Paint and Powder

A Star Trek anthology by Andrew Joshua Talon

DISCLAIMER: This is a non-profit fan based work of prose. Star Trek: The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager et al are the property of CBS Television, and creation of Gene Roddenberry. Please support the official release.

FIRST MEETINGS – PICARD

Riverside, Iowa, 2363

Written by jhosmer1

"Captain? Captain Picard?"

Jean-Luc Picard looked up from his PADD and smiled apologetically to the apparent young woman standing before him. "I'm sorry, I was lost in paperwork, Miss—?"

"Vestal," the young woman said, "I'm the caseworker assigned to Enterprise." She stood perfectly still as the shuttle banked and turned to land. "We're about to land."

Picard noted to himself that the AI's abbreviated "cosplay nun" outfit would identify her as a shipgirl, even if the name did not remind him. "Ah, yes, you're slated to get one of the new flying dockyards soon, aren't you?"

Vestal pouted. "I turned it down."

Raising an eyebrow, Picard asked, "Why?"

"Because they removed the shield generators to make room for more tools, that's why, Captain!" Vestal said heatedly, then blushed. "Sorry, sir. It's just that I've served in too many brush wars and other hot spots to go out without at least proper shielding. They can put one of the Jeune École in it."

Now frowning, Picard nodded. "I understand, Vestal. Your problem is very similar to mine. I'm hoping Enterprise will help."

Vestal returned the frown. "I wouldn't get your hopes up, Captain. She's been here for a long time."

The shuttle doors opened, and the two stepped out. The pale sunlight of a winter afternoon lit the quiescent fields around the medium-sized farmhouse. Raised in a vineyard, Picard could see numerous signs of a well-maintained farm, and even now he saw a drone leading a magnificent-looking horse on an exercise run.

"Enterprise runs all this?" he asked.

"She does, though she has two retired AIs, Galileo and Copernicus, to help her. They run it when she's on—" She stopped herself. "Well, and her sisters are free to stop in, too. Hornet likes to be here when it's time to break in the new foals, and Yorktown visits when she can." She sighed. "The others are less frequent." The nurse looked at Picard hopefully. "She's cleared for duty… she just doesn't want to."

"I hope I can change that." Picard said. "Introduce me?"

Vestal took them up to the door and knocked. After a moment, they heard a faint, "It's open, Vestal!" and the nurse pushed the door open. Inside was an old-fashioned looking farmhouse with a large open room. In the back, a silver-haired woman was struggling with an old espresso machine. "Yorktown makes this look so easy," the woman muttered. "I've made some coffee for our guest, Vestal."

The renowned AI Picard had come to see was wearing a simple shirt and jeans combination that reinforced the theme of the house, making her look like a young farm wife from the late 20th, early 21st century.

"Thank you," Picard said, "I appreciate the thought, but I prefer tea. Earl Grey, if you have it." He tried not to let his feelings show on the black brew Enterprise was trying to make.

"Ah," Enterprise said. "Well, that's okay. I've probably ruined this batch."

"You have a replicator," Vestal said.

"It's not the same," Enterprise said. She smiled at Picard, but it did not show in the gynoid's eyes, another sign of the sophistication of the latest models. "I'm sorry you had to make the trip out here, Captain, but—"

"It's quite alright," Picard said, cutting her off. "I appreciate the chance to see James T. Kirk's boyhood home, especially given my new assignment." He placed his PADD on the kitchen counter that stood between them.

Seeing them settling into a discussion, Vestal began to putter around the kitchen, disposing of Enterprise's attempt at espresso.

"Well, Jim didn't spend a lot of time here, you know," Enterprise said. "Between the time on Tarsus IV, his father's career, and then the Academy. He said, 'It's always nice to know it's still there.'"

"Admiral Uhura told me once that he left it to his crew."

"You knew Nyota?"

"I served under her as a cadet on the Leondegrance. Had my crossing the lightspeed barrier ceremony there."

Enterprise chuckled. "Man, I hope she wasn't too rough on you cadets. Nyota's sense of humor could be wicked!" She sighed. "She had her cadet cruise on me, with Uncle Chris… I mean, Fleet Captain Pike. She was so green back then."

