A recent Scout expedition at the edges of charted space discovered a blasted but still teeming garden world, with evidence of a human civilization wiped out by a nuclear war thousands of years ago. Not an uncommon sight for the Scouts - for every Ancient seeding project that leads to a stellar empire or minor race, there are a dozen which die out long before they reach the stars, or in many cases even invent the wheel. This civilization appeared notable only in how far they had risen before their ultimate fall. The planet was given a cursory examination, named Icarus by a poetic (or smart aleck) Scout and handed over to the Navy to begin colonization - but then IISS scientists, following up on some oddities of the world, raised a hue and cry. They had discovered transitional fossils and precursor species on the planet. This world appeared to be where humans had originally evolved.
Except that everyone knows that Sol was where humanity had originally evolved. The very existence of Icarus appeared to blow the Solomani Hypothesis out of the water, raised major questions about the Ancients' nature and seeding techniques, and even led to positing the existence of a race of proto-Ancients who had somehow found (or created?) two worlds so alike that they would result in the evolution of exceedingly similar forms of sentient life. Solomani adherents (especially supremacists) argued that it was some sort of trick: If not on behalf of the Scouts*, then on behalf of the Ancients, who had seeded the world with false fossils and evolutionary proofs for reasons unknown. Opponents pointed out that the same argument could be used to claim that Sol was the impostor and Icarus the true homeworld. In short order, Icarus became a feuding ground for rival scientific institutes seeking evidence to support or disprove the Solomani Hypothesis, the Icarus Hypothesis, the existence of the proto-Ancients, or stranger theories still.
Previously the acceptance of Sol as a homeworld was met with general indifference, but now the argument has brought it to the attention of the interstellar community, each new development stoking the flames higher. While officially the Imperium still supports Sol as the original homeworld, the debate rages not merely in academic circles, but in spacer bars, on talk shows and in religious confabulations. Observers feel it is only a matter of time before it turns violent, and requests have been made to have Icarus red-zoned for reasons of political stability. Local authorities are dragging their heels, and for good reason: Interdicting Icarus may staunch the tensions, but it could just as easily be the flashpoint that turns a scientific debate into an outright war.
* or the Zhodani, who a certain segment of the population blame for everything suspicious anyway.
Except that everyone knows that Sol was where humanity had originally evolved. The very existence of Icarus appeared to blow the Solomani Hypothesis out of the water, raised major questions about the Ancients' nature and seeding techniques, and even led to positing the existence of a race of proto-Ancients who had somehow found (or created?) two worlds so alike that they would result in the evolution of exceedingly similar forms of sentient life. Solomani adherents (especially supremacists) argued that it was some sort of trick: If not on behalf of the Scouts*, then on behalf of the Ancients, who had seeded the world with false fossils and evolutionary proofs for reasons unknown. Opponents pointed out that the same argument could be used to claim that Sol was the impostor and Icarus the true homeworld. In short order, Icarus became a feuding ground for rival scientific institutes seeking evidence to support or disprove the Solomani Hypothesis, the Icarus Hypothesis, the existence of the proto-Ancients, or stranger theories still.
Previously the acceptance of Sol as a homeworld was met with general indifference, but now the argument has brought it to the attention of the interstellar community, each new development stoking the flames higher. While officially the Imperium still supports Sol as the original homeworld, the debate rages not merely in academic circles, but in spacer bars, on talk shows and in religious confabulations. Observers feel it is only a matter of time before it turns violent, and requests have been made to have Icarus red-zoned for reasons of political stability. Local authorities are dragging their heels, and for good reason: Interdicting Icarus may staunch the tensions, but it could just as easily be the flashpoint that turns a scientific debate into an outright war.
* or the Zhodani, who a certain segment of the population blame for everything suspicious anyway.
