AGE OF THE UNIVERSAL CENTURY

BEGINNING OF THE UNIVERSAL CENTURY

The old century comes to an end. Under the banner of the Earth Federation, humanity finally achieves its long-sought goal of establishing a unified nation. However, the Federation was faced with a major challenge from its very formation. Yet this wasn’t tyranny from the former great powers of various countries or anti-Federation organizations working in the shadows, but rather the “citizens of the Federation” themselves, which were about to reach 9 billion, became a huge burden.

Earth no longer had the ability to support a population of 9 billion. Even as people simply lived, ate, and breathed, nature was certainly being destroyed, and Mother Earth was being driven to death. As the planet teetered closer to death, land grew less habitable, and more and more people were driven into starvation and poverty. Publicly, the Federation government offered a variety of humanitarian aid to these “environmental refugees,” but it became evident to everyone that this was nothing more than a temporary fix.

Abandon half of humanity, or supplant the Federation Charter so that all of humanity would walk the path towards extinction on an equal footing? The time to make a decision was fast approaching. It was then that people finally turned their attention to the infinite wilderness that stretched out above their heads: the beginning of the space emigration program.

THE SPACE EMIGRATION PROGRAM

The idea of building artificial lands in space, a space colony, and then settling there had already been proposed towards the end of the 20^th century, with the necessary technology having been established by the beginning of the 21^st century. However, there were a number of intertwined agendas that prevented the program from ever being realized, such as the exorbitant amount of funding required to construct colonies, the right of use for space resources, territorial rights of the colonies, and the military use of outer space. More than anything, for people at the time, the threat of human extinction from a population explosion was only a possibility in the distant future.

However, as soon as that crisis became a reality, humanity focused all its efforts on space development to ensure survival as a species. The Earth Federation government established the Colony Development Public Corporation and constructed resource mining bases on the moon along with mass driver bases to launch mined resources into space. Initially, the program was launched with almost no regard for cost, but it progressed at a pace far beyond expectations, with investments from private companies, patent income fees from the development of new technology using zero gravity, and most importantly, public support.

The Colony Public Corporation first constructed experimental colonies called “Island 1” and “Island 2” types. Based on the data obtained from these colonies, they developed a standard “Island 3” type colony. The Island 3 is a cylindrical structure with a diameter of 6.5km and a length of 40km, and its interior is divided into six sections by land and light collection sections. Three mirrors are installed on the exterior of the colony to allow sunlight to fall through the light collection portion onto the land located on the opposite side of the inner wall. The light collection portions are a laminated structure comprised of special glass and plastic that blocks out radiation, harmful visible light, and ultraviolet rays while serving as a van Allen belt or the ozone layer. It is also possible to replicate “night” by changing the transmittance of the light. Each colony is able to accommodate a maximum of 50 million people, however, to avoid cramming residents in high-rise housing, capacity was reduced to between 10 to 25 million. Not only was this to alleviate the claustrophobic feeling of an enclosed space, but to adapt to further population growth down the line. In addition, the components that make up these Island 3 types were thoroughly standardized so that in the event of damage, repair and parts replacement were taken into consideration so that it could be performed quickly and efficiently.

More pressing than the construction of the colonies themselves was the transport of emigrants. The total population at the time was almost 9 billion. Even if it took 50 years to transport 4.5 billion people (half the total population at the time), about 250,000 people would have to be sent into space each day. The Colony Public Corporation enlisted the help of various major corporations to develop and mass-produce a giant shuttle that could carry 10,000 people. These shuttles would be brought to the stratosphere on super-large transports, then detached, and they’d leave the atmosphere by chemically fueled rockets, a disposable aircraft with no re-entry capability. These shuttles were designed so that if they were dismantled after transporting passengers, nearly 80% of the parts could be used as building materials for new colonies, and whatever was left could be converted into space buses or transports only minor modifications. This revolutionary design, which combined launching resources from the planet with the transport of emigrants, contributed significantly to the rapid implementation of the emigration program.

Fifty years have passed since the announcement of the space emigration project. As soon as the ten Island 3 type colonies and more than 1000 massive shuttles were completed, the Federation government declared the dawn of a new era for humanity, the Universal Century, and began recruiting emigrants. Considering that a universal calendar had not yet been established even when the Earth Federation was founded, the extraordinary enthusiasm and confidence from the government was evident here.

