The Sundering, The Great Cracking, The Scarring. The event that ended the War to End All Wars. 1917 saw the end of history as we knew it, and the fate of the world forever changed after Europe was torn in half and the Earth opened up. No one knew why at the time, but our weapons and vehicles had stopped working all at once. Those who survived back then thought it was the end of the world. In a way they were right, but it was also a new beginning. The destruction was not caused by any natural means, but by a tear through time and space from the ‘other side.’ 
	Mankind had come to realize we were not alone in this world, but that there were many races that sought refuge from their ruined homes on our Mother Earth. Fairies, goblins, elves, cyclops, and countless others, it was like a fairytale come to life. To mark the beginning of our strange new world, most people agreed on a fresh calendar: After Cracking. A new era after nearly two-thousand years. 

	March 20th, 12 A.C. Twelve years after the Great Cracking tore through the Earth from Algeria to France a jungle was beginning to grow from the heart of the Outback in Australia, and by 20 A.C. it had grown vast and covered nearly two thirds of the Gibson Desert, and became known as The Great Oasis, and with it came more habitable climates and more people. Humans were no longer the only race on Earth after all, and people from the ‘other side’ had come to populate the surrounding areas of this oasis in a massive immigration movement, bringing with them what many could only describe as magic. No one knows who started them, but rumors began to spread that there were magical treasures within the jungles of the Oasis that could be causing the sudden flourishing vegetation and creatures.
	As the years went by more and more people moved to Australia, it was becoming harder and harder to keep the peace as the government had no way of dealing with the more magically gifted races nor the more physically powerful, as well as the more dangerous monsters that had come from the ‘other side' that had come to live in The Great Oasis. There were even those who dared to venture into the Great Oasis in search of this rumored treasure. Their mysterious vanishing only strengthened the rumors and brought about the myth of even grander treasures and the existence of The Wishmaker. People began searching for their wealth within the Oasis, but the Australian government dismissed its existence as baseless gossip.
	That was until the discovery of the crystals within the Oasis. Underneath the jungle infested soil were powerful crystals known as aether. At first people didn't know what to do with them. They thought them as simple quartz and trinkets, and nothing more. That is until some fool had the bright idea to dump them in the sea and nearly boil the coast over. Then people got the idea that they could be used to power engines like the old days and the first aether powered tractor was invented. This was done months apart from the mana reactors that were developed in America in the same year.
	They found that the crystal engines were much more powerful than petrol and better yet no fuel required, just keep them well greased and a tractor could finish an acre of farmland within a few minutes. It became a new gold rush, the rumors of treasure spreading like wildfire. People unearthed crystals wherever they could, while others found uses for them. More and more people from around the world started coming to Australia, machinists, inventors, investors and mercenaries. The industry for aether became more popular in Australia than mining for opals. The technology soared and new machines were developed monthly until the creation of the very first bipedal construction machine, the Multi-Utility-All-Terrain-Tool, or MUTT for short. The first of its kind, a miracle machine that allowed the user to lift objects twenty times their own weight and yet still dexterous enough to write with a pen. The first prototype model was developed on February 14th 32 A.C. and refined throughout the year. It was known as the Wagon and it hit commercial markets September 1st, 33 A.C. Many would use them to build infrastructure, develop cities and farmland and of course dig up more aether. The Australian government would take great interest in their development.
	To compensate for the boom in population and foreign powers attempting to have the crystals exported for themselves the Australian government sought to assimilate as many of the new races into their culture as possible, incorporating social programs to get the more trustworthy into positions of authority both politically and militarily. This would allow the government to police their borders more effectively and soon they would close them off completely to keep the crystals and secure Australia as a global power. 

