Darkest Heart: Star Trek
Star Trek has a wide assortment of cool villains. Because I am a Q fan, there will probably be a preponderance of Q fic here, but there are many other villains I like as well. Note that I am not dividing this page up by series (ST:TNG, DS9, etc.) but by the villains involved; specific story listings will say what series or that it's not relevant (eg, Q stories taking place in the Continuum with no mention of human characters, Cardassian stories taking place on Cardassia with original Cardassian characters, etc.)
August 2000 Feature Fanfic:
Wormwood by Marlissa Campbell.
A Federation psychologist is assigned to Gul Dukat to make him fit for trial, and is sucked into Dukat's worldview. A dark and intense exploration of insanity, evil, and self-justifications, and the path to hell being paved with good intentions. ST:DS9.
Q:
My favorite Star Trek villain of all time, Q is fascinating in part because he isn't a typical villain. Rather than being opposed to the Federation ideologically and seeking military power over it like most Trek villains, Q is an advanced omnipotent being and no one is ever really sure what his ideology is. He's a trickster, a teacher, someone who mocks humanity and yet for all that seems to have a great deal of respect for humans. And he likes to wear silly hats. This is important, too. :-)
Raison D'Q by Mercutio.
Q comes to Picard with a difficult question-- how do you resolve it when your nature demands you do something you don't want to do? ST:TNG.
From Me To Q by Julia Houston.
A drama/mystery, similar to an episode of the tv series, but featuring Q and a great deal of really intense characterization. ST:TNG.
The Best of All Possible Worlds by Jeanita Danzik.
The Picard from our universe sets out to heal the evil Picard from the "Dark Mirror" universe, with Q's help. ST:TNG, Mirror Universe. Adult. M/M themes, violence, rape.
In The Valley Of The Shadow by Jeanita Danzik.
Sequel to "Best of All Possible Worlds". Q's lover, Emperor Picard from the Mirror Universe, is feeling his mortality and jealous of the Good Picard. ST:TNG, Mirror Universe, adult.
Dilemma by Alara Rogers.
Q's precarious political position in the Continuum leaves him forced to an impossible choice. Based on episode "True Q" of ST:TNG.
Dance of Chameleon and Mirror by Alara Rogers.
Early dealings between Q and Guinan, when they had different names. ST:TNG-based.
Q and "Quinn" debate Quinn's right to die. ST:VOY, based on episode "Death Wish."
Le Q Entre Deux Chaises by Ariana.
Q's lover Q is jealous of Picard. ST:TNG with VOY characters thrown in.
Oasis by Laura Taylor.
Q is attacked by beings outside the Continuum. A human woman undertakes to save his life on a surreal journey. ST:TNG.
Q appears on Voyager to "help" Seven learn about humanity. In the process, humanity in the form of Voyager's crew learns something about the Borg. ST:VOY. Also listed under "Borg".
The Borg:
The Borg fascinate me both for what they are-- the emotionless, unified, devouring entity that assimilates all that cross their path-- and for what they're not-- the people, such as Seven from Voyager and Hugh from TNG, who come free of the Collective and need to learn what it is to be an individual. I've included stories about Seven of Nine in here, as well as stories about the Borg Collective, Hugh and his people, and other Borg characters. Because Seven is a main character on Voyager and mostly seems to appear in stories about her romantic relationships with other crew members, I limit Seven stories to either those that deal fundamentally with her Borgness, those that focus on her transition to humanity, or those that are really, really good.
Q appears on Voyager to "help" Seven learn about humanity. In the process, humanity in the form of Voyager's crew learns something about the Borg. ST:VOY. Also listed under "Q".
Seven Into One: By Alara Rogers.
Seven's POV in the episode "The Gift." ST:VOY.
Raindrops In Hell: By Jeanita Danzik.
Tranh Ming, a bitter Maquis, seeks to show Seven an alternative to assimilating into Voyager's crew. ST:VOY, f/f themes.
The Shadow Arc: By Raymond Cooper. (Email defunct: Raymond, if you're out there, write me!)
In the far future, the Borg evolve in two different directions, the Shadows and the Individuals. The two return to the past to duel over the future, with Deep Space Nine their battleground. ST:DS9.
Lore:
Data's tormented, psychotic twin brother has inspired a small handful of writers to do really interesting things. There must be a number of people out there who can sympathize with a creation who not only disappointed his creator but could never compare to his brother, either.
First Lore by Kate Orman.
A haunting tale of Lore's awakening in the Pakled ship. Kate Orman is now a pro, and it shows. ST:TNG.
The Cardassians:
A species capable of honor and nobility, who consider accusing a criminal to be proof that he's guilty and who commit atrocities in the name of helping their victims, the Cardassians are one of the most complexly realized villain races in Star Trek.
Wormwood by Marlissa Campbell.
A Federation psychologist is assigned to Gul Dukat to make him fit for trial, and is sucked into Dukat's worldview. ST:DS9.
The Romulans:
The Romulans were my favorite villains for a while, back when all we knew about them came from Diane Duane's novels. Since then the Powers that Be have contradicted Duane's lovely and well-delineated Rihannsu in favor of Yet Another Ordinary Trek Villain Race with names like Pardek and Tomalok and no linguistic distinction whatsoever between them and anyone else. Still, there's good Romulan fanfic out there, and I aim to find some.
The Klingons:
Okay, I'm about to speak sacrilege here, but I never liked the Klingons. Never ever. The barbarian "today is a good day to die!" archetype just does nothing for me. However, I won't deny the presence of some really nifty Klingon fanfic out there. And as soon as I find some it'll be put up here.
Back to Darkest Heart