Stories by Julien Gregg

 Copyright © 2025 by Julien Gregg 
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The story, all names, characters, and incidents portrayed in this production are fictitious. No identification with actual persons (living or deceased), places, buildings, and products is intended or should be inferred.

Star Trek Lexus
By Julien Gregg 



Chapter Four 


Kirk Personal Log Stardate 57282.4

Our first week at the academy has been both exciting and hard. I'm really enjoying my classes and getting along well with my roommate. Chad seems to be getting along with his roommate as well. Quinn is having problems with Anthony Barclay however. It seems that Anthony has had bad experiences with Quinn's father and no matter what anyone tells him he can't get it out of his head that Quinn is no longer a Q.

My first class with Annika was enjoyable. She lectured about the Borg for almost the entire time. Axum's Temporal Mechanics class was interesting. He involved the cadets in a discussion about temporal stasis for the entire period, making sure that everyone had a chance to speak. It was mostly opinions but the class passed quickly.

The adult Icheb's Quantum Chemistry class was a lot of fun but I believe that I will find it to be difficult at times. Before coming to this timeline I had studied Organic Chemistry and believed that I would find my balance in Quantum Chemistry but my eyes are open now.

A lot of the other cadets are having a hard time accepting Chad and my relationship with Annika, Axum and the adult Icheb. It has been said a time or two that we both get special treatment because of our relationship with the instructors. It's going to be hard to overcome the thinking of the other cadets and still maintain the friendships that we have.

"So the others are giving you a hard time over this?" Kathryn asked while they were at her apartment for dinner on Sunday.

"Not me," said Quinn. "They give me a hard time over something completely different."

"I'm aware of that, Quinn," she said. "I'm also trying to take steps to see that it stops."

"There are no steps to be taken to make sure that people really like us," Jim said, looking at his plate. "Sometimes I feel like an outsider with the rest of the cadets. I know that's a bad thing because I'll eventually have to command some of them if I want to be a captain again."

"I'm starting to wish we were still on the ship," said Chad with a sigh. "And I never thought I'd hear myself say anything close to that. I wanted nothing more than to reach Earth the entire time we were on the ship. Now I can't wait to graduate so I can be in space again."

"Funny how that works isn't it?" laughed Jim.

"Yeah," sighed Chad. "Real funny."

Jim thought about Chad's statement all evening at the dorm. He couldn't believe that Chad hated it so much in the academy that that he'd rather go back to life on the Lexus. There was something really wrong with that considering that Chad had hated being in space and couldn't wait to get back to Earth. Of course the Earth he wanted to get back to was in another time and space.

"You look troubled," said Icheb, breaking into Jim's thoughts.

"I'm not troubled," replied Jim. "Chad's troubled. So I'm worried about him."

"What's troubling Chad?" asked Icheb.

"Well he isn't happy here for one thing," said Jim. "He misses having a family I think. We were both put into cryo stasis because we were dying from diseases they didn't have cures for then. When our cryo ship was found it had been over a hundred years. Chad was happier at first because he had at least one family member still alive and he was even on the same ship."

"So what happened?"

"Well we ended up on the Lexus," replied Jim. "We had nothing and no one. When Q sent us here we found out that Chad never had a family in this time and space. There wasn't a Dodds family."

"What about you?" asked Icheb.

"I'm the last of my family it seems," he replied. "The name died out when James T. Kirk died."

"That's sad," said Icheb, looking at the floor.

"It is," agreed Jim. "It doesn't bother me the way that it bothers Chad though."

"Why not?"

"I'm not really sure," he replied. "I think because I think of the crew of the Lexus as my family."

"And Chad doesn't?"

"I wouldn't say that exactly," sighed Jim. "He just wants a blood family I guess."

"What's a blood family?" Icheb asked in confusion.

"It's another way of saying a genetic family," replied Jim.

"I see," said the other boy. "So Chad is unhappy because he doesn't have a blood family and you're worried about him because he is unhappy about it?"

