---

Captain 's log, stardate 4307.1.
Approaching Starbase 6
for a much needed period of rest and recreation.
The crew has performed excellently,
but is exhausted.
And I, too, am looking forward
to a nice period of rest on some lovely planet.
Captain.
There was a message from Starbase 6.
All I get is "Intrepid"
and what sounded like a sector coordinate.
Interesting.
No indications of magnetic storms in this sector.
Try another channel, Lieutenant.
Aye, sir.
Intrepid is manned by Vulcans, right?
That's right.
Enterprise calling Starbase 6.
Enterprise calling Starbase 6.
Come in. Come in.
Spock?
What is it, Spock? Are you in pain?
Captain ...
the Intrepid ...
it just ... died.
And the 400 Vulcans aboard --
All dead.
Come on, Spock. Let's go down to sick bay.
Doctor, I know what I know.
Get to sick bay.
Captain ...
No, no, no. That's an order.
Yes, sir.
Captain, I have Starbase 6 readable now.
Switching to audio, sir.
Kirk here. Go ahead.
Go immediately to sector 39J.
Sir, the Enterprise just completed an exhausting mission.
We're on our way in for R and R.
There must be another starship in that sector.
Negative. This is a rescue priority.
We've lost allcontact with solar system Gamma 7A,
which the Intrepid was investigating,
and we've just lost contact with the Intrepid.
Report progress.
Order acknowledged. Kirk out.
Mr. Kyle, you heard the order.
Set course for Gamma 7A, warp 5.
Aye, sir.
Captain ... I have just completed
a full long-range scan of Gamma 7A system.
It is dead.
Dead?
That was a fourth magnitude sun.
There are billions of inhabitants there.
It is dead.
Space -- the final frontier.
These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise.
Its five-year mission --
To explore strange new worlds...
to seek out new life and new civilizations ...
to boldly go where no man has gone before.
I assure you, Doctor, I'm quite all right.
The pain was momentary. It passed quickly.
All of my instruments seem to agree with you
if I can trust these crazy Vulcan readings.
Spock, how can you be so sure the lntrepid was destroyed?
I sensed it die.
I thought you had to be in physical contact before --
Doctor, even I, a half-Vulcan,
could hear the death scream of 400 Vulcan minds
crying out over the distance between us.
Not even a Vulcan could feel a starship die.
Call it a deep understanding
of the way things happen to Vulcans,
but I know not a person,
not even the computers on board the Intrepid,
knew what was killing them
or would have understood it had they known.
But 400 Vulcans.
I've noticed that about your people.
You find it easier to understand the death of one
than the death of a million.
You speak about the objective hardness ofthe Vulcan heart,
yet how little room there seems to be in yours.
Suffer the death of thy neighbor, eh, Spock?
You wouldn't wish that on us, would you?
It might have rendered your history a bit less bloody.
Spock, you may have been right.
We've lost contact with the Intrepid
and no communication within this solar system.
Any update from Starfleet?
I cannot filter out the distortion, sir.
It's getting worse.
Captain, deflector shields Just snapped on.
Slow to warp 3.
Warp 3, sir.
Indications of energy turbulence ahead.
Unable to analyze.
I've never encountered readings like this before.
Scanners on.
Magnification 3 on the screen.
Magnification factor 3, sir.
Exactly what are we looking for, Mr. Spock?
I would assume ...
that.
What is that?
Perhaps an interstellar dust cloud.
Not very likely, Ensign.
No. You would be able to see stars through a dust cloud.
Looks like a hole in space.
Readings, Mr. Spock.
Still not able to analyze, Captain.
Sensors are feeding data to the computers now.
Whatever this dark zone is,
it lies directly in line with the course I calculate
for the Intrepid and the Gamma 7A system.
Hold present course.
Slow to warp 1.
Warp factor 1, sir.
Mr. Chekov, prepare to launch telemetry probe.
Direct computer feed to Mr. Spock.
Aye, sir. Probe ready.
