"Descent" is a two-part TNG episode and novelization.

Description[]

The Borg are back -- and nastier than ever. No longer mindless, inhuman drones but cyborg soldiers on a mission to assimilate all intelligent life, their new goal is the complete destruction of the Federation. And in the midst of facing the Borg again, Captain Picard learns that he may be the cause of the change.

Commander Data is changing as well. For the first time in his life, Data feels a genuine emotion -- and that emotion is deadly, destructive rage. When it is revealed that the Borg are commanded by an old enemy out of Data's past, Data must choose between his allegiance tot he Federation and the one thing he wants above all else...

Summary[]

This summary is based on the novelisation. Some details may differ from the televised version.

Both the USS Saladin and the Federation outpost on Ohniaka III have been massacred. The Enterprise crew arrive in the aftermath of the second attack and encounter a group of Borg who demonstrate a new ruthless hatred for biological organisms, along with individual identity and self-preservation. During the battle, Data beats a Borg to death and concludes he experienced anger.

The Enterprise attempts to follow the Borg ship through a transwarp corridor but is stopped by a Borg boarding party, one of whom, Crosis, is captured alive. Crosis convinces Data to free him and together they travel to a distant planet with the Enterprise in pursuit. Picard has most of the crew beam to the surface to carry out a search. However, Picard, La Forge and Troi are quickly captured by the Borg, who turn out to be working for Lore.

Lore discovered the Borg in a state of disarray after Hugh's individuality infected them. He convinced them to follow him, promising to turn them into full mechanical organisms, although his experiments so far have been futile. He thus wants to experiment on the captives from the Enterprise, starting with Geordi. Data, who has been fed negative emotions from Lore's emotion chip and had his ethical programme disabled, is assigned to carry out the experiments.

Riker and Worf continue the search and are found by Hugh, who has hidden away with a small group of Borg who have rejected Lore. He agrees to show them into the city, where they are able to send La Forge and Troi to safety. Meanwhile, Crusher, left in command of the Enterprise, disobeys an order to retreat. She and the crew manage to destroy the Borg ship by triggering a solar burst.

Data's ethical programme has been re-enabled and he refuses an order to kill Picard. Lore tries to kill Data but Hugh and his friends attack, overcoming Lore's followers. In the confusion, Data overcomes Lore and deactivates him. Geordi convinces Data to keep the damaged emotion chip for possible future use.

References[]

Characters[]

Part I characters[]

Bosus • Corelki • Crosis • Beverly Crusher • Data • Albert Einstein (hologram) • Franklin • Garvey • Gates • Stephen Hawking (hologram) • Hugh • Jae • Kellogg • Geordi La Forge • Lore • Alynna Nechayev • Isaac Newton (hologram) • Jean-Luc Picard • William T. Riker • Dennis Russell • Tayar • Torsus • Towles • Deanna Troi • Darien Wallace • Worf, son of Mogh

Referenced only

Brooks • Locutus • Noonien Soong

Part II characters[]

Armstrong • Albert Barnaby • Crosis • Beverly Crusher • Data • Gates • Goval • Hugh • Jae • Geordi La Forge • Lore • Morik • Jean-Luc Picard • Andrew Powell • William T. Riker • Dennis Russell • Salazar • Spot • Zandra Taitt • Deanna Troi • Worf, son of Mogh

Referenced only

Noonien Soong

Novelization characters[]

Albert Barnaby • Corelki • Crosis • Beverly Crusher • Data • Albert Einstein (hologram) • Goval • Harlock • Stephen Hawking (hologram) • Hugh • Kalin • Geordi La Forge • Lore • Alynna Nechayev • Isaac Newton (hologram) • Jean-Luc Picard • Andrew Powell • Remmis • William T. Riker • Salazar • Solario • Spot • Zandra Taitt • Torsus • Towles • Deanna Troi • Trossin • Darien Wallace • Worf, son of Mogh

Referenced only

Brooks • Nicolaus Copernicus • Galileo Galilei • Adolf Hitler • Johannes Kepler • Locutus • Michelangelo • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart • H. G. Wells

Starships and vehicles[]

Soong (Borg Type 03) • USS Enterprise-D (Galaxy-class) • El-Baz (Type-15 shuttlepod) • USS Gorkon (Excelsior-class) • USS Saladin (Nebula-class)

Referenced only

USS Agamemnon • USS Crazy Horse

Locations[]

Ohniaka III

Referenced only

Devala Lake • Finala • Mercury • New Berlin colony • Starbase 295

Races and cultures[]

Android • Bajoran • Betazoid • Borg • Human • Klingon

Referenced only

Ferengi • Vulcan

States and organizations[]

Liberated • Starfleet • United Federation of Planets

Referenced only

Borg Collective • Cambridge University • English Parliament

Other references[]

acting captain • admiral • Amish • android • assimilation • atmosphere • brain • British • captain • carrier wave • cochrane • combadge • cyborg • EM field • emotion chip • ensign • ethical program • flux inhibitor • German • heart • holodeck • hologram • inertial damper • kedion • kilometer • log • metaphasic shielding • meter • Negro • neural net • phaser • phaser rifle • photon torpedo • poker • positronic matrix • robot • sailing • shield • sublight • swimming • star • tachyon • torpedo • transporter • transwarp • transwarp conduit • tricorder • ventricle • VISOR • warp nacelle

Appendices[]

Related media[]

• DS9 novel: Avatar, Book One - While experiencing flashbacks induced by the Orb of Memory Data recalls deactivating Lore, from this episode.
• The novel Greater Than the Sum and the Strange New Worlds II short story "Seventh Heaven" feature Hugh after the events of this episode.

Images[]

Novelization images[]

Cover image.

Cover art.

German language edition cover image.

German language re-issue edition cover image.

Data.

Jean-Luc Picard.

Hugh.

Planet.

Episode images[]

A hologram of Albert Einstein.

Connections[]

Timeline[]

Translations[]

1996

German : Abstieg, translated by Andreas Brandhorst. (Heyne)

External links[]

• "Descent" article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.
• Descent, Part II article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.
• Descent novelization article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.