The Coyo Compact

The Coyo Compact is a confederated government of independant worlds and a Member of the Imperium of Galactic States. It is comprised of six highly-developed worlds and eleven smaller habitats, colonies, and outposts under its direct control. The Compact was formed in [Data Error::Unknown Calender Format] as an agreement between colonists of the Wran and Qecnae species and the Ballialine species, whose territory they had unknowingly settled. Of the three species, only the Ballian homeworld of Coyo'te is in Compact territory: the other two species homeworlds are part of seperate, non-Imperium states. The Compact is located amongst the Rosette Nebula in Grand Division 4, and controls highly-valuable extraction stations for astatine, scandium, and aluminium amongst other resources. These resources have allowed Compact technology to advance in the fields of high-performance alloys, power generation, and starship engines, creating starships that can generate and withstand enourmous Delta-V values. As a result most Compact designs layer ship decks vertically instead of horizontally, with the engines at the bottom to generate gravity while firing. The Compact is situated roughly at the midpoint of Grand Division 4 and operates the largest fuel and repair docks in the region, which makes them a natural port of call for long destinations through the area.

History
The Ballialine species evolved on their homeworld at an uncertain date around 3 million years ago, and established a "civilized" society around 2 and a half million years ago. Due to the nature of their circumstances and phisioligy, the Ballialine never progressed to understanding the universe nor any form of society other than what they term "communion," a state somewhere between communism and a hive-mind. The Ballialine communion lasted undisturbed on their homeworld until Qecnae colonists made landfall there in [Data Error:Unknown Calender Format]. The Qecnae planned to establish a colony on the planet to extract its enourmous mineral resources. Contact between the two species was difficult at first. The Ballialine did not percieve the Qecnae as intelligent because they could not percieve ultraviolet and bioelectric communication. The Qecnae, meanwhile, did not think the Ballialine intelligent for similar reasons. However, when the Ballialine discovered they could morph inside of technology and essentially 'become' it, communication between the species was kickstarted.

The meeting of the species was revolutionary for both parties. The Qecnae knew that intelligent life existed beyond them, but this was the first time any of them encountered other sapient creatures. The physiology of the Ballialine was so foreign to the Qecnae as to cause radical shifts in the antropological and scientific parts of their civilization. Similarly, the Ballialine had no concept of existence beyond their world because of their society existing entirely within subterrainian caves. That there was intelligent life that not only could not speak in electricity and ultraviolet light but that came from a different sphere entirely caused the first factionalization in Ballialine society in history. The Qecnae were witness to the first and only Ballialine war, the Devouring. Some Ballialine wished to cooperate and learn from the Qecnae, while others wanted their expulsion, and others their destruction. A biomass-wide debate that lasted eight weeks resolved with a quarter of the population identifying themselves as The Pushers, a quarter The Eaters, and the remaining half The Talkers. These groups seperated into their own conglomerated biomasses and began to consume each other. This 'war' lasted a standard month and it is estimated that the Ballialine 'population' dropped from an estimated 79 billion possible individuals down to 17 billion.

The victors of the Devouring, The Talkers entreated the Qecnae for help and guidance, as many were confused by the concept of mass conflict and wished to avoid repeating it. The Qecnae colonists agreed, against the orders of their government, and a partnership was created. The Ballialine agreed to guide the colonists to valuable mineral deposits that they did not need while the Qecnae would teach the planet's natives about scientific concepts. This balance was upset twice, first with the arrival of the Wran, who also wanted to settle the region of space, and second with the dispatch of a Qecnae federal naval force. The Qecnae government wanted to defend their colonies from what the viewed as a hostile invasion, but also became hostile to their colonists when it was discovered they were still cooperating with the Ballialine. Sensing that the situation could devolve into more violence, the Ballialine entreated all four parties to come to an agreement. While the colonial elements of the Wran and Qecnae viewed the prospect of cooperation with the other two species as possible, their governments did not want to cede total control over the resource potential of the Rosette Nebula.

