Great Exodus

Wits and resources, that's all you need to start your own venture in the stars. Naturally, winning the hearts and minds helps, too.
— Anonymous, 228

Following the collapse of MINERVA in 220, many communities thought the Aurigan system would cease to be governed by a single entity, and instead be replaced by a myriad of independent nations. Unfortunately for them, the vast majority of the system's population rallied behind the Federalist movement and eventually founded the Aurigan Federation in 221. This left many small but wealthy or otherwise resourceful communities looking for ways to have their own rules, while the less fortunate ones had to adapt to the new government.

These richer, smaller, communities, still numbering in the millions of individuals, along with the numerous assets seized from Mobius Group, made for a very unique opportunity: constructing their own fleet and venturing into the stars. They would eventually be known as the Vagari, developing a keen eye for space-related technologies and advancing mankind's grasp on the stars, one step at a time. Their actions and motives also played a major part in the reactivation of Convergence Station and the major repair and upgrade efforts performed on it.

History

Placeholder by Negev1812

Overview

Start date
223 A.P.

End date
248 A.P.

Colonists
2,03 millions (223 A.P.)
2,55 millions (237 A.P.)
3,08 millions (248 A.P.)

Prelude

After the official establishment of the Aurigan Federation, several smaller communities, especially those who seized numerous assets from Mobius Group, thought of breaking off and form independent nations in the system. Given Vesta's latest response to such events, however, and even if at the hands of MINERVA at the time, it was imperative to avoid another conflict. As a result, these communities instead looked for a more radical solution. If Auriga was to remain under the grip of a unified government, then they simply had to leave and find their own home. This took the form of the construction of several deep-space fleets, using assets seized from Mobius Group and all the ingenuity these communities, who were mostly from the system's outer colonies, had to offer. The result of these efforts saw the creation of the first FTL Tunnelers, a revolutionary concept that would carry fleets to the edge of the Elysian Star Cluster should they need to.

Naturally, not everyone could afford such behemoths, and the renewed interest in deep-space exploration and travel eventually led to major efforts to restore and improve Convergence Station, both as a show of good faith to these communities and for the Federation itself. It took years to restore the station and to complete the first fleets, but during this time, neither the Federation nor the communities, who would eventually be known as the Vagari, provoked each other, in fear of causing another conflict of immense scale. While the Vagari did provide significant, and much needed, funding to the Federation, they would depart with resources and assets that would set back the new government for years if not decades. Still, in 225, the first Vagari deep-space fleet left for Ceryx, knowing full-well that Asteria could no longer sustain a permanent human population.

First Vagari Fleets

The first Vagari fleet arrived in Ceryx through its own tunneler, ready months before Convergence Station would be restored. While the fleet was loaded with months of supplies, it was not self-sufficient and would eventually need to resupply. As a result, the first task performed by these Vagari pioneers was to assess the state of whatever infrastructure remained usable after the Interstellar War. Salvaging what they could, these new pioneers established fuel refineries on the various moons of Aegisthus, as well as ice mines and water recyclers to provide basic resources. In time, these facilities were expanded with hydroponic farms and other workshops, slowly turning these outposts into settlements.

After nearly eight months in isolation, a second fleet arrived in Ceryx, though this time with the help of Convergence Station. This second fleet was well-received by the first fleet, though their lack of involvement in the early settlements made them more difficult to integrate. Still, their advanced resources and technologies made for a good trade, and the two fleets prospered with what few resources they had on hand. While the fleets had fuel, water and food produced locally, the supply was not going to meet the demand for long, especially if more fleets joined them.

Skirmishes in Ceryx

As a third fleet reached Ceryx through Convergence Station, the Vagari became less united and began to fracture into smaller groups, defending what outpost or settlement they originated from or invested in. This continued until small skirmishes appeared around Aegisthus, though none became major conflicts. The Vagari, now disorganized, established more and more outposts in the area to sustain themselves, as trade and cooperation decreased over time. This resulted in a multitude of those outposts evolving into more settlements as the Vagari continued to scavenge the remnants of the pre-war infrastructure already in place.

Founding of the Cerysian Vagari Clans

In 237, most if not all groups of Vagiri eventually had a place to call home, and as a result, skirmishes between Vagaris subsided and trade began to return. In order to guarantee the safety of the newly established trade routes, the groups eventually formed the Cerysian Vagari Clans, a collection of larger groups of Vagari whose territory was under the guarantee of their respective fleets. As the clans gained influence over the remaining minor groups, their collective economy began to take form, allowing the clans to share their pool of resources to invest in more robust infrastructure near Aegisthus for fuel and Charybdis for water. This would form the basis of the Vagari economy, with other resources being traded for these vital commodities.

Discovery of Harmony and founding of Concordia

Ceryx was not the only destination in mind for the Vagari, as some groups left in search for a new place to call home, away from the roots of the old world. These brave explorers tailored their fleets for deep space life and exploration, searching throughout the Elysian Star Cluster for some other inhabitable planet. In 242, the fourth and fifth Vagari fleets went on to explore what seemed like a potentially inhabitable planet, based on public Vestan astronomical studies. This turned out to be true, although the planet itself was not an ideal class V world but instead a usable class IV arctic world.

Independent Nations and the Vagari Clans

As the news quickly spreads to all corners of the Elysian Star Cluster, many of the Vagari fleets, including some who already established themselves in Ceryx, began to immigrate towards the newly settled planet, eventually forming the nation of Concordia. This fragilized the equilibrium between the Cerysian Vagari Clans, who were now left with no means of FTL travel outside of the schedule of Convergence Station. Still, the living conditions in Concordia were not much better than anywhere else, as the harsh living conditions were still a challenge.

As people started to look for yet another world to settle, the Vagari movement as a whole started to slow down, ending in a total of roughly 3 million people leaving the Federation, or 6% of the population of the time. These people ended up settling on several other class IV worlds, with the Cerysian Vagari Clans ending up being a minority of people remaining on those historical grounds. Despite this, the balance of power between the clans and the newly born nations was surprisingly even, as the clans remained a vastly superior military force at the end of 248.



Cover image: Mars by The Expanse

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