SPACE PIRATES - Notable Creations

This thread is for all of us to use as a reference since it is here that we should post any and all notable things we create within the group RP. These notables can be locations (ie, cities, buildings, etc), specific items or goods, various technology, etc. But basically it will be things we all create as we go that should be noted in case we need to mention it in any subsequent posts.

When you create something in your posts, please mention it here and give a brief description for reference. I will then add the name of your 'creation' to the appropriate list and link to your post below.

Thanks!

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Locations
Equatoria City, Thalassa (city)
The Comet, Thalassa (bar in Equatoria City)
Outer Haven, Erebos (city)
The Cherish Bar, Erebos (bar in Outer Haven)
Bioluminescent, Thalassa (nightclub in Equatoria City)
MareCorps, Thalassa (biolabs in Equatoria City)
Perigna, Thalassa (city)
Eija Incorporated
The Reptile House, Dragonia (nightclub)
Gargouille, Dragonia (city)

Items
Zeema (drug found on Thalassa)

Technology
Phase Engine

Races
Genetically Amplified Humans
Predators
Xinxth
Rapidly Evolving Parasite (REP) - Strain Designation 'Monarch'

Other
Biorhythmica (musical genre)
The Companies

The Phase Engine was designed, produced, and sold by Eija Incorporated. The purpose of the Jump Drives are to punch a hole in space, into something known as Phase Space. Here, in phase space, time travels a tad differently. While inside Phase Space, the ship is nearly invincible to most forms of damage. However, there have been accounts of ships being damaged in phase space. For this reason, Eija has produced 3 main models for the three types of ships. The Capitals, large ships capable of carrying 200+ people, cruisers, ships capable of carrying 15-35 people, and the Frigates, small ships only capable of carrying 1-14 people. The engines are listed as follows.

Capitals
JDCU-086
For massive ships, Eija created a massive jump drive. This system will allow travel from the sun to the edge of the Barbaric Rim in roughly 45 minutes. The only drawback is that it consumes a massive amount of power, which means that certain weapons systems aboard the ship will be momentarily drained (lasers, beams, pulse, etc.) for five minutes. Also, the Jump capacity will be reduced until the drive reaches full power again. It is not recommended using this engine system while jumping into highly contested areas, especially if the ship is armed with energy weapons.

JDCD-084
Smaller, though still large phase drive has less power then the JDCU, but what it lacks in power, it makes up for in ability. The JDCD has the ability to slip it's host ship into a static stream of Phase Space, there-by rendering in virtually impossible to damage. This is a good thing to have when the tides of battle are not going in your favor, but be warned, while in this stable Phase Space, the ship cannot move, and cannot fire it's weapons.

JDCA-084 MK. II
Same size as the JDCD, the JDCA is more geared towards offense, instead of defense. Unlike it's defensive counterpart, the JDCA does not allow you to phase out to avoid damage. Rather it gives the capital ship the ability to perform a phase jump within the planet's gravity well, allowing the ship to appear close to it's targets and bring it's guns to bear. This also means that jump warm-up times are drastically reduced.

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Cruisers

JDB-046
Largest engine for the Cruiser line of ships, it has enough power to jump from the first planet of the Inner Sanctum to the middle planets of the Middle Six. It also regenerates the antimatter, due to new reaction chambers.

JDBD-046
Mid-sized and less powerful then it's bigger brother the JDB, the main focus of this engine is defense. By diverting a portion of it's power to the shields, they can be bolstered for a few extra minutes, allowing what would be a normally hopeless scenario ample time to turn. While some energy can be rerouted back to the Jump Drive, it will never be quite as strong as the JDB. This engine's range is two planets less then that of the JDB-048 at full power.

JDBA-046 Mk. II
Being the same size as the JDBD, it has the same power output serving a different purpose. Instead of directing energy to the shields, it focuses on the offensive capabilities of energy weapons aboard the host cruiser. For instance, the energy output of a laser being bolstered by a Mk.II would be much greater then the laser on it's own. Pulse cannons fire faster, harder, with more shots per battery, beams can stay active for longer, burn brighter and hotter. Once again, some energy can be rerouted back to the Jump Drives, but it's range equals that of the JDBD.

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Frigates
JDH-020
Largest engine for the frigate period. It makes short work of travel from the first planet of the Inner Sanctum to the last planet of the Sanctum. Once again, the regeneration time of this engine is cut down due to advanced reaction within the reaction chamber.

JDHD-015
Smaller then the JDH by a considerable amount, it works much like the cruiser's JDBD, directing energy to the shields, allowing for higher survivability.

JDHA-06
By far the smallest engine in the Frigate line, this system only allows for jumps between two planets at a time. This is due to the fact that almost all energy produced by the reaction chamber is funneled into the sub-space engines, resulting in higher maneuverability, faster speed, and ace-like agility. Sadly, this engine is fairly new, and because of that, out of all the other JD systems, this is the most likely to break down. The connectors are constantly points of issues for owners of ships with the HA-06 model.

Equatoria City, Thalassa (city)

Location: Thalassa, near the equator.
Population: Approx. 250 000 (Greater Equatoria).
Main sources of income (in order of importance): Interplanetary trade, fishing, agriculture, tourism.

Description: Equatoria can be considered two areas. One is the City proper (called Central by the locals). This is an entirely artificial city, built on a plateau where the sea is shallower than in the surrounding areas. Much of the city is actually underwater, including much of the residential areas and commercial districts. The above sector is dominated by the spaceport and the harbour.

