Dan Vs. History of The Terran Empire Part 1. · 5:04pm Mar 24th, 2022
The original Terran Empire can be traced back to a political party, and even before that, Rome. Beginning in the early twentieth century, the Terra group advocated for a unified Earth government, an end to borders and border conflict, the formation of all nations into one glorious government devoted to the advancement of mankind itself. Although they were unabashedly ruthless and oft times unapologetic, they not without merit. The original Terrans preached a message of unity and togetherness, of putting aside all differences to help one another as one and together, advance into a new age of discovery and enlightenment.
Not unlike their counterparts in the Federation.
The first Terran government did take power through a combination of diplomacy, negotiation, compromise and brute military force. They began in Rome and spread outward, annexing, claiming, bartering and conquering to expand their territory. All men and women were treated as equals, law was strictly enforced, English became the dominant language but all cultures were absorbed and retained in some manner. The early generations of the Terran Empire began with rapid expansion but little opposition. Soon, Earth became Terra, the mother and heart of the Empire. The years followed were a period of peace, though short-lived would it be.
With such a large population and territory, the Empire set out with the task of total control and regulation of all of its citizens' lives. Slavery was reinstituted, but not based on race but ability. The Terran Empire adopted a meritocratic system by which individuals were measured and assigned roles based on their ability to serve the Empire. Individual citizens did have power and liberties, but not nearly as many as even most autocratic governments on Earth. All were citizens, and a citizen's duty, their very life was devoted to serving the Terran Empire.
This time was prosperous, but not without difficulty. Ambition and resistance to Terran rule remained, and with so many regulations, conspiracy began to develop, corruption took hold in many areas, and assassination became a common way of advancement. The rights of females also suffered, with a return to a male-dominated society and as a result, increased technological and cultural stagnation. The Empire's tight grip on society was straining under the effort, and compromise within the integrity of the system itself gave way to things the original Terran Empire never intended. A caste system developed, and soon after that, civil war.
Although the early Terran Empire's officials and Emperor were benevolent, later generations would become progressively colder and more distant as stagnation set in. Concern for life and wellbeing among citizens became strained by the necessities of Empire. Like their counterparts, there would come a time when their violence could no longer be maintained.
The Terran Empire would experience a civil war. Much of Terra would be ravaged, leaving only a single holdout in the equivalent of Bozeman, Montana that would eventually make First Contact with a mirror Vulcan scouting party. The mirror Zefram Cochrane, upon meeting the first aliens ever to(officially) set foot on Terra, he would immediately kill them, seize their ship and turn the tables an entire Vulcan invasion.
The Terran Empire would reemerge like the phoenix from its own ashes, but would rise on fell wings into the stars. The Terrans of the 22nd century reverse-engineered the Vulcans' technology and built their own starships. A brief war would take place between the Vulcans and Terrans, but the superior weapons of the Terran Empire, even if their original ships were rudimentary, would allow them to conquer the Vulcans, Andorians and Orions very quickly. They mostly did this by threatening their planets with atomic weapons, and some threats were indeed carried out, but the aliens tended to give in to Terran rule rather than allow themselves to be wiped out.
With each new conquest, the Terran Empire grew in both power and size. All non-Terran species were considered lesser than humans, and were enslaved. Some would be respected within the Empire and rise to ranks of prominence, but most would live meager existences supplying the Terran war machine. More ruthless and cruel than ever, the Terran Empire would begin an age of expansion into the stars. But resistance and opposition to the Terran Empire would follow it.
During the 22nd century, the Terrans would develop many more ships than the early Earth Starfleet. Based on their own and technology stolen from other races, many of their original starships were dangerous. Warp cores particularly gave off intense forms of radiation, and without the guidance of other warp-capable species, the Terrans suffered through space travel rather than flourished. They made up for this with volume, more than tripling the size of the Imperial Starfleet as compared to Earth's Starfleet, numbers they would sorely need very early on.
The Resistance became bolstered by new species, but had its own problems. Many of the aliens had their own views on government, with many simply wanting to take over the Terran Empire rather than replace it with a more democratic government. Fair representation, independence and democracy were considered archaic concepts in the Mirror Universe and only a few scattered societies even practiced them, though practice them they did. The only real thing the Resistance could agree upon was their hatred of the Terran Empire, and many Terran officers would even join their ranks, many doing so solely to advance their own careers and standings.
Plagued with internal and external problems, war with the Resistance took its toll. An opportunity would emerge from another universe: a plan by the Mirror Johnathan Archer, a power-hungry officer aboard the NX-class I.S.S. Enterprise. Learning of a starship from a future, alternate dimension captured by the xenophobic Tholians, Mirror Archer and his crew would seize control of a Federation starship and use it to save the Terran Empire. However, as is the case with many in the Empire, Archer's success would be short-lived. The Mirror Hoshi Sato, with assistance from the Mirror Travis Mayweather, would poison Mirror Archer, ending his life before his reign as Emperor could begin.
This would be the beginning of the Sato Dynasty, with Empress Hoshi Sato using the captured U.S.S. Defiant to seize control of the Terran Empire. The Empress would be cloned to continue her line rather than using offspring, a process that would continue until the death of Empress Hoshi Sato III and her entire Imperial Guard, paving the way for the ascension of Emperor Spock, the first non-Terran Emperor.
Inspired by his encounter with the Prime Universe Captain Kirk, Mirror Spock would become Emperor and attempt to make drastic reforms to the Empire. These would not be met without opposition themselves, but, like the Prime Universe, the history of the Terran Empire is quite long indeed, and things can always change in the future.
An interesting interpretation, given that we've only had the starting point of "it's the mirror universe so everyone is evul"
I forgot the name of the book which has Emperor Spock in which I have read, but I think the easiest way to put it is, he has read and follows, or even written The Evil Overlord List.
I know theres a list of top grade evil villains over the years, but Ive only seen a few, so Id say the closest alternative I could proposed, would be Overlord Ainz.
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My idea for an early Terran Empire does take some inspiration from Warhammer, but with a few differences. Instead of a godlike being rising up, it began as a group of people wanting to unite the world and better mankind, not unlike the Federation. The original Terran Empire may have even had an Imperial Senate led by an appointed Emperor, maybe even an elected one, one chosen for their intellect, charisma and capability. The best should lead, not just the strongest or most powerful, but the best the Empire has to offer.
Over time, though, bureaucracy became harder to maintain, corruption developed and civil war broke out. It's possible that the Americas were more royalty-inclined than the European areas, and they advocated for a stronger ruling class and an Emperor to lead with absolute authority. Because of Mirror Cochrane, this faction became the most prominent and led to the modern Terran Empire where the Emperor is viewed as a god. It's clear that there have been multiple Emperors, so the illusion of them being a god is something maintained, not simply accepted.
Finally, I have plans for Mirror Spock. I believe that Spock, regardless of universe, deserves good treatment and better treatment than just being assassinated or written out easily. Perhaps, after meeting with Kirk and trying to institute his reforms, he is more like his own counterpart than we realize...
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Consuls, eh?