| Q | |
 Q in 2402
| |
| Species: | Q |
| Gender: | Male |
| Died: | 2401 |
| Affiliation: | Q Continuum |
| Family | |
| Marital Status: | Married |
| Spouse(s): | Q |
| Children: | Q, possibly Trelane |
 Q in 2364 | |
- "You, by definition, are part of our charter. Our mission is to go forth to seek out new and different life forms, and you certainly qualify as one of the most unique I've ever encountered. To learn about you is, frankly, provocative. But you're next of kin to chaos."
- — Jean-Luc Picard, 2365
- "He's devious and amoral and unreliable and irresponsible and… and definitely not to be trusted."
- — Jean-Luc Picard, 2367
- "I'm the gentle flutter of a butterfly. I am death, destroyer of Worlds."
- — Q to Adam Soong, 2024
The being known as Q is an extremely powerful and ancient god-entity with control over time, space and reality itself. Q took an interest in humanity, believing the species to be "The Ones" who could save all existence, including that of the Continuum itself, from obliteration at the hands of Them.
Q and other members of the Q Continuum claim to be omniscient and omnipotent, and by human standards, this would appear to be true. However, it has become apparent that there are beings as high above the Q as the Q are above humanity.
Personality[]
Q is an extremely powerful and arrogant being who is very sure of his power and superiority over mortal races. Quick to insult and prod, Q enjoys playing with what he considers "lesser" species, making them jump through hoops and testing them for his own amusement. He claims to have an intelligence quotient (I.Q., fittingly) in the millions, compared to an average humanoid. He has been observed to handle timelines better than individuals. Most of his entrances are swift, grand and unexpected. And others have been known for him lying in wait, just around the corner. (ST reference: Q's Guide to the Continuum)
Stubborn and petulant, Q behaves in many ways like a small child. To date, the most effective way of getting Q to leave you alone has proved to be simply ignoring him and not giving him the attention he desires. He loves to provoke Commanders William T. Riker and Worf, referring to the latter as "Microbrain". Q called the known universe his backyard. (TNG episodes: "Hide and Q", "Deja Q"; VOY episode: "Death Wish"; TNG novel: Q & A)
Before Spock's encounter with Q, Spock was told that he should "Never approach Q as you would an adult, as he will respond as a child". However, Spock, who considered Q to be "interesting" and "unique", disagreed with the assessment believing that Q would respond to a real threat with alacrity. (ST audiobook: Spock vs. Q)
While his motives in preparing humanity in general and Jean-Luc Picard in particular for their eventual destiny may seem selfless at first, it should be noted that the fate of the Continuum itself was also at stake so Q's preparations for humanity could easily be seen as being merely acting in his own best interest. (TNG novel: Q & A)
Although Q mostly acts like a child he has been known to act selflessly. This "residue of humanity" was influenced partly from Data's advice of the concept. Q viewed the android as his only teacher of humanity, especially after protecting him from the Calamarain. After Data's gesture, Q told him his actions made him far more human than he could ever hope to become. As a reward, Q left Data a few seconds of real, emotional laughter. (TNG episode: "Deja Q")
Biography[]
"Early" life[]
With the extreme age of the being known as Q, confirmation of any of the following history is impossible. It is based on accounts given by Q to various Starfleet officers such as Captains Picard and Kathryn Janeway, Lieutenant Commander Data, Lieutenant Tom Paris, and Ensign Harry Kim.
However, it is important to remember that the people of the Gamma Quadrant world of Brax referred to Q as "the god of lies", and that anything he says is suspect. (DS9 episode: "Q-Less")
Q claims to have come into existence - or been born - about 70,000,000,000,001,200 years ago. (TNG novels: Q-Zone, I, Q)
Trapped in the distant past by Trelane, Q wandered the outskirts of the galaxy's rim. As a primitive, less-advanced lifeform, he had the misfortune of meeting Redjac. This entity had no interest in conversing with Q, as there was no fear to extract from its prey. It departed, vowing terror and vengeance upon all it fed from. An era later, during his re-"evolution", Q merged on the psionic level of a human host. After the host split Q's essence between himself to a host of another gender, Q became stronger. He eventually left the corpses of these corruptible, frail beings on Delta Vega; whole, once again. Q then received a message (unknowingly from his future self) instructing to continue his "circular" path, so as to be "where" and "when" he originally left. (TOS episodes: "Where No Man Has Gone Before", "Wolf in the Fold", TNG novel: Q-Squared)
Early in Q's existence (on the order of billions of years ago), Q in an act of defiance toward the Continuum, fell in with a cosmic "bad crowd". After an encounter with the time travel portal known as the Guardian of Forever, Q encountered the malevolent extra-dimensional entity known as 0. After bringing 0 into this plane, 0 and Q became traveling companions.
They soon gained the enmity of the cloud-like being known as the Coulalkritous (later known as the Calamarain). The cloud entity would carry its grudge against Q and 0 for eons, well into the modern era.
With Q's assistance, 0 soon used the Guardian of Forever to bring into this plane the beings known as Gorgan, The One, and (*). Among the many atrocities committed by the group in the following decades included the destruction of the ancient Tkon Empire.
The group's misdeeds soon came to the attention of the Q-Continuum. The Continuum hunted the group down and banished 0 beyond the galactic barrier, The One at the galactic core, and sent the substantially depowered (*) and Gorgan fleeing into unknown parts of the Milky Way Galaxy.
