Norton's Crossing

Norton's Crossing is a terrestrial natural satellite in the Chi Eridani system. Its connection to other colonized systems like Eridanus, Terrel, Gliese 86, and Dagmar's Star has helped form part of its history and wealth.

Discovery
The planet was discovered in late 2423 by the independent Eridania Expedition led by the wealthy Captain Jeremiah Norton. The Chi Eridani system was chosen as a layover point after discovering branching, stable slipspace routes from the system. While in the system, the expedition discovered an Earth-analog moon with visible oceans and a primitive ecosystem around Tehom, the second planet orbiting the binary system's primary star. Formally known as Chi Eridani A II, Tehom is a massive, hot oceanic super-earth with a dense atmosphere mostly composed of carbon dioxide, making it wholly unsuitable for human life. Tehom's gravity is strong enough to retain substantial amounts of light gases in its atmosphere. Although the quantities of helium-3 are proportionally small, they are enough to support a gas-skimming and refinery industry for local fusion fuel needs.

One ship from the expedition returned to colonized space to report their findings thus far, attracting the attention of governments, corporations, and independents with word of another Earth-analog. Other scouts were sent to investigate in more detail.

Settlement and rising autonomy sentiments
Due to the peculiarities of Norton's Crossing's habitability, the typical rules for homesteading were suspended and a special commission was organized to manage the settlement. The commission was incompetent, often issuing broad and vague titles to land and resources. The BXR Mining Corporation and Liang-Dortmund Corporation established large claims on the primary continent, and swiftly came into conflict over conflicting claims. Although the conflict was initially fought in court, the protracted legal battle swiftly escalated into a proxy war of sabotage and shooting engagements. This chaos only relented when both companies settled out of court and formed the Norton's Crossing Corporate Council. The companies and parts of the colony enjoyed some profits from manufacturing, mining and trading with nearby systems as they were colonized and established.

Although the compromise worked for a while, independent colonists felt that the council was dominated by megacorporations and that an independent government could meet the challenges of the moon better. As such, a people's government known as the Republic of Norton's Crossing formed. Recognition of this government was limited, even on the moon itself. The Republic nonetheless began amassing weapons, light vehicles and a few ships with the intent of fighting the security forces of both Liang-Dortmund and BXR, evolving into an independence movement. With a small coalition of citizen allies, the companies lobbied the CMA and UEG as a whole in order to get assistance through 2493. Although the central military-political apparatus' of the UEG as a whole and the CMA in particular were focused elsewhere and believed these threats as a cash saving ploy by the megacorporations, the Office of Naval Intelligence's Bravo-9 Division took the situation more seriously. Operation: FREQUENT TUNDRA was started.

Insurrection
The CMA and UEG would view the situation like ONI far too late, as all-out conflict began in earnest following Far Isle and the Callisto Incidents in 2494. The security forces of both corporations were overwhelmed within months. When the Republic nationalized the captured facilities, both corporations threatened to pull out. The economic impact on the whole sector from this would have been disastrous. Due to economic fallout and the colony's position, the CMA was finally pressed into service and fought back. While the mining corporations would stay, the corporate council was eventually dissolved and the pro-UEG Government of Norton's Crossing was formed in it's place.

Norton's Crossing would become the frontline along the New Eridanus Route as Secessionist Union forces began to exert more and more control on planets in the region like Mamore and Eridanus II. The CMA was eventually replaced with the UNSC. Fighting took place beyond the 2504 collapse of the Secessionist Union. Before this point, the Republic had shrunk and relinquished chunks of the moon; their logistical connection to the Secessionist Union had fallen apart. Their control amounted to mostly the deserts and desert island chains in the northern hemisphere. This was finally reduced to only the islands between 2506 and 2507 as the UNSC finally drove the Republic into the sea.

Norton's Crossing would eventually become a staging ground for operations against the rising United Liberation Front. Notably, the 105th Shock Troops Division would briefly be stationed on the moon before moving onto other operations. The core group of the ULF would strike Norton's Crossing several times in an attempt to cut the UNSC off as well as wanting control of facilities in the system. While the ULF and the Republic were both enemies of the UNSC, the Republic viewed the ULF as a threat to their sovereignty. The two groups would clash several times. By the time of the near disintegration of the ULF, Norton's Crossing had seen the most battles and changed hands the most, out of any singular colony.

The Great War
The onset of the Great War saw a change in UNSC presence in the Chi Eridani system and Norton's Crossing. Unlike nearby Carrow however, Norton's Crossing was not evacuated. A token force remained to ensure stability and keep raw materials flowing inward. The Covenant pushes through the Eridanus region between 2529-2531 would spare the colony as their routes deviated from human charted slipspace routes.

Reconciliation era
While the UNSC was pushed back considerably by the Covenant along the New Eridanus Route, a garrison of peacekeepers were sent to the planet. This was done in order to protect Phoenix Initiative workers properly building up the moon and possibly enforce a new border for UEG's possessions along the route. This coupled and with the survival of nearby Carrow, saw the re-rise of autonomous sentiments. Many felt that it was the very presence of the UEG and UNSC that helped create and attract the ULF, Republic, and Covenant remnant factions to the moon. In 2564, the colony voted to leave the UEG/UNSC with a 62% majority. Fears have since doubled that the remnants of the ULF and possibly the Republic are waiting for the UEG and UNSC to leave as per the vote, before making yet another strike on the moon.

Neither of these actions would come true, though tensions remained. Threats of secession continued, spawning the economic focused Outer Eridanus Orgnization with Carrow. The threats of full succession continued until the 2580s.

Governance
Several different entities have governed or claimed governance over the moon. This includes:
 * Norton's Crossing Corporate Council, a private-sector focused body to help keep order among larger and smaller companies.
 * Republic of Norton's Crossing, a people's government who take inspiration from older colonial independence movements and participated in the Secessionist Union.
 * Government of Norton's Crossing, originally a United Earth Government backed civilian governing body that eventually becomes the founding member of the Outer Eridanus Organization.
 * United Liberation Front, a militant rebel force that believes that its status as a successor to the Secessionist Union entitles it to the moon.