A Recent History of the Seven Systems

The Seven Systems have experienced conflict for as long as it's possible to remember, and the past twenty years have been no exception to this. Indeed, what actually makes them exceptional is the size and scope of the conflicts which erupted in the years following the disastrous Ananke Conference. It is understood that no lives remained untouched by war in this period.

Although the fragile web of alliances which spread through the Seven Systems meant that all conflicts were in some way interconnected, historians and politicians have found it helpful to divide them up. The primary areas of concern were the Selasi Reunification War, the Briareon Civil War and the Achelian and Cheimeran Wars. It is also worth noting, during this period, that Kybele experienced significant civil unrest, leading to a dissolution of the old order.

Many said that the Selasi Reunification War was brewing for a long time, as many Selasi had grown disillusioned with the corrupt power structures evident in Selas. The main questions were therefore when the war was going to kick off, and whether Eunomia herself would get involved.

Following the Ananke Conference, Ordained Oresteus reached out a hand, once more, to Selas in the hopes of maintaining and strengthening diplomatic relations. However, the paranoia that the events of the Ananke had inculcated on both sides meant that relations were strained. The Eunomians were afraid of the bioweapon unleashed in the last days of the conference, while the Selasi nationalists were convinced of the existence of a Eunomian plot to take over.

Eventually, diplomatic talks between the two nations broke down and, shortly afterwards, Selas erupted into civil war. Now going on for more than a decade, the war shows no signs of slowing and have reduced the once-beautiful planet of Selas into a toxic wasteland.

Some notable events in the Selasi Reunification War include:

• In protest against the Ordained’s peaceful policies towards Selas, Princes Acantha, daughter of Ordained Oresteus, attempts a coup backed by a large section of the Champion caste. Her coup fails and she is placed under arrest.
• Ordained Oresteus passes the throne to his son, Prince Ilias, with the unanimous support of the Visionary Council. Ordained Ilias continues his father’s legacy, working to maintain diplomatic relations with Selas despite an increasing atmosphere of hostility.
• Although still in diplomatic talks with Eunomia, the Selasi government caves to pressure from their citizens and introduce a spate of policies enacting sanctions against Eunomians, including a tightening of visa policy and restrictions on public following of the Eternal Order.
• Talks break down between Eunomia and Selas when a group of strict nationalists launch an attack on the Eunomian embassy.
  • The Eunomian government immediately withdraw their diplomats from the planet.
  • The Selasi reunificationists take this act of violence as a
• Although Ilias and the Council of Visionaries are reluctant to directly involve Eunomia in an armed conflict, citing the potential for ‘devastating damage’ to the Eunomian people and homeworld, the obvious threat cannot be ignored. After a lengthy round of debates, the Eunomians officially pledge their support to the Reunificationists.
  • Initially they only provide weapons and military technology to Selas, but as the war progresses the Eunomians begin to play a more active role.
• In the course of a dogfight on the First Selas, a bioweapon is released, covering the moon in red fungus and making it inhospitable to any visits. While tactically insignificant, this is seen as a symbolic attack.
• Selasi nationalists stage an incursion into Eunomia. While this is quickly repelled by the highly trained and already defensive Eunomians, a retreating fighter releases fungal spores on the asteroid Eirene, coating the holy location in choking red fungus.
  • It is believed that the original intent was to release the weapon on Eunomia itself. Because of this, many Champions have begun agitating for Eunomia to take more direct action.

In the years leading up to the Ananke conference, it is known that many were growing dissatisfied with the old gerontocratic regime. Following the death of Oscar Letts, the gerontocrats who returned from the conference began a brutal crackdown on the younger generations.

Led by an ambitious young woman called Maribelle Johns, the youth of Briareos pushed back, However, their attempts were initially unsuccessful and they fled to the planet’s surface, using their youthful vigour to survive, and resources broadcast by the MGS to develop techniques for underground farming. These factions became known as the Dawn and Dusk Briareons.

Twenty years on, the war is still ongoing. Thanks to the support of Kedalion, the Dusk Briareons have been able to fight back in a long and bloody confrontation, and now look to be on the verge of winning.

Kedalion, traditionally not an aggressive planet, have been the nation most involved in conflict over the past twenty years. They have been indirectly involved in the Selasi and Briareon conflicts by providing weapons and funds. However, more significantly than that Kedalion has staged attempted takeovers of both Achelia and Cheimeros.

While the Cheimeran war was simply that - a war, fought long and hard between a technologically superior force and a group of people rooting into their planet by sheer force of will - the Achelian war was significantly more complicated. Kedalion made a number of deals with Klaycorp to secure their corporate future. However, shortly after the deal was sealed, the Tungsten Roses led the people of Achelia in a revolt against Klaycorp.

The Roses were gradually able to take over most of Achelia. However, they were not witohut resistance, as Kedalion quickly turned on the Achelian people, with the support of Klaycorp. The might of the Kedalion drones was able to suppress the Achelian uprising and restore Klaycorp to power. The Klays immediately surrendered to Kedalion in terms exceedingly favourable to the corporate world, in exchange for a seat on Kedalion’s corporate council.

Key events from the Achelian and Kedalion wars include:

• Klaycorp and Kedalion enter into an official business relationship. Klaycorp accepts and installs a number of Kedalian automation solutions.
• Kedalion attack Cheimeros as a strategic move, intending to annex it for resources and to form a base for war on Selas.
  • Cheimeros fight back surprisingly hard, destroying a number of Klaycorp vessels sent to mine the planet.
• The Tungsten Roses lead a revolution against Klaycorp, gradually taking over most of the planet. They destory a large amount of Klaycorp porperty and set up artistic communes in the settlements they take over.
• Klaycorp machines suddenly begin producing Kedalian drones and war machines, which turn on Achelia’s citizens with swift brutality.
• Klaycorp are restored to power and immediately capitulate in exchange of a seat on the corporate council. Okeana Klay is universally reviled, as she is seen as having sold out the entire planet for personal comfort in Kedalion.
• Cheimeros does not surrender, but is eventually annexed by Kedalion by merit of there being too few people left to fight.

Kybele has always been a factional planet, but this has only increased in recent years. While the planet hasn’t been involved in any interplanetary conflicts, the conflicts between two of its major groups of agitants (some would say gangs of thugs) the Stones and the Blue Carnation, has been drawn out and bloody.

With the other two groups in such a situation, the Red Moon has risen to prominence as the most stable major faction.