Star Trek TOS: A Different Perspective
Chapter One
Completing two successful Five-Year missions, the USS Enterprise NCC-300-A had returned to the Federation in glory making Captain Pike, his crew and ship a household name throughout the Federation. After eleven years sixteen years since her launch, the USS Enterprise once again returned home for what was considered by many as an unnecessary refit. Nevertheless, upgraded with the latest technology in Federation design, the ship herself had undergone a server redesign and refit to bring upto date with the latest in technology. Although after her last refit, she was more then a match for any Starfleet ship currently operating, she was given a sleek new design too match the new level of technology being launched by the latest Federation ships yet, still regaining some of her elegant design. With the threat from the Romulan Star Empire still hanging over the Federation like the Sword of Damocles, her weapons and shields where of primary concern for the ever-expanding Federation.
Finally complete after almost two years, the Enterprise was finally ready for launch, as the first of her new class, a prototype ship given the registry of NX-300-A. An experimental vessel with new technologies throughout the ship she was considered by many as the pinnacle of Starship design.
Stood in the newly designed shuttle bay; First Officer, Commander Spock awaited the arrival of his Captain for the official launch of the vessel, at his side stood the command crew which had been specially selected for this new design. Each officer in their own right was the best of the best for the new ship.
Tugging and playing with the collar of his new design dress uniform, Lieutenant Commander Sulu shifted his feet around as Commander Spock attempted to calm his nerves slightly.
"You are going to wear out the collar Commander"
"Sorry sir, this uniform is too tight" He moaned.
"Perhaps you should head down to the Quartermaster for a new fit?"
"I'll be fine sir. Wait, was that a joke?" He smiled.
"Perhaps!" Spock replied.
Slowly, the large shuttlebay doors opened as a forcefeild activated in an instant and stretched between the doors to keep the atmosphere inside the vessel, allowing only the small Shuttlecraft passage into the ship. After touching down gracefully on the hanger deck, the doors too the tiny vessel opened as the Boatswains call echoed through the ship. Slowly a leg appeared through the darkness of the vessel interior. Standing too attention at the appearance of the Commanding Officer as he stepped down, large gasps echoed through the gathered crew as a young man stepped towards the First Officer. Slightly shocked, Spock approached the young man as yet another man stepped off the vessel behind him.
"You are not Captain Pike!" He declared too the room.
"Very astute Mister Spock…"
Taking a deep breath and with a slight smile on his face, the young officer wearing Captain's stripes looked at a small Computer Padd in his left hand as began too read his orders.
"James Tiberius Kirk, from Starfleet Command. As of this date, you are requested and required to assume command of the USS Enterprise, NX-300-A, as a consequence of your new rank any and all officers on said ship, are under your direct command effective immediately. Any objections will be dually noted in the ship's log. Signed Fleet Admiral Nagura, Starfleet Command"
With a deep breath, Spock walked towards the young man wearing the Captain's stripes and offered the traditional Vulcan salute. Much to his surprise, the salute was returned with expert ease as the second man joined them both.
"This is Doctor Leonard H. McCoy; he will be serving as Chief Medical Officer on this ship…" Kirk smiled. "Commander Spock, I want a briefing of the senior staff in the ready room in one hour. Dismissed!"
"Aye sir. Forgive me for saying so sir, but what of Doctor Boyce and Captain Pike? I was under the impression this was his command, as was the crew"
"Doctor Boyce has retired from Starfleet; Captain Pike has been… reassigned. Spock, I know you've served with him for many years. However, something has…"
"Come up!" McCoy said with a smile.
"Exactly, Chris will not be joining us on this little trip. I want a readiness to launch ASAP. I've only gone through about a quarter of those files so far, your chief engineer is currently on the Nimitz and I correct?"
"Yes… Captain!" Spock replied.
"Patience Spock, patience… I assume the chief designer is still onboard?"
"He is!"
"Have him report to the ready room right away. Helm officer, Mister Sulu is it?"
"Aye sir" He replied slowly.
"Prepare for launch, this ship has to be in open space in two hours. Spock… Bones, you're with me!"
