The Prelude to Empires
The Prelude to Empires: 
A Brief History of Mankind's Venture to the Stars
Though the universe is now filled with unending turmoil and factionalism on a cosmic scale, things were not always as they are today. The rise of the United Colonies came during a period of rapid expansion many thousands of years ago, during the great exodus of mankind which spanned nearly millennia. During this time, the control between the so called governing body of the colonies inevitably loosened as humanity expanded further and further from their home systems, away from the center of civilization and the shackles emplaced by the U.C. government. Before long hundreds upon thousands of colonies were founded by groups who sought to carve out a section of space for themselves, a place they could establish a home freprisalar from the prying gaze of the distant U.C. bureaucracy.
At its height, the United Colonies were composed of countless thousands of worlds spanning over nearly eighty galaxies. Initially, the United Colonies governing body allowed for free expansion amongst the settlers with little conflict. This was partially due to their inability to maintain control over the colonists’ vast territories and partly because of internal corruption amongst many political and administrative figures in the government. Over time however, the unsustainable manner in which the colonies’ government was being run began to trigger both a governmental and societal collapse. The Legislative branch proved unable to adapt to the challenges that new colonies posed: quickly becoming strained by the influx of new representatives and the tendency of these new representatives to bribery even as the executive branch sought to tighten the reins on any colonies that even hinted at subversion. This led to increased frustration amongst many colonists due the blatant favoritism displayed by their government, the misguided and ineffective attempts of regulation and control over the colonies themselves, or simply the ruthless manner in which neighboring colonies were allowed to compete for resources and territory with virtually no fear of U.C. reprisal.
It was from these grievances that the first seeds of sedition were sown. Several dozen systems on the outer rim of settled space expelled U.C. officials and seceded. The first of these rogue empires were ill-prepared for independence and quickly succumbed to piracy and U.C. retaliation as their former government attempted to regain control. In some cases neighboring ‘loyalist’ empires were issued mandates of conquest in return for restoring order in the U.C’s stead. The ruthless manner in which these mandates were carried out against former worlds ultimately led to even more secession, most heavily amongst the outermost colony worlds.
These independent colonies were well aware of the dangers that pirates and marauders posed in the outer regions. Because of the dangers many resolved to band together, forming the precursors of the contemporary guilds. These patchwork alliances dissolved frequently; often ending in even more conflict between the empires that comprised them. However, several grew into strong factions which allowed for increased expansion for their member-empires and deterrence against hostile intrusion by the U.C. and other alliances alike. As the emphasis on fleet production, economic development, and technological advancement was heightened amongst these first rogue guilds they soon found themselves drawing even more newly independent empires into their fold.
It was inevitable that as new and factions began to proliferate, they began to come into conflict with one another for control of the outermost galaxy clusters while constant warfare cut vast swathes out of U.C. controlled territory with each passing year. Though the U.C. military launched numerous campaigns to retake their lost systems most proved to be all but ineffective; often gaining little territory in return for costly military engagements. In essence the Colonies’ back was broken, its military rendered ineffective while its economy and government were in shambles. Within two centuries much of what had originally been the Colonies’ seemingly limitless expanse of space had wrested from its grasp; sending the universe into a period of renewed conflict as each various faction descended upon U.C. controlled regions of space hoping to claim even more territory as their own. In many circles any signs of U.C. resistance were merely the final spasms of a cornered beast.
The Drekon Threat:
In all likelihood the United Colonies would have failed within mere decades of the formation of the major alliances were it not for seemingly divine intervention at the hands of a previously unseen force. It was only the arrival of a new and powerful race that took up the majority of the guilds’ attentions, halting all efforts towards expansion and diverting their hungry gaze from the remnants of the United Colonies. There are conflicting accounts on the manner in which first contact was achieved with the Drekons; some accredit the initial interaction to a colonist fleet while others believe raiders stumbled upon one of their vessels in the void. Still others believe that the Drekons were scattered amongst the galaxy far before the rise of even the U.C. and only now chose to reveal themselves. Regardless of their origins or ambitions, the result cost the outermost guilds dearly; for the first time presenting a threat to humanity that far surpassed them in nearly every way.
Over the next decade the Drekons descended upon the frontier galaxies in force, conquering entire regions of space with seemingly little effort. In time the mere whisper of a Drekon fleet approaching was enough to destabilize entire systems, leaving even the strongest empires frail and vulnerable to attack. To a colonist at the time they personified the subtle fear of what lay beyond, that there were things beyond known space that humanity did not control. Indeed, to billions these fears were well-founded; everywhere the Drekons went worlds fell and entire planetary populations vanished without a trace, never to be seen again. Vast tracts of space were rendered inhospitable in the wake of the Drekons’ wrath, their once gleaming and pristine worlds reduced to dead-worlds of dust and ash.
