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Elim Garak; Former agent of the powerful Cardassian Obsidian Order intelligence service until he was exiled to space station Terok Nor in 2368. "The Wire". Garak was the only Cardassian citizen left on the station after the Cardassian retreat from the Bajoran system in 2369, at which time the station became known as Deep Space 9. While in exile, Garak opened a clothing shop on the station's Promenade and worked as a tailor. Garak made no references to his past, calling himself just "plain, simple Garak," but some people on the station still regarded him as a spy, including Dr. Julian Bashir, although the two eventually became friends. "Past Prologue".
Despite his protestations to Bashir, Garak maintained some contact with Cardassian intelligence. "Cardassians". Garak enjoyed raising Edosian orchids as a hobby. His experience with plants proved to be of value when he served as a gardener at the Cardassian Embassy on Romulus. Oddly enough, there were an unusual number of accidental deaths among high-ranking Romulan officials while Garak served on Romulus. "Broken Link".
While still a member of the Obsidian Order, Garak had volunteered to have a cranial implant placed into his skull, to help him resist torture if captured by an enemy. Garak found exiled life on Terok Nor (later Deep Space 9) to be intolerable, so he activated the cranial implant and left it on. The implant served as a powerful narcotic on which Garak became physically dependent until 2370, when the unit malfunctioned, nearly costing Garak his life. Dr. Bashir was able to remove the device. "The Wire".
Even in exile, Garak never gave up hope of eventual political rehabilitation. "Profit and Loss". Although Tain had been responsible for Garak's exile and even tried to have Garak killed, Garak found isolation so bitter that in 2371 he jumped at the opportunity to serve again with Tain. Garak participated in Tain's disastrous joint attack by the Obsidian Order and the Romulan Tal Shiar against the Founders of the Dominion. Garak was the only Cardassian survivor of that battle. "Improbable Cause", "The Die is Cast".
Elim Garak distrusted Gul Dukat "The Wire", "Civil Defense", "Improbable Cause", and "The Die is Cast", because Garak had played a part in the downfall and execution of Dukat's father. "Civil Defense". Garak nevertheless fought alongside with Dukat to defend the Detapa Council in 2372, when Klingon warriors attempted to abduct the Council. "The Way of the Warrior". Even more ironically, Garak found himself attracted to Dukat's daughter, Tora Ziyal, when she took up residence on Deep Space 9 in 2372. "For the Cause".
Garak returned briefly to Cardassia in 2371 to help rescue Kira Nerys, who had been taken prisoner by the Obsidian Order. "Second Skin". As a passenger on the Defiant while the ship was at the Founders' homeworld in 2372, Garak attempted to obliterate the planet by overriding the launch controls for the ship's quantum torpedoes. Had Garak been successful, he would have killed all of the Founders. For his actions, Captain Sisko ordered that Garak be imprisoned for six months in a holding cell. "Broken Link".
Garak was the
son of Obsidian Order chief Enabran Tain. Ironically, it was Tain who
gave the order to have Garak exiled to Terok Nor. Garak spent much of
his life desperately trying to please his father, although Tain kept
his son at arm's length. It was only in 2373, when Tain was on his
deathbed in a Jem'Hadar prison camp, that he confessed to Garak that
he was proud of his son. "In
Purgatory's Shadow".
Garak's
quarters on DS9 were Chamber 901, Habitat Level H-3. "The Wire".
In 2373, Garak
was a member of a salvage team assigned to obtain badly needed
engineering components from the abandoned Cardassian station Empok
Nor for use on Deep Space 9. Garak was instrumental in helping the
DS9 team avoid a variety of booby traps left behind on the station by
the Cardassians. Unfortunately, one such trap involved a powerful
psychotropic drug that affected Garak by amplifying his normal
xenophobic tendencies so strongly that he killed a Starfleet officer
before he could be subdued. "Empok Nor".
Garak demonstrated his considerable skill in covert operations as
well as his cold-blooded ruthlessness in 2374 when he worked with
Benjamin Sisko on an extralegal operation to draw the Romulans into
the war against the Dominion, an important turning point in the
costly war. "In the Pale Moonlight".
When Garak was a child, his father sometimes locked him in a closet
until the boy had learned his lesson. In later years, Garak wondered
if this had caused his occasional bouts of severe claustrophobia. "Afterimage".
During the final, desperate days of the Dominion war, Garak returned
to Cardassia Prime and, along with Damar and Kira, played an
instrumental role in helping to rally Cardassian resistance against
the Dominion. "Dogs of War".
After the
final battle of the Dominion war was won, Garak remained on Cardassia
to help rebuild his homeworld. "What
You Leave Behind, Parts I and
II".
Garak appeared in "Past Prologue", "Crossover", "The Search, Part II", "Second Skin", "Distant Voices", "Our Man Bashir", "Body Parts", "Things Past", "By Inferno's Light", "Call to Arms", "A Time to Stand", "Rocks and Shoals", "Favor the Bold", "Sacrifice of Angels", "Tears of the Prophets", "The Emperor's New Cloak", "Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges", "When It Rains...", "Tacking Into the Wind", "Extreme Measures", "
Garak (mirror); In the mirror universe, first officer of station Terok Nor in 2370. "Crossover". In 2371, this Garak tortured and killed Rom (mirror) after Rom revealed a Terran rebellion plan to get Jennifer Sisko (mirror) away from Terok Nor (mirror). "Through the Looking Glass".