Electronic emissaries are sent to every city-state on Gaia, asking for permission to set up an orbital diplomatic embassy in order to provide structure for conflict and negotiation in cases of war. Surprisingly, not a single objection is filed, even from the smaller anarchist and religious splinter groups. It seems that the AI is viewed in a benevolent light, given its role in settling the system. The stability that the station will provide is looked upon with anticipation.
Construction begins immediately, and is well progressed by the end of the month. While the fleet flies sorties by the new construction, named Babylon, no real issues occur that are of any note. Diplomats should begin arriving next month in temporary quarters, and be able to begin negotiations shortly thereafter.
Research on Hephaestus is directed towards a hydrogen scooper capable of harvesting hydrogen from the sun. While material science has advanced significantly in the years that the system has been colonized, the rigors of heat and gravity required for such a design leaves both scientists and Mavens baffled for the moment. Thankfully, hydrogen is relatively plentiful in several of the asteroids, and several other locations in the system outside of the star.
On Aries, ice is melted using the orbital lenses, but an engineering mishap results in several million gallons of water end up being wasted as a dam is breached unexpectedly. While no casualties occur, the planned lake will now be a swamp or marsh, at best, if the water does not simply evaporate. The latter is most likely, as the water cycle has not yet been restarted on the planet.
Expansion efforts are constantly underway at the Arcologies, but a special effort is made this month to make the people more comfortable. A focus on parks, pools, playing grounds, cinemas, and aquariums stocked with fish from Aquarius is made. The expansions go well, and a general sense of prosperity and industry has set in on Aries.
Work on chemical fertilizer is fruitful. A new chemical combination is discovered which will allow the grasses and scrub plants to continue their slow march across the planet at a more rapid pace. If the program is taken to an industrial scale, and a large swath is continually fertilized in front of the advancing grass line, the planet could be transformed radically.
Out of the blue, a design for a battleship class ship is submitted from a design consortium on Aries. Although unsolicited, the ship is quite impressive. The private company has offered to produce a prototype of the ship at cost if allowed access to the military dry docks the AI controls.
Time lapsed in system: 7 years, 3 months- "Gaia": Earth-like planet with mysterious alien presence, several bustling, competitive human-run colonies, and diplomatic space station (Babylon)
- "Hephaestus": acidic, hostile atmosphere and radioactive, burgeoning research and development station and several power generation facilities
- "Aquarius": aquatic world, savage life, pack-like nomadic intelligent Avians, floating university dedicated to teaching the Avians
- "Aries": Mars-like planet transitioning to Earth-like, industrial terraforming, (scattered trees, advancing grasses, basic wildlife, modest amount of surface water), AI-controlled comfortable Arcology settlements and scattered Maven communities
- "Shiva": Freezing world, habitable caverns under permafrost
- Abundant Asteroids: nascent asteroid mining industry, naval base
- Gas Giant A: numerous moons with isolationist intelligent life
- Gas Giant B: several moons with isolationist intelligent life
Military
Self-repairing carbon
Electrochemical ammunition
Mass drivers
Strong magnetic shields
Combat drones
Medical
Cloning and genetic manipulation
Industrial
Aerotransmission of power
Deep drilling
Solar lenses
Other
Internet
5-25 Meters (Patrol class): 50 ships
26-50 Meters (Corvette class): 25 ships
51-100 Meters (Frigate class): 9 ships
100-150 Meters (Destroyer class): 3 ships
- Can communicate through mental implants
- Produces own electricity via small organ
- Can be given programs to augment skills and knowledge
- Exhibit a slight tendency towards uniformity
- Specialized implants to perform military, research, and medical roles
- Seek knowledge obsessively
- Pack dwelling
- Near-human intelligence
- Nomadic
- Capable of tool use
- Quick breeding rate
- Teach new generations
- Know basic sign language
- Dwell on multiple moons around Jovian planets
- Very isolationist
- Possess at least rudimentary space flight
- Possess gravity manipulation technology
- Maintain an economy between multiple moons (evidenced by traffic between them)