Raion Consortium

The **Raion Consortium**, universally known as the **Consortium**, is the constitutional monarchy of the Aetanii race.

## Government

The Aetanii are primarily governed through an aristocracy of extended clans from their colonized worlds, with their primary meeting place being the underground garden-palace of Shiromizu, located in the city of Silverio. Each clan is headed by a patriarch or matriarch, with a single representative for their clan being sent to the Aetanii parliament and themselves on the clan council. Standard and day-to-day decisions are made by a democratically elected senate from each of the clans: if the issue is important, it is siphoned up through the parliament to the High Council, a cabinet of appointed clan leaders, and then to the *Kōtaigo* (localized as "Queen Mother"), where an important decision made by the parliament and/or cabinet can be approved for action.

Each of the ruling clans appointed to the High Council is responsible for a set of government affairs to manage: the Saromi are responsible for social issues such as justice, health, and education; the Yatogami are responsible for industry and production; the Shintaro and Takano are responsible for the sciences; the Sekozawa are responsible for agriculture and redistribution of resources; the Minamiya are responsible for currency and banking; and the Akiyama and Shinozaki are jointly responsible for military and foreign affairs, with the former being concerned with the army and the latter with the navy. The Sekozawa's redistribution of resources amongst the various Consortium worlds and Aetan is particularly important, and led to their position at the head of the High Council, with the others acting more in an advisory role. The military clans would be ranked second, considering the importance of warfare in Aetanii society.

The vast financial holdings of the Aetanii keep their supply lines running and also provide them access to a number of independent shipyards which they use to keep their vessels on constant patrol. This allows the Minamiya to maintain a foothold on the ruined fortress-world of Bál Masqué for the efforts of Civilian Security, and for several outposts and supply depots on the fringes of Consortium influence to maintain operation.

## Society

*Full Article: Aetanii*

The Aetanii culture is based around self-restraint and the mastering of one’s body and mind, especially one’s emotions; Aetanii are, by nature, an extremely violent race. While they may seem almost emotionless to outsiders, it is merely a façade to mask their inner selves, which are rather disposed towards the sword than to other forms of persuasion. While it is difficult to break this mask, it is possible to do so; the results, however, are often catastrophic for the person who was unfortunate enough to incur their wrath.

Despite this dependence on discipline and self-restraint, Aetanii are fiercely independent, for others as well as themselves; the concept of having freedom is extremely important to them. As such, they have not, do not, and shall never tolerate slavery; it is the most abhorrent practice in an Aetanii’s eyes, as it takes away freedom and places shackles on an otherwise independent being. While Aetanii do not enjoy killing, it is an acceptable option if required to undertake operations to free slaves. This is especially true with their own kind, which, while not an easy target, can occasionally fall prey to overwhelming numbers or the need to protect others.

## Military

*Full Article: Consortium Military*

In stellar combat, the Aetanii prefer swift and manoeuvrable vessels, with most taking to the heavens in starfighters rather than starcruisers. Carrying powerful pulse weapons and an advanced drive system, they are more than capable of outrunning and outgunning other nations' starships of their size.

Aetanii starships tend not to employ very strong shields, or particularly thick armor, relying on speed and a swift, brutal assault as their main defence. Their favored hit-and-fade tactics leave their enemies chasing circles, as their opponents never know when they will strike. Their favored battlefields are dense nebulae, where their ghostlike vessels can slip through easily where other starships cannot go at all.

When firepower is insufficient (and it usually is not), Aetanii will use boarding actions to take a vessel. Unlike other nations (which use boarding craft or pods), Aetanii deploy from space itself, physically cutting into the vessel and entering as a small, irregular force more than capable of taking out the crew of an enemy starship.