Gorgan, (*), and The One were all eventually confronted and defeated by the legendary Starfleet captain, James T. Kirk. As punishment for his misdeeds, Q was assigned to study the beings of the planet Earth, which was badly damaged during the conflict with 0 and his cohorts. (TNG novels: Q-Space, Q-Zone, Q-Strike; TOS episodes: "And the Children Shall Lead", "Day of the Dove"; TOS movie: Star Trek V: The Final Frontier)
Approximately 200,000 years ago, Q and the Continuum became interested in the race known as the Iconians, and shared with them enough secrets that they were able to create their legendary network of gateways. (VOY short story: "In the Queue")
Q, and all other of the Continuum must attend a college of sorts called Q U, that Q described to Tom Paris and Harry Kim as, "an organization that provided opportunities for the Q to examine and refine their "Q-ness" under the auspices of the most esteemed Q in the Continuum." (VOY novel: Evolution)
Q travelled to Earth's prehistory to settle a debt only to wind up trapped by Vandar the Stone and forced to create an alternate timeline where he was used as a source of power for Vandar, bending reality to the despot's will and acting as a source of information. He then encountered Commander Spock, Dr. Leonard McCoy, and Lt. Chekov of the USS Enterprise and Legion of Super-Heroes members Imra Ardeen-Ranzz, Querl Dox, and Rokk Krinn. Dox and Spock eventually managed to free Q, his freedom undoing the timeline where Vandar had triumphed and setting everything back to the way it was. Q later met up with Flint on Holberg 917G, assuring the immortal that he had not come seeking revenge and educating him on the existence of the multiverse. (TOS - Star Trek—Legion of Super-Heroes comics: "Star Trek—Legion of Super-Heroes, Issue 5", "Star Trek—Legion of Super-Heroes, Issue 6")
The Trials of Humanity[]
Q as a judge.
Humanity came to the attention of Q in early 2364, when Giriaenn, the last of the Manraloth, ascended from the corporeal plane. Giriaenn (who had taken on the name "Ariel") told Q of her recent experiences with the human Jean-Luc Picard and Q, believing that this Picard might be "The One" who could save the universe from destruction from "Them" (or "They", depending on the context), decided to pay Picard a visit. (TNG novel: The Buried Age)
Soon after Q put humanity, in the person of Picard, who was now Captain of the USS Enterprise-D, on trial for the "crime" of being a "savage, child race". (TNG episode: "Encounter at Farpoint")
Convinced that humanity and Picard in particular were "the ones", Q took his case to the continuum, who gave their permission for Q to continue his studies. (TNG novel: Q & A)
The Enterprise-D[]
2364-2365[]
Q appeared to the Enterprise crew on a fairly regular basis in the years that followed, primarily in order to prepare them for the trials that were to come. (TNG novel: Q & A)
Soon after his initial encounter with the Enterprise, Q briefly gave Enterprise first officer Commander William T. Riker the power of the Q. (TNG episode: "Hide and Q")
Soon after this, Q returned to the ship on stardate 41195.7, where he was apparently deprived of his powers for the first time. Q became suicidal as a result of this, and attempted to kill himself with a phaser, but was prevented by Picard from doing so. Unfortunately, the beam mortally wounded Geordi La Forge instead. After Q sacrificed himself to protect Data from an attack, his powers were restored by his fellow Q, and Q in turn restored Geordi to health. (TNG comics: "Q Factor", "Q's Day", "Q Affects!")
In 2365, believing that humanity needed to be prepared for the eventual coming of the Borg if they were to save the cosmos from destruction, Q transported the Enterprise to Borg territory in the Delta Quadrant, to impress upon them the unknown dangers of the galaxy. Q imparted this mantra before his departure, "The universe isn't safe, it's wondrous, with wonders to satisfy appetites both subtle and gross, but it's not for the timid." In Guinan's personal counsel, Picard resolved that this latest visit was a rightful gesture, but for the wrong reason in human development. Commander Riker submitted an official report of the previous away team to the cube and was under intensive review by Starfleet for the next year. (TNG episodes: "Q Who?", "The Best of Both Worlds")
2366[]
Q with Data.
In 2366 the Continuum, believing that Q had stepped over the line in introducing humanity to the Borg, de-powered Q and at Q's request, sent him to live out his days as a human on the Enterprise. Q had actually requested to be sent to the ship, as its crew were, for better or worse, the only creatures in the cosmos that came remotely close to being his "friends". The Calamarain, still holding a grudge against Q for all of these millenia, discovered Q in his de-powered state, and attacked the Enterprise to get at Q. Rather than allowing the Calamarain to destroy the Enterprise, Q was willing to instead sacrifice himself to the Calamarain. Impressed with this selfless act, the Continuum and "Q2" restored Q's powers. (TNG episode: "Deja Q")
When he next came to the Enterprise-D, Q at first transformed Picard into a goat. He then transported Picard back in time to an alternate-2332, where Maurice Picard was still alive. Picard relived the horror he felt after his six-year old brother - Claude Picard - died falling down a well, and saw an alternate future in which Claude had lived. (TNG comic: "The Gift")
Soon after, Betazoid Ambassador Lwaxana Troi developed romantic feelings toward Q when the two came to the Enterprise during a significant wedding. Q used this to his advantage to perform a cruel experiment on the nature of the human emotion called 'love'.
