"That's something else of which we get more than our fair share." Sisko tapped a fingernail against the words on the screen. "And you believe that you can connect this extremely ordinary individual with our little group of dead murderers?"
"Commander. He did take a swing at your head with an open pryblade—"
Sisko interrupted with an upheld hand. "Yes, of course; I mean with something besides that small datum." He managed a wry smile. "In my career, I've had several attempts on my life, and I've never assumed yet that they were all part of a single epidemic. They all seemed to be more of the sort of phenomenon that comes with the territory, as it were."
"In this case I believe we have indicative, if not conclusive, evidence. Ahrmant Wyoss was brought to my attention by one of his work-group supervisors, who had become alarmed by signs of a deteriorating mental condition on Wyoss's part. Specifically, an alteration in personality accompanied by verbal pronouncements of a disjointed and violent nature. A psych screening was performed on Wyoss and the results tagged and forwarded to me. I immediately noticed the similarity between the transcript of Wyoss's bizarre ramblings and the few recordings and ex post facto accounts of the dead murderers. For example, the comm line to the Denebian transport was inadvertently left open, and we have close to a quarter hour of that individual's comments to himself—along with some fairly gruesome sound effects—as he went about his self-appointed task. In all cases, and certainly in Wyoss's, there are common elements of an absorbing fantasy construct in which the individuals seem to be trapped. The murders themselves appear to be the result of some kind of level autistic functioning, in which the components of the normally perceived environment—such as other people—are seen as parts of another, completely enclosed world. And judging from the nature of the murderers' responses to those perceptions, it's not a particularly pleasant world."
Everything Odo said had been in his report; Sisko could look at the computer panel and see nearly the exact same words. Going over it this way had given him time to sort through his own thoughts on the matter.
Unfortunately, there were still not enough facts at hand on which to base a course of decision.
Sisko gazed up at the office's curved ceiling. "As long as we have this material from the murderers—and presumably more material forthcoming from our attempted murderer—we should put it through as much analysis as possible. There may be something we're overlooking. . . ."
"I quite agree, Commander. That's why I've asked Lieutenant Dax to begin a separate investigation. I've turned copies of all my records pertaining to this case over to her, and given her complete access to the prisoner Ahrmant Wyoss. She indicated that she understood the urgency attached to this matter, and has already started work on it."
"Dax?" Sisko brought his gaze back down. "But why not Dr. Bashir? I would've thought that he had more expertise in what would seem to be largely a psychological inquiry."
Odo's posture stiffened against the back of his chair. "In fact, I did initially approach our chief medical officer. I'm afraid, however, that Dr. Bashir was not cooperative."
He had been afraid of that. The chief medical officer was, if nothing else, a man of principle, as yet unalloyed by the compromises that a few more years of experience might bring.
"I'll speak to him." With a few taps of his finger, Sisko sent the report back to the computer's confidential archives. "In the meantime, Constable, give this matter your highest priority. Notify me at once of any new developments."
"Of course, Commander."
As soon as Odo had left the office, Sisko pushed his own chair back from the desk and stood up. He had a good notion that the chief medical officer was already waiting for him.
"Because it is, in essence, a medical problem. That's why, Commander."
Science Officer Jadzia Dax could hear the tension in Bashir's voice. The doctor only had his experience with Benjamin Sisko as a commanding officer aboard DS9 to go on; he didn't have the decades of knowing Sisko as a human being that her symbiont partner had brought to their shared consciousness. It was always easier for a Trill to view the great emotions of mere humanoid life, the angers and jealousies and other passions that loomed so large to those experiencing them, as mere epiphenomena, ripples on centuries-old seas.
A three-way conversation—or argument, at least on the part of the other two points of the triangle—had broken out in the research facility that she administered aboard the station. Commander Sisko had come upon her and Dr. Bashir, engaged in debating the ethics involved in Ahrmant Wyoss's case.
She could see that Benjamin was in danger of losing his temper, in that deceptively calm, voice-lowering manner that reasonably terrified a good number of the station's crew. But then again, Bashir's obstinacy—he was not quite the thin, pliable reed that many took him to be at first encounter—was notably evocative of that reaction in others.
"Commander—" In deference to Starfleet etiquette, she addressed him by his rank in public, rather than by the first name their long friendship allowed her to use. "I think both viewpoints can be accommodated here. There's no reason why my assisting Odo's investigation would necessarily interfere with the subject's therapeutic requirements."
"We're not talking about a 'subject' here." The steel in Sisko's voice barely softened when he replied to her. "The individual in question is charged with attempted murder. The target of Wyoss's attack was myself, DS9's most senior officer, and if he had managed to continue unapprehended, presumably he would have taken Major Kira's life as well. That puts an even more serious cast on the matter; we're dealing with what could have been a critical blow to the station's operating capability and to the ongoing execution of our mission here."
Bashir placed his hands against the lab table behind him, as though bracing himself for an anticipated stormwind. "I would like to respectfully submit that the commander may be letting his personal feelings interfere with his judgment. It would be only natural, and certainly expected by a competent psychologist, for you to be affronted by the subject's admittedly regrettable actions. That can give rise to feelings of vindictiveness on your part."
That, remarked Dax to herself, is a rhetorical tactic that's not going to work. One didn't need to share a centuries-old mentality to predict the negative effect the doctor's words were having.
"To be concerned about an epidemic of murder aboard this station, Dr. Bashir, can hardly be ascribed to vindictiveness." The steel had chilled to subzero temperatures. "I would be as concerned about the matter if that pryblade had been aimed at your head." The commander was silent for a moment, as though forcing himself to resist contemplating such an event. "Until we ascertain what's behind these events, I have to assume that something is happening which could endanger our entire onboard population. The welfare of the station takes precedence over the interests of this single individual."
Dr. Bashir didn't flinch, though Dax had detected a nervous clenching of his jaw as Sisko had spoken. "Sir, as DS9's commander, you may be able to justify that decision. But being the station's chief medical officer, I am first bound by my oaths as a doctor. The threat that you believe the station is faced with is still a matter of conjecture; your use of the word epidemic itself is a loose appropriation of a precise technical term—we haven't isolated a bacillus or virus that's being carried through the air ducts and is turning people into crazed murderers. I'm sorry, sir; I don't mean to indulge in a lecture on this point, but right now we don't have any basis for assuming the subject Wyoss's violent actions were necessarily connected to those previously committed, or that there will be similar acts committed by other individuals in the future."