The war between the Alliance and the Coalition had raged for over a century,
transforming the Solar System into a frantic and bloody battlefield.
As the momentum of the conflict began to shift against the Alliance, its constituent nations
embarked on a desperate gambit. Seven colony ships were constructed in secret, intended to
flee from the war that had ruined mankind and find a fresh start in a distant corner of the galaxy.
Their daring escape through the Coalition blockade became the stuff of legends,
but of the seven ships constructed, only 5 ever made it into orbit,
and only four would arrive in their ultimate destination: the Sirius Sector. In the 800
years since their flight from Earth, each became the foundation of a new civilization,
but it was the first ship to arrive that has enjoyed a special place of prominence ever since.
It can be found today in the center of the capital of the nation that now shares its name: Liberty.
Modeled after the United States of America,
the nation that sponsored their Sleeper Ships’s construction, Liberty is a Federal Republic.
Executive power is centered in the office of the President, which together with the
houses of its Legislature are democratically elected. It ranks favorably in international
measures of economic freedom, quality of life, education and human rights.
The largest institutions of Liberty’s government are based on Manhattan, the country’s capital
world located within the “New York” Star System. The nation's territorial claims extend outward
encompassing a total of five star systems, each home to a variety of planets, moons and other
interstellar phenomena. Cities on several of these worlds, most notably Los Angeles, Denver,
and Houston have grown to nearly rival Manhattan, but the latter remains the most significant
contributor to Liberty’s economic, industrial and cultural power and the center of galactic trade.
Liberty’s economic power in particular has benefitted from the abundance of raw resources
within its region of Sirius. The government’s unfettered support of capitalist enterprises,
dedication to free markets and a lack of meaningful oversight have allowed the emergence of
several mega-corporations. Interspace Commerce, Ageira Technologies and Universal Shipping,
are collectively known as the “Big Three” and form the backbone of Liberty’s economic strength.
These companies helped pioneer the development of the interstellar network of trade lanes and jump
gates which today span across all of Sirius. Their early monopoly over this technology
enabled Liberty’s economic hegemony over its neighbors which has largely persisted ever since.
To protect the lines of commerce and industry across Sirius that are vital
to its continued prosperity, Liberty commands the largest military apparatus in known space.
At the center of this is the Liberty Navy, which routinely patrols the trade lanes both within
its own territories and across neighboring systems. Its battleships, cruiser formations
and fighter squadrons are often deployed to protect critical worlds or jump points,
and are almost constantly involved in anti-piracy operations against a flourishing criminal element.
Other major service branches include the Liberty Security Force,
an intelligence service which operates largely in secret. Its clandestine operations and covert
nature have made its exact jurisdiction unclear and is rumoured to employ freelancers and private
operatives to circumvent the legal limits on its power. Its increasingly dramatic reputation
and unsavory methods has led to an emerging rivalry between the LSF and the Liberty Navy.
Law enforcement is provided by Liberty Police Incorporated,
which supports the Navy in suppressing criminal activities within Liberty space.
Like the Security Force however, its nature has expanded beyond the confines of its original
mandate. Since their privatization, the Liberty Police have utilized their prisons as factories,
encouraging their confined populations to produce an assortment of consumer goods.
Such activities have soured the reputation of the nation.
Criticism is often directed towards the Liberty Government and its armed forces,
for placing the interests of its corporations above those of its own citizenry.
Liberty, it is argued, is only interested in maintaining by any means the exploitive
status quo that emerged since its founding sleeper ship arrived in the Sirius Sector.
How the Liberty arrived first has been a matter of contention and resentment
since the earliest days of colonization. Rumors have persisted that the launch
of the ship was deliberately moved forward or the other sleeper ships were somehow delayed.
Whatever the cause, the Liberty’s colonists were able to claim the most favorable star
systems and exploit them for a full two years before the next sleeper ship arrived.
The development of the jump gates 180 years after the Liberty’s arrival led to the meteoric rise and
expansion of the nation. This feat of engineering was repeated in 280 AS when the technology behind
trade lanes was introduced and the second half of modern interstellar infrastructure
began to take place. These early successes made the other nations of Sirius reliant
on Liberty’s innovations, but when both Rheinland and Kusari defaulted on their debts, the resulting
economic depression created a lasting financial crisis and a rise in economic inequality.
Jump Gate and terraforming disasters on Los Angeles and Dallas respectively
brought an end to Liberty’s first golden era.
By 600 AS however, the nation’s fortunes grew more favorable as Liberty’s corporations
were able to profit from the ongoing war between Rheinland and the Gas Miners Guild.
With its neighbor unable to pay off many of its wartime debts, Liberty moved to exploit
the weakened Rhineland state, regaining its status as Sirius’s foremost economic power.
Liberty remains the beating heart of the Sirius Sector and it seems unlikely the nation will lose
its special place of prominence anytime soon. But for all the advantages it possesses, it is
today surrounded by its former allies of Earth, unable to expand without their consent. Within
the new human civilization that has been created, Liberty’s prosperity is only guaranteed when it
comes at the expense of its neighbors. Under such circumstances, the seeds of another great war may
have been planted, and the mistakes of the past might again play out across the Sirius Sector.