I had boarded the Enterprise without any problems arising. Here I was, in my quarters, unpacked and ready for whatever happened. Which is to say…nothing. Nothing at all was happening. There were no sudden attacks by Klingons, no sudden radiation leaks, no problem with the engines; no immediate danger. And I was bored out of my mind.

I headed down to sick bay, thinking maybe Dr. McCoy could tell me how to stay…not-bored.

The long hallways of the Enterprise made it feel so massive, so enormous, so frightening. What the hell are you doing here? I thought to myself. This is insane. You're out in the middle of nowhere, and you're seventeen years old. If mom could see you now… A sudden twinge of pain shot through me. Oh, if only my mom was here to see me…

Before I knew it I was down in sick bay.

"What do you need, Wolf?" McCoy said, not looking up from the medical chart in his hand.

"Oh, uh, erm, sorry sir. I'll come back at another time." I answered.

He looked up before I could turn and walk away, "What do you need?"

I grimaced. "I'm kind of just…bored."

He gave a faint smile. "Well. That can easily be fixed. Why don't I show you the 637 different types of parasitic worms we've so far discovered, out here in the darkness of space? I've got all the records right here, in the ship's library. You know, for when you want some light readin'."

I grinned. "If you're trying to turn me off, Doctor, you're gonna have to find something that's not so awesome. I'd love to see your worms."

After I had finished the manual, I had so much more information about the ways people could die out here. Especially the Enterprise; out in the middle of nowhere, exploring strange planets we knew nothing about. And yet I was still bored. It felt like something was missing, but I couldn't put my finger on what it was.

I was in my quarters organizing my collection of old earth fossils when I heard the whistle sound off, and the Russian boy, Chekov, began to speak,

"Angela Volf, report to ze bridge immediately. Angela Volf, to ze bridge."

For a moment, I felt sheer panic. Why was I wanted on the bridge? I forced myself to block out the feeling, gathered myself, and headed for the bridge. As I walked down the halls, nobody seemed to notice me at all. They all had their own things to do, their own places to go. I was simply one crewmen among the hundreds on board. I was tiny. I entered the lift and took a deep breath. The panic was starting to come back and this time I could not force it away. The lift zipped open. "Permission to enter the bridge." My voice came out unexpectedly strong, there was no waver.

"Permission granted." The voice came from the Captain's chair. Crap, this is it. I get to meet the Captain. I get to meet Kirk.

I stepped forward, my very first time on the bridge of the USS Enterprise. Not many people would ever set foot here. I took a deep breath as I felt a wave of energy surge through me. I quickly marched towards the Captain's chair.

"Sir." I nodded. And there he was. Captain James T. Kirk. The living legend. He doesn't look like much, I thought. How old is he, 25? He barely looks old enough to drink, let alone command a starship.

"Miss Wolf." He said. A small nervous laugh escaped me, and the bridge members turned to look at me. My eyes glanced towards the ceiling, I was irritated at myself. Contain yourself. You're not in trouble for anything. You can't be. You didn't do anything wrong…did you?

"Something funny, doctor?" The Captain asked.

He called me doctor? Oh my gosh, I am a doctor. I'm a frickin scientist. Why did it take so long for me to realize?

"Nervous laughter, sir. Not many new crewmembers are suddenly called to the bridge for no apparent reason."

Kirk smiled. "First time in space, doctor?" I nodded. "Well, now that you know all about the dangers out here on these planets, especially the worms," When he said that, I figured McCoy must have said something to the Captain. Is that why I'm here? Did I do something to insult McCoy? Kirk continued speaking, "Maybe, given it's your first time, you'd like to see what space really looks like when you're actually in the middle of it. What it's like looking out at the dangerous frontier."

"Sorry, sir?" I had been paying strict attention to what he was saying, but for some reason it didn't really compute.

The Captain nodded towards the viewscreen. I turned and stared, eyes wide. We had apparently dropped out of warp and were just outside a nebula. It was a canvas of beautiful colors, swirling around and blending together like some painter's abstract.

"I don't remember seeing this one in the records." I said, staring at the nebula's amazing blue color; soft, like the color of a jay-bird.

"Nope. Completely new. Was just discovered a little while ago, hasn't made it to the books yet. And here we are, the second starship to ever set eyes upon this."

I stood there, staring at it. It was huge. Whole solar systems would come from it, and those planets would later give life to entire cultures, and brand new species. History in the making. Life in the making.

Kirk stood up. "Welcome aboard." He said, as he walked towards the lift. "Sulu, you have the conn. Me and Spock are gonna go play some chess." He clapped Spock on the back as he walked by. I stood there, not sure what to do. Kirk entered the lift and stared at me for a second. He nodded at me and said, "Well? Come on." I quickly walked forward and stepped onto the lift, Spock right behind me.

"You ever played chess, doctor?" Kirk asked.

I grinned. "Never in my life, Captain. But I'm definitely willing to try."