Futility's End History
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A Post Dominion Alpha Quadrant
Despite the prosperity of the Alpha Quadrant, for many the scars of the Dominion War remained. The peace in the galaxy was fragile and a single misdoing could mean destruction for all.
United Federation of Planets
The Federation proved the most prosperous of all. The safe return home of the starship Voyager brought back new ideas, new discoveries and new technology to help the Federation remain a main power in the galaxy. But at the same time the Federation lost members due to their fear that remaining part of the government would bring more conflict to their worlds. Despite this, the Federation gained some new members, including Bajor which joined in 2376.
Starfleet was well on its way to returning to its pre-war state. The high reputation Starfleet had won in the Dominion War saw recruitment remain at high levels. Prosperity allowed for the decommissioning of old ships, including even former staples of the fleet such as the Excelsior Class. Newer designs were developed, and, more aware of the dangers of the galaxy, more of the combat-capable classes were built than ever before in peace time. Ships focused on exploration were more technologically advanced, to both bring further scientific knowledge to the Federation and to allow them to be better protected.
These changes would keep the Federation strong. Border patrol ships were hefty vessels able to protect their territory, and the strong exploratory fleet brought back news of new resources and new races which could help the flourishing Federation.
Romulan Star Empire
The Reman coup d'êtat of the Romulan Senate brought bad news for the Romulans. Civil unease caused an economic slump as the people preferred to save than spend. Production of raw materials decreased, and the government was forced to cut military spending. New ships were put on hold while existing ships were forced to operate longer without refits or repairs. Efforts were made to spin this as a choice, rather than a necessity, for the glory of the Romulan people. Another uprising, it was feared, could destroy the Empire. Several conflicts did erupt between the Romulans and the Tholian Assembly over claimed space, however these were resolved. A war was averted with the Federation as the two powers worked together and relations were improved between the two.
Klingon Empire
Matters were improving within the Klingon Empire. Chancellor Martok united the Klingon people in a way not seen since Kahless himself. The Klingon Defence Force was also well on its way to recovering its losses and the future seemed bright for the Klingons. More and more Klingon citizens were joining the KDF as upgrades were undertaken on a number of Klingon ship classes. Like the Federation, the Klingon Empire increased production of its more powerful warships to be prepared for another possible war with either the Dominion or other hostile powers such as the Breen.
Ferengi Alliance
The Ferengi Alliance was more stable then ever with its new reforms under the new leadership of Grand Nagus Rom. The Alliance was making more profit as many female Ferengi became key players in negotiations for trade routes and business proposals. The Grand Nagus was quite aware of the horrors of war, and increased spending on border defence to make attacking the Ferengi as unprofitable as possible for its enemies. Many Ferengi, both male and female saw the advantage in serving in the armed forces and were eager to join. More reforms were put in place to prevent corruption in the armed services as well all Ferengi businesses. Grand Nagus Rom offered the Federation an alliance proposal. Many Starfleet officials were sceptical but they soon realised they needed all the help they could get in maintaining galactic peace and rebuilding after the Dominion War and a treaty was signed.
Cardassian Union
The Cardassian Union was devastated following the Dominion War, with many of its civilian population killed during the Dominion's last ditch attempt at genocide. After the war had ended, Cardassian space was split up between the Federation, Klingons and Romulans. Cardassia Prime itself was placed under joint control of the allies as well the Cardassians. By 2376 a new democratic government came to power led by Legate Alon Ghemor. The Cardassians recieved aid from their new guardians as well other sources including Bajor and the Ferengi Alliance. Four years later Cardassia Prime was slowly returning to its feet and the allies were able to pull out of a few systems handing control back over to the Cardassian government. The search for their heritage and pride, as they were so utterly reliant upon foreign aid, saw the Cardassian people seeking out their cultural roots. Where they had little to be proud of in their military or political standing, Cardassian art and literature had always been rich and it was here the people looked to strengthen their cultural identity.
New Beginnings...
