Karvan the Uniter

The first Emperor of the Human Imperial Alliance, Agrica Karvan the Uniter was a tactical genious. Desiring to rebuild the fractured human state devastated by the First Lauresh War, The Uniter would raise an army on his homeplanet of Criteon-6, and would swiftly take control of the Criteon System, as the split forces of the former Human Federation either crumbled beneath him or joined his cause. He would march on the Terra System, conquering it in a months long siege, before beginning the restructuring of humanity, creating the Human Imperial Alliance in the year 3,011. He would defeat the Lauresh Imperium in the Second Lauresh War, unite mankind, and forge an empire that would last for tens of thousands of years. When he died in the year 4,233, his funeral would become a statewide holiday, and many memorials would be built in his honor, including the Pyre of the Uniter, a massive battleship assigned to the Terra Sub-Sector, which would participate in many battles throughout the expanse of the Human Imperial Alliance.

Young Adult
Throughout his early years, Agrica Karvan would be less social than his peers, instead preferring to read humanities historical records and military information. As a teenager, his homeworld of Criteon-6 would be involved in a skirmish with the neighboring Lauresh Imperium, in which his father would be killed during a boarding action by a Lauresh Imperium border fleet. Enraged by his loss, Karvan would devote his life to ensuring others would never experience what had happened to his family. He saw humanities prior attempt at centralizing, the Human Federation, as a critical misstep, which refused to use humanities numbers in it's advantage, being instead crippled by republicanism as varying planets would fight not for the betterment of the species but for their own benefit. Seeing this, and the traumatic effects it caused his homeworld and family even five centuries later, Karvan would begin creating the ideal political structure in his mind, though it would seem impossible for one entity to rebuild what the Human Federation had squandered.

Early Military Career
Karvan, at age 23, aided by his fascination with old and even ancient history texts of long-passed wars, along with his desire to reshape mankind, would join the Criteon-6 Defense Force, and would rise quickly through the ranks to command the frigate Judiciator of Criteon's Fleet Beta, the outer fleet that patrolled the edges of the Criteon System as well as engaged Criteon-4 and Criteon-3 in combat during intrasystem wars. This was often seen as a dead-end career, due to the separation from the military command that promoted soldiers to higher ranks, and the danger a human warship would face far from home would mean high casualties in case of conflict with enemy vessels.

Being unfazed by this seeming end to his dreams, Karvan would persist, fighting off pirates and other criminals on his vessels' patrol route, forging it into the safest route for trade throughout the Criteon System, yet this passageway would still not bring him the recognition he would need to begin his crusade to rebuild mankind. Karvan would thus take a gamble- deviating out of system to destroy the pirate outpost harassing his planet. Over the course of 15 days, the Judiciator would hunt down the pirates and engage them, destroying an entire fleet, before making his way to the outpost and razing it to the ground. This daring act would finally bring him recognition in both the eyes of the Criteon-6 high command as well as the public of all three Criteon System planet's populaces, and he would be promoted to the rank of Rear Admiral of the naval flagship Infinite Might.

Seizing Control
As the Infinite Might sat in orbit above Criteon-6, it's commander would regularly meet with his fellow officers on the topics of the system, including pirates, the constant skirmishes between Criteon-6 and other planets, and the ever-growing threat of the Lauresh Imperium to the fragments of mankind. During a stretch of two years, Karvan would slowly convince his fellow naval officers of his idea for a united humanity. While those in political office scoffed at his idealism, his fellow commanders began to see eye to eye with him, as stories of human colonies, isolated and with no protection, were flowing of horrid massacres by the Lauresh. The comfortable elites of not only Criteon-6, but other planets as well, continuously refused to acknowledge the coming threat, even when an alien scout ship was discovered surveying a vector filled with Criteon-4 warships. Dismayed with her political class and the lack of care they had towards the now imminent threat, Criteon-4 High Commander Vica Alitien would go to Karvan in secret, requesting assistance in the tight situation she was in. Karvan, seeing this as his opportunity, would begin his crusade to save mankind.

