1. Locations

The Spire

the Soul-system in Human Space

Hanging above the swirling storms of Saturn the Spire is both a monument to human ambition and a testament to the power of corporate hegemony. It began humbly, like just another space habitat, a midway refueling station for interstellar traffic in the golden age of human interelllar expansion. But over the last 7,200 years, it has transformed into a bloated, labyrinthine megastructure, growing outward in all directions, layer by layer, acquisition by acquisition, until it became something else entirely: the beating heart of humanity’s Skim fuel industry.


At its core, the Spire is a vast extraction complex, its namesake a miles-long, needle-like structure plunging deep into Saturn’s atmosphere. Using a sophisticated combination of vacuum extraction, magnetic coils, and massive fan arrays, it draws out the gases necessary for refining Skim fuel. Over centuries of continuous operation and upgrades, the Spire’s unrelenting pull has permanently altered the planet’s cloud layers, creating a great whirlpool-like depression, like a visible scar in Saturn’s atmosphere that serves as both a warning and a monument to humanity’s relentless drive for energy.


The origins of this extraction technology remain shrouded in secrecy. While official records credit human ingenuity, it is widely believed that NorArb Energies secured it through dealings with alien contractors long ago in the years after the Great Intersolar War. What they traded in return is a mystery, buried beneath layers of corporate bureaucracy and non-disclosure agreements that no government or watchdog has successfully unraveled.

Kanka is built by just the two of us. Support our quest and enjoy an ad-free experience for less than the cost of a fancy coffee. Become a member.

Overview

What sets the Spire apart from mere industrial infrastructure is its sheer scale. It is not just a refinery, not just an orbital station, it is a city in its own right, home to tens of millions. Layer upon layer of habitats, corporate office towers, luxury markets, slums, research labs, and military installations form an interconnected and chaotic ecosystem, where the ultra-wealthy of NorArb’s board members live in luxury while laborers and technicians toil in the lower decks, cycling through shifts that never truly end.

Trade flows through the Spire like blood through veins. Ships arrive from all corners of skim-space, carrying raw materials, consumer goods, and countless hopefuls looking to carve out a fortune or simply survive in the station’s underbelly. Political intrigue and economic warfare are just as commonplace as mechanical failures and industrial accidents. Power struggles between NorArb’s ruling executives can shape interstellar markets overnight, and smaller colonies, desperate for economic stability, often find themselves utterly dependent on the Spire’s whims.

The Spire’s influence extends far beyond Saturn’s orbit. Over the millennia, NorArb Energies has used its near-monopoly on Wave Skim-Drive fuel to cement its place as one of the most powerful human entities in existence. Its wealth has enabled it to construct smaller Spires and ground-based fuel extraction facilities across human space, ensuring that its grip on human interstellar fuel supply remains unchallenged.

Politically, it holds a status few corporations can match. The Great Maerthian Three may hold dominance over Maerth, humanitys political power and its interstellar reach, and Luna may be the heart of human military might, but NorArb’s control over Skim fuel gives it leverage that neither can ignore. While larger human powers maintain strict laws to prevent unchecked corporate lobbying, weaker colonies and independent systems often have little choice but to align with NorArb’s interests. Through economic pressure and strategic fuel pricing, the Spire can dictate terms to those who lack the means to resist.

Despite its seemingly unshakable position, the Spire is not invulnerable. It faces challenges both external and internal, be it factions within NorArb who vie for power, competitors search for alternative fuel sources, and those more radical political groups arguing that no single corporation should control such a vital resource. If ever the Spire were to fall, whether through sabotage, revolt, or a technological breakthrough that renders its fuel obsolete it would send shockwaves through all of human space.


For now, though, the Spire remains what it has been for thousands of years: a titan looming over Saturn, feeding the engines of human civilization while its masters scheme and its workers endure. A symbol of human ingenuity, greed, and survival.

February 12th, 2025