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June 5, 1994
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45 minutes
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138
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2024-09-12 01:54:59
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Version 2
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SUMMARY
Stardate: 47944.2. Chief O'Brien goes through the horrific Cardassian judicial system when he is charged for an unknown crime.
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TRANSCRIPT
[Ops]
(O'Brien is in civilian clothes.)
O'BRIEN: And I've downloaded the new docking procedure checklist for bay six into the BayProd D nine file. That's the only bay that's using the new criteria.
DAX: Got it.
O'BRIEN: And be sure to monitor the power fluctuations in the secondary fusion core. It's got some little kinks in there I don't like the look of.
DAX: I will care for the secondary fusion core like it was my own child.
O'BRIEN: As soon as I get back I'm going to run a full diagnostic to be sure
KIRA: Chief, we are perfectly capable of running this place by ourselves for a week.
O'BRIEN: Well, if you have any problems you can reach me on subspace.
KIRA: Would you please go on vacation and get out of our hair?
DAX: Miles?
O'BRIEN: Yes?
DAX: Have a good time.
O'BRIEN: Oh right. Thanks. I feel relaxed already.
(O'Brien exits on the turbolift.)
SISKO: (comes out of his office) Is he gone?
KIRA: Finally.
SISKO: Good. He's been driving me crazy all day. You'd think that I was
O'BRIEN: Commander. I forgot to tell you. I added a new subroutine to the environmental control in the habitat ring.
SISKO: Chief O'Brien
O'BRIEN: Yes, sir?
SISKO: You're on leave. Please disembark the station.
O'BRIEN: Aye, sir.
[Promenade]
(O'Brien is hurrying along, nearly dropping a PADD. He passes a man, stops and turns back.)
O'BRIEN: Boone? O'Brien. Miles O'Brien. We served together on the Rutledge.
BOONE: Of course. O'Brien. It's been a long time. How're you doing?
O'BRIEN: I'm fine, just fine. I work on this station now. Chief engineer.
BOONE: Is that a fact.
O'BRIEN: How long you been out of Starfleet?
BOONE: Oh, about eight years now. I settled on Volan Three.
O'BRIEN: Well, that's on the Cardassian side of the Demilitarised zone, isn't it?
BOONE: Yes, the new treaty really puts us in harm's way, but I run a ladarium mining sluice. As long as the Cardassians need ladarium for their warp drives, they leave me alone.
O'BRIEN: After what we went through in the border wars, I don't know how you can live there. You were there at Setlik Three?
BOONE: That's what got me out of Starfleet.
O'BRIEN: Really? That's why I stayed in. Listen, my wife is waiting me at a runabout and she hates it when I'm late, and I always am.
BOONE: I'm coming back for another supply pickup in a month or two.
O'BRIEN: Okay, let me know when.
[Closet]
(In a dark room, Boone checks the recording of the conversation.)
O'BRIEN [OC]: O'Brien. Miles O'Brien. We served together on the Rutledge.
[Runabout]
KEIKO: Miles.
O'BRIEN: Huh?
KEIKO: Didn't you bring the holocam?
O'BRIEN: Was I supposed to?
KEIKO: You said you were going to.
O'BRIEN: Did I?
KEIKO: Last night, when we were going over the list in bed.
(Keiko removes PADDs and papers from the console.)
O'BRIEN: Not me. I was dead as soon as my head hit the pillow.
KEIKO: You talked to me for a half hour.
O'BRIEN: No, there must have been someone else in bed with us.
KEIKO: What's this?
O'BRIEN: Oh, just some new technical update manuals.
KEIKO: Our first vacation in five years and you brought technical update manuals?
O'BRIEN: Yeah, maybe we should've brought Molly with us. Do you think she'll be okay with the Petersons?
(Keiko puts out food.)
KEIKO: She likes the Petersons more than she likes us. She's fine.
O'BRIEN: We could swing back, pick up the holocam and Molly, and still only lose half a day.
(Keiko stares at O'Brien.)
O'BRIEN: Or we could pick up the holocam when we get there.
KEIKO: How many did you bring?
O'BRIEN: What?
KEIKO: Tech update manuals.
O'BRIEN: Just a few. Computer, play something by Minezaki.
