On Space
One of the more interesting aspects of the world is the conquering of the inner planets. The exception to this is Mercury, which is still, even in my world, a huge ball of metal and rock. Some time should be given to how it is possible that a Victorian era world could have made it to the inner planets. First, I'll start with a brief recollection of some of the historical milestones regarding the first flights to the Moon, Mars, and Venus, and then I'll talk a little about their respective societies.
Much of what is possible today is based upon the knowledge of an Austrian man named Nikola Tesla. Born in German controlled Austria in 1782, Tesla was quickly distinguished as a powerful young spark, and was given a full scholarship to Berlin polytechnic at the tender age of 13. His early theories were derived from Isaac Newton's Etheric physics model. While at Berlin polytechnic, Tesla expanded upon NewtonÂs theories, and began to wow the scientific community with his theory of light. It was this theory that allowed Tesla to, at 22 years old, devise the first Etheric Acceleration engine. Unfortunately, Tesla discovered that it required an immense amount of energy, almost too much to be harnessed via natural means. However, his gravatics theory, developed as part of his light theory, provided Tesla with a possible solution. By setting up special power capture stations at the North and South poles, where the earthÂs magnetic field was strongest, these stations could milk magnetic energy off the earth and channel it to an Etheric Acceleration engine. It provided enough power to accelerate the engine fast enough to leave earths gravity. After another 10 years of trial, Tesla, with the backing of the British Government, built substantial inroads into space travel. On November 3rd, 1813, the HMS London, with a crew of 2 Humans, a Half-Orc and a Dwarf, made a stable orbit around earth. It was the dawn of a new era. Using specially created sails, the London and its crew accelerated to the Moon, where the ship made its landing on November 10th.
Within 2 years, nearly 1500 British citizens were living on the moon. Most of these were miners, who were tapping the Moons considerable mineral resources. By 1816, sparks working for the British Government created the CDS (Commodity Delivery System) on the moon. This system, a large "cannon" of sorts, fires canisters loaded with mined minerals back to earth to be refined by British facilities. It was one of these canisters, mis-targeted, that landed in London in 1817, killing most of the cities inhabitants, reducing much of the city to rubble and fracturing a portion of the island near the Thames River. After the incident, all CDS "drops" were targeted in the North Atlantic off the coast of Ireland.
The moon also made an excellent staging zone for exploration of other planets. In 1817, the HMS Manchester landed on Venus, and contact was promptly lost. A later expedition, this time by British Marines, discovered that the ships crew had disappeared at the "hands" of indigenous entities. As of 1847, there have been only a few ships to land on Venus. The environment is inhospitable and the indigenous entities are unforgiving.
Also in 1817 the HMS London landed on Mars. The discovery of an advanced race of aliens was met with some trepidation by the races of earth. The aliens, called Illithids, had technology that was just as advanced as the British, and while they knew nothing of magic, they commanded powers not unlike that of the arcane. At first, some attempts were made on the part of British diplomats to engage in dialogue with the Illithids. However, unlike the Native Americans, who were easily duped by overzealous colonists, the Illithids had a strong sense of entitlement to their home world. Subsequently, they made no attempt at mercy when they decimated the small contingent of diplomats and guards and sent them back with their brains devoured as a sign of intent. The British Empire, outraged at the act, declared war on the Martians almost immediately. Luckily, the invention of the Etheric Shock Rifle in 1820 made the conflict a short one. A small contingent of soldiers armed with the weapons were able to inflict horrendous damage upon the ranks of the Illithid warriors, and in 1824, at the base of Olympus Mons, the Illithids signed their unconditional surrender.
Currently, there are about 17,000 people on the moon, and about 1.5 million on Mars. Most of them are British citizens, although there are a number of Americans, Europeans, and even the occasional Mexica or Asian. Because the British Empire owns the proprietary rights to Tesla's Etheric Engine, and funded the launch facilities at the North and South Poles, anyone wanting to get off Earth has to go through the British authorities. The cities that have sprung up around the launch facilities, called Northgate and Southgate respectively, have an interesting amalgamation of people. Northgate is the largest city with a population of about 250,000 people. Most of them are mechanics, soldiers, miners, pilots, scoundrels, adventurers and tradesman. The launch facility itself sits on an artificial island, with a number of surrounding islands that have hangar bays, landing pads, repair facilities, administrative offices, a military garrison, coal refueling facilities and a small batch of hotels and restaurants. Around the islands, on whatever land can be seized, sits a shanty city that houses those who can't afford to live in Northgate proper or any of the affiliated facilities (the administrative offices have their own living quarters, as does the garrison, repair facilities and hangar bays). All told, about 55,000 people live in Northgate proper, and another 195,000 live in the shanty town nearby. The British government tried at first to keep the squatters away from Northgate, but realizing they couldn't, decided to rectify the strain that they had on Northgate's infrastructure by putting a beamed power station near the launch pad. This diverts some of the magnetic energy from the launch pad to give power to the squatters. This helps cut down the otherwise high mortality rate they have. Northgate Shanty, as it is called, is not as gleaming or as nice as Northgate proper. It is a den of thieves and criminals, seeking passage off of Earth for any number of sins. The British Government maintains almost no presence there, except the occasional military raid on some of the more powerful criminal elements. The squatters are at the whim of whatever food and supplies cargo haulers bring in, food and other commoditiesies are scarce and expensive. Even still, many people flock to Northgate hoping for a better life among the planets.
