The year is 2500 C.E. Once, humans lived on the surface of the Earth, in magnificent cities that stretched to the sky. But that was in the past, the world will never be the same again. Pollution, poverty, disease, greed, war. All these have brought about the collapse of Western civilization. Where once there were magnificent cities, where once there were natural wonders: forests, mountains; now there is only destruction.

It was into this chaotic world that Steve was born, in an area that had once been known as Europe. Steve was destined to unite the world, to bring about a new era for humanity. He alone rallied the support of thousands, using technology long abandoned to save the world from its doom. He was an inventor, a genius, some say. Using scraps and salvaged items, he built and his follows built the first Ark.

The Arks would be the salvation for humanity. Steve and his people would build many of them, sending them across the world over the dead landscapes, to once again seed life. In each Ark, a giant flying behemoth, contained artificially grown life, life that would spread once again over the Earth, resurrecting a dead planet.

But Steve didn't stop there. After the Arks, he rallied the masses: millions of starving, ragged people, and with them he built the first true city seen on the Earth in 200 years. They named this city Altera: its influence would soon spread across the world, it would become the center of this new world, awakening from its deep sleep. The world would once again live.

Many years have passed since then, and the Alterans (as the call themselves) have taken to the skies. With Steve's help, they have created floating islands, even entire towns and cities, kilometers above the surface. To celebrate the turn of the century, the turn of the era, the people decided to build a monument to Steve, a tower in his honor, where he could spend the rest of his life living in luxury, looking down on the world he created.

Located between the cities of Luxura and Selios, the S-13 and S-7 skyways run straight past Steve's tower, which will be unveiled at the end of the year, in time for the century-celebration. It was commissioned and designed by a budding young architect, who, abandoning all sense of humility, calls himself "Dr. Mackeroth".

The tower itself is a marvel of environmentally sound engineering. The superstructure is made from strong, lightweight carbon nano-tubing which is fully biodegradable when exposed to large amounts of bacteria (i.e. when buried). The rest of the structure is comprised of low-wattage holo-glass, recycled glass and steel, and various other bits and bobs. The tower runs on a combination of solar-paint panels, and a zero-point energy endo-spacial reactor which floats above the roof. The tower contains many trees and plants, even a small animal habitat. It is completely off the power grid, and Steve will be able to grow most of his own food there.