"Captain's log, stardate eight, one, one, four, four: This is my first log aboard my new starship: Harmony. This newest vessel is to mark the new friendship between my world, Equestria, and the United Federation of Planets. I....am glad we have this new starship, it's going to feel so wonderful to not only be able to look up at the stars but to explore what exists among them! I've already received a mission from Starfleet Command. There have been some small Klingon ships ambushing ships in an asteroid field near the neutral zone. We're to intercept and arrest them. I am excited to work with and along side everypony and every human aboard this ship. I just wish my first officer would share my excitement. Luna is a bit...worried about an inter-species crew. I wish my sister would take a deep breath and try to look on the benefits of an inter-species crew instead of the risks or restrictions."
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The 'Alicorn' class starship, Harmony, pulled away from Deep Space Nine. The final load of human crew members had been loaded and now Captain Celestia was eager to explore. She stood aboard the bridge in a modified starfleet uniform. The body was black up to the collar and shoulders, which were red. The bridge was a very white circular room with the Captain's chair dead center and a little half wall behind it. Behind the half wall was the entrances and exits to the bridge. Two large turbo-lifts with a door that led into a hallway behind it. About ten meters in front of the captain's chair and the two chairs that sandwiched it was helm control. Two the left and right, in this order, is tactical and science stations. Behind the captain's chair just a few meters from the left turbo-lift was the Engineering station. To the right turbo-lift was the operation's station. Celestia sat in her captain's chair, she flattened out the front of her uniform with her fore hooves and smiled at her human helm officer. Her chief pilot was a thirty year old starfleet officers by the name of Amy Walkston. She was the rank of lieutenant and stood at five, foot, ten with blond hair and average sized eyes hidden behind small rectangular glasses.
"Goodmorning, Captain." She says with a nod as she took a her position at the black swivel chair in front of helm control. She tapped at the console and reads out a status. "Impulse drive, online, warp core, online, thrusters, green. This ship is ready to go as soon as you give the command."
Celestia smiles. "Let us wait until the rest of the bridge staff is here." she says as she taps at small status console in the arm rest of her chair. Her hooves make it difficult to operate even this pony-optimized consoles, but she'll adjust.
As Celestia checks shield status, weapon status, and other things; another member of the crew enters. The Equestrian's chief tactical officer: Rainbow Dash. "Sorry I'm late, Prin-...I mean Captain. Fluttershy held me up in sick bay over an ear infection!" She says looking slightly red from the light gallop she had made to get to the bridge.
"She is the chief medical officer. Her job is to maintain the health of one thousand beings. That includes you , Miss Dash." Celestia says with a light grin. Rainbow Dash assumes her position at tactical.
The left turbo-lift opens and two more crew members step out. Ensign Twilight Sparkle came trotting in along side Lieutenant Pinkie Pie, who trotted happily to her position at operation. Twilight took over the science station, and sighed. "Fluttershy has become erratic, she seems to panic over every wort or blip. She ran a full bio-scan over a blip on my back." Twilight huffs
Celestia laughs lightly. "I will contact her soon and inform her that being responsible for everyone's health shouldn't impact their schedules unless it's truly life threatening." Celestia says "Can't have my crew get stalled by any ear infection or headache, eh?"
"Ma'am, now that everyone is aboard the bridge and at their stations, we should get going to the neutral zone." Walkston suggests turning in her swivel chair to face the Captain.
"Ah yes." Celestia says as she prepares her orders. "Set a course for the neutral zone, warp nine point five."
A few taps and beeps on the helm control and Walkston had the course and speed set in. "Ready, Captain." she announces.
"Engage warp." Celestia orders waving forward with her left forehoof.
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The Harmony was shaped like many Federation vessels. It had it's disk-like bow with it's sloping connection near the back and the flattened off aft with two proportional nacelles connected. Like the Intrepid class starships the Harmony's nacelles stayed horizontal with the rest of the sip when not in warp but raised to a forty five degree angle when going into warp.
