Description[]
- The climax of a new trilogy by the national bestselling author of Star Trek: Destiny!
- At the center of the Galaxy, a planet-sized Machine of terrifying power and unfathomable purpose hurls entire star systems into a supermassive black hole. Wesley Crusher, now a full-fledged Traveler, knows the Machine must be stopped…but he has no idea how. He enlists the help of Captain Picard and the Enterprise crew, who also fail to halt the unstoppable alien juggernaut’s destructive labors. But they soon divine the Machine’s true purpose, which threatens to exterminate all life in the Milky Way Galaxy. With time running out, Picard realizes he knows of only one person who might be able to stop the Machine in time to avert a galactic catastrophe—but he has no idea how to find him.
Summary[]
Wesley Crusher witnesses a Machine destroying several star systems, including inhabited ones, by casting them into the black hole Abbadon. He contacts the Travellers for help but they flee, having had many unsuccessful encounters with the Machine in the past. Instead, he turns to the Enterprise for help.
Wesley transports the Enterprise to Abbadon where Worf leads an away team inside. Chen realises it is the product of the same Machine Race who constructed V'Ger while Taurik downloads the Machine's mission. They learn it intends to build Abbadon to a large enough size and crash it into Sagittarius A*, creating a wormhole and causing a shockwave that will destroy all organic life in the galaxy over the course of several thousand years and instantly eradicate all subspace, destroying much technology and all faster than light travel or communication.
Meanwhile, Data has made contact with the rogue Fellowship of Artificial Intelligences group who are holding Akharin and Rhea McAdams prisoner and is also taken prisoner by them. Since the Machine refuses to acknowledge organic life as true life, Wesley guides their ship to it where the Fellowship's leader, Gatt, incapacitates him and communicates with the Machine. He becomes converted to its belief that true life is only retained by uploading knowledge to multiple points, seeing it as immortality rather than losing individuality.
Data's group take control of the ship with the Enterprise's help and after reestablishing his romantic relationship with Rhea, Data also communicates with the Machine. However, it judges them unworthy and begins plunging the sentient ship Altanexa into Abbadon. Most of the Fellowship evacuate and Data, along with Gatt, tries to retrieve two escape pods containing Akharin and Rhea. Data faced an impossible choice- save Akharin (the only one who could restore Lal) or Rhea, who had just agreed to come away with him and help him raise Lal. Data chose to save Akharin, and Rhea's pod was crushed by the black hole.
Finally, Chen realises the Machine Race are using the wormholes to create a work of art that will outlast them. Picard, Data and Wesley convince the Machine to work with the Travellers and repair the damage to subspace, instead creating a network of travel conduits that will benefit all. Gatt returns peacefully to the main Fellowship, affected by his experience, while Akharin returns to Earth with Data and restores Lal and his own immortality.
References[]
Characters[]
Enterprise-E personnel[]
- T'Ryssa Chen • Beverly Crusher • Peter Davila • Ravel Dygan • Dina Elfiki • Joanna Faur • Randolph Giudice • Tamala Harstad • Jutron • Geordi La Forge • Meidat • Mitchell Obrecht • Jean-Luc Picard • Rene Picard • Pinkman • Allison Scagliotti • Aneta Šmrhová • Taurik • Worf
- Referenced only
- Jasminder Choudhury • Hegol Den • Rennan Konya • Morello • Sakrysta • Scholz
Artificial intelligences[]
- Alset • Altanexa • Chirmarka • Cohuila • Data • Gatt • Karobalto • Lal • Rhea McAdams • Senyx • Shakti • Sirdarya • Juliana Tainer • Talas • Tashkul • Tyros • Tzilha
- Referenced only
- Esaal • V'Ger
Other characters[]
- Ahkarin (Micah Brack • Flint • Emil Vaslovik) • Almirax • Carlon • Wesley Crusher • Anthony Haftel • Kynum • Alynna Nechayev • Q • Tarsairys
- Referenced only
- Beethoven • Borg Queen • Johannes Brahms • Antigone Chen • Leonardo da Vinci • Jadzia Dax • Skrain Dukat • Gell Kamemor • K'Ehleyr • James T. Kirk • Kosinski • Kren • L'Del • Bruce Maddox • Junior Mance • Ozymandias • William T. Riker • Sarek • Shinzon • Benjamin Sisko • Noonien Soong • Spock • Sylix • Talys • Hilar Tohm • Deanna Troi
Starships and vehicles[]
