For over ten thousand years the ArcWays have slumbered, lost to the ages and buried under the sediments of time on many worlds.  But now they are rediscovered and utilized by Humanity, and a united stellar neighborhood is the ultimate result.  And such a League of Worlds will be needed, for as old as the ArcWays are, they contain a terrible force billions of years older, and it will not rest once awakened.

maastrichian@bresnan.net   |Enter Here| Return to Explorations

Timeline:  A by and large Earth-centric timeline of the universe in general, with more specific information on the Local Neighborhood as one nears the present time of the setting.  last updated May 25, 2008

The Shostak Institute of Sapiency and Exobiology:  The Galaxy is filled with life, but intelligent forms are comparatively rare.  Yet, in the Local Neighborhood, through the actions of other species, there are several different forms.

• Extinct Civilizations

  • The Angelic Epoch (between 6.82 and 4.52 billion years old)

    • Angelic Civilization

  • The Archaic Galactic Epoch (between 4.52 and 1.35 billion years old)

    • Archaic Civilization

    • Cthulu Civilization

    • Sky Miner Civilization

  • The Imperial Galactic Epoch (between 1.35 billion and 363 million years ago)

    • Dunwalli Civilization

    • Deeper Civilization

    • It'eel Civilization

    • T'zeche Civilization

    • Awaghūt Civilization

    • First Tsubar'ey Civilization

    • Arim-Ojefo-Joi Civilization

  • The Galactic Plague (between 198 and 51 million years ago)

    • The Third Tsubar'ey Civilization

  • The Modern Galactic Era (between 13 million and 800,000 years ago)

    • J'huyn'ta Civilization

    • J'ryx'ta Species

    • J'sai'ta Species

  • The Local ArcBuilder Era (between 800,000 and 125,000 years ago)

    • ArcBuilder Civilization

  • The Local Sivata Era (between 16,000 and 9,500 years ago)

    • Sivata Civilization

  • The Dominion Period (between 2942 CE and 2985 CE)

    • Khai Civilization

    • T'chebsoni Civilization

  • ZaFarKumor Civilization

• Local Neighborhood Species

  • Interstellar Civilizations

    • "70 Virginis Species"

    • Aagüla Civilization

    • Oswagii Civilization

    • Satlek Civilization

  • Intra-System Civilizations

    • "Iskanderite" Civilization

  • World Civilizations

    • Arsemian Civilization

    • Thanalé Civilization

  • Pre-Industrial Civilizations

    • Igii Civilization

    • "Tripod" Civilization

    • Tsalos'ey Civilization

    • Urgchitsitnik Civilization

  • Pre-Technical Civilizations

    • Cath'thetiki Civilization

    • Puggle-Na Civilization

    • Rho-1 Cancri Civilization

• Human and Human-Derived Civilizations

  • Lost Civilization

    • Children of Kastiel

    • Devasnid

    • Shiru'hushu

  • Pre-League Civilizations

    • "Moon Men"

    • "Neanderthal"

    • Kentauric Empire

  • League Derived Civilizations

• Known Non-Local Independent Civilizations

  • "Bugs' Province" Civilization

• Galactic Level Civilizations and their Clients

  • Eiyogsha Species

  • Eldradara ("Far Sider") Civilization

  • Gruy-koi (the "Magni") Civilization

    • LGM-X Continuity Civilization

    • Phohallii Species

    • Plyarra Species

    • Semu-vox Species

  • "New Lad" Civilization

  • Tsubar'ey Civilization

  • Xyln'drea-hulora ("Sagittarian") Civilization

    • Kamannuhana Species

    • Ultamu Species

Encyclopædia Planetæ: The League of Worlds spans many star systems throughout the Local Neighborhood.  And there are other systems of interest as well, some as close as Sol's backyard, while some others are to be found across the Galaxy.

• The Home System

  • Mercury

  • Venus

  • Earth

    • Moon

  • Mars

  • Belt, the

    • Ceres

  • Jupiter

  • Saturn

  • Uranus

  • Neptune

• The Core Systems  Systems out to 25 light years from Sol

  • Proxima Centauri:  The Proxima System, and the primary world of Bester.  Distance of  4.22 light years.  Bester PCL classification of JaniVesperian Subdivision.  Alpha Centauri Project colonization effort.  No previous influences.  The planet's biosphere is natural, with the most prolific areas confined to the terminator regions.  The colony, once established, always existed marginally, with some level of stability finally being reached nearly 200 years later.  By the time that it was integrated into the Kentauric Empire, the culture was pre-industrial, and bordering on pre-technological.  The empire brought a much higher level of culture and technology, which was maintained until the Empire's fall, and its incorporation into the Garden Oekumene.  Today Bester remains a simple culture, agriculture-based, and sees relatively little off world traffic.