Greater Equatoria also includes several islands situated upon the same plateau. These are the Rim, a crescent shaped strip of minor islands to the east and south of the main city, and Main, a larger island (actually an extinct volcano) to the north-west. Main has some agriculture, in the form of fruit plantations.

To get from Central to the islands is easy, either by hovercraft taxi, by bridge from Central to Main, or by underwater rail to the Rim.

Climate: Equatoria City has a quite warm climate, due to it's position along the equator. Central is protected from some of the worst storms by the surrounding island. Visitors are advised to know that even so, weather can be rough, and take that into consideration. Someone (often a careless visitor) being swept away by giant waves happens every year.

On a nice day, swimming, diving and boat safaris are popular with visitors.

Crime: While Equatoria has a moderate crime rate on paper, the reality does not quite match this. The local authorities consider just about anything that brings trade and commerce into the city a good thing, and can be lax about reporting any irregularities, especially if there are economical incentives involved. Smuggling and trade in contraband is quite common.

Genetically Amplified Humans

Background

Every G.A.H has a special ability, just one that allows them to stand out besides their superior strength, speed, telepathic abilities, and thought-processes. It can range from something seemingly simple to something complex. An example of this would be a G.A.H with the ability to "scent" the chemicals in the air that could spark a fire and then light one. Another example would be being able to survive in a desert because they have the ability to sense/scent water no matter how far away or deep underground it is.

Scenting is what it sounds like. They can "smell" the component that works with their ability almost like dogs. It is an ability that develops either very early or what is considered latent [around the age of puberty.] It is rare for a G.A.H not to develop a special ability, but if they do not, one of their main abilities is usually amplified such as being stronger than usual, being faster, or having strong telepathy.

G.A.H's are always born in pairs and 96% of the time they are fraternal twins, and consist of male to female pairs. On the rare occasions they are identical, it is always a same-sex pairing. About 3% of G.A.H's are fertile enough to conceive but less than 1% could ever carry a child to term. Any children formed from a G.A.H pairing is killed once it is born because of the deformities and the unusual balances of power. The child is usually extremely physically weak but has intense telepathic power and is born blind. Only one child survived birth physically intact, but was completely mentally unstable and after testing, was put to death to be studied.

Strengths and Weaknesses

A G.A.H's twin is their life. They form a bond that goes deeper than just love and is called a blood-bond. It is their biggest strength but also their biggest weakness. If a G.A.H loses their twin, they lose their sanity and their ability to control their blood and battle lust - another advantageous disadvantage. There have been cases where G.A.H's have been born without a twin and tend to have strong blood lust fixations, the need to eat twice as much, and the potential for two special abilities. Very few of them survive the experimental process because the lack of a twin proves too much for their mental faculties.

G.A.H's have fast regenerative properties, but it varies between pairings. One twin usually heals faster than the other, but none have proven to have instant-healing. No pair has been recorded to heal a wound faster than five hours depending on the depth and severity of the wound. Every pair can heal a bruise or a scrape within forty-five minutes. An anomaly amongst pairs is that none ever suffer facial scarring or permanent eye/ear damage.

They are trained mostly in hand-to-hand combat until puberty and then trained in weapons. Skill level is based off a virtual reality system that makes a note of kill count as well as real-life scenarios against other G.A.H pairings.

They have high drug tolerances as well as resilience in interrogations.

Every pair is given a 'level' based off of their abilities, skills, and kill count. The highest level is level 10. The lowest level is level 1. Any pairing below level one is terminated. Any pair below level 3 is lobotomized. Individuals or 'twinless' pairs range from Level 1-7.

Experiments

Every G.A.H pair is put through a series of experiments especially if they vary far from what is normal.

Blood Tests - Every pair is tested for blood abnormalities and potential mutations in their DNA that would be unwanted. These tests happen three times a day for three weeks after birth, and then every year afterwards.

Separation Tests - Every pair is separated for one week, including cutting off telepathic links, to test their mental abilities to handle stress of losing their partners. They aren't given any warnings. Only about 50% pass the test without losing their sanity, and about 13% gain their sanity once reunited with their twin. The rest are terminated.

Drug Tolerance Tests- Every pair is strapped down to a table in an purely white, sterilized room and put through rounds and rounds of drug testing to test their tolerances. The dosages are increased every day until detox is necessary to not corrupt the blood. They also test new poisons and chemicals on the pairs. This happens for three months solid every two years, and every year for special pairs that show the highest tolerances. Pairs with the lowest tolerances are lobotomized. 25% of pairings die during the first month of testing.

Blood/Battle Lust Testing- At age fourteen, when the battle/blood lust is at a peak, pairs are separated and put into different rooms. Communication is still allowed. 20 pairs are separated into two rooms while an additional pair is thrown in while bleeding and wounded. This additional pair is usually an underdeveloped and weak pairing and is designated for termination. The test is to determine the strength of the blood and battle lust within each twin. Each individual is given a small vial of an unidentified chemical to use in battle. Each chemical is corrosive and toxic. The last pair standing is then used in further testing. With further testing, every match is bare-handed and no chemicals or weapons are given.

Noted Escapes

There are only five noted cases of escapes.