Southgate is nothing like Northgate. Because of the distance that a traveler has to go to reach Southgate is often beyond their financial means, Southgate has few of the problems that Northgate has. Like Northgate, South gate has a launch pad, garrison, landing pads, repair center, refueling station, administrative center, hotels, and restaurants. The population of Southgate never rises beyond 35,000 people. Southgate is a popular place to launch military expeditions, and during the Martian War of 1818, makeshift hangars and barracks were erected near the city to house departing soldiers and ships. They are still there, old, defunct, and unused by anyone other than the occasional spark or wizard seeking to create some monstrosity.
The moon has one major space port at Tycho City. This port is smaller, with only a launch pad, a small garrison, and a repair facility. Most British soldiers shudder at the thought of a duty at the Dark Rock, a moniker they have placed upon the garrison at Tycho City. It sits on a high mountain near the dark zone of the moon overlooking the departure point. Because the Moons gravity is substantially low, and it is tidal locked, it produces no worthwhile magnetic field for ships to utilize. Subsequently, there is little beyond a ships own thrust to get the necessary escape velocity to leave the Moon.
Mars has approximately three dozen landing ports situated around the planet, and a departure point, called Marsgate, at the South Pole. Most of Mars inhabitants live in subterranean colonies, as the winds above can get quite strong, and frigid temperatures often are capable of freezing a person in a matter of minutes. Mars is, in most other respects, not unlike earth. It's year is slightly longer, but its seasons are virtually the same. Large canals hold water from deep underground rivers and lakes, although most time these rivers are frozen over. The abundance of water and micro plants keeps Mars atmosphere much like earths at high mountain altitudes. There are three major cities, New Cambridge, New Dunwich, and New Stygia, and a large number of smaller towns and villages. The Illithid armistice of 1824 gave over the government of their people to the British Crown, and like many of the peoples that the British have graced with their imperialistic views, the Illithids are little more than second class citizens to the British. The Illithids, however, are a completely subterranean race, and subsequently, much of what is known about their culture is very limited. For example, no one has ever reported seeing an Illithid child or an Illithid female. The British would love nothing more than explore the extensive catacombs that lie beneath the surface of Mars and gain more information about the aliens that live there, but so far, no one has successfully returned from any expedition. The British see this as substantially problematic, as without the capacity to fully account for where the Illithids are, it could certainly not put down any major resistance should they try to change their lot in life. For now, the British government is content with what limited control it has, and begrudgingly give the Illithids their space.
Most Illithids remain far removed from the machinations of the British people. Their culture is alien and highly individualistic. There seems to be no particular social order with one notable exception. Some Illithids, called Hunters, seem to be particularly loathed by their brethren. The Hunters, devoid of the tentacles that are normally present on an Illithid, are seen rarely, and only when one of the Illithids have committed some unperceived sin against his people. The past 23 years of constant British presence on Mars has contributed greatly to the Illithid culture. Those that do live in the cities have adopted British fashion and culture in total, and have picked up the language fluently. Because of the particular gifts that the Illithids have, many are sought by police and investigation companies. Interestingly, this has given rise to a fundamental question in jurisprudence: Can information gained from Illithid powers or magical extra sensory perception be admissible in court? Those Illithids that are part of mainstream British society on Mars seem unusually content with their lives.
Venus has no major towns or cities of note. A heavily fortified British Marine garrison is the only official presence maintained on the planet. Venus is a virtual death trap to those who aren't aware of what awaits them. The entire planet is covered with steaming jungle, with large reptilian beast hunting anyone not careful enough to avoid them. Also present are groups of intelligent creatures, not unlike orcs, large intelligent apes, shapeshifters, bi-pedal man sized birds, small pygmy-like men, grey hairless dwarves and humans. There has been little, if any, contact with these indigenous cultures.
For the most part, the people of earth have little knowledge or interest in what occurs on the other planets. The plights of the Illithids or the recent sabotage that is occurring in mines near the dark side of the Moon have little impact on their world. It may impact commodities marginally, but for the most part the people of earth maintain an "out of sight, out of mind" mentality when it comes to the other planets. Still, occasionally someone will hear news of something that has occurred "out there". For those in the know, or with the appropriate interest, getting to the other planets is not as difficult as one might think.