2380 brought the start of what many believed would become a new golden age for galactic peace. The Federation was securing itself as a stable power and its influences were reaching far across the stars. Many governments were at peace or allied with the Federation. The Federation's influences continued to spread in to every corner of the galaxy. There wasn't a part of the Milky Way were at least one Starfleet ship was passing the Federation Gospel to new races or to old acquaintances. Starfleet also increased its officer exchange program with other powers including the Romulans, Ferengi, Klingons and Cardassians.
Peace and Prosperity
On May 12th this idea was confirmed when a single Dominion attack ship entered the Alpha Quadrant, docked at Deep Space Nine and announced they had come to offer lasting peace to the Federation and Klingons from the Dominion.
Upon hearing about the treaty, the new leader of the Cardassian Union, Legate Ghemor was enraged. He felt that both the Federation and Klingons were turning their backs on the Cardassian people. The Federation tried to assure the Cardassians this treaty would benefit everyone, but Ghemor wouldn't hear it. He publicly criticized the treaty, finding support from two unlikely sources: the Romulans and the Breen. Ghemor then recalled all Cardassian ships serving in Starfleet units on exchange training missions, and cut off diplomatic relations.
The Invasion
On the June 1st 2382 Starfleet Intelligence received word that the Tholian Assembly was suffering from a major Borg incursion. Starfleet sent the Second Fleet led by Rear Admiral Taylor to the Tholian border. Almost immediately contact was lost with the area of space and information became limited, but what had made it through was that the Tholian had lost more then eighty percent of their fleet and their homeworld had been assimilated. The Second Fleet held the line long enough for several civilian transport convoys to make it out escorted by the remains of the Tholian fleet.
The news of the Borg attack was a shock to the Federation and its allies as they had estimated the Borg would still be trying to rebuild after the destruction of their transwarp hub and Unimatrix Zero One after the USS Voyager's return home in late 2377. The Federation Alliance had pledged to defend each other and those less fortunate then themselves against the Borg. All Federation Alliance forces went on a round-the-clock tactical alert. Every single ship was constantly scanning for Borg transwarp energy signatures and preparing for the worst. Production of combat oriented starships was increased in both the Federation and in the Klingon Empire.
Near to the Tholian border Starfleet's Fifth Fleet began to monitor any movement in and around Tholian occupied space. Freighters and transports swept in to the area to escort and remove both civilians, and the highly sensitive Starfleet R & D facilities that had made their home in the previously secure corner of the quadrant for centuries. These facilities were refitted as armoured stations as Starfleet Command gave the order for all bases to begin upgrades to their tactical defence systems.
First Contact (2382)
By the end of June 2382 the USS Relentless, was sent into Tholian space to gather intelligence on Borg activity and the status of the Tholian Assembly.
On July 28th, 2382, a faint transmission was received by the border defence. It had been sent by the Relentless from within Tholian space. Only four words could be heard: "Many cubes heading Botulus." The Relentless and her crew were never heard from again.
Battle of Botulus
The Federation Alliance went on a fleet-wide red alert as they got ready for the possibility of the Borg striking them next. The Fifth Fleet was met by the Klingon 242nd Battle Squadron at the edge of the Botulus system. On August 3rd, 2382, they were engaged by the Borg. The allied fleet compromised of more then four hundred combat designed ships that were met by nearly fifty Borg ships; eighteen of which were Cubes while the rest were spheres. Starfleet ships took the lead and opened fire using transphasic torpedoes to destroy the Borg armada. The Borg force was decimated. As the crews of the Allied Fleets cheered, a second wave of Borg ships; this time composed of Tactical Cubes and Spheres arrived. Once again transphasic torpedoes were fired but the fear the Borg would adapt to them was realized. Nine Tactical Cubes escorted by twenty six spheres had entered the system but were unaffected by Starfleet's most powerful weapon.
The Allied Fleet soon fell back to the inner core of the Botulus system and assumed their fall back strategy of splitting the Fleet up into mixed task groups of Starfleet and Klingon ships. The Borg soon chased them down and the Battle of Botulus commenced. A single Starfleet ship was able to retreat from the system to inform the Federation and Klingon Empire of what was happening. After the message was received and confirmed the ship was soon attacked by the Borg. No one knows what happened to the Fleet or Botulus III.
