take two months.
Kira: It has to be there tomorrow.
O'Brien: That's not possible, sir.
Kira: That wormhole might just reshape the future of this entire quadrant. The Bajorans have to stake a claim to it. And I have to admit that claim will be a lot stronger if there's a Federation presence to back it up.
Dax: Couldn't you modify the subspace field output of the deflector generators just enough to create a low-level field around the station?
O'Brien: So we could lower the inertial mass?
Dax: If you can make the station lighter, those six thrusters will be all the power we'd need.
O'Brien: This whole station could break apart like an egg if it doesn't work.
Dax: Even if it does work, we're still going to need help from Starfleet once we get there.
O'Brien: The Enterprise is still the nearest starship. They could reach us in two days.
Dax: We should advise Starfleet that we will require their assistance.
Kira: You have Ops, Mister O'Brien. Lieutenant, you're with me.
Dax: Aye, sir.
Kira: You too, Doc. Time to be a hero.
Bashir: Yes, sir.
Kira: Constable.
Odo: This is a security matter. I'm in charge of security.
Kira: Security here, on the station. I cannot justify taking you into this wormhole. We have no idea what we're dealing with in there. It could be hostile.
Odo: Major, I was found in the Denorios Belt. I don't know where I came from, no idea if there are any others like me. All my life, I've been forced to pass myself off as one of you, always wondering who I really am. Well, the answers to a lot of my questions may be somewhere on the other side of that wormhole. You coming?
Picard: The creature must be destroyed before it destroys us.
Locutus: It is malevolent.
Batsman: Aggressive. Adversarial.
Picard: It must be destroyed.
Sisko: I am not your enemy. I was sent here by the people you contacted.
Picard: Contacted?
Sisko: With your devices, your Orbs.
Picard: We seek contact with other lifeforms, not corporeal creatures who annihilate us.
Sisko: I have not come to annihilate anyone.
Locutus: Destroy it now.
Sisko: My species respects life above all else. Can you say the same? I do not understand the threat I bring to you, but I am not your enemy. Allow me to prove it.
Opaka: Prove it?
Sisko: It can be argued that a human is ultimately the sum of his experiences.
Jake: Experiences? What is this?
Sisko: Memories. Events from my past, like this one.
Jake: Past?
Sisko: Things that happened before now. You have absolutely no idea what I'm talking about.
Jake: What comes before now is no different than what is now, or what is to come. It is one's existence.
Sisko: Then, for you, there is no linear time.
Jennifer: Linear time. what is this?
Sisko: My species lives in one point in time. And once we move beyond that point, it becomes the past. The future, all that is still to come, does not exist yet for us.
Jennifer: Does not exist yet?
Sisko: That is the nature of linear existence. And if you examine it more closely, you will see that you do not need to fear me.
Computer: Partial field established. Instability at twelve percent.
O'Brien: Partial field? Is station's inertial mass low enough to break orbit?
Computer: Procedure is not recommended.
O'Brien: Damn it, I didn't ask for an opinion. Just tell me whether or not we can get enough thrust with only a partial field established.
Computer: Affirmative.
O'Brien: All right. Thank you. Initiate transit mode, three-axis stabilization.
Crewman: Aye, sir.
O'Brien: Engage thrusters.
Computer: Warning. Field integrity declining. Instability at twenty one percent.
O'Brien: We've got to close that gap in the field or we'll tear ourselves into a million pieces.
Computer: Warning. Subspace field collapse in sixty seconds.
O'Brien: Computer, transfer energy from the inertial dampers to reinforce the subspace field.
Computer: Procedure is not recommended.
O'Brien: Damn it, transfer the energy!
Computer: Unable to comply. Level one safety protocols have canceled request.
O'Brien: Canceled?
Computer: Warning. Subspace field collapse in thirty seconds.
O'Brien: I'm going to transfer it manually. On my mark, redirect the flow to the deflectors. Keep the power balanced.
Crewman: Aye, sir.
Computer: Field collapse in fifteen seconds.
O'Brien: Now.
Computer: Field energy now within flight tolerances.
Crewwoman: Good work, sir.
O'Brien: Computer, you and I have to have a little talk.
Dax: The Cardassian warship is in visual range.
Kira: On screen. They're headed right to it.
Bashir: They've got to listen to reason, haven't they? When we warn them what could happen if they go in there.
Odo: Doctor, most people in my experience wouldn't know reason if it walked up and shook their hand. You can count Gul Dukat among them.
Kira: This is the Federation ship Yangtze Kiang. Major Kira Nerys in command.
Dukat: Yes, Major?
Kira: Gul Dukat, we know you're headed for the wormhole.
Dukat: Wormhole? What wormhole is that?
Kira: I strongly suggest you do not proceed. We encountered a hostile lifeform inside.
Dukat: Perhaps they will be less hostile to Cardassians than to humans.
Odo: Dukat, these people are trying to save you from a lot of trouble.
Dukat: Really? And I suppose you'd also tell me these are not the lifeforms that have sent the Orbs, or that your Commander Sisko is not negotiating for their technology. I thank you for your concern, but I think we'll see for ourselves.
Odo: So much for reason.
Jennifer: Jennifer.
Sisko: Yes, that was her name.
Jennifer: She is part of your existence.
Sisko: She is part of my past. She's no longer alive.
Jennifer: But she is part of your existence.
Sisko: She was a most important part of my existence, but I lost her some time ago.
Jennifer: Lost? what is this?
Sisko: In a linear existence, we can't go back to the past to get something we left behind, so it's lost.
