Stardate 3192.1: Kirk is ordered to open diplomatic relations with Eminiar VII at all costs, but the Enterprise is warned away from the planet as it approaches. On board is Ambassador Robert Fox who has been sent to head the dialogue and to extend an invitation to Eminiar VII and its sister planet, Vendikar, to join the Federation. Kirk and Spock beam down with a landing party, but they are immediately reminded of the warning to stay away from Eminiar. After investigating further, the landing party discovers that Eminiar VII has been at war with Vendikar for 500 years. The war, however, is fought with computers which select targets, compute damage, and assign groups of people as casualties. The people who are ^killed^ by the computer's computations then voluntarily report to disintegration chambers. While in orbit above Eminiar VII, the Enterprise is ^attacked^ by Vendikar and is recorded as destroyed. As a result, the crewmembers are required to beam down and report to disintegration chambers. To ensure their cooperation, the landing party is held hostage. After learning of their situation, Ambassador Fox decides to beam down in hopes of negotiating for the landing party's release, but then Fox himself is taken prisoner and held along with the others. Kirk is allowed to contact his ship so that he can convince the crew to cooperate, but instead Kirk uses the opportunity to issue a General Order 24 to Scotty, requiring that the engineer destroy Eminiar VII if Kirk and the landing party are not released. Eventually, Kirk and Spock manage to escape and find the computer control room where Kirk destroys the war computers. Rather than face the destruction and horrors of real warfare, the leaders of Eminiar VII decide to accept Ambassador Fox's help and make peace with the people of Vendikar.