Reservoir is an independent system located 45 light years east-Northeast of Yamatai in the Lonely (eastern) Expanse.

Centuries ago, human settlers traveled in ancient colony ships to Reservoir. When they arrived, the words of the great poet and spiritual leader Dantarious were recalled; “There, pride, avarice, and envy are the tongues men know and heed”, lending the impetus for the naming of the celestial bodies. Thus was founded the system of Reservoir, the wellspring of life and hope for the colonists.

As the first settlement was founded by Francesca Virtù, she named the planet Vice, a mostly freshwater planet with vast tracts of arable land. With the ownership of the means of production, such as water purifiers, farm implements, seed, and agricultural technology, Francesca founded Landsdown. Other, more adventurous families rejected the “security” offered by the Virtù family and left to found other, less prosperous, settlements. Over time, The Virtù family, led by Francesca, eventually bought or seized the land-holds of the neighboring families, enslaving them for agricultural work. Thus began the Virtù Dynasty, fueled by the ancient concept of The Divine Right Theory.

The next few centuries saw an explosion in the population of Landsdown as well as a stagnation in the Culture. Stratification was the norm and few spoke out about it. Repressive religion preserved the landed gentry and the image of nobility over the vast slave population. Much was whispered, but never accused. To be noble was to appear a certain way in the public eye, but to have free reign out side of it. Decadence covered abject poverty. A gilded facade over a rotting structure.

Eventually, other families, who had avoided the subjugation of the Virtù Dynasty, banded together to force a change. They misstepped.

With the growing unrest among the other landed families, Bartlet Virtù devised a way to appease the families and cement control over vice forever, or so he thought. This agreement was known as the great sale. In exchange for their fidelity, lands, holdings, and the common free people tied to them, the ruling families would be granted access to the growing starport in Landsdown, ships and technology to reach the farthest reaches of the system, and the granting of the heavens as their fief in perpetuity. All agreed. This prompted the Virtù Dynasty to take on crippling amounts of debt, transforming the stagnant stratified caste system into a stratified capitalistic system. This ushered in the era of corruption, where anything was for sale, as long as the money went to the Virtù family. With so many “investors” willing to buy their way into “polite” society, the Virtù erected a new level of stratification, separating the common slave even further from the master. Thus The Crown, the monarchical ruling body was formed.

With the “freedom” to colonize the system, Many new houses were formed. From soldiery and mining, to logistics, trade, and the entertainment of the wealthy, the Great Houses of Reservoir spread across the system, claiming the heavens and establishing their fiefs.

To ensure the lasting peace, The Hierarchy of The Throne was established. Proximity, not wealth, from the seat of the great house to the throne would determine standing on the royal dais. Obviously, those who stand closer to the monarch, would have the monarchs ear. Machiavellian politics and maneuvering became the norm but peace was achieved. This would ensure the houses would compete with each other for the favor of The Crown rather than conspiring against it.

The system is patrolled and protected by the combined forces of The Crown and their appointed lords of the crown, which are simply the ones with the most money interested in protecting their assets. These lords of the crown are usually the sitting heads of the great houses. Ships patrolling the solar system are old pirated ships, refitted with diverse technologies, often leading to a variety of mechanical mishaps.

Technologically, Reservoir is a hodgepodge of pirated technologies from all over the entire sector. Automation lives side by side with manual labor. Various technologies are exotic and diverse as they are typically traded. High end technology is usually kept away from the “common” people of Vice, reserved for the rich and powerful and utilized by The Crown for policing and security of the planet and system.

Most labor in the Reservoir system is composed of slaves, purchased from slavers who come from all over the sector as well as those grown and raised on Vice. These poor unfortunate souls are not included in the official population figures, giving the system a rather overpopulated feel, despite the lower population numbers. All who are sold into slavery have implanted a metallic bar-code tattoo in a prominent location, such as the face or neck.

The society is officially ruled by The Crown, which administers rule through a monarchy that rules over the various regions and cities of the planet. The royal family is still present; however, Reservoir is home to several crime syndicates who actually hold much of the real power. Through their collective wealth they hold much influence over the planet and “control the crown” of Vice. They lurk in the shadows, and operate in the underworld. Without the criminal syndicates' power, wealth, and weapons, the royals would be unable to maintain control over the unruly mixed population of Vice and the greater Reservoir system, and thus the entire system would undoubtedly fall into anarchy and civil war. During the Second Founding The Crown accumulated a large international debt with various intergalactic traders and had begun to offer lands and power to those who had enough money to pay for it. As the only ones with power in Reservoir were those who had means of securing it, crime syndicates and large wealthy trade families now ruling various territories and areas in the name of the very corrupt royal family. This results in a lot of unfinished projects, towns and businesses. Though there have been efforts in the past to give aid to the unfortunate, most of these initiatives end quickly with the changing of land and resources, which seemed to come under new ruling every few months. Cities are traded, bought and owned as if stock in a market.

Because of this diverse monopoly game of ownership, give and take, we come to the largest issue with the society of Reservoir. There's a great divide between the filthy rich, and the poor. There is a saying in Reservoir that goes; “Reservoir is a nice place, if you got the money.” It reflects well because no matter the diverse background of any people on the planet, they're either rich or poor. There's hardly a middle class left.

Despite the heavy use of slave labor, there exists the potential of the Freeman. The society of Reservoir, unlike many worlds and systems under the boot of the known empires, is for lack of a better word “very free”. Any free being, regardless of his age, race, social standing, or belief system may rise up through any way he sees fit. It is not easy, and success is far from promised, but in Reservoir anything is possible.