Switching data feed to library computer.
Launch probe.
Probe launched, sir.
[High-Pitched Tone]
What was that?
The telemetry probe, sir.
There's no signal from it now.
Speculation, Spock.
I have none, Captain. Insufficient data.
[Groan]
Ohh!
Lieutenant.
I'm just dizzy.
I'll be all right.
I'm fine, sir.
Sick bay to Captain Kirk. McCoy here.
Kirk here. What is it?
I'm getting reports from every deck.
Half the people on this ship just fainted.
Uhura almost did. She says she's all right.
You want to see her?
Not unless she's feeling ill.
I've got an emergency here.
What's wrong?
Well, there's nothing organic.
They all seem to be nervous, weak, and irritable.
They say it happened suddenly.
Can you handle it, Bones?
I'm giving them stimulants
to keep them on their feet.
We'll handle it, Jim.
Good. Kirk out.
Hold our position, Mr. Kyle.
Aye, aye, sir.
Spock, give me an update on the dark area.
No analysis due to insufficient information.
No speculation, no information, nothing.
I've asked you three times for information on that,
you've been unable to supply it.
"Insufficient data" is not sufficient.
You're the science officer.
You're supposed to have sufficient data all the time.
I'm well aware of that, Captain,
but the computers contain nothing on this phenomenon.
It is beyond our experience,
and the new information is not yet significant.
I don't know about you, but I'm tired.
If you can't tell me what it is,
let's use reverse logic.
Perhaps it'll help if you tell me what it isn't.
It is not liquid, gaseous, or solid,
despite the fact we cannot see through it.
So far that's not much help.
It is not a galactic nebula such as the Coal Sack,
and since our deflectors were activated by it,
it would seem to be some form of energy,
but nothing our sensors can identify.
Is it possible ...
that this is what killed that solar system
and the Intrepid?
Very possible.
Lieutenant.
Yes, sir.
Notify the Starfleet ...
that we're going to attempt to probe
the area of darkness to gain further information.
Aye, aye, sir.
Captain?
Distance from zone of darkness, Mr. Kyle?
100,000 kilometers, sir.
Ahead slow.
Impulse power off.
Aye, aye, sir.
Transmission to Starfleet complete, sir.
Very good.
Time, Mr. Chekov.
Penetration of the zone in one minute, seven seconds, sir.
Red alert.
Deflectors full power.
Phaser banks ready.
Phasers standing by.
Deflectors at full power, sir.
[High-Pitched Tone]
It's not coming from communications, sir.
Spock!
Analyzing now, Captain.
Captain ...
the stars ...
are gone!
Malfunction, Mr. Spock?
Negative, Captain.
All systems functioning properly.
Then tell me what happened to the stars.
Unknown, Captain.
Kirk to McCoy.
McCoy here.
Things any better down there?
Worse. They're backed up into the corridor.
Have you got anything that will help up here?
I don't want anybody folding on the bridge at a critical moment.
On my way. McCoy out.
Kirk to engineering.
Scotty, there was a power loss.
How come?
We lost 5% of our energy reserve, sir.
Our deflector shields are weakened.
Can you compensate for the loss?
Aye, if we don't lose any more.
Don't ask me how it happened.
I am asking how, mister.
I want answers. Kirk out.
What's that?
A stimulant.
Bones, how bad is it?
2/3 of the personnel are affected.
Why? How?
Do you have any answers?
You know you'll get everything I can tell you.
But when there is nothing, what should I say?
Nurse.
This ship is in trouble.
We'd better start solving problems faster
than we pick up new ones.
We seem to be in the middle of a creeping paralysis.
Mr. Spock, analysis of that last burst of noise
before we started losing power.
That sound was turbulence
caused by the penetration of a boundary layer.
What boundary layer?
Unknown.
Boundary layer between what and what?
Between where we were and where we are.
Are you trying to be funny, Mr. Spock?
It would never occur to me, Captain.
Do you have any ideas, Spock?