  • Alpha Centauri A:  The Kentauros System, and the primary world of Ghellhonus.  Distance of 4.36 light years.  Ghellhonus PCL classification of GaianContinental Subdivision.  Alpha  Centauri Project colonization effort.  Previous influences include the Cthulu civilization, and the ArcBuilders.  The planet's biosphere is natural and prolific, with a largely subtropical climate predominant over most of the planet.  The colony was wildly successful, and eventually transformed into the Kentauric Empire, which gathered a substantial interstellar holding.  Its eventual fall, fueled by over-extended resources and decadence, paved the way for its incorporation into the Garden Oekumene, which is now arguably the most powerful polity in the Local Neighborhood, however benign.  Today Ghellhonus is a major population center, with substantial off-world traffic and trade.

  • Alpha Centauri B:  The Toliman System, and the primary world of Baahki.  Distance of 4.36 light years.  Baahki PCL classification of EuPromethean Subtype.  Alpha Centauri Project colonization effort.  Previous influences are lacking; there is no indication that the ArcBuilders had ever visited this system, even though they were present in the Kentauros System.  The planet's biosphere is likely as old as Ghellhonus', but its widespread nature is quite young.  Fossil evidence shows that life on this world remained bound to the oceans for billions of years, and that only in the last few hundred million years began to colonize the terrestrial regions.  Thus the native biomes were rather restricted, and possessed creatures no larger than Earth insects when first colonized by Humans.  Indeed, it was the colonists which introduced most of the terrestrial life forms, which have literally taken over the planet in the last ten thousand years.  Native biomes are now largely restricted to isolated islands, while Earthly biomes (derived largely from European stock) can be found over vast areas.  The colony itself was never rich, per se, and certainly id not enjoy the technological growth that the sister colony of Ghellhonus did.  indeed, as the population spread, many isolated regions reverted back to a subsistence level of existence, and did not begin to expand again for hundreds of years.  When the Kentauric Empire first arrived, most of the populace still lived in small villages, their economies based almost entirely on agriculture and local trade.  Even after hundreds of years of benefits from the Empire, the people of Baahki resisted a high-tech lifestyle.  Under the Oekumene, their simplistic lives have remained intact, and have in fact enjoyed something of a renaissance.  Even so, most communities now boast the best of modern essentials, such as medicines and food production.  But these things remain carefully hidden from the casual observer, who is likely to see only a simple people.  Offworld traffic is not prolific, but there does exist a substantial trade in Baahki livestock, most notably the various local breeds of sheep.

  • Tau Ceti:  The D'jedmin System, and the primary planet of Igom.  Distance of 11.9 light years.  Igom PCL classification of GaianContinental Subdivision.  Big Five Colony.  Previous influences include the ArcBuilders, who began terraforming the planet; the Lost Civilization established a colony here as well.  The world is home to the Igii, a sentient species that was provolved by the Lost civilization.  The planet itself has a lush biosphere, one that has become largely self-supporting.  However, the planet was originally terraformed from an Arean state by the ArcBuilders, who never established more than a small outpost here.  While they managed to create oceans and a thick atmosphere, they either abandoned the effort or were pulled from it (possibly by their species-wide demise), and the world backslid into a semi-frozen state once again.  By the time that the Lost Civilization arrived, the world was not at all habitable.  However, with the presumed aid of the Sivata, and abandoned ArcBuilder technology, the world was once again brought to life.  The biomes were carefully transplanted from Earth, and even today remain a fine example of late Pleistocene life.  The crowning achievement, however, was the provolution of a feline species into the sentient Igii.  It is unknown why this was done, but archaeological evidence shows that the earliest Igii independent settlements coincide with the final settlements of the Lost Civilization.  For unknown reasons, Humans withdrew from a green world, and left it in the hands of a new species.  The Igii have indeed enjoyed a long and varied history, having spawned no less than three major civilizations, all of which were remarkable for giant stone monuments, and uncountable smaller cultures.  One of the most recent civilizations, and the most influential, was a war-like set of related nation-states which had just begun to shed their constant battling, and establish scientifically-orientated "Houses" when the Big Five Colony arrived.  For a period of several centuries the Igii suffered under Humanity, who viewed them as nothing more than sophisticated pets.  It took a major Igii revolution, nearly toppling the extant Human culture in the process, to bring about full equality.  The mixed Human-Igii culture today is the end result of several nations, which had banded together to form a unified world government once the ArcWays were reopened.  This exceptional bond between Human and Igii aided in mitigating the deprivations of the Dominion, which viewed the Igii as abominations.  Today Igom is a major center of commerce for the League, and it is host to some of the leading scientific minds in the Local Neighborhood.  Because of the temporary nature of Igom's terraforming, this world has also become a center of study for the development and perfection of terraforming techniques and technology.

