Chief O'Brien is given twenty years of memories as a prisoner and struggles to return to normal.
O'Brien is wrongly convicted of espionage on Argratha and is punished with implanted memories of twenty years in prison, which pass in a few hours. Returning to the station, he struggles with what he went through, imagining his cellmate Ee'char and keeping prison habits such as hoarding food and sleeping on the floor.
He becomes increasingly angry and lashes out at Quark, and Sisko puts him on medical leave. After nearly striking Molly, he is about to take his life when Bashir stops him. O'Brien admits he killed Ee'char over food in prison, and Bashir helps him accept that his guilt proves he is still a decent man.