"25.000" "Right there." "The explosion began at the intercooler matrix." "Your men should have planted the bomb at the secondary plasma relay." "The ship was still destroyed." "The intercooler was the obvious choice for sabotage." "Their security could have found the bomb before the ship left orbit." " But they didn't." " That isn't the point." "Your men ignored their instructions and their training." "Let's not forget that the mission was a success." "It was a success because Jem'Hadar security slipped up and we got lucky." "Only use those men for routine reconnaissance." "They're my best men!" "Bronok is one of the most experienced..." "You've been told before..." "no names." "Every cell has to be insulated from the cell above and below." "If I know the names of your men and I'm captured..." " l've heard the lecture." " So you shouldn't need reminding!" "It's been a long day." "Why don't we take a break." "Good idea." "The air in here is getting stale." "Are you going to do something about him?" "I am. I'm giving him my support." "All right." "This does not bode well." "Odo." "The Tevak shipyard raid was successful." "I penetrated the Operations Centre, disabled the security protocols." "The rest of the team sabotaged the dilithium storage bunkers." "An hour after we left, the entire facility was vaporised." " You should get some rest." " That sounds good to me." " Anyone in the bunkroom?" " No." "It's all yours." "Odo." "Good work." "Thank you." "It's just like you to come sneaking in here without warning." "My approach may have been quiet, but I had no intention of sneaking up on you." "My apologies." "If I may ask...?" "Why have I deteriorated so rapidly?" "I've been assuming dozens of different forms over the past few weeks." "Changing shape seems to accelerate the progress of the disease." "Perhaps you should stop." "And do what?" "Lie here and wait to die?" "I came to work." "Work is what I'll do." "I take it Commander Kira is unaware of your true condition?" "That's right." "And I prefer that it stays that way." " l won't breathe a word." " See that you don't." "She has enough on her mind without worrying about me." "And I don't want her..." "Pity?" "is there a reason you came in here?" "We need a contact on Kelvas V." " l remember you said that you knew..." " l may have a few names for you." "I'll have to give it some thought." "Odo, I hope you know how much I... lf l don't want pity from the woman I love, why would I want it from you?" " Morning." " What time is it?" "0630." "Another all-nighter?" "That's four in a row." "You can't keep this up." "I'm beginning to agree." "And to add insult to injury, I'm not getting anywhere." "My DNA integration theory is a blind alley." " So where does that leave you?" " Square one." "Whoever engineered this shape-shifter virus covered their tracks." "Julian, it's time to face facts." "You can't pull a rabbit out of your medkit." "The Founders couldn't find a cure and they had the resources of the Dominion at their command." "The only way we're going to find a cure is to track down whoever created this." "Miles..." "We must find a way to get inside Section 31." "We've tried that." "We've tried and tried." "And we wasted two weeks chasing phantoms from here to Vulcan." "You want to face facts?" "Section 31 has managed to stay in hiding for over 300 years." "They won't come scurrying into the light because we are on the case!" "Which is why we should take this to Captain Sisko and let him contact Starfleet Intelligence." "All that will do is alert Section 31 to that fact that we're onto them." "They'll go deeper into hiding, send someone to destroy whatever headway I've made." "No more cloak and dagger games." "Science is the answer." "Every puzzle has a solution, every disease has a cure." "Now if you'll kindly get the hell out of here, I have work to do." "Martok's attack on Avenal Vll was a disgrace." "He had the advantage of surprise." "The Dominion wasn't expecting us to take the offensive so soon after the Breen entered the war." "Avenal should have been an easy victory for him, but instead, he's handed us a shameful defeat!" "General Martok and I both advised you against attacking a world deep in Dominion territory." " He was outnumbered six to one." " Six to one." "A good commander finds ways to beat the odds, not hide behind them." "He didn't hide behind anything." "He fought harder than I would have." "Have you read Worf's after-action report?" "Seven