Stardate not given: Back in San Francisco, Mariner is infuriated about the news coverage of her mom's trial that shows footage of Captain Freeman planting a bomb on the Pakled Planet. Mariner firmly believes this evidence was forged. She seeks the help of Boimler, who is currently at his family's raisin farm. Boimler suggests to retrieve his detailed personal logs from the Cerritos that could exonerate the captain. The two meet up with Tendi and Rutherford in Sisko's Creole Kitchen to gain access to the Cerritos that is currently in drydock. They head for a transporter station, whose old operator, against their expectations, turns out to be very cooperative. But he tells the ensigns that beaming into orbit is currently not possible because Earth is engulfed in a verugament - a swarm of extremophile lifeforms. He beams them to Bozeman instead, where they plan to take the Phoenix replica ride. After disabling the auto-pilot, the four ensigns head for the Cerritos. Boimler's logs, however, turn out disappointing for Mariner as they only contain embarrassing trivia. She decides to act on her own and find the one who actually planted the bomb. After setting a shuttle with Boimler, Rutherford and Tendi to a course back to Earth, she hijacks the Cerritos. But Boimler manages to reprogram the shuttle to return to the Cerritos. After a crash landing in the shuttlebay, the three ensigns proceed to the bridge where a struggle for the control of the Cerritos ensues. As the four come to an agreement, they notice that the extremeophile creatures use the hull of the ship as a breeding ground. Also, a Starfleet patrol arrives, and the ensigns need a cover story for why the Cerritos is out of drydock. They pretend to study the lifeforms but the patrol also asks for the commanding officer who ordered this. Suddenly Captain Freeman appears. She has been released after a special operation uncovered the true circumstances of the bombing. The Pakled themselves destroyed their capital, and they had someone forge evidence incriminating Freeman in the hope the Federation would find a homeworld with more resources for them. Freeman, however, is not happy about how her daughter once again acted against her orders. She assigns Commander Ransom to watch over her and decide whether she can still remain in Starfleet.

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