Asteroid Belt

Fine cosmic particles drift through the otherwise barren space of the Asteroid Belt. A mining drone cuts through the dust, leaving astroplankton shimmering in it's wake.

The Asteroid Belt belongs to no-one, everyone, Mars, Jupiter, and itself, depending on who you ask. It is a unique ecosystem nestled between Mars and Jupiter, and the boundary betweeen the Inner and Outer World. The asteroids are far apart, even in the denser clusters a person standing on any one asteroid in the belt sees nothing but dust and distant stars.
It is home to the majority of known cosmic wildlife. Filter feeders like shrimp subsist on the astroplankton, and in turn they feed schools of bloaters and orbitross. The asteroids themselves house bivalves and the burrowing eel-like ophis.

Unlikely Allies

Jupiter and Mars have both staked out territorial claims in the Belt, and established mining colonies, research centers, and reloading stations. Opposition to these territorial claims are frequently brought before the Alliance of Nations by the nation-asteroids, only for these petitions to be dismissed. The Alliance of Nations maintains a staunch neutrality, as to not favour one of the two great powers. The nation-asteroids have found themselves needing to switch tactics. They search for allies on and outside of the Alliance who would recognize them as agents with their own vested interests, rather than pawns.
The population of the asteroid belt has boomed after the establishment of the colonies. Colonies need workers, and these workers brought their families or established new ones in the Belt. These people became known as Belters. Working conditions in the Belt are notoriously poor, the jobs in the asteroid belt are dangerous and difficult, and the vast distance lends itself to a lack of oversight. Many of the Belters are starting to realize they have more in common with the nation-asteroids than they might've originally thought, not just in sharing their new home, but sharing a common enemy.

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Outer Space
Locations Asteroid Belt ( The Collision Course ) · Oort Cloud Species Deep Space Leviathan · Orbitross · Astroplankton Materials Astrallite Technology Crystal Technology · Super Wide Access Network · Spacecraft ( Dragonfly Carrier ) Society Traditions ( Dumplings in Space ) · Organizations ( Sentinel ) · Conditions ( Deep Space Syndrome )

Included Locations

• The Collision Course

Inhabiting Species

• Astroplankton
• Orbitross

Related Materials

• Astrallite