  • Omicron-2 Eridani System:  The Saquanché System, and the primary planet of Kidian.  Distance of 16.5 light years.  Kidian PCL classification of GaianContinental Subdivision.  Big Five Colony.  Previous influences include the ArcBuilders, and one of their most extensive colonies known; the Lost Civilization, which established a culture that would eventually give rise to the Children of Kastiel.  Kidian itself, while a seemingly lush world, is one of extremely harsh conditions.  There is a single supercontinent, with nearly all of its western portions covered by thick jungle.  Much of the biology of the planet is poisonous to Humans, and these forests, that must have at first seemed to be rich with potential resources, turned out to be death traps.  Likewise, the entirety of the rest of the continent is made up of barren deserts, ranging from sandy wastes to rock-covered barren lands.  Centuries may pass here where not a single drop of rain falls, only to have the droughts suddenly broken by months of harsh and unending rainfall.  Flash flooding often rewrites the geology of these areas, turning formerly flat lands into canyon-riddled mazes, while former clefts in the surface are suddenly filled with hundreds of meters of sediments.  When established, the Lost Civilization colony must have faced tremendous challenges, and indeed they responded with an extreme measure of prudence.  The colonists were genetically altered over time, finally producing a people with midnight skin to withstand the weather extremes and harsh solar radiation, exceptional physical abilities, and an endurance unmatched by any other strain of Humanity.  likewise, the culture was transformed into one of honor, ritual combat, and the constant striving to improve one's standing in the Game of Life.  this rigid culture acted to preserve the culture for nearly its full 20,000 year history.  Today, the Children of Kastiel live much as they did long before Humans even travelled to Earth's Moon.  When the Big Five Colony arrived, the history and relationship of the two worlds was slowly revealed.  All through this process, the Children revered their brethren from Earth, and still today they regard them as respected elders.  Kidian receives a large amount of offworld traffic, but visitors are typically restricted to well protected environments, sealed off from the rest of the planet.

  • Sigma Draconis:  The Alsafi System, and the primary planet of Retunda.  Distance of 18.8 light years.  Retunda PCL classification of MesoGaian Subtype.  Big Five Colony.  There are no known previous non-indigenous influences on the planet.  When colonized, Retunda was a world undergoing an oxygen revolution.  The extensive microbial and floraform biomes in the oceans had been releasing oxygen into the atmosphere for tens of millions of years, and the air was marginally breathable by Humans when the Big Five Colony arrived.  However, the land was still barren, save for primitive plants and microbial colonies along shorelines.  It was a world ripe for terraforming, and for the establishment of Earthly biomes.  However, the colony was not equipped for such activities, and so the process was a long and drawn out affair.  The initial colony existed in large biodomes for several hundred years, while the planet was slowly turned into a place livable by unprotected Humans.  Yet this structured approach was responsible for a very stable culture, one which eventually came to enjoy a much greener and lively planet.  Ironically, this more habitable Retunda allowed for a more lax, more diverse culture, one which eventually fell to internal warring.  The major Iotia Conflict nearly collapsed both the planet's civilization, and allowed for the reversion of the terraforming process.  Only through heroic efforts by the few remaining pockets of technology was the planet saved.  however, the final result was the final and permanent fracturing of the world's peoples.  Today, the planet is divided into several nations, all of which coexist peacefully, but yet remain separate.  Despite this, the world, once integrated into the Human extension of the ArcWay network, has become a major center of commerce and travel, and remains one of the premiere worlds of the League.

  • Eta Cassiopeiae A:  The Achird System, and the primary world of Hyannis.  Distance of 19.4 light years.  Hyannis PCL classification of GaianPelagic Subdivision.  Big Five Colony.  Previous influences include only the ArcBuilders, who possessed a small colony here.  The world itself  has a lush biosphere, and possesses a single supercontinent, stretching from the north pole to nearly the southern, and which is neatly spined by a long length of tall, rugged mountains.  Some five million years ago there was a major mass extinction, and today only five major families of animal life remain, all of which have adapted to a tremendous variety o ecological niches.  The planet also possesses an extensive ring system, likely formed by the breakup of a close approaching asteroid several thousand years ago.  The ring is eroding, however, and constant meteor showers light up the equatorial regions, with surface strikes not at all uncommon.  The Hyannis colony was a successful one, and for hundreds of years the people lived in several well-planned, strictly regulated communities.  Since that early time, however, several distinct cultures have arisen, some of which have falling into extinction, while others have continued to grow and evolve.  Today Hyannis is a popular, and quite populated planet, with extensive offworld trade and traffic.  indeed, it is often a major destination for vacationers and tourists.  An estimated 13% of the planet's current population are seasonal only.

