Chapter Nine
Court Martial
Kirk Personal Log Stardate 57973.3
I am being released from sick bay today as soon as Dr. McCoy comes on shift at 0600. I still can't remember the attack or anything leading up to it. In fact that entire day has been erased from my memory. Chad says I'm lucky that I can't remember. He's described what he saw when he came upon the attack. He says at first he didn't know who was being beaten and when he saw that it wasn't me and that I wasn't moving he was terrified that I was dead. I have assured him that I am not dead. The pain in my head and ribs reminds me that I'm very much alive every time I move.
I'm not returning to the academy for a week after I'm released. Kathryn has informed me that I will be at home in the apartment for the week and someone will be with me at all times. I keep telling her that I'm fine but she insists that I am not to be left alone for any reason. I love her for worrying about me.
I'm worried about Quinn. He's been to visit me seven times and each time he refuses to look me in the eye. I don't know what's going on with him. He told me during his first visit that he was so scared that I was going to die and he didn't think he could live with that. It gave me pause to hear him express such a sentiment. It also touched me. Quinn and I have gotten quite close and I'm afraid I'm starting to feel for him in a way that is probably not healthy for me.
I've had a steady stream of visitors since I woke up and started asking what had happened to me. Tom Paris is here almost every day and he and I are getting to be really good friends. Each time I talk to him I'm reminded of the Tom Paris from the other timeline and I wonder how Voyager is coping in the new timeline. I also wonder if they'll ever make it back to their rightful time. I hope so but with Q I know nothing can be taken for granted.
At any rate I'm ready to leave sick bay. A week in the apartment without classes and assignments sounds good actually. I could use the break.
"We'll just get you settled and then I have to get the boys back to the academy for classes," said Kathryn as they walked into the apartment.
It was slow going for Jim with his ribs still hurting. Doctor McCoy assured them that his ribs would be sore for a while but it would go away. His headaches were likely going to be a repeat offender for a while. He'd suffered a serious cranial fracture and though it had been regenerated the trauma hadn't went away. He was just happy that he hadn't suffered permanent brain damage as a result of the fracture.
"I'll be fine on the sofa," he said as he attempted to walk across the room on his own. The stitch in his side made him go slow and in seconds she was there to help him with Chad and Quinn on his other side.
"I'll only be gone long enough to get them back," she promised. "Don't get up."
"I promise to stay right where I am," he replied, breathing hard from the pain caused by moving around.
She used a hypo spray to give him a pain killer before she left with Chad and Quinn. She was gone only seconds before he started to doze from the effects of the pain killer she'd administered. He simmered there on the edge of sleep and understanding and it seemed like the door opened and Kathryn came through it only seconds after she'd left. She smiled at him as he finally gave up the battle, sunk back into the sofa and let sleep claim him.
He dreamt of sailing through the stairs on the bridge of the Lexus, Commander Munro at his side as they raced to their destination. He smiled at Chad as he flew them to their destination. This was the way it was supposed to be. They were supposed to be on the Lexus. He'd been terrified but happier when they were on that ship.
"Jim," Kathryn said, shaking him gently to wake him. "Jim, wake up."
"Kathryn?" he responded groggily, opening his eyes. He noticed that she was not alone and opened his eyes wider, feeling suddenly awake.
"Jim, Admiral Hammil is here with me," she said. "He wants to talk with you. Do you feel up to it?"
"Yes, Admiral," he replied, sitting up straighter and wincing at the pain in his ribs as he moved.
"I'll leave you two to chat," she said, looking from Admiral Hammil to Jim and back with a slightly worried expression.
Admiral Hammil, the man in charge of Starfleet, stood before him tall and proud. He was an older man but Jim dared not put an age to him. His dark hair was short and his hazel eyes searched Jim's face, a look of concern in them.
"If you're not yet up to talking, Mr. Kirk, I can come back at a later time," he said softly.
"No, Admiral," replied Jim, the fog lifting quickly from his mind. "I'm all right. Thank you."
"I've been hearing a lot of impressing things about you, Mr. Kirk," said Hammil as he sat in the chair across from the sofa. "I'd like to discuss your future in Starfleet."
"Yes, sir," replied Jim, wondering just what was happening. He was sure he wasn't in trouble.
"A decision about your status has to be made and soon," said Hammil. "You have three Starfleet Admirals in your corner who believe that you have what it takes to be a captain when you graduate. What are your thoughts?"
"I've learned a lot since my days on the Lexus," he replied, thinking as carefully as he could before he went on. "I enjoy being in command and believe that I can command a crew in a manner fitting Starfleet, sir."
