| c. 8000 | BC | In the Roj system, warfare breaks out between the planet Shayal and its spacegoing colonists, the Chirrn. After decades of war, the Chirrn leave the system, choosing to live exclusively in artificial habitats between the stars, and refusing to have anything to do with planet-dwellers ever again. |
| 2045 | The lightsail probe Sunbeam II is launched to explore Tau Ceti III, in the hopes that it will confirm telescopic observations of that world's habitability. | |
| 2050s | Further interstellar probes are launched to other star systems. The later probes in the series are self-replicating auxon systems. | |
| 2060s
-70s |
By this point the Molecular Revolution, encompassing profound advances in nanotech and genetic medicine, is well underway. Since advances in nanotech fabrication and resource-extraction methods have made production costs plummet, industries based on the manufacture of goods collapse and Earth enters an economic depression; industries in space, based on territorial expansion, energy production and so on, remain relatively viable. Extended longevity adds to the population of unemployed. | |
| 2080s
-90s |
Earth searches for new economic and social
systems to replace the ones rendered obsolete by the Molecular Revolution.
The most viable remaining professions tend to be in education, child care,
health care, entertainment and the creative arts. More humans begin
dedicating themselves to the physical, mental, intellectual and emotional
well-being of others. Meanwhile, now that technology allows near-foolproof
simulations and forgeries, rendering physical evidence less reliable than
in the past, a new cultural dependence upon personal integrity and the
word of honor emerges.
The economic and social upheavals of the Revolution prompt people to search for new answers about their place in the universe. This motivates a passion for science and discovery comparable to that of Victorian Britain. As early data from the Sunbeam probes suggest the habitability of nearby planets, a new eagerness to visit them, and hopefully discover new cosmic truths, arises. New advances in starship technologies are developed to support this goal. |
|
| 2121 | A cyber probe arrives in the Gamma Leporis system, discovering that its fifth planet is inhabited. It manufactures auxon probes (small, self-replicating robots) which are able to adapt to various environments and perform a thorough survey. | |
| 2147 | Probe data from Gamma Leporis V are received in Solsys. Most consider the planet too far away to colonize, but one small group led by Stephen Jacobs-Wong takes the chance, planning to achieve a new speed record for greater time-dilation. The probe is sent a signal to begin manufacturing construction auxons to produce a small colony. | |
| 2149 | Aug | Jacobs-Wong's colony group sets out for Gamma Leporis V in the ramship Arachne, which manages to reach 95% of lightspeed. |
| 2165 | May | Safira Kimenye is born in Kenya. |
| 2175 | Jun | The ramship Arachne accidentally destroys the Chirrn habitat Lesshchi. Its crew are put on trial for negligent mass murder. ["Aggravated Vehicular Genocide"] |
| 2176 | The auxon probes on Gamma Leporis V recieve the "go" signal and begin building a colony. | |
| 2199 | Jul | Status reports reaching Solsys from Arachne abruptly cease, suggesting something happened to the ship in 2175. A telescopic search detects the cessation of its ion trail, indicating its engines have ceased functioning; but its fate remains unknown. |
| 2206-8 | Noted biologist Safira Kimenye, an expert in ecosystem preservation and the restoration of extinct species, continues her efforts in West Africa with the help of graduate student Marc Dupuis. | |
| 2211 | Jun | Thirteen years after loss of contact with Arachne, one year after news of its arrival at Gamma Leporis V would have reached Solsys, another colony expedition is sent to Gamma Lep, headed by the ramship Anansi. Safira Kimenye, Marc Dupuis and other biologists accompany the expedition to ensure that the colonization of the planet does not endanger the native biosphere. |
| 2242 | Oct | The Anansi expedition reaches Gamma Leporis V without incident and settles it, naming it Cybele. The colonists are surprised to discover that the auxon probes sent prior to the Arachne expedition have evolved into large populations leading an animal-like existence. |
| 2249 | The Cybeline settlers, concerned that the auxon "animals" are disrupting the natural ecosystem, launch a campaign to exterminate them. However, Safira Kimenye and other activists protest this, saying the auxons have as much right to live as any other species. | |
| 2250 | Nov | ["Among the Wild Cybers of Cybele"] |