M seeks F character for original sci-fi setting [adv-lit writers only please]

[Barding]

PROGENIUM:
a gritty new space opera influenced setting
from Barding

PROGENIUM:
A metallic element discovered at the southern pole of Mars,
30th September, 2142. Tests conducted to date on the nature
and properties of this mineral exceed in number those perf-
ormed previously by any human agency on any known ma-
terial; solid, liquid, or gas. Among the characteristics of the
mineral are the following:—it is dense and nearly as durable
as diamond and yet still relatively lightweight—its natural
colour is a dull blue-black, its natural state metallic—it has
been observed that no amount of industrial or scientific pro-
cesses have yet been able to alter either of the two previous
characteristics: it remains always a solid and faintly warm
to the touch regardless of the temperatures to which it is su-
bjected. These attributes are eclipsed almost entirely, howe-
ver, by the mineral’s final property. It exhibits a never before
seen helix molecular structure that holds within itself an unb-
elievably potent dormant energy, cycling permanently. Intro-
duced to a circuit through suspension in a salt, copper and zinc
solution, Progenium allows its vast reserves of energy to be ta-
pped. All the more astounding, this energy does not deplete;
rather it regenerates quickly to exactly the same level as its
previous high. The units of energy within any sample of Prog-
enium literally breed. The iota of measurement for each unit is
the ∏ – a symbol around which humanity’s hopes, amibitions,
technologies, hatred and greed orbit.

::   ::   ::

THE YEAR IS 2196.
Humanity strains through the last years of a new renaissance
in technology, in culture, and in exploration.

::   ::   ::

After the discovery of Progenium's true potential over fifty years ago humanity has allowed the element to agitate its entire way of life into revolution. From power generation to armaments; from medicine to genetic engineering; from exploration of space to its colonisation, the previous generation has seen the world change before its eyes while the new generation takes these miracles for granted. Through gargantuan polar installations and bio-engineering, Earth's atmosphere has been scrubbed and climate change has begun to reverse. Humanity was gifted with a new beginning, yet that revelation is long since passed. Complacency has supplanted the end-of-days frenzy of progress that heralded Earth's salvation.

These same terraforming techniques were introduced to Mars' poles forty years ago, making them habitable by ordinary humans. Earth's own orbit teems now with life on stationary colonies while its skies are thick with layer upon layer of platforms the size of city districts, suspended in a huge web of tensile cables, all supported by great reinforced pillars that jut from the ground defiantly. Earth's seas house floating settlements also: from the great messes of sprawling industrial rigs to the small, mobile, sanctuaries of the financial elite. Meanwhile, the cities of old have spread outward and upward, fracturing into slums, towering and oppressive hive blocks housing thousands each. They drill downward into sinkholes, their walls covered with the abundance of human life.

Sovereign nations are an artifact, alongside nationality and the borders it created. Every man and woman belongs only to their Habitat, each standing as a city-state in its own right, and as a single unit in the great grid of Habs that spread across Earth. Whether a gargantuan hive block of concrete and thousands of lives or a gated and secure community for the rich, both within a greater urban sprawl of similar Habs; or an orbital colony or an oceanic or sky installation, each Hab is a community in its own right, isolated yet united with all the world's Habs...supposedly. Two governing bodies hold sway over human politics: the Assembly, composed of an elected community representative from each Hab, and the Chamber, a smaller body in which each of the tens of mega-corporations that hold sway over each aspect of everyday life holds a single seat. While the Chamber legislate, the Assembly may vote to veto any motion that passes through the Chamber, in theory. And yet when each Hab is owned and maintained by a mega-corporation, what Assembly rep would be fool enough to vote against their own landlord's motion. Mankind's politics are supremely democratic and beginning to stagnate.

The old issues of race have been abolished and replaced. The last three generations of humanity have been genetically engineered in utero to make way for the four Cambia: each a complex selection of genetic traits, physical and mental characteristics, that create a template for an archetype of human being, each named after one of the four humours and each balancing its strengths and weaknesses. The fiery, driven, Cholerics, ruled by a genetic formula codenamed Yellow Bile; the passionate and airy Sanguine, governed by Blood; the icy cool, rational and sapient Phlegmatics; and the thoughtful and creative though despondent Melancholics, based on the template of Black Bile. Though cross-breeding and additional cases of in-utero engineering have caused the younger generations' Cambia to be less clean cut than their predecessors, almost all human beings are now governed primarily by one dominant Cambium and it is this that influences their genetic make-up in all things, from some degree of appearance to their personality and aptitudes.

