Eta One Five

The ambition of Mankind has long been to live among the stars. Having achieved the first step of that goal only caused the aim to be raised higher: Man would not only live among the stars but also harness the very fire of heaven to fuel his kingdom.   Thus was born the desire that lost the home of Man.   The Dyson bubble that was supposed to catapult humanity towards the rank of a Type II galactic civilization instead put it in danger of remaining a Type I. Something went wrong, disturbing the Sun's magnetic field. A storm of mass coronal ejections is projected to occur in the near future. We don't know when, only that it will happen. When it does, Earth, Luna and Mars won't be safe places to live any longer.   And so the throne of humanity lay now abandoned, inhabited by those who stayed behind: the poor, the stubborn, the disbelieving, those willing to risk their lives for pay, and those who remained for religious reasons. The rest fled to the outer colonies.   Much was saved in the flight from the solar system, but more was lost. The great factories, both ground and orbital, had to remain behind. The outer colonies were thriving, but they were not ready for the great influx of refugees. The great upheaval also brought sweeping changes to the political landscape. The present is a time of dread, turmoil, and uncertainty.   In times such as these, the ability to reclaim materials and technology is of the utmost importance. Not every ship that ventures into the void returns. Not every colony, elite resort, or outpost survives its initial planting. Technology, knowledge, and history tread forgotten orbits and rest in unknown vaults throughout the countless systems known to Man.   That is to say, there's a good living to be had just in scrap alone. Raw and recyclable materials are a commodity out on the frontier. A decent haul could set a group up for a few months of living. A rare find--some forgotten bit of lore--that could be enough to make a scrapper rich.   The far-reaching exploits of humanity have uncovered new forms of life--flora, fauna, and even strange new microbial activity. Some have proved very useful; others have only proven terrifying.   The Heap is the local center of these sorts of operations. Cobbled together from various ships and recycle operations, the Heap is a sprawling space station that many groups call home.