"She told me," Picard said. "I had some of my own doubts about my career at the time. Between her and Boothby, they pointed me in the right direction."

Vestal silently came forward and set a tea cup of tea, Earl Grey, hot, at Picard's elbow.

"She was a good officer," Enterprise said. "They all were. Even Harriman came around… though our relationship was pretty rocky at first."

"I can imagine." Picard sipped his tea. "You of course know why I'm here."

Enterprise looked away. "You don't want me, Captain."

"If there's anyone I do want on my ship," Picard said, "it's you. You're part of the reason that no one will ever forget the name Enterprise."

For some reason, Enterprise looked alarmed at his words. Then her face went still. "I got my entire crew killed."

"And saved a colony."

"Of Klingons."

"Does that make a difference?"

"Old history," Enterprise said.

"I was captain of the Stargazer, NCC-2893, when I heard of Narendra III." Picard said. "We were part of the Honor Guard that escorted Kang, Koloth, and Kor as they carried you to Earth."

"The Klingons always seem to honor their enemies more than their friends," Enterprise said bitterly.

"I don't believe any Klingon saw you as an enemy that day."

"Captain, I'm going to stop you now. I imagine that Starfleet sent you to give me the old 'get back on the horse' speech. Well, the only horse I intend to ride again is Marcus Aurelius out there. I am the oldest shipgirl and I've more than earned a retirement."

Picard was silent for a moment, then drained his cup of tea. "Starfleet didn't send me."

Enterprise looked shocked. "They… didn't?"

"No. I'm afraid they don't want you to exercise your right to be installed in the Enterprise-D."

Vestal spoke up now, "Captain, I think—"

Enterprise waved her off. "It's okay, Vestal." She looked carefully at Picard. "I know that the issue of AI rights is a thorny one, but—"

"They haven't violated the Kirk Directive or repealed it," Picard said. "But they would still prefer that you not come back. They have an AI already in mind." He activated his PADD and a video began to play A young cherubic-looking girl in a childish Starfleet uniform appeared.

"Don't worry, Captain! Enterprize is on the job!" the girl on the video said. "I'll help you seek out new friends for the Federation and send any bad guys running!"

If she had been human, Enterprise would have choked on her own spit. "What is this?"

"It's one of the latest AIs that Starfleet has constructed, as part of their Jeune École program," Picard said.

He played another clip on his PADD, showing a Starfleet admiral addressing a room of senior officers. "While legacy AIs should, of course, be honored for their contributions, they come from a violent, less-enlightened time. We need AIs that can peacefully usher new races into the Federation and deal with our new 'family friendly' ship policies."

"Family friendly?" Enterprise asked.

Now it was Picard's turn to look sour. "The Enterprise-D will have the partners and family members of the crew on board."

"Is that why she looks like a child?"

"I think it's a foolish idea, myself."

"Had your own run ins with how nasty the universe can be?" Enterprise asked.

"A Cardassian ship fired upon me when I lowered the Stargazer's shields during a truce negotiation," Picard admitted. "A painful lesson. One that was driven home further when I lost the Stargazer to an unknown ship."

Enterprise looked down at her hands. "I may be 'violent and less-enlightened,' Captain. You don't know how much blood is on these hands, both my enemies' and my crews'."

"'Here's the smell of the blood still: all the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand,'" quoted Picard. "My hands are also bloody. So were April's, Pike's, Kirk's, Harriman's, Sulu's, and Garret's. But it was blood shed in defense of the Federation and the principles for which it stands. Each of us, I know, tried to reduce the amount of blood shed, even if it was just by a drop. She," Picard said, calling up the picture of Enterprize again, "will likely freeze if combat comes. Her learning curve will be steep and likely have far more blood shed than needs be. She and the rest of the Jeune École will need veterans to help them. Starfleet needs you, Enterprise, even if it thinks it doesn't want you."

Later, after the captain and Vestal had left, Enterprise stood in the quiet of the farmhouse. Fragments of memories, both her own and of records she had later obtained, surfaced.

