"Where is everyone?" "Perhaps they weren't expecting us." "Our arrival was scheduled well in advance, doctor." "The annual check of every scientific expedition is routine." "I had a subspace contact with a Robert Johnson, the leader of this expedition, not an hour ago." "Well, did he report anything wrong?" "No." "Yet there was something wrong." "I can't quite pin it down." "His conversation was disjointed, his thoughts a little foggy, unrelated." "Chekov!" "Check that building." "Mr. Spock and I will check this one." "The rest of you, take a look around." "See if you can find anyone." "Captain!" "Captain!" "Captain!" "Captain!" "A man, sir, in there." "A dead man." "Exactly what it looks like." " Death by natural causes, old age." " That's quite impossible, doctor." "I ran a personnel check on this entire expedition before we beamed down." "I assure you that none of them were..." "They've come to pay their respects to Alvin." " I'm Captain Kirk of..." " You'll have to speak louder." "I say, I'm Captain Kirk of the USS Enterprise." "Who are you?" "I'm Robert Johnson." "And this is my wife, Elaine." "How old are you?" "How old are you?" "I'm..." "Let me see." "I am 29." "And Elaine is..." "I'm 27." "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." "Captain's log, stardate 3478.2." "On a routine mission to resupply the experimental colony at Gamma Hydra IV, we discovered a most unusual phenomenon." "Of the six members of the colony, none of whom were over 30, we found four had died, and two were dying... of old age." "Mr. Johnson, can you hear me?" "I can hear you." "I'm not deaf yet, you know." "Not yet." "Can you tell me what happened?" "What happened?" "Did your instruments show anything?" "Elaine was so beautiful." "So beautiful." "So beautiful." "He can hear you, Jim, but he doesn't understand." "Let's let him rest." "If they seem lucid, I'll be in the Briefing Room." "Stay seated." "Commodore Stocker," "I've asked you to be a part of this briefing because Gamma Hydra IV falls within your administrative area." "I appreciate that, sir." "Dr. Wallace, as an expert in endocrinology," "I'd appreciate you working very closely with Dr. McCoy." " Yes, captain." " And Dr. McCoy, would you fill them in?" "Well, the expedition is suffering from extreme old age and they're growing older by the minute, much older." "My examinations have turned up absolutely nothing." "In fact, I don't have a clue." "What about the atmosphere and environment, Mr. Spock?" "Sensors reveal nothing which is inimical to human life." "The atmosphere screens out the usual amount of harmful cosmic rays." "We're close to the neutral zone between our Federation and the Romulan Empire." "It's possible the Romulans have a new weapon and are using this colony as guinea pigs." "I have already begun investigation into that possibility, captain." "Good." "I want you all to check out everything in your own departments." "No matter how remote, how far-fetched the notion, I want it run down." "We'll stay in orbit until we have the answer." "Thank you." "I'm sure you understand that I am anxious to get to Starbase 10" " to assume my new post." " Yes, commodore." "We'll do everything we can to make your due date." "Thank you, sir." "Doctor, is there something I can do for you?" "Well, be a little less the cool, efficient captain, and a little more the old friend." "How long has it been?" "Six years, four months and an odd number of days." "You mean you don't know?" "A long time." "Things wouldn't change if it started all over again, would it?" "You have your job, I have my ship." "And neither one of us will change." "You said it, I didn't." "In all those years, I only heard from you once." "A stargram when my husband died." "You know, you never asked me why I got married after we called it off." "Well, I supposed that you met someone you loved." "I met a man I admired, a great man." "In the same field as you." "You didn't have to give up a thing." "No." "Just you." "Captain Kirk, Mr. Spock would like to see you on the Bridge." "I'm on my way." " Standard orbit, captain." " Maintain." "I've rechecked the sensors, captain." "Gamma Hydra IV checks out as a Class-M planet with a conventional oxygen-nitrogen atmosphere, normal mass." "I can find nothing at all out of the ordinary." "And the comet that Astrophysics reported?" "We're running checks on it." "I've reached no conclusions yet." "The comet was a rogue and has never been investigated." " Captain Kirk?" " Yes, commodore?" "Facilities at Starbase 10 are much more complete than those onboard ship." "Seems to me your investigations would be facilitated if we proceeded there." " I assure you all cooperation." " Thank you." "I know you're anxious to get to the base, but we have a few facilities of our own here." "The Enterprise will do quite nicely." "I'll be in Engineering, Mr. Spock." "Maintain standard orbit, Mr. Sulu." "You already gave that command, sir." "Well, follow it." "Lieutenant Galway." "Doctor, may I speak to you for a moment, please?" "Of course." "Go right ahead." "Well, I know this is going to sound foolish, but, well, I seem to be having a little trouble hearing." "Well, it's probably nothing important." "I never had trouble before." "Well, don't worry about it." "Perhaps a little hypersonic treatment might clear it up." "Thank you." "Progress report, Mr. Spock." "All research lines negative, captain." "Astronomical section reports a comet recently passed by." "Check into that." "I am doing that, captain, as per your previous order." "We discussed that earlier." "Oh, yes." "Let me know what you come up with." "I'll be in the Sickbay." "Acknowledged." "The last one." "Robert Johnson, cause of death:" " Old age." " You did what you could." "Which adds up to absolutely nothing." "Dr. McCoy?" "This is Scott." "May I come up and see you?" "All you need are vitamins." "But you can come up anyhow." "Bones, I believe you're getting grey." "You take over my job and see what happens to you." " I see what you mean." " What's your problem, Jim?" "Shoulder." "Just a twinge." "Probably muscular strain." "You're probably right, doctor." "By the way, I don't like the way you've been running this ship lately." "All right, reprimand received." "Go ahead." "Jim, I think we'd better run a complete physical on you." "Why?" "Just muscular strain, isn't it?" "No, Jim." "It's advanced arthritis, and it's spreading." " That's impossible." " I can run it through again, but I'll come up with the same thing." "Scotty!" "Captain's log, stardate 3579.4." "Of the Enterprise personnel who beamed down to the planet's surface," "Dr. McCoy, Engineer Scott, Mr. Spock," "Lieutenant Galway and myself are all showing definite signs of aging." "Only Ensign Chekov appears to be normal." "Report, Bones." "All of us who went down to the surface, with the exception of Chekov, are aging at various rates." "Approximately 30 years for each day." "I don't know what's causing it, virus, bacteria or evil spirits, but I'm trying to find out." "Spock?" "I asked for some figures." "Based on what Dr. McCoy gave me," "I estimate that physically we each have less than a week to live." "Also, since our mental faculties are aging faster than our bodies, we will be little better than mental vegetables in a considerably lesser time." "Total senility?" "Yes, captain." "In a very short time." "What a way to die." "All right." "I want all the research facilities, all the scientific technicians to start round-the-clock research immediately." "I want the answers, and I want the remedy!" "You might start by finding out why Chekov hasn't been affected." "I'm doing what I can." " You're perfectly healthy." " I must differ with you, doctor." "I'm having difficulty concentrating, which is most disturbing." "My eyesight appears to be failing." "The normal temperature of the ship seems to me to be increasingly cold." "I did not say you weren't affected, Mr. Spock." "You are perfectly healthy." "That is, for any normal Vulcan on the high side of 100." "Captain, can I go back to my station?" " Do you feel up to it, Scotty?" " Of course I do." "I just need a wee bit of rest, that's all." "You can leave too, Lieutenant Galway." "Lieutenant Galway." "What?" "You spoke to me, doctor?" "Yes, I spoke to you." "I said that you could leave too." "Now, why don't you go on down to your quarters and get some sleep?" "No, I don't wanna sleep." "Can't you understand?" "If I sleep, what will I find when I wake up?" "Lieutenant Galway, assume