Mars Wars 2170

This whole universe was created by cooperation with McTecInd., TheSilverInfinity and Mustaché.

Prologue:

It is the year 2170 and Earth's resources are either depleted or in secured hands of various rivaling factions that emerged after the last great war.The great war which changed the world not only politically but also geographically. The biosphere nearly collapsed...dust storms, radiation, famine, and sickness were the norm. Out of the ashes of these fallen empires of old, three new empires shall emerge carrying forth the flame of hope and rebirth for mankind...or mutual assured destruction.

Now these three factions dedicate all their resources,military and technology to further their influence over what is left of mankind.Grasping for the riches of Mars...the spoils of war with no set rules of engagement. No mercy.

Welcome to this struggle for survival that is future.

Era 1 - Earth's Golden Days and the Great Mars Rush - How It Started
After the first manned mission financed by NASA landed at Mars in 2034, the Russian Federation wanted to catch up in the new space-race. And win it this time. In 2056, humankind decided to build the first full-time colony on Mars's surface. Various space corporations from all around the world were now deadly opponents. Everyone wanted to participate in such important task for humanity. The real space race had begun. Every country wealthy enough started to build huge rockets just to get in there. Every but one corporation - the Slavic Kosmos Industries, or SKI.

The union was officially made up of all Slavic nations, but was created as a tool of pro-Russian propaganda. Many people from even non-slavic countries joined the research and worked on new plans to conquer the Red planet. The Russian Federation had no finanaces to build the needed large rockets so they focused on something else. They decided to build the first orbital factory of Earth, and later build spaceships there. By the end of 2058, the individual and autonomous components of production facilities were finished and gradually moved to the orbit by, for this was its only purpose, Vostok spaceshuttles.

The manufacturing of new spaceships began immediately after completing the facility. Thanks to many brave kosmonauts (as they called themselves) the factory had successfully started production of the components needed to build inter-planetary craft, capable of safely transporting people and supplies to the Mars. The first spaceship, named Gorki, was launched in the December of 2060. These sturdy and heavy ships possessed everything that a fledgeling colony would need. Water, for consumption and hydrolysis into oxygen and hydrogen,an almost endless amount of power, thanks to nuclear reactors (originally made for submarines), tools and some materials to start constructing new hubs right on the surface.

The crew of this first ship was precisely selected from thousands of the most skilled botanists, physics, chemists, geologists and of course engineers.

Botanist Alexey Kaluga (Ukraine), geologist Fiodor Beletskiy (Russia), two engineers Kiril Petrenko (Belarus) and Henryk Bukowski (Poland) were the chosen. They were proven to be hardy enough to survive the journey, skilled enough to come up with good solutions for problems they might encounter and open-minded enough to not kill each other during the stay at Mars.

The Fantastic Four, as they were called by public, were set to sleep by new drug called Léthé, moved into their cryochambers and Gorki, controlled by precisely programmed AI protocoles, began its journey to the Red planet.

They safely arrived in Mars's orbit. They landed near the Tharsis Tholus volcano. Surprisingly everything went like it was supposed to. The scout rover was working, and new explorers started to search for something interesting that could be used by future colonists. For over the next two months they were building the first base and soon a second space-ship Ural arrived with more engineers. Together they quickly built an outpost. The foundations of a future city. Meanwhile, they found an extremely rich deposits of rare metals right inside the Tharsis Tholus volcano.

The message spread quicker than the Russian Government thought. Everyone wanted to get something for themselves. Fairytale riches were awaiting settlers in the red dust, waiting to just to be taken. This rush mainly included the USA, China, and the European Union. Huge deposits of platinum, titanium, nickel, cobalt, uranium - all were begging to be harvested.

The space-race really began to pick up. Every country that had resources to get there, started their own Mars program. Huge mining rigs were designed, enormous rockets were built.

Various mining corporations arrived to the Mars, with massive equipment. The golden fever began. The SKI stayed out of this, as they had enormous financial gains from the whole world for sufficiently running numeruous colonies + they didn't need extra trouble. As the pioneers of the space colonization they weren't at all suited up for any kind of military conflict.