The Harmony's nacelles raised as her warp core warmed up fully. She went forward at high warp as she disappeared among the stars on it's course for the neutral zone. The Harmony, even with it's larger size, was capable of speeds up warp nine, point, seven (Maybe higher even, but only in short bursts; like sprinting.)
The Harmony was to remain in warp for about ten hours giving plenty of time for the crew to begin the process of adjusting to one another. Humans and Equestrians working together aboard a starship are bound to have problems with one another.
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Celestia slowly walked to sick bay, nodding to humans and ponies alike as they happen to pass. The Harmony's sick bay was accessible on two decks, both decks were extremely large. Each containing areas for medical storage, bio-beds, and many other medical instruments and areas. The chief medical officer's office was on the second floor. The second floor and first floor were connected back two things; one two level turbo-lift and a small stair case.
Celestia enters at the first floor entrance. She sees Fluttershy tending to a tall Klingon male.
".....and so you see......doctor, I think it's a case of lavardian flu." The Klingon says, almost embarrassed to be at the mercy of a pink and yellow pony.
"I can treat that easily enough...I mean, if you're fine with that, of course." Fluttershy says moving to a nearby cabinet for a hypospray. She picks it up with her teeth and walks back to the embarrassed Klingon.
"Fluttershy?" Celestia calls as she approaches the two.
"Oh my!" Fluttershy exclaims, startled; she drops the hypospray into the shirt of the Klingon, just centimeters from his neck.
"Gah!" He shouts angrily as the hypospray gets caught between his uniform and under-clothing. "Doctor!" He shouts in anger as he jumps from his chair. The Klingon man had been sitting in a small metal chair, when he bounded up in shock and or anger he sent the chair backwards about four or five feet. He moved his arms over his chest and stomach quickly trying to feel where the hyposrpay was.
Captain Celestia giggles lightly. "Looking for this?" She asks waving a hyposrpay that had been on the floor at his feet. It must've fallen out of his shirt.
The Klingon appears embarrassed, his eyes widen slightly. He quickly forces himself to regain his composure and resist the urge to scream at the yellow pony.
Fluttershy straightens out her blue-at-the-shoulders uniform and her cheeks blush. "I'm sorry, ensign." She says to the Klingon.
The Klingon man looks away in disgust and minor-annoyance.
Celestia raises an eyebrow. "Ensign." She says sternly. "The Chief Medical Officer out ranks and you and is apologizing for her mistake. I advise you to respond."
He sighs. "Apology accepted." He mumbles. "It was...just an accident." He says calmly.
Celestia levitates the hypospray to Fluttershy. Fluttershy takes the hypospray between her teeth and moves back towards the Klingon. She presses it against his neck and it injected into him. Fluttershy takes the hypospray away and sets it on a nearby white medical counter. "You're....umm......dismissed, ensign." Fluttershy says.
"Yes, ma'am." The Klingon ensign says as he gets up and walks away stiffly.
Celestia smiles at Fluttershy. "We need to talk in your office."
"So...ummm.....this is my new office, Princess.....I mean Captain!' Fluttershy says in a slight nervous panic as she shows Celestia around the one room office. It was a half circle room with white steel-like walls. The entrance was at a flattened off part of a rounded side. On either side of the entrance was a door were two large rounded glass walls that filled in the round side of the half circle room and gave a view into the second floor of the medical bay. The flattened off end of the half circle had a desk and large black chair a few meters from it. On either side of the room were shelves for books, or anything of equal size. There was a replicator to the right hoof side the desk. It was mounted in the wall and could be used to replicate nearly anything. Two large metal chairs sat on the other side of the desk. Fluttershy hopped up in the chair behind the desk and scooted it forward so she could access the computer console on it with her forehooves.
"A few of my bridge officers were late today." Celestia says as she hops up in one of the metal chairs in front of the desk.
"Oh...I'm sorry. " Fluttershy squeaks apologetically.
"I will let this slide today, but if any time in the near or far future one of bride officers is late they'd be better be very sick. Is that clear?" Celestia says with as much authority has she could muster.
"Yes! Yes, Prince-I mean Captain." Fluttershy squeaks out with anxiety induced speed.
