Well readers, I’ve hit another milestone. I didn’t have the chance to celebrate post 200 due to time commitments so my celebratory milestone will be this post.

First of all I would like to thank everyone at work, on twitter and in my life who have supported me ever since I started all this. It’s been a great experience and I’ve been privileged to have the opportunity to talk to a great many people through our shared love and hate of all the things I write about.

Those of you who have read my 100th post will remember that I shared my notes on how I would do a modern reboot of Power Rangers in the form of a TV series. I felt that I would do the same here with another franchise I really like.

Star Trek has been in the press lately with all sorts of shakeups regarding a director and -hopefully- writer change. Recently director Justin Lin has been hired to direct the film. You can read more about this here. I’ve linked to the trekmovie.com article as I’ve had the pleasure of speaking with Anthony Pascal who was incredibly supportive of me so I’m returning the favour in some small way. In terms of my opinion on this decision I will be writing an article on scifipulse.net when I get the chance that outlines that and more.

So the basic idea is I’ll share my notes on the framework of my idea for a new Star Trek TV series and then you can all read it, digest it and let me know what you think. My notes are fairly extensive but I’ll leave out the long character bios as they are only really writers notes. You will get a brief description of who they are and what species they belong to though. It’s worth noting that I’ve actually been plodding away at the first story for quite some time but it’s a long way from completion. If anyone would like a sample get in touch and I’ll see if I’m willing to bare my soul in that way. Also, for those unfamiliar with the terms I’m talking about there are handy links to explain.

It should be noted that the ship designs are not mine. The Enterprise J was designed by Doug Drexler who did a fantastic job with it. I’ve sourced the images from his website which apparently seems to be gone now. I hope he doesn’t mind.

One last thing before I begin. If anyone has any ideas of a similar thing they’d like to see me tackle for my 500th post then speak up and I’ll give it some thought. Since it’s Christmas Eve when I upload this, I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and Santa brings you all you desire.

General Overview

Life in the Federation isn’t the paradise it once was. Starfleet Officers are constantly primed for a war and it won’t take much to start one given the state of interstellar relations at this point. As a society the Federation has lost the ideals upon which it was founded. The charter has little practical meaning now and serves merely as a reminder of what’s been lost by this time.

Starfleet Academy is training its officers to be naïve, not knowing what life is really like in the service. This is a conscious decision as Starfleet needs people to crew the ever increasing fleet and fear that people won’t enlist if they know the truth of the interstellar situation.

Similarly The Federation media reports inaccurate/exaggerated information about events within the Federation. The Federation council fears civilian backlash to the reality of life so feels it is better to give them an interpreted version of the truth.

Many member worlds are almost without support or aid in any form, news of this is kept quiet to the civilian population on other member worlds but it can’t be denied that many are losing faith in the Federation and are questioning their membership.

Starfleet is strained keeping an eye on the Tholian and Gorn situation which has left them almost blind to the building internal tension. At this point it seems just as likely that conflict could arise internally.

The Universe

The series begins in the 26th Century (May 2561 Earth Calendar, stardate 238654.79 to be precise). The Federation is a much more cynical organisation than it was 200 years previously and has been growing exponentially. It now fills much of the Galaxy. Klingons, Romulans, Xindi and Suliban (among others) are members and have been for over 100 years. Because of the Klingon and Romulan membership Federation Starships are now equipped with cloaking devices (in some cases Phasing Cloaking devices).

Due to the immense size of the Federation resource management has become very thinly stretched, outlying members and star systems often go misrepresented meaning that aid doesn’t reach them in time. Poverty is rife on certain outlying worlds. The richer member planets don’t even know that this goes on as the Federation media keep the general public ignorant to these facts. By in large the Federation Council turns a blind eye to this since they don’t feel that anything can be done. Tensions run high in Federation council sessions but due to the strained resources the poverty stricken members can do little to make any real changes. The only answer they’re given is that aid will be given when resources are available.

Lots of Federation resources go into defence spending as they fear a war with the Tholians and the Gorn, both of whom are aggressively increasing their weapons construction. There are Neutral Zones between Federation and Gorn space as well as Federation and Tholian Space (just like the situation with the Klingons and Romulans in the 23^rd century). This is a big reason for the strained resources.

