NOVEL NEXT LORE DROP 2
Nexus Travel: The Sil'narae Breakthrough
Early Experiments and Discovery
In their first deep–space expeditions, the Sil'narae found conventional FTL drives disastrously unreliable vessels misjumped, suffered fatal system failures, or vanished without trace. Determined to connect distant colonies, they turned to the natural "Nexus Points" scattered through Nythora's Halo. By analysing exotic energy wells near asteroid belts, gas giants, and system peripheries, they unlocked Nexus Travel, weaving a stable interstellar network long before any rival ever matched it.
The Nexus Drive
Activation:
• Only at fixed, naturally stable locations Nexus Points where gravity and electromagnetic forces converge.
• Ships approach at sublight speed before folding space time.
Mechanics:
• Energy Source: The drive harnesses a Nexus Point's gravitational potential to surround the ship with a warped bubble, enabling instantaneous jumps.
• Range: Typically 5–50 light years per jump; high capacity vessels exceed this.
• Cooldown: Each jump requires hours to days for capacitor realignment.
Nexus Gates
To handle heavy commercial and military traffic, the Sil'narae built Nexus Gates gigantic constructs that stabilise local Nexus Points.
• Strategic Value: Control of a gate grants immense economic and military leverage, since all intersystem traffic must transit through it.
• Civilian / Military: Merchant freighters rely on gates for safe cargo runs. Military forces fortify them as bulwarks in wartime.
System Entry & Exit
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1. Arrival: Ships exit the jump at a Nexus Point on the system's fringe, then switch to sublight drives. Predictable drop–outs make ambushes a constant threat.
2. Departure: To leave, vessels plot back to any outer Nexus Point and engage the drive. In busy systems, traffic queues can delay retreats.
Key Nexus Regions in Nythora's Halo
Serpent's Tail
• Dense Network: Frequent jumps amid active star formation.
• Starspool Cluster: Seven-star hub with a major Nexus Gate galactic trade nexus and FTA headquarters.
• Pirate Havens: Smaller, unsupervised points are ambush hotspots.
Iron Chain
• Industrial Gates: Funded by mining conglomerates for rapid ore transport.
• Viltor Belt: Choke point contested by rival factions risk of open conflict remains high.
• Traffic: Constant stream of bulk haulers.
Voidwalker's Path
• Sparse Points: Long sublight legs between nexuses due to low star density.
• Hidden Gates: Rumoured to be cloaked in dark matter clouds possible shortcuts to unknown realms.
• Religious Significance: Some faiths revere this region as a crossing for living deities.
• Black Hole Hazards: Several points lie near rogue singularities.
Ember Veil
• Unstable Points: Dying stars cause fluctuating wells misjumps and stranding are common.
• Ghost Ships: Derelicts litter the region; crews driven insane or perished in failed jumps.
• Abandoned Exodus Gate: An early Sil'narae attempt collapsed, isolating sectors new data suggests natural re–stabilisation, inviting future colonisation.
Societal and Strategic Impact
• Chokepoints: Nexus Points become heavily fortified flashpoints in galactic conflicts.
• Nexus Pirates: Raiders ambush drop out zones.
• Black Market Gates: Secret illicit portals traffic contraband.
• Cosmopolitan Hubs: Worlds near gates flourish as trade, cultural, and diplomatic crossroads.
Hazards of Unshielded Transit
• Psychic Fracturing: Organic passengers exposed to raw Nexus energies suffer Nexus–Induced Psychosis violent hallucinations, mania, or dissociation without neural dampeners or Nullite generators.
• Technological Degeneration: Unshielded electronics endure rapid component fatigue and "quantum jitter," leading to drive and navigation failures.
Most civilian liners retrofit older hulls with basic shielding, but only Sil'narae research and military vessels carry the full protective suite for dependable transit.
Nexus Point Instability & Isolation
• Rapid Transition Events: Stable points can shift or vanish for weeks or months, stranding entire fleets.
• Centuries Long Isolation: Some points collapse permanently, isolating systems for generations. Abandoned "ghost zones" are steeped in superstition despite rumours of lost archives or unique ecologies.
Whispers claim the Sil'narae have now developed a new FTL breakthrough enabling travel to distant, dead galaxies where untold riches and technologies await rediscovery.