2382 (STO)

2382

• The loss of agricultural planets claimed by the Imperial Romulan State threatened Romulus with severe food shortages. Romulus' power plants and factories could not increase output without the heavy metals and dilithium that once flowed from Remus. To avert the looming civil crisis, Praetor Tal'aura reluctantly accepted food shipments from the Federation. But she refused the Federation's offer to facilitate negotiations between her and Empress Donatra, saying that the dispute was an internal Romulan matter. Tal'aura charged her proconsul, Fleet Commander Tomalak, with retaking the planets held by Donatra. Tomalak appointed Admiral Taris as his second in command and ordered her to reorganize and mobilize Romulus' remaining military forces. (Star Trek Online)

• Seeking to stabilize the homeworld, Tal'aura agrees to reform the Romulan Senate. A reorganization commission selected by Tal'aura votes to allow her to appoint senators directly rather than holding elections, and she packs the Senate with her supporters. (Star Trek Online)

• Leaders of the Romulan-Vulcan Unification movement petition Tal'aura for representation in the Senate for themselves and the Remans, but Tal'aura declines to respond to their request. (Star Trek Online)

• The makeup of the Romulan Senate angers Romulan nobles, who dominated the Senate prior to Shinzon's takeover but held only a handful of seats after the reorganization. Representatives of several of the noble lines argued that for centuries the Romulan Senate has been a partner with the praetor in governing the empire, something that a weakened body beholden to Tal'aura could not be. (Star Trek Online)

• The Line of Tellus denounces Tal'aura and withdraws its members from government service. (Star Trek Online)

• The Klingon Empire takes advantage of the weakened position of the Romulans to stage lightning strikes into Romulan space, retaking Khitomer and the sector surrounding it. The Federation Council criticizes the move, but Ambassador K'mtok responded that the empire was simply reclaiming territory that belonged to the Klingons by right. (Star Trek Online)

• These are the words of Mojog, General of the Klingon Empire: "It took months to convince Martok that the time was right to strike. He was concerned about the Federation, and whether this attack would challenge the alliance. It was none of their concern! We are Klingons! War is our birthright! The Romulans are our enemies! We swept across the borders in a wave of destruction, smashing their meager defenses and conquering all that we saw. Soon we reached Khitomer. The Romulans were weak and starving. They barely put up a fight. Hundreds of their soldiers fled like cowards before our warriors could even set foot on the planet. After almost forty years, the Romulans have finally paid for their sneak attack on our colony. The shades of the 4,000 Klingons killed in that massacre have their vengeance. Khitomer is ours again!" (Star Trek Online)

Spock (ST 11)

• Thwarted in their attempts to find a role in the Romulan government, the Unification movement, represented by Ambassador Spock, pressed its case with the Federation Council. The Council took up the matter of formally supporting the Unificationists, but was heavy influenced by Councilor T'Los of Vulcan, who stated that the result of the unification of the two races could not be predetermined, which the probable course of the Romulans and Vulcans remaining separate could be reasonably predicted. Therefore, her only logical choice was to protect the Vulcan way of life by opposing unification. The council did not reach a decision on whether or not to support the Unificationists, and voted to table the matter. The bill was not expected to return to the Council floor for debate again. (Star Trek Online)

EMH (ST 08)

• A legal issue of interest to analysts in the Federation was rights for artificial life forms. On Stardate 60334.46, Admiral Owen Paris of Starfleet Research and Development ordered the mobile emitter brought back from the Delta Quadrant by the U.S.S. Voyager NCC-74656 to be taken to Starfleet's facility on Galor IV for study. The Emergency Medical Hologram (EMH) known as The Doctor filed a lawsuit to block the transfer of the mobile emitter, arguing that he was a sentient being who acted as a member of Starfleet during Voyager's time in the Delta Quadrant and that the mobile emitter was necessary to his quality of life and performance of his duties. The office of the Judge Advocate General issues an injunction against the transfer of the mobile emitter until it could study the case and issue a ruling. (Star Trek Online)

