Commanding Presence
| Star Traks: The Original Series | |
| Episode name | Commanding Presence |
|---|---|
| Season | |
| Episode number | |
| Writer(s) | Alan Decker |
| Year | 2373 |
| Stardate | 50594 |
| Chronology | |
| Previous in series | Star Traks 5 [TRK] |
| Next in series | Fear Has A Red Nose [TRK] |
| Previous in timeline | Win Or Else! [WAY] |
| Next in timeline | Close To Home [WAY] |
Hoping to lessen his command officers' workloads, Captain Alexander Rydell schedules trainings for some prospective bridge officers. The simulation becomes a nightmare, though, when the USS Secondprize is really attacked, trapping the command officers in Rydell's ready room and leaving the fate of the ship in the hands of untried crewmen.
Summary
With several Secondprize officers having left for Waystation, Captain Alexander Rydell finds himself a bit short on command trained personnel. He decides to test the remaining lieutenant commanders on board to see if any of them are fit to be left in temporary command. Each candidate runs through a simulated encounter on the bridge while Rydell, Commander Travis Dillon, and Lieutenant Commander Jaroch observe from the ready room.
Dr. Elizabeth Aldridge is first up. The Secondprize detects a damaged freighter, and Aldridge immediately races off for the transporter room to see if she can help the injured or at least autopsy the dead. The next candidate, Peter Kexler, destroys the simulated vessel in the encounter before even determining what it is. The third candidate, Lieutenant Commander Christy Williams, who also serves as one of the ship's elementary school teachers, is on the bridge when yet another ship is detected, but when this one attacks the Secondprize, it quickly becomes apparent that this is not a simulation. The attack cuts Rydell, Dillon, and Jaroch off from the bridge. Williams contacts the attacking ship, a Pakled vessel, and scolds them severely for being so rude and for using bad grammar. The chastened Pakleds retreat. Despite saving the ship, Williams doesn't get the job. Rydell decides that Dr. Alridge will be given the command training, assuming she can be taught not to leave the bridge.
Featuring
- Captain Alexander Rydell
- Commander Travis Dillon
- Lieutenant Commander Jaroch
- Commander Scott Baird
- Lieutenant Patricia Hawkins
- Lieutenant Emily Sullivan
- Ensign Andrea Carr
- Lieutenant Monica Vaughn
- Dr. Elizabeth Aldridge
- Trinian