STAR TREK
"Life is But a Dream…"
By Benjamin F. Ossoff
The captain stood on the bridge, his feet planted firmly on the ground. This ship, this crew, it felt so right now. The Vulcan science officer, the chief engineer, this was how the world was supposed to be. The chair in the middle of the bridge was no longer a stranger to him, it was his, along with this ship, this crew. Calm and relaxed, he turned to the science officer. He prepared to ask for a report, but the Vulcan seemed far away some how, as though he had suddenly been overwhelmed by some revelation. As though the deity that controlled the Universe had contacted him some how. The Vulcan remained in this trance for some time, mesmerizing the captain, until finally the Vulcan spoke in a formal and serious tone,
"Sir, I have been telepathically contacted…. We must change course."
"Explain," asked the commander.
"I cannot, but we must change course."
"To where?"
"I do not know, but we must, please allow me to change our heading."
The Vulcan had never lied to him before and was his friend, so he allowed the Vulcan to proceed,
"Lieutenant," he ordered, "Release the helm to the science officer."
To ask to change the heading without an explanation was an odd request, for a Vulcan. The Vulcan stepped over to the now vacant helm and punched in several commands, soon the view on the view screen changed as they turned to the portside.
"Those constellations don't look familiar," comment the communications officer, somewhat of an astronomer, staring intently at the screen. The captain, just out of the curiosity looked down at the helm.
Terror spread across his face, seeing the heading…Talos IV! They were headed for the only forbidden world in all the galaxy, and if…if they got there they were dead men, for contacting Talos IV was the only death penalty left on the books…General Order 7! He dived at the console to turn the ship around. The Vulcan threw him back away from the console…. Had he gone mad? Or was it the captain that was mad, perhaps seeing things, surely is long time friend had not betrayed him!
The crew jumped from their stations at this sudden outburst of violence from the captain. He called out to them; they had to turn the ship around!
"He set us on a course for Talos IV! You've got to stop him, or we'll all die!" he shouted desperately to his crew. The Vulcan in a calm, matter of fact voice said,
"I assure you I have not set a course for Talos IV."
The Vulcan was mad. Not only had he set a course for the only forbidden world in the entire galaxy, but also he didn't seem to know he had!
"Don't listen to him! He's trying to get us all killed! Stop him!" yelled the captain, pleading. His first command had suddenly become his worst nightmare.
"Captain, please, there is no planet Talos IV, at least not as we know it," the crazed Vulcan insisted.
"You filthy liar!" shouted the captain, "YOU FILTHY LIAR! What to mean there is no Talos IV? You're out of your mind!"
The crew stood dazed and totally confused, they didn't know what to do.
"Captain, there is no Talos IV."
/\
"YOU FILTHY LIAR!" yelled the captain for the hundredth time in the past four hours. They were still on course for the forbidden world. Every time he had tried to stop the Vulcan he had been pushed away and told that the planet that would cause their death was non-existent. The crew was now at their posts again, silently awaiting death.
"Now entering the Talos Star Group," the helm officer reported from the science station, as his station was being guarded by the Vulcan, "Estimate arrival at the fourth planet in 4 minutes."
"Crewman," said the Vulcan to the communications officer, "Hail Talos IV."
"Don't do it!" ordered the captain.
"Crewman, hail the planet or you will be relieved of duty," countermanded the Vulcan.
"Crewman, what will it matter if he relieves you of duty? If you open a hailing frequency to them we will all die!" Yelled the captain.
"Crewman, if you do not open a channel, you be relieved of duty and I will open the channel myself."
"No you won't!" shouted the captain, "I you do that, then I'll change the course."
"You will find that the helm is tied in with the life support systems. If you attempt to lay in a course, the life support on all decks will be shut off," the Vulcan said, "Open hailing frequencies."
Presented with no alternative the communications chief punched commands into his console.