"I've reviewed the sensor logs of the Lexus along with the crew's personal and official log entries," said Hammil. "You have a crew of gifted officers and enlisted men and women who believe that you are a great captain. I've also reviewed all of the logs from the Leviathan, and talked with the members of the cadet crew. They seem to think that you are a great captain as well.
"A few of them seem to have forgotten that you are currently a cadet in the academy," he continued. "They think of you as a commissioned captain already."
"Sir, I've done nothing to encourage them in thinking of me as anything other than the cadet that I am," he said. "I'm happy to hear that they hold me in such high regard and can only hope that I lived up to their trust and opinions of me."
"Judging from the way you handled situations in Andromeda and recent events I'd say that you have more than lived up to their opinion of you, Mr. Kirk," said Hammil. "I'd say you've also more than earned their trust. It is because of their faith and trust in you that I've come to the decision that I have."
"Thank you, sir," he replied, waiting for what would come next.
"Mr. Kirk I would like for you to be tested as soon as you are completely on your feet again," said Hammil. "If you do half as well as I suspect you will I am prepared to enter into the records of Starfleet Academy that you have graduated. Then, after a year in Starfleet Academy Command School, I believe you belong on the bridge of a starship in command of a crew."
"Thank you, sir," he said, holding his excitement in check.
"This is beyond the scope of normal, Mr. Kirk," said Hammil. "You will be the fastest commissioned officer in the history of Starfleet. A lot will be expected of you. Do you think you can handle the pressure?"
"Sir, may I speak freely?" he asked.
"Of course," Hammil replied with a smile.
"At the risk of implying that the pressure of being a commissioned captain so quickly is any less than my time on the Lexus, I must say that I've faced pressure that threatened to destroy me in Andromeda, sir," he said. "I can only say that I will do my best to live up to the level of trust that Starfleet places in me. I can't make promises because I don't know what the future holds. All I can say is that I will face the future on my feet and with everything I've learned firmly in my mind."
"That's all Starfleet could ask of you, Mr. Kirk," said Hammil with a smile. "I must say that I'm impressed with you."
"Thank you, sir," he replied.
"With all that's happened to you I find you to be eager and ready," said Hammil. "Ordinary men would have buckled under the stress you've been placed under. You haven't. That tells me something. I'm sure you'll make a fine captain."
"Thank you," he replied, smiling.
He didn't know what to think when the admiral left. Command School now? He was about to graduate from the academy after only one semester. Starfleet was going to commission him captain. He just didn't know what to think about it. It was better than a dream.
"How are you feeling now that you've had your talk with Admiral Hammil?" Kathryn asked, coming back into the living room and bringing him a cup of tea.
"I think I'm stunned," he replied, accepting the cup. "So much has happened in such a short amount of time. It's going to take a bit to sink in."
"Well I don't mean to be insensitive," she said, smiling. "You've got a few things to learn before you take that test he talked about."
"The Prime Directive," he replied, wheels turning in his head as they spoke.
"That and the Temporal Prime Directive," she said. "I have data pads for you to peruse as you feel up to it. We also have the court martial to get through. Do you feel up to that?"
"I do," he said after only a short pause to think about it. "I want to look into their eyes, Kathryn. Those boys tried to kill me."
"Yes," she said, her face softening. "I'm very happy that they failed."
He read all of what the data pads contained on The Prime Directive and Temporal Prime Directive that day. Most of what he'd read he was sure he'd have been able to deduce on his own. He wanted to think about it all some more before he consented to be tested though.
Two days and much studying later they were seated in a large room at Starfleet Command. This was the room that Jim and Chad had feared they would be sitting in shortly after arriving in this timeline. There were chairs in rows behind two tables with consoles at one end. In front of those was a longer table with six chairs. Seated in those chairs were admirals that Jim didn't know along with Admiral Hammil and Admiral Aaron.
Seated to the left of the right table were the seven young men who had tried to kill him. He still couldn't remember the event but looking at them gave him a sick feeling in his stomach. Anthony Barclay and six boys he didn't even know had tried to beat him to death less than a month ago. The very thought of it made his skin crawl.
The most shocking thing that had happened since he'd left sick bay and the academy to rest and recuperate at Kathryn's was Sonya Kemperson coming forward as a witness, telling Admiral Aaron that a boy named Josh Harring was innocent. She told them that the boy they were looking for was Jarred Nash. He now sat at the table with the others, waiting to be judged and sentenced. The seven had already been expelled from Starfleet Academy. That fate had been on the news almost every day as the press followed the story.
Jim's heart ached as Chad came into the room and sat in a chair to the side of the Admiral's table. He listened as Chad described the scene he'd come upon the day he'd found Jim being beaten by the defendants. Chad's voice broke when he told the Admirals that he'd though Jim was dead when he'd first got there.