  • 82 Eridani:  The Lashlé System, and the primary planet of Tsevorda.  Distance of 19.8 light years.  Tsevorda PCL classification of GaianContinental Subdivision.  Big Five Colony.  Previous influences include the ArcBuilders, who constructed an expansive coastal colony; the Lost Civilization colonized this world, and established a Lost Colony which thrived for the past 20,000 years.  The planet itself is lush and subtropical, being located marginally closer to its sun than what many would consider to be optimal.  The continents are largely barren of  any major land forms, and the oceans have a remarkably low salinity due to the lack of erosion from the land into them.  The planet is quite old, and its geological processes have begun to fade, which accounts for its simple morphology.  It is possible that the biosphere itself might begin to erode within another few hundred million years as the magnetic field begins to fluctuate and fade, also a result from a sedate core.  The biosphere is currently quite lush, however, and it is a testament to the Tsevordes, and all of their various cultures over the past 20,000 years, that the environment has not suffered.  Indeed, the Tsevordes regard their oceans above all things, the result of millennia of god-worship.  Archaeological evidence shows that the planet's population suffered after the ArcWays shutdown, stranding them here, cutting them off from their Sivata benefactors.  For nearly ten thousand years, various regions experienced cultural explosions and declines, until finally several small but stable civilizations became established.  While these peoples eventually faded away as well, they did give rise to an entire succession of daughter-cultures, which eventually culminated in the roots of modern Tsevorde history.  Today Tsevorda is home to a spiritual, nature-loving people; technologically they excel in medicine, with their vast resources coming almost entirely from the planet's expansive jungles.  Tsevorda is one of the founding worlds of the League of Worlds, and it is a major nexus in ArcWay travel.

  • Delta Pavonis:  The Waterdon System, and the primary planet of Waterdon Prime.  Distance of 19.9 light years.  Waterdon Prime PCL classification of  AreanLacustric Subtype.  A Hegira Colony.  Previous influences include the ArcBuilders, who likely aided the planet in achieving its habitable state, and who established a large and sprawling colony, most of which is now buried by floodplain sediment;  also present are widely scattered Sivata ruins, indicating that this was a primary world for them, and that they had spread across much of the surface.  The Hegira Colony was comprised largely of India-stock, with a sizeable Chinese population as well.  Initially several families were established, which over time grew into major Houses that ruled the world for centuries.  however, the Delta Crisis (a major period of solar activity) effectively ended this social structure as the surface population took drastic steps for survival.  Indeed, three periods of major solar activity have essentially reset Waterdon cultural and social standards to primitive levels each time, neatly dividing the planet into separate epochs.  Today, however, with the aid of both the League and the Orion Corpus, measures have been taken which will protect surface installations should another such event occur.  Waterdon is a major population center today, with both a sizeable population of natives and immigrants, as well as substantial numbers of transients passing through the system each local year.

  • Gliese 667 A:  The me'Rakka System, and the primary planet of Tsalos.  Distance of 22.7 light years.  Tsalos PCL classification of EuVesperian Subtype.  A Hegira Colony.  Previous influences include the Tsubar'ey Third Civilization, which terraformed the planet to a meta-stable state and seeded it with life from the Earth of the period.  However, with the fall of the Third Civilization, the planet was left to its own devices, and life spread.  Chief among the groups to evolve were those terrestrial forms descended from the giant sea scorpions, which eventually culminated in the sentient Tsalos'ey species.  The Tsubar'ey have since returned in their present civilization, the Sixth, and have made the planet a protectorate of theirs.  The planet itself was one of the first Vesperian worlds to be discovered, and had always figured high on the colonial possibilities scale.  The Hegira Colony that eventually travelled here, comprised largely of Asian cultures, never reached the planet.  The Tsubar'ey deny having had anything to do with the colony ship's disappearance, despite the world being one of their protectorates, and it is generally accepted that they are indeed innocent of any wrong doing.  Today the planet itself remains off limits, save for unmanned probes and landers, allowed in only after approval by the Oekumene.  The Tsalos'ey are relatively primitive, and have several different cultures scattered across their world.