No specifics, but we seem to have entered a zone of energy
which is incompatible with our living and mechanical processes.
As we draw closer to the source,
it grows stronger and we grow weaker.
Recommendations.
I have one.
I recommend survival.
Let's get out of here.
This is the Captain.
We're on a difficult mission,
but it's not the first time.
Our orders do not say "stay alive" or "retreat".
Our mission is to investigate.
We're sick, and we're getting sicker.
We have no guarantees, but we have a good ship
and the best crew in the Starfleet,
so do your jobs. Carry on.
Kirk out.
Sick bay to Captain Kirk.
Kirk here. Go ahead.
According to the life indicators, the energy levels ...
Yes, say it, Bones.
According to the life monitors, we're dying.
We're all dying.
Captain 's log, stardate 4308.8.
It is now 10 minutes
since we entered the zone of darkness.
We have stopped engines
while we seek a defense
against the energy drain
which seems topervade the zone.
Are you all right?
What was that?
Sorry, sir. I'm not sure.
I was trying to recalibrate,
and we went into reverse.
Reverse? That was a forward lurch.
How could that happen in reverse thrust?
I don't know, sir.
All I know is that ...
the power levels
are down 12% and steadily decreasing.
I've never experienced anything like it.
Bridge to Captain Kirk.
Kirk here.
Sir, we are accelerating.
We are being pulled toward the center of the zone of darkness.
By what, Spock?
Unknown, Captain. I suggest you order reverse power.
Scotty just gave us reverse power.
We lurched forward.
In that case, Captain,
I would suggest we apply forward thrust.
Doctor.
Life function indicators.
They've started to drop again.
Stimulants. I don't know how long we can keep this up.
What do you think? Forward thrust?
I don't know, sir.
It goes against the rules of logic.
Yes, doesn't it?
If it doesn't work, I'll never let Spock live it down.
Nudge it forward.
But ...
Go ahead.
That's doing it, sir. We're slowing down.
But we're not stopping.
We're still being dragged forward.
Have someone monitor the instruments.
Keep applying thrust against the pull.
Doctor, they seem to be stabilizing.
But at a dangerously low level.
Well, we're still alive.
I suppose that's something.
The further we travel into this zone of darkness,
the weaker our life functions become,
and I have no idea why.
I'm all right. It's those stimulants.
They catch up with you.
Engineering.
As to the power levels, everything is acting backwards,
but the drain is continuing.
On the static tests, I could only get 60% power.
We're still being dragged forward.
Spock.
It's logical to assume that something within this zone
absorbs all forms of energy
whether mechanically or biologically produced.
Whatever it is, it would seem to be the same thing
which drew all the energy out of an entire solar system
and the Intrepid.
The same thing, not the zone itself?
I would say not, Captain.
The analysis of the zone indicates it is a negative energy field,
however illogical that may sound,
but it is not the source of the power drain.
Maybe it's a shield of some kind,
a protection for something else.
But what?
We'll find out, but we better get out of here ourselves.
Scotty, channel all the impulse and warp power
into one massive thrust forward.
That might snap us out of the zone.
Aye, but I'll reserve some for the shields,
in case we don't get out.
I submit, Mr. Scott, if we don't get out,
the shields would be extraneous.
It would only prolong our wait for death
by a short period of time.
Use whatever power is necessary to get us out of here, Scotty.
Report to your stations, continue your research.
Dismissed.
Captain, the Intrepid would've done all these things, too,
and yet, they were destroyed.
Well, they may not have done all these things.
You've just pointed out how illogical this situation is.
True.
It is also true they never knew what was killing them.
Their logic would not have permitted them
to believe they were being killed.
Explain.
Vulcan has not been conquered
within its collective memory.
The memory goes back so far
that no Vulcan can conceive of a conqueror.
I knew the ship was lost because I sensed it.
What did you sense?
A touch of death.
And what do you think they felt?
Astonishment.
Aye, that ought to do it.
Engineering to Captain Kirk.
