Disclaimer: Star Wars and Star Trek does not belong to me. They belong to their respective owners, namely Disney and Paramount.

Bridge, Miranda-class Starship USS Strikefast, leaving TZ911951, Lombard System, near the Federation-Klingon border, Alpha Quadrant, Milky Way.
2364.

"First Officer's Log, supplemental. The Strikefast is now leaving TZ911951, with our mysterious guest, known as Thrawn, down in the brig. And we are inbound for Starbase 77, in the Spielberg system, at Warp 4. Captain Kovalena is continuing the interrogation, or in her words, the questioning of Thrawn. Evidently, they have a lot to talk about, given that she has not finished".

Commander Tileu, the First Officer of the USS Strikefast, was sitting down in the Captain's chair, taking a slight bit of comfort that she, as well as the members of her away team, were now safe and sound on board their starship.

Tileu was quite pleased that their adventure on TZ911951 was now over, only to frown at the reminder that 'Thrawn' was still onboard the Strikefast, being interrogated by the Captain.
She had no idea what Captain Kovalena was thinking, keeping their mysterious guest in the brig and continuing to interrogate him.

But Tileu did not have the time to ponder on it for long as the turbolift doors opened, and Captain Kovalena exited, heading straight for the Captain's chair.

Tileu knew it was time for her to take the First Officer's position, and return the chair to Kovalena, so she announced, "Captain on the bridge", before getting off the seat.
Kovalena nodded graciously to her First Officer, before sitting down and asking, "Status report?"
"We are currently at Warp 4. Inbound for Starbase 77. We'll be there in 3 minutes".
"Good, good".

And the Captain asked the other officers on the bridge on various updates, soon getting satisfactory answers, before silence followed afterwards and everyone continued on with their duties as normal.

Then Tileu asked, "So, what did you learn about, erm, from your interrogation of Thrawn, Captain?"
Inclining her head over to her First Officer, Captain Kovalena took a moment to best figure out her answer to Tileu's question, before she finally answered "Well, I definitely learnt a lot of things about Thrawn. All about how he managed to rig up all his tech, how he learned to speak our language and how he managed to take on a Starfleet Away Team. But most importantly, I know why he did all of it".

Tileu raised an eyebrow at all this, and asked curiously, "Why he attacked me and the away team, Captain?"
"Yes Tileu. Apparently, it was an elaborate test that Thrawn set up..."

At his desk, within his office on Starbase 77, Lieutenant Commander Manfred Berger, was currently analysing the current reports on the mysterious destruction of the Federation colony Frederich Beta IV, currently in the Neutral Zone, when his combadge pinged him.

"Berger here".
The voice on the other end was from the commander of Starbase 77, Commodore Howard Erikson, "Commander, come to my office immediately".
A pause and, "I'm on my way", before Berger got up and left for the Commodore's office, which was some floors above his own office, meaning quite a long trip for him to make.

First, after exiting his own office, Berger headed through around 4 corridors, before going through a sliding door, into a corridor that was followed by another, before he reached the elevator he was looking for.
Entering it, he imputed his destination to the elevator by his voice, "Observation Floor".

As soon as he was finished, the elevator then shut the doors, and then shot upwards towards the Observation Floor, which had an enormous window that could see straight out to the space full of far away stars.
Berger did not stay in the elevator long, as he reached the Observation Floor, left the elevator and headed straight for another one which would take him to the Commodore's office, he then saw a Miranda-class Starship docking at the Starbase, through an observation window.

Taking a look at the name printed on it's Saucer section, he saw that it was the USS Strikefast, captained by Captain Svetlana Kovalena.

Entering the Commodore's officer, Berger then found Erikson sitting down behind his desk, and went straight to his desk.

"Commodore Erikson, you wanted to see me?"
Looking up from his personal computer, the blonde haired, brown eyed 5"7' tall Commodore from Rio de Janeiro, smiled as he indicated for the Lieutenant Commander to sit down, "Ah, yes, I did. Come, sit down, Commander. We've a lot to talk about".

Berger then took a seat that Erikson indicated to, and looked around before asking, "Are we waiting for someone?"
"Yes. Captain Svetlana Kovalena should be joining us any minute now. She's made quite a unique discovery".
Raising his eyebrows, Berger was now curious, and asked, "What kind of discovery?"

