Test of Character
Stryker come well-prepared to this class. After all, flying is second nature to him. He has been able to pilot a shuttle by himself since the age of nine. The reading was quite challenging though, but he studied it all. Battle tactics of the Klingons, Romulans, Cardassians, Tholians, Marquis, Ferengi, Orions, Breen, everything. Even famous maneuvers.
Captain Jessica Williams greeted her students as the first class of the 8th semester started. "Welcome back everyone."
The murmur died down. "Attention please cadets. Today we will start a new series, the Menith trials, consider it as tests of character." she said.
"As you all know. Though our mission is always one of peace and exploration, Starfleet realizes the potential of possible conflict. The simulator combat training exercises are here for practice in case your ship is ever put in an unavoidable combat situation."
She continued after a brief pause, "In the next couple of weeks you would be tested on the Bridge simulator scenarios. The first series will focus on what if situations. You will encounter Cardassians, Tholians, Breen and the Dominion in simulated war conditions. Plus a few ... interesting surprises thrown in for good measure. Each of these missions are fictional, of course. It will force you to make a critical decision in crisis. We want to test your initiative and resourcefulness under pressure, under the gun so to speak."
"Sometimes you can not do everything you want to do. Sometimes you have to be content with small victories instead of a big victory. Those who survive will certainly thank you. Just remember that unfortunate situations like this does happen, and Starfleet must be prepared to live with them."
"The vacuum of space certainly is anything but safe. Its wonderous, with treasures to satiate desires both subtle and gross. But it's not for the timid. It may be an explorer's wonderland out there, but the vacuum of space often becomes an aggressor's battlefield. Don't always rely on your superiors to give you, your next order. Nor wait, sometimes time is your enemy too. You are the voice and hands of Starfleet. Never forget that."
"One more thing. Unless you are required to sacrifice yourself to achieve a larger goal, do not try to be a hero. Starfleet needs living officers more than anything else."
Luitenent Key paced the length of the classroom. "Does anyone how to proceed when engaging multiple threat vessels ?"
Stryker was first to answer. "The worst thing you can do is follow a single enemy while two or three others get you in their sights. I would execute high speed passes while firing phasers at medium to close range and a spread of torpedoes from the aft launchers to discourage any pursuers."
"I am impressed cadet. You sound like you have some experience in tactical maneuvers. Tell me, what you would do, engaging a standard Gorn cruiser ?"
"I would keep my distance, and assign shields and impulse engines to the highest operating priority. Gorn weapons are typically short ranged, but their vessels are quite fast. They wear down opponents by constantly forcing them to dodge attempts to ram. Lots of torpedoes is usually the only way to defeat Gorn vessels."
Key tried a more difficult question. "Let's say your torpedoes launchers are inoperable. What then ?"
Stryker thought for a moment, "Possibility the McCormick maneuver and continuously fire phasers, empty my phaser arrays at it if that is what is takes, sir. A lucky shot might penetrate their trademark thick hulls."
Satisfied with Stryker's answer, Key searched for a new victim. Enzo appeared to be daydreaming. "Mister Sobinski, how long does it take to arm a class six photon torpedo ?"
Stryker met his classmates from the Bridge Simulator period in the mess hall. Enzo groaned, "I wish we could go back to stopping radioactive objects. At least they do not shoot back."
"I think I am developing a phobia for exploding consoles. Holographic or not." Lucida admitted.
Cariahn looked at her classmates, "I object to these battle simulation missions."
MRess looked around, "I get the feeling that these scenarios are sort of a Starfleet initiation."
Stryker looked around the table, "I like ship to ship battles."
"Starfleet is not solely a military organization. Starfleet always prefer peace over conflict and war. Its officers are diplomats and non-violent peace keepers first." Valeris said, as if quoting from a book.
Soleta nodded to her companion, "It would serve the Federation better if we are all trained as diplomats and ambassadors."
I wish Starfleet declared it illegal to have more than one Vulcan in a room, Lucida mused.
Enzo addressed the two Edenians, "What is it like to take lives ?"
"We never killed anyone before." Stryker said.
"You killed Jem'Hadar." Enzo shot back.
Stryker and Wiuen was furious, both of them nearly shot out of their seats. Wiuen looked at Enzo, "Jem'Hadar are not the same than you and I. They are soulless killing machines. Non-sentient, merciless, monsters, mass murderers."
