The USS Enterprise's most deadly foe returns!—Vendetta is a Star Trek novel, a TNG adventure authored by Peter David released by Pocket Books as a "Giant Novel" in the TNG line in 1991.
Description
- The Borg—half organic and half machine, they are the most feared race in the known galaxy. In their relentless quest for technological perfection, they have destroyed entire star systems, enslaved countless peoples, and, in a single brutal attack, decimated Starfleet's mightiest vessels. Only a final desperate gambit by Captain Picard and the USS Enterprise crew stopped the Borg from conquering the entire Federation. And now they have returned.
Summary
Young Picard.
Overture
At Starfleet Academy, Cadet Jean-Luc Picard and his class (including rival Morgan Korsmo) attend a lecture on Starfleet history by Professor Talbot. A topic discussed is the doomsday machine encountered by the USS Constellation and USS Enterprise. Picard speculates that the planet killer could not have come from far outside the galaxy, because its low speed and requirement of planetary masses for fuel would make it incapable of traveling from another galaxy. Before and during the lecture, Picard repeatedly sees a mysterious woman, who disappears quickly and whom no other person is able to see. Later that night, Picard is alone in his quarters when he sees her again. She speaks to him, thanking him for his insight into the origins of the planet killer. She says that it was built to combat the soulless ones who destroyed her kind, and that she would stop them. Puzzled by her words, Picard tries to find out everything he can about the planet killer and its origins, but is unable to answer the questions the woman's appearance left with him.
Act one
On the planet Penzatti, the family of Dantar the 8th is engaged in a family ritual, when klaxons sound. A Borg ship is approaching. The planetary defense system, completely controlled by computers, analyzes the threat and recognizes the attackers as the Borg. Still, the Penzatti are not worried, because the defense system has always saved them, even from an attack by the Romulans twenty years earlier. However, the defense computers actually welcome the Borg, recognizing their way of life as superior, and the defense systems are deactivated. The Borg begin carving up large portions of the planet, transporting them to their ship with tractor beams. Meanwhile, the Penzatti try to defend themselves on the ground. Dantar the 8th is able to kill a Borg soldier with his energy weapon, but the others quickly adapt with force fields. Dantar is knocked unconscious, and a Borg drone enters Dantar's house. Trying to interact with a computer terminal, the Borg is attacked by Dantar's wife, who is able to stick a knife into the Borg's circuitry. The Borg defends itself, killing one of Dantar's daughters and his eldest son. The piece of Penzatti where Dantar's house stands is the last to be cut up by the Borg. While it is being dragged up, the house collapses, killing the whole family, with Dantar as the last witness. Meanwhile, another ship approaches the Borg cube in orbit and quickly begins an attack. Heavily damaged, the Borg stop transporting the last piece of the planet up, which begins to fall back to the surface. The Borg are able to send a warning to the Borg Collective before their ship is destroyed. The ship that destroyed them moves on.
Intermission
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Act two
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Grand finale
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References
Characters
USS Enterprise-D crew
- Boyajian • Tom Chafin • Beverly Crusher • Data • Guinan • Geordi La Forge • Meyer • Miles O'Brien • Jean-Luc Picard • William Riker • Selar • Deanna Troi • Worf • USS Enterprise-D personnel (roster • unnamed USS Enterprise-D personnel)
- Referenced only
- Jack Crusher • Wesley Crusher
USS Repulse crew
- Goodman • Katherine Pulaski • Seth • Ariel Taggert
- Referenced only
- Argyle
USS Chekov crew
- Hobson • Morgan Korsmo • Polly Parke • Peel • Elizabeth Shelby • Toomey
Other Starfleet personnel
- Referenced only
- Matthew Decker • Hanson • James T. Kirk
Fictional characters
- Dulcinea • Sancho Panza • Don Quixote
Other characters
- Borg drones • Reannon Bonaventure • Dantar the 8th • Dantar the 9th • Darr • Delcara • Lojene • Loskene • The Many • Martok • Turane (Vastator) • unnamed Penzatti
- Referenced only
- Miguel de Cervantes • Dantar the 6th • Dantar the 7th • Locutus
Starships and vehicles
