Children of the Void: A Hard Sci-Fi Space RP

[Milke]

15 February, 2460 ►►► 1 January, 2461

View of gas giant Kugalm from the Asco Superhub.


Map of the known Cosmos with political entities and claims. Capital systems shown with double asterisks. Territories with no color-fill follow the 'caelus nullius' doctrine.

FULL PUBLIC MANIFEST OF THE RUBIX NETWORK

Notable Events in the Universe

►With the assent of Xingji authorities, a team of scientists hailing from the Russo-Belayevski Republic have embarked on a quest to investigate mysterious new findings revolving around the Rubix network. This comes as federal authorities prepare to send their hardened probe across Kagami to investigate the mysterious object in its orbit...

►After embarking on a routine patrol earlier in the year, the Belayevski corvette Admiral Andreyev went missing. Authorities have not commented as to the nature of the disappearance, but many are now suspecting that the ship has undergone 'renovations.'

►The United Paraisan States held their first 'interstellar' election on June 4th, choosing progressive Sebastião Fontes as the new president of the republic.

►Foreign secretary Sahand Salehi of the Sovereign Vespan Republic met with Concert representatives at the Blixthammar Aeroplex in May to iron out a trade deal between the two parties. Negotiations are ongoing, but political analysts are expecting that the deal will go through, and could so as early as next year.

►The Commerce Executive dominated the news cycle in September after the board announced it would be deploying four military frigates to help quell unrest at the corporate colony on Rhiannon, in the Luxemburg system. After a swift crackdown on colonists' attempts to form a union against their corporate sponsor, the unrest largely died down. Several dozen were reportedly arrested and deported to the colony run by Rosmerta Systems on Rosmerta, Rhiannon's moon.

Sovereign Fennoscandian Republic

Capital: Blixthammar, Henwya, TRAPPIST-1 System

(Pic. 2460)
Prime-Minister Oleana Johansson

(Pic. 2460)
President Åke Lindblad

(Pic. 2440)
Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces Olympia Svärdh

► Recognizing its own sovereignty and the need to protect its assets, Prime-Minister Johansson announced the establishment of the Fennoscandian Defense Navy in February of 2460, marking a turning point for the republic's position in interstellar affairs. In accordance, all of the republic's existing cosmological assets have now been re-organized under the FDN, including its new military ships. The young FDN would welcome Port Kroon in Henwya orbit as its headquarters - a new and prominent

►Major and groundbreaking additions to the Blixthammar Aeroplex have been confirmed after a coalition of corporate and government groups came together to fund the project - the Henwya Cosmoloop will be among the largest and most expensive single structures built in the planet's history, and its proponents say it will democratize private spaceflight, much like how the European Launch Ring democratized spaceflight on Earth. Construction began in early June and is expected to finish within seven years if all goes well.

►In early September Prime-Minister Johansson headed up a summit in Blixthammar between the republic's human and Lengekyo leadership. The summit came as a reaction to a string of scandals across the country involving abuse of natives and systemic corruption. Tai Hyuolyu, mayor of Syugi, Fennoscandia's largest city, spoke and promised comprehensive reforms aimed at curbing nepotism and old-world attitudes. Other local leaders were not so enthused, choosing to criticize human leadership's lack of initiative and understanding of Ryunoyu culture and affairs as a key cause of extant issues in Fennoscandia's majority-Lengekyo communities. Talks were adjourned mid-September, and though change was promised, many in the public were left unconvinced that there was an easy solution to the issue.

►One solution came later in the month with the announcement of subsidies for the foundation of co-racial communities across the nation. The proposal, led up by a coalition of human and Lengekyo progressives in Parliament, was approved by landslide and put into effect in early December. However, the exact goal and effectiveness of these 'diverse villes' is yet to be seen. With the new year crawling close, communes backed by local governments have begun springing up, their populations largely filling in with those of low income on both sides of the racial coin. Still, progress is slow as these new communities struggle with job opportunity in an economy now dominated by Blixthammar's technical and experiential 'critical mass.'