Klingon ships destroyed." "Five others severely damaged." "And Martok is in critical condition in the Rotarran Sickbay." " He's expected to survive." " That's not the point." "This whole operation was a waste of resources, men and equipment." "The blame lies with the man who ordered the mission, not with the man who tried to carry it out." "That's one of the things I like about you, Captain:" "your loyalty to your friends." "This has nothing to do with loyalty." "Of course not." "Don't worry." "Martok is popular with the troops and that counts for something." "I won't relieve him of command...yet." "As you can see, the Klingon raid on Avenal was easily broken up." "I'm less concerned about this than I am about the Cardassian rebellion." "We cannot fight the Federation, the Klingons and the Romulans, and face a full-scale uprising behind the lines." "I completely agree." "However, the situation is in hand." "We still control the Cardassian military, while Damar has only a handful of terrorists at his disposal." "This rebellion poses no threat." "You also assured us that Damar would never turn against the Dominion." "That was an error, but an understandable one." "No one could have foreseen that." "The concept is antithetical to the very nature of Cardassians." "They respect authority." "They value law and order, which is what the Dominion offers them." "Exactly." "If our cloning facilities were operational, I would eliminate this Weyoun immediately." "Damar must pay the price for his treason." "Redouble your efforts to find his wife and children." "Then begin interrogating Cardassian teachers, scientists, local officials." "The population must understand that dissent will not be tolerated." "I also want you to begin putting Cardassian civilians in and around Dominion military installations." "If Damar destroys another shipyard, he'll have to kill a great many of his countrymen as well." "That will help turn the people against him." " An excellent plan." " Your opinion was not solicited." "The sooner we regain the offensive on the front lines, the better." "The installation of Breen weapons on Dominion ships must be accelerated." "Please issue the appropriate orders to your engineers." "How long before our cloning facilities are operational again?" "Not for several days, perhaps even weeks." "Well, keep me informed." "And according to our new contact on Kelvas V, the Breen will begin installing energy-dampening weapons aboard Jem'Hadar fighters within a week." "Has the Federation progressed in counteracting these weapons?" "They're still having trouble understanding the technology." " Why aren't the Klingon ships affected?" " We don't know that yet, either." "Supplying the Federation with one, they may come up with a countermeasure." "Our priority is freeing Cardassia, not doing Starfleet's dirty work." "By helping Starfleet, we're helping ourselves." "There's a Cardassian repair facility in the Kelvas System, right?" "Yes." "I take it you have something in mind?" "It won't be easy, but if we can get onto the bridge..." "We'll take a five-man team." "The four of us, plus Odo." "Garak, I'll need everything you have on the Kelvas facility." " Something wrong?" " Possibly." "May I have a few words with the commander?" " What's on your mind?" " lt's about taking Odo on this mission." "I'm afraid there's no easy way of putting it." "He's been hiding the true extent of his illness from you for some time now." "His condition has severely deteriorated." "And the more he changes form, the worse it gets." " l know." " You do?" "I love him, Garak." "You think I wouldn't notice?" " Why the pretence?" " Because I also know that he doesn't want me to find out about it." "If he wants to put up a brave front and protect me from the truth, then fine." "If that gives him one last shred of dignity to hold onto, then I'll go on ignoring what's happening to him until the very end." " Anything else?" " No." "All right." "We need a Cardassian shuttle with the latest security protocols..." " Sisko to Worf." " Worf here." " l'd like to see you in my office." " On my way." " How's Martok?" " Doctor Bashir says he will recover." "I'm glad to hear that." "Mr Worf, we've got a serious problem on our hands." "Gowron." "He's hell-bent on continuing these offensives, regardless of the cost." " He is a stubborn and arrogant man." " True, but I hope he's not a fool." "He's risking the entire defence posture." "Why can't he see that?" "I suspect he