As an incredibly popular figure across the system due to his actions two year earlier, Karvan knew he would have the support of the people if he played his cards correctly. Meeting with his fellow commanders, in the face of the Lauresh threat, Karvan would begin his plan in 3,009. The Infinite Might would begin a low fly over the capital city of Criteon-6, heading to the governmental district of the city. Having conferenced with disgruntled civilian leaders across the entire system, and owning the public's support, Karvan would disembark his vessel, walking towards the ring of security surrounding the Senatorial Building, before asking them to open the gates. The soldiers would happily allow Karvan through, and many joined him in his attack. Over the course of two days, Karvan would publicly capture the leaders of Criteon-6 and try them for treason against their populace, before launching a blitz assault on Criteon-4 and Criteon-3, swiftly capturing both planets. During the next two months, Karvan would solidify his rule in the Criteon System, strengthening his industrial and military base, before preparing for the second phase of his plan.

Forming the Human Imperial Alliance
Finally having secured the Criteon System, and with it's people dedicated to him as their protector from the Lauresh, Karvan would move out, beginning his plan for reuniting mankind. With half his forces remaining behind to protect his power base in his home system, Karvan would head with the rest to invade the planet L-19-44, a resource poor world with only one point of interest- circling in the planet's orbit was a Gateway Station. The Criteon System, lacking a Gateway Station of it's own, was unable to connect to the wider human and alien universe due to this crippling weakness, therefore making the closest planet with one Karvan's highest priority target. After 2 weeks of travel, Karvan would finally reach L-19-44, and would capture the planet relatively quickly due to it's lack of defenses and very low population. With faster-than-light travel now able to be utilized by his fleet, Karvan had what he needed to begin his crusade to rebuild mankind.

His strategy was simple- utilizing the Horizon Plane, the Criteon fleet would create a chain between different Gateway worlds and only operate within that chain. Due to limited resources, Karvan would have to focus on controlling only necessary systems which contained a Gateway Station. With a spearhead attack strategy, the Criteon fleet would be able to focus all available resources on attacking a single planet at once, minimizing the affect that limited numbers would have on Criteon forces. The chain of planets that Karvan sought to conquer lead all the way to the most important target- the Terra System. Despite the five centuries of chaos on Earth, Venus, Mars, and the Outer Terra System, it's resources, potential population size, internal Gateway Station, symbolic nature and relative distance from threats made the home of the Human race a very attractive location as a capital planet for Karvan's envisioned human alliance.

Nucaraen
Located relatively close to L-19-44, Nucaraen would be the first target of Karvan's war to rebuild humanity. Having a large population for a planet outside the former core of the Human Federation, it held a respectably sized fleet in orbit, tasked with maintaining shipping through the system's Gateway Station, and defending Nucaraen and it's colonies throughout the system. Karvan's spearhead strategy would be tested here, and it proved successful. Immediately after exiting the Horizon Plane in spearhead formation, the larger, bulkier cruisers would target a single Nucaraen vessel, instead of attacking the entire fleet as was the norm of the time. The singular vessel, unable to hold up against the large amount of fire it was taking, would be swiftly destroyed, leaving a gaping hole in the Nucaraen defensive line. Karvan's cruisers would keep the gap open, absorbing large amounts of enemy fire, while the smaller Criteon corvettes and frigates slid behind the Nucaraen fleet and began an assault from the rear. Thrown into disarray by the constant chaos across the battlefield, the Nucaraen line broke, and with low orbit being securely in Criteon hands, Karvan would order his troops to begin landing on the outskirts of the capital city.

Desiring to keep much of the planet's potent infrastructure intact, ships in space would not initiate an orbital bombardment of the city's defenses. Instead, Karvan opted to begin a seige of the capital, Nucaraen City, with ground forces shelling areas of civilians in order to create chaos inside. The strategy worked, and as civilian riots engulfed the interior of the city, Criteon tanks and ground troops would slowly make their way through the outer city limits, meeting little resistance to their invasion. With his ground forces only kilometers from the city center, Karvan would order an all out assault on the remaining defenders. Weakened, outnumbered, and spread thin due to frequent riots from the populace, any resistance by the Nucaraen Military was easily crushed, leaving Karvan with the first planet he needed firmly in his grasp.