►Late in the year, advanced coastal windfarm designs pioneered by SolarCity Europa started to become a reality after parliament approved extensive subsidies for the solar energy firm. With their first big break since the establishment of Fennoscandia's orbital infrastructure, SolarCity has already established over several dozen sea-based wind turbines which are already servicing towns surrounding Syugi.

Russo-Belayevski Republic

Capital: Novyy Sibirsk, Chronus Prime, Chronus System

(Pic. 2460)
President Vitaly Oshankobich

►Following an international controversy spawned by the Zhivans' declaration of the Russian Federation in the Rubix network, Belayevski president Vitaly Oshankobich held a press conference to affirm the republic's sovereignty from the 'defunct' Russian Federation. Nonetheless, he vowed to work closely with his counterparts down the chain, even floating the possible formation of an official coalition between the two republics.

►In late February, the great bulk of the Belayevski navy congregated in orbit over Vetrenyy to test the veracity of earlier simulated war-games. In a press conference in held in March, military officials said they were pleased with the results of the war-games and that the new Tigershark-class frigates exceeded all expectations.

►Proponents of the free market celebrated when in late March the government on Chronus Prime announced that it would introduce a limited run of currency in order to combat issues of motivation and trade. This comes as Belayevski presence in Omicron Subes and across the stars intensifies.

►The Ministry of Science announced in June that it was funding the establishment of a research outpost out in the Belayevski frontier - by 2463, the system of Tumanyy Zvezda will be host to a small scientific outpost tasked with investigating and researching the Orion Molecular Complex in a way humans have never been able to before - from within it.

►In the wake of the Vetrenyy wargames held in February, a private watchdog announced that it had spotted the construction of a large military installation in the Kuzmich system - a strategic chokepoint leading to the heart of Belayevski space. While the Ministry of Defense could not be reached by foreign press for comment, many defense analysts did not express surprise at the increasing militarization of Kuzmich - the system has long been the de-facto 'frontier' between the Russo-Belayevski Republic and Concert of Henwya, being the first inhabited system one would cross into when journeying to Chronus Prime, and the last when embarking toward Omicron Subes.

►In late September, a ground-breaking ceremony was held to commemorate the opening of Chronus Prime's first droid production facility. President Oshankobich was present to perform the ground breaking, and promised in a speech that many more facilities were planned as part of the republic's mission to 'extinguish scarcity' and 'propagate prosperity.'

Commerce Executive

Capital: Nilm City, Eno, System 01

(Pic. 2450)
Director-General of the Board James R. Oligon III

►In March, several ships in the Board's fleet embarked on a breaking-in-flight to test out systems and weapons, returning to System 01 later that year for duty.

►A gang shoot-out late last year at Nilm City's largest and most prestigious club sent shockwaves through the metropolis. An investigation launched after the New Year determined that the victim, the club's owner, had been the aggressor and that the shooter had acted in self-defense. The city was shocked nonetheless when the acquitted shooter was killed by an explosion in his own home in late March. With authorities coming up empty-handed for leads, some have now begun pinning the death of the shooter on Nilm City's government. The shooter-turned-victim's surviving family denounced the conspiracy theory, announcing in June that they were suing the manufacturer of their house's HVAC system - the part which is thought to have exploded - for a large sum.

►The quaint lunar colony on Rosmerta, Luxemburg has recently become a hot subject for migrants seeking a 'faux frontier' lifestyle out in the stars. Cheap transportation to the Luxemburg system and generous Board subsidies of firms operating on the moon have made it an attractive and rapidly-growing hub in Luxemburg, especially as tensions simmer below on the surface of its parent planet, Rhiannon.

►In late July, independent watchdogs spotted the erection of a significant number of new stations in strategic locations around Eno and down the chain to Omicron Subes. Later in August, the Commerce Executive at large would learn that these new jamming satellites were part of a 'signal defense network' being managed by Salton & Creele. Shortly after the news broke out, a number of prominent firms entered suit against Salton & Creele, with an independent council in the Board ruling that S&C could not unilaterally establish censorship measures in other corporations' common space, and especially not in the vicinity of critical infrastructure. Salton & Creele was able to retain ownership of its signal defense satellites in System 01, but was obligated to dismantle, move or hand over control of examples in the primary operating systems of the suing parties.

