Born from an alliance of world united to oppose
a mighty Empire, the United Federation of planets rose to become one of four super powers
who most influenced their region of the Alpha and Beta Quadrants. After centuries intermittent periods of war
between the Federation, Romulans, Klingons and Cardassians, borders were established
and long stretches of peace maintained, though much of the animosity between their species
continued. These years of peace were largely kept through
an alliance between the Federation and Klingons, yet their drastically divergent cultures and
core values sometimes exposed the relationship as more fragile than many might believe. Nevertheless, by the late 24th century no
single power in the Alpha or Beta Quadrants could realistically challenge the authority
of the Federation-Klingon alliance. However, the uneasy peace of the 4 superpowers
did little to protect those outside their borders, and so expansionist and militaristic
cultures like the Cardassians continued to invade and capture resource rich planets resulting
in terrible conflicts such as the 50 year occupation of Bajor. Yet despite the seemingly overwhelming military
might of the Cardassian, the Bajorans refused to accept subjugation launching decades of
rebellions and terrorist attacks, until the invaders at last pulled their forces from
the region, allowing them to organize a united government and join the interstellar community
as an independent power. To aid them in their recovery Bajor developed
a friendship with the Federation, and eventually petitioned for membership, with a Starfleet
crew given permission to man Deep Space Nine, a nearby space station built and operated
by the Cardassians during the occupation. And while the Federation’s relationship
with this planet may have seemed a small detail in the larger scope of quadrant politics,
everything changed in 2369, when the Federation discovered a stable wormhole to the gamma
quadrant in Bajoran Space. To the deeply religious people of Bajor, this
event represented the opening of the celestial temple which according to ancient legends
was where their gods the Prophets resided. And as if to confirm their beliefs, it was
soon discovered by Commander Benjemin Sisko of Deep Space Nine, that the wormhole was
indeed home to mysterious extra dimensional aliens, who chose him to be their Emissary
and spoke abstractly about being Of Bajor. Yet few outside of this region of space cared
about the existence of non corporeal wormhole aliens, as most others were instead focused
on the potential of having a gateway into the Gamma Quadrant, with ships now able to
travel 70,000 light years away in mere moments. As might be expected many began to explore
this far away region of space, such as the Bajorans who quickly established colonies
and the Ferengi who began forging trade relationships with newly encountered species. Yet it was not long before these travellers
started to hear rumors about a mighty superpower known as the Dominion, said to rule large
portions of the Gamma Quadrant and who did not appreciate seeing unfamiliar ships flying
through their space. As the Dominion threat grew larger, the Federation
learned that they were ruled by Changeling, a species of highly intelligent, and technologically
advanced non humanoid shapeshifters. More formally known as the Founders, these
beings were revered as gods by two genetically engineered species they helped create, using
the Vorta to administer their holdings while the Jem Hadar fought their wars. Free from the responsibility of running the
day to day operations of the Dominion, the Founders were able to remain on their home
planet engaged in the Great Link, a process unique to their species where individuals
could join together in a vast sea of interconnected thoughts, and feelings. Yet despite the Founders complete disinterest
in actually being a part of their interstellar community, they were ruthless in eliminating
any possible opposition against them, as they held deep hatred against the solid species
of the galaxy who in the past hunted their kind and threatened their very survival. And so in order to protect their people, they
settled on a hidden planet and used their intellect to breed 2 subservient species which
helped them conquer their region of space, thereby eliminating any possible threat to
their continued survival. And so when they discovered that a wormhole
had opened connecting them to the Alpha Quadrant, they once again believed themselves threatened
by unfamiliar solids, and so by 2370 they began to deal with these outsiders, destroying
a Federation Ship, and quickly sending a message to the Alpha Quadrant that they were on the
brink of war. However the Founders had a great deal of experience