Anidar & L-3-19
The planet of Anidar would be the next section of the chain to Earth, with it's large amount of resources and Gateway Station being vital to the war effort. With only a small fleet in orbit, Karvan would order a portion of his warships to leave the Nucaraen System while the ground battle was still ongoing, in order to prevent a larger defense from being mounted by the Anidarians. Speeding through the Horizon Plane, the fleet tasked with conquering Anidar would arrive after a day's journey, attacking the defenders immediately after being released into realspace. Despite the invading force being similar sized to the defenders, the Anidarian defenders would fall after only hours, leaving the planet undefended from attacks via space.

Having full control of the System from space, the commander of the Criteon attack force, Jarmen Gyadus, would have to begin the ground assault. There was just one problem- the seige of Nucaraen City was still ongoing, and most ground forces assigned to vessels in his fleet had been temporarily pulled to ensure victory over the Nucaraens. Gyadus, realizing the situation and the limited ground soldiers he had available, decided to begin an orbital bombardment of the planet.

It's affects were swift and powerful. Over the course of three weeks, the cruisers of the Criteon force would use the full force of their weapons to decimate the populated surfaces of Anidar. The gritty Anidarians at first held up well against the neverending attack, but as the days went, and the blasts of Gyadus' cannons continued, it became clear that Gyadus would burn the planet to the ground if needed, and capture instead a burning husk. A ceasefire would be requested by the Anidarians, and an official surrender would be negotiated. Only days before, Karvan had finally conquered Nucaraen City, and now with a strong resource base in Anidar, and the factories of both Nucaraen and the Criteon System, he would return to Criteon-6, while newly promoted Jarmen Gyadus would lead the attack till reaching the Terra System.

L-3-19
The lightly populated world of L-3-19, would be the next planet needed for Karvan to reach Earth. With it's small population numbering just 22,000, and lack of weapons that could fight off a military force as strong as Gyadus's, the republic on L-3-19 would reach out to the incoming Criteon forces and offer to surrender, along with giving full access to resources and the Gateway Station orbiting the local star in exchange for protection from pirate attacks, which had been a serious threat to the lightly armed colonists on L-3-19. Gyadus and Karvan would gladly accept the white flag, and several months would be taken to rebuild the army and navy, both of which had taken heavy casualties over the two months of conflict they had experienced.

Hi'unius
The forces of the Criteon System, now fully rested and replenished in numbers and supplies, would begin their move against their next target, the world of Hi'unius, controlled by the Derecel Syndicate. Privy to Karvan's now obvious route to Earth, and seeing Hi'unius as a critical junction to reach it, the Syndicate had spent a large amount of resources and money heavily fortifying it's most valuable planet. With several orbital defense systems as well as a large fleet in orbit of Hi'unius, the Syndicate would taunt Karvan to strike.

Knowing better, Karvan would split his forces in two, with himself leading a small distraction fleet while Gyadus would command the bulk of the forces. Gyadus would exit the Horizon Plane several days before the attack, taking his fleet through the gravitational shadow provided by the system's star and hiding it from long range scanners and Hi'unius scout vessels. Orientated at the Hi'unius fleet's right flank, the orbital defense platforms that posed a large threat to the fleet were in range, and the attack was ready.

Karvan would initiate the first phase of the attack- bringing his smaller force out of the Horizon Plane closer than the Hi'unius Commanders expected. Feigning a retreat after taking heavy fire, Karvan would draw a majority of the Hi'unius fleet away from the now unguarded platforms, giving Gyadus the opening he needed. As the second phase of the attack began, chaos errupted in the Hi'unius High Command. As the exposed orbital defense platforms were blasted to pieces, Hi'unius warships were given the order to retreat to the planet and form a defensive ring around it. Gyadus would reach this location first, trapping the remnants of the Hi'unius fleet in between the two Criteon battlegroups. After 7 hours, the fight was over in orbit.