The Commodore frowned and said, "Well, she wouldn't give me much details, for apparently she wanted to tell me in person, but she's found a member of an alien species we've not seen before, on the planet of TZ911951".
"Out in the Lombard system?"
"Yes".

A chime and Erikson knew who it was, so he beckoned the person on the other side to enter.

And through the door, was Captain Svetlana Vladanka Kovalena. The Russian-descended Jovian from Mars, standing rigidly even as she approached Commodore Erikson and Lieutenant Commander Berger and stood in front of the desk, before Erikson smiled at her and said, "Ah, Captain Kovalena. Please, come in, sit down".

However, Kovalena simply said, "No, thank you, Commodore, I'll stand".

A pause, before the Commodore relented, and got straight to business, asking, "Well, you said you and the Strikefast made a unique discovery, in the form of a member of an unknown alien species".
The Captain nodded, "Yes. An male humanoid, from an alien race known as the Chiss".
"Not native to TZ911951?"
"Not in anyway. Thrawn was using a breathing apparatus that allowed him to breath his own native atmosphere that is similar to ours".

Berger spoke up, raising an eyebrow, "Thrawn?"
Kovalena then turned her head over to him, and provided the answer, "Yes. That's not his exact full name. He did provide us with his real name, but it's quite unpronounceable, so he simply said to us that we could call him Thrawn".

Nodding his head, the Commodore asked further, "So what was he doing on TZ911951? Was he shipwrecked?"
Kovalena shook her head, "No. Exiled".
"Exiled?"
"Yes. Apparently, the Chiss exiled Thrawn, who was a military officer with the Chiss, because of an disagreement between them, that lead to the Chiss exiling Thrawn to TZ911951".
An eyebrow raised, "So they left him to die there?"
"No. We found that Thrawn was provided by the Chiss, the means to survive on that planet. They gave him some resources and he used those, to salvage some of the shipwrecks on the planet, to construct a habitat, as well as modify technology for his own means, in order to survive down there".

The Commodore "Yes, I heard about this, something about a laser that could cut through starship hulls and energy weapons salvaged from Federation and Klingon weaponry, am I right?"
"Yes, Commodore".

Berger interjected, with a frown, "I do find it a bit strange that the Chiss exile Thrawn, yet they were kind enough to provide him with means to survive on that planet".

A pause, before the Commodore then went, "Let's go down and see this Thrawn for ourselves".

Down in one of the interrogation rooms on the Starbase, Commodore Howard Erikson, Lieutenant Commander Manfred Berger and Captain Svetlana Kovalena all watched through the one-way mirror, the mysterious guest calling himself 'Thrawn'.

The Commodore observed him, taking in on his skin's shade of blue and the red eyes that even though were looking straight ahead, were undoubtably scanning every inch of the room.
Turning away from the one-way mirror, the Commodore began observing the technology that was laid down on a table in front of him, from the starship hull cutter, to one of the remote control energy weapon emplacements, the energy rifle and the helmet/breathing apparatus.

Picking up the helmet/breathing apparatus, taking a look at the helmet in detail, Erikson asked Captain Kovalena, "So, basically, this Thrawn rigged up a distress call, which you picked up, then when you sent the away team, he attacked them?"
"Well, basically, yes".

As the Commodore hummed to himself, Berger asked, "But why? If he was just stranded on that planet and needed to get off the planet, why did he just attack a Starfleet away team like how you described? If he just wanted to get off planet, why didn't he just approach them and say so? Is his species just so naturally aggressive?"
"Commander, as I said to the Commodore, Thrawn was just testing our away team and their capabilities".
An eyebrow rose, and he dubiously asked in response to Captain Kovalena's answer, "Testing?"
Kovalena nodded, and Berger frowned at this, before turning away and looking down to the floor, which caught the Commodore's eye.

"What's on your mind, Commander?"

Berger, raised his eyes and glanced towards the Commodore, before looking towards the floor again, and saying, "Well, I'm not sure I'm liking the sound of this. An exile stranded on a planet, left with barely enough to survive on the planet, testing and assessing our capabilities. It just seems too much like Ceti Alpha V and Khan to me, Commodore. Plus with this talk of testing us, I'm certain that this indicates a malevolent or benevolent purpose to his actions".

