Editor's Note:  This piece comes to us from Team Axanar blog contributor Quincy J. Allen.  Thanks so much for your submission Quincy, we look forward to further entries from you. Like many of you, I’ve been a Trekkie for a long time, almost as long as there has been Star Trek. Roddenberry’s notion of what humanity—all sentient life, in fact—can become is one of the primary reasons I’ve always latched onto Star Trek stories, characters, and conflicts. In recent years I’ve worked to become a writer, I mean a paid writer, which means I spend lots of time talking with other writers about world building and characterization and philosophy. As a science fiction writer (among other genres), the core purpose is to explore facets of “what if,” particularly regarding sentient civilization. That seems to be something Roddenberry and many Star Trek writers over the years embraced almost like a religion. They were practically zealous about the notion that humanity can—someday—unite peacefully so that all individuals within our society need not suffer. They envisioned a society where all are encouraged and enabled to pursue their dreams, to grow into the very best they can be. There have been deviations from this core premise from time to time in the multitude of tales that have grown out of the fertile soil that is Star Trek. For the most part, however, the prevailing foundation upon which characters and plots have been written is the conflict between a united Federation and those who would permit greed or power or zeal to tear down what has oft been described as a utopian vision of the human condition. I think that’s what appealed to me when I watched Axanar for the first time. It was an action-centric storyline, and the characters were immersed in an ugly war. At its heart however, stood the notion that the Federation could withstand any assault and prevail in no small part as a result of the tenets upon which it was built. It suggested that we as sentients, regardless of race, could work together and sustain our society as free individuals. I think that’s what has always appealed to many Trekkies, and I also believe that these notions of solidarity in the midst of diversity are ideas that our society would do well to study. Maybe it’s the troubles of today—we see them everywhere—that have so many of us hungry for notions like the Federation. That’s what excites me about Axanar, the next installment of Roddenberry’s universe. Throughout, the dialogue embraces concepts of the “we” and the “us,” united together towards a common goal. To be perfectly honest, I could use a good old fashioned dose of what Star Trek has always meant to me. These are troubling times, and fresh “what if” story that encourages solidarity amongst the free peoples of our society in the face of those who would tear it down might just do us all some good. So here’s to Axanar and the hope that a united Federation—of peoples if not planets—is achievable.