The Allied Response
The Klingon Empire sent more then half of their ships to their borders and began fortifying every one of their star systems. The Romulan Star Empire kicked their ship building back into high gear and set up a massive sensor network through their space. The Romulans also received some unexpected help from The Order Realm located near their space. The Order knew that they couldn't stand alone against the Borg, and hoped that the Romulans would agree to a pact of mutual support.
Starfleet considered the Botulus System a loss and ordered any remaining ships in the Beta Quadrant to fall back to the Alpha Quadrant. Rear Admiral Luke Duncan commanded the Third Fleet as they evacuated the settlements and dismantled the bases of operations along the Federation borders. Despite messages sent to the non-member worlds the Federation was in contact with, very few responded. Those that did received aid from the Third Fleet in their evacuation, but of those who stayed, no contact has been made since the Federation left the border.
Romulan Battle of Sharona (2385)
Those beliefs were shattered on Feburary 6th as over 100 Borg vessels entered Romulan space and attacked their outpost at Sharona 5. The Romulans sent a fleet of six hundred and seventeen ships to defend the planet. Many were Warbirds who were supported by refitted D7 Battlecruisers. The fleet intercepted the Borg and engaged. The Romulans put up a good fight, and destroyed more then eighty nine enemy ships. However the Borg were too many and the fleet was defeated with many warbirds having to retreat back to Romulus, Sharona was assimilated, and the Star Empire was thrown into a state of panic.
Klach D'Kel Brakt
Chancellor Martok was outraged, with nearly one-third of all Klingon ships lost at Klach D'kel Brakt, his options were limited. He recalled three quarters of all remaining ships to the Qo'noS system to defend their homeworld and vital shipbuilding and research bases. Martok then sent Starfleet Captain and Federation Ambassador Worf back to Earth with a special mission: request for the Klingons to become official Federation members. The reason was simple; together they might have a chance to beat the Borg. The Federation Council accepted on the spot. Starfleet re-commissioned the Enterprise-E and gave command to Captain Worf, with Admiral Picard returning to his old ship as mission advisor. The Enterprise would lead a relief force consisting of forty two starships to Qo'noS. The fleet brought medical supplies, food, over five hundred orbital defence weapons platforms, and other resources the Klingons would soon need. In return, fifty seven Klingon transports and freighters, escorted by a dozen Birds of Prey headed into Federation space. A Klingon shipyard started construction at Utopia Planitia, and an armored starbase was built in Earth orbit, opposite to Spacedock One to help defend against the interior attack Humans were fearful of.
Alliance at Deep Space Nine
On October 3rd a single Borg Cube arrived in the Alpha Quadrant near to Federation starbase Deep Space Twelve, which had just finished its tactical refits and upgrades. The station engaged the Cube as it went flying pass and headed towards the Cardassian Union. DS12 sent a message to all allied forces in the area and the Cardassians. The Union had been rebuilding at an impressive rate come 2384 in starship and interplanetary defence systems. They sent a fleet of seventy nine ships (mainly Keldon-class cruisers) to take on the Cube, this force was assisted by the remaining ships in the First Fleet lead by Admiral Jellico and the Columbia. The Cardassians were successful in fighting back the Cube, with a loss of only twenty two Cardassian ships and no Borg drone stepped on to Cardassian soil. The Cardassians agreed to aid in the fight with the Borg especially after whitnessing the heroics of the Federation Fleet in the defence of thier home world. An alliance treaty was signed with the Federation on Deep Space Nine a week later.