  • Gliese 33:  The Wanadi System, and the primary planet of Guaramé.  Distance of 24.3 light years.  Guaramé PCL Classification of MesoAmunian Subtype.  A Hegira Colony.  There are no known previous influences.  The lack of an advanced methanogenic biome suggests that the Awaghūt had no influence over the planet's early biological development.  The planet itself is well into its warming stage; that is to say, it is still a frigid planet by Human terms, but to native life the entire biological setting is changing.  Left to its own, life will either adapt and thrive, or it will undergo a massive extinction and either disappear, or remain trapped in a microbial state.  The Hegira Colony chose this world as a destination due to misinterpreted data, which had lead researchers to believe it was a watery planet.  Telescopic observations were never clear, but seemed to show a planet with oceans and continents.  What they were in fact seeing were massive methane ice glaciers atop water-ice plains, glaciers which have largely vanished today, due to both Human influence and the planet's natural evolution.  The initial colony was thus greatly hampered in its development, and indeed found it easier to remain in orbit for the first few years.  Once surface installations were complete, however, a strictly regimented society evolved.  Little has changed over twenty thousand years, and the population, always small, remains known as being a haven for administrators and politicians.  most of the planet's surface remains wild, with the populace almost entirely confined to several equatorial subsurface cities.

  • Beta Hydri:  The Cariad System, and the primary planet of Orra.  Distance of 24.4 light years.  Orra PCL classification of EuPelagic Subtype.  A Hegira Colony.  Previous influences include the ArcBuilders, who apparently never had more than a very minor outpost on this world.  Indications are present of minor structures, beyond the ArcWay, but of little else.  It is possible that they regarded this world as uninhabitable, considering the large amounts of surface water.  There was also the Lost Civilization, which established the present Lost Colony of the Shiru'hushu.  There is even more ancient archaeological evidence, however, of another species which lived here several hundred million years ago.  The holotype ruins of the Deeper Civilization are found here in the form of massive artificial structures, buried under several hundred meters worth of sediment.  While actual hard data or technological equipment are almost unknown, it is clear from the construction of these materials (as well as other indicators) that the Deepers were a very advanced interstellar species.  It is believed that Orra was a colonial world, however.  The Hegira Colony which made its way here, comprised largely of northern European and Canadian colonists, found the planet to be inhabited by a Lost Colony of mermen.  Ages ago the Lost Civilization that had settled here had genetically modified themselves to live in the open ocean, and a society of simple, aqua-agrarian people had taken route, surviving quite easily on a mix of both native and Earth-imported flora and fauna.  The arrival of the Hegira Colony began a new chapter in the planet's history, however, with the introduction of high level technology.  Lost Civilization era technology had long ago been lost, and the formation of several floating colonial platforms was a miraculous achievement to the native Orrans.  For most of the planet's history, there has been a slow and gentle mixing of these two cultures, including the occasional inter-marriage.  by the time that the Dominion came into power, Orra had become a low level technological world, offering largely tourism as its chief export.  However, the Dominion hit the planet hard, a likely reason for it becoming one of the chief centers of rebellion, as well as one of the founding worlds of the League of Worlds.  Orra has continued its slow technological and sociological evolution since that time, almost without break, and today it is a major League hub, renown both for its stable surface installations, and its expansive, environmentally friendly sprawling underwater cities.  The Shiru'hushu themselves often travel off world, and their hallmarks are their unique wheelchairs, allowing them passage over almost any terrain.  More recently, the fashion of wearing wigs has reappeared in Shiru'hushu society, although today it is more of a statement, and less of an attempt to integrate into other Human cultures.

  • 107 Piscium:  The Aské System, and the primary planet of Kelari.  Distance of 24.4 light years.  Kelari PCL classification of GaianPaludial Subdivision.  A Hegira Colony.  Previous influences include the ArcBuilders, who may or may not have been responsible for this planetary system's remarkable configuration, it is not certain.  The Lost Civilization also established a colony here, which continues to survive in the equally remarkable Devasnid race.  There are some who believe an older species, completely unknown, influenced both the planetary configuration and the Devasnid people, but there is absolutely no evidence to substantiate this.  Kelari is in a remarkable family of four co-orbiting planets, all of which were at one time habitable.  Only Kelari has retained its biosphere, possibly due to ArcBuilder influence.  The Lost Civilization may have also perpetuated the biosphere, which is now largely Earthly in origin.  Either way, no records exist to confirm any of this.  What is certain is that the four planets together, at one time, were a remarkable example of life.  Fossil evidence shows the other worlds lost their habitability over several hundred thousand years, finally fading away completely a few tens of thousands of years ago.  The Devasnids themselves have no records from their early days, and yet they are genetically modified in such a way as to fit into their biosphere perfectly, a biosphere that is almost completely made up of predators.  In this system, one animal is constantly feeding upon another.  The Devasnids have various adaptations which help them survive, not the least of which is a poisonous spur in the wrists of the female, often used to incapacitate or kill rivals, even mates.  While there is no obvious advantage for these adaptations (calling into question the motives of those who modified them to begin with), Kelari society had survived in many forms quite well over the past ten thousand years.  With their entrance into the League of Worlds ten thousand years ago, they began to enjoy a renewed sense of stability, and have grown both sociologically and technologically.  Kelari itself is not a popular world to visit, with many wild and dangerous region still, but it is a leading provider of various technologies, most notably being intra-system space vessels.

