Captive Pursuit ( episode ) O ' Brien helps an alien from the Gamma Quadrant as hunters descend on the station searching for their humanoid prey . Summary . Teaser . Sarda , a dabo girl , complains to Commander Sisko that Quark has made repeated sexual advances toward her . His claim that sex is part of her job appears valid since the provision is buried within the contract she signed , but Sisko reassures her that the provision will not stand and sends her on her way . As the dabo girl leaves his office , Major Kira informs him that something is coming through the wormhole . In Ops , he learns that a small starship has emerged so he has Chief O ' Brien hail the ship . The sole passenger is a reptilian humanoid who appears nervous and is extremely suspicious of Sisko and the rest of the crew . However , as the alien ' s ship is in danger of exploding , the alien reluctantly agrees to allow O ' Brien to bring his ship to a docking bay with a tractor beam . Dispensing with first contact procedures for the moment , Sisko tells O ' Brien to greet the new arrival alone so as to ease their guest ' s fears . Act One . O ' Brien finds the ship deserted when he enters , although sensor s indicate the alien is still present . He goes about inspecting the ship when the alien materializes behind him . The alien is Tosk , although Tosk doesn ' t tell O ' Brien if this is his name or ; he is simply Tosk . Although Tosk seems impatient and in a hurry , O ' Brien convinces him to let O ' Brien help fix the ship . As the two of them exit the ship and walk toward the Promenade , O ' Brien casually attempts to find out about how Tosk ' s ship was attacked , but he gets nowhere . The two of them seem to develop an unspoken bond on the Promenade . Tosk observes everything , even Doctor Bashir as they pass him near the infirmary , with great interest . He also takes a particular interest in a diagram of Deep Space 9 on a wall panel . When Tosk observes that others will detect the wormhole and come to Deep Space 9 , O ' Brien seems enthusiastic , explaining that Starfleet ' s mission is to seek out new life and new civilizations . There is an awkward moment while Tosk and O ' Brien observe Quark escorting a Bolian woman out of his bar . Quark promises to return the woman ' s money but forbids her from returning to his establishment , as she has cheated at dabo . O ' Brien casually explains that some aspects of his culture can be explained later . They reach Tosk ' s temporary quarters and O ' Brien escorts him in . Curiously , Tosk requires only seventeen minutes of sleep and has no use for food replicator s as liquid nutrients are stored throughout his body . In any case , O ' Brien says they can begin work on Tosk ' s ship tomorrow . Tosk turns to a terminal on the wall as soon as O ' Brien is gone and tells the computer to show him where on the station weapons are stored . He studies a schematic of the station as the computer informs access to the specified section is restricted to security clearance seven and above . Act Two . In Sisko ' s office , O ' Brien informs the commander that , while Tosk seems amicable , O ' Brien knows Tosk ' s ship was damaged by weapons fire . Sisko says he will tell Odo to keep an eye on Tosk . Back aboard Tosk ' s ship , he and O ' Brien go about repairing the damage and continue to bond as they teach each other new things , including the phrase " piece of cake . " There are some areas where they are unable to find commonalities , such as O ' Brien ' s sense of humor . He suggests that he buy Tosk a drink and exits the ship , which intrigues Tosk . The two of them go to Quark ' s where Tosk observes that Human s and species like them have too much " downtime . " He notes how very different he and O ' Brien are . Quark attempts to find a way to make a profit off of Tosk , offering him a visit to a holosuite , but Tosk claims to live the greatest adventure of all . He continues to resist O ' Brien ' s attempts to find out about his past . O ' Brien speaks with Commander Sisko and Lieutenant Dax in Ops , where it becomes obvious that O ' Brien is attached to Tosk . While Sisko is somewhat suspicious of their guest , he believes it is Tosk ' s option not to divulge the truth of his mission . Meanwhile , Tosk tampers with an access terminal in a corridor elsewhere on DS9 , attempting to access a weapons locker . A painting on the wall turns out to be Odo , who interrupts Tosk ' s work . Tosk becomes invisible but is stopped when Odo activates security force field s in the hallway . Trapped , Tosk assures Odo that he will not put up a fight . Act Three . With Tosk in a holding cell , Sisko , O ' Brien and Odo meet him in the brig , where Sisko attempts to find out from whom Tosk is running . Tosk seems to think that the fact that he is Tosk explains everything , and he claims he can ' t tell them any more . Even with the others gone , Tosk is unable to tell O ' Brien his predicament . He asks O ' Brien to let him die with honor . O ' Brien is perplexed and admits to Odo that he feels partially responsible , being that he was the one who talked Tosk into coming aboard DS9 . Another , larger starship with ion signature s matching those of Tosk ' s ship comes through the wormhole . However , its occupants do not respond to hails and use alien technology to scan and beam aboard DS9 . They board the Promenade , headed for Tosk ' s cell . Civilians scatter when three armored Hunter s materialize on the Promenade . Sisko , Kira , and O ' Brien arrive to join Odo and several deputies , and there is a stand - off feeling as the three officers approach the trio of Hunters . The Hunters appear to ready their weapons . As it is apparent that peaceable actions will not work , Sisko tells his officers to ready their phaser s . Act Four . Sisko instructs the Hunters to put down their weapons , and they refuse to do so . Odo heads forward to confront them , but is struck by one of the Hunters . A brief firefight ensues , with several direct hits against the Hunters , who apparently have a special armor that absorbs phaser energy . Odo comments that they ' re after his prisoner , Tosk , and vows that no one will abduct a prisoner from his brig while he ' s alive . Major Kira offers a phaser to Odo to help defend himself , but Odo declines , commenting that he never uses them . Eventually the Hunters blast open the doors to Security in a fiery explosion with their weapons , and they make their way into the brig . The Hunter scans the empty holding cell with his helmet to find Tosk , who has become invisible . Tosk reveals himself . O ' Brien , Odo , and Sisko run into the room as the Hunter tells his two partners that he has found the Tosk alive . The Hunter removes his helmet , then criticizes Tosk for such " a disappointment " for having been caged and caught . It is realized by Sisko that Tosk is prey for the Hunters . The Hunter announces that Tosk will be captured and brought home alive ( " the greatest humiliation Tosk can know " ) . Tosk hangs his head in shame . The Hunter commands Tosk ' s release , but Sisko does not allow it . Sisko and the Hunter debate over the morality of hunting another , even if he was bred specifically to be hunted . The Hunter states that the wormhole will be out of bounds for the hunt in the future , then once again demands the release of Tosk to him . In the Operations center , Sisko announces that Tosk will be released to the Hunters . Kira asks about asylum for Tosk . Sisko states it will be granted only if Tosk asks . O ' Brien runs to Tosk in the holding cell telling him to request asylum , but even though Tosk does appreciate their efforts to help him , he refuses because it goes against what he believes in . Act Five . Quark complains about the lack of tourism from the Gamma Quadrant while O ' Brien drinks a raktajino . The chief tells Quark to be quiet , which piques the Ferengi ' s interest in whatever has upset O ' Brien . Despite O ' Brien ' s apparent annoyance with Quark , the fact that he stays put through Quark ' s provocative inquiries indicates he wishes to talk about something . Finally , he explains the situation with Tosk and the Hunters ' game and observes that the Ferengi don ' t like playing by the rules . Undeterred by O ' Brien ' s belief the rules are stopping him for accomplishing his desires Quark speaks of the rules and just inquires about them on a conceptual level - - - if they can be changed or altered within the context of the game and O ' Brien suddenly has an epiphany and leaves shouting his thanks . Quark shrugs at his own skills of a bartender tending to his client ' s needs / concerns . In the security office , O ' Brien claims Sisko has ordered him to escort Tosk and the Hunter , as it is a Starfleet rather than Bajoran matter . Odo immediately heads toward Sisko ' s office and with him gone , O ' Brien claims that he must escort the Hunter off the station rather than transporting them , as a sign of respect . He leaves his combadge on Odo ' s desk as they leave the office . Odo arrives in Sisko ' s office to complain about the matter , but Sisko does not know what the constable is talking about . When Odo reveals the " order " that Sisko gave to Chief O ' Brien , Sisko denies ever making such an order , and immediately tries to contact O ' Brien . Having left his combadge back in Security , O ' Brien does not