| Odo returns from a conference with an unexpected guest: a
Changeling who tracked and boarded his Runabout. Odo recognizes him as
one of "the hundred" shapeshifters who were, like himself, sent out as
infants into the galaxy to learn about other species. Back at the
station, Sisko warily releases the visitor to Odo's custody. The
Changeling, known as Laas, queries Odo about their unique species - with
which Laas has made no contact since his infancy - and "the Link," a
Changeling ritual that allows shapeshifters to meld with one another and
thereby form a single, sentient collective entity. |