Jennifer: It is inconceivable that any species could exist in such a manner. You are deceiving us.
Sisko: No, this is the truth. This day, this park, it was almost fifteen years ago. Far in the past. It was a day that was very important to me, a day that shaped every day that followed. That is the essence of a linear existence. Each day affects the next.
Sisko 2: Listen to it.
Jennifer 2: To what?
Sisko 2: The sound of children playing. What could be more beautiful?
Jennifer 2: So you like children?
Sisko 2: That almost sounds like a domestic inquiry.
Jennifer 2: I've heard Starfleet officers don't want families because they complicate their lives.
Sisko 2: Starfleet officers don't often find mates who want to raise families on a starship.
Jennifer 2: That almost sounds like a domestic inquiry.
Sisko 2: I think it was.
Sisko: As corporeal entities, humans find physical touch to cause pleasure.
Jennifer: Pleasure? What is this?
Sisko: Good feelings, happiness
Tactical: But this is your existence.
Sisko: But it's difficult to be here, more difficult than any other memory.
Tactical: Why?
Sisko: Because, because this was the day that I lost Jennifer. I don't want to be here.
Jennifer: Then why do you exist here?
Sisko: I don't understand.
Jennifer: You exist here.
Sisko: What's wrong? What's happening?
Dax: We should be reaching the wormhole coordinates in two minutes.
Kira: Slowing to one-third imp
Sisko: Are you still there? What just happened?
Jennifer: More of your kind.
Sisko: Another ship in the wormhole?
Jennifer: Wormhole? What is this?
Sisko: It is how we describe the kind of passage that brought me here.
Picard: It is terminated.
Sisko: Terminated?
Picard Alien: Our existence is disrupted whenever one of you enters the passage.
Conn Officer: Your linear nature is inherently destructive.
Ops Officer: You have no regard for the consequences of your acts.
Sisko: That's not true. We're aware that every choice we make has a consequence.
Captain: But you claim you do not know what it will be.
Sisko: We don't.
Jake: Then how can you take responsibility for your actions?
Sisko: We use past experience to help guide us. For Jennifer and me, all the experiences in our lives prepared us for the day we met on the beach, helped us recognize that we had a future together. When we married, we accepted all the consequences of that act, whatever they might be, including the consequences of you.
Jake: Me?
Sisko: My son, Jake.
Jennifer: The child with Jennifer.
Sisko: Yes.
Jennifer: Linear procreation?
Sisko: Yes. Jake is the continuation of our family.
Jennifer: The sound of children playing.
Batsman: Aggressive. Adversarial.
Sisko: Competition. For fun. It's a game that Jake and I play on the holodeck. It's called baseball.
Jake: Baseball? What is this?
Sisko: I was afraid you'd ask that. I throw this ball to you and this other player stands between us with a bat, a stick, and he, and he tries to hit the ball in between these two white lines. No. The rules aren't important. What's important is, it's linear. Every time I throw this ball, a hundred different things can happen in a game. He might swing and miss, he might hit it. The point is, you never know. You try to anticipate, set a strategy for all the possibilities as best you can, but in the end it comes down to throwing one pitch after another and seeing what happens. With each new consequence, the game begins to take shape.
Batsman: And you have no idea what that shape is until it is completed.
Sisko: That's right. In fact, the game wouldn't be worth playing if we knew what was going to happen.
Jake: You value your ignorance of what is to come?
Sisko: That may be the most important thing to understand about humans. It is the unknown that defines our existence. We are constantly searching, not just for answers to our questions, but for new questions. We are explorers. We explore our lives, day by day, and we explore the galaxy, trying to expand the boundaries of our knowledge. And that is why I am here. Not to conquer you either with weapons or with ideas, but to co-exist and learn.
Tactical: If all you say is true, why do you exist here? First Officer's log, supplemental. We've rendezvoused with the space station at the former coordinates of the wormhole. Unfortunately, our scans have revealed no trace of either the wormhole or Dukat's ship. A few minutes ago, three Cardassian warships crossed the border, no doubt on their way to search for Dukat.
Kira: Mister O'Brien, can you establish a high energy thoron field before they get into sensor range. I don't want them to be able to scan our defense systems.
O'Brien: Aye, sir.
Dax: They're hailing us.
Jasad: I am Gul Jasad of the Cardassian Guard, Seventh Order. Where is our warship?
Kira: With any luck, they're in the Gamma Quadrant, on the other side of the wormhole.
Jasad: What wormhole? Our sensors show no indication of a wormhole in this sector.
Kira: That's because it just collapsed.
Jasad: What?
Dax: We believe it was artificially created. That may be why our sensors never picked up any of the usual quantum fluctuation patterns.
Jasad: You expect me to believe that someone created a wormhole, and now conveniently has disassembled it?
Kira: That's exactly what I expect you to believe.
Dax: They're flooding subspace with anti-lepton interference. It'll cut off our communications with Starfleet.
O'Brien: They're powering up their forward phasers.
Kira: Red alert. Shields up.
O'Brien: What shields?
Dax: They're hailing us again.
Kira: Open the channel.
Jasad: We do not accept your explanation. Somehow you have destroyed our warship.
Kira: Gul Jasad, I assure you.
Jasad: We demand the unconditional surrender of this space station or we will open fire.
Kira: I need at least a day to make the necessary preparations.
Jasad: You have one hour.
O'Brien: I can transfer all available power to establish partial shields around critical areas, but if they hit the docking ring we'll sustain heavy damage.
Kira: Constable, if you would coordinate moving all personnel to safer locations.