• The Mid Volumes  Systems from 26 to 55 light years from Sol

  • Pi-3 Orionis:  The Kane System, and the primary planet of Hokul'ea.  Distance of 26.2 light years.  Hokul'ea PCL classification of GaianPelagic Subdivision.  A Hegira Colony.  No known previous alien influences in this system.  The planet, in its native form, was a veritable tropical paradise.  With only primitive ecosystems existing on its many islands and in the world-girdling ocean, it was a planet ripe for colonization and the establishment of Earth-based biomes.  The colonists were largely from Pacifica, with heavy Hawaiian and New Zealand influences.  Upon arrival, the colonists fractured into many different groups, most of which retained their Earthly cultural ties, although all were held under the single authority of the "Nation of Islands Congress".  Kept unified over planetary distances by a global communications network centered on the old colony ship, this Congress fractured when the ship suffered a catastrophic failure and eventually plummeted into the planet's ocean.  With the loss of communications, most nations drifted apart and fell into a routine not dissimilar from their earliest beginnings.  Fishing, minor agriculture, and some hunting became the way of life for most.  Even those areas that retained a significant amount of technology eventually gave way to more simple methods of living.  A brief technological renaissance was experienced during the early years of the League, but over the past ten thousand years the planet has risen and fallen many times as far as that goes, with hot spots of advancement flaring like nova amid the lesser island tribes.  Today, Hokul'ea is well integrated into the League, but retains much of its primitive heritage.  It is not unusual to find some island population heading out to sea in the morning to fish, only to return by noon to check on the latest news via the League Interweb.  The planet remains a tropical world, with extensive undersea biomes, and as such is a popular tourist destination.

  • Beta Canum Venaticorum:  The Chara System, and the primary planet of San Gabriel.  Distance of 27.3 light years.  San Gabriel PCL classification of EuPelagic Subtype.  A Hegira Colony.  The only known previous influence is that of the ArcBuilders, who established a moderate sized colony on a now sunken volcanic island.  The planet is somewhat less oxygen-rich than most such worlds, but still far richer than what Humans are accustomed to.  When the Hegira Colony arrived, they found that the previously imaged land areas were simply darkened regions of sea, where subsurface, massive seamounts were located.  the colony managed to establish a presence on one of these seamounts, literally by sinking their colonial ship.  Provisions were then made to create and extend habitats over the surface of this mount, and eventually surface platforms were also constructed.  in the intervening 20,000 years, innumerable cultures have arisen and fallen on these surface platforms, while the subsurface habitats have remained stable to the point of cultural atrophy.  by the time of the ArcWay network's reactivation, both halves of San Gabriel civilization were on the brink of extinction.  Today, the planet is slowly being terraformed, with surface water slowly being removed, while seamounts are being stabilized and primed for eventual colonization as dry land.  the planet enjoys a large amount of interstellar traffic.

  • 61 Virginis:  The Bright-Eye System, and the primary planet of Dradgeworld.  Distance of 27.8 light years.  Dradgeworld PCL classification of GaianContinental Subdivision.  A Hegira Colony.  Previous influences from the ArcBuilders, who constructed a moderate colony here; the Sivata possessed a major colony here, building over the entire ArcBuilder site, and expanding over much of the planet, primarily along the coasts; the homeworld of the indigenous Khai species.  Dradgeworld is a lush, heavily forested planet, its stretches of woodland continuing unbroken across entire continents.  Only towards the poles and various desert regions do the local trees thin out and give way to other biomes.  The Khai species were superbly adapted to life in the mid-level of these great forests, and it is likely that they never set foot on the ground.  When encountered by the Hegira Colony, it was noted that they lived a peaceful, pre-technological existence.  Vegetarians, it seemed that they lived in complete harmony with their surroundings.  Early researchers noted that they often spoke of the "ancient sky dwellers", a reference to the Sivata (although this connection was not discovered until the reopening of the ArcWay network), but there was never any hint of knowledge regarding the ArcBuilders.  However, reports from this period, on up to the Dominion era, also made note of how often times certain Khai individuals seemed to be far more knowledgeable than they should have been.  There is some debate, then, as to whether or not the Khai had been genetically modified by either the ArcBuilders or the Sivata.  unfortunately, the species was completely wiped out by the Dominion, and this question remains wide open.  The Hegira colony remained quite insular, being almost entirely restricted to a group of large islands off of the shore of the mainland.  Largely western European in origin, these people eventually descended into a rather primitive lifestyle themselves, and for hundreds of years made only rare trips to the mainland to trade with local populations of Khai.  Over time, however, they did begin to spread, as Humanity is wont to do, and by the time of the ArcWay activation, had established several small daughter civilizations along the surrounding continental shores, more often than not utilizing ancient Sivata ruins, or building over the top of them.  Today Dradgeworld remains much as it always has been, a forested world that is both pristine and mysterious.  Humanity continues to exist along the coasts, with only three areas of significant urbanization.

