Ahrir'fvahir mnean? (ilhael 3)
(What are we? [book 3])
~ Eisn: Na Llaekh ~
Eisn: The Murder
In Terran year 2387, Sela led a small Romulan fleet past the Beta Stromgren supernova remnant and on into unexplored space. Not long after, a Romulan Mining Guild vessel observed massive fluctuations of radiation coming from the star in the Hobus system. Llairhi Spahkh s'Thaei (Amassador Spock of Vulcan) appeared before the Deihuit Rihan within days to warn them of the dangers should the Hobus star go supernova, and to request that the Shiar ih'Saeihr Rihan coordinate with the Thaessu to find a solution, but his plan was rejected. Donatra then traveled to Crateris at the invitation of Xiomek, and the two held there a private meeting, during which Xiomek is believed to have given information to her about possible rogue elements within the Romulan military and government. Donatra decided to return to ch'Rihan, and invited Xiomek to accompany her on her ship, the ch'R Valdor, so he would be present for the next meeting of the Deihuit. En route, Donatra contacted khre'Enriov Taris, who was still in the Levaeri system, and ordered her to return to ch'Rihan. The message was recorded by Romulan military communications relay stations, but Taris did not change course. A later review found that there was 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 could not be found. Kuramano Spahkh returned to Thaei, where he met with Ambassador Jean-Luc Picard to appeal to the Lasasam ih'Vriafwe Thaes (Vulcan Science Academy) to assist the Rihanh with the crisis in the Hobus system, but the Academy refused their request without comment.
 |
| Ki Baratan |
On Stardate 64444.5, the ch'R Valdor, passing near the Hobus system en route to ch'Rihan, reported unusual stellar activity, including a disturbance equivalent to a force seven ion storm, after which all contact with Donatra's ship was lost. Romulan Star Command sent four D'deridex class warbirds to search for the Valdor. The Deihuit at last authorized an evacuation order, and ships were recalled to help deliver residents of ch'Rihan to other worlds. Twenty-seven hours later, the Hobus star went supernova, setting off a subspace chain-reaction and destroying the Eisn star system, in which were contained ch'Rihan and ch'Havran. Billions of Rihannsu were killed.
 |
| ch'Rihan in 2387, before the destruction of the Eisn system |
The Federation's Starfleet Command immediately ordered all available vessels to cross the Neutral Zone and assist the Rihannsu with any possible relief and recovery efforts. Several of these ships were attacked by Nero, commanding the Narada, a Romulan mining vessel heavily modified with Borg technology. Additional cruisers were diverted to escort relief vessels to Romulan space. Fvillhu Chulan and the leaders of the Deihuit escaped from ch'Rihan before the planet's destruction, but the U.S.S. Nobel, en route to ch'Rihan, found the bodies of Chulan and the Senate's ruling council floating in space near their derelict shuttle. Meanwhile, Spahkh took the Jellyfish, a new vessel commissioned by the Vulcan Science Academy, to the Hobus system. According to sensor reports recorded on Stardate 64471.6 by the USS Enterprise-E, the Hobus supernova was contained by a limited singularity, ending the threat to the quadrant. Both the Jellyfish and the Narada were lost, Spahkh having been aboard the Jellyfish at the time. His sacrifice to save other worlds from the same fate which befell ch'Rihan and ch'Havran will not be forgotten.
 |
| Llairhi Spahkh s'Thaei, 2387 |
In Terran year 2388, with the death of Chulan, the disappearance of Donatra, and the exile of Sela, nobody remained with the authority to call the Romulan worlds together and organize a new government. The leadership council of Rator-III therefore declared themselves the new Romulan Deihuit and proclaimed Rator-III to be the new capitol of the Shiar ih'Saeihr Rihan. Both of these acts were quickly challenged by the leaders of Achenar Prime and Abraxas-V, who made similar claims. Many looked with hope to khre'Enriov Taris to pull the Romulan people back together and restore order to the Empire, but she was busy with military matters, recalling all Romulan vessels and working to restore order to the military. The Federation and most of its allies continued to send relief to the Rihanh, but the Nneikha Klling'hann under the leadership of Chancellor Martok refused, blaming the Romulans and Federation for the loss of life within the Klingon fleet which Worf took to battle Nero. The already-weakemed relationship between the Klingon Empire and the Federation consequently began to deteriorate further.