(He goes over to where she is sitting and starts kissing her face. Eventually she smiles.)
KEIKO: Do these chairs recline?
O'BRIEN: I wish they did.
KEIKO: You're an engineer. Do something about it. I'll make it worth your while.
COMPUTER: Vessel approaching bearing one nine one mark six.
O'BRIEN: Identify.
COMPUTER: Cardassian patrol ship, Hideki Class.
O'BRIEN: Shields up. Try to send an emergency subspace signal to the station.
KEIKO: I can't. They're jamming all subspace frequencies.
O'BRIEN: They're hailing us. This is Miles O'Brien of Starbase Deep Space Nine. State your business.
GUL EVEK [on monitor]: Mister O'Brien, we've spoken before. My name is Evek. Shut down your drive and come to a full stop. We're beaming an inspection team aboard.
O'BRIEN: We're nowhere near the Cardassian border. You've no authority here.
GUL EVEK [on monitor]: We'll argue about authority later. Now, you will either comply, or we will take preemptive action.
COMPUTER: Warning. Sensors are reading photo lock-on activation.
GUL EVEK [on monitor]: You have ten seconds.
O'BRIEN: Don't worry. We haven't done anything.
(Three Cardassians beam in)
GUL EVEK: Thank you for your cooperation. I have orders to arrest you, Mister O'Brien.
KEIKO: Arrest?
GUL EVEK: Search the ship.
O'BRIEN: What are the charges?
GUL EVEK: You have the right to refuse to answer questions, but such refusal may be construed as a sign of guilt.
O'BRIEN: I demand to know what I'm being accused of.
GUL EVEK: You deny all knowledge of this crime then?
O'BRIEN: How the hell am I supposed to deny something when I don't know what you're talking about?
GUL EVEK: So you do not deny all knowledge.
KEIKO: We are Federation citizens and we have rights.
GUL EVEK: Yes, yes. All your rights as defined by Cardassian Articles of Jurisprudence will be protected.
O'BRIEN: I demand to speak to my Commander.
GUL EVEK: We will contact your Commander and see that your wife is returned safely to your station. You will be taken to Central prison on Cardassia Prime to await trial.
O'BRIEN: I'm not going anywhere with you.
(O'Brien is stunned.)
KEIKO: Miles! Miles! No!
(The Cardassians beam out with O'Brien, leaving one with Keiko.)
KEIKO: Miles! Miles!
[Cardassia]
CARDASSIAN [OC]: Look to the children. They are the future of Cardassia and they will lead the way. Invest in their minds. Teach them carefully.
[Processing area]
(O'Brien is pushed into a spotlight.)
CARDASSIAN: Remove your clothes.
O'BRIEN: My name is Miles O'Brien. My rank, Chief of Operations, Starfleet. I'm a Federation citizen.
CARDASSIAN: Remove your clothes.
O'BRIEN: My name is Miles O'Brien. My rank is Chief of Operations, Starfleet. I'm a Federation citizen.
(He is thrown against a wall and a guard cuts his clothes off.)
CARDASSIAN: Would you care to make a confession?
O'BRIEN: My name is Miles O'Brien. My rank is Chief of Operations, Starfleet. I am a citizen of the Federation.
CARDASSIAN: Process him.
(O'Brien is held down while a laser is shone into his eye. His ID number 41302 comes up on a monitor. He's dragged to a metal chair, hits one of the guards but is slammed back and drugged. The chair tilts to lie him down.)
O'BRIEN: My name is Miles O'Brien. My rank is Chief of Operations
(A lock of hair and a tooth are taken from him during this, then he is irradiated. The main doors open and a female Cardassian enters.)
MAKBAR: Has he been processed?
CARDASSIAN: He has.
MAKBAR: You were told he was not to be harmed.
CARDASSIAN: He had to be restrained. Bring him his clothing.
(A guard gives O'Brien some clothes as he is released from the chair.)
MAKBAR: I apologise for the way you've been treated, Mister O'Brien. I am Makbar, Chief Archon. I want your stay here to be as comfortable as possible under the circumstances. I've scheduled your trial to begin in two days. You've been assigned the Venerable Kovat as Public Conservator.
