Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (TV Series)

The Maquis, Part II (1994)

Avery Brooks: Commander Benjamin 'Ben' Sisko

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Quotes 

• Adm. Alynna Nechayev : I want you to find the Maquis. Talk to them. Remind them that they're citizens of the Federation. That it is imperative that we preserve the treaty with the Cardassians.

  Commander Sisko : A treaty the Cardassians may not be honoring!

  Adm. Alynna Nechayev : Are you questioning Federation policy, Commander?

  Commander Sisko : [with suppressed frustration]  All I know, is that the situation in the Demilitarized Zone is deteriorating rapidly.

  Adm. Alynna Nechayev : Personally I think you're overstating the problem. Establish a dialogue with the Maquis. They're still Federation citizens, I'm sure they'll listen to reason. Good luck, Commander.

  Commander Sisko : [as Kira enters]  Establish a dialogue, what the *hell* does she think I've been trying to do?

  Major Kira : [urgently]  Commander!

  Commander Sisko : Just because a group of people belong to the Federation, it does not mean that they are saints!

  Major Kira : [more hesitantly]  Excuse me...

  Commander Sisko : [increasingly agitated]  You know what the trouble is?

  Major Kira : ...No.

  Commander Sisko : The trouble is Earth!

  Major Kira : Really.

  Commander Sisko : On Earth, there is no poverty, no crime, no war. You look out the window of Starfleet Headquarters and you see paradise. Well it's *easy* to be a saint in paradise, but the Maquis do not live in paradise! Out there, in the Demilitarized Zone, all the problems haven't been solved yet! Out there, there are no saints! Just people! Angry, scared, determined people, who are going to do whatever it takes to survive, whether it meets with Federation approval or not!

  Major Kira : Makes sense to me.

  Commander Sisko : [calmer, slightly embarrassed]  Well I'm glad... *someone* understands.

• Commander Sisko : According to Sakonna, the Maquis are going to attack the depot sometime within the next 52 hours.

  Gul Dukat : But she didn't tell you on which colony the depot is hidden?

  Commander Sisko : She says she doesn't know.

  Gul Dukat : How convenient.

  Commander Sisko : I believe her.

  Gul Dukat : Why? Because Vulcans don't lie?

  Commander Sisko : As a rule, they don't.

  Gul Dukat : They don't blow up ships either, as a rule.

• Gul Dukat : In Cardassia, the verdict is always known before the trial begins; and it's always the same.

  Commander Sisko : In that case, why bother with a trial at all?

  Gul Dukat : Because the people demand it. They enjoy watching justice triumph over evil, every time. They find it comforting.

  Commander Sisko : Isn't there ever a chance you might try an innocent man by mistake?

  Gul Dukat : Cardassians don't make mistakes.

  Commander Sisko : I'll have to remember that.

• Gul Dukat : [on Legate Parn]  I'm sure he made some rather ugly threats on my behalf, hm?

  Commander Sisko : He said that you were the one responsible for smuggling weapons into the demilitarized zone. That if the Maquis did not execute you, then the Central Command would - *after* a comforting trial, I'm sure.

• Commander Sisko : [of Dukat]  The Central Command wants him dead. That's reason enough for us to want him alive.

• Commander Sisko : You're throwing away your entire life!

  Cal Hudson : And beginning a new one.

• Commander Sisko : I said I would stop the Maquis. And one way or another, I will.

• Commander Sisko : [to Amaros]  Tell Cal Hudson I haven't told Starfleet anything yet. Tell him we can still solve this thing together, but we're running out of time. Tell him I still have his uniform; he can have it back any time he wants.

• Gul Dukat : I thought you were strong, Commander. You're not. You're a fool - a sentimental fool.

  Commander Sisko : I said I'd stop the Maquis, and I have. But I will not kill a good man for defending his home.

• Cal Hudson : I'm going to miss you, Ben. You've been a good friend.

  [disconnects] 

  Commander Sisko : So have you.

• [last lines] 

  Commander Sisko : I just got a communique from Starfleet, congratulating me on my good work, and thanking me for preserving the peace with the Cardassians.

  Major Kira : You deserve it. You prevented a war.

  Commander Sisko : Did I? Or did I just delay the inevitable?

• Odo : And one other thing...

  [nods towards Quark in the holding cell] 

  Odo : How long do I keep him here?

  Commander Sisko : Forever.