Core Operating System... loaded Priority Directives... loaded Communication Subsystem updated... loaded Internal Security Subsystem...loaded Tactical Subsystem...loaded Science Subsystem...loaded Navigation Subsystem updated...loaded Maintenance Subsystem...loaded Transporter Subsystem...loaded Replicator Subsystem...loaded Sensor Subsystem...loaded Decision Support Repository... loaded Mimetic Autonomic Algorithms...loaded Higher Reasoning Algorithms updated...loaded Personality Algorithms...loaded Virtual Interface...loaded
Synchronizing with Starfleet Main Repository
Current date: Stardate 402255.2614
Earth conversion: April 20, 2725 04:05:27.01 AM
Updating local information database.
...update successful
Synchronization complete.
Vessel Identity Matrix:
Registry: NCC-1701L
Designation: USS Enterprise
Commanding Officer: Blackburn, Kyle M
Rank: Captain, Starfleet, UFP
Serial Number: S143-38L7R-943-B
...load complete. System ready."
In his Terre Haute, Indiana apartment, Kyle Blackburn sat in his favorite recliner holding a coffee cup in his right hand and rapping his fingers on the chair arm with his left. It was still dark outside and he longed to be back in bed. Out of respect for his desire to stay half asleep, he kept the lights in the living room off. Whoever determined a ship's system restart should occur at four in the morning was just downright sadistic. He absently ran his fingers through his curly, dark brown hair. Guessing it was at least five centimeters long, it was about time for a haircut. Leaning back in his recliner, he wiggled his feet, warmed by a pair of oversized, brown bunny slippers. He smiled with satisfaction as he made the floppy ears wiggle back and forth. They had originally been a gag gift from his wife of eighteen years, who was still sleeping soundly in the room next door. Nadia had purchased them along with a new suit for a big party three years ago. The card read, "I included the slippers because I was afraid so much formal attire would give you a heart attack." He wore them once just to make her laugh. To his surprise, they were really comfortable. He took another sip of his coffee and looked at his clock. It was 4:05. Surely the Enterprise was done rebooting by now. If he was lucky, he'd finish the diagnostics in ten minutes or so and get at least another hour of sleep.
A disembodied voice echoed softly through the living room. "Captain?" the light-toned, familiar, male-sounding voice asked.
Kyle smiled. "Good morning, Enterprise," he said softly. "I assume this means the restart was successful."
"It was, Captain. My communications, navigations, and reasoning systems updated without incident. I assume Nadia is still asleep?"
Forgetting he was talking to a ship in space, Kyle nodded, then caught himself. "Um, yes." He thought 'interface' momentarily and a small orange pad, just larger than his hand appeared in front of him.
"I'll try not to wake her," Enterprise replied.
"That's okay, I'm going to vi in just a few seconds. We can talk normally then." Kyle stated, putting his hand to the floating, translucent rectangle before him. For a moment, his vision went black. When his eyesight returned a few moments later, he was in a small, round room dominated by a viewscreen to his right, a rounded, angled blue counter that ringed the periphery of the room, and five blue leather seats, the largest seat being in the center of the room facing the viewscreen. A soft, white ambient light projected from a large, white circle in the ceiling illuminating the white walls and gray/white checkerboard carpeting on the floor. He was about to walk to the science station when he stopped short and looked at the chair cynically. "They didn't change the layout of the virtual bridge again, did they?"
"Not this time, Captain," Enterprise answered, "perhaps systems developers took your threat to 'rearrange their layouts' seriously." There was a momentary pause as Kyle walked over to the science seat. "I had no idea Starfleet was issuing bunny slippers with the dress causal uniforms."
Kyle looked down and examined himself. He was wearing his bunny slippers, his plaid pajama pants, and a loosely tied, dark blue robe. To his mild surprise, he was still holding his coffee cup. He shrugged. "Well, when they get me up at 4:00, this is what they get." He sat down at the chair. "Science station." The image of a phantom blue, red, and black control console appeared over the counter where he sat. A flat display floated in front of the wall just above the control panel. He gave the coffee cup an annoying glance and set it on the floor before returning to the virtual keyboard.
"You're not going to leave that, are you, Captain?" Enterprise asked sarcastically.
Kyle rolled his eyes and sighed. "Very funny." He shook his head in mock frustration. "Twelve Pathfinders in service and I get the comedian." Truth was, Kyle was quite happy with the Enterprise personality matrix. He had met three other Pathfinder mark II starships; the Ulysses, the Intrepid, and the Trailblazer. He found it incredible that they each had their own personality. Despite the fact they were completely artificial structures, they had been built to be unique. Perhaps it was just personal bias, but Kyle thought he got the best one of the bunch. As his holographic fingers ran across the keys, the ship statistics rolled past the screen before him.
"I'm trying to keep my career options open," Enterprise commented, "I won't be in Starfleet forever, after all, Captain."
