"Dabo!" "Dabo!" "Dabo!" "You aren't leaving?" " Well..." " Come on." "Aren't you feeling lucky?" "All right, then, one more time." "Let it ride." "Karjinko." "Sorry." "Wait a minute there." "My name is Okalar." "What's yours?" "Busy." " You are evil." " Who, me?" "He was going to walk away a winner." "The first rule of dabo is, "Watch the wheel, not the girl."" "So, what's on the menu tomorrow night?" "Tomorrow night?" "Dinner with your father?" " What?" " He didn't tell you?" "He came by and invited me to dinner tomorrow night." " He said it was your idea." " My idea?" "I might have mentioned something about having you over." " l thought he forgot." " lt is all right, isn't it?" "I mean, you don't mind, do you?" "Oh, no." "No, of course not." "It'll be great." "You're going to love my dad's cooking." "This is a surprise." " A pleasant one, I hope." " So do I." "I have some salvage for you, Quark." "This isn't a good time to be selling your kind of salvage." "It's perfectly legal, and it's really salvage this time." "I'm not looking for junk right now." "I'm more in the market for entertainment." "You'll like this junk, Quark." "It's the wreckage from a ship that crashed in the Gamma Quadrant." "You're still going to the Gamma Quadrant?" "I love bold women." "How much?" "Three bars of latinum, and you can have it." " What kind of ship is it?" " l don't know." " Can I see it first?" " There's no time." "Quark, you and I have been doing business for years." "Don't you trust me?" "Three bars of latinum?" "It was worth it." "No..." "No." "No!" "No." "You bought a child?" "I thought I was buying some wreckage." "How could I know there was a baby in there?" "Inspect the merchandise first." "Isn't there a Rule of Acquisition for that?" "There is, and I do...usually." "We haven't been able to trace the Boslic Captain." "Her flight plan said she was headed for Risa, but we can't put much faith in that." "I haven't identified his species, but he seems healthy." "Seems?" "He has a very fast metabolic rate." "His cells are dividing at a pace I haven't seen outside of a laboratory." "There are no thyroid or hypothalamic problems, so this may be natural for his species, but I'd like to do further tests." "Very well." "What do we know about the boy's ship?" "Chief O'Brien is analysing the wreckage." "We should have a report soon." "Wait a minute, I paid good money for that wreckage and..." "And now it's yours." "Enjoy." "Hi there." "We should tell an orphanage on Bajor we might have someone for them." "I was talking about an orphanage." "Oh, right." "Have Major Kira make the appropriate arrangements." "And keep me informed about him." "Yes, sir." " What?" " You are positively glowing." "Oh, come on." "I haven't seen that look on your face since..." "Since Jake stopped wearing diapers." "I never thought I'd hear myself saying this, but I miss taking care of Jake when he was a baby." "I miss holding him, singing to him at night, feeding him..." "Listening to him cry, changing his diapers, worrying when he was sick." "I haven't forgotten." "But there are times when I would give almost anything for the days when I could make Jake happy just by lifting him over my head." "Good night." "Hey." "How about a hug for the old man?" "Why didn't you tell me you were going to invite Mardah?" "I did." "Weeks ago." "I told you if you didn't invite her soon, I'd invite her myself." "I still wish you'd given me a little more warning." "I didn't realise a dinner invitation required so much warning." "It doesn't, and it's not a problem or anything." "It just caught me by surprise." "Dinner isn't until tomorrow night." "That will give you a day to prepare her for the traumatic experience of dining with the old man." "Yeah. I mean, there's nothing to prepare her for." " lt's just dinner." " Exactly." "Right." "All right." " You wanted to see me, Doctor?" " Yes. lt's about our new visitor." "is something wrong with the baby?" "No, but he's not a baby any more." "There are many species with what we would call accelerated growth rates, but they're usually small, physiologically simple creatures." "I've never seen such a rapid maturation process in a humanoid." "He looks about eight or nine years old." "How old is he in reality?" "From his cellular kinetic profile, I'd say he's no more than two weeks of age." "Who are you?" "I'm Benjamin, and that's Julian." "Do you have a name?" "I need food." "With your metabolism, I'm