Starfleet has also been growing following devastating losses in the war with the Alsuran Empire (2556-2558). Despite only lasting two years, the war took a massive toll on the Federation and the effects are still being felt. The war was won by the Federation due to aggressively pressing the attack until the Alsuran Empire had to surrender due to them not having the resources to continue the conflict. They signed a treaty with the Federation where they agreed to minimise their weapons development and pay reparations that they simply can’t afford to pay. As a result the once great Alsuran Empire exists in almost total poverty, something that the Federation doesn’t seem to care about.

More ships are being built by Starfleet and they are increasingly better armed because of the fear of another war with the Tholians or the Gorn. There is almost no scientific or exploration program to speak of, though a lot of ships are outfitted with the latest in sensor technology and have dedicated science departments who often have little to do thus become more soldier like. Starfleet missions don’t tend to mandate exploration and study, relegated mostly to patrolling borders and investigating incidents. Due to the strained resources piracy is very common and many Starfleet missions result in combat which has become almost second nature to the Starfleet officers of this time period. Many officers aren’t interested in exploration because they’ve never known anything else. Starfleet Academy still champions peaceful exploration but this naïve outlook is often quickly cast aside when on actual duty.

The Enterprise

The Enterprise J is a Celestial class ship launched in July 2558 Earth Calendar (stardate 238128.76). Construction on the Enterprise J began during the Alsuran war, She was being constructed along with her sister ship, The USS Leyte Gulf (NCC 101903). The forerunner of the class was the USS Celestial (NX 101836) which never went into actual duty and serves mainly as a testing ship for new technologies. The Celestial Class was originally conceived as a powerful warship, capable of carrying a high complement of troops and combat specialists. When the war ended, the class was retasked slightly as an all purpose vessel but retaining the heavy armaments. Due to the change in purpose there are huge expanses within the ship that are left empty with no power going to them. Originally they were going to be used for various wartime causes but when those plans were abandoned nothing was put in those areas instead. What to do with those areas is at the bottom of a long list of priorities for Starfleet command.

She is a massive ship (3210 meters long) but it is not uncommon for ships to be very large. The Celestial class is the largest in Starfleet, the nearest is the Pacific class (2650 meters long). Gorn ships have been known to be larger than the Celestial class (biggest encountered is 5865 meters long). She is heavily armed with all weaponry covering 360 degrees of fire and state of the art regenerative shielding meaning she can take a significant beating. This is a requirement as rivals of the Federation will be similarly armed. She is also equipped with a top of the line phasing cloak. The effectiveness of this will vary as many rivals have devised means to detect cloaked vessels.

Since the ship is so large turbolifts are deemed impractical so site to site transporting is the preferred method of moving between decks. There are transporter platforms throughout the ship so that people materialise there instead of appearing suddenly in front of people working and potentially causing an accident. All people have to do is ask the computer to send them to a specific place and the computer will default them to the nearest platform. If the transporter grid goes down there are service crawl ways and ladders for getting around as well as three turbolift shafts spread evenly apart servicing every deck. The shuttle transporters could also be accessed if still functional. There is one transporter room which is used for ceremonial purposes only (diplomatic functions, arrival of VIPs etc).

As per tradition the Enterprise J is the flagship of the Federation which at this point means very little, it’s a ceremonial title and little else. The Enterprise’s missions mainly consist of border patrolling/control, investigating incidents and appearing somewhere when a showing of the flagship might defuse a situation. The Enterprise also appears at many official celebratory functions as something of a mascot.

When Voyager returned to Earth in the 24^th century she brought specifications for the Quantum Slipstream drive. This technology has since been developed and included as standard on all Federation Vessels (there are also Slipstream gates in several systems for civilian ships only equipped with a standard warp drive). Slipstream speeds go up to 3 (as far as anyone knows this is the fastest possible for this technology). At this speed the Enterprise can cross from one end of the Galaxy to another in the space in just over a year. Recommended cruising speed for starships is Around Slipstream 1.8 as going much faster for sustained periods of time can damage the engines.

