Welcome to a new post and a new month for Tuesdays at Quark’s! For the next several weeks we at Continuing Mission will be doing Mirror Universe May in order to explore everyone’s favorite alternate dimension. In the Tuesday’s at Quark’s column we’re going to be taking a look back at some of the previous entries to see what their evil Mirror Universe counterparts are like. Things are starting off with Admiral Alynna Nechayev.

There are so many different versions of the Mirror Universe during the years covered by Star Trek: The Next Generation but my favorite is the version covered by the recent Mirror Broken comic series. Reading this fun (if brutal) series is actually what led me to suggest Mirror Universe May to the authors here. It sees Jean-Luc Picard as a frustrated captain on an outdated starship during the last days of the Terran Empire. The Cardassians and Klingons are closing in and Picard finds the ranks of the Empire filled with cowards and weaklings.

So he steals a secret warship and launches his own offensive. Like you do.

Into that mess I’ve injected Alynna Nechayev, an admiral of the Terran Empire who has the same frustrations as Picard but an opposite approach (similar to her prime universe counterpart). She despises the weakness of many Imperial captains but also the reckless irresponsibility of those egotistical captains who think they know best. Thus she has the same goals as the rogue Captain Picard but the two are destined to be at each other’s throats.

There are lots of potential plot hooks here but here are just a few to get you started.

• In the Terran Empire, Jean-Luc Picard has taken it upon himself to strike into the heart of enemy territory with the ship he stole. Admiral Nechayev is not interested in seeing that happen but she also becomes worried when members of the Empire’s flag staff begin acting strangely. Perhaps she can find a crew worthy of helping her with both problems at once.
• In the prime universe, the crew is visited by Admiral Nechayev who orders them on a secret mission into Cardassian space. They are utilizing natural phenomena to shield themselves from long-range sensors but the mission is strange from the start. Once they realize this is actually the Mirror Universe admiral stealing technology to use against the Cardassians in her own universe, they might be too far into Cardassian space to change course.
• In the Mirror Universe, a ceasefire is being considered between the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance and the ailing Terran Empire. The cunning Admiral Nechayev is determined to be the only one even remotely capable of pulling this delicate negotiation off, but she needs the crew to stop the bloodthirsty Captain Picard and his band of traitors from ruining the whole thing.

Click on the image below for the PDF.