STAR TREK: PHASE ONE
The S.P.O.C.K. Unit
Starring
Brad Pitt as James Kirk
Vince Vaughn as Gary Mitchell
Morgan Freeman as Richard Daystrom
Alicia Keys as Guinan
and
The voice of James Earl Jones as S.P.O.C.K.
The command crew of the Enterprise was into their second hour aboard their new starship; in essence, their new home for the foreseeable future. Most of them had, at one point in their United Space Agency careers, trained on one of two full sized mock-ups. One mock-up, designated the USS BOTANY BAY, was kept in a giant hanger-bay in Hobart Australia. But due to wear and tear, that mock-up had been sold to a museum. (And unknown to the United Space Agency, the museum was owned and operated by John Gill, who saw a better future for the Botany Bay.)
The other mock-up was housed in a large building in the desert of California. As good as the mock-ups were for training, they couldn't match the raw feeling, and power, of the USS ENTERPRISE.
The crew was being given a tour by the proud engineers, mainly Scottish and Russian, who had built the ship, including Montgomery Scott's uncle, Ronald Scott. He was a portly round man full of vigor, and obvious pride of what they had built.
As the rest of the crew went on with the tour, James Kirk noticed an African-American, in his late fifties or early sixties, working at one of the computer stations on the circular bridge where the crew would be spending most of their working time. Kirk, with Gary Mitchell by his side, slowly made his way over to the man.
"What's wrong?" Gary Mitchell asked Kirk. "Don't you recognize him?" Mitchell asked. "That's Richard Daystrom. This guy has been designing computer networks, and complex duotronic systems, for decades. Most, if not all of the computer hardware and software on this ship came from what his mind came up with. He's a billionaire I might add."
"What is that box he is talking with?" Kirk asked.
Mitchell looked closer. Daystrom was indeed talking to a strange, black and silver box that was sitting atop one the panels.
Mitchell shook his head. "I don't know," Mitchell said. "Maybe it's a voice activated toaster."
Daystrom looked back at the two men as they drew closer to him. He had a very elegant, but distant, look to his face.
"This is hardly a toaster," the man said. He stood up and offered his hand to Kirk. "My name is Dr. Richard Daystrom, and this," Daystrom said, as he motioned to the box, "is S.P.O.C.K."
Kirk and Mitchell both looked at the strange computer that did indeed resemble one of those out-dated toaster ovens.
"Spock?" Daystrom said, "Say hello to your new friend, James T. Kirk."
"Good afternoon, Captain James Tiberius Kirk," Spock said in a familiar voice.
Gary Mitchell snapped his finger. "Wait a second," Mitchell said excitedly, "Isn't that the voice of Darth Vader?"
Daystrom nodded his head, "It is indeed," Daystrom replied. "I was very fond of his voice as a child, so I synthesized his voice, and when it came time to select a voice for Spock, I chose James Earl Jones's voice."
"Oh, this is totally cool," Mitchell said with a broad smile. "I gotta tell my brother about this. You know Bobby," Mitchell said to Kirk. "He'll go nuts knowing that you'll be interacting with Darth Vader on this mission."
"You do mean Spock," Kirk said to Mitchell. "I will be interacting with Spock, not Darth Vader."
"Yeah, whatever," Mitchell said. "Get it to say this is your destiny; or something like that."
"This is your destiny," The voice of Spock said.
"Oh man!" Mitchell said as he clapped his hands and laughed, "This is so cool."
Kirk looked at his excited friend and shook his head. "Some people are amused so easily," Kirk said to Mitchell.
"Damn right," Mitchell replied with a smile.
As Gary conversed with Spock, Daystrom walked with Kirk around the perimeter of the bridge.
Daystrom looked to Kirk. "You don't seem as impressed as your friend," Daystrom said.
Kirk shook his head. "Oh, I am impressed Dr. Daystrom, I really am," Kirk said. "But I have read about your M-class computer project. If I am correct, you hope to replace starship captains, someday, with computers, on the premise that they will make better commanders than humans."
"Oh, they will," Daystrom said. "A computer can make all the same decisions that a human can, and without the politics or social fabrics that come with humanity."
"I don't know," Kirk said with a warm smile. "We haven't even begun to explore the solar system, really, in terms of manned space travel, and you already want to take the thrill of going to Mars, or Jupiter, or where ever else, away from the human adventure. Maybe, years down the line, I could see a move to unmanned exploration, but not now."
Daystrom smiled back at Kirk. "Captain Kirk, when man goes into space, just as you are about to, he will bring his undeniable problems with him. It is in the human gene, and cannot be denied. We haven't really changed in the last fifty-thousand years, and I fear we will bring the problems of our society into space with us, and eventually war will come to space as well."
"Then why are you part of the mission?" Kirk asked. "If you truly believe what you do, then why contribute to a future you do not want to live in?"
"To be honest, Kirk, I am doing this for my own vanity. I have, perhaps, the greatest mind ever to spring the womb of a woman. It would be a travesty not to allow someone as worthy as myself to not be part of this great step in man's evolution."
Kirk did not like the man's lack of humility. In fact, he had a God complex that made the hair on the back of Kirk's neck stand straight-up.
-
As the command crew continued with their tour, another shuttle docked with the Enterprise. On board the shuttle were more crew members, including one very interesting civilian worker. Her name was Guinan.
Guinan was charged with running 10-forward. It was a recreation area that included a bar, which served non-alcoholic beverages as well as limited, and regulated, alcoholic beverages. Studies on Earth proved that social networks, between humans in peek years of performance, would be required for space travel. Years upon years of data proved that lack of interaction between humans, casual and sexual, led to higher incidents of human error. And the use of regulated alcohol drinks had been proven to be very successful in that it opened up both parties to conversation aspects that otherwise might not be bridged.
Guinan, an African-American female at the age of 31, held a PhD in Sociology, and more importantly, she also owned a bar in Chicago, where she spent most of her time observing humanity, in all of its forms; the good, the bad, and the ugly.