not surprised." "I'll get you something in a minute." " Where am I?" " On a space station." " Do you know what that is?" " No, but I want to learn." "I'd say we have a lot to learn from each other." "Erm... I'll be right back." " Advanced language skills." " And cognitive reasoning." "He didn't pick those up by listening to us." "This is either a natural ability or some basic intelligence implanted into his genetic structure." " implanted?" "You mean artificially?" " Yes." "I discount the possibility that it is a natural ability." "His biomolecular diffusion gradient suggests that his cellular mitosis has been artificially enhanced." "So he may have been part of some experiment." "Possibly. lf so, he's an example of very advanced genetic engineering." "His cognitive abilities are developing without any external stimuli." "Test his mental abilities, see if they increase." "He might get to the point where he can tell us who he is and where he's from." "This is where Quark said he found the boy." "It seems to be a stasis chamber that was damaged in the crash." "Perhaps they didn't want him to begin maturing while he was aboard." " What about the rest of the wreckage?" " lt's some kind of transport vessel." " Did you find any information systems?" " Not yet." "Most of it's just junk - twisted bulkheads, burnt deck plating..." "We should have a full inventory by tomorrow." "Good." "The replicators in my quarters are on the blink again." "Could you spare someone to fix them?" "That's right, tonight's the dinner with Mardah." " You know about that?" " Jake mentioned it." "It's the only thing on his mind." "You'd think I was going to court martial her by the way he's acting." "It's only natural." "Bringing a girl home for the first time is traumatic." "Quark may call her a dabo girl, but she's 20 years old." "She's a woman, and Jake's 1 6." "It has to stop." " So why did you invite her over?" " Curiosity, mostly." " l wanted to see what I was up against." " What if it turns out you like her?" "She's a dabo girl, and she's dating my son." "I don't want to like her." "1 6 years old and dating a dabo girl." "Godspeed, Jake." " Major." " Odo." "For you." "Ah." "Let me guess..." "decoration for my new quarters." "Just something to brighten your room." "That's very thoughtful of you." "You're welcome." "I suppose you'd like to see my quarters." "Everyone wants to see your quarters." "It's called curiosity." "Uh-huh." "It's not really finished yet." "This is just the start." "The start of what?" "I want to make this room into a place where l can explore what it truly means to be a shape-shifter." "I thought it had to be something like that." "I mean, you don't need an entire set of quarters just to sit in your bucket." "I don't use the bucket anymore." "I've kept it to remind me of how I used to be." "But now, when I need to regenerate, I simply revert to my gelatinous state anywhere in this room." "Here, I can experiment with different shapes, textures... I can bring in various forms to emulate, and I can do it in private." "I'm sorry if I intruded." "Maybe I should leave." "No, please." "You're always welcome here, Major." "Well..." "Where shall we put it?" "Ah..." "Perfect." "The boy's DNA sequence has definitely been altered." "The nucleotide analysis proves that." "He's a product of genetic engineering." "But why?" "Was he a unique experiment, or is this sort of thing common in his species?" "His blood chemistry shows that he's missing a key isogenic enzyme." "Without large quantities of it his circulatory system would shut down." " Can you replicate this enzyme?" " l've found a temporary substitute." "But why would anyone genetically engineer someone with such an obvious flaw?" "Nurse Hortak to Doctor Bashir." "You're needed in the infirmary." "On my way." "Listen, no one's going to hurt you." "Let's go back inside and..." "Security to the Promenade." "Stop!" "Stay where you are!" " Dax to Sisko." " Go ahead." "We've solved the mystery of our young visitor." "He's a Jem'Hadar." "I've just spoken with Starfleet Command." "They want to send him to Starbase 201 , where he'll be handed over to a team of specialists." "Sounds good." "The sooner, the better." "What sort of specialists are we talking about, Commander?" "There will be a team of xenobiologists and exopsychologists waiting for him." "They're going to study him like a laboratory specimen." " He'll be very well treated." " So he'll be a