It was believed that at least part of the reason for such a lack of response from neighboring guilds is because of this zero-sum warfare, which essentially prevented adequate communication of not only the nature of the threat, but intelligence as well. Entire galaxies in the outermost rims fell silent to the Drekon assault, so exceptional their advance that entire regions of the known Universe were lost within this short time, not to be rediscovered until millennia later.
Another possible reason for the lack of adequate response was the perceived nature of the threat; alien species were not unheard of amongst man before the Drekon threat emerged. Prior to the discovery of the Drekon race there had been exactly 1,485 recorded Colonial encounters with alien species and an untold number of undocumented encounters. Though many of these races differed greatly, mankind’s often xenophobic tendencies towards the unknown almost always led to violent confrontation with any alien races they encountered. It is of note that of these recorded encounters, a paltry dozen involve visual record of an alien being prior to the Age of Strife. Though ultimately defeated, the there remains no visual or audio record of a member of the Drekon race at this time.
As the Drekons expanded their control over the frontier they began to penetrate further into known space, finally coming to the more established colonies of many prominent empires. These empires, many of which had simply dismissed reports from the frontier found themselves faced with a direct threat and within months a response was organized and old feuds put to rest in order to combat the greater threat of this relatively unknown and dangerous adversary.
It was only after the stunned guilds rallied behind their navies; the full force of dozens of guilds finally managing to gain some semblance of organization from the otherwise shattered remnants of hundreds of worlds that had fallen prey to the Drekons, that they began to score victories against their enemy. Under the banner of the Intergalactic Coalition, the fleets of many of the most powerful guilds rallied under a combined military leadership. Little by little the coalition began assaulting Drekon-controlled territory, scoring numerous victories against their enemies, though almost always at a high cost. Indeed, it is estimated that in the course of any one engagement with the Drekons, coalition forces lost anywhere from twice to five times as many capital-class vessels per engagement the vast majority of the time.
Though the Drekons possessed far superior technology, in the face of a united coalition they found themselves outnumbered by an unwinnable margin. It was then, in a small nebulae near the Pamesos system that the Drekon’s main force was routed at immense cost to the human coalition.
Shortly after the defeat at Pamesos Drekon forces vanished, leaving the vast majority of their conquered territory behind with the exception of a few scattered outposts from which they continued to operate from, though on a severely restricted scale. As the battered remnants of the coalition began retaking their lost territories, they were met with largely empty regions of space, completely devoid of any signs of previous habitation. It was then that those leading the guilds began to turn their gaze towards reaping the rewards of their victory.
The Second Age of Strife and the Downfall of the United Colonies
With the Drekon armada eliminated and their forces in retreat, the threat posed by the enigmatic race was essentially erased and forgotten; allowing old rivalries and vendettas that had been temporarily repressed to resurface. It was beginning in the war-torn frontiers that the fighting began anew as guilds who had sat idle during the course of the Drekon invasion now descended upon the newly liberated galaxies, often forcefully wresting control of these areas by engaging in skirmishes and sometimes full-scale battles with rival empires.
Opportunistic guilds were not the only source of strife during the chaotic period following the Drekon’s withdrawal; fractures began to form within the Intergalactic Coalition almost immediately after their victory at Pamesos. As the threat of annihilation was no longer present to cement the unholy alliance of grudging factions together, they began jockeying against one another for power, establishing colonies and military installations throughout the Drekons’ former dominion all the while secretly organizing raids against one another on a frequent basis.
It was during this time, when many of the well-established guilds whose navies had previously occupied the central core galaxies sought to expand their member empires’ reigns to include the near-empty frontier galaxies. In efforts to maintain military supremacy over the distant frontier galaxies, more and more military assets were routed away from the core by all manner of empires. In large part this was due to the steadfast belief that despite the insurmountable animosity between many guilds, none would have the audacity to declare an all out war on a rival directly. And thus many empires within dozens of the most powerful and influential guilds sent away their navies believing that the relatively stable, if dangerous, political climate would deter any and all attacks on their home systems. There was however one faction that many guilds had written off and would pay dearly for their oversight. For many guilds, the decision to devote the majority of their forces elsewhere would prove costly as it created opening for a renewed assault by none other than the newly revitalized United Colonies military.
