The Boy, The Ship, and The Stars...
Posted on Wed Apr 11th, 2018 @ 4:21am by Commodore Tyler Malbrooke & Lieutenant Commander Katherine Malbrooke
Edited on on Wed Apr 11th, 2018 @ 4:26am
1,381 words; about a 7 minute read
Mission:
Academy Days
Location: Starfleet Academy, San Francisco, Earth
Timeline: October 2378
Tyler Malbrooke was officially one month into his Junior Cadet year and officially he wanted to go find the nearest hole and climb into it. His Astral Physics professor hated him or at least Tyler was convinced of it. How could one not be convinced when your professor comments that you are 'too cocky to pass this class'.
The weekend had come and he figured studying could wait, for now it was time to drown one's sorrows in some synthahol. But first a stop at Josh's room to see if he could drag him out too. When Josh opened the door to the room, Tyler made his way through the mess. "Hey Josh, you, me and some drinks, some Daamjat. What say you?" Tyler smiled broadly. "I got Commander Goldberg's warp theory exam next week. I have to study." Josh replied.
Tyler laughed "Come on, I bet she is going to be there. Becka Robinson will definitely be there." He prodded his friend, this was an old conversation one that happened every weekend. Thus far Tyler was on a winning streak. "Sigh fine lemme find my shoes." Josh's exasperated capitulation came after a few minutes of arguing just as it always did. When Josh was ready to go Tyler slapped him on the back. "Let's go get her..." he said with a smile.
About 20 minutes later and a stop with Boothby later Josh had some flowers and Tyler had a scotch in their respective hands. At a table not that far away sat Becka, Patricia Montgomery, and Katherine O'Donnell. He knew Kat the two of them had studied together since freshman year. But there was something about her tonight. Something distinctly different, and Tyler Malbrooke was suddenly smitten.
"You're sweating... You okay?" Josh asked with more than a little concern for his best friend. "Yeah I'm fine let's go get you the woman of your dreams." Tyler replied, well he said those words but what he meant was 'let's go get the woman of my dreams.'
Patricia saw Tyler and Josh approaching and waved them over to the table as she pulled up two more chairs. "Becka Robinson meet Josh Coslar, and Tyler Malbrooke." Patricia made the introductions. Josh handed Becka the flowers and the two got to talking as Tyler sat down next to Kat. "Hey Darlin..." he said and smiled sheepishly.
"Don't you hey darlin me... You stood me up last night. We were supposed to go over the warp field calibration equations. You are going to flunk and it won't be my fault." She said with a little edge in her voice. Kat had enough attitude to kick a Klingon in the teeth from 40 yards away.
"I am sorry but you know sleep called and I had to answer. Besides I know a really smart, and beautiful tutor who is going to help me pass this class or she is going to fail Advanced Starship Operations." He smirked and she blushed, Kat would never admit it but she found him devilishly handsome.
The five friends sat there and laughed and drank until the wee hours. It became evident that Patricia had done her job and she decided to head to bed 'early'. "Can I walk you to your room?" Tyler asked Kat. "I thought you would never ask," she whispered. The two of them left Josh and his new friend to continue chatting.
On the walk back to the dorms he couldn't resist picking her a couple of Boothby's prized roses. The ole man will understand Tyler thought. He held the flowers behind his back as they walked and talked. Kat telling him about her love and fear about working in an Engineering Bay of a major starship. Tyler telling her about his driving goal to command an Intrepid Class starship. He explained his the affection he had for Voyager. "Somewhere out there is that ship, and her crew. just them against the galaxy." He closed up his tale motioning to the sky. It was then that he produced the flowers and professed his love for his tutor, his best friend.
She took the flowers, smiled and smelled the roses. There was a pause that to Tyler seemed like hours. Then Kat shook her head no and planted the longest kiss in Tyler's life on him. "It took you long enough to ask. I was going out of my skull. I was almost ready to go find someone else. But it is you that I want you royal pain in the you know what." She smiled broadly and kissed him again. The two walked the rest of the way arm in arm, and were late for class the next morning.
*************
One Week Later
Tyler had heard and he couldn't believe it. The USS Voyager had made it home. They emerged from a transwarp conduit a week earlier and were under escort to Earth. There was a laundry list of parties, and welcome home celebrations. Tyler was not going to miss a single one of them. He and Katherine had become even more inseparable over the past week. She found big parties like these to be daunting and just not enjoyable. However, she knew how important it was for him. "You owe me more than you can ever know for this." She said as she adjusted the collar of her dress uniform. Kat did admit that the dress uniform definitely looked better on Tyler than just about anyone else.
The two headed down to San Francisco bay to get a good picnic spot. The idea was to watch Voyager as she did a fly by of Starfleet Academy and Headquarters. There would be ship tours and more.
He set out a dinner for them of some cheese and wine. Josh and Becka arrived shortly after them and the duo became a quartet. "Josh what do you think over or under?" Tyler asked. "What are you talking about?" Josh replied. "Do you think Voyager goes over or under the bridge?" Before Josh could answer Kat inturrupted "Under the bridge are you out of your mind. An Intrepid Class starship would never be able to fit under the bridge. Besides her atmospheric thrusters would annihilate the bay." She was getting on her technical high horse. "Leave it to an engineer to spoil the fun." Josh said and the group broke into laughter.
The group sat and enjoyed themselves listening to music. Then there was a call for silence. All eyes were up at the stars, Kat stood in front of Tyler as he hugged her from behind. "This is it, the moment I have been waiting for." He whispered in her ear. She smiled and blushed as she kissed his arm.
Then with little to no warning the hum of atmospheric thrusters could be heard as the USS Voyager NCC-74656 descended through the cloud. There was a moment, a moment that lingers in Tyler Malbrooke's mind. Where the world stopped and there was only Kat, him, and Voyager. "You see that, that is going to be me one day." Tyler whispered, "I am going to command an Intrepid." Kat turned from the ship and looked him in the eyes. "I know you will babe..." She kissed him passionately, when the kiss broke the couple laughed and cheered with the rest of the crowd as Voyager executed it's flyby.
*************
USS Pioneer - Present Day
Tyler sat in the center chair on his bridge as the ship made it's way out of the Badlands. He thought about why his mind wandered to that exact point in his history. Then like a lightening bolt it occurred to him. That was the moment that he was set upon his life's path. Tyler Malbrooke always knew that he wanted to be in Starfleet but he wanted to be was always a mystery. Until that one very moment, when he realized he wanted to be a husband, a father, and a Starfleet Captain.
Commander Tyler Malbrooke
Commanding Officer, USS Pioneer
Lieutenant Commander Katherine Malbrooke
Assistant Chief Engineering Officer, Empok Nor
(PNPC Malbrooke)
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