Star Trek: The Q Continuum
Encyclopedia
Star Trek: The Q Continuum
is a series of three novels written by Greg Cox and published by Pocket Books
, a division of Simon & Schuster Inc. The three books, Q-Space, Q-Zone and Q-Strike, tell the early history of Q
himself, and lead up to an ultimate confrontation between himself, the Enterprise, and another omnipotent being from Q's "childhood", which may lead to the destruction of the galaxy.
NCC-1701E, staffed by its usual crew (except for Worf
, who's on DS9
), is on a mission from Starfleet command, to assist Lem Faal, a Betazoid
scientist, in breaching the barrier which encircles the Milky Way Galaxy. Along the way, Q interrupts them, warning Captain Picard
to abandon his mission, with the usual warning of impending doom but no explanation.
Along the way, Q introduces his wife (as seen in the Voyager
episode "The Q and the Grey
"), and newborn son, q (seen at the end of that same episode), who for the most part remain onboard the Enterprise during the story, assisting them at times only when it suits Mrs. Q. The Enterprise is attacked by the Calamarain, a species of gaseous creatures it had encountered before (Déjà Q, season three of TNG
). Q takes the opportunity to remove Picard from the Enterprise, taking him with him on a journey back through time and space to his own early childhood.
Q shows Picard his history (including how Q created the Nexus, and an experiment which resulted in Q's invention of antimatter
), and eventual meeting with another omnipotent being called 0 ("Zero"), who Q eventually helps escape from his frozen prison planet in another plane of the multiverse
.
Q foolishly offers 0 the use of the Q Continuum, the shortcut to everywhere, and unwisely vouches for 0. Now with the continuum to give him freedom of the galaxy at superluminal speed, he tries to harness the Calamarain to use as his "transport", but the Calamarain drive him off. Enraged, he condenses them and freezes them, though Q stops 0 from condensing them into their own black hole
. This explains the Calamarain's hatred of Q.
0 summons three of his servant minions - Gorgan, The One
and (*), slightly less powerful than himself, and begins his escapades of "testing" species to see if they're worthy of eventually ascending to the same levels as himself and Q.
After testing the Tkon Empire, 0 shows how poor a loser he is when the Empress of the Tkon brilliantly puts an end to the civil war that Gorgan started, The One and (*) fed. 0 causes the Tkon sun to nova, destroying the heart of the Tkon empire and dooming it to extinction. The Continuum steps in, deals with protracted resistance by the four non-Q entities, and, gaining in the battle, arrests three while Gorgan and (*) flee into a black hole. (Gorgan later troubles the Enterprise under Kirk
's command, and (*) troubles Kirk and Kang.)
Q, 0 and The One are put on trial, and 0 is banished outside of our galaxy, establishing the energy barrier to keep him sealed out. The One, reduced to merely a head during the arrest battle, is similarly exiled to the center of the galaxy with a barrier to keep him in. The Enterprise-A
, under Sybok nearly sets The One free. Q's attempt to help arrest the four is recognized, and his punishment is relatively light, with Q's rehabilition to include repairing a small planet, the third in distance from a Class G star that had been thriving with dinosaurs. Although it is not stated implicitly, this reference may indicate that Q has had a hand in the development of Earth after the extinction of the Dinosaurs, though the planet was never mentioned by name in the book, leaving the inference of the planet's identity entirely to the mind of the reader.
While Q has been showing Picard a history that Q is not all that proud of, the Enterprise has been enduring the assault of the Calamarain, its shields steadily failing, its systems overloading. Data
works to establish communications using the Berthold rays that the Calamarain generate. When Riker is finally able to talk with the Calamarain, they finally understand why the Calamarain are attacking. Riker's offer to withdraw from the energy barrier is not enough, as the Calamarain associate the Enterprise crew (most of which are on the Enterprise E) with their old enemy Q.
Picard learns that if the Enterprise is successful in breaching the barrier, 0, now insane, would be released back into our galaxy to gain revenge on Q, and continue destroying the galaxy. Q brings Picard back to the present, arriving on a ship in terrible condition from the Calamarain assault. Unfortunately, at one point, the Enterprise took shelter inside the energy barrier, letting its psychic energy flow through the bio-neural gel packs to power shields; Lem Faal refused to be put in protective stasis, and he was zapped by the barrier, gaining superhuman power. He launches his wormhole
-generating device, and 0 gets into the galaxy again before the wormhole collapses.
