Palaedonii (Dendrius galaxy)
The Palaedonii are a powerful species with great skill in technology. They use a time measure called Vici, which is (or was) one rotation of Palaedonia that its sun. It lasts about seven and a half months. After their planet became uninhabitable owing to a nuclear Apocalypse, they left it and became a nomadic species.
History
0 - 10 000 Vici, 'The Ancient Era'
The early history is, unsurprisingly, particularly clouded. The first time measurements begin at the first records of Palaedonii activity, which are underground tombs, well preserved until the Apocalypse. Owing to the biology of the Palaedonii, it is believed that the first of their species existed underwater, and that they branched off into two species, the Palaedonii and the Varietii. According to leading Palaedonii scientists, the Varietii stayed in the water, while some others came up on land and evolved to suit that environment.
Unlike many ancient civilizations, the Palaedonii are not believed to have been religious in any way, believing that they were the most powerful beings. These thoughts probably existed because of their domination over their own environment, caused by their extreme intelligence. Such was the extent of their domination, in fact, that sometimes entire populations would have to migrate to another area to find a new food supply when their old one had been exhausted. It was this nomadic lifestyle that spread the Palaedonii across the globe.
Consequently, in ancient times, the main Palaedonii tribes would travel every few hundred Vici to another environment, until (it is believed) around 6 400 V. At this point, the Palaedonii reached a stage in their psychological development that they could understand the reasons that they were continuing to move and could prevent them from happening, such as dominating the land so much that all of their prey were eliminated.
The first written scripts were recorded around 10 000 V, marking the end of the Ancient era and showing that their development had progressed to such a stage that they were capable of achieving far more complex things.
10 000 - 18 000 Vici, 'The Domination Era'
It was during this period that the Palaedonii began to establish themselves as a more 'collective' force. Owing to their effective hunting techniques the population was growing quickly, and during this era there were many wars for power and dominance. There were perhaps as many as four thousand tribes scattered across the surface of Palaedonia. Each one wanted control.
Over a period of about eight thousand years, the various tribes fought viciously for control. After all, each believed that they were the supreme beings, so why should they surrender? Why shouldn't they be masters of all?
This era began to end in various stages for the different islands. It finished first in the Eastern Continent, Opulos, where the tribes had begun to set aside their differences and join forces. Although the natives of each continent did not meet until many thousands of Vici later, the peaceful ideas seemed to spread eastwards (excluding Pauxilli and the Southern islands). The era ended in Centrum next, followed by Insulus and Orientus, and finally Pericus and Pauxillii. However, Ferun and Vitreon seemed to work differently - on Ferun, the era did not end perhaps for many thousands more Vici, if it ever did. Vitreon, on the contrary, never seemed to enter that era, the natives instead never finding the need to go to war with each other.
18 000 - 22 000 Vici, 'The Political Era'
By this stage nearly all the various tribes of Palaedonii had united and formed super tribes. In Opulos, very distinct states were beginning to emerge, each with slightly different political ideas. They had different forms of government, a Monarchy being the most popular. Each of the states began to grow, expanding and developing.
A similiar thing happened on Centrum and Insulus, where it was reasonably peaceful. Even on Orientus, where the ideals were more difficult for the natives to accept, things began to run smoothly. By 19 000 Vici the whole world (except possibly Ferun) was at peace. This was to end abruptly on Centrum.
With the unity of the various tribes came great research, meaning that more and more powerful weapons were being created. With the weapons the natives became hungry for power, and as the various states became more hostile towards each other, the tension exploded in a war across the continent. This war saw great damage to the people of Centrum as well as the political systems already in place.
But in some ways this was good for the continent. People began to see how terrible war could be, and soon states were reformed, determined to make sure there would never be a war that was so awful again.
Over this era, all of the four major continents established their political systems, developed their technology and took control of the area around them. This was the era where the strongest of the continents, Opulos, really began to expand and develop, at a far quicker stage than the others. Ferun did little to develop, and surprisingly neither did Vitreon, whose inhabitants were content with their current lifestyle.
22 000 - 23 000 Vici, 'The Exploration Era'
Everything changed when the engineers on Opulo constructed the first naval vessels. Over the next thousand Vici, all manner of men in Opulos (and later Centrun and Insulus) began to map out the world.
At first, there was no conflict between the explorers and the natives of the continents that they discovered. However, as time went on, the inhabitants of Insulus and Orientus in particular became annoyed that these strange men were walking over their land. This escalated to a critical level when a naval expedition dispatched from Centrun began colonizing Insulus. In anger, the native people forced the colonizers off.
It wasn't until about 22 780 that the people of Insulus created naval crafts, and as late as 22 930 for Orientus. At these points, the various continents began to explore the world.
23 000 - 23 500 Vici, 'The Colonization Era'
By 23 000, the populations of most of the continents, particularly Opulos, were expanding at such a rate that they either had to be forcefully contained or be transferred elsewhere. The first attempt at colonizing other lands had been in 22 690, by inhabitants of Centrun, but they had been driven out. Now, they had no choice.
