A problem every spacefaring civilization has to come to terms with, once its members have left the confines of their homeworld and turned their gaze upwards to the stars, is the vastness of space. Distances that have seemed considerable before are dwarfed by the boundless stretches of nothingness that lie between two neighboring suns. The planet that houses their entire civilization, their cradle, their haven in the hostile vacuum that surrounds them, is but a grain of sand lost in the endless depths of the universe.

But people of every species adapt, and as they begin to explore the new possibilities that are now open to them, as they master the seemingly unsurmountable distances with more and more sophisticated vessels, space loses its terror and the unimaginable becomes an everyday procedure.

In the 24th century, few people in the United Federation of Planets are still aware of the magnitude of the step a civilization takes when it ventures into deep space. There are mining ships big enough to acommodate whole asteroids, vessels that carry hundreds, even thousands of people across the galaxy. And there are starbases to give them berth, a web of giant metal towers spread across the whole Federation territory. But although people have grown up with those tremendous technical achievements, although they take them for granted, there is a sensation of awe inspired in all of those who happen to be present when Starbase 77 opens its huge spacedoors to admit yet another ship into its dock. For a moment, conversation dies, and all eyes turn to see Enterprise coasting to her berth.

Captain Jean-Luc Picard sat on the sofa in his ready room and looked up from the reports he had been contemplating to notice that they were clearing the spacedock doors. There was no need for him to be present on the bridge during the docking procedures, Commander Riker was more than capable of handling everything. Enterprise would have to spend several days in spacedock so that the damage she had sustained during their encounter with the quantum singularity lifeforms could be repaired.

The view outside the porthole into the space station indicated that Enterprise had slowed. The ship shuddered almost imperceptibly and came to a halt. Almost instantaneously, Picard saw small worker-bees detatch themselves from the walls and approach the ship. Repairs would be effectuated immediately, Picard noted with satisfaction. From one side a long silvery tube was approaching the ship to provide a passage from the starbase to the ship. Before long it would be filled with crewmen glad to seize the opportunity of taking shore leave.

This reminded Picard of another matter he had to attend to. He put down the PADD containing the damage reports, shuffled through the dangerously high stack of PADDs on his desk and finally found the one he was looking for. The updated crew list. New personnel that had been dispatched to the Enterprise was due to come aboard soon, and as the captain it was his duty to familiarize himself at least with their files, if not necessarily with the people. He sometimes regretted the fact that, being the captain of so big a ship, he could not possibly become acquainted with everyone in person but only with a very selected circle instead.

Absentmindedly sipping a cup of Earl Grey tea, Picard's eyes idly scanned the colums of crewmembers listed according to rank until he came to the end of the list. There would be three ensigns transferred from the USS Hood to the Enterprise: the Human Sam Lavelle, the Vulcan Taurik, and one ensign fresh out of the Academy at his own request, the Bajoran Sito Jaxa. That was where the list should have ended. But it didn't. At the very bottom another name figured: Cadet Sverak. Captain Picard nearly choked on his tea. It was highly unusual for Starfleet to send cadets to starships. They might participate in training cruises on special ships but hardly ever in deep space assignments, simply because this meant a severe disruption of their training. Starfleet had never sent a cadet to the Enterprise before, and there had to be a very good reason for this, a reason Picard was determined to find out.

Picard put down his tea cup and activated the small computer interface on his desk to state his request.

"Computer, call up the file of Cadet Sverak. Vocal output."

The computer responded with a few faint clicks, and Captain Picard leaned back to listen as the computer started to speak.

"Sverak. Current rank: Cadet, Third Class. Current assignment: Midshipman, Starship USS Enterprise, NCC 1701-D. Date of birth: 2352, no further specifications. Parents: T'Lara and Silek of Vulcan. Place of Birth: DeghwI'Qagh III…"

That was where Picard, who had become more and more intrigued, first interrupted the matter-of-fact voice of the ship's computer.

"Specify whereabouts of place of birth." The name DeghwI'Qagh III sounded familiar to him, it nagged at this memory although he could not quite place it.

