Hyperlane

A Hyperlane is a volume of deliberately cleared space connecting two or more star systems to maximize efficiency, speed, and reliability for interstellar travel.

History

All civilizations that develop interstellar travel quickly learn the dangers of traversing the gulf between stars, notably the threat of collision. At relativistic speeds, striking even particles of dust can have deadly consequences. As greater cargoes were transported across greater distances, increasing surface areas made them much more vulnerable to collision. Between two heavily-trading star systems, pulses of ions can make travel safer. These long lines are immensely expensive, meaning that only the most well-traveled trade routes would get them.

It is unknown which species first created hyperlanes, but many ruins exist scattered throughout Cosmoria. The oldest confirmed components are over 50,000 years old. Archeologists discovered other less likely candidates, but they are so degraded that their exact purpose is unclear.

Anemoi Line

For nearly 2,500 years, civilizations on opposite sides of Cosmoria's core, the Lux Aeterna, have desired to trade. The obvious solution, traveling directly through the core, is expensive and risky. With only marginal decrease in time, the increase in cost was unjustifiable.

Governments willing to boost trade and thus their economies began to build the largest hyperlane in history, the Anemoi Line. Construction began in about 7500 CE and was spearheaded by the Providence Union. It took nearly 200 years to build as the slowly-traveling craft slowly dropped off components. The line started in the Varona System, where several other hyperlanes join it before it cut through Morid, skirting the core. It passed through Martial Space and ended at Zushilo.

Allowing for fast trade across nearly all civilizations in the galaxy, it would become even more profitable as Ma'eau bought vast amounts of material to fight its civil war. As more civilizations emerged both in Martial Space and Aylathiya, the line expanded to encompass nearly all of the stars therein. Currently, the line is as well-traversed as ever, with gigatonnes of material flowing through it at any time. Eos, Thalsiedeln, Maea, and Telva are important nexuses through which most international trade flows through.

Construction

In all cases, hyperlanes must be constructed from both ends of the lane - typically, these are points in the outer regions of a star system, relatively devoid of dust and almost always beyond the orbits of the large planets. Large anchors take advantage of solar wind to maintain their position. Once both anchors are placed and pointed toward one another, way stations can be installed. Most of the nodes were put in place by non-relativistic vessels. They are currently built at a rate of fifteen astronomical units per two years, much faster than the original speed of five astronomical units per decade.

Importance

Hyperlanes are of immense economic and strategic importance in interstellar civilizations. As they effectively cut travel time and costs in half or even more between two systems, trade and transport between stars are practically guaranteed to jump after one's construction. They are also extremely useful in denser regions and in creating a transport corridor between a state's core territories and more peripheral regions. They are generally considered one of the key technologies enabling large-scale empires.

Limitations

Hyperlanes have a carrying capacity. The oldest lanes were 100 meters across, meaning that only smaller ships could use them to leave room for two-way travel. Some of these ancient lanes exist to this day. Jams were common as the slower more massive freighters clogged the narrow passages. More modern lines are well over ten kilometers across, greatly increasing throughput. Large freighters travel down the middle of the lane while smaller ships squeeze by at nearly maximum speed.

Collisions, while rare, are devastating. They can tear up much of the lane as material shreds through its nodes. Additionally, they can be easily targeted during times of war. Targeting an international hyperlane, especially the Amenoi Line, is a sure way to earn the hatred of every nation in Cosmoria; however, internal hyperlanes are usually fair game in times of war.