Kira: What was the last reported position of the Enterprise?
Dax: At least twenty hours away.
Kira: We've got to hold out till they get here.
Bashir: I can't believe the Cardassians would ever attack a Federation outpost.
O'Brien: Doctor, you ever studied your military history of the border wars?
Bashir: Yes.
O'Brien: You ever heard of the Setlik Three massacre?
Kira: I assume, Mister O'Brien, you would agree surrender is not a preferable option.
O'Brien: You know what they do to their prisoners, sir.
Sisko: What is the point of bringing me back again to this?
Jake: We do not bring you here.
Jennifer: You bring us here.
Tactical: You exist here.
Sisko: Then give me the power to lead you somewhere else. Anywhere else.
Opaka: We cannot give you what you deny yourself. Look for solutions from within, Commander.
Sisko: I was ready to die with her.
Tactical: Die? What is this?
Jennifer: The termination of their linear existence.
Tactical: We've got to go now, sir.
Sisko 2: Damn it, we just can't leave her here. Oh, no!
Sisko: I never left this ship.
Jennifer: You exist here.
Sisko: I exist here. I don't know if you can understand. I see her like this every time I close my eyes. In the darkness, in the blink of an eye, I see her like this.
Jennifer: None of your past experiences helped prepare you for this consequence.
Sisko: And I have never figured out how to live without her.
Jennifer: So you choose to exist here. It is not linear.
Sisko: No. It's not linear.
Dax: Their lead ship is hailing us Gul Jasad wants an answer.
Kira: Are you ready, Mister O'Brien?
O'Brien: Yes, sir. When they penetrate our thoron field, it should raise a few eyebrows over there.
Kira: All right, then, let's give them our answer. Fire six photon torpedoes across Jasad's bow.
O'Brien: We only have six photons, Major.
Kira: We're not going to win this battle with torpedoes, Chief.
O'Brien: Aye, sir.
O'Brien: An urgent hail from Jasad.
Bashir: Looks like we got his attention.
Kira: On screen.
Jasad: This is your answer?
Kira: You don't think Starfleet took command of this space station without the ability to defend it, do you?
Jasad: Defend it? Your space station could not defend itself against one Cardassian warship.
Kira: You're probably right, Jasad. And if you were dealing with a Starfleet officer, they'd probably admit we have a hopeless cause here. But I am just a Bajoran who's been fighting a hopeless cause against the Cardassians all her life. So if you want a war, I'll give you one.
O'Brien: Major. Remind me never to get into a game of Roladan Wild Draw with you.
Cardassian 3: They were using a Thoron field to block our sensors but we were able to penetrate it.
Jasad: What are their defenses?
Cardassian 3: According to our scans, an estimated five thousand photons, integrated phaser banks on all levels.
Jasad: When did they receive these armaments? And how did they installl them without our knowledge? Somehow they have created a massive illusion of duranium shadows.
Cardassian 3: What if it is not an illusion?
Jasad: It is!
Cardassian 3: Why risk the confrontation? The Fourth Order can be here in a day.
Jasad: So can Starfleet.
Dax: Their lead ship is sending out a subspace message asking for reinforcements.
Bashir: Yes!
Kira: Too soon for a victory celebration, Doctor. Mister O'Brien?
O'Brien: The ships are being deployed into a standard attack formation, sir.
Kira: Battle stations.
Odo: Quickly now, quickly now. Calmly. Calmly. Come along.
O'Brien: They may just be testing us. I could run a pulse compression wave through the phaser banks. Put out a blast that'll make them think twice.
Kira: Do it.
Kira: Damage report.
O'Brien: Direct hit, level fourteen. Empty storage bays. No casualties.
Dax: Shields down to twenty-seven percent.
Dax: A fuel conduit has ruptured on the Promenade.
Kira: Can you divert the main power flow?
O'Brien: Controls are locked.
Odo: Odo to Ops.
Kira: Go ahead.
Odo: I've got wounded people down here.
Odo: Have you seen that doctor of yours anywhere?
Bashir: I'm on my way.
O'Brien: I'm going to have to shut down the primary power flow or the whole Promenade will go up. Bloody Cardassians! I just got the damned thing fixed.
Bashir: Press there, hard.
Odo: Look, Doctor, maybe I should find you someone
Bashir: Hold it there.
O'Brien: That should do it for awhile.
Dax: Shields are at eighteen percent and falling.
O'Brien: I might still be able to give you one more phaser blast, Major.
Kira: No. Signal the lead Cardassian ship that we will proceed with
Dax: Major, I'm reading a huge neutrino disturbance fifteen kilometers off the forward docking ring. It's the wormhole.
Kira: On screen.
Kira: Hail the lead ship. What did I tell you, Jasad?
Kira: There's your wormhole!
Sisko: Rio Grande to DS Nine.
Kira: On screen. Go ahead, Commander.
Sisko: Sorry to be late. Our friend Gul Dukat had some problems on the other side of the wormhole. I see you've had a few of your own.
Kira: A few, Commander.
Sisko: Gul Dukat is signaling his ships to disarm. Clear me for docking, Mister O'Brien.
O'Brien: Aye, sir. Cleared for pad C.
Sisko: Casualties?
Bashir: Thirteen injured, Commander, and no fatalities.
Sisko: Jake!
Jake: Dad!
Sisko: Captain's log, Commander Benjamin Sisko, stardate 46393.1. The lifeforms who created the wormhole have agreed to allow safe passage for all ships traveling to the Gamma Quadrant. With the arrival of the Enterprise, the Cardassians have left the area.
