Beginning of the End [Deep Space 9]

Aftermath Refugees

With the destruction of the Federation fleet and the deactivation of the mines in front of the wormhole, the Dominion began to turn the tide of war in their favor. Starfleet had no choice but to pull back and fortify key star systems. However, this would prove to be virtually pointless. Every engagement was met with overwhelming numbers of Dominion and Cardassian ships. It wasn't long until a firm grasp of the Alpha Quadrant was obtained as countless worlds fell under the boots of the Jem'Hadar.

Once Starfleet had failed in the attempt to retake Deep Space Nine, the Klingons strengthened their borders and prepared themselves for battle. Like the Jem'Hadar, the warrior race had reserved themselves to fight on to the last man standing. In comparison to other species in the Alpha Quardant, this meant the Dominion would have to push even harder into Klingon territory because there would be no surrender. The Founders, the changeling race governing over the Dominion, knew that the Klingons would make them pay dearly for every square light-year of territory. As such, they focused most of their attention eradicating the Federation. The plan was to keep the Klingons bottled up in their territory while eliminating Starfleet. For a human piloting a Peregrine class fighter, there were very few safe systems left to find assistance.

Shortly after the battle between the Federation and Dominion fleets, John decided he had to properly dispose of the Ensign's body. Although he tried to keep his promise and take Elizabeth home, he felt he had no choice but to beam her into space. The Commander had no idea how long his voyage would be, and the reality was he didn't want to travel indefinitely with a decomposing body sitting next to him. Somehow, it didn't feel right to just leave her in the middle of the cold and empty darkness of space. But it had to be done.

It had been weeks since Operation Return failed. It was getting exceedingly difficult to avoid Dominion and Cardassian ships. John had been surviving off of field rations stored in the Peregrine as he tried desperately to reach a Federation star base. Unfortunately, enemy ships quickly invaded the nearby territories making escape virtually impossible for a ship as heavily damaged as his. Without the capacity for maximum warp, Dominion and Cardassian ships were ultimately faster. Running was no longer an option.

John maneuvered through a cluster of asteroids and landed the ship on one of the larger pieces of rock. He pulled up a star chart on the console next to him. It flickered to life slowly. Many of the systems on the ship were damaged and the rest were difficult to use. From what John could tell, there was no way he could make it back to the Federation without running into the Dominion.

"Well, trapped between a rock and a hard place." he whispered to himself looking out the window of the Peregrine. A smile started to creep across his face as the lifeless rock of the asteroid laid before him. The damage to the ship was quite extensive. He had one operational phaser emitter and no torpedoes. The shield generator was all but destroyed and there was a piece of the Defiant's hull sticking out of the starboard thruster like a knife in a wounded animal. With the engines on the verge of failing, he had to find somewhere close to set down and make what repairs he could. With a maximum speed of warp two, he wouldn't get far before being picked off by Dominion fighters. Suddenly, a nearby star system caught his eye.
"Computer, who are the primary inhabitants of the Draylon system?" he asked.
"Draylon Two was officially colonized by the Skrreeans on star date four-seven-three-nine-two point four." the computer voice replied.
"Are there any other inhabitable planets in the Draylon system aside from Draylon Two?"
"Negative."
"I guess Draylon Two it is, then." John activated the remaining systems of the Peregrine and detached from the asteroid. It was going to be a long trip at warp two. The ship sprang to life, and jumped into warp with a flash.

Although the war with the Alpha Quadrant had taken its toll among native species, the Dominion were no better offer. Prior to the onset of the war, a secret division of Starfleet known only as Section 31 created a virus which attacked changelings on a molecular level. After a great deal of time, this virus began to demonstrate how deadly it truly was. The Founders showed symptoms of extreme degradation a few months after the destruction of the minefield. They were dying. The war had then become a race between total victory and annihilation. Dominion scientists scrambled to find a cure, but to no avail. Human ingenuity seemed to win out regardless of how inferior the changelings believed them to be. This fueled the Dominion's campaign against the Alpha Quadrant. Some of the changelings believed that should they fall, humanity would fall as well.

In the following months, the Federation pulled what forces they had remaining to fortify Earth. Peace talks had constantly failed with the Dominion as infected changelings were determined to eradicate the human species. At the rate the war was going, humans would become an extinct life form. In a last-ditch effort for survival, Admiral Ken Burman came up with a plan to abandon Earth and the Alpha Quadrant and seek refuge within the deep confines of the Delta Quadrant where the two sections of the galaxy met. This separated many within the Federation council. While some believed it was humanity's only chance for survival, others believed a final stand on Earth would be more fitting. Admiral Burman convinced others to join him and almost half of the remaining vessels of Starfleet headed towards unknown space and the Delta Quadrant.

As the Klingons were pushed deep into their own territory, the battles that were fought were costly for both sides. In the end, it was the sheer number of Jem'Hadar soldiers and ships that proved to be more than what the Klingons could repel. When the Klingon High Council began to ponder how it could be the end of their reign, the Dominion stopped their advances. Once a border had been established, no further attacks were made. It was unknown why the Empire was spared, but the Klingons used the reprieve to try to rebuild forces and ships.

In a final push to conquer Earth, the Dominion sent an overwhelming number of ships and troops to destroy the human race. A large number of resources were pulled off of the Klingon front line to face Starfleet. The Dominion was unaware of Admiral Burman's plans and assumed there would be greater resistance. 

The remaining forces of the Federation put up a valiant fight. Over the next few weeks, every meter of the planet had become a war zone. Starfleet personnel and civilians alike took up arms against the Jem'Hadar. Eventually the planet once thought of as Paradise was reduced to a smoldering rubble. Nearly the entire populace had been eradicated. The Dominion began salvaging any technology and resources left on the planet to supply their own forces. Then, in an effort to quell any further resistance, the Dominion irradiated the world making it uninhabitable for human life.

It was shortly after Earth's destruction when the changelings began to die. Those that were in the Alpha Quadrant slowly crumbled one-by-one and alone. The changeling home planet in the Gamma Quadrant quickly became covered in the debris of the dead. The visage from above was that of a ball of ash. What was once an ancient yet arrogant species had become nothing more than an ocean of charred dust.

Even though the leadership of the Dominion had been eliminated, the remaining forces still posed an immediate threat in the Alpha Quadrant. Fortunately, the lack of influence from the Founders allowed many of the remaining species to begin rebuilding what had been lost. Without the guidance the Dominion was founded on, it quickly succumbed to disarray. Although the forces were strong, there was no real leadership to govern over them. 

From the perspective of the Romulan Star Empire, the quadrant was now ripe for the picking.