SPOILERS for Star Trek: Discovery!

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Star Trek: Discovery survived a 4-episode journey to the Mirror Universe only to find things have gone from bad to worse: the Federation has lost the Klingon War! Can Starfleet defeat the Klingons and save the Federation now?

Discovery had won a pivotal victory in the mid-season finale, performing 133 spore drive jumps to destroy the Klingon Ship of the Dead and the Klingon leader Kol along with it, before getting stuck in the Mirror Universe. When the ship jumped back to the Prime Universe, our heroes overshot their goal, arriving nine months from the point when they breached the barrier between realities. In those nine months, without the most advanced ship in Starfleet fighting the war, the Klingon Empire emerged victorious and has overrun the Federation. 20 percent of Federation space is now under the control of the Klingons and Starfleet has lost a third of its ships. The Alpha Quadrant is in trouble like never before.

Related: Star Trek: Discovery: The Story So Far

Though Discovery is back, she has re-emerged without her captain. The Gabriel Lorca who was in command of Discovery and was a key figure in Starfleet's victories over the Klingons was revealed to be a Mirror Universe doppelganger. Mirror Lorca died trying to stage a coup over the Terran Empire, placing First Officer Saru in the captain's chair. Thus, the prospects of peace within the Federation look bleaker than ever.

There are numerous questions now facing the crew of the Discovery as they launch into the remaining two episodes of the season: Who leads the Klingons now that T'Kuvma and Kol are both in Sto-vo-kor? How did the Federation fall to the Klingons? Most importantly, how can Discovery turn the tide, defeat the Klingons, and end the war with a victory for Starfleet? In Star Trek, there are always possibilities, and here are a few...

Emperor Georgiou (This Page)

EMPEROR GEORGIOU

The Discovery returned to the Prime Universe with an unwilling passenger: Mirror Philippa Georgiou, the defeated and deposed Emperor of the Terran Empire. Michael Burnham, unable to watch another Georgiou die in front of her eyes, held onto the Emperor as Discovery's transporter signal locked on. Georgiou is not pleased to find herself in the Prime Universe; she knows the history of the Federation from the files of the derelict U.S.S. Defiant, and the fascist despot opposes the democratic values of the Federation with every fiber of her being.

However, Emperor Georgiou's presence in the Prime Universe could be a blessing in disguise for the Federation. Simply put, Georgiou is probably the most capable and proficient killer of Klingons in both universes at this point. The Terran Empire destroyed the Mirror Klingon Empire under Georgiou's watch, after all. This may be a case where the adage, "The enemy of my enemy is my friend" will apply.

Related: Star Trek: Discovery Kills Off Captain Lorca

In the preview for next week's episode, Georgiou is seen to offer Starfleet what will undoubtedly be an appallingly ruthless means to defeat the Klingons, perhaps in exchange for safe passage back to the Mirror Universe. Georgiou's methods will, in turn, undoubtedly be a tactic that goes against the very principles of the Federation. Will Discovery's crew follow the Emperor's advice to defeat the Klingons, even if it costs the Federation their very soul in the process? Even if they turn out to be effective, Georgiou's strategies are probably going to be unreasonably violent and immoral. There are other avenues Discovery can turn to instead...

Sonequa Martin-Green as Michael Burnham and Anthony Rapp as Stamets in Star Trek Discovery

THE SPORE DRIVE

Discovery still possesses their ace-in-the-hole, the spore displacement drive. The ability to instantly jump to any point in the universe allowed the Discovery under Lorca's command to decimate the Klingon fleet and was the means by which our heroes destroyed the Ship of the Dead. In addition, Lieutenant Paul Stamets seems to be healed from the neurological damage he took from exposure to the spore drive, and the mycelial network is repairing itself from the universe-threatening degradation caused by Mirror Stamets' experiments.

Discovery could resume Lorca's old but effective hit-and-run tactics and again be the difference that helps Starfleet beat back the Klingons. However, that would entirely depend on whether Stamets himself is physically and mentally up to continually baring the brunt of countless jumps through the mycelial network. Prolonged use of the spore drive may not be a sustainable tactic and could end up quickly killing Stamets.

Related: Star Trek: Discovery Is Bad At Surprises, And That's OK

TIME TRAVEL

USS Discovery

Another possibility is that old Star Trek standby: time travel. Discovery could somehow jump back nine months to the point before they were lost in the Mirror Universe. Perhaps they could even employ the Slingshot Effect the Starship Enterprise used during The Original Series and in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (although if it turns out Discovery invented the Slingshot Effect, that would be another violation of canon that would incense longtime Trekkers).

Still, there are other ways to break the time barrier; one was just utilized by their nemesis Harry Mudd this season when he trapped the crew in a causality loop. Time travel might be a better option; Discovery could prevent the Klingons from winning the war. But it could also wreck unimaginable havoc to the timeline, and the Alpha Quadrant is already in enough trouble as it is without adding paradoxes and temporal anomalies to the mix.

ANOTHER SOLUTION

Captain Lorca and Lt. Ash Tyler on Star Trek Discovery

Discovery does have something else going for it that no other Starfleet ship has: they are harboring two Klingons on board: L'Rell and Ash Tyler/Voq. We know from the preview for next episode that Discovery's command logically turns to L'Rell in the brig for answers to their questions. However, L'Rell was an outlier distrusted by the Klingons even back when she was a captain in their fleet, while Ash Tyler no longer has the memories of and personality of Voq after L'Rell purged them from him. L'Rell and Ash have been out of the Empire's loop long enough now to the point where they likely don't have any specific intel on the Klingons as they currently stand.

There could even be other help from within the Empire, however. There remains the matter of the whereabouts of the real Ash Tyler, who was taken prisoner at the Battle at the Binary Stars. Is he dead, or could he somehow be an ally working for Starfleet behind enemy lines? There is also the question of where the Prime Universe's Gabriel Lorca is. As Jason Isaacs revealed, Lorca's backstory is that he switched universes with Mirror Lorca in a transporter accident, but since that has not been spoken in dialogue or shown on the show, it may not be the actual story, and plans could have changed. There's a saying in movies and TV: "It's not canon until it's on the screen." Could we find out that our Gabriel Lorca is heroically fighting the Klingons from within the Empire?

Related: Is Voq Really Dead?

Star Trek: Discovery began with the advent of the Klingon War, and this has been the main story of season 1. Whether or not season 2 will continue to be about the war and/or its fallout is unknown at this time, but one way or another this conflict is bound to reach an action-packed crescendo. Though the fate of the Federation seems direr than ever, the crew of the Discovery - with Michael Burnham as their centerpiece character who is still seeking redemption - has truly gelled in their many adventures together. Winning the Klingon War will be their greatest test, and they may have to come up with some kind of crafty means to save the Federation. But the question is how? We'll soon find out.

NEXT: How Star Trek: Discovery May Fit Into The Original Series' Canon

Star Trek: Discovery streams Sundays @ 8 pm on CBS All-Access, on Space Channel in Canada, and worldwide on Netflix.