  • 41 Arae A:  The xxx System, and the primary planet of Coatlique.  Distance of 28.7 light years.  Coatlique PCL classification of xxx.  A Hegira Colony.  Previous influences include the ArcBuilders, who constructed a mid-sized colony here, and later the Sivata, who colonized the planet to a somewhat greater extent.  The Hegira Colony, comprised of South American natives of various cultural origins, arrived and established two major population centers on a single isolated island.  A third population center was being established when the island was swept almost completely clean by an undetected tsunami, believed to have originated half way across the planet.  A scant 43 survivors remained on the planet, where there had previously been nearly 2,000.  With the available technology, a program of careful cloning and inbreeding was begun to establish a viable population.  in the end, a society of five distinct Families emerged, and eventually spread to encompass five different nations.  While these nations have long since gone to dust, the genetic bottleneck created by this ancient incident remains painfully clear in Coatlique society.  Genetic matching is often performed to make certain that individuals are not too closely related before they procreate, and in many cases individuals will often simply close themselves in lieu of more standard offspring.  It has been estimated that the need for such drastic measures have not been needed since the League first re-contacted this world, and certainly over the intervening ten thousand years the genetic variability has grown substantially, especially considering the immigrants to the planet with the establishment of an ArcWay here.  Nevertheless, tradition rooted in the ancient past has become a moral imperative in many cases, and few think it unusual to consider breeding so carefully.

  • Gamma Leporis B:  The xxx system, and the primary planet of Mako Sica.  Distance of 29.3 light years.  Mako Sica PCL classification of EuPromethean Subtype.  A Hegira Colony.  Previous influences include an unknown species, responsible for terraforming the planet to a meta-stable state, and seeding it with Earthly life from about 66 million years ago or so.  Beyond the presence of Earth life here, there is no evidence of who these ancient beings were.  Theories range from distant aliens to an advanced, Earth-born species which has thus far remained undetected in Earth's fossil record.  Whatever the case, a species of Troödontid transplanted to Mako Sica eventually evolved into a sentient species, giving rise to the present Thanalé race.  Beyond this, the ArcBuilders also had a presence here, but it remained largely curtailed, likely in order to avoid interaction with the already extant, if primitive Thanalé.  The Hegira Colony itself was almost entirely composed of Native Americans, who named the planet because of the large extent of badlands which cover one of the main continents.  The colony, when settled, eventually came into contact with the then fairly primitive Thanalé, initiating a simple trade with them.  However, several years after the colony was founded a disease developed among the Humans, derived from the post-Dinosaurian inhabitants, which quickly and utterly decimated the colony.  Within two years, no one was left alive, and the colony became a literal ghost town, shunned even by the Thanalé, who viewed it as an evil place of tormented spirits.  The return of Humanity via the ArcWays reignited the plague, but far more advanced medical technologies easily found a cure.  Nevertheless, the planet remained virtually untouched by Human hands until the advent of the Dominion, which established a small penal colony there.  During the rebellion, the Thanalé lent a substantial amount of aid to the prisoners, freeing them and helping to overthrow the established Dominion outpost.  Afterwards, most former prisoners elected to remain, and established a new colony.  Over the next ten thousand years, this Human world has flourished in tandem with the Thanalé.  It is a joint society, one which has seen the rise and fall of several cultures, seen several wars, and several important advancements.  Today it is an interstellar center of biological studies, the most noted branch of which is determining the origins and relations between Mako Sica flora and fauna, and that of the Earth, past and present.

