ARC: A History

Earth, 2112 – On the Advent of Terraforming

Adaptation, growth, and expansion are the three steps of a waltz we know as
evolution. If one step is missed, the dancers will falter; if all are missing, then the dance
cannot begin, let alone continue. This is the problem that faced humanity in 2100 – all of
earth had been conquered and adapted to Man’s design, leaving nowhere else to turn. As
a result, Man grew stagnant, and began to destroy itself through warfare, plague, and
famine. If not for the colonization attempts on Mars and the Moon, all would have been
lost. Several companies pooled their time and resources to establish the first terraformed
colony on the Moon. The colony prospered for several months before an artificial
atmosphere malfunction occurred.
Rioting occurred on the streets, and it seemed that there would be more bloodshed
than ever before. However, one man stepped forward to propose a temporary solution.
Rather than terraform the surface of the moon, he suggested that terraforming be done
within the moon itself. The United Nations was in agreement, and they appointed this
man, Rudolf Berg, as the director of this project.

Earth, 2107 – Newspaper clipping

Rudolf Berg – Savior?
Dr. Rudolf Berg, a Swedish ecologist, just yesterday gave his proposal to the UN
regarding the terraforming of the moon for colonization purposes. In a controversial
move, he suggested that humanity live underground, in the core of the moon. His 3-year
plan involves the excavation of the majority of the body of the moon, the replacement of
lost mass with a gravity core, and the installation of terraforming agents within the
hollowed moon. He has hired the ARC Corporation to supply crew and machines to make
his dream a reality. But, will it be soon enough to stop the madness happening on this
planet? If the rioting doesn’t calm down soon, there may be no one left by the time the
moon is terraformed.
A look into Berg’s history yielded some interesting…

Earth, 2109 – Newspaper clipping

ARC, others implement security forces
As the terraforming of the moon’s core began, riots reached an all time high
planetside. ARC, as well as other robotics and weapons manufacturing groups, have
replied by supplying military forces worldwide with experimental weapons and
machinery – the highlight being ARC’s MkII Mobile Weapons Platform, a spider-like
robotic transport that can be outfitted with various heavy weapons, such as artillery, anti-
aircraft guns, and missile launchers. The advantage of ARC's system is the combination
of infantry mobility with a tank’s firepower. This will give the military the needed
fighting edge against insurgents and other groups.
In addition to supplying weapons, the corporations have announced that they will
be implementing their own security forces to augment military forces in their areas,
effective by the end of the year…
Earth, 2110 – Newspaper clipping
Moon’s terraforming completed, more underway
The moon terraforming project was deemed safe for public inhabitation today by
the United Nations. Not more than an hour after the declaration, the first passenger
shuttle took flight. It is expected that several dozen more will have left by the end of the
week, even though communal districts have yet to be designed, let alone constructed.
ARC, presumably because of their successful terraforming of the moon, has been
commissioned to provide security for the new colonies. They have also been given
permission to build a research and training facility on the surface of the moon.
Now that it’s been proven possible to terraform the core of a celestial body, other
corporations have begun to excavate their own moons and asteroids. ARC had already
begun excavation of Io prior to UN approval. Their reasoning? “ARC began excavation
of the moon Io without UN approval because the Company did not believe approval
necessary, based on the Company’s interpretation of the juridical area of the United
Nations...”

Earth, 2110 – Newspaper clipping

ARC - Who are they?
I’m sure that I speak for the rest of the world when I ask the question, “Who the
hell is ARC?” It’s very rare to have a company rise to the occasion right when the world
needs it, let alone one with as little publicity as this corporation. The people deserve to
know as much as possible about a company that can directly defy a world body and get
away with it, and this reporter has discovered as much as she could about the company.
ARC, short for Advanced Robotics Creation, has been around since the late 21st
century, specializing in robot-human interfaces, nanobots, and terraforming. Surprisingly,
they have done very little work on designing a humanoid AI for their robotics – an
interview with one of their lead researchers informed this reporter “Have you ever seen
those movies about rogue machines? Yes, those ones. ARC doesn’t believe that a robot
should ever be able to complete more than rudimentary actions without a user interface.
We do what we can to make it easier for people to control ARC creations, but there will
always be someone behind the wheel of an ARC product.”
In light of the recent riots and terraforming, ARC has released a new set of Core
Aims – Technology, Security and Research – as their major areas of influence in the
changing world. To think that a company that initially revolutionized a universal voice
recognition system for household televisions would be responsible for the protection of
an entire colony is beyond me, but I will say one thing – ARC is on the rise…