After the easiest to reach deposits got depleted, the hunt for new deposits was tense and detrimental to corporations' relations. The problems of evershifting sands and the destructive sandstorms, plus the frequent site stealing and hints of raiding, drove the companies to the breaking point. Begining as a squabble over the rights to a large copper vein, the First Colonial Mars War broke out.

Era 2 - First Mars War and Great War
All of the mining corporations on Mars started to repaint the planet red, all over contracts and money. The brutality of this war was never seen before. The superpowers on Earth supported this war by sending in newer and newer types of battle equipment including tanks and retrofitted aircraft. Expeditionary units were sent to Mars at the end of 2068. The events on Mars were unknown to the public, of course. The battles were taking place everywhere. In orbit, in the atmosphere, on the surface, underground in the mines. The size of this conflict was growing and growing. When the numbers of dead trespassed one million, the SKI, which was neutral at the time and acted as a Martain Red Cross, started to disobey Russian orders. They sent messages back to Earth, which included pictures and tapes of war crimes perpetrated by all sides.

Of course, this started huge demonstrations by ordinary people. They thought that the Mars colonies were prospering due to peace and cooperation between nations and now they saw, it was the exact opposite.

The hate between the super-powers started to grow exponentially. The circle of accusations started spinning with no intentions to stop. Society was preparing for Third World War. Massive war production started in all countries around the world. The tension of the upcoming disaster could be felt in the air.

The Third World War was officially started in the May of 2072 by the Chinese invading Japan. The USA sent all their armies to help Japan. The Russian Federation invaded the European Union. North Korea, with chinese help, defeated and captured South Korea and started an ambhibious attack at the West Coast of the USA.

Amidst this chaos, everybody started to see their opportunity. The new Great War had started. This global conflict was very reminiscent of trench warfare, but with a modern twist and countless casaulties. Tens of thousands of lives were lost every day on all fronts. Everybody was called to arms. Food production had almost grinded to a standstill due to damaged infrastructure. Everybody who could was holding a rifle in the name of defending their motherland. The war lasted for 8 years. And what was achieved? Total destruction of Japan, Eastern Europe and the West Coast of the USA. The war wasn't leading to anything. All the people wanted to see was to end this massacre and forget about it. World population dropped from 18 billions back to 10.

Politicians didn't want to accept defeat though. The old and forbidden weapons were raised from their lead-lined dens. The event known as Nuclear Payback took only a couple of hours to end Third World War. Old nuclear warheads were dropped everywhere where they could be. New toxins and bioweapons were started to be spread all through the atmosphere. The population dropped event more. Almost all the old governments had fallen. The world as we knew it was destroyed. Earth, once a paradise, was now an irradiated, poisoned form of its past self, and was begining to succumb to the Wars effects. It would in time become a more dangerous place to live than Mars.

Meanwhile on Mars events took the same directions. Engineers reverse engineered the nuclear power systems their colonies used to make nuclear warheads and Mars was first time shaken by earthquakes - wrought by the folly of mankind.

The mining corporations destroyed themselves. Their DNA got so irradiated, they couldn't live more than a couple of months. Only then did they understand what they've done. In the endless physical and mental agony everyone finally opened eyes.

They choose to forget about past, and to the surprise to everybody on Earth, they united into one coalition, with a radical plan to save their mortal lives.

All engineers and biologists, once hated enemies, now partners united by unbearable misery of certain death, started research on something unseen and unthinkable before. How to save themselves on the treshold of extinction.

There were experiments with transferring human minds into autonomous computers before but all were unsuccessful. But now, the new technologies allowed impossible. Everyone who yet survived the radiation's influence was made a new synthetic body and turned into an android with a human mind, much more processing power, and most importantly, no emotions. They shutdown an integral part of the human mind to prevent a recurrence in history - it was emotions and unwise thinking that forced them to do this and so the hearthless machines, mere shadows of what they once were, were born.

The following willing to teach the rest of civilization how modern and efficient this ideology is was growing stronger and stronger everyday. To end all next wars even before their start. To finally stop fighting between ourselves and move further. To the stars. But other humans were not as intrigued. They looked upon their metallic bodies with disgust and many who did not undergo the transformation shunned the androids.