  • Beta Comae Berenices:  The Phione System, and the primary planet of Phione IV.  Distance of 29.9 light years.  Phione IV PCL classification of GaianContinental Subdivision.  A Hegira Colony.  No known previous influences.  Seemingly a pristine and untouched world, the Hegira Colonists, largely of Asian descent, found the surface to be somewhat harsh.  Much of the land masses were mountainous, with only the occasional fertile river valleys available for colonization.  Winters were often harsh, and the summers could be brutally warm, even in the northern latitudes.  Because of this extreme cycle, many of the animals on the planet are migratory, moving from the lowlands to the highlands, following the clement temperatures.  The early colonists made note of several types of such animals, some of which grew to tremendous sizes, well adapted to eating the common tough-skinned native plants.  One species in particular garnered their interest, for they seemed to move in strict patterns, with certain individuals playing certain roles.  Often, it seemed that the patterns in which they moved sparked specific behaviors among individuals, and many likened them to the dances of Terran honeybees.  But the pressures of living on the planet eventually overrode any need or desire to learn more about this, and over the centuries the colony began to fall fallow, until finally there only remained a scattering of migratory Human tribes, living at a decidedly pre-technological level.  When the ArcWay was reopened, Humanity on Phione IV was rare, furtive, and shunned any sort of contact.  However, the resources of the new colonists allowed for further detailed studies of the planet and its life, and it was eventually determined that the large, curiously moving species was sentient, albeit no more advanced than the remains of the hegira colony.  Nonetheless, when Humans began to interact meaningfully with them, the T'chebsoni, as it was learned they called themselves in their ultrasonic language, began to adapt readily to both the alien presence and the use of modified technology.  By the time of the Dominion, the T'chebsoni had begun to develop (with help) technological items that aided in the establishment of their first permanently settled communities.  It was this swift learning curve which prompted the Dominion to wipe out the species completely, and to remove all Human presence on the planet.  Even the primitive descendents of the ancient Hegira colony were relocated.  After the Dominion's fall, Humanity was slow to return to a world which seemed suddenly so empty.  Today, however, the planet boasts a thriving series of arcologies, all located within many scattered river valleys, each one dedicate to various branches of science.  Phione IV has become, more than anything, a scientist's dream posting, an extended laboratory, more than a true colony.

  • Kappa Ceti:  The xxx System, and the primary planet of Neverwhere.  Distance of 29.9 light years.  Neverwhere PCL classification of GaianPaludial.  A Hegira Colony.  Previous influences began with the ArcBuilders, who terraformed this planet from an EoGaian state and seeded the biosphere with life from Earth.  Presumably, they were attempting to preserve the Homo neanderthal species, which figures prominently in their databases found on this world, and which can be found living today.  The Neanderthals themselves have had a colorful history.  Apparently independently of the ArcBuilders' influence, but caused indirectly due to the clement environment given them, the Neanderthals eventually developed a high order technological society, one which had begun to develop advanced computer technology.  However, sometime around ten thousand years ago Kappa Ceti began to emit massive flares, larger than even its "normal" superflares, causing extensive environmental damage, as well as destroying the Neanderthal technological base.  The result was a world littered with technological ruins, and peopled by Neanderthals who once again live as their long extinct ancestors did, by hunting and gathering and living in caves, both natural and composed of the ruins left behind by their technological kin.  The Hegira Colony arrived only a few centuries after this massive fall, but already the Neanderthals had lost all memory of what they had once been.  A complication to colony also came in the form of the sun's superflares.  While the planet's atmosphere had been engineered to be thick and possess a heavy ozone layer, there were still significant risks involved with living under the open sky.  The colonists then began to adapt themselves to a life underground, utilizing to a major extent the pre-existing infrastructures build by the ancient Neanderthals, such as mines, sewers, storage facilities, and so on.  But the Colonists expanded these warrens, and eventually came to produce a complex system stretching over several tens of thousands of square kilometers, with some regions delving down nearly a kilometer deep.  Over the past ten thousand years, the colonists have adapted themselves superbly to this subterranean existence, even to the point of literally making themselves into a new species.  Above ground, the adapted Neanderthals are largely unaware of these people, and the two species literally live side by side, but have little or no interaction.  Today the colony is a major center of genetic research, although some of the major exports include art, as well as scientific studies on local flora and fauna.

• The Outer Systems

• The Periphery

• The Frontier

• Worlds Beyond the League

The ArcBuilder Universe is a science fiction project established an authored and copyrighted © by John M. and Margo L. Dollan 2002-2008
Content by John M. Dollan
Title graphic © by John M. Dollan
Additional contributions by Neal Aaron, David Bellomy, Ares Johnson, Somes Jung Hallinan
This page first uploaded January 9, 2006
Most recent update for this page May 25, 2008