First Sergeant Gage Pembleton was the senior non-commissioned officer within the MACO unit assigned to the Columbia (NX-02) in 2156. He was of Canadian heritage. He had a wife and at least two sons together. Gage was aboard the Columbia when it suffered a crippling attack at the hands of the Romulans. Captain Erika Hernandez ordered the ship towards a Class M planet at impulse close to c, a decision some of the MACOs felt strongly against. Gage felt that he would be missing most of his son's young life, but when Major Stephen Foyle subtly suggested that new leadership might be required aboard the Columbia, Gage felt that he trusted the analysis done by the flight officers that there was no other option, and that a change in strategy or leadership would not be in their best interest in the situation.

After the Columbia arrived at the planet later determined to be Erigol, Pembleton was one of the six MACOs that beamed down to survey the surface, and then was joined by the flight officer away team that made contact with the Caeliar, becoming permanent visitors due to their desire for complete isolation from the universe. When the MACOs decided to rebel and escape their imprisonment on Erigol, Pembleton and Private Crichlow subdued first officer Veronica Fletcher. Pembleton was prepared to carry out the previously planned execution of Captain Erika Hernandez, but Foyle decided against it when the time came.

Pembleton then was part of the team to travel to Mantilis and capture the Great Work apparatus, forcing the Caeliar there to reduce the scattering field, allowing Yacavino to contact the Columbia. Pembleton fired on Kiona Thayer, injuring her foot, in order to ensure the cooperation of the Caeliar scientists. After Hernandez was freed and allowed to speak to her officers from the Quorum, she insisted that Pembleton kill Thayer so that she did not suffer needlessly; eventually, he and the other MACOs stood down. However, the extragalactic feedback pulse that disrupted the Great Work caused the planet to explode; the city of Mantilis was able to escape, but millions of Caeliar sacrificed themselves to ensure that the six humans lived to crash land on a planet thousands of years into their past. (ST - Destiny novel: Gods of Night)

Pembleton was one of three humans to be possessed by a lone deranged Caeliar Sedín. Sedin then instructed Kiona Thayer and Karl Graylock to kill Pembleton and eat him to survive. Thayer and Graylock would become the first Borg Drones.

Columbia personnel
United Earth (civilian registry)	SS Columbia	Theodore Haskins • Vina
United Earth Starfleet	Columbia (NX-02)	Reiko Akagi • Diane Atlagic • Erika Hernandez • Trip Tucker • Karl Graylock • Veronica Fletcher • Kalil el-Rashad • Johanna Metzger • Brynn Mealia • Sidra Valerian • Kiona Thayer • Katrin Gunnarsdóttir • Biggs • Stewart Rivers • Strong • Russell Hexter • Claudia Siguenza • MACO personnel: Eric Crichlow • Stephen Foyle • Niccolo Mazzetti • Hossad Mottaki • Ndufe Otumbo • Gage Pembleton • Thom Steinhauer • Vincenzo Yacavino
Federation, Starfleet	USS Columbia (NCC-621)	Clark Terrell