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Neo-Atheistic Garden of Ascension

Hastily formed in an attempt to stand up to the rampaging Stellar Orthodoxy early during the Third Pan-Galactic Civil War, the Neo-Atheistic Garden of Ascension managed to stand toe-to-toe with the Stellar Orthodoxy for the better part of half a millenia.  Beginning as an alliance between targeted frontier systems the Stellar Orthodoxy had set out to conquer, the Neo-Atheistic Garden of Ascension quickly became a coalition of systems that was able to withstand the ferocity of the invading Stellar Orthodoxy.  

Scientific outposts and resource colonies along borders of the few unconquered frontiers of space caught wind of the Stellar Orthodoxy’s inevitable turning in their direction and made the collective decision to band together and turn their efforts into developing a way to stand against the SO’s mighty Crusade Armada.  The guerilla elements that sacrificed themselves at the outset of the invasion to delay and harass the SO first began calling themselves “The Atheists” out of spite and sheer rebellion to the SO.  Taking inspiration from that title, the resistance branded itself as the Neo-Atheistic Garden of Ascension, or NAGA.  

NAGA Fleet Command established its headquarters inside of a shattered planetoid located in a system made nearly inaccessible due to navigational hazards and interstellar anomalies that made it nearly impossible to reach without precise navigational guidance.  Named quite accurately for what it resembled, the Nest also became the home of tactical research and development for NAGA forces and was instrumental in the creation of the AI fleets that allowed NAGA to claw its first victory from the SO Crusader Armada.

Aforementioned exploration and research technologies were loaded into AI simulation constructs and given more development resources than ever before.  RnD projects that had previously taken years were condensed down to days and weeks with the technology afforded by Nest.  Starting out as simple personality matrices, AI quickly became actualized as digital entities and given personhood and commissions by NAGA Fleet Command, thereby creating the galaxy’s first combat units capable of operating without organic officers onboard.

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Stellar Orthodoxy

A religious organization seemingly descended from one of the oldest religions of humanity’s ancestral home, Earth.  Although it was eliminated by the end of the Third Pan-Galactic War, the Stellar Orthodoxy had been leading the reins of human expansion from their earliest ventures out into the stars.  Very few things could say that they hailed from the birthplace of man, making the Stellar Orthodoxy one of the oldest known institutions in the history of the human species.

Doctrine and dogma were adapted by the Orthodox Church to explain and rationalize interstellar travel to its practitioners, explaining away any incongruence between the Bible and its teachings with the world around it simply as the will of God.  Instead of casting aside outdated ideologies as humanity advanced along its technological evolution, ardent believers of the Orthodox Church explained away anything that conflicted with its teachings by simply reinterpreting the parts of its texts and scripture to whatever would be needed to give their faithful much needed peace of mind.  As the millenia passed, the teachings of the church became less and less about the religion and more about the institution and preserving the way of life its leadership had come to enjoy.

Sometime during the 21st century, the Orthodox Church of Earth managed to attain enough power to declare its independence and establish itself as a sovereign nation.  Usurping the resources of the nations they annexed into their theocracy, the Church turned its eyes to the stars and intergalactic colonization.  Soon finding their first converts, the organization quickly adopted the moniker of the Interstellar Orthodox Church and began directing all of their efforts to spreading their faith to the far reaches of space.  It only took a century or two before the clergy became a bureaucracy, and the Interstellar Orthodox Church simply came to be known as the Stellar Orthodoxy.

Dropping the premise of being a religion entirely just prior to the Third Pan-Galactic War, the Stellar Orthodoxy set out with the express intent of converting all living beings in the galaxy to their way of life, and dooming those who refused to destruction or servitude.  The xenophobia and intolerance of the Orthodox Church stayed on within the Orthodoxy’s institutional memory; nonbelievers were considered enemies of the Orthodoxy and targeted for conversion or containment.  

The might and power of the Stellar Orthodoxy were deemed immutable by the galaxy at large, and it wasn’t until news of the first Crusade Armada being destroyed by a fleet of NAGA’s Marauder siege-carriers.  The two mighty navies first met in combat over a nameless star system that held no value to either side other than the abundance of tungsten and other dense metals and minerals needed for manufacturing and maintaining heavy equipment such as starships and mechanized combat units.  Jericho Point, the name the battleground was immortalized under, became the new eternal home for the ship carcasses left behind by both sides; neither fleet wishing to disturb the peace now known to those who had taken their final breaths in the bloody exchange between the two forces.