#312 - Nesmith
#493 and #494 - Dobiel and Robinza
#666 and #667 - Jibril and Zaphkiel

Captures

#493 and #494 were captured three weeks after escape. Whereabouts unknown concerning #312, #666, and #667. No further information is known.

Notes on Escapees

Pairing #666 and #667 are considered level 9. Do not approach without extreme measures. Considered unrecoverable.

#312 is considered a level 5. Approach with caution and back-up.

[If someone thinks I should add something, please let me know. <3]

Rare Mutations

In the Master Lab Records, there have been four rare mutations amongst the G.A.H groups.

1. #31 and #32 were born as an extremely unbalanced pair. #31 had very few responses to stimuli and #32 had overabundant responses to stimuli. #32 and #31 were terminated within the the fifth year of blood-testing due to seizures suffered by both. Autopsy revealed too much blood flow to the brain in #32 and a distinct lack of enough blood flow to #31.

2. #67 who never developed a twin or even hint of another being within the incubation chamber. Once birthed, #67 developed three distinct special abilities but had a weak constitution and eventually died. Body was studied but no true evidence indicated what the caused the multi-functional mutation.

3. #103, #104, and #106 formed a three way triangle bond when #106's twin #105 died post-birth. The bond formed within five years of life and continued until the bonds were broken during the Separation Trial. All three individuals committed suicide before the trial was completed. No other triangular bonds have been formed.

4. #199 and #200 never bonded. The lack of bonding caused a mental collapse between the pair. Autopsy showed brainwave activity had plummeted whilst in the incubation chamber, causing a fracture in the bonding process.

Predator Race

Characteristics
-Their bodies are resilient to damage, levels of resiliency vary depending on pureness of blood in species. (EX. Predators who are half human have half the resiliency of a full blooded predator)

-Their sight is ten times more powerful then a snow leopard meaning it is 16 times more powerful then a normal human's sight. They also have heat seeking vision that can detect warm blooded prey even through obstacles.

-They are skilled climbers and can move through trees quickly and silently when needed and also move across rooftops and other high up areas that humans cannot reach easily.

-They can jump up to 50 feet easily, some predators are known to be able to jump up to 75 feet but that is rare.

-Predators normally only hunt and kill those that they feel are a threat or a challenge to them, a lot of the time women and children do not fit into the category of a threat, unless of course the predator is a female finding another adult female as a threat, normally children never pose a threat for a predator no matter what gender the predator is.

-Predators have a heightened sense of smell and hearing, much like the sight of a hawk and ears of a fox so to speak, a lot of the predators capabilities are related to certain animal capabilities but they are much stronger and sharper.

-They have a code of honor that they follow by instinct. When a predator is killed the one that kills it is automatically considered one of them and branded to show they are not to be hunted or killed no matter what. They will also protect those that are branded with their symbol.

Short History

No one really knows where they came from or how they came to be all that is known is that their race as grown dramatically since the first predators were discovered. Although their population is very large not too many people have seen them and those that have were usually killed due to being prey others were too young or scared to explain anything about their sightings. Predators move silently and attack quickly so it is hard to spot one of them unless you are being hunted and if that's the case then most likely you don't come out alive.

The Comet (Bar)

Location: Equatoria, Thalassa.

Owner: Merro Xs.

General description:

According to local legend, the Comet got it's name from one it's previous owner's last adventure as a space pilot. For reasons that changes with each telling of the story, his ship had been destroyed in space, far away from any help, but he had managed to escape in the tiny emergency boat, landed on the surface of a passing comet, and then managed to lift off just as it passed Thalassa, followed by a million-to-one emergency landing on the ocean planet.

The truth of the tale is debatable, but nonetheless the blazing holographic comet projected above the door of the bar is a familiar sight to many in the Thallassan city of Equatoria.

The Comet has been described as 'one of the classiest dives on the planet. But still a Dive'. Selection of brews and spirits are good, and due to the kindliness of a stranger, the soundsystem works very well. Music is mostly recorded, but there is a tiny stage, with live performances some nights.

It is located just below the outer edge of the spaceport, and most leaving or entering the port will pass by it. Behind the bar are the only windows in the place. Because of the low position, these windows are underwater except at low tide. Part of the floor has been replaced with armored glass, allowing one to peek down at the depths below if one glances down.

Staff:
The day to day management is handled by Jack Farsee, who also tends the bar if other duties does not call him elsewhere. Usually, one or more additional bartenders will be attending, as well as a bouncer.

Patrons:
The clientèle is mixed, to say the least. Many are merely visitors, but a few locals can be found there as well. Both outlaws and bounty hunters are known to visit the bar, something that has caused tense moments in the past. Jack has no problem with anything guests may do to each other outside, but if damage should be caused to staff, uninvolved guests, or the bar itself, he knows people who can make staying in Equatoria unpleasant.

Policies:
Quite a bit of commerce takes in the Comet. Some visiting pilots seek quick employment here, and traders sometimes try to find byers for any cargo they need to get rid of quickly. That these people choose doing deals here, instead of through more established channels, implies that the legality of the transactions may questionable.

The Comet has no problem with this, and a couple of back rooms are available for hire, should more private space be needed.

Despite this, the Comet has an excellent relationship with local law enforcement, some who have VIP status at the bar themselves.

Selling Zeema in the bar is not tolerated. This has drawn a troublesome crew at earlier times, and is something the authorities cannot ignore. Hire a back room instead.