Quickly making his way past the gathered crew, the new Captain of the Enterprise had already aggravated the chief science officer and acting captain of the ship, Commander Spock. Although Pike had been reassigned, Spock was the next in command of the ship. Yet now he had to step aside for someone younger then him.
Following his new commanding officer at a respectable distance, Spock had attempted to remember where he had heard the name James T. Kirk before, yet he could not remember. As Kirk, Spock and McCoy walked through the ship, McCoy marvelled at the level of technology surrounding him as they finally entered the main sickbay.
"Doctor, I assume this will suffice?" Kirk laughed.
"It'll do Jim!" McCoy laughed. "I hope this ship is as good as they say, we have a lot of work ahead of us. Commander Spock, please see that all my equipment is brought onboard right away, I have some specialist equipment that will be needed"
"As you wish Doctor" Spock replied slowly.
"Actually Commander, I do hold the rank of captain. However for this assignment I have reduced myself in rank to that of Commander"
"Very well doctor. May I ask, are you in some way related to Doctor David McCoy?"
"Yes, he was my father… that's why I am here, to continue his work"
"What work?" Spock said slowly.
"To cure the Langaran Plague which has destroyed half of the Romulan Empire. Commander, did you not read the brief sent earlier?" Kirk replied.
"As you may have guessed Captain Kirk, I have been very busy. Doctor, if you have no other problems… I will show the Captain to the Engine Room"
"I'll be fine…" McCoy smiled.
As Spock led the new Commander of the vessel through the ship towards the large engine room, his remembered where he had heard of him as his memories came rushing back to him.
"Captain, permission to speak freely?"
"Of course Commander, infact, feel free to speak your mind at any time" Kirk smiled slightly.
"Very well, are you not the same James T. Kirk who graduated Starfleet Academy after just three years of training, graduated as a full Lieutenant?"
"Not to mention I defeated the Kobayashi Maru test and now hold the record for the young officer in Starfleet to hold the rank of Captain"
"Very impressive sir"
"Thank you" Kirk smiled.
"May I ask, what is going to happen to Captain Pike?"
Quickly, Kirk stopped and looked at the Half Vulcan beside him as he spoke.
"Alright, this wasn't supposed to come out until next week, so keep this quiet. Pike has been promoted to Rear Admiral; he'll take over as Chief of Operations at Command when Nagura retires. It's something of a publicity stunt for Starfleet; it is the first of many changes coming"
"Like what?" Spock said slowly.
"You've noticed the new uniforms being rolled out. It's designed to give Starfleet a less military look it's held since the Romulan War over a century ago. The MACOs are slowly being absorbed into Starfleet Security, but we will maintain a small squad or two, mainly on distant Outposts close to the Neutral Zone. The civilian population are getting worried that Starfleet is to… military and not enough science and exploration"
"That is ridicules; Starfleet is the first and last line of defence of the Federation against a hostile attack. And with the re-emergence of the Romulans several years ago, Starfleet is needed more then ever"
"I have gone over this with command Spock, all of it. Myself and several of the Admiralty agree, keep this to yourself Spock, it looks like the civilian population is growing restless with Starfleet Command… we could be looking at Starfleet being disbanded within the next ten years and replaced with a completely civilian organisation. Several are beginning to crop up on Earth, Andoria and several other planets"
"I was not aware that things are that bad on Earth" Spock said slowly.
"You may want to step off this ship once in awhile Commander and take a look around"
"Of course, this way to Engineering sir"
"I know the way Commander" Kirk said slowly.
Stepping into the vast engine room, Kirk's jaw dropped as he looked at the engine core for the first time. A large powerful vertical tower standing four decks above and four decks below them. Although it was not fully active at the moment, the power that pulsed through the core could be seen as ribbons of brilliant blue, red and green energy could be seen swirling around inside the core itself casting an amazing display of light on the bulkheads and darkened out consoles around the vast and powerful core. Stood almost leaning over a railing on the next level up, a human male could be seen yelling orders that where almost inaudible due to the sounds of the final touches being made to the ship. Laughing to himself slightly, Kirk looked up at the figure as he whistled loudly making everyone turn around to face him with an annoyed look on their faces. Quickly whipping his head around, the man on the upper level looked down at the two officers on the lower level and laughed slightly as he saw Kirk standing with his arms folded. Waving slightly, the Engineer walked towards a ladder and slid down one level before he walked towards the two men with a smile on his face.
