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Ektor:
Lore
The twenty first century was a time of severe upheaval for humanity. Despite the recommendations and warning of scientists, the global economy kept on depending on fossil fuels. Coal and Oil kept being explored as the population of the world grew even further, and after few decades, the environmental effects of this began to mount. The Earth warmed and climate got worse, suddenly, major agricultural disruption followed. The nations of Earth invested heavily on greenhouses and hydroponics to repel the threat of starvation, but their efforts were insufficient to avoid catastrophe, which struck especially hard on the developing nations without access to modern agricultural technology. World economy had been stagnant for the first decades of the 21st century, and in addition to this, peak oil was reached somewhere in the 2030’s, causing to the gradual increase of all manner of costs, until the combined pressure of climate change and oil price increase was too much for the already fragilized economy to support. In the late 2040’s, an economic crisis of yet untold severity hit the world, sending hundreds of millions into unemployment and poverty. Governments tried furiously to curtail the impacts of this crisis, but it was too little, too late. Massive collapse of civilization followed, and around the world, the famed when “smeg hit the fan” came.

The second half of the 21st century were one of the most chaotic periods that mankind had ever lived. Billions starved, many more died to disease, violence and poverty as the advanced civilization that covered the globe died. In most places, small communities centred around hydroponic greenhouses was all that was left. According to modern estimates, up to 90% to 95% of the world’s human population perished in this period.

Multiple societies arose in the aftermath of the great collapse, and many ran themselves into the ground via war and famine. In what used to be North America, a fiercely expansionist power cemented itself as a new contender for local domination during the early 2100’s. The new United Northern Republic fiercely conquered its neighbours, but it was also a strong civilizing force, as it built infrastructure and granted security to the populations living under its banner. Soon, the Republic came to be seen as the legitimate governing body of North America, and its severe investments in rebuilding society started to pay off by the 2120’s. Modern technology was quickly restored, and soon, in 2134 the Republic launched its first space program.

In the Republic, the fiercely expansionistic fervour had led to a campaign of colonization, and Republic taskforces, now backed up by what was by far the most technologically advanced society on Earth swept across the globe, providing security and comfort in exchange for loyalty to the Republic. Of course, those who resisted quickly found themselves shelled by missiles and bombs. It took only a few decades for the Republic to establish itself as a world government, and by the 2160’s, Earth was now for the first time united under the now renamed Republic of Terra. Intense rebuilding and development took place, in the now accepted Republican way, and after almost a hundred years of pure chaos, society finally was walking towards normality once again.

The Republic was decently democratic, for post-collapse societies. Whilst most of the world had become playground to different kingdoms and dictatorships, the Republic always prided itself on its relatively free society, with freedom of assembly and speech, and also a parliamentary body that allowed representation for even the lowest of their citizens. The dire situation of pre-collapse Earth led to some sort of collective awareness, and the Republic often granted better standards of life than many parts of the world had, even before the collapse.

All around the Earth, a feeling of optimism and progressiveness took place, the new Earth government sprung a revival of culture, philosophy and science, and during these optimistic years of the second half of the 22nd century, society gradually reached a point of technological equivalence to pre-collapse Earth, although still with a severely diminished population.

The end of the 22nd century marked the hallmark discovery of a parallel dimension, called “fluidic dimension” by Republic scientists and their associated Trans-Newtonian Elements. As the capacities of these new elements became clearer and clearer, the Republic passed the mark of scientific development that humanity had reached almost two hundred years ago, and talk of space exploration and colonization became the hot topic on the mouths of all Republic citizens. The year was 2200, and the greatest breakthrough in Trans-Newtonian tech was just about to come.

Ektor:
The Politics of the Republic
The Republic of Terra is a democratic government, with its legislative body made up of a single chamber of representatives called the Senate. The Senate has one seat for every two million citizens, having a size of 500 seats in the year 2200. Different parties vie for the seats of the Senate, which is elected every ten years. The executive body of the Republic is divided between the Council of the Senate and the Chancellor. The Council of the Senate is a moderating and executive body made up of the most influential senators and representatives of the military, the chancellor is chosen by the Senate in a vote between the top civilian members of the Council every five years, with unlimited reelections.

