Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Cunning Little Vulcan

Klingon Hamlet

Scenario: · Praxis explodes, endangering the Klingon homeworld and crippling its industries.
· An ecological and economic disaster.
· The Federation’s peace envoy, spearheaded by ambassador Sarek and his son Spock, open negotiations with Chancellor Gorkon, in the hopes of establishing a peace treaty and demilitarising the borders of the Klingon/Federation neutral Zones, paving a path to a brighter, safer and co-operative future as allies.

The original conspiracy:
· Numerous Starfleet, Romulan Imperial and Klingon imperial militants fear this future of unprotected territories and possible invasion, and conspire to kill Gorkon, frame Kirk, and thereby cement a future of hostility and possible all-out war.
· The driving force being fear, and greed, and hunger for war.

Actions taken:

· A Klingon Bird-of-Prey armed with a new cloaking device which allows firing of weapons whilst undetectable stalks Gorkon’s flagship to its rendezvous with Enterprise and when the dinner between the two crews ends, the warbird fires upon the flagship, whilst two crewmen beam aboard and slay several warriors and assassinate the Chancellor.
· Valeris is interrogated and releases this story to the crew, and they face down Chang and his ship of death and manage to destroy him with the assistance of Excelsior and her captain, Sulu.

What REALLY happened:
· Chang was, yes, hesitant to change from warrior to peackeeper, and untrusting of the ever-expanding Federation of Planets.
· His warrior’s heart swelled to meet Captain Kirk, slayer of Kruge, nemesis of Kang, Kor and Koloth, conqueror of the world-builder and world-destroyer Genesis, defeater of the enigmatic, warlord Khan.
· To meet him face to face, to challenge him, was a moment he cherished as a fellow veteran of space-battles.
· He watched over Gorkon with a wary eye, knowing Gorkon to have gone soft on the humans and their inferior allies.
· He followed his duty to the letter, and when the battleship was callously, viciously attacked, and her crew slain or maimed by masked cowards, and her pacifist revolutionary leader shot to death, he swore vengeance on the cruel Kirk and his band of bloodthirsty tyrants; for the pride that fuelled his determination to become a peacekeeper soon turned to lava-like fury; Kirk had betrayed them, had betrayed the morals he swore to uphold; showed his true colours.
· And Chang would “Blow them out of the stars.”
· Azetbur stopped him upon their immediate surrender, and they stood together watching Kirk’s lapdog McCoy hammer the great leader’s chest as if it were the back of an incompetent targ.
· Kirk feigned shock, but Chang knew better.

So why didn’t they kill them?

· Chang swore to obey Gorkon and enforce his will, whether it mean war or peace.
· Despite his huge need for vengeance, he continued this allegiance with Gorkon’s daughter Azetbur, although he had the will to remind her of her father’s death in the name of peace.
· Still she insisted on justice through the courts, and he looked on, pained, knowing the only justice Kirk deserved was a cold, vicious death.

The Chameloid, Martia

· She knew alot about what had happened, and Kirk/McCoy seemed surprised.
· But why?
· Gorkon was killed at the hands of the same man that had stolen the flagship and burned her over the surface of a planet he had created and subsequently destroyed...only to be given another flagship.
· He spat on rules and laughed at regulations and killed if necessary or entertaining.
· Kirk was a brute, and had finally exacted vengeance on the highest leader of the race he despised.
· Starfleet’s most famous captain was a murderous racist.
· News spread.
· Bribes were offered for his death.
· The Chameloid took a bribe from someone in the prison...the gravelly-voiced jail-keeper, a man who once shared command with Chang, and who would help exact the kind of sentence that Chang had sought: cold, vicious death...on the icy prison planet.
· Chang looked on his former colleague from the womb of his cloaked ship, realising that Kirk had done it again: deceived all those around him, and escaped certain death. “Escaped...escaped...”
· Chang would kill him personally.
· His ship was a weapon and finally, now, Chang could kill Kirk personally.

The Bird of Prey?

· Spock and co used the info on the neutrino emissions to extrapolate the right situation: all torpedoes accounted for onboard Enterprise.
· Another ships presence possibly.
· A Klingon assassin-ship, firing whilst cloaked.
· Remember...Valeris seemed not to know when Kirk asked her near the beginning about neutrino emissions.
· An act?
· Valeris seemed to slowly dawn on the idea as Spock lead her to it, because she didn’t know it was there.
· Chang used it as a secret bodyguard for Gorkon; why allow the empire’s leader meet with a Klingon-killer and not have added protection?
· Chang was simply following procedure.
· Valeris did not expect this.