Picard: I suspect that the sight of their warship being towed back by a Starfleet runabout took the heart out of their fight.
Sisko: We're not done with the Cardassians yet, not with the strategic importance of that wormhole.
Picard: Well, you've put Bajor on the map, Commander. This will shortly become a leading center of commerce and scientific exploration. And for Starfleet, one of our most important posts.
Sisko: Captain, regarding our conversation about someone to replace me.
Picard: Yes, I'm sorry I haven't had time yet to communicate that to Command.
Sisko: I would prefer you ignore it, sir.
Picard: I'm not sure that I can. Are you certain that's what you want, because we cannot afford to have an officer who's
Sisko: I'm certain, sir.
Picard: Good luck, Mister Sisko.
Bashir: So, where can someone practice with his phaser around here?
Quark: New rules?
Kira: You're can't cheat every customer who walks through the door anymore, Quark. You are a community leader now.
Quark: Very well, very well. Perhaps we could discuss these new rules over a drink.
Kira: If you don't take that hand off my hip, you'll never be able to raise a glass with it again.
Quark: Oh, I love a woman in uniform.
Dax: Benjamin, three Frunalian science vessels are requesting permission to dock.
O'Brien: Problem is, we've been retro-fitting the airlocks. Half of them were damaged during the move, and most of the others when the Cardassians blew out the fuel conduits.
Sisko: I guess they'll just have to transport aboard.


Dax: Do you need me, Julian?
Bashir: How did you know it was me?
Dax: There are different ways to recognize someone. The rhythm of their steps, for example.
Bashir: You are remarkable.
Dax: Julian, you and I have to have a talk about Trills and relationships.
Bashir: Fine. We'll do it over supper. Quark has found me this delightfully dry champagne estate bottled on Korris One.
Dax: Julian.
Bashir: What is this?
Dax: An Altonian brain teaser.
Bashir: A brain teaser?
Dax: A puzzle.
Bashir: A puzzle? I love puzzles. How does it work?
Dax: It responds to neural theta waves. The goal is to turn the sphere into a solid color.
Bashir: That's all?
Dax: That's all. I've been trying to master it on and off for, oh, a hundred and forty years. Would you care to try?
Bashir: Yes.
Dax: Just sit comfortably, and release your tension into my hands. Dax strokes his head)
Bashir: Your hands are cold.
Dax: It's a peculiarity of the Trill.
Bashir: Cold hands, warm heart.
Dax: Concentrate on the sphere. Clear your mind. This requires focus and clarity of thought.
Bashir: I understand completely. What is that exotic scent you're wearing?
Dax: Focus and clarity of thought.
Bashir: Yes, yes, I have it.
Dax: I'm going to release it to you now, okay?
Bashir: Okay.
Dax: Computer, transfer control to second player.
Dax: I think your mind is still a little busy, Julian.
Bashir: So, are you free for supper?
Sisko: Ready, Dax?
Dax: Sorry. Perhaps another time. Maybe you'd like to try again.
Sisko: Doctor.
Bashir: Computer. Reset.
Odo: Business is good, Quark. You're almost making an honest living.
Quark: A lot of new faces.
Odo: The wormhole does bring them our way, doesn't it?
Quark: Everybody wants a piece of the new frontier.
Odo: And I'm sure you've already tried to sell it to a few of them.
O'Brien: We made the decision together.
Keiko: Not true. That's not true. You decided and asked me to agree with it.
Quark: Grapevine says Chief O'Brien and the missus are having problems.
Odo: I'll never understand the humanoid need to couple.
Quark: You've never coupled?
Odo: Choose not to. Too many compromises. You want to watch the karo-net tournament, she wants to listen to music, so you compromise. You listen to music. You like Earth jazz, she prefers Klingon opera, so you compromise. You listen to Klingon opera. So here you were ready to have a nice night watching the karo-net match and you wind up spending an agonizing night listening to Klingon opera.
Keiko: That's exactly what I'm saying.
O'Brien: Keiko, sit down, please.
Odo: What could they be going on about like that anyway?
Quark: She doesn't like it here.
Odo: Who does?
Odo: Don't even think about it.
Quark: I can so think about it.
Odo: You might as well try to find a drink of water on the Yadozi desert. Besides I'd say our new Commander is interested in her.
Quark: Not at all. I know for a fact, when she was a he, you know, before she got this new body, they were old friends.
Odo: Things change.
Irudan: All right now, here we go.
Odo: How long has he been here?
Ibudan: All right, one more time.
Quark: He came in on a transport last night.
Waiter: Something to eat?
Dax: Just steamed azna.
Sisko: Well, some things are still the same.
Dax: If you'd listen to me, you would eat steamed azna too.
Sisko: Dax, did I ever tell you about the meals my father used to cook for us when we were children?
Dax: All the time.
Sisko: Every night in my house, my dad insisted that we have supper together as a family. He would try out his new recipes on us. He used to call us his test tasters.
Dax: Steamed azna will put years on your life.
Sisko: Dax, I don't want years on my life if I can only eat steamed azna. Sautéed, rolloped, fricasseed, fine. But not steamed. I've missed your steamed azna.
Dax: You must miss Curzon, too.
Sisko: He was, you were, are a mentor, another father to me.
Dax: This happens to Trills, Benjamin. Sometimes, our friendships with other species don't survive because of the change.
Sisko: It won't be that way with us. It's just a little uncomfortable right now.
Dax: I suggest you that allow yourself to be comfortable with your diskomfort. Time can do the rest.
O'Brien: Keiko.
