Planet California Minor

Planet California Minor

File:Li02 02 base.png

Owner

Planetform, Inc.

Location

E/D-6, California

DIAMETER: 6,101 km.

MASS: 2.77 x 10e24 kg.

TERRAIN: Arctic/Transitional

TEMPERATURE: -60°C to 12°C

ESCAPE VELOCITY: 6.7 km/sec

First surveyed when the California system was opened up for exploration, California Minor, was a small, icy world with a barely breathable atmosphere. Once considered unsuitable for conventional terraforming, largely due to the frigid surface conditions and overall distance from the sun, surveys did detect unusual geothermic readings deep below the planet's crust.

Previously considered unsuitable for conventional terraforming, in 741 AS, Planetform Inc. designed a new process to channel the planet's enormous subterranean stores of geothermal energy. Despite harsh conditions, the potential for jobs has attracted coarse, manual laborers to its few hospitable areas.

Bribes & Missions Offered

Bribes

Cryer Pharmaceuticals Synth Foods, Inc. Universal Shipping Ageira Technologies Bounty Hunters Guild Border World Exports Gateway Shipping Planetform, Inc. Liberty Police, Inc. ALG Waste Disposal

Missions

Liberty Police, Inc. Planetform, Inc. Bounty Hunters Guild

Commodities

Imports

Commodity Price Medical Equipment 29$ Crew 322$ Silver 163$ Alien Organisms 30$ Food Rations 41$ Fertilizers 37$ H-Fuel 168$ Mining Machinery 37$ Pharmaceuticals 30$ Consumer Goods 24$ Synth Paste 5$ Scientists 257$ Industrial Materials 21$

Exports

Commodity Price Deployable Mining Container 50,000$ Oxygen 6$ Water 7$ Liberty Ale 20$ Construction Machinery 25$ Terraforming Gases 26$ Passengers (Liberty) 334$

Ships sold

Ship	Class	Price
Reinforced Train	Heavy Transport	1,106,006$
Civilian Armored Transport	Transport	68,506$
Large Train	Train	906,006$

News

[833 AS] Liberty addresses Gold concerns

LOS ANGELES -- 833 -- While speaking at an industry event, Secretary of Commerce Trombly responded to Interspace’s startling report on the Bretonian Gold Crisis. Liberty has long been reliant on Gold imports for a range of purposes, with the current scarcity causing prices to spike and damaging economic growth. Bretonia’s continued blockade of the Dublin System has so far failed to dislodge the Molly revolutionaries within, while causing further damage to the broader Sirian economy. Trombly confirmed that, “Liberty does not see a viable short-term military resolution to this issue,” and called upon Bretonia to enter into negotiations with the Mollys, offering limited relief on wartime debts as an incentive.

[833 AS] Gold Insecurity Invites Crisis

WATERLOO -- 833 -- Interspace analysts have published a report on the continued volatility of sector-wide Gold supplies, claiming that further instability invites disaster. The reports note the pressures placed on advanced Optronics, Bio-Neural Processor and Quantum Multiplexor manufacturing were already causing spiraling cost increases in adjacent market sectors. Market analysis also indicates that the bulk of Bretonian exports now consist of recycled and in some cases adulterated materials, likely indicating that stockpiles are running low. Interspace has called upon House authorities to collectively find the means of addressing the Dublin question before economic crisis becomes inevitable.

[833 AS] Stabline Prices Spike Over Atka Destruction

SIGMA-17 -- 833 -- Cryer’s share prices have tumbled on the news that Atka Research Station has been destroyed by brutal Outcast pirates. The remote station served as the primary manufacturing point for the revolutionary drug Stabline, which had promised to eradicate Cardamine dependency across the Colonies. Cryer spokeswoman Alicia Fisher confirmed that critical staff and research materials were successfully evacuated due to the timely intervention of private security forces and the GMG paramilitary. She noted that adequate Stabiline stockpiles exist to “manage demand for priority clients” while a replacement facility is sourced. Cryer is believed to have entered emergency negotiations with the governments of both Kusari and Bretonia to explore potential options.

