Captain's log, stardate 92881.0 A rather intriguing thing happened just now. A civilian woman came aboard that seemed to have an interest in me, not because of my powers, but because I have "wisdom beyond my apparent years". She is attractive, but doesn't flaunt it.
"Captain there's a ship off the port bow." Said Commander Wilde.
"Who are they?" I asked.
"It has… Terran markings." Said Commander Wilde.
"They're hailing us sir." Said Lieutenant Phillips.
"Onscreen." I said. My face popped onto the viewscreen.
"Ahh…" Said my counterpart, "I see you managed to get powers in this place too."
"Yes I did, now, will I need to use them?" I said.
"That all depends on you," said the other me, "I'm here for your passenger."
"Why would you want her?" I asked.
"Because she's a goddess." He said.
"Sure she is." I said.
"What he says is true." Said a voice behind me. When I turned around, the tall, grey eyed, olive skinned, black haired woman standing before me was not the woman I had taken on board but as I watched she transformed into that woman.
"A changeling!" I said, stunned.
"No, not a changeling," said the woman, "I am Athena, goddess of wisdom and battle strategy." When she began to glow I ordered my crew to avert their eyes and I did the same. "I would not reveal my true form to someone who did not know what it would do to them." Said Athena.
"So what brings you here?" I asked.
"Running from me." Said my Terran twin.
"If I was truly running from you, you would never find me." Said Athena.
"Unless you wanted to be found," I said, "but why here?"
"Because I want you to prove yourself to me." She said.
"Prove what?" I asked.
"That you are worthy of my… affections." She said.
"So… I've attracted the attention of a goddess, a very attractive goddess I might add, who tells me I need to prove myself worthy of her affections so now if I have to fight I'll be distracted."
"I doubt my presence will distract you." Said Athena.
"Okay then," I said, "what must I do to prove my worth."
"Strategy or wisdom," said Athena, "I am the goddess of both."
"Well, I won't give you over to him." I said.
"Then we will fight." Said the captain of the ISS Titanic.
"Computer, activate Classis protocol authorization 4012." We said in unison. As our ships turned into the color of blood and we prepared to fight I heard footsteps leaving the bridge.
"It would seem you disappointed her." Said the other guy.
"She already said I could prove my worth through strategy or wisdom," I said, "and since you jumped so hastily to violence I had not choice but to respond in kind." His ship fired first, but I ordered a quick turn to port and accelerated to full impulse raking his shields with fire as I did so. I happened to get a lucky hit on his engines and knock them out, when I saw his T.E.R.S.E. engage I gave the order to emit a tachyon pulse from the main deflector to knock out his shields and then used my powers to establish a force field inside the first cylinder, cutting off his steam power and destroying his engines. "Now, I can destroy you, or send you back to your universe." I said.
"Just kill me," he said, "show her how ruthless you really are."
"I'm not ruthless," I said, "you attacked me."
"Enough," said Athena, who had apparently come back to the bridge, "you have proven your worth, I will send him home." After the ship had faded out of existence Athena wished to talk to me.
"We can talk in my ready room." I said.
"You showed both that you are a brave warrior by fighting your equal and proven your cunning by besting him." Said Athena once the door had closed.
"So I've proven myself worthy of your 'affections', but what happens now?"
"I know that you mortals are not fond of having relations with someone you just met, but I am a goddess." Said Athena.
"Well, most of us aren't anyway." I said.
"No comment about your 'extended lifespan'." Said Athena.
"I'm still mortal in that I can still be killed." I said.
"So as you mortals like to say, 'your bed or mine'?" asked Athena.
"While I am not fond of having relations with someone I just met, especially someone I considered to be fictitious until today, I will make an exception for you." I said.
"You didn't answer my question." Said Athena.
"That's because I don't care, a bed is a bed." I said.
"Okay, yours then." Said Athena. When we arrived in my quarters I asked Athena again what would happen.
"Join your mind with mine." Said Athena.
"Okay," I said, "give me a minute to meditate and then we can begin." I sat down on the floor and closed my eyes. When I lowered my mental defenses I was nearly blinded by the light of Athena's mind. "Ready?" I asked.
"Always." said Athena. I reached out toward the light and when we connected I nearly fell over because of the sheer might I had found. "Your mind is like none of the others that I have encountered." Said Athena.
"That's because you never encountered a telepathic being." I said.
"That is true," said Athena, "It is refreshing how clear your mind is."
"Most minds are a mess of images and sensations." I said.
"Do you do this often?" Asked Athena.
"Not often, and when I do it is mostly with other telepaths." I said.
"I can sense that you have joined your mind with dragons." Said Athena.
"I'm a dragon rider." I said.
"I can also sense that you liken my mind to that of a vulcan with 'bits of human'." Said Athena.
"I do," I said, "You have a mind that is divided not quite like a vulcan because the divisions are more flexible, hence the bits of human." I said. The com system sounded. "We should terminate the link." I said.
"Agreed." Said Athena.
"Go ahead." I said.
"Sir you have a message from the Britannic said Lieutenant Phillips.
"Put it through to my quarters." I said.
"Josiah, you won't believe what just hap- who's that?" Asked Damingo.
"Athena." I said, "and who's that I see in the background?" I asked.
"Aphrodite." Said Damingo with a hint of a sigh.
"So how'd it go?" I asked.
"How'd what go?" Asked Damingo.
"You're in your quarters," I said, "Nevermind, I don't want to know." Just then I got another hail from Tray.
"Who's in your quarters?" I asked.
"How did you know about that?" Asked Tray.
Athena boarded my ship this morning and Aphrodite apparently boarded the Britannic." I said.
"Oh I see," said Tray, "Demeter came aboard this morning." Yet another message, this one from the Lusitania.
"Not you too," I said, "who boarded your ship, Hestia?"
"Actually Hestia never leaves Olympus." Said Athena, "as well as the fact that she took the same oath Artemis and I did."
"Her name is Bellona." Said Israel.
"Ah, so you attracted the attention of a Roman," I said, "cool."
"So what do we do now?" Asked Tray.
"I could technically leave," said Athena, "because I don't procreate in the same way as the other gods and goddesses."
"What does that mean?" asked Damingo.
"Athena is a virgin goddess, but may still have 'brain children' for lack of a better term." I said.
"And how does that work?" Asked Israel.
"In a few weeks the child will be born in the same way I was." Said Athena.
"Uhh, I'm not immortal in that way and thus can't have my skull split open." I said.
"Don't worry," said Athena, "I'll take care of it."
"Okay, fine," I said, "I trust you."
"But what about the rest of us?" Asked Damingo.
"They'll have to stay with you." She said. A few weeks later I heard a baby crying and turned around to find a golden cradle with a baby girl in it. The intruder alert klaxon sounded and a security team ran into my room only to find me cradling the child.
"Sir, why are you holding a baby?" asked Lieutenant Commander Bailey.
"I informed you of my mind meld with Athena," I said, "this girl is the result."
"I'm afraid I don't understand, sir." He replied.
"Check out 'The Battle of the Labyrinth' in the holodeck," I said, "it should be explained there."
"Yes sir," Said Lieutenant Commander Bailey, "Her biosignature will be logged."