The Wran government, then known as the Lu Union, exerted political and financial pressure on their colonists to push for more concessions in a formal treaty that favored their side. The Qecnae Nmyyrs Expansion Authority, meanwhile, threatened both their frontier settlements and the other species with force if they would not allow the Qecnae total control over the region. Before tensions could reach a point of war, Ballialine individuals along with Wran settlers and Qecnae scientists infiltrated the starships of both sides and disabled all the FTL technology. With the military elements stranded, those in command would have no way to retreat from battle and were stuck orbiting the Ballian homeworld. Bargains were formed with those who would defect and those who would not were imprisoned. The three species made a formal agreement: each were equal, each would help the others, and each would defend the territory they lived in. The homeworld of the Ballialine, which had no formal name in their society, was jointly named "Coyo'te," which meant "Refuge of Peace" in the Wran language and "Clever Rebuke" in the Qecnae, both of which the Ballialine found agreeable.

Attempts by the Lu Union and Nmyyrs Expansion Authority to conquer the newly-formed Coyo Compact were attempted, but failed. Neither state could think of cooperating with the other, and the superior Wran technology, the Qecnae's martial prowess, and the Ballian ability to meld with electronics meant that the Compact was victorious though not without loss in each conflict, collectively know now as the Jealous Wars. The Ballialine, still the same generation that participated in the Devouring, found these conflicts distressing and disorientating, and demanded that the Compact become stronger and powerful enough to deter invasion. This was the origin of the War Constellations; the Compact mass-defense system was designed to position large formations of defense platforms and factories in orbit of their inhabited worlds.

War Contellations are massive formations of space stations, weapons platforms, and manufactories that orbit a planet in concert, at distances of several hundred thousand units, and positioned so that every orbital angle has at least one formation that can fire upon it. These formations are designed to detect hostile ships that translate into the gravity well and then destroy them with relitavistic kill-weapons, missiles, and particle beam devices from angles that do not damage the planet or any orbital installations. The targets destroyed by War Constellations are collected by shielded tug craft equipped with traction beams, and the material is then used by the formations as raw material for ammunition. Modern War Constellations are said to possess the firepower of a fleet for each compass point they occupy, and also include a medium-orbit network of kinetic kill drones positioned only a few hundred kilometers away from G-drive orbital transit height. The Compact does not equip the War Constellations with interstellar drives or FTL, circumventing Imperium military size limitations.

As the Compact refined their War Constellations, the two hostile governments were steadily outpaced in military capability and general technology. The first Compact colony world, Lubielle, was settled in [Data Error: Unknown Calender Format.] It was joined by Kovo in [Data Error: Unknown Calender Format] and Uuunm-Harmony two years later. Lubielle became the industrial center of the Compact when it was found to contain even more elements and minerals than Coyo'te, which was soon designated as a protected world to limit further development. Kovo became the first majority-Wran world, and Uuunm-Harmony was likewise settled mostly by Qecnae, each owed to the similarities to the birth worlds of the species. The final attempt by their governments to destroy the Compact, which had now grown into a rival of parity, came in [Data Error: Unknown Calender Format]. The Desperate Lashes of Hatred (known otherwise as the Independance Conflict) saw the majority of the Union and Authority battle fleets attempt to invade Coyo'te by translating first to its moon and then moving to destroy the War Constellation. This was somewhat successful, with a substantial number of stationary platforms taken out of action. However, once the invasion force entered the safe orbit zone, the Compact used newly-developed Gravity Anchors to translate above and below the hostile ships and destroy them with precision torpedo barrages.

This victory is accepted as cementing Compact independance. The formal government soon took shape as a microcosm of the Imperium system: each world had its own governor and ruling legislature, while the Compact as a whole was goverend by three elected representatives from each major planet, and one from minor settlements, in the Compact Agreement Board. While most of the confederated territories are essentially independant, the Compact Agreement Board retains authority over overall military matters, major trade and diplomatic decisions, and relations with the larger galaxy. The Compact began development of its worlds and the establishment of new outposts. Two more habitable planets were settled and became major population centers, Ouhs and Gulibene. The discovery of massive potential for the creation and exploitation of astatine in the Ouhs system saw the most extensive mineral extraction and refining operation in the Compact established here. The technology the Compact species developed allowed for astatine, with the shortest known half life of any element, to be placed in a chemical state where it would still emit incredible amounts of energy but decay at a much slower rate.