• The Bajorans and their allies continue to press for the Cardassians to surrender members of its government and military to stand trial for war crimes. But over the course of four months, 472 Cardassians wanted by the Bajorans disappear from Cardassia Prime. The Cardassian government reports it is attempting to determine the whereabouts of its citizens, but little progress is made. The Bajorans respond by accusing the Cardassian government of willingly assisting fugitives. (Star Trek Online)

• Ro Laren completes her time in Federation custody and returns to Bajor. She accepts a commission in the Bajoran militia and is appointed head of security for Deep Space 9. (Star Trek Online)

2383

• Intelligence operatives for Starfleet and the Klingon Empire continue to gather reports of unrest on Romulus. Praetor Tal'aura authorizes food rationing and strict limits on replicator use on the homeworld, saying that the empire's resources must be reserved to support the military's campaign against Donatra and the breakaway Imperial Romulan State. The shortages spark rioting in the capital of Ki Baratan, and the struggle continues for two days before the praetor orders troops to intervene. Observers on Romulus suggest that as many as 2,000 people are killed either in the initial riots or at the hands of Romulan troops. The civil unrest and resistance from Romulan nobles strains Tal'aura's command of the empire. She calls upon her allies in the Senate to help stabilize the government, and they respond by voting to expand the praetor's powers, giving Tal'aura the power to grant or remove noble titles, a privilege that previously only the emperor enjoyed. She also is granted the ability to declare war without Senate approval. (Star Trek Online)

• Ambassador Spock returns to Romulus to take his place with the Unificationists. Leaders of the movement say that although they did not win the support of the Federation, they will continue to "wage peace" on Romulus. (Star Trek Online)

• On Stardate 60900.31, Fleet Commander Tomalak attacks Donatra's fleet at Xanitla. Tomalak's forces are soundly defeated in the battle, and he is dealt a further blow when Admiral Taris and the twelve ships under her command defect to the Imperial side. (Star Trek Online)

• The Cardassians make some gains in their efforts to rebuild their war-ravaged planet, signing a new agreement for aid from the Federation and beginning reconstruction of Lakarian City. Excavation of several sites on the planet reveals Hebitian relics, and the publication of these finds sparks a resurgence of interest among Cardassians in ancient religious and cultural practices. The Oralians, a religious group dating back to the Hebitian civilization that was outlawed by the Cardassian Union, begin openly holding services and seeking adherents among the Cardassian population. The rise of this spiritual movement is opposed by the followers of the True Way, which continues to call for a return to the totalitarian practices of the Union. (Star Trek Online)

• In 2383, the Klingon Empire and the United Federation of Planets are at odds over the Klingon takeover of Khitomer. In a narrow vote, the Federation Council decides not to formally censure the Empire for its military action. However, the fact that the matter went to the full Council for a vote is enough of an affront for Qo'noS to temporarily recall its ambassador to the Federation. Hardliners on the Klingon High Council demand that Martok eject Federation ambassadors from Klingon space. Martok refuses to do so, and then defeats Councilor Qolka in a duel of honor after he accuses Martok of being a "pet desperate for the approval of his Starfleet masters." (Star Trek Online)

• In legal matters, Rear Admiral James Bennett of the Starfleet Judge Advocate General's office rules that the "Data decision," referenced in The Doctor's legal arguments to keep the mobile emitter, is too narrow to be used in The Doctor's case. Bennett rules that the precedent can only be applied to prove that The Doctor is not the property of Starfleet, and not to decide whether or not he is a sentient being. The Doctor's counsel appeals the decision, and analysts predict that the case would continue for some time. The Soong Foundation, a group affiliated with the Daystrom Institute and dedicated to promoting the rights of artificial life forms, announces that it is beginning research to create a mobile holographic emitter of its own design, with the hopes that the technology could be adapted for civilian use. (Star Trek Online)

2384

• Federation analysts say that a shakeup in the Romulan power structure leaves the empire vulnerable to attack from within and without. Starfleet dispatches additional ships to the border of the Neutral Zone and considers the Romulan situation one of the main threats to Federation safety and security. (Star Trek Online)