- Borg cube (unnamed Borg cubes) • USS Chekov (Excelsior-class) • USS Curie (hospital ship) • USS Enterprise-D (Galaxy-class) • Turane's ship (unnamed Ferengi starships) • Doomsday machine • USS Repulse (Excelsior-class)
- Referenced only
- Phantom Cruiser • USS Enterprise (Constitution-class) • USS Constellation (Constitution-class)
Locations
Interior locations
- USS Chekov
- bridge • ready room
- USS Enterprise-D
- bridge • conference room • corridor • holodeck • sickbay • ten forward
Planetary locations and landmarks
- Golden Gate Bridge • La Mancha • Spain • San Francisco
Planets and planetoids
- Referenced only
- Tri Epsilon Delta
Stellar locations
- Howell 320 • Kalish • Sol system • Wolf 359 • Beta Quadrant • sector 001 • Andromeda Galaxy
Races and cultures
- android • Betazoid • Borg • El-Aurian • Ferengi • Gorn • Human • Klingon • nanite • Penzatti • Shgin • Tholian
States and organizations
- Federation • Federation Council • Ferengi Alliance • Klingon Empire • Romulan Star Empire • Starfleet • Tholian Assembly • United Federation of Planets
Science and classification
Technology and weapons
- android • antiproton beam • biobed • blaster • communicator • computer • force field • hologram • Keldin blaster • knife • lance • nanite • starship • tractor beam • transporter • tricorder • VISOR • warp nacelle • windmill
Other references
- antiproton • castrodinium • cancer • civil war • communications • Dapple • energy • galaxy • God • government • hair • history • homeworld • horse • hyperspace • klaxon • light-year • money • moon • planet • philosophy • Picard Maneuver • rank • Rozinante • Starfleet Academy • weapon • zinator
Chronology
Appendices
Background
- This novel originated at a time when the producers of the Star Trek franchise did not tend to collaborate with the authors and editors of licensed works, but a number of concepts from this book ended up being used in later productions, ostensibly by coincidence and not by design:
- The one-line character of Leah Sapp in Picard's Academy days, and his subsequent musing about not following through with her infatuation with him was mirrored by Picard's involvement with Marta Batanides in TNG episode: "Tapestry", two years after this publication.
- Seven of Nine, a breakout character from Star Trek: Voyager, had a similar backstory as Reannon Bonaventure, as a Human who had lived a long portion of their life as a Borg drone after experiencing assimilation. When Vendetta was published, the idea of assimilation by the Borg had only been originated in TNG episode: "The Best of Both Worlds" and was a new concept that author Peter David was exploring, to a much more tragic effect than seen in the television incarnations of Star Trek. The similarity between Bonaventure and Seven of Nine was mentioned in TNG novel: Before Dishonor.
- This book was translated for a German language edition by Heyne-Verlag as the 20th book in their TNG series. When the translation rights for new TNG material moved to Cross Cult, Heyne issued eBook versions of all their previously translated material, including this novel.
- Of the book's origins, author Peter David stated that editor Kevin Ryan said, "I want a giant book about the Borg and I want you to write it fast." David said, "I was very pleased that I had the opportunity to do a sequel, of sorts, to one of my favorite episodes, "The Doomsday Machine". I think it's this kind of cross referencing, the doomsday machine tying into the Borg, that people get really excited over." (The Official Fan Club Magazine Issue 80: "Where No Man...")
Images
Connections
Timeline
| published order | ||
|---|---|---|
| Previous novel: Metamorphosis |
TNG unnumbered novels | Next novel: Reunion |
| Previous story: Doomsday World |
Stories by: Peter David |
Next story: Q-in-Law |
| chronological order | ||
| Previous adventure: Dark Mirror |
Pocket Books Timeline | Next adventure: Of Cabbages and Kings |
| Previous adventure: Game, Set and Match! |
Memory Beta Chronology | Next adventure: Of Cabbages and Kings |
| The above chronology placements are based on the primary placement in 2367. The Pocket Books Timeline and Memory Beta Chronology place events from this story in 1 other timeframe(s): | ||
| Previous adventure: Jeune Loup |
2326 Chapter 1 |
Next adventure: The Smell of Dead Roses Section 5 |
Translations
- 1993
- German language: Vendetta, translated by Andreas Brandhorst (Heyne)
- 1999
- Japanese language: ヴェンデッタ 上・下, translated by Hiroshi Saito (Hayakawa Bunko)
- 2004
- Italian language: Vendetta, translated by Stefania Bronzoni (Ultimo Avamposto)
External link
- Vendetta article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.