The Golden Age Under Emperor Augustus

Empire and You, the electronic publication founded by a subsidiary of UNN, was one of the most popular reads in the Terran Empire. On the front page of its first issue of 2503 was this line:

People had begun to naturally compare the age under Emperor Augustus's rule to the finest era in human history, without the slightest concern that doing so might be unfair. —Marx Spier

Indeed, those words perfectly reflected the growing ambition and arrogance of the Empire's people in this prosperous age.

"This isn't a good era. Powerful enemies surround us, and wars never cease. And I happen to know that the true disasters ahead are far worse than that."

As the Emperor of the Empire rode through the streets of Augustgrad in an Orion Turbo Coupe, he leaned sideways against the leather cushion and sarcastically remarked on the cover line of this issue of Empire and You. "Tell Spier to tone down the flattery, lest people start saying I control UNN again."

At that moment, Augustus's Turbo Coupe was crossing an elevated bridge that stretched like a giant dragon across the heart of Augustgrad. Its beginning and end vanished into the hazy morning mist, and the countless ground vehicles speeding along it seemed to be driving among the clouds.

On either side of the overpass stood an astonishing cluster of skyscrapers. Their Gothic, vertically soaring spires extended into a skyline beyond sight, while black glass separated by enormous grilles and polished metal facades gleamed brilliantly beneath the sun. The people of Augustgrad seemed to live in a forest of steel and glass built for giants, while the tiny figures on the ground resembled ants crawling over hills.

The entire city of Augustgrad was built atop unimaginable layers of steel structures. Vast buildings lined the roads in