It had been six months since James T. Kirk was washed out of the academy. Kirk was approached, a day afterward, by a old man with a mustache on his ride to Iowa, Riverside. The man had a white shirt with a black vest with various pockets and dark pants with a red stripe going down at the side of the pant leg. The conversation they had was rather interesting. The man was definitely Scottish, and sometimes he said "ay" which was odd as 'ay' was often used on the ship much to his knowledge by the ones assigned there.

"By the way,where are you goin', lad?" The Scottish man said.

"Home, back to Iowa." Kirk said.

"And?" The Scottish man asked.

"Mind the store." Kirk said.

"Nae, you don't. Whatever happened to the fightin' spirit?" The Scottish man asked, apparently curious.

"A Vulcan squashed it." Kirk said.

"Then unsquash it, captain!" The Scottish man faked a cough. "I meant, unsquash it, lad."

Kirk raised an eyebrow.

"I am no captain," Kirk said, lowering his eyebrow. "Never was meant to be one."

Kirk lowered his eyebrow looking down toward his hands.

"Nonsense!" The Scottish man said. "You are young and I see you could have had the spirit to lead a whole squadron."

"You don't know me that well." Kirk said.

"Ay, wish I did nae." The Scottish man said.

Kirk raised his head up.

"Huh?" Kirk asked.

"I knew someone like you a long time ago, more bold, stubborn, and compassionate," The Scottish man said. "He was nae a diplomatic kind of lad. He was the kind who shot their way out. That's the spirit of my days. Oh, the golden days." The Scottish man had a smile. "He was the greatest captain in the fleet. I would follow him tae hell or heaven if he asked. He had the loyalty of all the crew, all seven hundred eighty of them." He patted on his vest. "But most of all, he had my loyalty. Ship cannae run without her chief engineer."

"What was his name?" Kirk asked.

The Scottish man smiled.

"Classified, captain classified," The Scottish man said. "You are tae. . lost. . . of that fightin' spirit tae be told right now."

"I can't go back to the academy," Kirk said."I was expelled."

"There are other avenues, you know, in tae Star Fleet," The Scottish man said. "Such as the medical corps, engineer corps, the security corps, and the science corps."

"The only way I am getting on a ship is through the corps." Kirk said.

"Ay, that's the attitude!" The Scottish man patted Kirk on the shoulder.

"And I take it your name is classified, too?" Kirk asked, with the smallest of all smiles.

"Ay." The Scottish man said, with a nod.

"Just my luck," Kirk said, with a sigh. "How do I get the trust of others to even lead?"

"Savin' their lives." The Scottish man said.

Kirk looked over toward the Scottish man.

"What?" Kirk asked, with raised eyebrows.

"Savin' their lives." The Scottish man sad.

"I am no hero." Kirk said.

"Nae is everyone is made to be a hero," The Scottish man said. "Anyone can be a hero. Even the messed up lads."

The vehicle came to a stop.

"That is wise." Kirk said.

"This is my stop," The Scottish man said. "Good luck, Mr Kirk."

"Goodbye, classified." Kirk said.

The Scottish man walked out of the vehicle onto the street. Kirk looked over to see a star fleet badge on the seat beside him. Kirk picked it up into his hand. It felt lightweight and metal, hard, so distinguished that it seemed to be a device capable of being tapped on. Kirk flipped it over then back on its balanced end. It was advanced for its size. He was about to say something when the doors closed. Kirk's hands closed around the star fleet symbol.

"I dare you to do better than your father." Pike had once told Kirk.

And now, this was a 'I dare you tae get yourself on a starship' challenge laid by a old Scottish man.

Kirk accepted that challenge.

And now Kirk was getting on a shuttle headed to a starship, grinning, hopeful that he could right his wrong by making a whole new impression on Star Fleet.