"Why in gods name would they give a ship to you Kirk?" He smiled.
"Disparate I guess. How are you old friend?" Kirk smiled.
"Can not complain"
"How is the ship holding out?"
"She'll be ready for launch on time sir, once her chief engineer reports onboard that is"
"Sorry ol' friend, this ship has to be launched in two hours. Olsen will not be onboard"
"Sir, we have just completed a full redesign of this ship, how in the name of hell can I had ready in two hours?"
"Do what you can. Also, we need someone who knows this design to stay on as Chief Engineer for this mission"
"Me Captain? No sir. I'm an Engineer, not field personnel"
"I need you old friend. This ship is a little young to be without you" Kirk smiled.
"Alright Kirk, I'm onboard" He said with a smile.
Shaking the hand of his old friend, Kirk looked around at the large engine core as he spoke over the humming of the engine.
"I hear this one is fast Scotty?" He smiled.
"You have no idea Jim. For almost a century, Starfleet vessels have been stuck at warp eight, some can barely push warp seven. This beastie has a cruising speed of warp 8.5. She can push warp 9.5 almost a day before we have to slow down"
"I thought that was impossible" Kirk replied.
"Hardly Captain, It has all to do with the new Dilitium Crystals" Spock replied.
"New? Forgive me; I've not gone through all of those files yet"
"It was quite simple Jim… follow me please. Based on a theory put forwards almost s century ago by Charles Tucker III, it would be possible too artificially grow Dilitium Crystals to whatever shape needed. Thirteen years ago, the breakthrough was made. This ship is powered by that new form of Crystal. Known as 'Dilitium ART' meaning artificial or simply 'Green Crystal' because of its slight green tint rather then pink, they are over 130% more efficient then the natural counterpart"
"Impressive" Kirk smiled. "What about weapons? I assume that this ship has not sacrificed speed for weaponry?"
"No sir, with the Next Generation of Photon Torpedoes, she'll be as powerful as ever" Scotty smiled.
"Next Gen…"
"It is believed to be the final evolution of the Standard Starfleet Torpedo Captain" Spock replied. "The Mark XV Photon Torpedo is as far as we can take the design before a new system is needed. Compared too the Mark IIV, the standard design… it is 75% more powerful then its predecessor, Starfleet is already working on a new design"
"Currently Captain, We are operating with two different Phaser designs. Replacing the phaser cannon design with a new 'Strip Phaser' running the length of several key areas, they are capable of multiple shots at once, each phaser arch now covers all sections of the ship, no area is unprotected, including the Nacelle Struts"
"Amazing, but you said two designs" Kirk said quickly.
"Aye sir" Laughed Scotty.
As they approached the Chief Engineer's office, Scotty activated the console before him and brought up a weapons schematic. Leaning in closely, Kirk smiled almost from ear to ear as he looked at the design on the screen before him.
"The second is the next generation of ship board Phaser design, a compressed phaser cannon capable of firing multiple bursts of energy at once. Incredible power all channelled into one burst"
"Like an old machine gun, compared to a hand pistol?"
"Not exactly sir" Scotty laughed. "Think of a… multiple barrel machine gun, rotating thousands of times a minute, each firing an armour piercing round. Mounted on the bow of the ship, these… 'Barrels' rotate in the same way, each giving off massive blasts of phaser energy in a compressed bolt of energy. The only problem is, they have a small phaser arch, but once a shi is hit by this weapon… they will think twice about returning for more"
"Amazing" Kirk said impressed.
