Plot summary
A Bajoran smuggler tells Major Kira that he has recovered a piece of metal that might be from the Ravinok, a Cardassian ship that disappeared six years before with a group of Bajoran prisoners on board, including a friend of Kira's. She makes plans to investigate, but the Cardassian government insists on sending Gul Dukat to accompany her. The two travel to a desert planet near where the fragment was found, and they find the wreckage of the Ravinok.
Kira and Dukat discover twelve graves near the wreckage, but since several more people were on the ship, they conclude that some survivors may still be alive. First, however, Dukat opens the graves in order to identify the bodies and is overcome with grief when he finds the remains of a Bajoran woman who was his mistress. They soon set off on foot, scanning the planet for survivors. While setting up camp, Dukat reveals that he and his mistress had a daughter, Tora Ziyal, who may be among the survivors. Unfortunately, if he finds her alive, he plans to kill her to avoid a scandal that would endanger his Cardassian family and career. Kira tells Dukat she will not allow him to kill Ziyal.
Kira and Dukat discover a mining operation of Bajoran and Cardassian prisoners, supervised by the Breen. Dukat sees his half-Cardassian, half-Bajoran daughter among the prisoners. Disguised as Breen, Kira and Dukat infiltrate the mine, overcome the guards, and free the prisoners. Kira is sad to learn that her friend died two years earlier, but Dukat is only interested in finding his daughter. When he finds her, she instantly recognizes her father and is thrilled to see him, despite the fact he is aiming a phaser rifle at her. Kira arrives and tries to stop him. Ziyal realizes what is happening and tells her father she would rather die if she cannot go with him. She hugs him affectionately, and Dukat, shaken with emotion, decides to take Ziyal home — even if it costs him everything he has.
Meanwhile, in a side plot on Deep Space Nine, Captain Benjamin Sisko learns that his girlfriend, Kasidy Yates, has been offered a job on Bajor and is considering moving to the station. Instead of congratulating her, Sisko can only express his anxiety about escalating their relationship; but Sisko's friends and his son Jake convince him to apologize to her.
Credits
Adapted from Wikipedia contributors, Indiscretion (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine). Paragraphs and formatting adjusted; illustrations, reference markers, block quotations and non-story material omitted.