"I hope you and the rest of the ponies who knew me on Equestria will stop calling me Princess soon. On this ship: it's Captain. On Equestria it's Princess or Captain or Celestia." Celestia states as she gets off the chair. She glides her hooves over the carpet slowly as she heads for the door. As the door opens to her combage's signal, she looks back at Fluttershy. "Has Luna been around sick bay yet?"
"Oh! Ummmmm no." Fluttershy says looking up from some light reading on the computer monitor. "Last I heard she's been helping a bit in engineering. According to one of the human crew men who came from engineer because he burned his hand: she wants to learn about the ships impulse drive and warp core. Something about emergencies and the lack of a crew in certain situations."
"Skeleton crews?" Celestia asks standing a few feet from the door.
"Yes, ma'am." Fluttershy says drifting in and out of focus with the conversation and some reading material on her console.
"Well 'better to be safe than sorry' applies I suppose." Celestia says as she leaves the office.
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Celestia's walk to engineering was quite peaceful.. Many of the people and ponies she passed by were friendly and happy to see their new captain in good spirits. They'd pass by with a "Hi, Captain!' or "Good day, captain". Celestia would smile and return the greeting or a similar one. Upon reaching the main engineering.....well saying room would be an inferior term.....palace probably suits it better. The warp core sat quite comfortably in an room about three stories high (Each floor was about 10 feet from floor to ceiling), the core was much like an Intrepid class's ship's warp core. However, the Harmony's warp core was, of course, larger in size due to redundant components (backups) and increased capacity for warp plasma. The warp plasma in the core had a sort of redish,blue glow unlike many starfleet warp cores. The plasma was visible through the protective shielding that surrounded the tube-like structure that held it.
About sixty to one hundred crew members work in the engineering room on a daily basis. That number easily escalates to one hundred and fifty or near two hundred in emergencies. Since the Harmony had a majority of ponies in it's crew, Celestia preferred to have her loyalest crew in high places. With that in mind, it is easy to understand why Celestia appointed Soarin, one of the Wonderbolts, as head engineer. When starfleet had made all of the ponies who wished to serve aboard Harmony take Starfleet Academy courses Soarin and most of the Wonderbolts excelled in mechanically challenging courses. Celestia had taken note of this and decided that Soarin would make the best head engineer due to his "Succeed by any means necessary" attitude.
Thus far she had been correct. Upon entering Engineering, Celestia was given a front row seat to Soarin explaining the maintenance needed to keep the plasma manifolds operational to a crewman who didn't quite understand what his current task was. Celestia waited patiently for him to finish. Once he had dismissed the crewman and resumed his normal duty, Celestia approached.
"Good day, Soarin." She says walking up to his right side when he was at a console in front of the warp core.
"Good day, Captain." He responds, not looking at the Captain but simply reading out status of the warp-core on the console.
"Ah, finally someone who calls me 'Captain' instead of 'Princess' " Celestia says with a smile. "How is the core thus far?"
"Behaving as it should." Sorain says with a polite smile. "Since this ship has that new-ship smell still, this core has no malfunctioning parts, no re-fueling is needed, there is literally nothing wrong yet and that annoys me! There is currently very, very, very little to do for me and the rest of my staff. I read the statuses I'm reading now about ten or fifteen minutes ago."
Celestia laughs lightly. "Sounds exciting." she says with a friendly grin. "I'm sure once we reach our objective you'll have a bit more to do."
Author's Note
These chapters should get progressively longer as the story continues. I am trying to pump these out with some speed to not only induct everyone into the story but also to build up interest. These opening chapters are the free sample of a good food that gets you to buy the box :)
And yes I openly admit to using that strategy. I believe that small opening chapters can act as sort of "Sample" chapters. Give you a feel for the author's style and how he/she is using the personalities of each character. As you will see in my other stories I also prefer these small chapters for different types of stories because they can be distributed quickly and give the reader something he/she can read in one quick burst instead of (In the case of "I must leave my computer or phone now!") remembering where they were in a gigantic chapter. I had to do that once when I was going on a date and had recently found a story who's chapters were generally 10,000 words plus. I had to get ready for said date when I was at about the 5,000 word mark.
