The Captain and the Cadet
1- A MATTER OF HONOR
Chapter 1
Jamie Kirk sat miserably in the captain's office, staring at the monitor screen. A row of numbers—low numbers—stared back at her. Her grades.
She flicked a quick glance at the figure sitting on the other side of the desk then dropped her gaze to her lap.
He does not look pleased. Not at all.
Captain James Kirk folded his arms across his chest and leaned back in his chair. "Just when did you intend to share this little secret with me?"
Jamie shrugged and looked up. "I don't know."
It was clearly not the answer her father wanted to hear. He sighed, picked up a stylus, and tapped the screen. The box labeled "Terran History" opened, and Jamie watched him frown as he read the report.
He shook his head. "I don't like surprises, Cadet."
Jamie winced. Apparently, not telling her father she was failing in three subjects was a serious blunder. Worse, having to hear about it from one of his officers appeared to irritate him even more.
Jamie had never worried about schoolwork before. Grandma had never sat her down and talked about grades—failing or otherwise. Instead, they'd traveled together and learned everything of interest not only in Iowa, but in much of the United States as well. In fact, the two of them were planning a trip to the moon when . . .
That was a long time ago, Jamie reminded herself sadly, before the accident. Before the Enterprise.
Since then, she'd lost her grandmother, lost her only other relatives on the planet Deneva, and found herself aboard her father's starship—temporarily. Starfleet red tape being what it was, a few days had stretched into a few weeks, and a few weeks into a few months. It had now been over six months, and Jamie hoped Starfleet would become so entangled in red tape that they would forget she existed.
Unfortunately, the Enterprise was the source of her current problem. Jamie never dreamed a starship could be such an interesting place. She'd come aboard in dread and uncertainty, and fearful of meeting a father she hadn't seen in two years. However, one month later she felt she'd never lived anyplace else. There were so many fascinating things to see and do aboard the Enterprise that she found it impossible to find time to complete her school assignments.
"Jamie." Her father's voice sliced into her memories.
Jamie lowered her head; waves of golden hair fell into her face. "I'm sorry," she mumbled.
"You're going to be a lot sorrier if these scores don't go up. Sixty percent in Terran history, sixty-three percent in literature, and forty-nine in mathematics!" He let out a long, frustrated breath. "How did this happen?"
"I pass all the tests, but I . . ." Jamie gulped. "I don't turn in the boring busywork. That . . . uh . . . sort of irritates my tutors."
Before her father could interrupt, she plunged on. "I know how to do the math. Ask me anything—anything at all. It's a waste of time to work problem after problem, when I already know how to do them. I'd much rather learn how to align the matter-antimatter pods down in engineering with Mr. Scott. He makes the theory easy to understand."
"That's not exactly in the curriculum for eight-year-olds."
"I'm almost nine," Jamie corrected him. "I know I'm not supposed to use school time to study matter-antimatter reactions, but it's so interesting." She gave her father an impish grin. "Mr. Scott says the engineer is more important than the captain."
"He's probably right," Kirk admitted with a chuckle. Then his look turned serious. "But you're not to be bothering Mr. Scott while he's on duty."
"Oh, no, Captain," Jamie said in a rush, "I'm very quiet. I follow him around, and he tells me things about the engines, the warp core, and the matter-antimatter pods."
"I'll bet he does. He's finally found someone willing to listen to him go on and on about his precious engines."
Jamie saw her father smile and took it as a sign that the scolding was over. She sighed in relief when he reached out and snapped off the screen.
"Don't believe for a minute that I'm finished with this, Cadet. I've been informed of the problem. Now, we'll discuss the solution." He crossed his arms and waited.
"Solution?" Uh-oh.
Kirk nodded.
"How about . . . toss me in the brig, take away my dessert card, and . . . and . . . forget it ever happened?"
Silence. A tiny shake of his head told Jamie the captain wasn't going for it.
"How will we prevent this from happening all over again?" he asked.
"Don't make me do boring busywork."
"I'll see what I can do to make it a little more challenging, but take a look . . ." He indicated the stacks of disks and hard copies of reports strewn across his desk. "I don't like paperwork either, but it's got to be done."
Then he smiled. "Let's make a deal. You wade through your boring busywork, and I'll wade through mine. If we both manage to conquer the paper-monster in two weeks, we'll take a shore leave on Murdock's Planet."
"Murdock's Planet?"
Kirk nodded. "I just learned the Federation won the bid for a shipment of topaline. The Enterprise has been ordered to pick it up and deliver it to the refineries on Delta Vega."
"That doesn't sound like a shore leave stop to me."
"Murdock's Planet boasts the largest zoo in the sector. We'll spend the day there if I see your grades go up. Deal?"
Jamie gasped. The zoo? A whole day with her father? Just the two of them?
"Deal!" Jamie leaped from her chair and ran around the desk. She threw her arms around her father's neck and gave him a hug. "I'll do the work, Captain-Daddy-Sir. You just watch and see."
Kirk returned the hug. "I figured you might." He glanced at his chronometer and rose to his feet. "I've got to get up to the bridge and start my shift. See you at supper."
Jamie looked up eagerly when her father entered the recreation hall two weeks later. He smiled and waved a hard copy of her grades as he crossed the room. A few minutes later, he slid beside her with his supper tray.
"Congratulations, Cadet. You came through."
Jamie smiled. "It wasn't so bad once I got used to it." She pulled the paper from her father's hand and scanned it. "And it didn't take as long as I thought it would."
"I got my paperwork done also," Kirk added, spearing a chunk of meat.
Jamie took a swallow of milk and looked at her father. "I did some research on Murdock's Planet."
Kirk's eyebrows went up. "Oh? Good for you. What did you learn?"
"That it's a neutral planet. That means any ship can go there, even Klingons and Romulans. Did you know that?"
Kirk nodded.
Jamie frowned. Of course he knows that. He's the captain. He knows everything. Then she blurted, "Klingons and Romulans are enemies of the Federation."
Kirk sipped his coffee. "So?"
"But . . . if a Federation ship is already in orbit and a Romulan ship comes, won't they try to blow each other up?"
"No, Jamie. That's the whole idea of being a neutral planet. They welcome all beings. They realize that even though we may not be friends with the Klingons, we are not at war with them either. Neither are we at war with the Romulans. You'll see ships from many different systems in orbit around Murdock's Planet. We'll mind our own business, and hopefully they'll mind theirs."
Jamie crinkled her forehead in thought. "That means we might meet a Klingon or a Romulan on the planet, right? Even at the zoo?" When her father nodded, Jamie grinned. "I'd like that. I've never met a Klingon."
"You saw a few on K-7 last month," Kirk reminded her.
"From a distance, and only for a minute. I didn't really meet any. I'd like to. Klingons are . . . fascinating," she said, repeating the word she'd heard Commander Spock say often.
"I thought you wanted to see the zoo."
"I do. But when I found out Murdock's Planet was neutral, I thought maybe I could have a little extra excitement."
"I think you'll find the zoo exciting enough without a Klingon tossed in. Now, finish your supper and get to bed. You have a big day tomorrow."