Dramatis Personae (DS9 episode)
Encyclopedia
"Dramatis Personae" is the 18th episode
Episode
An episode is a part of a dramatic work such as a serial television or radio program. An episode is a part of a sequence of a body of work, akin to a chapter of a book. The term sometimes applies to works based on other forms of mass media as well, as in Star Wars...

 of the science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...

 television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is a science fiction television series set in the Star Trek universe...

.

Overview

A "telepathic infection" sets the crew into two factions fighting against each other, with Kira
Kira Nerys
Kira Nerys , played by Nana Visitor, is a main character in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.-Backstory:Per Bajoran custom, her family name, Kira, precedes her given name, Nerys. She has two brothers , and her parents' names are Kira Taban and Kira Meru...

 leading the mutiny.

Plot

Kira believes a Valerian ship is smuggling Dolomite
Dolomite
Dolomite is a carbonate mineral composed of calcium magnesium carbonate CaMg2. The term is also used to describe the sedimentary carbonate rock dolostone....

 weapons to the Cardassian
Cardassian
The Cardassians are an extraterrestrial species in the Star Trek science fiction franchise. First introduced in the 1991 Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "The Wounded", the species originating on the fictional Alpha Quadrant planet Cardassia Prime...

s, but Sisko
Benjamin Sisko
Benjamin Lafayette Sisko, played by Avery Brooks, is the main character of the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.-Early life and career:...

 refuses to detain the vessel unless she has evidence. Before they can resolve their conflict, a damaged Klingon
Klingon
Klingons are a fictional warrior race in the Star Trek universe.Klingons are recurring villains in the 1960s television show Star Trek: The Original Series, and have appeared in all five spin-off series and eight feature films...

 vessel comes through the Wormhole and one of its crew transports aboard Deep Space Nine
Deep Space Nine (space station)
Deep Space Nine is a fictitious space station, and is the eponymous primary setting of the science fiction television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. It serves as a base for the exploration of the Gamma Quadrant via the Bajoran wormhole, and is a hub of trade and travel for the sector's denizens...

 as the ship explodes. The bloodied man, later discovered to be the ship's first officer, whispers, "Victory!" and dies within seconds. As the vessel was only supposed to be conducting a biological survey, the crew investigates. While inquiring at Quark
Quark (Star Trek)
Quark is a fictional character in the American television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. The character, which was played by Armin Shimerman, was depicted as a member of an extraterrestrial race known as the Ferengi, who are stereotypically ultra-capitalist and only motivated by...

's, Odo's head splits in two and he collapses.

He awakens in the Infirmary, and while Bashir
Julian Bashir
Lieutenant Julian Subatoi Bashir, M.D., played by Alexander Siddig, is a main character in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Bashir is the chief medical officer of space station Deep Space Nine and the USS Defiant.-Overview:...

 is unable to find what is wrong with Odo, he hints at potential trouble between Kira and Sisko. When pressed for more information, he says it is "too early to commit oneself either way." By this time, Kira has found evidence of foul play among the Valerians, but when she informs Sisko of her intention to confiscate their cargo; he forbids her from doing so. Meanwhile, Dax
Jadzia Dax
Jadzia Dax , played by Terry Farrell, was a main character during the first six seasons of the science fiction television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine....

 and O'Brien
Miles O'Brien (Star Trek)
Miles Edward O'Brien, played by Colm Meaney, is Chief of Operations in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Before DS9, he appeared as a recurring transporter chief in Star Trek: The Next Generation...

 travel to the Gamma Quadrant to find the Klingons' mission recorder.

O'Brien mentions the mounting tension during their trip and makes his loyalty to Sisko clear to a complacent Dax. They find the mission recorder and bring it back to the station, where Kira attempts to win Dax's loyalty. While the others form alliances, however, Dax seems lethargic and only seems interested in reminiscing about the past. When Kira finds Quark attempting to eavesdrop, Kira nearly kills him.

Quark comes into Odo's office wearing a neck brace
Cervical collar
A cervical collar is an orthopedic medical device used to support a patient's neck and head. It is also used by emergency personnel for victims of traumatic head or neck injuries, and can be used to treat chronic medical conditions....

 and announces his intention to file charges. When he mentions Kira's attack, Odo is more interested in the alliances that seem to be forming so quickly and decides to talk with Sisko; after he leaves, it is clear that Quark did not need the neck brace.

In Sisko's office, Odo finds O'Brien, who is reviewing the Klingon captain's log. Odo visits Sisko in his quarters and warns of the parallels between the bloody mutiny that apparently occurred on the Klingons' ship and what is now happening on the station, but Sisko has begun meticulously constructing a clock and cannot be bothered. Kira is waiting for Odo when he returns to his own office, and she solicits his help in her plan to eliminate Sisko and O'Brien. She even offers to make Odo her first officer once she is in command. He pretends to go along with her and decides to review the Klingon log further.

Before the Klingons' mutiny began, they discovered a collection of energy spheres with telepathic
Telepathy
Telepathy , is the induction of mental states from one mind to another. The term was coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Fredric W. H. Myers, a founder of the Society for Psychical Research, and has remained more popular than the more-correct expression thought-transference...

imprints of an ancient power struggle that destroyed an entire race. While Odo is reviewing the log, the plot thickens as O'Brien informs Sisko that the Valerian captain has agreed to take them with him once O'Brien helps him escape. Odo visits Bashir again and they realize the imprints from the spheres are causing the crew to reenact the aliens' power struggle, with Odo being the only one unaffected due to his non-humanoid brain. Odo manages to trick the possessed Bashir - whose controlling influence wants to wait and see about which side to join - into helping him.

Bashir develops a way of removing the telepathic signals from the crew and Odo uses the fact that both Kira and Sisko trust him to lure both sides into one of the station's cargo bays. There, Odo and Bashir surprise them as they are about to kill one another. Odo activates Bashir's cure. A cloud of purple gas-like material emerges from the crew and they demand to know what is happening. He tells everyone to grab hold of something stable and opens the cargo bay doors, venting the gas into space and removing the telepathic imprint permanently.
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