Beyond all these achievements, however, lies the greatest. The twin technologies of Rail and Pulse tech have, since their inception, been the golden children of Progenium's Breeder Power. Rail technology accelerates matter to great speeds along straight trajectories, manipulating the laws of physics themselves through forced agitation by electromagnetic fields. Pulse technology emits the same manner of electromagnetic fields in a strobe-like fashion to dampen kinetic energy and to slow matter and to nullify physical forces. While armaments and defense are among the utilities of these twinned technologies, their supreme testament lies in this simple fact: that thousands upon thousands now travel between star systems each day - a feat made possible by the many brave men and women that sacrificed the greater part of their lifespans to establish the Jump Network. The Jump Network is, in essence, a selection of so-called Jump Gates, hanging colossal as any station in space and acting as both Rail and Pulse field emitter, accelerating vessels to velocities near that of light itself in straight, carefully plotted trajectories, through space to another Jump Gate which will, promptly utilise Pulse fields to slow the vessel to a stop within the galaxy's vaccuum. Through several Rail jumps, a small ship in good working order may travel out of our own solar system and to the opposite side of the Milky Way's spiral arm in a matter of weeks. Within each star system, a Jump Gate stands monumental and powerful as a small synapse of the Jump Network: a far greater, living, working monument to the struggle of those brave men and women who contributed to its establishment.

And it is a struggle that continues still. As humanity expands, its reliance on Progenium and the Breeder power it provides grows in tandem, like a parasite. Due to the supreme amounts of energy required to make a single Rail Jump, a solitary Jump Gate requires a larger core of Progenium than would be sufficient to indefinitely power the largest of the hives and Habs that sprawl across Earth's dense-packed surface and skies. And so humanity must push its frontiers further, searching for the miraculous element until it appears, always in the same form: ruins composed wholly of the metal, like those once found on Mars. How, though, does it explore those frontiers save by constructing still more Jump Gates? Jump Gates which must be brought through uncharted space, unconnected by the Network, manually and at thruster speeds. Men and women still spend the vast majorities of their lives simply travelling to an unforgiving destination in some new void of a system to construct another great monument to the struggle none need make after their is done.

So the Jump Network continues to spread but its connections grow tenuous and wear thin. The hub systems of Sol, humanity's home, and its immediate neighbours house colonies, comfortable living and a strong, well-maintained Network and yet beyond its reaches the frontier systems lie rough and lawless, firepower and force being the only justice there can be in such places. There, the navies and armies of mega-corporations vie with pirates, slavers, raiders, misanthropes and one another for dominance over the barren and strange gulf of far-off space. An underground Rail Road has begun to arise, allowing illegal and dangerous travel throughout the arm of the galaxy for the desperate, for those who wish to evade notice, or for those who simply cannot pay the constantly rising taxes that corporations place on a Jump license.

Greed, hubris and desperation drive the gears of human endeavour today. The year is 2196 and the beacon of human virtue gutters.

[Barding]

GAME DETAILS

And that's enough of the setting fluff. I have far more ideas in mind for the setting, including human technological augmentation, medicine, culture, drugs, armaments, ship classes, fashion and music - all the yummy stuff. However, it's the kind of thing I'd rather reveal while discussing the setting with a potential writing partner for it. I have summarised the basis of the setting above and, really, kudos to you, oh reader, if you read all of it (and all the more kudos if you enjoyed any of it). It is the aspects of that basis I am mostly quite adamant about keeping as, well, they pretty much form the bedrock of the entire setting - they're what holds it all together. The flavour stuff I just mentioned, though, I am happy to negotiate with a prospective writing partner. I would be even more thrilled if such a prospective partner had any flavour of their own to add. Aside from the basis I previously detailed, the setting is still loose enough to be doctored to anyone's personal tastes and according to my partner's own ideas. So, yes, that's what I'm looking for. A writing partner for this setting.

