Headlong Flight

Headlong Flight is a 2017 Star Trek: The Next Generation novel by author Dayton Ward.

Publisher's description[]

Surveying a nebula as part of their continuing exploration of the previously uncharted "Odyssean Pass," Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew of the Starship Enterprise encounter a rogue planet. Life signs are detected on the barren world’s surface, and then a garbled message is received: a partial warning to stay away at all costs. Determined to render assistance, Picard dispatches Commander Worf and an away team to investigate, but their shuttlecraft is forced to make an emergency landing on the surface—moments before all contact is lost and the planet completely disappears.

Worf and his team learn that this mysterious world is locked into an unending succession of random jumps between dimensions, the result of an ambitious experiment gone awry. The Enterprise crewmembers and the alien scientists who created the technology behind this astonishing feat find themselves trapped, powerless to break the cycle. Meanwhile, as the planet continues to fade in and out of various planes of existence, other parties have now taken notice....

Summary[]

The Enterprise is surveying a nebula when they come across a planet that has just appeared out of nowhere. They receive a message warning them to stay away but Picard sends Worf and an away team across in a shuttlecraft. However, just after they land, the planet shifts to another dimension. Worf's team learn the planet is Ushalon and it is occupied by a small science team from the Sidrac race. They were experimenting with travel to other dimensions and managed to send probes to five such dimensions. However, the first attempt at a shift sent the whole planet along, leaving them shifting between the five dimensions, none of which is their native one.

One of the dimensions is a parallel 2367 where the Enterprise-D is commanded by Riker. Another is an alternate 2266, where the probe and the appearance of the planet draws the attention of a Romulan bird-of-prey. The Romulans attempt to send a team down to Ushalon where they are quickly overpowered and captured by Worf's group. The Romulans' attempts to halt the shift damages the equipment, resulting in both their ships and the Enterprise-D being shifted to the Enterprise-E's dimension.

After initial hostilities, Picard is able to convince the Romulans to work with the two Enterprises. The crews work out a way to use pulses from the deflector dish to control the shifts and in short order the Romulans, the Enterprise-D and the Sidrac are returned to their own dimensions.

References[]

Characters[]

ChR Bloodied Talon personnel[]

Darjil • Ineti • Jacius • N'tovek • Prall • Sarith • Skerius • Variel

Sidrac[]

Bidani • Livak • Nelindar • Pevon

Other characters[]

Referenced only: Armus • Nanietta Bacco • Guinan • Gell Kamemor • Livingston • Robert Picard • Kyle Riker • Noonien Soong • Toqel • Vrax

Starships and vehicles[]

Amidar (Romulan shuttlecraft) • ChR Bloodied Talon (Vas Hatham-class) • USS Enterprise-D (Galaxy-class) • USS Enterprise-E (Sovereign-class) • Jarax (Mulaar-class) • N'minecci (Mulaar-class) • Sidrac personnel transport • Spinrad
Referenced only: USS Aries • Borg cube • USS Cairo • Cha'Joh • USS Drake • escape pod • ChR Gal Gath'thong • USS Hayabusa • USS Honorius • Jefferies • Justman • USS Melbourne • USS Pegasus • Planet Killer • Poklori gil dara • USS Stargazer • USS Titan • USS Voyager

Locations[]

NGC 8541 • Odyssean Pass • Spindrift Nebula • Ushalon
Referenced only: Alpha Quadrant • Betazed • Briar Patch • Cardassia • Delta Quadrant • Deneb IV • Denobula • Earth • Earth Outpost Station • Elanisal • Hecuba star cluster • listening outpost • McKinley Station • Neutral Zone • Pacifica • Polydorus system • Qo'noS • Starbase 198 • Starbase 212 • Starfleet annex to the Smithsonian Space Museum in San Francisco • Veridian III • Vulcan (Lake Yuron) • Wolf 359

Races and cultures[]

Betazoid • Capellan • Denobulan • Human • Klingon • Romulan • Sidrac • Vulcan
Referenced only: Andorian • Bajoran • Borg • El-Aurian • Golvonek • Raqilan • Tellarite

States and organizations[]

