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World history
Brief summary
In 1985, a very old Ward was discovered in South Africa. The precise age of this Ward remains unknown, but some experiments indicate that it predates our planet, which is extraordinary. This leads to the astonishing conclusion that someone must have deliberately placed this Ward on Earth.
The discovery of this Totem was secured by Murphy Corporation, a company specializing in general technology. Through a series of unethical experiments, it was found that the totem gradually kills any living creature within a 5-meter radius by forming a crystalline substance in their lungs. Years later, it was discovered that this unknown crystalline substance, called Substantia Macabra Mortis (as named by the pioneer of its refinement, Doc. Konrad Morgenstern), could be harvested from the lungs of deceased hosts and further refined. In its refined form the substance could be applied to the human body to temporarily enhance intelligence, consciousness, and various other aspects of human psyche. Additionally, it could be used to power perpetuum mobile engines, create deadly weapons, and more.
Substantia Macabra Mortis has significant drawbacks beside its horrifying genesis. Once the effects on the psyche wear off, most users experience severe fatigue, headaches, intense nosebleeds, and, in some cases, acute psychosis. Additionally, in its unrefined form or when it reverts to its natural state after exposure to oxygen, it has detrimental environmental effects. When it comes into direct contact with the environment, it mutates animals into rabid and aggressive creatures with an indefinite lifespan. These creatures can enter hibernation and require no sustenance but will erupt into a berserk state when an unaffected being approaches, seeking to annihilate them at any cost—even to the point of their own self-destruction.
In 1989, Murphy Corporation merged with another major corporation, Wasserstrom Corp. This collaboration led to immense financial power, surpassing that of any state. Wasserstrom Corp was notorious for gathering resources from all over the world and was infamously known for using slave labor. This union propelled Wasserstrom-Murphy Corp into becoming the de facto leader of the European Union. The corporation secured influence over everything, placing its own people in ministerial and political positions within the European Union, limiting the electoral options available to the majority of society and citizens, and imposing strict regulations on how knowledge could be acquired.
Although their inventions simplified everyday life for the average person, the corporation simultaneously stripped them of their identification and the ability to influence democratic processes. By the time it became apparent that the corporation was not as altruistic as it initially seemed, it was already too late.
Education in information technology, electronic devices, and other scientific fields was heavily regulated, with only select individuals allowed to study these subjects. A strict record of knowledge was maintained. The unification of communication devices available to the average person reached an absurd level, with all network traffic being strictly monitored by the corporate IT department. Any detected anti-corporate stance was considered a capital offense. Just like the attempts to cobble together their own communication device with a range of over 5 km.
History of Europe
The history of Europe is marked more by wars and conflicts than continuous periods of prosperity. Since the end of World War II, there have been numerous unsuccesfull attempts by the USSR to dominate and merge Europe into its empire. This attemps remained unsuccesfull thanks to technological advance thanks to research of weapons and technologies by Wasserstrom & Murphy Corporation.
In 2023, the USSR desperatly crossed a significant line by attacking a European state — Ukraine. Since Ukraine was not technically yet part of any European defensive alliance, many European states decided not to repeat the mistakes made at the beginning of World War II when Germany sought to annex the Sudetenland in then-Czechoslovakia. As a result, they began to support Ukraine with military, humanitarian and significant technological aid. This support led the USSR to make the unprecedented decision to use nuclear weapons against Ukraine.
This drastic step forced Europe to make a final decision to eliminate this imminent threat, prompting them to launch nuclear strikes on Moscow, Saint Petersburg, and several other cities and regions. The USSR disintegrated, leaving behind only a wasteland inhabited by impoverished people. Ukraine also suffered greatly, as certain technologies utilizing Substantia Macabra Mortis were destroyed by the nuclear attack and came into contact with the environment, deforming and mutating it. This rendered the country uninhabitable and hostile to life as we know it.
The nuclear exchange led to severe damage to the Earth’s biome, a rise in temperature, and other catastrophic consequences. Between the years 2023 and 2030, glaciers melted, causing sea levels to rise by 250 meters. The vast majority of coastal states’ landmass disappeared, and many countries lost significant portions of their territory.
With rising sea levels came massive waves of immigration, which was strongly suppressed by the policies of W&M Corp. Only citizens of the European Union retained the right to vote. Citizenship could only be granted to individuals of non-immigrant origin who passed an intelligence test with a sufficiently high score. This resulted in some European regions having very few voters, numbering in the hundreds to thousands.
Applicants for citizenship who did not achieve a high enough score on the intelligence test were given the title of Original Inhabitant. They could enjoy the technological privileges provided by W&M, but their freedoms were limited.
People fleeing floods from Asia and North Africa were largely enslaved en masse and used for labor. Slavery came back into practice. Only a citizen, not an Inhabitant, had the right to own slaves.
Around the year 2129, strange attacks began by well-equipped mercenaries and mutants from the former USSR region. It was quite obvious that these groups were far too well-equipped for these poor and destitute regions. Someone had to be funding them. Could it be someone from Europe?
History of USA
The fate of the USA was significantly influenced by the 1986 elections. Progressives came to power and embarked on a new stage of Humanism. Excessive political correctness and the prioritization of individuals with evolutionary disadvantages led to a civil war in 1996, which was suppressed by the government using military force. The growing emphasis on inclusivity and the complete absence of common sense led to the degradation of the educational system, prompting most rational-minded citizens to emigrate or attempt to do so, though many were detained at the borders and placed in re-education camps.
Through their ignorance, the ruling parties left an indelible mark on American history, dulling the nation to the point where it could not respond to events in Europe or elsewhere. The policy of non-intervention in foreign affairs led to the isolation of the USA and, many years later, to its degeneration.
History of China
In year 2024, after the inglorious fall of the USSR, China annexed some of the less-affected southern regions of the former Soviet Union and then raised a new Iron Curtain. Since the nuclear attacks, nobody knows what is happening within China or most of Asia. China closed its borders and refused any communication with the outside world.
In 1994, certain African regions were invaded by Chinese covert teams, likely as an unsuccessful attempt to gather information about the Ward. It is not fully known whether China eventually gained access to another Ward, but their technological progress compared to the European Directive remains significantly weaker.
Since the year 2110, it appears that China has been facing significant issues with an aging population.