[Allan Hood]

Lieutenant Hood, Personal Log- Stardate: 65377.96
Wed, May 18, 2388, Time: 08:00:02



As my first official log entry, I might as well start with my admission into Starfleet Academy. I received a recommendation for the Academy from Captain Benjamin Sisko, mostly due to being my father’s commanding officer and friend since the Battle of Wolf 359. They served on the USS Saratoga together and was a member of the team that developed the USS Defiant at Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards on Mars.

A friend, which will remain nameless, helped me find my father’s records. We found out that my father helped rescue Sisko’s son, after a Bolian named Lieutenant Hranok Zar, passed Sisko into his arms.


Even though my parents are against me joining Starfleet, due to the distance and potential danger, such as the Borg or whatever else is out here, they respected my decision, seeking Sisko’s recommendation. Sisko made it clear that he’s only recommending me because of my dedication to the sciences and his trust and respect in my father’s character and ability in engineering. No pressure. I didn't fully appreciate who Sisko was until after having classes about his political skill with the Bajorans and his tactical strategies during the Dominion War. I just looked at him as an old friend of my father's with really bad Borg experience.

After being accepted, I went through the Academy entrance competition exams. I was so nervous, I couldn’t study well and didn’t sleep the night before.

The infamous “psych test,” really got my attention. I have a profound fear of losing my family, probably enhanced by all the Borg stories I heard, ironically, to discourage me from Starfleet.

Which brings me to marrying Samantha-Josephine while at the Academy. My parents were hopeful I’d drop out as a result, but I kept going. Then after my daughters, Gracie born in ’85 and my newborn Donna this year, my parents figured I’d drop out, which obviously, I didn’t.

My parents couldn’t figure why I wanted my wife and children to join me on my deployment, but, as the psych test showed, I’m afraid of losing them, which includes, afraid of being away from them. I couldn’t choose between Starfleet or family, so I chose both.

I also took up fencing while at the Academy. I felt so connected to history learning in the same facility as Hikaru Sulu, founder of the Starfleet Academy’s European Swordsmanship club.

Just before graduation, I received my Concealed Weapon License for my Retractable Longsword. Though I’m okay with phasers, I got permission to carry it in a concealed manner, even on away missions. I’ve stopped telling people I have it; I think it makes some uncomfortable.


Everyone was proud I finally graduated and everything, huge ceremony, it was amazing. Captain Geordi La Forge, a legend, gave a stirring commencement about passion and dedication to Starfleet’s principles, even when being against the odds.

He closed with “the best advice” he could give, from meeting Captain Montgomery Scott, “Starship captains are like children. They want everything right now and they want it their way. The secret is to give them what they need, not what they want.” I can’t believe I actually got to see La Forge, after studying so much of what he and Captain Scott accomplished!


Out of all the ships I could have chosen, I couldn’t imagine applying anywhere else besides the USS New York. Besides being a Nebula-class starship, expecting relatively safe science missions with my family in mind, it survived against a fleet of six Borg cubes while under Captain Sisko. Knowing that Sisko was here, fighting the Borg, sort of makes me feel more at home and safer.

But, to top it all off, it’s a chance to meet and serve under Commander Ramus. Being that he was missing for 90 years in a temporal distortion, is incredible! I studied all the weird temporal incursions and distortions discovered and experienced by Starfleet, so, to serve with him is like serving with a living legend; he’s not from our time!

Though it was hard leaving my parents, I feel way more comforted having my own family with me. Though traveling to Starbase 39-Sierra was rough on the kids; Gracie kept thinking we were “home” with every stop and Donna couldn’t ever get comfortable.

The starbase is in orbit around a binary star system. The primary star is a Class G star with a magnitude of +1, a hundred times the brightness of Sol! It’s only five days away, at warp 8, from the edge of the Romulan Neutral Zone in Sector 30, which made it the perfect base for rescue and relief efforts. I can’t believe Romulus and Remus were destroyed.


Finally, we took a shuttle to the USS New York. Seems like a beautiful, strong and safe ship, perfect for what I’m looking for from Starfleet and for my family.

We met Captain Wright and Commander Ramus, just before they took off for the mining base. I felt like a time traveler just shaking the commander’s hand. They were in a hurry and the kids were cranky, so I didn’t get to talk to them for more than our brief encounter. I hope to go to the mining base and be able to talk to him about his experiences. I don’t know how I’d even bring it up.

After their shuttle left, we turned around and Lieutenant Commander T’Mir was standing right there, surprising my wife with a gasp. She seemed to have beamed in right behind us in the shuttle bay.

T’Mir showed us to our quarters, where we left Sammy-Jo and our crying kids to settle. T’Mir seemed virtually unphased by walking the corridors with cranky, crying children, but, I’d put latinum on her feeling irritated. Then again, Vulcans always seemed irritated to me, anyway.

She wanted to conduct my orientation personally to familiarize myself with the ship and certain protocols, so I “would not have any reason” for not knowing what to do. We’ll see how that goes.


The science labs are state-of-the-art, with labs focusing on everything from stellar cartography, astrometrics, and warp-field theory, to quantum mechanics, temporal mechanics, and holographic research. Based on my studies, T’Mir said I’ll be dancing between the warp-field, astrometrics, and temporal mechanics labs, when not on alpha-shift bridge duty, and unless the captain or commander say otherwise. In case anyone’s listening, “dancing” was my wording, not hers.

I saw crewmembers experimenting with Chronitons and testing their temporal properties. They’re probably experimenting because they’re produced by the normal operation of Romulan cloaking devices, but that shouldn’t be a concern nowadays. I hope they’re working on something more temporal.

We’re looking forward to finally celebrating Sabbath in our new home, being three more days til Sabbath. We’re probably not going to find any members of the Church of Elohim or followers of Yeshua Ha-Mashiach here, either, which we expect, being practitioners of such an ancient religion, especially among the science division.

I’ll be on the bridge in an hour, so I’m excited. I might try reporting early and see what happens.

End Log Entry - U.S.S. New York