There are currently four parties in the Senate floor, these are:

The Order of Sol
Ideologies: Militarist, Expansionist
The Order of Sol is a military organisation that gathers the most politically active members of the armed forces and those who support them. They are the political arm of the Navy and Army, and as such, value it above all else in the Republic.

The Terra Foundation Association
Ideologies: Scientific, Pacifist, Expansionist
The Terra Foundation is the top-level higher education institution in the Republic, coordinating thousands of scholars and researchers. They have united as a political body in order to lead the Republic to higher scientific achievements and specially the development of space exploration and trans-newtonian technology.


The Federation of Commerce
Ideologies: Economist, Expansionist
The Federation of Commerce is a huge organisation that oversees the economic development of Terra, they unite several magnates of the service, agricultural and manufacturing businesses and coordinate their actions, always seeking the maximum mutual benefit.

The Populist Party
Ideologies: Isolationist, Pacifist
The Populists, as they are known, are a diverse party formed by those who believe that instead of spending resources on things like the military or exploration, the Republic should focus on the here and now issues of the populace. They are an opposition party bent of souring the balance between the three traditional parties of the Republic.

And also:

The Independents
Idelogies: None
The Independents are not an organised body, they are simply the Senators not affiliated with any major faction. Their votes can always be swayed, given the situation.

The different parties represent different ideologies, they can be better explained as:

Militarist
The Militarists put navy and army above everything else, they will campaign for increased military expenditure and will want the scientific focus of the Republic to be put on developing new equipment and tools for the military forces. They will prioritize the construction of military forces and outposts.

Pacifist
The Pacifists believe the navy and the fleet to be unnecessary expenditures and focuses, and would like for a demilitarized society. They will oppose military expansion and focus.

Economist
The Economists put economic development and mineral acquisition above all else. They will campaign for increased wealth generation and mining expansion. They will want to focus research on expanding the economic capacities of the Republic.

Scientific
The Scientifics will always campaign for further development of science and construction of research outposts and facilities. They are interested in engineering the most advanced tech and will often cooperate with other factions to develop technology.

Isolationist
The Isolationists are a faction that opposes expenditures on expanding the Republic, they believe the Republic does not need to get any bigger, and will oppose efforts of colonization and expansion.

Expansionists
The Expansionists are a faction that rabidly desires to see the Republic grow, and will fund expansion and exploration as much as they can. They will fund the settling and development of any viable colonies.

Ektor:
The Elections of 2200
The high spirits caused the by the development of Trans-Newtonian technology and the talk about space exploration heavily favoured those who campaigned for expansion and research. As a result, parties with the ideologies of Scientific and Military gained a 10% bonus to their base votes in this election.

The results were as follows:

Order of Sol:
710 million votes - 355 Seats

It seems the expansionistic and militaristic history of the Republic heavily favoured the campaigns of the Order of Sol, who preached that the strong hand of the military must be the primary guiding force of the period of space exploration. The development of defences against unforeseen threats coming from outer space was a deciding argument to the OS Campaign, convincing most of the Republic's population of the necessity of the construction of a Space Navy.

Terra Foundation Association:
116 million votes - 58 Seats

Despite the news on Terra forecasting the TFA as a strong favourite for this election, their campaign about the scientific potential of Trans-Newtonian materials was far less appealing than the fancy 3D models of space warships that featured in the advertisement of the OS. The public was quick to latch onto the idea of a navy in space, and thus the strong campaigning of the TFA about peaceful exploration of space and non-violent uses of Trans Newtonian technology came off as slightly tone deaf to the hopes of the public.

Federation of Commerce:
108 million votes - 54 Seats

The Federation of Commerce was mostly interested in the economic potential of Trans-Newtonian technology, and as such, its campaign ran around the necessity of the development of a strong mining economy to supply the future ambitions of Terra. They campaigned extensively for the expansion of industry and mining operations, and pioneered the discussions on whether other bodies in the Solar System could also hold Trans Newtonian materials, a possibility considered entirely theoretical by most scientists in the Terra Foundation. Again, the flashy propaganda of the OS proved to be much more appealing than economic promises of hard data. However, despite the initial analysis of political scientists on Terra, the Federation did surprisingly well, given the situation. They managed to gain almost as many seats as the TFA, and for now, would be forced to cooperate with them if they were to have any weight on the Senate.

