§ § § - sometime in 2282

Lauren stepped into a black void and stopped short, afraid she would collide with something or someone. Very slowly, she stretched an arm out, hand extended and fingers splayed as widely as possible, wondering what she would encounter. But she felt nothing at all, and the silence was as heavy as the darkness.

Then she remembered something she must have seen in some "Trek" episode and said loudly and clearly, "Lights." It was the magic word; her surroundings lit up and she realized she was in a starship cabin. There were four bunks, all empty at the moment.

She didn't remain the room's sole occupant for long. Behind her, the door (which she could have sworn she had just pulled shut by a knob) slid open with a familiar whooshing sound and someone walked right into her, all at once, before she had time to get out of the way. Staring up from the floor where she had landed in an ungraceful heap, she found herself eyeing another human female who appeared to be about her own age.

"Terribly sorry," the girl said, her voice carrying an accent that was British yet not British. "You're not hurt, are you? Mum always said I need to slow down and watch where I'm going."

"No, I'm fine," Lauren said, picking herself up and gathering her wits. "I guess you're one of my roommates. I'm Lauren McCormick."

"Kylie Garrison," replied the other girl. "Good to meet you. I'm from Canberra, what about you?"

"You mean...Australia?" Lauren ventured, and Kylie nodded. Impressed, Lauren stared at her.

"Wow," she said. "You're the first Australian I've ever met. I'm from Fantasy Island and mostly we get Americans. Canadians too, sometimes."

Kylie's reaction to this statement was identical to Lauren's of a moment ago. "No fooling! Fantasy Island? Always wanted to go there myself, it sounds lovely. Met anyone else yet?"

"No, you're the first one." Lauren crossed over to the bunks and sat down on one. "Do you know anything about our assignment?"

Kylie grinned. "Calling it an 'assignment' would be too good for it," she remarked. "The way I hear it, it's more of an experiment, and we're the guinea pigs. See, the 'Enterprise' is on its way to a small planet, Class M, uninhabited. One thousand beings from all over the quadrant are sharing this place to see if we can all get along. The catch is that we're all teenagers, or the equivalent thereof." Kylie took the bunk opposite Lauren and rested her elbows on her knees. "I think the geniuses who came up with this brainstorm had the idea that teenagers would adapt and adjust better than adults."

Lauren made a face. "Not if they're anything like my cousin Camille," she muttered. "All over the quadrant, you said? So does that mean we're getting Klingons and Romulans too?"

"That's the story," Kylie said. "This experiment's supposed to last a year. Of course, if anyone can't get along, or just gets homesick and wants his mum...or whatever passes for his mum...well, they can beam back up and head home. The ships stay in orbit a week after arrival to make sure we're all settled, and after they leave, there are twenty adults left behind on a supervisory basis, just to be sure things are going OK."

"And to report on our progress to whoever's in charge of this whole thing," Lauren added.

"Right," Kylie said. "Me, I dunno if I can make it a year. I don't even know why they picked me to do this thing. Some teacher of mine thought I was a good candidate, and I guess the people in charge agreed with her, so here I am. How'd you get here?"

Lauren cleared her throat loudly, trying to come up with an answer that sounded better than the real one. Finally she offered lamely, "I always wanted to do something like this." It was suitably vague, but not a lie, and it would have to do, she supposed.

Kylie chuckled. "Bored stupid on that lovely tropical paradise, were you? I s'pose I can see your point. Not much to do on a South Pacific island except lie on the beach and bake in the sun. I guess it must be pretty isolated and you were just dying to see the world. Can't say I blame you, except it's not quite the world you had in mind, I'm sure."

At that point the door whooshed open again and the girls were joined by two more companions. Lauren barely managed to keep from voicing her amazement, but couldn't seem to do anything about her staring. One of the girls was slender, very pretty, and completely bald; the other had a sleek cap of straight, blunt-cut black hair and gracefully pointed ears. Both were utterly expressionless, though they stared back at Lauren and Kylie just as avidly as Lauren and Kylie were staring at them.

At last Kylie said, "I take it you're our roomies. My name's Kylie Garrison, I'm from Australia on Earth."

The bald girl smiled in response and Lauren relaxed somewhat. "I am Inriya na'Khotorin of Delta. It is a pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise," Lauren croaked, amazed that her voice worked at all.

"I am T'Rala of Vulcan," the fourth girl said in a quiet, even voice. She was calm and composed; only her dark eyes, almost black, betrayed a hint of curiosity.

Lauren introduced herself and felt herself turning red when both Inriya and T'Rala gave her blank stares. "I have never heard of this place, Fantasy Island," Inriya said.

T'Rala said, "I have," thereby stunning Lauren. And with that, the Vulcan girl sat on the bunk beside Lauren, a couple of feet from her, regarding her with an openly curious expression now. "Perhaps you would be willing to enlighten me as to the purpose of the place you come from."

At a loss for words, Lauren stared at her for a moment. Kylie broke in, "She's trying to understand what Fantasy Island's all about, Lauren. Tell her."

Lauren blinked and composed herself. "Well...I sort of know the proprietor, Mr. Roarke. I guess he grants people their fantasies to help...fill a need. To give them a change of pace from their everyday lives. We sort of need that, us Earthers." She cleared her throat in embarrassment, sure that she would merely confuse T'Rala even further. "I guess that sounds pretty odd to you," she said apologetically. "But sometimes it's nice to do something you've always wanted to do. And with certain things, such as living out a dream you could never achieve otherwise, there's no way to do it except to come to Fantasy Island."

"And how does this...Mr. Roarke...bring these dreams to fruition?" T'Rala inquired, without so much as batting an eyelash. Lauren wondered crazily if she had been through Kohlinahr, but managed to refrain from blurting out such a gauche question.

"I don't know," Lauren admitted baldly. "Most people just say he must be magic. The whole island's supposed to be enchanted. I do know we have a lot of weird plants that can't be found anyplace else on Earth. As for the rest of it...I have no clue." She smiled sheepishly. "Sorry I can't be of more help."

T'Rala raised an eyebrow, reminding Lauren that she was on the Enterprise. When would she get to meet Captain Kirk, Spock, Dr. McCoy, Scotty, Lt. Uhura, Sulu and Chekov?

"That was enlightening," Inriya said unexpectedly. "And very interesting. I would enjoy seeing your Fantasy Island someday." She smiled at Lauren. "Perhaps after our stay on Spirit is over, I shall come to visit."

"Spirit?" Lauren echoed foolishly.

"As in 'Spirit of Achievement'," Kylie supplied and rolled her eyes. "If you ask me, that's a pretty ambitious sentiment for a bunch of teenagers. That's the name those geniuses I mentioned before came up with for the planet we're going to."

"Are you not excited to be a part of this?" Inriya asked Kylie in a breathy voice. "This is a truly historical undertaking, and I am very proud to be one of the chosen ones."

Kylie shrugged. "I'm reserving judgment till we get there. So what happened to the blokes who were eating with us earlier? Did you drop 'em down a Jefferies tube? That Scott Halloran sure deserved it."

Before anyone could reply, the door whooshed open one more time and an unfamiliar face looked in on them. "Lights out, ladies," the female ensign said briskly. "Arrival at Spirit is scheduled for oh-nine-hundred tomorrow, so you'll need to be rested and refreshed for the initiation once we get dirtside. Good night."

Kylie, Lauren and Inriya echoed this sentiment; T'Rala nodded once, and the ensign retreated, letting the door shut her out of sight. "Time for some shut-eye," Kylie said. "Guess I can use it. I'm bushed."

Lauren had to agree with her. She was already overwhelmed, and her fantasy had barely started!