Kirk here. What is it, Scotty?
Ready when you are, sir.
Do we have the power to pull it off, Scotty?
I hope so, Captain.
Stand by.
All hands, this is the captain.
We are slowly being pulled deeper
into the zone of darkness by an unknown force.
We're going to apply all available power
into one giant forward thrust
in the hope that it will yank us out of the zone.
Prepare yourselves.
All right, Scotty. Let's get on with it.
Scotty!
It's no good, sir.
The best we can do is hold our position.
Are we still losing power?
Aye, sir.
How long will the power hold out?
At this rate, plus the drain on all systems,
two hours, sir.
Maintain thrust, Scotty.
While we're maintaining our distance, Mr. Spock,
have you ascertained yet what we're maintaining our distance from?
I cannot say what it is, Captain,
but I would say it has found us.
Prepare to launch a probe, Mr. Chekov.
Aye, sir.
Probe ready for launch, sir.
Getting very confused readings, Captain,
but this is definitely the source of the energy drain.
Launch probe.
Probe launched, sir.
Probe will impact in 7.3 seconds.
6 ...
5 ...
4 ... 3 ...
2 ... 1 ...
[Explosion]
Are we still in contact with the probe?
Yes, sir. Data being relayed.
Readings coming in now, Captain.
Length -- approximately 11,000 miles.
Width -- varying from 2,000 to 3,000 miles.
Outer layer studded with space debris
and waste.
Interior consists of ... protoplasm,
varying from a firmer gelatinous layer
to a semifluid central mass.
Condition ...
living.
Magnification 4.
Magnification 4, sir.
That is what is drawing us toward it, Captain,
the same way it drew the Intrepid to her death.
That is an amoeba.
Yes, I remember my basic biology, Doctor.
You mean to tell me that that thing
is a giant single-celled animal?
Yes, for lack of a better term.
It's a very simple form of life.
It's a much simpler form than you're looking at now.
That thing can perform all the functions
that qualify it as a living organism.
It can reproduce, it can breathe, it can eat,
although I don't know what.
Energy itself, perhaps, drained from us.
I would speculate that this unknown life form
is invading our galaxy like a virus.
The Intrepid died of that particular virus.
How is it we survive?
The lntrepid must have come across the organism
while it was still low in energy, still hungry.
We are not safe, Captain.
We merely have a little more time than the Intrepid.
What about this zone of darkness?
Does the organism generate it itself
as a form of protection?
That's one thing we've got to find out.
We need a closer look.
The closer we get, the faster our energy drains out.
We're barely surviving at this distance.
Perhaps we could risk the shuttlecraft.
Perhaps with a protective shield --
I'm not sending anyone anywhere.
Unmanned probes can give us the information we need
to destroy this thing, if it can be destroyed.
I must differ with you.
We have sent unmanned probes into it.
They've given us some information
but not what we need to know.
We cannot afford the power taking blind shots,
hoping to kill it.
We could send one man, pinpoint its vulnerable spots.
What's the odds of coming back?
I can't order a man to do that.
You've got a volunteer.
I've done the preliminary work.
It's a suicide mission.
The thing evidently has reflexes.
The unmanned probe must have stung it when it entered.
The lurch we felt was the turbulence of its reaction.
So I'd know enough to go slow
when we penetrated its vulnerable spots.
You have a martyr complex, Doctor.
I submit that it disqualifies you.
Do you think
I intend to pass up the greatest living laboratory since --
The Vulcans saw it first and died.
Just because the Vulcans failed --
I am more capable.
Gentlemen, I am not taking volunteers.
You're not going?
I'm better qualified as a command pilot.
Which makes you indispensable, Captain.
Further, you're not a science specialist.
Jim, that organism contains chemical processes
we've never seen before and may never see again.
We could learn more in one day --
We don't have one day.
We have precisely 1 hour and 35 minutes of power left.
Jim --
Captain, I --
Gentlemen, I'll decide.
Captain's personal log --
stardate 4309.2.
