Branan

by on September 22, 2017 at 12:01 am
Posted In: The Races of Humanity

An interesting point to be made about the Branan is that they are born with six limbs. Arms, legs, and wings. The problem is that their brain can only handle four limbs, so most Branan have their wings removed. But there are numerous Branan offshoot cultures that don’t do that. Some leave all the limbs in place, and simply train their children to use the ones they need. Most others remove their legs so they have fully functional wings and arms. Those Branan can fly without any technological assistance. Some even remove the arms so they can walk or fly. But considering the usefulness of hands, those are rare. The point is that you can see Thunderbirds with any combination of limbs, though only four of them will ever work. There are rumors of some progress towards successful six-limbed Thunderbirds in recent years, probably thanks to Contact with the Seraph, but those rumors have not yet been confirmed.

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Cheyenne Mountain

by on September 21, 2017 at 12:01 am
Posted In: The Essential Galactic Atlas

Theta Tauri. Phaesula. Chakumuy. 77 and 78 Tau. HD 28307 and 28319. HIP 20885 and 20894. The stars of Theta Tauri have many names from many cultures and scientific listings. But that multiple star system is the core of the Hyades Cluster. The center. The Heart. The gravitic nexus of a cluster of over two hundred stars migrating through our sector of the galaxy from wherever it was they were formed. The War ended there. We fought for the future of humanity there. And I do not exaggerate. Either the Chinese would rule Earthborn humanity, or the Western Alliance would emerge as the predominant power in our sector of the galaxy. All of that was decided by one, final roll of the dice at The Heart of the Hyades Cluster. We named it Cheyenne Mountain.

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Sunnydale

by on September 20, 2017 at 12:01 am
Posted In: The Essential Galactic Atlas

The original surveyors designated Sunnydale’s sole asteroid belt with the ironic name of Cobbledale. Most locals call it the Cobbles, and leave it at that. They aren’t very rich with heavy metals, or anything else for that matter, but asteroid belts are large places and even small amounts of ore are easy to find and mine. That is why the Cobbles are home to an impressive number of mining operations, both small and large. They are also home to several large asteroids that were hollowed out, laced with gravity plating, and pressurized to allow humans to live comfortably. I’ve been in them, and I question any definition of comfort that applies to them. I’ll grant you that I grew up on a wide open planet Earth, so I’m certainly biased, but just stepping inside those tiny little tunnels made me feel claustrophobic. But tens of thousands of people somehow live inside those rocks and swear they love it. I think they might be a little bit insane, but I’m no shrink, so take my verdict with a healthy grain of salt.

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Branan

by on September 19, 2017 at 12:01 am
Posted In: The Races of Humanity

Many consider the Branan to be a warlike race. The truth is that they are no more warlike than us. They just don’t hide that fact from themselves. We publicly decry war while waging it on many levels all of the time. The Branan accept that war is inevitable and wage it to the best of their ability. Many surmise that is because the Albion created them to be soldiers in the first place. Whatever the reasons, the Branan have earned the nickname that most people call them. They have earned it by being implacable enemies and relentless allies across the vastness of time and space. They are Thunderbirds.

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Forge of War

by on September 18, 2017 at 12:01 am
Posted In: Diaries

“The Shang are painting us with sensor sweeps,” Betty reported and glanced towards one of the displays where it showed a complex diagram of colors. “We’re scattering and jamming below detection levels. But I think they’re getting suspicious.”

“Prepare to break and attack on my order,” Charles transmitted as they continued to close the range. “Use old weapons packages only. Let us keep our full capabilities to ourselves for now.”

“Roger that,” Jack returned with an approving smile.

“Approaching detection levels,” Betty reported as the sensor display began to flash. “I can’t keep them in the dark much longer.”

“Break in three,” Charles ordered.

Jack tightened his hands on the controls and ran his hands over a display.

“Two.”

A T&J song about bad guys biting the dust began to play.

“One.”

Power flowed from capacitors, flooding defensive and offensive systems with enough power to light up small cities.

“Break! Break! Break!” Charles ordered and the world exploded in time to the screaming of a steel-stringed guitar.

Deflection grids came alive and fire control systems locked onto their targets. Gravitic cannons reached out and twisted the very fabric of gravity between the Shang formation and the incoming Cowboys. Deflection grids collapsed and armor buckled as focused gravity tore the plates apart. Laser turrets pulsed into unshielded flanks, vaporizing armor and weapons alike…

…

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