A Man Alone ( episode ) An old enemy of Odo ' s is murdered behind locked doors , and all the evidence points to Odo as the killer . Summary . Teaser . Doctor Bashir finds Dax playing with an Altonian brain teaser , a puzzle responding to neural theta waves in a holosuite . Eager to get closer to her , he says he loves puzzles and volunteers to play . Before she transfers control to him , she casually mentions that she ' s been trying to solve it for 140 years . As soon as she transfers control to him , the puzzle bursts in a matter of seconds . Dax tries to warn him about Trill relationships , but is saved by the appearance of Benjamin Sisko , picking her up for dinner . Unwilling to give up , Bashir gloomily tells the computer to re - start the puzzle . Act One . In Quark ' s , Odo is sitting at the bar , keeping an eye on Quark ' s business . Both of them notice Chief O ' Brien arguing with his wife Keiko at a table on the upper level . Keiko is miserable aboard Deep Space 9 ; with no need for a botanist , she has nothing to do , and also has doubts about the station as a fit place to raise their daughter . Odo denies being able to understand why humanoids place so much emphasis on mating with other members of their species ; he himself has never " coupled , " as he had decided that the aggravation of a relationship , worst of all the need to compromise , which idea he already hates , far outweighed its benefits . Having dinner in the bar , Sisko and Dax are still adjusting to their new relationship . Sisko has trouble seeing the young woman in front of him as his old mentor and father - figure , Curzon , which was how he had always seen Dax . Glancing around the bar , Odo tenses up when he notices a Bajoran man at the dabo table . Odo goes over to the table and informs the man that he is unwelcome on the station . A fight breaks out between the two and , after Commander Sisko forcibly separates them , Odo tells the man he has 26 hours to leave DS9 . Elsewhere on the Promenade , a bored Jake Sisko approaches Quark ' s nephew , the only boy on the station of any species close to Jake ' s age , and tries to make friends . The Ferengi is standoffish at first , but grudgingly shares his name , Nog . Jake smiles , seeing the beginnings of a friendship . In Sisko ' s office , Odo explains his actions : the man , whose name is Ibudan , had lived aboard the station during the Occupation , smuggling medical supplies and other black market goods to the planet . Some Bajorans considered him a hero , but Odo saw him as nothing but a ruthless profiteer – he had once allowed a young Bajoran girl die , when her parents were unable to afford his asking price for the drug that would have saved her life . A few years before , Odo had arrested Ibudan for killing a Cardassian officer who wanted a bribe to look the other way , and he went to prison for murder . Now , the Provisional Government has granted him amnesty , since " killing a Cardassian isn ' t considered much of a crime nowadays . " Sisko agrees Ibudan is undesirable , but does not see what they can do when he has not recently broken any laws . Odo vows to get him off the station , one way or another , and goes on the record saying , " " Commander , laws change depending on who ' s making them . Cardassians one day , Federation the next . But justice is justice , and as long as I ' m in charge of security . . . " " Thereupon Sisko interrupts , " " If you can ' t work within the rules , I ' ll find someone who can . " " That evening , Ibudan is enjoying a massage in a holosuite , when a gloved hand pushes the holographic masseuse away , then plunges a knife into Ibudan ' s back . Act Two . Jake and Nog play a practical joke on the Promenade , releasing some Garanian bolite s that infect a dining couple that harmlessly turn alternately blue , green , and yellow for a short time . A security officer catches the boys before they can run and marches them to the security office , while Keiko looks on disapprovingly . She doesn ' t believe that children should have the same freedom as they did on Starfleet ships . She later mentioned to Miles that the station should have a school . Sisko , Bashir , Odo , and Kira are in the deactivated holosuite , looking at Ibudan ' s dead body . Odo reports that , according to the security logs , the holosuite ' s door was locked , and only opened twice – the first to admit Ibudan , and the second time , presumably , to let his killer exit . There is also no evidence of a transporter being used within the suite . Sisko orders Bashir to sweep the suite for DNA evidence to identify all persons who have been inside the suite . Sisko orders Kira to inform all docked ships that their departures will be delayed as the crime is investigated . In Ops , Sisko and Kira receive Zayra , a Bajoran businessman from the Promenade , who confides that Ibudan talked to him shortly before his death , and confided fears that Odo was going to murder him . Kira quickly discounts the accusation , but Zayra remains suspicious . Odo investigates Ibudan ' s berth on the Bajoran freighter he arrived on . According to the ship ' s manifest , he was alone , but booked a room with two bunk beds . The ship ' s officer had assumed he simply wanted the extra room . Examining Ibudan ' s computer terminal , Odo finds an appointment book , stating that Ibudan had a meeting with Odo scheduled for the time he was murdered . Keiko talks to Sisko in his quarters , with Jake present . She lobbies to open a school aboard the station , as there are no fewer than twelve children of school - age there . Sisko is more than happy to provide her with an empty room and some computer equipment ; the only question is how many other parents aboard the station will accept her as a teacher . After Keiko departs , Sisko starts to read Jake the riot act , warning him to stay away from Nog , but Jake ducks into his room . Bashir reports that only five persons ' s DNA traces can be found in the holosuite : Ibudan ' s , and those of the four officers who were in there after he was murdered . Kira is baffled : Ibudan entered the room alone , and the door stayed locked until his killer exited – which is impossible . Odo grimly says that the only explanation is that the killer was a shapeshifter like himself , who could enter the room through the cracks in the door . Act Three . Odo says that if he is being framed , it is a very " neat package " ; only a shapeshifter could have entered the holosuite in order to murder Ibudan , Ibudan ' s calendar said he was going to meet with Odo at the time he was murdered , and Odo has no DNA of his own to leave behind at the scene of the crime . Kira asks him if he has an alibi , and Odo confesses that he has to regenerate every 18 hours , and was shapeless in a pail in the back of his office when the murder occurred , so the answer is no . He asks Kira to instruct Bashir to do a sweep of Ibudan ' s quarters aboard the freighter . Quark ' s brother , Rom , is initially hostile towards the idea of enrolling Nog in a Federation - run school , saying that a traditional Ferengi education is designed to teach young Ferengi the cutthroat skills needed to thrive in commerce . Keiko does a clever sell job , convincing Rom that she can teach his son those virtues , and more : learning commerce from the perspective of other cultures , his son ' s future customers , will be a huge advantage . Rom appears thoughtful , and Keiko leaves him to mull it over . In another corner of the bar , Zayra and several other Bajorans are questioning Odo ' s innocence ; after all , he is the purest form of alien , and all they really know of him is that he worked on the station when the Cardassian s occupied Bajor . Quark , overhearing , cuts in and defends Odo : no one knows ( and loathes ) Odo better than Quark does , and whatever else he is , Odo was not a collaborator and is no murderer . Nevertheless , Zayra returns to Ops with a group of Bajorans for support , to confront Sisko with their suspicions . To avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest , Sisko reluctantly relieves Odo of his duties on a temporary basis . In the infirmary , Bashir reports to Odo that he has found the destroyed remains of a biological sample container in Ibudan ' s quarters . It appears that Ibudan was conducting some kind of medical experiment , but Odo says that Ibudan was neither a scientist nor a doctor . Bashir finds a small biological sample in the remains of the container . When he puts it into a solution to culture it , its cells begin dividing rapidly . Odo is summoned to Ops , where Sisko reluctantly tells him that he is relieving him of duty . He assures Odo that he does not believe the Bajorans ' suspicions of him , but Odo sardonically replies that , with all the evidence mounted against Odo , Sisko would be inhuman if a