Into Darkness And Back | Star Trek

Chapter 1

"Are you serious?! Starfleet? Never." Carolyn gave her friend Kayla a look of disbelief. The two of them were sitting in a little café, drinking hot chocolate and enjoying the last few days of summer. The so-called 'café' was actually nothing more than a small and dark room, equipped with a few tables and chairs. There was even an old fashioned doorbell which rang every time a customer came in, and there weren't many customers living in Sanford. This 'megametropolis' - as Kayla liked to call it, was listed among the 500 smallest towns and villages in Colorado; and there were many towns and villages in Colorado. "Well, I don't know", said Kayla and shook her head. "It would be an option." Carolyn sighed, but couldn't hide a smile while watching her best friend slowly getting desperate over Caro's behaviour. Kayla was, even for rural ratios, a beauty. She was human yes, but that didn't prevent her from looking extraordinary. Kayla had wonderful thick, wavy red hair, which she always wore undone. With her golden caramel eyes, her pale skin and long legs and her unusual dressing style, she didn't really look like she lived in a town with 870 inhabitants, 98 miles away from the next big city. Carolyn knew Kayla nearly ten years now and she learned, not to compare herself with her best friend, but sometimes she would give Kayla a jealous look, because her skin seemed so smooth and her hair was always on point. But most of the time, Carolyn just forgot about the fact that she looked pretty plain next to Kayla. Carolyn wasn't as tall as her best friend, but she wasn't small either. The most exciting thing about her were probably her blue eyes, which with her brownish shoulder-length hair, was a nice contrast. Over summer, Carolyn even got a few freckles on her nose, but she was still as pale as someone living in Alaska. "I know what I'm doing Kayla", said Carolyn, now scanning Maple Street, the main road which led through the middle of the town, for something interesting. When looking around, it was hard to believe that the current stardate was 2245. Only the inner arrangements of the buildings were fully automatic and filled with highly developed technology. "Look", Carolyn said and pulled out her PADD. She quickly scrolled through a few holograms until she found the one she was looking for. "Here, this university in New Mexico, they offer several courses for art construction and...what?" Carolyn had noticed that Kayla just looked at her with her mouth opened. "Don't raise your brow like that", said Carolyn angrily; she couldn't stand that look of Kayla's. "You are seriously planning to go to some town university in New Mexico, wasting your talent on studying...? What was it again?" "Art construction", mumbled Carolyn and blushed. "And it's no town university. It's really huge and has a great reputation." "But what about your interest in biology and medicine? You could take some courses at Starfleet, where they..." Carolyn closed her eyes and Kayla stopped talking. "You don't want to live too far away from your family",Kayla concluded. Carolyn shrugged. "I would miss them." "Caro, you're 21! Don't you think that it's time to, kinda, move on?" Carolyn bit her lip. She knew that her friend was right. But Kayla was 24 already and did not grow up with her parents. In fact, she had spent all her life, living with her aunt and her uncle, because her parents died on board of a Starfleet vessel on a secret mission, which was one of the main reasons why Kayla would leave for the academy in two months already. Because she wanted to do what her parents did. That was the nub of the matter. Caro loved her parents and her little brother Marc, who would turn 12 in three weeks. As the opposite of Kayla, she was actually okay with studying at a small university, not far from home. Starfleet was the last option Carolyn would take. "Caro", said Kayla, taking Carolyn's hands in hers. "I just want you to have a good future and a great job when I'm gone." "I know", Carolyn said and smiled. "Believe me, that job is exactly what I want! You know that I always dreamed of doing something considering art and I think that's the right thing for me. You'll see! And it's not far from home, so I can visit Marc and my parents any time!" Caro smiled when she thought about all the new stuff she would get to know. Kayla laughed. "Then I'm satisfied. But I still think that you should join..." "Oh, shut up", said Caro and playfully punched her friend's arm. "I'll be alright!"