- CHAPTER 35 -
- Starfleet Academy, 11 Years Ago -
"Well Mr. Vanguard, what have you to say for yourself?" T'var's stern looking angular face seemed to stare deep into Ulysses. Ulysses merely stood at attention before her, unflinching under her fierce scrutiny. T'var almost smiled at the lad's impudence, but that would have been most unVulcan like, so she refrained from showing her amusement externally. "I am surprised at your silence Mr. Vanguard. Usually those in your position are either begging for their spot at the Academy, or else they have already packed their bags and left of their own accord. Yet here you are, as defiant as ever, yet not preparing to leave either. You present a most intriguing dilemma. Just what is it that you are hoping to accomplish with your time here?" The stone-faced silence remained her reply. "Mr. Vanguard, you will answer me or you will be expelled immediately, am I making my self understood?" T'var put all of the snap her 150 plus years of fleet command experience had brought her into her words. That alone had always been enough to crack errant Cadets that thought they were tough enough to stand up to her. Yet this one didn't bat an eye. He stared back at her with those same coldly calculating eyes. He is either one of the densest individuals I have ever encountered, or else he just doesn't care, T'var thought. Finally he responded.
"Ma'am, I merely want to finish my training so that I can get my commission aboard a starship."
"If that is your goal, why do you consistently pick fights with fellow cadets?"
"Ma'am, you wouldn't understand, and I have no intention of trying to explain it to you."
"I would encourage you to try Cadet. Your test scores are exemplary, putting you near the top of your class in all subjects. Aside from your behavior, you would make an exemplary officer. Why then do you continue down that path when by your own admission you want to become an officer?"
What business is it of hers was the first thought that sprang into Ulysses' mind. Then after a slightly longer pause, another one replaced it. Why did she care? He was, after all, just another Cadet out of the tens of thousands that went through San Francisco Starfleet Academy every year. Why was she trying so hard to save him?
"I respectfully refuse to reply ma'am." Ulysses replied, showing no hint of his brewing internal conflict in neither his demeanor nor his expression.
Oh of all the mulish. He has so much promise, yet he refuses to change his ways or even to let others in to see if they could help solve his problems T'var thought. Looks like things are gonna have to be done the hard way.
Quick as a flash, T'var's hand snaked out and gripped Ulysses lower neck. Ulysses only had a half a second for his eyes to widen before he was dragged into unconsciousness. Hands went about his collapsing form, easing him to the floor. As his vision grayed out to black, he heard a far away whisper in his ears.
"I am sorry Cadet, but you have left me with no alternative." Then the world went black.
Ulysses opened his eyes to see a brilliant thick white light all around him. As if from far away, but getting closer, he heard another voice calling his name. The voice seemed familiar, but it was distorted slightly, and so he couldn't exactly place it. Seemingly to materialize out of the light, a feminine figure appeared. She looked vaguely human, but there virtually no way to tell in her present state, so blurred and unclear were her features.
"Hello Ulysses." The woman said, and it was the same voice as he had heard earlier.
"Who are you and where am I?" Ulysses demanded. The woman merely put her index finger to her lips and continued to speak.
"You must listen to me. Trust T'var, Ulysses. She can be of great importance to you if you would let her help you."
"But."
"My little Uly, you were always so stubborn, even as a babe in arms." She cut him off, her voice both filled with love and exasperation. As the vision spoke, her voice clicked in Ulysses mind.
"Mamma?" Ulysses whispered with a mixture of wonder and pain. His eyes began to glisten as tears of joy afresh and remembered anguish fought for supremacy therein. "But how can this be." His voice cracked and he bit his lower lip to hide its trembling.
"Hush now my little baby. There is a bright future for you yet. But you must leave this self-destructive path you are leading. The first step towards that bright future is accepting T'var's help. Remember that always, just as you remember me." The ghost like woman began to fade back into the light from whence she had come. "Fare well my son."
"Mamma! Don't go! Please!" But the phantasm of Selon Vanguard continued to fade out. Tears began to flow down Ulysses cheeks, and he rushed foreword attempting to wrap the pale outline of his mother in a bear hug. His arms gripped open air, for the woman was totally gone before he even got there. "MAMMAA!" Ulysses wailed, the old pain made fresh again.
Cadet Ulysses Vanguard snapped awake, jerking into a sitting position from his place flat on his back. A hoarse whisper slipped from his lips.
"Mamma, why did you go?!" He said, sounding like a little lost child instead of a teenaged Cadet.
