A Transmission

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The whole world changed once X-42 fell.

Oh, don't get me wrong. The world was fucked up far before then, but that piece of space junk really put the final nail in Earth's coffin.

Long before the Fall, countries were at each other with the Silver Wars; cold wars over the control people had over androids and AI systems. However, this put them in mega-debt with the old 'corps who were basically funding their sad squabbles. When X-42 was detected, the businesses had to bail out the governments to even give them a chance of surviving. Pretty ironic, huh?

Then the Rush happened. People running around like headless chickens, screaming about doomsday and looking for back-up plans. The only good thing about the Rush was the sweet tech. Sure, the Silver Wars brought in Upgrades, F-Cars and the Net, but the Rush created Skins, Backups, and those Arcs we all get our vat-grown beef from.

As a last ditch, the shadow that was the UN decided to launch a fusion bomb at X-42. Big. Mistake.
The hunk of rock was originally supposed to smash into the Atlantic, probably not doing much. But when it
was blasted, boy did they regret it. What was once a 5 mile wide rock became thousands of cruise ship sized rocks, pelting the ground. Boom! New York, gone. Boom! Madrid, gone. Boom, boom, boom, boom! Cairo, Rome, Toronto, Shanghai, all reduced to skeletons. Not to mention all that nuclear dust. Wiped out whole ecosystems, and those survivors that got blasted became mindless mutants. Those that only got a slight dose became Psykers, like yours truly.

Refugees flocked to what remaining cities existed, overcrowding them and stretching their resources. World-wide riots broke out, and the governments put everything under martial law. Unsurprisingly, this made everyone even more angry.

That's when the Minutemen showed up in LA. A group of paramilitary and privately contracted soldies employed by Taipan Munitions, they turned their guns on the US soldiers. There was no contest, and the army was wiped out. The US wished they could retaliate, but their numbers were stretched too thin. The people rejoiced, and the Usurp began.

All over the world, influential companies started sending in their private armies to basically weed out the governments who were killing the people. Using advanced weaponry, such as psi-linked guns, power armor, combat drones and Frames, they were a force to be reckoned with. The corporations gained power, consolidating and merging until they became megacorps.

By 2072, 13 megacorps ruled supreme over the Earth. They announced the construction of Sprawls, giant additions to cities built by androids and nanobots, as well as defense matrixes to slow the oncoming mutant hordes out in the Wastes. They developed a universal credit system, the Omega chip that allows norms to become Psykers, they established colonies on Mars and Luna, they bred the first Ferals, and they even allowed countries to remain, but only on a symbolic level.

However, they were also making sure their investments were safe. Every street corner has a camera on it, and corp spiders patrol the Net constantly for any criminal activity. In a world of excess, drug use, violence, prostitution, gang activity and more can quickly become rampant as the haves seperate from the have-nots.

To solve this, megacorps employ "Fixers," (that's you and me) to protect their interests. Soldiers, hackers, psykers and more working for a few credits and an Upgrade or two. We are the front line of the megacorp shadow wars, always under the surface and in the grimiest parts of humanity. We'll have to deal with spies, mutants, cyber-horrors, gangers, cults and more. Still, the megacorps may not be the benevolent souls they pretend to be, but a job's a job.

Or is it? How much are you willing to lose? How much are you willing to sacrifice to "fix it?" And can we even fix it?

Who knows.

Harold Tanaka, psyker and exper agent for Alegdi Biotech, signing off.

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