receive Sisko ' s calls . Meanwhile , O ' Brien , the Hunter , and Tosk , wearing a ceremonial collar and hanging his head dejectedly , reach the airlock entrance . As the Hunter enters the airlock , the power grid overloads , knocking him off his feet . Downing the Hunter with a punch to the jaw , O ' Brien leads Tosk to escape to the second level of the Promenade and enter a corridor as the Hunter informs his colleagues that the hunt has resumed . Sisko , Odo , and the rest of the crew are in Ops when Dax informs them that internal sensors have located O ' Brien and Tosk . Odo immediately heads off to find them , but Sisko tells Odo not to hurry . After a confused moment and a nod , Odo continues on at an almost leisurely pace . O ' Brien uses a phaser to remove the collar from Tosk ' s neck . Tosk fends off several attempts by the Hunters to capture him , securing one of their energy crossbows for himself as he and O ' Brien make their way to Tosk ' s ship . Nearly there , the lead Hunter beams in the way with two others , but is determined to be the one that does the deed and fires . Tosk dodges and fires back , killing the Hunter and possibly the other two . In his ship , Tosk stores the crossbow above the pilot ' s seat and asks O ' Brien if he was looking to become a Tosk , which Miles declines , explaining that among other things , he has a family . The bond between the two of them is stronger than ever as O ' Brien wishes Tosk good luck and Tosk tells O ' Brien to die with honor , which the officer returns . As Tosk ' s ship departs DS9 , the Hunter ship follows , continuing the hunt . Once the ordeal is over , O ' Brien arrives in Sisko ' s office , where he attempts to make a feeble explanation for what transpired . Sisko appears furious with O ' Brien as he scolds the chief and warns him not to pull a similar stunt again . Before O ' Brien leaves , however , he wonders how it was that he was able to escape . He had figured that Sisko and Odo would be able to apprehend him almost immediately . " " I guess that one got by us " , " Sisko observes dryly . He has a satisfied grin on his face when O ' Brien leaves . Memorable quotes . " " I am Tosk . " " " " That ' s your name , or your species ? " " " " I am Tosk . " " " " He " immediately " made sexual advances ? " " " " Hey , barkeep ! " " " " Don ' t call me barkeep ! I ' m not a barkeep ! " " " " Alpha Quadrant has far too much down time . " " " " How about you . . . are you an explorer , or scientist ? " " " " I am Tosk . " " " " Right . " " " " I am Tosk . " " " " I ' m sure you are . " " " " I am sorry I have no vices for you to exploit . " " " " A challenge ! " " " " Constable . . . There ' s no hurry . " " " " Another stunt like this and your wife won ' t have to complain about the conditions here anymore . " " " " Die with honor , O ' Brien . " " " " Die with honor , Tosk . " " Links and references . References . access conduit ; airlock ; Alpha Quadrant ; amplitude ; anomaly ; arva node ; asylum ; Bajoran ; Bajoran sector ; Bajoran wormhole ; barkeep ; bloodsport ; cake ; " Cardie " ; chief of operations ; coladrium flow ; combadge ; contract ; crime ; crossbow ; dabo girl ; decorator ; deflector shield ; docking ring ; duranium ; Earth ; employment agreement ; energy flux ; engineer ; explorer ; Federation ; Ferengi ; first contact ; flea market ; food replicator ; force field ; fuel ; gambler ; Gamma Quadrant ; glass jaw ; graviton field ; habitat ring ; hailing channel ; health center ; helmet ; holding cell ; holosuite ; honor ; hull ; Human ; humanoid ; Hunter ; Hunters ' ship ; hunting ; jail cell ; knuckle s ; L - band emission s ; legal expert ; level five ; lifeform ; light year s ; liquid nutrient s ; log ; magnetic coil ; magnetic flux ; meditation ; Milky Way Galaxy ; neck manacle ; neutrino ; oath of silence ; oatmeal ; ; ; off - axis field controller ; ops ; painting ; palm beacon ; particle beam ; phaser ; pink skin ; plasma injector ; plasmic fiber ; polarity ; power grid ; Prime Directive ; Promenade ; proprietor ; propulsion system ; ramscoop ; reactor ; red alert ; replicator center ; Rest and Relaxation ; routine medical examination ; scan ; scanning device ; scientist ; security check point ; security clearance ; security grid ; security junction ; security office ; security sensor ; sensor s ; sex ; shields ; Starfleet ; Starfleet Command ; Starfleet patrol vessel ; station layout ; stellar gas ; straight man ; structural integrity ; suit ; synthale ; Tosk ( species ) ; Tosk ' s ship ; tourist ; tractor beam ; transporter ; transporter lock ; Vulcan s ; wager ; weapon detector ; weapons locker ; weapons scanner ; weapons sensor ; wife ; yellow alert