History of the Steam Islands Galactic Cluster

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**OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION**

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This document is free to edit by anyone so they may add in their information. No need to ask, feel free to add in what you deem important! But please, only edit where it makes sense. The history of the formation of the cluster, once finished, shouldn't be altered too much, whereas the formation of nations should be changing as much as is needed.

Times and dates are given in Earth Values, such that 1 Minute is 60 Seconds, 1 Hour is 60 Minutes, 1 Day is 24 Hours, and 1 Year is 365 Days. If a Date / Time is to be given in a different dating system, *make sure to specify*. Unspecified Dates will be assumed to be Earth Values.

Also, please recall that the Steam Islands Cluster is approximately 700 Million to 1.2 Billion light years from the Milky Way and affiliated Galaxies. Because of this, none of our history, nations, groups, ETC., should resemble or mention anything about Earth, the Milky Way, Andromeda, nor the Laniakea Supercluster.

The character **Artyomovich Lagounov Foka** is a fictional character created by EpicToaster1 for the means of this document. Any likeness to a real person or other fictional characters is entirely coincidental and should not be taken as copying of an existing character or stealing of a persons identity. Do not change the section labeled **OPENING**, unless it is to add in the name of your own historian as part of it.

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**IN CHARACTER**

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**HISTORY OF THE CLUSTER**
A NARRATIVE OF THE STEAM ISLANDS GALAXY

AND HOW IT CAME TO BE

*By:*

*Artyomovich Lagounov Foka*

## **Opening**

My name is *Artyomovich Lagounov Foka*. I am a historian and astronomer with a masters in both from the University of Vodshkavia in Armistice City, United Socialist States of Vodkaslavia. After countless observations, travels, and research, this book is brought to the masses to inform them of our origins in this large and cold universe. This book is not designed to deny the existence of higher beings or disprove them, but solely to show the progression of history from what were are able to figure out. Beyond our earliest records, we are unable to give much input, and as such this can lead to speculation as to anything could have happened before.

[INSERT MORE AUTHORS HERE]

Enough chit-chat about us. Let's get on with the history.

## **The Universe**

The Universe formed approximately 13.799 ± 0.021 Billion Years ago. The physical Universe is defined as all of space and time (collectively referred to as spacetime) and their contents. Such contents encompass all of energy in its various forms, including electromagnetic radiation and matter, and therefore planets, moons, stars, galaxies, and the contents of intergalactic space. The Universe also includes the physical laws that influence energy and matter, such as conservation laws, classical mechanics, and relativity.

The Universe is often defined as "the totality of existence", or everything that exists, everything that has existed, and everything that will exist. In fact, some philosophers and scientists support the inclusion of ideas and abstract concepts – such as mathematics and logic – in the definition of the Universe. The word *universe* may also refer to concepts such as *the cosmos*, *the world*, and *nature*.

The prevailing model for the evolution of the Universe is the Big Bang theory. The Big Bang model states that the earliest state of the Universe was an extremely hot and dense one, and that the Universe subsequently expanded and cooled. The model is based on general relativity and on simplifying assumptions such as homogeneity and isotropy of space. A version of the model with a cosmological constant (Lambda) and cold dark matter, known as the Lambda-CDM model, is the simplest model that provides a reasonably good account of various observations about the Universe. The Big Bang model accounts for observations such as the correlation of distance and redshift of galaxies, the ratio of the number of hydrogen to helium atoms, and the microwave radiation background.

The initial hot, dense state is called the Planck epoch, a brief period extending from time zero to one Planck time unit of approximately 10−43 seconds. During the Planck epoch, all types of matter and all types of energy were concentrated into a dense state, where gravitation is believed to have been as strong as the other fundamental forces, and all the forces may have been unified. Since the Planck epoch, the Universe has been expanding to its present form, possibly with a very brief period of cosmic inflation which caused the Universe to reach a much larger size in less than 10−32 seconds.

After the Planck epoch and inflation came the quark, hadron, and lepton epochs. Together, these epochs encompassed less than 10 seconds of time following the Big Bang. The observed abundance of the elements can be explained by combining the overall expansion of space with nuclear and atomic physics. As the Universe expands, the energy density of electromagnetic radiation decreases more quickly than does that of matter because the energy of a photon decreases with its wavelength. As the Universe expanded and cooled, elementary particles associated stably into ever larger combinations. Thus, in the early part of the matter-dominated era, stable protons and neutrons formed, which then formed atomic nuclei through nuclear reactions. This process, known as Big Bang nucleosynthesis, led to the present abundances of lighter nuclei, particularly hydrogen, deuterium, and helium. Big Bang nucleosynthesis ended about 20 minutes after the Big Bang, when the Universe had cooled enough so that nuclear fusion could no longer occur. At this stage, matter in the Universe was mainly a hot, dense plasma of negatively charged electrons, neutral neutrinos and positive nuclei. This era, called the photon epoch, lasted about 380 thousand years.

