Pactolus and Midaion

REGION - ARUSHA
This location is centered in the Arusha region.
Far to the north of the Coalition of Colonies' space lies Arusha. Unrecognizable from the rest of the Orion Spur, it is a truly alien sector, populated by xenoflora vastly different from the rest of charted space. With its unique plant species prized as rare and exotic, the sector is a hotspot for large amounts of expeditions and scientific studies. The vast majority of planets in this sector are uninhabitable however, and civilization is limited to orbital habitats and biodomes that live in relative isolation due to their distance from the outside world. Pactolus is located in Arusha.

The planet Pactolus, encapsulated in a field of debris, and encircled by its moon, Midaion.

Overview

Well inside the Arusha sector, formerly system XLV-0846, has been revitalized into a thriving mercantile hub of Pactolus and its orbiting satellite moon of Midaion. The moon itself has been repurposed into being the primary anchorage for the Golden Deep’s primary and largest vessel, the Midas. The system is governed by the Golden Deep, a nation-state who utilizes the area as its capital and hub of trade.

Pactolus

The primary and only planet within the system, Pactolus is a relic revitalized. Once known as Arcadie, disaster struck the planet during the interstellar war, vanishing its populace and leaving the planet to be reclaimed by the strange wilds that inhabit the surface. In recent history, the Golden Deep began reviving the system, laying claim to Arcadie and its moon to utilize the bountiful resources within. Now named Pactolus, the planet moves forward to be the hub for trade and the home to synthetics from across the spur, seeking a community to call their own. The city of Eurydice is the only major settlement on Pactolus. An advanced and efficient fledgling metropolis that has been brought back from the ashes of the disaster that rocked the planet. Once having been a crime haven for villains from the Republic of Biesel and Coalition of Colonies, everything changed when an attempted uprising in response to the change in Golden Deep government occurred in 2466, leading to the city streets being swept clean to forge new homes for inspiring citizens.

History

Originally referred to as Arcadie by the scientific community and its initial colonists, Pactolus was discovered early on into humanity’s spread into the stars as a habitable world within the Arusha Sector and marked for colonization shortly after it was confirmed to have an earth like atmosphere and biosphere, along with an underground rich in gold. The original colonists landed on the planet sometime in the early 2200s and the planet began to boom after that for numerous reasons. The habitable nature of the planet attracted many migrants from the still suffering Earth, and interest in the local biosphere and resources attracted investment from the newly growing interstellar corporations such as Einstein Engines and Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals.

By 2260, Arcadie was growing against all odds, with the colonists remaining hopeful and cities still being constructed despite the ongoing recession in the Sol Alliance at the time. While all of human space seemed to stagnate, the planet, mostly self-reliant and sitting on a vast mineral wealth, seemed poised to ride out the economic crisis in relative peace. In the period between 2265 and 2275, as the growing insurgency of the Coalition escalated into the Interstellar War, the colony sought to stay out of the conflict, dutifully delivering its Recession-era taxes to the Alliance, while taking in ships from both sides that, for whatever reason, had found their way to to the planet. In the chaos of the Spur’s largest war, Arcadie was said to be a time capsule. Amidst the foggy woods and alien flora of the planet, one might have never realized a war was on.

This all changed in early 2279 when news of the bombing of Gadpathur reached the colony. The 103rd fleet - the Solarian garrison of Arcadie who had previously declared neutrality in the conflict - now threatened to fire on anyone who entered the system. Its officers, known for their open and diplomatic nature, now seemed agitated and secretive. With neither the Coalition nor the Alliance willing to spare the resources to find out what was going on, Arcadie slowly began severing its links to humanity as a whole. All outside communications were severed, save for its annual payment of taxes still pegged to its Recession rate. For eight years, the planet remained silent, save for that one payment, each year, until eventually, that too stopped.

It wasn’t until 2287 that a single battered corvette from the 103rd showed up at the naval base at San Colette, its crew having apparently mutinied from the blockade around Arcadie before facing another mutiny aboard their vessel. Although Navy interrogators attempted to question the sole surviving crew member aboard, Captain Guy Moreau, they were unable to glean anything from his panicked ramblings about “that thing”. They need not have bothered, however, as camera footage from the ship revealed that Arcadia had been reduced to a nuclear wasteland, its cities burnt to ashes apparently from a radioactive comet, the fleet having been inexplicably destroyed in orbit as well. As the Spur sought to step away from the madness of the Interstellar War, Sol was content to sweep Arcadie under the rug, calling it another casualty of that conflict, even as Captain Moreau, to his dying day, insisting that the comet had been sent by some force.