►This decision came as a significant blow to Salton & Creele's ongoing campaign to corner the market of System 01 - an effort that has not been lost on anyone in the system. Nonetheless, a merger with several shipping companies based on Eno was approved in early December, significantly expanding S&C's reach in the system as it prepared to inherit a fleet of freighters and a base of wealthy customers. S&C also announced the formation of a new company that same month - AstroShield, a space-based electronics manufacturer specializing in ruggedization services.

►In mid-December, a force of customs officers arrived at the Phoenicia-Omicron Subes Rubix to begin their work - the Board stated in a press release several months prior that further security measures would be necessary to protect the Commerce Executive's sovereignty, although many corporations operating across this Rubix have now begun to question what measures the Board may further find necessary. Still, trade through to Omicron Subes is expected to continue mostly uninterrupted, with this new taskforce serving as a simple security check against a perceived risk of foreign incursion.

Russian Federation

Regional Capital: Angelsk, Zhiva, Veliky Persey System

(Pic. 2460)
Provisional President Leonid Sharonov

►At least on the surface, Zhivan space underwent significant political change as its people prepared to undergo a transition back to the Russian Federation. With agencies and government wings dissolved, reorganized and reborn, Zhivans went into 2361 as Russians, witnessing the birth of several new republics and a provisional federal government acting in the name of that one far, far away.

►The Republic of Zhiva welcomed a new head of the republic as voters elected Leonid Sharonov for the federal presidency, and she too welcomed her new siblings in the Republics of Chernastep, Arktika, and Skobelev.

►This new political transition also hailed a promised economic transition as the digital currency presses rolled out the fabled Ruble of old for a new century and a new Russia - soon enough, the Russian outposts in Omicron Subes were dealing in Ruble, and taking in heaps of foreign goods in exchange for it. Next to the Common Credit and the Commerce Executive Credit, the underdog Ruble is already rising in prominence by the end of the year.

►Not unlike for the Belayevskis, this economic transition came at an opportune time for Russians everywhere, as space travel becomes increasingly more affordable more people are venturing out into the vacuum to make their living, or even live there permanently. Indeed - with more colonies per capita than any other nation, the Russians were becoming a prominent presence in the deep expanse of the cosmos.

Kingdom of Caehzaehh

Capital: Edenel, Caehzaehh, Nog St'aly System

(Pic. 2430)
King Aslan Leonidze

(Pic. 2460)
Avatar of Xwytsau

►Seeing off a complement of construction ships and crews hailing from the Commerce Executive, the Kingdom hailed March 3rd, 2460 as a day to remember - when Caehzaehh's first major spaceport was christened and opened for operation - one step in a greater chain of efforts across royal space to colonize the empty expanse which they called theirs.

►The event would only play into the optimism of another great event in late March - the declaration and enfranchisement of an official Spacer caste, thus bringing the ostracized group into the legal fold of the Kingdom, and ever-closer toward widespread acceptance in society. The product of prominent spacers who negotiated a profit tax in exchange for enfranchisement, the greater spacer community hailed the decision as the act of a benevolent Xwytsau and wise King, and spacers from all over would quickly register and integrate themselves in all ways possible - indeed, spacers would be the first to man Port Temur over Caehzaehh, and their ranks were now slowly beginning to grow. This new influx of spacers sees the rapid growth of the caste's already-existing outposts strung across the route from Nog St'aly to Omicron Subes, and they benefit especially from newfangled government assistance as part of the King's agenda to expand the Kingdom's presence in space.

►While efforts to bring the vast cosmos into the Kingdom's fold were ongoing, there was also a concerted effort by the Royal government to bring Caehzaehh's barren wilds into the fold - royal subsidies to construct groves and temples across the planet are seeing the accelerated 'verdification' of the purple planet as vast swathes of land are committed for religious purposes, and communities across Caehzaehh are benefiting - both for their own spiritual sake and for the influx of money committed by wealth tourists from across the stars.

