Solaris stepped out of her ready room and onto the bridge of the Yamato, her ship. Her. Ship. It still hadn’t sunk in. Almost a week had passed since she had arrived at Deep Space 17. A week since she had first laid eyes upon the Yamato. It was then as it was now: A repository of boundless possibility. Deep Space 17 sat at the very edge of Federation space. Beyond its reaches, laid the great unknown. That was their ultimate destination. Places that no Starfleet officer had ever seen.  She looked around the bridge standing just in front of the door to her ready room. No one had noticed her yet, each officer tending to their stations, and they were all full now. The time had come. She started toward the command chair, causing her first officer to look up.

“Captain on the bridge!” she called, causing the rest of the officers to straighten up and pay attention. Sol held up her hand, stopping just in front of the command chair. She smiled, looking at each of the officers assembled in turn. They were all expecting her to say something. She had been mulling over that for the past week, in addition to all her other worries. She took a breath and then another, before tapping a command on the arm of the chair in front of her. A bosun’s whistle sounded, signifying that her voice would be transmitted ship wide.

“As I stand here, looking at each of you, I’m reminded of just how fortunate I am to lead this crew on the Yamato. We are each here because we chose to serve a purpose greater than ourselves—to explore the unknown, protect the Federation, and, I think, to discover a bit more about who we are in the process.” she began, stepping around the railing that made up the tactical console to walk toward the aft end of the bridge, slowly taking in each person on the bridge.

“I won’t pretend I’m not aware of the significance of this moment, nor of my own nerves as I take on this role for the first time. This is my first command, and I’ll be honest: I’ve thought about what to say in this speech more times than I can count. But it’s in these moments, standing here with all of you, that I realize that a captain’s command isn’t built on titles or speeches; it’s built on the trust and dedication of the people around them.” she continued, stepping around the rear of the tactical console, passing just behind her Chief Tactical Officer. She placed a hand on her shoulder, as she continued down the otherside of the bridge, to complete the loop.

“Our mission ahead is uncertain. Our course will take us beyond the Federation’s boundaries into uncharted space, to places no one from Earth” she paused, looking to Doctor Tarrant, sitting opposite Amaya, “or Bajor” she continued, looking to Ensign Soren, “or Vulcan has ever seen before.” she finished, eyes landing on her longtime friend, T’liss.

“We’ll face unknowns, dangers we can’t foresee, and I can promise you that there will be times when we’ll need to rely on each other more than we ever have before. In those moments, we’ll rise together, and I have every confidence in this crew.” she said.

“Each of you is here because you bring something essential to this ship. To Starfleet, you’re the best of the best, to me, you’re my crew. I couldn’t ask for better. And though this is my first command, I will give everything I have to honor your dedication, your skills, and your sacrifices. We’re going to learn and grow together out there. We’re about to embark on something remarkable. And I can’t think of anyone I’d rather share this journey with than all of you. So, thank you for being here, for trusting me, and for trusting each other. Let’s make this first mission a success, not for ourselves, but for every Starfleet crew who has blazed this trail before us and every crew that will come after.” she finished, completing the loop, ending up back in front of the command chair. There was no applause, but she could see each person on the bridge giving her words thought. She smiled, approaching her command chair, finally taking a seat. She looked over at Amaya, who nodded at her.

“Very good, Captain.” she whispered. Sol nodded back.

“Departure stations.” she ordered. “Ensign Soren, contact station operations and request departure clearance. Helm set thrusters to station keeping.” she added.

“Aye ma’am.” the helm officer responded.

“Station operations has granted us clearance and a clear path out of the traffic pattern, Captain.” Soren called. Sol nodded.

“Retract the docking umbilical. Clear all moorings. Helm, port thrusters at one quarter. Clear us from the station.” she continued. There were a series of dull thuds as the moorings keeping them tethered to the station were detached, leaving the Sovereign-class vessel to float freely for just a few moments before the port thrusters fired, pushing the ship away from the station. Sol waited for a few moments as the distance grew, watching the station disappear out of view on the view screen.

“T’liss do we have impulse power?” she asked.

“Yes, Captain. All propulsion systems are functioning properly.” the Vulcan replied.

“Helm, one quarter impulse until we clear the station’s perimeter, then take us to full impulse.” she ordered. The helm officer looked back.

“Course captain?” they asked. Sol studied the viewscreen, eyes focusing on a star.

“That way.” she said simply. The helm officer cracked a grin, and laid in the course, setting the Yamato off toward the unknown. Sol didn’t know what they would find, but she was excited by the prospect.