The Federation

As the series begins The United Federation of Planets consists of 268 member planets, spread across all four quadrants of the Milky Way galaxy.

Romulan Membership

The Romulan Star Empire became a member of the Federation in 2415. Romulans had become more accustomed to interstellar cooperation after joining the expansion of the Khitomer Accords (also including the Ferengi and the Cardassians).

After the Hobus Supernova destroyed Romulus and significantly crippled the empire. Nero murdering the senate also damaged the Empire politically.

Relations between the Federation and the Romulan Empire had gotten better in the years since the Shinzon incident and the destruction of the home world left the Romulans with little choice but to rely on the Federation’s assistance. After many years and much deliberation the Romulan Empire accepted membership to the Federation but had to make compromises. Terms of their membership included releasing many worlds that had been conquered as well as agreeing to free the Remans from being a slave race. Many people in Romulan society (including some of the conquered worlds) were in opposition to these compromises, fearing that it weakened them as a society and tarnished the proud long standing Romulan legacy. Many still feel that they are little more than puppets of the Federation and have lost what made them great. This belief is shared by many of their Ambassadors who resent Federation membership and don’t carry out their duties with any degree of enthusiasm. The Romulan Ambassador on the Federation council works to be as accepting as possible but shares many of these beliefs and finds it difficult to be objective.

Klingon Membership:

The Klingon Empire became a member of the Federation in 2398. The revised Khitomer accords necessitated by the Dominion War were very beneficial to both organisations. Despite the close relations between the High Council under Martok and the Federation council, Martok did not want the Empire to become Federation membership as he didn’t agree with many of the policies and wasn’t ready to make any concessions.

This all changed with Martok’s successor in 2387. Martok championed her appointment when he felt that he’d lost his objectivity due to many years of combat and the bitterness that he felt towards anything political. This Chancellor was far younger (only 38 when she assumed the Chancellorship), more open minded and idealistic than many of her predecessors. Her view was that the violent tendencies and basing an entire society on War and conflict was outdated and preventing progression as a race. This was Martok’s main reason for championing her as she fully committed to ideals that Martok saw as necessary but was too prejudiced by his experiences to properly commit to them. The High Council was reluctant to listen to her due to the fact that traditionally women didn’t serve on the High Council, let alone as Chancellor. Her views weren’t something that many of them agreed with either. When she proved herself in The Rite of Succession, many members of the high council resigned which meant a large number of the most powerful houses on Qo’noS were voluntarily not represented. In their place representatives from less powerful houses were appointed to fill out the need for a High Council. Many of these representatives held similar views to (name) and the class structure in Klingon society basically flipped, the least powerful houses became the most powerful houses and vice versa.

This new dynamic forced a rapid and significant shift in Klingon cultural priorities. War was no longer the basis of their society meaning that shipbuilding and weapons construction was minimised and Klingon culture became more democratic. This change was met with mixed reception throughout the Empire, many followed the decisions of the High Council out of devotion to honour and duty but many resisted the change and seceded from the Empire, forming a smaller collection of worlds called (roughly translated as) “The True Klingon Empire”. To date this organisation remains small yet aggressive. They don’t have enough resources to be considered a true threat but their desire for combat has forced them into piracy. Justification for this comes from a corrupted view of what is considered honourable.

These changes also solidified Klingon membership into the Federation. The Klingon Empire was opposed to Romulan membership on the basis that Klingons still largely believe that Romulans can’t be trusted. They were overruled and grudgingly accepted this membership. Klingon and Romulan tensions remain high but the latest Chancellor (Name?) puts these aside as best she can.

Xindi Membership:

The Xindi have been members of the Federation since the year 2436. The Xindi went into seclusion after they were manipulated by the race known only as the Sphere Builders and almost destroyed Earth based on this manipulation. Going into seclusion was a joint decision from all the Xindi races as they felt that the best course of action was focus only on their internal strife.

With the Delphic Expanse rendered inert they could easily focus on unifying their people for the right reasons instead of against a seemingly common threat. After over 200 years of negotiation, compromise and infighting the Xindi races were finally unified in 2392. As a united race they formed the Xindi Cooperative but remained in seclusion until 2421 as it took that long for most Xindi to feel comfortable. The headquarters of the Cooperative remained the Xindi Council Chamber which also serves as a memorial to the fallen Avian race and a constant reminder to what the conflict almost brought them to.