• After Tomalak's defeat by Donatra and her fleet, Praetor Tal'aura removes him as proconsul, choosing Sela as her right hand and fleet commander. Sela, a Human-Romulan hybrid with extensive experience in the military and intelligence fields, was a part of several major Romulan operations, including a failed a attempt to invade Vulcan and coordinating support for the House of Duras's attempt to take over the Klingon High Council in 2367. As a gift to Tomalak for his decades of loyal service to the Romulan Star Empire, Tal'aura allowed him to "retire" to his rural estates on Romulus. (Star Trek Online)

• The Romulan defeat at Xanitla made open war with Empress Donatra infeasible. Praetor Tal'aura reluctantly agrees to negotiate with the Imperial Romulan State to determine new borders and the establishment of a neutral zone, but rejects the Federation's offer to mediate the talks. Donatra says that she would welcome the Federation's input, but that she would defer to Tal'aura's decision in this matter. She sends Admiral Taris to the Romulan capital as her representative. (Star Trek Online)

• On Stardate 61602.00, Tal'aura is found dead in her private chambers. Tal Shiar investigators report that the praetor was attacked as she slept. The Romulan capital erupts in a firestorm of rumors and accusations. Among the groups suspected of carrying out the assassination are a coalition of the noble houses, the Tal Shiar, and agents working for Empress Donatra and the Imperial Romulan State. Donatra denies having anything to do with the murder. "I face my enemies on the field of battle with honor," the empress announces in an address to her citizens, "not with a knife in the dark." Days later, Donatra recalls Taris from Romulus and orders her to prepare to defend Imperial holdings. At Tal'aura's funeral in Ki Baratan, Sela publicly blames the Remans and the Unification movement for the attack. "They claim to desire peace," Sela says, "but ally with the murderers and usurpers who terroized our planet and led us to the brink of destruction. The blood of one praetor was not enough for the Remans. Tal'aura was the victim of their thirst for destruction." (Star Trek Online)

• On Stardate 61829.83, the I.K.S. Quv is attacked by a Gorn ship. Two hundred and seven Klingons die in the battle. Representatives of King Xrathis of the Gorn claim that the commander of their warship was acting without orders, but refuse to surrender the surviving crew of the Quv to the Klingon Empire. In response, Chancellor Martok expels Gorn diplomats from Klingon space and orders ships to the Empire's border with the Gorn Hegemony. (Star Trek Online)

• Representatives of the Federation Council are pleased to accept Bajor's renewed application for Federation membership, and pledge to fast-track the planet's admission. The increased traffic and commerce expected to arrive with Federation membership prompts the Ferengi to open an expansive embassy and gift shop near Quark's on Deep Space 9. (Star Trek Online)

• Odo, acting as the Great Link's ambassador to the solids, meets with his fellow Changeling Laas on Koralis III. Odo invites Laas to return with him to the Gamma Quadrant. Laas refuses, choosing instead to continue to search for other changelings in the Alpha and Beta Quadrants. (Star Trek Online)

• In late 2384, Starfleet transfers the Soong-type android B-4 to the custody of the Soong Foundation. The prototype android, with a less advanced positronic matrix than Noonian Soong's later androids Data and Lore, was deactivated after its discovery by the Enterprise-E in 2379. At the time of the transfer, Soong Foundation representatives said they hoped to restore B-4 to full positronic functioning. (Star Trek Online)

2385

Enterprise-E (ST 08)

• In 2385, Starfleet Command announces that it has completed a re-evaluation of all post-Dominion War assets and resources. Based on the results, the admirals decide to refocus some ships from defense and diplomacy to exploration and scientific discovery. Among the ships that are assigned to new duties is the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-E. "The flagship of Starfleet is not a warship," says Commander Marie Durant, a spokesperson for Starfleet Command. "The Enterprise and her crew are the pinnacle of Federation achievement. We need them out on the edge of explored space, making new contacts and reaching out in friendship to races across the galaxy." The Enterprise's final mission before returning to Earth for reassignment is to assist the population of Khitomer. On Stardate 62230.13, the Klingon Empire announces it is expelling all non-Klingon residents of the planet as a "safety measure." It gives the residents 14 standard days to leave the planet, but Chancellor Martok later agrees to extend the deadline after speaking to Captain Jean-Luc Picard. The Enterprise leads a contingent of ships to Khitomer, assists in the evacuation, and the former residents are safely resettled on Federation worlds. (Star Trek Online)