►In exchange for further subsidies to construct dedicated granaries and other industrial facilities, communes across Caehzaehh have been tasked with the construction and maintenance of local roads which will one day cross the planet, connecting isolated villages and towns by vehicle and rail where other forms of travel prove too costly. By late December, hundreds of villages have already begun work, but work they will - with so much planet to connect, they have it cut out for them.

►Edenel especially sees to benefit from these royal subsidies, and the capital uses its slice of the pie to begin construction of a droid factory in the city's outskirts. With plans for more to come soon, the factory is expected to be operational within five years, and its industry to be self-sufficient within at most fifteen.

Stay tuned for confidentials/technology!

 

[Milke]

Technological Innovations, 2460-2461

OPD Officers stand guard outside the capital building in Edenel, Caehzaehh, 2461.

In the Sovereign Fennoscandian Republic

►Habs Under the Sea
A number of companies have come out with specialized deep-sea or floating submarine-like habitats for use on Omicron Subes 3 - a world notable for having virtually zero landmass, but rich marine ecosystems in its marvelously deep oceans. These new habs designs are making cycles in the press as a solution to water-world habitation, and could potentially open up a dozen of such worlds to extremophile colonization, as well as scientific research.

►Orbital Defense
A bid by the Ministry of Defense to acquire designs for an orbital defense system to defend Fennoscandia's orbital assets over Henwya has come to fruition - a station design by Lockheed-Bofors North includes high velocity standoff railguns which would not significantly threaten ground targets but would adequately protect against orbital military threats - also included is a powerful laser for ablating small debris and projectiles. The installation, codenamed FREYR, is designed to be docked and integrated into existing station designs or as an independent station with optional maneuvering modules.

In the Russo-Belayevski Republic

►Understanding the Rubix
Further research into our local Rubixes has revealed strange facts indeed - while working on a Rubix in Kuzmich, researchers were able to access and interface with a manager-computer, and their doing so yielded process activity that resembled brainwaves - further adding credence to the theory that Rubix manager-computers are sentient. Attempts to communicate by interface have naturally failed, but peeks into their esoteric workings may yield some interesting information indeed.

In the Commerce Executive


►Improved PDCs
The Commerce Executive's greatest engineers, distributed across myriad defense companies, went hard at work with their Alanian partners to design point-defense systems which could stand up to a new age of modern missile technology. The requirements for the systems were stringent, and the designs were [REDACTED]. Due to [REDACTED], two designs actually resulted - from BAE Systems, the Commerce Executive's winner emerged: a new laser array system for military ships with a power surplus, capable of [REDACTED]. From the Alanian side emerged a series of high-velocity rail gatlings, capable of saturating fire onto incoming missiles, as well as serving as a close-range attack weapon.

In the Russian Federation


►Modern Gear for a Modern Decade
Bids for modernized military gear have come into their own recently, and we have set up contracts to start arming our ground forces with this, in order that we're prepared for any eventuality.

In the Kingdom of Caehzaehh


►Improved PDCs
The Commerce Executive's greatest engineers, distributed across myriad defense companies, went hard at work with their Alanian partners to design point-defense systems which could stand up to a new age of modern missile technology. The requirements for the systems were stringent, and the designs were [REDACTED]. Due to [REDACTED], two designs actually resulted - from BAE Systems, the Commerce Executive's winner emerged: a new laser array system for military ships with a power surplus, capable of [REDACTED]. From the Alanian side emerged a series of high-velocity rail gatlings, capable of saturating fire onto incoming missiles, as well as serving as a close-range attack weapon.

►Project Green Caehzaehh
Ecologists from the Order of Planetary Enrichment have engineered a type of grass which is most-suited to Caehzaehh's harsh and barren conditions - an ancestor of primordial grasses on Earth, they are easily plantable under current irrigation conditions and should be suited to most biomes across Caehzaehh. A diverse set of tree genomes has also been prepared for eventual planting.

►Laser Weaponry for the Common Man
Research into the viability of handheld laser rifles has revealed what the Order of Military Thought has been saying since it was created - laser weapons are inefficient, and kinetics rule the day! Soldiers of the Dinsaldat and Order of Planetary Defense continue to use conventional and hybrid firearms, while a true handheld railgun remains out of reach. However, this matter of research has proved amply more useful in the Order of Military Thought's cooperative research with defense companies in the Commerce Executive.