Forgotten by humanity, the planet slowly recovered from the wounds inflicted on it, radioactive waste and its strange alien ecosystem reclaiming what was left of humanity’s colonization efforts. The once shining cities of Arcadie became infested with plants, vines and trees twisting around their burnt husks. Although the planet became uninhabitable for all but the hardiest of life, its vast mineral resources were left untouched; a planet of gold, diamond, and rare earth elements out there for anyone with the daring to come and get it. Such a catch did not go unnoticed by the Golden Deep, who, while still in seclusion in 2452, found it to be the perfect base of operations while they prepared to make their debut to the Spur. Undaunted by the harsh elements, they would go on to reclaim and rechristen the planet, and while its name was long since forgotten by all but the history books, Arcadie would go on to be reborn as Pactolus.

Environment

Following the comet entering orbit and splitting into smaller fragments, much of the planet’s surface was transformed into fields of craters and radioactive wasteland, coupled with a long period of nuclear winter. The urban areas have since changed into depopulated husks, and once prominent bodies of surface water dried up to reveal lifeless deserts. Such was the devastation to the planet’s ecosystems, resulting in the vast majority of native species being lost to extinction, with only the most robust and anomalous of lifeforms persisting or even thriving in this new age.

Pactolus’ remarkably speedy recovery however, has returned the atmosphere back to relatively breathable, though still hazardous, levels. Odd as it may seem, the nuclear hellfire spreading across large parts of the planet acted favorably for specific kinds of Pactolus’ Arushan flora, eliminating the competition as it killed off the majority of “regular” forests and allowed breeds of radiation-consuming trees to flourish and dominate. These new pine-like trees were allowed to reach tens of meters in height, absorbing and prospering off the radiation as they grew and spread at an abnormally fast pace, rapidly spreading to reclaim much of the surface and significantly lower the levels of radiation. While still largely unexplored, it is expected that Pactolus hosts a plethora of similar plants, undergoing a series of mutations to adapt and engage in hostilities with other seeds, in what seems to be a violent and competitive struggle for the conquest of radioactive wastelands.

Stemming from the critical disturbance of the climate and environment, the planet has come to experience near constant lack of clear weather, with thick black clouds covering the skies and blotting out the sun through most of the year. Any rain and stormy weather is always acidic and extremely dangerous to organic life as we know it, and though ideal for the forests, this makes life on Eurydice very hard without durable raincoats or other means of protection. Finally, the most attractive element that has largely remained undisturbed is the abundance of gold. Today, hundreds of mines dot Eurydice’s surroundings, creating a source of the planet's wealth.

Eurydice

The beating heart of Pactolus lies firmly within the limits of the once ruined city of Eurydice, the planet’s capital and most populated settlement, surrounded entirely by dense forest. Built upon the steel carcass of the old capital of Bayonne. As of 2466 and the completion of the Eurydice Restoration Project the city has graduated from an unreliable heap of decrepit buildings, where only the wealthy had any sense of normalcy in construction, to a fledgling metropolis that is up to galactic standard. Organized in “layers”, the wealth of its denizens is an obvious contrast as one ventures closer to the city center. The downtown segment of Eurydice becoming more glamorous with every passing step, with gold lined or even plated skyscrapers piercing the heavens. The very center of town is the tallest structure, dwarfing the city entirely as it threatens the atmosphere of the planet itself, is The Tower. Home to the Eurydice city council, a collection of IPCs from all segments of the collective who each run a segment of the city itself. Together they act as the planetary council and are trusted with its standard operation.

The Outskirts

The outermost and newest ring to Eurydice is a section of industry, protection, and logistics. Featuring large research complexes deemed too dangerous to be within city walls, industrial centers for robotics and ship manufacturing, and home to hundreds of mines that provide the resources to keep all of it running. Being by surface area the largest ring of the city, workers are brought to and fro via a thriving logistics hub deemed “Hermes”, which finds itself transporting both worker and cargo alike all across the entirety of the city. The innermost section is met with a tall outer wall, made to keep the unknown wilds out. Capped on the wall and encapsulating the city is a force field of sorts named The Palisade, which keeps the toxic weather and potentially harmful atmosphere of Pactolus from affecting the citizens within, going so far as to filtering the rainwater before letting it continue to fall upon the streets. The outskirts themselves are exposed to the temperamental forest that surrounds the city, but through high fences and tactful patrols any rogue wildlife is contained before it can wreak havoc upon the denizens who work here.