The emigration program progressed smoothly thanks to a large-scale emigration recruitment campaign, preferential treatment for those who wished to emigrate, and support from organizations like the Frontier Settlement Transport Bureau (later known as the Public Corporation of Space Transport), and by U.C.0040, the Federation government had sent as many as 5 billion people into outer space.

At the time, becoming a space colonist was a sort of status for younger people. At the start of the recruitment period, young people who wanted to become the first space emigrants formed long lines at the Colony Public Corporation in various places. However, those willing to become space emigrants like them were in the minority as a whole. Nonetheless, there were still a large number of people who did not want to leave behind the land of their ancestors, regardless of however favorable the conditions that were offered, so the Federation government would sometimes have to resort to coercive measures. These forced emigrants were supposed to be selected randomly, but in truth, many of them were poor people from developing areas, refugees, and the unemployed.

Fearing riots by the emigrants dissatisfied with the forced measures, the Federation government established a Space Force under the guise of maintaining public order, but was fortunate to have few opportunities to play an active role. Not only did the government stare down the emigrants with force, but they also conducted a thorough appeasement policy, which proved to be far more successful than anticipated.

The government provided all of the forced emigrants with housing and household goods, and even provided language education and vocational training for those who needed it. This policy of focusing on livelihood stability was precisely what they were looking for when they were on Earth. Once stable, most of the forced emigrants were satisfied, and the young ones especially had no desire to return home. In addition, this policy significantly reduced the unemployment rate for the total population. The increase in consumption from the higher average standard of living created a modest economic boom that lasted for decades, and the resulting increase in tax revenue continued to support the astronomical colony development project budget. The economic successes of the space emigrants also went a long way in easing the fears of those who would follow.

THE BIRTH OF SPACENOIDS

Life in space has brought about a profound change in the hearts and minds of the emigrants. The scars of destruction that humanity had wrought on the planet were a constant source of guilt for the Spacenoids as they gazed at it from space every day. At the dawning of the Universal Century, planet Earth was a brown, desolate planet, and a “green planet” in name only. Furthermore, it was only after living in the enclosed confines of a colony that people realized the importance of nature. This sense of guilt over humanity’s transgressions and reverence for nature became deeply ingrained in the hearts and minds of space emigrants as a sort of shared experience. In the decades that would follow, thanks to the various environmental restoration policies of the Federation government, Earth, as seen from the colonies, was greener and more vibrant than at the start of emigration. As a result, the emigrants came to firmly believe that they had made the right decision in emigrating into space. Had they not returned the Earth to nature, both man and the planet would have perished. This belief transcended race and Side, becoming a shared consciousness of those living in outer space. At some point, it became recognized as an idea unique to Spacenoids called “Ere-ism.”

Ere-ism is the idea that the Earth should be protected as a shared sacred place for all humanity and that all humanity should live in space. It was an extension of old beliefs in sacred lands and worship of the earth goddess, which was quite easy for many people to accept, serving as the foundation for justifying their own circumstances as forced emigrants who held a strong belief that they had been expelled from their homelands.

The space emigration program had also brought about a remarkable cultural revolution. The Colony Public Corporation assigned emigrants to each colony almost at random, regardless of race, religion, or ideology. Although various problems arose among the residents in the early stages of the emigration program, they were fortunate that the younger generation, rich in a pioneering spirit and adaptability, was prioritized as early emigrants. Certain ethnic groups were prohibited from settling in one place, such as Chinatown or Little Tokyo, which fortunately helped to reduce the number of racial, religious, and ethnic conflicts of the previous century. As a result, new cultures were formed within the colonies, with manners and customs from all over the world intertwining. Although it is unclear whether this was the intention of the Colony Public Corporation, they managed to succeed in creating a fusion of various ethnic cultures that could be dubbed Neo-Hellenism. Although it is hard to deny that this was somewhat uniform, this is how humanity came to be unified culturally.