your position and start your duties." "Thank you, sir." "That's a stupid place to hang a mirror." "She's 10 years younger than I am." "She looks..." "People age normally at different speeds." "Why hasn't he aged?" " I don't know." " Well, I wanna know!" "Is it his youth, his blood type, his heritage, his glands, his genes?" ""His genes."" "All right, nurse, prepare Chekov for another complete physical." "Come along, ensign." "This won't hurt... much." "Promises." "A few years ago on Aldebaran III, my husband and I tried various carbohydrate compounds to slow down the degeneration of plant life." "Well, then try that, Dr. Wallace." " Try anything, but do it quickly." " Yes, sir." "I'll be on the Bridge." "Keep me posted as to Chekov." "I thought you were on your way to the biochemistry lab, doctor." "We're both going the same direction." "So we do." "Look, we know the problem." "We know the progress of the affliction." "Therefore, once we find the proper line of research, it's only logical we find a solution." "You sound like my first officer." "No problem is insoluble, not even ours." "That didn't spring from logic." "Our situation doesn't have its roots in logic." "The heart is not a logical organ." "When I married Theodore Wallace, I thought I was over you." "I was wrong." "When did you realise that?" "Today?" "What?" "How much older was your husband?" " What difference does that make?" " Answer me." "Twenty-six years." " That's quite a difference." " Jim, he was a brilliant man." "We were stationed on a lonely outpost." "We were working together." "I don't wanna talk about him." "I wanna talk about us." "Look at me." "Look at me." "What do you see?" "I see Captain James Kirk." "A man of morality, decency, handsome and strong..." "And old." " And rapidly growing older." " Jim, please." "What are you offering me, Jan?" "Love?" "Or a going-away present?" ""Give us some more blood, Chekov." "The needle won't hurt, Chekov." "Take off your shirt, Chekov." "Roll over, Chekov." "Breathe deeply, Chekov." "Blood sample, Chekov." "Marrow sample, Chekov." "Skin sample, Chekov."" "If..." "If I live long enough, I'm going to run out of samples." "You'll live." "Oh, yes, I'll live, but I won't enjoy it." "Maintaining standard orbit, captain." "Increase orbit to 20,000 perigee, Mr. Sulu." "Aye, aye, sir." "Will you sign this, sir?" "Yeoman." "Do you have a reason for being on the Bridge, Commodore Stocker?" "I had hoped for a few words with you at your convenience." "I have very little time." "If I may say so, sir, we have a due date at Starbase 10." "We're going to be late." "I don't intend to leave this area until we've found a solution for this problem." "Captain, I am watching four very valuable, one almost irreplaceable, members of the Starfleet failing before my eyes." "I want to do something to help." "Since you're so concerned, I'll send a message to Starbase 10." "Captain, you sent such a message this morning." "Yeoman!" "Where's that..." " Sir?" "...fuel consumption report?" "I gave it to you, sir." "You signed it." "If I had signed it, I wouldn't ask for it, now, would I?" "Your signature, captain." "Captain, I believe..." "Captain?" "Captain?" " Spock, I was just thinking." " Yes, sir." "Quite understandable." " You have something to report?" " Yes, sir." "I believe we have the cause of the affliction." " What is it?" " The orbit of Gamma Hydra IV carried the planet directly through the comet's trail." "On conventional radiation settings, we discovered nothing." "When resetting our sensors to the extreme lower range of the scale, undetected radiation appeared." "Below normal radiation levels, but definitely present, and undoubtedly residue from the comet." "Good, Spock." "Well done." "Let's get this to Dr. McCoy immediately." "Lieutenant, take a message to Starfleet Command." " Aye, sir." " Due to the proximity of the Romulans, better use Code 2." "But, captain, the Romulans have broken Code 2." " If you remember the last bulletin..." " Then use Code 3." " Yes, sir, Code 3." " Message:" "Key to affliction may be comet which passed by Gamma Hydra IV." "Said comet is now..." " Quadrant 448, sir." " Quadrant..." "All units are to be alerted for complete analysis of radiation and means