"That's it exactly," Jim said, nodding.

"I don't understand that," said Icheb. "I mean I understand why he's unhappy and I understand why you're worried about him. What I don't understand is how there could have never been a Dodds family in this time and space."

"I don't understand that either," admitted Jim. "Starfleet Command couldn't find them though. If they couldn't find them it pretty much means they weren't there."

"Maybe they had a different name in this time and space," said Icheb. "Maybe one member of the family in this time was a woman instead of a man and the name changed."

"That's possible," theorized Jim. "It's something to look into I guess."

Time moved forward at a rapid pace for Jim. There were pitfalls in his road and most of them were Anthony Barclay. It seemed that Anthony's problem wasn't only with Quinn. He made the fact that he didn't like "The Lexus Boys" very clear to them as many times as he could. By the time mid term rolled around Jim was ready to beat Anthony within an inch of his life.

Jim and Quinn sat with Kathryn, Tom and B'Elanna when Chad took his flight test in the shuttle. There were twelve other student pilots taking their tests at the same time so their names were stenciled on the sides of their shuttles. Jim and his friends watched the shuttle marked "Dodds" very closely. Jim wanted Chad to excel very badly. The next day Jim would take his own tactical test and he wanted both of them to excel. He wanted to show the other cadets that "The Lexus Boys" could do what they'd pretended to do on the ship.

"He's good," said Tom as they watched Chad perform each required maneuver with exact precision. "Reminds me of myself a bit."

"Well that's a glowing achievement," laughed B'Elanna. "Let's just hope that he doesn't have a taste for trouble like yours."

"Let's hope," laughed Kathryn.

"So if he passes are we celebrating tonight?" Tom asked, looking from B'Elanna to Kathryn and back.

"We have tomorrow's test to get through before we celebrate," Kathryn replied, smiling at Jim. He returned the smile but felt his stomach roll at the same time.

"I'll do my best," he said, trying to sound more confident than he felt.

"That's all we can hope for," said B'Elanna, patting his thigh.

The test ended with a maneuver that was so difficult that four of the six cadets who made it that far missed it completely. Jim held his breath as Chad and the last cadet made their way higher and higher into the air. Chad banked left just as he was supposed to do and rolled the shuttle three hundred and sixty degrees before banking right and performing the same roll in the opposite direction. The other cadet made the first roll which was the right as Chad rolled left. This made sure that the shuttles didn't collide. However on the left roll the last cadet didn't quite bank far enough to complete the roll. Chad missed the other shuttle by a hair but completed the maneuver perfectly. He was out of his shuttle, pumping his fist in celebration even before the last cadet was back on the ground.

"Attaboy!" cried Tom Paris, jumping to his feet, fists in the air as he cheered.

"Well that got him excited," laughed B'Elanna. "There'll be no living with him for the next few days."

"So what's the focal point of your exam, Jim?" Tom asked as they made their way to the six cadets standing around the shuttles receiving their marks.

"I have to perform the Picard Maneuver to perfection," replied Jim.

"What are you trying to do join the Red Squad?" laughed B'Elanna.

"What is the Red Squad?" Jim asked, looking at Kathryn.

"It's a group of elite cadets who get special training," she said. "There's more to it but that's the basic of it."

Jim thought about it for a few seconds before he asked, "Would it elevate me to Captain as soon as I graduate?"

"Spoken like a true Captain in training," laughed Kathryn. "I think it's safe to say that you'll be a captain shortly after graduating from the academy no matter if you make the Red Squad or not."

"Did you see?" cried Chad with the biggest smile on his face.

"We saw," replied Tom, shaking his hand. "Damned fine flying."

"Thanks!" Chad cried, smiling wider still. "Admiral Aaron said that I received outstanding marks!"

"I'm proud of you, Chad," said Kathryn, smiling as she grasped his shoulder.

"Come on boys and girls," said Tom. "Let's eat."