THOSE WHOSE SOULS ARE WEIGHED DOWN BY GRAVITY

Meanwhile, a spiritual shift was beginning to occur among those remaining on the planet’s surface. Ironically, however, the success of the environmental restoration policies had created opposing feelings between Spacenoids and those remaining on the surface.

With the relocation of heavy industrial facilities to space, the disposal of previous century waste, and the planting of fast-growing bio-trees, the Earth slowly pulled back from the brink of death. By U.C.0050, the Earth had recovered to early 20th century levels, if simply considering areas of green zones alone. (There were also areas where only weeds grew after the cities were cleared of inhabitants, and there were also areas that had turned into dense forests with huge trees over 30m tall due to the overgrowth of the bio-trees). Owing to a declining population, the environment would not deteriorate any further. And, with current technology, it wasn’t a dream to revegetate all the areas that were once deserts. For those who remained, the threat of extinction due to a population explosion was once again far off in the future. These people wanted to continue living on a planet that had once again regained its natural beauty. The only ones who had managed to avoid forced emigration up to this point were those who possessed the power to make their wishes come true in some way.

Around this time, the Earth Federation government was also undergoing a “spiritual transformation,” much like they were. Talented politicians and bureaucrats who had burned with ideals in the early days of the Universal Century had vanished from the center stages of politics due to generational change, having been succeeded by mediocre individuals who failed to understand the aspirations of their predecessors. The Earth Federation government had become a system that represented the interest of those with money and power. Or, in other words, those who remain on Earth.

Only a handful of wealthy citizens are able to continue living on the surface. Gradually, these Earthnoids came to see themselves as the elite while at the same time viewing the Spacenoids as a second-class race who had been expelled from the planet.

The year is now U.C.0051. With 9 billion people out of the total population of 11 billion having emigrated to space, the Earth Federation government announced a freeze on new colony development projects. Thus, the golden era of space development came to an end. The egos of those “whose souls are weighed down by gravity” would become the spark for many conflicts over the next one hundred years and would smolder for many years to come.

SIGNS OF SIDE NATIONALISM

In the U.C.0040s, when the asteroid Juno was moved into lunar orbit, coincidentally symbolizing human rights in astrology, marked the dawn of an era of suffering for Spacenoids due to the corruption of the Earth Federation government. At the same time, it saw the first sprouting buds of a new philosophical movement.

The Earth Federation government’s emigration policy had begun distorting toward expelling almost all but the most privileged class into space, all in the name of restoring and protecting Earth’s environment. That wasn’t all, though. Politicians and bureaucrats began to favor policies for those who remained on the planet blatantly. Under the guise of colony operation and maintenance costs, the Spacenoids were taxed heavily, and high tariffs were imposed on the distribution of goods between the Sides. In spite of this, the Earthnoids were given preferential treatment in terms of both quality and quantity of welfare and public services.

However, one Earth-based assemblyman was not satisfied with this situation: Zeon Zum Deikun, one of the greatest thinkers and politicians of the Universal Century. He was the first Earth-based legislator who sharply criticized the Federation governments policies, and at the same time, argued that each Side should be given a seat in proportion to its population. Or at the very least, recognize them as a new self-governing body with more authority than an autonomous state.

In U.C.0052, Deikun decided that reform from within the Earth Federation Assembly was impossible, so he moved to Side 3 himself and set out to implement Side nationalism. The other assemblymen ridiculed his act of political suicide, though it is believed that Deikun went into space with sufficient preparation. In fact, in just six years, he succeeded in his “revolution” and made Side 3 independent as the Republic of Zeon.

THE DEFIANCE OF ZEON ZUM DEIKUN

Side 3 is located on the far side of the moon from the Earth, making it extremely difficult to communicate with the planet and transport resources. For this reason, the establishment of a Side state was considered to be the most difficult when taking into account the geographical conditions. Nonetheless, why did Zeon Deikun choose Side 3, which was considered “backwater” even by Spacenoids, as opposed to Side 5, which was the center of space emigration culture and had many supporters?

The notion of “bad geographical conditions” is something peddled by the Earth’s point of view. Side 3 was in a prime position to receive resources from the lunar mass driver bases, and there were little to no issues with transportation to and from the other Sides. Being far away from the Earth and positioned on the far side of the moon was quite advantageous from a national defense standpoint after independence. The backwater location (as thought to be) was quite effective in convincing the Federation government that independence was merely a pipe dream, but also in making the residents of the other Sides consider that “well, if Side 3 could do it” after their independence.

