-1CHAPTER ONE

"Captain's log. Stardate: 2258.84. James T. Kirk reporting.

"Our little group had finally come to gel as a group during these past few weeks of active duty on board the still-new ENTERPRISE, inevitably becoming comrades and compeers, where once we were all barely amicable to one another. "Commander Spock, for instance, has come to be quite a close friend, as well as a fantastic first officer.

"Bones, or Dr. Leonard McCoy to everyone else but me, had come to actually thrive in a space-faring starship, when, in the beginning, he could scarcely contain himself when riding in an Earth-to-orbiting Space Station shuttlecraft for final assignment. The additional burden of being thrust into the role of Chief Medical Officer, rather than part of Medical Bay's senior staff, may have helped take away the frantic nature he once elicited as frazzled fear over something that not only flew, but flew in space.

"As to Lt. Nyota Uhura, the same person whom, as a cadet at the San Francisco-based Starfleet Command, had made it blatantly obvious that she bore more than a little ill will toward me. Can't say as I blamed her, I was a little bit of an bothersome womanizer, who found Uhura's stalwart resistance to my charms all the more reason to pursue her. How much different things became once I officially occupied the bridge's center seat as the ENTERPRISE'S captain.

"Even Lt.-Commander Montgomery Scott, usually down in engineering, had taken to his duties on board the U.S.S. ENTERPRISE. Already proving, so soon in his put-upon position of Chief Engineer, that he had what it took to keep the all-important warp engines practically purring, since the events of 2258.42.

"Still, even with only a few weeks under our collective make-believe belts, we were all more than a little eager to take on our first very real, more than a little important to Starfleet and the Federation, mission.

"Then we would prove ourselves worthy of the Flagship of Starfleet Command. End of log."

Captain James Tiberius Kirk slumped, slightly, in the centrally-located command chair of a bright-white, and amply lit, bridge.

For the past few weeks the ENTERPRISE, and her potentially peerless crew, had been bound over to less-than-exciting duties, ranging from ferrying Federation officials from one planet to another, to picking up and dropping off various supplies, medical and otherwise.

It was enough to cause the eyelids over Kirk's bright blue eyes to threaten to close, completely, as a bored-as-hell Captain might come to enter into an embarrassing snooze right there where he sat. Right elbow propped on his white, lightly twisting back and forth, command chair's right armrest. His right fist propping up one half of his strong chin and sturdy cheekbones.

All that was missing was some vociferous snoring, and his humiliation would clearly be complete.

Leave it to Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy to keep such from happening to his steadfast friend and commanding

officer.

"What's the matter, Jim?" quietly queried Dr. McCoy, after stifling an amused smirk so indicative of two close friends,

from their first days as cadets in Starfleet Command to their successful fracas against a futuristic Romulan vessel sent back in Time so as to, as an unconscious consequence, created a alternate reality for them all. "Tryin' to burn the candle at both ends, the way you used to do it at Starfleet Command?"

"Hm? Oh", a suddenly stiffened, and definitely alert, Captain Kirk almost snorted, as his blue eyes took in the sub-space streaks of toned-down starlight seemingly streaking past, in and of itself an illusion. "I, uh, was just resting my eyes."

"That little white lie didn't work when we were cadets in class", McCoy muttered just loud enough to lend itself to Kirk's ears alone, "and it damn sure ain't gonna cut it here. Why don't you pop on down to your quarters. If anything exciting happens...as likely as that is...I'll see to it Lt. Uhura places a call to ya."

After considering such for several slowly ticking seconds, Captain Kirk suddenly sat bolt upright in his center seat, his slightly bloodshot, now, blue eyes taking in the splendor of sub-space travel. Always in awe of the creation of an invisible warp bubble that, in essence, allowed a starship, like the ENTERPRISE, to travel at seeming faster-than-light velocities, Kirk's demeanor became one of command, rather than one of boredom.

"No need, Bones, I've just gotten my second wind", said the youngest Starfleet captain in the long and illustrious history of Starfleet and the Federation. Redirecting his attention to his helmsman, Kirk crisply asked, "What's our ETA to the next re-supply stop, Mr. Sulu?"

Lt. Hikaru Sulu was prompt in his reply, as he glanced down at his instrument board in order to provide as accurate a response as possible.

"On course, Captain, and we should reach the Drayian star system in precisely..."

"Captain", suddenly stated Lt. Uhura, causing all heads to turn in her beauteously ebony direction, even as she listens to the incoming message via the small and silvery piece of equipment so gently inserted into one ear. "I'm getting a transmission from Starfleet Command."

After allowing the slight stress in Uhura's liltingly lovely voice to command the moment, Captain Kirk assertively responded, "On screen, Lieutenant."

"Aye, Captain."

With a calm and confidently fluid motion of her hands over the touch-sensitive controls arrayed before her, Lt. Noyta Uhura easily and swiftly switched the incoming message, visual as well as vocal, to the substantially sizeable and thoroughly thick viewscreen window looking out into the rapidly passing splash of potential starlight consisting of the sub-space passage of a Warp Factor Four traveling vessel. "On screen now, sir."

Even as such took place in a matter of moments, Kirk shifted anxiously in his seat, whilst Dr. McCoy did so on his booted feet, as all eyes were on the image suddenly superimposed over the streaking sub-space beyond the astonishing thickness making up said viewscreen window.

Admiral James Komack's serious visage spoke as directly to one specific person on the bright-white bridge as was possible once one's up-close-and-personal image had manifested before all upon said bridge.

"Captain Kirk, I'm afraid your current course to the Drayian star system must be interrupted, and, instead, altered to a section of space just outside the boundaries of the Federation. A general distress sub-space signal has been picked up by the relay stations situated in Federation space, and translated by our speech-specific computers. Course correction and coordinates are already being relayed to your helm."

"Got it, Captain", quickly called Lt. Sulu from his permanent position upon the bridge. "Laid in and initiated now."

"We're on it, Admiral Komack", Kirk proudly proffered, as his seated position became one of scarcely contained excitement over having a true mission over one of simple re-supply. Something truly worthy of a Starfleet Flagship and her crew.

"I caution you, Captain", sternly said Admiral Komack, preceding the severing of sub-space communication to the U.S.S. ENTERPRISE. "You're about to warp into an mysterious situation. Treat it with as much straightforwardness as you would any mundane mission you have thus far carried out. We have a very real opportunity of forging another potential friend to the Federation and, should they join us, push our borders far further into unexplored space than currently realized. Admiral Komack out."

"In case you didn't catch that", said McCoy loud enough to be heard by everyone on the bridge, instead of just James Tiberius Kirk, as was usually the situation, "the Admiral is telling us not to screw this up."

After another few seconds of tension and stress settled upon the shoulders of everyone save Commander Spock, already extending sensor scans out to at least a single light-year before the streaking-through-sub-space starship, Kirk quietly contemplated for all to understand.

"Finally, something important to do. So let's do it right."