It is pretty well known that The Comet is used for prostitution. Most of the girls involved in this do work part time as staff as well. A discrete enquiry at the bar will be enough.

Bioluminescent

Location: Equatoria, Thalassa.

Owner: Merro Xs(50%), various others (50%)

General description:

Bioluminescent is perhaps the hottest club in Equatoria right now, according to many. It is also the first pick for those who wishes to just dance away the night. Their DJ's are picked from the best in the city, and most nights they also have performances by some of the best Biorhythmica dancers available (Biorhythmic dancers are performers with neural implants, converting neural pulses, heartbeats and muscular movements into sound. Basically, they dance, and the dance generates music.)

Located in the underwater sectors of Thalassa, one would think an underwater theme would be redundant, but that is exactly what Bioluminescent got. The interior of the club is dominated by large aquariums, covering most of the walls, and there are several large, pillar shaped one surrounding the dancefloor. These are high pressure tanks, simulating the deeper ocean. In them are hundreds of luminescent jellyfish. Many of these react to the beat of the music or the strobes from the dancefloor, making them change color and light intensity.

Apart from the jellyfish, the only light are at the dancefloor and by the bar, as well as dim LEDs in the floor, showing the way to the exit.

Staff:
Bioluminescent usually has several bartender and bouncers on duty. They usually employ top DJ's as well.

Patrons:
A lot of the guest are young Equatorians, coming to dance, drink and have fun. Outsiders do come as well, typically those who are tired of more typical spacer hang outs.


Policies:
Entry is subject to cover charge, but regular guests and known big spenders are sometimes let in for free.

Weapons are checked at the door.

Bioluminescent frowns upon any illegal activities performed on the premises, but enforcing this is virtually impossible. If you are discrete, or know the staff well, you can usually do what you want, but if you are blatant about it, you will get tossed out.

Bioluminescent does not police anything outside the premises, and drugs often change hands outside the club.

The Xinxth

Overview

The Xinxth are an alien species. They are distributed throughout the system, settling either as individuals or in small colonies. While biologically adapted to life in sylvan or mountainous terrain, they have adapted to many habitats, and seem to thrive in many human dominated cities.
Their alien appearance, clannish outlook, and exotic customs make some view them as monstrous, but they are (mostly) quite peaceful and have even some success in gaining wealth and influence amongst other species.

Physical description

Xinxth are roughly humanoid, but larger than most humans. A Xinxth that has reached full size (usually sometime between 25-40 years old) will usually weigh between 120 to 200 kilogram, with some exceptional individuals being larger. Most have 4 eyes, but certain subspecies with 2 or 6 exists.

Xinxth have two sets of arms.

Their bodies as quite hairy, and elders (especially males) sometimes sport long beards. A current fashion is to periodically trim the rougher, outer layers of their body hair, leaving the smoother and softer hair beneath it.

Unlike humans, Xinxth are not born with a set gender, but are instead hermaphrodites. As they mature, they will typically favour one gender aspect, developing the characteristics of that one gender while the other set remains underdeveloped, often atrophying altogether. In some instances, both sets are developed, creating a true hermaphrodite, or none develops, the Xinxth effectively becoming neuter.
The exact mechanisms for gender development are not known, but are connected to population size and availability of food and space. Abundant resources and space usually means more females will develop, while cramped conditions will result in more males. Urban populations are often heavily male dominated, causing males to seek mates elsewhere.

Xinxth sexual organs are usually retracted into the lower abdomen, and will emerge only when sexually aroused. Male aspected Xinxth have more than one reproductive organ. Both genders have a set of genital tentacles used to arouse their partners.

Xinxth young develop in eggs stored in abdominal sacks. When the eggs are ready to hatch, the sack will burst, and get eaten by the young. Newly hatched Xinxth are about the size of furry basketballs with big eyes and six limbs, but they grow steadily from there.

Society and customs

While Xinxth in general have learned to adapt to human society (although to varying degrees), there are differences both in psyche and culture. Xinxth have a reputation for being somewhat callous. This is perhaps because they place great value upon acting rationally, being focused on their tasks and not making decisions based on whims or moments of great emotion. This makes them seem somewhat cold at times, but they are far from unemotional. Rather, Xinxth seek to understand and contemplate their emotions and desires first, then seek to fulfil them in the best manner, often thinking long term.

To many humans, Xinxth customs and social structure appears both confusing and baroque. Xinxth society is governed by multiple bonds between individuals and groups, based on family relations, experience, services rendered, obligations, gift giving, reputation and seniority. Xinxth language has many terms and titles relating to such relations, making it easy for them to understand who has what relationship to whom. They also have a multitude of traditions and customs to mark such bonds, or even to transfer a set of relations to one another.

This network of bonds and obligations serve as social services and a financial framework for Xinxth society. E.G., Xinxth starting up a business or trade will usually meet other Xinxth they have relations with and tell them of their plans. These might then volunteer to help with financial aid or practical help, and if they cannot provide any they will contact other individuals they are bonded with to request aid. If these cannot help, they will instead find someone who owes them and so on. Few Xinxth are ever really poor. Even if they possess no money, their position within their social framework usually ensures that someone will take care of them.