Jean-Luc Picard (ST 08)

• The Enterprise-E's mission to Khitomer is the last for its legendary captain as well. After a personal request from the president of the Federation and a great deal of personal reflection, Captain Jean-Luc Picard resigns his commission with Starfleet. After a three-month sabbatical in France, Picard takes his place as the Federation ambassador to Vulcan. He is not the only senior staff member of the Enterprise who moves on to other projects. Chief Medical Officer Beverly Crusher accepts the position of captain of the U.S.S. Pasteur, an Olympic class ship. Her first task is to assist efforts to rebuild hospitals and medical facilities on Cardassia Prime. Worf, son of Mogh, also resigns his Starfleet commission, believing that with the recent strains in relations between the Federation and the Klingons, he would best be of service in a diplomatic role. He returns to Qo'noS to take up the post of lead ambassador, and a few months later begins a tentative relationship with Grilka, the leader of a Klingon noble house whom he met while serving on Deep Space 9. (Star Trek Online)

• With much of the senior staff gone and its role in flux, the Enterprise-E is assigned to the shipyards of Utopia Planitia for an extensive refit. The Starfleet Corps of Engineers reports that the refit will take at least a year to complete, because they plan to use the ship as a testing ground for new technology. Among the new equipment installed on the Enterprise-E is an advanced sensor array first tested on Luna class starships. (Star Trek Online)

Geordi La Forge (ST 09)

• When the Enterprise-E returned to Earth, Chief Engineer Geordi La Forge requested a long-term leave of absence from Starfleet to work on personal projects, including a plan to build and test his own starship designs. His first project, however, is to assist the team at the Soong Foundation studying the Soong-type android B-4. With La Forge's help, on Stardate 62762.91 the team unlocks what it calls the "Data Matrix," successfully accessing the personality, knowledge and memories of Data, who had downloaded this information into B-4 before his destruction in the Battle of Bassen Rift. The Data persona asserts itself over B-4's more primitive programming, and the android is then able to assist the Soong Foundation team to upgrade the positronic brain and recreate the emotion chip invented by Dr. Noonian Soong. In a statement to the Federation News Service, a representative for the team says he is confident that their work will be completed in months. (Star Trek Online)

• After more than two years with no reports of Borg activity in Federation space, Starfleet Command decides to dismantle its Borg task force and use those resources elsewhere. "We can't keep waiting for something that may never happen," says spokesperson Marie Durant. "And most of our analysts now agree that Voyager dealt a bigger blow in the Delta Quadrant than we initially believed." One Federation expert on the Borg who does not agree with Starfleet Command's decision was former task force leader Seven of Nine. She leaves her role with Starfleet in protest and accepts an offer to continue her research at the Daystrom Institute. When pressed by the Federation News Service for comment, the former Borg says, "The Borg will return. If the Federation is not prepared, it will be their end." (Star Trek Online)

• In Romulan space, what began as a tumultuous year after the assassination of Praetor Tal'aura settled down into what is believed to be a long-term solution, and both Starfleet and the Klingon Empire pull back some ships from the borders of Romulan space. (Star Trek Online)

• In the weeks following Tal'aura's death, her proconsul Sela steps in to take the reins of control in the government. Granted temporary executive powers by the Senate as an emergency measure, Sela uses them to replace more than two dozen senators with representatives of noble houses who had opposed Tal'aura's rule. Among Sela's apointees is the influential noble Chulan of the Line of Tellus. The backing of the nobles gives Sela the clout she needs to run the government, but she does not have the support of the military or the Tal Shiar and her regime is generally expected to be short-lived. (Star Trek Online)

• Rehaek, the leader of the Tal Shiar, makes a rare public appearance to announce that he will personally lead the investigation into the assassination of Praetor Tal'aura. "There are certain things which may seem expedient but which honor abhors. We cannot allow this crime to go unanswered." Empress Donatra of the Imperial Romulan State wins hearts among the people of Romulus by offering food shipments to non-military settlements. Federation experts fear a three-way struggle for control of Romulus, but instead Donatra meets with Sela and Rehaek to find a peaceful solution. The three begrudgingly agree to put their personal disputes aside for the good of the Empire, and the worlds of the Imperial Romulan State are folded back into the Romulan Star Empire. Donatra holds onto the reins of power of the military and keeps much of her forces safely off-world in case the peace doesn't hold. (Star Trek Online)

