Origins 7

Reaching out to the cosmos, humans established bases on the moon and on Mars. In many ways the colonization of space paralleled that of the New World five hundred years earlier. Nations contracted with private companies to move people and equipment out and bring resources back.

The world was dividing up the solar system as fast as it could launch a vehicle to plant a flag. China claimed a secluded region of the lunar far side to explore the derelict technologies it discovered. In fact, China consistently found itself at odds with the United States and Europe over meager energy and water resources on the moon. But earths satellite was only a stepping stone to the next prize. Mars.

Several other countries did the same showing, publicly, only those devices that would help humanity. Secretly they developed others that would, they hoped, secure a dominant position in world politics.

Perhaps the greatest triumph in alien technology made use of gravity manipulation to save millions, if not billions of lives. On Friday April 13, 2029, the 350 meter wide asteroid Apophis sped past Earth closer than the orbits of many weather satellites. From this pass, astronomers calculated the asteroid would return to impact our world in 2036. When it did all of it's mass and speed would be transferred to earth with devastating results.

One report suggested the asteroid would explode with the force of 65,000 Hiroshima bombs and create a crater eight miles wide. In the ocean, the impact would create a tsunami 275 meters high.

With this threat, and remembering the lesson of Comet Patterson in 2014, an international team was given the priority of deciphering the workings of the Derelict's gravity control technology. By 2033 a robotic expedition was ready to carry the human built technology to successfully alter the asteroid's orbit. In 2036 Apophis made another close but harmless approach to Earth.

The technology that saved the world was suddenly in great demand. Before long anyone with enough money could purchase vehicles that defied gravity. But more than that, humans were now able to leave earth far more easily than ever before. Within two years, three international corporations had established mining and manufacturing on the moon's surface. By 2036 more than 1000 people called the moon home and by 2041 that population had ballooned to more than 10,000.

Offshoots of the technologies found in the derelict also allowed humans to advance biotechnology by decades. Soon, anyone with the right amount of money might be able to order custom "nanos" that swam through their bloodstreams ridding their bodies of disease and poisons. Some even took a step further replacing parts of their bodies that failed or malfunctioned with semiorganic enhancements. Some went so far as to try to cast off their mortal bodies in exchange for a mechanical life and the promise of virtual immortality. The barriers between ourselves and our technology were blurring.

The computers and robots around us were also becoming smarter. Automobiles were infused with intelligence matching that of a well-trained horse giving their owners more freedom to, as one car maker advertised, "enjoy the ride". Robots could recognize and follow verbal directions spoken in any language and, under minimal supervision, accomplish basic tasks such as package delivery, or item sorting, or even preparing basic meals.

More advanced robots learned to fight wars alongside us and in a few cases for us. The first robotic wars began during the late years of the Terrorism Conflicts of the early 21st Century. By mid-century robotic weapons were a standard part of every country's arsenal. -- Every country that could afford them -- And would play an important role in the African Water Wars of the 2050s and the conflicts to follow.

Africa continued to be troubled by clan divisions and proved to be a haven for those who wished to hide their clandestine efforts from the rest of the world. The center of the continent became harsher as water resources dried up and populations migrated. Conflicts erupted between old adversaries and a new round of wars tore at the continent.