While 0 is chasing Q around the ship (Q even uses the transporter and the holodeck), Picard employs his diplomatic skills and his knowledge of the ancient Calamarain to persuade them to cease fire and talk with them. With the eventual help of the Calamarain who join with Q, 0 is finally defeated, and Q can rest peacefully free from his threat. 0 is again exiled outside the galaxy, and the Continuum shores up the energy barrier, which was particularly weakened by the Q Civil War.
Q Continuum
In the fictional televised Star Trek universe, the Q Continuum is an extradimensional plane of existence inhabited by a race of extremely powerful, hyper-intelligent beings known as the Q...
is a series of three novels written by Greg Cox and published by Pocket Books
Pocket Books
Pocket Books is a division of Simon & Schuster that primarily publishes paperback books.- History :Pocket produced the first mass-market, pocket-sized paperback books in America in early 1939 and revolutionized the publishing industry...
, a division of Simon & Schuster Inc. The three books, Q-Space, Q-Zone and Q-Strike, tell the early history of Q
Q (Star Trek)
Q is a fictional character who appears in the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: Voyager, as well as in related products. In all of these programs, he is played by John de Lancie....
himself, and lead up to an ultimate confrontation between himself, the Enterprise, and another omnipotent being from Q's "childhood", which may lead to the destruction of the galaxy.
Overview
The USS EnterpriseUSS Enterprise (NCC-1701-E)
The USS Enterprise is a Sovereign-class starship in the Star Trek franchise. It serves as the primary setting of the films Star Trek: First Contact, Star Trek: Insurrection, and Star Trek Nemesis...
NCC-1701E, staffed by its usual crew (except for Worf
Worf
Worf, played by Michael Dorn, is a main character in Star Trek: The Next Generation and in seasons four to seven of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. He also appears in the films based on The Next Generation. Worf is the first Klingon main character to appear in Star Trek, and has appeared in more Star...
, who's on DS9
Deep Space Nine (space station)
Deep Space Nine is a fictitious space station, and is the eponymous primary setting of the science fiction television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. It serves as a base for the exploration of the Gamma Quadrant via the Bajoran wormhole, and is a hub of trade and travel for the sector's denizens...
), is on a mission from Starfleet command, to assist Lem Faal, a Betazoid
Betazoid
In the fictional Star Trek universe, Betazoids are a sentient humanoid species from the planet Betazed, a member of the United Federation of Planets.-Overview:...
scientist, in breaching the barrier which encircles the Milky Way Galaxy. Along the way, Q interrupts them, warning Captain Picard
Jean-Luc Picard
Captain Jean-Luc Picard is a Star Trek character portrayed by Patrick Stewart. He appears in the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation and the feature films Star Trek Generations, Star Trek: First Contact, Star Trek: Insurrection, and Star Trek Nemesis...
to abandon his mission, with the usual warning of impending doom but no explanation.
Along the way, Q introduces his wife (as seen in the Voyager
Star Trek: Voyager
Star Trek: Voyager is a science fiction television series set in the Star Trek universe. Set in the 24th century from the year 2371 through 2378, the series follows the adventures of the Starfleet vessel USS Voyager, which becomes stranded in the Delta Quadrant 70,000 light-years from Earth while...
episode "The Q and the Grey
The Q and the Grey (Voyager episode)
"The Q and the Grey" is the 11th episode of the 3rd season of Star Trek: Voyager. It has an average fan rating of 4.1/5 on the official Star Trek website as of September, 2009.-Plot:...
"), and newborn son, q (seen at the end of that same episode), who for the most part remain onboard the Enterprise during the story, assisting them at times only when it suits Mrs. Q. The Enterprise is attacked by the Calamarain, a species of gaseous creatures it had encountered before (Déjà Q, season three of TNG
TNG
TNG may refer to:* Degrassi: The Next Generation, a Canadian teen drama television series set in the Degrassi universe* The Newlywed Game, an American television game show* Samba TNG, a fork of the Samba networking protocol...
). Q takes the opportunity to remove Picard from the Enterprise, taking him with him on a journey back through time and space to his own early childhood.
Q shows Picard his history (including how Q created the Nexus, and an experiment which resulted in Q's invention of antimatter
Antimatter
In particle physics, antimatter is the extension of the concept of the antiparticle to matter, where antimatter is composed of antiparticles in the same way that normal matter is composed of particles...
), and eventual meeting with another omnipotent being called 0 ("Zero"), who Q eventually helps escape from his frozen prison planet in another plane of the multiverse
Parallel universe (fiction)
A parallel universe or alternative reality is a hypothetical self-contained separate reality coexisting with one's own. A specific group of parallel universes is called a "multiverse", although this term can also be used to describe the possible parallel universes that constitute reality...