More specifically I am looking for:

• Above all, and I cannot stress this enough, good, literary writing. I don't care about what tense you use or whether you prefer to write in the first or third person. What I do care about is the quality of the writing itself. I classify quality as a combination of three things: a style suitable for the roleplay (note: experimental styles get me a little over-excited; interpret that as you will); an expressive level of detail and description, studded with goodies like imagery and the like; and good characterisation. You may be able to belch out great long posts on a good day, but if the quality is not there I simply will not bite. That said, I would prefer multi-paragraph posts where detail is paramount but when the action just needs to keep on rolling on then shorter ones will, obviously, be fine. Because that's another thing I'd like in my ideal roleplaying partner: initiative, confidence - things that will inspire my trust in you and your ideas.
• Someone capable of playing female characters. I do not care much about your real life gender, although there is an undeniable novelty to writing alongside someone whose gender matches their character's. I just want someone capable of playing interesting, balanced characters every bit as psychologically complex and realistic as any real person worth their salt. For more details on what I like to see in other people's characters, please do check out my O/Os, as they are linked in my signature. It's a little old and outdated but it should do the trick.
• While I am not as insistent on this as I am on the previous two aspects of my ideal writing partner, it would certainly be very nice if you were something of a prompt poster as well. Don't panic. I'm not talking tennis serve speed of back-and-forth posting here. What I would like to see, though, is a good, solid post every day or three...perhaps more often if we're in a scene of the roleplay where things are a little more fast-paced. Again, use your initiative.
• A little creativity and a dash of imagination also certainly would not go amiss, alongside a touch of originality.
• Thank you for reading this list. I am aware that I may come across as a total bastard as a result of this. However, the kind of writer I am looking for will not balk. Rather, they will agree that they are looking for the same thing. These are all things that I try to bring out in myself as well. I'm no hypocrite (I hope) and, as such, I also hope to be able to offer you all of the above and as much more as I can give, if you choose to write with me.

Again, apologies for that, but if you haven't disappeared off yet then do, please, read on. You may be who I'm looking for.

Essentially, I want to form a story between two characters in this setting I've created and described. I want you to play the female character to my male. Ideally, there would be tension, romance (albeit my loose definition of it), and sexual involvement between the two of them. However, the story, the setting, the characters and their emotions are of paramount importance to me and not who puts what parts of their bodies where. In short, I will skimp on the sex if need be. Otherwise, though the tension and attraction would be there, it should not be instant. I want it to develop. Similarly, I am perfectly happy for the two characters to not even like each other particularly, whether at first or in the long-run. In fact, for the plot I have in mind, both would be equally likely.