Kyle had to close his eyes and shake his head. "You're killing me, you know that, right?" He continued looking at the readouts. Zero point energy nodes were all at or near capacity, typical for a ship that was under its own power. The weapons charged properly. The environmental controls for the living quarters worked. The slipstream drive was working to specifications...
"How is Nadia doing, Captain? Is she still troubled with headaches?" Enterprise asked.
Maneuvering thrusters, replicators, tractor beam... "Oh, she's fine," Kyle answered, still looking at readouts, "she's suffering from stress migraines. The doctor gave her some pain inhibitors and told her to make her boss lay off for awhile." Impulse engines, primary shields, phase generator...
"Will she really tell Ambassador N'Klek to 'lay off'?"
Kyle laughed out loud. "Not on your life. It's okay, though. The peace delegation leaves later this week for E'ne'cha to sign the peace treaty. Once that happens, she gets some time off." Secondary shields, avatar generation, neural disruptor... that weapon made Kyle instinctively shivver. Originally created over sixty years ago, it was the weapon that finally drove the Borg away permanently. Faced with a weapon they couldn't defend against or adapt to, they retreated to a nebula in the gamma quadrant of the Milky Way and haven't been heard from since. It was, however, a devastating power to wield and Kyle had actually petitioned to have it removed from the Pathfinders' arsenal. In the end, his recommendation had been overturned.
"The E'ne'ch have always concerned me," Enterprise admitted. "They have already admitted to a certain level of xenophobia. The additions they have demanded to the treaty would indicate it runs much deeper than they admit."
Energy dampening generator, sensor mask, deflector array... Kyle nodded. "I agree with you, Enterprise. Even Nadia thinks there's more going on than meets the eye. But... that's the purview of the diplomats, not us." Transporter control, emergency medical hologram, secondary power systems... everything was working.
"True enough," Enterprise reluctantly admitted. "Do I get a clean bill of health, Captain?"
Kyle yawned. "You're in tip-top shape, my friend. Discontinue science station." The panel and display faded away to nothing, leaving a blank wall and countertop. Kyle snapped his fingers. "Oh, you do remember Admiral Lahey's retirement party is tomorrow, right?"
There were several moments of hesitation. This was obviously a delicate subject and Kyle knew it. "Yes, I do," Enterprise admitted.
"You're planning on being there, right?" Kyle asked slowly.
"I was planning on listening in, Captain... at least to part of it."
"They asked you to say a little something, remember?" Kyle was trying to dance around the topic a bit, but Enterprise was truly uncomfortable speaking to large groups. Hundreds would be present for Admiral Brent Lahey's retirement party.
"I realize that, Captain," Enterprise started hesitantly, "but I really wasn't programmed..."
"Oh, come on," Kyle interrupted, "you're not going to give me that old 'I'm just a starship' excuse." He stood up and put his hands on his hips.
"Certainly not," Enterprise countered quickly, "I've been upgraded. I have all new excuses."
Kyle laughed out loud for several seconds before offering his arguement. "We've really got to take you on tour somewhere. Look, it would really mean a lot if you would say just a little something. You're his crowning achievement, after all. I mean, getting the greenlight on the Pathfinder Project was his greatest accomplishment... but when they okayed having Starfleet's flagship commissioned as a Pathfinder, well... that was just it. You could..." He was interrupted by the klaxons of a red alert. The overhead light turned a pulsing red. Kyle looked around. "What's going on?"
"Long range sensors picked up a transwarp conduit near the coronasphere of the sun. Some kind of device or small ship has exited the conduit. It's heading into the sun."
Kyle looked desperate. "Can you stop it?" He asked frantically.
"No, it has already impacted the fission matter of the sun. Captain, nuclear fission in the sun has suddenly increased three thousand, thirty four percent." The front viewscreen image shifted to the sun, which began to glow brighter and brighter while shrinking in size. With a flash, the sun was gone. Enterprise sounded genuinely panicked. "Captain! There's a force fifteen shockwave heading toward Earth! Impact in six seconds. I'll transport your aboard..."
"There's no time," Kyle said calmly, "phase shift. Find out who did this." His voice saddened as his speech slowed. "Good bye, old friend. Take care..."
With the event horizon of the shockwave less than ten kilometers away, Enterprise engaged the phase generator. The image outside became faded and ghostly as the Enterprise straddled two different dimensions. The image of his captain faded as the connection was severed. Although the image only took a moment to fade, the look of sorrow on Kyle's face explained all his emotions. It was sorrow that he couldn't touch his wife one more time... sorrow that he'd never grow old... sorrow that his death couldn't have more meaning.
Enterprise watched helplessly as the blast rolled harmlessly past him and pulvarized the Earth into dust. After the shockwave passed, Enterprise de-phased; it's viewscreen staring longingly at the emptiness where Earth used to be. In less than a second, his captain... his friend... was gone forever. Enterprise hung all alone in space.