Dabo Girl: Dabo!
Irudan: All right.
Odo: I don't want you on this station.
Ibudan: Yeah, well that's too bad, because I have every right to be here.
Odo: I decide who has rights and who doesn't on this Promenade.
Ibudan: You'd better ask your Federation superiors about that one.
Odo: I don't have to check with anyone.
Irudan: Get off me.
Odo: You have twenty-six hours to get off this station.
O'Brien: Look, I'm willing to ask for a transfer if that'll make you happy.
Keiko: That's not fair either. You'd have to give up your promotion.
O'Brien: Not necessarily.
Keiko: I wish I knew the right thing to do. I'm just lost here. Starfleet doesn't need a botanist on this station.
O'Brien: Keiko, there's a whole new quadrant on the other side of the wormhole, full of new plant life to explore.
Keiko: And ships going to explore it and I'm not on any of them.
O'Brien: We'll be sending runabouts through the wormhole. I'll see to it you get to go.
Keiko: I don't need favors from you. I just need to be useful.
O'Brien: Just think how much more attractive this place could be if you planted some trees and flowers on the Promenade. You could even create an arboretum from the new specimens we bring back from the Gamma Quadrant.
Keiko: Do you really want to raise your daughter in this place, Miles?
Kira: Kira to O'Brien.
O'Brien: Go ahead.
Kira: We have a non-functional power transfer grid on level five. All the upper docking pylons are out of commission.
O'Brien: On my way.
Jake: Hi.
Nog: What do you want, Human?
Jake: My name's Jake.
Nog: I know who you are.
Jake: What's yours?
Nog: Why do you care?
Jake: Not exactly a lot of friends to choose from around here. You know what I mean.
Nog: Nog. My name's Nog.
Odo: His name is Ibudan. He used to run black market goods through here to the surface during the Cardassian occupation, gouging his fellow man who needed medical supplies and so forth. Some Bajorans actually considered him a hero, but I saw him let a child die when the parents couldn't afford the drug that would've saved her life. A few years back, he killed a Cardassian officer who wanted a payoff to look the other way. He went to prison for murder. I sent him there.
Sisko: For murder? What's he doing out?
Odo: The Provisional Government let him go. Killing a Cardassian isn't considered much of a crime nowadays.
Sisko: Doesn't sound like there's much we can do about it.
Odo: I can get him off my Promenade.
Sisko: If he hasn't done anything wrong, you can't just arbitrarily force him to leave.
Odo: Watch me.
Sisko: Mister Odo, you're not going to take the law into your own hands.
Odo: The law? Commander, laws change depending on who's making them. Cardassians one day, Federation the next. But justice is justice, and as long as I'm in charge of security.
Sisko: If you can't work within the rules, I'll find someone who can.
Jake: What are they?
Nog: Garanian bolites. Come on.
Bashir: I guess I know the competition now.
Dax: What are you talking about, Julian?
Bashir: Did you have a nice dinner with Commander Sisko?
Dax: Julian, Trills do not look for romance the way humans do. In fact, we find it quite a nuisance.
Bashir: A nuisance?
Dax: It's a weakness of the young, and although a Trill host may have these feelings occasionally, it is our wish to live on a higher plane, to try to rise above these kinds of temptations.
Bashir: You said, try to rise above, which suggests you don't always succeed.
Dax: Julian.
Sisko: Sisko to Doctor Bashir.
Bashir: Go ahead.
Sisko: We need medical assistance above the bar in holosuite four.
Bashir: Acknowledged, Commander. I still have that champagne on ice.
Woman: Help us!
Man: Somebody help us!
Woman: Something is happening to us!
Man: Get a doctor!
Odo: The door opened only twice. The first time when the computer logged Ibudan's check-in at seventeen hundred hours, sixteen minutes. The suite was secured so no one else could enter. He ran Lauriento massage holoprogram number one oh one A. Thirteen minutes later the door opened for the second time, but since Ibudan obviously didn't exit, we have to assume that's when the killer left.
Kira: Any evidence of a beam in during those thirteen minutes?
Odo: No.
Kira: Well then how did the killer get in?
Sisko: He might have entered the holosuite the same time Ibudan did.
Bashir: Cause of death's no mystery. The knife was thrust directly between the left and right thoracic vertebrae, perforating the lower ventricle of the heart. The murderer apparently had a decent knowledge of Bajoran anatomy.
Sisko: Doctor, I want you to look for evidence that could establish someone was in here with him.
Bashir: I'll do a sweep for hair follicles, any skin or cellular remnants, and DNA fragments.
Sisko: How many ships have left since yesterday.
Kira: Two. A Federation survey ship and a Vulcan science vessel.
Sisko: Advise all ships in dock that departures will be delayed until further notice.
Keiko: And they were just looking for trouble. Those kids have no reason to be hanging around the Promenade.
O'Brien: It's about the only place they have to go. You can't keep them locked in their rooms.
Keiko: This isn't like a starship, Miles. The kind of freedom children have on the Enterprise just won't work on a space station. There are too many ways to get into serious trouble here. What this place needs is a school.
Kira: All ships have been informed of the delays, Commander.
Sisko: Major, do you know Mister Zayra, who operates the Transit Aid center?
Kira: We've met.
Sisko: He was just telling me something disturbing. I think you should hear it
Zayra: It's just that the murdered man, Ibudan, I spoke to him yesterday about an hour before it happened.
Kira: Where was this?
Zayra: Quark's. By the dabo table. It was after his scuffle with the shape-shifter. He told me that he was scared. He was afraid that Odo might kill him.