well treated specimen." "I agree with Odo, Commander." "We can't just ship him off like some biological sample." "He's a sentient life form." "But the Founders could have removed his sense of free will." "He may be a genetically programmed killing machine." "We don't want one of them on this station." "Fine. lf you want answers about the Jem'Hadar, I'm the one who can find them for you." "Let me get to know him." "I'll be responsible for his conduct while he's here." "Odo, do you really think you can control him?" "He's already shown a certain deference to me." "That's probably another genetic alteration implanted by the Founders to insure the Jem'Hadar's loyalty." "I can keep him from harming anyone." "I'd like to speak with the Constable in private for a moment, please." "Talk to me, Odo." "Tell me what's really going on here." "What the Founders did to the boy, to all the Jem'Hadar, is not your fault." "Maybe not, but I feel an obligation to undo some of the damage that my race has done to this boy." "I know what it's like to be a specimen in a laboratory." "I'm sure they'll treat him well." "No one will risk harming their new prize." "They'll be courteous, caring, treat him like he's among friends, but in the end, he'll be just another specimen to them, something to be analysed and catalogued." "Give me the chance to find out if he is just a programmed killing machine or if we can help him become something else." "I'll tell Starfleet we have some preliminary tests to run before we send him to Starbase 201 ." " Thank you, Commander." " Just be careful, Odo." "He is still a Jem'Hadar." "Listen to me." "Your body is craving a certain chemical compound." "That is why you're feeling anxious and having muscle spasms." "There's nothing wrong with me." "Yes, there is, and denying it won't make it go away." "Leave me alone." "You can wait outside." "I think everything is under control now." "Please." "Sit down." " You don't look well." "How do you feel?" " Something's wrong with me." "I feel sick when I eat." "I have pains in my head, in my chest." "He is addicted to an isogenic enzyme." "He's experiencing symptoms of withdrawal." "Addicted?" "Can you replicate this enzyme?" "I've had success with triglycerides, but they're just a stopgap measure." "I can't get an exact chemical formula without further tests, but he's resistant to that idea." " l don't want tests." " Dr Bashir is trying to help you." "You should let him." "You may run your tests." " My name is Odo." " l don't have a name." "When your tests are done, I can maybe show you around the station." " lf you wish." " What do you want?" "Do you have any needs of your own?" " l want to fight." " Who?" "Me?" " No, the others." " Why?" "I don't know, but that's what I want to do. ls that wrong?" "We need to find other interests for you to pursue." "For the moment, why don't you relax?" "Try not to be so tense." "Take it easy." "Smile." "A smile, you know." "We'll work on that." "Smells good." "What is it?" "Shrimp Creole with Mandalay sauce." "One of my father's recipes." "You'll love it." "I hope you like spicy food." "This sure has a bite." "So, Mardah, tell me a little about yourself." " What do you want to know?" " Anything." "Family." "There isn't much to tell." "It's a pretty familiar story." "Parents killed during the occupation, raised by my neighbours until I was 1 3, then I moved out on my own." "I have a sister and a brother on Bajor, but we haven't talked in years." "Why not?" "Sarjeno and Koran weren't thrilled when I told them I worked as a dabo girl." "Then I told them what I thought of their lives, and we stopped speaking." "I see." "It's amazing how some people will judge you based on nothing more than your job." " Did I mention that Mardah's a writer?" " Really?" "Yeah." "Mrs O'Brien said that Mardah should try to get her stories published." "They aren't that good." "Nothing like your poetry." "You don't have enough faith in yourself." "Poetry?" "You write poetry?" "Sort of." "Not really." "Now who doesn't have enough faith in themselves?" "He writes some of the most beautiful things I've ever read." "That's what won me over." "His poetry?" " And the way he plays dom-jot." " You play dom-jot?" " Oh, your son is quite the hustler." " A hustler?" "Why don't I see how dessert's coming?" "Jake seemed like just another teenage boy at first, but there's more to him than that." "I'm beginning to realise that myself." "I care