Stardate not given: Kira has been recalled to Bajor, and accepts
an invitation from Vedek Bareil to spend some time at
his monastery. There, she encounters the Third Orb,
which gives her a strange vision including Dax, Vedeks Winn and Bareil, Minister Jaro,
and the Bajoran Chamber of Ministers. In the
meantime, as Li Nalas tries to fit into his role as DS9's first officer, the crew stumbles across evidence that the
Circle is not just an isolated faction, but is
instead a well-organized and surprisingly well-armed
movement which is waiting in the wings to overthrow
the provisional government of Bajor by force. Unknown
to the Circle's members, however, they are being
provided weapons by the Cardassians, who anticipate
correctly that Starfleet will order Sisko and all other Federation personnel to
evacuate DS9 and leave Bajor to its own political
machinations, wide open for a renewed Cardassian
occupation. The Circle launches assault ships to take
over the station, and many of the Starfleet occupants
have no choice but to stay behind and fight for their
survival.