He told them how he'd watched the boys walk away, laughing about what they'd done. Then he told them about calling for medical help and waiting in the hall outside of sick bay for word. Jim could barely stand to listen to his best friend and brother's anguished voice as he gave them his testimony.
Then Sonya Kemperson was sitting in that chair and what she had to say was even more unbearable than Chad's testimony. She'd seen much more of the attack and had been to afraid to get help. She cried as she talked about what she'd seen. Then she talked about learning that Josh Harring was being accused and knowing that he was innocent. She talked about going to Admiral Aaron to tell him that Jarred Nash was the boy that was missing from the brig.
Doctor McCoy testified next, telling the admirals about the state Jim was in when he'd been brought in to sick bay. He told them that he fully expected Jim to die before he could get the wounds regenerated.
Three of the boys, Paul Patterson, Vince Tatterton and Shane Phillips testified as well. They fully admitted that they had taken part in the assault and told the admirals how Anthony Barclay had instigated the entire thing. They apologized for their actions and then it was time for the admirals to discuss the case in private.
Jim sat with Kathryn and waited with everyone else. His mind was in turmoil as he sat there. He couldn't believe that Anthony Barclay hated him so much. He'd done nothing to him to make him feel such hatred. It sickened him to realize that nothing had to be done for some people to hate you so much that violence was their answer.
In the end Anthony Barclay was sentenced to twenty years in the Starfleet Penal Colony at Auckland, New Zealand. Three of the others were sentenced to fifteen years in the same institution while the three boys who had testified were sentenced to seven years. They were taken in hand cuffs to the Security Transporter Station just moments after the sentences were announced.
A steady stream of visitors came to the apartment starting the next day. The teenaged Icheb was the first to visit. He expressed his well wishes and was thankful that Jim was alive. Jim was surprised when Icheb left the apartment. The teen had told him that he considered him to be a treasured friend. In all the time they'd roomed together at the academy Jim had never known where he stood with Icheb.
Tom and B'Elanna came to help him study for the oral exam that was scheduled for Friday. There simply wasn't time to dwell on the court martial or his feelings about the sentences imposed on his attackers. He had an exam to study for and it was one of the most important exams of his life. He had to be prepared for it.
"All right," said Tom as they sat in the kitchen at Kathryn's apartment. "Tell me in your own words what the Prime Directive is."
"The Prime Directive says that no member of Starfleet may interfere with the natural development of another species by means of information, technology or leaving anything for the species to find on their own."
"That's a good answer," Tom said, nodding. "Now the Temporal Prime Directive."
Jim explained that the Temporal Prime Directive was different because it involved time travel. Basically it said that no civilization was to be altered by contamination from time travel in any way. There was a lot more to it than that but Jim felt he had the basic principle of the directive.
"I think you're ready," said B'Elanna. "You know probably more about Starfleet Regulations than we do."
"I've been studying my tail off for days," he replied, smiling. "I'm ready for this exam."
"You sure are," said Tom, smiling. "And then soon you'll be Starfleet Captain James R. Kirk for real."
Friday dawned bright and cold. Jim and Kathryn made their way to Starfleet Command in silence. Jim was dressed in his Red Zone uniform and more nervous than he'd ever been in his life. He wanted to pass this test. He wanted to attend Command School and become Captain for real. Ultimately he wanted to be back on the Lexus.
He sat in Admiral Hammil's office for three straight hours answering questions about Starfleet protocols, directives and procedures. By the time they broke for lunch his throat was dry and his knees were shaking. He didn't know if there were more questions but he hoped they were finished.
"So how do you think it's going?" Kathryn asked as they sat in a deli not far from Starfleet.
"Good," he said after a moment. "He hasn't said anything to indicate that it isn't going good."
"You've studied hard, Jim," she said. "I believe that you know what you need to know. I'm also proud of you."
"Thank you," he said, smiling. "It's hard to believe everything that's happened since I woke up in sick bay on Voyager."
"I can imagine," she said, smiling back at him.
At Starfleet Command once again three more hours of questions were waiting for him. He answered each question as clearly as he could. He elaborated on some answers when asked his opinion and when he finally sat in the waiting area with Kathryn while Admiral Hammil prepared a report for Starfleet he was satisfied with his answers. When they were both seated in Hammil's office Jim thought his heart was going to shatter his ribcage until the admiral spoke.
"Mr. James Randal Kirk," he said. "I've entered into my Starfleet Log that I have found you to be qualified and ready for graduation from Starfleet Academy. Congratulations."
"Thank you, Admiral," he replied, smiling.