Astatine-based reaction systems became the standard of energy generation across the Compact, though these reactors are radiation shielded by emitters on a seperate power system at all times to prevent contamination. Astatine reactors are ranked in the highest energy produced per-standard hour in the galaxy, and while falling far short of Quum technology, allow for Compact-built ships to achieve incredible speeds, maneuverability, and shield strength. The design and operation of these reactors are strictly state secrets, and they are built with various failsafes to prevent tampering or maintanence by anyone except state-certified technicians. The Compact does manufacture astatine fuel cells, known colloquially as "lightning rods." These are compatible with most standard reaction fuel systems and can give a boost of upwards of 700% power generation for a few minutes, or 200% for a few hours.

In [Data Error: Unknown Calender Format], the Compact joined the Imperium, contributing one senator from each species as agreed on by the Agreement Board. Despite their continued and loyal membership in the Imperium for the past several hundred years, most of the Compact is completely apathetic to the state of the galaxy. The Rosette nebula masks a large amount of visible light, and combined with their general "frontier independance" attitude, Compacy citizens have a psychological tendency to think about their own affairs rather than the Imperiums. The contributions of funding and military personnel to the Imperium have, however, created a small class of the population known as "The Far." Termed as such by the Ballialine, this demographic encompasses the millions of Compact citizens who earn a living in the larger Imperium as explorers, diplomats, soldiers, merchants, and travellers. "Far" is applied liberally by Compact society to any who travel beyond the borders of their space to interact with other species and states, and does not take into account actual distance travelled.

Coyo'te
Coyo'te (also known as The Creator/Mother/Father/Home/Egg/Place/Universe to the Ballialine, though this term is homogenizing to The Creator as the Ballialine generations progress) is the capital planet of the Coyo Compact and the birth world of the Ballialine species. It is a silicate planet with a nitrogen-argon-oxygen atmosphere on the surface and an argon-nitrogen-sulfur atmosphere in its subterranian biosphere. The planet is seperated into two regions: a single supercontinent on its surface with limited vegitation and rocky terrain mostly comprised of shale and mica-type minerals. Various liquid water lakes dot the surface. Underground exists a sprawling network of tunnels, caves, and caverns, with large fungal and algae populations. These chambers are both natural and carved by the Ballialine, and comprise most of their habitation area. The atmosphere in the subterranian biome (known as "The Ways") is filtered up through the soil by plants and microorganisms and produces the atmospheric composition on the surface (known as "The Open.") Ballialine evolved underground and cannot normally inhabit atmospheres with oxygen, so they use robotic suits to traverse the surface and travel to other planets. Coyo'te has a population of around 10 billion, with 7 billion being Ballialine, 3 million Wran, and 2 Qecnae. The Coyo Compact Agreement Board is headquartered here along with the Compact Militia Command and the embassies of associated Imperium states in the city of Aspiration.

Lubielle
Lubielle is the second settled planet of the Compact and the most metropolitan in terms of construction. Uuunm-Harmony is the manufacturing center of the Compact, with most of the surface consisting of either resource extraction pits or city sprawls. Settled as a joint venture between all three species, Lubielle was prospected in its near-entirety by the Ballialine and subsequently mined out by the Wran and Qecnae to create the Compact's ecumenopolis. Vast underground foundries, factories, warehouses, and mines support the weight of a standard unit of city blocks across the whole world save for the icecaps. Lubielle is not technically habitable, being both too far from its star and with a methane atmosphere. The Compact has terraformed it using comet impacts and orbital mirrors to roughly equal Coyo'te in temperature and atmosphere. The 9 billion population is mostly Ballialine, which operate the undergroud machinery in conditions they find more favorable than the surface. The city sprawl is regarded as the place in Compact space one goes to find anything, be it entertainment, black market goods, or a quality starship.

