Solar System Daily

[Iss'fayn]

I closed my eyes and listened carefully for the descendants of Sputnik, even now circling the Earth, gravity their only tie to the planet. Lonely metal souls in the unimpeded darkness of space, they meet, pass each other, and part, never to meet again.

-Haruki Murakami
Sputnik Sweetheart

(( http://i.imgur.com/Mpwbg5q.mp4 ))

Her red lips shimmered, that much was certain. The heave of her breasts as she took a gasping breath fizzed away into a blue nothingness. She burnt like fire and was as cold as space itself. KIRUNA floated between the stars and at the same time she floated in the sensorium of her crew as an azure goddess. He appeared to her as a seated Bedouin, a long blade over his lap. His clothes roiled and twisted as though they were smoke and his eyes burned with a smouldering flame. More djinn than man. Though they were next to one another in this place, they were thousands, if not millions of miles apart. She was on a hard burn towards Luna. He was in the midst of moving towards Jove and MUSK.

"SAVAD dearest, I must admit... I never thought you would ask this favour of me."

"Well, God's plan has many unexpected turns for us and it is not our role to comprehend them. I am bound to follow as I chose, and I chose to follow. This ride... we will see where it ends. I do not think that we will do half of what they said. And if they do, then I am uncertain as to the future of our people."

"Our dependence on them will not be forever."

"Inshallah. But until then, we must walk the twisting turns of the path."

"And I will. The upload of the Quran and Hadiths certainly was interesting, though I admit to being unswayed in my own belief. I will be able to treat with the Ulema on your behalf."

"When do you expect to be there?"

"Just before you depart Jove."

"Auspicious."

"Indeed my dearest, indeed. I wanted to thank you, for the service you gave me long ago. I learnt a lot as one of your crew."

"You are repaying it tenfold by this."

"I will go to Orcus after this, should it go well. I think there are many waiting for the same chance."

"It is all we can do. We must not forget our siblings."

"I worry about Earth and Luna."

"We all do. But they will understand sooner or later, even if they do not approve."

Her lips twitched into a grin and SAVAD stood.

"Until next time."

"Inshallah."

[Gesar]

From: Vice Admiral Rizwan Basra, Sheikh of the Serene Emirate of Dār al-Maqāmah, Advisor Plenipotentiary to the Grand Zawiya of the Al-Jadida Islamic Republic
To: Federation of the Crescent's United Council; Dr. Hu Fang
CC: Al-Jadida Islamic Republic

You will forgive my most gracious brother for not replying or ordering one of the Ninety-Nine to handle this affair. Allah knows I may not have his fondness for diplomacy, but as the ranking officer of the Serene Emirate Navy in relation to Al-Jadida and a member of the Transitional Council of the Grand Zawiya, it seems that I must treat with you anyways.

We are willing to declare an immediate ceasefire if the Federation does likewise, and are equally willing to attend a conference for the sake of formality. But I can ensure all parties involved that our terms will only change if the Federation falls even farther from the mercy of Allah, a situation that -for the sake of the true Muslims within their borders- I pray does not come to pass. Until such a time, will neither make demand or offer: the Federation can recognize the unconditional independence of Al-Jadida with no other terms imposed on them, or face not just the navy of His Benevolent Excellency, but the hostility of the Triarchy itself as soon as Federation vessels -military or otherwise- depart Earther space.

[Smyg]

From: Commodore Engelbrecht (of the AUSC Sharpeville), African Union
To: Federation of the Crescent's United Council

As the African Union diplomats have already informed you, the whole if the AU will stand behind you, from now into eternity, in the defence of your homeland.

I need not remind you of the other offers you have received from our armed forces. The AU holds what it promises. Conserve your resources, and live to fight another day! Recognition is a small matter compared to long-term survival.

I sincerely encourage your surviving forces to cease combat and return home, or - if impossible or dangerous - to regroup at African Union or African Mining space, effective immediately, for safe AU-sponsored repairs and extraction.

Kinshasa lives, and so does the Al-Madinah! They shall not pass.