can't see anything at the moment...except for one man." "You mean Martok?" "He sees him as a political threat." "These attacks are designed to humiliate the general in the eyes of the Empire." "To force him to endure defeat after defeat." "You're telling me this is a political vendetta?" "It would not be the first time that a Klingon chancellor put his own interests ahead of the greater good." "Something has to be done." "Agreed." "And I do have a solution but it will not be easy." "Do whatever it takes, Mr Worf." "Those Klingon ships out there are the only thing between us and the Breen." "Gowron is risking the safety of the Alpha Quadrant and he has to stop." "Understood." "My men have secured the shuttle." "They'll meet us at those coordinates." "Good." "Are you enjoying yourself?" "Getting Cardassians to do your bidding must give you pleasure." "I'm busy, Rusot." "Find someone else to play with." "You have fooled Damar into believing you're here to fight the Dominion," " but I know why you are here." " This should be good." "You killed hundreds of Cardassians during the occupation." "Now you're getting a chance to do it again." "You're here to hang a few more Cardassian neckbones from your belt." "Admit it." "You won't be satisfied until every one of us is dead." "I don't have time..." "Don't you ever touch me again." "I guess I hit a nerve." "This is hitting a nerve." "Stop pushing me or I'll make you realise how many nerves your miserable body has." "When this is all over and the Dominion is defeated..." "You won't have any trouble finding me." "You'll have to do something about him long before that, Commander." " Thanks for all your help." " You had things under control." "Did I?" "Despite his statement to the contrary," "Rusot won't wait until the end of the war to make his move." "I suggest that you don't wait either." "Kill him before he kills you." "Challenge Gowron?" "In the middle of a war?" "It's treasonous!" "Gowron is leading us all to ruin." "It is your duty to challenge him to protect the Empire." "You would have me protect the empire by breaking my oath, by spilling a Klingon brother's blood." "Where is the honour in that?" "He is sacrificing our troops for his own reasons." " Where is the honour in that?" " The troops are his to command." "It is not our place to question him, unless he acts with cowardice." " You are not listening." " l have heard what you have said." "You want me to become chancellor." "How do you think the High Council will react when they're asked to follow a man from the Ketha Lowlands?" "A man without noble blood?" " Kahless himself was not high-born." " Kahless was divine." "Your name is revered throughout the Empire." "If you seize the leadership, every warrior will swear an oath to you." "With that support, the High Council will have to accept you as chancellor." "You sound like a Romulan." "You know I am right." "I am a loyal soldier of the Empire." "I would rather die than dishonour my uniform." "By raising a hand to my chancellor in a time of war, I would shame everything I have fought to protect, everything I believe in!" " General." " My decision is made!" "We will not speak of this again." "You're staring again." "Sorry. I'm just worried about you." "Well, don't. lt may be a long time before the symptoms manifest themselves." "And by then, I'm sure Dr Bashir will have found a cure." "Right." "Could you take the helm?" "I'm going to get a "raktajino."" " What's wrong?" " A listening post picked up a message." "The Dominion has succeeded in locating Damar's family." "They're dead." "They weren't a part of this rebellion." "The Dominion, the Founder and Weyoun knew that." "To kill her and my son..." "The casual brutality of it." "The waste of life." "What kind of state tolerates the murder of women and children?" "What kind of people give those orders?" "Yeah, what kind of people give those orders?" " That was stupid." " Not at all." "Damar has a certain romanticism about the past." " He could use a dose of cold water." " l could've picked a better time." "If Damar is the man to lead a new Cardassia, if he's the man we all hope him to be, then the pain of this news made him more receptive to what you said, not less." "We're approaching the rendezvous point." "The shuttle is here." "Right on time." "Just as I promised." "Damar to shuttle." "Lower your shields and we'll beam aboard." "Acknowledged." "Let's go." "And in truth, I understand his position." "It is the