Now left exposed, the army of Hi'unius would begin evacuating the planet, as the Syndicate wanted to preserve any remaining resources to maintain it's other member worlds. As the troops of the Criteon System landed, and the Syndicate's army retreated, the planet of Hi'unius fell into absolute chaos, one that Gyadus was unable to control, forcing him to order an orbital blockade, as his commander sought only the Gateway Station, not the planet itself.

Ambush at Hi'unius
After the fall of Hi'unius to the forces of Karvan, the well organized military of Jycal-4 had seen the tactical genious of Karvan and his chief officer Gyadus when the battlefield was in their favor. Seeking to strike on their own terms, the military leaders of the planet would organize a quick offensive, preparing to battle at Hi'unius while the Criteon fleet was still being repaired and resupplied for the imminent assault on Jycal-4. Taking fast attack vessels, the forces of Jycal-4 would instigate the battle only a week after the fall of Hi'unius.

As the sensors on the Criteon scoutships exploded into lights and alarms, warning of incoming craft, Gyadus would scramble his forces, bringing ready ships to the front of the line in an attempt to shield the ones still under repair from the attack. This included his own command vessel, cruiser The Intermediary, which would be forced to be the frontline vessel to try and hold back the attack. The battle was an absolute disaster for Gyadus, as the fast attack frigates of the Jycal fleet would get around his shield and strike from the rear, taking down many warships still undergoing repairs. Karvan, overseeing the refitting of captured Nucaraen vessels and their integration into his fleet, would order all available ships to rush to Gyadus' defense.

Thirty-six hours latter, reinforcements would arrive, but it was too late. Outnumbered and surrounded, the Criteon fleet had been routed, with survivors fleeing the orbit of Hi'unius to it's farthest orbiting moon, where the remnant of Gyadus' fleet was regrouping to defend from the Derecel Syndicate, who's ships had been taking advantage of the chaos in a bid to retake their crown jewel. The Intermediary itself was a hulk of metal, barely recognizable. Karvan, saddened at the loss of his chief commander, and taking personal responsibility for not seeing an attack like this as a possibility, realized that if Hi'unius had been defended by it's own planetary fleet, then the damaged ships could have retreated for repairs and still have left Hi'unius protected from attack (This event would be the driving factor for the establishment of planetary defense forces).

Despite the success of the surprise attack, the Jycal fleet was left severely depleted as a result of it. Surrounding The Intermediary were the smoldering hulls of a dozen Jycal vessels, all which had perished in a pyrrhic victory over Gyadus' flag ship. As what remained limped back to Jycal-4, the terrible cost of the attack reared into reality, as several Jycal warships were unable to survive the retreat, breaking apart mid-transit in the Horizon Plane as their fractured hulls gave way. In all, the surprise strike had left Jycal-4 with a greatly weakened defensive force and a vengeful enemy.

Karvan would launch a full scale invasion to take Jycal-4 a month after the initial ambush, as the Nucaraen ships had been fully converted to Criteon standard warships. Karvan would crash through the weakened and strained Jycal-4 defensive ring, capturing many Jycal vessels as he began the ground attack. Opting to initiate an orbital bombardment of the capital zone on Jycal-4, only remnants of the area would remain days later when Criteon tanks rolled past, instead targeting the last of the Jycal Ground forces, who had wisely dug in outside the capital zone and avoided the bombardment. With the last organized power under his rule, Karvan would prepare for the final stage of his mission- taking the remnants of the Inner Federation Worlds.

Misadaron
Once a proud and populated world, the planet of Misadaron had fallen into dangerous times after the dissolution of the Human Federation. Routinely threatened by pirates due to the planet's easy access via the Gateway Station orbiting it's star, powerful warlords had taken control of the planet. The lack of a space going navy meant the planet's population became resiliently self sufficient, no longer relying on exports for the majority of resources and food. With an orbital siege having no effect, and wanting to not damage the planet's infrastructure and population base through an orbital bombardment, Karvan would instigate a ground invasion. As bombers softened up the initial landing zone, and troops began landing, the residents of Misadaron, already engulfed in a centuries-long planet-wide civil war, simply let the Criteon Army land, before engaging them throughout the countryside and the cities. After nine months of fighting, the planet had been subdued, and Karvan would immediately began rebuilding the planet into a forward operations base, as he knew the final months of his crusade would be long and treacherous, as the Terra System was still utterly engulfed in chaos resulting from the collapse of the Human Federation, despite the event being several centuries gone. Karvan would order his warriors and ships to begin the journey through the Horizon Plane- destination, Gateway Station Alpha.

