Prologue – "Promotion"

Lieutenant Leia Thronsen strode purposefully through the corridors of Starbase One towards the Admiralty Offices. It was not without a little trepidation, however; her promotion to Lieutenant following the skirmish with the Klingons over Taurus II had been an unexpected surprise, but to be summoned to the recently-promoted Admiral Garrett's office almost immediately afterward had her worried. No doubt he was reassigning her somewhere, away from the Nomad, which she had only just begun to think of as her home.

Running a hand through her silvery hair, Leia quickly retied her ponytail to keep it both neat and regulation, before stepping into Garrett's outer office. A bald Human wearing Lieutenant's stripes sat at a desk working on a computer terminal, no doubt Garrett's assistant; his presence reassured Leia somewhat, as it meant that he wasn't giving her a desk job. Not that desk job, anyway…

"Admiral Garrett is ready for you."

The Lieutenant didn't even look up from his work, he just waved in the general area of the door. Bracing herself for what might come next, Leia took a deep and calming breath and straightened her uniform shirt before passing through the doors. Garrett looked up from his work and invited her to sit at one of the chairs opposite his desk with a smile. He didn't say anything immediately, but indicated she should read the data tablet that rested on the desk; she picked it up and scanned the text with a frown on her face, gentle features then widening into one of surprise.

He wasn't transferring her off the Nomad. He was making Leia her Captain.

Her heart hammered in her chest, and she had to make the conscious decision to breathe as she read and re-read the words. Staring dumbfounded at Garrett, Leia had to fight to keep her jaw from hanging open. Only then did the dark-haired Admiral actually smile at her.

"I know that being a starship Captain is a big responsibility, but I believe you're up to the task."

Leia remained lost for words, her cheeks flushing, and managed a slow but grateful nod. To Captain her own starship, at her age, wasn't something many got to experience. She was no James T. Kirk, commanding a Constitution-class before his thirtieth birthday, but she much preferred the scrappy little Pioneer-class, anyway. While Constitution class starships pushed the boundaries, it was the little ships like the Pioneer that kept those boundaries safe.

Little ships like her new command.

The more she thought about it, and as rational thought once again became possible, Leia decided that 'Captain Thronsen' actually had a nice ring to it. Even though she was still only a Lieutenant, aboard ship she would be called 'Captain', and she would be directly responsible for the actions and wellbeing of the entire crew.

Straightening and tucking the tablet under her arm, Leia quelled the mix of excitement and terror that were gurgling in her stomach.

"Thank you sir. I won't let you down."

With a nod and a congratulatory smile, Garrett dismissed her with a suggestion that she get her uniforms altered, and to start thinking about who she would make her Number One. Following the escapades on Taurus II, there was really only one option.

But would she want the job?