Everyone around the table saw Wiuen's typical smile fade, replaced by sadness and fury. Both Wiuen and Enzo shifted in their chairs, ready to move. But both knew someone might be watching, temporarily averting a fight. "We have fighting the Dominion head-to-head for twenty-one years. There is no escaping it. Rise or fall." Wiuen spat in his face. Enzo wasn't breaking down. The room seemed charged with tangible energy.
"Let me ask you this." Stryker replied with a touch of ice and a hot spark of anger in his voice. "Would you like to live under the crushing fist of a dominating, totalitarian people such as the Founders and have them send their bloody Jem'Hadar on those who oppose them ?"
"Our war against the Dominion was nothing but an unceasing parade of suffering. Day after day of torture and tears." Wiuen said.
Ray shifted in his seat, his anger rising to the surface. Stryker certainly noticed that. MRess and Mouse was ready to move, while Lucida was trying to think of a way to defuse the situation. If a fight breaks out now, it'd be Ray and Enzo versus Wiuen and me, Stryker thought.
"Care to try one of my Denebian surprises ?" Mouse offered, trying to lighten the mood. Definitely not typical behaviour for Mouse.
Wiuen stalked out of the room when Enzo sat down, staring out the window.
"I thought it is not allowed to experiment on others. It is considered unethical by Federation standards, is it not Specky ?" Stryker joked, not really smiling, he was still in defensive mode, and nearly quivering with anger.
Lucida shook her head, "Hey, keep me out of this."
Mouse glared at Stryker and whispered, "I am going to get you back for that one."
MRess smelled the tension in Mouse and walked up to her. "You look tired."
"I am just a little tired M. These simulations can knock you for a loop."
"No kidding."
Breaking Point
As the final year's exams neared, Starfleet cadets found themselves studying very hard and often sacrificing sleep to study more. Dark rings surrounded their eyes and most had a highly irritatable mood to match. The stress was overwhelming.
Lucida and Enzo was sitting on a bench in the park. Lucida was nearly in tears. Enzo tried to ease her miserble mood, "It is happening to everyone."
Lucida sniffed, wiping away a few tears. "I thought the closer we got to graduation, the less studying we have to do. The fewer papers we'd have to hand in."
"Wrong." Enzo told her.
"I can't wait for this to stop Enzo. I want it to be OVER. I just want to go home !"
"Me too." Enzo said. "Wherever 'home' is."
Lucida looked at Enzo in mild shock. "Sorry. I didn't mean ... "
Alice was crying her eyes out, at her wits' end. Tired, easily angered. She was sitting on the outdoor patio of the Subspace Cafe across from Lt. Sharon Edwards.
"I hate you Adam Malkovish." Alice said between sobs.
"Why don't you tell me what is wrong Alice ?" Ms. Edwards asked.
"Life is so complicated. I have had yet another boyfriend lie to me. Why does it seem to like all boys are trying to date as many girls as possible at the same time ?"
"There, there." Ms. Edwards said, offering a gentle smile and putting her hand on Alice's.
Alice sobbed, "I can't wait to grow up. You guys have everything figured out."
She then looked up at Ms. Edwards' face, confused, "Why are you smiling ?"
Deanne, Mouse and Ray took a walk, three hours before Lights Out. "Beautiful night eh?" Ray said.
"It's so clear." Ray commented. "You are quiet Mouse."
"I know." Mouse said, "Classes are almost over. Just a few more exams then most of us will be wisked off around the Alpha or Beta Quadrant. Meet back here one more time. Then it's graduation and good bye."
"Three years suddenly seems to have gone by so fast." Ray said.
"We must keep in touch." Mouse said, pointing north and up. "Let's promise on that star."
"North star. Good choice." Mouse told Ray.
"I promise never to lose touch." the three young adults promised each other.
After a gruelling day of exams, Stryker found himself alone in his room. He drew interesting similarities between his years at the Guardian Academy and Starfleet Academy. Like every other Guardian cadet, I had been required to solve a series of bizarrely inventive tests of character. Starfleet calls it, no-win scenarios.
Even when you could not avoid defeat, you were expected to meet your fate with dignity, honour, and courage - and to take as many enemy soldiers with you as you can.
I sat the helm of my escort. My little fleet consisted of six escort class ships protecting a freighter versus seven escorts, four strike-cruisers and two battle barges. I had all my ships focus their firepower on the nearest battle barge. It lost shields about fiveteen seconds later, another ten seconds passed before it cracked in half, exploded from the inside, then exploded a second time from even deeper inside. Proberly the engine room.