with conquering other species, and so began their invasion not by sending armies through
the wormhole, but by sending spies and infiltrators, in order destabilize the region before the
outbreak of open war. Unfortunately for the Alpha and Beta Quadrants,
the Founders were expert shapeshifters and could take the form of just about anyone,
allowing them to replace prominent political or military figures and reap chaos across
the region. One such infilitrator replaced Colonel Lovok
of the Romulan espionage agency the Tal Shiar, which then allowed him to forge an alliance
with Enabrin Tain head of the Cardassian espionage agency the Obsidian Order, who wanted to launch
a pre-emptive strike against the Dominion, believing that if they could destroy the Founder
Homeworld, a larger war might be averted. Launching their mission without permission
from the Cardassian and Romulan governments, they flew a small cloaked fleet into the Gamma
Quadrant, and engaged in the Battle of the Omarion Nebula. However with the infiltrator reporting all
their plans to the Dominion, the battle was a massacre, with an armada of Jem Hadar ship
waiting for them, destroying all but one of their ships. Through this deception, the Dominion was able
to present themselves as the aggrieved victims of an unprovoked attack, while also crippling
two enemy spy agencies and damaging the reputation of their governments. These events then had larger ramifications,
as it led to the fall of the Obsidian Order, allowing for Military Central Command to take
full power within the Cardassian Union. This in turn led an ever growing dissident
movement to stage a coup and established a new Civilian Government under the Detapa Council. Matters only grew worse for the Cardassians
as they struggled to stabilize their own government while also fighting a war against the insurgent
Maquis, who wanted to liberate their home planets in the Badlands. Capitalizing on their weakened state, another
Dominion infiltrator, this time posing as General Martok of the Klingon Empire, manipulated
their government into launching an unprovoked attack against the Cardassian Union, justifying
their actions by claiming that the recent change in government may have been a Dominion
plot to take control of an Alpha Quadrant power. This then put a severe strain of their alliance
with the Federation who was working through their own internal struggles, as a terrorist
attack against Earth led a faction of Starfleet to attempt a coup against the government,
believing them too weak to fight this kind of war. Nevertheless the Federation tried to remain
true to their principles, condemning the actions of the Klingon government which infuriated
Chancellor Gowron, prompting him to end their alliance, and eventually led to war between
these powers. As a result of their scheming and manipulations,
by 2373 the Dominion had successfully accomplished many of their early goals, signing non aggression
treaties with the Tholians, the Miradorn, the Bajorans, and the Romulan Star Empire,
while the Cardassians were weakened from political instability and invasion, the Klingons weakened
by fighting wars on two fronts, and the Federation weakened by being at war with a former ally. As was pointed out by Bejamin Sisko, the powers
of the Alpha Quadrant were clearly losing the peace against the Dominion, and so a war
might be their only hope. Severely weakened from years of civil strife,
Maquis rebellion, and war with the Klingons, by 2373 the Cardassian Union was reduced to
a third rate power, unable to defend their borders and by some accounts even suffering
food shortages on their homeworld. In addition, due to their proximity to the
Bajoran wormhold, it was entirely possible they might become the first major target of
a Dominion Invasion fleet, when they began their inevitable invasion of the Alpha Quadrant. Deciding that something drastic needed to
be done, Gul Dukat, a prominent figure in cardassian politics with connection both to
the military and civilian factions of their government, overthrew the Detapa Council by
negotiating a deal to voluntarily bring the Cardassian Union into the Dominion. This mutually beneficial arrangement would
leave Gul Dukat as the unchallenged ruler of the Cardassian people, while the Dominion
gained a much needed foothold in the region from where they might launch a full on invasion
of the Alpha Quadrant. At first, this relationship proved beneficial,
as Dominion reinforcements allowed the Cardassian Union to finally crush the Maquis rebellion,
and recapture all territories lost to the Klingon Empire. In addition to ships and soldiers, the Dominion
brought food and necessary supplies with many believing that at last the years of scarcity