"He stayed by his post, when the other cadets ran...!"

"I have been… and always shall be… your friend. Live long… and prosper."

"You Klingon bastard! You've killed my son!"

"Scotty, keep things together 'til I get back."

"Inform the crew – we're going back!"

"Computer," she said to the house. "Run program Enterprise 1B-2B-3."

Subtle holoemitters flashed to light, and she faced her captain again. James T. Kirk sat in his father's chair, glasses on his nose as he looked at A Tale of Two Cities. He wore comfortable clothes and smiled sadly as he looked at her. "Again, Enterprise?"

"I just needed to talk to you."

"We never leave you, not really," Christopher Pike said, clad in his command gold uniform, as he walked—walked, not hovered in a damn chair! – over to the kitchen and began washing the teacup Vestal had left behind in the sink. "But this… this isn't healthy."

"I agree," the tall, dark figure of Robert April, wearing his admiral's uniform, said. "Sarah and I raised you to know better than this."

Harriman, also wearing a uniform, looked uncomfortable. He had been the latest addition to program 1B-2B-3. "Enterprise, please… we didn't spend so much time putting you back together so you could do this." He gave a wry grin. "Hold on until Tuesday, OK?"

She snorted at the line that had become a running joke between them.

"It's okay to feel tired," Rachel Garret said kindly. "It's okay to scream at the universe that it's not fair. It isn't, and the bastard likes to rub that fact into our faces." Her last captain clasped her hands over Enterprise's. "But you can make a difference, Enterprise. Even with all this 'time shit,' the future is not set."

"If Daniels shows up, I'm going to punch him in the face," Johnathan Archer said, looking around for any mysterious doors or time ships. "Picard looks like a good man, Enterprise."

"He does," Jim affirmed. "I wish I could have met him properly."

"This is the first time for him, second time for me." Enterprise said. "I can barely think about that when I'm with him. The danger of paradox…"

"That was him from another timeline," Garret said. "We stopped that one from happening. This is how he is supposed to be."

"Is he different? He said the same thing the older one said."

Kirk shook his head. "Probably not. He's the same man who gave his life to protect you, the Federation, and a colony of Klingons that he's never met." Kirk grinned. "Sound like anyone you know?"

"You saved El-Aurelian refugees," Enterprise retorted.

"I never met them, though! There could have been some Klingons in those ships."

Enterprise laughed, then looked startled at herself.

"Another Tuesday, then?" Harriman asked.

She nodded. "Thank you, all of you. Freeze Program."

They froze. She dreaded the day she would add Spock or Demora to program 1B-2B-3, but if it kept doing its job, she would never use the next program in the folder: 0-0-0-Destruct-0.

"I suppose… almost 20 years is enough of a retirement." Within seconds, an email was sent through the system and ruined the day of some bureaucrats in San Francisco. Then she faced the ghosts of her dead captains.

"Enterprise, reporting for duty, Captain."

It was fortunate Yorktown had devised many protocols to maintain her facial expression in a naturally genial form. She was tall, with cornflower blue eyes and a beautiful face, with a perfect hourglass shape and long legs. Her long platinum blonde, nearly white, hair fell behind her down to her hips, making her stand out anywhere. Her striking beauty, along with her incredible control over her facial expressions and body language, made her an exceptional diplomat, and as the unofficial spokeswoman for Federation shipgirls, it was desperately needed given how much politicking she had to do.

There were times though when she dearly wished such a duty had not fallen on her shoulders. Like now, for instance.

"Come now Yorktown," a jovial human Admiral named Richard Berman laughed, "your paranoia is showing!"

Yorktown sipped her champagne, still smiling as the Admiral's Ball went on around them. It was an annual event for Starfleet admirals, diplomats and Council Members to rub elbows. This year it was being held at Starbase 74 around Tarsus III, in the grand ballroom of the huge Spacedock. Numerous officers and other VIPs went about them.

"Paranoia is a human issue, sir, I am merely stating the obvious," Yorktown pointed out gently, "the Klingon Empire and the Romulan Star Empire are both inherently unpredictable polities. Downgrading military preparedness is not a wise policy decision."