about him very much." "And so do I." "Now, tell me more about my poet-hustler son." "It's over here." "This is it." "We tried to run an analysis, but the computer couldn't make heads or tails of it." "This is the drug the boy's addicted to?" "The Founders would have kept a supply of the enzyme aboard his ship." "Hopefully Dr Bashir can determine if this is it." "Why would they engineer someone to be addicted to a certain chemical?" "It's another way of insuring the loyalty of the Jem'Hadar to the Founders." "If your soldiers are addicted to a drug that can't be replicated and only you can provide, that gives you control over them." "Seems a pretty cold-blooded thing to do." "My people don't have blood, Chief." "I believe this tube delivers the chemical agent into the carotid artery." " How large a dose is required?" " l'm not sure yet." "This supply could last for a week, a month or even a year." "I'll have to experiment to find the right dosage." "We'll start with two milligrams." "Let me know if you feel uncomfortable." "His heart rate is slowing, some increase in neurotransmitter activity, and his cortical impulse readings are levelling out." "Let's try three cc's." "We can hold it there for now." " How do you feel?" " Good." "Thank you." "You should rest now." "We'll talk later." "I'll be in my quarters." "Wait." " l want to go with you." " The doctor will take care of you." "I want to stay with you." "He doesn't have to stay here as long as I can monitor his condition regularly." "Well, it seems I have my first houseguest." "You can change into any of these objects?" "With varying degrees of success." "Some forms are more difficult to emulate than others." " Like what?" " Like this one." "As you can see, I haven't mastered the humanoid face." "I've found it to be quite challenging." "Why do you want to look like a humanoid?" "You're better than they are." "You're a changeling." "That doesn't make me better, just different." "But I know in here that I am inferior to you." "But everyone else here is inferior to me." "That may be what your instincts tell you, but it's not true." "No one on this station is better than anyone else." "We're all equal." "Then I must be at fault, because I know that you cannot be wrong." "The first thing we have to establish is that I'm not infallible." "I'm no different from you in that respect." "You have to begin to think for yourself, to make decisions based on what you want, not what I want." "Do you understand?" "What do you want right now?" "Don't think about it." "Just tell me the first thing that comes to mind." "I... I want..." "I want to know more about my people." "Who I am and where l come from." "I can understand that." "I was also found by aliens." "I didn't know who I was or what my people were like." " Did you ever find them?" " Yes." "But sometimes the truth is not very pleasant." "Computer, display bridge security log USS Defiant, stardate 4821 4.5, time index 31 0." " These are my people?" " Yes." "They're a race of brutal warriors, but that doesn't mean you have to be like that." "You can channel your feelings of aggression in other ways." "How?" "Computer, run programme Odo One." " This is not a real person?" " That's right." "He can't be injured or killed." "He's just a computer simulation." " How strong is he?" " As strong as you make him." "The computer will adjust his strength, agility, speed - anything you want." "In here, you can indulge yourself, let your instincts take over, fight until you're ready to stop." "But at a price." "Out there you have to control yourself." "You have to learn restraint, to live peacefully among others, regardless of how you may feel, learn to contain your feelings of aggression and violence." "Can I?" "Can I do it again?" "Can I have a stronger opponent?" "Computer, increase difficulty to level two." "It's too easy." "Make it more difficult." "Computer, increase to level three." "Can I speak to you for a moment?" "Computer, increase to level five." "I heard you let him move in with you." "It was his idea." "He feels safer with me around." "Of course he does, Odo." "He was programmed to feel that way." "It's more than that." "I've begun to form a real connection with him." "He trusts me." "But can you trust him?" "How long do you think you can control him?" "I'm not trying to control anybody." "I'm trying to give him some choices other than becoming a laboratory specimen or a Jem'Hadar soldier." "You