These "people" thus exiled themselves to the center of Mars, lacking the manpower to be aggressive, planning on how best to introduce humanity to the efficiency of their Cold Doctrine. They soon faded into myth and became known as the Ancients or They, turning into little more than bedtime stories to scare children with. Though there was still the occasional tale of a miner disappearing in the depths or the odd medal scrapping or symbols found in walls.

Era 3 - The Great Terran Displacement and the Birth of the Major Martain Powers
Goings on Earth were souring fast. The rampant radiation and bioweapons had poisoned the earth, causing mass death and hunger and general suffering of the peoples. Out of this chaos, countries started to look towards the next available heavenly body - Mars. Countries began to put aside their differences and organized the last great rush from planet earth - The Great Terran Displacement. Peoples of countless nations were piled upon improvised colony ships and were inbound for the Red Planet. Many of the ailing governments could not effectively coordinate to rally the people, so corporations and new local governments stepped in. One such example is McTec Industries, founded by [Data Lost], which was responsible for the creation of several of the large colony ships which carried much of the remaining population of Western Europe. They would later settle the [DATA LOST] and be united and governed by the accompanying officials form McTec Industries and such, their state was named so.

After China's fall at the very end of World War 3, the balance of power in Asia was shifted rapidly. Billions of people now without leadership were shaken by defeat. They sacrificed so much for nothing. Literally. 8 years of brutal war for nothing. They were shaken, angry and determined. They wanted to revenge. To revenge on everyone who made them suffering. Together with China other goverments collapsed too. For good 5 years there was only chaos in whole East Asia. Smuggling, mercenaries, drug dealing but also radical movements. Everyone fighting for food bits and clean drinkable water. New diseases, radiation poisoning and still lasting effects of biological weapons shredded continent's population. In the chaos of new world, peace and unity had to be restored. And quickly. Luckily, in the middle of war China came up with ideas, if they will eventually loose. They estabilished huge underground complexes in whole country. They quietly abdicted best biologist and anatomists world had to offer. In the middle of World war, noone was suspecting anything. China set top secret cloning facilities. And started to create superhumans. In all means of word. They were faster, stronger, more intelligent, more agile, they had much longer lifespan. And the one who had best objective statistics, that one will lead China after it will collapse. That one will make it rise from ashes. The new Emperor. And after Nuclear Payback exactly that happened. Cloning chambers were opened. Ten thousands of armed, highly trained clones came to surface and with iron fist united what was left from China. With the Emperor in lead they took every piece of scrap, food and water possible to make China great again. They expanded and slowly captured rest of Asia. Everything was going easily. No bigger resistance was ecountered. These first clones that gained control over whole continent were soon nicknamed by ordinary people. Immortals. Emperor wasn't lazy too. With newly kicken up economics he could do whatever he wanted. He choosed Mars. With technology stolen in Japan and manpower from continental Asia, huge fleet of spaceships was started to be built. Emperor himself was planning and designing every ship that would fly to Red Planet. But from this point Emperor's mind, while precisely bio-programmed, stood up against it's orders. He will no longer work for China's glory. He will make his own super-power. The Great Empire will rise and shine at the ashes of old world. Nothing will be like it was before. New Martian nation of all Asian people will be led by him under one flag of piece and harmony. After one year of space travel Emperor, with Yin and Yan flag in hand, landed at Mars and claimed it all for himself. He didn't knew he wasn't alone...

On Antarctica, the Great Nuclear Blizzard forced the many scientists and engineers at the G.R.E.E.K Antarctic Observatories were forced to wait till close to the end of the Displacement due to the raging radioactive winds. In that time, they were able to intercept 4 of the escaping pseudo-colony ships passing over Antartica from South Africa and Southern South America and lured them into flying into the radioactive Blizzard, stranding them at their main base, GREEK Alpha. There using spare resourses and the material from their abandoned cargo seaships, they were able to expand these colony ships enough to enable the entire project's crew to leave Earth. After the grueling interplanetary trip, having to constantly repair the makeshift space vessels, they decided to land on the Martain poles, due to the earlier and larger escape ships taking up the land around the equator. They would soon unite the fragmented people of the North and name the collective Government Starlet Impact Industries, after the name of the Terran company that funded and built much of the original G.R.E.E.K architecture.