Q briefly shared his vast power with Lwaxana, and when he was finished with his experiment to prove that love made others blind to faults in their chosen partner and fixated on their own desires, citing as proof how Lwaxana had ignored all the warnings that he would do exactly this, he tried to take the power back without success. Lwaxana used her power to thoroughly humiliate Q as he had humiliated her. It was later revealed that another member of the continuum, "Q2" had prevented Q from removing Lwaxana's powers as a way to teach Q another lesson about interfering in the lives of mortals. (TNG novel: Q-in-Law)
2367[]
In early 2367, Q defied orders of the Continuum and interfered with the Enterprise-Ds encounter with Locutus of Borg by keeping the make-shift deflector dish weapon developed by Geordi La Forge from overloading and destroying the Enterprise. This consequently allowed the Enterprise to later rescue Picard and save Earth from assimilation. Q felt responsible for Picard's assimilation and was willing to face any consequences the Continuum saw fit to set upon him. (TNG short story: "Civil Disobedience"; TNG episode: "The Best of Both Worlds")
Q as the Sheriff of Nottingham
A few months later, Q transported Picard and his crew to a facsimile of Sherwood Forest on Earth and cast them as Robin Hood and his merry men. He then set them on a quest to rescue a romantic interest of Picard's named Vash, cast as Maid Marian from the Sheriff of Nottingham. Afterward, Vash accompanied Q on a promised grand tour of the galaxy, but they parted company after two years in the Gamma Quadrant. (TNG episode: "Qpid"; DS9 episode: "Q-Less"; TNG novel: Q & A)
This same year, Starfleet held a service-wide briefing about Q after the Sherwood Forest encounter. (ST website: StarTrek.com)
2368[]
In 2368, Q transformed Picard and his crew, with the exceptions of Data and Guinan, into Klingons. Soon after, the crew's aggressive Klingon nature started to take control of their emotions. Riker, believing Picard's command style was "weak", took the opportunity to lead mutiny and imprison Picard in the brig. Worf, (as the only "real" Klingon on board), was able to control his aggression in a way his transformed ship-mates could not. Worf challenged Riker and assumed command. Soon after, Q restored the crew, having had his fun. (TNG comics: "The Way of the Warrior", "Devil's Brew", "The Dogs of War")
2369[]
In 2369, at the behest of the Continuum, Q came to the Enterprise to evaluate a proto-Q named Amanda Rogers. Amanda's parent's were both of the Q Continuum, but forsook their powers to live as humans and have a child in the human manner. However, the temptation to use their power proved to be too great, and they were executed by the Continuum rather than let mortality contaminate the Continuum. Q's job on the Enterprise was to determine if then same measures would prove to necessary with Amanda as well. In the end, Amanda was convinced to forsake her humanity and live as a Q. (TNG episode: "True Q")
Soon after, when Picard had been critically injured, Q gave him look at his past and a chance to correct what Picard considered to be mistakes in his life. In the end, Picard realized that all of his decisions, even his mistakes, were what turned him into the man he was. (TNG episode: "Tapestry")
2370[]
In 2370, Q came to Picard to ask him for help dealing with the young Q who called himself Trelane. Trelane had seemingly gone insane and had caused three distinct timelines to merge, causing considerable temporal havoc.
Trelane managed to discorporate Q, in the mistaken belief that he had killed Q, and sent him back hundreds of thousands of years. Q spent the next several eons regathering his power and re-teaching himself how to phase himself back into reality. It was revealed here that what happened to Gary Mitchell was the result of Q's attempt to escape.
Upon arriving back at the scene of Trelane's breakdown, Q instructed Picard to confront Trelane on the world Terminus. There, Trelane challenged Picard to a duel. Unknown to Trelane, the sword Picard used was imbued with the essence of Q himself, while Picard was able to gain an advantage as Trelane had little practical sword-fighting experience. A thrust by Picard with this sword through the body of Trelane caused him to discorporate, ending the threat. As he restored reality to normal, Q implied in a conversation with Picard that Trelane may have been his own illegitimate son, but his mother's high status in the Continuum meant that any relationship between her and Q would have been scandalous at best, and Picard respected Q's desire to let the matter drop.
