Empire
Pre-History
Marlin Duval, was an architect of peace and an anti-Federation activist, circa 2300AD. She was notorious for speaking out against the harsh Federal administration which oppressed society. Such was her disenchantment that she gathered her family together, along with many supporters, and left the Federation. Marlin led them to a distant star system called Achenar, many light years from Sol, in order to start a new colony that would follow more peaceful ways.
The colony started off extremely well, and an administrative council was formed with Marlin at the head, in order to fairly distribute power throughout the colony. The plan was that as the colony expanded, so would the council, in the hope that any and every situation could be dealt with via peaceful methods and dialogue.
Alas, a few years later Marlin Duval was killed in a shuttle accident, in which her partner and children also perished. The accident was shrouded in controversy and happened under very suspicious circumstances.
History
Henson Duval, brother of Marlin Duval, took over the existing colony's administration almost immediately after his sister's death. Henson's first act was to disband the council and assume sole responsibility for the leadership of the Achenar colony. Henson then fervently denounced Marlin's vision for peace, and such was his passion and power of persuasion that he succeeded in converting the capricious colonists to his doctrines in a remarkably short period of time. During this period many requests were made by the Federation for the colony to join them, which were all flatly refused. Henson's vision of an Empire was finally realised when he announced that the leadership of the colony, and any affiliated systems, would be passed down from father to son. With that mandate the Empire was born, circa 2314AD.
Some years later, Henson ordered the sterilisation of Achenar 6d, in order to make it the homeworld of the Empire, which resulted in the extinction of a sentient race indigenous to that planet. This, and Henson's perpetual attempts to convert nearby systems to membership of his new Empire, enraged the Federation into sending a massive battle fleet to Achenar in order to end this new regime. The Federation surprisingly lost... and lost very badly!
With this victory, worlds that had previously been approached by Henson Duval, and refused his offers, now willingly gave their allegiance, abandoning the Federation in favour of the new, and mighty, Empire. As a result the Empire began to expand and grow, exponentially!
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