Quinn joined them as they left the academy campus and headed for a restaurant across the city. He'd been taking an exam of his own while Chad was flying. Tom and Chad quickly filled him in on both what it was like to watch and what it was like to actually fly during the test. Quinn smiled at them and shook his head.

The next day the group assembled again. This time they were joined by Annika, Axum, both the adult and teenaged Icheb and Admiral Paris in a shuttle that was stopped just fifty kilometers from the moon as Jim sat in command of the Constellation Class Starship Forerunner. Admiral Aaron and three others were in a shuttle a short distance away from where the Forerunner sat at all stop. The torpedoes in the Forerunner's armament were harmless for this exam so there was no danger to the shuttle.

"Do you think he'll make it?" Chad asked Tom as they watched with excitement.

"Oh I'm sure he will," replied Tom. "I've sat in on a few of his tactical training scenarios. He's a natural."

"I certainly hope so," said Quinn, making Kathryn and B'Elanna laugh. Kathryn stopped laughing when she saw how serious Annika was as she watched. She hadn't taken her eyes off the Forerunner since they'd come to a stop to watch.

As they quieted down the Forerunner appeared to disappear and then reappear right in front of the shuttle. As it reappeared the harmless torpedoes and phasers were fired. Huge red flags rose on either side of the Admiral's shuttle and the group inside the spectator shuttle erupted in cheers. He'd done it!

"You performed the maneuver perfectly, Jim," said Admiral Aaron when they were all on the ground again. "I don't think anyone has performed it that good since Picard himself. Now there's going to be a celebratory party tomorrow night. I want you and Mr. Dodds to be there and in uniform."

"Yes, sir," replied Jim. "Thank you, Admiral."

Jim relayed the message to Chad as soon as he got back to the group. He told them exactly what Admiral Aaron had said and Kathryn looked at him for a second and then congratulated him on his perfect score. He wondered what the look was all about.

"We'll all be at that party," she said. "It's the party they throw at the end of midterm exams every year."

"I don't care," laughed Jim. "I feel great!"

"And you should," said Admiral Paris. "That was amazing what you did up there."

"Thank you, Admiral," he replied, smiling. "I was a little worried that I wouldn't stop in time but I guess I did."

"You performed that maneuver perfectly," said the admiral. "So you'll be in uniform at the party?"

"That's what Admiral Aaron said," replied Jim. "He said he wanted me and Chad in uniform."

"What about me?" asked Quinn. "Did he say anything about me?"

"No," said Jim. "I'm sorry. He didn't."

He watched as Kathryn whispered something in Quinn's ear. Quinn looked from Chad to Jim and then nodded. He dropped the discussion then and there. Jim wondered what it was that Kathryn was hiding. Whatever it was he hoped he liked it when he found out. Whatever it was would effect both him and Chad so he hoped that Chad liked it when he found out as well.

After another celebratory dinner the boys returned to the dorm. Chad and Jim received pats on the shoulder and high fives from a lot of their classmates. John Barclay came to Jim's room to congratulate him. He shook his hand and told him that he'd seen the maneuver on the computer.

"You were amazing," he said with a big grin.

"Thank you," replied Jim, smiling back at him. "I was nervous as hell."

"Oh everyone is nervous when they have an exam like that," said John. "Tony was a wreck the night before his exam."

"What about you?" Jim asked. "How did you and your brother do?"

"Well I did all right," replied John with a smile. "Tony passed."

"I see," Jim replied, reading his tone and understanding the undercurrent.

"Well you and Chad are going to be like King rats around here for a while," said John. "Hope you don't mind attention."

"Isn't anything new to either of us," laughed Jim, thinking of the fact that they'd been the center of just about everyone's attention since the ship had landed at Starfleet Command. "We'll be fine."

"Well have a great night," said John. "See you at the party tomorrow night?"

"Of course," replied Jim as he wondered if John or Anthony would be in uniform for the party.

There were no classes the next day and Jim decided that being in the dorm all day wasn't something he wanted to do. He stopped to ask Chad and Quinn if they'd like to do some exploring and the three of them set off in a land car to have a first hand look at some of the sights in the city. They talked about anything and everything other than the party that was coming.

