by M. D. Cooper
- Book 1: Rika Outcast
- Book 2: Rika Redeemed (Nov 2017)
- Book 3: Rika Triumphant (2018)
Perseus Gate (Age of the Orion War)
- Episode 1: The Gate at the Grey Wolf Star
- Episode 2: The World at the Edge of Space
- Episode 3: The Dance on the Moons of Serenity
- Episode 4: The Last Bastion of Star City (Oct 2017)
- Episode 5: The Toll Road Between the Stars (Nov 2017)
- Episode 6: The Final Stroll on Perseus’s Arm (Dec 2017)
The Warlord (Before the Age of the Orion War)
- Book 1: The Woman Without a Country (Sept 2017)
- Book 2: The Woman Who Seized an Empire (2018)
- Book 3: The Woman Who Lost Everything (2018)
The Sentience Wars: Origins (With James S. Aaron)
- Book 1: Lyssa’s Dream
- Book 2: Lyssa’s Run (Oct 2017)
- Book 3: Lyssa’s Flame (Jan 2018)
Tanis Richards: Origins
- Prequel: Storming the Norse Wind (In At the Helm Volume 3)
- Book 1: Shore Leave (Fall 2017)
The Sol Dissolution
- The 242 - Venusian Uprising (In The Expanding Universe 2 anthology)
- The 242 - Assault on Tarja (In The Expanding Universe 3 anthology – coming Dec 2017)
The Delta Team Chronicles (Expanded Orion War)
- A "Simple" Kidnapping (Pew! Pew! Volume 1)
- The Disney World (Pew! Pew! Volume 2 – Sept 2017)
APPENDICES
Be sure to check http://www.aeon14.com for the latest information on the Aeon 14 universe.
TERMS & TECHNOLOGY
AI (SAI, NSAI) – Is a term for Artificial Intelligence. AI are often also referred to as non-organic intelligence. They are broken up into two sub-groups: Sentient AI and Non-Sentient AI.
c – Represented as a lower-case c in italics, this symbol stands for the speed of light and means constant. The speed of light in a vacuum is constant at 670,616,629 miles per hour. Ships rate their speed as a decimal value of c with c being 1. Thus, a ship traveling at half the speed of light will be said to be traveling at 0.50 c.
Cryostasis (cryogenics) – See also, ‘stasis’.
Older methods of slowing down organic aging and decay involve cryogenically freezing the organism (usually a human) through a variety of methods. The person would then be thawed through a careful process when they are awakened.
Cryostasis failures are rare, but far more frequent than true stasis failures. When true stasis was discovered, it became the de-facto method of halting organic decay over long periods.
Dark Layer – The Dark Layer is a special sub-layer of space where dark matter possesses physical form. The dark layer is also frictionless and reactionless. It is not fully understood, but it also seems to possess many of the attributes of a universal frame of reference.
Deuterium – D2 (2H) is an isotope of hydrogen where the nucleus of the atom is made up of one proton and one neutron as opposed to a single proton in regular hydrogen (protium). Deuterium is naturally occurring and is found in the oceans of planets with water and is also created by fusion in stars and brown dwarf sub stars. D2 is a stable isotope that does not decay.
EMF – Electro Magnetic Fields are given off by any device using electricity that is not heavily shielded. Sensitive scanners are able to determine the nature of operating equipment by its EMF signature. In warfare it is one of the primary ways to locate an enemy’s position.
EMP – Electro Magnetic Pulses are waves of electromagnetic energy that can disable or destroy electronic equipment. Because so many people have electronic components in their bodies, or share their minds with AI, they are susceptible to extreme damage from an EMP. Ensuring that human/machine interfaces are hardened against EMPs is of paramount importance.
Fission – Fission is a nuclear reaction where an atom is split apart. Fission reactions are simple to achieve with heavier, unstable elements such as Uranium or Plutonium. In closed systems with extreme heat and pressure it is possible to split atoms of much more stable elements, such as Helium. Fission of heavier elements typically produces less power and far more waste matter and radiation than Fusion.
FTL (Faster Than Light) – Refers to any mode of travel where a ship or object is able to travel faster than the speed of light (c). According to Einstein’s theory of Special Relativity nothing can travel faster than the speed of light.
Fusion – Fusion is a nuclear reaction where atoms of one type (Hydrogen for example) are fused into atoms of another type (Helium in the case of Hydrogen fusion). Fusion was first discovered and tested in the H-Bombs (Hydrogen bombs) of the twentieth century. Fusion reactors are also used as the most common source of ship power from roughly the twenty fourth century on.
g (gee, gees, g-force) – Represented as a lower-case g in italics, this symbol stands for gravity. On earth, at sea-level, the human body experiences 1g. A human sitting in a wheeled dragster race-car will achieve 4.2gs of horizontal g-force. Arial fighter jets will impose g-forces of 7-12gs on their pilots. Humans will often lose consciousness around 10gs. Unmodified humans will suffer serious injury or death at over 50gs. Starships will often impose burns as high as 20gs and provide special couches or beds for their passengers during such maneuvers. Modified starfighter pilots can withstand g-forces as high as 70gs.
