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With Enterprise's deuterium
reserves running low, Archer and the crew visit a small mining
colony in hopes of replenishing their supply. The alien
colonists, however, claim that they can't spare any deuterium,
and ask Archer to return at the end of the season. Archer
manages to negotiate, and eventually reaches an agreement with
the colony's leader, Tessic — the deuterium in exchange for
medical supplies, power cells and assistance in repairing the
colony's extraction pumps. In a puzzling move, Tessic also
insists that the pump be repaired within two days.
As the Enterprise crew is
helping with repairs, a Klingon ship enters orbit. Tessic
panics, insisting that Archer and his people hide. As Archer
watches, a small group of Klingons beams to the surface,
greeting Tessic in what appears to be a friendly manner. The
leader of the Klingons, Korok, is significantly less friendly
when he learns that Tessic does not have the deuterium he has
requested. Tessic asks for more time to produce it, but Korok
becomes enraged, and orders Tessic to have the deuterium ready
in four days. Finally, the reason for the colonists' strange
behavior becomes clear — these Klingon marauders have been
preying on them for five seasons, taking all the first-yield
deuterium they can produce. When Tessic and the others tried to
rebel, it resulted in the deaths of eight colonists. Defeated,
Tessic tells Archer to just take the deuterium he needs and
leave.
Archer, however, is angered by the situation, and believes that
the crew of Enterprise may be able to aid the colonists. He
convinces Tessic to allow them to try, and reveals a plan: the
colonists will surreptitiously move their village and rigs so
that when the Klingons arrive for their next visit, they will be
lured into a combustible fuel field. To protect them in battle,
T'Pol offers some rudimentary self-defense training, while Reed
and Hoshi lead the colonists in target practice.
When the Klingons do arrive, Archer's scheme is a success — the
colonists defend themselves against the marauders, and the
Klingons are tricked into entering an area that appears to be
barren desert. This "desert," however, is the deuterium field,
and flaming deuterium explodes from the wellheads surrounding
them. As the Klingons are surrounded by a ring of fire, Tessic
approaches, warning the Klingons to leave and never return.
Rattled, Korok and his crew beam back to their ship.
As Archer and his crew prepare to leave, a grateful Tessic gifts
them with 2,000 liters of deuterium — significantly more than
the initially agreed upon amount.
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