found to neutralise it." "The comet is highly dangerous." "Kirk, commanding Enterprise." " Immediately, lieutenant." "Let's go." " Aye, sir." "Oh, Mr. Sulu, increase orbit to 20,000-mile perigee." "You mean another 20,000, captain?" "I fail to understand why each one of my commands is being questioned." "Now, do as you're told, Mr. Sulu." "Mr. Sulu, what is our present position?" "Orbiting at 20,000, sir." " Maintain." " Maintaining, sir." "Radiation." "Well, that's as good an answer as any, but why didn't we know about it earlier?" "Possibly, doctor, because my thinking processes are not as efficient as before." "Run this through, doctor." "All right, Bones." "I'm going up to the Bridge." "Keep me posted." "Spock." "I have a question for the doctor." "Doctor, the ship's temperature is increasingly uncomfortable for me." "I've adjusted the environment in my quarters to 125 degrees, which is at least tolerable." "However, I..." "Well, I see I'm not gonna be making any house calls on you." "I wondered if perhaps there was something which could lower my sensitivity to cold." "I'm not a magician, Spock, just an old country doctor." "Yes." "As I always suspected." "Dr. McCoy, none of our usual radiation therapies will have any effect on this radiation sickness." "Well, then we just start over, that's all." "We work harder, faster, and we start completely from scratch if we have to." "But we find something." "Spock, can I have a word with you?" " Commodore?" " Mr. Spock, a starship can function with a chief engineer and a chief medical officer, even a first officer, under physical par." "But it is disastrous to have a commanding officer whose condition is any less than perfection." " I am aware of that." " Please understand me." "My admiration for Captain Kirk is unbounded." "He is a great officer." "But, Mr. Spock, I need your help and your cooperation." "For what, sir?" "I would like you to take over command of the Enterprise." "On what grounds, commodore?" "On the grounds that the captain, because of his affliction, is unable to perform his duties." "Need I remind you, sir, that I too have contracted the same affliction?" "Yes, but you're a Vulcan." "You have a much greater life span." "You show the effects to a much smaller degree." "I am half human, sir." "My physical reflexes are down, my mental capacities reduced," "I tire easily." "No, sir." "I am not fit for command." "Well, if you are not with your Vulcan physique, then obviously Captain Kirk cannot be." "Sir, I do have duties to perform." "Mr. Spock." "I do not like what I am about to say but regulations demand it, and as a Starfleet flag officer, I must follow regulations." "As second-in-command of the Enterprise, you must convene an extraordinary competency hearing." "I resist that suggestion, commodore." "It's not a matter of choice." "When a captain is unfit physically or mentally, a competency hearing is mandatory." "Don't make me quote a regulation which you know as well as I do." "Very well, sir." "The hearing shall convene at 1400 hours." " Now, this isn't gonna hurt a bit." " That's what you said the last time." " Did it hurt?" " Yes." "Doctor..." "Bones." "She's dead." "Her metabolism caused her to age more rapidly than the rest of us, but the same thing's gonna happen to us unless..." "How long have we got, Bones?" "A matter of days, perhaps hours." "Let it read that this competency hearing was ordered by Commodore Stocker and reluctantly called by myself." "Let it also read that I consider it invalid." "Mr. Spock, may I make a statement?" "I have had to resort to these legal grounds in order to save the lives of some very valuable members of the Starfleet." "I have tried to convince Captain Kirk of the necessity of proceeding to Starbase 10, but have been overruled in each case." "The responsibility of this hearing is mine." "On the contrary, commodore, as presiding officer and second-in-command of the Enterprise, the responsibility is mine." "Captain Kirk, would you like to make a statement?" "Yes, I would like to make a statement." "I am the captain of this ship and I'm totally capable of commanding her." "Let's call this whole thing off and get back to work." "It's quite impossible, captain." "The regulations are quite