Factions
Colonist
Your family might have lived in squalor on Earth. Finding a living there with so much automation is difficult, and whatever work there is to be had is unforgiving. You can expect to live a short, tough life on Earth. But a few corporations offer an alternative-- go to work in space. Move to a colony or live on a freighter. Work and food is guaranteed. What they don't make clear is that you will be surrendering your freedom to your corporate overlords. You might have even signed a contract that dooms your children to indentured servitude as well! Welcome to modern-age slavery. Some might have even ended up in this position due to debts they had accrued, or wagers gone wrong. You will have little say in where you live, what you do for work. Sometimes people like you do happen to slip through the cracks, however. Maybe you'll be lucky and be owned by a large corporation and become a statistic and fall off of the end of a ledger. Though just as likely you might find yourself owned by a single person through their corporate holdings. Under the microscope and nothing more than chattel. More than likely you will have an allowance. Spend it wisely.
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For those that have made it to space on their savings or that have managed to free themselves of a corporate contract, they still tend to end up in debt to corporations. Docking at corporate-run stations is inevitable and large, hidden fees are difficult to repay. Food, fuel, water, and cargo are all run by monopolies and trade cartels with very few independent vessels making any money. Living on a station permanently is no different.
Even those that somehow manage to make it are seen as traitors to their kind. Colonists that have managed to free themselves from their corporate overlords are seen as just as bad as corporate goons themselves.
The jobs that colonists hold are as diverse as the colonists themselves. Some perform manual labor, others apply their trade skills, a few even run small businesses in the markets on stations, and the rest tend to work on merchant vessels, moving between stations and trading goods.
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Despite how tough it can be in space, most still view it as better than living on Earth, some even see the corporation to which they belong as a kind of team, and they often view Earth's Military and the United Nations as a valuable service to protect them from pirates and other bad actors. Views differ on radical groups like the Free Europa movement. There are sympathetic colonists that simply don't have the courage to act, but there are others that view such radical ideas as threatening their way of life. It's easy for some to imagine life on Europa getting much, much worse.
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How will you choose to survive?
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IC Lead Title: Nexus Trade Union Boss
Main IC Faction Name: Nexus Trade Union
Description: The Nexus Trade Union is part of a larger Trade Federation that encompasses representation of workers and businesses from all over. They really only became active on the Nexus after the death of Nella Opree when the station was taken back by the corporate class. The union was actually originally only meant to represent corporations, mostly to resolve disputes, but over time it has become a larger organization, taxing individuals and corporations, representing and defending workers' rights (though not adequately) and generally working to make small improvements to the living conditions for the average worker.
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Nexus' position in the solar system means that it is the main trading hub of the solar system. This means that many businesses operate out of the station and many tons of goods move in and out of its docks every hour. Over time these businesses have found the need to come together to resolve disputes and to organize laborers. The Trade Union Boss is responsible for the smooth operation of Nexus businesses and the well-being of its workers. They have a voice that echoes through nearly the entire station as they represent nearly everyone on board. In general everyone but the corporate executive (Corpos) class works on the Nexus and either directly belongs to the Trade Union or the company they work for belongs to the larger Trade Federation. Any dispute relating to trade or business on the Nexus automatically is within the scope of the Trade Union Boss. They can arbitrate disputes, discipline businesses or workers for not following the rules, they run the Nexus Hangar and the Market, and they typically collect union dues.
Free Europa
You've been living under the boot of corporations your whole life. Born into slavery or tricked into it, you've held a hatred for the people in control for a long time and you're finally ready to do something about it. You saw "FREE EUROPA" or "FE" spray-painted on a wall and you asked around. By chance you found someone making a strange hand gesture and followed them to a meeting. Once there you were handed materials, digital snapshots of documents proving what you've always known-- corruption at the highest levels.
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Though the United Nations is meant to be an independent organization, it's not hard to follow the money. With Earth's Military in their back pocket, corporations are free to do whatever they want. Stations nearly starved to save a buck, colonists experimented on without their knowledge, and evidence of these crimes buried by their cronies.
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A year ago a station further out from Earth called The Bastion near Titan was temporarily taken over by a rebel organization like your own. People around you think that it could happen here. But they don't think that it could just happen here, they think that it could be permanent. Unlike The Bastion, Europa is self-sufficient. It could last without help from Earth. The only thing standing in the way is Earth's Military, run by The United Nations. If enough guerrilla action were to take place it's possible that they might abandon the station, or at least be forced to the negotiating table.
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You slowly gather supplies. Some explosives components from the market, mods from the labs. Your friends say the time to strike is now.
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Will you succeed?
IC Lead Title: Commander of the Free Europa Army
Main IC Faction Name: Free Europa
Description: The world is run by vile, infinitely rich, immensely powerful people. The status quo is impossible to change. As a Free Europa member you move forward however and help the most disadvantaged people on the station understand that there is dignity in fighting. There is value in resisting. And there is yet hope. You are influential enough that you have the backing and the devotion of a diverse group of individuals that include corporate executives (affectionately known as "corpos")-- some even say the "original" leader of FE was Nella Opree, who was herself a corpo-- and colonists and even some members of the UN. As anarchists you can expect that "Free Europa" constitutes a number of smaller groups, each with their own names, subtly-different goals and leadership.
