Kaleidoscope
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"Republic" - Ninja Tracks
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Prologue
Panic gripped the world. News outlets fanned the flames with sensationalism, as conspiracy theories flooded the internet. Religious leaders claimed it was the end of days, and stock markets took a nose dive. The United Nations held an emergency session on the matter, but the US government adamantly refused to grant other countries access to the anomaly. Protests and riots erupted around the globe, while military scientists sent robots through the sphere.
President Trump held a press briefing at his Mar-a-Lago estate, where he tried to alleviate the world's fears with footage from the other side. It appeared that the portal led to an Earth-like world, though it definitely wasn't identical to ours. The flora and fauna were bigger, the air had more oxygen and carbon dioxide, and there were no signs of intelligent residents. Dread became curiosity, and the international community demanded to be granted admittance to the other side.
When Donald Trump denied the world's wishes, the world responded by boycotting companies associated with him and his family. The President didn't budge, and his approval ratings spiked among US citizens. With the American public standing behind him, Trump quietly ordered the military to build a base on the other side of the portal. Much of the world resented how they were being treated, and dozens of countries soon imposed economic sanction on the US.
In attempts to counter their ejection from the global economy, the US government rapidly convened to draft legislation. The military saw its recruitment requirements relaxed. Corporations could bid for exclusive rights to extract the new world's resources. The wealthy were allowed to lease and purchase land on the other side, with certain restrictions. The education system was also upgraded, to ensure that many could acquire the skills needed to settle the other side.
Loyalties were tested during these tense times, but the US and its allies managed to rise above. Within a few days, the other side had a functional base. A few weeks later, extraction operations were up and running. A few months after that, a small city had been constructed. Throughout this period, the military discovered that the new world not only had prehistoric Earth species, but fantastical creatures. These factoids were classified, as were the ensuing experiments.
Today is May 10th, 2018. A whopping 1 million people live on New Earth, many of them being family members of military personnel or private contractors. The US economy is on the rise again, the federal deficit is shrinking for once, the labor force participation rate is at a record high, and the majority of citizens have at least 1 college or university degree. A huge fireworks display is scheduled for tonight, but the settlers are hardly prepared for what's coming tomorrow.
After all, tomorrow is when humanity learns that it's not the only intelligent life in the universe.
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