ARC Moon Base, 2113 – Channel 3 Interview (original script)

Marie Matthews (MM) – “So, tell me more about what you do at ARC.”
James Varnum (JV) – “Well, I am a project leader for ARC's Materials & Energy
Research Division. We specialize in designing new alloys for military forces – we
actually worked on the transparaluminum currently used in Humvees – and we try to find
new efficient power sources.”
MM – “New power sources? I assume that means that ARC is also participating in
the positron race?”
JV – “ARC is investigating positron technology, yes. (laughs) Although, not
nearly as greatly as you may think.”
MM – “Hm? I don’t follow. Does this mean that ARC is going to abandon
research in that field?”
JV – “Hardly. I’m just saying that there’s no hurry for us to bring positron
technology to market.”
MM – “Even with the Foundry claiming that they’ve solved the stabilization issue
and claiming to have a product to market within the next two years?”
JV – “I do not speak on behalf of the company with this next comment, but I have
always been of the mind that there’s a huge difference between a first-in-class product
and a first-class product.” [We can’t use this, Marie. We’d lose our job. I know we like to
tell it how it is, but ARC would pull strings to make it seem like we made it up. JA]
MM – “I see. So, what does ARC have in mind to bring to the table?”
JV – “That information, unfortunately, is confidential.”
MM – “Pity. So, your boy is turning 10 this year? Grooming him to be the future
of ARC?”
JV – “Zeke? I wouldn’t want to impose my hopes on him…”

Earth, 2114 – Magazine Clipping

ARC throws its hat into the ring
In a surprise move today, ARC has released a statement declaring its intent to
release a large-scale positron energy plant in the New York area by the end of this year.
What’s interesting is that this statement was made exactly a week after the Automation &
Robotics Foundry released their final plans for a positron power plant to be installed in
London by spring 2115. Many strategists believe that ARC is making a pull to steal
publicity in the short term, yet I believe that ARC actually does have something in the
works. I mean, this is the corporation that terraformed the freakin’ moon! If any company
can pull this kind of stunt and still come out on top, it would be ARC.
With three different ARC facilities (New York City, the Moon, and Io), ARC has
plenty of space to do whatever it pleases. Rumor has it that ARC has even purchased land
on Venus of all places! What they will do with real estate on the most uninhabitable
planet in our solar system is beyond me. ARC turned down an offer to purchase land on
Mars to build another research facility. Why would they choose…

Earth, 2115 – Channel 3 News bulletin

Header: Tragedy befalls New York City, ARC responsible
Octavian Rogers: “And there is a good chance of rain up and down the east coast
today, predictions are that it might be a hurricane –“
Marie Matthews: “I’m sorry, Octavian, I’m gonna have to cut you off. The ARC
positron plant – along with everything within a 10-mile radius – was utterly destroyed
just minutes ago. Although an investigation is pending, it is believed that the containment
field for the positron plant faltered, allowing for some positron material to interact with
the metal guide tubes. The results were disastrous. The casualty list is in the hundreds and
rising, and that is ARC personnel alone. If we include civilian deaths, we will easily be in
the thousands by nightfall.”
Michael Anderson: “I don’t know if ARC will be able to recover from this one, to
be honest. Notwithstanding the huge payouts that the corporation will have to make to the
families of lost ones, and repairs to the immediate area, ARC just lost one of their
research facilities. That’s billions of dollars of materials, manpower, and research lost. In
addition, ARC’s stock is starting to plummet as we speak. Unless they make a bold move
soon to attempt to recover, I think ARC is going to disappear almost as quickly as it
came…”

