Move Along Home (DS9 episode)
Encyclopedia
"Move Along Home" is the 10th episode
of the science fiction
television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
.
is forced to play a game in which the lives of the crew are at stake.
has the distinction of making first contact
with a Gamma Quadrant species known as the Wadi. However, the Wadi show no interest in formalities and head straight to Quark's. The Ferengi initially sees the Wadi as a potential source of great profit, but when the Wadi master Dabo and go on a winning streak, he has one of his waiters rig the game. The Wadi catch him and force Quark to play "an honest game" called Chula.
Meanwhile, Sisko
, Bashir
, Kira
, and Dax
find themselves in an abstract, dream-like world. One of the Wadi appears and cheerfully yells, "Move along, move along home!" They are faced with several puzzles as Quark plays the game, and when Odo finds the four of them missing, Quark comes to realize that they are part of the game he is playing.
Later on in the game, Julian's piece is moved to a separate area of the game and he disappears. Quark is then faced with a choice between a shorter, more difficult path or a longer, easier one for his remaining "players." He chooses the shortcut, and when Odo objects, he explains that with risks to his "players" involved in every move, advancing them home as soon as possible is the wiser choice. Ultimately, Quark chooses the shorter path for the officers. However, when he rolls the game says he must sacrifice one of his players.
Quark begs the Wadi not to make him choose, and they make the game choose at random. Sisko, Kira, and Dax are faced with scaling a mountain during a violent earthquake
, and Dax's leg becomes stuck between two rocks. Although she tells Sisko to leave her behind, he and Kira help her walk across a ledge on the rock face. They slip, however, and the three of them fall into the abyss — only to re-materialize in Quark's. Quark is elated and begins to collect his winnings, but the Wadi explains that all his players were lost; the crew was never in any real danger. "It's only a game!" he laughs.
As Sisko is about to angrily confront the Wadi over what they've experienced, Odo inturrupts and tells him that he might ought to better talk with Quark first about certain confessions that were made while the game was in progress. The Wadi depart as Sisko turns his attentions to Quark.
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
QuarkQuark (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...
is forced to play a game in which the lives of the crew are at stake.
Plot
Deep Space NineDeep 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...
has the distinction of making first contact
First contact (science fiction)
First contact is a common science fiction theme about the first meeting between humans and extraterrestrial life, or of any sentient race's first encounter with another one....
with a Gamma Quadrant species known as the Wadi. However, the Wadi show no interest in formalities and head straight to Quark's. The Ferengi initially sees the Wadi as a potential source of great profit, but when the Wadi master Dabo and go on a winning streak, he has one of his waiters rig the game. The Wadi catch him and force Quark to play "an honest game" called Chula.
Meanwhile, 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:...
, 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:...
, 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...
, and 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....
find themselves in an abstract, dream-like world. One of the Wadi appears and cheerfully yells, "Move along, move along home!" They are faced with several puzzles as Quark plays the game, and when Odo finds the four of them missing, Quark comes to realize that they are part of the game he is playing.
Later on in the game, Julian's piece is moved to a separate area of the game and he disappears. Quark is then faced with a choice between a shorter, more difficult path or a longer, easier one for his remaining "players." He chooses the shortcut, and when Odo objects, he explains that with risks to his "players" involved in every move, advancing them home as soon as possible is the wiser choice. Ultimately, Quark chooses the shorter path for the officers. However, when he rolls the game says he must sacrifice one of his players.
Quark begs the Wadi not to make him choose, and they make the game choose at random. Sisko, Kira, and Dax are faced with scaling a mountain during a violent earthquake
Earthquake
An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time...
, and Dax's leg becomes stuck between two rocks. Although she tells Sisko to leave her behind, he and Kira help her walk across a ledge on the rock face. They slip, however, and the three of them fall into the abyss — only to re-materialize in Quark's. Quark is elated and begins to collect his winnings, but the Wadi explains that all his players were lost; the crew was never in any real danger. "It's only a game!" he laughs.
As Sisko is about to angrily confront the Wadi over what they've experienced, Odo inturrupts and tells him that he might ought to better talk with Quark first about certain confessions that were made while the game was in progress. The Wadi depart as Sisko turns his attentions to Quark.