Later that year, Q secretly sent Enterprise Security Chief Lieutenant Worf on a journey through many different quantum realities, foreseeing that Worf would need the experience to help Picard when he finally made contact with "Them". (TNG episode: "Parallels"; TNG novel: Q & A)
Late in the year, Q shifted Picard between three different time-periods in his life in order to give Picard a broader insight of time and space for his eventual encounter with "Them". (TNG episode: "All Good Things..."; TNG novel: Q & A)
The USS Voyager[]
2372[]
Quinn, Kathryn Janeway, Tuvok and Q on the edge of the Q Continuum
In the year 2372 the lost starship, the USS Voyager encountered a comet in the Delta Quadrant within which the Continuum imprisoned a Q, known later as Quinn, in order to prevent him from committing suicide. Q was sent by the Continuum to return Quinn to his imprisonment. During this, Q called Commander Riker as a witness, who in turn used "colorful metaphors" when he asked Q what he wanted this time. He said that if it was not for Quinn, he would not have William Riker around to tease and pick on at all. After Quinn requested asylum from Voyager Captain Kathryn Janeway, Q agreed to abide by Janeway's decision. Janeway finally decided to grant Quinn his asylum request. The continuum agreed only if Quinn consented to living a fully-mortal, non-powered life. Despite Janeway's plea to Quinn that a mortal life could be a fulfilling one, Quinn committed suicide the following day using a poison supplied to him by Q. (VOY episode: "Death Wish")
Janeway would create on stardate 49301.2, an update to Starfleet's files about Q that were aboard Voyager. (ST website: StarTrek.com)
2373[]
Q conceiving a child with Q
Quinn's decision set the Continuum into chaos, and by 2373 the Continuum had split into civil war. Believing that literal new blood in the Continuum was the key to stopping the violence, Q came to Janeway wanting her to mother his child. Janeway refused, and Q brought her to the continuum so the she could see the carnage for herself. (VOY episode: "The Q and the Grey")
Members of the Continuum were dead and dying in the fighting and had no knowledge of how to to heal their wounds. A Vulcan doctor named Selar was recruited by the Continuum to teach them the basics of medical treatment. (NF short story: "'Q'uandary")
Janeway eventually convinced Q to procreate with Female Q that had recruited Selar. The birth of the first wholly-Q child in eons did indeed stop the fighting in the continuum. (VOY episode: "The Q and the Grey")
Again, Janeway updates Starfleet files on Q that were in Voyager's computers with a supplement on stardate 50394. (ST website: StarTrek.com)
2374[]
In early 2374, Voyager used Borg technology to enter fluidic space. (VOY episode: "Scorpion")
Unbeknownst to the Voyager crew, the rift never completely sealed itself, ultimately causing deadly temporal and inter-dimensional chaos and destruction. In an odd temporal paradox, the destruction hit the Alpha Quadrant first in the year 2270. Just before the destruction overtook him, Starfleet Captain James T. Kirk utilized the Guardian of Forever to confront the source of the destruction. The Guardian sent him to Voyager eight months after their journey to fluidic space.
The Continuum sent Q to punish Janeway for unleashing a chaos that even the now weakened Continuum could not reverse. Kirk correctly deduced that Q believed the destruction was reversible, and they spent the next three weeks developing a plan to do so.
At the site of the first of the coming subspace ruptures, Voyager and Q, utilizing the power of over a hundred enslaved Borg cubes, created an energy matrix that managed to seal the rift and correct the timeline. At the same time, Kirk flew the Delta Flyer into the rift, correctly believing that he would be returned to his own time. Q, intrigued by Kirk, followed him back to 2270, and for an undetermined amount of time posed as an Enterprise crewman. After the "reset", nobody other than Q recalled the encounter. (VOY short story: "The End of Night")
Later that year, Q enlisted the aid of Voyager officers Tom Paris and Harry Kim when he needed assistance finding the missing Keeper of the Light without the rest of the Continuum or the Nacene finding out that he had lost him. (VOY novel: Evolution)
2376[]
In 2376, Q appeared to Captain Janeway after she stepped through an Iconian Gateway. He informed her that he was partly reaponsible for directing many displaced ships in the Delta Quadrant during the crisis. He intended for Voyager to guide the aliens through the ordeal, each being profoundly affected by the journey. Before sending her back to Voyager, Q explained to Janeway that it was the Q who gave the Iconians their incredible teleportation technology over 200,000 years previously. As a reward for finding his son’s pet, Fluffy/Barklay he allowed Janeway to name any request. Janeway asked Q to bring all the ships Voyager guided through No Man’s Land back to their proper home to which Q complied. Though it would mean that Voyager would remain trapped in the Delta Quadrat, Q arranged that Voyager’s journey would be shorter than expected.
2377[]
In 2377, Q left his son, q, with Janeway for a time when the challenges of parent-hood proved to be too much for him. As thanks for her help, Q gave Janeway course corrections that would take a few years off the ship's long journey. (VOY episode: "Q2")
The course changes shortly brought Voyager within range of the Borg transwarp hub that Janeway used to bring her ship home to the Alpha Quadrant. (VOY episode: "Endgame")
Whether or not this was Q's intent is unknown, but Q had previously chosen not to bring the ship home earlier as he had correctly foreseen that Janeway would keep the Borg and the Borg Queen busy enough in the Delta Quadrant that they wouldn't find "Them" before Picard did. (TNG novel: Q & A)
The Enterprise-E[]
2374[]
Q is believed to have been involved when the USS Enterprise-E encountered a team of super-powered mutants from the early 21st century of an alternate timeline of planet Earth in the year 2374. (TNG novel: Planet X)
Following the USS Enterprise-E's encounter with Borg, Q went to Picard's quarters. There Q told Picard that he wanted to understand humanity. To do this, Q took Picard's form and decided to conduct the negotiations between the Vastak's Pentaget and G'ell species. At first, Q was able to deceive Picard's staff and the two species representatives. Unfortunately, Q was inept at mediating the two species disputes. So he returned Picard to finish mediating the dispute. (TNG - Alien Spotlight comic: "Q")
Soon after, Q appeared on the Enterprise-E for the first time with his wife and child when an experiment by Betazoid scientist Lem Faal to create an artificial wormhole in order to breach the barrier at the edge of the Galaxy threatened to release 0 from his confinement.