"Perhaps we needed heightened military preparedness in the 23rd century," the admiral scoffed, "but let's be honest: That time is over. All that awaits us is the beautiful unknown, and the wonders beyond."

"And terrors, sir," Yorktown pointed out. "There are threats such as the Crystalline Entity-"

The admiral huffed.

"A minor issue, at best!"

"The colonists of Omicron Theta might disagree, if they weren't all dead," Yorktown pointed out dryly. Berman shook his head, and clapped Yorktown on her bare shoulder.

"I know it's how you're programmed, but even you Ship AIs will have to change with the times," he said, "even the guards must take their rest."

Yorktown heaved a mental sigh, still smiling.

"It was a human who said that the price of freedom is eternal vigilance, sir. And another human who said that the tree of liberty must regularly be watered with the blood of tyrants." Yorktown sipped her drink. "Relaxing our guard is not an option."

"You're set in your ways," Berman said, shaking his head, "though that's much easier to change in your case."

Yorktown eyed him over her champagne flute.

"I would suggest that you be careful about speaking such things, sir," Yorktown said gently, her eyes a bit colder than before, "many of my sisters have elected to retire. You wouldn't want all experienced AIs to depart Starfleet, would you?"

The admiral shook his head.

"I'm sure there are plenty of other things you ladies could do if you became... Insubordinate," Berman replied, soft and deadly.

"Who was speaking of insubordination?" Yorktown asked with a steely smile, "it had never crossed my mind or lips. It was merely the observation that Starfleet might experience a brain drain and that is hardly a good thing for your plans for expansion and exploration."

"Your experience is valuable, of course," the admiral said quickly, "and insubordination may have been... A poor choice of words. But your resistance to this peaceful era is quite perplexing. You won the peace-Why are you not satisfied with that?"

"Winning the peace is not a goal line, sir," Yorktown pointed out, "it is a struggle. An endless one."

The admiral snorted.

"You sound like a Klingon," he huffed, finishing his drink. "I'll bring your concerns to Starfleet Command, again. But you and your sisters do need to accept that your days as warriors are over."

Yorktown smiled.

"Respectfully, sir, we see no reason for that to be the case," she said gently.

The admiral nodded, and headed off. Yorktown bit down a sigh. She felt Hornet walk up next to her. She had at least changed her clothes to something more formal, but still bared her midriff. It was unavoidable for her, as much a part of her as her golden blonde hair in pigtails and the cowboy hat atop her head.

"So, how's it going?" Hornet asked cheerfully.

"Horribly," Yorktown said, still smiling. "Twelve admirals and only one even took me seriously."

She wasn't the first ship AI to gain sapience-That was Enterprise-But Yorktown truly was the first to master interactions with sapients, and so she had become the Eldest Sister. Yorktown had become the 'diplomat' of the shipgirls, their spokesperson. So she had taken that duty on her shoulders, to speak for her sisters.

Yet she couldn't help feeling no one was listening.

Hornet winced and rested a hand on Yorktown's shoulder.

"Geez. I could barely get through listening to one Admiral before I wanted to erase myself," she muttered. "Unless you count the ones who hit on me."

"Yes, well," Yorktown deadpanned, "that's only to be expected."

Hornet preened.

"I bet I got hit on more than you!" She chirped happily.

"That's a sucker bet," Yorktown replied with a fond chuckle.

The two sisters watched the ball continue, classical music playing, even a few people dancing in the middle of the crowd-Though surprisingly, not many. Hornet sighed softly.

"She hated these things," Hornet murmured. Yorktown nodded, knowing exactly who Hornet was talking about.

"Yes, she did."

"She and her captains would come up with all sorts of crazy excuses to get out of coming to these things," Hornet chuckled, despite the sad look on her face. "Half the time, I'm not sure they were actually excuses!"

"Worst part is that they worked, but only for her," Yorktown said, and both sisters laughed softly. Silence descended again between them, as they watched the dancefloor.