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Autonomy Accords

Signed as a unifying treaty, the Autonomy Accords marked the end of the Third Pan-Galactic War, ushering in a new era and relegating the Universal Schism to the history books.  Signifying an end to tyranny and oppression being forced upon the peoples of the universe, the Autonomy Accords gave the individual system governments the autonomy and agency to govern themselves and administer to themselves as they saw best for their constituents.

The celestial anomaly where the SO and NAGA delegations met to sign the Accords became the site chosen by the ASP to construct the Convocate Promenade, the seat of the ASP’s intergalactic authority and central command of all Preservatorium forces assigned to any of the three branches.  Representatives from every signatory come together to resolve differences and work together to provide countless opportunities for growth within their respective systems.

Adherence to the Accords grants signatories the membership and privileges of the ASP, guaranteeing a cooperative peace between all member states currently participating in the ASP.  In addition to providing security forces for its member states, the ASP assists with infrastructure expansion and growth projects, making membership one of the fastest routes to a flourishing and robust economy within their systems.  With advancements in technology and science being openly shared throughout the ASP, membership has been viewed  by many as the pinnacle of organic cooperation and prosperity.

Being a signatory of the Autonomy Accords is not a prerequisite for trade and cooperation with members of the ASP, and does not make one an immediate enemy of the APS; it simply means that they are denied access to the ASP’s many benefits and privileges.  Freedom of choice for all organics and synthetic life forms is the guiding principle with which the ASP and its branches conduct themselves each and every day. 

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its a shame that so many of y'all dont know how to act because if you are a respectful transfeminist & don't treat trans women like we're sex objects, there are actually many trans women who would be willing (excited even) to let you roleplay treating them like a sex object. you just have to, y'know, treat us like people in actuality first.

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ASP Expeditionary Command

With the boundaries and territories of the areas of space that the ASP finds itself responsible for ever shifting, and cover the many parsecs within its confines, the ASP Expeditionary Command is a paramilitary branch that was stood up with the express purpose of patrol and enforcement.  Not every signatory system has the means or capabilities to offer a strong intra-system defense, so ASP Expeditionary Command often fills in the gaps.  Simply due to its size, ASP space is rife with outlaws of varying degree of criminality and volatility.  

Some wish only to live independent of any and all system governments and as such have staked claim to a planet here or station there, and largely wish to just be left alone and not cause trouble.  These types of outlaws typically wont go out of their way to draw the attention of ASP Expeditionary Command or local system security forces.  The same cannot be said of the more piratical groups that trouble some of the citizenry ASP Expeditionary Command is assigned with protecting.  Unlike the previously mentioned class of outlaws, the odds of these types of outlaws working together in anything more than a sort of warband or pirate tribe.  They frequently like to test the limits ASP Expeditionary Command is allowing them to reach, and in return quickly learn the strengths and capabilities ASP Expeditionary Command has at their disposal.

Every once in a while, a flashpoint pops up that demands a bit more of a response than the resources available to ASP Expeditionary Command.  Such situations result in the ASP forming and sending out a Tactical Patrol Force to inspect, assess, and ensure order is restored.  Tactical Patrol Force compositions and size are variable, and tailored by the ASP to match each situation’s specific needs.  From the moment the ASP determines a TPF will need to be sent out, Operations Branch and Expeditionary Command leadership decide which regional division is best suited and equipped for the task at hand.  Within 36 standard hours, a TPF will be on scene and ready to resolve whatever issue has necessitated their deployment.

When emergencies arise with the ASP that require order and enforcement, but not a firm military response, the ASP will put together and task a Sector Infrastructure Team with figuring out the best way the ASP can help the signatory system in need.  Planetary disasters, interstellar phenomena that cause a detrimental impact to planet life, uncontrollable disruptions to the space-lanes are just a few examples of reasons a signatory system might need aid of an ASP Sector Infrastructure Team.  Sector Infrastructure Teams deploy to help rebuild and return the troubled system back to where it was before hardship fell, and are in a slightly different, but largely similar way to the TPF; food, medical supplies and building materials instead of troops and weaponry.