A pause and Commodore Erikson then looked through the one-way mirror, before he said, "Maybe it's time that I speak to this Thrawn, personally".

And after putting the helmet/breathing apparatus down, Commodore Erikson left the room, to head straight for the interrogation room itself.

Entering it, the Commodore then made his way to the table, and sat down in the chair, facing their mysterious guest, who was still sitting down with a calm, collected composure, not showing any signs of discomfort.

Erikson then said, "I am Commodore Howard Erikson, commander of Starbase 77. And your name is?"

Still piercing him with a gaze that just seemed to look right through him, Erikson couldn't help but feel a bit uneasy, at the guest's penetrating stare, so he swallowed, trying to get a grip on himself before he asked again, "Your name?"
"Captain Kovalena did not tell you it?"
"No. All she said, that it was quite unpronounceable. Your full name?"
"I am Mitth'raw'nuruodo".
"But you are also known, as Thrawn, am I correct?"
"Yes".
"How long were you on TZ911951? The planet we found you on".
"I was deposited on the planet just 2 years ago, this day".
Erikson was surprised. "That long?
"And Captain Kovalena said that you were exiled, were you not?"
"That is correct".
Commodore Erikson nodded, "I understand that you must have been desperate to get off TZ911951. It's not a great place to live on, especially for those non-native to that planet. After all, you had to depend on a breathing-apparatus for all that time. It would have been unfortunate if that had malfunctioned or broken down in any way".
"Indeed it would have. But you are incorrect, Commodore. I was not desperate to get off TZ911951. But my people do need my help".

Erikson rose an eyebrow at Thrawn, "Your people need help?"
"Yes".
"But from what I understand, from Captain Kovalena's report, it says that you were exiled by your people. Is that incorrect?"
"No".
"But if you are exiled by your people, then surely you have no obligation to protect them. The problems facing your people are no longer your troubles since your exile".
"You misunderstand, Commodore. While it is true that my people have exiled me, I do not seek to not take this exile as a reason to step aside from protecting my people. For a warrior does not run away. And furthermore, I do not need their permission to protect them. My exile was about a disagreement in strategy, more than anything else".
"Strategy? Over what?"
"The best way to confront an upcoming threat".

At this, Erikson leaned back slightly, before asking, "How did they differ?"
"The leaders always opted to attack our enemies when the attack was after, not before. Seeing the devastation that followed afterwards, I disagreed with this strategy. I wanted our people to launch an attack before they hit our worlds. The leaders disagreed, and therefore, when I stopped an enemy attack, I was summoned to answer for my actions and punished with exile".
"I see..."

The Commodore and Thrawn allowed several moments of pause, until, Thrawn stated, "But while I am in exile, and are now in your midst, I do have a proposition".
Intrigued, Erikson asked what sort of proposition Thrawn had in mind, and the Chiss answered with, "I could offer my services and skills to Starfleet, skills that could help Starfleet".

Erikson rose an eyebrow and asked in an unbelieving voice, "You, want to join, Starfleet?"
"That is correct".
"Why?"
"I could provide vital knowledge and skills, that could benefit Starfleet, in the near future, and in the immediate future. And also help my people".
"How so?"
"As a Starfleet officer, I could be an ideal position to extend a hand of protection towards my people, against all threats".

Shifting a bit awkwardly, Erikson then stated, "Well, you are no doubt knowledgable about quite a few things, but I think that you are unaware of the Prime Directive, the Federation's most important law. It forbids us from interfering in the internal affairs of a species or doing anything to upset their natural development as a species. So, I'm sorry to say, that the Federation will not be able to extend a hand to your people, wherever they are".
And before Thrawn could speak, Erikson cut in, "but while you are a capable warrior, I'm afraid that Starfleet has no need for warriors. We are an peaceful exploration organisation above all else, we do not exist to wage war".

Thrawn looked off to the side, for quite the first time since the whole interrogation began, and continued doing so, until he looked back at the Commodore and said, "Then, let me put it another way. Whenever first contact with my people and your Federation is achieved, my joining Starfleet will mean that my people will have a voice in Starfleet, and the Federation as a whole".

Erikson rose an eyebrow, "Oh?"
"Yes. I'd say that relations between my people and the Federation would be much smoother, if there was a Chiss within Starfleet, wouldn't you agree?"

