CRITICAL PEACE: A STARS ABLAZE STORY
"I have heard stories about you since I was a child. Your confrontation with Kirk on Organia, your attack on Romulus, your defense of the Korama Pass…"
"Everything I have done pales in comparison to what I am about to achieve."
Milky Way Galaxy
Beta Quadrant
Qo'Nos
IKS Klothos
Kor's Quarters
"Personal Log: Kor recording. It has been over thirty-two solar rotations since our capture of the warship from universe and I am beyond pleased with the results. Though our engineers work day and night to adapt the strange crystalline technology we have found, we have managed to reverse engineer its engines. The Klingon Empire has achieved transwarp drive.
Finally, we have achieved something where the Federation has failed. And we have been able to improve our disruptor technology as well. The disruptors used by the Jaridian warship are a form of quantum disruptors, designed to attack a target's molecular structure, causing a rapid molecular breakdown. Clearly these Jaridians were as merciless as Klingon warriors. And their torpedoes, my engineers tell me that they used positon bombardment warheads instead of anti-matter and an advanced form of plasma torpedo known as a phased plasma torpedo." Kor grinned. "I would have very much liked to meet them. Though it is unlikely, I will put their weapons to good use in Operation: Guillotine."
From their studies of these positron torpedoes, the positrons are energetically distributed at the target side, resulting in large-scale annihilation of the electrons in the target's atoms, and the immediate dissociation of the target's molecular structure. Klingon scientists had done their absolute best to reverse-engineer the powerful weaponry of the Jaridian ship for the last several months. Jaridian crystal-based technology made it difficult, but it still gave them pointers to creating their own versions of these advanced weapons.
As for the phased plasma torpedo…
Kor, like everyone else, knew that the Romulans specialized in creating plasma-based weaponry. He was aware of the plasma torpedo they had used to destroy several Federation outposts along the Neutral Zone. The weapon expended large amounts of energy, forcing the Romulan vessel to decloak in order to fire, and limiting the vessel's operational range. Upon detonation, the torpedo unleashed an enveloping energy plasma, forcing an implosion in the target.
The weapon had a limited range, as the plasma effect dissipated after a few minutes of faster-than-light travel. That made it unsuitable for ship-to-ship combat compared to a photon torpedo. As for the Jaridian weapon, it seems the phased plasma torpedo has denser plasma particles and have a longer range but are still slower, again compared to a photon torpedo.
However, their phased density would allow them to pass through enemy shields.
Kor was grinning as he stepped onto the bridge of his ship, seeing all of the crew at their posts, which was good.
Today would be a glorious day and he wanted it to be perfect in every way possible.
What was so special about today?
Operation: Guillotine.
"Is the fleet prepared?" Kor asked, sitting in the command chair.
"All ships report they are ready."
"Good." Kor grinned. "Set course for Romulus. Prepare for transwarp drive."
That was right.
Kor is planning a strike at the planet Romulus itself.
The new transwarp drive combined with the cloaking device and enhanced weapons, Kor believed such a deadly combination would deliver a deadly strike to the heart of the Romulan Empire itself. In the century before the Romulans made contact with Earth again they committed themselves to expanding their borders in every other direction, rebuilding their fleets and strengthening infrastructure. Advances in nuclear fusion allowed the Empire to expand its borders to the point where it finally ran up against Klingon space; the Gorn would be encountered not long after. Moreover, the Romulans became pioneers in plasma-based weaponry, constructing ships that could pack a punch that was highly disproportionate to their size.
The Klingon and Romulan Empires initially had an alliance around the time of renewed contact with the Federation during this period came gradually; initially, the Senate decided to launch an incursion against Federation outposts to test both their new cloaking device and Federation resolve, while demonstrating their 'warrior spirit' to the Klingons. The cloaking device proved a success, and the Klingons were very impressed, but Federation resolve proved strong, and the Neutral Zone was quickly re-fortified. Decades of détente with the Klingons ultimately led to a cautious alliance, once a Romulan raid on the Federation Neutral Zone convinced the Klingons that the Star Empire possessed both the technology and spirit to make it a worthy ally. The Romulans were given a dozen Klingon D7-class battlecruisers and the technology to construct a dilithium-based reaction chamber, while the Klingons in return were given cloaking technology and a substantial amount of dilithium from the Reman mines, which the Romulans had previously found little use for.
