Christopher Pike

Christopher Pike was a 23rd century Starfleet officer. He was captain of the starship USS Enterprise (NCC-1701) for many years, as the immediate predecessor to later Captain James T. Kirk, succeeding Captain Robert April.

Rigel and Talos
In 2254, Captain Pike led a landing party to Rigel VII. Attacked by Kaylar warriors, three crewmen were killed, including Pike's own yeoman. Spock and six others were also injured. The incident weighed heavily on Pike's mind for some time, causing him to consider resigning his commission.

It was in that state of mind, while was en route to Vega colony, that Pike and the Enterprise crew made first contact with Talos IV. The highly-telepathic Talosians abducted Pike, and later his first officer and new yeoman, to breed a race of slaves in order to rebuild their society. While captive, Pike met and fell in love with, but left her behind on Talos in order to preserve her illusion of youth and vitality. 

In the aftermath of the Talos incident, Starfleet enacted General Order 7, forbidding contact with the Talosians, under penalty of death.

Promotion and tragedy
Pike commanded the Enterprise for at least 11 years, during which time Spock served as his science officer. In the mid-2260s, he was promoted to fleet captain, and relinquished command of the Enterprise to James T. Kirk. Shortly thereafter, Pike was supervising a group of cadets aboard a training vessel. There was an accident, and Pike fell victim to delta radiation, though he saved the lives of the midshipmen.

Horribly disfigured, Pike was placed in a life-supporting wheelchair, which could translate his brain's encephalographic signals into blinking lights - one for "yes," two for "no."

Return to Talos
Christopher Pike would have lived out the rest of his life a prisoner in his own body, were it not for the Talosians, who made Commander Spock aware of his former captain's ordeal. Spock then devised an elaborate plan to use the Enterprise to take Captain Pike from Starbase 11 and return him to Talos IV, where he could at least have the illusion of health. Spock was court-martialed for his actions, but the charges were later dropped by Starfleet Command, in recognition of his service to Pike.

Returned to Talos, Pike was reunited with Vina, and the two lived an idyllic life of illusion free from their physical disabilities. 

Additional data

 * With little canon data on Christopher Pike, different interpretations of his early life and career have sprung up over the years. The Marvel Comics series Star Trek: Early Voyages and the 2006 Pocket Books novel Burning Dreams'' depict contradictory information on Pike's childhood.

The Early Voyages
Christopher Pike was the son of retired Starfleet Admiral Joshua Pike, and was born on April 11th 2220 in Mojave, California, Earth. (EV comic: "The Flat, Gold Forever").

Burning Dreams
Christopher Richard McKinnies was born in Mojave, California in 2219, the son of architect Willa McKinnies, and would not know his biological father until adulthood. When Christopher was nine, his mother married terraformer Heston Prescott, and his stepson took his surname.

In 2228 the family moved to the colony world of Elysium. There he was befriended by Charlie Pike, an apparent drifter and hired hand, who helped the family in their horse breeding endeavor. Willa and Heston died in 2231 when intense wildfires swept across Elysium. While aboard a Starfleet ship aiding rescue operations on Elysium, Chris learned that Charlie was a Starfleet petty officer who had been on extended leave. Pike brought Christopher back to Mojave, to the home he shared with his wife, Hobelia. Charlie also brought Tango, a horse that Chris and Charlie had been raising back to Mojave as well. The day after Christopher's thirteenth birthday, the couple formally adopted him, and gave him the surname Pike. Pike would later learn that Charlie Pike was actually his biological father.

Starfleet

 * Different novels and comics sometimes present conflicting data about Pike's pre-Enterprise'' career, though the various sources fit together well just as often.

Academy and Early Career
Pike attended Starfleet Academy, and graduated in 2241 at the top of his class. Fellow members of his class included Lucien Murat, Akiko Torunaga, and Kadish of Vulcan, all of whom also became Starfleet legends. (TNG novel: The Forgotten War)

In 2246, he held the rank of lieutenant commander, and was temporarily assigned as first officer of the USS Aldrin under Captain Kamnach. Pike was forced to relieve Kamnach of duty when the captain launched an unprovoked attack on a Vestian ship. Pike was charged with mutiny, but all charges were dismissed following a court-martial, and Pike given a promotion to Commander, and assigned to the USS York. (TOS novel: Burning Dreams)


 * It is possible that the York was supposed to be a reference to the Yorktown''.

Pike served as the executive officer of the USS Enterprise under Captain Robert April for a time. Here, he met a young Spock for the first time. (TOS young adult novel: Crisis on Vulcan)

Pike's third command was the USS Yorktown, where he first met the mysterious Number One and Dermot Cusack. (TOS novel: Vulcan's Glory)

At some point, Pike along with his trusted Yeoman Cusack were involved with a conflict with the Tholians. (EV comic: "The Firest of Pharos")

Enterprise
In 2251, Captain Robert April announced to the UFP Grand Assembly that he was stepping down as commanding officer of the USS Enterprise. Pike was given command of the Enterprise, bringing  Number One with him as his XO, and Cusack as captain's yeoman. (TOS novels: Final Frontier, Vulcan's Glory; EV comic: "Flesh of My Flesh")


 * For extensive details of Pike's command of the Enterprise'', according to the novels and comics, see this section of his article at Memory Beta.

