| Cover image. | |
| Author: | Judith & Garfield Reeves-Stevens and William Shatner |
| Illustrator: | COVER ARTIST |
| Publisher: | Pocket Books |
| Series: | Pocket TOS |
| Published: | |
| Pages: | |
| Year: | |
| Stardate: | Unknown |
| Reference #: | |
Summary
A "virogen" has infested several Federation worlds, disrupting the food chain, and is rapidly spreading. Starfleet's resources are stretched to the breaking point attempting to keep the affected systems blockaded so the virogen doesn't spread any further and attempting to keep their populations from starving to death. Jean-Luc Picard and the Enterprise-E are assigned to a blockade of the Alta Vista system, home to the Gamow Station, a research facility designed to house about 60 scientists that is temporarily being used as a refugee camp for 1400 people. A ship attempts to run the blockade; its small crew destroys the ship rather than be sent back to the overcrowded station -- or do they?
James T. Kirk suddenly reappears on the world of Chal, which has also been quaranted because of the virogen. He is there to visit Teilani's grave -- only he learns that she is not dead. However, she is dying of the virogen, which affects the chalchaj'qmey far more seriously than it does other humanoids because of their artificial genetic structure, and she probably has less than a day to live. Kirk cures her with a herb whose origin he does not know. In trying to learn the origins of this plague, Kirk has the commander of the Starfleet rescue mission on Chal transmit a request for information to Starfleet Command. Chal is attacked by Orion fighter craft flown by pilots of a different -- and alarming -- race.
On Babel, Spock learns that his father, Sarek, who was thought to have died of Bendii Syndrome, was actually murdered in some way to make it appear as though he had Bendii. Spock becomes enraged and decides it is up to him to find out who murdered his father -- and why.
The answers to Picard's, Kirk's and Spock's mysteries are all found on the same planet -- Vulcan.
Background Information
Memorable Quotes
Characters
References
| Previous novel: The Return |
Novels Star Trek (Pocket) Pocket TOS |
Next TOS novel: Starfleet Academy |
| Next novel by Shatner: Spectre |