• With the threat of civil war averted, the Senate opens debate on who to elect as the new praetor. Sela, as Tal'aura's proconsul, is one of the leading candidates, and she makes a play for the position. But rumors of her possible involvement in the plot to assassinate Tal'aura dog her campaign, and when Donatra declines to endorse Sela's campaign, her defeat is almost assured. After an extensive debate, Senator Chulan is chosen to be the new praetor. He is a compromise candidate who is acceptable to, but not strongly supported by, any of the major powers. Federation analysts predict that without the backing of a coalition of factions, Chulan will be a weak leader. (Star Trek Online)

• Donatra, who most agree is the broker of the newfound peace on Romulus, travels to Remus to meet General Xiomek of the Remans. She offers the Remans full citizenship in the empire and representation in the Romulan Senate in exchange for their support. While Sela opposes the plan, which she sees as rewarding the Remans for a violent uprising, she and Praetor Chulan do not have the strength to oppose Donatra's power. The physical strength of the Remans, as well as their supplies of dilithium and heavy metals, add to Donatra's formidable military strength, and she has the resources to reopen shipyards and munitions plants closed since Shinzon's revolt. As resources flow back to Romulus from Remus and the worlds Donatra controlled, energy rationing and food lines become a thing of the past. (Star Trek Online)

• The Romulan Senate is reluctant to deal with the Remans but is swayed by popular support for Donatra, and the senators reluctantly vote to allow Xiomek to take a seat in the Sentate and to extend citizenship to the Remans. In common practice, however, most Romulans continue to treat Remans as second-class citizens, and the Remans are reluctant to relocate to Romulan settlements. (Star Trek Online)

2386

• In 2386, the Romulan Mining Guild finishes a multi-year study of Remus and presents its findings to the Romulan Senate. The guild reports that the planet is seriously overmined, and recommends that, to avoid a Praxis situation, all Remus operations should be shut down and mining operations moved to more distant areas of space. As a proactive measure, the guild spreads their operations across the Empire, settling hundreds of miners and their families on space stations and colonies light years away from Romulus. The guild further recommends that it be put in charge of all off-world mining, but Colonel Xiomek of the Remans uses his new position in the Senate to block that request. In the weeks that follow, conflict between the guild and the Remans sparks a number of skirmishes between guild ships and Remans in distant areas of the Empire. (Star Trek Online)

• After the Romulan Mining Guild discovers overmining has destabilized Remus and recommends that the population of that frozen world be moved elsewhere, Colonel Xiomek of the Remans speaks to the Romulan Senate. He argues that if the Remans are to be moved, that they should be given a continent on Romulus for their new home. The full Senate overwhelmingly rejects his proposal. With the backing of Donatra, Rehaek and Praetor Chulan, an alternative plan is reached. The Remans instead are offered the planet of Crateris in the distant Gamma Crateris system. The site of a failed Romulan colony, the planet has a harsh climate and is beset by almost constant electrical storms, but is rich in dilithium, decalithium and heavy metals. Xiomek agrees, because even the harsh climate of Crateris is a significant improvement over Remus. Thousands of Remans board colony ships and make the move to their new home. (Star Trek Online)

• On Stardate 63322.55, Rehaek, leader of the Tal Shiar, sends a statement to the praetor and the leaders of the Romulan Senate with the conclusions of his investigation into the assassination of Praetor Tal'aura. Rehaek rules that Tal'aura was killed by agents loyal to a coalition of noble houses angered by her reformation of the Senate. Both Donatra and Sela request to see the evidence that backs up his claims, but Rehaek refuses to divulge his complete findings. (Star Trek Online)