and hardship were at an end. Meanwhile, after being swiftly defeated by
Dominion forces, Chancellor Gowron was ready to retreat into Klingon space and prepare
for a fight to the death, but was instead convinced by Benjamin Sisko of DS9 to re-sign
the Khitmor Accords, and once again ally with the Federation to face the approaching enemy
together. Although war had not yet been officially declared,
the Federation-Klingon Alliance was determined to prevent the arrival of more Dominion reinforcements
from the Gamma Quadrant, however their initial plan to collapse the wormhole was sabotaged
by a changeling infiltrator posing as doctor Julian Bashir aboard deep space nine. Fortunately the deception was eventually revealed
and the enemy agent destroyed when a number of prisoners, including the real Dr. Bashir
and General Martok of the Klingon Empire, escaped a dominion penal colony and returned
to the Alpha Quadrant. Still needing to stop ships from coming through
the wormhole, the Federation alliance came up with a plan to litter the area with self-replicating
mines, fully aware this would be seen as a hostile action and provocation for war. And so began the Dominion War, with Gul Dukat,
alongside Wayoun of the Vorta, overseeing the Dominion war effort, beginning with an
invasion fleet sent to capture Deep Space Nine, so they might destroy the minefield. Opposing this Gamma Quadrant power, would
be the Federation, whose forces were led by Admiral William Ross, and the Klingon Empire
whose warriors followed General Martok. Realiizing they were unlikely to win the opening
battle at Deep Space Nine, the Federation alliance sis not defend their position, instead
hurrying to finish placing the minefield around the wormhole, and abandoning the station,
arranging for the computer systems to be sabotaged before the arrival of enemy forces. Then, with the invasion fleet distracted at
Deep Space Nine, the Federation Alliance sent their ships to destroy enemy shipyard on Torros
III, thereby making it a costly victory for the Dominion. As the war escalated further, the Dominion
quickly found themselves in the superior position, winning the vast majority of early confrontations,
including their victory in the Tyra system against the Seventh Fleet, destroying 98 out
of 112 enemy ships. Fortunately for the Federation Alliance, their
minefield was proving difficult to dismantle and so no new enemy reinforcements could arrive. In addition the Alliance found some success
in smaller scale confrontations, successfully destroying individual shipyards and ketracel
white facilities. Eventually this led to a shortage that threatened
to destabilize Dominion forces, as Jem Hadar warriors were known to go mad without the
white. Nevertheless, the Dominion were largely winning
the war, as the Federation alliance was constantly pushed further back into their own territory. In desperate need of a significant victory,
and knowing that the minefield was all that kept Dominion reinforcements from flooding
into the Alpha Quadrant to secure their victory, Benjamin Sisko, recently promoted to Adjutant
to Admiral Ross, organized Operation Return, gathering a Federation-Klingon armada to retake
Deep Space Nine. Unfortunately, Chancellor Gowron was hesitant
to commit so many of their ships to a single engagement, and so Sisko sent Commander Worf
and General Martok to convince him to commit his forces. However as the fleet was gathering, Sisko
received a message from trusted friends who had formed a Alliance resistance cell on Deep
Space Nine, informing him that the Dominion were days away from destroying the minefield
which would mean thousands of new ships brought in to join their war effort. Believing they could not wait for the rest
of the Armada to assemble, Sisko led nearly 700 federation ships into the battle, determined
to stop those reinforcements from coming through the wormhole. Although they fought well, the Federation
was badly outnumbered, and defeat was all but assured, if not for the late arrival of
the Klingon fleet, which allowed Benjamin Sisko aboard the Defiant to pass through an
opening in the enemy line. Much to their disappointment, the crew soon
learned that they were too late, and the minefield was destroyed. However Sisko refused to retreat, instead
ordered his ship to fly directly into the wormhole, where the defiant would await the
2800 dominion ships coming through from the other side, in a desperate last stand to eliminate
as many enemy vessels as possible before they passed into the Alpha Quadrant. However due to the special relationship between
the non corporial Aliens known as the Prophets and their Emissary Benjam Sisko, he received
a vision while inside the wormhole. When the Prophets made it clear they could