Suddenly the bridge disappeared in a blur, what replaced it was some thing he had seen in textbooks…. Earth, in the late 20th Century. This must be an illusion, he thought.
It is no illusion, said a voice. But the captain had heard no voice, yet some one or some thing was speaking.
The voice came again, I see that you are confused by our thought transmissions. This is no surprise. The last time we contacted your people in this way was some time ago. We are of the race, which you call Talosians.
The captain understood some how that the Vulcan had been contacted by the Talosians and had been called here. But where was here?
"Where am I? Why have you created this illusion?"
It is no illusion, came the voice again, This is reality. That which you have been taken from was an illusion.
"Why?" questioned the commander.
Three hundred years ago we visited your planet and found that you were destroying yourselves. However we found that your race had the capacity for peace in the mind of one of your people, Gene Roddenberry. From his mind we created the illusion of a peaceful and non-violent society. We also amplified the human instinct for exploration. We could not allow your race to suffer our fate.
"You Talosians have a knack for staying off topic. Why?"
To give you the knowledge that peace is possible. The philosophy of IDIC, Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations. With this, you would not only learn to accept differences, but to glorify them. Gene Roddenberry has been dead for some time, but the future he envisioned lives on in your memory of the illusion.
"So that future is impossible? The ships cannot exist? There are no Vulcans or other races?"
No. The technological predictions are possible and the races from the illusion exist. It is now up to you decide whether to go on with your wars, or to make that illusion a reality. You had begun to create the illusion on your own, this could not be allowed. You had an illusion, but now you have reality. May you find your way as pleasant.
The former commander stepped out of the building he had been in, onto crowded streets. No longer of a nationality, but as a citizen of a planet. A planet full of differences, differences that all combined to create meaning and beauty. With a new duty the man started on his way. He somehow knew that everyone else remembered the illusion and had been contacted as well. He set out with his new found purpose, to create a peaceful Earth; So that they might, just mabey, someday explore strange new worlds, seek out new life and new civilizations… and boldly go where no one has gone before.
The End
"Life is But a Dream…"
By Benjamin F. Ossoff
The captain stood on the bridge, his feet planted firmly on the ground. This ship, this crew, it felt so right now. The Vulcan science officer, the chief engineer, this was how the world was supposed to be. The chair in the middle of the bridge was no longer a stranger to him, it was his, along with this ship, this crew. Calm and relaxed, he turned to the science officer. He prepared to ask for a report, but the Vulcan seemed far away some how, as though he had suddenly been overwhelmed by some revelation. As though the deity that controlled the Universe had contacted him some how. The Vulcan remained in this trance for some time, mesmerizing the captain, until finally the Vulcan spoke in a formal and serious tone,
"Sir, I have been telepathically contacted…. We must change course."
"Explain," asked the commander.
"I cannot, but we must change course."
"To where?"
"I do not know, but we must, please allow me to change our heading."
The Vulcan had never lied to him before and was his friend, so he allowed the Vulcan to proceed,
"Lieutenant," he ordered, "Release the helm to the science officer."
To ask to change the heading without an explanation was an odd request, for a Vulcan. The Vulcan stepped over to the now vacant helm and punched in several commands, soon the view on the view screen changed as they turned to the portside.
"Those constellations don't look familiar," comment the communications officer, somewhat of an astronomer, staring intently at the screen. The captain, just out of the curiosity looked down at the helm.
Terror spread across his face, seeing the heading…Talos IV! They were headed for the only forbidden world in all the galaxy, and if…if they got there they were dead men, for contacting Talos IV was the only death penalty left on the books…General Order 7! He dived at the console to turn the ship around. The Vulcan threw him back away from the console…. Had he gone mad? Or was it the captain that was mad, perhaps seeing things, surely is long time friend had not betrayed him!
The crew jumped from their stations at this sudden outburst of violence from the captain. He called out to them; they had to turn the ship around!