.
Q foolishly offers 0 the use of the Q Continuum, the shortcut to everywhere, and unwisely vouches for 0. Now with the continuum to give him freedom of the galaxy at superluminal speed, he tries to harness the Calamarain to use as his "transport", but the Calamarain drive him off. Enraged, he condenses them and freezes them, though Q stops 0 from condensing them into their own black hole
Black hole
A black hole is a region of spacetime from which nothing, not even light, can escape. The theory of general relativity predicts that a sufficiently compact mass will deform spacetime to form a black hole. Around a black hole there is a mathematically defined surface called an event horizon that...
. This explains the Calamarain's hatred of Q.
0 summons three of his servant minions - Gorgan, The One
Star Trek V: The Final Frontier
Star Trek V: The Final Frontier is a 1989 American science fiction film released by Paramount Pictures. It is the fifth feature in the franchise and the penultimate to star the cast of the original Star Trek science fiction television series...
and (*), slightly less powerful than himself, and begins his escapades of "testing" species to see if they're worthy of eventually ascending to the same levels as himself and Q.
After testing the Tkon Empire, 0 shows how poor a loser he is when the Empress of the Tkon brilliantly puts an end to the civil war that Gorgan started, The One and (*) fed. 0 causes the Tkon sun to nova, destroying the heart of the Tkon empire and dooming it to extinction. The Continuum steps in, deals with protracted resistance by the four non-Q entities, and, gaining in the battle, arrests three while Gorgan and (*) flee into a black hole. (Gorgan later troubles the Enterprise under Kirk
James T. Kirk
James Tiberius "Jim" Kirk is a character in the Star Trek media franchise. Kirk was first played by William Shatner as the principal lead character in the original Star Trek series. Shatner voiced Kirk in the animated Star Trek series and appeared in the first seven Star Trek movies...
's command, and (*) troubles Kirk and Kang.)
Q, 0 and The One are put on trial, and 0 is banished outside of our galaxy, establishing the energy barrier to keep him sealed out. The One, reduced to merely a head during the arrest battle, is similarly exiled to the center of the galaxy with a barrier to keep him in. The Enterprise-A
USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-A)
The USS Enterprise, NCC-1701-A is a starship in the fourth, fifth, and sixth Star Trek films.-Origin and design:The Enterprise-A used the same shooting model as the preceding NCC-1701...
, under Sybok nearly sets The One free. Q's attempt to help arrest the four is recognized, and his punishment is relatively light, with Q's rehabilition to include repairing a small planet, the third in distance from a Class G star that had been thriving with dinosaurs. Although it is not stated implicitly, this reference may indicate that Q has had a hand in the development of Earth after the extinction of the Dinosaurs, though the planet was never mentioned by name in the book, leaving the inference of the planet's identity entirely to the mind of the reader.
While Q has been showing Picard a history that Q is not all that proud of, the Enterprise has been enduring the assault of the Calamarain, its shields steadily failing, its systems overloading. Data
Data (Star Trek)
Lieutenant Commander Data is a character in the fictional Star Trek universe portrayed by actor Brent Spiner. He appears in the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation and the feature films Star Trek Generations, Star Trek: First Contact, Star Trek: Insurrection, and Star Trek...
works to establish communications using the Berthold rays that the Calamarain generate. When Riker is finally able to talk with the Calamarain, they finally understand why the Calamarain are attacking. Riker's offer to withdraw from the energy barrier is not enough, as the Calamarain associate the Enterprise crew (most of which are on the Enterprise E) with their old enemy Q.
Picard learns that if the Enterprise is successful in breaching the barrier, 0, now insane, would be released back into our galaxy to gain revenge on Q, and continue destroying the galaxy. Q brings Picard back to the present, arriving on a ship in terrible condition from the Calamarain assault. Unfortunately, at one point, the Enterprise took shelter inside the energy barrier, letting its psychic energy flow through the bio-neural gel packs to power shields; Lem Faal refused to be put in protective stasis, and he was zapped by the barrier, gaining superhuman power. He launches his wormhole
Wormhole
In physics, a wormhole is a hypothetical topological feature of spacetime that would be, fundamentally, a "shortcut" through spacetime. For a simple visual explanation of a wormhole, consider spacetime visualized as a two-dimensional surface. If this surface is folded along a third dimension, it...
-generating device, and 0 gets into the galaxy again before the wormhole collapses.
