Description
Chronicle text
Arrival text
Welcome to YZ Ceti Jump Gate, Citizen! Safe journeys from here on.
Statistics
System: YZ Ceti
Affiliation: Consortium
Level: 25
Legal: 10 (Strong)
Orwellian: 10 (High)
Areas
Bank
The bank seems like a location that would work at peak efficiency if not for the extra security checks that seem to have been inserted along the flow of business here.
While official Consortium personnel move through the bank's systems with relative ease, anyone else is subjected to extra scrutiny and security procedures. The already acrid and tinny air feels even heavier under the suspicious gaze that non Consortium citizens are often subjected to here.
NPCs
Brig
Consortium personnel are busy processing potential prisoners or those about to be released in a very clean and efficient looking brig.
The officers working with prisoners here seem both strict and firm, however they are also very professional and polite in all their dealings. The area is both clean and completely utilitarian with bright lights and white walls.
NPCs
Clones (Cloning Vats)
A row of chrome plated gestation tubes hold their growing occupants up against a white and sterile looking wall. Panels of monitors keep tabs on their vitals and various ownership statistics.
The sterile brightness of the clean room is juxtaposed by the eerie green glow of the vats washing the back wall. Consortium staff administer any growing clones and keep tabs on their life signs. A freshly activated clone is led to a back room to wash and process their updated identity. Over at administration, a frustrated pilot sits through the extra security checks given to all non Consortium citizens before he can purchase a clone.
Available Clones
NPCs
Employment (Employment Center)
A squat but large chrome building that offers a number of employment type services and sees a hwfty amount of traffic and visitors.
The employment center sits on a main thoroughfare in the station's most traffic heavy zone like a large, toad like gargoyle. Visitors enter and exit the building at all times of the span as someone always needs something doing, and someone invariably wants to be paid to do it.
NPCs
Career Advisory
A chrome building with a number of clean and professional looking rooms. The staff and gleaming screens help people with their chosen career paths.
Most staff and visitors here wear the colors of the Consortium. Anyone else, while not exactly treated badly, is subjected to long and searching looks. A pilot in the first room searches for mining runs on a holographic screen while a Consortium staff member nearby runs a security check on her. The pilot doesn't seem particularly bothered however and answers any questions in an offhand manner while continuing to flip through the available jobs.
NPCs
Discreet Work
A tight lipped and paranoid looking member of staff sits behind a holoterminal where prospectives can apply for less official work.
Most of the travellers utilizing the terminal are pilots and traders stopping by from the nearby mining system. Whoever they are, given that they are almost never Consortium citizens, they are subjected to a higher level of scrutiny and occasionally security from the staff member administering the room.
Side Jobs
A bank of monitors display the multitude of odd jobs station staff and personnel require.
The room is colored in an almost sylvan glow of neon colors from the many holoscreens on each wall. Travellers and those needing to make a quick credit on the side peruse the holoterminals here, accepting jobs or arranging payment as needed. Non Consortium folk are often subjected to extra security checks before they can accept a job as security in the ‘Iron Quad‘ tends to be tight.
| Name | Description | Credits | Statistic |
| Clone Nutrient Mixer | Mixing clone nutrient paste is a tiring job. Is your stamina up to it? | 75 | 4x Stamina |
| Nurse | Blood tests are required to prevent diseases from penetrating the populations of the Iron Quad. Temporary nurses are required to perform the necessary amount of tests during influxes of people entering the other stations in the system. | 80 | 4x Social |
| Passenger Surveillance Assistant | Visitors to the 'Iron Quad' system are closely monitored. Are you diligent enough for this task? | 70 | 4x Intelligence |
| Random Security Scans | Non Consortium travellers in the 'Iron Quad' system are to be kept under tight scrutiny. Will you assist in some random spot checks? | 70 | 3x Intelligence |
Gaule Embassy
In the large, brightly-lit Embassy, orderly queues expand and contract throughout the day. Electronic displays refresh with info about current waiting times for each desk.
Documentation is taken seriously throughout the Iron Quad and it shows in the quiet but focused efficiency of this Embassy. Consultations are curt, business-like, and punctual down to the very last unit. Visitors queue patiently and nobody raises their voice, even those griping about a costly visa refusal or answering yet another stringent security question.
NPCs
Government Center
A glistening edifice and testament to the Consortium's reach across the galaxy, this building helps station visitors with all their bureaucratic needs.
Consortium themed hologramatic banners shine from atop the center's stylized and pyramid like rooftop. A hustle and bustle of visitors, both Consortium as well as the occasional other, move in and out of the impressive structure. Within the hushed hallways, most non Consortium folk are met with scrutiny reserved for those deemed strangers to the 'Iron Quad'.
NPCs
Info Hub
Holo screens illuminate the area as news sources flow like a river of data from one terminal to the next. Occasionally, some government drone will adjust a particular metric or record another before buzzing about their duties.