►A Most Divine Re-Tooling
Many of our up-and-coming C2 factories are being retooled to build purpose-specific components for expanding the Machine Spirit. While this will delay our efforts to produce more C2s, heads at the Order of Industry insist that the re-tooling will satisfy demands from up-high.

 

[Milke]

Comms officer Lukas Ohlson was roused from his sleep by a sudden and harsh report from his station.

A drop of sweat trickled down his brow - he sat forward, his consciousness slowly returning to him. A vignette of black slowly crept in and out of his periphery as he rocked in his seat. The ache of his muscles and the unexpected pull towards the floor told him the ship was under thrust - perhaps a gee or more.

Lukas sprawled his hands over the touchscreens of his whining station. Coordination still foggy, he fumbled and backtracked through the labyrinthine UI of his comms station, trying to pull up readings and quiet this rooster of an alarm.

Another micrometeoroid crossing a planet's distance from us, he thought to himself.

He envied the hands who were under privilege to sleep at this time, and began to, as he often did, despise the man who designed such a loud and trigger-happy alert system. He worked with a quickness to dismiss and log the alert.

A cold, dull sensation spread up Lukas's chest as the screen resolved a visual representation of the received radio burst. He only looked in shock as the brilliant false-color image completed before him.

He tapped into ship comms.

"Comms to Korpral Olander."

...

"Korpral, it's Ohlson - please pick up."

...

Lukas's fingers shook as he fumbled with his seat harness. He pressed himself to his feet, holding onto the console for support - he could feel an intense, dull ache in his knees. He stumbled through dark, tight halls full of hardware and wire, his ears pounding painfully to the rhythm of the ship's titanic main motor.

Finally, he reached a heavy bulkhead adorning the title of his slumbering co-worker. Twelve raps against the titanium door invited the wrath of Korpral Sven Olander - wrath that, coincidentally, invited his attention.

"Korpral..."

"Don't ask me to go to go to engineering over that fucking radar. Don't ask me anything - we're under relief, and you're basically AWOL."

"The-"

"Fucksake Lukas! Chain of fucking command. Leave me alone." Sven said, still inebriated by slumber.

Lukas felt the joints in his arm start to give in as he lunged to stop the bulkhead from closing. Looking Olander in the eyes, he could feel the rising anger of his sleep-deprived CO focusing into a beam of collimated hatred. Lukas quickly felt the courage to speak escape his body. He thought quick what to say before Olander resolved to lay him out.

"-I scooped an ARS. There's imagery." Lukas said with a lull in his volume.

Lukas saw a falter in Sven's composition. He seemed to ease it up. The two exchanged confrontational looks in silence.

"Ping it to my station." the Korpral said, moving to shut the bulkhead. Lukas didn't dare interfere. He stood in silence, and then turned to shamble back to his comms station.

A rush of pleasure came over Lukas when he planted himself back into his seat, taking the burden of gravity off of his knees. He pulled up a report dialog and prepared to send the details of the alert to Korpral Olander's station. Taking a deep breath, he hit the enter key and slumped back in his seat.


...

Lukas felt a hand grip his shoulder. When he came to, the white-lights in comms were on. He felt lighter, and the rumble of the engine was quieter. Arrayed in a semi-circle around his station were the head honchos of the Gryning.

"Pull it up." Korpral Olander said, his voice now lacking slur.

The authority in his presence did more to wake him than any alert tone could. He worked at the keyboard quickly, every blunder sending a chill down his spine as the eyes behind him observed. A few keystrokes and swipes of the finger resolved the full spread of data.

All present stood in silence.

The calm voice of Kapten Sparv broke through the silence.
"What's the course of action here?" he asked, though Lukas didn't know to who. He kept his mouth shut.

"Vice-Korpral, did your dish pick up metacode?" an unfamiliar voice asked. A ship of seventy and he'd never heard this man's voice.

