Saavik
In March of 2285, Saavik was a Starfleet cadet and, while mentored by Spock at Starfleet Academy, she underwent the Kobayashi Maru scenario. Despite an in-depth awareness of Starfleet regulations, she chose – during the test – to violate the Neutral Zone Treaty by venturing across the Klingon Neutral Zone in an attempt to rescue the freighter Kobayashi Maru, an action that resulted in the simulated deaths of all other officers in the bridge simulator. Afterwards, Saavik related to Admiral Kirk that she doubted the non-winnable simulation had been a fair test of her command abilities, though Saavik also conceded that she had not considered how possible such a situation was in reality.
Saavik was thereafter assigned aboard the Enterprise as navigator under Admiral Kirk, firstly in a training cruise that was then prematurely terminated so that the ship and crew could respond to the Genesis crisis. During these missions, Saavik was the highest-ranking cadet from a training crew on board the vessel. As such, she occasionally occupied the ship's command chair and was even permitted to supervise the vessel's departure from spacedock, which she had never done before.
Saavik struggled to become acquainted with Human personality traits and was inquisitive as to how Kirk had handled the Kobayashi Maru scenario. At this stage in her career, she often quoted Starfleet regulations and was surprised by the way Kirk occasionally bent those rules, questioning several of the commands he gave her. Saavik's mettle – as a prospective officer-of-the-line – was actually tested when the Enterprise was unexpectedly engaged in a drawn-out battle with the commandeered USS Reliant. Though she acquitted herself well under the stress of battle, she was admonished by Admiral Kirk that knowing regulations by heart was not enough and that she still needed to learn "why things work on a starship." As an away team member on one particular away mission amid the battle, Saavik visited both the Regula I space station and the Genesis cave, the latter of which was beneath the surface of Regula. She concluded that – as Kirk's method of beating the Kobayashi Maru test had been to cheat the system – he had never faced death. Saavik's mentor, Spock, was killed during the closing stages of the battle. Despite her Vulcan stoicism, Saavik wept at Spock's funeral. (Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan)
Later that year, Saavik was transferred to the Grissom, where she further studied the Genesis planet along with Kirk's son, David Marcus. There, they found the body of Captain Spock, who was believed lost. When Saavik and David found him, Spock's regenerated body was physiologically that of a child, but he aged rapidly. Saavik helped Spock through the agonies of pon farr by mating with him. Afterwards, she and her companions were captured by Klingons. Though a d'k tahg-wielding Klingon officer attempted to murder Saavik, her life was saved by David, whose intervention in these circumstances resulted in him being violently killed by the Klingon. Saavik returned to Vulcan with the Enterprise crew, to reintegrate Spock's katra into his body, in 2285. (Star Trek III: The Search for Spock)
In 2286, Saavik explained to Kirk how his son had died bravely saving her as well as Spock from the Klingons. She remained on Vulcan with Spock's mother, Amanda Grayson, when the Enterprise crew – together with Captain Spock – returned home for Earth. (Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home)
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