O'BRIEN: As what?
MAKBAR: Your lawyer. Many feel that he's the best counsel in all Cardassia.
O'BRIEN: What do I need a lawyer for? What am I charged with? Who's accusing me?
MAKBAR: All in good time, Mister O'Brien. All in good time
[Commander's office]
SISKO: Starfleet has ordered the Enterprise, the Prokofiev and the Valdemar to the border of the Demilitarised zone. Hopefully, when the Cardassians see that they are risking the entire treaty over this
KEIKO: In the meantime, my husband is being violated by them. Every shred of his humanity is being violated. Isn't that true?
SISKO: We don't know exactly what
KEIKO: Damn it, don't lie to me! They're torturing him as we sit here.
ODO: It is standard procedure for the Cardassians to use torture in their interrogations. You are correct, Mrs O'Brien.
KEIKO: You don't know how many times Miles spoke to me about this, what the Cardassians did to the prisoners they took at Setlik Three, what they were like when they came back. The thought of it, it disgusted him, it scared him. We can't leave him there.
SISKO: We don't even know where he's being held on Cardassia Prime.
[Ops]
SISKO: Keiko, I promise you as soon as we have more information, I'll do everything in my power to
KIRA: Commander, you have a subspace transmission from Cardassia Prime.
SISKO: On screen. I'm Benjamin Sisko, Commander of Deep Space Nine.
MAKBAR [on viewscreen]: My name is Makbar. I am the Archon representing the Cardassian Empire in its case against Miles O'Brien.
SISKO: May I speak with him?
MAKBAR [on viewscreen]: That is not possible.
SISKO: May I see him?
MAKBAR [on viewscreen]: Commander
SISKO: May I be assured that he is well and being treated properly?
MAKBAR [on viewscreen]: Mister O'Brien is being treated with great care and respect.
SISKO: Good. Because if he is not, I will hold you personally responsible. And if that sounds like a threat, it is.
MAKBAR [on viewscreen]: Gul Dukat's told me about you. You live up to your reputation, Commander.
SISKO: That's right. I do. Now, what are the charges against Chief O'Brien?
MAKBAR [on viewscreen]: The charges will be announced when the trial begins, as is customary in Cardassian jurisprudence.
KEIKO: How can we prepare for the trial if we don't know the charges?
MAKBAR [on viewscreen]: Mrs O'Brien, I take it?
KEIKO: Yes.
MAKBAR [on viewscreen]: Mrs O'Brien, there's nothing for you to prepare. Your husband's verdict has already been determined. He is guilty. The trial will reveal how this guilt was proven by the most efficient criminal investigation system in the quadrant. You may, if you desire, attend this trial, which begins in two days time.
SISKO: We'll be there.
MAKBAR [on viewscreen]: Oh, I'm sorry, Commander, this is a privilege enjoyed solely by the spouse of an offender.
ODO: What about his Nestor?
MAKBAR [on viewscreen]: His Counsel and his Nestor will be assigned by the court.
SISKO: Nestor?
ODO: Advisor to the offender. Madame Archon, I volunteer to serve as Nestor in this trial.
MAKBAR [on viewscreen]: That is not possible. The Nestor must be an officer of the Court.
ODO: I am an officer of the Court. Chief of Security Odo. I served Gul Dukat on Terok Nor. You may check my credentials. I was designated an officer of the Cardassian court four years ago in order to testify in criminal cases.
MAKBAR [on viewscreen]: Very well. If this is true, you may accompany Mrs O'Brien and serve as Nestor.
ODO: May I ask what penalty does Mister O'Brien face?
MAKBAR [on viewscreen]: His execution is scheduled for next week.
KEIKO: How can you schedule an execution before the trial even begins?
MAKBAR [on viewscreen]: We believe in swift justice.
(transmission ends)
ODO: Mrs O'Brien, we should leave immediately.
SISKO: Begin a complete security sweep of the station and Chief O'Brien's recent activities. I want to know if there's anything out of the ordinary that might begin to explain this.
KIRA: Commander, Chief O'Brien's attitude toward the Cardassians is hardly a secret. What if he actually has done something?
SISKO: Then we need to know that too, don't we?