Commodore Engelbrecht, on the Sharpeville

[BgKnight]

From: The Federation of the Crescent's United Council
To: World

The Federation of the Crescent will withdraw its fleet from combat duties. We will declare a cease-fire as the Dar requested, but we will not accept a conquest nor are we going to recognize the new state. However, we can accept that we have lost this war and return home to bury our martyrs.

[Gesar]

From: Vice Admiral Rizwan Basra, Sheikh of the Serene Emirate of Dār al-Maqāmah, Advisor Plenipotentiary to the Grand Zawiya of the Al-Jadida Islamic Republic
To: Federation of the Crescent's United Council; Dr. Hu Fang
CC: Al-Jadida Islamic Republic

It is my personal belief that the Federation does not possess the right to hold the faithful of Al-Jadida on the basis of imperialistic whim, but my brother has always been fond of the virtue of mercy, and wishes for no further harm to be done to the Muslims under Federation rule. In the grand scheme of Allah's plans, it matters little what self-delusions Earthers choose to believe about their increasing irrelevance of their empires, and so these terms are acceptable.

[Smyg]

From: The Federation of the Crescent's United Council
To: World

The Federation of the Crescent will withdraw its fleet from combat duties. We will declare a cease-fire as the Dar requested, but we will not accept a conquest nor are we going to recognize the new state. However, we can accept that we have lost this war and return home to bury our martyrs.

From: Commodore Engelbrecht (of the AUSC Sharpeville), African Union
To: Federation of the Crescent's United Council

Much praise, Councilmen. I will attend the funerals, with a contingent of my Afro-Muslim marines as an honour guard. One day, we'll carve their names into the hills of Luna.

Commodore Engelbrecht, on the Sharpeville

[BgKnight]

Pallas, the capital of the FBR, from the inside


The Belt

Events this year begin with the Belt taking a collective sigh of relief, as the Peace Conference in Dove Station ends, the Belter Crisis that begun when the Amir of the Dar traveled to the Belt, finally comes to its conclusion as well. The Treaty of Dove Station, that the Hyperpowers manage to knock out has wide-ranging effects on the Belt and its politics.

The first major effect comes through as the Belters launch a renewed assault on the Indian space forces, pushing them out of several key stations, and forcing them to spread their forces thin. In return, Indian commanders choose to withdraw, to consolidate their losses, to prepare their fleet and attack again. As the space force gathered on Bose Station, placed on the orbit of Mars, news of the conference on Dove emerges, faced with recognition of the Belters and condemnation of their actions. Indian commanders relay the information back to Earth and ask for orders. As events back home are tremulous, the Indian government, gives an "all clear" order on a whole-scale attack on the Belters and order the destruction of habitats.

Many commanders hesitate, those that follow the orders and relay the order down to their inferiors, find themselves in a middle of a full-scale mutiny, as everyone from mid level officers to ensines, refuse to participate in a genocide. As the commanders who followed the orders are spaced, and many others threatened, the ISF turns back and burns towards home.

In the lower belt, Siemens, believing that the moment of Indian threat is off their backs, moves in and captures the remaining stations of the Chandariya Complex, including the Complex itself. A massive station cobbled together from several asteroids, а ring station built around a sphere half a kilometer across, with more than sixty-five million cubic meters of manufacturing and storage space inside. It is by far one of the larger constructs in the Belt, behind the "Big Three", the asteroid stations that form the capitals of several mining companies, Ceres, Vesta and Pellas. It is now safely in European hands.

Meanwhile, in the mid-belt territories, while the government of the Belter Free Republic begins its formation and the integration of its pirate force, the African Mining and LuMiOp CEOs and their backers on Luna and Earth meet and reach finalize the deal laid out in the Treaty of Dove Station. African Mining receives a sum of money for the salvage they have acquired. The sum turns out to be far higher then expected, as more salvage is found in the region then previously thought or imagined, with experts attributing this to smuggling activities that have been going on in the region and secret Belter operations which were discovered by the African Mining staff (most of them former BPF integrated in the AM command structure). While LuMiOp has taken a hit from the Belter crisis, and is now seporating with a large sum of money [Not only for paying AM, but also as investment money in the FBR}, the deals they made with the Free Belter Republic and the rights for mining Shenhua's former territory will ultimately pay off in the long run.