duty of all soldiers to support their leaders in time of war." "Asking Martok to stand against Gowron was an error." "So what are you going to do?" "Try to convince Gowron to discontinue these attacks." "You have said very little." "I'm just not sure I should give you advice on what to do in this situation." "It's a Klingon matter." "You are still a member of the House of Martok." " This is the first I've heard of it." " Martok and I discussed it weeks ago." "He likes you." "He thinks you're an honourable woman, a worthy successor to Jadzia..." "and so do I." " That's very sweet of him." " Sweet?" " Not a very Klingon word, is it?" " No." "It's very honourable." "Better, albeit a little obvious." "Now tell me what you think." " OK." "But I'm not sure you'll like it." " Tell me." "I think the situation with Gowron is a symptom of a bigger problem." "The Klingon Empire is dying." "And I think it deserves to die." "You were right. I do not like it." "Don't get me wrong, I'm very touched that you still consider me a member of the House of Martok." "But I look at the Empire with more scepticism than Curzon or Jadzia did." "I see a society in deep denial about itself, a warrior culture that prides itself on maintaining centuries-old traditions of honour and integrity." "But in reality, it's willing to accept high-level corruption." " You are overstating your case." " Am I?" "Who was the last High Council leader that you respected?" "Has there even been one?" "How often have you covered up Klingon leaders' crimes because you were told it was for the "good of the Empire"?" "The truth is that you've willingly accepted a government you know is corrupt." "Gowron is just the latest example." "Worf, you're the most honourable and decent man that I've ever met." "If you're willing to tolerate Gowron, what hope is there for the Empire?" "We have a prisoner for the Vorta who commands this ship." "Everything seems to be in order." "Leave your weapons here." " Why?" " Orders from Dominion Headquarters." "No armed Cardassians on Jem'Hadar vessels." "It sounds like they don't trust us anymore." "I'm sorry, but those are the orders." "It's not your fault." "Do as he says." "The three of us should be able to handle one Bajoran woman." "Take them to the bridge." "Good luck, Legate Damar." "We'll run the first test firing in two hours, 14 minutes." "Agreed." "Coordinate it with Central Operations." " What's this?" " We have a prisoner." "Why are you bringing her to me?" "This is Commander Rota, the deputy intelligence officer for this entire sector." "I wasn't informed of this." "Perhaps you haven't received the report yet." "We only took the commander prisoner yesterday." " Let me see your orders." " Of course." "Founder." "You honour us with your presence." " l had no idea you were in this sector." " My movements are not your concern." "No." "Have you begun the interrogation of this prisoner?" " Not yet." " Good." " l will conduct the questioning myself." " As you wish." "I see the upgraded plasma rifles have been distributed." "May I inspect it?" "An excellent weapon." "What do you think?" "Secure those hatches." " lt wasn't necessary to kill them all!" " We can't be burdened." "We'll argue about this later." "Prepare to flood all decks with neurazine gas." "Bring the warp drive on-line and lay in a course for the Federation." "Commander, they haven't finished installing the Breen weapon." "We can't leave." "How long until they've installed the weapon?" " We can't wait!" " l'm not leaving without that weapon." "There are three, no, four Breen working in the engine room." "I'd say it will take them 30 to 45 minutes to complete their work." " We don't have that much time." " Yes, we do." "No one knows we're on the bridge." "All we have to do is sit tight, give standard replies to inquiries and wait for the Breen to do their work." " She'll get us all killed!" " There's an incoming message." "They want to speak to the Vorta." "Disable the visual feed." "What was her name?" "Come on!" "I'm looking." "Her name was Luaran." "This is Luaran." "I can't see you either." "We're experiencing trouble with our com system." "What do you want?" "Just a moment." "They want a status report on our navigational array." "I've got it." "That data is coming to you." "Excellent." "We'll be repairing our com system for at least the next hour." "I'll contact you when we're finished." "Luaran out." " What if they didn't believe you?" " Then we're