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Harsh Realm PBEM
At the end of the 22nd century, most of humanity's problems have been solved. Solar collectors and fusion reactors provide clean energy, biotechnology has solved the problem of feeding the twenty billion people, a balance has been achieved between local governments and the United Nations, and we are starting to heal the Earth. There are dozens of habitats in orbit around the Earth, colonies on the Moon and Mars, even outposts in the asteroid belt and the moons of Jupiter. Thirty years ago a way was even discovered to travel between the stars.
Five years ago, the first artificial radio signals were detected by a probe at the furthest reaches of human exploration. Although extremely weak and similar to the Morse code signals of almost two centuries ago, they were real and coming from Bernard's Star, one hundred light years from Earth. Humanity finally knew someone else was out there. The UN commissioned a new class of starship, the Daedalus-class. The first of this class, the UNRV Stormbird, is just under a kilometer long, crewed by over 800 humans, capable of going years without resupply, and carrying the first operable quantum reactor. On June 14, 2183, the Stormbird set out to make contact with another species, secure in her peaceful intentions and her ability to defend herself if need be. Her quantum reactor at full, her gravity generators opened a jump point into subspace.
And that was where everything went wrong.
Send E-Mail to: stormbird@space.com
Copyright © 2001 Chuck Thorne. All Rights Reserved