[O'Brien's cell]
KOVAT: Miles O'Brien? Yes, of course you are.
(He deactivates the forcefield and enters)
KOVAT: I am Conservator Kovat.
O'BRIEN: I've been told that I've already been charged, indicted, convicted and sentenced. What would I need with a lawyer?
KOVAT: Ah, Mister O'Brien, if it seems immodest of me, I apologise, but the role of Public Conservator is key to the productive functioning of our courts. I'm here to help you concede the wisdom of the state, to prepare you to accept the inevitable with equanimity. There is an old Cardassian expression. Confession is good for the soul. But it's also good for the populace to see people like you confess. It makes them feel better about themselves. It makes their lives more bearable.
O'BRIEN: So that's what this is all about? Make the people of Cardassia feel better, huh?
KOVAT: No, no, no, but that's not a bad side effect. Now then, I have your biographical extract and your Starfleet record. All this will be very useful.
O'BRIEN: What am I being charged with?
KOVAT: No need to worry about that at this point.
O'BRIEN: This is insane.
KOVAT: Whatever you've done, whatever the charges against you, none of that really matters in the long run.
O'BRIEN: What does matter?
KOVAT: This trial is to demonstrate the futility of behaviour contrary to good order. Everyone will find it most uplifting.
O'BRIEN: Not everyone.
KOVAT: Once again, justice will be done. Our lives will be reaffirmed, safe and secure. Here on Cardassia, all crimes are solved, all criminals are punished, all endings are happy. Even the poorest of our subjects can walk the streets in the dead of night in perfect safety. You're only one man, but your conviction will be a salutary experience for millions. Now then, the trial opens tomorrow. Do you have any questions, anything you want to tell me?
O'BRIEN: Only that I am not guilty of any crime, and that I hold this whole procedure with nothing but contempt.
KOVAT: That's good, that's good. Maintain that level of arrogance in the courtroom and we should put on a very good show indeed.
O'BRIEN: I do have one question.
KOVAT: Yes, certainly.
O'BRIEN: Have you ever won a case?
KOVAT: Winning isn't everything.
[Weapons locker]
(The crates are full of scrap metal)
SISKO: Are they all like this?
KIRA: All of them. There isn't a photon warhead left in here.
SISKO: How could somebody transport two dozen warheads off this station without the perimeter sensors picking it up?
DAX: The metal in these crates has the same mass as the warheads. A transporter could been programmed to switch the two simultaneously. The sensors could've been fooled.
KIRA: But it would require a transporter expert.
BASHIR: I know what you're implying, Major, and I don't like it.
KIRA: Neither do I, but there is more. According to the logs, O'Brien was in here just minutes before his runabout left.
DAX: Computer, play security log entry, stardate 47944.2, weapons locker.
O'BRIEN [OC]: Request access. weapons locker four. Miles O'Brien, security level one.
DAX: The computer confirmed his voice-print ID and let him in.
KIRA: As soon as the door opened, some kind of field saturation device was activated that froze all the security scanners in the room.
SISKO: I want a full analysis of that voice-print. Make absolutely sure it was O'Brien.
BASHIR: It doesn't make sense. What would he do with photon warheads?
KIRA: Give them to the Maquis. We had an advisory two weeks ago that a Maquis ship disabled a Bolian freighter near the Demilitarised zone and stole a supply of photon launchers.
SISKO: Launchers, but no warheads.
KIRA: Launchers, but no warheads.
BASHIR: You're suggesting that Miles O'Brien took his wife on a romantic vacation as an excuse to deliver warheads to the Maquis? I don't believe it.
SISKO: If these warheads were in the runabout, they'll be used as evidence in the trial.
BASHIR: Commander!
SISKO: We'll find that out soon enough.
DAX: If they were in the runabout, how did the Cardassians find out?
SISKO: That's the one question I want an answer to. I also want to find out who the other guy was.
KIRA: The other guy?
SISKO: The one who was waiting to receive these warheads. I'll have Starfleet intelligence begin to pick up Maquis suspects for questioning. In the meantime, let's see if we can ID any possible Maquis members who've been on the station recently. Dismissed.
[O'Brien's cell]
O'BRIEN: Tell me you're here to take me home.
