This Gray Spirit

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The Defiant continues its voyage of the Gamma Quadrant, while a lasting peace between the Bajorans and the Cardassians moves closer.

Summary

From the book jacket

The political intrigue aboard Deep Space 9 escalates when Gul Macet's warship arrives at the station with an unexpected passenger. Cardassian Ambassador Natima Lang has returned to the station on a mission of hope, but it's one that will bring back old wounds and old ghosts. As tensions rise on all sides, Colonel Kira Nerys discovers that the line between friend and foe is narrower than she ever imagined.

Elsewhere, the crew of the damaged Starship Defiant forges an uneasy alliance with an unusual alien species - one whose unique biological makeup is the key to the balance of power in that region of the Gamma Quadrant. As the crew becomes ensnared in a web of deceit, Lieutenant Ezri Dax and Ensign Thirishar ch'Thane struggle to stave off a genocidal civil war.

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During its continued mission in the Gamma Quadrant, the Starship Defiant becomes ensnared in the sensor webbing of the Cheka. As nanobots invade the ship, causing systems to fail and consoles to explode, an alien vessel arrives, and a new contact is made.

Back on Deep Space Nine, Colonel Kira Nerys is disturbed by a message from Gul Macet of the Cardassian vessel Trager. Macet is bringing Ambassador Natima Lang to the station, and they want a meeting with First Minister Shakaar. Shortly after receiving Macet's message, Kira finds Lieutenant Ro Laren examining religious artifacts outside her quarters. The station's Chief of Security suspects some sort of religious uprising, and Kira believes it could be related to a schism forming in the Vedek Assembly, something that has been brewing since her Attainder.

As Commander Vaughn and Lieutenant Nog work to make a defense against the nanobots, Lieutenant Ezri Dax works with the Yrythny to end the dispute between the Houseborn and the Wanderers of their society and Ensign Thirishar ch'Thane searches for the secret of their genetic code in hopes of saving his own people. He ultimately succeeds in discovering genetic reasons for a unification of the Houseborn and the Wanderers.

On the station, an exhibit of late Tora Ziyal's artwork serves as a message from a victim of war to bring hope of a new peace between the Bajorans and the Cardassians; however, peace talks are all of a sudden suspended, and while Kira first thinks that this is all minister Asarem Wadeen's work, she is shocked to find out that Shakaar Edon, current Bajoran prime minister, is behind it. After the suspension, the crew of the stations is shocked after tragic loss is discovered - Thriss, having no news from Shar and thus assuming that he would never come home, has committed suicide.

While on Bajor and visiting Kasidy Yates, Kira is surprised to witness a visit of Vedek Yevir - who, after discovering a B'hala figurine, develops a new inspiration for his future.

Background Information

• The second novel in the Mission Gamma series.
• Thriss had a very close relationship to Shar, closer than to any of the other two bondmates - something which is unusual and considered unacceptable in Andorian culture.
• Kira's upload of the old texts (see Avatar, Book Two) apparently had impact on some people, who are not followers of the Vedeks and the traditional Bajoran faith any more.
• Andor is listed on the title page as the location of one of Pocket Books' offices.

Characters

Canon characters listed below are linked to the main article about them. Non-canon characters are not linked, but those that recurred, appearing or being mentioned in more than one story, are defined further in Mission Gamma characters.

Regular and recurring characters

Elias Vaughn

Starfleet commander, the CO of Defiant.

Kira Nerys

Colonel, CO of Deep Space 9

Shakaar Edon

Prime minister of Bajor

Admiral Akaar

Starfleet Admiral

Charivretha zh'Thane

Andorian member of the Federation council, zhavey (mother) of Thirishar

Thirishar ch'Thane

Ensign aboard DS9 and the Defiant

Prynn Tenmei

Ensign aboard DS9, daugher of Elias Vaughn

Nog

Chief engineer on DS9

Kasidy Yates

Wife of the Emissary

Treir

An Orion dabo girl (see Demons of Air and Darkness)

Hetik

A dabo boy

Quark

Barkeeper

Ro Laren

Chief of Security on DS9

Julian Bashir

Chief medical officer on DS9

Ezri Dax

Second in command on the Defiant

Sam Bowers

Tactical ops

Gul Macet

Captain of the Trager

Natima Lang

Cardassian ambassador

Asarem Wadeen

Bajoran minister

References

18th century; 2370s; Alpha Quadrant; Andoria; Andorian; Bajor; Bajoran; Cardassia; Cardassian; Casperia Prime; Deep Space 9; Dominion; Ferengi; Gamma Quadrant; Khitomer Accords; Krem; United Federation of Planets; Vedek Assembly

External link

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