Kathryn Janeway and a group of other cadets - Blinar, Timothy Wang, Mari Lakoo and L'as'wa Ranna - are assigned to accompany the USS Tsiolkovsky on a mission to deliver medical supplies to Chatoob. There are two races co-existing on the planet but the Chats are presently in control. The inhabitants live in domed cities because of the poisoned atmosphere, but Janeway's first scan indicates the atmosphere is breathable.