This has proven a rather effective system amongst the Xinxth, but it is somewhat opaque to outsiders, who will have no idea whom to talk to. Often, a Xinxth with experience with outsiders will be designated to be the one to deal with non Xinxth, often being given a fancy title so the even dimmer humans will know who to talk to, such as High Chairman of the Thalassan Human-Xinxth Friendship Society (Equatorian Chapter).
In a few cases, non-Xinxth will be considered part of the same system, usually because of good relationships with an influential Xinxth. Marrying into, or being adopted into the extended Xinxth family is possible, but very rare.

Marriage, or choosing a Primary Mate is a serious but joyful affair amongst Xinxth. They usually marry for life, divorce and remarrying being quite uncommon. Since it is an important decision, many Xinxth do not marry until late in life, or do not marry at all. Incidentally, the notion of marital fidelity is a bit different from what many humans practise. Primary means just that, the first and foremost in your affections and loyalties, it does not necessary exclude other liaisons. In fact, occasionally having sexual intercourse with friends, business partners and associates of your spouse is sometimes seen as a friendly thing to do. This has on some occasions led to rather embarrassing situations when married Xinxth deal with outsiders, but most know that the average human is not attracted to Xinxth, and thus waive that clause to avoid awkwardness.
Polygamy is only practised by a few communities, usually only by a member who has accumulated both exceptional honor and has the wealth to support multiple spouses. In this case, they will be known as Secondary Mate, Tertiary mate and so on.

Xinxth prefer to police their own, seeing their customs as more important than outsider law. Formal trials or punishments are rare, often an informal rebuke or a reminder of mutual bonds is enough. Sometimes, a miscreant can be deemed so untrustworthy that bonds and obligations are considered void. This is a severe punishment, but working one's way back in is possible. Xinxth prefer 'Euthanasia' to 'Death Penalty'. Punishment is supposed to teach a lesion to the punished and others, and death makes that hard, but in rare cases an individual Xinxth is seen to be so well beyond redemption that it would be better for everyone if they are put out of their misery as quickly as possible. The offender is then killed in their sleep,or an assassin might be hired to take them out as discreetly as possible. When the Xinxth want to make an example of another, the punishment is either exile or being handed over to outsider authorities.
When an outsider wrongs a Xinxth, the offence might be ignored, reported to the authorities, or dealt with by the Xinxth or a hired bounty hunter, depending on what is deemed most gainful in a given situation.

Population and distribution.

The Xinxth population is not very large. No official consensus exists, but estimates are less than 10 000 in the entire system. The three out-most planets have the largest populations. Equatoria on Thalassa is home to about 24 adults, and about 3 times as many resides on the rest of the planet.

Note: When searching for visual representations for Xinxth, I found that extreme close ups of the faces of spiders does the trick (I suppose moths and bumblebees might work as well).

Biorhythmica (musical genre)

Related genres/performing arts: DJing, Various form of Electronica, gymnastics, pole dancing, musical kata. Improvised music.

Overview: Biorhythmica is genre of music where the performer, using cybernetic enhancements, uses their body as a musical instrument, typically dancing, creating the music as they move. It is popular at nightclubs, but also performed at other venues. It is growing art form, having grown from being seen as a mere gimmick to being regarded as something worthy of critical acclaim in recent years.

The Technology: The basic technology involved in Biorhythmica was developed for medical purposes, for monitoring the human body in order to identify potential problems in patents with serious long term conditions. It also uses technology intended for cybernetic modifications where precise coordination between the biological body and the implants are necessary.

The implants are connected to the nervous system, monitoring such things as hearth rate, muscular activity, brain activity and respiratory functions. These signal are usually transmitted to an external unit carried by the performer, and then broadcast to loudspeakers. Portable sound units are also available.

Most performers will have the programming of their implants tweaked to get the precise sound they want.

The Music: A Biorhythmica performer creates music by moving, the implants converting neural impulses to sound. Thus increased physical activity may cause a faster, harder rhythm as the hearth-rate increases. Slower movements may create a gentler melody, rapid and complex moves more intricate melodies.

Biorhythmica is quite demanding on the performer, who must exercise both discipline and have an ear for improvisation. Unnecessary movements may cause unwanted noise, and performer often make use of breathing exercises and such to eliminate unwanted fuzz. It is virtually impossible to eliminate all the possible variables, though, and that is not really the goal. Even small variations in mood may cause change to the music, as such may alter breathing, heartbeats and brain activity. Thus a performer must know when to go with the flow, and embrace and improve upon unexpected changes in the music. It is practically impossible for an artist to perform the same piece of music the same way twice, and one trying to mimic another will usually end up with a quite different result.

Biorhythmica artist either perform alone, being in total control of the music, or by small groups, dancing to each others music in order to create harmonies.

Typically, Biorhythmica is performed in nightclubs, where the audience is dancing as well, taking their cues both from the music and the moves of the performer. In recent years, there has been a shift towards other types of venues, often in smaller, more intimate locales, where the audience is watching a performance, instead of dancing themselves.

Biorhythmica is very much about the performances, although music is also recorded and sold, often used by DJ's who remixes the tunes for use in clubs and at parties. Sometimes, music is recorded on spot and sold to the audience after the show.

Subgenres: It is hard to classify the different types of Biorhythmica according to strict genre conventions, as the sound varies a lot between artist. However, certain techniques are known to result in certain sound, favoured more by some than others. Many performers refuse to subscribe to one genre only, often experimenting with different styles.

