The Quiet Universe

Prologue

Book 1: From the Darkness:

The Prologue

No one knew how or why it happened. No one knew that it was even possible for it to happen in the first place. Yet even now, humanity had to come to terms with the horrible truth of the matter at hand. The stars, beacons of light that lit up the universe and gave it life, all disappeared without warning one day at the turn of the millennium. It wasn't obvious at first, but slowly as the last of their lights reach Earth. One by one, each star closest to Earth vanished followed by the next. On the eve of the 21st century, the government tried to suppress the information as much as possible. Forcing their astronomers to secrecy on the punishment of life imprisonment if they dared reveal this horrible fact. However, as time went on more and more stars disappeared. The truth was undeniable to hide from the public.

Global panic ensured as billions of humans tried to comprehend what had occurred. Scientists from all over the world came together to understand the event. However, with limited knowledge of how the event occurred and combined with the limitation of their spaceflight capabilities at the time of the event. The world's best minds were at a loss. Religious chaos and fanaticism were widespread with numerous cults taking advantage of the chaos to strengthen their numbers. In addition, extremists and anarchists began fanning the flames of terrorism across the world to spread the chaos. Their motives were selfish to outright psychopathic, regardless of their motives; the truth was evident. Inevitably the world and human civilization spiraled into collapse.

A great war erupted from the chaos of the revelation. Human civilization nearly ended there and then. But from that darkest hour, hope emerged. Following the war and the nuclear apocalypse inflicted by the war. The remnant of mankind began the long and arduous task of rebuilding their shattered civilization. By the late 22nd century, the first satellites were launched into space to investigate how the "event" changed the solar system in any way possible. Too much of their pleasure, the solar system remained unchanged since. No one knew why the sun never disappeared along with the others as if it was an act of god. The sun was very much the last beacon of this dying universe. Providing mankind with the last source of light and hope that life would continue onwards.

From there on out, mankind soon got to work. They were still alive that was very much the fact. Their star was still here and present, as such only one thing remained. If they were to seek the answer as to what caused the stars to vanish in the first place. Then they must go out into the darkness and seek those answers themselves. Thus began mankind's age of exploration and their space age.

...

It began as always with the desire to explore. In the mid-21st century, the first colonies were established on Mars followed by a wave of colonization across the inner planets of the solar system. However, that progress was regrettably delayed following the global war and chaos that followed in the wake of the revelation. In the next few centuries after the recovery efforts, mankind would expand rapidly across the solar system including a multitude of settlements across planets, moons, and stations. To facilitate faster travel, a new type of engine was needed. This incentive led to the creation of the technology known as the Interspace Drive. An engine using principles of Alcubierre's theory of warping space. This eventually led to the development of an engine that would allow a spaceship to travel at 1 percent of the speed of light. This speed would eventually increase as research and development continued. With the invention of this drive system. The outer solar system was now available to humanity, triggering a new wave of colonists.

But that was never enough, as mankind in its very nature was always greedy for more. From that greed grew the increasingly tyrannical control of those who held power safely protected within the inner system. As a result, a rebellion would break out that would see these colonies become independent and the inner system in ruins. In the aftermath of this short and quick war, the inner planets had few options. They can either attempt to take back their colonies, engage in trade, or try something new. In the end, they chose the latter due to the latest advancement of spacefaring technologies, and thus began the next era of mankind. This era was known as the stellar exodus. The day when mankind made their first journey outside of the solar system and set foot on a completely new but alien world.