T'var looked deep into Ulysses the confused and distraught face. Her mind meld had encountered surprising resistance at first, but the it seemed as if all blocks and locks to her passage were removed. What she saw then shocked her. The depth of this young man's pain and hate were so powerful it was astounding. What was even more astounding was the root cause of both. The Terran Empire had killed both of this boys parents for no better reason than they felt like it. It was times like this that she almost put stock in the Human belief of hunches. She had felt drawn to help this Cadet as if by an outside power, and now that she had seen into his very soul, she realized that it could only be her that could do so. A follower of the teachings of Spock could do no less for a fellow being in trouble. And if Cadet Ulysses Vanguard could harness his desire for retribution with Spock's teachings, he could become a potent ally should the opportunity present itself for the followers of Spock to come out into the open. T'var placed her hand on Ulysses tense shoulder.
"Cadet Vanguard, I have decided to entrust you with a secret. It is a secret that would mean my death if word of it was to get out. I am sure that you have by now at least heard of a half Vulcan, half Human named Spock. I am also sure that you have heard that the Terran Council outlaws his philosophy. I am a follower of that philosophy, and if you give me a chance, I would like to pass it on to you. I believe that you will find it a great help in controlling your violent tendencies towards Starfleet personnel. It will also enable you to hide in plain sight a lot better. Then, when the time is right, you will be in a position to help bring down the Terran Empire and their horrific policies. What do you say?"
Ulysses looked over at her as she kneeled next to him. Part of him wanted to strike out at her like he had so many others. But a greater part of him remembered what he had heard while unconscious. Now it seemed like some half-remembered dream, but he felt strongly compelled to follow its instructions.
"Ma'am." He paused for a second, then sighed. All of the tension seemed to flood away from him in an instant. "Ma'am, I accept your offer."
- Present Day, ISS Athena, Sickbay -
Ulysses shook his head to clear away the memory. There would be time to reminisce after this was all over. Right now 2nd Fleet needed its flagship.
"Admiral, I need you to transfer command of this ship to me. There are a whole lot of bad, bad creatures out there and I need this ship to stop them."
"Of course Mr. Vanguard." T'var's face got a far away look as she tried to sift through her still discombobulated brain to find the proper authorization code. After a few seconds, she thought she found it. "Computer." The machine chirped to acknowledge its being called. "Transfer command of this vessel to Captain Ulysses Vanguard effective immediately and until this order is rescinded by either me or another flag officer." Now came the moment of truth. "Authorization T'var Pi Gamma Three Nine Tango Seven Enable."
"Acknowledged." The sultry female voice said. "Command of the ISS Athena transferred to Captain Ulysses Vanguard as of 0600 ships time." T'var, Ulysses, P'tel and Davenport exhaled breath they hadn't known they had been holding. Ulysses still looked down at T'var with evident concern, but she looked up at him.
"Go Captain. I am counting on you to save my people for me." Ulysses stood there for an endless few seconds, then nodded tersely and stepped away from the biobed.
"Computer." Ulysses said. "Initiate site to site transport. Three to beam to the Flag Bridge." The whine of the transporter filled his ears and his vision flashed bright blue/white. Then he was standing on the flag bridge of the most advanced and powerful warship in the known universe. He tapped his com badge. "Vanguard to Heidberg, what's your status?"
- ISS Athena, Slipstream Core Alpha -
The massive transparent orb that contained the pulsating, lightning like plasma which capped the Quantum Slipstream Core was finally online again. Emergency backup generators dropped out of the circuit to recharge as the massive power of the QSS engine again flooded through the arterial conduits of the monolithic monitor. So redundant was the ships power system that even while on backup, most major systems were still fully online. Hence no one noticed when the mains came back online. Instead of the heartbeat like thrum of a warp core, the QSS core was more felt than heard. Cmdr. Heidberg was by now old hat at QSS engines, for the fleet had been using them for a few years already, and he had been one of the first to train on them. This one's readings showed perfectly within tolerances and at optimal power generation. Walking around the catwalk that surrounded the sunken orb of the QSS core, Clay heard the voice of Ulysses Vanguard cutting through the quiet background noise of the primary engineering section of the Athena.
"I was just about to com you sir. We have success, Slipstream Core Alpha is hot, locked and ready to rock sir." Heidberg said.
"Well done Cmdr. Prepare for a micro jump back to the battle fleet. Bring shields, armor and weapons fully online. Lets see just what this big momma can do. Vanguard out." On the holo display, the gruesome, strangely beautiful carnage of a deep space battle continued. But the balance was about to shift decidedly in the home teams favor.