Earth
As his fleet exited the Horizon Plane, Karvan would immediately order a defensive formation around the Gateway Station, as it was the only link between his forces and the empire he had forged over the past one and a half years. Landing forces on the terraformed Moon of Earth, Karvan would repopulate the abandoned celestial body with his engineers (forming the basis of the Moon's future as the key factory and research world) as a repair center for the system-wide invasion.

Despite being incredibly weak due to the five hundred years of chaos on the planet, the large remaining population, the tangled mess of former cities, and the wartorn nature of the planet had formed a fierce fighting population that would prove a large obstacle to any planetary invasion. Clearing a landing area and forward operations base in the northern desert Empire of what the natives called Afrikanna, Karvan would begin his invasion of Earth. Utilizing a creeping barrage strategy to weaken enemy fortifications, the Afrikanna Empire would fall first, with it's capital in Abuja being taken in early 3,010. The Eurasia continental mass would be conquered next, the Rusko-Europian nations, currently engaged in conflict with each other, did not having the resources to battle against both Karvan and their neighboring enemies, and were easily conquered. The Asianic nations would also soon fall to Karvan, as well as the Australian continent and it's peoples. The Americas, their populations decimated by a war who's belligerents were lost to history, would be easily defeated by the far more powerful Criteon ground forces. With the Earth conquered, Karvan would immediately begin devoting resources to rebuilding the Terra System's logistical and infrastructure resources.

Founding the Human Imperial Alliance
The challenge of rebuilding the Terra System as well as the string of conquered worlds, while still protecting the Criteon System from the ever-increasing Lauresh threat, greatly strained both Karvan's military resources and his engineers, who stated that his demands were impossible to meet in a standard lifetime. Desiring to complete his mission, in 3,034 Karvan would gamble his life on an experimental medical procedure, utilizing biomechanical technologies to dramatically extent his lifespan. The procedure was a success, giving Karvan the necessary time to design his new Empire.

Utilizing Gateway Station Alpha in the Terra System, large amounts of resources from nearby farming and mining worlds would be pumped into Karvan's military, which would then be distributed to the populations of worlds as well as to the rebuilt factories of Earth, Moon, and Mars. Karvan would officially found the Human Imperial Alliance in the year 3,110, with representatives from all the worlds he had conquered and a few others that had joined him signing the document, officially creating the Alliance. For the next 30 years, the transportation infrastructure would strongly link the conquered planets to each other, forming strong bonds and creating a chain of worlds that were able to withstand the odd attack by a neighboring human power. The population of the Human Imperial Alliance would explode, as Karvan encouraged a military industrial complex to form, providing both the High Imperial Military and the Planetary Defense Forces with the hardware needed to defend each planet.

After five centuries of disunity, Karvan had successfully reunited a small portion of mankind, and would begin the third phase of his plan, to conquer or absorb the neighboring human planets, which would greatly strengthen humanity, allowing for Karvan to solidify the Human Imperial Alliance and fortify mankind against the alien and human threats surrounding the young Alliance. Over the next several hundred years, many wars were fought to strengthen the Human Imperial Alliance and to claim new territories. The most important ones are listed here:

Falisope Subsector War
As the Human Imperial Alliance rapidly expanded over the next four decades, several large human republics and empires fell or joined Karvan and his rising Empire. Most who put up a fight were not equipped with the resources to fight off the High Imperial Navy, and their ground forces, despite often having a numerical advantage in resources, were unable to withstand the combined arms tactics of the High Imperial Army and Navy. However, the Falisope Subsector was different. Heavily industrialized, with a large population and military, the Falisope Dynasty had ruled their Subsector of 15 planets for two hundred years. Watching as the Human Imperial Alliance grew closer each year to their Subsector, the Falisope Family knew that Karvan would eventually invade their territory. Pulling all military resources into a single large force at the Gateway world of Ichetera, the Falisope Subsector was ready for the invasion.