The Xindi council were honoured to be offered Federation Membership, seeing it as forgiveness for their aggressive action against Earth, something which nearly defined the Xindi for a long time.

Suliban Membership:

The Suliban have been members of the Federation since the year 2483. They are quite a peaceful and private species, apart from the organisation known as The Cabal who haven’t been seen or heard from since the Temporal Cold War was reportedly stopped by Captain Archer and his crew in the 22^nd century. They mostly stayed out of interstellar affairs until the mid 25^th century, preferring to conduct their affairs privately.

This changed when they were attacked by a hostile species bent on expansion in 2462 and were forced to ask for help from The Federation. The Federation offered defence and resources in exchange for the beginning of negotiations that would lead to membership. It took just over 20 years to secure that membership. The Suliban had little to offer from membership but the Federation council decided that it was better to have people side with them than side with others. The Suliban hold little influence in the Federation Council and they are among the members who receive the least aid which is steadily causing them to lose faith in the Federation.

Cardassian Membership

The Cardassian Union accepted entry to the Federation in 2406. It was an easy decision as a race following their losses in the Dominion War. Having proven themselves as being trustworthy after joining the Expanded Khitomer Accords they were offered membership and accepted. Their territory was unaffected by joining and they have greatly benefitted from Federation aid since their membership. They hold a seat on the Federation Council and actively contribute to interstellar affairs.

Ferengi Membership

Under Grand Nagus Rom in the late 24^th Century, Ferengi society completely changed. They moved away from

capitalism and granted equal rights to the women in their society. After having joined the Expanded Khitomer accords in the 2380s Ferengi Society completely adopted the Federation economic model and slowly over the space of generations the desire for profit diminished. They were offered membership in 2442 and accepted. Their territory remained unaffected and they hold a seat on the Federation Council.

Main Antagonists

The Tholian Assembly

Relations between the Federation and the Tholians have always been tense but this has escalated since the early 25^th century. The expansion of the Federation has caused territorial disputes to become more serious. Their borders were not fixed as they periodically adjusted them every ten years to account for the movement of star systems and astronomical objects within their rule. This caused strife with other races as a star system may randomly be annexed by the Tholians by how they understood their territory.

Repeated conflict caused the creation of a Neutral Zone in 2522 between Tholian and Federation space. Generally the Neutral zone is two light years wide though negotiations are planned for every time the Tholians adjust their territorial calculations, these negotiations never end well as both sides are never willing to compromise in terms of what territory comprises the Neutral zone.

It is hard for agreements to be made between the Federation and Tholians since the two powers are so different in terms of ideology and diplomats aren’t able to even sit in the same room together due to the Tholians extreme life support requirements.

Tensions are very high between the Federation and Tholians, many fear an imminent war outbreak but this isn’t something that the Federation can afford at present. Little is known of the internal workings of Tholian society and their true military strength.

The Gorn Hegemony

Diplomatic relations between the Gorn and the Federation have all but disintegrated since the 24^th century. The

Gorn became far more aggressive after the end of the Borg crisis (2381), annexing planets and aggressively expanding their territory, the disappearance of the Borg Collective meant that there wasn’t a larger threat for them to focus on lending more focus to their own interests. Eventually this got to a point where the Federation feared an incursion into their space so a neutral zone was agreed in 2538. The neutral zone spans two light years between the two territories. So far the Gorn have stuck to this agreement but there is always the fear that they might decide to break it.

Diplomacy is often ineffective against the Gorn as they are often uncompromising, threatening violence if their demands aren’t met. This makes it very difficult to negotiate with them. Many disputes are left unresolved and lots of Federation Ambassadors feel intimidated by their reptilian characteristics. Attempts have been made to use reptilian Federation Ambassadors such as Xindi or Pahkwa-thanh but this proved completely ineffective. The Gorn saw this as cowardice on the part of the mammalian centric Federation and refused to even speak to them.

Tensions are very high between the Federation and Gorn but there is an uneasy period of non aggression at present.

