The first thing they saw was that the room was definitely a ballroom of some kind. It was large, grand, and it had two marble staircases flowing opposite each other.

Standing on the stairs was a strange being. He looked like a normal human, except for that fact that his skin was lime green, and he had an abnormally large forehead. He was wearing a dark silver, clearly ceremonial robe, which covered every inch of his body, including his feet and hands.

As the six people came further into the room, he spread his arms out, revealing two sharp hands. "Welcome!" he said theatrically, and it was made clear to all six officers that this was the voice that they had heard when they first came in. "My name is Exhocmundo. Welcome to my castle."

"You're in charge of this castle?" Kirk asked warily.

"Indeed. Do you like it?"

"Are there more of you?" Bones asked snappily, ignoring the question entirely.

"Alas, no. It is just me." Exhocmundo's tone was still light and welcoming. "The rest of my kind is back on my home planet."

"And what planet would that be?" asked Spock.

"Omega-3," replied Exhocmundo.

"That does make sense," Spock told Kirk. "I have not personally visited Omega-3, but I have heard of its beings. It is a planet about a tenth of the size of Earth, and all its inhabitants are this being's species."

"How does he speak English?" Kirk asked in a whisper.

"I am not entirely sure," Spock admitted. "However, it is not unheard of for some beings to teach themselves English. Perhaps that is how he achieved it."

"So what was the purpose of all this?" Vivian called, gesturing with her arm to the walls. "Torturing us?"

"Goodness, no." Exhocmundo actually sounded hurt. "This was all a test."

"A test?" repeated Kirk.

"Yes, a test. A test to see if you humans have the will to overcome fear and survive."

"The suit of armour following us?" Bones snapped. "What was that all about?"

"Ah, a classic." Exhocmundo's expression and tone became wistful, almost dreamy. "Did you like it? Robotic, of course. And the fact that it seemed to teleport? There were actually two suits of armour. The one that grabbed you then turned invisible once you had walked past it, and the other one turned visible just as you walked into it. Added a sense of thrilling danger to it, did it not?"

"Thrilling danger?" Bones repeated angrily. "That thing almost killed me and Spock!"

"Ah yes. The thrill of the chase, and the thrill of danger. Made for quite a good watch. I have half a mind to turn it into a movie."

"Why, you-!"

Bones started furiously forwards but Tonia and Scotty grabbed his elbows and restrained him.

"You were watching us?" Spock inquired.

"Every moment. Except for her." Exhocmundo waved a careless hand in Tonia's direction. "Giving birth. Nasty."

Bones almost burst a vein on his forehead. "She wouldn't have had to give birth in here if you hadn't locked us in this godforsaken castle!" he snarled. "She could have died!"

"Did she?" asked Exhocmundo amicably.

Bones's anger dissipated slightly. "No," he admitted. His voice rose again. "But she could have! What if she had needed a C-section or a different operation that we couldn't have given her down here? If you hadn't locked her in here, we could have beamed her back to the Enterprise where she could have given birth in a proper sickbay!"

"Doctor, beaming a woman while she is giving birth is definitely not advisable," said Spock. "Mrs McCoy would have had to have the child outside on the savannah."

Bones didn't even look at the first officer. Without missing a beat, he shouted, "Better out there than in here!"

"Leonard," said Tonia quietly, tightening her grip on her husband's arm. "It's okay."

But Vivian shared Bones's anger. "And us?" she snarled. "Captain Kirk and I nearly froze to death!"

"But you didn't," Exhocmundo pointed out.

"THAT'S BESIDE THE POINT!" bellowed Vivian. "DO YOU KNOW HOW IT FEELS TO HAVE YOUR BODY TEMPERATURE DROP TO WELL BELOW WHERE IT SHOULD BE? IT FEELS LIKE AGONY!" She lowered her voice slightly. "Perhaps not matching the agony of giving birth, but we were dying in there! What if we hadn't been able to find a way out? Would you have dropped the temperature even more and let us freeze to death?"

"I don't think you want me to answer that question," said Exhocmundo calmly.

"Why?" Vivian hissed. "What was the point of these tests where we all nearly died?"

"Learning, Miss Walker," replied Exhocmundo, his tone growing slightly more serious. "My people and I wish to learn more about the human race, and how they react to fear and extreme situations."

"You were extremely close to violating Federation law," said Kirk warningly. "You must not do this kind of thing again. If you must observe and learn more about humans, then go peacefully to Earth and disguise yourselves whilst walking among them."

"While I agree it was not the most thought-out of tests, I have to admit that I have no regrets. It was a lot of fun watching you all."

Kirk and Scotty grimaced. "That was the wrong thing tae say," remarked Scotty quietly.

Bones and Vivian would both have charged Exhocmundo and attacked him, had Kirk and Spock not been holding the science officer back, and Tonia and Scotty not been holding the doctor back.

"Fun!" roared Vivian. "You better make sure I never see you again, because if I do, I swear, I will knock you on your-!"

"I just have one final query," interrupted Spock. "I assume your castle was hidden to us by the same means as the suits of armour were hidden to the doctor and myself?"

"Your assumption is correct, Mr Spock."

"If I may ask, how exactly was this feat accomplished?"

"You may ask, Mr Spock. And I shall answer: we have a rare material on Omega-3 that essentially mimics the properties of the Earth animal known as a chameleon. It camouflages anything from view. It was only a matter of time on our planet until we found a way to control the camouflage. The suits of armour and the outside of the castle both have this material in them. At the proper time, I flick a switch, and BLINK! It's gone. BLINK! It's back. Clever, eh?"

"It certainly is fascinating," said Spock.

"So now you've had your fun," growled Bones. "May we leave your castle of fear and death?"

"But of course," replied Exhocmundo with a wave of his hand. "I bid you farewell, Captain Kirk, Mr Spock, Montgomery Scott, Vivian Walker, Doctor McCoy, and Tonia Barrows."

"My name is Tonia McCoy," said Tonia, showing the first hint of aggression that she had displayed since entering the room.

Exhocmundo inclined his head. "Of course. Now, I shall open the doors, and you shall all go home."