"Starfleet tested the weapons by refitting an unmanned Type V shuttle craft before they where installed, they where so powerful, they shook apart the shuttlecraft after pushing it backwards from the sheer force of the weapon system itself"
"Commander Spock is right Jim, they where originally designed for usage on a Starbase, lately they have miniaturised for use on a Starship, you'll be the first to operate a ship with them onboard"
"Well, let's hope we don't have to use them"
As ordered, the senior staff had gathered in the large briefing room behind the main bridge. Although Kirk had quickly browsed their personnel files, he was still not sure of their names. While still wearing his dress uniform, he looked around at his new command staff with a slight sense of pride on his face. Many of them have served onboard the Enterprise for years, like Commander Spock. Recruited onto the Enterprise from the Academy by Captain Pike, he had served with honour and distinction throughout his career onboard the USS Enterprise. The youngest officer, a brilliant Russian officer whom had graduated Starfleet Academy after an impressive two years of training and the last to be assigned too the ship before Kirk, sat nervously between Lieutenant Commander Sulu and the Communications officer, a beautiful young Lieutenant Commander with an almost unnatural talent for alien languages. It was something of a departure for Kirk joining a ship on such short notice, but his mission was clear and he would carry it out to the best of his abilities.
Since the launch of the USS Enterprise NX-300, Starfleet duty uniforms had not changed but for the acceptation of satchel clips stitched into the uniform slightly below the shoulders on the front and rear. Originally designed out of necessity for carrying bags on the wearer's back during away missions, they have almost become redundant and mainly an aesthetic display. On the trousers of the once peace jumpsuit uniform, cargo pockets had been placed many decades ago for any remaining equipment such as Tricorders and communicators, even the beltline had a holster for the standard Starfleet phaser, which until recently had become a part of the every day uniform as a throwback from the Romulan War of a century ago.
Unzipping his jacket and tying the sleeves around his waist, Kirk took a deep breath as he looked around once more before he spoke.
"Thank you all for coming on such short notice, many of you know each other already… so I will not go into introductions around the table since time is short. My name is James T. Kirk or Jim if you prefer, around this table please feel free to voice any ideas regardless of rank. For those of you who don't know, this is Doctor Leonard McCoy… for this voyage, he'll be serving as Chief Medical Officer on ship. Bones, the floor is yours"
"Thank you Jim" McCoy said as he stood.
Walking towards the large computer display on the wall behind the Captain, he accessed the system as the display changed from the long lineage of vessels named Enterprise. From the HMS Enterprise of the Royal Navy, through the USS Enterprise CV(n) 6, USS Enterprise CVN-65, Enterprise OV-101, Enterprise NX-01, USS Enterprise NX-300 and the final display of the ship in which they all sat, the USS Enterprise NX-300-A. The display changed to a biographical detail of the Romulan planet known as Langara.
"As you all know, this is the planet Langara, deep inside Romulan space. For the last century or so, this planet has been the focal point of interstellar controversy since the attack by the USS North-Gate a century ago. Using a genetically modified virus, the North-Gate infected the planet with a deadly variant of the Andorian bio-weapon R-U-D-45. At the time, the USS Challenger… under the Command of Admiral Archer, they attempted to stop the plague before it took hold. For awhile it worked, but then it mutated and infected the planet…"
"From what I remember of my history Doctor, many escaped the planet and infected the rest of the Empire"
"Quiet right Mister…"
"Chekov sir"
"Chekov. As I was saying, the plague was eventually spread throughout the Empire… the Doctor who created the Ante-virus held himself responsible and dedicated his life to finding a cure, he died ten years ago" He said with sadness.
"That was Doctor David… McCoy… any relation?" Chekov replied.
"He was my father. When I was old enough to understand, he told me everything. I dedicated my life to his cause, first becoming his pupil, then his assistant and finally a Doctor, like him. Upon his death, I swore to him that I would take over his work and find a cure for this plague. Now, with the help of a Romulan Doctor… I have found it!"
"Help of a Romulan?" Sulu said in shock.
"We have only spoken via Sub-space radio for the moment, but we are both very close to the cure. Our mission is to rendezvous with a Romulan ship at the Neutral Zone, they will escort us to Langara and with Doctor Selana's help, cure the plague"
"We are just to walk into Romulan held space, hand over the Ante-Virus and then walk away?" Sulu said quickly.
"Not exactly" Kirk smiled. "We have… another assignment!"