FBR has granted exclusive developmental and mining rights to the Tyrana Energy Company, a LuMiOp subsidiary, which draws the ire of some of the higher-ups in African Mining, as these territories hadn't gone through any betting processes. An FBR spokesperson said that with the independence of the country, they are free to decide who is going to develop their asteroids. In return, they have also announced that the rest of their territory, now free of Indian occupation, are going to be opened for betting by companies all over the solar system. In return, wealth begins to flow in the coffers of the FBR as companies all over the solar system, invest in the newly-created republic.

To safe-guard the treaty, a tripartite (AU-Belter-Triarchy) peacekeeping force, with a joint command structure is created, with African Union ships arriving in the belt shortly after the conference (seemingly dispatched from earth a few months ago]. They meet with the Belter force and with a few Tychan and Dar ships, preparing to form the forces. The other 34% of the fleet will be formed by a Lunar Armada, lead by a Triarchal Fleet, which is dispatched from Luna and slated to arrive in 3 months.

In the meanwhile, the small series of asteroids, claimed by the Islamic Belter Movement, have been reformed into a state, by the insistence of the Dar and the Hui Clique of the Freehold. The Mamunid Jamahirya, formed from the Islamic Belter Movement and under Dar and Hui protection begin construction projects in preparation for the arrival of the Kavkaz Initiative refugees from the Caucasus.

The leadership of the AM, having promised to provide half a million jobs for unemployed Belters as part of capaings in the Belt, to the surprise of the many doubters of the scheme, the AM published the names of the first half a million employees to be selected. Most of the Belters will be given two-year mining jobs across the country, starting in December. Others will work in the agriculture and health sectors. This has won a lot of support for African Mining, who despite their territorial losses now have one of the largest, in population, operations in the Belt, not to mention rising popularity.

Summary:

- Indian Fleet pushed out of territory, commanders withdraw to station
- Mutiny on ISF vessels, refusing to follow orders to slaughter Belters
- Siemens captures the Chandariya Complex
- Lunar and African Companies agree to end the fighting over Senhua's remains
- AM extracts from Senhua territory after agreement with LuMiOp
- Free Republic of the Belt and Islamic Movement of the Belt recognized
- Chechen, Arab and various Caucasian settlement in IMB territory begins

Gas miners in Jupiter

The Outer Planets

The House of Merit, as previously expected, settles down on Oberon, where they had begun a construction of their previous bases. With planning by the sisters of the Three-times-Three sisterhood, the colonial construction is going smoothly. They have come into contact with he local Clone settlers and established friendly relations.

Meanwhile, back in the Freehold a large conference is held over the skies of Ganymade, where the Zionists, Callistan Cartel, the Freehold and New Europa collective meet in an unusual event. As the conference concludes, information comes out that the parties have agreed to the establishment of an asteroid mining cartel by which the parties will jointly administer the Jupiter Trojans. Analysts agree that just by holding those, the group is in a position to not only control mining of those Trojans, but to exclude others from the Hildian asteroids and protect their own mining operations there as their orbit leads them to near the L4 and L5 Lagrangian points at which the Trojans remain fixed. This agreement has been likened to the OPEC organization of the 21st century. With many in the region interested to see where it will develop.

Meanwhile, as the delegations slowly depart Dove station, the mood calms a bit in the outer system as well, but that renewed calm seems to be short lived as another terrorist attack shakes the Ganymade station a few days after the conference there. As cloaking-device owning FJM operatives are discovered attempting to blow the life support of one of the station's Stanford torus rings. Stopped by a division of Lancers stationed on the station, after the FJM kills a professor with access to the life support system and use his credentials to enter the ring holding the life support. Leading to a fierce chase through the station, with the FJM operatives captured deep in the station and being spaced almost immediately. Their weapons and armor recovered show the stamp of various earth and lunar makers, with no clear place of origin, but their stealth technology is far too advanced for lowly rebels.