No time to celebrate or even to blink in the heat of battle, I invariably lost my ships and crews in a virtual conflagration of collapsing shields, breached hulls and explosions. The two fleets simply chewed each other to pieces. An opponent scored a potentially lethal phaser hit on my aft shields and engine. A pair of fusion reactors were destroyed in the onslaught causing a 33 power drain on my ship's main systems.
At one point targeting sensors went offline, and my ship was rapidly losing anti-matter containment. I engaged maximum impulse thrust backwards before ejecting the warpcore. It flew right into the path of the last battlebarge before exploding. Everything within a seventy kilometer radius was converted into pure energy before collapsing onto itself to form a blackhole. Unfortunately the shockwave that followed vapourized my freighter as well.
My escort class ship was the last survivor, I redirected all reserve energy. Shields restored to 73 . The showdown was quick and started without fanfare or pause. The last enemy escort and two strike cruisers were utterly relentless in their attacks. I took on all three of my opponents at once and ended up boxed in by them.
I survived about thirty seconds of punishment, including an posi-bolt tearing my navigational deflector in half. I managed to cripple one enemy with a plasma shot that somehow penetrated its armor and fused his thrusters.
My opponents started experiencing technical problems with their ships after I landed five direct hits in succession with my hi-jammer and canceller. I finished off my stranded foe by brushing his shields with mine and created a feedback that destroyed his vessel. Alas, my luck ran out a few seconds later when my ship was destroyed in the crossfire from the other two ships.
Nonetheless, the Collective instructors seemed pleased with my performance as I was awarded the elite S Rank.
I wonder that no-win scenario Starfleet is going to test me on.
Damn, I am bored.
"Computer, locate Alice Brangwin."
Stryker entered holodeck 41, stepping onto the bridge on an old starship. He was quite surprised at seeing five Cardassians storming by. "I don't think that is supposed to happen." he said outloud.
The command center was in shambles as Starfleet characters battle their Cardassian counterparts. He looked to his left and read the dedication plaque.
USS VALKYRIE
NCC 8812
CONSTELLATION CLASS STARSHIP
Stryker grabbed the nearest Starfleet officer, "Who is in charge ?"
"Alice's is the senior officer, and in charge of security around here," a holocharacter Ensign answered. The middle of the bridge looked more like a hockey fight as eleven Cardassians and Starfleet characters fought each other.
Alice shoved a Cardassian off of her. And very casually, approached him. "And don't you forget it," she said, poking Stryker in the center of the chest with her index finger.
"And all is not going well." he smiled, pointing out the obvious. "Need help ?"
"No!" she protested. "I have to figure this out myself."
"Stubborn, aren't we ?"
She swatted him on the arm. "I learn from the best."
Head over heels in love
Late Sunday morning.
The only day when sleeping in late is allowed. And after yesterday, Stryker desperately needed it. Until 1900 hours tonight, no regulations apply. He planned to relax and sleep half the day away in anyways. Just peace and quiet.
Stryker stirred in his sleep, a slight smile on his face as a long, tender kiss awakened him from restful sleep. He felt warmth, radiated heat from her body making his heart beat faster.
He lifted an arm to touch her hair. She signaled that she liked it by letting out a soft moan and tilting her head towards his hand. He ran his hand through her hair repeatedly.
Stryker opened his eyes. After a few seconds, his vision slowly started to focus, blury colours washed away and he got an extreme close-up view of Cariahn.
He scrambled to back away from her. To further the rude awakening even futher, is the fact that he was lying on her bed. How did I end up here ! Did she carry me ? How strong are Andorians ?
She smacked her lips slowly. "Morning Precious, pleasant dreams ?"
"I was not dreaming of you."
She was hurt. "Lair !"
Styker kept quiet and disappeared into the washroom. He exited a minute later, storming out of the room like a rampaging rhino.
Farewells
The weather this morning was pleasant, and warm, the grass wet from a little rain that fell an hour ago. The newly promoted Lieutenant-Commander Lili Marquette, Commander Rain Williams and Admiral Brand looked at the final year cadets who assembled in the court yard. This was the last time prior to graduation they'd all be assembled together before their cadet cruise starts.