On the ground, however, are where Aetanii truly shine. Close-quarters experts with a disturbing affinity for "up close and personal", they are easily capable of taking on forces three or four times their size, and trouncing them thoroughly. Their reaction speeds let them outright dodge many enemy projectiles, while their lightsabers (a favoured weapon) allow them to block or cut through anything else. Versatile and deadly, each Windtrooper deploys with a variety of weapons, and every Aetanii has the potential to turn a battle to their favour.

Their only mechanized units come in the form of STRAIN, Strategic Armored Infantry, with a subset in the ITE units, Infinite Tactical Enforcers. Three-meter-tall mechanized units that function as walkers, mechs, starfighters, and more all rolled into one, they are modular units capable of being used anywhere and anytime.

## Astrography

*"The interior is remarkably secure, but there is always contact on our borders no matter how well we patrol. Such encounters are frequent, short, and oftentimes bloody."* - Ariwara Jin

The Consortium currently occupies the region of space known as the Sora Wheel, or the Halcyon Nebula (Dragon Mists to some) to the majority of the galaxy. It is a dense and unstable accretion of nebulaic material, difficult to navigate and prone to causing hallucinations in sentient species. It is also known for frequent lightning storms, random and potentially catastrophic warp, hyperspace, and wormhole fluctuations, and more. It is generally considered one of the more inhospitable places in the galaxy, and this has lent the Consortium almost something of a mythos among other spacefaring civilizations as it is the only race known to traverse the Wheel without difficulty due to their otherspace drives.

### Notable Locations

#### Aetan

The homeworld of the Aetanii, Aetan is a rocky planet orbiting a single Class A star. The majority of the surface is ocean, while forested mountainous regions dominate the rest. The planet is perpetually shrouded in mists that rise well into the stratosphere and beyond, with only a very few mountains rising above it to peek through the white-grey carpet. The planet is mostly undeveloped, with only a few cities and industrial centers. The majority of such work takes place offworld.

The planet’s mists are known to contain hallucinogens and other inimical gases, causing non-Aetanii to fall into fear, hysteria, insanity, and death without proper breathing equipment; even most filtration systems are useless, meaning one has to design masks and other such devices specifically for the purpose. Considering that Aetanii do not often let outsiders into their homeworld, it can be difficult if not impossible to do so.

The world is home to a multitude of predators and prey that rely on silent and extremely quick movement to either kill or evade capture, including the *kitsune*, a small white fox-like creature with nine tails; it is also called “Aetan’s piranha”, for reasons that might be obvious. This gave rise to the Aetanii’s superhuman speed of reflexes and other physical factors; any lesser race would have been killed off by predators they never saw or heard coming. However, their eyesight is somewhat poor (though not as sensitive to flashing lights as one might expect), leaving them blind at inopportune times. The Aetanii came to terms with this offworld by using glasses and contacts that darken when exposed to light, or when in battle, advanced tactical imaging systems built into their body armor.

The capital of the planet (and by extension the Consortium) is Silverio, a large urban sprawl located in one of the many valleys in the northern hemisphere. The focus of the city is the hollow mountain that contains the massive garden palace of the Queen Mothers; shafts cut into the rock above the cloud layer lend natural light to the mountain’s interior.

Aetan is home to the Ariake Orbital Naval Arsenal, the largest government shipyard and the only shipyard capable of handling the *Setsura.*

#### Ayana

The clanworld of the Shinozaki, a vertiginous world of high peaks and dizzying drops separated by rushing golden rivers and red forests. The capital is Akahime, and the world is home to Akahime Starworks, the largest private shipyards in the Consortium.

#### Acilaris

A dead world within the Wheel, formerly an ecumenopolis. It is now only the gravesite of several million Aetanii who died fighting for the planet.

#### Shiromiya

The clanworld of the Sekozawa and the Consortium's premier tradeworld, a large forested world dotted with massive colorful cities. The capital is Nara.

#### Kuro

The clanworld of the Minamiya, a shadowy planet with an almost impenetrable cloud layer that layers the mountainous world in perpetual misty night. The capital is Shinako.