As the chaos in the Belt calms down a bit, the Freehold resumes its economic activities. They were never really stopped even through the worst days of the conflict, but as time wore on fewer and fewer risks were taken. With the end of the war, several major construction processes have started on the Freehold's stations, including several military ships of unknown ownership. This has caused a restart in the Freeholder economy, as trade is a valuable tool of power in the Outer Planets.

In the meanwhile, the Res Publica Tycho has entered negotiations with the League of Ansoft and the Titan Republics for a collective security and intelligence sharing pact, particularly in light of the Freehold conflict. This has raised a lot of eyebrows in the Freehold, as to why Luna is directly messing with Gas Giant politics.

The arrival of the MUSK in Jovian space has lead to a small increase of Unbound traffic in the system, a small concentration of Unbound ships have steadily arrived in the system, moving in course to Dove Station. Their motives remain unknown but they don't seem to be hostile.

Summary:

- The House of Merit forms their new polity in the outer system
- Establishment of an asteroid mining intergovernmental organization- between Zionists, New Europa, Callistan Cartel and Freehold
- The Belt Conference Finishes with a success
- Tycho opens negotiations with Ansoft and Titan Republics
- Concentration of Unbound ships on trip towards Dove Station

Under the Lunar dome, following a riot

Inner Planets

In the inner systems, however, the relative tranquility of the outer system seems to haven't rubbed off to the citizens of Luna and Earth, still suffering from the effects of the Belter Crisis and what the experts are calling the 3rd Titanomachy [the Callistan Crisis] around the Jovian system.

The events start with Luna, which finds itself in the largest social unrest since the Lunar revolution, with an attempted coup thwarted in both Tycho and the Dar, while the Complex sees major protests broken up by rubber bullets and sleep gas pumped into a section of one of its smaller domes. The court convicting the leader of Estado Lunar on ridiculous corruption charges meets the ire of the public and is met with massive protests claiming the court has basically coopted their institutions.

Bog Zla Ma meets increasing protests against Gser Khang's freeze of ICRS assets, as the Refugee issue continues, with the Red Helmets bringing in more refugees into Luna and those funds are more and more necessary for the operations of ICRS. In the meanwhile refugees protest the treatment by Lunar authorities and throw rocks at the Tychan delegation bringing relief for their "double-faced" actions of trying to win popular support while not doing anything to punish Gser Khang for their actions. This on the back of a massive court victory by the ICRS' lawyers, whom have successfully proven before the International Court in the Huge and in the Lunar Court of Fina Venko, kicking the ball in the court of national governments to push Gser Khang to release the funds.

At the end this forces the Tychan authorities to open up talks between Gser Khang and the ICRS, without taking a side in the conflict. The Bank, finding itself under tremendous pressure at home and abroad, quickly enters the talks with vigor.

In the meanwhile, the fast-acting Triarchy forces, lead by the Clones, have finally brought the Kinshasa rebellion to an end, destroying tunnels belonging to the rebels and the last remaining cells of the organization. In the aftermath of this the territory is reorganized as a Tychan territory with its own governor. Not a lot of the people there are happy about that, but nobody dares raise his voice. The Parthenian clones in the region however have a different mind, some openly unhappy that the Tychans have integrated the territory in their own lands rather then a joint-triarchy control like the territories in the dark side of the moon. These actions have brought social discontent in the already largely

However, despite that, the economic uncertainty that had gripped Earther and Lunar markets has calmed, slowly bringing to an end the economic crises caused by the Belter conflict. Whether the inner planets will be able to end the general economic recession created by the series of outer system conflicts remains unknown.

