 |
By the mid-30th century, the Milky Way’s dilithium supply was failing, threatening warp travel. The Federation pushed member worlds to develop alternatives, including Ni’Var’s SB-19 project, which used a vast sensor network to instantly transport ships across light-years. Ni’Var declared SB-19 too dangerous, but the Federation refused to end it.
In 3064, the KSF Khi'eth crashed on Theta Zeta, a dilithium planet in the Verubin Nebula. A Kelpien aboard, Dr. Issa, gave birth to Su'Kal, whose cells bonded with the dilithium. After Issa’s death, Su'Kal lived inside a protective holoprogram.
In 3069, Su'Kal witnessed his mother's death and suffered severe trauma. His emotional outburst triggered a massive subspace shockwave that rendered refined dilithium inert across the galaxy. Warp cores failed, ships exploded, millions died, and the Federation collapsed into isolation. This catastrophe became known as The Burn.
Following the Burn, the Federation was unable to determine what caused it, nor did it know if it would occur again. The Vulcans of Ni'Var believed that SB-19 caused the Burn, and the planet seceded from the Federation, despite the Romulans' desire to remain. Around the same time, the people of Earth, feeling an urgency to protect their planet, also seceded. The Federation and Starfleet subsequently relocated their headquarters from Earth to a large space station simply called Federation Headquarters. Titan splits off from Earth. Many other member worlds followed suit.