98926.2 Federation News Service
TERRANS RETREAT FROM ITRIN, LARGER THREAT LOOMS AS SECTORS LOOK TOWARD RECOVERY
Breaking news today: Starfleet’s 38th Fleet is reporting that the Terran invasion of the Itrin Sector block has been repelled. In the last 48 hours, the remaining Terran forces have been forced to retreat back to their own universe, marking the end of the bloody 5-week conflict on the Federation’s border.
The invasion began with the Terran conquest of the neighboring Confederacy of Azed. Using prepared countermeasures to the Confederacy’s advanced weaponry, the Terrans fully occupied the Itrin Sector within a week, while Starfleet mobilized in Doza. Though a full accounting of Confederacy losses is presently difficult to quantify, FNS has confirmed that their governing body was executed, their capital planet destroyed, and at least one other heavily populated world was rendered lifeless by orbital bombardment. The death toll is expected to measure in the trillions.
Rear Admiral Samuel Bishop was assigned to organize the Federation’s defense from a command post at Talos Junction Outpost in the Yuhop System. Allied forces from the Klingon Empire and the Romulan Republic arrived to fight alongside Starfleet. In response to this unprecedented threat, the majority of the local powers in the area agreed to temporarily put aside their differences and allow Starfleet and allied vessels safe passage and, in some cases, basing rights, in order to mount an effective defense against the invaders.
Though Itrin itself and the Confederacy systems hosted the early battlegrounds, fighting soon spilled out into the Doza Sector and beyond, with the Terrans pushing as far as Ba’aja, Tau Zeta, and Legia – committing atrocities everywhere they went. Even Deep Space 13, in the Aldebaran Sector, suffered a series of raids.
The decisive turning point was the Battle of I-7815. Starfleet managed to lure the bulk of the Terran fleet to the otherwise insignificant I-7815 System, where local conditions and pre-placed defenses contributed to an overwhelming allied victory. Unable to maintain supply lines, the diminished Terran battlefleet was forced to abandon many of its fortified positions, allowing for the liberation of the Confederacy. The front lines in Doza quickly collapsed, spelling the eventual end of the invasion.
Declassified timeline of Terran Invasion, Itrin Sector Block, Oct-Dec 2421.
Noteworthy exceptions to the cohesive front of local civilizations are the Junayd and the Korlackress. Both minor empires directly or indirectly supported the Terran invasion and, despite the Terran withdrawal, both they have remained overtly hostile to the Federation. These smaller-scale conflicts are expected to take a priority in Federation military and diplomatic efforts in the region, now that the larger Terran threat has abated.
The collapse of the Confederacy of Azed and the destruction of entire worlds and the busy trade port at Itrin has left not only a regional power vacuum, but also a major refugee crisis. Starfleet’s extended deployment into neutral space was necessary to defend our very universe, but it remains to be seen what will become of the affected territories now that the crisis has ended. FNS sources inside the Federation Diplomatic Corps have confirmed that a number of local powers have already revoked their permission for Starfleet to operate within their sovereign territory, and reports of opportunistic piracy and other criminal activity are expected to skyrocket in the coming weeks and months.
Though the end of active fighting is cause for celebration for many in the affected region, the larger threat of the Terran Empire still looms over the Federation. Analysts suspect that Azedi technology may have posed some sort of threat to the Terran superweapon “the Other”, and the unfortunate fact is that the Terrans did seem to accomplish what they set out to do, in with the destruction of their technology.
FNS will continue to update this story as more information becomes available.
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((Thank you to everyone who participated in this story arc! If you’re willing/interested in providing feedback on our implementation of the arc and the various RP systems involved, please head over to this thread: Terran Gambit: Invasion feedback/review.
We will be following up on this in the new year when STO’s Terran Gambit finale comes out. Until then, please remember that mirror universe plots require approval outside of these designated special events. If you want to do anything involving leftover Terrans, or anything set in the MU, please open a ticket and let us know what you have in mind!))
USS Enterprise encounters V'ger in 2273.