Beginning the attack in 3,075, Karvan would strike at Ichetera, gaining a beachhead on both the surface of the planet and in orbit. However, due to stronger than anticipated Falisope reinforcements, the High Imperial Navy would lose control of the Gateway Station due to an immediate counterattack, cutting off the invasion force from outside reinforcements. Without access to the Horizon Plane, it would take months for supplies and fresh soldiers to reach Karvan's forces.

Cutoff from the industrial and population base of the Human Imperial Alliance, Karvan realized that he would need to strike throughout the system, drawing as many Falisope forces away from Ichetera as possible, before counterattacking a weaker Falisope defensive force, retaking the Gateway Station, and resupplying, before continuing the war. He would order an assault on the planet of Masaba-2, which had been striped of most of it's military in order to defend Ichetera's Gateway Station, leaving a undefended target, while a small scouting force remained on Ichetera, watching and recording fleet movements to ensure that when the defensive force was weakened enough, Karvan could reclaim the Gateway Station. However, the Falisope forces did not retreat from Ichetera, content to let a less important planet fall while slowly squeezing the High Imperial Navy and Army, which could not afford to fight any sort of drawn out conflict without reinforcements. Karvan, knowing how dire the situation was, ordered a top secret relief mission, in which supply ships would travel through normal space till reaching his forces, which would be resupplied and could then break the Ichetera blockade.

Over the next few months, being trapped and under constant attack, Karvan would continue to order his forces to hold their position over Masaba-2, while the resupply ships hurried along through the void. When the vessels finally reached Karvan's invasion fleet, they found a military force on the verge of collapse. Running out of food, medical supplies, ammunition, and spare parts, the attrition strategy of the Falisope military force had almost been a success. Now resupplied and reinforced, Karvan would commit to an all out assault on Ichetera in a gamble to retake the Gateway Station. The attack was successful, and now, with a much larger force available for him to command, Falisope would fall in just a year. By 3,077, Karvan would have fully integrated the Falisope Subsector into the Human Imperial Alliance.

The Derecel War
Raids on the stretched supply lines of the Human Imperial Alliance were common during the early years of Karvan's rule, due to the thin area of territory controlled by the Alliance making the sole string of Gateway Stations a relatively easy target for pirates. However, during a reconnaissance mission by the newly minted Exploratory Force in 3,179, it was discovered that the Derecel Syndicate had allied with various planets and pirate organizations hostile to the Human Imperial Alliance, and the Syndicate was coordinating raids on logistical systems, as they collected resources to prepare for an assault to retake Hi'unius.

Resources were immediately rerouted toward Hi'unius to form a defensive ring around the planet, while a fleet and ground forces were prepared for a preemptive strike against the Syndicate's forces. Admiral Callen Omani would organize both the defense of Hi'unius and the general battlefront for the attack. Hi'unius' forces would be built up dramatically, owing to the now stalwart industrial might of the Human Imperial Alliance. With Derecel scouts informing their leaders of the massive military buildup on the planet, their officers would call off the attack, their resource advantage dissipated. Yet this halt on hostilities would not save the Syndicate.

Admiral Omani, with now overwhelming force, would lead an assault on the Syndicate staging grounds on the planet L-17-89, striking an unorganized and bored force swiftly and with great execution, as the enemy would be routed. Syndicate forces would all either be destroyed or retreat to the planet Derecel. Omani's fleet would follow them there, having clear advantages at every instance, easily crushing the Syndicate once and for all and ensuring that they could not be a threat to the Human Imperial Alliance anymore.

