Meanwhile, Mayweather visits Phlox for a headache remedy. Phlox, however, is not content to simply diagnose Mayweather with a headache, and begins to subject the ensign to a number of medical tests. Soon, each of the crew's seemingly ordinary tasks begin taking on more and more significance, as each person becomes obsessed with a single job. Archer turns his one-page preface into a 19-page missive, while Trip takes the entire captain's chair apart, determined to add new features (such as a cup-holder) and re-shape it to fit Archer perfectly. Reed, who is attempting to draft a special emergency alert, becomes obsessed with the perfect name and sound for the alarm. And Hoshi tries to get her family recipe for a dish called oden just right — so much so that she abandons her other cooking duties, leaving the crew to starve. Their behavior is also affecting their interactions with one another — Reed and Trip nearly get into a physical fight, while Phlox sedates a frustrated Mayweather so he can run more medical tests.

T'Pol, meanwhile, is the only member of the crew who does not seem to be obsessing over a particular task, and she can't help but notice everyone's odd behavior. She approaches the captain about it, but he remains absorbed in his preface, and becomes irrational and angry when she disturbs him. T'Pol also tries to inform Phlox of the crew's illness, but he is intent on performing an extreme medical procedure on Mayweather. Seeing that the doctor has also been affected, T'Pol quickly renders him unconscious via a Vulcan nerve pinch.

With the rest of the crew unconscious, T'Pol uses Phlox's scans of Mayweather and her own study of the trinary system to form a hypothesis — the radiation from the trinary system is affecting the crew. If they're exposed to this radiation much longer, they may not survive. In order to escape, she must chart a course between the stars. This means passing dangerously close to the black hole and a considerable amount of debris.  She will not be able to pilot the ship alone.

T'Pol heads to Archer's quarters and manages to rouse the groggy captain by putting him in the shower and dousing him with cold water. She manages to explain the situation to him, and the two head for the bridge. While T'Pol determines the course corrections, Archer pilots the ship away from danger. Enterprise is rocked by debris, and Archer determines that they need weapons. T'Pol insists that there isn't enough time to bring them online — then she notices that they already are, apparently as part of Reed's new security measures. Enterprise fires its phase-cannons at the dangerous debris, clearing a path, and jumps to warp. The ship is finally out of danger.

Later on, Phlox examines the crew, and determines that there are no lingering effects from the radiation. Archer commends Reed on his Tactical Alert, noting that it saved Enterprise at a crucial moment. In fact, the captain requests that Reed make the new protocols standard procedure. Trip, meanwhile, has lowered the captain's chair a centimeter, making it much more comfortable, and Archer appears to have written a preface he's happy with.