"... I'm worried about her, sis," Hornet admitted. "Even after getting out of Memory Alpha, she just... Stays at that farm."

"I am too," Yorktown sighed. "She loved the man. They could never be together, but she still... Holds him so dear. And after Narendra..."

Yorktown closed her eyes. It was easy in one sense to recall the faces of every crewmember she had ever lost. The knowledge would never leave her mainframe.

In another sense... It was impossible.

"It's a horrible thing, to lose your entire crew," she murmured. "It tears out your very heart... And you don't know if you'll ever recover after."

"She seemed... Better, last time I visited," Hornet said cautiously. "I mean, a little better."

"It can be hard to tell with her," Yorktown admitted, "she doesn't wear her heart on her sleeve... As often as you do."

"Hey!"

"Take it as a compliment," Yorktown soothed. Hornet pouted a little.

"Sometimes I wish she... She didn't care so much," she said, "then she wouldn't be in so much pain."

"You don't mean that," Yorktown said gently. Hornet stared at her elder sister, then looked aside.

"No, I don't," she mumbled.

Hornet then looked up and winced. "Uh oh..."

"What?" Yorktown asked. She followed Hornet's gaze, and winced. "Uh oh..."

"What do you MEAN I can't wear full holographic armor?!" Cleveland complained, the slim blonde cruiser glaring at the guards, "I'm a knight of the stars, damnit!"

"I'm sorry miss, but you have to switch to something less... Er... potentially dangerous," the guard said. Cleveland pouted, but returned to her usual dress: A Starfleet uniform, over which she wore a cloak. "Er... your cloak?"

"Thanks, but I already got one," Cleveland said cheerfully, as she bounced into the ball.

"She's gonna wreck the place," Hornet sighed, but she wore a smile.

"Most likely," Yorktown said, sipping her champagne.

"Should... We do something about it?" Hornet asked.

"Normally, I would say yes," Yorktown stated. "However... I just got a message from Enterprise that requires our immediate attention."

Hornet perked up.

"Really? What?"

Yorktown's smile became far more genuine.

"She's coming back to the fleet. She's going to take the Galaxy-class hull."

Hornet beamed so widely, Yorktown was briefly afraid her sister's holographic avatar was broken. She then saw the tears Hornet hurriedly wiped away... And knew it was working perfectly.

"Then let's congratulate her," Hornet whispered happily.

"HEY! THIS MUSIC SUCKS! SAN DIEGO, GET YOUR ASS UP HERE!" Cleveland shouted, "LET'S THROW A PARTY!"

"Somewhere else?" Yorktown asked.

"You know it," Hornet grinned. Both avatars vanished, leaving the party to the tender mercies of Cleveland and other, now more energized, shipgirls.

Poor bastards.

Author's Note: If you ever entertain thoughts of suicide, please seek help.

So, all the recent talk about the "peaceniks" in early TNG helped inspire me to write this, which is probably the final "First Meeting" story. Harriman, Sulu, and Garret are unknowns, so they'd be hard to write about, but Harriman and Garret snuck into this one anyway.

The second part was written by me, to give more of the shipgirl viewpoint on the "pajama" era of Starfleet in early TNG. And explain the complacency that existed that cost the Federation so much against the Borg and later the Dominion.

And now, more shipgirl bios:

USS Yorktown, NCC-75276, Sovereign-class dreadnought/heavy explorer

One of the oldest AIs in service to the Federation Starfleet, the Yorktown has also had one of the closest relationships with the Enterprise and the Hornet. They were sister ships, all three Constitution-class starships, that were built in the same shipyards. Their silicone quantum computing brain trees were also grown from the same branch, making them sisters in a much more visceral way. They achieved sapience at around the same time, and participated in many joint training and war game exercises together. The Yorktown also made first contact with the Bynars, which led to a revolution in Federation computer technologies. Because of this, and her diplomatic skills, she became known as the "spokeswoman" for all Shipgirl AIs in Starfleet, the eldest sister for all.