	September 27th of 55 A.C. the Australian parliament voted in the new prime minister, Thaddeus Crone, a lizardman who quickly rose up through the political ladder and had a great interest in aether. The country saw immense growth under Thaddeus and the country became very wealthy under his leadership. Cities would spring up in days, roads and infrastructure were made overnight, jobs were abundant and every need was readily available thanks to the conveniences of magicks all thanks to the Crone administration. The people came to love Crone and his policies. It wasn't long before the government began developing weapons that utilized the aether to protect their interests, used by bigger and more powerful MUTTs for the police and military to keep control of their borders indefinitely while keeping order within. 
	Weapons reminiscent of those used only a few decades ago had become commonplace again, weapons that shot streams of flame and fireballs instead of bullets. They tested MUTTs against their own sanctioned wizards and found that the crystal engines made the machines uniquely resistant to magic. They were nearly impervious to mages of all kinds and were unmatched around the continent. Thaddeus immediately had them reinforce the borders and redouble expeditions into the vast jungle for more aether. Even still, many tried to smuggle the crystals out and made a new discovery: the crystals would disappear without a trace once they left the continent.
	Although it seemed impossible to get the crystals out of the country, the government continued to tighten their grip on the aether, which only served to spread rumors that they had a way and it was only a matter of time before someone figured out how to do it. 

	Year 58 A.C. comes and goes, seeing the unanimous reelection of Thaddeus Crone as prime minister. Australia had become entirely self-sufficient and energy independent. Many Oceanic and Asian nations felt threatened by Australia's rapid growth and began putting stringent tariffs on their trade. In response the prime minister and parliament voted to cut all trade with those nations indefinitely, deciding to look to the Americas for trade instead.

	January 8th, 60 A.C. Five years after the weaponized MUTTs were in production the Australian government proved the rumors true. Wanting to show the world their military might and relieve international pressure from their political rivals, they sought to back the second Mexican war of independence, siding with the rebels and effectively toppling the old government within a few months. There were reports that new weapons had been used, explosive weapons similar to the artillery of the Great War, something only the crystals were capable of producing now. No MUTTs were damaged in the fighting, but for two that were considered missing-in-action and were never recovered. With the terrifying success of the MUTTs on full display for the world, the global interest in the technological marvels was at an all-time high. All manner of people wanted their hands on aether, whether they were nations terrified that the MUTTs would be used to topple their governments overnight, new tech companies looking to advance their influence on the global market or mercenary groups trying to rake in the cash.
	It wasn't long after that the Australian government began to feel immense pressure both externally and internally as many felt the government had gone far beyond their boundaries. The secret to taking the crystals off the continent was kept safe, allowing no outside forces to determine this magic, while Australian politicians and generals were becoming increasingly paranoid, Thaddeus Crone being no exception.

	February 2nd, 61 A.C. Thaddeus saw unanimous reelection yet again, and the government began slowly implementing more and more authoritarian policies that made the country begin to feel like a prison, and by November there were laws forbidding anyone with any technological knowledge on either aether or the MUTTs from leaving the country under penalty of death. Naturally that went the same for anyone trying to smuggle aether out of the country. As expected, this forced the country into a lockdown, as it had become impossible to determine who knew anything about MUTTs or the crystals and it didn't seem like the government cared either way.

	By December 9th, 64 A.C. The pressure on the Australian government had peaked and civil war erupted, the MUTTs the government developed to safekeep their borders and the aether were now being used against them. The initial fighting was devastating on the public with MUTTs being used against one another for the first time in history. Casualties were in the tens of thousands, and the government's hold on the country collapsed before the new year, its remnants, including Thaddeus Crone, retreating to Queensland and holding their border against the opposition.

	The date is December 27th, 66 A.C. While there are several splintering political parties all vying for power within Australia, there are the big three: first is the Australian Federalists still trying to maintain the order of the old government with Thaddeus still at the helm. Then there’s Sovereign Convergence, the insurrectionists who kicked off the initial fighting. They're a bunch of monarchists from the old world who are tired of the governments of Earth and seek to carve a new empire out from Australia. Finally there's Oceana Venture, a coalition of corporate interest groups and mercenaries who want to get their grimy palms on as much aether as they can to share it with the rest of the world – for a price. That's where my crew and I come in. 

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