• In retaliation for the death of Tal'aura, the Tal Shiar begins a campaign of assaults on the noble houses, arresting dozens of nobles and seizing their assets. Sela pushes back against the persecution of her major supporters, and in response sways the Senate to drastically cut funding to the Tal Shiar. In a speech before the Senate, Sela accuses elements inside the Tal Shiar of knowing about the plot to assassinate Tal'aura but doing nothing to stop it. "Does standing silent make them as culpable as the killers?" Sela asks. "In abandoning their sworn duty to protect the praetor, as a symbol of Romulus itself, they are no better than those who wielded the knives that killed her." Donatra refuses to take sides in the conflict between Sela and Rehaek, and instead encourages the praetor to handle the situation. Praetor Chulan appoints a Senate committee to formally investigate the matter, but the committee takes little action. (Star Trek Online)

• On Stardate 63446.41, an explosion destroys Rehaek's home on the outskirts of Ki Baratan. Observers report several visitors to the estate of the leader of the Romulan Tal Shiar in the hours before the blast, any of whom could have planted the explosives. The remains of Rehaek's wife and young daughter and several servants are found in the wreckage, but no trace of Rehaek is ever found. Investigators theorize that the blast was intense enough to have vaporized anyone close to the point of detonation. Two hours after the explosion, Tal Shiar forces storm Sela#Star_Trek_Online_Timeline|Sela's townhouse in Ki Baratan, taking her and her personal guard into custody for the murder of Rehaek. In a secret trial held days later, Sela is sentenced to death for the crime. At the last minute, Donatra intervenes. She argues that the evidence is not overwhelming, and pressures Praetor Chulan to allow Sela and her supporters to accept permanent exile instead of death. (Star Trek Online)

• The leader of the Romulan fleet, Admiral Taris, maintains a low profile during the troubles, putting many of her responsibilities in the hands of General Tebok. Late in 2386, she informs Donatra that she plans to take her ship to Levaeri V to investigate claims that a blade believed to be the Sword of the Raptor Star has been recovered. The ancient sword, reputed to be one of the swords created by Vulcan swordsmith S'harien and taken into exile by S'task, was a revered artifact of the Sundering. (Star Trek Online)

• The Gorn Hegemony mourns the death of King Xrathis in 2386. His son, Crown Prince Slathis, ascends to the throne and takes responsibility for dealing with the Hegemony's many troubles. One of his first acts is to reinforce their border with the Klingons. With more ships in the region, several skirmishes are reported. The Klingons respond to the buildup by the Gorn by sending more ships of their own to the border. The standoff escalates into open conflict on Stardate 63504.74, when a Klingon fleet bombards the Gorn colony on Gila VI. Klingon troops land on the planet two days later, and after a bloody battle with Gorn defenders they succeed in taking the planet. Federation diplomats work with both sides trying to work out a peaceful solution, but some analysts predict that a full war will erupt within four years. Federation Ambassador Worf makes a personal appeal to his friend Chancellor Martok to end the hostilities, but privately Worf admits that he is not sure if peace is possible. (Star Trek Online)

• All is not work for Ambassador Worf in 2386, though. He weds Grilka in a traditional Klingon ceremony with his family and many of his friends from Starfleet in attendance. A surprise guest at the wedding of Worf and Grilka is Data. (Star Trek Online)

• With his upgrades at the Soong Foundation complete, Data requests that his commision in Starfleet be reactivated. While there are some initial questions because the Data persona is in the body once used by B-4, after Jean-Luc Picard, William T. Riker and several other current and former members of the Enterprise-E crew testify on Data's behalf, Starfleet Command agrees to reinstate the android. He is promoted to captain and assigned to supervise the completion of the Enterprise-E's refit. On Stardate 63894.06, the refit of the Enterprise-E is complete and the ship, helmed by Captain Data, leaves the Utopia Planitia shipyards. "We are introducing a new era of exploration and peace," says Starfleet Command spokesperson Commander Marie Durant. (Star Trek Online)

• Another update by Starfleet is its uniforms. Starfleet completes a redesign of the uniform code and by the end of the year all of its officers are wearing the new designs. (Star Trek Online)

• On Ferenginar, protests rock the capital for two days after Grand Nagus Rom uses tax proceeds to start free schools. Many Ferengi sae the free education as an assault on traditional values, and the demonstrations continue until Rom charges each protester ten slips of latinum for mass assembly without a proper permit. To get a permit to protest, Rom charges a bar of latinum. Proceeds are used to fund the educational system. (Star Trek Online)

