Prologue:
The year 2072 is coming to a close and humanity has stagnated on their dying rock. Despite massive technological progress, humanity has been seeing a general decline since the year 2020, and after large scale social and political upheaval following energy and fuel shortages, much of the world has devolved into anarchy or tyranny, and those states which remain have not faired much better. Having banded together officially on New Years day on 2025, the Union of Sovereign Solarian Nations is a rough coalition of the former major United Nations member states, having been created to attempt to find a solution to problems which had been tearing humanity asunder. It met limited success in the form of the discovery of the trans-newtonian elements - new materials discovered inside of Earth's mantel which interact with the world around them in ways previously thought impossible. One of these elements, Sorium, colloquially known as plasma due to its depiction as such in popular culture, was adapted and utilized to solve the energy crisis in the year 2037, but by that point, the seeds of change had already been sewed, and further desolation was inevitable.
The modern day has seen some minor improvement, the trans-newtonian elements allowed for the establishment of minor settlements throughout the solar system. There is permanent habitation on Luna, a small mining outpost on the moon of Ganymede and 200,000 brave spacers live above the toxic clouds of Venus. Earth, however, has continued to slip into chaos. In the major cities, people augment themselves with hedonistic technology to escape the troubles and tribulations of life, and advanced cybernetics allow for increased lifespans and untold brutality. Slicers, stim-slingers and other ne'er-do-wells run most urban areas, extorting the local population and contributing to the continued status of Earth as a terminally ill world.
Today, however, hope lies on the horizon. December 6th 2072 marks the day when the first human ships will cross the veil and explore uncharted territory beyond the Sol system. Utilizing recently discovered gravitational anomalies, human scientists have designed methods to travel astronomically massive distances instantly with relative accuracy, and today will be the first tests of one of these devices. Vice Admiral Fritz Trosclair, his command staff, and the ships of the USSN Expeditionary Fleet plan to traverse through the gravpoint #1 at 10:00 GMT, Earth Time. Their ship, the SEV Proteus, is equipped with the most advanced survey technology that humanity has to offer, and is escorted by two point defense cruisers, the SEV Endymion and SEV Iridium and one tanker, the SEV Bethlehem.
The time is 9:30 GMT, Earth Time. Vice Admiral Fritz Trosclair and his Staff Officers are currently transmitting their final messages back to Earth before their expedition through the veil.
30 Minutes to Jump:
A message from Vice Admiral Fritz Trosclair to the citizens of the USSN, broadcasted through the newly deployed FTL Comm Relay Buoys, brought to you by Apex Aerostatics - Working together for a better, Human future.
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Live Feed of Deep Space Monitoring:
1 Minute to Jump:
A live feed of the radio chatter from the SEV Proteus, broadcasted through the newly deployed FTL Comm Relay Buoys, brought to you by Apex Aerostatics - Working together for a better, Human future.
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Some OOC Notes:
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