specific." "You are entitled to direct examination of all witnesses immediately after the board has questioned them." "That's very kind of you, Spock." "Mr. Sulu, how long have you served with Captain Kirk?" " Two years, sir." " To your knowledge, has he ever had any difficulty making decisions?" "No, sir." "Did he order you to maintain standard orbit around Gamma Hydra IV?" "Yes, sir." "Did he not, several minutes later, repeat that order?" "Yes, sir." " Did he order you to increase orbit?" " Yes, sir." "Did he not, several minutes later, repeat that order?" "He did not!" "When I give an order, I expect it to be obeyed." "I don't have to repeat myself." "Mr. Sulu, you'll please answer the question." "Yes, sir." "Captain Kirk repeated his order." "Thank you, Mr. Sulu." "Atkins." "You handed Captain Kirk a fuel-consumption report in the presence of witnesses, which he read and signed." "Is that correct?" "Sir, he had more important things on his mind." " The present..." " Yeoman, you will simply answer the question." "L..." "I guess he forgot he'd signed it." "You guess?" "He forgot he'd signed it." "Thank you, yeoman." "You may leave." "Lieutenant Uhura." "I have here a bulletin from Starfleet Command which states that the Romulans had broken Code 2." "Are these your initials which appear at the bottom?" "They are." "And whose initials are those which appear directly below yours?" "Those of Captain Kirk." "Did Captain Kirk ask you to send a message about the comet which passed Gamma Hydra IV?" " He did." " Using Code 2?" "Oh, yes, but he changed it to Code 3." "After you reminded him that the Romulans had broken Code 2." " Yes." " Thank you, lieutenant." "Dr. McCoy." "Dr. McCoy." "Yeah." "Yes, Mr. Spock, what is it?" "Several hours ago, at the request of this board, you ran a complete physical examination of Captain Kirk." "I did." "Medical banks." "Compute, describe subject's physical age, using established norms as comparative base." "Working." "Subject's physical age, based on physiological profile, between 60 and 72, aging rapidly." "Oh, I'm thirty-f..." "I'm 34 years old." "The computer differs with you, captain." " Dr. McCoy." " Yes?" "Will you give us your professional evaluation of Captain Kirk's present physical condition?" "Captain Kirk is suffering from a peculiar physical degeneration which strongly resembles aging." "Is not his mental capacity degenerating even more rapidly?" " Yes, but he's a better man now..." " Doctor, you heard the computer's analysis of Captain Kirk's physical age." "Do you agree with it?" "Blasted machines." "Spock, you can't argue with a machine." "Do you agree with it, doctor?" "Yes." "Yes, I do agree." "And I am sorry, Jim." "This board has no further questions." "Unless you, Commodore Stocker, have something you would like to add." "No." "I am quite satisfied, Mr. Spock." "Do you wish to call any witnesses, Captain Kirk?" "I'm perfectly capable of speaking in my own defence, Mr. Spock." " Captain, I would suggest..." " No, it's all right, Spock." "It's all right." "There's only one reason, and one reason alone for having this hearing." "I refuse to leave Gamma Hydra II." "Gamma Hydra IV, captain." "Yes." "A slip of the tongue." "Captain, your inability to remember having given commands, reading and signing important orders and then forgetting them, your physical analysis as compiled by your own chief surgeon, all of these things would appear to be irrefutable proof" "of failing physical and mental condition." "So I'm a little confused." "Who wouldn't be at a time like this?" "My ship's in trouble, my senior officers are ill, and this nonsense about a competency hearing is enough to mix up any man." "Trying to relieve a captain of his command is..." "Why, that's..." "That's..." "Spock." "I wouldn't have believed it of you." "Go ahead." "Ask me questions." "I'll show you what I'm capable of." "Nothing wrong with my memory." "Go ahead, ask me anything." "We're in orbit around Gamma Hydra II, right?" "Anyhow, it doesn't matter." "There's a lot more to running a starship than answering a lot of fool questions." "A lot more." " Go ahead, ask me a question." " We have no more questions, captain." "Ask me anything." "Anything." "There will be no more