The Head of the United Corporation of Colonized Worlds has vanished without a trace. Due to financial troubles, the logistics system collapsed: supplies ceased, and almost all industrial worlds became deserted because the workers and their families returned to Earth.
Thrill-seekers use abandoned cities and settlements for entertainment, such as races in homemade vehicles.
A novice racer, after flying off the track, crashes into a research complex, where it turns out that experiments on digitizing the human consciousness were being conducted.
World
Humanity has mastered interstellar travel and has settled on dozens of worlds. The interstellar communication network is run by the OKKM Corporation. It holds a patent for lag-free signal transmission across any distance. Enthusiasts have hacked and modified the communication protocol. One of the modifications allows users to control robots on other planets as avatars. After the founder of the corporation disappeared, the OKKM Board of Directors split power, and emerging financial problems lead to the collapse of the logistics network. The familiar order is crumbling…
Technology
Modified equipment for interdimensional communication allows users to connect directly to electronic systems. With this, enthusiasts can connect to robots on other planets and use them as avatars in that location. The person takes full control of the robot and can move freely and even assemble race cars.
Character
Konstantin was born on Earth in 2261. His father is one of the chief engineers of the OCKM in the field of robotic systems. Thanks to his father’s education and knowledge, he has a deep understanding of technology. He built his own setup for connecting to colony systems on other planets and uses it to participate in races across abandoned colonies.
Atra-8
A volcanic planet orbiting an orange dwarf, slightly larger than Earth. The planet’s young age accounts for its intense volcanism and rich deposits of tungsten and osmium. A dense nitrogen-oxygen atmosphere, rich in carbon dioxide and volcanic haze, is unbreathable, but the climate is warm and humid. Black basaltic rocks are covered in dark red and rusty vegetation adapted to the star’s orange light.
K-74-22
K-74-22 — a mining colony on Atre-8, established in 2141 during humanity’s golden age. It was founded on an ancient, stable crust, far from volcanoes, where erosion exposed rich deposits of tungsten and osmium. The quarry gradually grew into a three-bowl system. The mined ore was shipped to Earth and industrial worlds via OKKM logistical routes, and the colony remained one link in this network. At its peak, about 3,000 people lived there: miners, equipment operators, engineers, workers in the processing complex, their families, and a small corporate administrative apparatus. Due to the constant dust, people wore respirators, used throat lozenges, and drank purified water. After the disappearance of the OKKM founder in 2279, shipments ceased, and by 2281, almost all residents had returned to Earth. A small portion of the most valuable equipment from the research center was successfully transported on ships, but no one returned for what was left behind.
- Carrier «Atlant»
- Carrier «Quiet»
- Power Plant
- Research Center
- Hangar with Robots
- Spaceport
Career
A deep, terraced quarry of vast scale, once a site for mining the rare-earth metal tungsten.
Research Center
The building where soil and mined ore research took place, and where the secret project on consciousness digitization technology was developed.
Warehouse with robots
The starting point of the protagonist’s journey—a vast hangar where hundreds of machines stand shoulder to shoulder, once helping to mine ore for transport to Earth.
Track
A track for go-karting on the course, built by humans collaborating with robots to create custom vehicles.