The Second Lauresh War
In 3,566, Karvan had fully united the Sub-Sector around the industrialized Terra System and began rebuilding the Human Imperial Alliance's Planetary Defense Forces, fortifying the barrier worlds that bordered the Lauresh Imperium. Seeing the inevitable, the Lauresh began fortifying and expanding their military forces to counteract mankind's actions. Karvan would secretly create Savatus Corp, a top secret highly trained and armed force that was used to launch an early strike against the Lauresh planet Ullyte-2. Holding orbital facilities with long range Grid weapons, Ullyte-2 directly threatened the Shipyards of Mars and Venus. In 3,572, Savatus Corp would strike, beginning the Second Lauresh War. The Lauresh military, losing its main counter to mankind's shipyards, retaliated with its far superior technology humanity could not reverse engineer, as an advanced Lauratan scutttling system prevented capture of their technology. The generals and admirals of the High Imperial Army and Navy, unevenly matched up with the Lauresh in terms of ships and firepower, had but two advantages that the Lauresh did not- a larger and more interconnected set of Gateway Stations for transportation and logistics, and faster ships, due to superior engine technology. The Lauresh's territory had a very limited number of Gateway Stations, resulting in many of their armies making months long journeys to areas of conflict, which the High Imperial Navy exploited to great effect, attacking Lauresh fortress worlds cut off from Gateway Stations. By isolating individual fleets, Lauresh naval superiority was negated, and the High Imperial Navy could strike where it desired.

Ground combat, however, was a completely different story. Lacking the individual shielding that protected Lauresh armored vehicles, the High Imperial Army suffered massive casualties as entire armored columns were destroyed by the much more advanced weaponry of the Lauresh armored forces. Defeat was common, and early battles were often massacres, in which Lauresh ground forces caused millions of human soldiers to meet their ends. Battles such as L-21-22, the defense of Hurricut, and L-11-93 showed that humanity lacked the technological level to compete in a full scale war on the ground.

This all changed in year 3,576 during the Siege of Castillus-5, in which the High Imperial Army was fighting a losing battle to hold the planet and the Gateway Station in orbit. However, during a battle over one of the planet's many mountain ranges, a Lauresh stealth craft would be shot down and crash-land behind human lines. Surprisingly, the usually robust scuttling system had been disabled on impact, leaving a damaged craft with its weapons and shielding systems still intact. Savatus Corp would be called in to protect the crashed spacecraft, and Karvan would order the wreck transported back to Venus, where it would be disassembled and analyzed, before being implemented into mankind's war materials.

The Lauresh technology on the ship, being implemented on as many human vehicles as possible, flipped the tides of the war in humanities favor. Now donning energy shields, better power generation, improved weapons and stealth tech, humanities advantages in speed and logistics compounded exponentially. Four years later, Karvan himself would step onto Laurata, and would decree that the remaining Lauresh on the planet be eliminated or forced off-world, and that Laurata would become a new colony of the Human Imperial Alliance.

The Rise of the Human Imperial Alliance
Over the final five centuries of Karvan's life, the bulk of mankind would greatly prosper thanks to the peace finally brought to the species, as no major wars would happen during this time, only small skirmishes. The economic force of a united mankind would be on full display, as large factories were constructed, entire worlds converted to farmland, and more efficient ways to collect resources were developed. While life was still difficult during these times, the average person could be sure that they would have food on the table, a stable job, and protection from threats, no matter how unimportant their world was. Karvan himself would make appearances across the frontier worlds, personally overseeing their development and fortification.

On Earth, he would see to it the full reconstruction of the planet into a new glory not seen in centuries. Large civilian structures dotted the planet, while buildings dedicated to supporting the governance and military structure of the Human Imperial Alliance consumed the surface. Defensive emplacements were everywhere, it was common for the normal human to live less than one kilometer away from a gound to space gun battery, always trained to the sky for incoming threats. Under Karvan's orders, the workers of the Human Imperial Alliance would construct a great fortress on the surface of the planet in 3,978, dubbing it the Imperial Fortress. This massive place was self sufficient and well protected, and it would house the training grounds for the High Protectors, Karvan's personal guards. Yet most important of all was hidden deep underneath the Fortress in a well protected and secret location - the Communication Supercomputer's Isolation Core, which handled all forms of information that travelled through the horizon plane and delivered it to it's recipient. This room was the nerve center of the Human Imperial Alliance, and it was important that it remained running at all times.

When he finally died in 4,233, his death was widely mourned across mankind's worlds, with his date of death becoming a statewide holiday, with his body