Professional editing services provided by Donald Schell.

Historian’s Note: The following takes place in 2378, just after the return of the U.S.S. Voyager from the Delta Quadrant.

* * *

First Command

By Darrin Drader

1

“Would you care to take a tour of the ship’s exterior before we dock, sir?” the shuttlecraft pilot, a young male ensign from Earth asked.

Captain Sean Sheppard didn’t remember his name, having met for the first time twenty minutes prior. He has seen several Sovereign Class starships before, but this was the first time he would see his own ship anywhere other than a PADD. He couldn’t wait to come aboard, meet the crew he had selected, and start his first mission, but this was the first look at the first command of his first starship as its captain, not counting the times he had temporarily taken charge of the USS Robinson. He decided it was right to savor the moment. It was also customary to tour the ship’s exterior prior to departing Spacedock. “Sure, ensign,” he said casually. He briefly considered asking the ensign his name again, but decided it would be easier to learn it by looking at the crew manifest after he was aboard.

The shuttle approached from the bow, and Sheppard took in the graceful arc of the starships saucer section. The Sovereign Class ship’s saucer section was elongated, which was the opposite of the Galaxy Class’s, which looked as though it were stretched side to side. Sheppard noted that Starfleet had taken his request seriously to change the shading on the top and the sides from gray to azure. It was just a paint job, but he had requested it as an homage to the ship’s name: Horizon. Ever since the beginning of flight, people would look to the blue horizon, and ultimately that was Starfleet’s primary interest, to push outward and explore the horizons of knowledge and understanding.

Sheppard was of average height for a human at six feet tall. He had a full head of dark hair that he wore swept back, and he had taken to arranging his facial hair in a Van Dyke style goatee. At fifty-four years of age, he was in the prime of his life, and he was considered a damn attractive man. The ship’s counsellor aboard the Robinson had written in his personnel file that he exerted a certain presence that inspired confidence and loyalty among the crew. He’d recently been told that it was that comment that put him over the top when choosing between the three top contenders to captain this vessel.

As he watched the graceful secondary hull of the starship glide slowly by out the fore viewport, he reflected upon his time aboard the Robinson. It was a Galaxy class ship that had been launched a year after the Enterprise-D, but given the fact that it was commissioned, it now had more years of service than that other storied ship commanded by Jean Luc Picard that was destroyed on Veridian III.

The decision to leave his previous post hadn’t been an easy one. Outside of wondering whether he was truly competent enough to command a Starfleet vessel, there were also the bonds of friendship formed that would not so easily be replaced. Sophie McKinnon, Nellar, Synod, and more… each of them had begun as subordinates, and in the end were people he would be willing to sacrifice his life for. Despite his emotional attachments, the top-performing senior officers serving aboard the various ships of the fleet often eventually reach a point where Starfleet extends the offer to promote them to captain. When that day comes, they typically look at all the others who have recently been given ships, and know that they can do just as good a job—that their turn to take the center seat has arrived.

In the wake of the Dominion War, the Federation was rebuilding. Starfleet had lost a lot of vessels to the invaders from the Gamma Quadrant, and numerous worlds had been devastated. This created serious vulnerabilities, as well as numerous newly constructed starships that needed captains and crews. The Horizon was one such ship.

The Sovereign class starship was designed after the Battle of Wolf 359 as a vessel designed to combat the Borg. The Enterprise-E was the first one that entered service. The Horizon was a second generation of the ship and included several upgrades that hadn’t yet been installed in the first generation of the ship, including additional torpedo launch tubes, more efficient warp nacelles, and an upgraded power management system that would, theoretically, make the ship even more adept at managing getting power to vital systems during a crisis. Of course, these systems were state-of-the-art, and therefore untested aboard an actual starship. If things went poorly, some systems could go the way of the ship-wide holo-emitters of the previous century.

Sheppard’s attention returned to the tour as the shuttle spun around to the aft and began to descend into the shuttle bay. I guess the joyride is over, he mused. When he wasn’t wrapped up in the day-to-day operations of a starship, he allowed himself to be amazed at the sheer size and scale of these vessels… of the level of engineering that went into their creation… and of the depth of love their captains would have for them and their crews. It was the only healthy way to be at space for years at a time.

“Magnificent ship,” the ensign commented.

“That she is, ensign. That she is.”

The shuttle turned toward the bay doors, which were parting to admit them. They were now a couple hundred feet from the starship’s hull, and Sheppard could clearly see the assembled officers just beyond the shield keeping the atmosphere contained.

The vessel glided in and came to a rest on the deck. As the main hangar doors closed, the shuttle’s bulkhead parted horizontally, the bottom of which came to rest on the deck below. Sheppard walked down the stairs and looked at the Starfleet officers assembled before him.

At the front of the assembly was Kevia Turner, his first officer. Although her ancient heritage was African, she’d been born on Barisia Prime. He noted the cybernetic implant on the left side of her forehead and her mechanical left arm, both made necessary due to injuries sustained during the Dominion War.

“Permission to come aboard,” Sheppard said.

Turner’s expression remained neutral as she said, “Permission granted, captain. Welcome aboard.”