[833 AS] Solderi's Case Escalated To Planetary Court

MANHATTAN -- 833 AS -- The Sorderi case has moved to the next stage, as Cryer Pharmaceuticals appeals the decision made by a district court on Manhattan ruling them liable for the death of Kella Sorderi. In a case which has gripped the nation, Sorderi's death due to Cardamine withdrawal was ruled "expected and calculated" by Cryer due to the treatment plan presented by them, which Sorderi had followed. The case now moves to the Manhattan Planetary Court. Sorderi's family has expressed disappointment at the decisions, her mother stating: "This is an endless battle, and we don't have endless ammo! Our girl's dead because of them and they're just going to keep this going forever!". Sorderi's fans, also known as "Rosebuds" for her net alias "Bloodrose", have vowed to continue fighting and are planning protests before the Manhattan court. Clashes have already been reported in Sorderi's home town of Opera, JN, as police were forced to use tear gas against enraged followers of the star who feel the trial is becoming lost in bureaucracy.

[832 AS] Cardamine Withdrawal Epidemic!

MANHATTAN -- 832 AS -- Reports of Cardamine withdrawal-related hospitalizations have surged to unprecedented levels, with a specific hospital on Planet Manhattan recording a staggering 450%% increase compared to the previous year. A growing number of addicts are seeking emergency medical care, apparently unable to obtain their regular dose of the highly addictive drug. Symptoms of withdrawal rapidly progress into severe sickness, pushing many of these individuals into critical condition. While this troubling trend is observed throughout the Sirius colonies, Liberty is bearing the brunt of the crisis among the four major Houses. Remarkably, even Rheinland, where historical data indicated low Cardamine consumption, has witnessed a notable rise in medical cases linked to the illicit narcotic. Experts postulate that the extensive black market responsible for Cardamine distribution might be facing a shortage, or worse, that Outcast factions deliberately curtail the supply to bolster demand. Regrettably, no law enforcement agency has been available for comment on these concerns. The long-standing debate over Cardamine's controversial nature, juxtaposing its euphoric and purported medicinal qualities with the genetic alterations it inflicts upon long-term users, continues to echo. A key point of contention revolves around the plight of innocent consumers caught in this crisis. Yet, according to independent polls, a substantial majority of our viewers maintains that the substance must remain banned. In response to this escalating crisis, Cryer Pharmaceuticals has announced a forthcoming press conference. During the event, the company intends to unveil plans for an expanded production of Stabiline, their touted "wonder drug". This announcement promises affordable access to Stabiline for all patients grappling with Cardamine withdrawal, sparking a remarkable 15%% surge in Cryer Pharmaceuticals' stock following the revelation.

[831 AS] Neural Net Influencer Found Dead

MANHATTAN -- 831 AS -- Socialite and media influencer Kella Sorderi, better known under her Neural Net alias "Bloodrose", was found dead in her Manhattan apartment earlier this week, aged 29. The preliminary autopsy has suggested an overdose and the death is not being treated as suspicious by the Liberty Police Inc. at this time. Sorderi had made a name for herself by, among other things, speaking candidly about her Cardamine dependency and her attempts to overcome it by alternative pharmacological means. Though the circumstances of her death remain uncertain, theories abound which implicate the products of Cryer Pharmaceuticals that she had long championed as the future of Cardamine-dependent persons in the colonies. "Cryer killed our baby!", says father Ernest Sorderi. "They used her as a guinea pig for their unproven treatments, and the reality was a family losing their daughter! We will pursue ALL legal means to find justice for her!" The Neural Net is awash with an outpouring of sympathy from Sorderi's fans and scrutiny surrounding her sudden death.

[831 AS/747 AGS] Gate Corps Clash Over 'Blackout'!