The Commodore looked to the side, before saying, "You've got a point there, and quite a good one".

And with that, Erikson seemed to be satisfied with Thrawn's proposal and was leaning towards accepting Thrawn's idea, before asking, "So you want to join Starfleet?"
Thrawn nodded, "If this is needed, in order to become a Starfleet officer, then yes".
"Well, you'll need a letter of recommendation from a Starfleet officer, in order to go to Starfleet Academy, and therefore, join Starfleet. I'm sure that Captain Kovalena will provide you with that recommendation, but there's no guarantee that you'll enter the Academy".
"That is all I will need. A chance".
"But what if you are not entered?"
"Then I would have gambled, and lost. But, we shall see, Commodore".

A pause and, "We will indeed".

Section 31 Headquarters, LOCATION CLASSIFIED.
2364.

Lieutenant Commander Krolek, one of the very few Vulcans in Section 31, clutching a datapad in his right arm, made his way towards the offices of his superior officer, through the corridors of the headquarters of Section 31.

Arriving at the very door that he was headed to, which was labelled 'COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF, SECTION 31', he announced himself by pressing the button on the side of the door, that chimed, in order to announce his arrival.

The voice of Admiral Carlos Ngwenya came through, "Enter".

The door sliding open, Krolek was soon within the personal office of the Commander-In-Chief, which had little to no decorations of any kind, to indicate the personality of the man in charge of the Federation's most secretive and dangerous, black ops/intelligence organisation.

Approaching the desk, the Lieutenant Commander then stopped and waited as the Admiral behind the desk was still working on his datapad.

3 minutes later, he had finished, and then addressed Krolek,
"Yes Lieutenant? What have you got for me?"

Blinking once, he said, "The alien individual, the one from a race called the Chiss, picked up by the USS Strikefast, his letter of recommendation to Starfleet Academy's being challenged".

The Admiral extended a hand and Krolek gave him his datapad.
Taking a read of it, Admiral Ngwenya asked him, "By who exactly?"

And the Vulcan responded with, "By about around 6 Starfleet admirals. Admirals T'Hul and Fitzpatrick, Vice Admirals Chen, Gulyas and Cevert, and Rear Admiral Mellap".

Remembering his meetings with T'Hul, a Vulcan, Mellap, a Tellarite, Gulyas, an Andorian, and the three others Rafael Cevert, Sven Chen and Jean Fitzpatrick, he had some sort of inkling of what they'd have to say about this new alien joining Starfleet.

"What reasons do they give?"
"Well, T'Hul is said to, erm, well, I quote 'Thrawn's way of thinking is impressive, almost Vulcan-like. But his warrior way of thinking is against the very values that Starfleet embodies'. Fitzpatrick is convinced that having someone who attacks one of our Away Teams is, and I quote 'not someone we want in the Federation'. Gulyas, Chen, and Cevert all reckon that since Starfleet is not a military organisation, but an exploration organisation, he is unsuitable. And Mellap, well, said..."
Idly remembering his past encounter with the Tellarite, he now knew what the Rear Admiral's reaction to Thrawn was going to be and stopped the Lieutenant Commander, "Alright, I get the picture, Mr Krolek".

The Vulcan officer went silent, and Carlos took a moment to pause, as he read and re-read the datapad in his hand, before he spoke,
"Mr Krolek".
"Sir?"
"Make sure that, this Thrawn, gets entered into Starfleet Academy".

Krolek nodded, knowing that once Admiral Ngwenya had decided something, he was unyielding from something that he had decided to do.
But before he could get around to that, he did however have some questions.

"Admiral, may I ask, why are we pulling strings to get this Thrawn into the Academy?"

A pause came, a rather long one, and Krolek did wonder if he overstepped his boundaries, until the Admiral asked him, "Did you receive the report on the Federation outpost on Frederich Beta IV?"
"Within the Neutral Zone? Yes, I heard that it was completely destroyed. By unknown attackers".

The admiral nodded, "Yes. Unknown attackers. All done by the same attackers on Sigma Point 9, Brunel Heights, Eiffel IV and Soyuz VIII. Same pattern, entire settlements of people seemingly ripped up in a precise circle, no trace whatsoever. And here's the thing. The Federation is not the only ones being attacked".
"Admiral?"
"Yes, the Romulans also had had several of their outposts in the Neutral Zone destroyed. So whatever these unknown attackers are, they are not content with just attacking us. Everyone is fair game for whoever they are".