In Terran year 2389, five Rihannsu attempted to seize the throne as Rhiyrh s'Shiar ih'Saeihr Rihan, at least a dozen declared themselves Ehkifv Temjahaere (Proconsul and therefore Supreme Commander of the Imperial Defense Force under the political scheme which had been in place before the destruction of the Eisn system), and twenty-five or more claimed the office of Fvillhu s'Shiar ih'Saeihr Rihan. Most of these persons were quickly assassinated, while a fortunate few were simply ignored. Federation diplomats attempted to organize a conference between the various Romulan colony worlds in order for them to form a new government, but no agreement on location could be reached, and the effort failed. Subsequently, the Nneikha Klling'hann made lightning strikes into Rihan territory and seized control of the Tranome Sar and Nequencia systems. Although poised to strike further into Rihan territory, the Klling'hannsu backed down when Raenasa s'Lloann'mhrahel (the Federation's Starfleet Command) sent a Federation fleet to guard the border between the Nneikha Klling'hann and the Shiar ih'Saeihr Rihan, with a few minor skirmishes reported between the Lloann'mhrahel and the Klling'hannsu afterwards.
In Terran year 2390, while the Shiar ih'Saeihr Rihan remained embroiled in political instability, the Romulan colony of Talvath made a formal request for Federation protection and extended an offer to open talks that could lead to Talvath applying for Federation membership. Some saw this as the first sign of the dissolution of the Romulan Star Empire. Meanwhile, khre'Enriov Taris had been organizing the remaining Romulan ships into a new fleet. In areas with holes in the chains of command, Taris had approached each ship captain personally, and outside observers expected her to have the Romulan military fully operational within seven months. Although analysts within the Lloann'mhrahel warned that a strong fleet could quickly overwhelm the weak leaders of the colony worlds, and that the Romulans might soon be under military control, Taris had not publicly expressed an interest in governing the civilian population, and had instead ordered the forces under her control to concentrate on relief efforts and defense of the border regions.
In Terran year 2391, Raenasa s'Lloann'mhrahel recalled Starfleet vessels from the Romulan-Klingon border in order to patrol shipping routes, which had been suffering from the depredations of Nausicaan pirates. When some Romulan colony world leaders objected and accused the Lloann'mhrahel of breaking their promise of protection, Taris rebuked them, reminding them that Rihannsu should prefer death with honor and liberty to any mewling like frightened younglings after protection from other governments. With ships of the Lloann'mhrahel having been withdrawn from the Klingon-Romulan border, hardliners on the Klingon High Council began to push for a resumption of the stalled Romulan campaign. Martok and his followers urged caution, preferring to concentrate on the war against the Gorn and building up the Klingon Defense Force to pre-Dominion War levels. Councilor J'mpok, however, defiantly gathered ship commanders loyal to his house and the houses of his allies and invaded the Zeta Pictoris system, where they clashed with a galae Rihan (Romulan fleet) commanded by khre'Enriov Taris, and the Rihannsu forced the Klling'hannsu to retreat.
Taris' victory in the Zeta Pictoris system rallied the Rihanh, who had been desperately seeking a sign of their former glory. Rator-III was the first to proclaim Taris as the leader of the Shiar ih'Saeihr Rihan, quickly followed by Achenar Prime and more than a dozen other worlds. In an address broadcast throughout the Empire, Taris stated: "I am a military commander, and I would prefer to remain so. The seas of politics are rife with submerged hazards and hidden perils, and a wise person does well to avoid them. But my Empire calls and I cannot resist her plea." Taris then called on the leaders of the colony worlds to meet at Rator-III to select representatives for a new Romulan Senate, to make plans to organize a government, and to build a new capitol.
Also in the same year, Romulan listening posts picked up a coded message sent by a Federation operative inserted into the fleet that departed Romulan space with Sela in 2386 which reported that Sela and her followers had landed on Makar, an M-class planet in the Beta Quadrant with abundant supplies of decalithium and heavy metals. A humanoid race with technology equivalent to Earth's Iron Age inhabited two of Makar's temperate southern continents, but Sela saw the population as nothing but an additional natural resource, and within weeks her forces had hundreds of Makarans working in the mines. The operative also reported that Sela had held a conference of some sort with a group of Hirogen, and seemed quite pleased when it was finished; he estimated that Sela was hatching a new scheme to take over the Shiar ih'Saeihr Rihan, but the exact nature of her plan was beyond his ken. (The details of this meeting later came to light: Sela had agreed to allow the Hirogen to hunt Rihannsu and Havrannsu in exchange for their support in her bid to become ri'Rhiyrh s'Shiar ih'Saeihr Rihan.)
In Terran year 2392, construction began of "Rihan," a new city on Rator-III to become the new capitol of na Shiar ih'Saeihr Rihan. The first building to be completed was used to host meetings of the Romulan Colonial Organizational Committee, formed under direction of Taris, and the Committee began to lay the initial foundation for a new government, although still beset with the in-fighting and factionalism which had continued since the destruction of the Eisn system.