Syndicate Services
A number of recruiters, both in physical as well as hologrammatic form, interact with would-be members or peruse applications on the wall of terminals that lines this room.
VIP Lounge
Soft music and soothing lights drift through the atmosphere in the lounge. Robotic waiters clad in shiny (but not too shiny) chrome wheel between Citizens, dispensing smooth looking beverages.
Inn (Galileo Line Inn)
Named after the system's vital wormhole connection, the Galileo Line Inn offers a Bar, Hotel and Lounge.
A large sign reads "The Iron Quad welcomes you" with a list of precautions and warnings underneath, aimed at first time visitors to this high-security system. A serious mood prevails even in the Inn, partially due to the presence of passing Security patrols at regular intervals throughout the day.
Bar (The Cold Star)
The Cold Star Bar is a slightly sterile place to drink. Mostly it attracts Consortium R&D personnel stopping off for a single drink before resuming journeys to Asimov Freehold or Cape Verde Stronghold.
Brightly-lit, the Cold Star Bar seems deliberately designed to remind visitors of their professional responsibilities: no surprise when most are high-ranking Consortium scientists or military strategists. Ordering more than a couple of beers tends to raise eyebrows here.
Menu
Hotel Rooms (Iron Quad Gateway Hotel)
Those who visit the system tend to do so for business rather than pleasure. The Iron Quad Gateway Hotel provides them with secure and reliable accommodation whilst doing so.
Rooms are well-equipped here, designed to maximize the working productivity of their often highly-skilled occupants.
Beds feature responsive memory foam mattresses which adjust to guests' sleep patterns in real time to ensure optimal deep and REM sleep patterns. Dawn simulators mix lighting with tailored aural effects, ranging from running water to archival bird songs, chosen to match the sleeper's personality type.
You should have minimum intelligence of 25.5? to avoid injury while reading.
Lounge (Social Space)
The Social Space is a rather bland lobby filled with white foam arm chairs and low coffee tables.
A congenial murmur permeates the air as people recline on quality furnishings and occupy themselves with conversation. The odd chuckle raises the volume every now and again, but mostly it's just a quiet and polite hum.
You should have minimum social of 25.5? to avoid injury while socializing.
Port
A bustling place where travellers to and from the jump gate and other stations of the system meet or move on to other destinations.
The air is acrid and tinny, smelling of burnt plasma and superheated metal. The crowd is ever shifting, always moving and changing like some gigantic, primordial proto-creature. Consortium colored drones hum quietly overhead, scanning travellers and relaying biometric information to security personnel below.
Unlike many other ports, there is an extra section and throng of travelers here that consists of Citizens who have not me the very strict criteria for disembarking here and are being processed and ordered back to their points of origin.
NPCs
Arrivals
A bustling river of humanity with endlessly branching tributaries flows from the shuttles arriving here, through the processing gates, to crash onto the banks of eagerly awaiting locals receiving visitors from near or far flung parts of the galaxy. A number of travelers post the usual glazed looks of those recently harangued by any type of transportation system created and run by the human species. They drift with a mixture of existential confusion and relief through to the station beyond. Always, they are scrutinized by security or some type of subspecies therein.
Docks
Rows of gleaming Consortium vessels sit in the docks, very occasionally separated by a vessel of a different faction.
Any non Consortium vessels docked here are invariably mining vessels haling cargo from the nearby mining system. A heightened level of security clearance required for docking at the jump gate for prolonged periods tends to dissuade any captains of other vessels.
NPCs
Interstellar Shuttles
A squad of gleaming shuttles sit ready to transport travellers through the nearby jump gate.
Travellers queue in droves for access to the pristine, chrome shuttles of the Consortium. The sterile white lighting of the glass corridor is occasionally altered by the nearby jump gate, giving the area a momentary fey afterglow. Some travellers sometimes look up in wonder, but most seem quite used to the spectacle. Consortium colored drones hover around the crowd, scanning travellers as they wait.
Destinations
| Destination | Distance | Ticket Price |
|---|---|---|
| L 726-8 | 3.58 ly | 1,180.43 |
NPCs
Local Shuttles
A row of shuttles flying the colors of the Consortium, ready to ferry travellers around the system.
Consortium officers walk among the crowd as drones buzz overhead. Spot security checks are common here as those not affiliated with the Consortium are met with a certain amount of suspicion in as far as their reasons for travelling to the 'Iron Quad,' the local name for the four stations of the system.
Shipping Bay
Consortium staff, both human and robotic, sort packages and parcels arriving and departing the station here.
A mountain of packages from all corners of the universe is processed and sorted by drones while travellers come to claim their deliveries or send their parcels elsewhere. The air is charged with the anticipation of those eager to claim an important or exciting delivery.
NPCs
Ruins
Catastrophe’s scars run deepest in the Ruins; those dark swathes of the former station that are yet to be officially reclaimed. Blighted by unreliable infrastructure and vicious gangs, the Ruins are comprised of three areas: The Wrecks, Syndicate Districts, and The Wilds.
