Thank you, Captain. Thank you for restoring my faith in the 98th Rule of Acquisition: "Every man has his price."
“In the Pale Moonlight” · Season 6, Episode 19
In this episode: Benjamin Sisko (7), Elim Garak (2), Quark (1)
My father always used to say that the road to Hell is paved with good intentions. I laid the first stone right there. I'd committed myself. I'd pay any price, go to any lengths, because my cause was righteous, my intentions were good.
That was my first moment of real doubt, when I started to wonder if this whole thing was a mistake. So then I went back to my office. And there was a new casualty list, waiting for me. People are dying out there, every day! Entire worlds are struggling for their freedom, and here I am still worrying about the finer points of morality! No, I, I had to keep my eye on the ball, win the war, stopping the bloodshed—those were the priorities. So I pushed on, and every time another doubt appeared before me, I just found another way to shove it aside.
[threatening Tolar] If that program passes inspection, you walk free. But if there is even the slightest flaw, then I will send you back to that Klingon prison, and tell Gowron to take his time while he executes you.
Welcome aboard, Senator, I'm Captain Benjamin Sisko.
VVreenak
So... you're the Commander of Deep Space Nine and the Emissary to the Prophets, decorated combat officer, widower, father, mentor, and oh yes, the man who started the war with the Dominion. Somehow, I thought you'd be taller.
Sorry to disappoint you.
VVreenak
To be honest, my opinion of Starfleet Officers is so low, you'd have to work very hard indeed to disappoint me.
Who's watching Tolar?
I've locked him in his quarters. I've also left him with the distinct impression that if he attempts to force the door open, it may explode.
I hope that's just an impression.
It's best not to dwell on such minutiae.
[Sisko, having realised Garak has assassinated the Romulan Senator Vreenak to provoke the Romulan Star Empire to enter the Dominion War on the Federation's side, storms into Garak's shop and strikes him]
You killed him.
That's right.
That's what you planned to do all along, isn't it? You knew the data rod wouldn't hold up to scrutiny: you just wanted to get him on the station so you could plant a bomb on his shuttle!
It wasn't quite that simple. I did have hopes that the rod would somehow pass inspection, but I suspected that Tolar might not be up to the task.
And what about Tolar? Did you kill him too?
Think of them both as tragic victims of war. [a furious Sisko strikes Garak again] If you could allow your anger to subside for a moment, you'll see that they did not die in vain! The Romulans will enter the war!
There's no guarantee of that!
Oh, but I think that there is. You see, when the Tal Shiar finishes examining the wreckage of Vreenak's shuttle, they'll find the burnt remnants of a Cardassian optolithic data rod which somehow miraculously survived the explosion. After painstaking forensic examination, they'll discover that the rod contains a recording of a high level Dominion meeting at which the invasion of Romulus was being planned.
And then they'll discover that it is a fraud!
Oh, I don't think that they will! Because any imperfections in the forgery will appear to be a result of the explosion! So, with a seemingly legitimate rod in one hand, and a dead Senator in the other, I ask you, Captain—what conclusion would you draw?
[sighs] That Vreenak obtained the rod on Soukara, and that the Dominion killed him to prevent him from returning to Romulus with it.
Precisely! And the more the Dominion protests its innocence, the more the Romulans will believe that they're guilty because it is exactly what the Romulans would have done in their place. [pauses]That's why you came to me. Isn't it, Captain? Because you knew I could do those things that you weren't capable of doing. Well, it worked. And you'll get what you want—a war between the Romulans and the Dominion. And if your conscience is bothering you, you should soothe it with the knowledge that you may have just saved the entire Alpha Quadrant. And all it cost was the life of one Romulan Senator, one criminal, and the self-respect of one Starfleet officer. I don't know about you, but I'd call that a bargain.
At 0800 hours, station time, the Romulan Empire formally declared war on the Dominion. They have already struck fifteen bases along the Cardassian border. So, this is a huge victory for the good guys! This may even be the turning point of the entire war. There is even a 'Welcome to the Fight' party tonight in the ward room. So... I lied. I cheated. I bribed men to cover the crimes of other men. I am an accessory to murder. But the most damning thing of all is—I think I can live with it. And if I'd have to do it all over again, I would. Garak was right about one thing. A guilty conscience is a small price to pay for the safety of the Alpha Quadrant, so I will learn to live with it... because I can live with it. [pauses] I can live with it. [pauses] Computer, erase that entire personal log.
VVreenak
It's a faaaaaaake!!!!!!!
These quotes come from Wikiquote's Deep Space Nine pages and are available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.