First Battle of Bajor
At the height of the battle, the Wormhole opened and out poured nearly four thousand Dominion ships, lead by Admiral Chadwick's USS Farragut. With the help of the Dominion, a race the Borg had never encountered, the attacking Cubes were quickly destroyed and the Bajoran system saved, again. Starfleet allowed the Dominion to set up a base of operations in the Dreon System near Bajor as well as a shipyard and cloning facility at Utopia Planitia Shipyards. The Federation clearly saw the key to the survival of the Alpha and Beta Quadrants was the Dominion. Starfleet also gave the order for all of their ships that hadn't received the latest improvements in defense technology to undergo refits and upgrades. By the end of February all Starfleet ships were outfitted for war.
Battle of Ferenginar (2386)
March 23rd saw the first counter offensive against the Borg Collective. An Allied Fleet of two hundred and seventy two Dominion ships, seventy two Federation ships, twenty one Klingon ships, and eighteen Cardassian ships, lead by Fleet Admiral Alynna Nechayev and the USS Gorkon, attacked the Borg holding Ferenginar. They engaged four spheres, nine probes and one cube which were apparently caught off-guard. Despite this it took a tough fight for the Borg to be destroyed and it was at a cost of a third of the Allied Fleet. Ferenginar had been striped of its resources, but not assimilated. After retrieving debris from the Borg cube the Allies discovered that the Borg had determined Ferenginar to be a "pool of resources" that would aid them in their invasions.
Status quo was the phrase through the rest of 2386 and well into '87. Borg attacks were few, and for the most part were minor engagements with smaller Borg ships such as Spheres and Probes.
Invasion of Romulus
On June 8th, the Borg launched their second offensive against the Romulan Star Empire. They ripped though the joint Romulan & Order forces at Hapor 4 and headed for Romulus itself. The Romulans had setup a massive orbital defence network in their homeworld's system and construction of several Reman Scimitar-Class warbirds was quickly finished. Nothing was heard from the Romulans for several days.
Concerned more for their own security than for their Romulan allies, Starfleet sent a task force, working with with sixty two Dominion vessels, to Qualor 2 to be ready if the Borg continued forward beyond Romulan space. At this time a major evacuation of the Qualor system began and Deep Space Six's crew was ordered to deploy a massive minefield in and around the Qualor system.
Within days, contact was lost with Deep Space Four and Deep Space Five. Captain Riker on the USS Titan was sent to find out why. The Titan reported both stations destroyed and Borg ships inbound. It was the last transmission ever received from the vessel. While a Federation/Dominion fleet rushed toward the last known location of the Titan, thirty nine Romulan ships arrived at Earth led by the Romulan Star Navy's flagship; the IRV Valdore under the command of Admiral Donatra. Aboard the Valdore were the remaining Romulan Senators and Ambassador Spock. The Romulans soon became the newest Federation member.
Counterattacks
Assault through the Transwarp Hub
On September 2nd, the USS Jefferson, with two Romulan Scouts, was patrolling the former Romulan Neutral Zone. Deep within the Bassen Rift they located a new Borg Transwarp Hub. The three craft swiftly returned to Earth and reported this to Starfleet Command. A mission was planned to distract the Borg armada and to send a small strike force though the hub to attack the Unimatrix and deliver a destructive pathogen to the Collective in hopes of stopping the Borg.
Just over eight hundred Dominion ships launched an offensive against the Borg fleet in orbit of Remus. In the first few minutes the Dominion ships being quick and powerful as they were destroyed almost two thirds of the Borg armada. The Borg were unwilling to lose their grip on the Romulus system. Fourteen out of the seventeen ships guarding the Transwarp Hub were drawn in to the battle leaving the hub protected only by a single Cube and two Spheres.
Due to the nature of the Bassen Rift the allied task group was able to sneak by undetected using their cloaks. The Klingon/Romulan force of twenty six ships, accompanied by mission advisor and former USS Voyager crewmember Lieutenant Commander Annika Hansen (Seven of Nine) entered the Hub. After departing from a transwarp aperture in the Delta Quadrant which wasn't under Borg surveillance, the Allied Fleet neared Unimatrix Zero One. As they approached they launched ten Cardassian Dreadnought Missiles. Six of these carried Trilithum warheads and targeted the suns of six known Borg worlds. These Dreadnoughts were specially outfitted with modified Romulan cloaking devices to keep them from being detected. The other four were armed with high yield photon torpedoes and aimed at shipyards in the area. The attack was a success.