not allow the Sisko to die, he convinced them to intercede on his behalf, causing all Dominion
reinforcements to instantly vanish, and would prevent any future enemy ships from passing
through the wormhole. Shocked and utterly perplexed at the loss
of their reinforcements, on whom they were depending to win the battle, the Dominion
quickly abandoned deep space nine and retreated into Cardassian space. All except Gul Dukat, who suffered a nervous
breakdown after losing the battle and watching his second in command Damar kill his daughter
Zayel after she admitted to working with the enemy. With Gul Dukat captured by the Federation,
his second in command Damar was promoted to Legate becoming leader of the Cardassian Union. However, with the initial Cardassian plan
for the war failing, Damar was given far less operational control then his predecessor,
eventually becoming a mere puppet of the Dominion. Meanwhile, as casualties continued to mount,
Dr. Julian Bashir of DS9, started a program to help a group of brilliant genetically engineered
people with social disorders, create a think tank that analyzed information about the war
so they might make helpful recommendations to Starfleet. At first the effort proved successful, with
the Think Tank determining that a generous peace proposal sent by the Dominion was actually
a tactic so they could hold onto the Kabrel system, a necessary source of Ketracel White
for their Jem’Hadar army. Yet as the Think Tank continued to study the
war, they came to, what they considered, was the inescapable conclusion that the Dominion
would successfully conquer the Alpha Quadrant. Believing there was no way around this conclusion,
Dr. Bashir recommended that the Federation Alliance should surrender, in order to save
the lives of the 9 billion people that would die in a prolonged struggle. Outraged by their proposal, the Federation
rejected the idea and soon disbanded the Think Tank, after Dr. Bashir discovered the others
were planning to outright aid the Dominion and hasten their victory, in order to keep
casualties to a minimum. As the war continued, the Dominion allied
themselves with the Orion Syndicate, working with the criminal organization to plot the
assassination a Klingon Ambassador in order to destabilized the Federation Alliance. But the plan was ultimately exposed by Miles
O’Brien, a Starfleet Officer undercover with the Syndicate. Having lost access to their reinforcements
beyond the wormhole, the Dominion created a new generation of Jem’Hadar warriors bred
specifically for combat in the alpha Quadrant and were able to maintain this new army by
allying with the Son’a who took over production of Ketracel White, finally ending the supply
shortage. Slowly the Dominion expanded their influence,
seeking out every available advantage while continuing to press the attack against the
Federation. As a result they were once again winning the
war, and so in 2374, the Dominion conquered Betazed in under ten hours, gaining a strategic
foothold in the heart of enemy space, from which they might launch attacks against important
Federation planets like Vulcan, Andor, Tellar, and Alpha Centauri. Desperate to stop the Dominion from continuing
their advance, captain Benjamin Sisko put morality and federation principles aside to
work with Elim Garak, a fomer Cardassian spy living in exile on DS9. Together they hired a criminal to forge a
recording of the Vorta Weyoun discussing the invasion of Romulus and presented it to Vreenak,
an influential Romulan Senator as evidence that the Dominion were preparing to violate
the non-aggression treaty. And while the plan failed and the forgery
was discovered, the entire ordeal proved to only be a distraction so that Garak could
plant explosives on the Romulan ship and assassinate the Senator when he departed. Although Sisko was furious, having been kept
in the dark about Garak’s true intentions, the former spy explained that the Romulans
would soon launch an investigation and amongst the wreckage of the Senator’s ship would
find the recording they created of a high level Dominion meeting. At that point, any problems with the recording
could be attributed to the explosion, leaving the Romulan government to conclude that the
Vreenak was killed by the Dominion after discovering their plans to invade the Star Empire. Sisko was then upset further when he learned
Garak also killed the criminal who made the forgery, in order to cover up their involvement. But in the end, the Cardassian exile was proven
correct, with the Romulans declaring war on the Dominion and joining the Federation alliance. Although he felt guilty about what had occurred,
Sisko decided that he could live with what he did, with Garak so eloquently stating:
