Soldiers of the Empire ( episode ) After Worf becomes first officer of a Klingon Bird - of - Prey commanded by General Martok , he is caught between loyalty to his commander and loyalty to the crew . Summary . Teaser . Doctor Bashir treats Klingon General Martok for an injury he claimed he suffered in the holosuite . Bashir chastises him for disabling the Holodeck safety protocol and for refusing to replace his maimed eye with an artificial one . Afterward , Martok visits Worf on the . It is clear that the two men have come to have great respect for each other following their imprisonment in Internment Camp 371 . Worf apologizes for inconveniencing Martok by causing his injury during a training session . Martok then informs Worf that the Klingon High Council has assigned him a mission , his first since their escape . He offers Worf to be his first officer aboard the , a Bird - of - Prey . Act One . The son of Mogh gladly accepts , explaining to Captain Benjamin Sisko that the general had saved his life while imprisoned at Internment Camp 371 . He explains that he had been about to let the Jem ' Hadar kill him , when he and Martok experienced a moment of tova ' dok , which is a " moment of clarity between two warriors on a field of battle . " This encouraged him to continue fighting . Their mission is to find the , a battle cruiser that has been missing for three days . Dax , jumping at the opportunity of being on a Klingon ship again , decides to come along , while Kira , Miles O ' Brien , and Bashir are assigned Worf ' s regular duties . Worf chooses not to wear his baldric while aboard the " Rotarran ; " as the House of Mogh no longer exists , he sees no point in displaying its crest . Despite the vessel ' s string of defeats by the Jem ' Hadar in the last several months , Worf accepts the crew ' s battle records and pledges their lives to General Martok . Martok accepts the crew ' s lives and orders the helmsman to set a course around a nearby nebula , claiming that he wishes to avoid a confrontation if there should be Jem ' Hadar ships hiding in it . The helmsman objects , but obeys the order . Once they have warped away , Worf starts to sing The Warrior ' s Anthem . Some of the others join in , but it is a dour unenthused version of the song . Worf and Dax immediately realize that this mission is not off to a good start . Act Two . Dax arrives in the Mess Hall to find Ortikan sitting in her assigned seat . She throws him on the floor and threatens him before sitting down . She then tries to brighten the mood by informing the others that she has brought aboard three barrels of bloodwine , which the crew have not had for six months . Meanwhile , Martok and Worf discuss the crew ' s unsatisfactory combat record and both realize that one defeat after another has taken away the crew ' s motivation and has even led them to expect defeat . They both agree that a victory would do much to lift their spirits . They promise each other they will make the ship worthy of the Empire . Back in the mess hall , the crew drinks Jadzia ' s bloodwine and discusses their previous failures in battle . Kornan claims that the ship is cursed and that they will never be victorious in battle . Just then , a klaxon goes off indicating that they have cloaked , and Worf calls alert status one – a Jem ' Hadar patrol has crossed their path . Act Three . Despite the ship ' s and the crew ' s readiness for battle , Martok decides not to risk attacking the Jem ' Hadar ship , claiming that their real mission is to rescue the " B ' Moth " . Even though the crew strongly disagrees with this , Worf refuses to challenge Martok . Dax warns him that a dangerous situation is developing . In the mess hall , the crewmembers get drunk and Leskit begins an analysis of the Jem ' Hadar after he speaks admirably of the Cardassian s he fought against . He says that the Jem ' Hadar have no honor and that makes them more efficient than Klingon s . He even interprets the recent decisions of Martok as a fear of the Jem ' Hadar . Suddenly , Kornan goes berserk and attacks Leskit . In the fight , he nearly kills Ortikan who came to the rescue . Dax then ends the combat by shooting Kornan with a phaser . Worf runs into Dax in the corridor and notices the blood stains on her uniform . She informs him what happened and once again warns him that it will only get worse . Act Four . A little after , the " Rotarran " crew picks up a distress call from the " B ' Moth " . It is an automatic transmission indicating they were attacked by the Jem ' Hadar , suffered heavy casualties and are in need of assistance . They set a course for the coordinates . Tavana thanks Dax for intervening in the fight and saving Ortakin , her Par ' Mach ' kai . Worf and Martok discuss the distress call . Martok is convinced that it is a trap , that the Jem ' Hadar purposely left survivors aboard the " B ' Moth " in order for someone to come rescue them , or even that they may have faked the distress call . When the " Rotarran " arrives in visual range , they realize that the battle cruiser has drifted into Cardassian space . The crew is ready to cross the border in order to carry out the rescue , but Martok refuses to take them across , citing strict orders from the High Council and claiming that there must not be survivors anyway . He then leaves the bridge , and Worf decides that it is time to challenge him for command of the ship . Act Five . Martok returns to the bridge and Worf challenges him . It is clear that the crew can ' t stand another defeat and Worf wants his friend to see that . In the following struggle , Martok again feels what it is to be a Klingon and when Worf realizes he has made his point , he lets Martok defeat him . When a Jem ' Hadar ship is detected nearby , a re - invigorated Martok promises to make the Jem ' Hadar regret crossing them . This time , the crew are fully behind him and sing The Warrior ' s Anthem much more enthusiastically . Dax carries an injured but much - at - ease Worf to be treated . Later , the ship returns to DS9 on a triumphant note . They had destroyed the Jem ' Hadar ship and rescued 35 crewmembers from the " B ' Moth " . The scope of their success allowed the High Council to easily forgive their crossing into Cardassian space ; indeed , they commended the crew ' s bravery . The crew is completely changed by the recent victory , and Martok requests fifteen barrels of bloodwine to celebrate this . He later comes to Worf to thank him for making him remember he is a soldier " and " a warrior , and Worf admits that when he let Martok defeat him , he wasn ' t sure he wouldn ' t kill him . Martok is impressed by the sacrifice Worf was willing to make , and makes his friend an offer . He mentions that Worf still wears the crest for the House of Mogh , and Worf admits that Jadzia considers it a sentimental gesture . Martok offers Worf a new beginning as a member of the House of Martok , telling him he is proud to welcome Worf into his family as a warrior . . . and as a brother . Worf accepts , and replaces the House of Mogh crest with the one for the House of Martok . The two warriors and brothers clasp hands in victory , signaling a new beginning for Worf . Memorable quotes . " " I - I do not wish to have a lengthy goodbye . " " " " I wasn ' t planning on having one . " " " " Good . " " " " I am Worf , son of Mogh . I now take my place as first officer . I serve the captain , but I stand for the crew . " " " " Two years I spent on the Cardassian border . Two years fighting Guls and Legates and Glinns . They were cunning enemies . Always had us chasing holo - projections and sensor ghosts . Everything was a game with them . Always had a plan within a plan within a plan leading into a trap . It was an honor to kill them . " " " " The Cardassians . " " " " Ah , but you can respect a Cardassian because he fights for his people and he follows a code just like we do . But not the soldiers of the Dominion . Not the Jem ' Hadar . No ; they don ' t fight for anything . They fight because they ' re designed that way , because they ' re programmed to fight . " " " " They have no honor . " " " " You ' re right . That ' s why they ' re better than us . " " " " It is clear to me that none of you are worthy of my blood or my life , but I will stand for you . " " " " They are soulless creatures , Worf , fighting for no goal , no purpose except to serve the Founders . They take no pleasure in what they do . . . nothing is glorified , nothing affirmed . To the Jem ' Hadar , we are nothing more than targets to be destroyed ! I must not allow them to destroy us , Worf . I must . . . " " " Hear ! Sons of Kahless . Hear ! Daughters too " . " The blood of battle washes clean " " The warrior brave and true " . " We fight , we love , and then we kill " . " Our lives burn short and bright " . " Then we die with honor and " " Join our fathers in the black fleet , " " Where we battle , forever battling , on " " Through the eternal fight " . Links and references . References . 999 ; active polaron scan ; alert status one ; Alpha Quadrant ; asteroid field ; autocrat ; autosuture ; ; barrel ; battle cruiser ; Black Fleet ; bloodwine ; bok - rat ; bow thruster ; brachial artery ; Cardassian ; Cardassian border ; centimeter ; commendation ; computer core ; crew roster ; " d ' k tahg " ; ; ; detached service ; disability ; distress call ; docking clamp ; duty roster ; emergency power ; emitter stage ; engineering team ; Ferengi ; first officer ; fleet liaison officer ; garbage scow ; Glinn ; Great House ; Gul ; holo - projection ; holosuite ; House of Martok ; House of Mogh ; Internment Camp 371 ; Imperial Klingon Defense Forces ; intelligence officer ; Jem ' Hadar ; Jem ' Hadar patrol ship ; ; Kahless the Unforgettable ; kellicam ; kilometer ; Klingon Bird - of - Prey ; Klingon Empire ; Klingon High Council ; Klingon warrior ' s anthem ; leave ; Legate ; medical ward ; mission report ; Mogh ; mooring ; neckbone ; ocular implant ; operating system ; " par ' Mach ' kai " ; personnel report ; phaser relay ; phaser rifle ; pirate ; pre - fire chamber ; priority message ; prison record ; Qo ' noS ; Quark ' s ; record of battle ; ; security clearance ; sensor ghost ; Shovak ; small arms recalibration ; stewed bok - rat liver ; Tavana ' s mother ; Tong Beak Nebula ; " tova ' dok " ; Year of Kahless