Pirates

Piracy is rife in Federation space, mainly because of the strained resources. Some have taken it upon themselves to attack weaker vessels and plunder them for supplies.

Scouting for Pirates is seen as a routine task for Federation ships and there are clearly defined procedures in place for dealing with them.

The main pirates include The True Klingon Empire, isolated pockets of Hirogen (acting alone or in groups), Nausicaans and members of various races. Basically Pirates can be from any species living on a member world that is cut off from aid and support.

Other Things to Note

Starfleet

Starfleet is a far more cynical organisation in a more cynical Federation. The focus has changed from peaceful exploration to defence and patrolling. Starfleet crews spend most of their time patrolling and stopping pirates. The exploration and scientific program still exists but it is under resourced and understaffed, it is not seen as a priority. The entire Milky Way Galaxy has been charted so many Admirals feel that there isn’t an awful lot left to discover. Fear of the tension erupting into all out war on at least two fronts has precipitated the construction of bigger and more powerful ships as well as weaponry. Starfleet are ready for a fight should it come to that and crews are more aggressive in combating disputes.

Starfleet Academy still trains their officers on the old model of peace and tolerance but this ideology is usually quickly stamped out within the first year of actual duty. Graduates come out of the academy with an unrealistic view of life aboard Federation starships, the desire for adventure is heavily suppressed in officers in view of their duties and responsibilities which help them survive this more cynical age.

The Dominion

The Dominion have not been seen or heard from since the end of the Dominion War. Following their surrender they closed their borders and their territory has not expanded in the time since. Nothing is known about their current status at this time.

The Borg

The Borg no longer exist after being absorbed by the Caeliar in 2381 but many fear that they are not gone forever and that they will return someday.

Main Characters

Captain Davis B. Archibald – A 38 year old human male – Captain

Davis is resourceful, intelligent and career driven. He has always had a desire to better himself academically and in

his career. His work ethic has served him well throughout his life as he has been constantly recognised and rewarded for working hard. His ability to easily understand engineering and his quick thinking in problem solving situations has enabled him to save lives on several occasions.

His command style is relaxed but he won’t stand for people not giving their best and has no time for those who disobey orders or turn in substandard work. He expects excellence from his crew but doesn’t hold them to any standards that he doesn’t expect from himself.

He is friendly to his crew and takes time to get to know them on a personal level where possible but he also has a firm grasp of where he feels that line should be drawn. He won’t allow his crew to feel complacent in his presence and remains guarded about many aspects of his personal life but will also relax protocol in quiet moments and allow them to let off steam with a more relaxed bridge and shipboard atmosphere.

His career driven personality has prevented him from forming relationships with any depth. Throughout his academy years he had two girlfriends, all of whom left him due to his lack of ability.

Commander Korbus – A 37 year old Klingon Male – First Officer

Korbus is atypical as far as Klingons go. He is calm and deliberate in how he approaches decisions. Despite being raised as a warrior Korbus will try to resolve situations non-violently. His temper and violent urges are still prominent within him but he has learned to control them. He is not quick to anger and is skilled at solving tense situations by talking them through.

His style as first officer is firm but fair. He doesn’t tolerate people who do not give their best and only expects from others what he feels they are capable of achieving. He won’t socialise with people on the ship other than his friend Captain Archibald. Due to this people under his command don’t really have an idea of what he is like as a person due to his professionalism.

The only romantic relationship he’s had was with a Klingon woman back on his home colony when he was 18. The relationship ended after she left to enlist in the Klingon military. Until Davis he has never had close friends. He had several acquaintances growing up and at the academy that he would occasionally socialise with but none of those people were ever spoken to after he left home and the Academy. Korbus greatly enjoys his solitude and finds it difficult to get close to other people; he rarely meets people that he wants to get close to and prefers to be solitary.

His hobbies include refining his combat skills; he uses his training mostly as a method of relaxation rather that satisfying a lust for violence. He also enjoys solving puzzles which aids in his engineering skills and has a keen interest in ancient cultures and a great appreciation for Starship engineering on older vessels.

