The Captain's Chair: A short story

“I’m gonna miss this chair. From here I have seen so much. Ushered in peace, and navigated through the treacherous waters of war. From here I have seen friends die.” He smiled ruefully, “It was a chair, very much like this one, where I discovered who I really am. To think, everything this chair has seen, and it’s being left to gather dust in a museum. I was sitting in that chair when you and I first met, old friend. Do you remember? Of course you do, that brain of yours doesn’t forget a thing, does it? You know, the only time I was ever truly sad sitting here was when I thought I had lost you. I remember coming back up here after your funeral and sitting down. I couldn’t get comfortable. Nothing seemed right, and my mind… my mind would not focus on anything. I felt no joy feeling that surge of power as we began to move. The wonder I have always held of the stars was lost without you.”

                He turned away from the chair and walked to navigation console, leaning forward on it, with his hands firmly planted. “Bones said I went a little crazy after you died, and I guess I had to have been a little crazy. How else could’ve I stolen the ship to come find you? Sitting in that chair again, high with the hope of finding you, I was excited again. I was happy to be in that chair, to be home again. And being on that planet, with you by my side as it was destroyed; I didn’t feel an immense sadness. The old girl had done all I had asked of it—it brought you back to me, old friend. Even in that rust bucket we took from Kruge, that chair felt right because you were by my side again.”

                He smiled, honestly this time. “I’m going to miss this chair. It was far more comfortable than the first one.” He turned to his friend, who was standing off to the side watching and listening with his hands behind his back. “Well, Spock, aren’t you going to say anything? I know the chair won’t mean as much to you, but the ship, and the name, must mean something to you!”

                “I have never understood the connection that humans make to inanimate objects, as a Vulcan. However, the human part of me does feel a longing to stay. It is, however, illogical to miss a starship. It is far more logical to miss the people I have spent time with on this ship. The human side of me will reminisce about Chekov’s unsubstantiated claims of Russian dominance in classic literature, while the Vulcan side of me will urge me to continue on and not live in my past.” Spock paused, and looked over at the science station, his science station. “I will, however, miss the opportunities that my position on the ship allowed me. And you, Jim. I will miss you on the day that we part for the last time.”

                Jim Kirk smiled at his old friend, “Bones would say that that would be damned illogical for a cold-blooded, pointy eared bastard like you.” Kirk laughed at his own joke, while Spock merely raised his eyebrow quizzically. “Don’t worry Spock, it’s going to be a long time before we part ways. I’m heading out for the shakedown cruise with the Enterprise-B, and then I’ll be back doing god knows what. Do you remember what you said to me while you were dying? ‘I have been and always shall be, your friend.’ I mean to hold you to that.” Kirk clapped his hands and headed towards the turbolift, “Now, I have to get ready for that shakedown. I’ll see you when I get back, supper that night?” Kirk smiled as he entered the lift, knowing that he had many more years to spend with his friend.

                Spock stood by the captain’s chair, a place he had so often stood before, and looked around the bridge, one last time. He remembered the banter between Sulu and Chekov. He remembered Uhura’s professionalism, and the way she would shake her head at the antics that went on around her. He remembered Scotty’s determination to this ship. And most of all, he remembered the way that Bones, Jim, and he would talk; the humans laughing at some joke while he stood beside them, never fully understanding why something was funny, but never feeling like he was the joke. Spock would miss this ship. It was just something he would not admit to Jim. Not yet. Perhaps when Jim returned.

                But Spock would not see Jim again. 

The greatest influence in my life

                Arguably the most important science fiction franchise in history turns 50 this year. Sorry Star Wars, but you wouldn’t exist if Star Trek hadn’t paved the way with its clearly superior writing and acting. Now, I’m a fan of many sci-fi franchises: Star Trek, Star Wars, Stargate, Battlestar Galactica, and those are just the ones with ‘star’ in the title. Yet, if I had to choose just one franchise to watch, read, and write about for the rest of my life, the choice would be startlingly easy: Star Trek. I learned so much from it, so many of my morals, my ideas about right and wrong, they come from Star Trek. My understandings of justice and acceptance, my ability to hold onto hope! My belief that things can get better, they all come from Star Trek.

                Star Trek debuted in the sixties. In a time of international tensions, and race riots, it portrayed a future where humanity was united. Where the country of your birth and the colour of your skin didn’t matter. At the height of the Cold War, it had a Russian officer working alongside American officers. At the height of the racial divide in the States, it had a black woman as an officer working alongside and in harmony with white people. For these reasons alone, it was ground breaking. Like all good science fiction, the stories the series told held up a mirror to society. Science fiction has the benefit of critiquing everything in a way that people don’t notice on the surface. Through episodes dealing with xenophobic aliens, it critiqued the Cold War. Through episodes dealing with alien races, it critiqued the racial divide in America.

