Search
Cookie Usage Statistics Colour Key Sudden Death Monthly Poll Caption Comp eMail Author Shops
Ships Fleets Weaponry Species People Timelines Calculators Photo Galleries
Stations Design Lineage Size Charts Battles Science / Tech Temporal Styling Maps / Politics
Articles Reviews Lists Recreation Search Site Guide What's New Forum
Bioship Planetbuster Assault Ship Fighter Emissary Kendra Pagh Prophet Solar Sail Additional Cube Probe Singularity Ship Sphere Tactical Cube Transwarp Prototype Yacht Dreadnought Freighter Galor Hideki Keldon Breen Frigate Attack Ship Battlecruiser Battleship Dreadnought Karemma Ship Air Tram Akira Ambassador Antares Centaur Challenger Cheyenne Class F Shuttle Constellation Constitution Constitution Daedalus Danube Defender Defiant Delta Flyer Endgame Nova Endgame Shuttle Excelsior Excelsior II Excelsior Variant 1 Federation Class Raider Scout Trainer Freedom Gagarin Gage Galaxy Galaxy Yacht Griffin Hermes Holo Ship Intrepid Kelvin Luna Miranda Nebula New Orleans Niagara Norway Nova Oberth Olympic Orbital Shuttle Peregrine Polaris Prometheus Ptolemy Raven Refit Galaxy Reliant Rigel Ross Saber Sagan Saladin Shelley Sovereign Sovereign Yacht Soyuz Springfield Steamrunner Sutherland Sydney Travel Pod Trident Type 3 Shuttle Type 6 Shuttle Type 7 Shuttle Type 8 Shuttle Type 9 Shuttle Type 10 Shuttle Type 11 Shuttle Type 14 Shuttle Type 15 Shuttle Type 17 Shuttle Type 18 Shuttle Warp Sled Wells Work Bee Yeager Additional D'Kora Additional Ares Conestoga DY-100 Intrepid J Class Neptune NX Class NX Test Ship Saturn V SS Enterprise The Phoenix Type 0 Shuttle USS Enterprise Valiant Y Class Additional Raider Predator Additional B'rel D'tai D-5 D-7 Early Bird of Prey K'pak K'T'Inga Bird of Prey Cargo Ship Tanker Negh'var Raptor Regency Voodieh Vor'cha Additional D'Deridex Early Bird of Prey Narada Norexan Bird of Prey D7 Science ship Scout Shuttle Scimitar Scorpion Additional Battleship Collector Destroyer Additional Cell Ship Module Ship Salvage Ship Additional Observation Ship War Ship Additional D'Kyr Sh'Raan Suurok Vahklas Lander Additional Aquatic Cruiser Arboreal Ship Insectoid Assault Ship Insectoid Fighter Insectoid Warship Primate Ship Primate Shuttle Reptilian Warship Additional Dauntless Doomsday Machine Kumari class Angosian Ship Cravic Ship Yonada Hirogen Ship Husnock Ship Krenim Patrol Krenim Timeship Krenim Warship Malon Ship Mawasi Cruiser Eymorg Ship Nihydron Ship Pralor Ship Promellian Battlecruiser Tarellian Ship Early Tholian Ship V'Ger Whale Probe Varro Ship Zahl Ship Additional

The Omarion Nebula

NotesImages
Name : The Omarion Nebula
Universe : Prime Timeline
Year : 2371

In 2370 the Federation had their first direct encounter with a powerful Gamma Quadrant civilisation known as "The Dominion". The encounter led to the loss of the USS Odyssey with all hands [1]; a follow up mission by Commander Sisko made it clear that the Dominion intended to conquer the Alpha quadrant, by subversion if possible or by force of arms if necessary. [2]

The Federation's preparations for the Dominion onslaught were largely defensive - the Defiant was stationed at Deep Space Nine [3] and a massive upgrading of the station's weapon systems was undertaken. [4] Series production of the Defiant class was also commenced. [5] However, other powers planned a more aggressive response. In 2371 rumours reached The Maquis that the Cardassian Obsidian Order were carrying out a mysterious operation in the Orias star system. Despite stealing the Defiant and attempting to reach Orias, the Maquis were unable to determine exactly what was taking place there. [6] Further investigation by the Cardassian government also apparently proved fruitless.

