The Doctor hears the crew may soon be leaving Voyager to go straight home. Kes: "I promise." The Doctor, alone in his office, contemplating the turn of events.

In Sickbay Kes hands back the PADDs the Doctor gave her. Kes: "I've finished these and I'm ready for more." Doctor: "You've finished those already?" Kes: "I enjoyed studying anatomy. It would be interesting to see an autopsy sometime." Doctor: "What are the bones of the middle ear?" Kes: "Malleus, incus and stapes." Doctor: "And the connective tissue between the middle and the external auditory canal?" Kes: "The tympanic membrane." Doctor: "I suspect you have an eidetic memory. An astonishing gift. I'll do a full neural scan on you at some point." She follows him into his office. Kes: "I've been thinking: if we do get back to Federation space I'd like to explore the possibility of going to medical school." Doctor: "If you continue to apply yourself as you have, by the time we get back you may already have the equivalent of a medical degree." Kes: "Then you haven't heard?" Doctor: "Heard what?" Kes: "That we might be getting back soon." Doctor: "If there's one thing you can count on, it's that I am the last to be told about anything that happens on this ship." Kes: "Everyone's talking about it. There may be a way to transport all of us to the Alpha Quadrant. Chief Torres and half of engineering are working on it right now." Doctor: "I see. Well, I'll say goodbye now. I won't be transporting with the rest of you. Kes: "But can't we download your program and take you with us?" Doctor: "My program is fully integrated into the Sickbay system. At present I cannot be downloaded." Suddenly Kes kisses him: "Thank you for everything." Doctor: "Wait, I'd like- that is, could I ask a favour of you?" Kes: "Anything." Doctor: "If you do leave, before you go would you check to make sure I've been deactivated?" Kes: "I promise."

On Voyager's bridge Janeway addresses the captain of the Talvath. "And our chief engineer has managed to bind a transporter beam to the visual link between us." Talvath captain: "Then you've matched your data transmission to the phase amplitude of our com. signal?" Janeway: "Exactly."

On Voyager's bridge Janeway addresses the captain of the Talvath. "And our chief engineer has managed to bind a transporter beam to the visual link between us." Talvath captain: "Then you've matched your data transmission to the phase amplitude of our com. signal?" Janeway: "Exactly." Talvath captain: "Apparently our intelligence operatives are not doing their job. You clearly have technology that we are unaware of. This would be an incredible breakthrough in subspace field mechanics."

Chakotay: "If it's successful we'd like to try transmitting a test cylinder to you." Talvath captain: "Test cylinder, of what sort?" Tuvok: "It's a standard Starfleet mechanism of a varietal molecular matrix. It simulates most known organic and non-organic compounds. It is not classified technology." Talvath captain: "Ah, I am aware of this mechanism. We use a similar device. I will allow the transport."

Janeway, via comms: "Bridge to Transporter Room 1." Torres, via comms: "Torres here. We're all set, Captain. The lock is active and we're focussed on the Romulan's transporter co-ordinates." Janeway: "Alright then. Let's give it a try." Chakotay: "Energise."

the cylinder in transport

Torres: "The cylinder has dematerialised, Captain."

There is a problem with the transport as the cylinder only partly materialises on the Talvath.

Janeway: "Can you get it back?"

In the transporter room. Kim: "The pattern buffer is having trouble accepting the matter stream. I'll increase power to the phase transition coils." Torres: "Adjust the coils to 37 megajoules." Kim: "37 megajoules."

The transport is successful. On the Bridge they can see on the viewscreen that the test cylinder fully materialises on the console top by the Talvath captain.

Talvath captain: "Congratulations, Captain, you've done it. Very impressive."

Janeway: "We should run a series of these tests just to make sure, but we have to act quickly before the probe is crushed." Talvath captain: "I understand." Janeway: "Eventually we'll have to try transporting a person. One of our crew will beam to your ship if you'll allow it." Talvath captain: "I'm afraid I can't permit that, Captain. My government would never allow Starfleet personnel on this ship. I wouldn't want my logs to show that activity." Tuvok: "Then what would you suggest?" Talvath captain: "I'll volunteer to transport to your ship and back again." Janeway: "But Captain, if we can't transport to your ship how are we to get back?" Talvath captain: "If the procedure is successful, I'll arrange for a troop ship to join me. That would easily accommodate your crew." Janeway: "Very well. We'll be in touch."

After a time...

Janeway, Chakotay and Tuvok walk along the corridor to the transporter room. Chakotay: "Kim and Torres have made more than twenty transports of the test cylinder. Even though she's still having trouble with that phase variance, every one of them has been successful."

Janeway: "Let's hope it goes as well with the Romulan." Tuvok: "Captain, I must insist that I stay with him at all times while he's on board." Janeway: "Agreed."

They enter the transporter room.

Torres reports: "We're locked onto him. Whenever you're ready, Captain."

Janeway: "Well, let's try it. Energise."

The Romulan starts to materialise but the transport fails to complete. Janeway: "What's the problem?" Torres: "It's the phase variance in the radiation stream. I'm balancing it manually."

The transport is successful and the Romulan materialises on the transporter pad.

Janeway: "Welcome to the Delta Quadrant, Captain."

She indicates her officers to introduce them. "My First Officer Commander Chakotay, Lieutenant Tuvok head of Security, Chief Engineer Torres, and Operations officer Kim."

Talvath captain: "My congratulations on your remarkable accomplishment. This is an astonishing breakthrough." Torres: "For a while there, I didn't think you were going to make it. There was a phase variance in the radiation stream. It almost kept us from pulling you through." Janeway: "Mr Tuvok, you may begin evacuation procedures."

"What year???" "But this is 2371."

Tuvok, having scanned the Romulan with his tricorder: "I suggest we delay that for the moment, Captain. I'm afraid I've found the reason for the unusual phase variance." Janeway: "What is it?" Tuvok: "Captain, what year is it?" Talvath captain: "What year???" Tuvok: "If you please." Talvath captain: "By your calendar the year is 2351." Chakotay: "But this is 2371." Tuvok: "Exactly. Our Romulan visitor is a person out of time. He's showing clear evidence of temporal displacement. I would surmise that the rift is a wormhole, not just in space but in time. The unusual phase variance we detected was actually an indication of a temporal shift. We have transported him from 20 years in the past to our present."