The torpedo?

· ½ torpedo(es) fired upon the battleship.
· She spun through space as everyone panicked and checked their consoles.
· Even Valeris was rattled.
· She had arranged 2 extra torpedoes beamed directly from Starbase One to Enterprise.
· She fired them, and so Scotty found all torpedoes in place, and the databanks said they fired.
· When Spock and Scotty met in the torpedo bays, Valeris quickly met them to ascertain their suspicion level.
· She was safe.

The battle

· Chang was furious, righteous, and released from his bond of peace.
· Kirk was a warmonger.
· Even Starfleet didn’t want him.
· Chang would be hailed as a hero and a decision would be made: continue peace, or seek vengeance on the vile federation.
· First, destroy Enteprrise.
· As expected Kirk was racing towards Khitomer to kill the president and bring all-out war.
· Chang had no love for the president but war would be on his and Azetbur’s terms; too much had gone out of control already.
· He and his ship patrolled the dark skies of space, awaiting Enterprise’s arrival.
· And arrive she did, at full warp, red alert, her captain at the conn.
· Battle ensued, Chang intimidating the coward with promises of victory and death.
· And characteristically of anyone who walked in Kirk’s wake, Sulu appeared in his advanced warship Excelsior.
· “The game’s afoot,” sneered Chang, as he brought both federation ships to their knees.
· Only somehow Enterprise had followed their ions, and a rain of torpedoes turned Chang and all around him to fire and dust.
· Chang uttered the line of Hamlet, the man fooled by his own assumptions, fooled into attacking an innocent, or so it goes (Kirk = Claudius?)
· (On this point, Claudius seduced his dead brother’s wife; Kirk later won over the dead chancellor’s daughter; Chang saw the future deceits and pained; but all was not what it seemed)

Alleged Conspirators

· Ambassador Nanclus:

• • Romulan, despises the Klingon Empire.
    Beseeches the president to free Kirk and tells him “there will never be a better time” to attack Klingon Empire.
    He wasn’t in on anything;he is as intelligent as a Vulcan, and as manipulative and opportunistic as a human; and darkly determined to conquer as any of his military colleagues.
    He sees a chance and takes it.

· Admiral Cartwright:

• • Watched as Kirk and his crew defied odds and saved earth in their captured Klingon bird of prey.
    Heard (between IV and VI) of David’s murder at Klingon hands, all just for show of force.
    Was good friends with JT Esteban, the captain of the Klingon-destroyed Grissom.
    Has experience during the tv series of fighting Klingons across besieged colonies.
    Tired of their constant threat and sees offense as the best defense to bring liberty and safety to the galaxy.
    Pained to see Jim Kirk forced to shake hands with the devilish empire’s leader.
    Looks in shock as Valeris is cuffed; ashamed that he wanted Gorkon and his kind oppressed; afraid Valeris has somehow dragged him into her little plan.

· Chang:

• • Did his job. Hadn’t a clue.

· Colonel West:

• • Dressed as a Klingon so as not to alert the president to his presence.
    Took a high station to take aim at anyone willing to attack the president.
    Aimed at Kirk as he ran at the president, missed, and died when Kirk’s engineer unexpectedly jumped in and shot him.
    Dies an unintentional traitor; just doing his job.

· Two ensigns (Burke and Samno):

• • Valeris warns them that she has heard the Klingosn have a plan to kill them all.
    Orders them to suit up and prepare to beam aboard and assassinate the chancellor, thereby crippling leadership.
    Blame it on civil war, but only if the Enterprise is attacked first.
    Are alerted by Valeris by touch-tone when the first torpedo strikes; they, being ensigns, naive and afraid, follow orders, got through the halls killing any and all that oppose them, do their job and go back to Enterprise, only to find out the consequences of their actions.
    They say they will tell Kirk and co what happened; Valeris kills them.

Valeris
Is she Vulcan or Romulan? Peacekeeper or warmonger? Psychotic or incredibly focussed? Full of hate or doing what she does for the love of her Federation? There is a dark story behind her actions.