Lukas dug into the radar log and extracted a metadata file. He pulled it up for all to see.

...

"Wow - Kapten, it's my opinion that the Vice-Korpral should fire a hail." The man said in amusement. Lukas tried to imagine the Kapten's reaction without looking back.

"Have at it then, Ohlson." Kapten Sparv said. Lukas hesitated at such a sudden permission.

With a hail of keystrokes, Lukas began to compose a broad-band ping to the radio object.



"RSG KAZINSK.

WE HAVE RECEIVED YOU ON AUTO-TRANSPONDER.

PLEASE ACKNOWLEDGE AND DIRECT FURTHER COMMUNICATIONS BY TIGHT BEAM."



"Is this the right decision?" Kapten Sparv said, his voice even more reserved than usual.

The man Lukas didn't recognize spoke then -

"Kapten, I fear if we ignore it, we're simply sticking our heads in the sand."

...

"Send it, Ohlson." Sparv said.

Lukas took a deep breath, and then hit enter.

 

[Milke]

"-Although details from the government and the ship-owner Republic Star Group have been sparse at best, anonymous sources at the local level told IPG that the search for the Kazinsk wreckage will likely wrap up later this year, with today marking three months since the ship's disappearance along with its eighty-five crew. IPG Journalist Sven Lavanin has been in Zhiva interviewing families of the lost freighter's crew, where some are still holding out hope for a happy ending. As this exclusive story develops, we'll keep you posted.

In news closer to core, Omika Group announced a record valuation at its annual shareholders' meeting in Nilm City this week, coinciding with the settlement of its long-running bid to establish a trade station in treaty space. OG's Vice-President, Calahan Grey, said that construction of Port Carthage would proceed despite Nemedus Heavy Works' intention to appeal the de-"

Sigayev waved his hand, powering the television off and bathing his office in darkness

Another gentle rap of knuckles echoed from the door.

"Make it quick." he called out.

The door slid open, a solid bar of orange light pouring into the dark office. A smaller man, hair slicked back to compliment a tightly-tailored suit, entered with documents in hand. He approached Sigayev's desk without hesitation, the door sliding closed behind him as he walked. It took the magnificent cream-orange light with it, returning the office's dark ambience.

"The reports are back from Raskova." the fashionable businessman summarized as he dumped a number of papers on Sigayev's desk.

The wrinkles on his forehead creased.

"Did they find the ship?"

"No."

Sigayev exhaled slowly. He stared at the report before him - laser-ink Cyrillic printed on bleached white paper, stamped with a bold and conspicuous red CONFIDENTIAL. He didn't bother actually reading it - he let the dull typography keep his mind from going off the rails.

"Where is my fucking ship, Eduard?"

"What they're telling us is no debris, no impact storms, no craters, and no signatures anywhere in the system."

Sigayev slowly brushed the report aside, his composition eerily calm. His chin rested on one palm, propped up by his elbow.

"How do I explain this to the board? To parliament? This is a disaster."

"It is." Eduard simply said.

...

"Why are you here? To tell me the obvious? To give me a hug before the board reams me up the fucking ass?"

Sigayev's hands were shaking now. He looked up to his younger protege.

Eduard's lips pursed. "Ser, you should look at the report."

Sigayev glared with contempt, but his young assistant was quite well used to it. He brought the report back in front of him and began to read. Sigayev went sparingly over the printed paper, and Eduard stood silently as minutes passed.

Sigayev drew a sharp breath, meeting Eduard's gaze. He returned with a knowing look, assuring Sigayev's expression of surprise, confusion, and, perhaps, fear.

"Who gave you this?"

"Proprietary Ops, ser." Eduard answered calmly, easing the tapping of his foot.

"Get Sharonov on the line. In the iso booth." Sigayev said sternly.

"I'll have it ready in five, Mr. Sigayev." Eduard said, then turning to exit.

The bright orange glow of the lobby briefly illuminated the numerous wrinkles on Yuri Sigayev's face. He stared at those laser-ink letters. The lowest tech for the highest confidentiality.

Sigayev reached for his liquor cab and uncapped a fresh bottle.