Krolek took a moment to pause, before he asked, "So, how does having Thrawn in Starfleet help us, Admiral?"
The Admiral looked up from the datapad, "Did you read the report given by Captain Kovalena?"
Krolek nodded, "Yes I did, Admiral".

And hthus, the Admiral explained his position, "Thrawn, was on a planet with shipwrecks of multiple ships from all over the Quadrants. He managed to configure different technologies together and turn them into working tools and weapons. He managed to work out how to survive on TZ911951, a quite hazardous environment. And he managed to outwit and outmanoeuvre, a Starfleet away team".

Krolek understood, and came to the same conclusion "Thus, his skills and prowess will prove most valuable to Starfleet".
"Indeed they will, Mr Krolek. But here's the most important thing. Read the transcript from his interrogation by Captain Kovalena".

The Vulcan did so, and read through it carefully, looking to see what the Admiral was trying to point out to him, until he found it,
"The important thing, being, he has knowledge on the Delta Quadrant".

Admiral Ngwenya nodded, "Exactly. All we know, are just the Alpha and Beta Quadrants. We've only just scratched the crust of the Gamma Quadrant with Quadros-1, and we know next to nothing with the Delta Quadrant. So, Thrawn's knowledge of the Delta Quadrant will help us in the long term if he is within the service of Starfleet. Therefore, if he is to share information on the Delta Quadrant, freely, since I do not believe we'll achieve it by an interrogation, we are to enter him into Starfleet's service".

Getting up from his chair, the Admiral paced around to the front of his desk, to Krolek's left, before saying, "They say that Starfleet is not a military organisation, but an exploration organisation. But in fact, Starfleet is both these things. Just as we need explorers, philosophers, scientists and scholars, what is the one thing that Starfleet will need, Krolek?"
"The logical answer to that question, Admiral, is that Starfleet needs warriors".
"Exactly, Mr Krolek. Well said. And we have to start with Thrawn. Thrawn may be the warrior that Starfleet needs".

Returning to his seat, the Admiral continued, "We have the Archers, the Pikes, the Kirks, the Spocks, and now, we're having the Picards of Starfleet. It's now time to see if we will have the Thrawns, of Starfleet".

Krolek had one more question,
"Will we be helping him progress through the Academy, then, Admiral?"

The Admiral shook his head, "No. All we'll be doing, is allowing him to enter through the door. Then, it's up to him, to see if he lives up to the hype that this recommendation brings".

With finality, Admiral Carlos Ngwenya implemented his next orders, "So, let's get Thrawn's letter of recommendation approved. And ensure that Thrawn gets to San Francisco. Dismissed, Mr Krolek".

Krolek nodded, and headed off to carry out the Admiral's orders.

Yep, Thrawn is going to Starfleet Academy. Where, hopefully, he'll show his many varying skills and prowess in a variety of ways.

And yes, I included a Wrath of Khan reference in there. Because I just couldn't help but think that my Thrawn encounter was quite a bit like when Chekov and Tyrell discovered the crew of the Botany Bay on Ceti Alpha V. *shivers*
On the other hand, speaking of Khan, I actually think that Ricardo Montalban would have actually made a great Thrawn (either via voice acting or in live action, if they had ever done a live-action or animated adaptation of the Heir to the Empire series). What do you think?

As well as a reference to the Borg making their first appearance, attacking Federation and Romulan outposts in the Neutral Zone, which is prior to the episode "The Neutral Zone". After all, 2364 is the same year as the Next Generation's season 1.

For those interested in Thrawn participating in the Kobayashi Maru, well, I'm quite excited to show you it, yet really nervous. However, it won't be out for quite a while. Thrawn's still got to be getting adjusted to Starfleet Academy after all, and I guess that Starfleet cadets don't just get pushed through the door of the Academy, participate in the test and then go off to a ship. They've still got to do lessons and other activities that get them ready for Starfleet.
Plus, there is also a significant character I want to introduce, basically the Watson to Thrawn's Sherlock, and develop their relationship between each other, and this is one character I've been really looking forward to introducing.

Don't forget to leave a review whenever you can, and see you next time!