The Great Rift lies between the Sagitarius and Orion arms of the galaxy. Stars are scarce there, beyond the authority of the Federation, and legends abound of lost civilizations and of ancient monsters that prey on those who dare to venture into the vast darkness between the stars. When several ships and colonies mysteriously disappear into the Rift, the U.S.S. Enterprise leads an expedition to investigate various disturbing reports. Accompanied by two other Federation starships, Picard and his fellow captains discover a bizarre menace of unimaginable power. And the only way to trap this destructive entity is to use the Enterprise as bait.

With the help of the Vulcan leader T'Pau, Spock gets permission to use the Guardian of Forever, a portal through time constructed by a long-vanished race, to venture into the past. On another trip into history, on the planet Sarpeidon, Spock had loved a woman who could not return with him to the future, and now Spock wishes to see the son she bore him, 5,000 years earlier. But a Romulan attack on the Guardian's planet could interfere, unless the Enterprise can keep the Guardian out of their hands.

Just over a year ago, Captain James T. Kirk was lost in the Nexus while saving the USS Enterprise-B from destruction. Aboard the science ship USS Intrepid II, Captain Spock, commanding some of his old crewmates, must face the loss of his closest friend. But while still in mourning for one friend he must come to the aid of another.

Spock's childhood friend David Rabin, now a captain, has been assigned to a harsh desert world much like Vulcan, where the Federation is determined to protect the lives of the inhabitants. But Rabin's efforts are being sabotaged and he has asked for Spock's help against the unknown forces that may destroy the society he has come to save.

While reflecting on his youthful adventure with Rabin the adventure that set him on the path to Starfleet Spock joins with him to face an enemy out of their shared past and confront deadly Romulan treachery. In the process, Spock will decide if the path of his life now leads back toward the family traditions he had once sought to escape.

The planet Sanctuary — A fabled world in unexplored space which is thought to be the last refuge of the persecuted, home to both the justly and unjustly accused. Though its name has been translated into every language in the galaxy, Starfleet has never known its exact location.

When the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise is assigned to capture a dangerous criminal named Auk Rex, their pursuit takes them to an unexplored sector of space. Captain Kirk, Mr. Spock, and Dr. McCoy continue the pursuit in a shuttlecraft, following Auk Rex to the surface of the planet, Sanctuary. Soon, Kirk and his crew are locked in a life and death struggle on the mysteriouus planet, which harbors deadly secrets and never releases its visitors.