Lieutenant Kell Timor – A 24 year old Unjoined Trill female – Chief Operations Officer

Kell is a very curious and inquisitive person. Throughout her childhood she had a desire to learn everything about the places she visited and the cultures she encountered. She has a great passion for exploration in any form. Her passion has been easily recognised as it complimented her studies and her work perfectly. She is very driven and strives to make the best of herself.

She chose not to apply to become a joined Trill as she didn’t feel that lifetimes worth of experience is something that would benefit her. She has a very strong sense of self and is very comfortable in who she is. She fears losing that; preferring to learn things on her own and doesn’t want other thoughts and feelings confusing her thinking.

She is friendly and outgoing; people warm to her personality and most seem at ease in talking to her as well as answering any questions she might have. Due to the nature of her upbringing she was unable to forge long lasting friendships or relationships due to the fact that she spent relatively little time in a given place. She has met a great many diverse people from all races and made friends easily while on the various planets she would visit. This also applied to romantic relationships. Her romantic relationships tended to be more casual. She is very direct in the way she approaches people which made initiating her friendships and romances very swift.

This changed somewhat when she attended the academy. Her friends at the academy tended to be more academic in nature, mostly people she could study with. She held her longest romantic relationship at the Academy which lasted 10 months. It eventually ended due to him graduating and neither of them wanting to pursue a long distance relationship.

Commander Grannar Lumm – A 123 year old Xindi Arboreal – Chief Engineer

Grannar is a very intelligent and resourceful person. He is able to reason out problems quickly and efficiently. His levels of patience are known to be easily tested. He can be quick to anger which has been known to upset those he works with.

He is very friendly and outgoing despite his temper and is able to get along with many different types of people.

Due to his long life span he has been reluctant to form deep long lasting relationships. The exception to this was his wife Puinna who managed to get through the walls that Grannar put up. He was devastated after she died and decided to honour her by going back to work and doing something productive. He still speaks to his two daughters regularly and maintains a close relationship with them.

Kell Timor is another who was able to get around the blocks that Grannar put up and they have cultivated a close friendship. Grannar thinks that Kell is very wise beyond her years and they get along very well.

Grannar’s hobbies include puzzles and shooting, he is very good at Velocity and makes sure his reflexes are sharp. He is also very good as Stratagema. He also keeps and collects model ships of any type.

Lieutenant Commander Verelan Lovok – A 36 year old Romulan Female – Chief Tactical Officer

Verelan is a very intelligent person who has a keen tactical mind. Her ability to find unorthodox tactical solutions seems innate and has served her very well throughout her career.

She is a very “to the point” sort of person and many find her difficult to get along with, she tends to maintain a professional relationship with most people she meets and not make any attempts to get to know them personally. She is not very friendly and can seem rude to people who don’t understand that she doesn’t like small talk.

She had a relationship with a female Romulan at the Academy but that was more a relationship of convenience, she ultimately left because of the way Verelan acts around others.

She has no hobbies as such but has a profound interest in weapons and historical tactics in combat. She has been known to play games with a more strategic focus.

Commander Dolik Sirnami – A 72 year old Zakdorn male – Chief of Security/Away Team Operations

Dolik is a determined and confident person. He is also driven to do the right thing no matter what it takes, hence why he turned his Uncle in despite being so close to him. The death of his parents still weighs heavily on him and he is reluctant to form close relationships with others as a result, he is scared of losing those close to him so his defence mechanism is to not allow anyone to get close. His temperament is calm for the most part but he has been known to regularly lose his temper.

This doesn’t mean that he’s unfriendly by any means, he is very personable and people find it easy to get along with him. People feel instinctively inclined to respect him but he never feels that he deserves respect from others before he has earned it. It took over a year for his colleagues on the Montgomery to begin to respect him after his rushed promotions landed him in that position.

Throughout his lifetime he has had several casual romantic relationships. Due to the nature of his work for the security firm he was never in one place for too long which meant that having relationships that were anything other than casual was nearly impossible. He has no sexual orientation so doesn’t discriminate based on species or gender.

His hobbies include playing any sport he can get involved in; he is able to get good at them very quickly and enjoys the more tactical ones especially.