The remnants of the United Colonies, though scattered throughout the core galaxies and surrounded on all fronts by hostile guilds, had not sat idly by during the Coalition/Drekon war. Taking full advantage of the reprieve that the war had provided, the United Colonies had undergone a tremendous shift both politically and militarily. Due to increased fear at the threat of complete annihilation the U.C. congress had voted a temporary transfer of power to the military under the command of Admiral Antoinin Markov, a shrewd tactician and naval prodigy. The appointment resulted in a near-total shift of all means of production, both state and private, to the reconstruction of a grand navy the likes of which the universe had ever seen. In order to make use of the sheer number of vessels that the Colonies’ began producing, intense recruitment followed by subsequent drafting from member worlds’ populations led to the development of a military of unprecedented size.
The retribution of the Colonies was swift and decisive; countless systems fell back into the U.C. fold all along the edges of U.C. controlled space and beyond. In but a few short decades many of the once scattered U.C. strongholds had merged back into more cohesive regions which the Colonies wasted no time in fortifying. Despite the exceptionally quick rate in which the Colonies were able to re-conquer their past territories, they seized only what they could control, establishing well-defended enclaves throughout numerous systems while bypassing non-essential regions in a manner that is more akin to the present empirical trends of colonization.
Of note is the harsh treatment that many of the conquered populations suffered at the hands of the Colonies’ navy as they swept through. Having rebelled against the Colonial government through means of succession and often armed rebellion, the Colonial military deemed occupied civilian populations of guilty of treason and therefore punishable to the full extent of military justice. Though it is fiercely debated to this day by historians, it remains unknown whether or not the various mistreatment and subjugation of the native populations was under the direction of the U.C. governing body or if the U.C. government had simply been ignorant to the ruthless manner in Markov’s command structure operated.
Regardless, it was not uncommon for Colonial Battlegroups, upon sweeping aside any orbital defense platforms and their defensive fleets, to engage in extensive orbital bombardment as a means of pacification. The Colonial military success was fueled largely in part by the callous nature in which the fleet operated; their fleets moved through a contested galaxy systematically, sweeping aside all potential threats before moving on. Any planetoids within a conquered system were stripped of almost all resistance from orbit before being ‘processed.’ Processing was almost entirely based upon a world’s value to the Colonies. Worlds that were projected as worthwhile were then subjected to invasion by Colonial land and air forces as well as further orbital bombardment, often resulting in prolonged terrestrial conflicts between local planetary defense forces and the Colonial ground forces, many of which lasted years. Those worlds deemed too costly or otherwise useless to the Colonies’ goals were eradicated entirely, often by means of bio-weapons or extensive orbital bombardment.
The true horror of the Colonial military doctrine was finally revealed to the universe only after their campaign was brought to a standstill by a newly reformed Intergalactic Coalition at the battle of Marathon, where coalition forces were able to successfully route a sizeable Colonial armada, thus saving the Imperial world of Marathon from almost certain destruction. A distress call had been sent out from a neighboring Imperial stronghold which had been picked up by a local splinter fleet which was then able to relay the signal to Imperial Command which requested the help of any and all available forces. The arrayed coalition fleets were then able to turn back the Colonial task force, halting the Colonial advance in that galaxy indefinitely while striking a crushing blow to Colonial morale and mustering nearly universal support against the Colonies’ actions.
Well within the fifth decade of what was later coined as the ‘Final Colonial Crusade’ the Colonies’ efforts in expansion ceased abruptly in favor of fortifying those areas that they had wrested from the neighboring guilds. This was largely a decision born of necessity as the forces arrayed against the Colonial navy had swelled to such an extent that even with its prodigious ability to produce the necessary tools of war there would be no victory in further expansion. As the now aged and ailing Markov was reported to have said, “One empire, no matter how strong, cannot hope to stave off an entire universe.”
Indeed, it appears that either through miscalculation or lack of foresight the United Colonies unification crusade ultimately proved to be its downfall. As the collective might of nearly every major guild descended upon them, it became clear that despite their numbers and extensive fortifications, the arrayed guilds were overseeing the destruction and dismantlement of the largest and well-equipped military force the Universe had ever seen. Within two decades of the Battle of Marathon the Colonial navy had been broken; their forces in full retreat whilst the planets surrounding them fell in droves. However, it was only after the conquest of several key regions of space including the renowned Sol system which contained the U.C. home world of ‘Terra’ since its formation that sounded the death knell for the United Colonies.
