#starbase 1

(and even if you weren't, here it is anyway 😅)

Tags: @deadheaddaisy, @indignantlemur, @shadowinthefire, @pearlypairings, @1lostsoul0fishbowl, @pajamasecrets, @pumpkinfreak

A ship landed on the Starbase

The NMO representative from before emerged.

They looked around, getting a vague feel of the place

As you approach the station's docking bay, you look around at the massive station. You're not sure you've seen a station this massive before.

As you dock with the station, a small team in yellow shirts come out to inspect your ship, waving tricorders at it before you get an "all-clear" signal, letting you know you can leave the ship. You see Armine waving from a nearby window. You hear the intercom:

"Oh! hello again! Welcome to Starbase 1. Do you need repairs or supplies? Let me give you the tour."

I'd usually ask about Under A White Sky, but today I think SB1 deserves some director's insights and featurettes. Especially how and why Monica becomes the Patron Saint of the Core(s) (heck, I bet her processes played a role in the success of a station that became incredibly popular several centuries later.

Go wild, val'tor! 💜

Now, are we talking about Starbase 1 the setting, or specifically about the story Far From the Sun?

Eh, why choose? 😁

I knew I couldn't keep Karveth and Monica on Mars forever, but I also knew he would never accept a position on a starship, because he wouldn't want to be separated from Monica, and dang it, family on a starship isn't a thing until the post TOS era! (And honestly, I'm not sure it's a thing for the majority of Starfleet vessels in the TNG era, just the big 'uns)

So where do they go from here?

One of the little things I've really liked about Strange New Worlds is Starbase One, and how it serves as their home port, so to speak. And digging into the (beta canon) history of Starbase One, we find it's existed since the ENT era! Sort of - according to certain sources, its first iteration was destroyed during the Romulan War while it was still under construction, with a second attempt being completed after the war's end.

Hmmmm, says I. That's handy timing.

So Karveth gets a transfer to SB1. Now what will Monica do?

The reason Monica thrives in hospitality is because she likes people, and she's good with them. An environment where there's a ton of new people constantly moving in and out is perfect for her, honestly. I drew a lot of my inspiration from DS9's Promenade - you have a public space with shops (we'll just overlook the money/lack thereof issue for now), eateries, services, all that good stuff - but how does it work, between Starfleet and a civilian population? And what if the how of it all got lost in the shuffle of trying to just get this place up and running?

And what if there's one person who's perfectly suited by temperament and inclination to bridge that gap?

I'm actually intending to come back to the Service Association and how Monica gets it going in future stories, but she's the one who lays the groundwork, and I'm just so proud of her for it!

(Karveth is too, obviously, but he's also not surprised at all, because he knew she could it, and anybody who doubts her will learn the error of their ways)