Plot

Enterprise has found the location of the testing site of the Xindi weapon and gets some rather unexpected help.

Enterprise has picked up a trail of the tracking device Archer planted on a Reptilian ship. There's a problem however. To get to its location Enterprise must cross a giant and very dense field of anomalies. When something gets wrong and Enterprise gets enveloped in an anomaly, there's some unexpected help. Enterprise is pulled out by an Andorian tractor beam. Commander Shran tells they are here to offer the help the Vulcans refused. Wary of their intentions at first, Captain Archer still agrees on having Andorians make repairs on Enterprise. Soon it becomes clear that the trail leads to a Xindi testing site for the weapon that is to destroy Earth. Archer and Shran make plans to retrieve it.—Arnoud Tiele (imdb@tiele.nl)

Dec 2153. Xindi council meets where Degra (Randy Oglesby) reports that the weapon prototype is ready and will be tested in 3 days. The final weapon will be deployed within a month. The Enterprise has picked up a Kemocite trail that they had planted on the Xindi ship and Archer orders to pursue it at maximum warp.

Enterprise, despite losing most of its map data (They have managed to get back only 30% of it), continues to traverse a series of spatial anomalies in the Delphic Expanse. The Xindi weapons site lays beyond the most dense part of the spatial anomaly fields and Enterprise would have to go through it to get to the site in 17 days.

When heavily damaged by a particularly dangerous vortex (Main power has gone down and the ship is venting atmosphere), Enterprise is suddenly pulled clear by an Andorian ship. The ship's captain, Shran (Jeffrey Combs), claims he is only interested in helping Enterprise in its mission to subvert the Xindi's weapon, in the interest of forming a closer alliance with humanity. His ship is faster and he had a signature of the Enterprise's warp trail and was able to follow it easily. He insists that since Vulcans aren't yet ready to help the humans with their mighty fleet, he wants Andorians to be their trusted partners.

Suspicious of the Andorian's true motives, Captain Archer nonetheless agrees to allow them to work with his crew to repair the ship and to scan the test-site of the Xindi prototype weapon. T'Pol argues that Andorians have proven untrustworthy in the part and tells him to remain super cautious. Lt Talas (Molly Brink) from Shran's crew comes aboard to help Reed get the weapons systems online. Talas and her crew helps bring the weapons and engines back online in a few short hrs. Together, the ships fly to the location of the Kemocite signature and find the prototype and 4 Xindi ships protecting it.

Shran and Archer get close to the Xindi to scan the prototype being deployed. Degra warns Shran off, but Shran pretends to be a simple mining vessel. Degra deploys the prototype, which Shran and Archer observe from a distance. The prototype takes out an entire moon. Archer wants to attack and secure the prototype. Shran permits Archer to command his crew (of the ship Kumari) in capturing the weapon (Since only his ship has shields powerful enough to withstand the residual radiation being emitted by the weapon). But secretly, Shran has orders from his superiors to grab the weapon, despite the risk that it might end the alliance with the humans. Shran is not OK with this plan.

With Enterprise distracting the Xindi, the Andorian vessel grabs the weapon and stores it aboard. The Andorians actually want the weapon to give them an advantage in their conflict with the Vulcans. Archer is ejected in an escape-pod.

Back aboard Enterprise, he threatens to detonate the weapon unless the Andorians surrender it. Shran believes this ultimatum to be a bluff, but when Archer activates the detonation sequence, he reluctantly ejects it. The weapon explodes, damaging the Andorian ship but leaving Enterprise unscathed. They receive a secret transmission from the Andorians, containing detailed scans of the prototype. Archer is pleased and orders it transmitted to Starfleet, and invites Trip and T'Pol to his quarters to try some Andorian Ale.