Graviton – These are small massless particles that are emitted from objects with large mass, or by special generators capable of creating them without large masses. There are also negatively charged gravitons which push instead of pull. These are used in shielding systems in the form of Gravitational Waves. The GSS Intrepid uses a new system of channeled gravitons to create the artificial gravity in the crew areas of the ship.
Heliopause – The point where a star’s solar wind stops relative to the interstellar medium. Though gravitational influences may stretch beyond this point, and some stellar objects, including the Oort cloud, typically lie beyond this point as well.
Heliosphere – The region of space contained within a star’s heliopause. Despite the name, these are rarely spheres as most star’s heliospheres are shaped like elongated water droplets as they race through the interstellar medium.
Helium-3 – This is a stable, non-radioactive isotope of Helium, produced by T3 Hydrogen decay, and is used in nuclear fusion reactors. The nucleus of the Helium-3 atom contains two protons, but only one neutron as opposed to the two neutrons in regular Helium. Helium-3 Can also be created by nuclear reactions that create Lithium-4 which decays into Helium-3.
HUD – Stands for Heads Up Display. It refers to any type of display where information about surroundings and other data is directly overlaid on a person’s vision.
Link – Refers to an internal connection to computer networks. This connection is inside of a person and directly connects their brain to what is essentially the Internet in the fourth millennia. Methods of accessing the Link vary between retinal overlays to direct mental insertion of data.
Maglev – A shorthand term for magnetic levitation. First used commercially in 1984, most modern public transportation uses maglev to move vehicles without the friction caused by axles, rails, and wheels. The magnetic field is used to both support the vehicle and accelerate it. The acceleration and braking is provided by linear induction motors which act on the magnetic field provided by the maglev ‘rail’. Maglev trains can achieve speeds of over one thousand kilometers per hour with very smooth and even acceleration.
Nano (nanoprobes, nanobots, etc…) – Refers to very small technology or robots. Something that is nanoscopic in size is one thousand times smaller than something that is microscopic in size.
Railgun – Railguns fire physical rounds, usually small pellets at speeds up to 10 kilometers per second by pushing the round through the barrel via a magnetic field. The concept is similar to that of a maglev train, but to move a smaller object much faster. Railguns were fi
rst conceived of in 1918 and the first actual magnetic particle accelerator was built in 1950. Originally railguns were massive, sometimes kilometers in size. By the twenty-second century reliable versions as small as a conventional rifle had been created.
Larger versions take the form of orbital railgun platforms which can fire sabot rounds or grapeshot at speeds over a hundred-thousand-kilometers per second.
Scattered Disk – Beyond a star system’s EK Belt lies a region filled with comets, asteroids, and dwarf worlds. In the Sol System, this region begins roughly 50 AU from Sol and extends to the edge of the Oort cloud. While it contains the least mass of a system, a system’s scattered disc typically contains hundreds of dwarf planets and fills an area nearly half a cubic light year.
Stasis – Early stasis systems were invented in the year 2541 as a method of ‘cryogenically’ freezing organic matter without using extreme cold (or lack of energy) to do so. The effect is similar in that all atomic motion is ceased, but not by the removal of energy by gradual cooling, but by removing the ability of the surrounding space to accept that energy and motion. There are varying degrees of effectiveness of stasis systems. The FGT and other groups possess the ability to put entire planets in stasis, while other groups only have the technology to put small items, such as people, into stasis. Personal stasis is often still referred to as cryostasis, though there is no cryogenic process involved.
Tritium – T3 (3H) is an isotope of hydrogen where the nucleus of the atom is made up of one proton and two neutrons as opposed to just a single proton and no neutrons in regular hydrogen (protium). T3 is radioactive and has a half-life of 12.32 years. It decays into Helium-3 through this process.
v – Represented as a lower case v in italics, this symbol stands for velocity. If a ship is increasing its speed it will be said that it is increasing v.
Van Allen belts – A radiation belt of energetic charged particles that is held in place around a magnetized planet, such as the Earth, by the planet's magnetic field. The Earth has two such belts and sometimes others may be temporarily created. The discovery of the belts is credited to James Van Allen, and as a result the Earth's belts are known as the Van Allen belts.
Vector – Vectors used are spatial vectors. Vector refers to both direction and rate of travel (speed or magnitude). Vector can be changed (direction) and increased (speed or magnitude).
GROUPS AND ORGANIZATIONS
FGT – The Future Generation Terraformers is a program started in 2352 with the purpose of terraforming worlds in advance of colony ships being sent to the worlds. Because terraforming of a world could take hundreds of years the FGT ships arrive and begin the process.