The Ring

The most populated of the city’s layers, the Ring comprises essentially the entire urban area except the city center, covering miles of freshly renovated buildings sparkling with holographic advertisements, buzzing with vessels of all makes, and acting as a monument to the mercantile nature of the Golden Deep at large. Amongst this capitalist franchise and thriving economy live the inhabitants and visitors of Pactolus; namely the Thesian caste of individuals with a few Merchants who could not aptly afford a residence properly in the affluent center itself. Due to its location outside the bounds of civilized space, the planet serves now as a unique location amongst the Orion spur, where synthetic life is the dominant populace, and such populace is afforded the unusual gift of more or less equal treatment societally.

Few organics live amongst the population, being from the original criminal inhabitants that once used the city as a safe haven to hide from persecution. Having elected to be documented and not participate in “The Eurydice Uprising”, these organics have been left to live their lives amicably among the growing synthetic majority. These individuals find work just as any other, and can be found in almost every facet of society on Eurydice, but in very sparse numbers. Coming from a multitude of backgrounds and species, they are a diverse minority. Though requiring special resources such as “Food”, the organics of Eurydice are often found in a collection of city blocks known as “Little Xanu”, which simultaneously serves as the main shuttleport for tourists who venture so far into Arusha who require similar needs.

The population of The Ring is one of a growing nation, housing old citizens and new, with backgrounds all across the spur. Some sections of The Ring are bustling party-centric zones, where overloaders are found dispensed on the street, and nightclubs of various makes and types foreign to most organic person's interpretation rule the local economy. Other sections, quieter, full of refugees or synthetics looking for a new life of equal treatment, or running from their old one. Influences are abound mixed with The Golden Deep’s flashy opulence, with elements of Konyanger architecture shown side-by-side Elyran and Colletish fixtures. This section of town is a melting pot of IPC culture from across the Orion Spur at large.

The grounds are mostly peaceful, but openly patrolled by The Argo police force, who rapidly respond to any situation higher than your standard argument, enforcing a forced peace while haunted by the city’s past of rabid gang violence. Weapons are no longer to be openly carried except in the event of ceremonial items, or items that compliment the look of the owner wielding them (As long as the weapon isn’t loaded or charged). But such rulings don’t stop underground traders, sponsored partially by the Zaibatsu, from peddling arms, armor, and more to interested buyers.

Overall the citizenry operate either ferried by the Hermes system, or utilizing their own vessels, coming for business or pleasure. Establishments catering to all needs of all species are widely available, and coexistence between different races is mostly peaceful lest the might of The Argo be called upon. Wild parties and celebrations are the norm in the entertainment-heavy sectors every night, leaving the streets at the time littered and sometimes damaged. To which cleaning and restoration fees are swiftly posted to the offenders through a remote camera network which patrols the city proper that also mans an army of drones to see the city spotless.

The Centre and Tower

Found in the new skyscrapers in downtown Eurydice, the Center as a layer is essentially a deluxe gated community, separated from the rest of the city by a series of towering walls, sentries, and checkpoints. Home to the flourishing elite upper class of merchants and Golden Deep business magnates, entry is bought with an exorbitant amount of credits, with living spaces being generally limited to the higher floors and away from the surface. The tall structures are connected with sealed bridges and domed floors from reinforced glass, creating a very pleasant and luxurious environment, protected by the elements that the Palisade lets through, and with a rich view of the sparkling city beyond. These areas provide spaces for high-end retail stores and, much like the Anchorage on Midaion, serve as prime residences for the Merchant and Grand Merchant tiers of society within the Deep.

In the middle and above all the skyscrapers, rises a singular thin and spike-like building, creatively named the Tower. Its height manages to pierce the stormy skies to stand above the clouds, the top offering itself as the only inhabited spot with constant sunlight during the day and a majestically clear view during the night. It is there where the Eurydice city council choose to reside accompanied only by vetted members of staff, and a host of Hoplan guard, making it effectively the seat of the planetary government and the Deep’s absolute authority. Furnished in an outrageously expensive and overbearing manner standard to the Deep’s extravagant ways, only the most important individuals are permitted to reach these levels under tight security, and solely for appropriate business with the city council. However, despite the regime change, many of the older populace of Pactolus still view the Tower as a symbol of authoritarian rule.

