Most species crack FTL when they discover that their planet orbits the closest star, but due to Sol's solar wind, there is no magic. Now, in 2106, the Terra Firma Systems Union* has built their first set of 10 FTL SRVs**, and the Galactic Union, a place of magical intraspecies relations, finds itself looking at an actual spaceship***.

* the TFSU was formed after WW3, and was a major player in reversing climate change. They are the sole unified governing body of Humanity. They use a communist/capitalist economy, with universal basic income ensuring nobody goes hungry, but people have to work to go beyond that.

** SRV stands for Scientific Research Vessel. For example, TFSU Untested Ideas SRV 000-00-001 is a ship's full name. Still, Humanity's FTL is much faster and more agile than everyone else's.

*** most species use water-ships and just float them in space, so seeing an angular metal box with enough armor to not even care about cannons is very concerning. The same way, the aliens have not technologically progressed since.