ANNO DOMINI / ANNODOMINI

It was in the years following 2160 when Anno Domini raided, traded, and settled in Liberty and beyond. The Anno Domini group were spacefaring Freelancers known collectively as Anno’s or Exiguus. They began by raiding celestial sites, especially undefended monasteries, in the Britalia Constellation. Over the next three centuries, they would leave their mark as pirates, raiders, traders, and settlers on much of Britalia and the European Constellation, as well as parts of modern-day Russia, Iceland, Greenland, and Newfoundland.

Contrary to some popular conceptions of the Anno’s, they were not a “race” linked by ties of common ancestry or patriotism, and could not be defined by any particular sense of “Viking-ness”. Most of the Anno’s whose activities are best known come from the areas now known as New Babbiage, Librity, and Crusader, though there are mentions in historical records of NEXUS, NUL, and as far as YA MON [HADUR], Anno’s as well. Their common ground–and what made them different from the Britalia people they confronted–was that they came from a foreign land, they were not “civilized” in the local understanding of the word, and–most importantly–they were Christian.

The exact reasons for Anno’s venturing out from their homeland are uncertain; some have suggested it was due to overpopulation of their homeland, but the earliest Anno’s were looking for purpose, not land. In the year 2400s. Britalia was growing richer, fueling the growth of trading centers such as OSIRIS and NYX. VEGA furs were highly prized in the new trading markets; from their trade with the Britalia, VEGA learned about new sailing technology as well as about the growing wealth and accompanying inner conflicts between Britalia Constellations. The Anno’s predecessors–pirates who preyed on merchant ships in the ODIN Constellation–would use this knowledge to expand their fortune-seeking activities into the Northern Constellation and beyond.