jedibuttercup

That's certainly an interesting point that they could still be in our solar system. I hadn't thought of it that way, but it's totally possible. Also a point worth noting is that we often forget that space is 3D. They could totally simply have gone "up" or "down" relative to the plane that is out solar system. (Maybe that is what you meant, too.)

(Impulse engines are pretty ridiculous anyways because in the real world there'd be major issues with time dilation if they simply propelled ships REALLY fast. So it's not as if any of that makes much sense anyways.)