ABBEVILLE -- 831 AS/747 AGS -- EFL's 'Resilience Taskforce' today reported its findings on The Blackout, claiming to have gathered forensic evidence that proved the cause as Ageira negligence. A spokesperson claimed that the destruction of the Dublin jump gate by Molly separatists had created a hyperspace feedback loop that was propagated and amplified through the Ageira gate network. Ageira disputed this finding in their own press release, calling EFL 'fantasists' and countering that their own scientists had narrowed the cause to a rare 'hypernova' stellar event that originated outside the Sirius sector. Both corporations claim that network-wide hardware safeguards have been implemented that would prevent a similar occurrence in the future. Independent researchers have sharply criticized the corporate announcements, accusing both of self-interested misdirection. Professor Sophia Nagel from Heisenberg Research Station called EFL's accusation 'incoherent' and the hypernova explanation 'nonsense' that did not explain the characteristics of the 'Blackout Pulse'. Despite multiple different Pulse recordings being widely disseminated across the neural net, public efforts have so far failed to triangulate its source.

[831 AS] Core of an old problem

MANHATTAN -- 831 AS -- After a recent leak by an undisclosed source claiming to have loose ties to the Liberty Security Force, Congress has been sent into furious debate following intense public uproar, all in response to allegations that the Core has cooperated with the loathsome Outcasts. These allegations come as a shock and have significantly impacted the investment climate, leading many to reconsider Core stocks as an addition to their portfolios. While the investigation is as of yet inconclusive in its findings, analysts believe that values may not reach their historic peaks again as a consequence of this potential breach of trust.

[831 AS/747 AGS] 'Blackout' Causes Jump Network Fail

MANHATTAN -- 831 AS/747 AGS -- Two days ago Jump Gates failed simultaneously across Sirius, freezing commerce and neural net access across the sector. When the network resumed 31 hours later, restored communications broke the news of Bretonia's loss of the Dublin system. This twin shock has plunged the market into chaos, prompting fears of sector-wide economic recessions. Interspace estimates indicate that the stoppage alone caused billions of credits in losses. Gallia immediately accused Liberty of culpability for the outage, claiming the destruction of Dublin's jump gate instigated a cascading failure in faulty Ageira infrastructure. Ageira has sharply refuted the allegation, claiming such a systemic effect would be physically impossible. Independent researchers in Cologne and the Edge Worlds have also announced that a hyperspace pulse of unprecedented strength was detected moments before The Blackout, with data about 'The Pulse' being widely shared across the neural net in recent days. House authorities have remained tight lipped, refusing to comment on their own observatories' data.

[830 AS] Rampant Human Trafficking Cases on Erie

ERIE -- 830 AS -- A scandal rocked Planet Erie's administration when a video recording of Insurgency prisoners, escorted by LPI officers, were being loaded aboard a transport bound for the Edge Worlds, surfaced on the Neural Net. As the Republic's forces maintain law and order on the pacified planet, this leak has undermined their authority, causing waves of public outcry and calls for police reform by both local Zoners and Liberty citizens alike. In the video, a number of restrained people that have been identified as former residents of Planet Vespucci, board a Dromedary-class vessel registered to a freelance trader Vincent Ruthen. They are under supervision from several LPI officers, who exchange words with the ship's crew. Private investigators have trailed the ship, determining that it did not land at its purported destination of Gas Miner Naha in the Sigma-13, instead electing to travel away from civilized space into the Edge Worlds. The people aboard it have effectively vanished from the colonies. This is the latest case in a streak of such disappearances, with investigators estimating as high as ten percent of all inmates thought to be awaiting their trial in LPI internment camps have been covertly shipped off-world for unknown reasons. The fate of these people is yet unclear, but theories range from secret trials to unethical experiments aboard Atka. Outraged by what is apparently an LPI-sanctioned human trafficking operation, protesters flooded the streets and had to be dispersed by police riot control squads. A Liberty Police official has denounced allegations of corruption, stating that "All interned personnel are secured and all prisoner transfers have been done within the framework of the legal code". He refused to comment on the evidence presented, dismissing it as "slanderous fabrication against the good, hard-working officers of Liberty law". Meanwhile, political opposition already promises increased oversight over the law enforcement corporation for the next election cycle.