Moon, 2115 – ARC press conference

James Varnum, CEO: “I thank all of you for attending. As you may know,
Advanced Robotics Creation is in a dire situation right now. With the resignation of
Richard Clark, the explosion of the New York positron plant and, most importantly, the
death of countless ARC employees and civilians, public trust in the company has
dwindled away to almost nothing. To tell you the truth, there are times when I agree with
you. ARC has acted rashly with its newfound prestige, and we’ve made some mistakes.
But, like any good company, we’re willing to rebuild and rebound to reestablish the
rapport with the public that we had a few short months ago. With that, I’ll take
questions.”
Reporter: “You mentioned in a recent interview how ARC was going to continue
to research positron technology, even in light of recent events. Other companies have
abandoned their projects, and the Foundry stopped development of the London plant
indefinitely. What research could you possibly be doing?”
Varnum: “ARC is abandoning the majority of its research into sustainable
positron energy. However, we feel that there is still a lot of untapped potential with
positrons. Although it may not be well suited for a long-term use, there is sufficient
evidence of short-term advantages to maintain research. We also hope to take advantage
of the biggest liability to a long-term power source.”
Another Reporter: “With ARC nearing bankruptcy, where do you expect to fund
this research?”
Varnum: “Like I said earlier, it will take a rapport with the public, particularly
with the stockholders. (Laughter) Seriously, though, ARC is looking to expand into new
territory, and we feel that these expansions will do wonders…”

Moon, 2115 – Newspaper clipping

ARC’s return to the forefront of technology: A year in review
ARC has been ebbing and flowing the past few years. Not since the early 21st
century has there been this much turmoil and interest around a single company. Even
with the explosion, ARC has managed to come out on top. Their merger with the Goliath
Company, a specialist in Mechanized Assault Weapons (MAWs), has proven to be a
prosperous venture. By implementing their advanced targeting systems and mobility
subroutines into the reliable MAW weapons systems and engines, they have increased the
efficiency of the basic Lion unit nearly threefold. It is believed that ARC has revitalized
land combat with this new integrated system, and nations are lining up to backorder the
newest Lion and Cheetah models, due to be out by 3rd quarter 2115.
In addition to their growth in the land combat field, ARC has released their new
space defense weaponry. They’ve taken positron technology and turned it into a viable
combat weapon, albeit a costly and inefficient model. Released as the Hellfire cannon Mk
1, the positron turret has already been used to repel a raid on the moon recently. The only
disadvantage is that these weapons are space exclusive – using them in atmosphere would
be disastrous.
Some people wonder why ARC has made such a sudden shift to more military
technology with the resignation of Richard Clark, but many feel that it is due to the
increasing pressure on corporations to provide security detail and resolve conflicts in
space until the system for a solar system-wide government body is established…

Moon, 2118 – Newspaper clipping

Space Stations, Mechs, and ARC
ARC’s focus over the past few years has shifted once again, to the stars. The
company has been working on space variants of their MAWs, to simply be labeled as
‘Mechs’. The first models, Wolf and Cobra, have been out for a year now, with three
more models in production. The Mechs have been lauded for their relative ease for the
exceedingly increased difficulty of operating in full three-space without gravity or air
resistance. These same problems have also been effectively addressed in the development
of effective space fighters. CEO James Varnum stated, in a recent press release, “the
militarization efforts undertaken by ARC may have people convinced that ARC has
abandoned its tenets of technology and research, but this is not the case. In order for ARC
to have developed what it has, the engineers and programmers have had to work long
hours and develop brand new systems to extend our basic functions into three
dimensions.”
To support his new claim, Varnum announced the design plans for a space station
that would serve two purposes. First, it would serve as a way station to provide security
detail on both the Moon and Earth. Second, it would serve as a replacement for the New
York ARC facility, which had focused primarily on research. By reestablishing a
dedicated research facility, Varnum believes that ARC will be remembered for all three
tenets, not just one.

Moon, 2119 – Newspaper clipping

ARC Satellite Active
The ARC space station went active yesterday, in geosynchronous orbit around the earth.
This research station will focus on engineering of new materials for both military and
commercial use, starting with the completion of development into the Non-Newtonian
Liquid Alloy Buffer (N-LAB for short) that they hope to use as an armor support for
Mechs and Cruisers.
Of particular interest is the implementation of an artificial intelligence known as
A.R.L.E.N.E. (Automated Requisition, Logistics, Engineering and Neural Emulation), to
assist data collection, processing and interpretation, as well as serve as a repository of
knowledge. ARLENE will be carefully audited and regulated by ARC programmers, as it
is the first in class for artificial intelligence on a city scale. If successful, variants of the
ARLENE program will be used in all ARC facilities, as well as the moon colony.

Current Year: 2120. The ARC Satellite has officially been operational for a year.