Augment

File:Khan2285.jpg

Khan Noonien Singh in 2285, the Augment tyrant and last vestige of the Eugenics Wars.

Augment is a term used to describe a group of genetically engineered Humans created by DNA resequencing in the late 20th century, a group of Klingons, and other genetically-engineered beings. (Those from the 20th century were also called supermen.) The Augments were designed to be stronger, faster, and more intelligent than a normal Human being. Even their resistance to energy weapons was improved, as it took multiple shots with a phase pistol to stun one. (ENT: "Borderland")

The Eugenics Wars

Dr. Stavos Keniclius, an Augment scientist involved in the Eugenics Wars

These Augments were five times stronger than the average person, their lung efficiency was 50 percent better than normal, their heart muscles where twice as strong, they possessed remarkable agility, and their intelligence was double that of normal Humans. (TOS: "Space Seed"; ENT: "Borderland") They, however, were aggressive and arrogant – one of the scientists behind their creation said that "superior ability breeds superior ambition." Doctor Arik Soong later theorized that a defect in the genomes of the Augments created a malformation in the base-pair sequences that regulate the neurotransmitter levels in their brains, causing them to be highly prone to aggression and violent behavior. (ENT: "The Augments")

In 1993, the Augments seized power in over 40 nations on Earth, leading to the conflict known to them as the Great Wars, as they battled amongst each other and with "normal" Humans. The Augments were mostly horrible despots, treating their subjects like slaves. (TOS: "Space Seed")

They were finally overthrown in 1996; the last to be deposed was Khan Noonien Singh. After the end of the war some eighty Augments were unaccounted for, including Khan. (Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan) Earth authorities collected the remaining Augment embryos and placed them into storage; by the 2130s they were stored on the Earth Starfleet facility Cold Station 12. (ENT: "Cold Station 12") As a result of the Wars, genetic engineering was banned on Earth; the first Human clone, Stavos Keniclius, was exiled from the planet. (TAS: "The Infinite Vulcan")

Soong's Augments

Malik in 2154

In the 2130s, Arik Soong, senior medical director of Cold Station 12, managed to steal several Augment embryos from the facility, which he took to the Trialas system, where he raised the resulting children as his own. A decade later he was captured by Earth forces, but refused to disclose what had happened to the embryos. (ENT: "Cold Station 12")

In May 2154 the answer to this puzzle was discovered when Soong's Augments, led by Malik, seized control of a Klingon Bird-of-Prey, jettisoning its crew into space. (ENT: "Borderland") The Klingons recovered these bodies, and discovering the Human DNA on them, threatened war. The NX-01 Enterprise was launched to the Borderland to find these Augments and bring them back to Earth, and Arik Soong was recruited to assist the ship in doing so.

Unfortunately, Soong managed to escape on Verex III and rejoin his Augments, who then planned to use their bird-of-prey to "liberate" the thousands of other embryos on Cold Station 12. (ENT: "Borderland") All of these Augments were killed when Malik destroyed their bird-of-prey to avoid capture. Soong, who "defected" to Enterprise, decided afterwards to switch his focus to cybernetics. (ENT: "The Augments")

See also: The Augment Crisis

Klingon Augments

A Klingon prisoner infected with the Augment virus

After the Augment crisis, the Klingons attempted to create their own augments to combat the Humans, believing that Humans would place Augments on their ships and put the Klingons at a severe disadvantage. They were able to retrieve multiple embryos left over in the debris of the Augment Bird-of-Prey and implemented their DNA in certain Klingons. However, due to the aggressiveness of Augment DNA, the cranial ridges started to dissolve and the Klingon Augments completely lacked ridges on their foreheads.

These subjects did gain increased strength and intelligence, but they died when their neural pathways degraded. Unfortunately, one of the subjects was suffering from Levodian flu, which was modified by the Augment genes to become a deadly, airborne plague that spread throughout the Empire. An early symptom of this plague caused victims to lose the ridges on their foreheads and to look more Human. Other symptoms included irregular heartbeat, chest pain, and tingling in the cranial ridges.

A cure was eventually created which halted the virus in the first stage, retaining the changes in appearance but with no enhanced strength, speed, or endurance. This left millions of Klingons without their ridges, an alteration that was even passed on to their children, though it was hoped that one day gene therapy would be developed to reverse the effects (ENT: "Affliction", "Divergence"; DS9: "Trials and Tribble-ations"; TOS et al)

The Klingon augment situation was used to explain why Klingons in Star Trek: The Original Series had flat foreheads.

The Return of Khan

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Khan Noonien Singh in 2267

The fate of Khan and his Augments remained unknown until 2267, when the NCC-1701 Enterprise discovered the Botany Bay, a DY-100 class sleeper ship. Aboard the ship was Khan and 71 of his fellow Augments (twelve had died due to sleeper unit failure in the interim). At first the Enterprise crew was unaware of the true identity of Khan, but when it was discovered, Khan attempted to take the ship, though he ultimately failed.

Enterprise commanding officer James T. Kirk generously offered Khan and his followers voluntary exile to the uninhabited Class M planet Ceti Alpha V, and Khan accepted. (TOS: "Space Seed") Unfortunately, six months later the nearby planet Ceti Alpha VI exploded, causing the orbit of Ceti Alpha V to shift, which decimated the planet's environment. The dominant remaining lifeform was the Ceti eel, which claimed many of Khan's followers.

In 2285, Khan seized control of the NCC-1864 Reliant, intending to use it to destroy Kirk in revenge for what had happened to him and his people. In the end, Khan died when Reliant was destroyed by the detonation of the Genesis Device after a heated battle in the Mutara Nebula.

Khan was presumably the last of the Augments from the Eugenics Wars. (Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan)

24th Century onwards

Genetic engineering is illegal in the Federation (except for correcting serious defects at birth), however there have been several incidents and cases in the 24th century.

In 2365 the Darwin Genetic research station conducted genetic modification on several human children. The 'children' appeared to be physically mature while still only 12 years old and possessed Telepathy, Telekinesis and an agressive immune responce to illness. The latter modification proved to be dangerous, when the crew of the Starship USS Lantree introduced Thelusian Flu to the 'children' for the first time, their immune system produced an anti body that altered the DNA of a standard human and caused he or she to rapidly age. (TNG: "Unnatural Selection")

In 2347 Julian Bashir went under Genetic resequencing at the request of his parents on Adigeon Prime when he was just 6 years old. As a result his IQ, height, weight, reflexes, vision and eye-hand coordination where improved dramatically. (DS9: "Doctor Bashir, I Presume?")

As well as bashir, several others where also subject to Genetic resequencing when they where children, although the enhancements worked it produced behavioural problems, forcing their parents to come foward and confess to the authorities so their children could recieve care.(DS9: "Statistical Probabilities")

Known Augments

• See: Category:Augments

Episodes featuring Human Augments

The term "Augment" itself was only used in the 22nd century episodes of ENT.

• ENT:
  • "Borderland"
  • "Cold Station 12"
  • "The Augments"
  • "Affliction"
  • "Divergence"
• TOS: "Space Seed"
• TAS: "The Infinite Vulcan"
• Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
• DS9:
  • Julian Bashir appears in all episodes except:
    • "Paradise"
    • "Blood Oath"
    • "Destiny"
    • Bashir is only first established as having been genetically altered in the Season 5 DS9 episode "Doctor Bashir, I Presume", so no prior episodes make use of the fact that they feature an Augment.
  • The following episodes dealt specifically with Bashir's status as an Augment:
    • "Doctor Bashir, I Presume"
    • "Statistical Probabilities"
    • "Chrysalis"