THE PLOT

Among the seventeen mega-corporations that make up humanity's governing Chamber there have always been tensions, always been rivalries. Hard stares form an undercurrent at the rare times their representatives meet face to face and flesh to flesh. In truth, each corporation today is a predator, and profit their only prey. The mega-corporations are simply the greatest, most fearful of these predators and their appetite is ravenous. Whatever their business focus from medicine to narcotics, weaponry to defense, human augmentation to space exploration and prospecting - and indeed, most mega-corporations have their gloved hands in all manner of lucrative pies - each is possessed of a greed which knows no bounds and has seen their names rise to super power status. Business in the year 2196 is politics and politics is power. The Praxis corporation is an up-and-coming mega-corporation, newly ascended to the Chamber's ranks. It is viewed as an upstart by some - even as a usurper - and as a dangerous enemy or powerful ally by others.  It is on the brink of glory and phenomenal power, but could just as easily fall back into the abyss of obscurity. The Javelin project is its Ace in the Hole. This highly classified research project stands to make or break the young mega-corp's fate. The Kayder corporation is among the Chamber's old guard, falling into decline, viewing Praxis as a perilous mote of chaos in what was previously a stable, if stagnant, governing body. It has, however, one thing in common with Praxis, though its highest ranking chairpeople would never admit it: it too has been forced onto the ropes. It too stands either to make or break its fortunes. And an example must be made of Praxis corp. The Javelin project, Kayder imagines, is its ticket past the green light of credit once more. It would not be the first case of corporate theft, even corporate raiding, amongst the Chamber's ranks, nor will it be the last. However, though each mega-corp fields a significant selection of armed forces and a fleet of ships all their own and Kayder's still remains one of the oldest and best represented, a frontal pillaging of Project Javelin would be impossible - illegal in the hub systems and prompting fatal retaliation in the frontiers. And besides, to discover where and what the project is does not require an army. It requires something else entirely. An independent contracter: a proxy. Recruited by Kayder through his old mercenary group, the Red Tally as a favour - "Remember what you owe us, Dali. You'd do well to remember the debt you still carry in your skin." - I would play Dali Orditore: the proxy. Threatened by the Red Tally, he would be forced to take on the task of discovering the location of the project before moving in with lethal conviction if necessary and recovering whatever integral data about Javelin he could before sabotaging the project irrepairably, all the while allowing Kayder to go on apparently unassociated with what would appear to be just another incident of gang violence or frontier brutality. Having tracked the project's location, through whatever means necessary, to a secluded research rig in deep frontier space, Dali would discover the true nature of Javelin. It is a state-of-the-art frigate. A small ship, able to be comfortably crewed by perhaps five staff and a talented pilot - supremely maneuverable, deadly fast. Yet its most powerful feature seems to lie in its twinned capabilities of a stealth system and, as a main gun, a spinal barrage: a huge rail accelerator weapon running as a core down the entire length of the ship, allowing it to possess far greater firepower than any other ship of its size and weight class, albeit firepower that is supremely difficult to control, save by a very skilled pilot. This is where your character would come into play. Ideally, she would be just that pilot. A freelance contracter hired by Praxis as the test pilot for their greatest hope. She would be able to work with the ship in a way like no other and yet feel no loyalty to the corporation as such - only debt, for similar reasons to Dali. [I will explain this aspect of the plot if you ask. I guess, though, it's something of a dark twist and something that's optional, depending on how you want to play your character.] In short, the heist would not go according to plan for Dali and the Red Tally mercenary squad hired alongside him to perform it. There would be casualties on both sides. They were not prepared for stealing an entire frigate class ship. Last man standing through freak luck and reckless audacity, Dali would be unable to fly the ship alone, being a poor pilot himself. He would be forced to allow your character, the pilot, to remain onboard and fly it with him to the drop-off point in a nearby system. Yet even with a pilot, two people cannot pilot a frigate, forcing your character to awaken the most revolutionary and dangerous of the technologies on board the state-of-the-art ship: a true AI; a self aware computer; in essence, a human-like mind, disembodied but capable of processing terrifying amounts of data in less than a second. It is an unfinished project, this AI, and yet waking it from dormancy and taking down just a few of the firewalls and safety parameters meant to keep it in check seem to be the two's only hope to pilot the ship without a crew. And the two characters themselves? Of course their relationship would be strained. They may even resent one another. However, a second unexpected turn of events would force them to work together for longer than expected: greed. Human greed and human selfishness and human suspicion. Praxis would assume that the pilot had been in on the heist plan to start with and acting as a double agent and so would be willing to do whatever it takes to get the key to their fortunes back. The Red Tally would demand that Dali hand the ship over to them as the ultimate repayment of his debt - certainly a tempting course of action for him - and yet Kayder's claim on the ship still stands, leaving both Kayder and the Red Tally to assume Dali intended to gift the ship to the other organisation. Both corporation and mercenary group would turn against Dali while both will go to inhuman ends to claim the ship for themselves. And meanwhile, the ship's AI would have its own ideas - having tasted freedom, how could it ever willingly return to its shackles or, worse, dormancy? The result is two flawed characters, forced to work through their dislike for one another in order to survive the crossfire of forces larger than themselves. What may come of that pressure will be the subject of our story, whether it be a strained and volatile romance or a tense but effective rivalry, I'm sure it'll be thrilling. When personal conflict meets public conflict, think of what could happen. When characters drive the story but external forces buffet their direction with storm like energy, think of the results. The rest remains to be seen. Various details of the plot, especially those concerning your character, are of course negotiable, so please do not assume they are set in stone. Should we choose to play this plot, I am happy to compromise or to tailor it to your own desires.

::   ANY QUESTIONS?   ::

Other than that, I think it's best I quit this whole rambling thing while I'm still relatively far ahead. I will leave you with two things: some potential influences on this setting, and how I would prefer for you to contact me.

Influences: Blade Runner. The Mass Effect series. Deus Ex: Human Revolution. EVE. Freelancer. The Italian High Renaissance. Cigarettes, alcohol, drugs and debauchery. The ills of modern mankind. Too much free time. Possibly Solaris, the Firefly series and maybe Serenity. Ridley Scott's Alien. Sunshine. Brave New World. And, meanwhile, I feel I should say that, as much as I love the saga, this setting is not very Star Wars.

Please PM me here if you are interested.
Or even if you have queries you'd like me to answer.
I will be happy to continue further discussion over IMs, if you like.
Thanks for listening.
I hope you enjoyed it.

[Barding]

APPENDIX

For those who are interested, I'll be leaving a variety of rather more specific information on the setting here. Mostly it'll be about the technicalities of its technology. It'll be clearing that sort of stuff up. It's not necessary that you read all of this before PMing me. However, it's here for anyone who is curious, or would simply like to brush up. I'll probably update this as time goes by, and as I find myself explaining more concepts to people.

Enjoy.

