AMT 1 -
Project Babylon is announced. The sweeping proposals plan include an orbital elevator, dozens of orbital colonies, asteroid mining, and preliminary plans for terraforming over the course of the next century.
AMT 10 - After years of delays the OWPU declares a raft of economic regulations to 'speed progress of Project Babylon.'
AMT 12 - The first of re-occurring 'Babylon Riots' begin over economic shocks to pay for the new 'Space Economy.'
AMT 16 - Labor strikes are effectively criminalized under space economy regulations.
AMT 18 - The first cluster of second-generation space colonies at the
L1 Lagrange Point are started.
AMT 45 - The 'Free Movement of People and Goods Act' is promulgated that ostensibly eliminates all remaining national laws restricting economic migration. Hidden in the tens of thousands of pages of regulations however are little advertised rules allowing for 'guaranteed' employment contracts. In effect the law de-facto establishes a new form of serfdom. 'Contractors' with 'guaranteed employment', instead of being bound to the land, are instead locked into perpetual employment contracts with state-controlled corporations. Workers are moved around as demands for labor require regardless of circumstances. Those in the managerial or bureaucratic classes, without 'guaranteed' employment, are still able to practice self-determination and access a new modern aristocracy, though the noble titles are of more corporate than ancient.
AMT 48 - Beginning of the 'Exodus of the nations.' With perpetual contracts growing in popularity, communities that wish to preserve their identity increasingly turn to subsidy programs to emigrate to space and avoid bondage. The exodus of these 'particularists' are encouraged by the state as it removes a frequent source of dissension from the important centers on Earth and boosts population numbers to claim success in the next milestone of Project Babylon.
AMT 50 - Another wave of Babylon riots lead to increasing factionalism within the Union, culminating with the First Corporate War.
AMT 51 - The First Corporate War ends with a re-entrenchment of the 'old guard' faction. Project Babylon timelines are accelerated and programs to exile dissidents are started.
AMT 86 - The Second Corporate War begins and ends in five months, concluding with the ascension of Major General Charles Wette to Supreme President. The reformed-minded populist rolls back many of the excesses of Project Babylon but also works to re-approach the colonies to achieve his vision of 'One Humanity, United.' Wette's reign is often seen as the start of the Union's golden age, and the height of its power.
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AMT 211 - The Sixth Corporate War, also known as the War of the Eight Presidents begins.
AMT 223 - The Sixth Corporate War ends in a House Este victory, with Dominic Este proclaimed Supreme President. In the post-war consolidation Este is able to centralize much of the bureaucracy and retires many of the old corporate and socialist trappings of the Union. While the title of 'Sovereign' is chosen instead of 'Emperor,' Este's power is de-facto monarchical. The One World Progress Union is officially re-born as the Earth Union. While many on earth see the rise of Este as a positive step to prevent the unceasing cycle of factionalism, most off-world are cold to the plans of the dictator. While no formal independence declarations are made, the lack of several names on the list of dignitaries making oaths of loyalty is noted.
AMT 228 - Sovereign Marcus Este declares the 'completion' of Project Babylon, despite several projects still ongoing or not started, and announces the next step towards humanity's destiny. Coined 'Golden Mars' it focuses the many (often contradictory) ambitions of Project Babylon into a single goal - the terraforming of Mars into an agricultural wonderland to support the dream of 'Population 1 Trillion.' Abandoned projects to re-start the Martian magnetic sphere are dusted off, and work begins on a major orbital ring with large living quarters for workers and colonists.
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AMT 237 - Comet seeding of Mars is completed - Mars is now a stark red and white planet with large tracts of ice.
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AMT 261 - Station Ixios is completed, powering a huge electromagnet to provide Mars with a magnetic sphere without work on the planet's core. Atmospheric terraforming begins in earnest.
AMT 263 - Station Aether - sister station of Ixios responsible for maintaining large solar mirrors to provide additional atmospheric heat.
AMT 275 - Comet melt on Mars - the 'red planet' is now an image of blue and rusty brown. Chemical surface treatment and topsoil husbandry begins.
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AMT 365 - Golden Mars meets its penultimate milestone - EV advisories are lifted on most equator population centers. Mars is green across its waist and many farming colonies are turning a profit exporting foodstuffs to the space economy. The final step is the re-purposing of infrastructure and expansion of farms to maximize production. The Earth sphere celebrates as 100 billion people are feeling anxiety about how they will be fed, and Golden Mars seems providentially timed to meet the population boom.
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AMT 379 -
The Great Disaster - The dream of Golden Mars is forever ruined, right on the cusp of its realization. While the direct cause is unknown, the orbital ring collapses and its towed asteroids crash, causing sudden and permanent shifts in climate. Sovereign Marcus Este IV is murdered in a palace coup. The usurper Harold Wei is unable to attain universal acclaim and commits suicide shortly after his arrest. While Marcus's relatively obscure brother Peter is crowned as a consensus candidate to prevent another civil war, many regions and colonies use the opportunity to demand autonomy.
AMT 380 - Without the unifying dream of Golden Mars, the Earth Sphere loses faith in the Union project as a whole. Faced with the prospect of the complete dissolution of the Union, Peter is pressured to sign a series of reforms granting self-rule to most areas. The Sovereign mostly becomes a functionary and real power is transferred to a Federal Council and the GuildCorps.
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AMT 382 -
The Martian Revolution - The surviving Martian colonies are whipped into a fury by radicals claiming that the Great Disaster was a deliberate attack by the Union to prevent Golden Mars from threatening the fortunes of Earth's elites. Revolutionary fervor grips Mars which unite forcefully under the Directory, led by Chairman Sadat. Unionists are purged violently across the planet.
AMT 384 -
The War in Heaven - The Martian Directory declares a 'war of revenge' against the Earth Union. Earth scrambles to gather a unified defense fleet but the slow-motion breaking apart of the Union means Mars enters into a complicated web of factionalism. A few groups side with the Martians, but many simply delay to see if a more competent leader than Peter Este rises to the occasion. They will be kept waiting.
AMT 385 - The revolutionary Martian fleet assaults the lunar sphere. The fighting is bloody and indiscriminate, and ends mostly in a stalemate, but not before Directory forces are able to seize a foothold to launch future attacks from.
AMT 388 - The Earth Sphere suffers a wave of Relativistic Kill Missile (RKM) attacks. Large cities such as Rome, Chinese Tokyo, and Rio De Janeiro are disintegrated. The colonies of the L1 cluster are obliterated. Factions backing Mars, appalled at the billions killed, attempt to flip sides but most are occupied by Directory troops in lightning attacks timed with the RKM assault. However, Mars is unable to muster the manpower to complete their victory and get bogged down in their occupations. In grief Peter Este abdicates and the Earth Union is thrown into chaos. A rump of the Union's Federal Council attempts to capitalize on the attacks to unify the factions with the formation of an Earth Federation, but many distrust Federation leadership due to their previous roles in the failed Union.
AMT 411 - Mars is spoiled and disunited; Earth is broken and divided. The colonies turn inward to the safety of isolation. The sweet vision of Mundus Turrim has curdled and mankind increasingly realizes that for all his power, his heart has not changed since ancient days. With the light of Babylon discredited, a new light is needed. Into this fraught time people grope in the darkness of war and danger. While answers are few, one thing is clear - the past is dead; and the living must live.