The star of the Reservoir System is a Yellow Dwarf star. Below are statistics for the star.

• Name: Reservoir
• Type: G0V Yellow Dwarf
• Mass: 2.8169 × 10e30 kg
• Semi-Major axis: 1.017 AU
• Orbital period: 2.35 × 10e7 years
• Rotation: 49 hours

There are 8 planets and 1 Asteroid Belt in this system. Below is their statistical information.

Here the House of Pazienza (bear and the color red.) laid claim to the scorched and boiling surface of Ira. With the natural heat from Reservoir as well as the heavy metal deposits on Ira, House Pazienza specializes in the refining of the vast amounts of metals mined in the system.

• Type: Volcanic
• Orbital Radius: 4.91 x 107 km (0.33 AU)
• Period: 3.25 x 103 hours (0.37 earth years)
• Gravity: 13.87 m/s² (1.42 x earth)
• Planetary Population: 34,000
• Natural Satellites: 0
• Facilities: few

More information: heavy volcanism

House of Generosità (frog and the color yellow) quickly laid claim to this mining wonder. Thin atmosphere, meteorite encrusted surface, and close proximity to both Ira and Vice allowed for quick, easy access to rare and valuable minerals as well as bulk staples for a variety of uses.

• Type: Rock Planet
• Orbital Radius: 6.99 x 107 km (0.47 AU)
• Period: 5.52 x 103 hours (0.63 earth years)
• Gravity: 10.06 m/s² (1.03 x earth)
• Planetary Population: 50,000
• Natural Satellites: 2 small moons
• Facilities: Multiple

More information: Methane seas

As no house was granted exclusive fiefdom rights over the belt, many houses have various stations and facilities. This is also where the proxie wars between houses have surfaced and resurfaced over the generations. Mostly comprised of small military outposts and spy networks for the intrigues of the great houses at court.

• Type: Asteroid Belt
• Orbital Radius: 1.12 x 10e8 km (0.75 AU)
• Period: -
• Gravity: -
• Planetary Population: -
• Natural Satellites: -
• Facilities: many

Home of The Crown, the current and only ruling house since the founding, the House of Virtù.

• Type: Terrestrial - Temperate
• Orbital Radius: 1.95 x 10e8 km (1.3 AU)
• Period: 3.03 x 104 hours (3.46 earth years)
• Gravity: 10.79 m/s² (1.1 G)
• Planetary Population: 3.7 Billion (various races)
• Natural Satellites: 2 small moons
• Facilities: System Capital

More information: Vice

During the founding, The House of Umiltà (horse and the color violet) laid claim to the various moons, forming various raw mining colonies. With the extreme gravity influences from Superbia, all of Umiltà's assets were placed below the surface of the planet's moons.

• Type: Jovian
• Orbital Radius: 3.25 x 10e8 km (2.18 AU)
• Period: 5.43 x 104 hours (6.21 earth years)
• Gravity: 24.52 m/s² (2.5 G)
• Planetary Population: 0 on the planet, 8,679 on the moons.
• Natural Satellites: 27 small moons, 4 large moons
• Facilities: Many

House Castità (cow and the color blue), rulers of Luxuria, transformed the rock moons into pleasure resorts for the wealthy. Sculpted surfaces, beautiful slaves, and every game and drug available for those with the coin to spend. This is where the rich and powerful come to revel.

• Type: Neptunian
• Orbital Radius: 6.25 x 10e8 km (4.18 AU)
• Period: 1.70 x 105 hours (19.44 earth years)
• Gravity: 10.45 m/s² (1.07 x earth)
• Planetary Population: 0 on the planet, 694 citizens on the moons.
• Natural Satellites: 4 small moons
• Facilities: Several

House Astinenza (pig and the color orange) took possession of the moons of Gula for mining and gas extraction during the second founding, the first wave of expansion after settlement of Vice. Most of the structures littering the many moons have tunnels extending for kilometers, like spider webs. Whereas other houses fancied export of their resources for profit, House Astinenza reinforced those moons, transforming most into fortress style colonies.

• Type: Jovian
• Orbital Radius: 1.20 x 10e9 km (8.03 AU)
• Period: 3.85 x 105 hours (44.03 earth years)
• Gravity: 22.90 m/s² (2.34 x earth)
• Planetary Population: 0 on the planet, 6,750 on the moons.
• Natural Satellites: 22 small moons, 4 large moons
• Facilities: Many

As the owners of Invidia, House Bontà (dog and the color green) serves as the primary out-traders, clearing houses, and customs officials for the Reservoir system. Vast warehouses and star ports cover the surface of Invidia, connected by underground mag-trams to the main colony, Envy.

• Type: Ice/Rock
• Orbital Radius: 1.51 x 10e9 km (10.07 AU)
• Period: 5.53 x 105 hours (63.23 earth years)
• Gravity: 14.41 m/s² (1.47 x earth)
• Planetary Population: 2,785
• Natural Satellites: 0
• Facilities: Many

At the edge of the system, Acedia has a minimal, frozen atmosphere. House of Diligenza (goat and the color light blue), the caretakers of Acedia and the First line of defense from out-system aggressors, have multiple bases as well as an underground colony. Martial ceremony and history form the foundation of this house and planet.

• Type: Ice/Rock
• Orbital Radius: 2.51 x 10e9 km (16.76 AU)
• Period: 1.16 x 106 hours (132.80 earth years)
• Gravity: 13.70 m/s² (1.40 x earth)
• Planetary Population: 5,132
• Natural Satellites: 0
• Facilities: Many

Bullroarer created this article on 2017/10/23 08:13.

Approved here on 11/15/2017.