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Yes, another fanfic from me. Since I have a laptop with a quiet keyboard now, I can write whenever I'm on, so expect more updates.
Prologue:
It was many years ago, in 2099. The multitudes of greenhouse gases that existed in Earth’s atmosphere increased the temperature of the climate. Ice caps melted, and then oceans began to dry up. Wildlife all but disappeared, with food coming from technologies able to rearrange molecules. Deserts grew faster than was thought possible, the entirety of Africa and Central America now barren wastelands. Humanity fled, away from the thick layer of clouds that separated the surface from what is now known as ‘Sky Earth.’ The latest gravity negation technology allowed for the creation of several thousand metal islands, created from then-new substance refinery, able to turn common materials into strong, workable stallium, a metal only known from this process. All the first-world governments made this change; however, third-world countries never were able to scrape together the funds necessary. These third world countries make up the surface-dwellers, poorer folk who still reside on Earth. Those who did not, however, came to a unanimous decision of uniting as one government, bringing an end to the times of war that had come with this change. With cold fusion perfected in 2050, energy was no concern. The air was clean, fresh, and free of pollutants.
Of course, cars were no longer practical. Planes were now the norm, although these were often rented for long-distance trips, vacations, etc. Every island or ‘Meta-loft’ had its own transport systems. Some still owned individual planes, but such was extremely rare in urban centers. This sort of thing was almost exclusive to the one-home meta-lofts owned independently. With this came the constant threat of breaking the peace, and so a universal police/military force was put in place. These were called the ‘Sky Keepers’ and were composed of almost a million universal pilots. The Sky Keepers had their own ranks, following the military system, but the most esteemed, elite class which took priority over any other class were the Peregrines. No one knew why they were called that. Some said that the committee responsible really liked old birds, and that was probably the case. These officers were crème de la crème, best of the best, whatever you wish. They were less than one percent of the Sky Keepers, only about 1000 existing. They had never had failed missions, and each had their own custom craft. This was an honorable title, respected and revered almost universally.
Sadly, these times of peace have caused a major relaxation in this force. Corruption and greed have brought disgrace to the Peregrines, with almost 75% of the force simply OK pilots who came from rich families and bought their way in. Those who still get in because of skills often aren’t proud of their title. One of these few people is the very target of our story, in the year 3070. But this is getting a little long for a prologue, so that is a story for another time.
Prologue:
It was many years ago, in 2099. The multitudes of greenhouse gases that existed in Earth’s atmosphere increased the temperature of the climate. Ice caps melted, and then oceans began to dry up. Wildlife all but disappeared, with food coming from technologies able to rearrange molecules. Deserts grew faster than was thought possible, the entirety of Africa and Central America now barren wastelands. Humanity fled, away from the thick layer of clouds that separated the surface from what is now known as ‘Sky Earth.’ The latest gravity negation technology allowed for the creation of several thousand metal islands, created from then-new substance refinery, able to turn common materials into strong, workable stallium, a metal only known from this process. All the first-world governments made this change; however, third-world countries never were able to scrape together the funds necessary. These third world countries make up the surface-dwellers, poorer folk who still reside on Earth. Those who did not, however, came to a unanimous decision of uniting as one government, bringing an end to the times of war that had come with this change. With cold fusion perfected in 2050, energy was no concern. The air was clean, fresh, and free of pollutants.
Of course, cars were no longer practical. Planes were now the norm, although these were often rented for long-distance trips, vacations, etc. Every island or ‘Meta-loft’ had its own transport systems. Some still owned individual planes, but such was extremely rare in urban centers. This sort of thing was almost exclusive to the one-home meta-lofts owned independently. With this came the constant threat of breaking the peace, and so a universal police/military force was put in place. These were called the ‘Sky Keepers’ and were composed of almost a million universal pilots. The Sky Keepers had their own ranks, following the military system, but the most esteemed, elite class which took priority over any other class were the Peregrines. No one knew why they were called that. Some said that the committee responsible really liked old birds, and that was probably the case. These officers were crème de la crème, best of the best, whatever you wish. They were less than one percent of the Sky Keepers, only about 1000 existing. They had never had failed missions, and each had their own custom craft. This was an honorable title, respected and revered almost universally.
Sadly, these times of peace have caused a major relaxation in this force. Corruption and greed have brought disgrace to the Peregrines, with almost 75% of the force simply OK pilots who came from rich families and bought their way in. Those who still get in because of skills often aren’t proud of their title. One of these few people is the very target of our story, in the year 3070. But this is getting a little long for a prologue, so that is a story for another time.
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