Captain Kirk diguised his puzzlement as the crew of the Ghost stared in amazement as McCoy passed a dermal regenerator over Hera Syndulla's burned hand, which was looking much improved.

"Had to recalibrate a little for your physiology," McCoy said absently, looking at his tricorder, "but the drug seems to be taking effect."

"Well, if that's in order," Captain Kirk said, and approached Hera, "Perhaps you'd like to explain who you are and what you're doing in the Neutral Zone?"

"What's this 'Neutral Zone,' Ezra said, his teenaged face taught with confusion.

"You don't know," Kirk asked, perplexed, "Are none of you citizens of the Federation?"

"Jim," McCoy said, nodding off toward the Chief Surgeon's office. Kirk followed his doctor in, where McCoy turned to him. "Jim, I don't think they will know. I've never seen the like of them before!"

"The two aliens I don't recognize," Kirk agreed, "But the others seem human enough."

"On the outside, perhaps," McCoy insisted, "But internally, there are some minor differences I can't account for."

"Strangers in a strange place," Kirk said thoughtfully. "But fighting in the Neutral Zone? Even if it wasn't the Romulans, if they noticed it, they might not take kindly."

Without further word, Kirk returned to the sickbay berths and said, "I'm sorry to insist, Captain Syndulla, but you don't appear to realize how hazardous a situation this represents. We are on the Neutral Zone border that stand between our Federation and the Romulan Star Empire. Accident or not, your ship violated that zone."

"The what empire?" Syndulla frowned furiously in perplexity.

"You don't know of the Romulans?" Kirk demanded.

"There's only one Empire," Zeb said.

"And the Trade Federation was dissolved decades ago," Kanan began, and then sighed. "But that's not what you're talking about, is it?"

"Captain Kirk," Syndulla said earnestly, "We don't even know where we are! Last thing we knew we were fighting in a supernova nebula, then we were here!"

Kirk frowned in his own bewilderment, "There's no supernova remnant within twenty light years of here!"

"I believe I can explain, Captain," said Spock, striding suddenly into the room.

"Spock?" Kirk turned to his science officer.

"We have been scanning the cometary belt, sir, and we have discovered that the pergium radiation and gravitational distortions have resulted in a spatial aperture. The space-time continuum has been breached in this area."

"So," said Ezra slowly, "are we..."

Spock nodded solemnly, "You are not in your own universe."

Hera stared around at the bridge of the starship Enterprise. It was as spic and span as an Imperial ship, but for a while she couldn't quite figure out what it was that was different. Finally she realized it was all the screens displaying astronomical phenomena intead of damage control schematics and weapon system readouts. The brightness of the uniforms and relaxed air of the bridge was a subtler contrast.

The viewscreen was putting on a show, though. In the midst of prickly cometary debris and icy haze, a shimmering, ragged hole in space ringed a riot of yellowish gases and flickering pulsars, as if looking through an irregular window.

"So," Kanan said, "Everything we know - the Empire, Lothal, the Rebellion - are over there. And we're not."

The other crew members were spaced around the bridge, leaving room for the various staff to move about the bridge.

"The gravimetric distortion is extremely intense," Spock observed.

"Mr. Scott," Kirk said, turning to the engineering console, "did you complete your assessment of the Ghost?"

Scotty stood, looking somewhat apologetic, and said, "I don't like to speak poorly of somebody else's ship, sir, but compared to even a Federation-built tramp freighter, that ship is a lashup, and built with technology that seems half beyond our science and half antique." He addressed himself to Hera, "It's a credit to you that your little ship made it through there."

"What do you mean, little," Sabine said testily.

"Hey, we almost didn't," Ezra said hollowly.

"Can we get back through," Hera asked.

"I would say your chances of surviving the sheer would be on the order of..." Spock began. Zeb groaned, "Don't tell us the odds."

"But we have to get back," Ezra said, "People are counting on us!"

"The laws of physics aren't your only problem," Capt. Kirk said, "Mr. Sulu, how far over the Neutral Zone border is that anomaly?"

"Seven million kilometres, Captain," Sulu said, looking through his scope.

"We have a war to fight!" Ezra said loudly.

"Ezra," chided Kanan.

"If you violate the Neutral Zone," Kirk said gravely, "It may begin another one..."

Just at that moment, Sulu's alarm blared again. "Captain Kirk," Sulu exclaimed, "Unknown vessel approaching, bearing one-six-one, mark three-four-seven."

"Onscreen," Kirk said.

