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Shatnerverse Book 3: Avenger Takes place in: 2373, two years after the events of The Return A deadly virus known as the virogen has spread across the Federation and threatens to cause the collapse of the organization as resources are stretched to their limits and entire worlds are placed under quarantine. USS Enterprise-E, while enforcing a blockade around the infected Alta Vista system, uncovers evidence that the virogen might have been a terrorist attack launched by an obscure Vulcan terrorist group known as the Symmetrists.

Kirk, who had apparently escaped from the explosion on the Borg homeworld two years ago, returns to the planet Chal to search for his lover Teilani. He finds the planet infected with the virogen and helps the Starfleet relief effort by providing some medical knowledge he had picked up from several former Borg during the past two years. Chal comes under attack, apparently by Orion fighters. With Kirk's aid, the USS Tobias manages to fend off the attack, and it was soon discovered that the pilot of a crashed Orion fighter was a Vulcan. This leads the Tobias, with Kirk onboard, to proceed to Vulcan to investigate the matter. Meanwhile, Ambassador Spock receives a holomessage from Ki Mendrossen, the former chief of staff to Ambassador Sarek, Spock's father. Mendrossen confesses to having mudered Sarek and making it look as if Sarek had died of Bendii Syndrome. He then kills himself with a phaser. The holomessage prompts Spock to return to Vulcan and investigate the murder of Sarek. While meeting with Tarok, a former associate of Sarek, Tarok's estate came under attack by unkown forces. USS Tobias arrives at Vulcan and sends an away team to the scene of the attack. Kirk is reunited wtih Spock, but the Tobias is detained by the Vulcan authorities and the crew is taken for questioning for their unexplained presence and the attack. The crew subsequently escape detention and retake the Tobias. The Enterprise-E then arrives at Vulcan and meets opposition by the Vulcan authorities from furthering their investigation on the planet. The Enterprise-E encounters the Tobias escaping from the spacedock, and it was discovered that Kirk had survived from the events of two years ago. The Tobias escapes pursuit by the Enterprise-E and proceeds to Tarsus IV, which Kirk believes to be the source of the virogen and where the cure to the virogen may exist. It is also revealed that Sarek was a former member of the Symmetrists, and had been murdered to facilitate the virogen attack. At Tarsus IV, the Tobias narrowly escapes destruction from an attack, with the timely arrival of the Enterprise-E. On the planet, the Symmetrists' facilities for producing the virogen were discovered, and samples were taken before the facilities were destroyed. With the help of Admiral McCoy, a cure to the virogen was developed. After a brief stayover at Vulcan, Kirk returns to Chal to be with Teilani.

Analysis . Following the explosion on the Borg homeworld, Kirk was beamed away by a Borg emergency escape transporter to a planet where damaged Borg components were sent to be broken down and reassembled. There a clan of former Borg drones found Kirk and helped to remove the Borg nanites from his body. Kirk stayed with the clan for two years before he found an intact Borg scoutship which, with the help of the former Borg operating the scoutship, Kirk used to travel to Chal. . The Symmetrists were originally a group of scientists who believed that the galactic ecology was a single organism, and that the expansion of the Federation interfered in the natural state of the ecology by subjecting delicately balanced planetary biospheres with the shock of alien microbes, plants and animals. The Symmetrists pleaded with the Federation to introduce strict quarantine protocols on worlds discovered to have a native biosphere, and that colonization and terraforming would only occur on worlds that were completely lifeless. The Federation rejected the Symmetrists' arguments as baseless and could potentially halt further Federation expansion, but was willing to reconsider if hard evidence could be presented.   Although the Symmetrists began to complie the data necessary to prove their case, radical factions within the Symmetrists decided to carry out acts of terrorism in order to get their message across, such as the hijacking of a colony ship at Deneva which resulted in the deaths of 408 colonists, 32 Starfleet personnel and all of the hijackers involved. Gradually the Symmetrist movement became discredited by these acts of eco-terrorism, and by 2248 the Symmetrists had ceased to exist as an organized group. . The famine on Tarsus IV in 2246 is revealed to be caused by the Symmetrists. The famine resulted in the massacre of 4,000 colonists under the orders of Governor Kodos in order to extend the food supply for the remaining 4,000 colonists. Kodos, a Symmetrist, was aided in his escape by Sarek. Kirk was an eyewitness to Kodos' escape, but Sarek mind-melded with Kirk and removed Kirk's memory of the event. The Federation regards the famine to have been caused by a fungus and there was no Symmetrist involvement. . As a result of the mind-meld with Sarek, Kirk had visions of meeting an unknown figure throughout his life, revealed to be Sarek in the previous book, The Return. . Stonn and T'Pring are married, and they have a grandson, Srell. All three were members of the Symmetrists. Srell was killed at the end of the book, while Stonn and T'Pring were arrested. . USS Tobias is an Oberth-Class starship and is commanded by Christine MacDonald, who was promoted from Commander to Captain at the book's end. . Dr. Andrea M'Benga is apparently the great-granddaughter of the Dr. M'Benga who served onboard the USS Enterprise NCC-1701. Her nickname is "Bones". . Teilani served as Chal's delegate to the Federation from 2293 to 2314.

Notes . The date Avenger is set in can be determined. Admiral McCoy's age is given as 146. Since McCoy was born in 2227, the date can be calculated as 2227 + 146 = 2373. . Avenger takes place during DS9's fifth season in 2373. There is a mention that the command structure usually stationed at Vulcan had been reassigned because of an emergency situation at Bajor due to the Cardassians and the Dominion. Hence it can be assumed that Avenger occurs around the time of DS9 "By Inferno's Light" (Stardate 50456.2) when the Cardassians allied themselves with the Dominion and together they threatened Bajor. . USS Tobias flew briefly in the atmosphere (with great difficulty) while in combat with the Orion fighters. . USS Tobias could be a reference to Michael Tobias, who co-wrote with William Shatner the book Believe. . The Alta Vista system could be a reference to the Altavista Internet search engine. . The normal interior temperature of an asteroid is given as -357 C, which is impossible since the lowest temperature possible, absolute zero, is -273 C.

Quick links : The Ashes of Eden The Return Avenger Spectre Dark Victory Preserver Captain's Peril Captain's Blood Captain's Glory

Ex Machina The Fearful Summons The Last Roundup War Dragons The Captain's Daughter The Sundered Dark Mirror Crossover Ship of the Line

Dark Passions, Book 1 Dark Passions, Book 2 Vulcan's Soul, Book 1 - Exodus