Trip and T'Pol analyze logs in Engineering. "It's just background noise," T'Pol tells Trip. "Your sensors aren't capable of isolating plasma decay." "How can you be so damn sure what our sensors can do?" Trip demands. "Vulcan children play with toys that are more sophisticated," T'Pol snots. Yeah, like the wooden blocks Spock shows that Romulan kid in TNG's "Unification"? "You know, some people would say that you Vulcans do nothing but patronize us," Trip says, stalking along a catwalk. Uh, would you be one of those "people," Trip? "But if they were here now," Trip continues, "if they could see how far you're bending over backwards to help me, they'd eat their words." T'Pol saunters her catsuited body around Trip and steps onto a lift. "Your captain's mission was to return the Klingon to his people. He no longer has the Klingon," T'Pol points out as the lift descends. Trip asks T'Pol if "it ever occurred to [her] that [Cpt. Quantum] knows what he's doing?" and without waiting for an answer, he goes on to say that he knows Starfleet hasn't been around that long, but don't they still owe the Captain their support since he's in charge of the mission. "Then again, loyalty's an emotion, innit?" Trip asks T'Pol. Uh, actually, I hate to break it to you, Flyboy, but loyalty's a concept, not an emotion.

Just then, Cpt. Quantum himself enters the scene and asks if they've had any luck. "Not really," Trip drawls. T'Pol sticks her pointy chin forward and tells Cpt. Quantum that her analysis "indicates a stealth vessel with a tricyclic [Like Ortho-Tricyclin? Why not take the only pill guaranteed to clear up your complexion?] plasma drive." Trip tells Cpt. Quantum, "If we could figure out the decay rate of their plasma, we'll be able to find their warp trail." T'Pol tells Cpt. Quantum that their sensors weren't constructed to quantify plasma decay. Well, can't they just "modify" something? They were always doing that on the other shows. "It's impossible to keep the ship from exploding, Captain." "See if you can modify something, Lieutenant." "Oh, yeah, I'll modify the whatchamajimmy with a thingawhatsit array -- okay, we're in the clear!" Anyway, Hoshi enters Engineering cautiously and asks, "Are you sure it's safe to stand so close to that?" gesturing at the warp engine.