In Voyager's Briefing Room, the senior staff are gathered to hear then discuss the Astronomer's message.

"Good friends in the Skyship. I call you that hoping at least that you're not enemies. There is nothing on our world that resembles your technology so we assume you came from a nearby planet or a distant star. Our ancient mythology describes your arrival centuries ago, coinciding with the tremors that continually shake our planet and destroy so many of our accomplishments. I hope that was never your intention but the result is the same. Respond if you can or if you wish come down from your Skyship and visit us."

	Paris: "Well, we've got to let them know we're not doing it on purpose."
	Tuvok: "Inadvisable. The Prime Directive still applies. This transmission was made with primitive radio technology. They are not a warp-capable civilisation."
	Paris: "To hell with the Prime Directive - that man deserves an answer!" Torres: "Don't forget the temporal differential. That man has been dead for a long time." Doctor: "Nearly a century by now." Paris: "Ok, so we send a message to his great-grandchildren. I'll gladly do the honours."
	Chakotay: "'Ancient mythology' - that means we've already insinuated ourselves into their culture. Why not take the next step?" Janeway: "First contact with a pre-warp society." Paris: "We've already made first contact. They know we're up here." Janeway: "They've known for hundreds of years, which means our presence has been tempered by time. We've gradually become part of their mythos. Meeting us could throw that belief system into chaos." Paris: "We're destroying their planet! You heard him." Chakotay: "A first contact, face to face, might give us information we could use to leave orbit. That would stop the damage. It's worth the risk."

Janeway: "We don't even know if an away team could survive the transition to their timeframe. Doctor, correct me if I'm wrong, but the physiological stress could be fatal." Doctor: "For one of you perhaps, but not for me. My holomatrix would be unaffected." Janeway walks round the table to the Doctor. She uses the time it takes to consider and come to a decision. She tells the Doctor: "You'd be going only as an observer. You are not to make contact."

On the Bridge, at Ops, Kim informs Chakotay: "I've localised the source of the transmission to a subcontinent in the southern hemisphere." Chakotay: "The Central Protectorate." Kim: "How d'you know that?" Chakotay: "I've been looking at the data from Astrometrics. Seven's picked up a few of their local transmissions. I can tell you the names of all twenty-six states on the planet." Kim jokes: "And all the best places to eat?" Chakotay ripostes: "Just about." Kim: "So is this Central Protectorate a good place to send the Doctor?" Chakotay: "Probably. Judging from the transmission, they seem to have a tolerant society." Kim: "Well, just to be on the safe side I'll find him an isolated spot."

	In a transporter room, with the Doctor on a transporter pad, Torres makes adjustments to his mobile emitter. Torres: "I'm giving you access to your facial and epidermal parameters. You should be able to mimic the appearance of whoever's down there in a matter of seconds."
	Doctor: "What if they're big purple blobs of protoplasm?" Janeway: "Then you'll be the best-looking blob on the planet. I'm keeping you down there for three seconds, Doctor. That'll be almost two days in their timeframe. Gather whatever data you can: seismic charts, meteorological records, anything that might give us a clue about how to break orbit." Doctor: "Understood." Torres to Doctor: "This will speed up the scanning mode of your program, allow you to make the transition." As soon as she is finished, she joins Janeway at the control console. Doctor: "See you soon?"
	Janeway: "Energising." The Doctor is transported to the planet. Torres counts the seconds: "One...two...three." She initiates transport to bring the Doctor back. But the return transport does not work. Janeway interprets the read-outs. "The confinement beam is destabilising." Torres: "It's the temporal field. We'll have to recalibrate." Janeway: "Every second he's down there he's in danager of being discovered."
	Torres: "Locking on again." But the transport fails. Janeway realises: "We've lost him." The Doctor is stranded on the planet!

At Ops, Kim reports: "I'm scanning within a 100 kilometre radius of where we sent him. Nothing. Chakotay: "He could've moved across the continent by now or to the other side of the planet. Increasing radius to 1,000 kilometres." Chakotay has an idea and makes a comm. call: "Chakotay to Seven of Nine." Seven, via comms: "Go ahead, Commander." Chakotay, via comms: "Have you picked up any information regarding opera houses or concert halls?" Seven, via comms: "The cultural centre of the state along the shore of the eastern lake."

Kim smiles, liking Chakotay's initiative. He scans and almost immediately reports: "Got him." He contacts Torres in the transporter room. "B'Elanna, stand by for the co-ordinates." Torres, via comms: "Acknowledged."

