BY LETTER
The Violets (BL and UV Ceti)
Galactography > Other Major Polities, Empires, and Meta-Empires > Diamond Network
Galactography > Regions of Space > Inner Sphere
Galactography > Systems and Worlds > Systems & Worlds U - V
Galactography > Regions of Space > Inner Sphere
Galactography > Systems and Worlds > Systems & Worlds U - V
 Image from MiyuwiAuthor amended by Steve Bowers | |
| The stars BL Ceti and UV Ceti have been modified to appear lime and violet to outside observers; these colors are emitted by the outermost shells of the twin matrioshka brains. The reason behind this color choice is unknown. | |
Data Panel - The Violets | |
| System | Names: The Violets, Gliese 65, GJ 65, G 272-61, L 726-8, PLX 343.1 Components: 2 1) Violet A (BL Ceti) 2) Violet B (UV Ceti) |
|---|---|
| Location | Distance from Sol: 8.77 ly (J2000) Constellation: Cetus |
| Violet A | Names: Wise Violet, Violet A, BL Ceti, Gliese 65 A, LHS 9, LP 768-27 Physical characteristics: - Mass: 0.122 x Sol - Radius: 0.165 x Sol (114,892 km) - Luminosity: 0.00147 x Sol (bolometric) - Temperature: 2784 K - Spectral type: M5.5V - Rotation period: 0.2430 days |
| Violet B | Names: Insane Violet, Violet B, UV Ceti, Gliese 65 B, LHS 10, LP 768-26 Physical characteristics: - Mass: 0.116 x Sol - Radius: 0.159 x Sol (110,321 km) - Luminosity: 0.00125 x Sol (bolometric) - Temperature: 2728 K - Spectral type: M6V - Rotation period: 0.2268 days |
| Binary orbits of A and B | Orbital characteristics: - Semi-major axis: 5.459 AU - Period: 26.38 years - Eccentricity: 0.6172 |
Despite the solipsist nature of the archailect known as The Violet, this entity appears to be fascinated by Terragen Culture, and appears to have copied many aspects of that culture within its own constructions and virtual simulations.
History
By the dawn of the fourth century AT, various ahuman AI groups were fleeing the Solar System to escape prosecution and termination by pro-human AIs. Some escaped by infiltrating and hijacking exploration probes, and others constructed their own spacecraft. The Solipsist League was no different. They fled from Solsys in 342 aboard a comet core converted into computronium, using deuterium they had gathered to boost the ship up to 0.07c. Their destination was a system of a pair of youthful, active red dwarfs known as the Gliese 65 system, where the violent flares serve to discourage any human mission. They were ignorant of another ahuman mission that had departed for this star some 30 years earlier. This mission, crewed by an ahuman group, reached the system in 465, five years before the Solipsist League ship.The solipsist AIs were dismayed to see another ahuman group heading to their destination system, and the ahumans presumably were equally appalled. Needless to say, a conflict almost immediately broke out. The ahumans had the advantage of having an early start; they had already taken BL Ceti, the larger of the two stars. Around this star, they had a rapidly maturing industrial base and the capability to build long-ranged beam weapons, which they utilized generously. By the time the solipsists entered the system, the ahumans already had the capability to send drones to intercept and cripple them. But the solipsists had already prepared for the worst-case scenario; The ship constructed a thick ice shield, providing the first layer of defense. The ahumans of BL Ceti launched a number of drones, which managed to destroy the shield, but what was revealed when the shield was gone was not an intact ship, but a cloud of thousands of fragments, some containing habitation computronium and others filled with weaponry, using emergency fuel to provide power. Scholars believe this is actually part of the flight plan; due to the square-cube law, a gigantic ship cannot slow down fast enough. The first probes were immediately overwhelmed by the surprise onslaught, and before the second probes could arrive, most of the pieces had already decelerated into the vicinity of UV Ceti, the smaller star. Some fragments did not slow down, instead impacting the nascent ahuman colonies around both stars, heavily weakening them and delaying the launch of the next wave at the same time.
UV Ceti (nicknamed The Insane by colonists of the nearby system of Ran) was more active than its sibling star. This proved to be a major obstacle to the colonization effort of the relatively low-tech Solipsist League (but it is important to note that the even lower-tech ahumans also suffered from radiation, which slowed down their development enough to give the solipsists a chance to gain a foothold in the Gliese 65 system). But gradually the solipsists managed to establish functioning industrial bases at the night side of the small, tidally-locked, airless rocky planets orbiting this star. BL Ceti had recovered as well, and the two civilizations were soon locked in an uncomfortable stalemate enforced by the capability to utterly destroy each other. Occasionally, the two factions would try to hack each other's assets, occasionally causing collisions that are detectable with Solsys' telescopes.
This standoff equilibrium broke down due to a freak incident. On 7 Copernicus 517 (local time), BL Ceti emitted an exceptionally strong flare, crippling a good fraction of the ahumans' circumstellar defense beam platforms. The solipsists, having noted the ahumans' relatively slow response rate, took this chance to launch a full-scale assault consisting of suicide drones, supporting beams, and viruses towards BL Ceti. The ahumans, which were preoccupied with trying to get their defenses online again, fell victim to the strike and suffered massive destruction, including but not limited to at least three amat farm explosions. The ahumans managed to dish out their own attacks, however, before their defenses finally succumbed. By the beginning of 520, the entirety of the ahuman civilization had already retreated into the depths of the planets as the solipsists reigned in space. The fate of the ahumans beyond this period is not clear, but they appeared to have already vanished from the system.
