The New Way

Sometime around the turn of the century the capitalist part of the world found itself in a situation where a few corporations controlled the vast majority of business. Over the years, mergers, bankruptcies, anti-trust actions, and rebranding changed the names of the megacorporations. But it seems that it is the natural state of things that the economy is whittled down to a handful of companies.

The modern iteration of this condition is constructed around a piece of legislation. This was the law that would confirm the legality of corporate social credit programs. The new law was passed as a response to a court case that ruled against a corporation that had been sued for implementing one of these programs.

During a board meeting one CEO would famously answer the objections of his PR head, “This is the new way, get used to it.”

This new way would create an entirely new dynamic between the consumer and the business. In the past, the customer was always right. Now, the company would dictate to the customer what behavior was and wasn’t acceptable. The corporation would act as a kind of secondary government.

The new way’s defenders would point out that people respond to incentives; they were merely using incentives to help people make positive choices. Corporations had been doing that sort of thing for a long time now, this really wasn’t anything new. And besides, people needed to be controlled, wasn’t it better that a company do it in a soft manner, rather than a government use force?

The problem with this line of thinking is that each corporation has a different and often completely incompatible worldview. How can they say that they are helping people act right when they can’t agree on how they should go about acting right?

Regardless of the logic, morality, or practicality of the new way, it is universal. When given the right to implement a system of control the megacorporations took full advantage of the opportunity. Numerus polls and studies have shown that there is a demand for a company that lacks a social credit system; it is estimated that as much as thirty percent of the population would switch to such a service. In spite of this fact, there are currently no exceptions to the new way.

Alpha Prime

The origins of this corporation may very well be the strangest out of the bunch. This is especially true when we look at what the business has evolved into.

A social media star created his own fashion line aimed at male youth, called Young Alpha. This venture was widely mocked when it first launched. It was still mocked when the star reached his thirtieth birthday, but it out of pure jealousy, Young Alpha was now a major clothing manufacture.

The star cut his detractors off at the pass. A few weeks before his thirtieth he made an announcement, “I may not be so Young anymore, but I’m still an Alpha Prime,” this was immediately followed by the news that the corporation had changed its name.

Over the next few years the company would expand into other areas. The founder would tragically pass away before hitting forty. He was killed while helping to move injured sailors from a damaged navy destroyer onto his private yacht.

Alpha Prime refused to die with its creator. The company continued to grow until it found itself at the top.

During the 20s the university system would come close to completely collapsing. A variety of reform initiatives were tried. One such effort was the rejection of Critical Theory aka Social Justice. One major university would go so far as to embrace traditionalism, Alpha Prime would recruit very heavily from this institution. Many of these hires would go on to reach the very top of the company’s ranks.

The standards of behavior for an Alpha Prime member are traditional and conservative. Homosexuality is strictly forbidden. Masturbation and sex outside of marriage will result in a loss of social credit. Promotion of traditional values and conservative ideals will earn the member social credit. The company is against extreme body modifications. People that were gestated in artificial wombs are forbidden from joining.

Alpha isn’t tied to any political party. It instructs its members to vote on which ever candidate the board of directors believes will be the lesser of two evils.

The company’s colors are blue and white, its symbol is a chalice with a capital A engraved on it. Alpha’s currency is the Work Hour Credit, abbreviated as WHC. One WHC is worth two Burabō Tokens. They have forgone complex social credit systems in favor of simply standing levels, which are Bad, Good, and Superb.

Burabō Incorporated

Burabō got its start manufacturing military equipment during the Russo-Japanese war. The small company would eke out a living selling one product or another for over a hundred years. It wasn’t until an engineer had a minor accident that Burabō Inc would become a major player.

It began when the company was switching from manufacturing an outdated product to one that was believed to be the next big thing. The settings on a speaker system were bungled, causing an incredibly annoying sound. On a lark, the engineer rigged up a device on his lunch break that produced the sound with the simple press of a button. Video of him harassing his coworkers with the gadget would go viral, many viewers expressed a desire to have one.