Cybernetic Body Music: CBM performers use hard physical activity, often closer to a rough workout than an elegant dance, to create a hard, pounding, more industrial sound. This is often performed at clubs, especially when the audience on the dance-floor had been warmed up and are ready for more vigorous action.

Vocalcore: This is the combination of singing with Biorhythmica, usually with less focus on dance. This requires a very skilled singer, with good breath control. The music will often supplemnt and harmonize with the voice, arm movents may be used to add additional movement and energy.

Instrumental Biorhythmica: Instrumental in this context means that the one with the implants are the instument of another. The implanted person will usually lay still and focus on remaining relaxed, while another person manipulates their body, using massage, careful tickling and sometimes even mild pain to cause bodily reactions. This is good for more chilled, ambient music.

Orjazzming:This is not a widely used technique at all, but is still a controversial subject among fans of Biorhythmica. Some maintain it is a perversion of the art, others claims it is perfectly in line with the nature of Biorhythmica. While using a fair amount of sex appeal is common while preforming, and some artist even claim a level of arousal adds more energy to the sound, Orjazzming is the use of sexual activity to create music. This is more difficult than it sounds. Usually performed solo, as two or more partners must be very well attuned to each other in order to create anything but noise.

Note to persons unfamiliar with the scene: Despite what your porn mag says, most Biorhythmica performances do not involve live Orjazzming. No Biorhythmica performer appreciates drunken louts tossing crumpled bills on the stage and shouting 'let's hear some fucking!'. Seriously. Most venues will have you tossed out.

While few knows it, Oriana Cee of Thalassa actually combined Orjazzming with Vocalcore on one track on her latest album, possibly making her the only one who has mastered that particular combination. It is sort of her naughty secret, but some rumours exists.

Eija Incorporated

Eija Inc. The designers of the Phase Drive engine, as well as one of the leading manufacturers of weapons, armor, and defensive hardware/software. To high class civilians, Eija is a company with no morals, keeping roots in both the official and underground economies. While Eija is a leading manufacturer of weapons and armor, it is not in the top spot, although they have been making progress. They have seen the success and implementation of the Jump Drives in almost all ships in the Hera System, and rumor has it that they have been experimenting with intergalactic travel systems. There are also rumors that Eija Inc is also working to 'weaponize' the Phase Drive model, attempting to reduce the size and make it easy enough to build to use in missiles and similar warheads. None of these rumors have been confirmed.

Aside from the rumors, there have been legitimate projects that have also been successful, such as the Akkan and Marza class warships. These warships pack a deadly powerful punch, boasting an array of missile systems as well as many, many autocannons. The Akkan also has the ability to house small squadrons of strike craft.

Zeema (drug)

Zeema is extracted from the Zeem, a kind of molluscs native to the mega ocean of Thalassa. In its natural form, it is a kind of poison, used by the molluscs on their prey. It has a slightly different effect on humans and species with comparable biology, and when extracted, refined and concentrated, it creates a strong stimulant.

Zeema makes you feel stronger, more confident and energetic. The brain works overtime, and everything seems easy. Someone on a zeema high may think themselves invulnerable, able to do anything. That is the good side, and what most users seek.

Sooner or later, a zeema user will experience the bad side, often if the dosage is too high, too much chemical residue from earlier doses are still in the body, or the body's ability to process the chemicals have been reduced. Then everything seems disjointed and chaotic, paranoia runs rampant and you suffer intense mood swings. Users experiencing such an episode are prone to act irrationally, and may suffer various minor delusions.

After using zeema, the user will often be dead tired and emotionless, or may also suffer from symptoms similar to a deep depression. The feeling is often described as 'empty', 'hollow' or 'cold', and for habitual users, even a bad trip might seem preferable to the current feeling of emptiness.

Zeema is outlawed by the Illuminati because of it's addictive nature. The poison does also have some more useful medical properties, and some types of medicine can be manufactured from it, using other processes. Getting these medicines recognized as legal drugs have been difficult though.

The Reptile House, Dragonia (nightclub)


Location: Gargouille, Dragonia.

Owner: Serra Kazou

General description: The Reptile House is a concert venue and nightclub, taking it's name from the draconian and reptilian theme. Above the entrance is mounted a huge skull of a dragon, supposedly fossilized remains of a real dragon, but may also be a very well done fake. Holograms of reptiles, snakes, as well as the indigenous dragons decorate the dark, tunnel like main entry.

While a lot of different bands and performers have been booked to play at The Reptile House, the focus has been shifting heavily towards Biorhythmica of various kinds the last few years, with a slight bias towards CBM. On nights without live acts, DJ's tends to focus on danceable tunes with hard beats, something that usually draws the local crowd onto the dance floor.

The club has two stages, the smaller one being circular and located in the middle of the dance floor. A drawbridge can be lowered to connect the two.

Above the main area of the club is The Lizard Lounge, a more laid-back locale with view to the dance floor and the stages.

Staff: The reptile house usually has at least two bartenders in place in the main club. There is usually at least two waiters/waitresses in the Lounge. There are always several bouncers at the ready. More staff will be present during concerts, as needed.

Gargouille, Dragonia (city)

Location: Dragonia.
Population: About 1 million, the greater area included.
Main sources of income (in rough order of importance): Mining, amber, jewelry export, logging, various industry, agriculture.