After Enterprise
In 2264, following the end of his second five-year mission on the Enterprise, Pike accepted a promotion to Fleet Captain.


 * The following paragraph is a spoiler for a recently released (19 December 2007) comic book

Shortly after this promotion, Pike was at Babel and aided Leata, an Orion woman. (Star Trek Alien Spotlight: Orions)

In 2265, aboard the USS Tereshkova, he participated in a joint Starfleet-Trill study of a rogue comet in the Trill system. At the request of Trill scientist Audrid Dax, he agreed to keep the discovery of a parasitic life form inside that comet classified. (TOS novel: Where Sea Meets Sky; DS9 short story: "Sins of the Mother")

Later life
On Talos, Pike and Vina lived a life of illusion, freeing them from their ruined bodies. But soon, the illusions came to feel empty to them. So, Pike, still an explorer at heart, looked for a way to give his life meaning again. He found it in the abandoned technology of the Talosian race. He studied their history, their rise to power eons ago, and their fall when the illusions they had created consumed them. Pike also learned the Talosians mental abilities. With the Talosians' help, he repaired the equipment that had manipulated the environment long ago, and started the world back on the road to new life. The Talosian robots even built a home for Pike and Vina in a reclaimed part of the surface.

Pike also studied the ancient Talosians' medical techniques. Using them, he and Vina finally were able to have the only thing missing in their lives -- a child. Phillip Joshua Pike was born in 2276, ten years after his father had returned to Talos.

In 2289, then-Captain Spock made a return visit to Talos. He had been sent by Starfleet to offer Pike a way to return home -- to undergo an experimental proceedure that would put Pike's brain inside a partly-cloned, partly-bionic body. After Phillip attacked Spock out of fear that his father would leave forever, Pike refused the offer, and remained on Talos with his wife and son. (TOS comic: "Door in the Cage")

On Talos, Pike helped inspire the Talosians to reclaim the surface of their planet and rebuild their former culture. By the time of his death around 2320, Talos IV had again become a thriving world, and Pike (in a recorded message, relayed after his death) appealed to Spock, now an ambassador, to take some of his ashes back to Earth, and to help bring Talos into the Federation. (TOS novel: Burning Dreams)

In 2373, the Talosians created an illusion of Pike to assist Omega Squad in repelling a Jem'Hadar invasion of Talos. (Starfleet Academy comic)


 * What became of Phillip Pike after his parents' deaths is unknown, and with DC Comics' loss of the Star Trek publishing license, the tale will likely never be told.

In Memoriam

 * The Christopher Pike Medal of Valor was named in Fleet Captain Pike's honor. Benjamin Sisko and Solok received the award in the 24th century.
 * There was also a shuttlecraft Pike carried onboard USS Enterprise-D.
 * On the planet Cestus III, there is a Pike City, which has a baseball team named the Pike City Pioneers.
 * In 2336, a Decker-class starship, the USS Christopher Pike (NCC-36002) was named in his honor.
 * A second vessel named after Pike was launched in 2368, the Galaxy-class starship USS Christopher Pike (NCC-72091).

Fan continuities
The Galaxy-class USS Christopher Pike (NCC-72091) was named for Pike. (Star Trek: Pendragon; Star Trek: Pioneer)

Star Trek: New Voyages
In 2266, Fleet Captain Christopher Pike commanded the USS Daedalus (NCC-129).


 * In an alternate timeline, Christopher Pike was destroyed along with the USS Enterprise by the Planet Killer. This event set up the Doomsday War. ("In Harm's Way")

Biographical timeline

 * 2210s: Born in Mojave on Earth.
 * 2213:
 * 2219: (TOS novel: Burning Dreams)
 * 2220: April 11 (Star Trek: Early Voyages)
 * 2235: He's assigned to USS Yorktown (NX-1531) as Ensign and Helsman.
 * 2236: The SS Columbia crash-lands on planet Talos IV; only one survivor named Vina. (TOS: "The Cage")
 * 2245: USS Enterprise NCC-1701 is launched under Captain Robert April.
 * 2250s: Christopher Pike takes over command of the Enterprise.
 * circa 2252: Spock begins service on the Enterprise under Captain Pike's command, becoming a loyal and long-serving officer.
 * 2254: The Enterprise visits Rigel VII, Talos IV, Vega colony. (TOS: "The Cage")
 * 2260s:
 * 2264: Pike is promoted to fleet captain; the Enterprise is turned over to the command of Captain James T. Kirk.
 * 2266: Fleet Captain Pike is bound by delta rays to a wheelchair by an accident aboard a training vessel. He is taken by Spock and the Enterprise to Talos IV, goes into retirement and lives with Vina in illusory bliss.
 * 2276: Son born on Talos IV. (TOS comic: "Door in the Cage")
 * 2320: Dies on Talos IV (Burning Dreams, Starfleet Academy comic)