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The Dominion war reached its peak in the sixth year of Julian's term aboard Deep Space Nine. Casualties were inordinately heavy for the Federation and its allies, most notably the Klingon Empire. Suffering near complete defeats, the Federation lost major worlds like Betazoid under the swarms of militant Jem'Hadars and their cunning Vorta supervisors. Throughout the campaign for the freedom of the Alpha Quadrant, Deep Space Nine has been on the front lines, guarding the wormhole that serves as a channel to the Gamma Quadrant and buffeting the first waves of each attack. Julian Bashir seemed to have aged more during these last two years than in his whole life. Seeing casualty lists that have new names on them daily, whole races punished by the Dominion for failure to conform, even the Jem'Hadar's plight has all contrived to snatch the dreamy look from the doctor's eyes and quell his spirit into submission. Too much death has Julian seen, and his attitude has certainly come a long way from the naivety of his first year aboard the station. That is the price of war, a desperate time when dreams seem fainter and less attainable than they already are. The doctor devoted his life to saving people, but there are times when the acts of one individual simply don't matter. 
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