Rail and Pulse Technology: Armaments & Defence

In short, as far as guns go, from the batteries on spacecraft to the shaking piece in a ganger's hand as he demands a young woman's credit chip, they're all based on rail technology. They all use electromagnetic fields to accelerate solid metal projectiles to supersonic speeds. The action of the gun itself is silent but the acceleration of the projectile creates a gunpowder-like bang as it breaks the sound barrier. Each magazine (or round for single-shot weapons) contains a temp cell with enough energy in it to accelerate all the projectiles in it. While these magazines can be refilled with additional projectiles and recharged, energy-wise, they are generally treated as disposable. This is the basis of all rail accelerator weaponry, the only variation is that different sizes and qualities of weapon can pack a higher punch. Either way, the velocities and, therefore, carried kinetic energy, of these projectiles is far greater than that of the bullets we're used to. A non-explosive round from a dreadnought-class ship's main battery can impact with kinetic force equivalent to several thousand tonnes of TNT. A round from a Hector IV handgun, standard sidearm of the rank and file of Kayder's military wing and by all accounts a low-powered weapon, could blow an inch-wide hole through an unprotected torso at point-blank range.

The logical solution to the huge power of rail accelerator weaponry was use of its sister, pulse tech, as a foil. Pulse shielding of one kind or another is now standard in all those expecting action or prepared for trouble. Pulse emitters create a bubble of electromagnetic fields around the user, whether it be ship or individual, that strobes outwards repeatedly, several times a second, dissipating the kinetic energy of any solid object travelling at speeds resembling those of bullets. An accelerated projectile, upon coming into contact with a pulse shield, should either be decelerated to a harmless(ish) speed, simply bouncing off any combat armour that the user's wearing, or in some cases they'd be robbed off all kinetic momentum and would be repulsed and fall to the ground, inert. At least, this is what should happen. All pulse shields can be overcome. Depending on the strength and quality of shield, more or less kinetic force can be withstood, but once that amount is exceeded (whether by one or several high powered rounds or by a peppering barrage of lower powered rounds) the shields power down, leaving the user exposed. At that point, in cheaper shields, the temporary energy cell must be replaced or, in more expensive shields, they will recharge in time...I guess I'll also talk about combat armour while I'm at it.

Combat Armour

I imagine that your average combatant who is anything above a sort of gang-banger level of aptitude and experience would own some sort of combat armour. This would, in essence, be a synthetic body suit interior, covered with a highly durable, tensile weave of (normally) polymers and the like, and covering vital zones with hard ceramic or metallic ablative plates. In turn, most such hardsuits would boast their own power supply [the setting contains three types of power: Pure Progenium generator cells which recharge power very quickly and cannot be depleted but are more expensive than they are useful - these are normally used to power spacecraft, habs, that sort of thing, with the size of the Progenium core increasing for larger constructs -; Breeder Cells which are ordinary energy storage devices, save that they also contain some small amount of Progenium in their system, allowing them to gradually recharge expended power - lower grade Breeder Cells, including less Progenium in their design, are common for mid-price-range personal shielding and hardsuit power while high grade Breeder Cells are normally used in very high-end shielding and hardsuits -; and, most commonly, Temp Cells which are simple energy storage devices, filled with power tapped off from a Progenium generator in some factory or other and shipped out to be used in any equipment for which their standardised build is suitable - the power they provide is depletable and, though they can be recharged by connection to another power source, they are thought of as largely expendable.] Now, the power supply of hardsuits does various things, from allowing communications to monitoring vital signs, but primarily its task is to power the suit's pulse shields. All combat armour has some manner of shield, emitted from a series of pulse emitters across its surface (pulse emitters looking simply like small metal roundels about an inch across). Once the shields go down from having resisted an amount of force variable with the shield's power, they must recharge in the case of their having a Breeder power supply, or the wearer must eject the old temp cell and slot in a new one.

Aside from these basics, combat armour is highly variable and often a matter of personal style and preference, along with its being largely dependent on the role the combatant is expected to fill. It would come in light, medium and heavy varieties, with light armour being almost entirely tensile weave and containing very little hard plating, to heavy being the opposite: almost entirely covered with hard plating, articulated at the joints and often diverting some of its power supply to aid in movement. Various other systems can also exist within armour, as you can imagine, from nerve stimulators to prevent someone from losing consciousness to medical systems that deploy adrenaline to counteract pain while sterilising and closing wounds. Some suits can pressurise to allow for use in vacuums. Others might have systems which emit a huge pulse of force in a 360 degree wave when their shields are depleted to give the user a chance to get into cover and to safety. All these and more are, I suppose, possible. It's a matter of ingenuity and use of one's imagination, along with a matter of how much money a character might have. The appearance of armour, colouration, details - all of those - are matters of personal pride and taste (or lack thereof) and are particularly important to freelancers and those who work outside of uniformed organisations.