In the transporter room, Torres reports: "I've re-initialised the confinement beam. It's holding." Janeway: "Locking on. The Doctor's figure appears in the transport beam and the transport is successful.

The Doctor is delighted to see them. "Captain! Lieutenant!" He throws himself at Janeway, hugging her tightly. She is a bit surprised at his great enthusiasm. He says: "I thought I'd never see you again!" Janeway: "Are you alright?" Doctor: "I've had a few close calls over the years but-" Torres: "Years?" Doctor: "It's been over three, but at least I knew you hadn't left me behind. All I had to look up and there you were: the brightest star in the sky." Janeway: "Well, what do they know about us?" Doctor: "Only that we arrived here centuries ago. They blame us for the seismic tremors, but everything else is pure speculation, and let me tell you they like nothing better than to speculate about Voyager. Darik would go on and on, 'Skyship this, Skyship that.'-" Torres: "Darik?" Doctor: "The owner of the building I lived in until the war started." Janeway: "There was a war?" Doctor: "The neighbouring state decided to lob a few cannon shells at us. Our tactical air command responded and a new treaty was signed in a matter of weeks, but not before my apartment was in ruins." Janeway: "So they have aviation technology?" Doctor: "They're hardly savages, Captain. In fact, they're making great strides technologically, thanks in part to Voyager." Torres: "What do you mean?" Doctor: "From the moment our ship arrived in the sky they've been trying to make contact. Our presence has encouraged invention, religion, science, art, even children's toys. They're all variations on a single theme - Voyager. Marisa even composed an aria based on the Skyship. I sang the lyric." Janeway: "Marisa?" Doctor: "She was my-" He stops as he reconsiders his words. "-room-mate. Three years is a long time, Captain. One needs....companionship." Janeway: "You'll get no argument from me. But did you learn anything that might help us leave orbit?" Doctor: "It's all in here." and he indicates his head. They leave the transporter room. standard doors "Meteorological records for the last three hundred years. I've committed them all to memory. Some are inaccurate almanacs, but the recent ones contain detailed seismic analyses." Janeway: "Get that information to Astrometrics. See if you can find any pattern that to the quakes - might help us figure a way out of here." See you in Sickbay. I'll download the data from your program and we'll do a little cosmetic surgery too." Doctor: "Lieutenant?" Torres turns as she starts leaving. "Unless you prefer looking like that." She leaves. The Doctor puts a hand to his forehead: "Of course, I completely forgot." To Janeway: "I must tell you if some of the people on the planet had their way those weapons would be pointed at Voyager. Luckily the ship is still out of range, for now." Janeway: "Guess I can't blame them." Doctor: "There's something of a space race going on between the various states: who can get to the starship first with a rocket." Janeway: "Are we talking about a capsule with an astronaut or a missile with a warhead?" Doctor: "I can't answer that, but at their present rate of development we won't have to wait very long to find out."

Seven is at work in the Astrometrics Lab when Naomi Wildman enters, PADD in hand. Naomi: "How does this sound: 'The Weird Planet Where Time Moved Very Fast And So Did The People Who Lived There, by Naomi Wildman.'? That's what I'm calling my report for astronomy class. Neelix said I should choose a planet to write about, so I picked this one." Seven: "The title is verbose. I suggest you try to condense it." Naomi: "'The Weird Planet'." Seven: "Better, but it lacks precision. 'The Weird Planet Displaced In Time'." Naomi: "Perfect." She taps the new title into the PADD. Seven uses the comm. system. "Seven of Nine to the Bridge. I'm transmitting my calculations directly to the helm." Naomi: "What's happening?" Seven: "The Doctor brought back data regarding the planet's graviton field. We're using it to re-align our thrusters." Naomi: "That'll be great for my report." The com. signal alert sounds shipwide. "All hands, this is the Captain. Secure your stations and prepare to break orbit." Seven: "Brace yourself." Naomi holds onto the console. Seven reads out the data as the attempt is made to break orbit. "Our altitude is increasing. 50 metres, 60-" She breaks off and makes an urgent comm. call. "Seven of Nine to the Bridge. Our attempt to leave orbit is increasing the seismic activity. We must abort!" Janeway, via comms. "Agreed." The attempt is stopped and the seismic activity on the planet immediately ceases. Even so, due to the time differential it meant that the planet suffered tremors for several days. Naomi: "Is the planet ok?" Seven: "Minimal damage along the equatorial coastline. Nothing serious." Naomi: "Seven, do you think we'll ever be able to leave?" Seven: "Eventually." Naomi: "I hope. I need a way to end my report."

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