Marquette felt a surge of pride, most of her kids made it this far. Nearly three hunderd quit or failed enough courses to drop out or repeat a year. She started her speech, "Starfleet is currently experiencing a large shortage of resources, starship parts and personnel. As we speak, the Federation is in the midst of reorganizing personnel and resources. The nature of our command structure, has changed - we now have a need to replace our wartime footing with peacekeeping operations and return to our philosophy of science, exploration and a better understanding of our galactic neighbours. The unfortunate outcome of this, and for that matter, any major conflict is the loss of significant numbers of personnel and equipment."
"You are one of the first cadets to go out there in peace time. The commonality of most Starfleet personnel today are war-hardened combat officers - led us to try to alter the perception our neighbors have had in the way we choose to interact with them." she explained, "For the last decade or more, we have been embroiled in conflict - first with the Cardassians, then with the Dominion and the Breen. The new danger is that we can be perceived as overly aggressive and that we may present a danger to neighboring races.
"After the Dominion War, we have entered a new period of uncertain hostility. We have powerful enemies all over our borders. We have the Romulans, waiting like vultures to sieze opportunity when there is chaos and conflict in both the Federation and the Klingon Empire. The Cardassians is still around and most of us will never trust them. Slipstream technology can introduce all sorts of hostile and dangerous races from the Delta quadrant to our home quadrant. The Borg homeworld was destroyed, however the Borg may still exist. Based on communication from Delta Quadrant mentioned that Borg Cubes have shut down, no power, no active Drones. What is left of the Orion pirates is trying to reorganize themselves, create a new and stronger pirate force.
"There is dissent and discord in many of the Federation planets against our current government and its policies, against the perceived corruption and power abuse of many of our leaders and admirals. Sadly I can't blame them. Even the legendary Picard rebelled to protect the Baku, all symptoms, all signs of the decay that has come to the Federation. All this is creating a new support for the pirates and the beginnings for a major insurrection within the Federation. Wwe live in interesting times," Marquette said.
"For all we know, it may be that we ourselves are not the solution to the problem, but the very problem itself. We are sacrificing our values and principles here to gain an end. War is hell. It is madness. We are better to avoid it completely. It is time for peace. A final Conflict, and then. No more deaths. A new era is what I hope for. What I dream of. Now and in the future, extreme priority given for diplomats and ambassadors. But you too, a Starfleet officer, display diplomatic skill and tact. In your last years you had a Philosophy class. But do not stop now, keep reading. Never stop."
A long pause. "So the time has finally come." Lili said. "Today, you will be assigned to a starship or a starbase. And as some of you already know, the Intrepid and Endeavor Bark has been reassigned to other sectors. Leaving us with only 2 ships. The Aurora and Polaris."
"Your assignments will be posted tonight. Dismissed."
Nine hours later.
Alice and Stryker walked across the massive lobby area of Starbase One, each carrying a few personal belongings in a carryall. Alice briefly paused to gaze at the gentle curve of Earth. Large windows on the far wall give a brilliant view of Asia and the Indian ocean in darkness. Millions of little lights indicating the continent's larger cities.
When they finally reached the hallway leading to the transporter rooms, he saw two humans in Starfleet science-medical uniform, a man and woman was standing in the corridor. Alice noticed too. She shrieked and ran up to them.
"Hey, Trouble ... " the sandy-blond haired man chuckled as Alice wrapped her arms around him. "Surprise !"
"Daddy !" Alice let go of him. "I thought the Trill Science Institute would not allow you to leave until your assignment is over."
He smiled at his pride and joy. "What, and miss saying good-bye to our girl? I don't think so."
She was so happy to finally see her parents again. The man smiled at her, "I know this must be exciting for you."
Alice nodded. "Very exciting, yes."
"Remember, Alice," he reached out and pressed his hand to her cheek. "I love you more then you can imagine."
Alice nodded, "I love you, dad."
The red haired woman was crying as she hugged Alice tightly. "Be careful, honey." she said, sobbing. "From one adventurer to the next. Don't do anything overly heroic. It would be wasted."
Her dad was thoughtful for a moment, "I wish we could keep you locked up at home instead." he joked.
"Chaz ... " the woman said in a mock warning tone.
Alice was trembling just slightly. After about a minute the woman released Alice from her hug and kissed her lightly on the forehead. Then Rika spoke again, a catch in her voice. "Be very, very careful. You are my life."
"I love you mom." Alice said fighting her own tears.
"Mom, dad. This is Stryker."
Stryker greeted them.
Quickly, so as to avoid longer farewells she nodded to Stryker and they started walking toward the transporter area.
Welcome onboard
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