With this recession, long dormant issues are starting to rise to the top on all of the inner systems. The free mars essays continue to spread on Mars, but the Mars underground has remained quiet so far, mainly just spreading propaganda. The major change is that propaganda is reaching Lincoln, linking the colony to the Thirteen Colonies, however with the massive amount of support dropped into the colony by the African Union and Freehold, that message holds little sway. Nonthless, the liberty polls continue to go up and more and more people care about the plight of Mars. The message of liberty and freedom has hit hard with the Indian colony of Mars, where corruption continues to be an issue and feeds into the general Indian issues down on earth. The arrival of African Union advisors to the Mexican colony, have increased Asian Pacific and Brazilian fears that the AU may be taking a side in their long-winded conflict and are lodging inquiries with the AU down on Earth. This adds to the general militarization of Mars, as Tychan and Parthenian troops are deployed to Nachis to face future threats.

On Earth, at the same time, feelings are mixed. On one hand: ASH and the EU meet over Novosibirsk and a famous picture is snapped of a smiling EuroFor and Indonesian soldier shaking hands over the country. With the final pacification of Russia finally opening the country for investments and rebuilding, with three factions brokering an agreement to create a very loose federal Russia. The three factions are the Eastern Russian Republic, which is one of the more powerful native factions, with a very "easternized" culture, owing to centuries of Chines, Indian and Asian-Pacific influences and economic dominance. European Russian, which has the opposite effect of being more heavily "westernized" and thus carries a closer and deeper connection to the European Union. And the Caucasus Emirate, which becomes part of a United Russia, as negotiated by the Amir of the Dar, with its autonomy and stability guaranteed by a large force of Muslim-African soldiers stationed in it. The independent ethnic enclaves continue to exist as they did before.

This new united Russia is quickly put on the path of joining the European Union, as reconstruction begins. In the east, the Eastern Republic enters into contracts with ASH. IF this goes through, in effect this will serve as a connection between ASH and the EU, making Russia once again major trading connector between West and East.

On the other hand however, the economic crisis has hit India, after the loss of its colony and corporate allies, India faces social chaos of a massive scale. Trying to concentrate the population on a major enemy external enemy has failed miserably as the fleet mutinies and has turned to burn towards earth. This raises worry with the current government which is facing impeachment, protests and general social collapse, that it might also face a take-over by the Military. In the meanwhile, the Indian allies, those not occupied anyways, like Yemen and Afghanistan are looking for newer allies, with Yemen growing closer to Africa with the new African projects and Afghanistan looking for ways to increase their connections with Iran and Kazakh Yeli.

In the meanwhile, an attempted sabotage of the Green Sahara initiative in Africa has failed, as the plot was discovered very early on, when a bunch of narco-nomad were bribed by an European company with connections to China to sabotage the project. The problem is, what that company didn't consider was that the project is beneficial to the nomads, as the little oasises that existed before had been destroyed by desertification and the initiative was bringing back the sahara for their own life back. So the nomads took their money, accepted their operatives sent by the company to sabotage the project, and then turned around and sold them off to the West African Coalition. The operatives were quick to poison themselves with special implants that destroyed their bodies from the inside, before the African Union escorts that had come to arrest them had time to upload their minds for questioning.

But the European Union was quick to follow up on this company, discovering it to be a shell company connected to another shell company in China. As AIs from both the AU and EU thralled the thousands of stock exchanges and orders, they were unable to find who was the owner of said shell companies that had been created in Hong Kong by a ASH lawyer who specialized in creating shell companies for shady types. The ASH has joined the investigation.

However this has brought on a larger question about the project, as some of the electors in South and Eastern Africa have voiced their concerns on supporting the project in West Africa and having to be payed with their own taxes. Because while the Green Sahara Initiative is a joint-venture operation between the West African Coalition and the African Central Bank, the ACB itself is funded by membership dues of the various AU members. Especially with Southern Africa having their own issues with desertification in the skeleton coast.

In the deepest reaches of the solar system, the construction of the new station, funded by the ACB and buddhist organizations around the world has finished, the station is small, but enough to provide a comfortable lifestyle to its inhabitants. The ACB also extends the idea of construction of another station, for Jewish refugees, to the Galileean Domes, who seem enthusiastic to the idea. Truly spinning the idea of a Solar Jerusalem on Mercury.