Within moments, the Borg lost over fifty percent of their ship building capabilities. Seconds later, the targeted stars went nova, taking with them the Borg worlds and approximately one hundred billion drones.
Second Assault
Meanwhile, back in the Delta Quadrant, the combined Romulan/Klingon strike force launched their second attack; this time against Unimatrix Zero One itself. A single Klingon Bird of Prey decloaked, and fired a powerful tachyon burst at the central Borg structure which knocked its shields offline long enough for several squads of Jem'Hadar soldiers who were all bred to carry a neurolytic pathogen to beam aboard. The Jem'Hadar had been instructed on how to disable the sensors and shielding of the Unimatrix before they themselves were assimilated. The Federation-Dominion designed pathogen began to spread through out the Collective at a rapid speed. The Dominion had engineered the virus to remove the Borg's ability to assimilate drones and technology. At the same time the effects of the neurolytic pathogen infected the Unimatrix's drones causing disruption to their electrical signals as well as interference with the interlinks between their organic and cybernetic components.
This massive disruption gave the allied task force enough time to make sure the Unimatrix was destroyed before they re-entered the Borg's transwarp network. Several Romulan Warbirds had been outfitted with Federation high yield Tricobalt torpedoes against the unshielded Unimatrix. The Klingon fleet meanwhile used the technique of decloaking near to unprotected Borg ships, beaming over a single photon torpedo near to a power conduit, detonating the torpedo, then re-cloaking. Over nineteen Borg ships were heavily crippled through this tactic before the reality of the situation set in.
Final Withdrawal
As the Unimatrix started to explode, four Tactical Cubes which hadn't been affected by the pathogen entered the area forcing the Allied Fleet to retreat through the nearest transwarp aperture.
Already the Transwarp Hub's network of interspatial manifold force fields had been taken out by the destruction and death of the Borg Queen at Unimatrix Zero One. After the strike force entered the transwarp hub, a combination of photon, quantum, plasma and tricobalt torpedoes were fired at the manifolds causing a cascade reaction. However, a single tactical cube quickly intercepted the Allied Fleet through another transwarp conduit and began to destroy them one at a time. The IKS Maht-H'a, the flagship, turned back and engaged the cube inside the corridor, allowing nineteen Klingon and Romulan ships to return home before the entire hub network exploded. Last sensor recordings indicated the Maht-H'a had moved in to another conduit near to an aperture in the Delta Quadrant, the Borg Cube itself had been crushed as the network exploded. This was the Allies' first major victory over the Borg and is seen by some to be the turning point of the war.
Borg Retaliation (2388)
2388 soon came along and since the September assault against the Borg's homeland nearly nine months had gone by with no Borg attacks. At this time a new Starfleet Commander In Chief had come to power; Fleet Admiral Kathryn Janeway who, with her Executive Officer Admiral Jean-Luc Picard, gave the order for starship construction to be increased further and more orbital defence structures deployed.
Second Battle of Bajor
However, on May 16th the Borg threat returned as the Bajoran Wormhole opened and over five thousand Dominion ships poured into the Alpha Quadrant. The Dominion's leader reported that the Borg had destroyed the Founder's homeworld and completely ripped though their space. Vice Admiral Kira Nerys, commanding officer of starbase Deep Space Nine ordered all Federation forces in Bajoran space to battlestations. She received a visit from her former commanding officer, Captain Sisko, a day after the Dominion fleet arrived. He told her he had a vision from the Prophets telling him they had to seal the wormhole to save Bajor from the Borg. Kira contemplated the decision with the Orb of Wisdom. She too had a vision from the Prophets who spoke to her saying it was time for Bajor to accept responsibility for itself and that the Prophets would never abandon their children.
