Corporations had massive amounts of financial power. In the distant past it came to pass that no politician could ever win a general election without a corporate backer.
Soon every politician was beholden to his or her corporate sponser and the corporations held all effective power.
The first thing to fall was the wage. Minimum wage laws were rescinded and maximum wage laws were set in place.
Eventually, in the name of freedom and liberty, wages were outlawed all together. This was massively supported by the political north; with the galaxies most zealous activists protesting and chanting “wage labor is slave labor!”
Once wages were outlawed the vast majority of workers suddenly had no way to take care of their families. But fear not, as the corporations provided barracks housing and two meals a day for any laborer who worked at least 12 hours. Cold in the morning and hot at night.
Once the corporations had total control of the economy, the government, and the workforce they then had the political system changed into a corporate one. They created an articles of incorporation to replace the standing constitution and only stockholders could vote, with one share being one vote.
This resulted in massive amounts of share dilution as corporations printed shares as fast as they could, wiping out and diluting the last of the savings of the longest lasting individual hold outs.
The corporations now owned everything. The means of production. The goods. The services. The equipment. The militaries. Everything.
To stop the hyperinflation the corporations federalized themselves into the Federated Corporate Conglomerate. With a Chief Executive Officer leading them.
The only way forward for further profit was out. The Federated Corporate Conglomerate will not stop until it controls every resource in the galaxy.
This leads us to today. Captains will be given a small frigate. If they are able to acquire enough materials, they can turn those materials in and be given command of a stronger corporation ship.
Beware of the dangers of space. There are those who resist total control.
You don’t own the ship. The Fed does. And it must be returned upon request.