“That's why you came to me, isn't it Captain? Because you knew I could do those things that
you weren't capable of doing. Well, it worked. And you'll get what you wanted: a war between
the Romulans and the Dominion. And if your conscience is bothering you, you
should soothe it with the knowledge that you may have just saved the entire Alpha Quadrant,
and all it cost was the life of one Romulan senator, one criminal… and the self-respect
of one Starfleet officer. I don't know about you, but I'd call that
a bargain.” Quickly the Romulans proved effective allies,
striking 15 bases along the Cardassian border, and driving the Dominion off Benzar. It would be during these campaigns that a
unique young Romulan slave known as Shinson, distinguished himself as a great military
leader, defeating the Jem’hadar in 12 engagements. Shinzon, was originally created by the Romulan
government as a human clone of Jean-Luc Picard in order to replace the prominent Federation
captain. However the plan was eventually abandoned
and so the clone was discarded and sent to live as a slave. With the Federation Alliance revitalized,
they went on the offensive, successfully invading Cardassian Space in the First battle of Chin’Toka. However this proved a difficult region to
defend and as the war intensified, heavy fighting along the front lines resulted in battles
like the failed assault on Monac IV, where they lost 30% of the Klingon Fleet, or the
siege of AR 558, where 147 Federation soldiers were sent to defend a subspace communications
array, but due to manpower shortages they had no reinforcements for 5 months, leaving
only 43 of them alive to hold the line. Despite their significant losses, the Alliance
successfully capitalized on their momentum, with small, hard fought victories mounting
together, like their capture of the Kalandra system thanks to the efforts of Elim Garak
who was now openly aiding the Federation, hoping to help free the Cardassian people
from their Gamma Quadrant oppressors. The Dominion then faced further challenges,
when their leaders contracted a new Morphogenic virus that threatened to destroy the Founders. But what they did not know, was that this
illness was actually a weapon of war, created by Section 31, a rogue intelligence agency
working on behalf of the Federation without any oversight or official approval. As the war dragged on, fluctuating from minor
Dominion advances to more of a stalemate, the Founders grew frustrated and sought out
new allies, identifying the Breen Confederacy, as a strong warrior species, capable of bringing
them victory. The Dominion may even have sent an infiltrator
to replace an influential person in their society, in order to convince them to enter
the war. After months of secret communiations, Thot
Gor of the Breen Confederacy, travelled to Cardassian space and signed a treaty of alliance. Yet with the Dominion desperate to gain their
support, the Breen were able to demand a great deal in return, annexing a number of Cardassian
planets, with an added promise of controlling Earth and Romulus once the war was won. Determined to strike fear into the heart of
the Federation, the Breen began by organizing a direct attack against Earth, targeting Starfleet
headquarters. Although most of their ships were lost in
the battle, Thot Gor remarked that is was a small price to pay for such a great victory. The Breen then engaged in the Second Battle
of Chintoka, using energy dampening weapons to drain enemy ships of power, so they might
be easily destroyed. Although many alliance vessels were lost,
a single Klingon ship survived, as their engineer had made an adjustment to their warp core,
which unintentionally made them immune to the Breen weapon. General Martok then ordered all ship in the
Klingon fleet to make similar adjustments, leaving the Empire to stand alone against
the Dominion, while their allies upgraded their vessels to withstand this new technology. Unfortunately, it was at this most critical
time, that Chancellor Gowron of the Klingon Empire chose to play political games, purposefully
sending Martok on missions doomed to fail, as he feared the General’s growing reputation
amongst their people. Although the General was so loyal, he was
willing to die for the Empire, even on a mission he knew was foolish, Lieutant Commander Worf
of Starfleet, who was also a member of the House of Martok, refused to accept the situation,
engaging Gowron in a fight to the death. And while Worf was victorious, and by all
rights might have claimed leadership over the Empire, he instead insisted that Martok
take the position, allowing them to once again focus on the war. With the Breen given charge over much of the
invasion effort, the Dominion once again began to make advances. Yet all was not well within the Dominion alliance,
