Pocket Books has provided StarTrek.com with an exclusive preview of the upcoming post-Nemesis book, Star Trek: The Next Generation Resistance, written by J.M. Dillard, coming out this September. Below is the cover copy - beware of Spoilers.


The U.S.S. Enterprise is ready to rejoin the fleet. The body of the great starship - which managed to survive the deadly Romulan-Reman attack only with Data's ultimate sacrifice - has been restored.

With the departure of first officer William Riker and ship's counselor Deanna Troi, Picard has to replace two of his most trusted advisors. A Vulcan is granted the commission of ship's counselor. Logical and pragmatic, T'Lana is a highly decorated member of Starfleet who served with distinction during the Dominion War. For his Number One, Captain Picard has only one candidate: Worf.

The captain is looking forward to putting the shadows of war behind him, shaping his new crew, and returning at last to being an explorer. However, the Klingon refuses the promotion. And Picard senses that his new counselor does not approve of Worf.

Starfleet hands the Enterprise a simple assignment perfect for a shakedown cruise. Picard is confident that this is all he needs to bring his crew together. Before the mission commences, the captain once again hears the song of the Borg Collective. Admiral Janeway is convinced that the Borg have been crushed and are no longer a threat. Picard knows that she is wrong, and if he doesn't act immediately, the entire Federation will be under the domination of its most oppressive enemy.

Here is an excerpt from the book:

STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION
RESISTANCE

J. M. Dillard

Based on Star Trek: The Next Generation
created by Gene Roddenberry.



In two leaping steps, Worf reached the communications console and worked the controls. "The Borg have piggybacked a signal onto the lieutenant's comm," he shouted over the whine "I cannot terminate the… Incoming!"

The bridge rocked as the Enterprise was hit by a tremendous blow. The few officers still on their feet fell to the ground. Nave and T'Lana had both been thrown from their chairs.

"Shields are down," LaForge reported as he pulled himself back up to the console.

"Lieutenant Nave, take us out of weapons range!" Picard ordered as a second burst hit the ship.

The lieutenant struggled back to the conn, squinting in pain as the piercing sound grew impossibly louder. With a few commands, she brought the ship around and punched in a course that would take them as far away from the Borg ship as they could allow. As they sped away, the noise finally stopped.

"I've cut the connection to Lieutenant Battaglia's combadge," Worf reported.

"We've got shields," LaForge reported.

Picard looked to his two officers. They had been through this before—and much worse—yet he knew the looks of shock on their faces as they continued to work at their stations only mirrored his own. The Borg never lashed out so quickly, unless they were in attack mode. "I want a full—"

"The Cube beamed something into sickbay while the shields were down," Worf said. "Readings are unclear."

Beverly!

Picard was immobilized for a fraction of a second. Though the rest of the bridge crew would have hardly noticed, to the captain, it felt like an eternity. The Borg were after Beverly. Somehow, they had sensed the connection and read his thoughts. They were hitting him personally, going for blood.

"Security to sickbay," Picard commanded.

Worf and Picard both went for the turbolift, when Beverly's voice filled the air "Sickbay to the bridge." There was something hollow about her voice. Calm, yet emotionless. The tone stopped Picard.

"Yes, doctor?"

"The Borg," she said, halting.

"We're on our way," Picard said with a glance to Worf. He knew they both shouldn't leave the bridge, but damned if he was going to stay behind.

"No," she said "It's not drones. It's the away team. The Borg have returned their bodies... or, rather... what remained."

Picard felt a flush of relief. The Borg hadn't noticed the connection and sent a personal attack. They had merely sent the bodies to the last logical location on the ship.

The bodies.

He had failed them. He had done the one thing he had sworn he would never do: lose even one more of his crew to the Borg. With his eyes focused on the bridge crew, his mind finished Battaglia's last utterance: They now attack on sight.

He had assumed that the Borg would react to the away team as they always had to humans who posed no direct threat—that they would ignore them. He had assumed… and been wrong. How had he not known? He had been correct on everything else; he had known about the existence of the unborn Queen, the location of the Borg cube…

But he had not known about the Borg's new tactic of attacking all intruders. Or their murderous intentions. His imperfect connection to the hive mind was a defect, a flaw, that had to be corrected, and swiftly.