The post-apocalyptic survivor nations—South Korea, Kazakhstan, India, the region formerly known as Vladivostok, Singapore, and New Zealand—spent almost one hundred years reinstating their scientific, engineering, and infrastructure capabilities, which they had once taken for granted. This process began in the aftermath of the first nuclear strike in AD 2068, the event that triggered a global domino effect. While these nations had been affected by the global collapse, they managed to survive with their core functions and resources still intact.
Energy, food resources, global mobility, and essential social infrastructure—like undersea communication cables, advanced medical facilities, and even commodities like unpolluted coffee—became rare luxuries, remnants of a bygone era of global trade.
Each of these survivor nations developed their own specializations to contribute to the Star Ark project, the last hope for humanity:
South Korea: Specializes in Neuromorphic Semiconductor technology and Nuclear Fusion Reactor development, leveraging its advanced semiconductor industry to pioneer innovations that are crucial for long-term space exploration and energy production.
Kazakhstan: Known for its rich Uranium deposits, rare earth elements, and lithium resources, essential for the development and sustainability of nuclear fusion reactors and other energy systems. This positions Kazakhstan as a key player in future energy resource supply chains.
India: Leads in Deep Space Telecommunication systems, quantum communication networks, and artificial intelligence. India has also pioneered biotechnology, allowing for efficient wireless power transmission through space, essential for powering space infrastructure and communication systems.
Vladivostok Region: Specializes in Astrophysics, Space Navigation Control Systems, and Rocket and Satellite Manufacturing and Launching Facilities, which contribute to space exploration and satellite deployment.
Singapore: A global leader in Artificial Intelligence and Ethics, Singapore has developed AI technologies that are not only advanced but also ethically governed, ensuring responsible use of AI in space missions.
New Zealand: Advances in Artificial Photosynthesis, Space Agriculture, Bio-Engineering, and Genetic Science have made New Zealand a hub for creating sustainable food systems in space, helping solve key challenges for long-term space habitation.
The realization dawned on them: the Star Ark project was the only narrow path forward, the last attempt to conserve what humanity had worked so hard to build and, potentially, to help it thrive again.
With limited remaining resources, humanity was forced to develop extremely cost-effective solutions. The contrast was stark: the human brain consumed only 20 watts of energy to process information through its organic circuits, while AI systems required 13 megawatt-hours to process and learn data, driving the development of advanced neuromorphic semiconductors to mimic the efficiency of human organic circuits.
Earth had once been both a cradle and a nurturing mother to humanity, providing everything they needed to thrive. But now, humanity faced an alien and unforgiving environment, like a fish thrust out of its tank and into open air. In space, deadly conditions such as cosmic radiation, vacuum, extreme temperatures, and a lack of habitable planets made survival a monumental challenge.
They had to fuse all these indispensable integral parts to function as one harmonized entity, mimicking the seamless balance crafted by Earth. Survival in space required exceptionally delicate controls beyond human judgment, where even adjustments smaller than a millisecond were critical. The extreme temperatures of space and the overall control systems were essential to enabling the crew's survival during their constant, around-the-clock space life. Guiding them through their perilous interstellar journey was the master AI known as 'AI Sherpa.'
Humanity agonized over its role in an AI- and robot-assisted world, even though primary decisions still rested in human hands. Many profound philosophies and ethical frameworks became powerless when confronted with the ultimate survival challenges in space.
Was humanity ready to leave its home forever? The decision was not just technical but philosophical, ethical, and deeply emotional. What remained of the Earth was barely habitable, and despite all efforts to sustain life, it was clear that time was running out.
That's how the council of survivor nations, known as the Collective of Star Ark Nations (CSAN), faced the most challenging question of all.
This fragile offspring of Mother Nature, having destroyed its own cradle, had no choice but to leave their ruined home and seek survival among the stars, setting foot on the unknown realms of time and space.
The humanity was about head for one lonely and fuzzy path.
'It is not down on any map; true places never are.' – Herman Melville, Moby Dick
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Point Nemo (Star Ark Mission)
Science FictionThis is a story about humanity's interstellar travel.
