Star Trek: What If Decker Commanded The V'Ger Mission (update 3.0)

Happy 30th to Star Trek: The Motion Picture.


An ongoing project - it's an idea I had for years about a "What If?" type Star Trek novel - in this case, what if Decker had commanded the V'Ger mission.


I have been pecking away at it in dribs and drabs, and have given up my conceit of doing it from memory and have actually picked up Roddenberry's original novel.   


What I had forgotten was there, was that Gene treated it as if he were a Kirk biographer, and that Kirk was aware about how his exploits (which we know as TOS) had been exaggerated.   At times in the novel Kirk will comment about Gene's take on things - a really cool idea I have decided to adopt in this update.


Feel free to comment and nitpick.




The newest additions (8/22/08) are:

• Kirk comments on the "Roddenberry" writing
  
• Kirk depressed in his apartment
  
• Nogura self-doubt
  
• Kirk/Decker pre-launch

....

Nogura looked across his desk at a clearly obsessed man.   "No way Jim.   There's no way I'm letting you have a midlife crisis in space with this thing headed straight for Earth.   Decker has trained for this, YOU recommended him.  It's his ship."

...

Twelve minutes earlier Commander Sonak was walking through Golden Gate Station when he heard his name.  It was Admiral Kirk.   Kirk was saying something about Sonak being posted as science officer on Enterprise.

"Based, I am told, upon your recommendation."

Now Kirk was lecturing him about not being on board, and didn't seem to care that Sonak was following Captain Decker's orders.

Did Kirk just say something about reporting to HIM?   It was uncommon for an Admiral to sit over a captain's shoulder, and given that this was Captain Decker's first command, it would be highly uncommon to have the previous commander on-board.

Sonak questioned the request,  "Report to you, sir?"

Kirk went on, seemingly obsessed.  "I intend to be there following that meeting.  Report to me in one hour."

...    

Will Decker was 32, handsome, trim and the captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise.   Four hours ago he had been told by Starfleet Command that his ship would be launching weeks ahead of schedule, for an emergency mission, in 24 hours.

He was slightly annoyed that he had practically lived on board, in drydock, for eighteen months, and the one time he takes a personal day to visit his mother, Starfleet is looking for him with an emergency.  Decker was worried enough about how he'd be compared to Kirk, and now the first time Starfleet needed him he was eating bangers and mashed and had had two beers.

The second the call came in it was time to say goodbye to mom and get focused.   Twenty four hours.  Starfleet must really be screwed up if they are launching us early.   Something about a "cloud."

....

After being fully briefed, Decker headed to the Enterprise.  His mind hadn't stopped thinking about all the things that would need to be done before the ship could launch, including fixing the ship's transporter systems, which were out of service.

Chief Engineer Montgomery Scott had asked the captain to meet him, and they were now together in a travel pod on their way to the Enterprise.

Decker correctly guessed that Scotty was looking to vent - there were any number of transporters available to beam someone up to the ship, so there was no good reason that the Enterprise had to be the one originating the beaming.

Scotty broke the silence.

"Twenty hours? Starfleet canna be serious!"

"They wanted twelve."   Decker had had an ugly conversation about twelve vs. twenty, but the young captain had won his first battle with the brass.

Scotty continued on, "....we haven't had a proper shakedown cruise, the warp drive isn't balanced, it's a new crew...."

Decker thought to himself "and you don't yet trust your captain."

There had been another reason Scotty had pushed for the travel pod.   He knew Decker would like to get one last look at the ship in drydock.  On a mission it's rare that you'll get an outside view of the ship.   Scotty was taking the long way around....under, and then looping to the docking portal. 

Enterprise was beautiful.   It was for all intents and purposes a brand new ship.  Some of the underlying framework was from the original material, but almost everything else had been replaced.   She was prettier now - sleeker - as if she had lost her baby fat and become a beautiful woman.

Scotty broke the silence and offered Decker a handshake.

"She'll launch on time, and she'll be ready."

...
Nogura took another look at the video coming in from station Epsilon 9.   The "cloud" as it was being called was over 80 AU's in diameter, and heading straight for Earth.