Kira: There isn't a more honorable man on this station than the Constable.
Zayra: Maybe so. All I know is, an hour later, Ibudan was dead.
Officer: Computer, lights. This was Ibudan's quarters. Feel free to look around.
Odo: Double accommodations?
Officer: That's what he requested, but only one passenger was logged in. He probably just wanted larger quarters. If there's anything else you need.
Odo: I want a record of all the passengers on board.
Officer: Of course. I'll get you a copy of the ship's manifest.
Odo: Computer, how many entries made from this terminal during the last seventy eight hours.
Computer: Seven entries noted in personal calendar files.
Odo: Show them to me. (Stardate 46383 Secure for departure, Depart from Alderaan spaceport, Lifeboat drill, Lunch meeting with Della Santina, Tennis holodeck 2, Dinner, Ship's concert.)
Odo: Take me to stardate 46384
Sisko: You won't get an argument from me, Mrs O'Brien. When I found out what happened this morning on the Promenade
Jake: We weren't doing anything.
Sisko: I don't want to talk about this now. It's this Ferengi boy, Nog. Jake's won't be having anything more to do with him.
Jake: He's the only one here even close to my age.
Keiko: That's not exactly true, Jake. There are twelve other children on board, ranging from eight to sixteen. The problem is there's no structured activity for them. Don't you miss the schools you used to go to, Jake?
Jake: No. I guess. Studying alone on the computer, it kind of gets boring sometimes.
Keiko: You know, I've never actually been a teacher, Commander, but it's something I've always thought about doing.
Sisko: As a Starfleet Commander and as a father, I think this is a terrific idea. What do you need?
Keiko: Some space.
Sisko: We'll find it.
Keiko: Computers?
Sisko: You'll have them. I hope you realize what you're getting yourself into. I can't force the Bajora, the Ferengi or anyone else to send their children to your school. And even if they do come, every one has a different culture, a different philosophy.
Keiko: I know I'll have to come up with an innovative program But I can't imagine any parent not welcoming the news of a school opening here. Thank you, Commander.
Sisko: If I hear of you hanging around with him.
Jake: I thought you didn't want to talk about this now.
Bashir: These are the DNA sequence analyzes, the cellular spectrographs and the particulate matter traces. I asked Lieutenant Dax to confirm my findings and I'm afraid she concurs.
Dax: There were no new DNA traces found in the holosuite.
Kira: You're saying nobody went into the room with him?
Bashir: Well, apart from those of us who were in there after the body was diskovered, this was the only DNA present, and we've identified it as Ibudan's.
Kira: Wait a minute. Ibudan goes in the holosuite alone, locks the door, nobody transports in, a few minutes later he's murdered. How is that possible?
Odo: It's not. Unless the murder was committed by someone who could get through the cracks in the door. Say, a shape-shifter.
Odo: It's a pretty neat package. His calendar shows he was planning to meet with me at the time of the murder. No one except a shape-shifter could get into the holosuite. And since I'd obviously be called there after the body was diskovered, traces of my DNA wind up at the scene of the crime.
Kira: Do you have any kind of an alibi?
Odo: Major, I have to return to my natural state every eighteen hours to regenerate. To be quite honest about it, I was in a pail in the back of my office when Ibudan was killed.
Kira: The killer might have known your regenerative cycle and planned the murder accordingly.
Odo: Like I said, a neat package.
Kira: Who might want to frame you for murder?
Odo: I can think of about five hundred different people, but I haven't seen any of them around the station recently. Do you think that Federation doctor could do a sweep of Ibudan's quarters for me, see if he can find out if somebody else was using that second bed?
Kira: I'll send him over there right away.
Odo: Thank you, Major.
Girl: Dabo!
Rom: You want my boy to go to a Federation school?
Keiko: Not just Federation. I'm developing a curriculum that will take a much broader approach.
Rom: Little lady, little lady, what do you know of Ferengi education?
Keiko: I understand you employ a work-study approach, Mister Rom, with apprenticeships in a wide range of business and economic fields.
Rom: We throw them into the cut-throat competition of Ferengi commerce and anyone who survives, graduates. Are you prepared to teach that to my son?
Keiko: I'm sure I couldn't improve on what you've already taught him in that department.
Rom: Thank you. Thank you. I've taught him everything I know. It's so important that we prepare our youth for the challenges of the future.
Keiko: Exactly. Consider the advantage your son will have over other Ferengi once he's learned about other cultures, once he learns how others run their economies, conduct business, negotiate.
Rom: You will teach my son these things?
Keiko: Knowledge is power, Mister Rom.
Rom: It can't work. He will not listen to you.
Keiko: Why not?
Rom: You are female.
Keiko: So?
Rom: My son cannot learn anything from a female human teacher.
Keiko: Let him try it for a few weeks. He has nothing to lose and so much to gain.
Rom: I don't think so.
Keiko: Will you at least think about it?
Rom: Yes. Yes. Of course. Now, really, I'm quite busy. Place your wagers! Place your wagers. Get this lovely young woman a drink.
Zayra: What do we know about him anyway? He's not one of us.
Bajoran: He isn't one of anything.
Zayra: You know what really bothers me? This shifter was the last Chief of Security when the Cardassians were here.
Bajoran: He's the one who caught Ibudan for them.
Zayra: Why is he still Security Chief?
Bajoran: You're right. We ought to talk to Major Kira.
Quark: Nobody knows him like I know him. Let me tell you something. He's an ill-tempered, over-bearing crosspatch. But he was no Cardassian collaborator and he's no killer.