ODO: I'm sorry. How have they treated you?
O'BRIEN: Not so bad. They did some dental work when I got here that wasn't fun.
ODO: All Cardassians are required to give the Bureau of Identification one of their first molars. It's usually extracted at age ten.
O'BRIEN: Keiko. Is she all right?
ODO: She came with me.
O'BRIEN: She's here? Now?
ODO: It's not permitted for family members to visit offenders in confinement. She'll be at the trial tomorrow. The Cardassians always invite families to trials and executions so that the public can see them weep.
O'BRIEN: No, I don't want her there. I don't want her to see me like this.
ODO: I think that's a mistake.
O'BRIEN: My lawyer's already told me it's all over but the execution. I don't even know what I'm charged with! Did they tell you anything?
ODO: No. But we have an idea.
O'BRIEN: What?
ODO: Have you ever had any dealings with the Maquis?
O'BRIEN: Dealings? No. I'm not sure what you mean
ODO: Do you know anybody in the Maquis?
O'BRIEN: No.
ODO: Ever supplied any of them with weapons?
O'BRIEN: No! Are you here to interrogate me, Constable? Is anybody ever going to tell me what I'm supposed to have done?
ODO: Commander Sisko informed me a few hours ago that twenty four photon warheads are missing from the station. We believe they may have been in your runabout's cargo bay intended for the Maquis.
O'BRIEN: The Cardassians did find something in the hold, it's true.
ODO: But you know nothing about it?
O'BRIEN: Nothing.
ODO: And you didn't transport them from weapons locker four just before you left the station?
O'BRIEN: No.
ODO: Were you in weapons locker four before you left the station?
O'BRIEN: No.
ODO: Then why does the log say that you were? Why was it your voice releasing the security lock?
O'BRIEN: My voice?
ODO: Your voice.
O'BRIEN: I don't know. You don't know me very well, Constable, but I, I, I've been in service to the Federation, Starfleet, all my adult life. No one has ever questioned my loyalty. No one in my entire life has ever had cause to ask, Miles O'Brien, are you a criminal? I took an oath to defend the Federation and what it stands for. I don't steal from them. I don't lie to them. I'm no angel, but I try to live every day as the best human being I know how to be. I need my little girl to wake up in the morning and look up at me and see a man she can respect. Until now, she always could.
ODO: Being accused of a crime is not a disgrace, Chief. Some of the great figures of history have shared the honour with you.
O'BRIEN: I didn't figure on dying a martyr.
ODO: Not all of them were martyrs, not all of them died. Some of them were just innocent men like you. Now, I've managed to get myself named to your defence team. I'll be there tomorrow. Your wife will be there as well, but she won't be weeping and neither will you. I want the Archon to see the clear, unwavering eyes of an innocent man. Is that understood?
O'BRIEN: Yes, sir.
ODO: Guard! I'll see you tomorrow.
O'BRIEN: Odo. Thanks for being here.
[Ops]
DAX: The voice modulation patterns don't match up. See how the peaks here and here are out of phase?
BASHIR: So we can prove it wasn't O'Brien who entered the weapons locker?
DAX: It's O'Brien's voice, but the sentence was reconstructed sound by sound.
KIRA: I've got our Maquis. I narrowed the suspects down to twelve people who live in the Demilitarised zone and were on the station that day.
(Yup, that's him on the PADD)
KIRA: Raymond Boone, human, lives on Volan Three. Three merchants on the Promenade saw him talking to O'Brien just before he left.
BASHIR: Talking to him. And recording his voice, perhaps?
KIRA: Recording?
DAX: Someone doctored Chief O'Brien's voice to get into the weapons' locker.
SISKO: I'll have him picked up.
[Cardassia]
MAKBAR [on viewscreen]: The offender, Miles O'Brien, human, officer of the Federation Starfleet
[Courtroom]
MAKBAR: Has been found guilty of aiding and abetting seditious acts against the state. The sentence is death. Let the trial begin. Conservator Kovat, is the offender ready to face his judgement?
KOVAT: He is, Madame Archon.
MAKBAR: Let him enter.
(O'Brien is escorted to the dock.)
