In 2200, after over a decade of automated tests and experiments, the TUS Hawking completed
the first manned faster than light jump to a distant star system.
It arrived in Alpha Centauri, over 4.3 light years from Earth, and in that moment the destiny
of humanity and the Greater Terran Union was made manifest.
By the end of the year, the TUS Hawking had become just one of an ever-expanding fleet
of ships passing across the boundaries of the Solar System and into the unknown.
Humanity had learned, at great cost, that they were not alone and while no evidence
of a second invasion by their great enemy was detected, the search for answers as to
the nature of the galaxy raised only more questions.
Ancient ruins were uncovered on nearby worlds, derelict alien starships discovered, scientific
anomalies found, and new forms of primitive life encountered that challenged the Union’s
greatest minds.
In the face of endless mysteries, the Greater Terran Union was not deterred.
In 2206, construction began on a colony ship, one that would transport tens of thousands
of citizens to a carefully selected site on a planet within the Sirius system.
A year later, on Christmas Eve, these first pioneers arrived and set foot on a new world,
not merely as explorers but as settlers.
Even as all humanity celebrated this tremendous achievement, survey vessels operating on the
frontier of explored space began encountering signals that were undeniably alien in origin.
After months of chasing sensor ghosts, a ship of unknown origin was finally directly observed
by a Union exploratory vessel.
Panic swept across the Greater Terran Union and for the first time the assorted patrol
ships and fast attack craft that constituted the Terran Interstellar Navy were deployed
to the frontier.
As Terran linguists struggled to find a means to communicate, High Marshall Natasha Fox
together with the National Council debated how best to respond.
The ship had not acted aggressively and seemed entirely different in nature to those that
had attacked Earth, but with the prospect of a second hostile alien race within striking
distance, there were those who urged a pre-emptive attack.
In a narrow vote held behind closed doors, it was decided the ship would continue to
be observed, but not engaged.
In 2209, the means of communication were finally established and diplomats of the Greater Terran
Union were formally introduced to the Algan Republic.
While the Polenian species that made up the Algan Republic exhibited none of the determined
hostility that defined mankind’s earlier contact with an alien race, differences in
culture and governance prevented any meaningful agreements from taking place.
In a matter of months, all borders were closed and the Greater Terran Union began an aggressive
campaign to claim and fortify star systems that might become the site of a future invasion.
On Earth, xenophobia spread like wildfire and radical factions quickly materialized
in every tier of Terran society.
In 2211, several of these fringe groups began openly attacking mining outposts across Union
space.
The largest of these piracy elements, led by a disgraced former member of the Terran
military, known to his followers as “Romulus Chuck,” demanded the creation of a Holy
Solar Empire and the annihilation of the Algan Republic, before he and his followers were
destroyed by Terran warships over Alpha Centauri.
Mass arrests followed, the right to assembly was briefly suspended, and Fleet Command was
formally cemented as the primary space warfare branch of the Armed Forces.
It was quickly expanded to deter further acts of piracy.
While these setbacks raised some concern over the pace of human expansion, rising tensions
with the Algan Republic and the likelihood that other, potentially dangerous alien civilizations
lay undiscovered just past the frontier spurred the Union onward.
The fledgling colony on Sirius III, newly renamed “Acadia” was soon joined by others
on worlds in the Alpha Centauri System and elsewhere.
A network of communication and supply bases were constructed and as the first colonists
were quickly joined by millions upon millions of their fellow citizens from Earth, humanity
was transformed into a truly interstellar society.
In 2216, first contact was established with the United Clans of Skiron and more signals
were detected by reconnaissance probes each following year.
Seemingly surrounded by space faring civilizations, plans were quickly enacted to seize as much
territory as possible before formal communications could be established.
In 2220, one such species was finally discovered.
Yet unlike those previously encountered, the Wassari civilization had not yet developed
the means of faster than light travel, but was seemingly only years away.
Located within a strategically important star system rich in natural resources, the National
Council and the newly inaugurated High Marshall Lee Martin convened an emergency session.
In another close vote, held after a series of emotionally charged debates, it was determined
that should the Wassari develop faster than light technology, it would represent a clear
and present danger to the national interest of the Greater Terran Union.
In 2222, Terran Fleet Command destroyed a primitive space station in orbit of the Wassari
homeworld, followed shortly thereafter by a coordinated orbital assault.
Hopelessly outmatched by superior human weaponry and military doctrine, the Wassari quickly
capitulated.
The annexation of the Wassari sent shockwaves through the Union.
While almost all its citizenry had advocated a “humanity first” and interventionist
approach, the actions of the National Council were seen as shocking.
Questions prevailed over how the Wassari would be integrated into the Union and whether the
invasion of their homeworld had been justified.
Some even suggested that by invading the world of a primitive species, the Greater Terran
Union had become the very thing it had vowed to destroy.
At least one Marshall was forced to resign when leaked documents revealed he supported
the invasion of the Wassari only to determine the effectiveness of the Terran armed forces
against an opponent that was not likely to pose a serious long-term threat.
While the justification and ramifications of the invasion continued to be debated, the
colonization efforts continued.
Hundreds of outposts and stations were constructed across dozens of star systems and every month
brought news of new alien contacts and bizarre anomalies.
While most alien civilizations seemed unreceptive to human values and worked to counter the
Union’s ambitions, the United Clans of Skiron, themselves surrounded by hostile alien powers,
worked to ingratiate themselves amongst Terran diplomats and by 2240, a limited technical
exchange had been agreed to as well as a preliminary defense pact.
The Greater Terran Union, if not welcomed into some grand galactic community, had, if
nothing else, been recognized as an equal of the other powers of the region.
The vast emptiness of space that for millennia had challenged humanity to seize it now teems
with Terran colonies and stations, alien empires, and ancient mysteries.
Yet as even more distant civilizations are contacted, and humanity’s knowledge of the
galaxy extends ever outward, it is a familiar story that is of the greatest concern to High
Marshal Lee.
Desperate refugees encountered across the frontier territories tell of an implacable
enemy they call the “Tyrum” that has consumed entire worlds, annihilating their populations
before moving onto the next.
Terran field agents have spent decades travelling across the stars, seeking the origin of these
reports and their findings have finally made it back to Earth.
There can be no mistake, the Tyrum, the great enemy of all mankind has been found, far too
distant for now, but perhaps not for much longer.
How they might have travelled to Earth, and what has prevented them from returning remains
unknown, but the answer might be found in one of the strange alien derelicts encountered
by the Union, which for now, remain dormant.