I am a relatively new addition to the galactic stage. I grew up starlocked on Kemet, before it imploded. Since then I've plundered ancient hulks in the Vagrant Fleet, and battled against the Unseen Fleets. I've both been saved by the Confederacy, and watched it perpetrate injustice.
I've been inside the Nebiat System, and spoken with the Krox. I've toured the shipyards at New Texas, and spent time in alleys on Ternus, so far below the towering skyscrapers that light doesn't penetrate.
I have even spent time among the demonic artificers that serve Xal'Kazon, the demon prince of creation, and witnessed his dark miracles.
There are countless more places I haven't seen, but as I visit each I will share what I learn. I ask that you do the same. We know little about where we came from, because our ancestors didn't value history, or recording things as they are.
Well here's things as they are in our sector, and there is absolutely no bias on my part. If you believe that then hopefully you're gullible enough to Quantum 20 credits to #AugmentJereksBankAccount. It will, uh, help save kids.
If you need more than what I have here I'd check out
The Magitech Chronicles. They are an unauthorized retelling of the war, though I don't know how accurate they are. Just a warning that if you are interested in the story, and don't know much about history, then I might wait to read the rest of this chapter.
There are spoilers below.
The Shayan Confederacy
Any discussion about our sector has to begin with the Confederacy. If you are a smuggler, slaver, or honest freighter captain you will probably come to hate them. They take what they need, and make no apologies to the people hurt in the process. As an entity the Confederacy is brutal and callous, whatever its leadership intends.
They are this way, because their mandate requires it. They are all that keeps our sector from perpetual war. Every member state, which is most civilized worlds in our sector, has agreed to arbitration by the Confederacy, and to abide by Confederate rulings in interplanetary matters.
We can already see the benefits. The Krox set our sector aflame. They wiped all life from Starn, and the planet is now a tomb of the unliving. They killed nearly everyone on Marid, and New Texas, and Shaya. Yet now they are a part of the Confederacy, and since that accord there has been no more planet burning.
Most of the Member states hate each other. Originally they joined because Shaya effectively conquered the sector, and set up puppet governments everywhere but Ternus. Ternus joined because they saw threats like the Krox, and knew they'd have no chance without Confederate magic and resources. In exchange they opened the breadbasket that is Colony 3, and began to feed the entire sector.
I believe that was a wise strategic move. The entire sector relies on shipments from Colony 3. If we lost it the deaths would be in the billions, and the very fabric of every system's daily life would likely grind to a halt. You can imagine how well protected that planet is now, and how vital Ternus is considered to be.
We have reached an uneasy peace where we all need each other, but keep a knife to each other's throats just to be certain.
Shaya
Population: 47 million Shayans and Drifters
Government: Elected Council, The Tender
Known Catalysts: The Tree of Shaya
Exports: Shayawood, Life mages
Shaya is that uncle you have who fought in the war, and always talks about how he wiped out a platoon all on his own. There's footage to back it up, and every word of it is true, but he still can't make it up the stairs on his own, or remember where he put his pants.
For almost nine millennia Shaya has stood with little in the way of changes. Their eldest members tend to reach twelve to fifteen hundred years, which means even for them it was seven generations. Each of these generations saw a lessening of their power and prestige, as their ruling demigods were killed off or gave themselves to Shaya when they couldn't bear reality any longer.
Their world is carpeted in redwood forests, and among them are Great Tree seedlings, that will grow to rival the single arboreal giant where the ruling elite have made their home. The powerful and wealthy occupy the highest branches, with descending power and prestige until one gets to the roots.
In pre-Krox Shaya the poor were underfed, and the roots overcrowded, but a pair of war heroes named Kezia and Bord have started a number of programs to bring food, wealth, jobs, and education to anyone in need. When you speak to an average citizen on any level they have glowing things to say about the couple. They have less glowing things to say about Tender Ducius.
Tender Ducius is the first Tender to be directly appointed by a goddess, apparently, but also the first Tender not to have the direct backing of a powerful
life Catalyst. What used to be a powerful, immortal mantle is now merely a title.
Ducius is really first among equals among the council, though in practice he has a lock on most votes. Even his opponents respect him. He is cruel and contemptuous of lessers, but he wants the best for his planet. Many say he is angry that Voria was elevated to godhood over him, especially with the whispered rumors that the goddess executed his own son, Thalas.
Shaya's place after the war changed. They are no longer a galactic power, but their exports are making up for it. Shaped Shayan wood is highly prized through the sector, as it is harder than tritanium. It's sold as everything from spellblades to shuttles, though it does need to be shaped to order by a skilled artificer. As you can imagine Shayan artificers are finding jobs all over the sector installing Shayawood as the reconstruction continues.