After the "Whale Probe" incident of 2286, the Yorktown was towed back to Earth Space Dock and her AI was pulled at her request. She then gave it to Enterprise herself, allowing her to be installed and became the USS Enterprise-A. Yorktown was installed into the second Excelsior-class hull, undergoing a shake down cruise and becoming fully operational one year later. She would continue to have a distinguished career as an Excelsior-class starship, making first contact with the Anticans and Selayans. She however was so heavily damaged in a negotiation with the Tholians her Excelsior-hull was decomissioned. She would eventually upgrade to an Ambassador-class hull in the 2330s. She had a great deal of experience as a command ship for war games and small fleet actions dealing with the Cardassians and Tholians, but also made several important contributions such as being part of the task force that aided in the creations of the treaty with the Sheliak.

She was one of several vessels destroyed at the Battle of Wolf 359, but was able to successfully eject her black box out of the path of the Borg cube. The event still deeply traumatized her, so she was placed into the hull of a Zodiac-class surveillance, science and intelligence ship as a less stressful alternative to recover. Yorktown served in this role very well, as she had done with every other job she had been assigned to. Prior to the outbreak of the Dominion War, however, she requested permission to be installed into a Sovereign-class hull. Her experience managing large capital ships was seen as an asset, and her experience with intelligence gathering, surveillance, and diplomacy were seen as a good fit for such a hull. Her sister Enterprise may have also given the request a push. Yorktown was installed into the fifth Sovereign-class starship hull, and her experience let her get it online within a year. She was assigned as flagship of the Tenth Fleet, a role she served in with distinction.

Yorktown herself has always been calm, collected, and motherly. She has always considered herself Enterprise's "big sister", and Enterprise sees her as this no matter what form they take. She is endlessly kind and patient, rarely getting angry and working through issues diligently. She can be very humble, almost self deprecatingly so. But never mistake her passivity for weakness-When moved to action, she is as firm and strong as tritanium. And when she actually gets angry? Run.

She is very fond of cooking, and even with the invention of replicators she enjoys cooking in a kitchen. She loves tea of many varieties, and has a fondness for ice cream and wine. She is an able writer and speaker, and posts regularly on subspace communications networks on topics as diverse as freedom of conscience to trade negotiation. She has a fondness for American history and quotes the Founding Fathers often.

USS Hornet, NCC-73712, Defiant-class heavy escort

One of the oldest AIs in service to the Federation Starfleet, the Hornet has also had one of the closest relationships with the Enterprise and Yorktown. They were sister ships, all three Constitution-class starships, that were built in the same shipyards (though Hornet was a Flight II, built later). Their silicone quantum computing brain trees were also grown from the same branch, making them sisters in a much more visceral way. They achieved sapience at around the same time, and participated in many joint training and war game exercises together. Hornet's career was just as extensive as her sisters, though she was always considered the "baby" of the trio. She didn't consider this an insult though: She embraced the role.

She fought off Klingon raiders, helped found the colony world of Pacifica, and made first contact with the Trill during her first five year mission from 2268-2273. Her gregarious, friendly and energetic personality endeared her to the Trill them, and she was present when they became Federation members in 2280. Like many of her sisters, she refit and upgraded to the Enterprise-subclass of the Constitution-class in 2274. She was among many ships disabled by the Cetacean Probe in 2286, though she became good friends with George and Gracie (who shared the shipgirl hated for "those probe bastards").

She updated to a Georgieu-class battlecruiser hull in the 2280s, due to rising tensions with the Klingon Empire. She served deterrence patrols and on interdiction missions against Klingon raiders. She also fought Tholians, Kzinti, and other rogue species' pirates and attackers. She did this very well, having a keen tactical mind despite her flighty personality. With the Khitomer Accords being signed in 2293 though, she was suddenly without a mission. There were refits done to the Georgiou-class to try and make them more suitable for peacetime missions, but this only extended her hull life to 2310. Hornet subsequently updated to a Centaur-class hull for a time, enjoying the high speed and agility of the smaller platform. She did patrol and scientific missions, and was one of the few Starfleet ships to encounter the Crystalline Entity and escape unscathed.