• In addition to working to curb the rising hostilities between the Klingons and the Gorn, Federation diplomats are hard at work crafting a new pact between the Federation and the Cardassians. On Stardate 63976.74, the Cardassians sign a new treaty, in which they agree not to field a military or wage war. In exchange, the Federation agrees to provide aid to rebuild Cardassian cities and military protection in the event of an invasion of Cardassian space. In response to the landmark agreement, the Bajoran coalition drops its request to prosecute Cardassians for war crimes. Many among the Bajorans and Cardassians hoped that relations between their worlds would someday be normalized. (Star Trek Online)

• On behalf of the Founders, Odo meets with Lamat'Ukan, First of the Jem'Hadar in the Alpha Quadrant. Odo asks the Jem'Hadar to return to the Gamma Quadrant with him, but Lamat'Ukan rejects Odo as a false god. "You wear the shape of our gods, but you do not have their spirit," Lamat'Ukan is reported to have said. "You are corrupted by your ... taste for the life of a solid. To follow you would be to sacrifice our souls. There would be no victory under your banner. Without victory, there is no life." (Star Trek Online)

2387

• The Daystrom Institute announces the successful launch of the Jellyfish, an experimental spacecraft equipped with trans-metaphasic shielding designed to withstand conditions that would destroy most other ships. Designed by famed engineer Geordi La Forge, the ship is slated for extensive testing before it can be used for scientific and exploration missions. Starfleet announces that it is working with La Forge and the institute to determine if any of the ship's systems can be adapted for Federation use. (Star Trek Online)

• Starfleet Intelligence recommends that the Federation keep a close eye on activities of the Orion Syndicate. A multi-year crackdown on criminal activity in the Alpha and Beta Quadrants is successful in curbing the threat of the Syndicate for Federation citizens, but on Stardate 64163.8 Hassan the Undying assassinates top Syndicate boss Raimus on Farius Prime. Raimus's death opens the door for Hassan's employer, Melani D'ian, to take over Raimus's Syndicate operations. Starfleet Intelligence estimates that after the assassination, Melani D'ian controls as much as 30 percent of the Syndicate's operations. It is feared that other Syndicate bosses will attempt to topple her before she can extend her power base further, sparking a criminal war in the Alpha Quadrant. Historians note that Melani D'ian is the first Orion to rise to a top spot in Syndicate leadership in more than 20 years, and speculate that this could mark the return of the Orions as an interstellar power. (Star Trek Online)

• On Ferenginar, social and economic reforms pushed by Grand Nagus Rom are a topic almost as important as the stock market. The Nagus presents a bill to the Economic Congress of Ferengi Advisers that would formally ally the Ferengi with the Federation. Opponents of the bill launch a campaign of advertisements that argue that a formal alliance with the Federation is an attack on traditional Ferengi values, and that the Federation will force the Ferengi to turn back on profit and the Great Material Continuum. The bill fails to pass the Congress after several lawmakers are paid to vote against it. (Star Trek Online)

• On Stardate 64317.6, Klingon long range sensors pick up a small Romulan fleet led by Sela. The fleet passes the Beta Stromgren supernova remnant and continues into unexplored space. (Star Trek Online)

• Starfleet sends a battle group to Cardassia Prime to assist the Cardassians with the dismantling of their military, a process which is expected to take several years. The Cardassians plan to use a much smaller self defense force to patrol their space, and to coordinate with Starfleet for issues outside of their borders. The arrangement is soon tested when Alpha Jem'Hadar take control of Devos II, which had been mostly unpopulated since the Dominion War. The Jem'Hadar establish a base of operations near a former Dominion ketracel white storage facility, and then expand the facility so they can manufacture their own supplies of the substance. Starfleet sends the U.S.S. Stargazer NCC-2893-A to the Devos system as a precautionary measure, but chooses to take no additional action as long as the Alpha Jem'Hadar don't make any further aggressive moves. (Star Trek Online)