The Council, The Law, and The Market

Ruling over the city of Eurydice and by extension, Pactolus as a whole, is the The Council. A collection of five members of each part of the Golden Deep class system (with the exception of owned synthetics). Each member is responsible over a different department for the system, with issues that fall between departments ruled upon by the council as a whole. This ruling party was democratically elected by the populace of Pactolus after The Mayor was removed from power. Otherwise outside this council operates The Argo, who fall under their own command answering only to Midas Control. Independent merchants find stake also, utilizing their economical influence and ability to establish business as they please to run markets through the many courtyards and mercantile centers found throughout Eurydice.

The Minister of Finance, a Grand Merchant by the name of M@mmon sits at the head of the council. With economic gain at their theoretical heart and at the head of the nation they serve, it is natural that this position sits at the most important, to be trusted by only the most proficient in capital gains. The Minister of Finance sees all (bank accounts) and is the final say in complex citizenship applications among other things. Their chief responsibility is the organization of transactions and businesses within the Pactolus system to ensure nothing less than excessive growth of the economy.

In the seat of bureaucracy is the Artificer of Regulation, Hokatinheeres, a complex synthetic who is the legal representative for the Pactolus system, and handles any contracts required within its space in terms of dealing with the planetary government. A synthetic of several sets of arms with rumors of multiple working heads, they handle thousands of documents every passing day from license approvals, to citizenship advancement applications, to business applications. They play a key role in holding the foundations of the city together, and the sheer enormity of the tasks they consume within the Golden Deep can never be truly calculated.

Vicar of Tourism, Merchant Alay, is focused on the attractiveness and cleanliness of the Pactolus system, with the aim to draw in both more citizens, and tourists from across the Orion Spur. The work they provide keeps the denizens of Eurydice content, while boosting the economy for the Golden Deep’s home system.

Secretary of Immigration, is the first of the Thesian council members. Thesian Compardon-Armand is the forefront of approving applications of citizenry and residence. Working closely with the offices of Midas Control, Comardon-Armand helps new citizens adjust to the lives within the Golden Deep, and sets them off on a path of employment should they need assistance.

And finally, the Foreman of Industry, Engineer Philan organizes the Research, Development, and Industrial growth of the Pactolus system. It is their design where research labs are constructed, where shipyards send their engineers to, and where Merchants may organize markets. The goal of this seat of power is to maximize the Gross Domestic Product of the Pactolus system, ensuring product and services for export or advertisement. Any business that produces goods on a mass scale or requires specialized equipment for scientific purposes must put in a request through the offices of Industry.

Law enforcement is entrusted to The Argo, a section of the Golden Deep Merchant Navy led by Commander N33L. This corps of law enforcement officers patrol the streets enforcing order on every level. Supplying low level enforcers who act as public servants until fully armed and armored teams are required for more sensitive engagements. They hold offices within the Tower, and additionally within precincts scattered across Eurydice, organized by district. The command center itself is not explicitly defined, with N33L’s office completely unknown.

In terms of Eurydice’s history with the free market, the spirit of the previous Mayor’s notion is still in practice, but is now explicitly regulated to keep civility within the Pactolus sector. Weapons and armor are now sold in exclusive markets where the members within such markets are highly organized. Courtyards around the city are regularly rented to be utilized for large mercantile gatherings, the nature of such are highly chaotic with bombastic advertisements and high paced deals simulating the wheeling and dealing found on the Midas proper.

Industry

For a significant amount of time the main export to Eurydice was the resources of Pactolus itself. Namely rich gold reserves found within the planet’s crust, in addition to the untapped minerals found abound. These gold reserves are what tinge the merchant vessels and structures of the Golden Deep collective, adding legitimacy to the name of the nation itself. In recent developments, this structural gold is not just the raw material, but has been modified and refined to alloy with standard starship standards, giving structural strength to the usually flimsy metal.

In the interest of improving the system’s overall Gross Domestic Product (GDP), industry has been implanted around the city of Eurydice and into the stars. Materials labs work in hand with shipyards to refine new alloys in zero gravity environments, arranging the very atoms of the grains of metals to elicit the most desirable properties. Afterward they would be forwarded into artisanal vessels custom made for synthetic life, or for the prospective foreign commissioner from space beyond the Golden Deep. It is here in these shipyards that ships of fancy are assembled alongside vessels of war. From elaborate merchant vessels of cruiser size and below, to the militaristic small-craft that can dance around an organic pilot with the grace of a ballet, armed with a lethality uncharacteristic for their size.