As Coalition forces reached Sol they sought about the wholesale destruction of any and all orbiting spacecraft, military or civilian. The fighting was brutal, with orbital combat lasting many grueling months. Upon the destruction of the final remnants of the Colonial fleet it was decided by a Coalition council headed by the Imperium’s Imperator, Vladimir, that the world be destroyed with the same prejudice that they had shown many other worlds during their half-century reign of conquest. It is said that for nearly a full season the world burned and all traces of its existence destroyed. To this day, the precise coordinates of Sol remains unknown as any surviving traces of its whereabouts have long ago been lost within long forgotten data-constructs. This lack of tactile proof; having happened millennia ago, has led many to question whether or not the battle itself ever took place. Regardless, trace records do indicate that the battle did occur and as a result the battle of Terra is remembered by many in the guild’s collective memory as a most heinous event; for never since has a world been condemned to wholesale destruction by any guild since that day.
Upon the dissolution of the Colonial government at Terra, the remnants of the Colonial navy found themselves essentially lost in space. Adrift, many were aimless and many turned to piracy or fleets for hire. Another matter was that of the remaining Colonies who now found themselves lacking a centralized governing body. These planets often spread out several thousand light-years apart from one another, often maintained their sovereignty to the best of their abilities while others descended into anarchy and destruction, unable to function without the presence of a greater authority.
Due to the rapid manner in which the Colonies were dismantled as well as the abrupt fate of their home world, an accurate chart of the extent of their territories prior to Colonial dissolution remains elusive. The only known galactic map was stored within the Hall of Absolute Knowledge on Terra and was destroyed along with the rest of the planet. Though portions were discovered later on by coalition taskforces as well as independent scouting parties much later on, the existence of a comprehensive map of the known universe remains a myth.
As a result of this lack of comprehensive galactic cartography, a vast number of the United Colonies’ remnants remain hidden amongst the most backwater regions of the Universe. To remain in obscurity is a blessing that far too many planetary populations remain blissfully unaware of; for those former Colonial worlds which are discovered all too often find themselves at the mercy of marauders or face subjugation at the hands of embittered empires who still retain bitter memories of the treachery that their forefathers endured under Colonial rule.
The Civil Age
The final destruction of the United Colonies signaled a relative calming of the previously turbulent nature of the Universe. While war remained a constant within nearly every inhabited galaxy its effects were often limited in both size and scope; with many such conflicts limited to mere border-clashes or territorial disputes. Major power-blocks began to form from the old guilds of the Ages of Strife and this era saw many guilds rise and fall from the graces of the Universe. It was an age of apparent civility; conflicts were often settled through complex terms and arrangements which were usually agreed upon participating factions.
Through this subtle shift in inter-empire relations, the ensuing years brought forth a slew of new guilds to the fore. Factions such as the Imperium, the Minbari, the Confederation and the Wolf Guards among others all rose against one another in an ever shifting network of alliances and treaties. In addition to being tenuous at best, these alliance webs often proved counter towards many guilds’ interests; all too often an allied guild would call upon its allies for support against superior foes to find their calls unheeded or worse find that their would-be allies had traded support for the opposing side.
In spite of the various machinations that lay behind every guild’s ambitions, there was some semblance of order that had taken prevalence. This sense of honor had been embraced by most, if not all of the major guilds and served to compartmentalize most of the bloodshed that would have likely occurred in the previous ages with a few notable exceptions. Those few exceptions that did take place, however, engulfed the Galaxy in the flames of war and proved devastating. With each Universal War that occurred billions died and hundreds of worlds burned. During each such conflict galaxies were razed almost in their entirety, with one side plundering all who opposed them. In the wake of each war the face of the Universe was forever scarred; dozens of empires were extinguished and in some cases entire guilds fell to their foes.
In retrospect it would appear that the name of the current era is a misnomer; though the nature of man’s competition may have been reined in somewhat its bloodlust had far from been sated. Wars and organized conflicts are as prevalent as in ages past, and the extent to which thier quarrel affects the Universe is greater than ever. Just as humanity’s birth rock bore witness to mankind’s unending capacity for violence and self-mutilation in ages long past the galaxy now observes a new era of bloodshed based as much in deceit and political intrigue as it was in overt warfare. This current age, ushered forth in the fires of human conflict, serves as the most recent baptism for the Universe’s most violent race. Only time will tell how long this era of veiled daggers will last but only one thing is certain: as long as humanity roams the stars strife will follow and the very stars will continue to burn.