[830 AS] Troubles in Erie's Paradise

ERIE -- 830 AS -- It was the early hours of the morning when a missile was launched from Erie's surface; A missile that struck its target of an LSF satellite in orbit of Erie. The attack was claimed to have originated by militant Zoners seeking to separate themselves from Libertonian governance, and proved to be the straw that broke the proverbial camel's back. For some time, it had been alleged that Insurgent and Xeno-backed cells had been stirring trouble on Erie, inciting violence in the population and seeking to turn the planet into a second Veracruz. Never, however, had such open acts of terror been visited upon the governing Libertonian forces. The response was quick and decisive. In coordination with the LSF, Vice Admiral Hamish aboard the Battleship Alma lead a Liberty Navy task force directly into the system in Operation Pesticide, escorted primarily by Siege Cruisers, Gunboats and fightercraft, with many of the Navy's capital warships tied in the Vespucci campaign or ever watchful at Liberty's borders. They were met by Zoner Q-ships based from Bethlehem, with many coming from as far as Galileo or even the Sigmas, accompanied by a motley assortment of freelancers and other anarchist elements. Leading the Zoner line was a Aquilon-class carrier, the Pinnacle. While the Pinnacle came under heavy bombardment from the Alma and her task force, supplies quickly gathered onto Zoner transports from Erie attempted to run the Navy blockade. While some transports were lost to Navy bombers, others yet escaped to parts as of yet unknown. This 'victory', however, came at a heavy price. The Pinnacle was lost with most of her hands still on board and the rest captured, while the Liberty Marines landed virtually unopposed, quickly securing population centers for both the safety of Libertonian assets and the civilians on Erie itself. The Alma is settled now into the low orbit of Erie, a constant reminder to those below that they are under the protection of the Liberty Navy. A comfort to some, a dire warning to many more.

[830 AS] Victory Over Veracruz!

OHIO -- 830 AS -- An announcement by the Liberty government today unilaterally declared victory over the once-Insurgency as the LNS Ohio settled into high orbit over Veracruz last week. The Battlecruiser Triton, the infamous warship that felled the Delaware, was left as little more than debris burning through the planet's atmosphere that now rests in a crash site located on Veracruz's smallest continent. Over the last few days, Archer-class siege cruisers have been deploying their massive coaxial cannons to suppress military infrastructure on the planet, systematically targeting the very last bastions of the Insurgency. First to be destroyed were the planet's few remaining ground to space weapons installations, quickly crippled by bomber strikes from the Ohio herself, before the remaining desolate ground defences and deserted infrastructure were reduced to rubble, their populations having already long fled the world. A small service was held on the Ohio as the bombardment drew to a close in memory of Rear Admiral Dylan Brandt and those thousands of sailors and marines who had given their lives in the name of Liberty; fought their own lost brothers-in-arms so that others may not live under their misguided yoke, and many more who had their lives irrevocably changed as a result of the evils the campaign sought to end. The announcement also confirmed identical monuments to the Insurgency campaign would be erected on every world in Liberty, from Planet Houston to Planet Erie, each monument an obelisk carrying the names of every serviceman lost in the conflict and serving as a reminder that Liberty is stronger when it stands together.

[829 AS] Battleship Delaware lost In Vespucci: Part II

LOS ANGELES -- 829 AS -- Navy pilots fought in a heated scrap with many of their former comrades-in-arms as a fearsome shroud of flak rippled around the great Battleship Delaware, several trails of explosions snaking towards myriad bombers and torpedoes swarming the vast Mitchell-class. Delaware herself launched volley upon volley of anti-capital torpedoes at the Insurgent Battlecruiser Triton, whose own flak screen was considerably weaker than that of the Battleship. The missiles found their mark, but the battlecruiser retained its hull integrity as the Insurgents' one advantage in fighter superiority began to shine through. Torpedoes and antimatter cannons landed hits on the Delaware's vital flak batteries as they went silent, one by one. Admiral Brandt was heard to give the order to abandon ship right as the ship's hull could take no more and began to be torn asunder, with hull breaches on multiple decks. Tragically, the armored engines of the Delaware had suffered a great deal of damage, and as the armor and shielding was whittled away, vast quantities of radiation and superheated gas began to flood into the crew compartments of the vessel. In an emotional announcement, the Liberty Navy officially stated that they consider the Delaware to be lost with all hands, including Admiral Brandt himself. No life pods could be secured in the heat of battle, with the remainder of the Delaware's escort making a fighting retreat back to the LNS Ohio which had herself been caught lagging behind the Delaware's doomed thrust into the heart of the Insurgency. The Ohio now remains with her own escort, augmented by survivors of the Delaware's battlegroup, and will continue as the Liberty Navy's bastion in the Vespucci system, ready to ensure that the Insurgents pay dearly for the toll they have extracted upon one of Liberty's finest Admirals.