Much of what is possible today is based upon the knowledge of an Austrian man named Nikola Tesla. Born in German controlled Austria in 1782, Tesla was quickly distinguished as a powerful young spark, and was given a full scholarship to Berlin polytechnic at the tender age of 13. His early theories were derived from Isaac Newton's Etheric physics model. While at Berlin polytechnic, Tesla expanded upon NewtonÂs theories, and began to wow the scientific community with his theory of light. It was this theory that allowed Tesla to, at 22 years old, devise the first Etheric Acceleration engine. Unfortunately, Tesla discovered that it required an immense amount of energy, almost too much to be harnessed via natural means. However, his gravatics theory, developed as part of his light theory, provided Tesla with a possible solution. By setting up special power capture stations at the North and South poles, where the earthÂs magnetic field was strongest, these stations could milk magnetic energy off the earth and channel it to an Etheric Acceleration engine. It provided enough power to accelerate the engine fast enough to leave earths gravity. After another 10 years of trial, Tesla, with the backing of the British Government, built substantial inroads into space travel. On November 3rd, 1813, the HMS London, with a crew of 2 Humans, a Half-Orc and a Dwarf, made a stable orbit around earth. It was the dawn of a new era. Using specially created sails, the London and its crew accelerated to the Moon, where the ship made its landing on November 10th.
Within 2 years, nearly 1500 British citizens were living on the moon. Most of these were miners, who were tapping the Moons considerable mineral resources. By 1816, sparks working for the British Government created the CDS (Commodity Delivery System) on the moon. This system, a large "cannon" of sorts, fires canisters loaded with mined minerals back to earth to be refined by British facilities. It was one of these canisters, mis-targeted, that landed in London in 1817, killing most of the cities inhabitants, reducing much of the city to rubble and fracturing a portion of the island near the Thames River. After the incident, all CDS "drops" were targeted in the North Atlantic off the coast of Ireland.
The moon also made an excellent staging zone for exploration of other planets. In 1817, the HMS Manchester landed on Venus, and contact was promptly lost. A later expedition, this time by British Marines, discovered that the ships crew had disappeared at the "hands" of indigenous entities. As of 1847, there have been only a few ships to land on Venus. The environment is inhospitable and the indigenous entities are unforgiving.
Also in 1817 the HMS London landed on Mars. The discovery of an advanced race of aliens was met with some trepidation by the races of earth. The aliens, called Illithids, had technology that was just as advanced as the British, and while they knew nothing of magic, they commanded powers not unlike that of the arcane. At first, some attempts were made on the part of British diplomats to engage in dialogue with the Illithids. However, unlike the Native Americans, who were easily duped by overzealous colonists, the Illithids had a strong sense of entitlement to their home world. Subsequently, they made no attempt at mercy when they decimated the small contingent of diplomats and guards and sent them back with their brains devoured as a sign of intent. The British Empire, outraged at the act, declared war on the Martians almost immediately. Luckily, the invention of the Etheric Shock Rifle in 1820 made the conflict a short one. A small contingent of soldiers armed with the weapons were able to inflict horrendous damage upon the ranks of the Illithid warriors, and in 1824, at the base of Olympus Mons, the Illithids signed their unconditional surrender.
Currently, there are about 17,000 people on the moon, and about 1.5 million on Mars. Most of them are British citizens, although there are a number of Americans, Europeans, and even the occasional Mexica or Asian. Because the British Empire owns the proprietary rights to Tesla's Etheric Engine, and funded the launch facilities at the North and South Poles, anyone wanting to get off Earth has to go through the British authorities. The cities that have sprung up around the launch facilities, called Northgate and Southgate respectively, have an interesting amalgamation of people. Northgate is the largest city with a population of about 250,000 people. Most of them are mechanics, soldiers, miners, pilots, scoundrels, adventurers and tradesman. The launch facility itself sits on an artificial island, with a number of surrounding islands that have hangar bays, landing pads, repair facilities, administrative offices, a military garrison, coal refueling facilities and a small batch of hotels and restaurants. Around the islands, on whatever land can be seized, sits a shanty city that houses those who can't afford to live in Northgate proper or any of the affiliated facilities (the administrative offices have their own living quarters, as does the garrison, repair facilities and hangar bays). All told, about 55,000 people live in Northgate proper, and another 195,000 live in the shanty town nearby. The British government tried at first to keep the squatters away from Northgate, but realizing they couldn't, decided to rectify the strain that they had on Northgate's infrastructure by putting a beamed power station near the launch pad. This diverts some of the magnetic energy from the launch pad to give power to the squatters. This helps cut down the otherwise high mortality rate they have. Northgate Shanty, as it is called, is not as gleaming or as nice as Northgate proper. It is a den of thieves and criminals, seeking passage off of Earth for any number of sins. The British Government maintains almost no presence there, except the occasional military raid on some of the more powerful criminal elements. The squatters are at the whim of whatever food and supplies cargo haulers bring in, food and other commoditiesies are scarce and expensive. Even still, many people flock to Northgate hoping for a better life among the planets.