questions, captain." "If you would leave the room so the board can vote..." "Good idea." "Get this stupid voting over with so I can get back to running the ship." "Worst fool thing I ever heard of." "Competency hearing when there's work to be done." "I'll be in my quarters awaiting your decision." "Well, since the senior officers are incapable, and I am of flag rank, I am forced by regulations to assume command." "Sir, you have never commanded a starship." "What would you have, Mr. Spock, a junior officer with far less experience than I have?" " The danger from the Romulans..." " We have to save these people." "Mr. Sulu." "Set a direct course for Starbase 10." "Warp 5." " Across the neutral zone?" " Immediately, Mr. Sulu." "All officers are to return to their posts." "Spock?" "Yes, captain." "So I've been relieved." " I'm sorry, captain." " Yes." "You should have been a prosecuting attorney." " Regulations required..." " Regulations." "Don't give me regulations." "You've wanted command all along." "The first little excuse you get..." " Captain, I've not assumed command." " I hope you're proud of the..." "What do you mean, you've not assumed command?" " I suffer the same affliction as you." " If you're not in command, who is?" " Commodore Stocker." " Stocker?" "Are you crazy?" " He's never had a field command." " Mr. Scott was unfit for command." "Commodore Stocker, as ranking officer..." "Don't..." "Don't talk to me about rank!" "The man's a chair-bound paper-pusher!" " I order you to take command." " I cannot, captain." " Are you refusing a direct order?" " No, sir." "Only Commodore Stocker can give a command order onboard this ship." "You traitorous disloyal..." "You stab me in the back the first chance you get." "Spock." "Get out." "I never wanna have to look at you again." "Jan." "Oh, Jim, I'm sorry." "Truly, I am." "I made a fool of myself in there." "I shouldn't have let them confuse me, rattle me." "Everybody understood." "But I'm not old, Jan. I'm not." "A few muscular aches doesn't make a man old." "You don't run a starship with your arms, you run it with your head." "And my brain's as sharp as it ever was." "A simple case of radiation poisoning, they relieve me of my command?" "I admit I'm getting a little grey, but radiation will do that to you." " Forgive me, I have some work to do." " Jan." "You know me." "Look at me closely." "Tell me, am I getting old?" "What are you doing here?" "It would seem to be the place where I can be of the most use." "Maybe you'd like to relieve Dr. McCoy?" " What about Chekov?" " Nothing." "Absolutely nothing." "Bones, there has to be." "There has to be." "We beamed down together." "We were on the surface together on the same spot." " We were together all the time." " No, not all the time, captain." " He left us for a few moments." " He left us?" "He left us." "He went into the building." "Spock, something happened." "Yes." "Yes, indeed, captain." "Doctor, you will remember..." "He was scared." "He saw the dead body." "And he ran out of the building and he was scared to death." "Yes." "Yes, now that..." "That could be." "Frightened, scared." "Heart beats faster, breath gets short, and has cold sweats." "Adrenaline flows." "Adrenal activity." "Now, hold on just a minute now." "There's something that I read once." "It was ancient history, just after the atomic age." "Used for radiation sickness." "Adrenaline!" "Doctor, hyronalin is the specific accepted for all radiation sickness." "Yes." "Yes, now." "But before, adrenaline." "Highly promising." "Early research." "But they abandoned it when hyronalin was discovered." "Quite possible, doctor." "Perhaps a sufficiently efficacious compound could be developed." "Don't just stand there jawing, Spock." "You and Dr. Wallace get cracking!" "Entering Romulan Neutral Zone, sir." "All sensors on maximum." "Thank you, Mr. Sulu." "Lieutenant Uhura, let me know if we contact any Romulan." "I think we just made contact, sir." "Romulans approaching from both sides, sir." " We're bracketed, sir." " Engineering wants instructions, sir." "Commodore Stocker, what are your orders?" "Commodore!" " I'm going up to the Bridge." " No, Jim, you can't do it." "I've got to go." "We're under attack." "Nurse!" "Dr. Wallace!" " Let me