Prodromal: Incident In Mbandaka

It is 2052. Space is thriving. There have been settlements on Luna for 30 years, bases on Mars for close to 20 years. There are two large orbital hotels. There are multiple daily launches delivering people and supplies to Low Earth Orbit. There are weekly transits between Terra and Luna. Every two years a Flotilla of cruisers make the transit from Terra to Mars. In 2052 the largest Flotilla to date is launching for Mars. Terra has begun to go into decline. A break-in at a covert microbiology lab in central Africa may have released an experimental pathogen with catastrophic potential. The nature of the pathogen makes it almost impossible to track and control, placing the people of both Terra and Luna at risk. Within this context, Luna faces the need for a transition of leadership to a young Lunar born population untrained in the skills of government; and young people on Terra face the prospect of being permanently exiled to space to save them from the potential pandemic.