In 23 003, a large force consisting of fourteen passenger ships, four cargo ships and three warships set out from the west coast of Opulos, with plans to colonize wherever it could find. It landed on Pauxillii later that year, and, with powerful military force, they took over the island. When the natives tried to resist, they were annihilated. The convoy, minus three passenger ships, one cargo ship and one warship, continued south. It was known that there was an island there, but no one had never landed on it.
The colonization of Ferun took almost six Vici owing to the violent nature of the residents, but it was successful. Also around this time Centrun was dispatching a fleet of its own, but this was not for 'peaceful' colonization like Opulos had planned; this was an invasion of Insulus.
The war lasted over one hundred Vici, with both sides fighting viciously for control of the continent. Eventually, however, the diminished forces of Insulus could not hold off the invaders any longer, and they surrendered. Insulus became the property of the Centrun, and the United Federation of Centrun and Insulus (otherwise known as UFCI) was born.
The fleets of Opulos continued its sweep through the southern island, meeting no resistance at Vitreon and little at Pericus. In 23 404, Opulos formally established the Opulosian empire. However, this powerful force would not remain so strong for long.
23 500 - 24 500 Vici, 'The Establishment Era'
The first revolutions took place in the continent of Opulos and quickly spread to the UFCI and Orientus. Small groups of people became more and more confident in spreading the word of new forms of leadership. Dozens of small political parties began to grow. The governments knew that things wouldn't hold for much longer, and they were right. In 23 538, the Separations began.
The first Separation was in Opulos. An area of land in the south declared its separation from the government of Opulos, and, under the leadership of a new political group, named itself Mustur. Less than one Vici later, two more countries declared separation, Pollentias and Imun. By 23,800, the entire continent was divided up into a number of different countries. The colonies, however, continued to be ruled by the state still controlled by the original government, Medis, who made sure any resistance was brutally eliminated.
But Opulos was only the first to divide. Next, revolutions in Centrun put massive strain on their government, both on their own continent and on the UFCI as a whole. The revolutions began in 23 679, and lasted until 24 074, when the UFCI was formally disbanded. At this point, Insulus became an independent state of its own, and would not separate until 24 663.
This began to spark ideas of rebellion across the rest of the world. Although any open resistance in the Medisian (formally the Opulosian) empire was immediately crushed, many were working underground to release their country from the invaders. Also, a similiar resistance was building in Orientus.
In response to this, the government were forced to take quick decisions. They elected a dictator to take control of the entire continent. This dictator quickly established the army, enforced many new rules, executed anyone that fought against him and overall made things far worse for the people of Orientus. He also renamed his domain the 'United Continent of Orientus'.
24 500 - 25 300 Vici, 'The Unified Era'
Unusual things were taking place in Opulos. Now, the people in the nations believed that both the United Continent and the Medisian empire were wrong, and they wanted to stop it. So, in 24 481, the League of Opulos was formed. The founding members were two of the world's main superpowers, Mustur and Inenorii. In the following century, all the other Opulosian states except Medis would join. By 24 800, the LO was the most powerful force in the world.
The first thing they did was to target the injustice in Orientus. Things had escalated to such a stage that life in United Continent was unbearable. However, it did rely on a large number of imports and exports too and from Opulos. Using this to their advantage, they made a number of demands, threatening to cut these unless Orientus complied. It had no choice, and at last things made a turn for the better.
Also at this time the LO also began to cease many of its exports to Medis and its colonies, weakening the Empire significantly, Medisians made no attempt to appease them. Their brutal techniques continued to be used throughout the colonies.
The LO's pressure built up in Orientus was finally released in 25 102. Orientian Revolution had been taking place for nearly two centuries. Eventually, they grew to such a number, with support of the LO, that they were able to launch a direct attack against the Orientus government. During the attack, the Dictator himself and many of his most loyal subjects were killed, and the famous Silver Street Houses were burnt to the ground. At this point, the resistors made the decision to split Orientus into five states, so that if ever one was corrupted the others would be able to help. The central state, Incommos, was taken control of by the LO until a more permanent government could be established.
Medis, too, was facing serious difficulties. Pauxilli were on the verge of declaring independence and Vitreon and Pericus were recieving fierce resistances by the native people. Even Ferun was beginning to fight back, but this much could be contained - for now.
In 25 134, despite a number of reinforcements from the Medisian army, Pauxilli declared its independence, instantly recieving support from member states of the LO, which also began to support Vitronian and Pericusian rebellions. Finally, in 25 198, Vitreon declared its independence, followed by Pericus in 25 206. Yet the Medisian empire was not yet defeated. In retaliation, it declared war on Vitreon.
This was the final straw for the LO. To counter, they immediately sent a message to Medis stating that if they did not immediately cease all aggression against Pauxilli and release Ferun, they would be forced to declare war. No such action was taken, and in consequence Orientus was at war.
Now, forced to withdraw troops from Vitreon, Medis faced serious difficulties. With LO troops moving in to its borders from every direction, it was forced to go to Centrun and Orientus for help. The nations of Centrun were discouraged from aiding Medis, but no such form of order existed in Orientus. Procerus and Imus both supplied troops to assist Medis upon the promise of a hefty reward. Incommos, too, sent troops and resources later on.