go." " Jim, you can't." "We're under attack." "I have to go to the Bridge." "I've got to go to the Bridge." " Keep trying to raise the Romulans." " I'm trying, commodore." "If I could talk to them, explain to them why we violated the neutral zone..." "The Romulans are notorious for not listening to explanations, sir." "Lieutenant Uhura is right, sir." "We've tangled with them before." "Greenhorn up there, ruining my ship." " Jim, if I have to give you a shot..." " No." "Jim, boy, you just lay quiet." "You can't do no good." "We're both through." "No." "No." "My ship." "My ship." "Doctor, make the necessary computations and produce this serum." "It is crude and dangerous." "We had no time for refinements." "All right." "Let's..." "Let's go." "It could cure or kill, doctor." "Don't give me any Vulcan details, Spock." " Just give me the shot." " No." " I'll take the first shot." " You can't." "How long do you think this ship can take the pounding?" "I've got to get up there." " Jim, it could kill you." " I'll die anyway." "Do it." "Dr. Wallace, give him the shot." "Quickly." "Quickly." "Sir, they fired another." "Well, well, what's happening?" "The aging process has stopped." "His bodily functions are getting stronger." "Sir, I've tried all known hailing frequencies." "They simply ignore us." "Opinion, Mr. Sulu." "They know they have us." "They know our shields will give out." "Well, then we have no alternative but to surrender." "Sir, the Romulans do not take captives." " We're losing power, sir." " What am I going to do?" "I've got to do something." "Report, Mr. Sulu." "We're surrounded by Romulan vessels, maximum of 10." "Range: 50 to 100,000 kilometres." "Engineering, this is the captain." "I want full emergency power." "I want everything within about two minutes." "I want the warp-drive engines on full standby." "Kirk out." "Open up a special channel to Starfleet Command." " Aye, sir." " Code 2." "But, captain, Code..." "That's an order, lieutenant." "Code 2." " Yes, captain, Code 2." " Message:" "From Enterprise to Starfleet Command, this sector." "Have inadvertently encroached upon Romulan Neutral Zone." "Surrounded and under heavy Romulan attack." "Escape impossible, shields failing." "Will implement destruct order using corbomite device recently installed." "Since this will result in the destruction of the Enterprise and all matter within a 200,000-kilometre diameter, and establish a corresponding dead zone, all Federation ships will avoid this area for the next four solar years." "Explosion will take place in one minute." "Kirk, commanding Enterprise." "Out." "Mr. Sulu, course:" "1-8-8 degrees, mark 14." "Speed:" "Warp factor 8." " Stand by." " Standing by, sir." "Romulans giving ground, captain." "Obviously they tapped in as you expected them to." "A logical assumption, Spock." "Are they still retreating?" " Yes, sir." " Good." "All hands, stand by." "Warp factor 8, now." "The Romulans were caught off-guard, captain." " They're falling behind." " Are we out of range, Mr. Sulu?" " Yes, sir." "And out of the neutral zone." " Secure from red alert." "Adjust to new course." "2-5-7 degrees, mark 3, heading for Starbase 10." "2-5-7 degrees, mark 3." "Captain, I just wanted to assure you that I did what I thought best" " to save both you and the men." " Noted." "You should know, however, that there's very little a starbase can do that a starship can't." "If I may say so, captain, I am now quite aware of what a starship can do with the right man at the helm." "You're looking good, doc." "I'm feeling fine." "So is Scotty." "The serum worked." "He pulled a muscle during the reaction, but otherwise he's feeling fine." " And yourself?" " Oh, very well." "A few bruises here and there." "Anytime you're ready, Mr. Spock." "I am quite ready now, doctor." "Because of your Vulcan physique," "I've prepared an extremely potent shot for you." "I thought you might like to know I've removed the breakables from Sickbay." "That is very considerate of you, doctor." "I thought you'd be pleased to hear that." "Gentlemen, all in all, an experience we'll remember in our old age, which won't be for some while, I hope." "Take over, Mr. Sulu." "Steady as she goes." " Steady as she goes, captain." " I thought I said that."