MAKBAR: Mister O'Brien, you can spare your family and the Federation further humiliation by dispensing with this proceeding and confessing now.
O'BRIEN: No, thanks.
MAKBAR: Very well. The Nestor and Mrs O'Brien may enter.
(Odo and Keiko enter)
MAKBAR: Mrs O'Brien, this court recognises the disgrace your husband has brought to you. As is prescribed in the Cardassian Articles of Jurisprudence, we hereby offer you the opportunity to dissociate yourself from his actions by testifying against him.
KEIKO: I have no intention of testifying against my husband.
MAKBAR: Call the first witness.
ODO: Madame Archon, may I confer privately with the Conservator before we begin.
MAKBAR: I believe this is the first time you are serving as Nestor, so perhaps I should explain that you have no authority to address this court. You assist the defendant, that is all.
ODO: I beg the court's indulgence. I am new at this.
MAKBAR: All of Cardassia is watching these proceedings. Private conferences do not make for good viewing. You should have done this before we convened. Very well, make it quick.
KOVAT: Please don't ruin this for me. I'm only a year away from retirement.
ODO: We have new evidence to prove O'Brien's innocence.
KOVAT: New evidence?
ODO: If O'Brien is accused of stealing warheads from Deep Space Nine, we can prove that he didn't do it.
KOVAT: Of course he did it. He's been found guilty, hasn't he?
ODO: Someone manipulated a recording of his voice to gain entry. I can produce that recording here.
KOVAT: No evidence can be submitted after the verdict has been reached. You should know that.
ODO: Of course, but I was hoping that the most renowned Conservator in all of Cardassia
KOVAT: You flatter me, sir, you flatter me, but we want justice, not chaos in this court. No, I will have no part of this.
MAKBAR: Enough. Are you ready to proceed, Conservator?
KOVAT: I am.
ODO: Madam Archon, may I address the court?
MAKBAR: Didn't I just explain to you that you may not?
ODO: But if our Conservator refuses to bring up new evidence
MAKBAR: Silence!
ODO: Of a manipulated recording of the offender's voice that would prove his innocence.
MAKBAR: You are out of order, sir!
ODO: what else am I supposed to do?
MAKBAR: You are supposed to respect our judicial procedures. Wouldn't you ask that we respect your rules if we were in your court?
ODO: Which raises my next point, Madame Archon. I would like to move for a change of venue to my court. No crime has been committed against Cardassia. It was in fact committed at a Bajoran space station
KOVAT: Madame Archon, I am extremely humiliated. I ask to be relieved of this assignment.
MAKBAR: No! Sit down! And you, sir, do not try the patience of the Cardassian people. If this court finds you in contempt, you will discover the punishment very unpleasant.
ODO: I regret that I have no teeth to offer your Bureau of Identification.
MAKBAR: As for new evidence, yes, I fully expected the Federation to come up with remarkable new evidence in an attempt to free Mister O'Brien. I'm sure your experts can create all sorts of evidence to confuse the issues. That may work in your courts, but not here. There will be no new evidence considered. Call the first witness.
[Commander's office]
SISKO: Look, we're not after the Maquis. We're just trying to help an innocent man.
BOONE: And I'm telling you I don't have any idea what you're talking about.
KIRA: People saw you talking to O'Brien just before he left.
BOONE: Since when is that a crime? We're old friends from the Rutledge.
SISKO: Doesn't it bother you that old friend is about to be executed by the Cardassians?
BOONE: Of course it does. I wish there were something I could do to help.
KIRA: He has a wife and a five year old daughter.
SISKO: If you're worried we'll turn you over to the Cardassians, I can assure you that we won't.
BOONE: I haven't done anything. I don't have anything to be worried about.
SISKO: Hold him for further questioning.
[Infirmary]
(It is dark when Bashir enters)
BASHIR: Computer, lights.
(No response so he tries a panel. Nothing happens.)
MAQUIS: Don't turn around, Doctor.
BASHIR: There's nothing here you could want.
MAQUIS: You have a man in custody suspected of arranging the theft of photon warheads. Raymond Boone.
BASHIR: That's right.
MAQUIS: I am here to tell you he is not one of us.
BASHIR: One of us? You're from the Maquis.
