The U.S.S. Voyager finds another Federation starship lost in the Delta Quadrant, the science vessel U.S.S. Equinox, and helps it stave off an attack by creatures from another spatial realm. Captain Janeway now has a kindred spirit in its commander, Captain Ransom, and helps him salvage his war-torn vessel so they can journey home together. But when The Doctor retrieves data from the U.S.S. Equinox research lab, Janeway learns the hard truth that Captain Ransom has seriously violated the Starfleet oath by commiting mass murder in the Delta Quadrant. When she strips him of his command and confines him to quarters, he and his crew manage to escape with the U.S.S. Voyager's advanced technology — and The Doctor and Seven of Nine as hostages aboard their ship.

John Savage (Captain Rudolph Ransom)
Titus Welliver (Lt. Maxwell Burke)
Olivia Birkelund (Ensign Marla Gilmore)
Rick Worthy (Ensign Noah Lessing)
Scarlett Pomers (Naomi Wildman)
Steve Dennis (Crew member)

• The U.S.S. Equinox NCC-72381 is a small, short-range Nova-class science vessel designed for planetary research. Its maximum warp speed is warp 8. It is assumed it was also pulled into the Delta Quadrant by the Caretaker (see episode #1: "Caretaker"). A week in, a run-in with the Krowtonan Guard killed 39 Equinox crewman, half of the ship's crew.
  
• Captain Ransom is a Starfleet exobiologist, promoted to Captain after he made first contact with the Yridians (Borg species 6291), who were believed to have been extinct.
  
• Starfleet Regulation 191, Article 14: "In a combat situation involving more than one ship, command falls to the vessel with tactical superiority."
  
• Starfleet Regulation 3, Paragraph 12: "In the event of imminent destruction, a captain is authorized to preserve the lives of his crew by any justifiable means."
  
• B'Elanna and Max dated while they were at the Academy. He called her by her initials, "B.L.T.".