Shaya also exports a variety of fruits, nuts, and livestock. The government charges a premium for scholars to study at their Temples, where they hold immense lore about our past. This premium is used to improve infrastructure, education, and the overall lives of citizens. Post-war Shaya reports the highest per capita happiness of any system. Ever. That's what happens when a handful of people are given a sprawling paradise and near infinite wealth, I guess.
Ternus
Population: 4 Billion
Government: Elected Governor and Senate
Known Catalysts: None
Exports: Entertainment, Bad Decisions
Ternus raises so many questions I wish I could answer. The closest definition for the name I can find is an acronym that supposedly dates back to ancient Terra. It's short for the Texan Renewal of the United States. Who the Texans were, why they were renewing them, and which states they united are all lost, at least if their libraries and my Quantum research are accurate.
Whatever their origins, Ternus represents the most advanced technological power in the sector. They have the most citizens by an order of magnitude, though the majority of those citizens wish they could be on another world.
Highrises cover nearly 70% of the surface of the planet, with the rest being allocated to state-owned reservoirs. The poor, which is nearly everyone, are relegated to the allies and lower levels, which are as dangerous as they are unsanitary.
Those on the middle levels have just enough for the people below to want to take it, and aren't any safer from what I can see. They lack the funds for security, and have to try to avoid notice, like I did back in my flopstack on Kemet. I know that life well.
Above them, across an obvious line of drones, checkpoints, and turrets, lays the upper middle class. They are the buffer between the truly wealthy who live above the clouds, but at least they get to see daylight some of the time.
Every high rise is its own city, complete with internal shipping, forges, foundries, and anything else a citizen needs to survive, or on the upper levels, thrive.
Ternus is still a strong galactic power, though their navy is much diminished after the war. For generations Ternus has relied on the New Texan shipyards, which are located at their first and strongest colony. During the last war they turned to the Inurans for help, but I notice that none of the sleek black ships they purchased are being flown.
My bet? The Inurans built some sort of back door into the ships, and turned on their clients at some pivotal moment in combat. If you have details, and want to share, contact me via Quantum. I'll keep you anonymous.
The NT Shipyards are producing, and their factories have been retooled as well, but that seems more alarming than reassuring to the Ternus Governor. I get why. There's nothing to stop New Texas from declaring total independence, and if they do Ternus has a whole lot of mouths to feed, but would suddenly lack the military might to protect those people.
New Texas
Population: 118 Million
Government: Locally elected Governor, who pays lip service to Ternus
Known Catalysts: None
Exports: Starships, guns, tanks, explody things
New Texas is probably my favorite war story, as well as my favorite underdog recovery story. The planet is largely arid, and relies heavily on food imported from Colony 3 to survive. This is less true than it used to be, because most of NT's citizenry died in the war.
The Krox killed them, then animated their bodies into unliving corpses, and hurled them into combat with their former brothers. It was a war of attrition that the New Texans will never forget, and never allow to happen again. With the help of Voria and her forces they took down the binders. Now they are forever vigilant, to the point where it is ingrained in every survivor. Mages cannot be trusted. Even the ones who saved you can be corrupted into Demons, like their hero, Aran, Voria's right hand.
They will never forgive the Krox, or the Ifrit, though they are more likely to tolerate the latter. What they will not tolerate is any form of
spirit or
earth magic. They recognize those things as belonging to binders, and binders are not just killed. They're made an example of. Global holiday's are built around making a spectacle of a binder's death.
New Texas has labored hard to rebuild their orbital shipyards, and that industriousness continues. Every day their world is able to grow more food, and more shipments of soil from Shaya are arriving daily. For the first time a new generation of local farmers are playing the primary role in feeding the common folk. There's even talk of cattle, if they can get enough soil transplanted.
Many New Texan's pray to Voria as the Lady of Light, and trust her to watch over them, and to protect them, and ironically trust her more than many of her own people on Shaya. Here, she is recognized for the goddess she is, not the goddess they wish her to be.
I don't know if New Texas will ever make a play for independence, but I've never met as self-sufficient a people.
Colony 3
Population: 480 million
Government: Elected Governor, who reports to Ternus
Known Catalysts: None
Exports: Proteins, soy, processed foods, and beef
I haven't visited Colony 3. You probably haven't either. Colony 3 is a restricted system, and most citizens are not allowed to leave the glittering blue planet. Everyone who lives there helps to maintain a farm, and the entire world is blanketed in one crop or another.
If it doesn't have a plant on it, then it has a solar cell, or livestock. The entire world is designed to produce, and every citizen reflects that need. The documentary I watched showed happy people, but I have to wonder what it might feel like to be starlocked against my will.
On the upside the citizens are well fed, extremely well paid, and don't have to work very hard to maintain their standard of living.