Starfleet monitoring relays in the Gamma Quadrant picked up twenty one Borg energy signatures approaching the wormhole with over four hundred more ships within days of nearing the Gamma terminus of the wormhole. Kira eventually agreed to Sisko's plan to seal the wormhole from DS9. The station fired graviton beams at the wormhole, destabilizing it. Then, a probe with protomatter aboard was set off inside the mouth of the wormhole, sealing it. Despite this operation, seventeen Borg Cubes and four Spheres managed to traverse the wormhole before it was sealed. DS9 took the brunt of the Borg assault, taking heavy damage and was boarded by several drones. The Borg, however, weren't successful in assimilating the station as the Jem'Hadar security personnel on the station repelled every single intruder.
Kira then gave the order to abandon the station as its shields failed and its weapons were exhausted. The station was jointly responsible for the destruction of seven Borg cubes. Kira evacuated the remaining of her crew on to her flagship the USS Gryphon. During the battle the Gryphon took heavy damage and contact was lost with the admiral. Admiral Chadwick, who had arrived in the Bajoran system an hour before DS9 was abandoned on board his own ship the USS Farragut, assumed command. He quickly ordered the Fleet to fall back to Starbase 375. The Borg ships that hadn't been destroyed by the fleet were left behind to take on the Bajoran orbital defense system, however they soon separated, with some heading towards Cardassia Prime. Three other Spheres headed for Starbase 503 within the Bajoran Badlands, and one Cube headed for Trill. As the various battles continued, contact with Cardassia was lost, followed by contact with Bajor, and Trill.
A handful of Starfleet ships remaining from amongst the defenders of Deep Space Nine set a course for Trill. As evacuation was conducted, the last reports from those fleeing confirmed the small task force was engaging the Borg Tactical Cube in the Trill system. The final outcome of the battle, and the fate of the task force and Trill, remain unknown.
Battle of Qo'nos
While the line in the Bajoran sector was held at Starbase 375 as those ships that survived the Borg assault from the Gamma Quadrant slowly limped back to the base, the Borg in the Beta Quadrant quickly turned their attention away from defending the territory they had conquered in Romulan space and launched their second attack against the Klingon Empire. On October 2nd 2390 the Borg arrived in a force of forty one ships in the Qo'noS system. The Klingon Defense Force, alongside the Federation task force assigned to help the Klingons led by the Enterprise-E, prepared for battle. Captain Worf was able to get a message to Starfleet informing them of the attack. Ships rushed to aid the Klingons but were stopped on the border by a single Tactical Cube. Repeated hails to Qo'noS, the Enterprise, as well as the Klingon Defence Force went unanswered. During the fight, a probe was launched to scan further out than the ships could, but it didn't pick up any Klingon ships, Federation ships, or the Enterprise; only additional Borg and massive amounts of debris, both Klingon and Borg. The probe was lost before reaching Qo'noS, and its fate remained unknown. Once the Tactical Cube was destroyed, the ships retreated back to Earth. Starfleet's First Fleet was dispatched to the defences at Khitomer.
The Federation/Klingon Border (2391)
In January of 2391, Ambassador Spock was elected Federation President. But the start of the new year also saw continued Borg attacks. Khitomer was the first, and even after a strong defense from Starfleet's First Fleet, the planet fell. That defeat was followed a month later by attacks on Bynaus and Qualor II. The combined Federation-Dominion task force assembled fought hard for Qualor, but were overwhelmed by the Borg. They took heavy losses and only thirteen ships made it back at the newly constructed Starbase 565 in the Wolf 359 system.
A massive Jem'Hadar cloning effort took place and production of Dominion ships increased. Thousands upon thousands of the Dominion's foot soldiers poured into the Borg lines, sworn to do anything to protect Earth, where the last two known Founders were located; Odo and the Female Changeling, who had once been held for war crimes during the Dominion War fifteen years before.