A few years later, Starfleet caused what is known as 'the Enterprise incident', where Federation agents stole a state-of-the-art Romulan cloaking device from an Imperial battlecruiser. The military, embarrassed and infuriated by this incident, was ready to invade Federation space to retrieve the cloak, but the Federation hastily pledged to use the device only to develop countermeasures against Romulan ships, not to build a cloak of their own. Although skeptical, the Senate agreed, stipulating that violation of this pledge would be considered an act of war.
In the incident's aftermath, progressives in the two governments engaged in a diplomatic push for measures to advance galactic peace; the Romulans at this time were leery of confronting the Federation head-on, especially after the Organian Treaty forestalled any Federation-Klingon conflict, lending mainstream support to this approach of peaceful influence. Most notable in this approach was the settlement of various worlds inside the Neutral Zone as joint colonies, some of which the Klingons contributed to as well. Most were total failures, particularly Nimbus III which became a haven for privateers and a diplomatic embarrassment. Other colonies, most notably the Federation-Romulan venture on Qualor III, proved more successful, but their populations remain highly divided to this day.
Despite the closeness of the Klingon-Romulan alliance, the two empires were never quite at ease with each other, for the same reasons as always: The Klingons disapproved of the Romulans' version of honor, while the Romulans felt Klingon society was dangerously barbaric. Early flare-ups began not long after the alliance came into effect, most notably the Klingons' claim of the Klach D'Kel Brakt which the Romulans had been using as a surveillance post on the Federation for the better part of a century but held spiritual significance for the Klingons.
A rogue group of warships captured the Klach D'Kel Brakt a few years after the Enterprise incident, and the Klingon High Council refused to return the territory, it seemed to validate Romulan suspicions that the Klingons were too barbaric to honor any agreement with an alien species; this incident signaled the beginning of the end of their alliance.
Good riddance in Kor's mind.
To him, the Romulans were too treacherous to be trusted and their sheer arrogance of their beliefs in being the superior life form to everyone else irked Kor greatly. Given their expansion, it was likely in a decade or two, they would reach the point where the Gorn were being boxed in between the Star Empire and Tholian Assembly.
A chance to bring them to their knees was too good to pass up.
Plus, with the Romulans now making overtures to the Federation, if they somehow gained access to the wormhole leading to the other universe, the Romulans could very well gain as much an advantage as the Federation, leaving the Klingons caught between two superpowers.
Not if Kor had anything to say about it.
"Attention all Klingon Warriors." Kor stood up once a channel had been opened to the fleet, consisting of over twenty Birds-of-Prey.
Only Kor's ship, the Klothos was the exception to that and only because it was to be the flagship of this strike force.
The reason why is because only Birds-of-Prey were chosen for this mission is because Klingon Battlecruisers lacked the maneuverability and speed needed for this mission.
"Today, we are embarking on a mission that if we succeed, will cement our place in Klingon history as the great warriors of our era." Kor began with an eager grin. "A mission at the heart of the Romulan Empire. With the new technologies we have plundered from our attempts, we will delivering a crippling blow that will remind the Romulans never to trifle with the Klingon Empire!"
This earned him cheers from his bridge crew and he could hear cheers from the open channel.
Good.
They were motivated.
He liked nothing better than a dutiful and motivated crew when he was about to undertake a glorious battle.
"Prepare for warp speed. Standy by transwarp drive." Kor sat down. "Engage cloaking device."
The lights dimmed as the cloaking device activating, vanishing along with the twenty Birds-of-Prey.
"Set course for Romulus." Kor gave the order.
"Course laid in, Captain."
"Execute."
The Klothos along its fleet went to transwarp, the only knowledge of it happening was seen by the crews of the ships carrying them through space at a near infinite velocity.
The mission of glorious conquest had begun.