10.4 Alien Encounters

Human Fusion Klingons (Quch'Ha)

The Klingons of the early Federation encounters prior to 2267 (save for the very first occasion with civilian trader E.A. Jacoby) bore little resemblance to the Klingons that we know today. They were more human-like in appearance and wore their hair short. The only signs of their true heritage were their preference for Oriental-style beards and long moustaches, their Mongol-like features and mannerisms, and the shoulder sashes worn by their officers (which turned out to be almost identical to those of “normal” Klingons).

Many theories have been advanced over the years to explain the mystery behind the early “look” of the Klingons. No Klingon will discuss it. The most that they have ever said about this discrepancy is that it is a private manner and they do not speak of it to outsiders. Scans of Klingons captured or killed during the Four Years War revealed traces of human DNA in their genetic makeup. When and how they came by this remains a mystery as of this date, but this discovery has led to the term “human fusion” for these types of Klingons. Regardless of their origins, whatever they may be, it was these human fusion Klingons with whom the Federation fought the Four Years War. Human fusion Klingons are still occasionally encountered today, usually as covert intelligence operatives or low-level Klingon officials. There have been certain exceptions, however, and some have hinted that Chancellor Azetbur, the current ruler of the Klingon Empire, is herself a human fusion Klingon. This is not confirmed and may never be, given the natural Klingon reluctance to discuss the origins of the Quch’Ha.

A human fusion Klingon on average is about the same size and build as a normal human. Externally they appear almost identical to most normal humanoids, save for swarthy skins and uniformly dark hair, which tends to be thicker and longer than the human norm. That is where the likeness ends. Their abnormal metabolic rate, which is remarkably close to the Klingon norm, is easily detectable by scanners. They average 1.5 times the strength of a human of comparable build (since their homeworld Kazh is a high-gravity planet). The blood of a human fusion Klingon is red like humans but darker. It also tends to turn purplish-pink when exposed to the right conditions. Their internal organ redundancy is not as pronounced as a full Klingon; however, they can still withstand injuries that would cripple or even kill a human. Most human fusion Klingons have uniformly dark skin and thick, bifurcated eyebrows; however, light-skinned human fusion Klingons with features closer to human norm are not unknown. In any case a simple medical scan is enough to tell the difference between a human and a human fusion Klingon despite external appearances.

The Talosians

The Talosians are a genetically weakened race with the most powerful psionic powers in known space. The range of their powers is so great that as a group effort it can span the many parsecs from Talos IV all the way to Starbase 12. Beyond this their collective powers have not been tested.

At one time the Talosians were great explorers, like humanity, and brought back many samples of lifeforms from the worlds they visited back to their own. About 200,000 years ago, though, the Talosian civilization collapsed under the brunt of a self-induced thermonuclear war. The surface of their planet was rendered uninhabitable and they were forced to relocate underground, living in cities buried miles below the highly radioactive surface. It was at this time that the Talosians, with nowhere to go and nothing else to do, began concentrating on their mental powers. Many of their off-world specimens had been brought below with them for their own survival, and they probed their minds with their newfound powers. At first merely a test of their newfound abilities, soon they become psychologically addicted to the life experiences of the residents of their underground menagerie. They stopped building and creating, allowing their civilization to stagnate and eventually decline as they spent their days living and reliving the thoughts and experiences of their menagerie specimens.

The Talosians got their first taste of human experiences in 2232 when the ACI science ship S.S. Columbia crashed on their planet. The only survivor was a badly injured young girl named Vina Oliver. The Talosians did what they could to save her life. Unfortunately, they had never seen humans before and had no guide save themselves for tending to her many injuries. Vina survived the experience; however, the well-meant but ultimately misguided Talosian medical attention left her disfigured for life. As she recovered, though, and railed against the hand that fate had dealt her, the Talosians discovered in her mind a vitality and life force they had never experienced before. Add to that the memories of her life on Earth and her short time as an adult explorer of space, and to the Talosians the young Vina was a narcotic new-found. It took years to break her mind and spirit but that they eventually did, reveling in the broad vistas that her memories and experiences offered. This brief taste the Talosians had been given of human experiences made them thirst for more. Pooling their mental powers, they soon learned that the Federation occasionally sent ships within range of Talos IV. When the next one came, they would be ready.

The eventual encounter between Captain Christopher Pike of the starship Enterprise and the Keepers of Talos IV is documented elsewhere. Suffice it to say that it was a paradigm event in Federation history. To its horror Star Fleet learned that a psionic power of massive proportions, potentially capable of overthrowing and enslaving the very Federation it was sworn to defend, lay within a virtual stone’s throw of Local Group systems. Star Fleet had no choice but to accept Captain Pike’s recommendation that all contact with the Talosians be broken on pain of death. The only way the Talosian threat could be combated was to deny them the very narcotic that they sought: the minds and experiences of beings others than their own. This order would remain in place for decades to come.

A lot has happened since the clash between Captain Pike and the Keepers of Talos IV almost half a century ago. General Order 7 has recently been lifted based on the recommendation of Ambassador Pike. The Talosians have turned their powers toward the greater good and now export their psionic skills. Their mind-manipulation abilities have been applied to diverse projects ranging from intelligence gathering to empathic and telepathic training, and even such fields as holodeck research and the entertainment industry. The very beings that the Federation so feared not so long ago are now proving themselves as one of its greatest assets.