The Prisoner of Vega

The Prisoner of Vega is a Star Trek: The Original Series young adult novel, the last of four published by Random House in. It was written by Sharon Lerner and Christopher Cerf with illustrations by Robert Swanson.

Publisher's description

 * Copyright page
 * Captain Kirk and the Enterprise crew confront villains from the Klingon Empire who are holding the beautiful ruler of Vega prisoner.

Summary
Invited to sign a mining treaty for the essential metal korium, the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701) approached Vega III and hailed Queen Vanadala, whom Kirk had met before. Strangely, she fired on the Enterprise and then demanded that they depart within two hours. Since the inhabitants were peaceful and did not have that kind of weaponry, Kirk, Spock and Leonard McCoy beamed down to investigate, leaving Montgomery Scott with orders to retrieve them in exactly two hours.

Three Klingon guards blocked their entry to the palace. The landing party stunned them, stole their uniforms and helmets, then infiltrated the palace. They spotted a Klingon spacecraft being loaded with korium. Spock used a Vulcan nerve pinch to knock out a guard by the throne room. They entered, encountering the occupation force's leader, Commander, whom Spock had met before. Kalor ordered the men to take off their helmets. He immediately recognized Spock, realized the others were Kirk and McCoy, and seized them. They were to be executed before a firing squad in one hour.

Soldiers threw them into a prison cell with Vanadala, who apologized for their circumstances. The Klingons had arrived shortly before the Enterprise, and she had no way to stop them. An hour later, the four were removed from their cell. Kirk pointed out to Kalor that killing them would be a treaty violation, but Kalor scoffed at their treaty, reveling in the idea of renewed war.

As the prisoners were lined up to be shot, Kirk stalled for time, offering to trade their lives for details on a more efficient mining technique. Monitoring his chronometer, with only seconds left, he asked if he could say good-bye to his crew. Those were pre-arranged code words for Vanadala, who quickly moved beside Kalor. At that moment, all five were beamed aboard the Enterprise. Security guards disarmed Kalor and took him to the brig.

Vanadala said her people would be able to take care of the remaining Klingons now that she was safe. She signed the mining treaty, then beamed back to Vega III. The Enterprise departed for Starbase 2, where Kalor was to be turned over to the authorities.

Characters

 * • James T. Kirk • Leonard McCoy • Montgomery Scott • Spock • Hikaru Sulu • Nyota Uhura • Vanadala • unnamed Klingons

Starships and vehicles

 * USS Enterprise (NCC-1701) ( heavy cruiser) • unnamed Klingon starships (Klingon spacecraft)

Locations

 * Vega III

Altair • Deneb • Earth • Starbase 2 •

Races and cultures

 * Human • Klingon • Vegan • Vulcan

States and organizations

 * Klingon Empire • United Federation of Planets

Science and technology

 * chronometer • communicator • intercom • library computer • phaser • rifle • spear • transporter • transporter pad • tricorder • viewscreen • weapon

Ranks and titles

 * captain • commander • crew • doctor • chief engineer • Federation Starfleet ranks (2260s) • guard • helmsman • lieutenant • queen • rank • security guard • Starfleet ranks

Other references

 * alert status (red alert) • August • bacon • beam • bridge • brig • command chair • coordinates • engine room • execution • firing squad • fruit • goblet • The Great Summer Triangle • helmet • hour • July • korium • logic • metal • mining • minute • The Northern Cross • Organian Peace Treaty • palace • peace • potato • prison • second • September • sickbay • space • star • Starfleet uniform • Starfleet uniform (2265-2270) • starship • stun • transporter room • treaty • uniform • valley • Vulcan nerve pinch • war • warp factor (warp four) • weapon

Chronology

 * Citing of the Organian Peace Treaty places this story after in 2267.

Background

 * Vega III's inhabitants were referred to as Vegans. As such, they may be descendants of, or related to, the Vega IX civilization that was wiped out by Vegan choriomeningitis in the 20th century.
 * As with the authors' previous novella, "The Truth Machine", the last two pages were dedicated to astronomy. This time, "A Star-Gazing Tip from Mr. Spock" presented young readers with information about the real star Vega and a constellation it forms with Altair and Deneb.
 * Artist Robert Swanson omitted assignment patches from the Starfleet uniforms. Klingons wore atypical clothing, and their spacecraft closely resembled a space station.
 * The inside front cover featured an unusual artistic interpretation of the Enterprise. This artwork may have been referenced by artist Don Dyen, who painted a strikingly similar image for the 1978 coloring book "War in Space".

Related stories

 * Klingon planetary raids to steal mining resources:
 * Kirk and Spock vs. a firing squad:
 * Kirk and Spock vs. a firing squad:
 * Kirk and Spock vs. a firing squad:
 * Kirk and Spock vs. a firing squad:
 * Kirk and Spock vs. a firing squad: