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Character: Klingon Male Starfleet Tactical Cadet
Timeframe: Before and During the Federation Tutorial (Season Eight and onwards version)

-o0O0o-

"An Exercise In Elaboration"
'Duty, Honor, Culture'
By J.T. Magnus, 'Turbo'

-o0O0o-

Starfleet Academy,
San Francisco, North American continent,
planet Earth, Sol system, Sector 001 (United Earth designation)
2405

Duty and honor were interesting things. While most would feel compelled by them to join the Defense Force and serve the Empire, the young Klingon standing in the shuttlebay of Starfleet Academy had been guided in a different direction. It had been the intervention of Starfleet - specifically the offiers and crew of the Enterprise-D - forty years before, in 2365, that had kept the crew I.K.C. T'Ong from potentially making a dishonorable mistake when they had come out of stasis without knowing of the Khitomir Accords and the peace between the Klingon Empire and the Federation. As the first-born son of one of the T'Ong's crew, he sought to join Starfleet and repay the debt his family owed to them in that way, indirectly continuing the mission of exploration that the T'Ong had been sent on over a hundred years before.

-o0o-

Starfleet Academy,
San Francisco, North American continent,
planet Earth, Sol system, Sector 001 (United Earth designation)
2406

The second-year cadet frowned as others looked at him with suspicion, despite the fact that he wore the uniform and intended to serve as a Starfleet officer no different than the rest of them... he was a Klingon and the Federation and the Empire were now at war, and as a Klingon by blood and a Starfleet cadet and future officer by oath, he was caught in the middle of it already. There were those who looked at him with suspicion - as though at any time he might take a kut'lach and beging stabbing people, yelling 'For the Empire' as he did so - and those who underestimated Klingon hearing and made comments when they thought they were out of earshot, but he chose to ignore them and focus his attention on others among his fellow cadets - those that acted as the Starfleet officers-in-training that they were supposed to be and not mewing children.

"Again," he instructed.

"Iw blqtlQdaQ jljaH," the Vulcan cadet replied with faint discomfort visible on her face.

"Better, T'Vrell," he answered, "But you still put too much emphasis on the 'Q' sound, it is 'blQtlqDaq'."

"Iw blq-tlQ-daQ jljaH," T'Vrell repeated.

"Good," the Klingon cadet nodded.

-o0o-

Starfleet Academy,
San Francisco, North American continent,
planet Earth, Sol system, Sector 001 (United Earth designation)
2409

Elisa Flores looked at her classmate and shook her head, "Fugu again?"

The Klingon cadet looked up from his lunch, "Despite being from Earth, it is a very Klingon dish. It is a good way to face one's own mortality... much like Klingon tea."

Flores rolled her eyes as she sat down, "Don't tell me the big, bad Klingon warrior is afraid of facing his Academy graduation exam. I thought Klingons considered getting jabbed with painstiks to be a rite of passage, the finals should be easy."

"Age of Ascension, not rite of passage," the other cadet corrected.

"And you're trying to change the subject again," the redhead pointed out.

"If I fail," the Klingon put his utensils down as he answered, "Some Klingons already consider my family and my House dishonored by my intended service in Starfleet - to then fail to graduate the Academy and actually enter Starfleet..."

"That bad, huh?"

"There are those who would consider ritual suicide the only way to recover honor from lesser failures," he answered.

"Just think of it this way," Flores replied, "You've got me and T'Vrell, Kazkii, Morek and R'raak - you don't really think we're gonna let you fail after all the help you've given us over the last four years, do you?"

-o0o-

The bridge of the U.S.S. Richard N. Jensen,
Starfleet Light Cruiser, Miranda-Class
Orbital Drydock, San Francisco Fleet Yards,
geosynchronus orbit over San Francisco, North American continent,
planet Earth, Sol system, Sector 001 (United Earth designation)
2409

The cadet looked at Captain Taggert, "Captain... despite my oaths to Starfleet and the Federation, I am still Klingon. There is one matter that must be taken care of before we depart if I am to serve as second-in-command of this vessel."

"Oh, and what is that, Number One?"

The Klingon drew himself up and looked around the bridge, announcing to everyone present "I take my place as First Officer. I serve the Captain, but I stand for the crew."

Taggert looked at him and shook his head, "Just don't start singing the 'Warrior's Anthem' on my bridge, Number One."

The new First Officer looked at his captain and asked in a deadpan voice, "Would you prefer something by Earth's Johnny Horton?"

The Denobulan captain sighed, "I'd prefer if you took us out of Spacedock, Number One."