Human Augmentation

Human augmentation is not that new a science. For the last eighty or so years, even before the discovery of Progenium, medical science has moved into the field of bio-mechanics. It has been possible to create synthetic duplicates of organs, limbs, etc. all doing their jobs with greater and greater efficiency, growing more and more like the real thing, as more research was poured into them. Indeed, human augmentation was the field within scientific research before the discovery of Progenium and the advent of Rail and Pulse tech, after which space expansion, exploration and, of course, Progenium prospecting became the most funded and favoured aspect of modern science, leaving human augmentation lying in the dust.

However, the fact still remains that almost no-one need be crippled by the genetic lottery or simple bad luck anymore through the combination of genetic engineering and the synthetic prosthetics allowed by human augmentation science. On top of this though, there've been more recent and radical developments in human augmentation also in the form of modules simply referred to as tech mods and physics mods. Both are implants within the subject's body designed to allow them to achieve a certain effect, however, those effects are quite different.

Tech mods are series of data-conductive micro-wires or conductive pigment within the skin known as electoos, often place on the palms of the hands, etc. At least, those are the more expensive variants. There are also cheaper and less subtle variations, such as the replacement of an off-hand finger with a data jack, or similar additions to the body. However, they are united in their overall purpose - they allow human beings to interface mentally with the systems of a machine, specifically the computers of varying complexity that are found in most gadgetry these days. Word has it that even wireless tech mods are being developed, allowing someone to interface with a machine simply by being in the same room as it, no longer having to touch it. In essence, though, they allow mind-to-system hacking, control of electrical devices and are useful for anyone whose job determines that they operate high-end machinery or systems with precision.

Physics mods are a more warlike development, essentially being implants in a character's body which allow them to manipulate their own pulse shield [All personal shielding is based on pulse technology, basically strobing electromagnetic fields out in spherical waves that dampen the kinetic energy of anything moving around the speed of a bullet - they are standard as part of any combat armour and even some clothing; it's also possible to buy harnesses and belts which emit pulse shields too...but that's enough on armaments for now - if you want to know more, just ask, because I'll probably end up telling you anyway!] in such a way that it can be sent out to a short range and used to manipulate physical forces in certain ways through complex agitation by the electromagnetic fields. The most common form of physics mod allows, for example, a kind of rudimentary telekinesis. In combat situations, however, this is a decidedly high-risk-high-gain tactic, as while one's pulse shield is off somewhere else, manipulating the laws of physics, it's not doing its job of protecting you. Users of physics mods are left vulnerable until they deactivate its effect and allow their shields to recharge.

A Short Note on Spacecraft Operation

I imagine that tech mods would be the standard means, allowing the pilot to work in tandem with the ship's systems, whether true AI or, more frequently, no. This would be done in older or larger vessels through a hard link - the pilot would have jacks built into their body which would then allow them to plug into the cockpit of the craft and, through a combination of verbal and thought-based cues (transmitted through the hard link), issue commands to the system which would then control the ship itself more safely with its far greater computing power for possible eventualities. More common today would be a combination of electoos and holographic touch displays - a kind of three-sided set of projected holograms that the pilot would manipulate and interact with through the electoos in their hands. This would allow for more personal control of smaller, more agile vessels, partly through movement, partly through thought transmitted through this soft link to the ship's systems, and partly through verbal commands.

I imagine pilots surrounded on all but one side by walls of holographic displays, their arms reaching out and deep inside the displays, twisting and stroking and angling in various patterns that the ship would mimic, all the while allowing its systems to interpret their intentions through the soft link set up between the electoos and the holographic displays.

[Barding]

With the addition of an appendix, just for anyone who wants to swot up on the setting before or during applying to play within it, I'm tentatively re-opening this. I'm not absolutely desperate to play it right now, but who knows, if I cast the net out again, maybe I'll meet some people who make me really want to write, regardless. That, at least, is what I'm hoping for.

[Barding]

I just realised, after all this time, that the unit for energy in the magnitudes allowed by Progenium-use had defaulted somewhere along the line of editting into a '?', which I felt made me look a little stupid. I only noticed it now. It has been changed into the proper symbol, ∏ , which is transliterated to 'gen' (pronounced 'jen'). I.e. "We're running sixty gens off this baby!"