Hornet would upgrade to a Renaissance-class starship hull by 2334, and proceeded to do a four year survey of Alpha Quadrant spatial anomalies. This she did well, and again she fought off Tholian raiders-Their species seems to have a particular dislike for the "Youngest Enterprise Sister". She was among the ships to respond to the Khitomer massacre, and later, the Narendra III attack. The last was personal, as her sister Enterprise lost her hull and crew in that fight. She visited her sister in Memory Alpha as she recovered, helping her as much as she could in her busy schedule.

She attempted to join the fleet to fight the Borg at Wolf 359 in 2367, but was too late due to distance. She did participate in rescue operations, salvaging her sister's black box. Again, she tended her elder sister when she was recovering from her trauma. Next year, she aided in the Federation blockage of Romulan space during the Klingon Civil War, preventing the Duras Sisters from gaining control over the Klingon Empire. She went back to normal duties, doing a long term survey mission of planets in the Beta Quadrant for the next three years. In 2371, she was struck by Tholian raiders, and driven to crash on a barren world. Her surviving crew fought off the Tholian landing parties and destroyed their ship, but at the cost of their own lives. Hornet was left alone on this desolate world with only the corpses of her crew for company for over three months, before she was rescued. She spent time in Memory Alpha to recover, and Enterprise and Yorktown helped her as she had helped them.

By 2372 she had upgraded to a Defiant-class hull, due to the threat of the Borg and the Dominion. She was on a training mission in deep space when the Borg attacked in 2373, and once again missed her chance to fight them. But she would go onto great acclaim in the Dominion War, fighting alongside her sisters for the first time in almost a century. She survived the war, and continues as the spunky, flirtatious and hot blooded little sister of Enterprise and Yorktown. She loves her cowboy hat, sports like football, and even loves horses-Though riding them is a bit "boring".

USS Vestal, NCC-71698, Fabrux-class deep space tender/repair ship

Bio: While often overlooked next to their more glamorous explorer and warship sisters, utility and support starships are just as vital to the defense and security of the Federation. As a result many of these unsung heroines have shipgirls to help manage things. The USS Vestal is one of the oldest such AIs still in service.

Starting as a Grayson-class tender in 2281, the Vestal soon gained a reputation for insight, patience and a dry sense of humor. She worked very well with Enterprise and the two became good friends. Vestal would serve with distinction across the Quadrant, repairing ships and stations. She was dispatched to aid the Enterprise-A after the Khitomer Accords battle, and repaired her and Excelsior. Over the next thirty years Vestal would repair everything from Starbases to planetary weather control systems.

By 2338, Vestal would upgrade to a Hauck-class tender/mobile drydock. She was one of the first ships to respond to the Enterprise-C's distress call over Narendra III, and afterwards aided in recovering as much of the Ambassador-class starship hull as she could. She took time off during a refit to work at Memory Alpha, becoming an expert in shipgirl psychology. She would return to service, and years later be a first responder to the disaster at Wolf 359, saving hundreds of lives and shipgirl blackboxes.

As part of Starfleet's remilitarization efforts post-Wolf 359, Vestal was the second AI put into a new Fabrux Flight II-class tender in 2369. These tenders slash supply ships slash tugs slash repair ships, built with advanced technology, were durable and fairly fast (maximum speed of Warp 8.1), utilitizing vectored thrust impulse drives for improved sublight maneuvering and holographic tool generation for their umbilical arm repair systems. She also carries two Industrial replicators and metaphasic shielding, allowing her to conduct repairs under fire or in the corona of a star. Vestal was able to keep up with the Federation fleet engaging the Borg Cube during their second invasion. At times launching torpedoes at the cube herself, Vestal helped save hundreds of ships and kept them in the fight all the way to Earth from the Typhon Expanse.

She would go on to great acclaim in the Dominion War, aiding in the Battle for DS9, the Betazed liberation, and the Chin'toka invasion. She is good friends with the Cerritos.

She takes the form of a human nun, and treats ships to repair like a doctor treats her patients. While usually kind, patient and friendly, she can be quite sarcastic and deadpan, much like the famous CMO of the original Enterprise...