small part of him did not believe Odo might be guilty . Act Four . Odo returns to his office and finds it vandalized : his datapads are littered all over the floor , his monitors have been smashed , and the word " SHIFTER " spray - painted across the wall . As he starts to clear up , Quark happens by and offers to find out who did it . Chafing at the idea of asking the Ferengi for help , Odo declines . Then he asks Quark if he would be interested in Odo working for him , since it looks like Odo will be out of a job soon . Quark is briefly enthralled by the idea of having a shapeshifter to use in his various dealings , before he realizes Odo is joking with him . As he leaves the office , Quark mentions that he has been making some enquiries about Ibudan ; but he seems not to have made any enemies in prison ( who might be suspects in his murder ) as he had spent most of his time hanging around the Bajoran dissidents jailed by the Cardassians for various non - criminal acts . In the Infirmary , Bashir and Dax show Sisko the sample from Ibudan ' s container , which has been growing exponentially and is now a large , flesh - colored blob . Both Bashir and Dax are sure it is a vital clue , but cannot yet say what it is . Sisko invites Dax to lunch , and Bashir , mistakenly thinking he is being invited as well , accepts . To diffuse the awkward moment , Dax begs off , leaving Sisko and Bashir to go by themselves . Over lunch , Bashir admits that he is attracted to Dax , but does not want to step on Sisko ' s toes , since Sisko has known " her " far longer . Sisko explains to the doctor that in all the previous years he knew Dax , the Trill was his male mentor and friend , Curzon . Therefore , Sisko assures Bashir , he is not interested in Dax romantically and the young doctor is free to choose to pursue Dax in that manner . Sisko and Bashir then witness Odo rejected by the customers at Quark ' s who refuse to drink with , or even be near , the former chief of security . Miles is helping Keiko to set up her new schoolhouse , and has replicated an old - fashioned schoolhouse bell . Molly , from her father ' s arms , says that she wishes she could attend her mother ' s school , and Keiko wryly responds that she does too , at least that way she would know someone would show up . They are interrupted by the sound of an angry mob on their way to Odo ' s office screaming that he is a murderer and a freak . O ' Brien signals Ops to have them send security to assist Odo and requests Commander Sisko ' s presence to handle the mob . From afar , Bashir observes the mob outside Odo ' s office , trapping him inside and yelling for his head . Turning back to the infirmary , Ibudan ' s " blob " amazingly has grown much larger . Act Five . Sisko and security arrive to see the mob growing larger and more violent . While Kira secures the turbolifts , more armed security arrives . Sisko plants himself in front of the door and defends the Constable , telling the Bajorans not to condemn a man just because he happens to be different from them . Zayra and others begin yelling about the evidence against Odo . Meanwhile , Bashir and Dax are frantically analyzing the blob , which has grown larger still like a man - sized humanoid . Bashir makes a realization and they appear to the mob , announcing that they have a breakthrough in the case : the murder victim was not Ibudan . Bashir ' s pronouncement stuns everyone there , including Odo , and they lead Sisko and Odo to the infirmary , while Kira and O ' Brien tell the crowd to disperse . The man who was murdered was Ibudan ' s clone , whom Ibudan created himself , specifically to kill , then to frame Odo for the crime . ( As Odo later finds out , one of the dissidents with whom Ibudan had associated in prison was a Bajoran geneticist who had been jailed for conducting cloning experiments . ) Bashir and Dax have already checked the victim ' s DNA and found the signature gene sequence degradation that identifies him as a clone . The second clone will gain consciousness in a few hours and be a more - or - less exact copy of Ibudan , though hopefully not psychologically . Now Odo concentrates on finding Ibudan , who turns out to be masquerading as an elderly Bajoran man who arrived a short time ago on a ship . Odo captures him as he boards the ship for departure from the station , pulling off his mask and informing him that killing his own clone still makes him guilty of