Southgate is nothing like Northgate. Because of the distance that a traveler has to go to reach Southgate is often beyond their financial means, Southgate has few of the problems that Northgate has. Like Northgate, South gate has a launch pad, garrison, landing pads, repair center, refueling station, administrative center, hotels, and restaurants. The population of Southgate never rises beyond 35,000 people. Southgate is a popular place to launch military expeditions, and during the Martian War of 1818, makeshift hangars and barracks were erected near the city to house departing soldiers and ships. They are still there, old, defunct, and unused by anyone other than the occasional spark or wizard seeking to create some monstrosity.
The moon has one major space port at Tycho City. This port is smaller, with only a launch pad, a small garrison, and a repair facility. Most British soldiers shudder at the thought of a duty at the Dark Rock, a moniker they have placed upon the garrison at Tycho City. It sits on a high mountain near the dark zone of the moon overlooking the departure point. Because the Moons gravity is substantially low, and it is tidal locked, it produces no worthwhile magnetic field for ships to utilize. Subsequently, there is little beyond a ships own thrust to get the necessary escape velocity to leave the Moon.
Mars has approximately three dozen landing ports situated around the planet, and a departure point, called Marsgate, at the South Pole. Most of Mars inhabitants live in subterranean colonies, as the winds above can get quite strong, and frigid temperatures often are capable of freezing a person in a matter of minutes. Mars is, in most other respects, not unlike earth. It's year is slightly longer, but its seasons are virtually the same. Large canals hold water from deep underground rivers and lakes, although most time these rivers are frozen over. The abundance of water and micro plants keeps Mars atmosphere much like earths at high mountain altitudes. There are three major cities, New Cambridge, New Dunwich, and New Stygia, and a large number of smaller towns and villages. The Illithid armistice of 1824 gave over the government of their people to the British Crown, and like many of the peoples that the British have graced with their imperialistic views, the Illithids are little more than second class citizens to the British. The Illithids, however, are a completely subterranean race, and subsequently, much of what is known about their culture is very limited. For example, no one has ever reported seeing an Illithid child or an Illithid female. The British would love nothing more than explore the extensive catacombs that lie beneath the surface of Mars and gain more information about the aliens that live there, but so far, no one has successfully returned from any expedition. The British see this as substantially problematic, as without the capacity to fully account for where the Illithids are, it could certainly not put down any major resistance should they try to change their lot in life. For now, the British government is content with what limited control it has, and begrudgingly give the Illithids their space.
Most Illithids remain far removed from the machinations of the British people. Their culture is alien and highly individualistic. There seems to be no particular social order with one notable exception. Some Illithids, called Hunters, seem to be particularly loathed by their brethren. The Hunters, devoid of the tentacles that are normally present on an Illithid, are seen rarely, and only when one of the Illithids have committed some unperceived sin against his people. The past 23 years of constant British presence on Mars has contributed greatly to the Illithid culture. Those that do live in the cities have adopted British fashion and culture in total, and have picked up the language fluently. Because of the particular gifts that the Illithids have, many are sought by police and investigation companies. Interestingly, this has given rise to a fundamental question in jurisprudence: Can information gained from Illithid powers or magical extra sensory perception be admissible in court? Those Illithids that are part of mainstream British society on Mars seem unusually content with their lives.
Venus has no major towns or cities of note. A heavily fortified British Marine garrison is the only official presence maintained on the planet. Venus is a virtual death trap to those who aren't aware of what awaits them. The entire planet is covered with steaming jungle, with large reptilian beast hunting anyone not careful enough to avoid them. Also present are groups of intelligent creatures, not unlike orcs, large intelligent apes, shapeshifters, bi-pedal man sized birds, small pygmy-like men, grey hairless dwarves and humans. There has been little, if any, contact with these indigenous cultures.
For the most part, the people of earth have little knowledge or interest in what occurs on the other planets. The plights of the Illithids or the recent sabotage that is occurring in mines near the dark side of the Moon have little impact on their world. It may impact commodities marginally, but for the most part the people of earth maintain an "out of sight, out of mind" mentality when it comes to the other planets. Still, occasionally someone will hear news of something that has occurred "out there". For those in the know, or with the appropriate interest, getting to the other planets is not as difficult as one might think.
posted by Aleris at 11:42 PM
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