While 0 is chasing Q around the ship (Q even uses the transporter and the holodeck), Picard employs his diplomatic skills and his knowledge of the ancient Calamarain to persuade them to cease fire and talk with them. With the eventual help of the Calamarain who join with Q, 0 is finally defeated, and Q can rest peacefully free from his threat. 0 is again exiled outside the galaxy, and the Continuum shores up the energy barrier, which was particularly weakened by the Q Civil War.
Details
Through the course of the books, several well-known phenomena are mentioned and seen, insinuating that Q and his escapades were the cause. Some of these things are:- The Great Barrier at the center of the galaxy, seen in Star Trek V: The Final FrontierStar Trek V: The Final FrontierStar Trek V: The Final Frontier is a 1989 American science fiction film released by Paramount Pictures. It is the fifth feature in the franchise and the penultimate to star the cast of the original Star Trek science fiction television series...
. The entity The One is shown to be one of 0's associates. This is only conjecture as it has never been mentioned in TV or motion picture canon. - The entity named only as "(*)", another of 0's associates, compelled people to fight so it could draw upon the energy of violence and hatred, while causing people to heal or awaken from the dead. It also caused equipment to regenerate. (*) did this in "Day of the DoveDay of the Dove (TOS episode)"Day of the Dove" is the seventh episode of the third season of Star Trek: The Original Series, first broadcast November 1, 1968 and repeated June 17, 1969...
". - The entity named Gorgan, another of 0's associates, specialized in supporting generational strife, giving his unwitting followers the ability to employ telekinetic powers, as he did in "And the Children Shall LeadAnd the Children Shall Lead (TOS episode)"And the Children Shall Lead" is a third-season episode of Star Trek: The Original Series, and was broadcast October 11, 1968. It is episode #59, production #60, written by Edward J...
". - The Galactic Barrier surrounding the galaxy, as seen in "Where No Man Has Gone BeforeWhere No Man Has Gone Before (TOS episode)"Where No Man Has Gone Before" is the second pilot episode of the television series Star Trek: The Original Series. It was produced in 1965 after the first pilot, "The Cage", had been rejected by NBC. The episode was eventually broadcast third in sequence on September 22, 1966, and was re-aired on...
" and several other episodes of the Original Series, was forged by the Continuum to keep 0 from ever reentering it as punishment. It also trapped him in intergalactic space, as 0 is unable to travel faster-than-lightFaster-than-lightFaster-than-light communications and travel refer to the propagation of information or matter faster than the speed of light....
. - The Nexus from Star Trek Generations, which was created by Q accidentally while playing with plasma in the core of a star.
- The battle to arrest 0 and his associates caused numerous other ramifications, including the cooling of Exo III's sun and the resulting android civilization discovered by Roger Corby ("What are Little Girls Made Of?What Are Little Girls Made Of? (TOS episode)"What Are Little Girls Made Of?" is episode seven of the first season of Star Trek: The Original Series. It was first broadcast October 20, 1966. It was repeated two months later, on December 22, 1966, and was the first episode of the series to be repeated on NBC. It was written by Robert Bloch and...
"); it caused a final, devastating war on Arret, where Sargon took shelter with his wife, Henoch from the enemy forces and 17 others ("Return to Tomorrow]"). One of the battling entities also shoots energy "arrows" at the Q, after he attempts to enter the wormhole from Star Trek: Deep Space NineStar Trek: Deep Space NineStar Trek: Deep Space Nine is a science fiction television series set in the Star Trek universe...
only to be blocked by the ProphetsProphet (Star Trek)In the fictional Star Trek universe, the Prophets, also known as Wormhole Aliens, are non-corporeal beings who inhabit the artificially constructed Bajoran wormhole which connects a distant point in the Gamma Quadrant to the Alpha Quadrant, near the planet of Bajor and the space station Deep Space...
, and many Bajorans interpret this as a sign from the Prophets-though the Kai of the time understands that it is not. - The blame for the extinction of the dinosaurs on EarthEarthEarth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
can (and has been) placed squarely on Q's shoulders. During the battle, 0 supercharged an iridiumIridiumIridium is the chemical element with atomic number 77, and is represented by the symbol Ir. A very hard, brittle, silvery-white transition metal of the platinum family, iridium is the second-densest element and is the most corrosion-resistant metal, even at temperatures as high as 2000 °C...
asteroid and hurled it at the female Q. Unwilling to see his mate hurt, Q created a temporary wormhole in front of the asteroid, not really caring where it went. The asteroid ended up striking Earth. Q's punishment was to watch over the planet and any intelligent species that evolves on it - the reason for the Q's constant tests of humanity. - Tagus III comes up. In "Q-PidQ-Pid (TNG episode)"Qpid" is the 94th episode of the science fiction television series Star Trek: The Next Generation.-Plot:Captain Picard is working late on a speech that he will present to a group of visiting archaeologists when Counselor Troi enters and tells him that the council members have arrived and been...
