The Earth is officially deemed ‘condemned’…

The nations have failed to restore the planet as pollution and apathy for the environmental crisis gradually ended any hope for revitalization. With the constant rise of devastation and the lack of resources to keep up with the sociological impact of the ecological crisis, governments around the world collapsed. Debt stricken and in need of continuous bale outs, the various nations signed over ownership to the industry giants who removed them from power. The corporations engaged in a hostile takeover. Freedom and liberty was now under their rule… for a price. They broke the countries up into sectors for each conglomerate, even though there was little to salvage in the years of pollutive devastation.

As each sector grew in greater profit, trade became a bitter rivalry. Prices began to soar out of control and sector mergers became inevitable. This led to corporate warfare which yet again affected the civilian population and the economy. When the dust settled on those skirmishes, the top five surviving corporate sectors united to stabilize the economy. They formed a New Collective Corporate Earth Alliance, amalgamating all sectors into one branch for financial stability. It was a bold cooperation and spawned new technological innovations and collaborations into new ventures.

Off world living was now a trend as people set their sights on ditching Earth for greater prospects. The rich elite paid vast amounts of money to leave while the poor were left behind to whatever they could afford on the planet. This didn’t stop the NCCEA from exploiting both sides as they continued to reap profits from the haves and the have-nots.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Gang wars reduced the population further once they took hold of major food stocks and medicine. People were forced to pay the NCCEA for any products or services, while the gangs forced them to pay for the privilege of staying alive in their territories. Once the numbers dropped again, the NCCEA created a police group dedicated to weeding out those who were a drain on the system. Robot sentinels over saw the officers to log their kills and dispensed with the gang lords cutting into their profits. They referred the enforcement officers as “Sweepers” who located and removed those deemed by the Alliance as a “useless element”. If you couldn’t afford to live, then they would solve the problem immediately.

This is how the world was now; A systematic elimination of the weaker human element and selection of the wealthy to a higher status. The Sweepers had a quota to fill by the corporation, once they completed it, it would grant them off world status as one of the new elite. An incentive to boost numbers, maintain loyalty and keep them from turning against the NCCEA.

Earth had come to the end of its usefulness. There was nothing left, and it had transformed into a barren wasteland. Only the few mega-cities remained and its population was dropping significantly. Everyone was struggling to get out and lobbied to become one of the chosen elite in the Oasis platforms that sat high above the planet. Life on its surface was a death sentence, both environmentally and financially. If you didn’t die from pollution, disease or cannibalism… you would come face to face with a Sweeper, and be removed.

There’s no mercy, no justice, only the bitter reality, and a very hard world.