Chapter 1 - The beginning to the end

Abandoning the Earth of mankind...

Earth, a planet with so much history, home to mankind and the birthplace for so many stories and events. It’s purpose to bring forth life and the meaning to why we are here. Unbeknownst to us, it holds deep dark secrets that will play their part in the story of RF Online, a story that will unfold before you and whisk you up into an adventure where you are key.
Novus our last hope
After the “First Galaxy Development Plan” was initiated, it was deemed unnecessary to further research Earth any further. The human race was expanding beyond this solar system and galaxy, with opportunities lying beyond the stars, not back home. History, it seemed, held no important information for mankind’s evolution.

The Antarctic, once a key location for researchers and scientists, became a distant memory as the “Forth Galaxy Development Plan” was initiated. The cold lands housing the interests of curious amateur research laboratories, manned by retired researchers and scientists.

The retired biologist Soburg Ivanovich was a member of the Arcane Club, where scholars and amateur researchers looked into the mysterious histories and the origins of civilizations, often largely neglected by other scholars.
Traditional mainstream academics considered the Arcane Club as a ‘Rich Boy’s Club’; a social gathering for wealthy gentlemen. The theories and ideas emanating from this elite group were held in contempt, with few believing in their outlandish interpretations. This group were looked upon with scepticism, a mistake that would inevitably be costly to the human race.

Soburg Ivanovich, a member of the Arcane Club, arrived at the Antarctic to research the creatures living in this distant and inhospitable part of the Earth. The work he carried out did not get the attention it deserved, since it was believed that all the living things this area had or was playing home to, had already been discovered. Moreover, the fact that he was a member of the Arcane Club instilled a sense of cynicism among his peers. It was not until he discovered the Dimens Syndrome Virus, that his ideas and discoveries were treated with respect.

This Arcane Virus, discovered hundreds of metres below the ice cap of the Antarctic’s ‘eastern lands’, excited Ivanovich immensely, his research findings and hard work finally paying off. He brought the virus straight back into his laboratory to begin testing. Despite being trapped in the ice for tens of thousands of years, the virus was still in an active state, living in a state of hibernation, waiting to be triggered back into life from its once dormant state

Ivanovich carefully defrosted the ice in the anticipation that he would prove to the world that there was still life left in the Antarctic area, and that his name would be remembered forever.
However, he did not know that this discovery would bring the end to all mankind. The now defrosted virus infected his mind. At first he thought the headaches were a direct result of his cold, but within a day, himself and his colleagues became infected by the virus.

They all began to show an abnormal aggression towards each other and extreme desire to hurt and destroy one another. These extreme behavioural problems drove them all to their eventual painful deaths.

A transport ship, informed of this dire situation, was dispatched to collect the researchers’ bodies. Its return journey would prove to be a costly mistake.
Using the transport ship as a conduit, the Arcane virus quickly spread throughout Earth, leaving no stone unturned, and no creature untouched. The contagion was unlike any virus discovered or created by man. Humans on earth took on the traits of the infected researchers, killing each other and finally firing nuclear weapons toward the human colonies on Mars and Saturn. Defending themselves, the inhabitants of Mars and Saturn retaliated, firing their own salvos of nuclear warheads toward the Earth. Mankind’s self-destruction and demise in the solar system had begun.

Further outposts in the galaxy were left in a state of shock by what was happening in this solar system, leading to an organized group of investigators being dispatched to the planets in the solar system. What they found was death and decay; many polluted with radioactivity, the solar system now a desolate wasteland.

The investigators soon realized that it was going to be an impossible task finding anyone alive, the cause of destruction to the solar system to remain a mystery forever. However, the investigators were to soon discover the truth behind the devastation, for unbeknownst to them, the Arcane virus, immune to the radiation, had infected one of the investigation team.

The Arcane virus was still active, despite the heat and radiation produced from the nuclear explosions. The resilient viral design had shut down its life activity, leaving it in a state of hibernation ironically familiar to how Ivanovich had discovered it originally.

After losing most of the investigation team, the remaining team members came to realise the truth behind the destruction of Earth and the solar system, all be it too late for them.

The B-13 sector acting as a base for the 4th galaxy development plan became the centre of administration after the fall of the solar system. The government of the B-13 sector stipulated that the Arcane virus was a very dangerous organism and had to be contained. Over time, the disaster on Earth and to the solar system began to fade away into distant memory. Mankind moved forward burying the memories of this terrible time.
Chapter-2