• On Stardate 64333.4, a Romulan Mining Guild ship, the Narada, observes the start of a chain of events that will forever change the Alpha and Beta Quadrants. The star in the Hobus system, in the far reaches of Romulan space, begins to exhibit massive fluctuations in radiation output. Days later, Ambassador Spock of the Federation appears before the Romulan Senate to warn them about the dangers of this star. Spock believes that if the Hobus star were to go supernova, it would create a reaction that could threaten much of the Romulan Empire. He asks the Senate to coordinate with Vulcan to find a solution. After a lengthy debate, the Senate rejects Spock's plan. (Countdown, Part I, Star Trek Online)

Spock (ST 11)

• Ambassador Spock returns to Vulcan, where he meets with Ambassador Jean-Luc Picard. The two appeal to the Vulcan Science Academy to assist the Romulans with the crisis in the Hobus system, but the academy declines their request without comment. The two former Starfleet officers decide that they will make their own plans to deal with the situation. (Countdown, Part II, Star Trek Online)

• After the close of the Romulan Senate's session, Donatra accepts an invitation from Colonel Xiomek to visit Crateris and inspect the construction of the new Reman colony. Their flight path allows them to perform a sensor sweep of the Hobus system. After arriving on Crateris, Donatra and Xiomek spend several hours in a private meeting, where it is believed that Xiomek gives Donatra information about possible rogue elements within the Romulan military and government. Donatra decides to return to Romulus earlier than planned, and invites Xiomek to take passage on her ship, the I.R.W. Valdore, so he can be in Ki Baratan for the next meeting of the Romulan Senate, which will once again take up the Hobus situation. On the way back to Romulus, Donatra contacts Admiral Taris, who is in the Levaeri system, and orders her to return to Romulus. The message is recorded by Romulan military communications relay stations, but Taris does not change course. A later review finds that there is no evidence of the message in the computer banks of Taris's ship, and that the communications officer who would have been on duty during that time cannot be found. (Star Trek Online)

• On Stardate 64444.5, the I.R.W. Valdore reports unusual stellar activity, including a disturbance equivalent to a force seven ion storm. Romulus loses contact with Donatra's ship after the transmission, and dispatches four D'deridac class vessels to search for the Valdore. The Romulan Senate finally authorizes an evacuation order after the loss of the Valdore, and ships are recalled to help ferry residents of Romulus off-world. At that time, the Romulan military estimates that it will take a minimum of six weeks to evacuate the homeworld. Twenty-seven hours later, the Hobus star goes supernova. The resulting chain reaction destroys Romulus and Remus. Billions of Romulans are killed. (Star Trek Online, Countdown, Part III, Star Trek)

• After the destruction of the Romulan homeworld, Starfleet immediately orders all available ships to cross the Neutral Zone and assist the Romulans with relief and recovery efforts. Several of these ships are attacked by a man named Nero, who captains a heavily modified Romulan vessel, the Narada. Starfleet diverts additional cruisers to escort relief vessels to Romulan space. (Countdown, Part III, Star Trek Online)

• Intercepted Romulan transmissions indicate that Praetor Chulan and the leaders of the Senate escaped Romulus before the planet's destruction, but the U.S.S. Nobel, en route to Romulus, found the bodies of Chulan and the Senate's ruling council floating in space near their derelict shuttle. (Countdown, Part III, Star Trek Online)

• After Nero expands his attacks to Klingon ships, Chancellor Martok orders a fleet to enter Romulan space. He appoints his friend Worf as one of the mission's commanders, giving him the rank of General for the mission. (Countdown, Part IV, Star Trek Online)

• At the request of Spock and Jean-Luc Picard, Geordi La Forge brings the Jellyfish to Vulcan and agrees to allow Spock to pilot it to the Hobus system. Spock outfits the ship with a Red Matter converter and departs. According to sensor reports recorded on Stardate 64471.6 by the Enterprise-E, the Hobus supernova is contained by a limited singularity, ending the threat to the quadrant. Starfleet believes that Spock detonated the Red Matter in the rupture caused by the singularity, closing it with an artificially created black hole. It reports that both the Jellyfish and the Narada were lost in the event. "He sacrificed himself to save us all," Ambassador Picard said of his friend Spock. "May his soul live long and prosper." (Star Trek, Countdown, Part IV, Star Trek Online)