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Atreus, Capital of Free Worlds League


Atreus, Capital of Free Worlds League

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World Name: Atreus
Star Type: F4V
Position in System: 3
Time to Jump Point: 16 days
Recharging Station: Zenith, Nadir
Form of Government: Representative Commonality
Noble Ruler: Captain-General Thomas Marik
Word of Blake Facility Class: A
Word of Blake Representative: Demona Aziz, Word of Blake Precentor Atreus Station
Population: 5,391,000,000
Percentage and Level of Native Life: 10%, Mammal

          Atreus was first settled during the Exodus period, when it was one of the farthest rimward planets to be settled. In 2271, the Treaty of Marik established Atreus as the capital of the Free Worlds. One of the reasons that the delegates chose Atreus was because of its capital, Atreus City, was one of the few cities that had not been planned; its sprawling, hillside neighborhoods seemed a pleasanter environment in which to locate a government than the austere cities of Oriente, Marik, or Regulus. In all the centuries since, the security precautions that separate the House of Government from its surrounding neighborhoods have never destroyed the city's charm.

          The House of Government is located at the north end of the city. It is an excellent example of 23rd century post-Terran architecture, with magnificently curved eaves highlighting chromium and marble-trimmed ferrocrete facades. It is the only original capitol building still standing in the Successor States. All this gives Atreus City an air of antiquity that belies the vigorous economy of both the city and the planet.

          The principle industry of the city is ceremony. An astonishing 40 percent of the populace is employed in services connected with imperial ceremonies, such as catering state banquets, fueling and servicing vehicles for motorcades, supplying bunting and other decorations for official receptions, and polishing the shockproof diamond glass windows in the government buildings. Another 20 percent of the city's populace work in areas ancillary to the government, such as providing parts and repairs for the government's vast computer complexes.

          The rest of the planet is largely undeveloped, except for the state-of-the-art fishing industry and an AeroSpace manufacturing facility in Semidam. One of the major weaknesses of the Marik government is that it is too reliant on offworld goods and services. In two centuries of almost continuous warfare, Atreus has never been invaded, but citizens of Atreus fear a blockade more than they fear invasion.