- Starfleet Academy, 11 Years Ago -
"Well Mr. Vanguard, what have you to say for yourself?" T'var's stern looking angular face seemed to stare deep into Ulysses. Ulysses merely stood at attention before her, unflinching under her fierce scrutiny. T'var almost smiled at the lad's impudence, but that would have been most unVulcan like, so she refrained from showing her amusement externally. "I am surprised at your silence Mr. Vanguard. Usually those in your position are either begging for their spot at the Academy, or else they have already packed their bags and left of their own accord. Yet here you are, as defiant as ever, yet not preparing to leave either. You present a most intriguing dilemma. Just what is it that you are hoping to accomplish with your time here?" The stone-faced silence remained her reply. "Mr. Vanguard, you will answer me or you will be expelled immediately, am I making my self understood?" T'var put all of the snap her 150 plus years of fleet command experience had brought her into her words. That alone had always been enough to crack errant Cadets that thought they were tough enough to stand up to her. Yet this one didn't bat an eye. He stared back at her with those same coldly calculating eyes. He is either one of the densest individuals I have ever encountered, or else he just doesn't care, T'var thought. Finally he responded.
"Ma'am, I merely want to finish my training so that I can get my commission aboard a starship."
"If that is your goal, why do you consistently pick fights with fellow cadets?"
"Ma'am, you wouldn't understand, and I have no intention of trying to explain it to you."
"I would encourage you to try Cadet. Your test scores are exemplary, putting you near the top of your class in all subjects. Aside from your behavior, you would make an exemplary officer. Why then do you continue down that path when by your own admission you want to become an officer?"
What business is it of hers was the first thought that sprang into Ulysses' mind. Then after a slightly longer pause, another one replaced it. Why did she care? He was, after all, just another Cadet out of the tens of thousands that went through San Francisco Starfleet Academy every year. Why was she trying so hard to save him?
"I respectfully refuse to reply ma'am." Ulysses replied, showing no hint of his brewing internal conflict in neither his demeanor nor his expression.
Oh of all the mulish. He has so much promise, yet he refuses to change his ways or even to let others in to see if they could help solve his problems T'var thought. Looks like things are gonna have to be done the hard way.
Quick as a flash, T'var's hand snaked out and gripped Ulysses lower neck. Ulysses only had a half a second for his eyes to widen before he was dragged into unconsciousness. Hands went about his collapsing form, easing him to the floor. As his vision grayed out to black, he heard a far away whisper in his ears.
"I am sorry Cadet, but you have left me with no alternative." Then the world went black.
Ulysses opened his eyes to see a brilliant thick white light all around him. As if from far away, but getting closer, he heard another voice calling his name. The voice seemed familiar, but it was distorted slightly, and so he couldn't exactly place it. Seemingly to materialize out of the light, a feminine figure appeared. She looked vaguely human, but there virtually no way to tell in her present state, so blurred and unclear were her features.
"Hello Ulysses." The woman said, and it was the same voice as he had heard earlier.
"Who are you and where am I?" Ulysses demanded. The woman merely put her index finger to her lips and continued to speak.
"You must listen to me. Trust T'var, Ulysses. She can be of great importance to you if you would let her help you."
"But."
"My little Uly, you were always so stubborn, even as a babe in arms." She cut him off, her voice both filled with love and exasperation. As the vision spoke, her voice clicked in Ulysses mind.
"Mamma?" Ulysses whispered with a mixture of wonder and pain. His eyes began to glisten as tears of joy afresh and remembered anguish fought for supremacy therein. "But how can this be." His voice cracked and he bit his lower lip to hide its trembling.
"Hush now my little baby. There is a bright future for you yet. But you must leave this self-destructive path you are leading. The first step towards that bright future is accepting T'var's help. Remember that always, just as you remember me." The ghost like woman began to fade back into the light from whence she had come. "Fare well my son."
"Mamma! Don't go! Please!" But the phantasm of Selon Vanguard continued to fade out. Tears began to flow down Ulysses cheeks, and he rushed foreword attempting to wrap the pale outline of his mother in a bear hug. His arms gripped open air, for the woman was totally gone before he even got there. "MAMMAA!" Ulysses wailed, the old pain made fresh again.
Cadet Ulysses Vanguard snapped awake, jerking into a sitting position from his place flat on his back. A hoarse whisper slipped from his lips.
"Mamma, why did you go?!" He said, sounding like a little lost child instead of a teenaged Cadet.