[829 AS] Battleship Delaware lost In Vespucci: Part I

LOS ANGELES -- 829 AS -- The state-of-the-art Delaware was the tip of Liberty's spear in the Kansas system; it was from here that the charismatic RAdm. Dylan Brandt commanded the fleet that secured the system from both Rogue and Insurgent elements. But now, he sought to strike a crippling blow to the Insurgency in their very home, an attack to break the back of the movement and stand as a warning to those who would stand against Liberty's unity. Leading a fearsome line of some of Liberty's most advanced warships, the Delaware bore down on the Insurgency's remaining, cobbled-together fleet in the Vespucci system, out of position from dealing with a Bretonian thrust from Magellan. Immediately caught was the Battleship Vanquisher, one of the scant few Arbiter-class Battleships available to the Insurgents. Caught by itself, the Vanquisher put up a fearsome fight but was ultimately unable to stand against the Delaware and its escort, despite its fighter component dealing severe damage to much of the Delaware's own, smaller fighter contingent, as well as the Delaware herself. With the great Arbiter all but vanquished, the Interdictor-class Battlecruiser Triton stared down the guns of the damaged Delaware and her escort. Outnumbered two-to-one, and outgunned to an even greater degree by the Libertonian heavyweight, Triton and her escorts launched their one and only advantage, their fighter and bomber superiority gained at the Vanquisher's expense.

[829 AS] Imminent defeat of the Insurgency

MANHATTAN -- 829 AS -- The Liberty Navy has finally published news on its most recent operation, beyond the Pennsylvania system. The Navy has committed two vessels and their escorts to clearing out the threat of the Insurgency once and for all. Battleship Delaware and Ohio have since reported the successful destruction of two major Insurgency installations and report that they assume to see the end of the Insurgency within the year. Admiral Brandt, who is charge of this pacification operation, has stated that the defeat of the Insurgency is not only certain but he expects to come home without major losses. Following this press release, the Navy received record applications for its West Point Academy and the arms market has seen an explosion in investors. If support for the Navy continues like this, experts anticipate a return to the Navy's peak operations of 800 AS.

[829 AS] Ontario festers

MANHATTAN -- 829 AS -- Having been a longstanding den of criminals and smugglers, Ontario has finally taken a plunge into complete anarchy. The Navy issued a categorical notice of withdrawal and advised all legitimate operations in the system to follow suit, as no further attempts could be made to keep the increasingly expensive operations secure. This comes after heated debates divided Congress for months until the deadlock was broken by an independent economic publication, revealing that revenue was overshadowed by security expenses that were double the amount gained. DSE has officially commented saying that this closure of business is a minor setback to future operations, and that the ultimate prosperity of the market is assured.

[829 AS] Fingers in the broth

MANHATTAN -- 829 AS -- Liberty's High Congress has passed the recently submitted Organization Categorization Revision Act (O.C.R.A) by a considerable majority. The Act sets out to revise long-standing categorizations of domestic and foreign organizations, which in turn allows or disallows certain actions by Navy and Law Enforcement agencies. It is widely speculated that the recent surge taking place in the Kansas system is related. The oddly self named Insurgency has long been categorized as a "Domestic Paramilitary Organization" that is of extremist political nature, in effect making them Liberty citizens with rights as such. The Act recategorizes them as a "Foreign Supported Terrorist Organization", a drastic shift in political standing. Sources have speculated the move is related to the Bering operation that precipitated the formation of the Insurgency as the root cause of the change in policy. Despite considerable cost both monetarily and in terms of material, the operation failed to expunge the organization to the desired level. The Act comes a considerable spending package for future operations and gives free rein to Liberty Navy admirals to take necessary measures to properly remove the long-standing issue.