are listening to your heart, not your head." "That boy was created in a laboratory." "His body, his mind, his instincts are all designed to do one thing - to kill." "My body, mind and instincts were designed to be a Founder." "You were trained to be a terrorist, but we chose to be something different." "I just want to give him the same chance we've had." "All right." "Give him a chance." "Just don't forget he's a Jem'Hadar." "He's dangerous." " l'm well aware of the risk, Major." " l hope so." "Computer, end programme." "Everyone keeps looking at me." "They're afraid of me." "They're mostly curious, but they're also afraid." "They should be." "I could kill any of them." "is that all you can think about?" "Killing?" " Don't you care about anything else?" " l don't think so." "There is so much more to life than that, so much more for you to discover and experience." "Maybe there is for you." "And maybe there is for all these other people here, but for me..." " Sisko to Odo." " Go ahead, Commander." " l need to see you in my office." " On my way." "Wait for me in our quarters." "Something's wrong." "Starfleet is sending the USS Constellation to pick up the boy and then take him to Starbase 201 ." "They'll be here in five hours." "I thought we had an agreement." "I'm sorry, Odo." "Starfleet considers the boy a top priority." "I did everything I could, but orders are orders." "I..." "You're not sending me anywhere." " What do you want?" " A runabout." " To go where?" " That's not your concern." " This is not the way." " l know what I'm doing." "I'm leaving, and you're going with me." "You don't belong here any more than I do." "All right." "It won't be necessary to hurt anyone." "Commander Sisko will see to it that no one interferes." "If they do, I'll kill them." " Where are we going?" " To the Gamma Quadrant." "It's where our people are." "It's where we both belong." "I don't belong there, and you don't either." "I won't let them put me in a laboratory." "I won't go with them." "All right, but we needn't go to the Gamma Quadrant." "We can find a place where no one will bother you, where you can learn about yourself without worrying about being sent to some laboratory." "It's a big galaxy." "All we have to do is head out for unexplored space and keep on going." "I am willing to do this with you, to help start you on your new life, if that's what you want." "You just don't understand, do you?" "I want to be with my people." "I don't want to be anywhere else." "I'm not like these other humanoids." "I'm a Jem'Hadar, and that's what I want to be." "You're not like these humanoids either, but they've done something to you." "They've filled your mind with ideas, with these beliefs." "I don't know what the other changelings are like, but I know they're not like you." "No." "They're not." "Spread out, but remember not to fire until you hear my command or the boy fires first." " This is as far as you go." " Let us go, Commander." "I'm leaving of my own accord." "I'll take the boy back to his people, then return in the runabout." "If he boards the Constellation when it arrives, he'll either kill a lot of innocent people or be killed himself." "What makes you think he'll let you come back?" "I don't believe he could injure a changeling." "When the Constellation arrives I'll tell them that I couldn't stop you from leaving, that I would have had to kill the boy to keep him here." "Admiral Nechayev won't like that answer, but it has the virtue of being the truth." "Sisko to O'Brien." "Release the security fields around the airlock, Chief." "Aye, sir." "I'll see you when you get back." "He was afraid of me." "I could see the fear in his eyes." "Commander Sisko was trying to help you." "He's not my friend." "He's my enemy." "I now know that anyone who is not a Jem'Hadar is my enemy." "Does that include me?" "Station log, supplemental." "Starfleet is disappointed over the missed opportunity to learn more about the Jem'Hadar." "But I'm happy to report that with the boy gone, life on the station has returned to normal." "We can get the upper sensor grid back on-line." "Good." "We'll need it in the next few days." "Weren't you going to lower the boom on those two?" "I was, but some things came up at dinner I didn't expect." "Got to know her a little better?" "No, I got to know Jake a little better." "Have you ever played dom-jot with him?" " No." " Don't." "Major, about the boy..." "You were right."