"Star Trek: New World"

"Captain's Log: This day marks our two-year take off on our five-year mission into the unknown regions of space. When we began this mission two years go, the crew of U.S.S Enterprise expected to see wonders in the darkness that could only be thought of in their wildest imaginations. So far, we have found nothing amazing; unless you count an asteroid shaped like Bones' right ear amazing. But the Enterprise searches on, because I believe that somewhere, out there in the emptiness, a new world is waiting for us."

Captain James T. Kirk sat in the Captain's chair with his head leaning on his palm. His eyes locked on the deck's viewing screen. He only saw the beautiful rich blackness of space, dotted with white, red, yellow, and blue stars. Creatures all over the universe would kill for a view such as this, but when you've looked at the same image for two straight years, it begins to grow old, and it has for every crew member of the starship Enterprise, except for the loyal captain. Jim Kirk looked at each star with a spark in his eye. In his own mind, he pictured each ball of energy as one pace on a treasure map, and all he had to do was follow the paces in the right order and he would reach the greatest treasure of all.

Kirk turned on the communicator connected to his chair. "Hey, Scotty how are we coming along with the engine?"

From down in the depths of the ship, Montgomery Scott crawled through the conductor tubes of the engine's turbine. "I'm a-workin' as fast as I can, Captin'," he shouted in that Scottish accent over the loud noises. "Could be another half n' hour at least."

"Thank you, Scotty, keep working," replied Kirk and he ended their transmission. "Mr. Sulu, how long have we been suspended in this part of deep space?"

"About 23 hours, Captain," said the helm officer. "If I may ask, sir, in what direction are we heading after Mr. Scott repairs that damage?"

The captain adjusted his placement in the chair and looked back out at the stars. "Honestly, I don't know Mr. Sulu, we'll see if Mr. Spock has found anything we need to be on the lookout for, and another thing, where is that pointy-eared son of a bitch?"

Commander Spock stood in sick bay with the head doctor, Bones McCoy, and his pregnant wife, Nyota Uhora. Bones had just finished doing a 'final' check over Uhora.

"All finished, for today," said Bones packing up his equipment.

"And-?" started Uhora.

"Your baby is perfectly healthy, as always. I don't see why you have to stop in every day. Unless you start actually feeling ill, there's no reason for you to come back until the day of the delivery. I understand why you're concerned, with the DNA mix and all, but trust your doctor, Uhora. Now, if you will excuse me, I have a shoulder to push back into its socket." With those last words, Bones left the couple alone.

"Come, Nyota, I will escort you back to our quarters," said Spock as he helped his wife off the examination table.

"It's a shame, our baby will be born out here," said Uhora suddenly in the corridor.

"What do mean?" asked Spock puzzled.

"I always imagined that when I became pregnant, that my baby would be born on the ground, in an actual hospital, not in the outer regions of deep space." They came to their door and stopped. "But I guess it's worth it if you're the father." Uhora reached up and kissed Spock on the lips, then went inside the door.

"Me too," said Spock quietly after the door sealed shut. He then turned back down the corridor to return to his post on the main deck.

"Finally, you're back, Spock. I miss you when you're not shouting rules in my ear," said Kirk as Spock walked onto the bridge.

"I do not understand what you mean, Captain, for I rarely ever shout," he responded.

"Oh, forget it."

"This is Commander Scott, are ya there Captin'?" came a voice through the com.

"I'm here, Scotty. What's going on?" replied Kirk.

"I think I got her runnin' again. I'm bout' to hit the drive, there may be a wee bit of a lunge."

"Great work, let's get this flying bucket running again," said Kirk. From engineering, Scotty slammed the main drive button, powering the core up once again. The whole ship then lunged forward about 15 feet, which was not at all very far for a ship of this size.

"Alright! Let's put some stars behind us! Mr. Sulu-" yelled Kirk as he sat back down in the chair.

"Wait, Captain!" shouted Ensign Pavel Chekov in his thick accent. "There is something out there! We cannot get around it, sir!"

"What is it?" asked Commander Spock.

Chekov's fingers danced over the keyboard. "It's…this can't be…" He turned his chair to look Kirk in the eye. "It appears to be a moon, sir, a blue, flaming moon."

"Are you sure that it's not just a star, kid?" asked Kirk.

"No, sir, no! Look at the screen!" Chekov put a close up photograph of the 'moon' on the large viewing screen. "It's made of rock, sir, not gas! As you can clearly see it is flaming, sir!" The small orbiting rock was close to the size of the Enterprise itself, except with the addition blue dancing flame.

"That is impossible. How could it be on fire without a heat source in sight?" pondered Mr. Spock.

"There could be a sun somewhere close by, but our trackers cannot find it," suggested Sulu.

"Now this is one for the record books," exclaimed Captain Kirk.

"What is this?" rang Chekov's voice of alarm again. "Captain!"

The Captain stood up in awe at the mysterious sight laid out before him. The blue moon had shifted its position and reveled yet another flaming moon behind it. A second moon with the same size and blue fire of the first. The entire starship grew absolutely silent; every living soul on the U.S.S. Enterprise were staring out windows, or looking on video screens at the impossible. Bones entered the bridge and stood beside Jim.

"By God, Jim, what does this mean?" he breathed.

"Well, I do know that wherever a moon is, no matter how hot and flaming, it has to have something to orbit."

"A planet, sir?" asked McCoy in shocking awe.

"A planet."