Once the world(s) being terraformed reached stage 3, a message was sent back to the Sol system with an ‘open’ date for the world(s) being terraformed. The GSS then handles the colony assignment.
A decade after the Destiny Ascendant left the Sol system in 3728 the FGT program was discontinued by the SolGov, making it the last FGT ship to leave. Because the FGT ships are all self-sustaining none of them came home after the program was discontinued—most of the ship’s crews had spent generations in space and had no reason to return to Sol.
After the discontinuation FGT ships continued on their primary mission of terraforming worlds, but only communicated with the GSS and only when they had worlds completed.
Hand, The – The Hand is the common name of the Inner Stars Clandestine Uplift Operations. This bureau is responsible for managing and controlling the stability, and spread of technology within the Inner Stars. It operates exclusively under the direction of President Tomlinson.
GFF (Gedri Freedom Federation) – The GFF began as the political front for the ruling families and crime syndicates of Jericho. Over time they managed to gain seats in the system parliament, and eventually became the dominant party. The GFF also sends representatives to the Silstrand Alliance Senate.
Though they claim to be a legitimate political organization, everyone knows (though none can successfully prove) that all their funding and power still comes from the crime syndicates on Jericho.
Orion Guard – The Orion Guard is the name of the Orion Freedom Alliance’s military. Within the Transcend, the term is often used to refer to the entire OFA, not just its military.
Scipio Federation/Empire – Externally, Scipio is known as a Federation, though it has, in recent decades, reformed itself as an empire, with Diana proclaiming herself Empress Supreme.
Located on the coreward side of the Silstrand Alliance, Scipio is vast and powerful, claiming over a thousand member stars, and exerting diplomatic influence far beyond its borders.
Though Scipio has always billed itself as an heir to Rome, Under Diana, the empire has further embraced those cultural artifacts.
Silstrand Alliance – The Silstrand Alliance (commonly referred to as the SA) is an alliance of 10 star systems, which lie 90 light years coreward of Sol.
The capital system is Silstrand, and the capital world also bears the same name. The Alliance was named by Peter Silva, who referred to the main G-class stars as a silver strand of light, running through a region filled with dimmer stars.
Many companies, worlds, and regions in the SA use Peter Silva’s name.
The government of the SA is a quasi-parliamentary body.to which the member systems send representatives, which are called senators. The president of the SA is the senator with the largest party in the SA parliament.
Systems on the rimward side of the SA tend to democratically elect their senators separate from their local elections, while systems on the coreward side of the alliance nominate their representatives.
The population of the Silstrand Alliance is in excess of twenty-trillion humans, and over one trillion SAI.
Though the SA is an independent alliance, it is directly adjacent to the Scipio Federation, and not far from the ever expanding borders of the Hegemony of Worlds (AST).
SSF – Silstrand Space Force.
TSF – The Transcend Space Force is the overarching military of the Transcend Interstellar Alliance. It also shares an acronym with the ancient Terran Space Force.
PLACES
Coburn Station – Located above Trio in the Trio System of the Silstrand Alliance, this system is connected to its host world by the system’s only space elevator.
Dauntless – A PetSil Scrapper, model 541A. Originally owned by a salvage company operating out of Trio, one of Maverick’s shell corporations purchased it, and the crime lord eventually gifted the ship to Kylie Rhoads.
Freemont – The capital world of the Gedri system, Freemont is a cold, icy planet. Though there are some surface (mostly subterranean) settlements on Freemont, most of the populace lives in several massive orbital habitats.
Gedri (system) – A system on the core-ward fringe of the Silstrand Alliance. The Gedri System is the most corrupt and lawless of the worlds in the alliance and is rife with pirates and smugglers.
System Bodies:
Nepal – small terrestrial world orbiting at 96 million km.
Inner A-Belt – Asteroid belt orbiting at at 124 million km
Inner B-Belt – Asteroid belt orbiting at 211 million km
Freemont – Icy terrestrial world orbiting at 603 million km
Tapeka – Icy terrestrial world orbiting at 784 million km
Chiras – 0.64Mj gas giant planet with 17 major moons orbiting at 3.3 billion km
Townsend – Red dwarf star orbiting at 4.48 billion km
Outer Asteroid belt – Thick asteroid belt orbiting at 6.8 billion km
Einendart – 1.7Mj gas giant orbiting at 104 billion km with 23 major moons
Scattered Disk – the Gedri scattered disk contains hundreds of dwarf worlds and cold, icy objects.
Gedri (star) – The primary star in the Gedri system, this large, orange star is in the final stages of its life, with perhaps only a million years to go before it puffs off its outer layers and leaves behind a white dwarf stellar remnant.
Gedri masses 1.8 sols, has a radius of 25 sols, and a luminosity of 7.8 sols.
