A/N Hey everyone! It's been a long time since I've posted, but I'm back for a while. This is a story that I've been working on more or less for the last five years, and I've been meaning to post it for a while.
"Congratulations, Captain," Admiral April said ceremoniously, handing James T. Kirk his assignment. "You have a big job ahead of you; you're going to be commanding the Enterprise."
Kirk looked up, "That's your ship, sir." April looked at him appreciatively. Hardly anyone remembered April's short captaincy of the flagship, compared to the eleven years Christopher Pike had been at her helm, but then, Kirk had always been sharper than most people would give him credit for. That was why he was being given command of the flagship at the age of thirty in the first place.
"That's right. So you take care of her, you hear me? She's just had a refit and she'll be ready to go in a little more than a week. That'll give you the time to get to know the crew that's been assigned and choose any new crew members for yourself, if you want."
Kirk glanced at the readout of the Enterprise's crew, then said, "I only have one request. Lieutenant Gary Mitchell. He was in my first class at the Academy, and he's an excellent helmsman, sir. I believe he's serving on Starbase 2 at the moment."
April smiled, "That makes it easier. I'll contact him right away. In the meantime, you get to know your ship. The Enterprise'll be docking in about a day. Commodore Pike wanted to take her on one last cruise."
Kirk grinned back, "I understand. She's a beautiful ship." And now she was his.
April leaned forward, suddenly serious, "She's the flagship, Jim. We're taking a risk, giving her to you. You're the youngest captain in Fleet history, and I can imagine there's a lot of pressure on you."
Too much, Kirk thought. But he always tried to project an aura of confidence, and he had no intention of letting on to his fears to the Fleet's most respected Admiral. He simply smiled and said, "I won't deny that. But I know how to command a ship, sir. I'll do the best job I can."
April smiled back, "Well, that's good enough for me. I wouldn't have let her go to you if I didn't think you could do it. And, to let you in on a little secret, once you're out there and away from all this bureaucracy, none of that will matter. It's just you, your crew, and your ship. Make it last; those are the best years of your life."
"I will, Admiral," Kirk said, saluting. He managed to contain his euphoria until he reached his temporary quarters, but once there, he burst out laughing in pure joy. He'd done it. His goal since he was eight years old was to be a starship captain, and as the years went on and he grew more focused, that ultimate goal had never left him. Now, he'd succeeded beyond his wildest dreams. He'd never expected to reach captain before forty; no one ever had. Much less to be captain of the flagship by the age of thirty. Even though he knew the efforts he'd put into reaching this goal; the extra classes he'd taken at Starfleet Academy, volunteering for the dangerous missions as well as the grunt shifts no one wanted to take, extra training sessions; he'd never expected it to pay off so quickly. Sobering, he sat down on his bed, thoughts whirling around his head so fast he could barely catch them.
What if I'm not good enough? What if we run into that one situation no one could defeat? What if we lose the ship, and the crew? Kirk shook his head; he knew the quickest way to make sure he failed this assignment would be to start doubting himself from now. Take everything as it came, one week at a time, one day, one minute at a time if need be. Right now, the only thing he needed to do was get to know his new crew.
Surveying the list of names, Kirk found himself nodding. He knew of several of these officers already, either because he'd served with them before or because people he knew had served with them. He was sure he remembered one of the engineers on his last assignment wishing Montgomery Scott was Chief Engineer on their ship. Then, seeing something odd about the assignment for First Officer, Kirk did a quick double take. The roster only listed one officer for both First and Science Officer: Lieutenant-Commander Spock. Only one name. Kirk was intrigued enough that he called Admiral April on the viewscreen to make sure it was correct.
"Admiral? Whoever made up the crew assignments put the same officer down as both First and Science Officer. I was just wondering if that was a mistake."
April chuckled, "No, that's correct. Lieutenant-Commander Spock's more than capable of filling both posts. He'd probably find even that too light for him, from what I know."
"Hang on," Kirk said, remembering something hazy. "Lieutenant-Commander Spock, the one who wrote that paper on the link between transporters and the holographic projections found in the Orion belt?" He'd thought the paper was brilliant, and the possibilities raised by the connection were worth watching.
"That's the one. I didn't think you attended science conferences that often," April said, "but the attendees said Spock's got the potential to be one of the best scientists of his generation."
"I didn't go; I read the papers when they were published afterward," Kirk said, his voice hardening slightly. He considered keeping up with scientific research part of any Starfleet officer's job; they were primarily a scientific exploration fleet, after all. He called up Spock's basic personnel record, which regrettably didn't provide much information beyond years of service, postings and species. He was surprised to see Lieutenant-Commander Spock hadn't served anywhere but the Enterprise since graduating the Academy, and never with a commander other than Pike. His last posting had been Science Officer of the Enterprise. Kirk's eyes widened; Spock had risen through the ranks as quickly as he had himself. For him not to be given the captaincy of a science vessel now seemed unfair. Then his eye moved to the species designation: Vulcan.
Suddenly, it all became clear. For all that Starfleet was an organization that promoted scientific exploration, equality and peace, it still retained much of its early military tradition from the Romulan Wars. There were few enough non-humans in Starfleet, fewer Vulcans, and those few were unlikely to rise as high in the ranks as the human officers. Although Vulcan was Earth's strongest ally and the second largest power in the Federation, the planet remained staunchly independent and many Vulcans continued to view humans as frivolous, over-emotional children who were not equipped for the role of interstellar leader they now found themselves in. A Vulcan officer who had risen through Starfleet's purely scientific branch (Kirk was unsure if there were any of these outside the all-Vulcan ship Intrepid) would likely find it easy enough to rise to command of a science vessel. Kirk had never heard of a Vulcan joining the nearly all-human military branch, and thought it likely such an officer would find himself passed over for promotion by both sides, fitting in nowhere. April's next words confirmed his suspicions.
"Jim, there were several captains who said they didn't think Spock was a good fit as First Officer for their own ships, and the science branch didn't really want someone from a military background as captain for one of their ships. I didn't want to skip him over for promotion; he deserved one, he's the best Science Officer in the Fleet, and Pike gave him glowing recommendations. This seemed a good compromise." April appeared apologetic, and Kirk thought with some anger that he should be. The captains who didn't want a Vulcan as first officer because he was too rigid and logical, the science branch that thought it was holier-than-thou, not daring to touch anything from the military branch. Stupid, petty bureaucracy that showcased the worst of human nature.
"I'll consider myself lucky then," Kirk said, signing off with confidence. Sitting back, he felt some of the confidence ebb. He was used to commanding crews he knew, not a group of strangers. And these strangers were the best of the best; they were on the Enterprise. Plus, for all he hated the blind bigotry of the Starfleet bureaucracy, he'd had very little experience dealing with Vulcans himself, all he knew was that they were devoted to logic and seemed not to need the pleasant, social companionship humans craved. Kirk couldn't suppress a slight grimace of worry; he was friendly and informal with his crews, needed that connection to stay grounded in the cold of space. If Spock was both First Officer and Science Officer, they'd be spending a lot of time together, and if they could never get past the cultural barrier, to be more than distantly professional, it looked like it would be a lonely five years. Still, he'd always made it a point never to judge someone before knowing them, and he wouldn't start now.
At least Gary would be there. There was always that, and nothing could really quench Kirk's excitement. His ship would be here tomorrow, and it felt like his whole life was about to start.