", Q hinted to Picard that they really knew how to party on Tagus III a billion years ago, and in this novel series, Q actually does show Picard how the "Imotru" (ancient Taguans) partied, since Q and his future wife sat in on one of those parties. - Three Q who show up in TNG and Voyager episodes also figure in the novels. Q2 (played by Corbin Bernsen in Deja Q) and Q(uinn) (from Voyager "Death WishDeath Wish (Voyager episode)"Death Wish" is episode 14 of season 2 of Star Trek: Voyager. It has an average fan rating of 4.5/5 on the official Star Trek website as of September 2009.-Plot:...
") are involved in trying to arrest 0 and gang. The future Mrs. Q makes several appearances in the novels, as well as, of course, being present on the Enterprise E while Picard and her husband are in the past. q first appeared in "The Q and the GrayThe Q and the Grey (Voyager episode)"The Q and the Grey" is the 11th episode of the 3rd season of Star Trek: Voyager. It has an average fan rating of 4.1/5 on the official Star Trek website as of September, 2009.-Plot:...
", but these novels were written before q, shown as a teen-age boy, appeared in another Voyager episode, "Q2". - The Enterprise tactical officer/security chief in the three novels is Baete Leyoro, an Angosian (see the TNG episode "The HuntedThe Hunted (TNG episode)-Plot:The Enterprise is investigating Angosia as a candidate for entry into the Federation. The Angosian authorities approach Picard and ask for help in apprehending a convict who has escaped on a transport ship from their prison colony on Lunar V. The Enterprise, with Data in command, is able to...
"). She is another soldier in their wars who was altered for battle, then a prisoner on a lunar colony after the war, and then somehow successfully rehabilitated and joining Starfleet. Initially hating the Calamarain because they attack the ship, in the end she sacrifices herself to thaw out the Calamarain while 0 makes her phaser overload. This sacrifice convinces the Calamarain that cooperation is the key to defeating 0. - The energy barrier gives psychokinetic power to those with some form of ESP, like Betazoids, or Terrans like Lt. Cmdr. Gary Mitchell and Dr. Elizabeth Dehner. In these novels, it affects Lem Faal and his son Milo, but not Faal's daughter or Deanna TroiDeanna TroiCommander Deanna Troi is a main character in the science-fiction television series Star Trek: The Next Generation and related TV series and films, portrayed by actress Marina Sirtis. Troi is half-human, half-Betazoid and has the psionic ability to sense emotions. She serves as the ship's counselor...
, who were put into stasis in time. The barrier also seems to affect Leyoro, but it doesn't affect VulcansVulcan (Star Trek)Vulcans, or sometimes Vulcanians, are an extraterrestrial humanoid species in the Star Trek universe who evolved on the planet Vulcan, and are noted for their attempt to live by reason and logic with no interference from emotion. They were the first extraterrestrial species in the Star Trek...
(it didn't affect Spock a century earlier). - Beverly CrusherBeverly CrusherCommander Beverly Crusher, M.D. , played by actress Gates McFadden, is a fictional character on the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation and its subsequent spinoff films...
makes use of the EMH Mark One, relying on it in the emergency. - According to 0, The One invented MonotheismMonotheismMonotheism is the belief in the existence of one and only one god. Monotheism is characteristic of the Baha'i Faith, Christianity, Druzism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Samaritanism, Sikhism and Zoroastrianism.While they profess the existence of only one deity, monotheistic religions may still...
. This is probably why every time there is a description of an action by The One, certain words are capitalized (e.g., "He raised His Mighty Hand"). - Apparently, the creators of the Guardian of ForeverGuardian of ForeverThe Guardian of Forever is a time portal portrayed in the fictional universe of Star Trek.-Fictional origins:In the Star Trek universe, analysis of the ruins on the Guardian's home world suggests it may be billions of years old but no one knows who built the Guardian...
anticipated someone like 0 trying to use the portal to enter the Milky Way galaxy, as the Guardian refused to let 0 through until Q forced it. - The worm-like creatures from the TNG episode Realm of Fear were shown to have been created by a careless young Q.
- One of 0's associates attempts to flee through a wormhole, but is blocked from doing so. This is implied to be the Bajoran wormhole.