Almedae (Classic Journeys Era)

Almedae are slender humanoids who were the original inhabitants of Castor.

The Almedae became known to the Orion Arm peoples on June 1st, 3002, when the colony ship Sai Ra'non and its fleet of warships entered Castor orbit. The Almedae and their leader Lady Mellilah Ra'non blockaded Castor and announced an ultimatum: the Castori must vacate the world or be forcibly removed.

Just seven days later, to the the great dismay of many of the pacifist Castori, Ubercast Wulkachim said that the Almedae "have no right to force the Castori people from their homes" and that the Almedae would have to "take Castor from us." The Ubercast also addressed Castor's allies in asking for their help, but also having caution in doing so. He said that the Castori were working on fighting on their own without endangering their allies. The Ubercast correctly predicted the Almedae would begin orbital bombardment.

Bombardment continued, with hundreds of Castori lives lost and the interstellar economy badly disrupted. Two weeks into the bombardment, the Almedae shifted strategy and began targeting the capital city of Ursiniru, scoring a glancing blow to the tree housing the city on July 3. As Almedae ships began descending to the surface, the Castori finally permitted allies to attack them. The powerful navy of the Maltarian Empire entered the battle evenly matched, engaging with at least twenty capital ships and hundreds of fighters for one and a half hours on July 6.

The Almedae reportedly surrendered after a disabled Maltarian battleship drifted into the Sai Ra'non, knocking out the shield generators and doing severe hull damage. The surrender came a few minutes after the collision, during which the Sai Ra'non was bombarded by the Maltarian fleet, which had concentrated all firepower onto the crippled ship and damaged its engines.

The surrender was quickly accepted, and a cease-fire soon prevailed. While the Almedae suffered heavy casualties, Maltarian estimates saying from 70-80% of the original size, with the Maltarian lost slightly more than 50%. A treaty between the Castori and Almedae was signed on July 22. The major point of the treaty was that Almedae recognize the right of the Castori to continue living on Castor. In return, the treaty called for the Castori government to give the Almedae the use of land on the planet to create an Almedae settlement and to help in the rebuilding of the Sai Ra'non. In compensation for their assistance, the Maltarians accepted special deals on OtherSpace Ring components.