Cadet Stephanie Decatur Reports for Kobayashi Maru Simulation

Stephanie was finishing her lunch in the mess hall with three other fourth year cadets.  As she took another bite of her salad she interrupted the Bolian cadet that was sitting across from her, nose buried in the Science 401 textbook, “No, that’s a not a Causality loop, it’s a Predestination Paradox…” She paused to swallow. “You see, it’s a paradox because if you prevented your parents from meeting you’d not be born to go back in time in the first place. A loop is just the same events looping over and over.”

The four of them had spent the last few hours discussing the finer points of Temporal Mechanics, something that Cadet Durax was having trouble with. Of the four of them she was the only Joined Trill, one of the few in the Academy. She felt a little guilty having the advantage of three separate lifetimes’ worth of experiences and knowledge to fall back on. Her symbiot have never been an officer in Starfleet, but her previous host had been a Starfleet marine. Her own desire to attend the academy before her and the symbiot were joined was part of the reason that Stephanie was chosen as host.

She was about to begin explaining the difference in more technical terms for her confused classmate when the Vulcan cadet at the table spoke up, “If you do not depart for the holodeck, Captain Vincent will remove points for tardiness.” She shoveled another bite in her mouth and nodded, leaving him to explain to her bolian friend what she was talking about as she jumped up before trotting quickly out of the mess hall. She made her way to the turbo lift which opened smoothly allowing her entry.

“Holodeck” she said as the doors slid closed behind her. She spent a moment to straighten her uniform as the lift sped between decks and sections of the ship.

The doors opened and she stepped onto the deck and made her way quickly to the professor in charge of the test who was standing near the holodeck entrance. When she was close enough she stood at attention and spoke first, “Cadet Decatur reporting for the Kobayashi Maru Simulation, Sir.” She would stand there until told to stand at ease or given an order. Her discipline was as immaculate as her uniform. While each joined trill was unique with each and every host, there were some pairings that just made sense. Her host’s desire to serve in Starfleet combined with her Symbiot’s past experience as a Starfleet marine had meant the transition to a disciplined military organization was almost too natural for her.

On the other hand, her host had always had a tendency to forget what time it was. Once joined she always seemed to be on time…but only just, the Captian would be familiar with her last-minute arrivals and this would be no different. She literally snapped to attention exactly at the turning of the minute her exam was scheduled to begin.

She was one of the shortest cadets in the Academy, a very small woman with dark purple hair neatly cut short and styled into a faux-hawk that was within uniform regulations if only just. Her build was slender, and she had struggled against the other cadets in the self-defense courses. Despite her being exceptionally fit and her previous lifetime experience with the SFMC she was still much smaller than her classmates and had to work twice as hard in those classes. They were, she admitted to herself, the hardest classes for her simply because of her comparatively diminutive stature. She sincerely hoped silently that the coming simulation would not involve fighting Klingons or Hirogen in boarding combat like some of the simulations she’d had to endure before. 

Josh stood at attention in the holodeck, as the small Trill cadet walked briskly up to him and snapped to attention as his PADD beeped to notify him of the starting time of the exam.

Perfect timing, as always, he thought as he moved to a relaxed pose.

"At ease Cadet," Josh said in a relaxed tone. "Welcome to the Kobayashi Maru Examination. As you are aware, this exam will test your behavior in a no-win scenario. You will face death, as all Starfleet officers must during their careers, and you will face the extra challenge of leading others to face death as well."

He paused as he pulled up this cadet's data on his PADD.

Ah, a science cadet, he thought. I've got the perfect scenario for her.

"We've come up with some new scenarios since the Kobayashi Maru Exam began," Josh said "Today, you'll be taking command of the USS Renegade, an Intrepid Class science vessel, tasked with exploring the edge of the galaxy near the Galactic Barrier. Before we begin, do you have any questions?"

She shifted on her feet slightly, setting them shoulder-width apart and rested her arms behind her in a more relaxed pose as she listened to his explanation of the test. She waited politely for him to finish. A million questions ran through her head in less than the time it took for him to ask. She took a breath, stopping herself from rattling off all of them one by one.

“Sir, if the test is unbeatable, and I am set up to fail, how will the exam be evaluated? And what advice can you give me before we begin?”

Her mind was racing through countless possible scenarios, trying to account for every possible situation was a hopeless endeavor, but she was trying anyway.

Josh smiled at these questions, the same questions that nearly every cadet that walked through that door asked.

"You will be evaluated on how you handle yourself when facing death," Josh replied. "I will also be grading your command abilities and how you handle unforeseen circumstances. My only advice is to be true to yourself and rely on your training. If there are no further questions, we can begin."

Stephanie nodded and steeled herself for what was to come. “I’m ready, sir.” She wondered if she truly was ready, if anyone could ever truly be prepared to face the situation she was about to face. She supposed not, which explained why they even needed this test.  She took a ragged deep breath and nodded, more to assure herself that she could handle whatever was about to happen than in acknowledgement of being truly prepared.