Tapping a pen on his desk, he thought that maybe Kirk was right, and this was a mission for an experienced captain.   Was Kirk right?   Why not send Kirk with Decker?

No.  Kirk was obsessed.  This wasn't about the mission, this was an excuse to get the Enterprise back.

Nogura looked at fleet deployment again.   Was there another ship in range?   No.   He had been telling the President for years that twelve starships were not enough to protect the Federation.   Maybe now they'd listen, if they were still alive.

Kirk comments:  The conversation with Nogura was one I will always regret.   There was something in my tone that convinced him I had feelings that I didn't have.  To this day I wish he had sent me on that mission, and maybe the mission would have succeeded. 

....

An hour had passed since Sonak's run-in with Admiral Kirk.   In engineering, Captain Decker and Engineer Scott were elbows deep into the master transporter systems.   Scotty had manged to get the transporter working again, but Decker, a former transporter chief, wanted to look it over.   Not to be annoying, but help.  He had the "cloud" mission specs memorized, reading them a seventeenth time wasn't going to help anything.  At least here he could be helpful. 

Decker was completely focused, even more so than the usually unflappable Scotty who didn't know how the hell he was going to launch Enterprise in twenty hours.

"Oh shoot!"

Decker's sudden burst scared the engineer - plus Scotty didn't appreciate the elbow to the shoulder as the young captain dove across the console.

"Decker to Transporter Room!  Do not engage!"

Chief Rand was puzzled, but hey he's the boss.  "Aye captain."

Down in San Francisco Commander Sonak raised one eyebrow.

...
(a section as of yet unwritten)

...

"Starfleet reports final crew replacements on board and en route to the bridge.   The science officer Sonak and the navigator Lieutennant Ilia.  She's Deltan."

"Thank you Uhura, I'm aware of that."  Decker was amazed that there could still be prejudice in Starfleet.   Deltans tended to have a strange effect on human males, making them well, horny.  Some thought they shouldn't be on board starships.  Decker thought crews should keep it in their pants.

The turbolift doors opened.

"Commander Sonak, Ilia, welcome aboard."

It was Sonak who spoke, "Admiral Kirk requested I report to him when I arrived."

"Admiral Kirk?  Here?   No he's down in San Fran."

The awkwardness of the conversation caught everyone's attention.   Uhura looked over at the young captain.   It was odd to be older than the captain.  Would she be sitting here some day saying "hailing frequencies open" for the rest of her life?  She hoped not.  That was a thought for another time, right now it was time for business.

"Incoming message from Starfleet Command."

Decker assumed it was some new piece of information about the giant cloud approaching Earth.  There would be plenty of time to catch up with Ilia and now was neither the time nor place.    "On screen."

Most of the bridge crew recognized the face at once.   A little older looking, tired - as if it beaten down - hair darker than when it had been frequently bleached by alien suns - but on screen was none other than...

"Admiral Kirk!   We're getting a top brass sendoff!   We'll launch on time even if we have to tow her out with our bare hands!   I hope this isn't some sort of Starfleet pep-talk, we're really quite busy."

Uhura thought about just how young this new captain really was.  That last comment was likely to get the Admiral in a tizzy.

Down in San Francisco Jim Kirk nearly exploded with, "You arrogant son of a bitch.  I'd demote you right on the spot if I had the chance" - but he didn't.    What he actually said, in that slow and low tone of voice Kirk used when frustrated was "Well, I did want to wish you success with the ship.   Take good care of her and she'll always bring you home."

Will Decker didn't know what to do with...well what was that, a poem?   Did Kirk think he didn't want to make it home?  What kind of comment was that?   Is this guy just being needy?

After an awkward silence, Decker filled it, "Anything else, Admiral?"

"Space Station Epsilon 9 is sending live video of the cloud, which we are relaying to you.   I'd like you to move up the launch schedule by four hours."

"I understand the urgency Admiral but we're not quite..."

"Four hours.  Kirk out."
....