While none of the units attached to ASP Expeditionary Command act in a way that could be seen as an overt act of aggression, Expeditionary Command units still possess deadly combat capabilities.  Battle and combat are not the main purpose for their existence, but their capabilities to mete out harm and destruction when threatened match that of ASP Operations Branch.  ASP Expeditionary Command units that have found themselves underestimated by their enemies often return to their central command with several more kill tallies to mark their record.

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ASP Operations Branch

Unlike its counterparts the Operations Branch makes up the larger majority of the ASP’s security forces, and while Admin Branch has its main offices outside of Convocate Promenade, Operations Headquarters is located right inside the very seat of intergalactic democracy.  Not just for the immediate security of signatory parliament members or the Convocate Promenade itself, but to better facilitate planning on issues requiring a military response from the Operations Branch Security Forces.  Generally preferring to rely on Expeditionary Command to address most hostilities, Operations Branch stands ready to deploy a much more forceful representation of the ASP’s military might when situations call.

More of than not, the ASP Operations Branch sees duty as an informal ceremonial guard for the Convocate Promenade.  Expeditionary Command and Tactical Patrol Forces really do possess more than adequate capabilities for addressing almost all issues that the ASP has seen to date.  In fact, with the exception of the Proselyte Uprising, Operations Branch has only ever deployed security forces on readiness exercises and annually each signatory system gets an Operations Branch fleet visit for several weeks for morale and welfare purposes.  This also affords any Operations Branch made of the visited system’s citizenry a chance to visit home if they so wish.

With the overwhelming lack of demand for the Operations Branch’s security forces, a great deal of the Operations Branch budget and manpower can be tasked to Horizon Division, the research and development wing responsible for the cutting-edge technology fielded by the ASP, which is in turn accessible to its signatory members.  Signatories are free to continue their own advancement and research projects, although most choose to pool their efforts with Horizon Division, allowing science to truly bring many peoples together in mutual cooperation.

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dating a gamer tgirl can be tough sometimes because i don’t know shit about pokemon but I always gotta pretend to be one of those fuckers during petplay.

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mech pilot that gets deployed to fight against the affini, having no clue what they're up against. before they know it, vines have wound around their main gun and bound it in place; and because their senses are linked to their mech, they can feel it as if the vines were touching their own flesh. at first they're just surprised by how little it hurts and how comfortable the texture of the vines is, but mostly too busy struggling to try and escape to really notice. things only change when they chamber a round with the intent to fire it, but before they can get it into place, another tendril slides inside of the barrel of the gun to block it from firing

the affini doing all of this is very confused when the mech suddenly collapses to its knees and its head tilts upwards, robotic fingers twitching and hull lights flashing erratically, but she's pleased to have seemingly succeeded in pacifying the cutie

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attempting to join the transfem mecha corps and during the interview they keep asking about my kinks and shit to figure out if i should be a pilot or a handler and eventually i admit i'm just here to fuck the mechs and am not really interested in being a 24/7 domme or sub and the interviewer simply nods and says the engineering bay is that way

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source

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ASP Administrative Branch

Standing out as the shining jewel of democratic bureaucracy, the ASP Administrative Branch is truly a marvel.  Staffed by volunteer members hailing from each signatory, ASP Admin are the cogs and gears that help drive the interstellar prosperity and cooperation that followed the reconstruction years after the Third Pan-Galactic War.  ASP Admin staffers make up the many offices and ancillary support facilities in orbit around the Convocate Promenade.

The ASP Administrative Branch could easily be described as the more governmental of the three branches of the ASP.  Although the ASP doesn’t exist to act as a law making body, the distinction between them and the Convocate Promenade is often lost on the citizenry they serve.  While they certainly assist in the drafting and execution of those laws and regulations, there is little involvement by the Admin branch past that point.  Admin legal regularly has to cross reference the laws and regulations of all signatory systems to ensure that as few conflicts of interest or legal contradictions occur, marking members of Admin Legal for recruiters and headhunters of some of the most prestigious legal firms in the galaxy.