Yet still Medis could not hold out. In an attempt to defeat the LO, the country had been sucked dry of most of its resources and money. Eventually, in 25 297 vici, Medis surrendered to the LO. This brought great anger against it from its allies, who demanded appeasement. Forced to compromise, the LO sent a number of resources from Medis to its original allies, who ceased their aggression, but still had not recieved what they had expected to. The LO replaced the government in Medis, which immediately joined the LO.
25 300 - 27 218 Vici 'The Industry Era'
Now, freed from war, the countries of the world could freely expand and develop their technology. Aggression between the LO and the nations of Orientus began to cease. The previous colonies of Medis began to expand and develop on their own. Even Insulus began to develop its technology.
The Grand Eclipse, the first organization dedicated to world peace, was established in 26 714. It recieved huge amounts of criticizm and was charged on several occasions, up to its collapse in 26 856, with conducting espionage missions into Opulos and Centrun. It fought the LO in the Colonies War, where it was defeated.
Following the Colonies war the world underwent a World Renovation, a period of time where the various nations of the world grew hugely in power and also began to unify. It was during this time that the LO reformed into the more powerful ILN, the International League of Nations. Also, the nations of Centrun began to unify, forming a poorly funded United Federation of Centrun (UFC). Orientus had been previously linked by the Grand Eclipse and that too began to unify more strongly, although never creating mutual organization this time.
The various nations continued to develop well for many years. Small disputes did occur in Orientus, but nothing so significant as a war, and very rarely did the ILN have to intervene. Things seemed to be improving at last, but in 27 064, everything began to change. It was in this year that the first Nuclear Missile was invented by Inenorii. Six Vici later and every country in Opulos had at least one. Nine Vici after that, every nation in Centrun had one. By 27 100, every single nation in the world had possession of at least one armed nuclear weapon.
Over the next century, Palaedonia slipped into a sense of unease, knowing the potential damage a nuclear weapon could cause. The LO made it quite clear that any nation that used a nuclear weapon of any kind would be severely punished, but in reality, once it had been launched, there was little they could do.
Things went from bad to worse - three world leagues were developing, each with rivalries with one another. These were; the ILN, the UFC and an alliance of the various nations of Orientus, Insulus and Pericus. It was the third one that the ILN were worried about; they potentially had bad intentions, knowing the history of those continents.
Also, the Palaedonii were massively expanding on space travel. Nearly every single nation had sent one of their own men into space by 27 140. All three superpowers were working on ways of colonising other planets. The ILN started working on the Eclipse project, a way of getting people off the surface to protect them should their be any nuclear activity.
After the Eclipse project was discovered by Orientus spies, this sent the world spinning into a state of aggravation. Orientus claimed that the ILN are planning an evacuation of their entire population into space, perhaps to avoid a nuclear disaster. Nevertheless, similiar projects were begun by other nations worldwide. Hyperspace technology was invented by Inenorii, making space colonization very possible indeed.
The tension between the three superpowers increased. The evacuation projects were completed but not yet used. Suddenly, in 27 218, Orientus and Insulus launched around half of its missiles in an attempt to eliminate its enemies, while simultaneously launching four evacuation ships, three from Orientus and one from Insulus. The ILN and Centrun both counterattacked and also launched their ships - but both the UFC and ILN only manage to launch two apiece. The missile strike hit their targets, and the combination of the explosions and the radiation killed every living thing on the planet.
The ships launched from the planet split off the into the various Palaedonii Segments, except from one of those launched from Orientus, which exploded in the atmosphere. The two from the ILN merged together to form the most powerful, the First (or Prime) Segment. The Segments from the UFC became the Third and the Fifth Segments, which quickly made an alliance with each other. The ship from Insulus became the Second, while the remaining two from Orientus were the Fourth and the Sixth.
27 218+ 'The Nomadic Era'
To this day, the Palaedonii are wanderers, travelling the galaxy in search of resources, food and, above all, a planet that they can one day call home. Only two of the Segments control a certain area of territory, but as the formidable Empire of Imperia expands and the Fourth Segment conducts its brutal raids, it is unlikely that this will remain the case for much longer.
The First Segment have stationed a powerful force guarding Palaedonia, should it ever begin to recover itself from the Apocalypse that destroyed it. Only once has it ever been returned too by a living creature, a team known as P.E.A.R.L, the Palaedonii Exploration And Resource Link. Using advanced equipment, they were able to conduct thorough scans of the atmosphere, but the results were as expected - the radiation is going away, but slowly, almost immeasurably slowly. According to leading researchers, it could take hundreds, possibly thousands of years before the planet can be recolonized.
So what next for the Palaedonii? It has been deemed unlikely that all six segments will survive intact for much longer, with the developing world growing and expanding while they most continue to move around. Perhaps they will make contact with new species, for better or worse. Or perhaps, in the end, the Palaedonii will fall, in an era begun with a tragedy. Either there will be new unity within them, or they will collapse, one by one, and one of the greatest species ever to exist will crumble to nothing.
Military
The military (and the entire population) is now divided up into the six segments. Each has its own lifestyle, government and territory. The Palaedonii have also all equipped their ships with Hyperspace technology.