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This article was written by ToaFairon. Please do not add to it without the writer's permission.
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| Arcturus Magna | |
|---|---|
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| Location | |
| Position |
400 million kilometres from its star
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| Size |
N/A
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| Population |
8 billion
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| Status |
In existence
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| Pronunciation |
N/A
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Arcturus Magna, also sometimes referred to as simply Arcturus, is a snow-covered, rocky planet located in the Xeler Galaxy. It was formed in a solar nebula that also created the other satellites of its parent star, and is the fourth planet of the Xeler System.
History[]
Arcturus Magna came to be in a solar nebula that formed much of its solar system, situated near the galactic core of the Xeler Galaxy in the Realm of Light in the Kronian Multiverse. It was situated roughly ten lightyears away from Estron and roughly thirty lightyears away from Azzilat. It used to be approximately fourty lightyears away from Dracia, being the second most-distant planet of the Planetary Alliance from Dracia after Azzilat.
Unlike Dracia, Estron and Azzilat, Arcturus Magna's icy surface and inhospitable climate prevented any immediate settlement during the Great Migration from Infina Magna through the Realm Between to the Realm of Light. For the most part throughout its early history, the planet remained largely uninhabited save a number of ice creates. About 1,000 years after the Great Migration, a number of Ko-Matoran settled on the planet in what is now the abandoned Kronix Province in the east. Their society eventually fell to causes as yet unknown.
Two centuries after the Kingdom of Dracia was founded and set up as a permanent main base for the Combat Masters' League, Filius and Acritus proposed the creation of a secondary base of operations where they would train new Combat Masters for the League, while also monitoring the security situation in case a new surge of Darkness would arise in the outer regions. Hendrax agreed to the proposal, and Filius and Acritus set out on their search.
The search for a relatively isolated world proved difficult, and the two sought for several years before finally making contact with the Ko-Matoran who lived in the Kronix Province. The Ko-Matoran welcomed the two Toa as their own, regarding them as "messages from the stars", before helping them set up the Masters' Village and Temple, which would later form the core of Arcturus City.
Due to the precarious nature of the Arcturan environment, due to a combination of the planetary climate and the potentially lethal radiation from the planet's twin stars, the Masters' Village and Temple was built as an entirely indoor environment. The economy was largely reliant on internal trade between the Masters' Village and Kronix Province, and trade between the planet and its moon, Arcturus Mina, where an industrial base had been laid down by the inhabitants of Kronix Province.
Several years into the existence of the Village and Temple, disaster struck as the entire population of Kronix Province disappeared under mysterious circumstances, leaving not a trace in its wake. The disaster of Kronix Province struck a huge blow in the planetary economy and halted communications between the planet's own settlements, as well as long-distance communications between the planet, Dracia and other parts of the galaxy. When the planet finally managed to regain contact with the rest of the galaxy, the Combat Masters discovered Kronix Province entirely devoid of life. In honour of the early settlers of the province, the Combat Masters' League elected to maintain the ruins of Kronix Province as a reminder of the grim possibilities of life.
During the Period of Silence following the disaster of Kronix Province, the Planetary Alliance had been founded, and it was the first to regain contact with the planet at the end of the silent era. Though initially shaken and reluctant to join an alliance so soon, Hendrax managed to convince his fellow Combat Masters to join on the condition that their position as "training ground for the galactic elite" be largely maintained.
Throughout the era of the Planetary Alliance, the settlement surrounding the Masters' Temple and Village grew considerably in population and size, and eventually it was agreed that a new system of Biospheres was to be designed to provide livable environments for the inhabitants of the planet. The new system of Biospheres would allow for the creation of a large, simulated breathable environment with both an indoor and an outdoor region, so as to facilitate the construction of further settlement within the dome of the Biospheres. This development, along with the continued training of Combat Apprentices on the planet, quickly led to the rise of Arcturus Magna's reputation as a galactic center of cultural, scientific, educational and economic prosperity, while still maintaining secrecy regarding its actual position on the galactic maps.
Meanwhile, the original Temple and Village themselves had become large city settlements in their own right. Not only did Acritus and Filius quietly continue their rigorous training of future Combat Masters, they also employed a myriad of other personnel dedicated to teaching diplomacy, science, and the cultures at the Arcturan Academy. Many of those who studied and lived on Arcturus Magna went on to become Combat Masters, diplomats or other influential political and social figures on the galactic stage. Amongst others, the Toa of Air Rex was apprenticed in these early days on Arcturus Magna, while the Onu-Matoran Rezinicx was apprenticed at the Arcturan Archival Academy. Its moon, Arcturus Mina, meanwhile served as an important center of industrial manufacturing and development, housing many manufacturing plants and shipyards in its own right.
Throughout the Planetary Alliance-Azzilati War, Arcturus Magna remained largely untouched by the fighting that befell many other regions of the galaxy, owing in large part to its secrecy and shielded status even within the Alliance itself. At the end of the War, diplomats from Arcturus Magna were instrumental in drawing up the Treaty of Mesos IV that established and shaped the entirety of the post-War political environment in the galaxy, and resulted in Azzilat, Kubran and Moni joining the Planetary Alliance on the condition that they be allowed to maintain a "Skakdi-centric zone" in their sphere of influence.