Sabine whistled, "That's a high-quality screen."

Kirk smiled a little, then looked to the screen. A boxy ship with thick stubby wings sped across the screen.

"A Gozanti cruiser!" Kanan exclaimed.

"You recognize the design," Kirk asked sharply.

"That was the kind of ship that was chasing us when we came here," Ezra put in.

"But it's coming from Federation space," Kirk said, frowning.

"Most puzzling," Spock remarked.

"Sir," Chekhov said, "The ship is on course for the Neutral Zone."

"Uhura, hailing frequencies!"

"Unkown vessel," Uhura said, "This is the starship Enterprise. You are on course toward restricted space, stand to and identify yourself!" After a long pause, Uhura said, "No response, sir."

"Mr. Sulu," Kirk said, "Move to intercept. Red Alert."

The crew of the Ghost jumped at the klaxons' whooping.

"They appear to be powering up weapons," Spock remarked.

"Shields up," Chekhov called out.

"They're carrying fighters," Hera pointed out. Then light flashed from the turret on the cruisers after end. The deck shuddered under their feet. When the view cleared again, the cruiser was still underway, except now it was dropping the four foil-winged craft it had slung under its wings.

"It's carrying bombers, too," Sabine said grimly.

"What kind of weapon was that," Kirk asked.

"A twin high-energy laser weapon, Captain," Spock said from his station.

"Shields holding, sir," Chekhov added.

"What kind of weapons are those small craft carrying," Kirk asked the Ghost crew.

"Laser cannons," Sabine said, "The bombers probably have concussion missiles. They'll produce proton blast waves!"

The fighters broke into two pairs, one fighter and one bomber, and began weaving toward the Enterprise.

"Coming up on our bow," Chekhov said.

"Standby," Kirk said, resuming his command seat. "Uhura, continue challenge transmissions."

"Aye, sir."

The deck lurched again, harder this time. "Number one shield weakening, Captain," Chekhov exclaimed.

"The missile weapons, sir," Spock remarked impassively.

"Full impulse power," Kirk said, "ready photon torpedoes and phasers."

Hera spotted Sabine, out of the corner of her eye, mouth the words 'photon torpedo' but did not comment further.

"Fighters are coming around," Chekhov said, "Going for the warp nacelles!"

"And the Ghost," Hera cried.

"Helm," Kirk snapped, "hard to starboard!"

Sulu's hands flew over the controls, and the deck wobbled severely. Then the four fighters flew into the viewscreen off the port side.

"Torpedoes, proximity burst," Kirk snapped, "Fire!"

The deck vibrated, and swishing comets of light sprayed out amongst the TIE fighters. One by one, they burst in eye-stinging flashes of light.

Hera blinked a few times, and gaped. All four fighters had been blown to smithereens.

"Status on the cruiser," Kirk asked, his expression solemn.

"Still on course for the Neutral Zone border," Chekhov said grimly. "And not waiting around either."

"Pursuit course, full impulse!"

The viewscreen panned to show the cruiser, stern-on, engines blazing away, and the laser turret traversing to blaze in its own way.

"Phasers locked on target," Chekhov said.

"Uhura?" Kirk looked round.

"No response sir," Uhura said sadly. "They have been warned."

"Security, prepare boarding party in the transporter room. Phasers," Kirk said quietly, "open fire."

Twin lances of blue light, so steady it reminded the Ghost's crew of giant lightsabres, stabbed out at the after end of the cruiser once, again, and again. Hera gasped as the cruiser's laser turret blew apart! The cruiser veered off course, trying frantically to correct, as the starship Enterprise bore down on her.

"Prepare photon torpedoes," Kirk said coldly, and turned to Uhura, "Open a channel."

"Channel open, sir."

"Unkown vessel, this is Captain James T. Kirk of the starship Enterprise. Your engines are damaged, your weapons disabled, and your fighters destroyed. Surrender and prepare to be boarded."

"They've got fixed turbolasers on their bow," Kanan said urgently, and Kirk realized the ship was turning about.

"Torpedoes," he said simply.

Chekhov hit the control, and another comet flew forth and its blast knocked the already-faltering cruiser into a helpless spin.

Moments later, a transmission came in, "Enterprise, this is the Mining Guild cruiser Tecora! We surrender! We surrender!"

"Prepare to receive our boarding party," Kirk said, and hit a control on his chair. "Mr. Sulu, head up the boarding parties, please."

"Aye, sir," and sprang from his station to the turbolift.