as the Cardassian people continued to suffer heavy losses in blood and treasure, while
also losing influence and territory. A true patriot, Legate Damar was furious with
the generous terms given to the Breen, having been forced to sign a document allowing for
the annexation of Cardassian planets to their new allies. And so he grew increasingly depressed and
angry, drinking to numb the pain of his people’s humiliation. Yet when he was at his lowest, he reconnected
with his old commander Dukat, who reminded him of what a courageous warrior he once was,
telling him to take back control of his life and become the leader the Cardassian people
needed. After hearing his old friend’s words, Damar
finally had enough of being a Dominion puppet, gathering together his most trusted allies
to form the Cardassian Liberation Front, determined to win back his people’s independence. The rebellion launched several successful
attacks, including the destruction of the last Dominion cloning facility in the Alpha
Quadrant on Rondak III , and even reached out to the Federation for an alliance against
their shared enemy. Unfortunately, the movement was eventually
betrayed and their forces massacred, but they served a useful purpose in the overall war
effort, as they’d distracted the Dominion long enough for the Federation Alliance to
upgrade their ships to fight against the Breen. With their Advantage lost, the Dominion accepted
that this war would be a prolonged struggle, and so pulled back all forces into Cardassian
space, returning the galaxy to pre-war borders. However this was merely a tactical withdrawal,
designed to shorten their supply lines while extending those of the enemy and giving them
a smaller area to keep secure so they could focus on growing their army and fleet. Realizing that this situation benefited the
Dominion, the Federation Alliance chose to launch a final assault into the heart of Cardassian
Space, in order to end the war once and for all. Despite the resolve of the Alliance, the Breen,
Jem’Hadar and Cardassians stood an excellent chance of winning the battle, if not for the
continued interference of Damar, who had survived the destruction of the rebellion, and was
now rallying the citizens of Cardassia Prime against their oppressors. In response to his efforts, the Dominion unwisely
chose punish the general population, killing two million of their citizens in the bombing
of Lakarian city. Yet rather than terrify the Cardassians into
submision, it stirred them further to anger, leading to rioting in the streets, and even
convincing the Cardassian Fleet to turn against the Breen and Jem Hadar in the midst of the
Battle of Cardassia. The unexpected attack caused chaos in the
Dominion Fleet, forcing them to withdraw to Cardassia Prime for their last stand. Meanwhile, Dominion headquarters came under
attack, and while Damar was killed in the fighting, his forces continued on and took
the building, killing Weyoun and capturing the Female Founder. And while she was prepared for a fight to
the death, she was convinced to surrender after linking with Odo, a member of her species
who had sided with the Federation and promised that if she surrendered, he would go to the
Gamma Quadrant and deliver the cure for the Morphegenic Virus to their people. And so in 2375, Dominion and Alliance representatives
witnessed the signing of the Treaty of Bajor, bring an end to this devastating conflict. Among the terms of this treaty, the Dominion
lost all their territory in the Alpha Quadrant leaving the Breen and Cardassians as sovereign
powers once more. In addition, they agreed that the Female Founder
would stand trial for war crimes, while all Dominion military forces promptly returned
to the Gamma Quadrant. Although peace was restored pre-war borders
were reinstated, the balance of power in the region had shifted significantly by the end
of the conflict. Having been on the front lines for much of
the fighting, the Klingon empire was significantly weakened, though they had also gained territory,
as they remained in possession of the Cardassian planets captured before the start of the Dominion
War. The Cardassian Union itself was utterly devastated,
enduring most of the collateral destruction, leaving them a shell of their former self,
forced to rebuild their civilization. And while the Federation and Romulan Star
Empire, also suffered heavy losses, they remained the most significant super powers in the start
of the post war era.
Really, really good! Martoc having two eyes bothered me, but besides that it is perfect!
This is the best thing ever.
Savor this. We will never see anything like this in Star Trek ever again.
Should include spoiler tag for those beautiful Dominion war virgins out there.