Zayra: I can't believe you're defending him, Quark. You're his worst enemy.
Quark: Guess that's the closest thing he has in this world to a friend. (A gray-bearded Bajoran in a cloak and hood watches the men talking.
Zayra: Security, huh?
Sisko: Listen, I hear what you're saying. I understand your concerns.
Zayra: We're not saying whether he's innocent or guilty, Commander. All we're saying is isn't it reasonable under the circumstances that he
Kira: Thank you very much for coming.
Kira: This is wrong.
Sisko: And what would you suggest we do?
Kira: He didn't do it.
Sisko: The man we have in charge of a murder investigation is the prime suspect, Major. Those people have a right to complain.
Dax: Even if he's innocent, it could still seem like a conflict of interest, Kira.
Kira: You're going to relieve him of duty.
Sisko: I don't see any other choice.
Kira: He has been completely candid about this investigation. He could have covered his tracks a half a dozen times already if he were guilty.
Sisko: I appreciate how you feel, but the decision stands. I'll inform him myself.
Bashir: The only curious thing I found were these seofurane fragments near the matter reclamation unit. Dish, please. It appears he was trying to get rid of them.
Odo: Do you have any idea what they're from?
Bashir: I know exactly what they're from. A biological sample container. I use them all the time.
Odo: What would Ibudan be doing with a biological sample container?
Bashir: That I'm not so sure about, but when I analyzed the fragments I detected traces of a complex organic structure.
Odo: Translate, Doctor.
Bashir: It suggests Ibudan may have been conducting some sort of medical experiment on board his ship.
Odo: He wasn't a doctor or a scientist.
Bashir: Let's see what a standard electrophoretic analysis tells us.
Bashir: What the? The complex proteins are breaking down into DNA fragments.
Odo: And what does that mean?
Bashir: It means we should set up a bio-regenerative field to accelerate the cellular development. If I can reconstruct the DNA sequence, it might just give us an idea what he was up to.
Sisko: Sisko to Odo.
Odo: Here.
Sisko: May I see you in my office, please.
Odo: Acknowledged.
Odo: Commander?
Sisko: Sit down. I am temporarily relieving you of duty. I'm sure the reasons are obvious.
Odo: Who will be taking over the investigation?
Sisko: I've placed Major Kira and Lieutenant Dax in charge.
Odo: Will that be all, Commander?
Sisko: I want you to know I don't personally believe that you were responsible for this.
Odo: Really? Now how can that be true? You don't know me. You have no reason to believe that I wouldn't kill Ibudan if it suited my fancy. So don't tell me there isn't some doubt inside of you, some question about whether or not I murdered the man.
Sisko: I simply feel that putting Kira and Dax in charge of the investigation will be in everyone's best interests, including your own.
Odo: I'll take care of my own best interests.
Man: That's him.
Voice: They found his DNA.
Quark: I can find out who did it for you.
Odo: Not for me. Tell it to Starfleet. I'm not in charge here any longer.
Quark: Well now, there's a piece of good news to brighten my day.
Odo: You'd better take advantage of my absence while you can, Quark.
Quark: Oh, I will, I will. Count on it. I'll have every confidence man in the sector on board by tomorrow.
Odo: You do and I'll
Quark: What?
Odo: You're going get sloppy without me to keep an eye on you
Quark: I don't think so. You've kept me on my toes for far too long now.
Odo: Sure. I've turned you into a better crook.
Quark: Like it or not.
Odo: Quark, think you could use a shape-shifter in your organization?
Quark: You had me going.
Odo: I did, didn't I.
Quark: Yes, you did. You know, I've been asking some friends at Kran-Tobol prison about Ibudan. Whether he made any enemies while he was there. Couldn't find any. Mostly he stayed around the Bajoran dissidents that the Cardassians locked up.
Bashir: It's growing exponentially. We're going to have to increase the metabolic field energy.
Sisko: Just what is it that's growing in there?
Dax: Aren't those DNA patterns humanoid, Julian?
Bashir: That's what it looks like to me, but there's a genetic drift I can't quite put my finger on.
Sisko: What was Ibudan up to?
Bashir: We're going to have to wait and see what this becomes before we have a clue. You can transfer it to the larger field now.
Nurse: Yes, Doctor.
Sisko: Care for lunch?
Bashir: Sure.
Dax: No, thank you. Major Kira's waiting for my report.
Bashir: Just how many different lives do you think she's led?
Sisko: I don't even know. He'll go, she'll go through a list of them, then out comes another one in a later conversation. I'd guess that Jadzia is probably the sixth host.
Bashir: Has she changed much?
Sisko: Changed?
Bashir: From the last one, Curzon Dax. I understand a Trill integrates the personality of each new host.
Sisko: I guess I'll have to find that out. If I were to tell you some of the mischief he and I got into. There was a time, I was no older than you are, we were at the running of the Rujian Steeplechase. Dax loves the races. Anyway, there were these gorgeous seven foot Ruji twin sisters that Curzon knew, and he and I. I guess we won't be doing that again soon, will we?
Bashir: You care for her a great deal, don't you?
Sisko: Dax and I are just friends, Doctor. If you're interested, you have nothing to fear from me.
Bashir: I mean, I were in your shoes, knowing Dax as intimately as you do, I think I'd find her hard to resist.
Sisko: You don't understand, Doctor. Dax used to beat me regularly at bare fist Juro counterpunch.
Bashir: Well I guess you won't be doing that again soon, either.
Man: I'm not drinking with that scum.