[823 AS] Liberty and Rheinland formally end conflict

NEW BERLIN -- 823 -- President Powell and Chancellor Neumann have signed the Treaty of Atka formally ending the state of war between their two Houses. 6 years of devastating conflict has seen tens of thousands killed and both Houses severely economically damaged. The agreement sees Rheinland cede all claims on Planet Atka, while Hudson and Bering are split in half, creating two security zones. The boundary between these two zones remains neutral territory, to be policed by the Bounty Hunters Guild under a joint contract. In return, Liberty has agreed to immediately end all economic sanctions, and fund 85% of the Jump Gate cleanup and reconstruction project.

[817 AS] Planetform sanctioned over disputed terraforming

PLANET ATKA -- 818 -- Rheinland's Reichstag today passed a motion applying sanctions to Planetform Inc, condemning the Bretonian corporation for its work on Planet Atka in Hudson. The motion prohibits Planetform from entering or purchasing goods in Rheinland until such a time as the company ceases work on Atka and ""desists in furthering Liberty’s imperialism"". The move has drawn protests from both Bretonia and Liberty, and severs Planetform’s access to Rheinland-sourced Terraforming Gasses. Planetform representatives have called for peace talks between Rheinland and Liberty over Hudson’s status, arguing that a terraformed planet in the dangerous Independent World would mutually benefit both.

[817 AS] War with Rheinland!

HUDSON -- 817 -- President Powell has declared a formal state of war against Rheinland, to a standing ovation in Congress. During an impassioned speech, the President described how Rheinland had treacherously slain a number of Navy personnel in the Hudson Security Zone after initiating an aggressive and unwarranted military buildup across Liberty’s borders. He pledged that Liberty would defend its “intrinsic economic interests” in the region and punish flagrant Rheinland breaches of the Boorman Treaty. He has blamed Chancellor Reinhardt for escalating diplomatic disputes into direct armed conflict, comparing him to the disgraced Chancellor Niemann who triggered the Colony Wars seventeen years ago.

[817 AS] President Powell Grilled in Senate

MANHATTAN -- 817 AS -- Former President Barbara Jacobi, now a senator and a member of the Liberty Reform Party, has sharply criticized President Powell for “reckless escalation that has driven us to the brink of war with Rheinland”. Jacobi famously opted not to press Rheinland for reparations after the Colony Wars, likewise persuading Bretonia to drop their own claims. President Powell fiercely disagreed with this position, and based his election campaign on the feeling that Liberty had been “weak” in failing to punish Rheinland for the conflict. Jacobi and other members of the Reform Party have continued to condemn Powell’s policies, and called for immediate deescalation to find a peaceful solution.

[817 AS] Liberty Declares Border Security Zone

HUDSON -- 817 -- In a significant escalation to ongoing tensions, Liberty has established a Border Security Zone in the two Independent Worlds of Bering and Hudson. President Powell announced that the Liberty Navy will maintain a blockade along what Liberty deems its zone of control. This is purportedly to prevent intrusions by the Rheinland Military, and thwart attempts to facilitate terrorist attacks in Liberty territory. All civilian shipping bound for Liberty through the affected systems are now being stopped for mandatory inspections. Rheinland has furiously condemned the move as military aggression, and called the deployment a flagrant violation of the Boorman Treaty.

[816 AS] Houses clash over Hudson terraforming

PLANET ATKA -- 816 AS -- Rheinland has reacted with outrage at the discovery of Cold Bay Depot, a Planetform terraforming outpost recently constructed in orbit of Planet Atka. Hudson’s status has been the subject of friction between Liberty and Rheinland for decades, however Liberty appears to have grown tired with the impasse and unilaterally commissioned further terraforming surveys and ground preparation. Rheinland has set an ultimatum for the “illegal” station to be dismantled within one month, threatening to do so by force if the neutrality of the contested Independent World is not respected. Liberty has rejected the demand, and declared that it is prepared to defend its intrinsic economic interests in the region.