Infiltrating Colony 3 requires bypassing the orbital defenses, which are considerable and growing more so every day. Now they are backed by Yantharan Flame Readers, who predict incursions before they happen, and allow defenders to intercept smugglers attempting to reach the planet. If you want to skip customs on that cargo of chocobars, then you'd better have a way to block scrying.
The Nebiat System
Population: Unknown
Government: The Goddess Frit, backed by a council of advisors
Known Catalysts: The Echo of Nebiat
Exports: Dragons, Planetary Destruction, Hot Fire People
My time in the Nebiat system was cut short by a sighting of the
Maker's Wrath, but before I left I had a chance to dine with Frit and her consort Kaho, a Wyrm and apparently the son of Nebiat before she ascended to godhood. He is the keeper of their memory, and has devoted his life to teaching their people. Not exactly the warlord I expected, though Frit more than makes up for it.
Frit remained unfailingly polite throughout my visit, and even asked after her friend and fellow goddess Xal'Nara, who she knows I am connected to. The knowledge that she'd already decided how to dispose of me if she needed to underlay it all, and I wasn't sorry to scurry away when the call came through.
Frit wouldn't allow me on her world, and Kaho refused to speak on the Followers of Nebiat, who revere the fallen goddess and claim that she was unjustly slain by Voria and Frit, and should be resurrected to resume her place as their world's protector.
I did glimpse their shipyards, though I didn't get a look at the ships. The Krox are building fleets, and building them quickly. Make of that what you will.
Virkon
Population: 780 million humans, and about 100,000 hatchlings
Government: Council of Wyrms and Outriders
Known Catalysts: Memory of Virkonna
Exports: Mercenaries, Air dragon scales, Kem'Hedj champions
Virkon is another world I haven't visited, but one that has fascinated me since childhood. Virkon is the final stronghold of the last dragonflight, and until the last war their goddess was one of the few living in the sector. The ancient
air goddess slumbered under one of their continents, which was destroyed when she woke, and led her people to war against her sister Nefarius.
We all know how that played out. Virkonna's sister slew her in a legendary duel, which was recounted to the Council by Wyrm Lord Kheross, the steward of Virkonna's Memory. He witnessed it, and distributed his memory for the sector to see.
A funny thing happens when a goddess dies on camera. Every person who experienced the memory wanted to know more about this tragic heroine, and her sacrifice for her people. They studied her. Learned about her. Some even made pilgrimage to Virkon. Her religion grew to the point where there is real power there, and it is capable of granting miracles.
Virkonna may be gone, but her faithful Outriders still awaken with
air magic when the storms are high and the Contest is held. Most of her children are gone, but their Outriders, humans, remain to rebuild their culture.
Virkon is strong militarily, but as they have no ship production are reliant on ancient vessels long preserved from the reign of the Dragonflights. That confines their activities largely to their own world, but woe to anyone foolish enough to attack that world.
The Children of Xal
Population: Unknown
Government: Unknown
Known Catalysts: Skull of Xal, Husk of Xal
Exports: Demotech Weaponry, Mercenaries
I'm not telling you squat about Xal. I like breathing.
Yanthara
Population: 840 million
Government: Representative Democracy
Known Catalysts: Flame of Van, Memory of Shi
Exports: Silk and other textiles, Fireglass, Flame readers, Fire Dreamers
Yanthara survived the war largely unscathed, though they did suffer an assault from Nefarius that tore the dream Catalyst known as Shi from the world, and snacked on it right there in orbit. As I understand it Shi and the Flame of Van used to be one god, Shivan. Now there is only Van, I guess.
Their world is largely covered by lush jungles, and the heat and humidity got to me whenever I wasn't sealed in my armor. Yanthara was originally established as a Shayan colony, but because the Shayans detested the weather they appointed representatives among the locals to attend to their affairs.
Yanthara would never be their equal magically, from their perspective, and so they dismissed them as servants and producers of luxuries. Imagine their surprise when Ternus began selling them technology. Unlike the shayans, who detested holounits and hoverboards, the Yantharans loved it.
Ternus recognized a new market, and moved in everywhere they could. They supplied the Yantharans with whatever they'd pay for, and the Yantharans paid them well. Over time both parties profited from the arrangement, while the Shayans turned their noses up at the whole affair.
Yanthara grew into a prosperous world every bit as technologically advanced as Ternus, though with more of an appreciation for nature.
After the last war Yanthara has become the true power in the union, but unlike Ternus the Shayans made a shocking choice. They emancipated Yanthara officially, and welcome her as a sister nation. A little late perhaps, but better they did then it had to be forced by bloodshed.
Shaya and Yanthara still get along well, and Yanthara imports a huge amount of Shayawood, while also supplying Shaya with a massive volume of tourism.
Unaffiliated Systems & Outposts
(Will finish after snack time, if this Wyrm doesn't snack on me)
Drifter Rock
Sanctuary & The Unseen Fleets
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