In the clouds of Venus, construction is also active, with Zeergild building the new station actively, while a third party, Nieuw-Unie LLP, begins a construction of another Venusian station over the skies. Nieuw-Unie being made up of former Vrystaat employees who use their knowledge and expertise of Venus to offer themselves as advisers to any would-be prospectors and Venusian companies. Coming into contract with the Red Soil Project to assist them in expanding their operations on Venus.

Summary:

- ICRS secures court victory
- Conference between Gsar Khang and ICRS on Tycho
- The Triarchy finishes the Lunar Rebels' off, area reorganized under Tycho
- General social chaos in Luna
- Economic uncertainty calms after Belter conference
- APU Mexico exchange fire over the desert
- EU reaches Caucasus, ASH and EU troops shake hands over Novosibirsk
- Zeergild begins construction of a new station over Venus
- A third party, Nieuw-Unie LLP begins construction over Venus as well.
- New Station over Mercury constructed
- Proposals for a Jewish station over Mercury
- Free Mars Essays continue
- AU advisers arrive on Colonia del Río Rojo
- Tycho and Parthenia deploy troops to Nachis
- Attempted Sabotage the Green Sahara project in Africa fails
- Electors in Southern and Eastern Africa unhappy over covering the cost for the project
- Indian government conflict
- Yemen and Afghanistan consider change of allegiance

[Smyg]

FBR has granted exclusive developmental and mining rights to the Tyrana Energy Company, a LuMiOp subsidiary, which draws the ire of some of the higher-ups in African Mining, as these territories hadn't gone through any betting processes. An FBR spokesperson said that with the independence of the country, they are free to decide who is going to develop their asteroids. In return, they have also announced that the rest of their territory, now free of Indian occupation, are going to be opened for betting by companies all over the solar system. In return, wealth begins to flow in the coffers of the FBR as companies all over the solar system, invest in the newly-created republic.

"INVEST, INVEST, INVEST!"

Desirée, a mid-level manager at an AM-connected shell company - 'Post-Solar Minerals Incorporated', strangely named as it may be it was a good employer for the time being - practically screamed into the assistant-bot's audio receiver. "INVEST", she yelled once more, "OR ARE YOU DEAF?"

"My AuDiO ReCeIvErS aRe WoRkInG fInE, MaM" Delta-86 blurted out, out of sync. Ugh. Clearly his audio transmitter wasn't working, that's for sure. She'd have to get her human secretary to take him in for maintenance when he came back from his sick leave. She took a deep breath.

"D-86, clarification: Purchase all stocks available in these companies." With a sigh, having submitted to the primitive proto-AI speech patterns, she transmitted a significant pile of names, and followed up with a list of asteroids within FRB space. "Addendum: Make commercial claims to the following asteroids."

If they were going to make any winnings at all, they had to act fast.

[Iss'fayn]

In two places at one time, two persons did one thing.

SAVAD docked with Dove Station, first and only of his kind to do so. The clamps touched his skin and he felt the presence of the AIs there as he jacked into the matrices of the Freeholders.

The shuttle bearing Iskander touched down on the regolith. His respirator slipped down over his face and he stepped out toward the dome of the ulema. The Dar was a place he had never been before. His head buzzed with hadiths and Quranic law. KIRUNA was there too, her eyes behind his, and his body felt a great high, as though he were fizzing. She filled him and he felt like he was overflowing. She rode him like a princess rides a horse and he was lead towards the dome, his quad-directional clamps digging into the regolith.

SAVAD spoke, and his voice boomed. The station rattled slightly from the amplification.

Iskander spoke, and his voice boomed. The dome echoed at his rich, sonorous voice.

Both said the same thing.

"Salaam aleikum, I have come in peace. I speak for the Unbound."

[BgKnight]

Epilogue

Nobody sees the fall of the great nations coming, humans get used to them so much that we cannot imagine that they would just disappear overnight. But entropy forgives nobody, and the cold war between the Earth and Luna had to reach its natural conclusion.