Probe Capture
The Borg re-directed their forces back in to the Alpha Quadrant and attacked Starbase 375 and its combined Federation/Cardassian/Dominion defence fleet stationed there. During mid-battle a plan was hatched by Fleet Admiral William Ross to capture a Borg Probe and attempt to uncover how many Borg ships were still in the Alpha and Beta Quadrants. The Admiral ordered the USS Cerberus, a Prometheus-class starship to carry out the task by baiting the Probe to follow them out of the area. Once out of sensor range, the Cerberus sent out a rotating electromagnetic pulse that jammed the Borg's subspace communications. Then, using her massive firepower, she took out the Probe's weapons arrays and warp engines. A boarding party beamed over and was able to tap into their systems. They found that the Borg had set up a shipyard inside what was left of Cardassian space and that another one had just started construction near Khitomer. They learned that the Borg in the Alpha and Beta Quadrants were unable to reach those in the Delta Quadrant after the strike on the Unimatrix, and that the forces in the Gamma Quadrant had fought the remaining Dominion forces to what appeared to be a mutual destruction. They also learned that the Borg had a total of 223 vessels in the Alpha and Beta Quadrants, with plans to build their forces for a move on Earth. Once Starfleet Command heard the news, they set up plans to hit both shipyards. However the USS Cerberus was the only ship to return from the battle after the Allied task force and Starbase 375 were destroyed by the Borg.
Borg Shipyards
On September 6th, the Dominion's 43rd battalion moved to attack the Khitomer base whilst Starfleet's Sixth Fleet and the Dominion's 42nd battalion prepared to hit the one in Cardassian space. Both units arrived at their targets two days later and attacked. At Khitomer, the Dominion were met by six Spheres which they quickly destroyed. Moments later, they opened fire on the shipyards and destroyed the facility, losing only fifteen percent of their unit. The attack inside Cardassian space was not as easy. Rear Admiral Chakotay led the assault from his ship the USS Voyager. The Allied armada was met by fourteen Borg ships and was only able to damage the facility before being forced to fall back.
Second Battle of Wolf 359 (2392)
With the loss of more ships and the ability to build more cut in half, the Borg held off on further attacks for nearly a year. Then, on August 24th 2392, they attacked Starbase 565 in the Wolf 359 system. The nightmares of the first Battle of Wolf 359 went through every single person in Starfleet as two Tactical Cubes entered the system. The system was currently being defended by the Third Fleet under the command of Vice Admiral Luke Duncan. The Federation force was able to destroy one of the cubes and heavily damage the second. However Starbase 565 received heavy damage itself and was boarded by over a thousand drones. Rear Admiral James Ryan, the commander of the base ordered for it to be evacuated and set the station's auto-destruct. The remains of the Third Fleet beamed off as many of the station's personnel as possible before they were force to retreat back to Earth. The second cube was last seen slowly limping away from the system. A day later long range tactical reconnaissance probes picked it up as it went up in flames after the loss of containment in its numerous transwarp drives.
The Inner Core
After the loss of tactical position at Wolf 359, the Allies were forced to retreat to the Inner Core of the Federation in order to provide a strong enough defensive line.
First attack in Sol (2393)
By the end of 2392 though mid-2393, Starfleet attempted to break though Borg lines to find out what happened on Romulus, Qo'noS, Cardassia, and Bajor, but each time the Borg beat them back, then counter-attacked. Then, on October 12th, a lone Cube entered the Sol system. It destroyed the research outpost of Jupiter Station, the Dominion shipyards and Jem'Hadar cloning facilities before attacking Utopia Planitia. Though the cube was destroyed, the damage inflicted upon the facility had a serious impact on Starfleet's ship output rate, meaning that the rest of the year was spent trying to rebuild the fleet yards.
Second attack on Borg Shipyards (2394)
The rest of 2393 was a rebuilding phase for Starfleet. By May 2394 Starfleet felt that it could send another attack against the shipyard inside Cardassian space. Commodore Tom Paris led the combined efforts of a Klingon, Dominion, and Starfleet battle group. The fleet moved in force and attacked. While Borg ships were drawn off, a single ship, the USS Avenger entered the nearby star's corona and used a modified tractor beam to force an expulsion of stellar matter that ripped the shipyard apart. The Allied Fleet survived the counter-attack and fell back to Earth. During the attack, they learned the Borg had wiped out the Talarians, Tzenkethi, and Kzinti.