Rumors

Bounty Hunters Guild

Fastest way to some quick bounties? Head straight for the Trade Lane to the Magellan Gate, around the middle of the Tahoe Cloud. You'll get some strikes pretty fast in that area. I made it all the way to the Texas Jump Hole in the Whitney Field yesterday. I didn't hang around for long. Didn't even a take a shot at the Rogues in the area. I'll go back next time with a posse. The air's a little thin here still. I like to sleep in my ship at night. It's warmer and there's more air. Those Planetform people are kind of uptight sometimes. Guess that's how all Bretonians are. The Planetform folks let us use their site as a forward base for our operations in the central part of California. They're mostly interested in stopping the Rogues who prey on their Silver shipments from Freistadt Base in Omega 7. Heaviest action in the system is by the Cortez Hole in the Tahoe Cloud. You better come in with your guns blazing if you want a chance of going home that night. Been trying to talk a few of my buddies into doing it, but they all keep backing out. This is a good location to launch into the Tahoe Cloud. You don't have to go far to find trouble in there. It's also a straight shot across the system to the Whitney Field, if that don't offer enough action for you.

Planetform, Inc.

Some time ago Planetform discovered that the Alien Organisms found in the Edge Nebula systems had very high reproductive rates, and could exist in quite hostile conditions. One of their primary functions is to dissolve the carbonate rocks found in abundance here, releasing elemental oxygen and carbon dioxide in the process. The Oxygen is mostly used for the terraforming machines, which run around the clock. Their purpose is twofold: to increase Oxygen content in the air around the base, and to introduce various atmosphere forming gases like carbon dioxide and nitrogen into the atmosphere. We still have at least fifty years before this operation is completed. Most of our Water is hauled in from Freeport 4 in the Magellan system. The thin snow layer that covers this planet is actually quite recent, a product of our Phase I cloud-seeding efforts. California Minor is still too cold and arid for sustainable agriculture. Planetform, Inc. has operations in two Bretonia systems in addition to this one: Edinburgh and Tau-31. The Edinburgh project has been plagued from conception by terrorist activity in the area. Our headquarters is in the New London system at Canterbury. We bring in the bulk of our supplies from other places in Liberty since there is no agriculture or industrial manufacturing here. We've set up a chemical processing plant to produce Floragro, but that's the only production going on so far. We get our Consumer Goods from Fort Bush, and Basic Alloy from Manhattan. Liberty has been quite accommodating to our needs. We certainly haven't had to contend with anything like the Gaians. They are more pragmatic here. The primary use of this planet following the completion of our project will be synthetic Food production, now that Los Angeles is becoming too dry. We bring in our Terraforming Gases from Birmingham in the Manchester system. At least there aren't any of those dreadful Gaians in this corner of space. Our hope is that some even more robust and prolific Alien Organisms can be discovered in the mysterious clouds of the Edge Nebula. It's as if they were tailor-made for the process of making planets habitable. The use of Alien Organisms dramatically accelerate the terraforming process. Original estimates for California Minor were in the 400-year range. We now think we will be able to complete it in 840 AS, less than a quarter of the original estimate.

Liberty Police, Inc.

This is as far off the Trade Lanes as we get in Liberty. They'll build one to the planet once Planetform is finished. Then Synth Foods will shift Food production here. We run patrols around California Minor. I think it's a waste of time. Not enough bad guys around here. I heard that the real reason is that Synth Foods wants to move up the schedule on Planetform a lot. They been resisting, saying there were too many shipping losses. I hate this place -- cold, it's always windy, really thin air. I get headaches all the time. We're supposed to make Planetform happy by being here. What did I do to get this transfer? Must have pissed someone off back in Los Angeles.

Universal Shipping

We bring in the Alien Organisms from Planet Kurile that Planetform uses to jumpstart the terraforming process. The Sirius Commerce Act prohibits any import of Alien Organisms onto planets with indigenous life forms like Manhattan, but sterile planets like this one don't apply. We bring in supplies to augment Planetform's operation here -- mostly Oxygen, Food, Basic Alloy, and Industrial Materials. Just made the monthly Silver run from Freistadt. Always gives me the nerves. Everybody out there is your enemy when you start hauling high-value stuff. Guess they use it for their cloud-seeding operations.

NOTE: Page generated on the 07/06/2024 at 15:55:47 UTC