In Terran year 2393, the Romulan Colonial Organizational Committee continued to work on forming a new Romulan government, although several legislative sessions were interrupted by debating between Taris and General Tebok over defense of more remote Romulan territories, with Tebok arguing that such worlds should be sacrificed in the short term to strengthen the core worlds, while Taris insisted on their duty to defend every Romulan world. This debate raged for the remainder of the year, with no decision reached.
In Terran year 2394, Melani D'ian, the "Emerald Empress" of the Orion Syndicate, signed a non-aggression and mutual defense pact with Chancellor J'mpok of the Nneikha Klling'hann in exchange for a new homeworld within Klingon territory. This planet would be Ter'jas Mor. As a gift to celebrate the new union, Melani D'ian sent 1,500 Orion women to "serve" the Great Houses of the Nneikha Klling'hann -- an act which would soon lead to Orion dominance of the Nneikha Klling'hann as Klingon males succumbed to the powerful pheromones produced by the Orion women. Meanwhile, the Romulan Colonial Organizational Committee continued working to form a new government for the Shiar ih'Saeihr Rihan. They rejected the suggestion to restore the monarchy, and instead began work to reform the Deihuit Rihan on Rator-III, which planet was by this time being called "Nova Roma," or "New Rome" (in the ancient Terran language of Latin, although the reason for the use of such an alien name was not explained). Taris was named Fvillhu (Praetor), but the majority of legislative and executive power would be vested in the Deihuit.
In Terran year 2396, an outbreak of Bloodfire ravaged the Kevratas system, ultimately spreading to multiple colony worlds. The disease is lethal to several species, including Rihanh, but is curable if treated promptly with a drug developed by Doctor Beverly Crusher of the Lloann'mhrahel. Fillhu Taris, however, seemed to prefer an attempt to halt the spread of the disease by means of a quarantine of the Kevratas system. The quarantine was enforced by a blockade of Romulan ships, stopping all food and medical shipments to the planet during its coldest season. Thousands perished from disease and starvation.
Meanwhile, Federation observation posts saw an increase in ship traffic going to the far reaches of the Beta Quadrant. Dopterians were reported to be funneling ships and supplies to Romulan exile Sela and her followers in exchange for decalithium. Because Sela was well outside Federation territory, Starfleet had no grounds on which to stop the trade. However, Starfleet Intelligence kept a close eye on the situation. Also, since decalithium is a highly restricted substance in the Lloann'mhrahel, any ore that the Dopterians brought into Federation space was subject to seizure.
In Terran year 2397, the government of Kevratas declared independence from the Shiar ih'Saeihr Rihan. In response, Fvillhu Taris ordered General Tebok to put down the rebellion with force, but Tebok refused to issue the order to his troops to open fire on civilians. Instead, he negotiated a settlement with the Kevratan leader Kito, giving the Kevatran leaders safe passage to Nova Roma to present their grievances to the Deihuit Rihan and ordering that relief supplies and medical personnel be sent to Kevatras immediately. Reacting to his insubordination, Taris ordered Tebok to resign his position as head of the Romulan military, but Tebok refused and instead appealed to the Deihuit, which decided to overrule Taris.
In Terran year 2398, General Tebok promoted General Velal to command of the Romulan Second Fleet. Velal had been openly critical of Fvillhu Taris and her policies, and was one of the officers responsible for negotiating the agreement that kept Kevatras under Romulan control. Many saw this move by Tebok as a deliberate insult to Taris.
In Terran year 2399, the ch'R Alth'lndor, General Tebok's ship, notified Nova Roma that it was experiencing unexplained malfunctions in several systems, but that the problems should not impede the ship's progress. General Velal offered to send a ship to rendezvous with the Alth'lndor, since General Tebok was due back in Nova Roma in 32 hours for a meeting of the Deihuit, but Tebok assured Velal that his engineers believed the problems to be caused by a computer virus and that a solution for the problem would shortly be found. Two hours later, the Alth'lndor dropped out of warp and transmitted a final distress signal. The ch'R Kaidor was the closest vessel, and it raced to the Alth'lndor's location. The Kaidor reported detecting a singularity containment failure, but before her crew could act the Alth'lndor exploded, killing General Tebok and all hands. Fvillhu Taris then ordered that until a new commander for the fleet was selected, all fleets must report to her directly. Velal, however, went to Tebok's allies in the Deihuit, and they quickly passed a bill that called for approval from the Deihuit for all high-level military appointments. The uncertainty in the chain of command once again threw the Romulan fleet into chaos, and several commanders announced that they would no longer report to any authority but their own -- a late resurgence of the virtue of freedom and self-determination which has always been at the center of the Romulan nature.