Description:
Gargouille is located next to, and partially in, the steep slopes of one of the main mountain ranges on Dragonia. The city occupies the upper part of a long, deep valley, carved out over the aeons by a mighty river originating from a huge lake on the mountain plateau above.

A great waterfall runs out between several jagged, teeth like peaks above (called the Throat by the locals), falling down more than 200 metres, into the middle of the city. There the water forms a small lake, tuning into a serpentine river snaking it's way down the lower valley.

The city has been built around the lake, up along the steep mountain walls as far up as possible. Part of the city has been built into the rock, utilizing old mining sites.

As the rock contains veins of minerals and rare crystals, the city originally was almost a pure mining town. Much of the ore is depleted, and mining has moved elsewhere, but Gargouille still remains a local centre for the industry. Amber can sometimes be found along the sides of the river, but this resource is being slowly depleted. Making jewellery is still a revered tradition here, though.

Climate: Luckily, the valley opens to the south, letting in relatively much sun for it's location. It can still be a pretty cold and dark place, especially in winter. The waterfall in the middle of the city makes the air humid. On chilly nights and mornings, the whole place is wrapped in thick fog. On sunny days, you can see the most marvellous rainbows above the tall roofs.

Crime: The slow drop in mining and resources in the city itself has led to a certain rise in crime, former miners out of work forming gangs, sometimes named after their mines and their shifts. Many of these extort protection money from former employers, or from businesses in various districts. Many of these gangs are mere thugs, but a few sees themselves as actual protectors, keeping other criminals out of their areas. Which parts of the city that are safe and which is not is hard to tell for most outsiders.

Perigna, Thalassa (city)

Location: Thalassa.
Population: 35 000
Main sources of income (in rough order of importance): Fishing , freshwater exports, salt extraction, pearl diving.

Description: Perigna is a floating island, a floating, artificial island in the sea. It is located on Thalassa's mega-ocean, near a long sector of coral reefs. It has changed position several times, either being towed to find more suitable spots, or because fierce storms have torn it away from its moorings.

23 years ago, Perigna was seriously damaged during one of these storms, When rebuilt, it was supplied with improved and more modern freshwater plants. This means the city produces much more freshwater than it needs, exporting it to other cities. Perigna is in the tropical sphere, meaning the plant is solar powered, saving lot of energy.

The city is circular, open to the water in the central. Docks can be opened, making it a rather safe harbour.



Climate: Most days in Perigna are gloriously sunny and bright, but it is not all nice and shiny. Storms are a problem. The city is constructed to take quite a bit of punishment, but someone being washed away to the sea, never being seen again happens most years. It is an inevitable fact of life in most of Thalassa. Most just pay close attention the the weather forecasts, and otherwise hope for the best.

Crime: Crime, while not nonexistent, is not a huge problem in Perigna. Periodic pirate attacks have happened in the past, but the city is too large and well built to be an easy target. Some local Zeema manufacturing is rumoured to take place, but if so must be on a pretty small scale.

The Companies

Eija Incorporated
Eija Incorporated was known for it's unbelievable quality in ships before their creation of the Phase Drive Engine. Eventually, as the system saw a rise in commercial espionage and sabotage, Eija scrapped some projects, while meticulously hiding other, which increased the overall time needed to fully research and finish the project. To keep the project under wraps, they referred to it as the MAE project. In any case, the project was finished and quickly published, boosting Eija Inc to one of the highest spots in the ship-building industry. The creation of the Jump Drives used to travel the Lumos system today is one of the milestones in history, and it's still undergoing constant changes, revisions, and improvements. Also, it has been rumored that Eija and Underground have been working on new types of weapons using the reaction chambers from Jump Drives.

Underground Incorporated
Underground, or UG Inc is a fairly new company, and bases it's revenue on making high tech weapons, ranging from Capital class weapons systems to reliable rifles for infantrymen fighting planet-side. While other companies dabble in all types of weapons, energy, ballistics, etc, UG focuses primarily on ballistics, explosive, and gas-based weaponry. There have been times when UG works with Eija and DD Lmtd to produce masterpieces of war, but otherwise, they generally tend to keep to themselves. Representative of UG always seem to pack some kind of weapon or the other. Their ships also, as a general rule, have astounding firepower, to show off new UG weapons.

Dissidia Defensive Limited
Dissidia Defensive got it's roots from one of the Outer Rim planets, although which exact planet no one is sure of. Ever since glactic battle became possible, DD has been around, constantly producing new types of armor plating from ships ranging from Capital Class to Strike Craft. They've also fairly recently entered the Defensive Weapons market, blowing away competition with it's signature CDS-10, 20, and 50. They are more well known however for their Repelon Premium armor, an aqueous metal alloy. The exact details of how it works are fuzzy, but it works. Reps of DD most often have heavily armored ships.

While UG and DD are not the most powerful of companies, they are associated most commonly with Eija, which most would think gives them quite a bit of pull. Every company is rumored to be working on secret projects, and while a few of these may be joint operations, even more aren't shared among the Companies, leaving numerous possibilities in the future.

Rapidly Evolving Parasite (REP) - Strain Designation 'Monarch'

The Monarch strain of the parasitic life-form known as REP is considered one of the least threatening strains, at least in the short term after initial contact. In the long term they are just as, if not more so, dangerous as the other REM strains, but defending a system against them does not require the rapid militarization and massive mobilization over a short time frame that is needed to defeat one of the more prolific REP strains.

