The Age of Terraformers

Even after continued refinement, the process of terraforming a moon or a planet takes decades. Terraforming requires atmospheric processing plants, the regulation of gravity, environmental adaptation and the introduction of creatures great and small brought from Earth-That-Was— everything from algae and bacteria to insects, birds, and mammals. The power to make such jing chai changes is astonishing, but is not without its limits. While most all terraformed worlds are suitable for human life, each has its own quirks.
The first two planets terraformed and settled were Londinum and Sihnon, and they became the center of culture and business throughout the system. The governments of these two planets took an enlightened view of civilization. They worked to maintain order, but also encouraged diversity of language, ethnicity, religion, and expression of thought.
Despite all the best efforts and intentions of the original founders, the problems of the common folk did not go away with the formation of new worlds. Mankind is restless, always looking to find greener pastures somewhere else. Pioneers left the crowded cities and traveled out to the most newly terraformed worlds, hoping to build a better life for themselves.
As mankind spread out, he brought with him his usual miseries: greed, corruption, crime. Disagreement over resources, trade, and political influence led to general unrest among the planets. A movement began in the oldest, most stable planets to form a unified parliamentary system of government that would work to regulate such matters and keep the peace. The popular idea was quickly ratified and the Alliance was formed.
The Alliance was started out of an idealistic belief that a strong central government that controlled every aspect of a person’s life, from cradle to grave, could provide that person a better, safer, and more secure life. Some folk in the Alliance truly believed this and they dedicated their lives to bringing this about. Other folk saw this as a chance to grab power for themselves.
The Parliament formed a military council that acted quickly to quell any unrest among the Core planets and their neighbors. Maintaining order meant keeping tight control over the populace, and that led to the creation of many secret programs. Their hope was to make people obedient, complacent, compliant— “better” by the government’s definition.
The Alliance was the protective parent. The Core worlds were model children. But the Alliance had another problem. They feared their “good children” were going to be corrupted by the bad seeds who lived on the wrong side of the ‘Verse. The worlds on the Border and the Rim were self-governing, outside the limits of Alliance control. Each world had its own set of laws and rules that suited its own particular needs. Folk living on these frontier planets had been forced to be self-reliant in order to survive, and they had come to be free-thinkers who saw no need for a lot of government meddling. The Alliance considered such independence a threat to civilization. (They also considered that a lot of valuable resources and real estate were outside their control!) For the benefit of all people in the ‘Verse, the Alliance decided that every planet in the system should come under Alliance rule, whether its people wanted it or not.
Idealistic folk of the Core planets thought this was a great idea. Doesn’t everyone would want to live on a safe, civilized world where folk are cared for by their betters? The movement for Unification spread like wildfire through dry brush. The leaders on the Core thought they had only to open their arms in a wide embrace and those poor benighted souls on the Rim would come running home to their mothers.
Those on the Border did come running. Only problem—they carried guns.