- Quark: I have a dream - a dream that one day all people, Human, Jem'Hadar, Ferengi, Cardassians will stand together in peace... around my dabo tables!
- [Garak has knocked out Eddington in order to help Sisko escape from a holding cell]
- Doctor Bashir: If I didn't know better, I'd say you were enjoying yourself, Garak.
- Garak: Oh, not at all, Doctor, but after years of hemming women's dresses, a little action is a welcome change of pace.
- Garak: There's an old saying on Cardassia: "Enemies make dangerous friends", and I fear the Dominion will make a very dangerous friend indeed.
- Garak: I'm glad to see the plan is going as scheduled.
- Jem'Hadar Soldier: What plan is that?
- Garak: You mean no one told you? You see, I pretend to be their friend... and then I shoot you.
- Doctor Bashir: Well, I guess this means the end of our Starfleet careers.
- Garak: Oh, I wouldn't worry about that, Doctor.
- Lieutenant Jadzia Dax: Well, that's easy for you to say.
- Garak: Oh, you misunderstand me, Lieutenant. All I meant was, it's a little foolish to worry about your careers at a time like this, when there's a good chance we're all about to be killed.
- Major Kira: You belong to the Dominion, don't you?
- Female Shapeshifter: Belong to it? Major, the Changelings *are* the Dominion.
- Odo: [understanding] You are the Founders!
- Female Shapeshifter: Ironic, isn't it? The hunted now control the destinies of hundreds of other races.
- Odo: But... why control anyone?
- Female Shapeshifter: Because what you can control, can't hurt you.
- Female Shapeshifter: To become a thing is to know a thing. To assume its form is to begin to understand its existence.
- [Sisko is questioning the decision to exclude the Romulans from the peace talks with the Dominion]
- Admiral Alynna Nechayev: Commander, if this treaty is signed, and I'm confident it will be, we'll never have to worry about the Romulans again.
- Commander Sisko: Are you sure of that?
- Admiral Alynna Nechayev: Quite sure. After all, what chance would they have against the combined power of our new alliance?
- Commander Sisko: They wouldn't have much of a chance at all.
- Admiral Alynna Nechayev: I'm glad we agree.
- Admiral Alynna Nechayev: Commander, I'm ordering you to stand down. Return to the station immediately.
- Commander Sisko: I'm afraid I'm going to have to refuse that order.
- Borath: Please, Commander. Don't make us send the Jem'Hadar after you.
- Commander Sisko: Go right ahead. But you'd better warn them not to expect any reinforcements for about seventy years.
- [Kira and Odo find the rest of their crew unconscious in a cavern and attached to some machines]
- Odo: What have you done to them?
- Borath: Nothing harmful. We're just conducting a little experiment.
- Major Kira: What kind of experiment?
- Borath: To see how they'd respond to an attempt by the Dominion to gain a foothold into the Alpha Quadrant. We were curious to see how much they'd be willing to sacrifice in order to avoid a war.
- Major Kira: And what have you found out?
- Borath: Unfortunately, they're proving to be just as stubborn as I'd feared.
- Odo: I'm glad to hear it.
- Odo: How do you justify the deaths of so many people?
- Female Shapeshifter: The Solids have always been a threat to us. That's the only justification we need.
- Odo: But these Solids have never harmed you. They travel the galaxy in order to expand their knowledge, just as you once did.
- Female Shapeshifter: The Solids are nothing like us.
- Odo: No - I suppose they're not. And neither am I.
- Odo: I admit this... Link of yours is appealing. But you see, I already have a link - with these people.
- Female Shapeshifter: Your link to the Solids won't last. You will always be an outsider.
- Odo: Being an outsider isn't so bad. It gives one a unique perspective. It's a pity you've forgotten that.
- Odo: It's... different than I imagined it would be.
- Female Shapeshifter: Whatever you imagined, I promise, it will be better.
- Odo: Then teach me what I need to know.
- Female Shapeshifter: I'll do what I can. But in the end, this is another journey you'll have to make on your own. And when it is over, you'll be ready to take your place in the Great Link.
- Borath: Believe me, Commander, an alliance between the Dominion and the Federation will be beneficial to both our people.
- Borath: It's the beginning of a new era, Commander, and you helped make it possible. Congratulations.
- [Odo has linked with the female shapeshifter, leaving him awestruck]
- Major Kira: Odo!
- Odo: Yes, Major?
- Major Kira: Are you all right? What happened?
- Odo: I'm not sure. But I know one thing. She's right: I am... home!