The Mining Colony of Rodom
Posted: Sat Nov 30, 2024 12:59 am
The Mining Colony of Rodom
Rodom is a terrestrial world, with violent tectonic and volcanic activity, the surface is not habitable but experts believe that with in a few million years it will be.
Rodom is rich in heavy and rare minerals. A mining treasure trove.
Thousands of years ago, a race of human genetically modified themselves and built a civilization on Rodom. They used genetic manipulation on some common galactic life forms and created an underground ecology.
They tunneled into the steep mountains of Rodom and made a new civilization. The people of Rodom were modified for short stature (to feel comfortable in the enclosed spaces of the tunnel-cities.) for Strength and Endurance, and for open ended life spans.
The Rodomites lived for thousands of years, building tunnels, mining and creating their new life style. They took to building machines to last, when they discovered their sense of time was becoming something different from human. A Rodomite would get interupted in the middle of a project and wander away. When he remembered and returned to his project, as likely as not, he'd find a thick layer of dust all over his work bench and his tools and equipment aged to death.
So Rodomites started building their tools and equipment to handle long stretches of dormancy and return to operation seemlessly.
The basis of the Created artificial ecology in the mines and caverns is brown mold. A type of mold that uses heat to power it's metabolic processes rather than sunlight. This mold grows wildly near volcanic vents and in warm areas of the tunnels.
Meat-beetles are 100 lb beetles that eat brown mold and other subterranean plants. They have natural chitin armor, which can be scavenged and heated, to become a sort of plastic putty. Once molded and re-cooled this material retains it's shape as well as any plastic.
The meat of the meat-beetle is tasty and very nutritious.
Mushrooms grow in the caverns. There are many different varieties. They all have different tastes and textures, but none are harmful to humans.
However the Rodmites went one step too far in thier genetic engineering. They created a black ooze. a terrifying life form, it looks like a black glossy liquid, but it can move. It can squeeze through narrow holes like a viscous fluid. The black ooze absorbs anything organic and digests it. It is the perfect omnivore.
Once it accidently got loose on Rodom, all attempts to contain it and defeat it failed. The Rodomites began losing people to the creature and evacuated, emmigrating to colonies of people similar to themselves.
Several thousand years later, The World of Rodom has been re-discovered.
While the ancient tunnels mines and machines of the original Rodomites are if academic interest to scientists and historians, the real interest in the planet is commercial. A new mining colony was set up, with a small contingient of archaeologists.
occasional expeditions are mounted into the depths of the old Rodomite cities. Some time priceless antiquities are recovered. Some times caches of treasure in minderals and jewels.
Other times, the parties sent out to explore and loot the ruins simply disappear, never to be seen again, and no one knows exactly why.
Rodom is a terrestrial world, with violent tectonic and volcanic activity, the surface is not habitable but experts believe that with in a few million years it will be.
Rodom is rich in heavy and rare minerals. A mining treasure trove.
Thousands of years ago, a race of human genetically modified themselves and built a civilization on Rodom. They used genetic manipulation on some common galactic life forms and created an underground ecology.
They tunneled into the steep mountains of Rodom and made a new civilization. The people of Rodom were modified for short stature (to feel comfortable in the enclosed spaces of the tunnel-cities.) for Strength and Endurance, and for open ended life spans.
The Rodomites lived for thousands of years, building tunnels, mining and creating their new life style. They took to building machines to last, when they discovered their sense of time was becoming something different from human. A Rodomite would get interupted in the middle of a project and wander away. When he remembered and returned to his project, as likely as not, he'd find a thick layer of dust all over his work bench and his tools and equipment aged to death.
So Rodomites started building their tools and equipment to handle long stretches of dormancy and return to operation seemlessly.
The basis of the Created artificial ecology in the mines and caverns is brown mold. A type of mold that uses heat to power it's metabolic processes rather than sunlight. This mold grows wildly near volcanic vents and in warm areas of the tunnels.
Meat-beetles are 100 lb beetles that eat brown mold and other subterranean plants. They have natural chitin armor, which can be scavenged and heated, to become a sort of plastic putty. Once molded and re-cooled this material retains it's shape as well as any plastic.
The meat of the meat-beetle is tasty and very nutritious.
Mushrooms grow in the caverns. There are many different varieties. They all have different tastes and textures, but none are harmful to humans.
However the Rodmites went one step too far in thier genetic engineering. They created a black ooze. a terrifying life form, it looks like a black glossy liquid, but it can move. It can squeeze through narrow holes like a viscous fluid. The black ooze absorbs anything organic and digests it. It is the perfect omnivore.
Once it accidently got loose on Rodom, all attempts to contain it and defeat it failed. The Rodomites began losing people to the creature and evacuated, emmigrating to colonies of people similar to themselves.
Several thousand years later, The World of Rodom has been re-discovered.
While the ancient tunnels mines and machines of the original Rodomites are if academic interest to scientists and historians, the real interest in the planet is commercial. A new mining colony was set up, with a small contingient of archaeologists.
occasional expeditions are mounted into the depths of the old Rodomite cities. Some time priceless antiquities are recovered. Some times caches of treasure in minderals and jewels.
Other times, the parties sent out to explore and loot the ruins simply disappear, never to be seen again, and no one knows exactly why.