MAQUIS: That's correct.
BASHIR: Why should I believe you?
MAQUIS: We knew nothing about the theft and this man is not one of us. That's all I can tell you.
BASHIR: How do I know that you're not just trying to protect him? Who else would want photon warheads?
(But he's talking to himself)
[Cardassia]
GUL EVEK [on viewscreen]: The Maquis are savage, Federation-born killers. They live
[Courtroom]
(The torpedoes are in the court as evidence)
GUL EVEK: You terrorise and murder innocent Cardassians, as evidenced by these weapons we confiscated from O'Brien's ship.
KOVAT: These Maquis are based in the Demilitarised zone?
GUL EVEK: They are all from Federation settlements in Cardassian-occupied territory. Frankly, the situation is becoming untenable. How many more innocent people must die before the situation becomes clear?
KOVAT: How do you know these photon warheads recovered from the offender's vessel were intended for the Maquis?
GUL EVEK: According to reliable sources, the Maquis arranged the theft.
ODO: I object.
KOVAT: Madame Archon, please!
MAKBAR: I thought we went over this yesterday, Mister Odo. What is it this time?
ODO: Gul Evek has tied the Maquis to this plot by quoting reliable sources. I think we deserve to know who these reliable sources are.
MAKBAR: Can you provide any details, Gul Evek?
GUL EVEK: I'm afraid that information cannot be revealed without risk to national security, Madame Archon.
MAKBAR: That's an acceptable answer.
ODO: Might we know how Gul Evek learned the warheads were in the runabout?
GUL EVEK: Yes, of course. We learned about them from reliable sources.
MAKBAR: Are you satisfied, Nestor?
ODO: Madame Archon!
MAKBAR: Enough. This is already the longest trial in the history of Cardassia let's try to speed things up, shall we? Proceed, Mister Kovat.
KOVAT: As you wish, Madame Archon. I'll try to be as brief as possible.
[Infirmary]
BOONE: What is this?
SISKO: I'd like Doctor Bashir to give you a physical examination.
BOONE: What for?
SISKO: To help us answer some questions about you.
BOONE: What are you talking about?
BASHIR: For example, why you haven't spoken to your parents in eight years.
BOONE: What's that got to do with anything? I never got along with them.
BASHIR: That's not what they told us.
SISKO: You left your wife about eight years ago. You'd been married a long time. Almost fifteen years, wasn't it?
BOONE: Look, this is none of your business.
SISKO: And about the same time you were discharged from Starfleet after failing several crew performance reviews.
BASHIR: All of it seemed to happen shortly after Setlik Three.
(Boone tries to leave and is held by deputies.)
BASHIR: Bring him over here.
[Courtroom]
(The court is in recess)
O'BRIEN: Some romantic vacation I took you on, huh?
KEIKO: We'll have other chances.
O'BRIEN: Keiko, I don't want you to be there next week.
KEIKO: It isn't over yet.
O'BRIEN: Don't give them the satisfaction.
KEIKO: Miles, you can't just
O'BRIEN: I mean it.
(The Archon re-enters)
MAKBAR: Court will resume. The offender will step forward and testify.
O'BRIEN: I have nothing to say to this court.
MAKBAR: Under Cardassian law, you are compelled to testify. Step forward.
KOVAT: This would be a good time for you to advise the offender.
ODO: Advise him to do what?
KOVAT: To confess. To throw himself on the mercy of the court, of course.
ODO: I never heard of a Cardassian court showing mercy.
KOVAT: That is not the point. Think of the children, sir. Allow them to see a glimmer of enlightenment as the offender realises that the end is near. Let him use his last breath to show remorse.
MAKBAR: Do you wish to advise the offender at this time, Nestor?
ODO: No, Madame Archon.
MAKBAR: Very well. Proceed, Mister Kovat.
KOVAT: Mister O'Brien, were you abused as a child?
O'BRIEN: What?
KOVAT: Were your parents especially abusive? Did you hate them very much?
O'BRIEN: I loved my parents.
KOVAT: I see. Spousal abuse, perhaps? Was your wife causing you severe psychological stress?
O'BRIEN: My wife is the most wonderful, supportive person I've ever known.
