Aeon Student Guide: The Korean Reunification

I ended up having to divide Unity's Founding and The Korean Reunification into two separate entries, with the Korean Reunification in particular ending up a lot longer than I anticipated. I'm posting the first part up (on the Reunification) in it's entirety before the rewrite in order to solicit your feedback--please let me know if there's any awkward wording or anything seems unclear! 

If the text seems biased . . . well, the winners write history. And Unity definitely leans into that propaganda to make themselves come across as heroic as possible. None of the information is outright false, but there's enough of a slant that Button will be able to call it out in-game.

Most of this information gets repeated in-game during Rosy's new class scene, but in a much briefer/shallower way. Reading the Student Guide won't be necessary in order to enjoy Mind Blind, but it will provide some deeper insight into the world and lore. (And possibly drop a bonus clue, if you're paying close attention.)

* * * *

The Korean Reunification

The Korean Reunification War was an unprecedented event. Prior to the United Nations decision to unify all member nations against North Korean, the UN had primarily served only as an organization dedicated to facilitating open and peaceful discourse between separate countries.

What changed?

Alas, the answer is that thirty years ago, Ments were largely feared by the global community. Even in Finland, which had statutes granting Ments unique legal protection, those with mental agility still possessed restricted rights that limited their job opportunities, stripped away their ability to vote, and often denied them a fair trial if accused of abusing their psychic powers.

North Korea was not simply another totalitarian regime; it was a repressive dictatorship by Ments. North Korean leadership was decided by strength of mental agility, which its then-ruler being one of the most powerful Empaths in recorded history. Although the prevalent anti-Ment bias of the time was inarguably egregious, the atrocities committed upon North Korea’s populace by its Ment leadership must not be understated (for a full recounting, see pg. 129). Brainwashing was common, with conscripted soldiers serving under telepathic or empathic generals who used physical fatigue and indoctrination to break past mental barriers. When the true nature of the North Korean regime was revealed by a Ment deserter who survived crossing the DMZ, the tense stalemate between North and South Korea became increasingly heated and ultimately broke out in open combat.

When South Korea sent out the call for allies, the entire world responded, propelled by a shared concern that Ments in their own countries might view North Korea’s regime of terror not as a human rights violation but rather as an example to attempt to claim power of their own. The United Nations declared it a time of “unprecedented crisis,” and The Reunification War officially began. North Korea’s historical allies declared neutrality on the issue, their message was clear: so long as Ments openly controlled the nation, North Korea would receive no outside aide.

Despite being overwhelmingly outnumbered by UN forces, North Korea managed to temporarily claim Busan via subaquatic naval attack. South Korean citizens residing in the city were forcibly conscripted into the North Korean army, their minds grasped under the control of designated Ment “will breakers.” These civilians were sent to the front lines, where South Korean soldiers understandably balked at fighting people who had, the week prior, been family members and friends.

South Korean President Chae-min Choi proposed bringing in Ment soldiers to fight against North Korean leadership and free the non-Ment populace from psychic control. Under the leadership of Spec Ment Commander John Wiseman, an allied Ment taskforce took down Haneul Kim, the telekinetic general responsible for Busan’s seizure and whose violent misusage of telekinesis on the battlefield had earned him the name of “Black Hand.” Many scholars of modern history now regard Haneul Kim’s defeat as the impetus for Unity’s founding (see pg. 47).

Less than two months after the Liberation of Busan, North Korea unconditionally surrendered. The border between North and South was abolished, and Korea emerged as a reunified nation.