Hard Time

Wrongly convicted of espionage by the Argrathi, O'Brien is punished with implanted memories: in a matter of hours, his mind lives through twenty years in prison. He is released before Starfleet even learns he was arrested. Back on the station, he tries to pick up his old life but cannot settle. He insists he spent his sentence alone, yet he keeps seeing Ee'char, a gentle cellmate who taught him how to survive. O'Brien hoards food, sleeps on the floor and grows angry and violent, arguing with Bashir and attacking Quark. When he almost strikes his daughter Molly, he flees to a cargo bay, where he comes close to taking his own life. Bashir finds him in time, and O'Brien confesses the truth: starving and desperate, he killed Ee'char in a fight over food. Bashir tells him that his remorse proves he is still the man he was, and O'Brien accepts help.