0 manipulated Faal into completing his experiments and was unleashed upon the galaxy once more. Q did not have the power to take on 0 by himself. He convinced the Calamarain that what happened all of those millennia ago was the doing of 0, and that they had a common enemy. Then Q joined his essence with that of the Calamarain, enabling them to defeat 0 together. (TNG novel: Q-Strike)
2375[]
In 2375, Q enlisted the aid of Jean-Luc Picard and Lt. Commander Data, when it seemed as if all of the multi-verse itself were about to be sucked into a cosmic sinkhole. Q's defiance in the face of The End Of Everything was part of what saved the cosmos from destruction. (TNG novel: I, Q)
Other encounters[]
1999[]
At some point, between the years 2364 and 2376, the Federation utilized the Guardian of Forever to send Ambassador Spock to planet Earth in the year 1999, when it was determined that divine intervention was needed to keep an asteroid from destroying the planet. Spock encountered Q, and convinced him to use his power to move the asteroid 30 light-years distance from the planet. Given Q's beliefs about humanity's potential, it can be understood why Q would be willing to save Earth from it's premature destruction. (Spock vs. Q audiobook: Spock vs. Q)
- Spock traveled back from a point in the timeline after the Enterprise's first encounter with Q in 2364, as Spock had studied reports by Picard, Data, and Commander William T. Riker about Q before embarking on his journey. Spock later spoke of his "lively debates" with Q in 2376. (NF novel: Gods Above)
The two later continued their discussions over a meal. (Spock vs. Q audiobook: Spock vs. Q: The Sequel)
2369[]
Q with Vash
After Vash managed to return to the Alpha Quadrant by way of the Bajoran wormhole in 2369, Q appeared to her and Commander Benjamin Sisko at starbase Deep Space 9 in an attempt to get her to continue their travels together. Vash refused and Q eventually let her go on by herself. Q said that he was going to miss their travels as seeing the universe through her eyes allowed him to experience a rare sense of wonder. (DS9 episode: "Q-Less")
2375[]
In 2375, at the behest of the Continuum the beings known as the Traveler and his protege, the former human called Wesley Crusher performed a test on Q (similar to the ones he often tormented others with) in order to determine if Q had begun to develop human traits such as conscience and courtesy. (TNG short story: "The Human Factor")
2376[]
Two members of the crew of the USS Excalibur, Lieutenants Mark McHenry and Zak Kebron, encountered Q on the planet Liten in the year 2376. Q claimed that with his new responsibilities as husband and father, that he missed his old self and was toying with the people of Liten simply for old times sake. (NF novel: Requiem)
2377[]
Q as First of Four
In 2377, a Starfleet cadet named Qaylan Furlong encountered Q during a battle with the Borg. Q gave Furlong a chance to go back in time and save his father, who was killed at the Battle of Wolf 359. (TNG video game: Star Trek: Borg)
2379[]
Q is believed to be responsible for the destruction of the gelatinous realm of the species known as the Teuthis and the Bolgar in late 2379. (NF novel: Missing in Action)
When the Metrons and Organians challenged the Q's supremacy of the universe, Q acted as the primary representative of his people, answering Picard's call when the captain protested all the supernovae that the higher-dimensional war was causing. Inspired, Q whisked his friend to a garden so that Starfleet could serve as proxy armies for the battles. When the other factions agreed, Q chose Picard as his champion, being quite disappointed when the captain had allowed Riker's trickery to deprive them of victory against the Metrons. (TNG - The Q Conflict comics: "Issue 1", "Issue 2")
2380[]
In 2380, all of Q's preparations came to a head when Picard and the Enterprise became the first ship to explore the Gorsach system. The ninth planet in the system proved to an incredibly ancient, artificially constructed world.
Q manipulated Picard and his crew to go to a certain place on the planet, where they triggered a device that garnered the attention of "Them". Using the experiences gained through Q's preparation, Picard and Worf attempted to revert the cross-time and dimensional chaos that ensued.
After Picard managed to navigate through all of the obstacles that "They" put before him, he and Q gained an audience with "Them", all-powerful beings that destroyed and created new multi-verses at whim. As Q and "They" casually discussed the end of everything, Picard suddenly realized the absurdity of it all, and burst out laughing, apparently the reaction that "They" were hoping for. "They" decided to spare this reality.
Although it would now seem that humanity has finally achieved the goal that Q was preparing them for, before departing Q informed Picard and Beverly Crusher that they had not yet seen the last of him. (TNG novel: Q & A)
Later that year, while Admiral Janeway was heading to the believed-to-be dormant Borg cube in Sector 10, Q's mate, the Female Q, appeared and told Janeway that she had come on Q's behalf. She later divulged how she believed that he was too proud to admit that he did not want Janeway to be assimilated by the cube, and would not, therefore, interfere and try and help either the Federation or Janeway. (TNG novel: Before Dishonor)
Q was summoned on New Thallon by Shintar Han, it's Prime Minister, who asked him to dispose of Cwansi and Robin Lefler, whose presence threatened to end his political influence. Although Q wasn't interested in the least he decided to honor his request when he found out that the infant was protected by the "demigod" Mark McHenry, whom he had developed an interest into. Q offered the young man a place in the Q Continuum but was surpised when he refused, stating that he still found himself thetered to humanity by his love for Robin Lefler, at this point Q challenged him to a battle but was unable to proceed because unknowingly to him the Female Q was dampening his powers. Q decided to move his challenge to New Thallon where he created a replica of the Coliseum in which McHenry had to fight, while the young demigod was able to neutralize Shintar Han, turned into a minotaur by Q, whithout hurting him he was unable to win a swordfight against Q himself and before he was able to deal the killing strike McHenry, Cwansi and Lefler were rescued by Xyon who transported them on his ship. Q quickly reached them and decided to kidnapp Cwansi in order to turn him into the representative of the Q Continuum that he always tought the galaxy needed. (NF novel: The Returned, Part 3)
2382[]
It was later revealed that Q's mate had actually come to Janeway on behalf of her son rather than her husband, giving her son a chance to spend more time with his godmother by extending the usual moment typically experienced by mortal beings between life and death so that Janeway existed in this state for over a year. Despite his father's warnings against bringing the dead back to life, Q's son was able to find a loophole that allowed Janeway to 'rebuild' her own body with the aid of Kes when he believed that Janeway was needed to defeat the threat of the Omega Continuum, which she had originally dealt with during the longer journey home that had been cut short by Admiral Janeway's intervention. This crisis resulted in the death of Q's son when he sacrificed himself to contain the Omega Continuum and reset the balance of the universe without erasing the rest of the Q Continuum- which had been created as a creative force to counter the destruction of Omega- although Q coldly declared himself Janeway's enemy for her role in his son's decision to sacrifice himself.