"Planet in the DeghwI'Qagh System near the Romulan Neutral Zone. Site of archeological excavations until Stardate 28723.5, when the planet was devastated. The USS Stargazer was unable to retrieve any of the archaeologists."

So that was it. Picard dimly remembered the desperate rescue mission when all they came upon on the planet's surface was a raging inferno. All colonists as well as their families had been presumed dead - prematurely, as it would appear. He was eager to hear more.

"Continue."

"Entered Starfleet Academy in 2368. Age: 18. Biographical data: Was brought to the Romulan Empire together with 12 other Vulcan children shortly after the incident on DeghwI'Qagh III…"

Picard's head snapped around. He could hardly believe his ears. He could not possibly have overlooked 12 Vulcan children, and what had the Romulans been doing there in the first place?

"Computer, how did this happen?"

"Starfleet reports indicate that the group was most likely rescued by a Romulan intruder…"

"Specify", Picard snapped.

"No other data available."

Picard inhaled deeply, and picked up his tea. "Very well. Continue."

"Adopted by a Romulan Commander and released in 2363 as a result of newly upcoming trade negotiations between the Federation and the Romulan Empire, brought to Vulcan."

The computer stopped. Picard cradled the half-filled cup of tea in his hand and leaned back, lost in thoughts.

Sverak stood so close to the huge windows of Starbase 77 that enabled visitors to get a look inside the main docking bay that her breath condensed on the thick transparent aluminium. She didn't care. When the huge doors opened to admit the Enterprise, Sverak involuntarily drew in a deep breath.

"It will turn out all right", said a sympathetic voice next to her. Sverak looked at her friend, and for a moment an expression of resignation crept over her face.

"On the contrary, Kim, I do not think it will be all right at all. This is no opportunity for me to prove myself in any way or to help me with my choice of career but for Starfleet to expel me once and for all. Good riddance of a nuisance, to put it into good Standard."

The blonde woman standing next to Sverak shook her curls empathically. "You're much too gloomy for someone who is supposed to show no emotions at all", she chided gently. "Look at me. If Starfleet really wants to get rid of someone they send him to a Constellation class ship that should have been decommissioned years ago and is scheduled for frontier duty instead. I would love to be in your place."

Sverak looked at her friend for a moment, her face displaying no emotions at all, then turned back to face the windows. "In that case maybe we should get extensive plastic surgery done and switch places."

Her friend laughed. "Maybe we should."

"I am not even sure anymore if I want to be in Starfleet", Sverak said dejectedly. "So far, I have tried to ignore all hostilities directed at me. I thought that if I worked hard enough, I would soon be accepted without questions about where I came from. I think I might have been wrong and it would be better if I just quit."

The blonde woman spun around, grabbing the Vulcan by the arms.

"Shut up! You're just too stubborn! It is an honour to serve aboard the Enterprise, no matter how you came by it! You should ask yourself what made you deserve this and count yourself lucky not to be stuck on a flying death trap like me! Ensign Kim Shapiro bound for the stars in a bucket of bolts! Honestly!"

Sverak, who had endured this outburst stoically, now took a step back to free herself. "I do not think that this is in good faith."

Her friend threw up her arms in defeat. "You're hopeless! Let's get packed" she stated and walked away, leaving the Vulcan to stare mutely at her back, then follow her.

"About ten years! Raised by Romulans, taught the Romulan way of life, the Romulan way of thinking …" Riker shook his head. "Starfleet must have had second thoughts about admitting her to the Academy."

"Indeed", Picard replied. He was pacing his Ready Room, with Riker comfortably seated in front of the captain's desk. "This is a bit of an awkward situation Starfleet is putting us in, Number One."

The commander nodded.

"From what you've told me, it seems obvious that Starfleet doesn't quite know what to do with her and now leaves that up to us." He shook his head slightly. "We're a galaxy class starship, not a kindergarten."

Picard stopped his pacing and turned to his first officer, his lips curved slightly upwards in a faint smile. "Well. We do have a kindergarten, Number One. She's the first Romulan in Starfleet, at least as close to a Romulan as you can possibly get. Unusual situations call for unusual measures. Put her where she can do no harm and we'll see."

