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Archer invites Reed to breakfast,
hoping to become better acquainted with his armory officer.
Reed, however, seems reluctant to discuss anything other than
work. Just as Archer's getting frustrated, T'Pol alerts the
captain that an uncharted system has been detected and one of
the planets is Minshara-class. As Enterprise enters the planet's
orbit, it is rocked by massive explosions, damaging sections of
the ship and injuring several crewmembers, including Hoshi. Reed
is able to discern that the ship has been hit by an alien
orbital mine, which has attached itself to the hull. As the mine
has the power to disable Enterprise, Reed suits up and heads out
to defuse it. Uncertain that Reed will succeed in his task,
Archer suggests an alternate plan to Trip — detach the section
of hull plating surrounding the mine, allowing it to drift away.
Trip notes that this will expose a good portion of the impulse
manifold, but Archer tells him to get started on it anyway — the
captain will consider the plan a last resort.
As Reed works, he suddenly
becomes aware of a strange alien vessel de-cloaking nearby. The
ship hails Enterprise, but the translator can't quite get a lock
on the strange language, and Hoshi is out of commission in
Sickbay. The aliens begin to fire warning shots at Enterprise,
so Archer orders Mayweather to move them out of harm's way —
slowly, so as not to injure Reed, still hard at work on the
hull. Mayweather must also be careful not to collide with any of
the other mines in the field.
 Reed begins to make some headway in his efforts to disarm the
mine, but just as he's making progress, the motion from
Enterprise jostles the mine. A spike thrusts out of the mine and
through Reed's leg, pinning him to the ship's hull. Hoping to
disarm the mine and save his officer, Archer heads out to the
hull. With Reed unable to reach the mine, Archer must depend on
him for instructions to disable it. Reed thinks it's too
dangerous, but Archer insists that he's a quick study.
Meanwhile, Hoshi is translating the mysterious alien language
from Sickbay. The aliens have ordered Enterprise to leave
immediately or be destroyed — they have annexed the planet in
the name of "The Romulan Star Empire." Only T'Pol has heard of
this species, and she reveals that they are an aggressive,
territorial race. Archer orders Hoshi to compose a response
explaining the crew's desperate circumstances.
Out on the hull, Archer works painstakingly to de-activate the
mine. He also tries to engage Reed in casual conversation, but
it doesn't seem to calm the armory officer's nerves. Rattled,
Reed reveals that he doesn't believe socializing with superior
officers has any place on a starship. Archer, however, points
out that the crewmembers all have to depend on one another, and
that Enterprise's mission is not a typical one. As they continue
to talk, it becomes apparent that Reed is prepared to sacrifice
himself for the ship. Archer, however, is determined to save
both his officer and Enterprise.
 On the bridge, the crew is being hailed yet again by the
Romulans, who insist that Enterprise leave. The Romulans know
that Reed is trapped outside, but demand that the ship jettison
the section of hull plating. Complicating things even further,
the mine re-arms just as Archer believes he's defused it — he is
forced to quickly re-set it again. Reed ascertains that they
will now have to dismantle the entire mine, but there's no time.
Reed once again volunteers to sacrifice himself, even going so
far as to disconnect his air supply hose. Archer, however, won't
have it, and quickly attaches the auxiliary air hose from his
own suit to Reed's.
Desperate, Archer comes up with one last-ditch plan, and
requests two shuttlepod hatches and a plasma torch. Trip
detaches the section of hull plating, and, as they drift away,
Archer uses the torch to free Reed from the hull. As the mine
begins to arm itself, Archer and Reed grab their shuttlepod
hatches and launch themselves out of harm's way. The mine
explodes. As the Romulans descend on Enterprise, Archer and Reed
make it back to the ship just in time for T'Pol to order the
ship to warp speed. As Enterprise makes a safe getaway, Archer
and Reed are left to ponder their ordeal.
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