Doctor Wilda Raan – A 34 year old Suliban female – Chief Medical Officer

Wilda is a very pleasant and approachable person, her bedside manner as a healer is something that her patients always comment positively on. She has many friends spread throughout the galaxy and her patients often want to keep in touch with her.

She is very intelligent and driven, she makes it her business to learn as much as she can in regards to her profession and her keen mind has helped her progress her career very quickly. She is also fiercely determined and very driven which has allowed her to surpass her peers and her elders in almost every way.

When she was 29 she met her fiancé Harrad Marras (45) (An Orion) who was training to be a therapist. They were engaged when they graduated and were due to leave on different assignments. At this point they are still engaged but the relationship is strained.

Wilda’s hobbies include reading and pursuing research projects. She also likes to paint and solve puzzles.

Ensign Lucy Peterson – A 20 year old human female – Security Officer

Lucy is a very passionate and enthusiastic person who is keen to learn and loves to study. She found all of her Academy classes fascinating and skated through with ease.

She is compassionate and has a sincere desire to help others, so much so that she tailored her studies so that she could become a field medic. She believes that violence should only be used as a last resort and greatly believes everything Starfleet and the Federation stands for.

She is in a relationship with a Romulan named Teril (22) but it is long distance as they have completely different postings.

Her hobbies include martial arts and cooking. She also plays the flute and has a keen interest in music from all cultures.

Ensign Frederick Knox – A 20 year old human male – Junior Pilot

Frederick is kind and compassionate, he was raised with old fashioned values so goes out of his way to treat others with respect and tries to help others where he can. He is friendly but very shy around new people and new situations. He is very intelligent but also prone to laziness and apathy. He had the potential to be a great student at the academy but due to his predisposition to “slacking off”; he was unable to achieve his full potential. This is something that will come to haunt him on the Enterprise due to the fact that he is very easily distracted.

He is quite a guarded person and won’t give too much away about himself which prevents people from getting close to him in many cases. He had one girlfriend at the academy but the relationship wasn’t working and ended after less than 6 months. Socially he had acquaintances he spent time with at the academy but never formed any kind of deep friendship.

His hobbies include Dom-jot and pool. He is also a keen shot at archery which he spent time at the academy doing on an extra-curricular basis. He also likes to spend his time reading and has a huge interest in 20^th and early 21^st century Earth rock music. He doesn’t play any instruments but has always wanted to. His laziness has always gotten in the way of that and he has never really pursued it.

Chapter Outline for first book

Chapter 1:

Deals mostly with Fred and Lucy at a starbase waiting for the Enterprise to arrive and pick them up. They haven’t previously met so this will chronicle their first meeting and gives the introduction for these characters. Lucy will receive a holographic communication from her parents and sister which will establish her relationship with her family. The mirror of that is Fred will write his family a short letter. The chapter ends when the Enterprise arrives.

Chapter 2:

Fred and Lucy (as well as 53 other new crewmembers) beam aboard the Enterprise and are greeted by Korbus who welcome them aboard and they are allocated a crew member tasked with showing them their quarters. Because of their junior status they are allocated quarters akin to barracks with 4 crewmembers per room. Fred and Lucy share with 2 others, one a Vulcan female and the other an Andorian male, both of whom have been there 7 months. They are advised that a briefing will take place later that day with the Captain and other members of the senior staff.

Chapter 3:

Starts off with the briefing from the Captain and senior staff. This is where we meet these characters and are

reintroduced to Korbus. Afterwards there is a reception where most of the senior staff stick around, we find out a little more about these characters and what Fred and Lucy think of them. The chapter ends with them reflecting on their first day and speculation as to what will come next.

Chapter 4:

Fred and Lucy both meet their respective department heads and are told more about their assigned duties. Fred’s first assignment is on the bridge and Lucy has to participate in a training simulation designed to test her teamwork and skills. Both are very excited about getting started. Fred finds the bridge duty boring as the computer does most of his work for him, Lucy has a great time as she finds she gels well with the team and they all take to her very well, it is clear that she’ll go far very quickly.

