Dr. Bashir's genetically enhanced friends are brought in to work on the war.
Bashir agrees to work with four genetically enhanced patients whose augmentation left them unable to function in society: the restless Jack, the flirtatious Lauren, the childlike Patrick and the silent Sarina. Bored by enforced idleness, they impress Starfleet by reading Damar's motives from a broadcast and spotting the Dominion's interest in a world rich in ketracel-white materials during border talks.
Given more intelligence, they build a model predicting the Federation will lose the war with hundreds of billions dead and urge surrender. Starfleet refuses, so they plan to hand its strategy to the Dominion. They tie up Bashir, but Sarina releases him and the plot is stopped. Bashir concludes that one unexpected choice undid their certainty. The episode draws on his own secret of genetic enhancement, revealed the season before, and the group returns in later episodes.