Despite this declaration, Counselor Hugh Cambridge concluded that Q must have calmed down and recognised that Janeway had no real blame in her son's decision, based on the fact that they were all still there after several months with no sign of revenge from Q. Q and his wife later appeared in an alternate past, caring for the daughter of an alternate version of Kathryn Janeway created by the manipulations of the Krenim, this Janeway kept alive along with her 'primary' counterpart thanks to Q's actions. Musing that this was his way of respecting his son's memory and acknowledging all that Janeway had done by giving at least one of her a happy ending with a child, Q severed this timeline from the rest of the multiverse for the duration of the other Janeway's lifespan, allowing the alternate Janeway and her child to live in peace. (VOY novel: A Pocket Full of Lies)
2386[]
In 2386, after Captain Typhuss James Kira ends up in the dark mirror universe, Starfleet orders the USS Kingston to find and bring back Captain Kira to the primary universe. On their way home, Q appears to help the crew get back home, after Typhuss returned to the Kingston then Q uses his powers to return the Kingston to their universe. (Star Trek: Kingston episode: "Crossover")
2389[]
in 2389, after protecting Typhuss from his cazy ex-lover Carissa Kensington, Carissa boards the Kingston and makes her way to main engineering and causes a warp core breach to kill Typhuss. Q tells Typhuss,"Now we can't have you dying on us now can we". Typhuss then asks "Q, what are you doing here?". Q answers "I came here to stop your death as well as the destruction of the Kingston this ship is still needed by the Federation. Q then uses his powers to save the Kingston from the warp core breach. (Star Trek: Kingston episode: "Lethal Seduction")
2390[]
in 2390, after Kira Nerys lied to SVU and Olivia Benson, Kira tells Olivia that Typhuss attacked her, SVU arrests Vice Admiral Kira and puts him in jail. Q appeared in his cell and said "Aw what's wrong Typhuss". Typhuss sees Q in his cell and says "Q what the hell are you doing here, go away". Q answers "I was bored and I'm not here to cause trouble I heard around the grape vine that you're in hot water and that means I've got no one to bug besides Jean-Luc and your nephew". Typhuss tells Q, "Well I'm not in the mood Q so get the hell out of here right now". Q tells Typhuss, "I happened to be disguised as a fly when the attack happened". Typhuss answers "Let me guess you know who attacked Kira". Q tells Typhuss "It was your first officer but he wasn't himself he was drugged but I can tell you who drugged him it wasn't Lex or Miranda it was someone else from your past a certain Cardassian Gul that is accusing you of a crime you never committed". (Star Trek: Intrepid episode: "Dark Deeds")
2392[]
In 2392, Q saved Typhuss during the Anti-Monitor Crisis, saving him from the antimatter wave and took him to the Q Continuum, but his friends on Team Arrow were killed by antimatter, Q restored Earth-1 at the request of Typhuss.
2394[]
8 years after her death, Prue Halliwell is resurrected by Q, she returns to her life and family. (Star Trek: Intrepid episode: "Prue Returns")
The Cerritos[]
Q aboard the Cerritos
Q's reputation preceded him aboard the USS Cerritos, when in 2380, he was referenced by Ensign Brad Boimler in a simile explaining the existence of his girlfriend, Lieutenant Barbara Brinson, whom he described as being "as real as a hopped-up Q on Captain Picard Day." (Star Trek LD: episode: "Cupid's Errant Arrow")
That same year, he made multiple appearances aboard Cerritos. At one point, while wearing a variation of his judge's garb, he abducted four members of the bridge crew to participate in one of his challenges. He dressed the crew up as chess pieces, and put them on a large chessboard, but had anthropomorphic playing cards holding hockey sticks as the opposing pieces, football goal posts at either end of the game board, and a singing, dancing soccer ball.
