A Romulan order of warrior women who live by absolute candor, always speaking the truth, and devote themselves to lost causes.
The Qowat Milat are an order of Romulan warrior nuns known for their mastery of combat and their creed of absolute candor, under which they say exactly what they think. They also embrace the way of the lost cause, pledging themselves to a person or cause in which they believe, however hopeless it may seem.
The order had a presence on Vashti, a world where Jean-Luc Picard helped resettle Romulan refugees before the supernova. There the sisters raised Elnor, an orphaned Romulan boy, and trained him in their ways. Picard visited Vashti in 2399 seeking a bodyguard, and Elnor chose to pledge himself to Picard's cause after Picard had abandoned him years earlier.
Elnor's devotion and bluntness became a defining part of his character. He later enrolled at Starfleet Academy, carrying the Qowat Milat philosophy of candor with him into Starfleet.