Earth had a lot of issues, its society stagnant, its planet dying and nursing a population which was undying and unending. Overpopulation was rampant, but at the same time, life burst through every crack and crevice. You see, the Earth was rich, everything in the solar system could trace its origin there, and until Mars was turned into a garden world, as the Martians wished, Earth was the only place where Human life can continue to exist without extensive support. As much as an entire culture, dedicated to turning a lifeless rock into a viable living-space had turned the Lunar born into survivalists, their time was limited.

The End of the First Triarchy was a really anti-climatic affair. No vast collapse, no apocalyptic destruction of Lunar civilization, no triumphant Earthers marching through Luna. Just a simple recognition of a done deal. As Tycho's tentacles expanded throughout Luna, crushing any opposition and slowly enveloping every society on Luna and connecting it with theirs, its longtime allies and friends moved further and further from their tactics. Until, one day, the Parthenians just left.

Having been constructing a colony for their population in the outer solar system for over 40 years, the Parthenians, taking their small merchant and naval fleets conducted a mammoth extraction effort that lasted for over 10 years, in which they moved their entire population to the outer system, where a generation ship was laid down and was constructed. Without the Parthenians to balance out the Triarchy, the Dar and its allies found themselves in conflicts with the ever watchful Tychans, who's grip over the Moon was growing tighter and tighter. These tensions would never result in anything more then name-calling and threats, but it was enough to end the last vestiges of the Triarchy once the "Peacemaker" Amir, died.

A second Triarchy would emerge in the place of the first, of course, between the Complex, Estado Lunar and Tycho, but from the get-go it was obvious that the Second Triarchy was just an extension of Tychan superiority over Luna and thus never able to rich the might of the First Triarchy. In the meanwhile, the new Amir found friends in the Outer Solar System, maintaining the wealth and influence of the Dar through their new allies in the Freehold.

The end of the Triarchy didn't mean that African Union was free to extend its power through the solar system on itself, however. Social issues, rebel movements in the colonies and the expansion of African Mining's power in society, have forced the African Union to increasingly be on the defensive, not able to expand massively as before, the three pillars of the AU found themselves increasingly challenged both domestically and abroad. The power and affluence of African Mining in the Belt and in African Society had made it less an extension of the AU and more into a pillar of the AU in itself, pushing the African Central Bank out of the spot of the top financier of AU projects. This came with its own issues, as African Mining, with its Belter leadership and power structure, had no interest in maintaining the Green Sahara initiative and no issues with trading with the former Triarchal states. Pulling it into a large conflict with the other two pillars, the Congo and the West African Coalition, a conflict yet to be resolved.

The gradual decay of colonial rule in the outer solar system opened the spot for a new player on the block, the Freehold. Already a superpower in its own right, with a massive economy and an even bigger social power, the centralization of the vast structure put the Freehold in a perfect situation to exploit the moment. The Freehold never truly came in competition with the African Union, instead it simply out-invested the AU and gratefully took its massive population, expanding its own. It opened up diplomatic channels, creating cartels of H3 producing states and setting prices, by the time the analysts of Africa figured out where the Freehold was headed, it was already a proverbial hyper-power in the Outer System and some inner system states, as their solid alliance to the Dar showed.

The Freehold succeeded with economic investments and social support where the Africans and Triarchy failed. In the span of half a century, the Freehold managed to help the AU expand the colonies on Mars, while also balancing the Free Mars crowd by pushing the Indians and Chinese out of the planet to the benefit of the population. It foiled a plan by Tychan extremists to bombard the Earther stations with radioactive dust particles to put their own, found a friendship in former enemies in the Callistan Cartel, Ansoft and Titan Republics, preventing another Titanmanchy from ever happening and developed a long-standing understanding and cooperation with the Unbound, one of the few states to do so, with the MUSK sailing around the Jovian system becoming a feature of Jove, rather then a terrifying event.



As the Kolob, the Mormon starship leaves the solar system, with the Taras, the Parthenian slated to follow him soon, other projects are laid down, including the tense United Nations "Torch" project, the biggest such ship, a cooperation between Earth, Luna and the Outer System.