The Populist Party:
48 million votes - 24 Seats

The Populists had long been thought to be the least favourite party of the 2200 elections, mostly on the grounds of opposing to focus most of the Republic's resources on space exploration. Instead, the campaigned on internal development. Their campaign was largely ineffectual, gathering a very small amount of voters, mostly contrarians and those who could not see the benefit of expanding further. The Populist Party benefitted from some conspiracy theories that ran on the year of 2199, claiming that trans-newtonian materials were false and that there was nothing to acquire in space, despite this, they did not manage to form a significant portion of the Senate.

The Independents:
18 million votes - 9 Seats

Most independents ran with campaign focusing on very much the same aspects that the major parties did, although claiming neutrality and cooperation between all tendencies, the independents painted themselves as skilled and impartial negotiators. However, given the political system of the Republic, only a few managed to get enough votes to be elected.

Ektor:
The Council of 2200
Only 3 Senators managed to gain entrance to the Council in the year of 2200, those were:

Laura Gould – Federation of Commerce:

Laura is a popular name on the Federation, coming from a financial background. She is not the most charismatic figure, though, as her years working with the market have made her very convinced that she knows best about the economic needs and development of the Republic. The Republic web is filled with memes of her being an annoying know-it-all.


Ellen Stevens – Order of Sol:

Ellen Stevens is one of the leaders of the Order of Sol. A thoroughly bland person, she fits well into the serious and order-oriented world of the military. Despite being a civilian, she is seen as a stern and competent woman, making her popular with the voters of the Order of Sol.


Harry Thompson – Terra Foundation Association:

Harry Thompson is the representative of the TFA, a scientific man through and through. He is popular amongst the science lovers of the Republic for being known as a man without political motivations, he is a defender of pure science and technology, believing his position to be self evident and adamantly defending the Foundation from those who believe science must be put under the yoke of economics or the military. Harry is a bit of a tragic figure, however, being a well known sufferer of depression.

In addition, three military commanders joined the Council:

Admiral Joshua Duncan - Order of Sol:

Joshua is another serious man of the Order of Sol. Known for being a good commander to his men, he is generally considered a good boss to work under. His dedication to the military has earned him the position of Admiral, and he prides himself in his high position in the Fleet. Joshua is one of the most adamant supporters of the need for the development of a Space Navy.


Admiral Rachel Humphries - Federation of Commerce:

Rachel Humphries is the never-tiring, energetic defender of the Federation amongst navy circles. Admired for her deep studies and knowledge of Trans Newtonian Geology, she is an adamant supporter of the expansion of the mineral wealth of the Republic. The woman is known for being able to quote numerous facts on Trans Newtonian minerals and their properties.


General Sophie Wheeler - Order of Sol

Sophie is the annoying representative of the Army. Always complaining about how everybody is focused on the Navy, she takes upon herself the role of the spoilsport who has to remind everybody that wars have always been won by boots on the ground. She is popular amongst the army due to this, but disliked in other circles.


Chancellor Elections of 2020
Ellen Stevens: 253 Votes

The landslide victory on the general elections had its counterpart on the elections for Chancellor. Ellen Steves won an easy majority from the support of the Senators of the Order of Sol.


Laura Gould: 36 Votes

Unsurprisingly, the unpopular Laura Gould did not achieve a significant percentage of votes. Her declarations of being the most qualified person for the job and utter surprise at not having won were amongst the most watched videos on the Republic web.


Harry Thompson: 197 Votes

Harry's science focused campaign earned him a lot of votes, as he was seen as the leading figure to coordinate Trans-Newtonian research. He did very well, but not well enough; on a normal election year he would have surely won, but the immense advantage of the OS in the year of 2200 stole the chancellorship from right under his nose.


14 Abstentions

Some Populists and most Independents decided to abstain from the vote, claiming none of the candidates represented them.

Ektor:
2200

The years of 2200 opened with the discussion on how to best use the new understandings of Trans Newtonian Tech. The January 4th meeting of the Senate opened with a speech from Admiral Rachel Humphries, shedding light on a study done by the Industrial Union, a subsidiary of the Federation of Commerce. The study stated that by employing trans-newtonian industrial equipment and the new porduction techniques permitted by them, there was a forecast of a 430% increase in industrial production on the next ten years, if the appropriate measures were taken by the Senate. In addition, the study estimated that the application of such equipment in mining could increase the trans-newtonian mineral output of the Republic by over 60,000 cubic meters in volume.