Beyond Turner was the remainder of his senior staff, at least those currently aboard the Horizon, and beyond them were another twenty five officers, each some of the higher ranking officers from the various departments aboard the ship. He noted the Andorian Science Officer, Sass Ch’qahrok, who was one of the few non-Vulcans to study at the Vulcan Science Academy. Next to him was Tavika, the Romulan woman with shoulder-length brown hair who would serve as bridge crew at Tactical. Born on Tantalus Penal Colony, she was one of the only Romulans serving in Starfleet. Next to her was Ipesh Nod, a Bajoran man with sandy blond hair and a fit physique who had spent considerable time in a Cardassian prison, and would serve as his Chief of Security. Finally was Adriana Cunha, a slim girl with red hair and slight features. Still in her mid-twenties, she was something of an engineering prodigy who assisted in the design of the Luna class vessel. Not present was Doctor Julian Bashir, who would be joining them at Deep Space Nine.

“Thank you, Commander,” Sheppard said pleasantly. “It’s good to see all of you here. I picked each of you from the finest officers Starfleet had available and I expect this crew to do amazing things.” He winced inwardly, realizing how generic that greeting must sound to them. He needed to follow that up with a special touch—a captain’s touch. He paused a moment, then said, “A starship isn’t just a machine that sails between the stars. Every ship has a personality, a memory, and will one day leave a legacy. That essence isn’t simply defined by its captain, or the missions it undertakes—it is defined by the people who serve aboard her. Each of you, and every other person serving aboard her will make her what she is, and what she will be remembered for. I look forward to getting to know each of you.” He paused again for effect, deciding that he’d said enough. “Dismissed.”

The officers visibly relaxed and began heading for the door to the shuttle bay. Sheppard walked briskly into the corridor himself. Turner kept pace beside him.

“Commander,” Sheppard said to Turner.

“It’s good to have you aboard, captain,” she replied as they began their walk down the corridor toward the turbolift. Starfleet vessels within the same class looked nearly identical from the outside, but the interiors were not always the same. The Enterprise was the same class of vessel, and was the Federation’s flagship, and its interiors were primarily rendered in browns, grays, and reds. The Horizon’s interior was mostly blue, with black trim, and gray seats and carpeting.

Likewise, uniforms varied from ship to ship, and captains would periodically change them after a few years. They had been mostly black with red, blue, or yellow shoulders prior to the Dominion War, then they switched Starfleet-wide to black with gray shoulders and colored collars during the war. This remained a popular uniform aboard most vessels, but the older design with the colorful shoulders became an option captains could choose. Sheppard had grown tired of their wartime uniforms, so he had elected the latter over the former for the Horizon.

“The crew’s been aboard for about a week now, testing systems and making sure she’s ready to depart Spacedock. How are they coming together?”

“Some of the crew has been aboard for a week,” Turner corrected him. “Others of us have been supervising final installations of equipment longer than that. Others beamed aboard within the last few hours.”

“Others?”

“Ipesh Nod was apparently on shore leave until about two hours before your scheduled arrival. Admiral Conolley vouched for his absence, so I didn’t feel the need to follow it up.”

“I remember when I was first assigned as senior staff aboard the Robinson. I reported for duty at Starbase twenty-three as soon as I could. I couldn’t wait to get to know the other officers, and get acquainted with the ship. You don’t think he’s going to be a problem, do you?”

“His service record is impressive and he spent time in a Cardassian gulag, so I doubt we have anything to worry about.”

They approached the turbolift node in this section of the ship and waited for it to arrive. “Anyone else stand out?”

“Yeah, Adriana Cunha. Brilliant engineer, but if I didn’t know any better, I’d swear she was still a teenager.”

Sheppard frowned. “Rebellious?”

“No. Awkward.”

“Brilliant minds sometimes have social deficiencies. It’s not unusual, and nothing she shouldn’t be able to overcome.”

The door to the turbolift hissed open and they stepped in. “Bridge,” Sheppard said and the lift began moving. “How is the rest of the Engineering department reacting to her?”

“You mean how do they feel getting bossed around by someone younger than most of them who’s never actually served aboard a starship? They’re following her orders. Ask me again when we get into a crisis.”

“The crew as a whole is untested, so that’s true of all of us,” Sheppard commented. The lift came to a stop and the door to the bridge swooshed open and as they stepped off they were immediately immersed in a cascade of sounds of the bridge, with its constant beeps and alerts. Sheppard proceeded toward the control center and an ensign at the conn shouted, “Captain on the bridge!”

“Ensign, you don’t have to do that every time I walk in,” Sheppard said with a touch of annoyance. Captains who insisted on continuing that ridiculous tradition struck him as arrogant.

“Aye, sir,” she said.

The bridge followed the standard Starfleet layout. It was circular, with a large viewscreen in front, a command well in the center, and a slightly raised rear portion that contained separate tactical and ops stations, and three operations panels along the back wall. The command area contained two chairs, one each for the captain and first officer, and the conn station was up front. Finally, the science station was on the left, and the Andorian Sass Ch’qahrok was already at his post. Near the back were two doors, one to the captain’s ready room and the other to the turbolift. Like the rest of the ship, the color scheme was blue, gray, and black. It was not the expansive area that was found on the Galaxy class starship, with its varnished wood tactical console which sat behind the three command chairs.