The official story from Burabō is that the team saw an opportunity and jumped at it, that those innovators spotted a demand and met said demand like true capitalists. Other sources say that they initially offered the item as a joke. Regardless of their intentions, the new product would sell insanely well.

The profits were used to expand the company. It acquired a major drone manufacture, along with a weapons producer and an asteroid mining firm. They invested in a publishing house, which would land them the unbelievably lucrative Saga of the Stars franchise. From there they continued to grow, until one day they were one of the top companies. But they would end up hitting a major roadblock, one that would change the face of the company.

Someone noticed a pattern of mysterious deaths, every one of them tied to the use of recreational drugs. A public outcry led to an investigation. It was found that in almost every single case a Burabō product was to blame. It turned out that the company had been cutting corners to save money. The scandal resulted in legal action; the company would lose all rights to manufacture recreational drugs.

A shareholders meeting was called, they adopted a two-part plan for recovery. Their first step was to set up a special team, its sole purpose was to purge the company’s ranks. The team performed this task with razor sharp efficiency. They found and terminated every corrupt and incompetent leader in the corporation, they even did a brief audit of every single worker. Some sources of trouble were so deeply entrenched that it was easier to terminate them in an entirely different way. The special team completed its task by picking the new personnel that would form the skeleton of the rebuilt corporation. Then the team was given their reward, a hefty retirement package. It was hoped that this would keep them from making too many appointments based on nepotism.

The new president, Mr. Takahiro, was chosen for his masterful sense of innovation. He was immediately faced with the fallout of the scandal, which he parsed down to two main issues. One: a PR nightmare. Two: Burabō could no longer manufacture drugs, while the other companies could, putting them at a disadvantage.

Takahiro found an amazing solution, he would simultaneously take the moral high ground while working to deny the competition access to the drug market. If they couldn’t do it, then no one could. They would go full anti-drug.

The standards of behavior for a Burabō member are focused on abstaining from drugs, encouraging others to avoid drugs, and staying positive when it comes to the company’s entertainment franchises.

Burabō Incorporated is tied to the Liberty Party. In primaries members are instructed to vote for candidates that are anti-drug.

The company’s currency is the Burabō Token. A Burabō Token can on average buy one person a good meal. Purple and white are Burabō’s colors, their most common symbol is a letter B rendered in ornate script. The company’s social credit system is organized in seven tiers, each tier has three levels. Example: T2L3.

Charles Fauré

Charles Fauré was started by a man of the same name. He manufactured arms from his machine shop during the fall of France’s 16th republic. The ad hoc weapon manufacture would stamp every blade and barrel with his name and a sarcastic Fleur-de-lis. This playful action would cause him to become a bit of a meme among the conflict’s warriors.

His daughter would parley this fame into the creation and success of a proper weapon’s factory. Before her death several such facilities had been erected in France and other nations. Her successor, a young suitor, would take the company into other areas. By the time he stepped down Charles Fauré was one of the big five.

One high level corporate officer, Ben Bisswell, was married to a woman with a strange body. She would eventually change it, this time to a more human form, before changing it to something very alien. Her actions would scandalize elements of the press and public. They could never wrap their brains around why she would do this, much less why she couldn’t pick a body and stick with it.

Bisswell joined the ASC and brought in several of its spokesmen as advisors. Bisswell was instrumental in the acquisition of Human Action Services. This feat earned him an even higher position in the firm. He used his rank to increase the ASC’s influence even further. By the time he retired the company’s social credit program would abandon its Libertarian leanings to focus on enforcing ASC policies.

The standards of behavior for a Charles Fauré member are centered around complying with ASC dictates. Members are required to vote Freedom Party, favoring ASC approved candidates over pro-Mars politicians in primaries.

Water Certificates, redeemable for one liter of clean water, are the Charles Fauré currency. One Water Certificate is the rough equivalent of five Burabō Tokens. The corporate colors are gold and black, the Fleur-de-lis is still its primary symbol. The company’s social credit levels are Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, Black, and Ultra-Black.