We have established
that the thing which destroyed the U.S.S. Intrepid
and the Gamma 7A system
is an incredibly huge but simple cellular being
whose energies are totally destructive to all known life.
Both Mr. Spock and Dr. McCoy
have volunteered to go in a specially equipped shuttlecraft
to penetrate the cell, find a way to destroy it,
and free the ship.
Dr. McCoy has the medical-biological knowledge.
Mr. Spock ...
is better suited physically and emotionally to stand the stress.
Both are right,
both are capable ...
and which of my friends
do I condemn to death?
This is the captain.
Mr. Spock, Dr. McCoy, report to my quarters immediately.
Kirk out.
Engineering to Captain Kirk.
Kirk here.
You asked me to keep you informed on the power drain.
All levels are down 50% now
and still draining.
We can maintain thrust for another hour and 15 minutes.
Very well.
Prepare the shuttlecraft for launching.
Sir?
Dr. McCoy will tell you what special equipment to put in.
Kirk out.
I'm sorry, Mr. Spock.
Right. I'll get a few things I need, Jim.
Not you, Bones.
I'm sorry, Mr. Spock.
You're best qualified to go.
Do not suffer so, Doctor.
This is not the first time superior capability
has proven more valuable than professional credentials.
Nothing has been proven yet, Spock.
The DNA code analyzer
will give you the fundamental structure ofthe thing.
You'll need readings on three light wavelengths
from the enzyme recorder.
I am familiar with the equipment, Doctor.
We're wasting time. The shuttlecraft is ready.
You're determined not to let me share in this, aren't you?
This isn't a competition.
Whether you understand it or not,
grant me my own kind of dignity.
Vulcan dignity?
How can I grant you what I don't understand?
Then employ one of your own superstitions.
Wish me luck.
Good luck, Spock.
All systems clear for shuttlecraft launch.
Launch shuttlecraft.
Shuttlecraft away, sir.
Lieutenant Uhura, channel automatic telemetry directly to the computers.
Aye, aye, sir.
[Static] Shuttlecraft to Enterprise.
Come in, Spock.
Power drain is enormous and growing worse.
Chekov.
Diverting all secondary power to the shields ...
[Static]
... continue communications
as long as there's power to transmit.
He won't have enough power to get back
if he diverts it to his shields.
Spock --
I heard, Captain.
We discussed that possibility earlier.
But you will need this information.
When do you estimate penetration?
Slowing now.
Contact in 18.3 seconds.
Brace yourselves.
The area of penetration will no doubt be sensitive.
Contact ...
in six seconds.
Report, Mr. Spock.
Spock, report.
[Static] I am undamaged, Captain.
Relay to Mr. Scott
I had 3% power reserve
before the shields stabilized.
There was nothing to spare.
I shall continue my tests.
Oh, and, Dr. McCoy ...
you would have not survived it.
You want to bet?
I am moving slowly now,
establishing course toward what appears to be the nucleus.
Sir, Mr. Spock has reduced life-support systems
to bare minimum.
Spock ...
save your power for the shields.
Calculations indicate the shields will last only 47 minutes.
However, I am able to identify the chromosome structure.
Changes indicate the organism
has stored sufficient energy
for reproductive process to commence.
Then there'll be two of those things?
[Static] I'm having difficulty
maintaining ship control ...
[Static]
Spock, do you read me?
Spock, do you read me?
[Static]
I'm losing voice contact --
[Static]
I will transmit internal coordinates of chromosome bodies.
[Static]
Spock, come in.
Come in.
Contact lost, sir.
He's alive!
He's kicked it in the side to let us know.
Captain, I'm getting telemetry.
Mr. Chekov, telemetry analysis as it comes in.
According to Spock's telemetry information,
there are over 40 chromosomes in the nucleus
that are ready to reproduce.
If the energy of that organism only doubles, we're dead,
and everything within a light year will be defenseless.
Well, all I know is,
that soon there'll be two, four, eight, and more.