Furthermore, Side 3 had the groundwork for accepting Deikun’s ideology. A vast majority of the inhabitants were forced emigrants from former developed nations. As emigration began in the late 0030s and early 0040s, and until then, these people were unmistakably “Earthnoids.” They had been proud to be people from the developed world and those of Earth, yet the awareness of being exiled to a remote Side where the Earth couldn’t be seen cast a dark shadow over society as a shared emotional scar. Zeon Zum Deikun sublimated these sentiments through Zeonism and Newtype ideology, which he believed that only through living in outer space could people walk a path towards innovation. For a people tormented by a sense of inferiority and defeat, Deikun’s ideology was truly gospel and invigorated the hearts and minds of the oppressed.

As he gained public support and increased momentum for independence, Deikun was conducting various behind-the-scenes diplomacy efforts. Based on the notion that national power is the power of its people, he recruited many talented people, mainly engineers. He welcomed them to Side 3, having them devise plans to keep the colonies alive without relying on Earth. According to Dr. Minovsky’s memoir, in the early 0040s, Deikun had already begun to search for the talent to make Side 3 the cornerstone for an independent Side state. Deikun himself encouraged Dr. Minovsky, who had been expelled from academia and in the depths of depression, to emigrate to Side 3 and even encouraged him to establish the Minovsky Physics Society. It’s also not difficult to imagine that other than Dr. Minovsky, young and outstanding talent at the time would have gathered at Side 3. Deikun would also make full use of his vast wealth and political and business connections to secretly secure distribution routes through Side 6, even making secret agreements of continued support and assistance following independence.

Although Deikun was known to be a pacifist, he did not underestimate the necessity of military power in their independence movement. He formed a national defense force that primarily consisted of merchant cruisers converted from transports and armed worker space pods and prepared for the Federation’s military intervention.

Having steadily secured a foothold, Side 3 finally declared its independence as the Republic of Zeon in U.C.0058.

SIDE 3’s INDEPENDENCE

The declaration of independence by the Republic of Zeon shook the entire Earth Sphere. The Federation Forces immediately assembled a space fleet and prepared for armed intervention. However, an advanced reconnaissance fleet received critical intel just before their dispatch. The Zeon Defense Force had deployed a large fleet near the “border,” one that was roughly equivalent to half of the Federation Fleet at the time. This wasn’t all, though. The recon fleet confirmed a large number of disguised cruisers and space pods in defensive formation in the sector around Side 3. The Federation government was astonished by the unexpectedly large of Side 3. None of the soldiers in the Federation Forces had any real combat experience, and the organization lacked the flexibility to deal with unexpected situations. Federation Forces General Staff Headquarters wasted several precious days blaming one another for the failure to detect the presence of a Zeon fleet. In the meantime, all the Sides and the lunar cities issued a joint statement supporting the independence of the Republic of Zeon, and even some of Earth’s assemblymen showed movement for supporting the independence. Thus, the Federation Forces missed an opportunity to launch an armed intervention under the pretext of “mobilizing security to suppress the rebellion.”

ARMS RACE AND THE RISE OF THE ZABI FAMILY

Following the success of Side 3, momentum for independence proliferated in each Side. Even on the Earth’s surface, some self-governing states showed movements of breaking away from the Federation and began accepting the return of space emigrants from those regions. The independence of a single Side triggered a dangerous point of collapse for the Earth Federation.

In U.C.0060, the Federation government began building up its military to protect citizens from terrorism by anti-Federation organizations. This was the so-called “60s Armament Reinforcement Plan,” which was primarily aimed at intimidating the Republic of Zeon and the Spacenoids. Still, in order to keep one eye on autonomous states posturing to break away from the Federation, they also reorganized their ground forces by integrating the Army, Navy, and Air Force. In addition, the Federation Forces moved the asteroid Juno into an orbit on the opposite side of the moon and renamed it Luna II to convert it into a military base. Furthermore, a shipbuilding dock was constructed on Luna II, and it became the home port of the Space Forces, the single most important Federation Forces base in outer space. Afterward, the Federation Forces began to take a forceful stance in opposition to the Sides and autonomous states, those that defied the central government’s intentions through intimidation by force and economic blockade.