Eventually, at a time known as recombination, electrons and nuclei formed stable atoms, which are transparent to most wavelengths of radiation. With photons decoupled from matter, the Universe entered the matter-dominated era. Light from this era could travel freely, and it can still be seen in the Universe as the cosmic microwave background (CMB). After around 100 million years, the first stars formed; these were likely very massive, luminous, and responsible for the reionization of the Universe. Having no elements heavier than lithium, these stars also produced the first heavy elements through stellar nucleosynthesis. The Universe also contains a mysterious energy called dark energy, the density of which does not change over time. After about 9.8 billion years, the Universe had expanded sufficiently so that the density of matter was less than the density of dark energy, marking the beginning of the present dark-energy-dominated era. In this era, the expansion of the Universe is accelerating due to dark energy.

Models and calculations estimate there to be approximately 100 billion (1011) galaxies within the observable universe, containing approximately 300 sextillion (3×1023) stars. The number of planets that could be contained is currently unsolvable.

## **Formation and Location of the Cluster**

> *Main Article: Steam Islands Galactic Cluster*
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The Steam Islands Galactic Cluster formed by the collapse of an initial massive cloud of gas and dust. While shrinking down, it separated into two, forming the major galaxies of Steam Islands and Kal'Kiara. The two formed initially one million light years apart, but have since moved closer to approximately 550,000 light years apart. During formation, several smaller clouds of gas and dust conglomerated around each of the larger forming galaxies, forming the several hundred minor galaxies seen today.

The Steam Islands Galactic Cluster is located at the approximate "leading edge" of the Horologium Supercluster. It is located approximately 10 million light years from defined edge of the Supercluster. The next closest galaxy group is the Forporox Cluster, located approximately 5.1 million light years from the Cluster.

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OOC: This estimates that the SIGC is ~710,000,000 lyr from Earth, give or take.

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## **Earliest Life**

The first single-cell life to be estimated to emerge around 5.3 (±0.1) billion years ago, on the planet of Viro M7S01244+06d in sector 2C, as indicated by carbon dating of fossils found. The next oldest life emerged on the planets of Steam, Viro M7S01283+14c, Rentall, and Senvin about 5.0 (±0.1) billion years ago. Due to the proximity of the times, it is unclear which is older.

## **The Empire of Olsteam**

The Empire of Olsteam is the oldest nation in the Steam Islands Galaxy. It is unclear if it still exists today, but if it does, it would still hold the title of the oldest nation.

### **Early Steam**

The Republican States of Steam was formed sometime in the year 205 Before Collapse [B.C.] on the planet of Steam in the **Vleccier System**. It formed as a buffer state between the Republic of Nostrania and the Kingdom of Erasa in the volcanic hotbed of the Great Steam Plains. Because of the volcanic hotspots, the nation had a thriving forging and metallurgical economy. It also was one of the best producers of various fruits and grains, as the soil was rich in nutrients from the volcanoes.

The two powers surrounding would constantly be waging wars against each other, first running their troops through the RSS, then eventually fighting in the skies over, until missiles were created and the two sides were constantly bombing each other. Soon enough, the RSS created its own anti-missile system and began shooting down missiles that flew over, eventually forcing the RN and KE to stop fighting as their tactics became ineffective.

With the wars finally ending, both nations were forced into economic recessions as their economies were focused around the war, causing them both to collapse. The RSS decided to step in and save both, but ended up annexing both nations as neither could fight.

### **Rise of the Empire of Steam**

With the annexation of its neighbors, Steam garnered a reputation of "liberating" the fallen. With the two previously most powerful nations annexed by a small smithing nation, the nearest nations began provoking the beast, building large defensive lines and stationing more troops along their borders. As they'd finally cause the nation to snap, the RSS would invade the Democratic Republic of Asera. The war would last fifteen months, with the DRA capitulating and collapsing. The RSS would annex them, staring down the rest.

With its most recent acquisition, the government would turn more authoritarian, becoming a dictatorship. With the new government, the nation began to become more militaristic, soon having a military that outranked all but one. As the rest of the world joined to fight the Empire, the Empire striked first. In a total war, the Empire of Steam and the rest of the world fought.

The world fought, the war raging on for nineteen grueling years.

### **Today**

Today, it is unclear if the nation exists. Rumors state it survived the Great Turmoil, but it's been confined to its home system and a few of the surrounding systems. Others state it still owns the entire core, or the nation has ceased to exist entirely. With no way of getting to the core, there is no way to confirm or deny any of the rumors.
*Assuming* the nation still exists, it is unclear if its government has changed, or if it still operates as the Empire it once was.