Voice: I won't drink near this man.
Keiko: In a semi-circle here, facing the module. That's right. Thank you.
O'Brien: Here's Mommy.
Molly: Where you been, Mommy?
Keiko: I've been getting ready for school tomorrow, honey.
Molly: Can I come to school?
Keiko: I wish you could. At least I'd know one student would be coming. But you have to wait a year or two.
O'Brien: How's it going?
Keiko: We'll be ready in time. In time for what, I'm not sure. Aside from Commander Sisko, we haven't had a firm commitment from any of the parents. What's this?
O'Brien: Just a little something I replicated on the way over.
Keiko: Help Mommy to open her present, Molly. Come on, pull.
Keiko: Oh, Miles. Thank you.
O'Brien: I want to see you standing in the Promenade tomorrow morning ringing your school bell.
Man: Murderer.
O'Brien: I'd better take her home.
Crowd: Murder. Killer.
Zayra: Shape-shifting freak.
O'Brien: O'Brien to Ops.
O'Brien: Security to the Promenade on the double.
Kira: Acknowledged.
Security: Yes, sir.
O'Brien: O'Brien to Sisko.
Sisko: I'm here, Chief. What's going on?
O'Brien: We've got a crowd, more like a mob, outside Odo's office.
O'Brien: You'd better get down here.
Crowd: Freak! Shape-shifter!
Zayra: Freak! Murdering shifter.
Sisko: Odo's inside?
O'Brien: Yes sir, he went in a few minutes ago. The crowd followed him from the bar.
Sisko: I want more security here and I want them armed.
O'Brien: Aye, sir
Kira: It's going to be harder to control them if numbers keep growing. We can secure all turbolifts, slow down the traffic onto the Promenade.
Sisko: Good idea.
Dax: Julian, look at this.
Bashir: The chromatin pattern is changing.
Dax: It's definitely humanoid.
Bashir: It's definitely humanoid. It's definitely. My God! Dax, I think I know what it is. Run a chromosome analysis. I think we're going to find a gene-sequence degradation.
Zayra: Shifter! Shifter! Shifter! Shifter!
Sisko: Coming through. What the hell do you people intend to accomplish here?
Bajoran: We want the shape-shifter!
Sisko: And what do you think you're going to do to him if you get to him?
Crowd: He deserves to die.
Zayra: He's right. How do you get a rope around the neck of a shape-shifter.
Sisko: Listen to me. You will disperse immediately. Return to your quarters. Return to your ships.
Male: He's a murderer. We want justice.
Sisko: Do you? Justice? Really? Is it justice you're after or just some way to express your anger, your fear. Look at yourselves! In an hour, you'll regret what you've tried to do here. Do not condemn this man because he is different than you are.
Zayra: We condemn him because of the evidence.
Sisko: Then take that evidence to a court of law. There will be no justice served here today.
Bashir: Commander! Commander Sisko. I believe we have some new evidence to consider. The man who was murdered was not Ibudan.
Odo: What?
Bashir: Come with me.
O'Brien: All right. break it up now.
Kira: Move on, people. Let's clear the area.
Security: You heard what she said. Come on, back to your quarters. Quickly, move.
Bashir: A clone. That's what Ibudan was working on. Creating a clone of himself.
Odo: And then he killed the clone to frame me for his murder.
Sisko: How can we be sure the victim was a clone?
Dax: A clone has identical DNA to that of the donor, but certain cloning methods cause a characteristic gene-sequence degradation which can be detected.
Bashir: if you know to look for it. We've matched the victim's gene-sequence with the fellow in the jar here. They're definitely both clones.
Odo: What happens to this one?
Bashir: In about two days, he becomes a living, breathing member of Bajoran society.
Odo: Let's hope he doesn't follow in his donor's footsteps.
Sisko: What about Ibudan?
Odo: I have an idea where to find him.
Lamonay: Computer, lights.
Lamonay: Who are you? How did you get in here?
Odo: Oh, I think you know.
Lamonay: I warn you, I'll call ship's security.
Odo: Do that. I have some interesting questions to ask them. For example, I'm especially curious to know how the name Lamonay S came to appear on this ship's passenger list yesterday.
Lamonay: That is my name, and I arranged for transport on this vessel. What should that be so strange?
Odo: You did not arrive on this ship.
Lamonay: No.
Odo: Well, just what ship did you arrive on, Mister Lamonay S? I can't find any record of your arrival on any vessel that has docked here in the last three weeks.
Lamonay: I assure you, you are in error.
Odo: In fact I think you did arrive on this ship, and that you spent the last few years in prison among Bajoran dissidents, one of whom I've learned was a scientist who was arrested by the Cardassians for conducting experimental research into tri-phasic cloning.
Odo: Killing your own clone is still murder. Commander's log, stardate 46421.5. Ibudan has been turned over to the Bajoran authorities just hours after his clone gained consciousness and began a new life. The perpetrators of the mob violence have retreated into their own business. To my knowledge, Odo has received no apologies. Meanwhile, life on the station has begun to return to normal.
Keiko: Computer what time is it?
Computer: Oh nine oh seven hours.
Keiko: I guess you were right. It isn't going to be easy.
Sisko: Maybe it's just going to take a little time to
Rom: Sit down! Not next to that human boy. I don't want you to have anything to do with him.
Rom: We'll try it for a few weeks.
Keiko: Please, come in. Take any seat. Try to be on time from now on. My name is Keiko O'Brien, I'll be your teacher. Why don't we turn on our computers and access the files on Bajor to find out a little bit more about the people and history of this world?