"He set us on a course for Talos IV! You've got to stop him, or we'll all die!" he shouted desperately to his crew. The Vulcan in a calm, matter of fact voice said,
"I assure you I have not set a course for Talos IV."
The Vulcan was mad. Not only had he set a course for the only forbidden world in the entire galaxy, but also he didn't seem to know he had!
"Don't listen to him! He's trying to get us all killed! Stop him!" yelled the captain, pleading. His first command had suddenly become his worst nightmare.
"Captain, please, there is no planet Talos IV, at least not as we know it," the crazed Vulcan insisted.
"You filthy liar!" shouted the captain, "YOU FILTHY LIAR! What to mean there is no Talos IV? You're out of your mind!"
The crew stood dazed and totally confused, they didn't know what to do.
"Captain, there is no Talos IV."
/\
"YOU FILTHY LIAR!" yelled the captain for the hundredth time in the past four hours. They were still on course for the forbidden world. Every time he had tried to stop the Vulcan he had been pushed away and told that the planet that would cause their death was non-existent. The crew was now at their posts again, silently awaiting death.
"Now entering the Talos Star Group," the helm officer reported from the science station, as his station was being guarded by the Vulcan, "Estimate arrival at the fourth planet in 4 minutes."
"Crewman," said the Vulcan to the communications officer, "Hail Talos IV."
"Don't do it!" ordered the captain.
"Crewman, hail the planet or you will be relieved of duty," countermanded the Vulcan.
"Crewman, what will it matter if he relieves you of duty? If you open a hailing frequency to them we will all die!" Yelled the captain.
"Crewman, if you do not open a channel, you be relieved of duty and I will open the channel myself."
"No you won't!" shouted the captain, "I you do that, then I'll change the course."
"You will find that the helm is tied in with the life support systems. If you attempt to lay in a course, the life support on all decks will be shut off," the Vulcan said, "Open hailing frequencies."
Presented with no alternative the communications chief punched commands into his console.
Suddenly the bridge disappeared in a blur, what replaced it was some thing he had seen in textbooks…. Earth, in the late 20th Century. This must be an illusion, he thought.
It is no illusion, said a voice. But the captain had heard no voice, yet some one or some thing was speaking.
The voice came again, I see that you are confused by our thought transmissions. This is no surprise. The last time we contacted your people in this way was some time ago. We are of the race, which you call Talosians.
The captain understood some how that the Vulcan had been contacted by the Talosians and had been called here. But where was here?
"Where am I? Why have you created this illusion?"
It is no illusion, came the voice again, This is reality. That which you have been taken from was an illusion.
"Why?" questioned the commander.
Three hundred years ago we visited your planet and found that you were destroying yourselves. However we found that your race had the capacity for peace in the mind of one of your people, Gene Roddenberry. From his mind we created the illusion of a peaceful and non-violent society. We also amplified the human instinct for exploration. We could not allow your race to suffer our fate.
"You Talosians have a knack for staying off topic. Why?"
To give you the knowledge that peace is possible. The philosophy of IDIC, Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations. With this, you would not only learn to accept differences, but to glorify them. Gene Roddenberry has been dead for some time, but the future he envisioned lives on in your memory of the illusion.
"So that future is impossible? The ships cannot exist? There are no Vulcans or other races?"
No. The technological predictions are possible and the races from the illusion exist. It is now up to you decide whether to go on with your wars, or to make that illusion a reality. You had begun to create the illusion on your own, this could not be allowed. You had an illusion, but now you have reality. May you find your way as pleasant.
The former commander stepped out of the building he had been in, onto crowded streets. No longer of a nationality, but as a citizen of a planet. A planet full of differences, differences that all combined to create meaning and beauty. With a new duty the man started on his way. He somehow knew that everyone else remembered the illusion and had been contacted as well. He set out with his new found purpose, to create a peaceful Earth; So that they might, just mabey, someday explore strange new worlds, seek out new life and new civilizations… and boldly go where no one has gone before.
The End