"That was amazing, Captain" Ezra said, "I bet an Imperial Star Destroyer couldn't stand up to the Enterprise's weapons!"

Kirk glanced up at Ezra, and the boy was taken aback at the serious, even sombre expression on his face. "Yes, maybe," Kirk muttered, and hit a control on his chair. "Bridge to sickbay: Bones, we're boarding the disabled cruiser. Prepare to receive casualties."

The Enterprise had secured from Red Alert, and the Ghost's crew were down in the mess hall. The treatment for the radiation exposure had given them back their appetites.

Ezra prodded at an unfamiliar dish he understood was called 'spaghetti in meat sauce.' Zeb, Kanan, Hera and Sabine sat along the same side of the table. Across from them, Spock and Lt. Uhura were partaking as well.

"I'm sorry we can't get you back to where you came from," Uhura said sadly.

"We'll have to find a way at some point," Kanan said, "Our people are depending on us to do our part against the Empire."

"What is the nature of this Empire you speak of," Spock asked.

"They overthrew our Galactic Republic," Hera said, "And they've wiped out whole planets. Zeb's people, Geonosis, and enslaved other people, like mine."

Spock raised an eyebrow thoughtfully. "Indeed? Most disturbing."

"Are these Romulans anything like that," Kanan asked.

"Well, we don't know," Uhura said, "We think they're warlike, but our peace treaty keeps us apart."

"And they honour the treaty," Zeb said skeptically.

"There have been incidents," Spock conceded, "But those have been among hundreds of years of peace."

"They actually leave you alone," Hera said, wondering at the idea somewhat.

"Sounds nice," Kanan sighed, "Sometimes I think our galaxy would be a better place if everyone left each other alone."

"Do you think so?" Uhura said thoughtfully, "I don't think that's a very nice way to live."

"Of course not," Ezra said, "You can't turn your back while they're still there!"

Uhura looked shocked, "No! That's not what I meant at all!" She leaned across the table, hands together in a pleading gesture, "I mean, with barriers between us, we lose so much. On Earth - the planet a lot of us come from - we seperated ourselves for centuries with borders, ideologies, religions - we don't have any of that anymore."

"But if they're so warlike and dangerous..." Ezra began.

Spock looked thoughtful, "You would do well to heed Lieutenant Uhura, Mr. Bridger. Her attitude is logical, at least for us. Seperation breeds mistrust and jingoism. Dialogue and openness is more conducive to peace. Albeit the Romulans do not share that view."

"There are a few different species in your Federation," Hera asked.

"Dozens," Spock said. "All have agreed to abide by rules of mutual cooperation."

"And to fight the Romulans, right," Ezra said, his voice suddenly soft.

"Defense is one aspect of the Federation," Spock said, "But not the primary one."

Silence greeted this pronouncement, but general curiosity greeted the opening of the mess hall door and the arrival of Lt. Sulu.

"Sulu," Uhura said, "How was it over there?"

Sulu shook his head, "Grim. It's a mining ship, at least sometimes. Small crew, lots of cargo space. And the cargo space was stuffed with people."

"I thought you said," Uhura began, then her eyes widened in horror, "Oh no..."

"Slaves," Zeb growled.

"Andorians," Sulu said. "They were taken off a transport liner."

"Do you not have the capacity to create autonomous workers," Spock asked, "Mr. Scott reported being accosted by a robotic crew member."

"Chopper," said Hera. "And yes, we can."

"It hardly seems logical, then, to rely on captive labour," Spock said, frowning.

"No, but it's the kind of thing the Empire does," Ezra said coldly.

"They were heading for the Neutral Zone," Sulu said, "could they be running slaves to the Romulans?"

"What would the Romulans need slave labour for?" Uhura asked aloud.

"Well, we know this much," Sulu said. "When that ship wasn't running captives, it was shipping pergium. Traces of the ore all over the ship."

Spock's expression cleared, and he said, "The levels of electromagnetic radiation in the cometary belt is caused largely by the levels of pergium. And may interfere with delicate electronics."

"You mean they're mining this...pergium in the comet belt?"

"Quite probably," Spock said.

"Pergium's a huge energy source," Sulu said, alarm on his face.

"Which is being mined for the Empire," Hera said. "That might explain why the cruiser's weapons were so overpowered!"

"Then Federation citizens are in that cometary belt," Sulu said, "We've got to get them out!"

"That may be difficult, without violating the Neutral Zone," Spock pointed out.

"Maybe not," Hera said. "Can we see your Captain?"