Chapter 5:

The Enterprise receives a distress call from a freighter under attack by pirates. Fred is confused at how calmly everyone treats this, things are said about how many times this has happened this month and the Enterprise rushes into action. The standard procedure is to threaten the pirates before firing a warning shot. When they don’t respond to this the Enterprise is forced to press the attack, disabling their weapons and threatening to disable their engines if they don’t back off. The pirate ship eventually leaves. Fred finds this distressing as a Starfleet crew is issuing fairly intense threats and being very quick to draw their weapons. An engineering team is sent aboard to repair the freighter.

Chapter 6:

Repairs to the freighter will take at least a day so the crew is afforded some down time. Fred and Lucy take the time to reflect on what had happened. The experienced voices of their roommates will be instrumental in showing the contrast here.

Chapter 7:

Once the freighter has been repaired the Enterprise receives a report from Starfleet Command about smugglers in the area, pointing them to a specific ship smuggling dangerous narcotics. Lucy is assigned to the security team carrying out the inspection. The drugs are found and the ship is impounded, the smugglers aren’t treated very well according to Fred and Lucy but it all seems routine to the crew of the Enterprise which is very unsettling.

Chapter 8:

It has been two weeks and it’s clear that similar situations have been ongoing as Fred and Lucy are used to the routine. They attend a meeting where the new crew are asked how they are finding things by Korbus. Lucy speaks honestly in regards to her feelings on the way the ship conducts business but it is clear that this question was only asked as a routine requirement and that her opinion isn’t actually of interest to anyone. Everyone else is stunned into silence by this and a follow up discussion is had about how shocking that is and how the academy didn’t prepare them for how things really are in the line of actual duty.

Chapter 9:

There is another distress call from a cargo ship that is under attack, the message is relayed from Starfleet Command and is three hours old so by the time the Enterprise gets there the attack is long over and they determine that the cargo ship had to make an emergency landing on a nearby planet. The planet is inhospitable and magnetic fields render the transporter useless so a shuttle mission is planned. In Korbus’ and Dolik’s agreed opinion the mission will not be very dangerous so it will be ideal for training purposes. Fred is assigned to pilot one of the shuttles (two are needed due to the complement of the cargo ship) and Lucy is added to the away team that Dolik leads escorting medics and engineers in case they’re needed.

Chapter 10:

When reaching the site of the crash landing it is clear that any survivors are long gone, shuttle sensors detect life forms in a nearby series of caves so that seems like a suitable place to start. The engineers are left with the cargo ship along with a security detachment and one of the shuttles to see what they can repair/salvage and they fly the shuttles over to the caves. While on their way the Enterprise informs them that a small pirate vessel managed to evade them and is approaching their position so they need to be cautious. The security team enters the cave and begins searching. Fred and his co-pilot/instructor are left with the shuttle along with 2 security officers. They are instructed to remain hidden above the ground if possible.

Chapter 11:

The security team search the cave and come across the survivors who are happy to be rescued. They advise that their sensor array was heavily damaged in the first assault and they couldn’t identify the attackers. Dolik is concerned as that isn’t typical pirate tactics and notes the fact that they didn’t take anything initially, he then goes on to theorise that the incoming pirates are only responding to detecting the crash on their sensors. It is at that point that the shuttle informs them that the pirates are on a descent vector. The ship eclipses both shuttles in firepower so they have been ordered not to engage. The pirates enter the cave and vastly outnumber the security team. Some also head to the cargo ship

Chapter 12:

Through trying to escape, Lucy and two other security officers as well as three of the cargo ship’s crew are taken hostage by a Hirogen hunter. Threats are persistently made and Lucy manages to use her martial arts training to allow the others time to escape. She exploits the fact that the Hirogen underestimated her and was sloppy in watching over them. In the resulting fight Lucy is badly injured but Dolik manages to find her and the rest of the team take down the Hirogen. Also on the Cargo ship the engineers move the cargo onto the shuttle and render the ship valueless. They manage to successfully hide the shuttle.

Chapter 13:

They are able to defeat/evade the remaining pilots and get back to the shuttle. There is a bit of trouble evading the pirate ship but both shuttles manage to escape and get back to the Enterprise. The pirate ship runs from the Enterprise but they have to pursue and arrest them.

Chapter 14:

Would be too much of a spoiler to reveal the ending