It is the year 094 of the Colony Century. Four long years have marched passed since the epic Space War consumed the Earth Sphere, setting the colony dwellers of the Grand Cross (GC) against the United Alliance of Nations. Throughout the many months of that historic conflict, humanity redefined the face of warfare with mobile suits, bipedal battle units that move with human agility. As these machines tore across the Earth and space, the battle lines drawn between the colony rebels and the United Alliance Armed Forces (UAAF) seemed clear. However, behind the pretences of independence versus order, the megalomaniacal Tresdemo Foundation pulled each sides strings, wearing them down in preparation for its own unbelievable agenda. Their instrument was the Paragon: a psychic communication (psycomm) computer system capable of rewriting the minds of its victims, bestowing the double-edged benefit of brain programming upon the human race. Through it, they would force both sides to their knees, and guide the very thoughts of every citizen in the Earth Sphere.

They failed.

The destruction of the Foundation's psycomm battle station, Operae ATMOS, signalled the end to corporate entities decades-long scheming. During this operation, the UAAF was aided by the defence forces of the controversially independent colony of Ark Nova. Both allies sacrificed heavily to see the battle through, suffering losses whose effect still echoes upon many people. The victory over ATMOS, however, did not mark an end to the war itself. Outnumbered, outgunned, desperate, and totally committed to victory, the ruling military and political figure within the GC took advantage of the brutalized UAAF, threatening to drop six space colonies full of civilians upon Earth if the Alliance didn't surrender. The threat in itself was yet another pretence, this one created by a nameless forth party who had manipulated the GC and influenced members of the Foundation. Despite everyone's efforts, even those of the betrayed GC, the colonies crashed to Earth, forever changing the face of the planet.

The Space War was over, at the cost of more than half the human race.

As if the war hadn't punished the Earth enough, the ecological aftershocks that followed the colony drop tore apart the surface. Violent storms, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and any number of other disasters came in a matter of days. The ash and fallout of the colony wreckage blotted out the sky, starting a nuclear winter across the entire planet. Within four years, the cradle of humanity has been reduced to a frost-covered wasteland, with large, radioactive pockets blighting hundreds of miles. Those who have managed to survive now live in tightly-clustered cities, trying to survive the unpredictable climate. Some have started to horde inside underground complexes, taking the example of the space colony and reproducing it beneath the weary Earth.

Administering the recovery effort is the United Alliance of Nations. Despite the breakdown of planetary order during the war, the Alliance has managed to maintain itself from its cities on the moon. With the Earth crisis bringing back many wayward governments into the fold, they have ironically benefited from the nuclear holocaust. They, in turn, have depended on aide from the remaining space colonies to keep their relief efforts alive; another irony. The former rebel settlements of the Grand Cross now hold very special standing within the Alliance, but also recognize their obligation to undo the damage done in their name. Still, there are those among the colonies that despise the Earth's governments, and feel used by this forced cooperation. It may not take much more to encourage such people to begin a new rebellion.

Between the Earth and space colonies, Ark Nova continues to maintain both its independence and its neutrality. It is a bridge between the two regions, and one of the few colonies that has continued to open its doors to the thousands of refugees fleeing Earth. An independence government, however, has not kept Nova outside of Alliance politics; far from it. In a post-war agreement, the Ark has turned its surprisingly skilled defence force into a whole new agency. They are now the Preventers, a special forces and intelligence organization dedicated to preserving peace throughout the entire Earth Sphere. The Preventers goal is, bluntly, to prevent events like the Space War from every occurring. To do that, they have mobile suits, computer specialists, and special authority all provided through Alliance funding. Granted, this arrangement is also imperfect, with a constant rivalry existing between the agency and the UAAF regulars.

Beyond the war, beyond politics, and beyond disaster, life is unchanged for those Earth Sphere denizens who have left Earth behind. As those on the planet struggle, the colonies, Ark Nova included, live a strangely ideal existence. Or as ideal as one could expect. Each colony remains a microcosm of Earth's pre-disaster environments. Nova especially remains a balanced combination of a thriving city built within lush wilderness. While its industries are not too extensive, the mix of ex-military personnel and planetary refugees have helped the colony make a name for itself in the medical science field. It is still a place where most folks are content to live out their lives peacefully, and indulging themselves now and then. Yet, it is still a place where such rich assortment of different stories thrive, and where your life may be even more incredible than even you ever realize.    

The wild success of Chapter VIII has encouraged the cast of Forever Zero to continue on into the Colony Century setting. This original perspective on the Gundam universe combines some of our fondest story details with new perspectives, and a few elements of the latest Gundam canon as well. Chapter IX continues this new tradition, progressing on ahead to the next stage of our new story. Rather than open with an epic war, this latest environment begins ripe with basic human conflicts, and has the potential to expand into much, much more. Many unresolved conflicts remain, the least of which include Earth-dwelling raiders, the frontier pirate bands, and the mysterious powers behind many of Chapter VIII's events. Once again, onward!