In fact they are the most restrained of the REP variants, and instead of a constant hunger driving them to consume all life in their path as quickly as possible they seem content to focus on a more restrained slow pace of growth. The worlds they leave behind are not the barren lifeless wastelands that other, less restrained, strains leave in their wake, and are instead paradises filled with various lush plant life. They seem to turn planets into 'farms', using various plant-like constructs to leech resources from the planet itself. This technique is much slower than other strains, but in the long term provides them with more resources and ensures that they do not need to constantly consume new worlds, or die out at a rapid rate. They still need to expand at a steady rate to survive, but that rate is much much slower than any other strain.

The Monarch strain is also, unlike most other strains, very bad at re-engineering already created biological forms into efficient combat 'units', and as a result instead of infesting animal/sentient life-forms it converts them into pure biomass, and then creates combat or support forms from their stores of biomass. This means that plant life is just as valuable to them as animal life forms, which also factors into their reduced aggression levels. However the Monarch strain is unable to create it's own intelligence, unlike more prolific strains, and must instead use animal life-forms as it's core intelligence. The more intelligent the original host is, the higher potential intellect the Monarch strain can reach using it. The need for intelligent hosts to infect to provide intelligent oversight and control is the main reason the Monarch strain will target systems inhabited by sentient species.

While technically any mind is useful to the Monarch strain there is a very particular set of brain patterns (which is very rarely found in various sentient species as harmless mutations in the makeup of the brain) that it focuses on, ignoring all other potential hosts as anything other than walking (and possibly resisting, depending on technology level) biomass.

If it identifies an individual with this particular set of mutations capturing that individual becomes of paramount importance to the Monarch as a whole. Once captured infestation begins. The process is considerably longer than usual for REM infestations, due to the fact that the strain must modify the hosts brain to enhance it, yet shift it to furthering the Monarch strain, rather than simply taking over the nervous system itself as other variants do. It has been noted that such individuals tend to suffer from hearing 'voices' when around REM-Monarch strain bio-forms, as well as flashes of images, and sensations. There seems to be little pattern or control as to what these individuals can 'pick up', and most would be driven mad by the chaotic mental messages that they are forced to receive.

Once the Monarch has fully infested an individual they are turned into a life-form classified as a 'Queen' (or 'King' depending on the gender of the host). Physically they are fairly similar to their host species, with vital organs located in roughly the same place. They do usually have additional armour plating that is on par with high-tech armour, and a variety of natural weapons (fangs, claws and occasionally a tail or wing like appendages), an enhanced skeletal structure that is significantly tougher and more complete (for example on humans the rib cage becomes a solid wall of bone around the otherwise vital chest region) and their muscles gain additional density to provide a boost to strength and speed. However they are nowhere near a direct threat as a combat form, and considerably easier to kill.

However despite the physical similarity mentally they are several leagues in advance of their original host. Their brain is more powerful than it was previously by several orders of magnitude, and operates at a level that blows even the most advanced computer away in terms of raw 'processing power' available. It also acquires the ability to 'compartmentalize' itself, creating small sections of brain that are devoted to maintaining a certain task without requiring a concentrated effort from the main intelligence (often used for maintaining repetitive simple tasks that require intelligent oversight) However the major difference between a 'Queen' and the host it originally was is that additional nodes have been added to the brain. These nodes require that the initial brain have certain traits and biological mutations (The ones specifically targeted by the Monarch Strain). They give the Queen access to the 'psychic' ability that the Monarch Strain uses to co-ordinate the millions of units that it creates to further it's own spread. This ability allows a Queen to create a 'psi-space tunnel' to the control node that each Monarch unit has attached to it's nervous system. This tunnel allows thoughts to move at FTL (Faster Than Light) speeds from the Queen to the unit, and turns the unit into a physical extension of the Queen's mind.

This makes Queens among the most powerful Command and Control assets in the galaxy, even amongst the REP strains. Monarch units have almost perfect synchronization when controlled by a Queen, and often use highly advanced and constantly evolving tactics when engaging a hostile, utilizing traps, ambushes, multi-pronged attacks across broad fronts, and other tactics designed to clog up reinforcement and communication channels to allow them to cut apart opponents piecemeal.

There is a downside to this centralization however. While the 'psi-space tunnel' that the Queen forms is un-blockable and undetectable, if the Queen itself is too far from the units it is controlling lag can occur, which can significantly decrease the combat effectiveness of the various units being controlled. Each Queen can only control so many units at once based on their intelligence, and as many of the more advanced combat forms are made up of multiple units the number of units being controlled at once can very easily spiral beyond a Queen's ability if they are not careful. The largest weakness in the Monarch strain is if a Queen is killed or incapacitated ALL units under that queen's control lose their intelligence, and become unable to operate with anything beyond the most basic instinct they have. To charge at and try to kill any biological life-form that does not release the pheromones the Monarch Strain uses as IFF tags. This means that machines are often left untouched, and drones, tanks, and even space-ships are ignored by the feral Monarch units, allowing them to be easily mopped up.

<*note: This is here since i'm not sure where else to put it, and to give people some background on the species I plan to bring in. There are a few possible clues in there as to how to beat them, as well as tactics and such that they will probably use. But I'll probably be expanding this as we go along and more details emerge (specific technology for instance). If this isn't the proper place for this sorry and feel free to move it to where-ever it should be. ^-^; >