Kovo
Kovo is the largest Compact world by mass, at 2.85 standard planetary masses, and is the home world for the Wran in Compact space with a population of 5 billion. The silicate planet displays a similar gravity and biome to the Wran birth world, at 1.7 G and high altitude variation desert. Kovo is renowned for its massive Mesacologies; these several-kilometer wide and tall rock formations have been hollowed out by the Wran and each contains a self-sufficient city. Kovo is the center of the Compact shipbuilding industry, with its system hosting twelve C-class shipyards and five B-class, as well as attendant repair yards. Portions of Kovo are massive canyons, which are popular with air and terrestrial racers. The planet also hosts the headquarters of Three-Part Creation Circle, a leading developer of mechatronics, weapons, and cybernetic technology. With four moons and a very faint ring system in addition to the constant traffic, orbital installations, and defense clusters, "orbiting Kovo" has become a Compact euphamism for a complicated or dangerous task, while "ignoring Kovo Orbital Control" is similarly a turn-of-phrase for a suicidal or stupid decision.

Uuunm-Harmony
Uuunm-Harmony (a dual name since Uuunm also means Harmony in the Qecnae language) is a silicate planet with a nitrogen-oxygen-carbon dioxide atmosphere and a lush variety of biomes ranging from desert to tropical to archipelago. With a population of 4 billion, it is on the lower end of resident citizens of the Compact worlds. The intention upon settling the planet was to create a space where members of the Compact could divest themselves of connection to utilitarian technology and connect with the natural world. Uuunm-Harmony cities are renowened for following the designs of individual Qecnae architects: each has its own aesthetic and expression that is not duplicated elsewhere on the planet. Considered the cultural capital of the Compact, Uuunm-Harmony hosts many renowned research institutions, high-society personages, museums, and artisan craft communities. The quality of foodstuffs are said to be the best in Compact space. The planet is the current location for the Compact Board of Arts and Sciences.

Ouhs
Ouhs is a small silicate moon of a helium gas giant, boasting a boreal-alpine climate and a nitrogen-oxygen atmosphere. The vegetation on Ouhs is stratified due to tidal forces and the wavelength of its star, and possesses retinal species as well as chlorophyl. The vegetation and the light blue chemical oceans have given Ouhs the nickname of "Candyworld." The Ouhs system is the center of Compact fuel industry with several dozen siphoning stations around the five gas giants and many refineries and fuel depots. The world itself has a population of only 2 billion, though its cities are sizeable and many buildings reach sub-orbital heights. Ouhs is often cited as having the most interesting blend of nature and civilization in the Compact. Its renowned High Sky Casino is commonly rated as "the Most Dangerous Gambling Establishment in the Imperium" due to it being a free-floating structure tidally locked between Ouhs and its parent gas giant, only held in stable orbit by a system of tension fields and magnetics.

Builbene
Builbene is a small silicate planet with a mostly-oceanic biome and a oxygen-nitrogen-hydrogen atmosphere. The atmosphere and gravity have allowed large indiginous life to evolve. These creatures are mostly confined to the deep depths of the planet's liquid water oceans though it is not unheard of them to surface. Builbene is a valued world in the Compact for its huge fishing and agriculture industries, as well as being the only source of [Data Error: Translation Corrupted], a popular black-market drug in the Compact and surrounding Grand Division with hallucinogenic and possibly psionic properties. The population of 6 billion mostly live on the scattered small continents or stilt cities in the shallower parts of the oceans. Ships built on Builbene are aquatic-capable and can operate inside bodies of liquid. The Builbene system also hosts the Bright Light habitat with a population of 1 billion, which is the center of interstellar trade for the system and is the location of large astatine refineries.

The Periphery
The Periphery is a term encompassing the less developed worlds, smaller habitats and stations, and resource outposts of the Compact. Numbering 11, these secondary settlements are no less imporant for the Compact. They generate nearly-two thirds of the raw materials and a quarter of the economic power that the Compact can call upon. While none can obtain full representation on the Board of Agreement due to Imperium restrictions on major worlds and territory, the Periphery settlements still have a voice in Compact affairs and are generally afforded with equal consideration and respect. The military presence of the Compact Militia in the Periphery is usually limited to patrol forces and garrisons rather than major bases, but each settlement has its own War Constellation system if applicable.