As the United Federation of Planets grew and expanded they made great strides towards exploring
the Alpha and Beta Quadrants, eventually making an alliance with the mighty Klingon Empire,
to become one of the dominant powers in the region.
When a wormhole to the gamma quadrant was discovered late into the 24th century, the
Federation learned even more about the galaxy, though it also led to a devastating war with
a local superpower known as the Dominion.
And while this led the gamma quadrant to become the primary focus of the Federation throughout
these years, there was another important mission of exploration was taking place at the same
time, led primarily by a single ship on the far side of the galaxy.
Having been transported to the Delta Quadrant by a powerful alien called the Caretaker,
Captain Janeway and the starship voyager were left to make the long journey back to Earth,
roughly 70,000 late years away.
Yet Janeway and the crew did not give into despair, instead taking advantage of this
rare opportunity to explore this mysterious quadrant, learning as much as possible in
the hopes of making a meaningful contribution to the Federation upon their return.
By taking advantage of wormholes and new technologies, Voyager was able to make it back home in only
7 years, but in that time they were able to learn much about the quadrant, making friends
as well as enemies everywhere they went, making a significant impact on many of the species
they encountered.
Their journey began when the federation starship Voyager and the maquis ship Val Jean were
pulled into the Delta Quadrant by the Caretaker, a member of the highly advanced Nacene species,
who long ago poisoned the planet of the more primitive Ocampa, and so moved them underground
where they provided everything necessary for survival.
After the Nacene left this region of space, 2 caretakers were left to watch over the Ocampa,
but they were parted when the female resettled a group in another part of the quadrant.
The Male stayed behind to watch over the homeworld, but eventually learned he was dying and so
started gathering beings from across the galaxy to find a genetically compatible partner,
so that their offspring could take over his responsibilities with the Ocampa when he was
gone.
Unfortunately he died soon after meeting the voyager crew, leaving Captain Janeway to destroy
the array that brought them into the Delta quadrant, rather than using it to return home,
as that would have allowed the technology to fall into the hands of the Kazon, former
slaves who rebelled against their Trabe masters by developing a ruthless warrior culture that
now dominated the region.
Eventually Voyager encountered the female caretaker as well but the encounter proved
hostile, as she wanted vengeance for the death of her mate, believing the crew was responsible.
Looking at a 70 year journey back to Federation Space, the Maquis joined the Voyager crew
alongside 2 delta quadrant native in the Talaxian Neelix and the Ocampa Kes.
Talaxians once had a thriving, space faring civilization based on the world of Talax,
but were now reduced to a scattered and opressed people after losing a war with the Haakonian
Order.
Neelix and Kes were quickly welcomed by the crew, most of whom were scared to be so far
from home, but understood the need to destroy the caretakers array.
Yet some few believed it folly, with Seska a cardassian spy and the maquis Michael Jonas
defecting to the Kazon, who were desperate to attack Voyager and steal their technology,
which was far more advanced then what they possessed.
Though Voyager attempted meeting with the desperate Kazon clans to settle their disputes,
their violent male dominated society meant they did not respect Captain Janeway or Federation
values, making negotiation near impossible.
Thanks the heroics of the crew, Voyager survived the Kazon and eventually Voyager left their
space, meeting many more fascinating species throughout their journey, such as the Vidiian
Sodality, a people who once had a great and prosperous civilization until a terrible disease
called the Phage ravaged their people, attacking their body tissue and cellular structure.
Under threat of extinction, the Viidians poured all of their efforts into developing highly
advanced medical technology, and harvesting organs from other species to replace those
being destroyed by the phage.
Though the Voyager crew fought back against Viidian attacks, several of the crew were
taken captive and some were harvested for their organs.
Fortunately by 2375, the phage was cured by a Think Tank who travelled throughout the
Delta Quadrant solving problems in exchange for unique treasures.
Controlling a large region near Kazon space, the mysterious species known by some as the
Swarm, were infamous for the reclusive and hostile nature, with most ships who encountered
them never heard from again.