murder . In her empty schoolroom , Keiko glumly checks the time . Sisko enters with Jake , and , to her surprise , Rom enters a few minutes later with Nog . Nog starts to take the desk next to Jake ' s , but Rom tells him to sit on the other side of the room , not wanting him to have anything to do with " that Human boy " ; apparently he and Sisko are of one mind on this subject . A short time later , two other Bajoran children are escorted in by their parents , and Keiko happily introduces herself , and begins her lesson plan , with a basic introduction to Bajoran history . Memorable quotes . " " I can ' t believe you ' re defending him , Quark . You ' re his worst enemy . " " " " I guess that ' s the closest thing he has in this world to a friend . " " " " Business is good , Quark . You ' re almost making an honest living . " " " " Killing a Cardassian isn ' t considered much of a crime nowadays . " " " " How do you get a rope around the neck of a shapeshifter ? " " " " Little lady , little lady . What would you know about Ferengi education ? " " " " I know for a fact , that when she was a he . . . you know ? Before she had this new body , they were old friends . " " " " Things change . " " " " The man we have in charge of a murder investigation is the prime suspect , Major . Those people have a right to complain . " " " " Do not condemn this man because he is " different " from you ! " " " " Steamed azna would put years on your life . " " " " Dax , I don ' t want years on my life if I can only eat steamed azna . Sautéed . . . rolloped , fricasseed , fine ! But not steamed ! " " " " I don ' t want you on this station . " " " " Well , that ' s too bad because I have every right to be here ! " " " " I decide who has the rights and who doesn ' t on this station ! " " " " You ' ve . . . never coupled ? " " " " Choose not to . Too many compromises . You want to watch the karo - net tournament , she wants to listen to music – so you compromise : you listen to music . You like Earth Jazz , she prefers Klingon opera – so you compromise : you listen to Klingon opera . So here you were , ready to have a nice night watching the karo - net match and you wind up spending an agonizing evening listening to Klingon opera . " " " " Killing your own clone is still murder . " " " " Commander , laws change depending on who ' s making them . Cardassian one day , Federation the next . But justice is justice . " " " " Freak ! Shapeshifting freak ! " " Links and references . References . 2229 ; alibi ; Altonian brain teaser ; anatomy ; apprenticeship ; arboretum ; azna ; Bajor ; Bajora ; Bajoran anatomy ; Bajoran Provisional Government ; Bajoran sector ; Bajoran transport ; Bajoran wormhole ; bed ; biological sample container ; bioregenerative field ; black market ; botanist ; business ; calendar ; Cardassian ; ; champagne ; chopstick ; chromatin ; chromosome analysis ; clone ; collaborator ; computer ; confidence man ; conflict of interest ; court ; crime ; crook ; culture ; curriculum ; dabo ; daughter ; ; dinner ; DNA ; DNA sequence analysis ; docking pylon ; doctor ; donor ; drug ; Earth ; economics ; education ; electrophoretic analysis ; ; Federation ; Federation survey ship ; female ; Ferengi ; flower ; forensics ; freak ; fricassee ; Gamma Quadrant ; Garanian bolite ; gene - sequence degradation ; genetic drift ; grapevine ; hair follicle ; hanging ; heart ; holodeck ; holosuite ; humanoid ; jazz ; jumja ; Juro Counterpunch ; Karo - Net ; killer ; Klingon opera ; knife ; Korris I ; Kran - Tobol prison ; law ; Lauriento massage holoprogram 101A ; law ; masseuse ; matter reclamation unit ; metabolic field energy ; microscope ; module ; murder ; neck ; neural theta wave ; nuisance ; Occupation of Bajor ; pail ; ops ; perfume ; personal calendar file ; petri dish ; philosophy ; power transfer grid ; prison ; Promenade ; promotion ; puzzle ; Quark ' s ; recipe ; regenerative cycle ; replimat ; rollope ; romance ; rope ; Ruji ; Rujian Steeplechase ; runabout ; sauté ; scene of the crime ; school ; school bell ; schoolroom ; scientist ; security chief ; security office ; semi - circle ; seofurane ; shapeshifter ; shifter ; ship ' s manifest ; ; skin ; space station ; spectrograph ; Starfleet ; starship ; steam ; supper ; sweep ; teacher ; theta wave s ; thoracic vertebrae ; Transit Aid Center ; tree ; tri - phasic cloning ; Trill ; turbolift ; unnamed medical tool ; ventricle ; ; wager ; Yadozi desert