The cavernous interior of Spacedock was on the viewscreen. He was still amazed that the massive structure had been in service for over a century. Twenty years ago it had been refit with larger doors to accommodate the Galaxy Class ships that were about to enter service, and it had undergone regular maintenance and upgrades over the years, but it was still a monument to engineering, and had changed very little since it entered service.

“Ensign, are all systems online?” Sheppard asked.

“Aye, sir,” came the response.

“Signal Starfleet that the Horizon is almost ready to depart.”

* * *

Tavika walked quickly from her quarters. The ship would launch soon and she would be needed on the bridge. With prominent brow ridges and ears that ended in pointed tips, Tavika was unmistakably Romulan. While there were others in Starfleet with some Romulan blood, there were very few full Romulans. In fact, there were more Klingons in Starfleet than there were Romulans. While the Romulan Star Empire had entered the Dominion War on the side of Starfleet, their position was against the Dominion rather than on the side of Starfleet. Despite their brief alliance, they were far from friends. In fact, brinksmanship along the Neutral Zone remained as common as ever.

Of course Tavika had never been a part of the Romulan Star Empire. Her parents had been, but they had been in a Federation prison from the time she was born. Despite this, there were many in Starfleet who didn’t trust her simply because of her bloodline. So much for the great enlightened society… She wasn’t sure if Captain Sheppard had selected her to be part of the Horizon’s senior staff based on her service record or if he simply wanted to help her advance in the ranks because there were so many forces within Starfleet that would be aligned against her simply due to her bloodline. In either case, she was cautiously optimistic that this could turn out to be a good assignment.

She rounded a corner and caught sight of the Bajoran Security Chief, Ipesh Nod. She sped up so she could walk beside him. She had met the other members of Horizon’s senior staff, but she had yet to speak with him due to his recent arrival. “Lieutenant Commander,” she said, acknowledging him.

Ipesh Nod was tall and athletic, with dark blond hair that he wore short and combed to the left. He did not wear the d’ja pagh on his right ear as many of his people did, and Starfleet had no regulations against them.

“Tavika, right?” She noted immediately that his tone of his voice did not sound overly friendly.

“That’s correct. As the Chief of Security, I would imagine that the two of us will be working closely.”

“Most likely,” he said.

They approached the turbolift doors and Nod remained silent. She wasn’t sure if he was normally this curt with everybody, or if he had a problem with her specifically. Having never met before, she could only imagine why he might not like her. “Lietenant Commander, I apologize if I caught you at a bad time. I merely wished to introduce myself.”

“Noted,” said Nod.

Tavika felt her cheeks flush in anger. This was not how she wanted to begin a working relationship with another senior officer aboard the ship. “Computer, halt the lift.”

Nod simply looked at her wordlessly.

“Is there something I have done to offend you in the hour and a half we have both been present aboard this vessel?”

“Not as such,” Nod replied.

“Do you speak in three word sentences with everyone?”

“No.”

“Then why are you doing so to me?” she asked. Her eyes narrowed, her jaw set. While she had spent no time among other Romulans, she had inherited their heightened emotional state, and though she tried to keep it under control, she did not back down when she felt someone was discriminating against her on the basis of her heritage.

Nod was silent for a moment. Finally, he lowered his eyes to his boots. “I apologize Lieutenant Commander. I did not mean to offend you.”

“Computer, resume lift,” she said. As the turbolift moved smoothly into motion again she said, “As one of the few Starfleet officers who happens to be of full Romulan heritage, I am not oblivious when people are discriminating against me. I wish for us to have an amicable working relationship, but I will not tolerate blatant disrespect. I hope I don’t have to take this up with the captain.”

“No ma’am,” Nod said.

The lift doors parted and the two stepped onto the bridge. Captain Sheppard stood in front of his command chair and looked at them as they entered. “Well, it looks like we have a full compliment now. Let’s be underway. Signal to Spacedock to open the bay doors so we can depart.”

Tavika took her place at the Tactical station, which also handled shipboard communications. “Aye, sir,” she said as she tapped a few controls at her station. A moment later she received her electronic reply. “Starfleet confirms and wishes us well on our way.”

They watched as the doors in front of them parted revealing the star dotted blackness of space beyond.

“Ensign Sanchez, take us out,” Sheppard said.

Tavika barely felt the movement as the maneuvering thrusters kicked on and the ship went from a dead stop to slowly inching its way toward open space.

“Impulse engines are coming online and functioning within normal parameters,” Ch’qahrok reported.

They watched the open doors grew increasingly larger on the viewscreen. A moment later, the open starfield filled the entire screen, with a corner of the Earth in the lower right hand field of view.

“We have cleared Spacedock,” Sanchez said. “Switching propulsion to impulse.”

“Mister Sanchez, set course for Deep Space Nine at Warp Seven. Engage.”

The ship jumped smoothly to warp speed. The Horizon had taken flight.