A lonely stretch of space without stars brings the crew's morale to a low.
Two months into a vast, starless region known as the Void, morale is low and Janeway has withdrawn to her quarters, troubled by her role in stranding the crew. A sudden power loss leaves the ship open to intruders, the crew captures one of the region's native aliens, and a Malon captain named Emck offers to guide Voyager out in exchange for the prisoner.
Janeway learns that the Malon are dumping toxic theta radiation into the Void and poisoning its inhabitants. When Emck rejects her offer of technology that would make the waste harmless, she decides to destroy the vortex the Malon use to reach the region. With help from the native aliens, Voyager defeats Emck, collapses the vortex and emerges into normal space. The episode introduced the Malon.