The entire antilife matter that that thing puts out
could someday encompass the entire galaxy.
Spock understood when he transmitted the coordinates
of the chromosomes.
We must destroy that organism.
Captain, the pull from that organism is increasing,
and the power drain from our shields is getting critical.
How much time do we have?
No more than an hour.
Put all secondary systems on standby.
Shield power has unconditional priority.
Aye, sir.
Captain, I'm receiving a message from Mr. Spock
on a low-energy channel.
It's faint, but it is readable.
Put it on, Lieutenant.
On audio, sir.
This is Spock.
I am slowly losing life support
and minimal shield energies.
According to my calculations,
[Static] nervous energy of the organism
[Static Louder] is maximal ...
Just within ...
its outer ...
protective ...
membrane.
Relatively insensitive
to interior irritation.
[Static]
Believe sufficient charge of --
[Static]
... could destroy the organism.
Tell Dr. McCoy ...
[Static]
He should have wished me luck.
Captain 's log -- stardate 4309.4.
We have determined we can destroy the creature,
provided we can do it from inside the organism.
Spock clearly knew how to destroy it
but was unable to transmit that information.
How do you feel?
Oh ...
What's on your mind?
Spock.
Is it me, Jim?
Am I so sentimental
that I just have to keep believing
that he's still alive in that mass of protoplasm?
He knew the odds,
Just as you did when you volunteered to go.
What is that thing out there, Bones?
It's not intelligent,
not yet.
It's a ...
disease,
like a virus invading the body of our galaxy.
Yes, it is, isn't it?
How many cells does the human body have?
Millions.
This thing, this cell, this virus --
It's 11,000 miles long,
and it's one cell.
When it grows into millions ...
we'll be the virus invading its body.
Now, isn't that a thought?
Here we are, antibodies of our own galaxy,
attacking an invading germ.
Be ironic indeed if that were our sole destiny, wouldn't it?
Antibodies.
Antibodies.
Bridge!
Scott here, sir.
How much power do we have left?
We're down to 43%, sir.
We're slipping a bit against the beastie's pull.
We can't last more than 45 minutes at this rate,
less if I have to apply more thrust.
What would happen
if you diverted all remaining power to the shields,
except for impulse power, keep that in reserve?
Cut the engine thrust?
We'd be sucked in
like being caught in a wind tunnel, sir.
Exactly. Prepare to divert power on my signal.
Kirk out.
You got something to say?
Technically, no.
Medically, yes.
Between the stimulants and the pressure,
I'd suggest you stay off your feet for a few minutes.
I don't have a few minutes, Bones.
Maybe none of us do.
Let's go.
All hands, this is the captain.
We're going to enter the body of the organism,
rather abruptly, I would think.
Damage control parties stand by.
All decks secure for collision.
Kirk out.
Ready, Scotty.
Switching power to shields,
impulse in reserve,
cutting thrust to zero ...
now!
Impact -- five seconds!
We're through, sir.
I believe everybody is aware of that, Mr. Chekov.
Damage control parties report minimal damage, sir.
Repairs are being initiated.
Very good, Lieutenant.
Captain, we've only 26% power reserves after entry.
Do we have impulse power, Scotty?
I saved all I could,
but I don't know whether we have enough to get out.
We are committed.
Aye, we are, but we're committed to what?
We have no power for the phasers.
We couldn't use it.
We'd cook ourselves along with that protoplasm.
That thing would probably like phasers. It eats power.
What the devil -- begging your pardon --
are we doing?
Mr. Spock was trying to tell us what to do.
We can't use the power to destroy it.
Antipower.
What?
This thing has a negative energy charge.
Everything seems to work in reverse.
We'll use antimatter.
Aye, it couldn't swallow that.
Mr. Chekov, prepare a probe.
Scotty, we'll need a magnetic bottle for the charge.
How soon?
It's on its way.
We'll use a timing detonator.
Aye, sir.
Helmsman, when will we arrive at the nucleus?
Seven minutes, sir.