KOVAT: Excuse me for asking. I'm merely trying to establish why a fine man like you could turn into a criminal. Perhaps you could help me.
O'BRIEN: Sorry, no, I can't help, because I'm no criminal.
KOVAT: Well, I tried.
MAKBAR: Tell me, Mister O'Brien. How many Cardassians have you killed?
O'BRIEN: Killed? None. Since the war, that is.
MAKBAR: Including the war, how many Cardassians have you killed?
ODO: Madame Archon, what relevance does Mister O'Brien's war experiences have?
MAKBAR: His past criminal record is very much relevant to these proceedings, sir. Answer the question.
O'BRIEN: I'm not sure.
MAKBAR: That many, eh?
O'BRIEN: It was war. Both sides did things they had to do.
MAKBAR: Tell me, Mister O'Brien, now that we are at peace, do you have a warm place in your heart for your Cardassian neighbours? Or are you deeply prejudiced against Cardassians? Do you not, in fact, hate Cardassians? Have you not on several occasions publicly stated your opposition to the treaty because, and I quote, 'the bloody Cardies can't be trusted'?
O'BRIEN: I decline to answer.
MAKBAR: There are no grounds in Cardassian law which permit you to decline. Answer the question. Is it an accurate quote or not?
O'BRIEN: It is.
KOVAT: Madame Archon, at this time, it seems the offender's guilt has been clearly established and I see no other alternative but to concede to the verdict.
O'BRIEN: I do not concede.
MAKBAR: You may stand down, Mister O'Brien.
O'BRIEN: I am not guilty. I have committed no crime, and I do not concede to this court or the Cardassian Empire.
KOVAT: Madam Archon, I apologise but I appear I have lost control of my client.
MAKBAR: No matter. You've done your usual eloquent job on his behalf, Conservator Kovat.
KOVAT: Thank you, Madam Archon. This has been a most difficult case but it is always an honour to serve your court.
(Sisko and Boone enter)
KOVAT: I object to this. Madam Archon, how can you continue to tolerate these intrusions?
MAKBAR: Return to your seat. Once again the Cardassian system of jurisprudence has worked to protect it's people. A guilty man has been brought to justice. But, never let it be said that there is no room in this system for compassion. I sense in Mister O'Brien, a man with strong family ties, the potential for rehabilitation. And I'm sure he has gained a new appreciation of Cardassian law through this difficult process. Therefore, I am pleased, in the spirit of furthering Cardassian-Federation relations, to hereby set aside the verdict and to release Mister O'Brien into the custody of his Commander, Benjamin Sisko.
KOVAT: What happened? What?
ODO: You won.
KOVAT: I? They'll kill me.
[Runabout]
KEIKO: Then the Maquis told you about Boone.
SISKO: When Doctor Bashir examined him, he discovered that Boone was missing his first molar. The DNA analysis confirmed that he was Cardassian.
KEIKO: He was surgically altered?
SISKO: Eight years ago, to replace the real Raymond Boone who was taken prisoner at Setlik Three and apparently killed in detention.
O'BRIEN: Well, how did you figure it out?
SISKO: His ex-wife told us he came back from captivity a different man. She blamed it on the treatment he received from the Cardassians, but it started us to think.
O'BRIEN: So he was spying for the Cardassians even when he was serving on the Rutledge with me?
KEIKO: But why did they want to frame Miles?
ODO: This trial was never about your husband, Mrs O'Brien. It was designed from the beginning to discredit the Federation, to show that the Maquis had their official sanction. Gul Evek's testimony made it clear that the situation had become untenable.
O'BRIEN: Next they would have been demanding that the Federation colonies be disbanded.
SISKO: Exactly. When Makbar saw Boone in the courtroom, she realised that we had the goods to embarrass the High Command in front of the entire populace.
KEIKO: I'm just glad it's all over.
O'BRIEN: Yeah, I'm ready to get back to work.
SISKO: Oh no, no, no. I had to use all of my influence to extend your accommodations at the lagoon. We'll drop you off on our way home.
O'BRIEN: But we haven't any bags, no holocam. I've nothing to read.
KEIKO: Perfect.
2024-09-12 01:54:59 -
Pike:
Added the transcript.
