Hi, just wanted to let you know that I've been a big fan of your Star trek work for quite awhile now. I love your grasp of Q and the dynamics between him and the rest of the Enterprise crew. In this fic, I especially enjoyed your reasoning of Q's thoughts on privacy regarding telepaths and empaths. I always found it a little odd in ST:TNG that Counselor Troi was able to spout off what everyone was feeling willy-nilly with no one else getting offended before. The part with Q's interaction with Picard were also very well written and heartfelt and had me in tears at certain points.

Anyways, thank you for writing and sharing this, and I hope you feel the urge to update soon!

I was pleasantly surprised when I found that you've started (or perhaps ended, because this chapter works quite well alone) another Q story.

I find the contrast between this and your other Deja Q spinoffs, primarily Only Human, particularly interesting. Here, the Continuum doesn't step in at the last moment to save everyone and as a result, Q and the crew have to figure a way out themselves. Instead of being shunted aside at the end of the crisis, Q is allowed to do what he can to help and prove that, yes, he is a rather useful person to have around when dealing with tricky problems of the technical nature as long as you're willing to put up with his less-than-refined personal skills. His crushed self-esteem is allowed a chance to recover, so what you get is a Q that is nearly opposite the self-pitying, suicidal one that we find at the beginning of Only Human, who is only able to begin to seriously change after a great deal of (forced) encouragement from a certain Vulcan. Of course, without the Continuum, our main characters are in a rather sticky pickle and it looks like Q is about to die...poor Q...unless something drastic happens to change the situation, which Q do you think has it better off?

Although, on that last point, before I forget, you mentioned the Cold Equations! And built a philosophical/moral/psychological discussion around it! The world has just gotten a little better, I should think. And for anyone out there who doesn't know about it, it's by Tom Gowin and con be found in an anthology called, erm, The Cold Equations. Check it out of a library or something, and while you're at it, read his other short stories in there.

In other words, I find your character interactions as engaging as ever and hope to see more eventually, on this story or otherwise (Only Human or Guidance or something like that?). Ta!

I can see it took a lot of effort to write this so I really hope you continue it.

It makes me happy. (the story, I mean.)

Accurate, LONG and well-writen. Not many errors. I'll look at your other stories.

By the way, I'm going to kill something if you don't continue.

~

Lenny.

I thought I was watching real Star Trek! Very nice! I wanted that episode to keep going.

So how did Q get out of this one- did the continuum intervene?

Fantastic! Every Q story you write I love. I hope greatly that you decide to finish this fic, or at least add another chapter to feed my need for good writing. thanks! DL

Wow, this is an awesome story! You write Q so well-both the typical sarcasm and arrogance, and the new insights he develops from spending more time as a human. And his breakdown in Picard's office after making the bargain with the Calamarain was really moving. I can't wait for the next chapter!

I gotta say I love all your Star Trek fanfiction, but this has to be my favorite so far. I always thought it would have been cool if Q actually stayed human and stuck around from a while. Despite his shortcomings, he really is useful - omnipotent or not.

Wow, what a fantastic story! You've captured everyone with great detail and accuracy. It feels like it should be an episode. Please write more!

Your story is extreamly good.

What a thougtful detailed and wonderful Chapter. This could either be a one shot ending on a cliff hanger, or it could be one or more additional chapters. The final part was terrific: Q is really fleshed out as a growing person with nuances of emerging character-especially at the end when he talks to Jean-Luc-who really cares about other people. All too often stories about this Q present him as a Characature, rather than as a solid character.

Q feels there is only one way, his sacraficial death for a crime under the Calamarain social system and its peculiar standards of justice. He feels he is innocent, and Jean-Luc wants to find another way-or else militarily defend him. This could be the second chapter. How they work things out: whether there is a way for Q to live, or whether we see him go down to the Calamarain world and we see just what the ritual confession is that he has to go through. Also, it would help us very much if we see just what he did to expose the Calamarain social system as inconsistent and unjust, and irrational. He is to be killed for the crime of revealing that "the Emperor has no clothes," so to speak or for the crime of revealing "An Inconvenient Truth" that exposes the inconsistencies in the foundations of Calamarain society and culture. Even though he is an outsider he is to be killed for speaking heresy that refutes the social norms of Calanarain society. He's not standing accused of robbery, murder, or criminal offenses.

The third, or possibly the third and fourth chapters would be about Q's gradual growth as a human and member of the Crew. With his great abiities he can do much, and at the end of Chapter One already has, to help both the Enterprise and the people on other worlds as well. At some point I'm sure the Senior Officers would conclude that he should be given a regular position in Star Fleet, but that due to his tempermental difficulties he should not be given the authority to issue Orders to other Star Fleet Personel. A rank of Lt. Commander, like that of Data and LaForge in recognition of their common abilities, but without command authority,

This was a wonderfully well written Story, or Chapter. There are so many good beginnings and so much left hangling undecided or undisclosed. I hope very much that the Author will go on and complete the story.

-Lilith Kayden

Yay! This is great. Wonderful Q characterisation.