Cardassian Guard • Romulan Star Empire • Starfleet • United Federation of Planets
Referenced only: Borg Collective • Cardassian Union • Department of Temporal Investigations • Klingon Empire • Romulan Senate • Starfleet Academy • Starfleet Command • Starfleet Intelligence • Starfleet Medical • Starfleet Research and Development • Starfleet Tactical • Typhon Pact

Science and technology[]

ablative armor • air circulation • airlock • algorithm • analgesic • android • anti-inflammatory • antigravity sled • antimatter containment • artificial dimensional shift • artificial gravity • atmosphere • atmospheric regenerator • atmospheric scrubber • automated survey drone • baryon particle • baryon sweep • buoy • camera • chronometer • class-1 probe • Class M • cloaking device • cloaking field • combadge • communications • communications array • compression pulse generator • computer • damping field • deflector shield • diagnostic • diagnostic scanner • dimension • dimensional transference • dissonant feedback frequency • disruptor • electromagnetic pulse • emotion chip • energy • energy distribution center • environmental suit • eukaryotic organism • fire suppression • frequency • grenade • holodeck • hologram • holographic emitter array • hypospray • hyronalin • impulse drive • inertial damper • ionized gas • isolinear chip • jamming signal • life support • long-range communications • main deflector array • medical tricorder • memory banks • nausea • nebula • nuclear fusion reactor • nutational frequency modulation • ocular implant • ore • oxygen • padd • parallel universe • particle accelerator • phased cloaking device • physics • plasma • power distribution node • quantum energy • quantum fluctuation • quantum shift • quantum signature • quantum torpedo • radiation • replicator • self-destruct • sensor • sensor array • stabilizer • stellar phenomena • subatomic • subspace compression pulse • survey probe • temporal theory • temporal transition • thruster • tractor beam • transdimensional movement • translation processor • transphasic pulse • transphasic torpedo • transporter • turbolift • universal translator • universe • vertigo • VISOR • warp core breach • warp drive • warp nacelle • warp speed • weapons control

Ranks and titles[]

admiral • assistant chief medical officer • astronomer • bartender • cadet • captain • centurion • chauffer • chief engineer • chief science officer • commander • communications officer • contact specialist • counselor • deputy chief of security • diplomat • doctor • engineer • ensign • exchange officer • first-contact specialist • first officer • flight controller • freight hauler • helmsman • glinn • junior officer • lieutenant • lieutenant commander • operations manager • pilot • playwright • politician • Praetor of the Romulan Star Empire • President of the United Federation of Planets • proconsul • professor • rear admiral • scientist • security chief • sensor control officer • spy • stellar cartographer • subcommander • supervisor • vice admiral • watch officer • weapons officer

Other references[]

17th century • 23rd century • after-action report • astrometrics • astrophysics department • away team • Battle of Wolf 359 • beacon • Borg Invasion of 2381 • citation • coffee • daycare • disaster beacon • duty shift • Earth-Romulan War • evasive maneuvers • eyeshade • Federation-Cardassian Treaty of 2366 • Federation-Cardassian War • The Globe Illustrated Shakespeare • Hamlet • Happy Bottom Riding Club • history • Khitomer Accords • lionfish • medkit • milk • mutiny • New General Catalogue • officer exchange • Paleoproterozoic Era • photograph • pip • play • playing cards • poem • poker • pool • Prime Directive • prison • ration • sexuality • stardate • Starfleet uniform (2366-2373) • Starfleet uniform (2373-2386) • stellar cartography • storage container • sugar • surplus depot • tactical alert • Temporal Prime Directive • textbook • tolik • tolik sour fizz • tome • Treaty of Algeron • trombone • vodka martini • Vulcan nerve pinch • water

Appendices[]

Background information[]

Star Trek: The Next Generation novels set after Star Trek Nemesis

Death in Winter • Resistance • Q & A • Before Dishonor • Greater Than the Sum • Losing the Peace • Indistinguishable from Magic • Cold Equations (The Persistence of Memory • Silent Weapons • The Body Electric) • The Stuff of Dreams • The Light Fantastic • Takedown • Armageddon's Arrow • Headlong Flight • Hearts and Minds • Available Light • Collateral Damage

Connections[]

published order
Previous novel: Armageddon's Arrow	TNG novels	Next novel: Hearts and Minds (novel)
Previous story: Purgatory's Key	Stories by: Dayton Ward	Next story: Hearts and Minds (novel)

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