Our story takes place in the present day on the distant, tropical moon Eisa. We are in an alternate timeline of the space race between the Soviet Union and the United States. Here are some key events...
The Moon, Mars, and Beyond...
1972 — A permanent moon base is established by the United States. The discovery of Faster-than-Light (FTL) travel a decade later opens up the far reaches of our solar system. The Soviet Union is first to colonize Mars, mining the red planet and conducting secret military research.
1984 — Colonization beyond our solar system begins. The Russians discover Eisa, a swampy moon, millions of light-years from Earth. Rich in exotic minerals, the Soviets open the Yuri Gagarin Mine, deploying a rough assortment of workers and engineers to mine the new world. (More about Eisa at Eisanet.org.)
Fall of the Soviet Union...
1992 — With the breakup of the USSR, former Soviet colonies are dissolved. The Martian mines are sold to the United States, Japan, and the UAE while Eisa is abandoned, leaving the miners to fend for themselves. Robotics engineer, Andrei Javik, takes over a derelict cargo station high in orbit above Eisa. He uses the aging station to move goods, robots, and contraband on the black market with nearby colonies.
1997 — Catastrophic flooding on Eisa forces the colonists to flee to higher ground, with one group taking refuge at the abandoned Gagarin Mine. They install a corrupt Planning Council to coordinate relief and Gaga-Rin Colony is born. Life is brutal in the hostile terrain, but the fledgling colony takes hold. Thanks to nearby colonies, Gaga-Rin becomes the main trading outpost in the sector.
A Better Tomorrow...
2005 — American robotics company Nanite Systems moves to Eisa, rebuilding the main settlement as a showroom for their advanced Companion Robots. With their security division, NanoSec, they push back the old colonists and relocate their headquarters from New York to Eisa. The gentrified settlement becomes a wonderland for tourists and travelers, but tensions remain below the surface.
The old Soviets at Gaga-Rin reach an uneasy truce with their new, corporate neighbors, and Gaga-Rin becomes a safe-haven for galactic drifters outside of NanoSec's jurisdiction.
Man and Machine...
2006 — Nanite Systems discovers programmable nano-machines called nanites. The discovery revolutionizes medicine, allowing seamless integration between cybernetics and the human body.
Illegally, engineers experiment with human robotization: injecting nanites to modify living tissue and installing a programmable computer cortex to integrate with the human brain, in some cases, removing the brain outright. With the potential for drone enslavement, brain augmentation is banned.
An Uncertain Future...
As the sector rebounds, Andrei converts his cargo station into a floating pleasure palace, catering to work crews, pilots, and intergalactic travelers. Javik Station becomes one of the most successful attractions in the sector, with Andrei scrambling to satisfy his customers' demands for more lifelike units and outlandish sexual appetites...
