Crimson Flare : A Journey Begins

Prologue: Earths last breath.

Earth is no more. Although, in hindsight, we might have seen this cataclysmic event approaching. It was the year 2156, and humanity teetered on the precipice of Trans-Dimensional warp.

I was just a child back then, but those memories remain vivid within me. For years, the United Earth Government (U.E.G) poured astronomical sums into a project destined to birth a Dimensional Warp Gate, enabling travel from Earth to Mars in less than two minutes.

It was meant to be the crowning achievement of human progress, plastered across holovision screens with tantalizing advertisements. "First Mars, then the Unknown!"-the slogan that resonated deeply with us all. We fervently believed that this gateway would be the solution to our resource-depleted Earth.

However, everything changed on July 7th when they arrived. During the inaugural test run of the Trans-Dimensional Gateway (T.D.G), an enigmatic fleet of alien warships slipped through, launching a merciless assault upon our home planet.

For a brief period, the United Earth Defense Force (U.E.D.F) valiantly fought back, staving off the invaders, but it proved to be only a temporary respite. In a final, desperate act, the U.E.D.F managed to force the enemy back into the gateway, only to be dealt a devastating blow from the far side of the Earth.

A blinding beam of light erupted from a colossal space cruiser, piercing the Earth's core. Thus began the countdown to our demise, triggering a frantic race to evacuate the planet before it crumbled. Such events etch themselves into a child's memory forever-I know they did for me.

In those chaotic moments, countless spacecraft, bursting with fleeing souls, surged towards the gateway. The same tool that had brought us to the brink of annihilation now served as our sole escape route to Mars.

I found myself aboard the very last vessel to depart the crumbling planet. As we hurtled through the gateway, the remnants of humanity and Earth lay in ruins on the other side. That day, over ten billion lives were extinguished.

In a bold attempt to reclaim our celestial territory, the U.E.D.F's fifth fleet initiated a massive assault on the beings we later dubbed Phantoms-so named due to their sudden appearances and disappearances. I was but a teenager during that battle, witnessing firsthand the brutal defeat of the fifth fleet, forcing us humans to flee Mars and embark upon a nomadic existence across deep space.

Relentlessly pursued from one colony to another, from planet to planet, the Phantoms nearly drove us to extinction. It was then, at the precipice of our demise, that the Federation of alien races known only as Corso came to our aid. Equipped with advanced technology, they granted us a fighting chance against the Phantoms.

Humanity was bestowed with a second opportunity to rise from the ashes and reclaim its former glory in the following years. And rise we did. We established colonies far and wide in the sector of space we now christened Terra-1.

Yet, this era of hope and progress was shattered when the newly established colony known as X-81 abruptly fell silent. The only individual close enough to investigate the mysteries surrounding it was a scrappy smuggler named Alexzander Deagon, though I prefer to go by Alex. And so, it is at this pivotal moment that my story begins.