Back in his apartment in San Francisco Jim Kirk looked in the mirror.  Only 38, and were his best days behind him already?   Although his hair was a little fuller without the daily stress of command, the gut was back.   In the middle of the five year mission he had put on some weight, and actually overheard a crewman referring to Captain Fatty.  Me, Captain Fatty?    A re-commitment to wrestling in the Enterprise gym as he had done in the early days of the mission had gotten him back in shape - but two and a half years deskbound had undone all the work.   Welcome to middle age Admiral Kirk, he thought.

Kirk comments:  This idea that I was fat or colored my hair has always bewildered me.   Colors will look different depending on the spectrum of light, so of course you see variants in the logs, and of course my hair looks darker when in the standard spectrum of Earth normal.  For that same reason sometimes Spock looks "green" if you watch the old vids.  As for my weight, I admit I have had my challenges over the years but between horseback riding and Antonia giving me a hard time I do ok for someone in their mid-fifties.

(not yet written scene where Uhura reports that final crew replacements are ready and that Ilia is Deltan.  Decker already knows that, and asks Sulu to take her in hand.)

.....

(departure scene not yet written)

....

"How we looking on the warp drive Scotty?"   Decker thought it insane that Starfleet had somehow left the fleet deployment with no ships near Earth.   It was Starfleet Operations job to assign the ships.   Was he being catty?   Before he could decide, Scotty was on the intercom.

"It's borderline on the simulation.  I'd like to run a few more tests."

Jim Kirk had told Decker about Scotty's tendencies to exaggerate.

"Commander Sonak, what do you think?"

"About what sir?"

Decker realized he had blown it.   The unspoken question was to ask what Sonak thought of going to warp now.   The mistake was in even asking...as if the young captain couldn't make decisions on his own.  What were Kirk's old crew thinking about him this very second?

"I was curious if you thought we should go to warp now or give the engineer more time."

"Logically if we are to intercept the cloud as soon as possible, we should try the warp drive also as soon as possible.   If it fails, there is no downside, we will still be as far away as if we had not tried."

"Agreed.   Mr. Sulu, bring us to warp speed."

Sulu spun back around to face forward.   That had been a little awkward, but not unlike the conversations Captain Kirk used to have with Spock.   Sonak seemed even more Vulcan, whatever that means, than Spock.  His hand on the throttle, Sulu called out "warp point five.   Point six...."

Suddenly all the stars seemed to shoot past the Enterprise at once, in a rainbow of colors.

"Warp one."

Decker smiled, a little, and thought of Kirk's words about Scotty.   He spun around to face the science officer, "Commander Sonak I'd like to..."  but was interrupted by the red alert siren.

....

(not yet fleshed out wormhole scene:   Decker has spent the last 18 months living on board and knows the phasers are offline and how silly that is.  Kirk has warned Decker about Chekov's overeagerness and youthful enthusiasm.  Decker sees that Chekov has his hand on the phaser control, but orders torpedos.   Sulu is impressed by how calm the captain was....thinks to himself about shooting for command.  Sulu is third in command now behind Sonak.   Scotty had been relieved when Decker asked him to stay out of the command chain so that he could be in enginnering during emergencies.   Chekov, not knowing Decker covered his potential mistake, enjoys having a captain that doesn't treat him like a 12 year old.   Scotty mumbles under his breath about having to break in another captain.")

....

(scene not yet written.  A shuttle pulls up along side.  It is Mr. Spock.  He has been monitoring the communications and thinks he can help with the warp drive problems.   Sonak sees the logic of having Spock's expertise.   Spock is reinstated as commander and assigned to the science department.  Engines get fixed)

...

(scene not yet written explaining that Sonak had been assigned to Decker. First time captains never get to pick their second in commands because they often want someone like themselves. Kirk had wanted Gary Mitchell but had been told to keep Spock. 7 years later Starfleet decided once again to pair up a young captain and a vulcan.)




(Decker has had no time to build a rapport with Sonak but feels like he needs a sounding board so seeks out Spock. In conversation Spock reveals that he has been sensing an alien presence (V'Ger).

...