NOTE: Ziggy's story is taken from the movie "The man who fell to earth" with David Bowie. An absolutely lovely film from the 70's that broke my heart. It is also a book by Walter Tervis, which I'm trying to find in my library. No copyright infringement intended but the story line was simply too awesome not to use. Most of it comes from the film but I added a few details of my own to the mix.

"My home planet was named Anthea. It was bigger than this planet with a rich soil that grew any plant you could imagine. We shared Anthea with three other races in a peaceful harmony. We hadn't fought for dominion over the planet in millennia and so we lived in equality and peace. But some thought that was too simple and war came back to Anthea.

"It began with a simple slogan - very similar to Germany's 'Wir sind das Volk' or 'we are the people'. The campaign leaders overtook our federation and soon a war broke out. Neighbour against neighbour, friend against friend, brother against brother. But that wasn't the worst of it. No, soon enough weapons were used that destroyed parts of our atmosphere and caused seasonal changes unlike anything we'd ever seen.

"I was a scientist, my entire family was devoted to science, and it was my job to find new ways to kill our enemies. I came up with the nuclear weapon that caused our planet to dry out. It was my fault and so, when the war ended I was charged with murder. But by then the drought had killed so many that no one cared about anything but surviving.

"So, I came up with a plan. My wife and two kids begged me to remain on planet because they firmly believe everything would be okay. But by then, our plants were wilted, our water dried up, sand began to cover every inch of Anthea and clouds covered our collapsing atmosphere. I built a ship out of scrap and leaving my family behind to die, I left Anthea in search of this planet called Earth.

"Earth to us meant water, that was our native word for your planet, Captain Kirk, water. When I arrived I made money and began to build a way to get back home with enough space on the ship for any surviving member of my planet. But I was discovered and taken into custody. By the time I got out, I was addicted to alcohol and my physical appearance had been altered by experiments.

"It was the 1970's, you see, no one knew of aliens in those times. It was all sci-fi and fiction to them. They let my family, my people, die by keeping me jailed up and they didn't care. I begged to be let out, told them I would leave and never come back but no one listened. All they saw was a freaky alien who had managed to slip under the radar for years and pretend to be human.

"I got out and found my craft but by that time my planet had collapsed on itself, become a supernova, taking away everyone I knew and loved. I flew to where my planet was and found nothing... I was heart broken," Ziggy looked down at his thin shaking, upturned hands. His palms were riddled with scars and his fingertips looked burnt off. His fingers were a white colour that seemed like they were painted. Jim looked at Ziggy as he closed his hands into a fist and crossed his arms over his chest, wrapping his crossed arms around his thin body.

Ziggy looked melancholy as he looked up to Captain Kirk, tilting his head to the side. His blond bangs fell over his strange eyes and the visors on the bridge of his nose. He sniffed once and, straightening in his seat, began to silently hum to himself. Jim sat back in his seat, trying to process all the information he'd been given by the alien. He knew know that his initial thoughts were correct. The man was lonely and perhaps depressed but he had no ill intentions for anyone but himself. He'd seen enough war and destructions to last him a lifetime and, given his tale had taken place nearly 1,050 years ago, he's forgiven everyone but himself.

"How is it that you look so young after so many years?" Jim asked after a while.

Ziggy looked at Jim, stopping his humming to answer with a shrug. "I do not know. The scientist who held me captive experimented with my physiology many times and perhaps they altered some part of my DNA with one of them." He laughed mirthlessly and added, "they glued my human contacts to my natural yellow eyes using an x-ray machine after I told them I could see the x-ray flash. It was very painful, I assure you, and yet they did nothing to alleviate my pain."

"Earth, at that time, was very chaotic. By the 1990's there was chemical warfare and such, there were dictators and revolutions. War and death unlike anything before," Jim told him. "You certainly didn't arrive at a time where people like yourself would have been welcomed in with open arms."

"It matters not," Ziggy said, running his thin hands through his hair. He rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. "The past is the past. It is mine to deal with, not yours to apologize for. I have gotten over it, being a captive for so long. My planet is a whole other story but I hope to one day stop what happened in Anthea from happening to another planet and another race."

"You could come with us," Spock said as he approached the two conversing men. He sat down by Jim and turned to Ziggy. "I apologize, I did not mean to overhear but you could come back to Earth. You could train at the Star Fleet academy and catch up with the times. From what you've told the Captain, you sound like a very accomplished scientist and I don't think Star Fleet would pass up the opportunity to have a brilliant mind such as yourself in its side."

"I don't know," Ziggy replied. "It's been such a long time since I've been to earth. Hell, it's been a long time since I've been around people." He paused. His hand rose to touch his lower lip, gently tracing it as he thought Spock's offer over in his head. With a nod, he stood and said, "I will consider the offer, Mr. Spock. I will have an answer before you and your company leave. I thank you for your compliment although I'm sure you would say they were facts."

"They were," Spock agreed. "But you are welcomes nonetheless." He turned to Jim and said, "Captain preparations are in order and Mr. Scott is awaiting your command to begin beaming down the crew members."

"Thank you, Spock, I'll just go give Scottie a call. It was nice chatting with you, Ziggy. Thank you for sharing your tale with me."

"It was my pleasure, Captain," the alien replied. He waited until Jim was out of earshot before turning to Spock with a sad smile. "Would it be a bother to ask if I could get a look around your ship? Perhaps you could give me a tour and explain all the advance that have been made."

"It would be my honour," Spock replied. "As we are guest on your planet, you are a guest on our ship."