The anti-Federation sentiment of the Zeon citizens steadily worsened due to the increased strengthening of the Federation Forces and their blatant provocations. During this period, Degwin Zabi, who had been quite vocal about the threat from the Federation and its military buildup, became leader of the hardliners in the Republic and gained the support of the people. Deikun’s goal was to resolve the contact through dialogue, but even he was unable to think of any other way of quelling the people’s fears aside from building up their armed forces. As a result, the Republic of Zeon Defense Force was upgraded to a full-fledged military.

As Zeon expanded their military, the Federation further accelerated their military buildup as well. An arms race is like a never-ending marathon that lasts until one side or the other ends up coughing up blood or collapsing. The difference in national strength between the Zeon and the Federation could not be reversed, and it was evident that Zeon would be the first to fall. Deikun tried finding a way to have an open dialogue with the Federation government, but the government was hardening its stance against the Republic of Zeon, which continued to build up its military despite its insistence on dialogue.

Furthermore, as the military grew in power, policy conflicts between Zeon Deikun and Degwin Zabi became more evident. Key positions in the military were secured by members of the Zabi family and their close associates. The friction with the parliament, which was dominated by the Deikun faction, became a serious issue.

BIRTH OF THE PRINCIPALITY OF ZEON

In U.C.0068, Zeon Zum Deikun, the first prime minister of the Republic of Zeon, dies suddenly. In addition to the fact that the cause of death was only announced as an “illness,” and the details were shrouded in secrecy, there were also many inexplicable details. One such was the fact that just before his death, he nominated his current political opponent Degwin Zabi as successor. Assemblymembers of the Deikun faction were poised to reject Degwin’s succession as Prime Minister on suspicion of assassination by the Zabi faction. However, Gihren, an expert in intel warfare, evaded questioning against his own party by leaking a rumor that the announcement that Zeon Zum Deikun had died of illness but was “assassinated by the Federation to prevent the bloodthirsty hardliners from starting a war.”

Seeing an opportunity presented by Deikun’s death to reduce Zeon’s political power significantly, the Federation stepped up its economic and political pressure, which was actually favorable for the Zabi faction, which was trying to solidify its dictatorship. The Zabi faction keenly appealed to the threat of the Federation and the dangers of a nation’s survival to stir up its citizen’s sense of crisis and manipulated public opinion so that people’s desire to avenge Zeon’s death would lead them to seek a strong Zeon army and a strong leader.

Then, on August 15, U.C.0069, only a little more than a year after the death of Zeon Zum Deikun, Prime Minister Degwin Sodo Zabi amended the constitution to make the Republic of Zeon the Principality of Zeon and assumed the position of Sovereign himself.

The Deikun faction was in vehement opposition to this but was silenced by suppression and purged by the Zabi faction, who controlled the parliament, the military, and the media. Many of those who evaded pursuit escaped Side 3, but some fled underground to continue their struggle. The vast majority of the populace accepted the dictatorship of the Zabi family as an emergency measure to end the tyranny of the Federation and at least publicly welcomed their new leaders with jubilation.

Even after a military government was formed in Zeon, the Federation government continued to exert varying pressure and repeated overt military provocations. The Federation’s goal was to crush Zeon’s economy through massive military spending and bankrupt their nation’s finances. This was a strategy that had toppled many military regimes and communist countries at the end of the previous century, and the Federation government believed that the Principality of Zeon could collapse by the same means now that Zeon Zum Deikun was dead. However, further back in time, this strategy also led the German and Japanese populace to support dictators and advocate war, which had caused the Second World War. The Federation government was so distracted by the personal political power and charisma of Zeon Deikun that it misjudged the true power of the Side state he left behind. Although inferior to the national power of the Federation, Zeon had many talented engineers scouted from all over, and the Zabi family, including Gihren, were all exceptionally gifted military leaders. And, when Minovsky particles and mobile suits, the new weapon that would overturn the Federation’s numerical superiority, were developed, the countdown to the One Year War, the greatest catastrophe in human history, began.