Human History

Early in the 24th century, much of the arrangement of nations on Earth was considerably different from what it had been only a few centuries before. Most larger nations had broken up into smaller ones, with some smaller ones forming weak alliances with neighbors.

Fearing the world was destined for constant localized wars, a group arose calling itself the Unifying Bringers of Peace unto the Fragmented World (UBPFW). Their goal was to encourage more alliances and less divisions between nations. They began their focus with the most developed parts of the world, attempting to use ancient cultural and linguistic ties to create alliances. This idea became very popular fairly quickly, and soon the world had formed large networks of  alliances, most based on the major languages and some based on old cultural ties.

Soon the UBPFW had enough clout to gain actual power, and they were soon directing the alliances to ban local cultural differences and the use of minority languages, as well as being strong advocates of censorship.  Those who opposed these measures had three options: pretend they were in compliance and rebel in secret, flee to the poorer nations or wilderness areas out of the reach of the UBPFW, or outright rebel and get arrested or subject to forced labor.

Those arrested or sent to do forced labor were called Separationists by the UBPFW. Many of them died or simply vanished while in prison or doing forced labor.  Some Separationists were incarcerated near a facility where generation ships were being developed, and when the UBPFW scientists were in need of people to fly them, the Separationists were told they would test fly the generation ship to what may or may not be an inhabitable planet some 10 light years away, or they could just all be shot. Naturally they chose the first option, but also managed to get random books and a small printing press put on the ship too, and they went with their families to this new planet.

Upon arrival in the Epsilion Eriadani system, they made their way to the small potentially inhabitable planet, but the ship malfunctioned and rather than landing, they crashed. All their possessions had been locked in special storage rooms, and everyone inside was in special landing seats in landing rooms, except the main crew. A few managed to escape the burning wreckage unaided, and were shocked to find what seemed to be humanoids already on th planet, and coming to see the source of the fire. The Yawurenyi were the smaller blue-gray ones that had tails and were setting up quick shelters, while the Quanafi were the taller ones who were extremely pale and were coming into the ship to rescue people. The Separationists that survived were then termed by the taller indigenous sentients, "Kelvia," meaning "born of fire" and to this day they are still called Kelvians.

Meanwhile, back on Earth, two groups were still meeting in secret: Traditionalist Praetiridifin, and speakers of an obscure Spanish dialect Descubralians. To all outside appearances they were obeying the laws, but their basement meetings were all to the same end -- either stop the Assimilation as they called the UBPFW, or leave the planet on one of the ships they kept hearing about on the news. When other groups attempted the first option and suffered grave consequences, these two groups formed an alliance and snuck into one of the generation ship facilities with insider help.  Once inside, they went aboard a ship that was going to go on an exploratory mission and was set for takeoff, they drove everyone off but the people who knew how to fly it, hijacked it, and flew it to the only planet programmed in: the same one the prior ship had gone to.

They landed successfully, and were shocked to discover the wreckage of the prior ship surrounded by villages of humans, living a simple and very agricultural lifestyle, directed on how to survive by the local inhabitants. 

When they exited the ship, the Kelvians came to greet them, well-armed with iron weapons of all sorts, and prepared for them to be either exiles like themselves or UBPFW "Assimilation" representatives. When they realized they were also exiles, they brought them to the leaders of the Quanafi and the Yawurenyi in the region. The Kelvians then taught the new arrivals how to survive on this planet.

The Descubralians saw that the Quanafi were electrogenic and long-lived and many considered them demi-gods, while Kelvians and most Praetiridifin viewed them as wise sages. To the north of these already inhabited lands, and on a nearby continent, were great deserts and frozen wastelands, and the new humans were told that if they could make residences there they could live there. The Descubralians had retained much of their Earth technology and chose to build in the deserts and colder lands n the same continent, and the Praetiridifin chose to make small cities on the other continent, intermixed with indigenous and Kelvian communities.