In Terran year 2400, the Deihuit Rihan on Nova Roma planned to restrict the powers of the Fvillhu, while Fvillhu Taris argued that her powers should be expanded due to the upheavals in the Alpha and Beta Quadrants. In the end, although she was able to sway some Deihur to her position, the Deihuit proceeded with its plans to limit the authority of the Fvillhu. In the same year, several messages were sent from Nova Roma to a planet deep in the Beta Quadrant, claiming that there were irregularities in the reports about the death of General Tebok and the destruction of the ch'R Alth'lndor. The origin of these messages is believed in retrospect to have been General Velal. In response, Sela ordered her spies to investigate and find the truth of the matter.
In Terran year 2401, General Velal reportedly met with Sela and some of her exiled followers in the Zeta Volantis system. After this alleged rendezvous, Velal gathered a trusted group of ship commanders, planning to remove Taris from power.
In Terran year 2402, Velal appeared before the Deihuit Rihan and demanded that Fvillhu Taris resign before she was removed from office by force. Velal had the backing of many of the Deihur, but a vote of no confidence nevertheless failed by a small margin. Taris then called for ships of the fleet loyal to the legitimate government of the Shiar ih'Saeihr Rihan to engage those supporting the revolution. There were multiple skirmishes between the two groups, and when Sela's fleet re-entered Romulan space in support of Velal, the conflict exploded into open warfare.
In Terran year 2403, the conflict between Taris and Velal continued to divide the already fractured Empire. Kevatras and Abraxas Prime threw their support behind the revolution, giving Velal and Sela's forces much needed safe havens and supply bases. The war came to an abrupt end on Stardate 80957.96, when forces of the Romulan Second Fleet under command of Velal approached Rator-III. Taris had been locked in her rooms for a few days at this point, and would not allow anyone to enter. Her staff finally broke down the door when Velal's fleet entered orbit, trying to get Taris to safety, but she was already gone. An extensive search of the palace turned up no clues. The Tal'Shiar then extended the search to all of Nova Roma, but Fvillhu Taris had disappeared. Velal and Sela landed in Nova Roma while the search was still ongoing, and proceeded directly to the Deihu'kri. The Deihuit subsequently named Sela as Fvillhu and General Velal as the leader of the Romulan fleet by acclamation. The reign of Praetor Taris was over, but the new regime would prove to be no more preferable.
In Terran year 2404, Sela settled long-simmering disputes between colony worlds, opened the Romulus Memorial at the remains of the homeworld, and, using blackmail, charm, and guile, began to slowly shape the Deihuit to her way of thinking. The Shiar ih'Saeihr Rihan appeared to be entering a new era of peace not seen since before the destruction of the Eisn system.
In Terran year 2405, the alliance between the Nneikha Klling'hann and the Lloann'mhrahel was terminated when the two powers went to war over territorial disputes.
In Terran year 2406, Admiral Chakotay was promoted to the position of head of Starfleet Intelligence. In one of his first briefings to Starfleet Command, he admitted that Starfleet Intelligence believed that at least 30 individuals in Starfleet or high-level Federation posts were actually Undine infiltrators.
In Terran year 2407, Sela revived one of the ideas put forward by Taris, that of the restoration of the monarchy. Although she herself said nothing of this, her senatorial allies began to float the idea, and comparisons were made between Sela and beloved rulers from the Romulans' past, like Ael i-Mhiessan t'Rllaillieu. A quiet search began for the Sword of S'task which had sat in the Empty Chair in the Deihu'rhe on ch'Rihan, although everyone believed it had been destroyed with the homeworld.
In Terran year 2408, on Stardate 85365.28, the half-Terrhain Sela was crowned as the ri'Rhiyrh s'Shiar ih'Saeihr Rihan (Empress of the Romulan Star Empire). The new Empress called for a return to the traditions of old, including the carrying of honor blades and blood oaths. Before taking the crown, Sela publicly used a jeweled blade to cut her own palm. As the blood dripped down onto a rug of white fur, she took an oath to uphold and preserve the Empire with her life. The new Empress began her reign by dispensing with the office of Fvillhu, and declared that the Deihuit would serve at her pleasure. Many Rihannsu began to refer to Nova Roma as Mol'Rihan, which is "New Romulus" in High Rihan.
In January of the Terran year 2409, the Romulan agricultural colony on the planet Virinat was preparing for their annual "Festival of the Tapping," the time when the kegs of Romulan Ale brewed on Virinat and flavored with the nectar of the Khellidir (Khellidir are insects native to Virinat) would be tapped. Some oddities were noticed on the day of the festival, but further investigation was postponed pending the end of the festival. As Malem, the Maiori of the Virinat colony, concluded the opening ceremonies of the festival and the fireworks began to erupt in the night sky, other explosions rocked the colony. Virinat was under attack.
 |
| A portion of the farm on Virinat before the attack |
Onre: ilhael 4 - Na Kreh'dhhokh Mol'Rihan
(Next: book 4 - The New Romulan Republic)
No comments:
Post a Comment