Corporate
No one makes it on their own anymore. You were born into wealth. A lot of it. So much of it that you don't know what to do with it. But you're not safe, far from it. Your peers want your money-- all of it. Corporate espionage is the norm. Politics is the game we all play. You weren't paying attention and your license was revoked. Your main customer? I took her out to lunch and she's mine now. Everyone is just a tool for you to use, currency and numbers on the screen of a datapad-- stats. Colonists are just one more stat. They've signed their life over to your corporation (though that really means that they belong to you doesn't it?). What are you going to do with it?
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Most corporate members or "Corpos" for short make their money in one of a few trades-- medical treatments, mods, and drugs; guns and ammo; or banking and trade. There are usually monopolies that are entrenched in each business as the permanent incumbent. You might work as a subsidiary of one of those businesses, or your business might be collectively owned by several, larger businesses. If you're the rare independent you won't last long. Eventually you'll be bought out whether you want to or not, or more than likely you'll be run out of business through sabotage or by having your sales fall out from underneath you.
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Colonists are a cost and an opportunity, you feed them and they're also your customers. But they're also itching to steal money out of your pocket or rip you off. You might have on your payroll mercenaries or spies. And also, Earth's military. Turns out the rumors are true. You would bribe anyone. You'd bribe your mother. Careful though, in theory bribing certain people could land you in trouble. The United Nations is supposed to be incorrigible. You know better though.
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How will you make your mark?
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IC Lead Title: Chief Executive Officer Nexus Foundation
Main IC Faction Name: Nexus Foundation
Description: After Nella Opree died and left ownership of The Nexus in the hands of a trust which was owned by its colonist residents, several key business leaders took charge of returning ownership of the station to its rightful owners. Leaders from Seneca, Monticello, AllClear, and Neptune all purchased stake in the trust, buying out colonists, displacing others. Eventually the trust was dissolved and a corporation called the Nexus Foundation took its place. The goal of this organization was neutrality, at least with respect to corporations involved in the trust. No company in the trust would own a majority stake. The station was to be a no-man's-land. Switzerland. The CEO of the Nexus Foundation has dominion over how the station is run, for the most part. They run the co-op known as Gaia Labs. They also are the station's liaison to the United Nations Peacekeeping Forces. Any laws to do with the safety of its occupants still technically falls within UN jurisdiction. Despite basically owning the station you actually don't run most of it. The hangar, the mines, any sort of manufacturing, and basically anything else outside of the labs needs colonists to run. They have a trade organization that shares some responsibilities. The position of CEO of the foundation is typically awarded to those that work within one of the companies that are stakeholders of the foundation, and usually to those with powerful connections. Nexus station is very profitable and is key strategically to control of the solar system. Usually the CEO is someone that knows how to get things done, has very little dirt on them or is unusually good at concealing it, and someone that is expendable. CEOs of the Nexus do not typically fair well. Sure for a while they make a lot of money and become powerful, but usually they make a mistake and the stakeholders find a way to quickly (and permanently) remove them.
Military
Earth's Military. A fighting force run by The United Nations. An impartial organization dedicated to the maintenance of peace and security for all mankind. Also, an organization that has been kneecapped throughout the years by corporations bribing officials behind closed doors. But you-- you're different. Or maybe you're not. Maybe you're a citizen, either from Earth or of the stars, and you've been chosen by a lottery. It's probable that your parents bribed someone to get you the slot. Or you've paid off your corporate debts and now you want to pay for your many crimes by giving back to humanity.
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It doesn't matter in the end. You might accept bribes or you might believe in liberty or something like that. But you can't do much of anything. The top brass have said to stay put. You've been stationed on The Nexus and your superiors know what's going on, they've read the reports. The Free Europa movement is getting dangerous. But you can't lift a finger or shoot a bullet unless it's to stop a corpo from getting shot or mugged. You're there to protect corporate interests, not unburden humanity from its weighty shackles. You can't do anything.
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Or can you?
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You help a colonist when they're having a rough day. You slip supplies unnoticed to your rebel contacts, or better yet information about a corpo target.
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But your partner does the exact opposite. She intimidates colonists until they pay or scream, accepts bribes from corpos to look the other way, and drains their rebel prisoner of all the information that they have.
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Does anything matter?
Will you matter?
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IC Lead Title: Nexus Director of Operations, United Nations Peacekeeping Forces
Main IC Faction Name: Nexus United Peacekeeping Forces
Description: The United Nations vision statement is to reduce and eliminate extreme poverty, to ensure sustainability of economic and social development, to strengthen human dignity and rights and to prevent violent conflicts. The Nexus is home to many thousands of residents of diverse backgrounds and cultures and peace between its residents and protecting their safety is paramount. The Director leads a force of individuals which have the best training, the newest equipment, and have absolute authority when it comes to the safety of individuals on the station. They also can be corrupt, have trigger-fingers, and find themselves in the pocket of the corporate class.