It transpired that Enabran Tain, the ex-head of the Obsidian Order who had been living in retirement on Arawath [7], had been perturbed by the lack of offensive action by the major powers of the Alpha and Beta Quadrants in face of the Dominion threat. He had contacted the Romulan Tal'Shiar intelligence agency and together they had created a plan aimed at ending the threat by a "decapitation" strike on the Dominion. They planned to assemble a significant force of both Cardassian and Romulan warships which would travel to the Founder's home world and destroy the surface, killing all the Founders on the planet. Since the Jem'Hadar where dependant on the drug ketracel white which only the Founders could provide, Tain expected that the vast majority of the Jem'Hadar would then die over the following weeks. Without the Founders or the Jem'hadar, the remnants of the Dominion would then fall once and for all. [8]

The Obsidian Order used the Orias system to construct a fleet of Keldon class ships, something which violated their founding charter. The ships were equipped with cloaking devices by the Tal Shiar, who in turn provided their own force of D'deridex class warbirds. The two fleets rendezvoused close to Deep Space Nine; Tain had decided to offer his old friend and assistant Elim Garak a chance to join the effort, an opportunity which Garak accepted enthusiastically. [9] Odo was also taken aboard the fleet and interrogated for information on the Founders. The fleet passed through the wormhole to Dominion space, transmitting messages to their respective governments which explained the plan and the motivations behind it. Neither the Romulans, Cardassians or even the Federation chose to intervene, at least in part because the plan seemed to have a fair chance of success. Vice Admiral Toddman ordered Deep Space Nine's the civilian population evacuated and sent a force of nine starships to reinforce the station in the event of Dominion reprisals. Meanwhile, Commander Benjamin Sisko disobeyed orders and took the Defiant into the Gamma Quadrant, in hopes of recovering Odo and Garak. [8]

Unknown to both the Order and the Tal'Shiar, the Founders had been aware of the plan from the outset and had decided to use this opportunity to cripple both of those organisations. The Romulan Colonel Lovok had been replaced by a Founder infiltrator, who had done everything possible to encourage the plan. The Founder's homeworld had been completely evacuated and false life-signs planted on the surface. A force of 150 Jem'hadar attack ships was hidden within the Omarion Nebula to await the fleet's arrival. [8]

Determined to retrieve Odo, Commander Sisko violated Admiral Toddman's orders and took the Defiant through the wormhole to pursue the fleet. Although the ship's cloaking device was disabled by Commander Eddington in an attempt to prevent the violation of orders, O'Brien was able to repair the damage and the ship resumed its course after a delay of only a few hours. [8]

Meanwhile, the Dominion's trap worked perfectly. The fleet launched their attack, doing massive damage to the Founder's planet - thirty percent of the entire crust was destroyed in the opening volley - but Tain was taken completely by surprise when the Jem'Hadar launched their attack. Massively outnumbered, the fleet took heavy damage from the Jem'Hadar. Lovok offered Odo the chance to once again rejoin his people, and when this was declined he assisted Odo and Garak in escaping from the Warbird which had been holding them aboard the Runabout USS Mekong. Although the Runabout took fire from Jem'Hadar forces, the Defiant arrived in time to rescue the pair and escaped the scene of the battle. The remainder of the fleet was subsequently annihilated [8] though some prisoners were taken, including Tain. [10]

The Battle of the Omarion Nebula was a disaster for both the Tal'Shiar and the Obsidian Order. Both organisations lost countless resources and personnel, setbacks which would cripple them for years afterwards. They had originally been targeted because the Founders considered them ruthless and efficient organizations - after the battle, this was true of neither one. [8]

In the longer term, the battle would have other repercussions. In particular, the devastation of the Obsidian Order may well have been a major factor in the fall of the Cardassian government just months later [4], an event which prompted the Klingon's invasion of Cardassia and the subsequent brief war between the Federation and Klingon Empire. [4]


Colour key

Canon source Backstage source Novel source DITL speculation

References

# Series Season Source Comment
1 DS9 2 The Jem'Hadar
2 DS9 3 The Search, Part 2
3 DS9 3 The Search, Part 1
4 DS9 4 The Way of the Warrior
5 DS9 5 Call to Arms
6 DS9 3 Defiant
7 DS9 2 The Wire
8 DS9 3 The Die is Cast
9 DS9 3 Improbable Cause
10 DS9 5 In Purgatory's Shadow
Series : DS9 Season 2
Episode : The Jem'Hadar
Series : DS9 Season 3
Episode : The Search, Part 2
Series : DS9 Season 3
Episode : The Search, Part 1
Series : DS9 Season 4
Episode : The Way of the Warrior
Series : DS9 Season 5
Episode : Call to Arms
Series : DS9 Season 3
Episode : Defiant
Series : DS9 Season 2
Episode : The Wire
Series : DS9 Season 3
Episode : The Die is Cast
Series : DS9 Season 3
Episode : Improbable Cause
Series : DS9 Season 5
Episode : In Purgatory's Shadow


© Graham & Ian Kennedy Page views : 55,599 Last updated : 6 Jun 2006