Centauri Confederation
History
The Alpha Centauri systems is dear to the hearts of humanity, even those who have never cast their gaze upon the verdant fields of Nova Terra or New Mecca, never studied upon the perfect symmetry of the huge city domes of the Planets Majestic or Beacon, never seen the sunrise over the lava-fields of Constance. Those who confess to hate the products grown or built under the bright Centauri suns still must admit that the Centauri system was the gateway to the stars.
The first human entered the Centauri system on April 27, 2029, marking the beginning of countless waves of human expansion to the far reaches of the earth sky. Though the discovery of the new Earth heralded the beginning of humanities escape from the reaches of Sol, it would be three full years before the first human set foot on Centauri soil. Towards the end of June in 2032, the forward scout team entered the system, looking for the future site of the first extraterrestrial human colony.
The team, like many others sent to the many worlds discovered by “Project Prometheus”, spent the first 3 months in orbit around the planet designated “ACA-EL1” which had been nicknamed “Nova Terra” by the Icarus crew three years before. During these first three months the crew used seismic sensors, orbital based ground-penetrating-radar, and other equipment to map the surface of the large Earth-like planet.
On October 12, 2032, Captain William Conyers stepped off the bow of the landing craft, becoming the first human to stand on alien soil. The tranquility the Centauri system had enjoyed since the big-bang, officially ended with the seal stamped into the dust by Capt. Conyers booted heel. This new land was officially open for business.
Within 22 months the first colony ship was making 12c toward Alpha Centauri, loaded with the four thousand brave souls who would make up the first colony. The patch of ground selected for the colony site lay about nine hundred miles north of the equator in a temperate forest biome. The land had proved good, if somewhat dry for many earth crops, as well as many of the animals the colonist would bring with them. The native flora and fauna had been studied and had shown to be timid by many earth standards. The higher amount of liquid water on the planets surface along with the planets surface temperature had apparently not produced the cycles of ice ages which had produced earth’s most fearsome predators.
The first colony on Nova Terra had an explosive growth rate from its inception. Within forty years nearly half a million people had been displaced to the NT colony, many of these people considered political dissidents. The first colonial government administered the colony like a military prison, rather than a civilian city. The TC peacekeepers were known for their brutality and corruption while far removed from the eyes of public oversight, while the populous of Terra for the most part considered the colony almost a leper colony, best out of sight and out of mind.
In 2106, a riot broke out among the foundry workers at the Corrian Steel Works, in the colonial city of New Odessa. TC colonial police responded with their normal brutality and violence, though footage of the repriasals was later smuggled back to sol where it created a hugh scandel for the administration, triggering a massive wave of indictments and resignations within the colonial government.
The dome colony of Constance City was established on the planet Constance in the Alpha Centauri A system in 2142, whicle another dome colony, Basheen was established on the planet Beacon in the same system in 2147. Both colonies were sponsored soley to exploit the resources of those world by industrial conglomerates. The beginnings of these colonies set a precident for future colonies by private industry, which is still practiced today. Though both colonies were considered company worlds, they have since been given autonomy and have diversified their industrial and economic base to be mostly self-sufficient. Both are full members of the Centauri Confederation.
By 2190 the population of the Centauri system had moved on to begin expoiting the bodies surrounding Alpha Centauri B. The subterranian moon colonies of Majestic and Gendy Hussbaden around the gas giant Ramisu each boast a population of around 2 million citizens. Though Gendy Hussbaden began as a company world owned and administered by Gestron Propulsion, for the collection of deuterium from the gas giant Ramisu, it was unilaterilaterally granted autonomy when that company was sold and dismantled by investors.The majestic colony, also a subterranian moon colony around Ramisu, was started by a group of political seperatists, though abandoned within 15 years. It was later reoccupied and expanded as an outpost for TC police forces in system, and has eventually grown to include several corporate interests who further expanded the complex and imported equipment which led to the colonies self-sufficiency.
The planet New Mecca and the colony which bears its name is a popular destination throughout sapient space. By 2070 the descendent of Abdul Dhul Fiqar, Mahdi Dhul Fiqar ibn Abdul was named the first Caliph of sovereign islam. The first Caliph was as powerful as his grandfather and was able to unite many sects of islam, though not without several years of intense sectarian violence. His regime was able, in 2091, to effect the move of the entire city of mecca to the colony of new Mecca, stone by stone, including billions of tons of the sacred earth which the city rested upon. New Mecca has since become the destination of the sacred pilgrimage of all muslims in sapient space. Through the support and contributions throughout sapient space New Mecca has become a prosperous world supporting nearly 4 billion inhabitants.
The Centauri systems were mostly insulated from the violence of the succession wars because of their proximity to Sol, and the presence of the large TC force in system, though the systems were confederated and granted autonomy in 2105 under the Colonial Reform Act, just in time to escape the internal violence in Sol which followed the refusal of autonomy to the occupied sectors of earth. The Centauri Confederation Council is considered the biggest supporter of the TC government, often accused of being a puppet of the Terran Congress. The Centuari Confederation still maintains close political, economic and military ties with the TC.
The Centauri System Today
It seems almost providence that our closest star is so very similar to our own sun, as if it was destiny that mankind would one day outgrow their own solar-system. These similarities were highly exploited in the colonization of the Centari system. Alpha Centauri A is a G2 V class star, of the same class as our own, while though Alpha Centauri B is a K0 V class star its size, luminosity, and mass are very close to our own, relatively speaking, and make exploiting its bodies if not easy, easier than other smaller, dimmer stars.
The Centauri System is composed of the binary star system Alpha Centauri A and B, and claims the star system Proxima Centauri as Confederation space. Alpha Cent A is composed of the three planets Nova Terra, Constance, and Beacon and supports a combined population of 7.2 billion, while Alpha Cent B contains the the gas giant Ramisu, Hector and New Mecca and supports a population of nearly 4 billion, mostly on the planet New Mecca.
One of the most popular destination in sapient space is the Gateway arcology orbiting the Centauri confederation world of Nova Terra. The arcology was first designed as a orbital ship construction facility, though through the years it has grown and been expanded until it now houses over 2.4 million people, many of whome live and work there on a permenant basis. The arcology also houses the Centauri A data relay as well as a relay of the Centauri A broadcast power system. Many major corporations in sapient space have their main offices at Gateway, mostly in the interstellar transport industry, though other major industrial and commercial firms are also present. The many levels of the arcology were added in succession atop the old levels of the original station as the station was redesigned, rennovated, and expanded. The station also houses the Centauri office of the ICA, home of the bureau of standards, making gateway a popular destination for starship crew applicants seeking employment.
The governing body of the system is the Centauri Confederation Council, composed of delegates of each of the systems autonomous worlds, except for New Mecca, which has consistantly refused to join the confederation, and maintains its own jump points and power stations. The delegates elect a prime minister, and the Provost General who administers the Centauri armed forces.
The Centauri fleet command is composed of over 720 warships and their compliment of fighters and auxiliary ships, with a ground force consisting of 31 divisions. The Centauri Armed Forces is a volunteer force mostly tasked with system defense, and insystem security. The close ties with the TC insure that any hostilities involving the Centauri Confed will also involve some TC forces, and vise versa.