They stopped at a little deli just a few blocks from campus, noticing that a lot of Starfleet uniforms came in and out of the place. Inside they found Admiral Paris and his wife. They ordered sandwiches and talked with the admiral for a few minutes.

"Out seeing the city?" asked the admiral's wife, Julia. She was a beautiful woman with blond hair that was pulled back from her face and blue eyes that reminded Jim of Tom's. She had a regal look to her.

"Yes, ma'am," he replied. "We have the day off until the party."

"I've been told by my husband and son that the three of you dazzled everyone during exams," she said, smiling at them. "My husband has talked of nearly nothing else all morning."

"Thank you, ma'am," said Jim, smiling back at her. "We each did our best."

"That's all that was asked of you," said the admiral with a smile on his face. "We asked that you do your best and you showed us what your best is, Mr. Kirk."

"Thank you, sir," he replied.

"So tell me, what are you goals young man? What do you wish to happen after graduating from the academy?" Admiral Paris asked, looking at him with an intense gaze.

"I would like to have command again," he said. "Well real command."

"Son, you had real command on the Lexus," replied the admiral. "We've studied the ship's logs, interviewed the crew and checked the sensor and memory banks of the ship's computer. You never stepped back and let anyone make decisions for you. Every impossible problem that presented itself to you was faced head on with self assurance. You had the respect of the crew and it never faltered. That is real command, Mr. Kirk. Don't let anyone tell you you've never held a real command."

"Thank you, sir," he replied, blushing slightly. "When we were on the ship command was thrust upon me. I know that we set it up that way on Voyager's holo suite but when it became a reality I was terrified that I'd make a mistake. When we faced the Borg in Andromeda I was sure that we were finished. Meeting the Arminians and learning a little about their culture was like a dream, sir. So much of the time on that ship was spent in battle situations and Chad and I were terrified most of the time."

"But you never faltered," argued the admiral with determination in his voice. "You never stepped back and asked Commander Munro or anyone to take over. When you were faced with Captain Sparks trying to relieve you of command you fought back and held on to what was rightfully yours. That's a captain, Mr. Kirk. That's real command."

"Thank you, sir," Jim said, smiling. "I guess I didn't step back and look at it all like that. The experience was greatly different than the way it sounds."

"Of course it was," said the admiral, smiling as well. "That's what makes what you boys did so remarkable. You had no formal training, knew only pieces of the Prime Directive and belonged at the academy. Yet you stepped up and made command decisions, carried them out and learned from each mistake."

"I've had a chance to tour the ship," said Julia, recognizing that her husband was getting too intense and making the boys uncomfortable. "It was like nothing I've ever seen before. She's wondrous and beautiful."

"Thank you, ma'am," said Chad and Jim at the same time. They smiled at each other with genuine pride in their eyes.

"The design of that ship is amazing," said the admiral. "To think that you came up with the enhancements is simply remarkable."

"Well Lieutenant Kendrick helped us a lot," said Chad. "We knew nothing about engineering at all. Of course the computer took care of some other areas that none of us knew anything about as well."

"Well boys we really must be getting along," said Julia, smiling at them. "We have appointments to take care of before the party."

"Yes, ma'am," said Jim as the three boys stood.

"So polite," she said, smiling wider.

"Quinn," said Admiral Paris as he stood as well. "You'll be in uniform tonight as well so I hear. Congratulations."

"Thank you, sir," replied Quinn, not letting his surprise show.

"Admiral Hahn says that your performance in Temporal Mechanics is outstanding," said Admiral Paris.

"Thank you," replied Quinn once again.

As they each got ready for the party Jim wondered about Quinn's Temporal Mechanics exam. Kathryn hadn't said anything about it to either him or Chad. He knew that Quinn had been taking that exam at the same time Chad had been flying but nothing was said about it afterward. He wondered why he didn't kow about it until the admiral had mentioned it at the deli.