Cooperating defense, the shipyards and many facets of the Golden Deep society implement developments from a dedicated Research and Development sector. Hundreds of laboratories both in and around the city of Eurydice, stretching all the way to the stars above. Here scientists and engineers from all houses of the Golden Deep are commissioned by merchants, government, and foreign investors, to solve issues or develop eccentric visions at the whim of the client. It is in these laboratories that both beauty and horrors are made. From starship mounted energy blades to variations of the Konyang texture based synthetic food systems, to even the “perfect” types of synthetic music tastes can be developed. The range of these laboratories knows no bounds, and the unusually eccentric, some calling borderline insane, minds of the scientists within work tirelessly to bring their dreams and the dreams of their clients to life.

But in the heart of a synthetic nation lies what is both a scientific venture but also a fundamental healthcare system for its residents. The robotics sector of the Golden Deep empire ventures with a unique understanding of the synthetic anatomy that any organic can only wish to possess. The robotics laboratories of Eurydice provide both vanity and healing to the denizens that call the area home. Providing seamless transitions between chassis to those who can afford more than one and developing ways to integrate the positronic into more and more complex systems, to which some within the spur call the work of the Golden Deep roboticists to be both a miracle, and blasphemy. But no matter who holds what opinion, everyone can agree that anything beyond the standard repair in Golden Deep space is one thing: Expensive. It is thanks to these labs that the Golden Deep holds so many unique looks that many can hardly recognize what chassis was the original base for your standard merchant. Though merchants who work with the organic members of the spur tend to utilize more familiar models when in foreign space to ease a sense of familiarity into their clientele, and not to induce unease from the eccentricity of their preferred frame. Golden Deep members cannot swap wildly between chassis due to this segment.

Midaion

Pactolus’ natural satellite, Midaion was the primary interest of Golden Deep explorers in the region, as a potential base of operations and permanent anchorage. This came to fruition in 2448, when the first structures started to be constructed with investment and direction from the Midas group. Initially envisioned as a dock for the Midas itself, the preliminary plans were eventually enlarged substantially as interest was growing from the rest of the Golden Deep for a permanent base for their vessels. This resulted in the infrastructure being expanded to the size of a megastructure, outfitted with its own atmospherics system, gravity generator, leisure facilities, office complexes and most importantly, a capacity to host a few thousand vessels of all sizes at a time.

Environment

Midaion itself lacks any noteworthy geological or mineral features, its rocky surface remaining uninhabitable and without an atmosphere. There have not been any significant expeditions to discover any mineral wealth, as any mining plans have been deemed too expensive for a relatively barren underground. Dotted with craters, the moon’s side facing Pactolus bears the scars of man-made debris crashing on Midaion during the early days following the planet’s complete nuclear destruction by Alliance forces.

The Anchorage

Known simply as the “Anchorage”, the super structure created by the Golden Deep on the surface of Midaion can be considered a technological marvel, rivalling in size the largest of Hephaestus’ production stations. Able to accommodate thousands of ships at a time, the largest and most impressive dockyard is reserved solely for the Midas, the Golden Deeps’ flagship. An imposing exterior, the Anchorage does much to impress and captivate the outside viewer, its baroque features and architecture complemented with enormous glass windows, gilded surfaces and impeccable detail. Its spacious, multi-storied interior includes all manners of shops, offices, repair stations, luxury suites and amenities appropriate for the affluent Golden Deep members. Every corner, room and hallway has been cared for by the finest artisans the Deep can hire, as decorative statues, paintings, gem-encrusted chandeliers and furniture create an overwhelming sense of suffocating luxury and wealth. An enormous water fountain in the very middle of the Anchorage’s main hall cast in solid gold is especially indicative of the Midas Group’s power projection, accompanied by a bronze statue of the mythical king washing off his Golden Touch in the water, causing the fountain and its surroundings to be turned into gold.

The Anchorage’s lower and underground levels are on the other hand, dedicated to a purely utilitarian function. The megastructure’s electrical, atmospheric and plumbing infrastructure require constant maintenance from these floors, with hundreds of technicians, engineers and labourers keeping busy every day. The structure’s gravity generator is also present in these areas, requiring a robust electrical grid currently serviced through a mix of solar farms dominating the moon’s surface around the Anchorage, as well as energy from the battery on board the Midas and the larger ships.

Base of Operations

Although the Midas undoubtedly holds primacy over any location connected to the Golden Deep and its activities, Midaion and the Anchorage serve as the logistical hub and resting area for the gargantuan vessel. When the Midas is not sailing through space, the Anchorage becomes the practical seat of power for the Collective directed by the Midas Group. Entry to the Anchorage is permitted only to Golden Deep members, who in turn can bring any accompanying guests.