Dark Age

"The time before, eh? It was nice. Quiet, even. Nothing to disturb us other than the fish in our heads, right?"

In a moment, the vast empire of humanity crumbled to dust--washed away by the Interastral Deluge. The network of connected star systems--once a great web--was now but a dark forest of systems fighting for survival against the elements.

But in those times, humanity adapted. Survived, despite the odds, and became a greater sum together than they ever were in the First Age of Expansion.

Shortly after the fall, the systems that had enough infrastructure to save a large portion of the population immediately began recycling space-infrastructure for use in building a new home beneath the waves. Satellites were de-orbited, floating launch bays and landing pads became temporary shelters, and the remaining asteroid miners became a short-lived lifeblood for those still remaining. Slowly, humanity began making its way beneath the waves, slowly building advanced underwater habitats out of space tech that could support long-term survival. Eventually, as the years passed and the population started to grow, humanity started making new, non-recycled infrastructure across the ocean floor, partly in thanks to underwater mining operations.

After hundreds of solar cycles, vast underwater habitats rivaled the size of the industrial cities of old, spanning to the very bottom of the ocean. These habitats took power from geothermal vents and tidal generators to maintain a renewable source of energy that could power their underwater cities virtually indefinitely. Their numbers were still relatively small, though, and their environment made it extremely difficult to develop further and expand--especially once colonies reached the deepest points of the ocean floor with habitats.

First Contact & The Arbiters

As the underwater infrastructure settled deeper and deeper into the ocean, strange things started to occur among the human population. Strange voices, heard only by the few that plunged the deepest beneath the waves, and recurring dreams of cephalopods made of glowing energy gliding along the abyssal ocean floor. The strange creatures whispered of a new age, and future to be achieved: but only if they could speak directly to humanity in the depths. People who had these visions, heard these whispers, were at first administered to psychiatric wards and such, the authorities believing them to be insane.

Eventually though, someone made it to the depths. In each colony, supposed “madmen”, typically a research of sorts, made it to the deepest part of the ocean, to the geothermal vents that feed extremophile organisms in the depths. There, happening around the same time on the various colonies, First Contact occurred.

There, emerging from geothermal vents, was the Arbiters: massive cephalopod-like organisms made of a glowing white energy, almost dream-like in appearance. With their chosen few, they created the first Numen, deities ruling over and guiding individuals on the various ideals and practices within their Current. Some have said that those initially contacted were selected specifically by the Arbiters to embody their current, while others believe the selection was random, merely deciding from a collection of humanity on a specified planet that already treaded a certain set of ideals. Regardless, most of this is merely educated speculation: not much is known about the ascension of the first Numen.

Regardless, the aftereffects of their ascension were clear: after their ascension, everyone on their respective planet felt the slight pull toward their current. Some planets felt the draw of multiple currents, while others felt a single, unanimous voice guiding them toward their Numenity.

The Gift of Knowledge

More people soon made their way to the depths, but rather than being blessed with divinity, the Arbiters granted knowledge:

First, knowledge was granted of blinkspace, an unknowable vast domain that exists parallel to the material reality where humanity resides. Through the understanding of blinkspace, humanity would be allowed interstellar travel at a speed and ease unheard of in the previous age. With this technology, the old colonies could be reconnected with ease--once humanity could make it to space once again.

Then, knowledge was granted of the mecha: the truth that humanity's rapid development would only come at the extension of the human form through massive mechanized machines. Through this knowledge, the first lancers were born: not for a combat purpose though, but an industrial one. Yet, just like in the present day, lancers were given the blessing of the Arbiters, in representation of a Numen, in order to become a mech pilot.

After this knowledge was imparted on humanity, the first mechs were created as tools of construction rather than warfare. These massive machines allowed underwater cities to be built at an exponential rate compared to before. Within a century, most colonies achieved levels of production nearing that of the pre-Deluge era--without the burning of hydrocarbons. Once this goal had been met, the recovered colonies soon made their way to the stars once more, slowly constructing the massive blink-gates required to herald travel between space.

And with the finished construction of the gates, the Dark Age for humanity was brought to an end, with a new, complicated interstellar community emerging in the Age of Rebirth.