The Ruins serves up danger in all sorts of flavors. Scavengers pick through The Wrecks, fighting savagely for overlooked prizes among the debris. Syndicates, under license from station authorities, renew buildings and facilities within the Syndicate Districts. And The Wilds are nothing short of a warzone, where the toughest Syndicate militia battle hardened criminals in an endless struggle for spoils and turf.
Syndicate Districts
[Coming soon]
The Wilds
The Wilds are a desperate warren of blind alleys and deadly corners. With unreliable lifeline systems, the area has become the domain of those to whom danger is mother’s milk. Feral tribes, solitary scavengers, and well-armed Syndicates roam these blood-soaked walkways, unhinged in equal parts by primal terror and the promise of bounties lurking in the rubble.
Syndicates use these bullet-riddled spaces for insecure storage, and many a bandit has been cut down attempting a bold raid on someone else’s well-guarded cache. Once a benign web of service tunnels; every inch of The Wilds now serves treachery and murder. Deep in the festering darkness, heartless animals track their prey guided by primordial instinct. Only fools come here without first securing a serious weapon and a clone back-up.
The Wrecks
The Wrecks are an unequivocal no-man's land. Not even the Syndicates have begun to comb through the detritus of pre-cat civilization. It's dangerous here, but not altogether unworthy of exploring. Due to the instability of the Wrecks, and the tendency for unsavory types to skulk around among them, they often prove quite profitable to sift through.
On any given day the Wrecks pivot between desolate emptiness and sparse population by desperate people avoiding prying eyes, bandits, and merchants looking for some cheap and interesting wares. It can be worth your time to pull on a pair of gloves and dig through the debris in the wrecks in search of something useful, just keep your wits about you during your excavation. You never know who's watching in the wrecks.
Security
The security building is stark and militant. Security personnel can be seen throughout the building.
Inside, a number of rooms are dedicated to various security and safety related activities. One large room holds a bank of holoterminals that process an endless stream of traveller information. A second floor is dedicated to various bodyguard corporations that offer private security services to potential clients.
NPCs
Sick Bay
A clean and efficient clinic where Consortium doctors treat any travellers requiring medical care.
While the high security of a jump gate to the 'Iron Quad' system tends to rule out most serious or battle related injuries, a number of accidents and occasional breaches of security do occur. The staff work diligently and efficiently to treat such occasions and have robotic surgeons on hand for when the rarer more serious situations crop up.
NPCs
Notes
- Gaule Embassy and Ruins added with update on February 28, 2019
"Galactic Destinations" text
Welcome, loyal listeners, to another exciting edition of Galactic Destinations. This time we head to YZ Ceti’s Jump Gate and, Stars, have we got a scoop for you! This station is the entry point into what is colloquially known as the ‘Iron Quad’ system. This quartet of stations is high on security and extremely…
…Unauthorized transmission intercepted: Initializing protocol “Dropping Eaves.” Standby for confirmation of illegal activity…
…then feel free to listen on!
YZ Ceti Jump Gate is the first of four stations in this system. The other three are the Consortium controlled research stations: Cape Verde Stronghold, Spirit of New York City, and Asimov Freehold. They deal in Biochemical research, System Surveillance (?), and Robotics research respectively but, as we have found, they don’t divulge anything more insightful than that.
Here at the Jump Gate, tensions are quite high, at least if you are non-Consortium. Even then, one must have the appropriate clearance levels to make any sort of headway (which we procured by perhaps less than legitimate means, but only because it's so smogging difficult to get around the place, and just so we can have a look and bring you this broadcast).
.Confirmation of suspected illegal activity, standby…
Many travelers find that the Jump Gate is their final destination for exactly this reason. The lucky few of the intrepid, curious, or seeking a potential opportunity are simply refused further travel and are forced to travel back to their point of origin. The port is quite busy with this extra throng of visitors escorted back to their ships. Others, who may be viewed as potential security threats or with less than legitimate stories may find themselves serving an extended brig stay too.
There are even rumors, unsubstantiated of course, of swifter and deadlier solutions in the form of security drones tracking and ‘dealing’ with citizens who may have been flagged by the highly paranoid security system aboard the station. We just walked by “The Cold Star,” one of the local bars, where…
…Location established. Drone dispatched…
…and he was led away without further explanation!
Make no mistake listeners, this location is neither one for the curious traveler, nor the enterprising businessman. The Iron Quad is very much a system that the Consortium seem to need to keep classified. This feeling is prevalent throughout the station from the scrutinizing glances of personnel here towards strangers or the extremely high level of security and even…
Apologies listeners, we seem to be experiencing technical difficulties. Where is that humming coming from?
…Unauthorized broadcast discontinued. Waste disposal crew has been informed. Current operation logged and closed…
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