The 21st Century

Since the dawn of time, mankind’s fight for survival has never ceased.
Geopolitical tensions in the 21st century were rampant as the global demand for resources began to outrun the supply. With the rapid advancement of technology by 2040, scarcity and competition became even more intense. Extraterrestrial colonization efforts were in their infancy as space proliferation was seen as the only viable solution to the growing terrestrial problems, so governments around the world began investing heavily in satellite colonization programs.
In 2049, Endurance Station was established as a small, permanent colony on the Moon’s south pole in a huge leap for mankind. Evidence of vast quantities of water ice were discovered which would be crucial for sustaining life. As the lunar base grew, so did the need for resources. Mining operations began, focusing on the extraction of rare earth metals and other valuable minerals. One of the most promising assets was helium-3, an extremely rare isotope on Earth but abundant on Luna. Extracting materials and transporting them off-world proved a significant challenge but the support network back home was making it work, supplying the station with over 1,000 personnel over the next decade.
The Mars colonization program was also in full force. Remote scouting missions had been successful and in 2065, the first human crew constructed its first colony on the Red Planet. The challenges of establishing Crimson Station as a permanent outpost were immense but over time, a self-sustaining habitat was formed. Over the next 20 years it grew to nearly 500 inhabitants.
With tensions mounting on Earth, governments began to pull back their support for lunar and Martian colonies in 2075, forcing them to fend for themselves despite the enormity of their mission to ensure the survival of the species. By 2079, commitment to supplying and maintaining the lunar and Mars missions were reduced to the bare minimum despite the hugely important strides being made. The colonies were abandoned, all but cut off from terrestrial support.
Meanwhile back home, global climate change had wreaked havoc around the world and was impacting the daily lives of every citizen of every nation. Extreme weather events and the melting ice caps decimated resource extraction operations like mining, and while reliance on oil was at an alltime high, so was its scarcity. Now that the benefits of satellite mining had dwindled and valuable resources were no longer as readily available, new sources of renewable energy were in dire need. This was a time for a miracle, and the world’s scientists stepped up to the challenge.
Advancements in technology combined with the brilliant engineering minds at Japan’s Aoki Industries had birthed a prototype hydrogen engine in 2082. This bypassed the need for increasingly rare fuels in favor of a renewable resource the earth was abundant in - water. By extracting hydrogen molecules from salinated water, these engines were able to produce enough power to replace nearly every major machine across the globe and allow for tensions to be quelled over valuable fuel reserves and efforts to combat the overwhelming threat of a hostile planet.
However, implementation on a large scale was still decades away. While some more well-off nations in the west could make due with this migration away from traditional resources, this wasn’t nearly as possible outside of the western world. Fossil fuels had become worth their weight in gold for most and remained extremely important for their survival. This led to rising tensions between nations on an unprecedented scale.