In the late 2020s, in the entity then known as the United States of America, the political tension had reached a breaking point. The people living in the large urban centers resented those living in the wilds for what they saw as interference and subversion of their rightful total political control by right of majority. Those in rural areas resented the urban residents for what they saw as interference and subversion of their rightful local political control by right of local presence. The politicians of the time had aligned themselves roughly along those lines, throwing attacks of ever increasing savagery and viciousness back and forth. Far beyond the point of cooperation, or even any sort of reconciliation, a true armed conflict seemed inevitable.

The elite of the time, mostly concentrated in urban areas, feared a total rebellion by the countryside, as their agricultural products were necessary to feed the cities. In response, they started buying up farmland to forestall any logistical attacks. Rhetoric on the other side accused them of aiming for control and domination, rather than self-sufficiency. Copious use of misinformation and early forms of memetic warfare on both sides served to drastically muddy the waters.

Fortunately, the truth behind these accusations would become irrelevant. A small company had charted a course to rescue civilization. GreenBlue, a construction startup from Brazil, had been hiring star engineers from all over the world with the objective of convergence. They used both new and tested technologies to both speed up construction, and to integrate all the necessities of modern life into the structure of their projects. They also had little regard for the traditions and expectations of their competitors, and so innovated in an almost compulsive fashion. After their first contract finished ahead of schedule and on budget, it was inevitable that more would follow. The series of proto-arcology structures that resulted were dubbed “The Pyramid Towers of Sao Paulo,” but the ultimate limitation in these early designs became obvious almost immediately.

These early works included many of the features we have all come to expect of a modern arcology: fast and efficient internal public transit, multiple connection points to external public transit, advanced medical facilities, multiple sources of renewable energy, a complete water treatment facility, and enough vertical farms to support its entire staff and resident population. The farms though, hungry for energy, could not be run by the output of the renewable energy systems. Those early towers were not truly independent of the traditional power grid infrastructure.

In the fall of 2029, a splinter group from the old elites, defectors from the existing order, met with the leadership of GreenBlue, bringing with them an ambitious plan. New towers were raised in New York, Chicago, Denver, and Los Angeles, but with an additional feature, hidden away from the eyes of the increasingly criminal government of the day. In the heart of each new tower, now a true arcology, was built a new variety of nuclear reactor. Fueled by thorium, and designed with failsafes the likes of which the world has never seen, the power cores in each of those four initial arcologies spun up without issue, and without anyone beyond the worker responsible and inner circle of conspirators even knowing.

The arcologies were a refuge in a world gone mad, a quiet place where life was simple, under the watchful eye and guiding hand of their controlling corporations. People flocked to fill them, though the political powers at the time took little notice. The political faction at the time almost certainly counted the arcologies among their assets, but they would soon realize their error. Corporate law replaced State and National, and under their new regulations there would be no tax flowing outward. The government raged and threatened. Police were politely declined entry. Later, much less politely. The arcologies were all designed with access control in mind, so it would take a full military offensive to have any chance of working.

In the spring of 2032, a state of emergency was declared, and the National Guard was mobilized to deal with these autonomous zones. The rural population watched in stunned disbelief as the military they expected would one day be used to crush them was instead marched into the hearts of those four cities, setting up perimeters around their respective arcologies. Plans were made, and orders were given to breach these rebel fortresses, to bombard their walls. To kill those who disobey, make an example of them.

The military, however, was still made of people. People who knew those who live in the arcologies. These were their mothers, their brothers, their sisters, their sons. The military, in all four cities, balked at their orders. Nearly 30% of the forces arrayed against them instead defected, leaving the remaining forces reeling. There was no bloodbath to cristen this revolution, just people choosing to help their own over their distant overlords.

In the wake of this crushing blow to their image, other entities rose up against the old governments. It was the first blow in a chain reaction that would see the entire nation collapse into a brief period of fighting. The military fragmented and joined many different causes, very few stayed and fought for the Federal government.

In the wake of what would later be called the Arcology Revolution, many of the politicians from the old system, and many of their financial backers fled to Europe. The arcologies used their position and resources to protect their cities from as much chaos as they could, establishing the order we know today: arcologies protect and provide for their cities, and their cities offer allegiance to their arcology, or the corporation behind it.

Many new groups and governments contacted the newly minted Arcology City-States, looking for direction or otherwise assuming that they would be replacing local governments. They all received similar answers: “Interfere with us, our property, or our people, and there will be consequences. Other than that, we don’t care what you do. You are free.”

Corporate citizenships were issued to those within the territory of the arcologies. This would occasionally result in families being split over whether to live in the wilds or under corporate rule, especially considering that corporate citizens were forbidden from owning any property outside the cities. Though it seemed a harsh measure, it was enacted to ensure an absolute minimum amount of conflict with the outside world.

Though the history of these wild northern territories and their many conflicts, and the rise and fall of their many governments, is beyond the scope of this text, it is relevant to us to note that this tactic has proven largely effective. In the many years since, there have been vanishingly rare incursions into corporate territory and similarly few crimes of any sort committed across urban-rural borders. This author will go so far as to speculate that it is the lingering respect for the arcologies, and their role in freeing the rural population from the cycle of tyranny. Some might say that the arcologies themselves are something of symbol to be honored, even by those that do not choose to live under our umbrella.

- Excerpt from History of the Arcologies, published by Veritas Books, a wholly owned subsidiary of GreenBlue