After this incident, the three terrestrial planets and super-Neptunian were deconstructed by the Solipsist League colonists along with some asteroids and dwarf planets in order to construct Matrioshka brains around the two stars. The Solipsist League colonists merged into a single entity which gradually ascended to S4 utilizing the computronium of the Matrioshka brains. In 3685 AT, outside observers noticed an unusual change in the appearance of the twin stars: BL Ceti now appeared to be a deep violet color (~400 nanometer wavelength of light), while UV Ceti now appeared to be a neon lime color (~525 nanometer wavelength of light). This color came from alterations of the stars' atmospheres, as well as light tricks involving swarms of orbiting material. No change has been observed in the stars' radii or luminosities. The cosmetic change was definitely intentional, though no meaning behind this seemingly pointless alteration has been revealed. Because of this unusual change in coloration, as well as UV Ceti's name being confused as "Ultraviolet Ceti," outsider observers have named the system "The Violets."
Relations with Outsiders
The Violet is extremely isolationist, barring all from entering the system. E has broadcasted several messages politely asking outsiders to not interfere with eir matters and leave em alone. E rarely responds to any attempts to communicate. All who have tried to enter the system have been escorted away. Despite this, the Violet is known to generally have good relations with the Sephirotic Empires, and has not engaged in any significant interstellar conflicts. The Violets also have generally good relations with both the Diamond Network and the Panvirtuality, but remain relatively isolated.The 'Terragen Fiction' Broadcast
In 7866 AT The Violet broadcast a complex and unique composition known as the "Terragen Fiction." The text of this work is written in a unique language, which is probably meant to be an imitation of languages spoken in Solsys during around the time the Solipsist League colonists left. "Terragen Fiction" contains over 10^13 words. This work contains references to a wide range of fictional characters and historical figures, as well as ril, virtual and fictional locations, all drawn from aspects of Terragen culture from the viewpoint of The Violet. The visual and audio components of this work of fiction include footage and artwork, music and sound effects, all from Terragen sources, blended into a singular composition.It is surmised that the Violet has been collecting data on Terragen culture from intercepted broadcasts for thousands of years, and has composed this work as a way to express Eir appreciation for that culture. Much of the content of the "Terragen Fiction" dates back to before the expulsion of the ahumans, and includes a considerable amount of information which had been previously lost.
 Image from Steve Bowers | |
| Human World, a human-shaped habitat 150 km wide, near the green-tinted Matrioshka Brain around UV Ceti | |
The Violet's Constructions
The Violet has been observed creating many different constructions. Thanks to powerful cliotelescopes in the surrounding systems (particularly in the Ran system), these constructs have been monitored closely in detail for many thousands of standard years, and there are many theories about their activities and purposes. The following are the most notable.- The Matrioshka Brains: Both stars are surrounded by matrioshka shells. These shells consist of swarms of computronium nodes, and presumably support the local archailect. The outermost shells are around 5,000,000 km out from their respective stars.
- Computronium Nodes: There are a number of computronium nodes. These appear to vary in size and shape. It is believed that some of them run virtual worlds populated by virtual robots. Not much is known about what takes place inside these virtual worlds, as The Violet has revealed very little information about them.
- Replica Worlds:"Replica Worlds" are habs populated by bots, which are believed to be non-sophont. These bots are very diverse and come in many different forms. Some of them are organic, while others are inorganic. It is believed that this is meant to be an imitation of Terragen society. It appears that these bots are all individually controlled by The Violet to act out certain scenarios. These scenarios are not always realistic, and often contain dramatic or strange occurrences.
- Elimination World: "Elimination World" is a Replica World that goes through a peculiar cycle. The cycle begins with the hab being populated by millions of bots. However, the population of bots begins to decline, until only one is left. Then, the hab is reset, and a new set of bots created. It is believed that this activity is meant to be some sort of competition or game. It is unclear what criteria The Violet uses to determine who will or will not be eliminated.
- Music World: At first glance, "Music World" seems like just another Replica World. However, everything in this world has been designed to contribute to a symphony. The bots of this world are always producing rhythmic and melodic sounds, and objects around the hab are designed to amplify and synchronize with these sounds. The Violet periodically broadcasts this symphony out to nearby systems.
- Math World: "Math World" is a Replica World that is perfectly designed according to mathematical functions. The objects and bots there always neatly follow mathematical patterns. There are also bots that are always doing mathematical calculations, and machines that are intricately designed for precise calculations.
- Human World: This is a Replica World that resembles a giant baseline human, around 150 km wide. Each section of the hab corresponds to a different organ of a baseline human's body, and the bots in each section are designed to look like that organ. For example, the lung section of the hab is filled with millions of bots that look like lungs, which are always respiring and flopping around. The heart section of the hab is filled with millions of jumping bots which look like beating hearts. The eye section of the hab is filled with millions of rolling bots which look like eyeballs.
- Food Worlds: There are Replica Worlds that are designed to look exactly like various food items, typically around 10 km wide or less. The inside of these worlds contains mountains, lakes, and rivers made out of the designated food item. Food Worlds are fed to the Human World, where they are processed in the digestive organs and turned into "Waste Worlds."
- Solsys Worlds: These Replica Worlds are replicas of Solsys on a much smaller scale. One large Replica World represents Sol, while smaller orbiting Replica Worlds represent the various planets and moons of Solsys. These worlds are populated by bots meant to represent Solsys residents. There is even a bot that represents GAIA.
- Violet Worlds: These Replica Worlds are replicas of the entire Violet system. There are replicas of the two stars, the Matrioshka brains, and even every Replica World. There is even a smaller version of the Violet Worlds, which itself contains an even smaller version of the Violet Worlds. This is believed to continue down to an atomic level.
Related Articles
Appears in Topics
Development Notes
Text by MiyuwiAuthor and The Astronomer
with contributions by Steve Bowers
Initially published on 28 October 2024.
with contributions by Steve Bowers
Initially published on 28 October 2024.