After the Cerritos left K'Tuevon Prime, Q appeared before Ensigns Beckett Mariner, Brad Boimler, Sam Rutherford, and D'Vana Tendi to challenge them. Mariner told him they were not in the mood and walked away, even as Q followed them and urged them – in vain – to continue, and lamented that he found Picard to be boring. (Star Trek LD episode: "Veritas")
The Road Not Taken[]
Q appears before Picard following the destruction of the Stargazer
At some point prior to 2401, Q began to experience a change he believed was impossible: despite everything he believed about the Q as a species, Q was not truly immortal, and he realised that he was going to die. Symptoms of this phenomenon were that Q had begun to lose his powers. Q believed to think of it as being on "the threshold of the unknowable" and believed that he was about to be "enveloped in the warm glow of meaning" now that his life had a definite end in sight. (PIC episode: "Mercy")
In 2401, three decades after their last encounter, Q visited Picard at his home on Earth. After having ordered USS Stargazer to self-destruct in order to stop the Borg from seizing control of the Starfleet armada, Q had intervened to stop Picard's death. (PIC episode: "Penance")
Picard had awoken in his home to find that not only was he alive, but several things had changed. Picard turned to face Q, and Q remarked that Picard was older than he imagined. Snapping his fingers, Q updated his appearance to more closely match the aged Picard and reminded Picard about the words that he imparted to him when they last parted ways, "the trial never ends." Q reminded Picard about how he had talked about second chances and told him that he was now at the "very end of the road not taken." (PIC episode: "The Star Gazer")
Q explained to Picard that he was "home". After Picard inquired about the whereabouts of the Stargazer crew, Q admitted that there was no Stargazer. Picard demanded to know what Q had done, to which Q responded that he had merely shown Picard a world of his own making and stated that it was "human" of Picard to instead blame him. Picard angrily asked if Q had had enough of playing games with other peoples' lives and exclaimed that he was no longer Q's pawn, to which Q answered that Picard was much more than a pawn – he was instead the "very board upon which this game is played". When Picard told him that he was too old for Q's "bullshit", Q angrily affirmed that Picard was old, and lamented that time was unfair and had presented Picard with "so many wrinkles... so many disappointments." Picard demanded that Q get to the point, to "cut to the chase". Q rambled to Picard about the chase bleeding out and how he was a suture on the wound. Noticing Q's odd behavior, Picard asked Q if he was unwell. Q responded by transporting them both to the vineyard.
At the vineyard, Picard asked again what had happened to the crew of the Stargazer, and Q acknowledged that he had intervened because he had wanted to see him. Picard demanded that Q tell him what he wanted, and Q told him that while he could tell him, Picard was too clever to listen. Picard told Q that he had enough of Q's patronization, and Q struck Picard, angrily telling Picard that he had had enough of Picard's stubbornness, obstinance and "insistence on changing in all ways but the one that matters". Q declared the situation was not a lesson but instead a penance. Q explained that in Picard's original history, humanity had found a way to spare the planet they were "murdering", but in this timeline, humanity "keeps the corpse on life support". Q once again transported Picard back inside the Château, where he revealed several alien slaves working for Picard. Despite Picard's insistence that he would never do this, Q stated that "such moral convictions are the luxury of the victors".
Q offers Picard a choice between remaining as he is, or a chance at 'atonement'
Q brought Picard inside the trophy room, explaining the life that Picard had led in this new timeline. Q talked through several of Picard's trophies – including the skulls of Dukat, Martok and Sarek, all of whom this timeline's Picard had executed in brutal fashion. Q called Picard "the most bloodthirsty, merciless, ruthless human to ever set out to conquer the galaxy" and asked if Picard wished to see what else had been lost thanks to Picard's fear. He offered Picard a choice: he could remain as he was in this world, trapped inside "the body of a madman, in the world of a madman", and try to "wash the blood" from his hands for the brutal murders committed by his counterpart – though Q deemed that to be "unwashable". Q offered an alternative: Picard could show atonement, possibly forgiveness. When Picard asked what he would be forgiving, Q answered cryptically that Picard already knew. Q stated that he would not let Picard take this on alone. Picard refused Q's choice and Q left him alone.
Picard would later inform Seven of Nine and Raffaela Musiker of his encounter with Q, and explained that Q would in the past put him to the test using 'games' such as the situation they found themselves in. He told them that he felt that there was something wrong with Q, as he was acting stranger than usual.