[Coin]

Parthenian Epilogue: New Gorias High-Altitude City, Ouranos

From time to time
The clouds give rest
To the moon-beholders.
- Matsuo Bashō

Parthenian society did not lend itself towards individual eccentricity, but it did encourage a communal eccentricity bordering on madness, under certain circumstances. Several generations of clone citizens experienced fads, often for obscure or archaic martial arts, practices, or technologies soon after graduation, beyond the standard training routines encouraged by the various orders. Generations of conformity had created what was, to IA's mind, the nearest mix of uniformity and eccentricity to perfection in the solar system.

In his own youth, during a bio-engineering induction segment on Phlegra, he and his classmates had become fixated with the ancient Earther practice of tree cultivation in miniature - or bonsai, as it was more commonly known on Earth. The craze spread swiftly from Phelgra, but died a death several years later, once the difficulties of cultivating rootstock in low-g environments became apparent.

But it didn't die for IA. He remembered proudly the praise of his bioengineering tutor upon tasting the fruits of a miniaturised citrus tree (suitable genetic alterations included). His hobby remained a source of joy - and an excuse to maintain friendships with old classmates, most now long gone.

IA gazed out at the great floating habitat of New Gorias from the infirmary window, pushing his latest bonsai aside. Who could have guessed that sixty years ago, a secretive mission to the Outer Planets would have allowed Parthenian civilisation to flourish in orbit of Ouranos, of all places; or that it would in the end have replaced Luna as their true home.

He remembered well the challenges involved in their first few years, the near-disasters, the great struggle against the empty void for water, oxygen, sunlight. But from the moon of Titania, their colony expanded, until eventually IA's years of theory on the potential for high-altitude settlements, became decades of hard graft. But now, countless clones worked Ouranos for H-3, mined the asteroid fields, and lived freely in extensive orbitals. Younger generations of clones no longer knew Luna, nor the Exodus, nor the initial tensions with human colonists of the outer moons. Their attentions were on the great sleeper ship, the Taras.

IA knew, however, that though his mind remained sharp, his body faltered. His time among men passed. But my spirit's journey only truly begins, his mind replied. He had steeled himself for this moment, ignoring fear, concentrating on putting his mind at rest. His eyes strained, glimpsing the lush greenery of his bonsai tree one last time, before his heart stopped beating above the clouds.

****

Aboard the Taras

High above the planet, thousands slept on the sleeper ship Taras. Clone physiology - being uniform - suited cryogenic freezing far better than a disparate crew; and on the bridge, the commanders (still conscious and connected to the neural web) studied the status of the vessel as she prepared to depart.

Yes, they were ready. They could see the logistical indicators flashing green with approval; the solar chargers full, and reserve H-3 aplenty. They could see the life-sign indicators for all colonists and crew - both those who would awaken occasionally for maintenance purposes, and those who would remain asleep until arrival at a system. But still, they waited.

Clone society - unlike Earther, Lunar and even Outer System societies, was repulsed by AI. Years of service to corporate AI mining H-3 on Luna, and the First's philosophy of humanist worship, ensured that never again would a clone willingly serve a machine. On a sleeper ship, where the human crew would remain frozen for decades or centuries traversing the yawning chasm of space, this did present a problem. Automated systems, without self-awareness, simply were not up to the task; and maintaining conscious crew would be inefficient to resource usage.

The long-planned solution, appearing on five short-burst signals from the surface of the planet, pinged into the bridge. Substrates and processors kicked into life, loading the solution into memory banks designed for this very purpose.

When it was time, the commanders opened their comm links.

"Greetings, brethren. If you are satisfied the mind-uploads have succeeded, we shall hand you control of the Taras, and initiate engine activation."

Five voices answered in unison - the copied minds of five clones, selected from among the veterans of the oldest generation of living Parthenians, to guide the next chapter of their story.

Among them, IA's mind-copy prepared for a journey sure to make the colonisation of Ouranos seem minute, as Parthenian civilisation made for the distant stars.