Chapter 0:
Animaguard
In the year 2075, humanity had moved on from corporations. Climate change, countless disasters of all sorts, and extreme social unrest had forced politicians into a corner. They passed strict legislation that took away much of the power corporations had hoarded. The people of Earth hoped that the oppression of the upper class had become a thing of the past, though wealth redistribution ended-up more difficult in practice. The families that had gained their wealth from corporate empires remained the ruling class.
With massive developments in space travel, earthlings gained the ability to travel to other solar systems.These advancements lead to the creation of Inspiration, a multi-trillion dollar space vessel with a primary goal: to carry humans to a new planet to create a utopia. This world was called Nue, an M-class planet three times the size of Earth and the best fit for long term settlement.
It was a world of much promise, one that would not only allow those who came there to survive, but to thrive as well. The leaders of The Inspiration Project swore to not repeat the mistakes of their past.
From the very beginning of the settlement process on Nue, there was to be a focus of clean, renewable energy. Non-degradable materials like plastic would only be used when absolutely necessary (ie. medical equipment) and biodegradable materials like wood, glass, and metal would be used for everything else. The architecture was to have a focus on artistry, community building, and function.
It would be a return to form, focusing on international tradition instead of the emptiness of corporate values. Religion would be allowed but not mandatory. The final major focus of the project would be the absolute banning of tools of mass destruction.
Guns, bombs, and gas weapons were completely banned along with infrastructure to manufacture such tools. Inspiration’s vast library of knowledge purposefully omitted the information required to make these weapons, and included a wide breadth of material warning of their dangers. Of course, the leaders understood that a lack of weapons wouldn’t mean a lack of conflict or war.
Conflicts were to be settled without involving civilians. This would be achieved by primarily using melee weapons. There would be a strong emphasis on strict codes of honor, personal ability, and dueling.
Wars were not to be fought impersonally, from a distance, while using other people’s lives as tools. If people in power had to risk their own lives in war, perhaps they would be less callous in their decision making. Many were intrigued by this idea of a new world and wanted to be part of it.
Approximately 500,000 individuals boarded Inspiration and were organized into the five decks of the ship. First Deck tickets cost over a billion dollars each. They came with the most space (over an acre) and had luxurious accommodation.
First Deck passengers could construct an entire mansion (if not multiple) in their space and most chose to do so. In contrast, the least expensive layer, the Fifth Deck, provided a small room, only a bit larger than the width of a single mattress. All tickets allowed passengers to purchase storage space at an additional cost.
First Deck storage offered spaces the size of entire warehouse lots. Lower Decks, like the fourth and fifth, offered spots within a communal storage deck that had minimal security.
The trip to Nue took 45 years. A society of its own formed on the ship during that time. Despite the idealist rules put in place by The Inspiration Project’s leadership, conflict started shortly after arrival on the new planet.
Organized government struggled to form and wars broke out over land, resources, and ideologies. The rules regarding tools of war were oftentimes ignored and illegal firearms were utilized.
In the midst of the conflict, a shocking discovery was made. A humanoid species had lived on Nue before the new arrivals and it seemed to have been abandoned.
The previous civilization left behind their technology, much of which entirely intact, including their energy source, which consisted of strange, man made crystals similar to uranium but not radioactive. There was another, stranger discovery.
Wearable tech that could form armor from nanomachines. This by itself wasn’t unthinkable. Earthlings had advanced nanotechnology themselves. It was the way the armor formed that was unique.
It seemed to embody the user’s will, translating their very essence into physical form and giving them remarkable abilities. As much as earthlings tried to find another explanation, this tech seemed to read one’s very soul.
This meant that the previous species on Nue had proven the existence of the soul and found a way to evaluate it, something humans had been unable to do despite many years of research. Humans of Earth never fully understood the logic of this tech, but were able to reverse engineer it and enhance it with their own nanomachines.
This technology gave birth to Animaguards – soul protectors. In the coming years, they’d become the primary tool of war on Nue. Over the next century, the earthlings had developed the planet enough to reach a point of stability and the exploding population formed two city states: the Republic of Inizio and the Republic of Litora.
Both would develop a military with Animaguard users as the warriors. These warriors were called “Defenders” by Inizio, and “Knights” by Litora. The two nations had frequently been at war in the past, but today enjoy generations of peace.
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