Galacti-Pedia

[Floyd Looney]

I was cruising through some wikipedia entries for story ideas and I decided that wikipedia-type entries for the distant future would make some very interesting reading. lol

[Attero Dominatus]

That would be a good idea.

[Floyd Looney]

The story might be made up of or built around such entries.

[Floyd Looney]

Well, I think it'd be interesting. You could have entries about different events and things with entries on the main characters and locations filling in more details. You could choose to read them or not, but you might be missing something interesting.

[Attero Dominatus]

It sounds great to me.

[Floyd Looney]

Now I need to find an idea that would fit. Space Opera? lol.

[Attero Dominatus]

I think a Galactipedia fits hard sci-fi more. A lot more room for articles on wars and the technological leaps that warfare drives, as well as the cultural and political changes that result.

[Floyd Looney]

Just scribbled a little outline for an entry:

Grimly Massacre

The Grimly Massacre took place at the foot of Mount Grimly at a spot called the Grimly Pass when a group of travelers was attacked and brutally slaughtered by a local Militia belonging to the local branch of the Church of Ashkelon. The Church had controlled the region and was under threat from the Colonial government which was sending soldiers to restore law and order.

The Iron Rock Division of the Militia intended to leave no witnesses to their actions but did allow small children to survive, who were taken to be adopted by church members. The bodies of the dead were left in the field where they fell for years but their belongings were taken and auctioned off.

Less than a week later the Colonial Army would enter the Ashkelon “sovereign” territory and take control after a brief skirmish. The Colonial Army did not have weapons much better than the militia but were better trained and organized. Colonel William T Decker led this 2,500 man detachment and soon became the Military Governor of the territory.

The Church of Ashkelon

The religious movement was started by Eustace V Hayes who was twenty years old at the time and an almost illiterate dirt farmer. His claims of being visited by an angel and told revelations of prophecies were scoffed at by most but some believed enough to give him a chance. He began speaking at public gatherings, gaining a following with his main theme being that humans were promised many worlds.

The faith grew by fits and starts but “repression” by unbelievers led them to relocate to different cities in the colony. Eustace V Hayes then announced that he had been given a new revelation that they were to open new parts of the world to colonization. (Much of the main continent was set aside for future growth or as nature reserves)

May 23, 2104 on the local calendar a caravan of wagons and newly created ground vehicles stretching more than two miles left from the frontier city of West Gate to the closed territory known as Zone 14, just past a small mountain range. The Church of Ashkelon fully intended to settle Zone 14 but after arrival Eustace V Hayes declared it an independent nation called the Republic of Huma on October 20, 2104.

Government Response

The Governor of the Colonial Republic rejected the idea of a separate nation on its planet and threatened to send in the Colonial Army. After several months it became apparent that the Ashkelon establishment was digging in and had even subdivided Zone 14 into 7 “Military Districts”.

Early in 2105 the Colonial Assembly passed a resolution ordering the “Illegal” nation to be disbanded or face military invasion. The same bill ordered that the Colonial Army call up reservists and begin preparations for “re-establishment of the sovereign governing of Zone 14”. The Commanding General appointed Colonel William T Decker to this task.

Task Force 2, led by Decker, gathered, trained and organized its troops over the period of the ultimatum timetable. The Colonial Army didn’t have much of a standing force so calling up reservists was the only way to get a real fighting force. At the end of the period the “Government” of the Republic of Huma issued a declaration of their sovereignty defying the authority of the established government.

On Apollo 20, 2105 (on the local 390-day calendar) Task Force 2 headed out from the area near the Capitol City. The 2,500-man army marched west and would reach the border in a few months.

The Siege

There was actually very little real fighting between the militia of Ashkelon and the army sent by the Colonial government. Township after township surrendered upon sight of the Colonial Army and soon the “Capitol City” of the Republic of Huma was surrounded. This led to a 49-day standoff while negotiations took place with Eustace V Hayes.

There was sporadic fighting and a few attempted ambushes by small groups of “believers” on the route to seize Huma City but nothing of consequence. William T Decker became impatient with the siege and ordered a stream to be diverted or dammed to stop it entering Huma City. Decker also pronounced that no civilians or provisions would be allowed to enter the city.

Finally Eustace V Hayes and his top officers surrendered and William T Decker set up a military government to “instill loyalty” to the true government of the colony. The military government consisted of his top officers being appointed to Cabinet positions.

Eustace V Hayes was ordered imprisoned for 40 years while his top military officer Craig Jansen was executed for his part in the Grimly Massacre. Jansen was thought to have ordered the killings and ended up being the only one held responsible for it legally.

The State of Apollo

Zone 14 would be renamed the state of Apollo after a little more than two years and the territory was now a fully integrated part of the settled colony. Although the colonization of Zone 14 had not been planned to happen until at least 2119 the state of Apollo was admitted on Julius 23, 2109. Apollo had a population of around 40,000 and most of these were members of the Church of Ashkelon that had reformed their creed and bylaws to accept Colonial laws and government.

[Attero Dominatus]

That is a very good start. You could expand it to full fledged world building.

[Floyd Looney]

Maybe but I think I just rewrote the Mountain Meadow Massacre of Utah. lol.