                Star Trek portrayed a universe where people were always given a chance to prove themselves. A universe where people were judged only for their actions, not their appearance. It taught me that this is how people should act. I grew up watching a world where skin colour didn’t affect how you should look at people, and through that I became a person who doesn’t judge others by that. I’m sure my parents had a little to do with that, but this is about Star Trek, not them.

                Deep Space Nine taught me that the world isn’t in black and white. It taught me that morals weren’t black and white, and that if something was the right thing to do for one group of people it wasn’t necessarily the right thing for other groups. Through characters like Dr Bashir, who through no fault of his own was an illegal eugenic, I learned that I could accept myself for who I was. Through Kira I learned that being religious was okay, but that I shouldn’t blindly follow it if something felt wrong. Through Sisko I learned that leadership and respect is earned through actions, and not just because of status. It taught me that even good people will do bad things if they believe it’s the right thing to do. And in the end, it taught me that victories of any sort only come through sacrifice.

                The Old testament in the bible has some interesting thoughts on justice, including that the sins of the fathers can be passed on to future generations. Star Trek showed me that this was wrong. It allowed me to see that no one should be tied to the wrong doings of their families or of their people. The most obvious example that springs to mind is when Jadiza Dax was put on trial for the supposed actions of Curzon Dax. The accusers argued that because Jadiza was the new host of the Dax symbiont, she should be held accountable for the actions of Curzon. Odo once said that “The law? Commander, laws change, depending on who's making them - Cardassians one day, Federation the next. But justice is justice,” which took me a while to fully grasp. It’s something that I get now. Everywhere in the world, there are unjust laws: from the gun laws in the States, to some of the laws involving First Nations in Canada. Are the people affected by those laws receiving justice? No, they aren’t, and because of Star Trek, I learned to truly appreciate the fact that laws do not always equal justice.

                Star Trek was a world that I wanted to live in. A world where everyone was accepted, and for a time, I felt like I could live in that world. I truly embraced my inner trekkie. Then I moved and got teased and bullied for it, so I hid it. I still loved Star Trek, but it became something I enjoyed in secret. The irony is apparent to me now, but it was necessary at the time. I always found it so odd that Star Wars was something people could love openly, but Star Trek wasn’t. It was because Star Trek was always something that made you think, and thinking was something nerdy. Because Star Trek was smart, it wasn’t “cool”. The real world was so biased and base, that people weren’t even being accepted because they liked things that required thought. But Star Trek gave me hope that this would change, so I held onto that hope, and I continued to love Star Trek. The Vulcan philosophy of Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations gave me the belief that anything is possible, because there is literally an infinite amount of choices that we can make. I watched all the series, I read the books, I played the games.

                Then I fell away from it for a bit. The real world got too dark and depressing, and I didn’t want things that made me think, so I fell into a world of bright colours and flashing lights to distract myself. The lessons I learned from Star Trek were still there, but I distanced myself from the franchise. I still watched the movies, but I didn’t read the books anymore. I quit watching the TV series. I was denying myself of something that was literally part of me. But outside of my parents, Star Trek was the biggest influence on my life. I grew up with it. I was molded by it. And yet I denied myself of it. I don’t know why, other than I thought people would judge me by it. But Star Trek taught me to be true to myself. To not hide who I am.

                And I’m a trekkie. Star Trek is possibly the most important science fiction franchise ever made. It has made real world changes: from technological advances, to how we view others. It has influenced the lives of countless people through its portrayal of humanity and a better world. Even Martin Luther King Jr believed that it was important. I will argue forever that is a better franchise than Star Wars in every aspect (except in money making), and we all know that Star Wars wouldn’t even exist if Star Trek hadn’t paved the way. For Star Trek’s 50^th birthday, they have added the their first canonically gay main character, who just happens to be a person of colour, and they’ve announced the return of Star Trek to television.

                I, for one, am excited, and will definitely be going to watch Star Trek Beyond next weekend; even if I have to drive to another city to see it (our theatre here is terrible). In case you didn’t pick it up, Deep Space Nine is my favourite series. Followed by the Original, then The Next Generation. Wrath of Khan is my favourite film, followed by First Contact, then The Undiscovered Country.

                Qapla’ and Live Long and Prosper.

                That’s right, I snuck some Klingon in.