Through the rest of 2394 and all of 2395, only minor skirmishes took place, with both sides facing shortages of raw materials. On March 18th, 2396, contact was lost with the inner-core worlds, Andoria and Vulcan, driving the frontlines ever closer to Earth. Stafleet dispatched vessels to Vulcan to find out why, even though most feared that it was another Borg attack. It was reported the task group encountered one Tactical Cube and two Spheres. The vessels were never heard from again.
Battle of Alpha Centauri (2397)
On January 4th, 2397, the Borg attacked Alpha Centauri with a force of eight vessels. The close proximity of Alpha Centauri to the Sol System prompted Starfleet Command to send what remained of the Fourth Fleet to defend the system. Though the defence was ultimately successful, almost all the Starfleet vessels were destroyed.
Thoughout 2397, Starfleet continued to rebuild its fleets. On May 29th, a distress call was heard from Sector 441. The Son'a, a race that had been able to escape the Borg thus far, were now under attack. The Son'a had been using isolytic warheads to destroy the Borg force attacking them however they were quickly running out of warheads and ships. Starfleet sent Rear Admiral Paris to lead the allied fleet in repelling the Borg invasion of the Briar Patch on the newly commissioned Sovereign class starship USS Archer. As the battle progressed, one of the Borg ships followed three Federation ships, the lead of which was the Archerinto the Briar Patch. The Borg were not ready for travelling though that violent region and the Federation ships were able to cause it to destroy itself by trying to move too quickly through "the patch." The other Allied ships were able to hold off the Borg, but only the three that had been inside the patch returned to Earth.
Final Days (2398)
By March, 2398, the Sol System had become the only remaining stronghold in the Federation. Millions of refugees from the Klingon, Romulan, Ferengi, Gorn and Tholian civilisations amongst others sought refuge from the advancing Borg Fleet. Sending scout ships to investigate an adrift sphere later in the year, Starfleet Intelligence was able to learn that the Borg had two hundred and thirty one vessels left in the Alpha Quadrant and were preparing to attack the Sol System, specifically the Dominion outpost within Utopia Planitia - the location of the development of a Dominion Pathogen which was wreaking havoc in the Collective - hoping to find an antidote to the Pathogen. Not willing to wait for the onslaught, Starfleet Command sent four hundred and thirty two vessels to attack Galorndon Core, the site of the Borg's last remaining forward base. Though the base was destroyed, only eight Borg ships met the same fate, though the entire Allied force was lost. Following this attack, the Borg regrouped and headed towards the Sol System, entering it on Wednesday, December 23rd.
A Borg fleet of two hundred and twenty three ships approached the Sol system. The deadliest, bloodiest and most vicious battle in Starfleet history began and lasted for nearly five days. Over eight thousand Federation allied vessels took place in the fight. The final Borg ship was destroyed at 1201 hours on 27th December 2398 bringing a spectacular and costly end to the twenty-year war.
- Main article located at Battle of Sol
Aftermath
For the entirety of 2399, Starfleet kept all vessels close to Earth with fears of further Borg attacks commonplace. However, as the months passed, it became apparent that Earth was not in immediate danger of attack and so on January 1st, 2400, Starfleet tentatively declared victory, both encouraging the inhabitants of Earth that they were safe and officially re-forming the First Fleet; the Earth Defence Force. Though some in Starfleet called for a return to exploration, this move was opposed by many in the admiralty and some members of the Federation Council. Despite this, the calls were loud enough to warrant the formation of the Starfleet Re-Exploration Initiative, now named the Fourth Fleet.
Now, the limited number of Starfleet ships assigned to the Starfleet Re-Exploration Initiative have been charged by President Spock and the Starfleet Commander In Chief, Fleet Admiral Picard, to explore the remains of the Alpha and Beta Quadrants, make contact with any survivors, and help forge a new Federation of Planets.