I've been doing this long enough that I'm not gonna take the word of somebody who shows up in my cabin and says he's future me.
APAdmiral Pike
Mm. Your first pony was named Sir Neighs-a-Lot. He broke his leg in a rainstorm. Your parents had to put him down, and you cried for a week. Ever tell anybody that?
[referring to his brother] Look, I'm not gonna say that Jim isn't a pain in the ass. He is, he's a huge pain in the ass. But the truth is, he's as fine a captain as Starfleet has.
Captain's personal log, stardate 1709.2. Per Captain Kirk's plan, we are mounting a pincer move. Our two ships will slowly drift closer as the Romulans remain unaware. When they pass through the comet's tail giving us their exact location, we will be in weapons range. Kirk, however, has agreed to my plan to neutralize, not destroy, the Bird-of-Prey, leaving open the possibility of dialogue. And yet I remain concerned this brash, young Starfleet captain follows his own rules. I can't help but wonder, is Kirk the reason I was sent here? If I wasn't here to stop him, would we be led into a war?
I'm saying "caution" means you're not going to put everything you have into the punch. And that's a good way to lose, because your enemy will see that and act accordingly.
Yes. This isn't going to help, but... it gets worse. This war with the Romulans? Millions die. So far. It's still going on. Not only did you start something that should never have been started -- the best chance at a lasting peace between the Federation and the Romulans in any timeline? Well... turns out he's lying in a bio-bed. We all wanna think our future is important and ours -- yours and mine -- it is. Just not the way you think. Time is, uh... it's complicated. But the monks showed me something simple: every time we change the path, he dies. He's got things to do. Fate of the galaxy type things. Paths diverge... but I am the result of one that should never have been taken.
Did it ever occur to you that sometimes you can't avoid a fight? If you had just chased that Romulan ship from the get-go and taken it out, maybe none of this would've happened.
I think highly of Una. Promoted her faster than any other officer on my ship. Recommended her for the Medal of Gallantry after the Marcel disaster in 2248.
From the videos I've seen, we mostly have clouds of ash that won't clear for a thousand years and underground lunar habitats with no view of the sun at all. [pulls himself together, smiles and turns to La'an] My advice? [offers her one of his hot dogs] Don't skip good hot dogs when you can get them.
I might be the only one. Truth is, if we can only save one timeline, I'd rather live in yours. I mean, I know that's not how it works. Like I mentioned, I missed a few lectures in temporal mechanics, but...