ASP Admin is also charged with the upkeep and maintenance of the Atheneum; the central database and knowledge center of the ASP.  As scientific and technological developments and breakthroughs occur throughout signatory systems of the ASP, the knowledge and data associated with them is transmitted and warehoused in the Atheneum.  Signatory systems have open access to this information; more than a few signatory systems have found themselves literally light years ahead of their current tech evolution in a matter of a few cycles thanks to the knowledge access at the Atheneum.

Although ASP admin staffers get assigned to work with other departments and are given other tasks during their time of service to the ASP, the fact is that the overwhelming majority of their work lies with either Admin Legal, or the Atheneum.  Also regularly forgotten about to most the citizenry, ASP Admin also ensures the smooth and seamless distribution of ASP financial assistance and stimulus programs, assisting with providing at-risk populations of signatory systems access to resources and aids that might benefit them, and works to ensure that any prospective new signatory systems have open and free access to begin the acclimation process to becoming a signatory to the Autonomy Accords.

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getting my girlfriend a tag for her collar with my discord handle on the back was truly a great decision, I love getting messages from random cool transgenders she meets going "found your pet"

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Astral Security Preservatorium

Acting as a regulatory organization, the mission of the ASP is to ensure that the Autonomy Accords remain adhered to by all current and prospective signatories.  They possess a highly specialized and equipped security force, which has a robust defensive component to safeguard the Convocate Promenade - the center of the ASP’s Operational and Administrative Branches.  They’re also responsible for the ASP Expeditionary Command; a roving paramilitary branch that patrols the territories the ASP is responsible for as both security and police forces.

Both Branches and the ASP Expeditionary Command frequently work together in the execution of the ASP’s mission.  Operational Branch units and Expeditionary Command units would frequently deploy on combat cruises as Tactical Patrol Forces, while Expeditionary Command and Admin Branch units would commonly be seen on missions as Sector Infrastructure Teams.  In extremely rare instances, all three would be combined to form a Preservatorium Intercession Flotilla to respond to any emergency or crisis that might befall the ASP’s member systems.

Instead of functioning as a dictatorship or tyrannical ruling force, the ASP instead opts for a more parliamentary system.  Signatory membership requires full commitment and contribution participation in exchange for guaranteed protection, commerce, and enrichment for themselves.  Participation agreement is entirely voluntary and can be rescinded at any time of the Signatory’s choosing.  Once the ASP and the Signatory have negotiated time for dissolvement, the Signatory and the ASP cut ties, with no negative repercussions or penalty to the former Signatory other than losing their protections and privileges under the Autonomy Accords.

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Third Pan-Galactic Civil War; Universal Schism

A galaxy fracturing conflict that lasted 680 years between the Stellar Orthodoxy and the Neo-Atheist Garden of Ascension that resulted in the dissolution of both governing bodies and the formation of the Astral Security Preservatorium.  Functioning as a regulatory council, the ASP is in place to safeguard the Autonomy Accords; an agreement that guarantees the rights of its signatories to operate as independent governments, or to come together and form collective alliances, coalitions, and even in some cases, republics.

The Stellar Orthodoxy had ruled the stars for several millennia, bringing the doctrines and dogma of the ancient human Church to the vast reaches of space.  Preaching and prejudice followed the church from the gravity well of Earth to the vast expanses of the unknown.  Every system they touched fell to their control; military might combined with self-righteous zealotry gave them what seemed to be a supernatural advantage over those they converted.

Rising from the cracks and rubble of many conquered systems and civilizations, the Neo-Atheist Garden of Ascension, or NAGA, proved to be the only intergalactic power that could give them any opposition.  They didn’t possess even a fraction of the infrastructure that made up the war machine of the Stellar Orthodoxy.  NAGA made up for their lack of raw military power with some of the most advanced technology space had ever seen.

Frontier systems, having used virtual reality for centuries to develop cutting edge technology without endangering organic life, were easily able to adapt that development into creating virtual consciousness and artificial intelligence.  AI was their force multiplier; even the earliest and most primitive versions allowed for a reduction in nearly 70% of all organic staff requirements in settings where an AI could be of use.  Thanks to these early AI, NAGA Fleet Command was able to design, develop, and manufacture the Marauder-class siege carriers they used to dethrone the SO’s Crusade Armada.