Délta Corporation

Délta Co was one of the pioneers of asteroid mining using unmanned drones. They were also a major player in the second wave of Mars colonization.

During the 40s tensions began to grow between the Mars colonists and the government. At the tail end of the first wave of colonization a lonely and disturbed researcher massacred his teammates. The state took this as a sign that closer governance was needed. The colonists insisted that it was an isolated incident, the government pointed out that there had been several other violent altercations.

Things would finally kick off in the 50s. There was a sniper attack on a military convoy passing through Elonville. This resulted in the massacre at Korolev crater. From there, relations would continue to go downhill until a full-blown war had broken out.

The planet’s capital city, Opportunity, was quickly captured. Within a month the majority of the Earth’s military and police resources had been captured or destroyed. The state was ready for this eventuality. For the previous few years they had been preparing for a full-scale assault on the red planet.

The Martians failed to repel the invasion. They adopted hit and run tactics, slowly chipping away at the enemy, sending countless flag draped coffins back to Earth. After several years of this a public outcry forced the government to seek peace. Mars was granted independence, but it is common knowledge that Earth will try to take the planet back if they see an opening.

When the Délta Corporation reestablished contact with their Martian assets they were shocked to find that the majority of their facilities were still intact and that most of their employees were still alive. This was hailed as a major accomplishment. Several of the managers that were responsible for preserving the Martian side of the business were handsomely rewarded and fast tracked into positions of power. Shortly after this, the company would adopt a pro-Mars attitude and change its social credit program from a focus on being upbeat and polite to one that would reflect its new concerns.

The standards of behavior for a Délta member involve both loyalty to the brand and loyalty to the independent Martian colony.

The company’s currency is the Délta Dollar, which is worth somewhere around twenty Burabō Tokens. Red and black are its colors, a hollow triangle is its symbol. The social credit ratings are: D, C, B, B+, A, A+, AA, AAA, S.

Echo Industries

Echo’s first accomplishment was exploring and establishing a research facility on Charon. They were responsible for exploring the inner planets as well as making key developments in astro medicine.

The person most responsible for the company’s achievements on Charon was Miriam Paulides. Her career hit a roadblock when someone reported that she was using LSD. Paulides was recalled to Earth to face an internal investigation.

She made an impassioned speech in her defense, “The beauty of God’s vision is left naked and clear when you travel into the depths of outer space. How can you look at the pallid sphere of Pluto and deny it? I use the spirit molecule to help me commune with the creator, how does this make me bad? Who have I hurt?”

The review board wasn’t impressed, the same was true for the company’s directors. But the public liked it, and the government was inclined to defend her religious freedom. It was ultimately decided that Miriam would stay with Echo, and this was a good decision, because she would go on to establish settlements on over a dozen planetoids.

Paulides was eventually recalled to Earth again, this time it was to take overall control of Echo’s research and development programs. By this point she was already a high-ranking member of The Church of the Ascended. It has been noted that she had a tendency to appoint and promote fellow Church members. It has also been noted that several of these people would go on to gain high positions in Echo, and that they also tended to favor Church members.

The standards of behavior for an Echo member require tolerance of The Church of the Ascended, with entry into the church granting the member a great amount of additional social credit. Echo Industries is strictly Freedom Party, favoring the interests of the Church over those of Mars.

The company uses the Fuel Credit as its medium of exchange. One Fuel Credit represents a gallon of synthetic gasoline, it is the equivalent of four Burabō Tokens. Green and black are Echo’s primary colors. It uses two C shaped waves colliding as its symbol. The firm’s social credit system is rather complex, involving tiers and levels which are represented using abbreviations and roman numerals. The tiers and levels are: Unproven Customer, UC I-III; Proven Customer, PC I-III; Loyal Customer; LC I-VI. Exemplary Customer, EC I-V.