Kybele

“The hearts of everyone across Kybele… No, the hearts of everyone across the Seven Systems! They're what we're all reaching for! We will grasp the world's spirit in our hands… and light it up with joy and truth! We will set the galaxy aflame from Kybele's stage!” - Xanthe Criss, leader of Delta-V

• Formerly the cultural powerhouse among the Seven Systems
• Population centres at poles of planet in the form of massive cities, hotbeds of intrigue and hedonism
• Kybele broadly avoided the War, accepting some refugees from other planets but not directly involving itself in conflict.
• However, while they may have avoided interplanetary conflict, Kybele is in a constant state of internal conflict between various warring micro-states.

If you made movies, music or games, the capitals of Kybele were where you wanted to be. Crystalline skyscrapers, jutting out of the streets, housed millions of office workers every day in the megametropolises at the planet's poles. Though the slums, the suburbs and acres of crop fields technically outdid these cities in size, in the memory of the Seven Systems the culture would always loom the largest. The entire planet was devastated by the loss of the GSS Ananke, boarded as it had been by the most important musical talents across the planet. Three groups of singers and their handlers left, to perform in a highly competitive showcase; none would come back, and the agencies that managed them would never be the same again. The last known communication of the musicians would later be recovered: a cryptic joint interview, released online, in which an interviewer stated that he was a traveller from the future and that their careers “took unexpected turns”. Several websites trying to decode possible hidden messages in this video have since sprung up.

Besides media and celebrity, the other thing Kybelians valued most was money. The planet was a plutocracy; those who accrued money accrued power. For this reason, displays of conspicuous consumption were not only frequent amongst the political class, but an active means by which power would be consolidated and defended. There was, for this reason, a ritualised culture of gift-giving and patronage between citizens; it is hypothesised by contemporary sociologists and historians that this is part of the reason the family structure became so solidified later in the planet's life. Feasts and balls were commonplace occurrences, especially among the ruling and upper-middle classes, and these would be elaborate and colourful affairs. Nevertheless, there would always be the unspoken assumption at these ostentatious social gatherings that they were affairs of business and politics. Mysterious deaths at and immediately after these gatherings were very frequent.

As systems fell into civil war across the universe, Kybele's diverse and motley collection of cultures attracted refugees from across the galaxy, and there is now a thriving expatriate community. Those whose families have called Kybele home for longer have been caught up in a number of conflicts. Turf wars between the micro-states which formed Kybele civilisation because more and more common as the War progressed and ended, with the House of Stone, Red Moon and Blue Carnation emerging as dominant factions. Of the three, the Blue Carnation appears to be nudging into the lead, its involvement in the Achelian situation having paid dividends in terms of cultural capital and military support.

The lack of trade and an interplanetary market have been hard for Kybele, but the lean years and the factional conflicts haven’t removed the glitter from the skyscrapers. While everything may be a little worn down, a little less efficient and a little less shiny, the hypersubway still runs and the people still gorge their minds on bright and shiny entertainment.

The two most prominent micro-states in Kybele are the Blue Carnation, a focused and driven militaristic outfit, and the House of Stone, a very old and very close family living in secrecy and decadence. These two groups take up the majority of the land on Kybele, and are constantly at loggerheads with each other. For this reason, their territories - especially those near the borders - are very unstable. After these two, the largest faction is the Red Moon, an order of monk-like people who live, and work to preserve old Kybele culture, in giant libraries. Other micro-states exist too, taking up little pockets not considered strategically significant. All these groups are not necessarily the same: some are biological and adoptive families, others military outfits led by a pretender warlord, others still new religious groups or even artistic collectives. A micro-state may be as small as a single tower block, or as large as thousands of square miles.

These groups may be more or less orgaised and official. Of note are the Cheimeran and Selasi groups which have formed and slowly taken over tower blocks and areas of land, using the skills and experience brought from their homeland to contribute to their own small societies. The Cheimerans in particular fascinate many Kybele, who find their lack of interest in mass-media strange. Many cultural exchange events have been organised, and very well attended.

The Tungsten Roses also have a significant presence on Kybele, working with the Blue Carnation. They are noted for their artistic approach to military matters, with many former stone strongholds planted with flowers and graffitied with artistic slogans such as ‘SHATTERED STONE’ and ‘ROSE THROUGH THE ROCK.’

For most of those who lived before the Ananke disaster, there is a strong feeling of nostalgia towards the era of lustrous skyscrapers and unbelievable celebrity. Vintage movies and music are frequently hoarded and watched with reverence among the survivors. That said, there is also a significant undercurrent of skepticism and resentment, particularly from the planet's younger population. Was it not that extreme focus on money and power, they argue, that created the Kybele of today - a planet wracked by near-constant turf wars and power grabs? There is a decently large subculture of people who believe in accepting and understanding that Kybele is changed for good, and creating a mode of art entirely different to the old culture and beliefs.

Devotion to the state of which you are a part is also deeply important to almost all Kybele citizens. Many micro-states have their own colours, or a uniform, or some other insignia. Because of this, expatriates originally from other planets tend to cluster in their own small pockets of land. In general, movement through the territories is tolerated - though rival groups may take (sometimes violent) offence at members passing through each other's turf. Tiny wars over territory are still relatively frequent.