dead." " Hey." " Hey." "Keiko whipped up some crab rolls for you." "She...we thought you might be hungry." "Thanks." "To both of you." " Uh...about the other day..." " Oh, forget it." " How's the work going?" " l'm firmly entrenched in square one." " Can I ask you a question about 31?" " Go ahead." "If you found the cure and they heard about it, what do you think they'd do?" "I imagine they'd be very concerned." "A cure would jeopardise their plan to eradicate the Founders." "It wouldn't surprise me if operatives turned up here to destroy my work." "What are you getting at?" "I think you should send a message to Starfleet Medical saying that you have found the cure." " You're trying to lure someone here?" " Yeah." "That's right." " And once this operative gets here?" " We capture him." "Then we figure out a way to get some information out of him." "He may not know anything about the disease." "I bet he'll know who does." "What do you think?" "I think it's a very good plan." "When did you get so devious?" "I've been hanging around you too long." "Let's hope this works and we cure Odo." "That's all I care about." "Me too, Miles." "Our next target:" "Sarpedion V." "Sarpedion is the headquarters of the entire Twelfth Order." "Yes." "You'll take 15 Vor'cha-class battle cruisers in first to soften their defences." "Then..." "Chancellor, that world is one of the most heavily fortified positions in the entire Cardassian Empire." "Fifteen battle cruisers will barely scratch their defences!" "If you lack the courage to fight an uphill battle, then perhaps you should retire to your bed." "I will fight any battle, anywhere... for the Empire." "Spoken like a true warrior." "After Martok has softened their defences..." "No." "We cannot attack Sarpedion." "I decide what can and cannot be done." "You rule without wisdom and without honour." "The warriors gathered here will not say this to you, but I will." "You are squandering our ships and lives on a petty act of vengeance." "I should have known better than to trust you again." "If you were a true Klingon, I would kill you where you stand." "Fortunately for you, that child's uniform shields you from your rightful fate." "What I say now, I say as a member of the House of Martok, not as Starfleet officer." "You have dishonoured yourself and the Empire." " You're not worthy to lead the Council." " There can be only one answer to that." "Worf, this is madness." "You will not have this...day." "Hail, Worf." "Leader of the Empire!" "Worf!" "Worf!" "Worf!" "Worf!" "Worf!" "Wait!" "Hear me." "Hear me!" "What I have done was for the Empire." "A new day must dawn for our people." "I am not the man to usher in that day." "But there is a man here who can." "Worf, I do not seek leadership." "Kahless said, "Great men do not seek power," ""they have power thrust upon them"." "Hail, Martok." "Leader of the Empire!" "Leader of destiny." " How much longer?" " l'm not certain." "They're having problems connecting the secondary relays." " Odo, are you all right?" " Yes, don't worry, I'm... I'm sorry." "There's nothing to be sorry about." "Just stay with me, Odo." "Stay with me." "We're going to get out of here." "Just hang on a little while longer." " lt's over." " Shut up, Rusot." "The shape-shifter is useless." "The plan is coming apart." " Go back to your post." " No!" "No more." " We're leaving now." " That would be unwise." "You're still a Cardassian." "You won't kill one of your own for a Bajoran woman." " How little you understand me." " Put your weapons down, both of you!" "You want her dead too, Damar." "I know you do." "You don't want to kill someone with a Starfleet uniform." "Let me do it for you." " They've finished installing the weapon." " Then let's all get out of here." " Not you." " l'm still here, Rusot." "Damar, shoot him." "We can keep the Breen weapon for ourselves." "I believe in you, Damar." "You're the right man to restore the Empire we so loyally served." "The Empire we loved." "Together, we can lead our people to greatness again." "Just aim and fire." "He was my friend but his Cardassia is dead." "And it won't be coming back." "Flood all compartments with the gas." "Clear all moorings." "Bow thrusters ahead full." "We've cleared their defence perimeter." "Take the helm." " You're probably angry." " Why?" "I..." "I hid my true condition." "Odo, I've known all along." "But it's not over." "Julian's probably working on a cure." "Nerys." "Nerys, don't." "Just stay here with me."