This study sent the Senate into a wildfire, many agreeing that the benefits of this were too strong to be ignored. Some populists and independents gave long statements questioning the methodology of that study, claiming a number of statistical irregularities. This discussion of minutiae related to the study was drawn out for the entire day by the populists, making January 4th be a very improductive day for the Senate. The next day, it was agreed that no further discussions on the validity of the study would take place, and a motion to start the long process of updating Terra's industry to trans-newtonian standards passed with over 400 votes. The big discussion now was how much of the Republic's resources would be destined to this purpose.

The Senators from the Federation of commerce were adamant that this should be the primary focus of Terra's industries for the following years, but their small presence on the Senate floor caused that to be heavily questioned by the other factions. General Sophie Wheeler insisted on the expansion of Terra's military industries, and her motion was heavily supported by the Order of Sol. 10% of the construction budget was allocated to that purpose.

When Chancellor Ellen Stevens got the chance to talk, she wisely spoke about the necessity of building a massive space installation to serve as the foundation of orbital construction. This "Space Port", as she called it, would be the logistical centre of everything the Republic planned to put into orbit. She had consulted with the engineers from the Terra Foundation, and presented before the Senate a very ambitious project, that would be able to move thousands of tons of cargo, coordinating itself with many planetside cargo shuttle hubs. The necessity for such a project became clear to most of the Senate, and she managed to secure a 20% investment of the construction budget into her new Spaceport.

The support of the Terra Foundation to the studies and projects mentioned so far earned them enough political capital that their Senator managed to convince the Senate of the need to expand the scientific installations on Terra. Another 10% of the construction budget was allocated for that purpose.

Despite the insistence of some vocal members of the Order of Sol, the Senate quickly realized how inadequate the current infrastructure was for the dreamt expansion into the Solar System, despite their minority on the Senate, 60% of the construction budget was left to the Federation of Commerce to decide. They quickly hatched a plan to develop industries and mining, as well as n expansion of sectors of the private economy that would be most benefitted by the switch to trans-newtonian. Furthermore, they sought to secure the manufacturing of Sorium gas, vital for the generation of power in trans-newtonian power plants.

By 9th of January, a new budget had been set. The overall budget ended up looking somewhat like this:



As soon as the Senate's plans reached the planners of the Republic, complaints were made to the Federation of Commerce. Many thought the Senate had been overly optimistic, and it seemed that this 2200 plan would take decades to complete. Many realized it would still be incomplete by the time of the 2210 elections, and all sectors of the Senate prepared themselves for the great amounts of interference this project would suffer in the coming years.

Then, discussion changed to what directives should be given to the Terra Foundation for research. The overwhelming majority of the Order of Sol made clear what was expected: the research of space warship components. After much protest by the members of the Association, the Senate understood that was outside of current scientific knowledge. A mid point was brokered between the Association and the Order of Sol: Heavy investment would go into the theoretical research that would allow the development of a space fleet. The given schedule, however, heavily displeased the Order of Sol. It would probably take one or two decades before a real warship could be materialized.

In the Foundation, research into trans-newtonian propulsion was seen as the obvious first path to seek, as there could not be a ship without engines. The second focus came almost as an accident. An obscure project for a mining tool consisting in a jet of particles accelerated by a trans-newtonian power source was dug up, apparently one of the earliest theoretical developments of the discovery of trans-newtonian technology from the past decade. The project had originally been rejected due to the massive excess in power the so dubbed "particle cannon" offered for mining enterprises, the few actual tests done with it showing it was better as a vapourizer of minerals than as a mining tool, this, of course, greatly excited the envoys of the Order of Sol that accompanied the discussions in the Foundation.



The year went on without major incidents until April, when scientists at Terra Foundation made a major breakthrough on power generation technology, this in turn allowed for the theoretical development of the first trans-newtonian engines ever conceived. Research continued as normal.



[I just realized I had set my research modifier incorrectly. From now on research will take 500% longer.]

The year proceeded without major incidents.

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