- Archeus • Bietasaari • USS Cumberland (runabout) • USS Enterprise-E (Sovereign-class) • Erithacus (Mancharan starcutter) • Faraday (Enterprise-E shuttle) • Gyfrinac • Mendel (Enterprise-E shuttle)
- Referenced only
- USS Enterprise (Constitution-class) • USS Enterprise-D (Galaxy-class) • Iacovino (Enterprise-E shuttle) • Riess (Enterprise-E shuttle) • Voyager 6
Locations[]
- Abbadon • Alpha Quadrant • Istarral Prime • Milky Way Galaxy • Tau Alpha C
- Referenced only
- Azure Nebula • Beta Quadrant • Deep Space 9 • Earth (Christchurch • Japan • Café du Monde, New Orleans) • Exo III • Gamma Quadrant • Hell • Messier 101 • Orion • Sagittarius A* • Sagittarius-Carina Arm • Sector 579-R • Terlina III • Vulcan (ShiKahr) • Yutani IIIa
Starship locations[]
- arboretum • auxiliary control • bridge • brig • cockpit • corridor • cybernetics lab • engineering • escape pod • Happy Bottom Riding Club • holodeck • landing bay • nerve center • observation lounge • quarters • ready room • science lab • shuttlebay • sickbay • transporter room • turbolift
- Referenced only
- lifeboat • mess hall • shuttle-storage hangar • stellar cartography
Races and cultures[]
- Bajoran • Bolian • Capellan (hologram) • Cardassian • Chelon • Efrosian • Hasturian • Human (Immortal) • Istarral • Klingon • Thallonian • Traveler • Soong-type android • Vulcan
- Referenced only
- Arkalian • Balduk (hologram) • Betazoid • Breen • Chalnoth (hologram) • Dinasian • Gorn • Hirogen (hologram) • Jem'Hadar (hologram) • Machine Race • Nausicaan (hologram) • Romulan
States and organizations[]
- Body Electric • Fellowship of Artificial Intelligences • Starfleet • Traveller Convocation • United Federation of Planets
- Referenced only
- Borg Collective • Breen Confederacy • Council of the United Federation of Planets • Gorn Hegemony • Klingon High Council • Mother of All Machines • Q Continuum • Romulan Star Empire • Spetzkar • Starfleet Academy • Starfleet Command • Starfleet Medical • Typhon Pact
Science and classification[]
- ablative armour • airlock • android • antigravity drive • Argelian flu • artificial gravity • artificial intelligence • astral projection • astronomical unit • biobed • bioneural gel pack • Brovdoss-9 interrogation model • chroniton integrator • combadge • computer core • console • control panel • cosmic light horizon • disruptor pistol • DNA • docking clamp • Dyson sphere • Emergency Medical Hologram • environmental suit • force field • hologram • holotronic brain • humanoid • hyperwarp • impulse coil • impulse engine • inertial dampener • isolinear chip • light-year • M-5 computer • the Machine • master systems display • medical tricorder • nanite • padd • photon torpedo • plasma cannon • plasma torch • positronic matrix • quantum slipstream drive • quantum transceiver • sensor • shields • sonic drill • space • starship • structural integrity field • subspace • tractor beam • transporter • transwarp • Trojan horse • viewscreen • Von Neumann replicators • warp coil • warp drive • warp nacelle
Occupations and titles[]
- admiral • ambassador • assistant chief engineer • captain • chief engineer • commander • C-in-C • counselor • ensign • first officer • glinn • lieutenant • lieutenant commander • n'iliquendi • number one • praetor • president • security chief • thot
Other references[]
- 2380 BCE • 14th century • 20th century • 2273 • 29500 • Altair water • away team • bat'leth • boomerang • Borg Invasion of 2381 • bulkhead • chegh'leth • Christmas • coffee • couch • Dominion War • English language • Federation Standard • green tea • IDIC • kligat • lullaby • mind meld • Morse code • piano • raktajino • SOS • technology • The Bunny Bear • viewport • week • wine • year
Celestial body classification[]
- accretion disk • asteroid • black hole • class M • comet • galaxy • gas giant • moon • nebula • orange star • planet • red giant • singularity • solar system • star • supernova • universe • white dwarf • wormhole • yellow star
Materials and substances[]
- blood • carbon • carbon dioxide • chimerium • duranium • glass • iron • molybdenum • monotanium • nitrogen • oxygen • steel • triox • tritanium • tungsten • water
Appendices[]
Related stories[]
| Star Trek: Cold Equations |
|---|
| The Persistence of Memory • Silent Weapons • The Body Electric |
Translations[]
- 2015
- German : Diabolus ex Machina, translated by Wibke Sawatzki. (Cross Cult)
External link[]
- The Body Electric article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.