"Your official Starfleet Rank is Commander at the moment," said Hammil. "There'll be a celebration banquet on Monday and I will announce your graduation and commissioning there. You'll also be enrolled in Starfleet Academy Command School Monday morning along with Quinn Janeway.
"At the end of your year in Command School you will be promoted to Captain," he continued. "Congratulations, Commander Kirk."
"Thank you, Admiral Hammil," he said, rising and shaking the admiral's hand. Kathryn was beaming at him.
They went straight to the Command Commissary from Hammil's office so that Jim could be fitted for his Starfleet uniform. Two hours later he was standing in front of a mirror dressed in an official Starfleet uniform with pips on his collar that indicated his rank of Commander.
"We have to pick up Quinn and Chad," Kathryn said, smiling at him as they made their way to her transport vehicle. "I'm sure you'd like to clear out your dorm room as well."
"Yes actually," he said, smiling back at her. He couldn't stop smiling. It was all so unreal to him at that point. He was now Commander James Kirk of Starfleet.
Every cadet he passed on his way to his dorm room looked at him twice. They noticed the uniform and the pips on his collar and smiled. Word spread as he packed his uniforms, clothes and awards in his stasis case.
Chad sat on the other bed, smiling from ear to ear as he watched Jim pack. He was happy for his friend. He couldn't believe it had happened so quickly but he was happy that it had. He couldn't wait for the banquet and the official announcement.
"So," he said. "Commander."
"It's only for a year," replied Jim. "When I graduate from Command School I'll be promoted to Captain."
"This is so great, Jim," said Chad with a huge smile on his face. "I can't believe it."
"I'm having a little trouble with that myself," laughed Jim as Quinn came into the room dressed in his own Starfleet uniform. Jim was shocked to see the blue collar sticking up out of the grey and black jacket.
"I'm officially a graduate of the academy," Quinn said, smiling. "I'll be enrolled at Starfleet Medical Academy on Monday."
"Congratulations, Quinn," said Chad, shaking his hand.
"Congratulations, Lieutenant Commander Janeway," said Jim, smiling as he saw the pips on Quinn's blue collar.
"Thank you, Commander Kirk," Quinn replied with a big smile on his face.
"This is so unreal," laughed Chad as the three of them made their way to Kathryn's transport vehicle, gaining looks and calls of congratulations from cadets as they passed.
"Ah my officers," said Kathryn as they got in the vehicle. "I'm so proud of you both."
"Thank you," they said in unison. They turned to smile at each other.
"I know the three of you said you didn't want to celebrate Christmas," she said as they pulled out of the parking lot of the academy campus. "But I have gifts for each of you at home. Don't argue."
"We won't argue about anything today, Kathryn," laughed Jim. "We're too excited."
"That's the spirit," she laughed.
Once in the apartment she presented all three young men with carefully wrapped packages. Jim opened his to find a plaque with a solid twenty-four carat gold replica of Lexus and inscribed with "Captain James R. Kirk of the Federation Starship Lexus NCC-74566". He smiled as his breath caught.
"Thank you, Kathryn," he breathed as he hugged her.
Quinn unwrapped his gift to find a golden stethoscope inside. He smiled wide and hugged Kathryn thanking her at the same time. Chad's gift was pips for his collar to indicate the rank of Lieutenant. He smiled at Kathryn in confusion.
"You'll be commissioned as Lieutenant when you graduate next year, Chad," she said. "This was my way of giving you the news and saying congratulations."
"Thank you," he said, smiling as he hugged her.
"Jim and Quinn I have another surprise for the two of you," she said. "It isn't a gift though. Upon receiving your ranks you were both compensated for your first year of service to Starfleet. Out of that I have procured an apartment for the two of you to live in while you attend Command and Medical school. If you'll follow me we'll go and have a look."
They were speechless as the three of them followed Kathryn out of the apartment to the lift. She smiled at their stunned faces as they were taken from her floor to the floor below. She instructed them to program their access codes into the computer touch pad on the door. Then she explained that once that was done the door would only open for the two of them unless one was inside to allow entry.
When the door opened Jim was pleasantly surprised. The apartment was just like Kathryn's but inside were his possessions from Lexus. The entire apartment looked like it had come out of the twenty-first century. The replicator in the kitchen looked like a refrigerator while the actual refrigeration unit was in the wall, concealed by cabinet doors. The appliance that Jim could not name in Kathryn's apartment was much easier to identify in the apartment he would share with Quinn. It was a stove and oven but here it looked like an electric range from the twenty-first century.
In the bedrooms they found standard queen sized Starfleet issued beds with chests that looked like real antiques. They found their clothing in the closets and turned to Kathryn smiling. She'd thought of everything.
THE LEXUS CHRONICLES