Their nickname came from the swarm of small ships they sent to attack vessels in their
space, with the Voyager crew barely able to escape.
When the crew came to the aide of the Nezu, they learned of the Etanian Order, a people
who conquered other worlds by manufacturing a natural disaster which cleared out the native
population, allowing them to settle the planet once uninhabited.
While travelling through a part of space controlled by the B’omar sovereignty, an isolationist
power, Voyager was given a strict flight plan which they violated, resulting in their expulsion
from the region, told to stay at least 5 light years away from the border.
The Krenim Imperium were a great power in the region who developed time travel technology
which led one of their ships to create a number of alternate realities, where they eventually
fought a war against Voyager crew, leading Captain Janeway to sacrifice herself and her
ship to destroy the source of temporal disturbance, thereby restoring the original timeline.
During this same period, Voyager met the Zahl Union, a friendly species who defeated the
Krenim in a war, and so were wiped from existence during one of the alternate timeline created.
As were the Alsurians, who once controlled a vast Empire near the Krenim border.
The Hirogen proved to be another threat against Voyager, as they were a large and powerful
hunter society who viewed other species as prey.
A migratory people, they roamed a vast portion of the Delta Quadrant, hunting whoever they
wanted and taking trophies they displayed proudly.
During one of their hostile encounters with Voyager, they were given holographic technology
in the hopes of stopping them from hunting living beings.
But the Hirogen wanted the most challenging prey possible, and so programmed their victims
to be supremely intelligent, creating a sentient race of holograms who rebelled against them.
The Malon Cooperative were technologically advanced but lacked the ability to recycle
antimatter, creating a profitable industry which transported hazardous waste and dumped
it in open space far from their home planet.
The Devore Imperium were an authoritarian government who sent telepaths to detention
centers and inspected all ship travelling in their space.
Since Voyager had to pass through their borders, they developed a way to conceal the telepaths
on board as well a number of Brenari refugees, a species persecuted by the Devore for their
mental abilities.
Finding the last of the Vaaduar species asleep in stasis pods, the Voyager crew helped revive
their people, learning that they were a great power centuries earlier, who used subspace
corridors to expand and conquer their enemies.
When those enemies, led by the Turei, then rebelled and destroyed their civilization,
the remaining Vaadwaur went into stasis hoping to one day restore their society.
But the Vaaduar learned nothing from their ancient defeat, and once again restored to
aggressive conquest, trying and failing to seize the voyager ship and take it for their
own.
After a hostile encounter with the Overlookers and their government the Heirarchy, Voyager
learned their species possessed advanced surveillance technology, which they used to spy on passing
ships in order to assess whether they should be raided.
In addition to meeting some of the more influential species of the Delta Quadrant, Voyager encountered
a great number of lesser powers, like the Banea, an amiable and technologically advanced
species with a unique approach to crime and punishment, implanting memory engrams into
the guilty which forced them to repeatedly relive the victim’s last moments alive.
The Banea were at war with the Numiri, a secretive and hostile species who evolved on the same
homeworld.
There were also the Taresians, a people whose population was 90% female, leading them to
release a retrovirus upon males of other species which altered their DNA.
Those males were then wed to three Taresian females and killed after mating, in order
to extract genetic material for reproduction.
The Monean Maritime Sovereignty lived in the waters of an ocean world, but the planet was
under threat from local industry, as their oxygen refineries were causing the artificial
core to lose containment.
Norcadians invented Tusnkatse, a martial arts competition viewed by many species across
the delta quadrant, while Aksani, Chessu, Imhotep, and Terrellians were at war for years
until 2377, when they made peace and held the Antarian Trans Stellar Rally, with racers
from every species.
Though the event was bombed by rogue Terrellians, Voyager helped preserve the peace.
And the Dinaali, who hired Jye administrators to oversee the distribution of resources on
their planet, with government ordering them prioritize health care so that the rich and
elite were given the best treatment, while many of the poor were left to suffer and die.