"You know what I like about Vulcans? They have the perfect poker face, inscrutable and unmoving. And yet, I've never met a people more predictable than them because for them there is only one logical course of action." Sam Lavelle turned to face Taurik who had listened to his rant with his usual composed expression. "Right or not, Taurik?"

"That is correct", Taurik stated flatly.

"Speaking of poker... have you ever been introducted to the game?" Sam asked innocently, with a gleam in his eye.

Both Sito and Taurik shook their heads.

"Well then..." Sam clasped his hands. "I suggest we find our quarters - Taurik's and mine that is - and I'll show you."

They all headed for the next turbolift.

As soon as Sverak materialized, she knew she was on a starship. In the back of her mind she felt that mixture of emotions that was typical on a starship. Pride, curiosity, a certain hardiness maybe. People were different on a starship, no matter which race. For a moment, she felt almost elated.

She stepped down from the transporter platform, towards the ensign waiting for her.

"Permission to come aboard."

He nodded impatiently. "Granted. I will take you to your quarters first and then to Commander Riker. You're new, so he wants to have a word with you, and he'll probably tell you which section you're assigned to. Follow me."

He turned without waiting for her acknowledgement and headed out. Sverak trodded after him, down the corridors of her new home. Temporary, she reminded herself, and probably not for long.

They came to a turbolift and stepped inside.

"Deck 17."

The turbolift accelerated smoothly. The ensign did not seem to be in a mood for talking, and Sverak did not venture any topics of conversation either, so they made the trip in silence. Finally, the turbolift stopped moving, the doors opened and Sverak followed the ensign out into the corridor. They passed identical doors to either side of the corridor until they came to cabin 19, which already had the names "Ensign Jamie Quinn" and "Cadet Sverak" on it. Inside, Sverak was pleased to see that even for the lower ranks, or lowest, in her case, the cabin was anything but cramped, with two well separated beds but also room for chairs, a table, and plenty of space to stow away her things. Sverak threw her duffle bag onto the clearly unused bed, then turned and followed the ensign back out to their next destination.

"Bridge."

They stepped out of the turbolift onto the brown carpet. Sverak looked around with interest. She had seen similar bridges in simulations, but seeing it on a real ship was something else. It was spacious, with beige as the dominating colour. Not a warship at all. Only the ops station was manned, a crewmember was effecutating repairs on one of the aft stations.

The ensign left her little time for contemplation. Instead, he beckoned her to follow him, and led her down the ramp to what had to be the door to the Ready Room. He pressed a button, and just a few seconds later the reply came from within.

"Come."

The ensign marched straight on, the doors opening to grant him entrance. Sverak followed suit. They both stood to attention in front of a desk where a tall, bulky Human with a dark beard sat. Sverak recognised the face. Commander Riker, first officer on the starship Enterprise. She stole a glimpse to the left of Commander Riker and did a double take, when she saw a colourful fish swimming around in some sort of aquarium.

The ensign spoke first. "Cadet Sverak has arrived, sir."

Riker nodded. "Thank you, ensign. You're dismissed."

The ensign turned and was out, leaving Sverak still standing to attention. Riker stared at her for a long moment, but Sverak withstood his scrutiny without blinking. Sometimes she was even beginning to be thankful for her Vulcan training. Finally, Riker blinked and leaned back, pushing himself back from the desk with one hand.

"Cadet Sverak. Welcome aboard Enterprise. I've had a look at your grades from first year, congratulations on your performance. Starfleet in their infinite wisdom thinks that at this stage you could benefit from extended onboard training rather than more theory, so here we are. You're on the Engineering track and we'll get you into that department, but you are in an early stage of your training. We will rotate you through a bit of Enterprise's various departments for you to get a broader experience in case you would still like to adjust your track."

It was not quite a question but he still looked at her expectantly. Sverak, who had not had any expectations whatsoever, gave a cut "Yessir."

Riker gave her a brief smile, then handed her a PADD. "Your first assignment is to xenobiology in the department of Lieutenant S'keet, more details are on the padd. Be ready to report for duty tomorrow, beta shift. Dismissed."

And that was it. Sverak took the PADD from Commander Riker's hand, gave another "Yessir" for good measure, and was out of the room to start her new life on Enterprise.