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Noble scion of a royal house, honored with a mech befitting her title and name. Bought by the population of three satellites, living, fighting and dying on her land. In her name.

Given the honor of being appointed squadron leader of her own platoon straight out of officer’s school, a trim and fit crew of 6 dolls. Outfitted in the same crisp uniform, with candy-colored hair and eyelashes, flawless skin.

Outfitted in plain-but sturdy lightweight frames. Equipped with rifles and high frequency blades. Modular, so if a part breaks it can quickly be replaced. The pilots, dolls, are modular too. Ready to be replaced.

As they glide over ice wastes and thermal vents, albedo burns and blisters her skin, leaving petty pock-mark scars and post-teenage acne in their wake. Her dolls are free of it. She hates them for it.

She’s sorely disappointed on her first sortie, launching into the battlefield from orbit, lance in hand, gallantly bearing her family’s crest and colors. Her dolls land shortly after, and set to work slaughtering Liberationists indiscriminately. By the time she can level her weapon at a combatant, something else swoops in to tear it to pieces. She should be happy. She’s not.

Denied even the pleasure of beating servants into submission, her crew already completely servile. Obsequient, really. Nothing like serfs or conscripts or convicts, who beg and plead and threaten under a polished bootheel. She beats them anyways. It doesn’t help her satisfaction. They thank her for the privilege. She should be happy.

She’s proud when they start calling her “the Witch”, takes it as a mark of pride that these useless automata are finally learning their place, until another officer tells her it’s a term of endearment for dolls. Then she hears it everytime, like nails on a chalkboard. “my witch”. “my witch”. “my witch”. mine.

She’s quickly promoted. She should be happy. She isn’t. They offer to appoint more soldiers to her squadron. She should take it. She doesn’t.

She orders her dolls to stand down, uses the officer’s passphrase to force them into immobility.

They watch as she rushes into her first proper sortie, still green-at-heart. She doesn’t bother dodging long-range fire. She doesn’t bother using her Lance’s reinforced point. She doesn’t bother skewering the cockpit, sinking herself into something warm and hot and squidgy to the hilt. She doesn’t bother ending it quickly. She batters and wallops and spits. Family colors scraped down to raw hull, family crest cratered by shells beyond all recognition. She should be happy.

When there’s one last survivor, and she’s finished prying off all its limbs, she opens the cockpit like an oyster, and extracts the wriggling rebel. She carries it back to her squadron like a prize. She gets to keep this one, another of her dolls.

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mechs

she emerges from the metal encasement, peeling away wires and detaching IVs, and she smells of gunsmoke and motoroil. she smiles, and there's blood and soot between her teeth, coolant and sweat on her brow. she cracks her knuckles, and it sounds more like the grinding of gears than popping of joints; her gaze glitters steel when the others flinch at the noise. machine grease streaks her hair, her face, her being. she tilts her head at a question, and though she is said to be disconnected from the mech, it seems to mirror the movement in unison as the mechanics run through the maintenance checks. later that night, after she's choked down the nutrient slurry and decontaminated in the showers, she slips from her bunk and walks silently back to the bay. neither her nor her mech speak as it opens the cavity for her to slip back inside, far more at home here than anywhere else. she doesn't reconnect her neurons, for even she is not reckless enough to sync her system again so soon after, tired and aching and raw following the fight, but still, she sleeps better here than among the breathing, dreaming sighs of her comrades. across the room, other pilots slip into their mechs in similar fashions, bodies scrubbed of grease and replenished in a way that soothes the minds of the higherups but leaves the pilots feeling empty and detached. they all feel detached anywhere but here, nowadays. all best friends, but the pilots find themselves closest speaking through the mechs, lodged safe in mechanical hearts. she drifts asleep without a moment longer, mechanical whirring and the rush of hydraulic pumps filling her ears, a sound more familiar than her own heartbeat. steel and seat leather lay under her head, and she curls into it. in the morning, her commanding officer will check the mech before her bunkroom, and they will rub the IV scars and wire ports on the inside of their own elbows with an empty sadness before waking her for the morning dosages. they, too, understand this urge, no matter how long their mech has been out of commission, broken down for parts years ago. it's the commander's own fault, anyway. no pilot was ever meant to outlive their mech.