T'var looked deep into Ulysses the confused and distraught face. Her mind meld had encountered surprising resistance at first, but the it seemed as if all blocks and locks to her passage were removed. What she saw then shocked her. The depth of this young man's pain and hate were so powerful it was astounding. What was even more astounding was the root cause of both. The Terran Empire had killed both of this boys parents for no better reason than they felt like it. It was times like this that she almost put stock in the Human belief of hunches. She had felt drawn to help this Cadet as if by an outside power, and now that she had seen into his very soul, she realized that it could only be her that could do so. A follower of the teachings of Spock could do no less for a fellow being in trouble. And if Cadet Ulysses Vanguard could harness his desire for retribution with Spock's teachings, he could become a potent ally should the opportunity present itself for the followers of Spock to come out into the open. T'var placed her hand on Ulysses tense shoulder.
"Cadet Vanguard, I have decided to entrust you with a secret. It is a secret that would mean my death if word of it was to get out. I am sure that you have by now at least heard of a half Vulcan, half Human named Spock. I am also sure that you have heard that the Terran Council outlaws his philosophy. I am a follower of that philosophy, and if you give me a chance, I would like to pass it on to you. I believe that you will find it a great help in controlling your violent tendencies towards Starfleet personnel. It will also enable you to hide in plain sight a lot better. Then, when the time is right, you will be in a position to help bring down the Terran Empire and their horrific policies. What do you say?"
Ulysses looked over at her as she kneeled next to him. Part of him wanted to strike out at her like he had so many others. But a greater part of him remembered what he had heard while unconscious. Now it seemed like some half-remembered dream, but he felt strongly compelled to follow its instructions.
"Ma'am." He paused for a second, then sighed. All of the tension seemed to flood away from him in an instant. "Ma'am, I accept your offer."
- Present Day, ISS Athena, Sickbay -
Ulysses shook his head to clear away the memory. There would be time to reminisce after this was all over. Right now 2nd Fleet needed its flagship.
"Admiral, I need you to transfer command of this ship to me. There are a whole lot of bad, bad creatures out there and I need this ship to stop them."
"Of course Mr. Vanguard." T'var's face got a far away look as she tried to sift through her still discombobulated brain to find the proper authorization code. After a few seconds, she thought she found it. "Computer." The machine chirped to acknowledge its being called. "Transfer command of this vessel to Captain Ulysses Vanguard effective immediately and until this order is rescinded by either me or another flag officer." Now came the moment of truth. "Authorization T'var Pi Gamma Three Nine Tango Seven Enable."
"Acknowledged." The sultry female voice said. "Command of the ISS Athena transferred to Captain Ulysses Vanguard as of 0600 ships time." T'var, Ulysses, P'tel and Davenport exhaled breath they hadn't known they had been holding. Ulysses still looked down at T'var with evident concern, but she looked up at him.
"Go Captain. I am counting on you to save my people for me." Ulysses stood there for an endless few seconds, then nodded tersely and stepped away from the biobed.
"Computer." Ulysses said. "Initiate site to site transport. Three to beam to the Flag Bridge." The whine of the transporter filled his ears and his vision flashed bright blue/white. Then he was standing on the flag bridge of the most advanced and powerful warship in the known universe. He tapped his com badge. "Vanguard to Heidberg, what's your status?"
- ISS Athena, Slipstream Core Alpha -
The massive transparent orb that contained the pulsating, lightning like plasma which capped the Quantum Slipstream Core was finally online again. Emergency backup generators dropped out of the circuit to recharge as the massive power of the QSS engine again flooded through the arterial conduits of the monolithic monitor. So redundant was the ships power system that even while on backup, most major systems were still fully online. Hence no one noticed when the mains came back online. Instead of the heartbeat like thrum of a warp core, the QSS core was more felt than heard. Cmdr. Heidberg was by now old hat at QSS engines, for the fleet had been using them for a few years already, and he had been one of the first to train on them. This one's readings showed perfectly within tolerances and at optimal power generation. Walking around the catwalk that surrounded the sunken orb of the QSS core, Clay heard the voice of Ulysses Vanguard cutting through the quiet background noise of the primary engineering section of the Athena.
"I was just about to com you sir. We have success, Slipstream Core Alpha is hot, locked and ready to rock sir." Heidberg said.
"Well done Cmdr. Prepare for a micro jump back to the battle fleet. Bring shields, armor and weapons fully online. Lets see just what this big momma can do. Vanguard out." On the holo display, the gruesome, strangely beautiful carnage of a deep space battle continued. But the balance was about to shift decidedly in the home teams favor.