Though it seemed like the Planetary Alliance would finally be able to repair much of the damages of the War, the post-War galaxy was shaken up by the Fall of Dracia as the consequence of Zirix's betrayal of Hendrax, and the refugee crisis that followed. In the ensuing mass panic, and the secessions of Kubran, Moni and Azzilat, Arcturus Magna saw itself drawn into the galactic playing field.
Being that many elite Dracians knew of the location of Arcturus Magna, an unusually high number of refugees ended up seeking refuge on the icy planet. Almost immediately, the Arcturan government was overwhelmed by the amount of requests and the sheer number of beings arriving at an unprecedented rate. The central Biosphere, once able to house all of Arcturus City, was quickly becoming too small, and tensions between the Dracians and Arcturans mounted. The arriving Dracians felt that, since their planet had been the center of the galactic political system for so long, they deserved to be treated like royalty, which infuriated the local Arcturans, who felt that they had been giving the Dracians everything, but had received nothing in return.
As tensions rose, the government eventually stepped in and ordered what was at that point the largest rehousing project of the galaxy. Within a hundred days, millions of beings were set to work on the construction of the Arcturan City Biosphere System, a set of Biospheres that were to host both the refugee population as well as the local populations, as well as rebuilding the entire city's political and social system. What was once an elite settlement of a few million, quickly grew into a megalopolis that housed billions across its various domes and sectors.
With its newfound powers, and enormous financial and labour power at hand, the newly-found Arcturan government decided to construct its new headquarters on the site where the former League temple had been built, building an enormous multi-level, multi-layer Ziggurat-pyramid construction called the Governmental Palace. Towering high above the skyline of the rest of the city, the Palace (or GP, as it became called) dominated the skyline and became the political and administrative centre of the city.
Shortly after its foundation, Arcturus City grew to become the single largest settlement in its corner of the galaxy, growing at an almost uncontrolled rate.
Atmosphere[]
The atmosphere of Arcturus Magna is relatively thin when compared to that of planets like Dracia or Estron, with only half the atmospheric pressure of Dracia present and only a quarter of that of Estron. It also differs in that, in sharp contrast to the thick cloud layers of Estron and the cloudy atmosphere of Dracia, it has no clouds at all, leading to a perfect view of the surface from all sides.
Also, due to its relatively thin nature, the atmosphere provides minimal protection to the Arcturan citizens from the radiation emitted by its parent star. This has led to the construction of the Biospheres that house Arcturus City.
There is oxygen present on Arcturus Magna, but in far smaller amounts than on either Estron or Dracia. This makes the planet even less habitable, but the inhospitable nature of the planet and its climate actually contributed to Filius' and Acritus' decisions to establish their base of operations here.
Climate[]
Due to its distance from its sun, and the little sunlight it receives from it, Arcturus Magna's climate outside of its Biospheres is harsh and cold, bearing little to no signs of life other than fish in subsurface oceans. Its temperatures only average around -25 degrees Celsius, with it being notably colder in higher-lying places.
Its harsh and unforgiving climate was one of the reasons for which Filius and Acritus chose to colonise it in the name of the Combat Masters' League.
Geography[]
The surface of Arcturus Magna is largely marked by the presence of endless swathes of snow-covered rock, with little in the way of bodies of water. It is subject to varying degrees of latitude and altitude, and a large portion of the planetary surface is marked by the presence of endless snowy plains, which are largely inhospitable due to their barren nature. Below the surface, a large cave system extends all the way to the planet's core.
Arcturus Valley[]
Arcturus Valley is an enormous low-lying canyon situated in-between two large mountain ranges, largely covered by Arcturus City. It is flanked on both sides by its mountain ranges and some hills, but other then that is largely composed of flat terrain on which the tremendous main Biosphere of Arcturus City was built.
Arcturan Caves[]
The Arcturan Caves is a system of ice caves situated right below and around Arcturus City leading deep into the planet's underground. It is a vast network of caves of which the surface level has largely been taken up by Arcturan building projects that have expanded into subsurface levels.
Arcturus City[]
The largest city in its corner of the galaxy, Arcturus City makes up not just the entire canyon of Arcturus Valley, but also the slopes of the surrounding mountains, as well as large subsurface territories. It is an enormous circular megalopolis that is centered on the Government Palace and the original Masters' Temple and Village.
Due to the violent nature of the atmosphere, Arcturus City is built inside a collection of vast domes that rise kilometres into the sky, called Biospheres, which are built of reinforced Protodermis steel and glass (the glass is encased within a honeycomb-shaped structure) and prevents solar radiation from its parent star from hitting the city and affecting its inhabitants. It also regulates the climate of the city and its surroundings, and provides the city with food and sustenance through the agricultural greenhouses situated within the Biosphere.
Furthermore, a good portion of the city is located nearly entirely underground, which was a result of the rapid expansion of the city during the Dracian Refugee Crisis.
Arcturus City is also home to the galaxy's largest spaceport, where ships from all over the galaxy come and go.
Residents[]
- Filius
- Acritus
- The Government of Arcturus Magna
- Population of Arcturus City
Trivia[]
- The Arcturan governmental structure and its operation is based on a mixture between the real-life US government and European Union.
- Arcturus Magna was named after the real-life star Arcturus.
- The Biospheres of Arcturus City were based off of real-life proposals for "biodomes" (essentially space greenhouses) to colonise, for example, the moon or Mars.
Appearances[]
- Dark Future (mentioned only)