A Borg Queen held captive in Agnes Jurati's laboratory was able to perceive the fracture in the timeline and calculated that Q had implemented a single change in the year 2024 to create the current timeline. (PIC episode: "Penance")
Q briefly appeared again to Picard aboard La Sirena to repeat his words about this being the only life Picard understood. (PIC episode: "Assimilation")
Q observing Renée Picard, about to attempt to interfere with her mission
Q later observed Renée Picard reading a book before she undertook the Europa Mission. Q attempted to amplify Renee's fear about the upcoming mission, but his powers failed. (PIC episode: "Watcher")
He next attempted to get assistance from Adam Soong, whom he promised to give a cure for his daughter's genetic disorder. (PIC episode: "Fly Me to the Moon")
During a gala celebrating the Europa Mission, Q, posing as Renée's therapist, encouraged her not to go on the mission and nearly succeeded. However, Picard successfully foiled Q's plan. In response, a desperate Soong tried to run down Renée, only to have Picard take the hit himself in order to save her life. (PIC episode: "Two of One")
Jean-Luc survived and met with Guinan, who performed an El-Aurian ritual in an effort to summon Q. The ritual appeared to fail, and shortly after, Guinan and Jean-Luc were arrested by a team of FBI agents led by Martin Wells. (PIC episode: "Monsters")
Q had heard the summons, however, and visited Guinan in prison, where she realised that Q was dying. Q imparted to her that he was trying to find meaning in his remaining time, and that he was using Jean-Luc as a means to that end. He also demonstrated his loss of power by attempting unsuccessfully to vaporise Guinan. Q left with a parting word that humans were "all trapped in the past", which gave Guinan the clue she needed in order for Jean-Luc to pry into Agent Wells' past in order to secure their release. (PIC episode: "Mercy")
Q later hacked himself into a virtual reality program operated by Kore Soong, to reveal to her the truth and offer himself as an ally, in spite of Adam Soong not keeping his end of their bargain. Kore removed the VR headset to end the conversation, but Q had left the permanent cure – labelled 'freedom' – in the airlock for her. (PIC episode: "Mercy")
After the success of the Europa Mission and the restoration of the original timeline, Picard encountered Q in his home after leaving the skeleton key for his younger self to find in the future. Q noted that although Picard had the chance to potentially save his mother and change his own future, he instead accepted himself as he was and absolved himself. Because Picard had chosen himself, he may now be worthy for someone else to choose and he may even give himself the chance to be loved. Q reminded Picard that he'd told Picard that this was about forgiveness: Picard's own forgiveness of himself. Q stated that Picard had fixed all of the deaths that Q had caused by altering the timeline aside from Tallinn and Elnor. However, Tallinn was always destined to die in every timeline, but thanks to Picard's intervention, Tallinn had met Renée in this one. Picard asked why Q had taken such an interest in him for over thirty years and Q explained that he was dying alone and he didn't want that for Picard. Q had elaborated that: "Even Gods have favorites and you've always been one of mine" As such, he had set it up so that Picard would travel back in time and in a round about way come to terms with his mother's death and absolve himself of his perceived responsibility for the event. "As I leave, I leave you free." For once, Q was not acting for some grander design but simply because he cared about Picard and genuinely wanted to help his friend.
Gathering outside, Q prepared to use the last of his power to send Picard and his friends back to their own time, something that would kill Q in his weakened state. With Rios choosing to stay in 2024, Q told Picard that he had an unexpected surplus of energy that he will use to give Picard one last surprise gift. Stating that Q didn't have to die alone, Picard hugged him and an emotional Q promised to "see you out there" and snapped his fingers, sending Picard, Raffi and Seven back to 2401 moments before the Stargazer's destruction, allowing Picard the chance to change his future. Shortly thereafter, the group discovered Q's final gift: Q had resurrected Elnor and returned him to the Excelsior. (PIC episode: "Farewell")
Visiting Jack Crusher[]
Q in Jack Crusher's quarters aboard the USS Enterprise-G
In 2402, Q appeared to Jack aboard the USS Enterprise-G. Jack immediately recognized the being, having heard about Q from his father Jean-Luc Picard. Jack was surprised as Q was supposed to be dead, but Q simply stated that he was hoping that "the next generation wouldn't think [time] so linearly." and told him that Jack had much ahead of him. While humanity's trial was over for Picard, Q was here for Jack because his trial had only just begun. (PIC episode: "The Last Generation")
Kelvin timeline[]
After the Pah-wraiths had triumphed over the Prophets, they turned their attention to the rest of the higher species with even the Q Continuum being unable to halt their advance. Unable to find a path to victory, Q left for the three-dimensional universe to seek the counsel of Jean-Luc Picard on what action to take. Arriving shortly after Spock had quelled the threat of the Hobus star, Q informed his friend that Spock's action had created an alternate timeline only for Picard to cut off any discussion of the subject. Annoyed, Q took his leave for the new timeline, intending to instead seek the counsel of the native James T. Kirk for his experience in triumphing over no-win scenarios.
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James T. Kirk meets Q
Materializing aboard the USS Enterprise on stardate 2261.34, Q introduced himself to Kirk by way of masquerading as a security officer (and complementing the shiny aesthetic of the ship). To test Kirk's established belief in a "no-win scenario", Q replicated the Kobayashi Maru scenario before he conversed with the man and sent the Enterprise a century into the future to Terok Nor. Q sporadically appeared to Kirk throughout the adventure, offering vague advice as well as assuring that he and his crew would not be confined to these dire circumstances forever. After Dukat had merged with a Pah-wraith and intended to ascend to godhood, Q finally appeared to Kirk and revealed to him the true magnitude of the stakes. When Q, Kirk, Spock and Sisko were brought aboard the Enterprise as prisoners, Spock transferred the last Prophet into Q, the two merging into an even more powerful entity, one readily capable of quelling the Pah-wraith threat. After returning everyone to their proper places in time, Q went off to visit Picard to inform him of his latest adventure. (TOS - The Q Gambit comics: "Part 1", "Part 2", "Part 3", "Part 4", "Part 5", "Part 6")
After swapping minds with his prime counterpart, Kirk assumed Q had returned to test him much to the confusion of Pavel Chekov. (TOS - Connection comic: "Part 1")
Some years later, Kirk found himself a prisoner on an Augment ruled Earth as part of Gary Mitchell's elaborate revenge. When Mitchell spoke to Kirk in a disembodied voice, Kirk initially believed him to be Q only for Mitchell to claim he was more powerful than the entire Continuum. (TOS - IDIC comic: "Part 3")
Distant future[]
Q visited and conversed with the Guardian of Forever and the family of Horta protecting it in the years 17,602 and 44,247. (ST short story: "Guardians")