To Slip the Surly Bonds of Earth

The West is entering its final phase, like the fall of Rome or the Late Merchant Phase of the various Chinese empires. It is slowly grinding to a halt as the inevitable problems multiply, with no obvious will to counter the decline. One man dreams of humanity becoming a multiplanet species in the hope of preserving the basics of human knowledge through the coming dark ages. The great powers have turned inward, and there is little political will for further space exploration. Funding is minimal, and technological innovation has slowed dramatically.

The West continues its precipitous decline. The ancient, magnificent, awe inspiring Christian Churches which had taken centuries to build are burning all over Europe, and that tragedy and violence on the streets are becoming so commonplace that it barely is mentioned by the media. Even the most egregious terrorist outbreaks are passed over by politicians as something which occurs in big cities and the indigenous population should simply get used to it.

The development of fusion power in the small colony established on Mars leads to an explosive outward emigration from Earth to the moons of the solar system. On Earth, increasing civil unrest in Europe has led to the election to positions of authority of three strong women: Leda in Germany, Madeleine in France, and La Marquesa in Spain. With the assistance of others - including Tomiko from Japan and Hinchcliffe, with her paramilitary organization, the Legio - order is restored, at least temporarily.

With small colonies established on the moon and on Mars, the Prometheus Group struggles to increase the number of people living off Earth before widespread breakdown of civilization occurs in the Western world and catastrophic numbers try to escape, leading inevitably to overcrowding and conflict, which would likely see the colonies fail. A major war on Earth would mean the loss of the ability to resupply space colonies, so establishing independence is a priority.