How close are you going?
Point-blank range.
We'll implant it and back away.
Why? The probe's range --
With the eddies and currents in that protoplasm,
the probe could drift thousands of kilometers.
We must be ...
exactly on target,
because we won't have a second chance.
Bones ...
time for another stimulant.
How long can you keep taking that stuff?
It'll blow you a part.
Keep me together for seven minutes.
That's all I need.
Personal log --
Commander Spock,
U.S.S. Enterprise.
I have noted the passage of the Enterprise ...
on its way to whatever awaits it.
If this record should survive me ...
I wish it known
that I bequeath my highest commendation and testimonial
to the captain,
officers,
and crew of the Enterprise ...
the finest starship in the fleet.
We have arrived at the chromosome body
in the nucleus of the organism.
If we should fail in our attempt to destroy it
or be unable to free ourselves ...
I wish to record
my recommendations for the following personnel,
that they receive special citation --
Lieutenant Commander Leonard McCoy,
Lieutenant Commander Montgomery Scott,
Officers Chekov, Kyle, Uhura,
and my highest commendation for Commander Spock,
Science Officer,
who gave his life in the performance of his duty.
Target coordinates programmed, sir.
Probe ready for launch.
Mr. Scott, how much time do we have left
at 100% impulse power?
Six, maybe seven minutes, sir.
Mr. Kyle, program fuse for seven minute delay.
All nonessential systems on standby.
Communications, scanning --
Conserve every bit of power.
We must make it through the membrane
before that thing explodes.
Make it work, Scotty.
Aye, sir.
Programming complete.
Ready for launch.
Launch probe at zero acceleration.
Forward thrust off 1/10 of a second.
Forward thrust off, sir.
Probe launched, sir.
Despite what Spock said, it's still plenty sensitive.
Probe confirmed.
It is lodged in the nucleus
near the chromosome bodies.
Mr. Kyle, back us out the way we came in.
Mr. Chekov, a nice straight line.
Don't waste any time.
Backing out, sir.
Estimate we'll be out in ...
6.37 minutes.
Very good.
Captain,
metallic substance outside the ship.
Spock!
Lieutenant, get me Spock's voice channel.
Highest possible gain.
Go ahead, sir.
Spock, do you read me?
Do you read me, Spock?
Come in, Spock.
Spock!
Scotty, get a tractor beam.
We don't have time.
We only have a 53-second escape margin.
Get two tractor beams on that shuttlecraft.
Aye, sir. Tractor beams on.
[Spock] Captain, I recommend you abandon the attempt.
Do not risk the ship further on my behalf.
Shut up, Spock! We're rescuing you.
Why, thank you,
Captain McCoy.
Almost out.
We're approaching the membrane, sir.
Time until explosion?
57 seconds, sir.
Maintaining tractor beams on shuttlecraft, Mr. Scott?
Aye, sir.
I can't guarantee it'll hold when the warhead explodes.
The power levels are --
The power levels are dead, sir.
You may have just written our epitaph, Mr. Scott.
Activate main viewing screen.
Mr. Chekov, report.
The organism is destroyed, sir.
The explosion must have ruptured the membrane
and thrown us clear.
The power's coming back, sir.
Shuttlecraft?
I don't know how, but it's still with us.
Shuttlecraft to Enterprise.
Shuttlecraft to Enterprise.
Request permission to come aboard.
Spock, you're alive!
Obviously, Captain.
And I have some fascinating data on the organism.
Don't be so smart, Spock.
You botched the acetylcholine test.
Later, later, later.
Ha ha ha ha.
Bring the shuttlecraft aboard, uh, Mr. Scott.
Aye, sir.
[Kyle] Prepare to receive shuttlecraft.
Received shuttlecraft.
Hangar doors closed.
Hangar deck pressurizing.
Mr. Chekov, lay in a course for Starbase 6.
Ahead warp factor 5.
I'm still looking forward
to a nice period of rest and relaxation on some lovely ...
planet.

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