Q-Squared

Description[]

Continuing the bestselling tradition begun by Star Trek hardcovers like Spock's World, Imzadi, Best Destiny, and The Devil's Heart, Pocket Books is proud to present the newest epic adventure starring Captain Picard and the crew of the USS Enterprise NCC-1701-D.

In all of his travels, Captain Jean-Luc Picard has never faced an opponent more powerful than Q, a being from another continuum that Picard encountered on his very first mission as captain of the Starship Enterprise. In the years since, Q has returned again and again to harass Picard and his crew. Sometimes dangerous, sometimes merely obnoxious, Q has always been mysterious and seemingly all-powerful.

But this time, when Q appears, he comes to Picard for help. Apparently another member of the Q Continuum has tapped into an awesome power source that makes this being more powerful than the combined might of the entire Q continuum. This renegade Q is named Trelane—also known as the Squire of Gothos, who Captain Kirk and his crew first encountered over one hundred years ago. Q explains that, armed with this incredible power, Trelane has become unspeakably dangerous.

Now Picard must get involved in an awesome struggle between super beings. And this time the stakes are not just Picard's ship, or the galaxy, or even the universe—this time the stakes are all of creation...

Summary[]

In another part of the multiverse, the Enterprise has just been launched under the command of Captain Jack Crusher. Picard is his first officer, having been demoted after being blamed for the loss of the Stargazer. His ex-wife Beverly Howard is on board as chief medical officer. William T. Riker, who has been held prisoner and tortured by the Romulans for seven years, is rescued by a group of Klingons led by Worf. His wife Deanna and their son Tommy board the Enterprise in order to reunite with him.

In the regular universe, Q bring Trelane, a junior member of the Q Continuum he is mentoring, to the Enterprise in the hope of teaching him about responsibility. After an incident where Trelane conjures up Winnie the Pooh characters who attack security, Picard orders him off the ship. However, Trelane ends up being absorbed by his counterpart, who has gone mad after looking into the Heart of the Storm and resolved to collapse the multiverse. He and Q flee to the other universe where Q ends up being scattered across the beginning of time and taking millions of years to reconstitute himself.

Trelane merges the two universes, along with a third universe where the Federation is at war with the Klingons. This and Trelane's manipulation causes conflict among the various crews. The wartorn Enterprise crew see Worf as an enemy and eventually become convinced the ship is full of traitors and infiltrators. The commando Worf similarly sees any irregularity as a sign of Romulan plots. Trelane also manipulates Jack Crusher with the fact his Picard and Beverly are in a secret relationship, claiming in every other universe Picard arranged Jack's death so they could be together and in this universe, fate arranged the death of his son Wesley to drive him and Beverly apart. The enraged Jack accidentally kills Beverly before shooting himself dead. The war Picard and commando Worf kill each other, while the wartorn Riker is killed by his counterpart who was tortured after trying to kill the two Deannas.

Q eventually makes contact with Picard who, with the aid of Riker, Worf and the Tasha Yar of the recently launched Enterprise, manages to beam down and confront Trelane, challenging him to a duel. Picard's sword is actually Q and, when Picard manages to stab Trelane, it allows him to infiltrate and destroy him (although he is apparently reborn soon after). Q separates the three universes again. The Picard and Riker of the late Jack Crusher's Enterprise end up being placed in temporary command, while that universe's Data (a human body with a positronic brain) ends up with his counterpart on the wartorn Enterprise.

References[]

Characters[]

Reginald Barclay • Joseph Cavalieri • Claire (teacher) • Beverly Crusher • Jack Crusher • Wesley Crusher • Sonya Gomez • Guinan • Homn • Caryn Johnson • Geordi La Forge • Andrea Martinez • Jean-Luc Picard • Q • Tommy Riker • William T. Riker • Trelane • Deanna Troi • Lwaxana Troi • Winnie the Pooh • Worf • Natasha Yar

Referenced only: God • Kira Nerys • James T. Kirk • A. A. Milne • Ishara Yar

Referenced only: Bajoran • Cardassian • Romulan

States and organizations[]

Q Continuum • Starfleet

Science and classification[]

animal • brain • comm badge • gravity • hair • light • minute • phaser • starship • time • turbolift • universe

Ranks and titles[]

captain • counselor • guard • professor • security guard • teacher

Other references[]

bear • chair • classroom • day • duck • empathy • engineering • jacket • kangaroo • owl • planet • platypus • psychic • rabbit • storybook • stuffed animal • telepath • tiger • year

Appendices[]

Background[]

This novel establishes Trelane as being a Q... specifically Q's godson, although it is implied that Trelane is Q's actual (but illegitimate) son.
At one point, Trelane creates a real version of Winnie the Pooh. This ties in ever-so-loosely with the TOS novel: World Without End, which established an amusement park called Disneymoon on Luna.

Images[]

Connections[]

Timeline[]

published order
Previous novel: Dark Mirror	TNG hardcovers	Next novel: Crossover
chronological order
Previous Adventure: Homeward	Pocket	Next Adventure: Sub Rosa
The above chronology placements are based on the primary placement in 2370. The Pocket Books Timeline places events from this story in three other timeframes:
Previous Adventure: Imzadi Chapter 32	2364 Track A	Next Adventure: Lefler's Logs 18th entry
Previous Adventure: Yesterday's Enterprise	2366 Track C	Next Adventure: Q-in-Law
Previous Adventure: Where No Man Has Gone Before	2265 Track A, Chapter 12	Next Adventure: Republic

Translations[]

1997: German : Q², translated by Andreas Brandhorst. (VGS-Verlag)

1998: Italian : Q contro Q, translated by Flora Staglianò. (Fanucci)

External links[]

Q-Squared article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.