Cestulus

Davien II, named Cestulus after terraforming was completed in the early 26th century, is the system’s inhabitable world. Cestulus has a very thin atmosphere and the majority of Human habitation is beneath its rocky surface: elaborate biodomes pump air from above ground into habicubes constructed to stack miles beneath the planet’s crust. The world has no particularly interesting resources and the bulk of its economy is associated with transport and shipping. Despite the distance from the Banu, the infrastructure that has sprang up on Davien has allowed it to become the so-called “gateway to the Eastern Empire.” Dozens of major cargo runs criss-cross the system, and the planet is dotted in spaceports with facilities to entertain and supply long-haul transport crews.

For reasons not completely understood by sociologists, Cestulus became a flashpoint for political upheaval. In 2529, the feared economic collapse that accompanied the introduction of the Empire’s unified currency, UEC, lead to a bloody, two-week riot in the city of Jata. Only military intervention stopped the protest. In 2545 the planet was the site of terrorist bombings that left thousands dead, with bombs being planted specifically to collapse some of the planet’s more populated overground biodomes. These strikes kicked off a series of similar (and still unattributed) attacks across the UPE that lead to the adoption of Ivar Messer’s Prime Citizen plan. In recent years, Cestulus has become the adopted podium of everyone from Terran secessionists to anti-alien xenophobia groups.

Travelers are well-warned that owing to the system’s history of political upheaval, the Advocacy forces and local militia units in Davien are no-nonsense elites. Your cargo will be scanned when you enter the system, land, take off and exit. Waystations and well-equipped militia spacecraft are the rule here, and only the most advanced artificial holds and scanner blankets can possibly move contraband through Davien’s “galactic truckstop.” There is no humor for smugglers, even the most harmless varieties.

Jata
Jata is Cestulus’ most emblematic city, though not technically the world’s capital. Located underneath an everexpanding warren of air production facilities, the city is most famously home to Aegis Dynamics’ corporate headquarters and initial production facilities. The base primarily produces components rather than a particular ship design. More exotic resources are imported and the need is consistent. Beyond Aegis’ footprint in the city, the unique ‘open air’ underground cityscape has become symbolic of the Davien system as a whole.