=The Vulcanoid Gate= 
**Posted by:** Angelique Sjoholm, terraformer <Info Msg Rep>
As one of only two gates within the inner system, and the only one of those not controlled by the [[Planetary Consortium]], the Vulcanoid Gate holds an interesting position in inner system and hypercorp politics. [[TerraGenesis]]’s willingness to work with almost any partners, regardless of political affiliation, provides access to a gate for those inner system entities outside or even hostile to Consortium interests. Despite the restrictions placed on gate ventures due to a recent attack on the facility, the Vulcanoid Gate remains the go-to place for those concerned about Consortium interference.
==History and Overview== 
The Vulcanoid Gate was discovered in the polar region of an asteroid known as [[V_2011-Caldwell|V-2011/Caldwell]]. Though originally discovered decades earlier (being in fact the ﬁrst conﬁrmed and cataloged Vulcanoid), Caldwell remained unvisited and untouched until after the Fall.
Exactly how TerraGenesis came to own the Vulcanoid Gate is a murky affair. The ofﬁcial story is that the gate discovery was sold to the ecosystem and terraforming cooperative by the team of Venusian prospectors who accidentally stumbled across it, and that these miners specifically chose TerraGenesis because they were worker-owned and not a part of the Planetary Consortium. Several sources have disputed this story, however, noting that the original discoverers have since disappeared and questioning why they did not choose a [[Morningstar Constellation|Morningstar]]-based corporation instead. TerraGenesis writes off these concerns as Consortium-influenced propaganda, claiming that the well-rewarded discoverers used the unlimited gate access they were given to go off on a gate-hopping jaunt.
TerraGenesis focused on exoplanet exploration for the ﬁrst few years, but it spent that period transforming Caldwell into a well-equipped spaceport and staging area. The cooperative’s focus has since switched to extrasolar terraforming operations and geoscience research missions, though not exclusively. A small bit of gatecrashing exploration is still encouraged, and a notable chunk of gate time is leased to TerraGen’s numerous partners.
==The Caldwell Incident== 
In AF 9, an unknown group managed to penetrate the Vulcanoid Gate facilities and initiate an attack. Though the perpetrators were never identified and no reliable party has claimed responsibility for the incident, what is known is that a cell of reaper morphs managed to penetrate deep inside the facilities, almost to the gate itself. More worrying was the fact that this cell was carrying a thermonuclear warhead, which they presumably planned to use to attempt to destroy the gate (and gate facility) itself.
Though no stranger to terrorism (TerraGen terraforming operations on Mars are a frequent target of preservationist saboteurs), TerraGenesis was nevertheless shocked by how close this attack came to succeeding and how thoroughly the perpetrators had managed to inﬁltrate the facility and bypass various security measures. A complete overhaul of the Caldwell infrastructure was overtaken and a host of new security regulations implemented. These new restrictions also extend to TerraGen’s numerous partners, putting much heavier burdens on participating in gate missions.
==TerraGenesis== 
The cooperative congress that manages TerraGen’s business takes a direct interest in Vulcanoid Gate affairs, which is no surprise as it remains one of the company’s key assets. As usual for TerraGen’s structure, however, local workplace councils are given authority over various aspects of the Caldwell infrastructure and operations. The council directly in charge of gate operations, for example, is completely separate and autonomous from the workplace council in charge of spaceport traffic or those in charge of the various geoscience labs. A separate Coordinating Group oversees communication and coordination between the various councils.
TerraGen’s approach to gate missions seems to be taking the long view. Given the small percentage of exoplanets that are actually suitable for (unassisted) transhuman life, thus limiting prime colonization options, TerraGen has instead decided to make their own habitable worlds. Having identified dozens of worlds that are ripe for terraforming, TerraGen has initiated projects to transform an untold number of them. Though most of these will take decades, if not centuries, to transform, each already bolsters a small colony to pave the way for civilization on these new homeworlds.
One advantage to working with mostly-uninhabitated exoplanets is that TerraGen can experiment freely, sometimes using geo-engineering methods deemed too dangerous or extreme to use elsewhere. This has drawn them some ﬂak from preservationist groups who condemn them for destroying whatever ecosystems those planets already have.
==Partners== 
Though TerraGen retains its own defense force for the facility, it also contracts with two separate mercenary hypercorps for ground- and space-based defense, respectively. Novaﬁre provides a small armada of patrol drones, ﬁghtercraft, and various space defense systems to complement TerraGen’s own, including a destroyer permanently stationed in Caldwell orbit. The Sol Brigades provide security checkpoints and heavy defenses for Caldwell’s numerous [[domes|domed]] facilities, though surveillance and defense of the gate dome itself are handled by TerraGen Security forces.
TerraGen leases gate time to a large range of partners, from hypercorps to private interests. The cooperative has significant ties with various Morningstar hypercorps and research interests that prefer the Vulcanoid Gate to dealing with the Consortium-controlled [[Martian Gate]]. The few extrasolar colonization efforts specifically initiated by the Morningstar Constellation are also handled though this gate. Several mining hypercorps have contracted with TerraGen for lucrative extrasolar resource extraction operations, providing heavy metals and rare elements that are easy to transfer to the inner system.
==Political Rivalries== 
The complex and intricate web of inner system politics means that TerraGenesis often ﬁnds itself caught between opposing interests. The Planetary Consortium has often voiced concern at the favored status TerraGen provides to Morningstar entities and has even gone so far as to encourage sanctions against these partners in exchange for favored status and contracts in Martian terraforming efforts. TerraGen has so far refused these deals, and so the Consortium has escalated the stakes and now openly discusses taking more direct sanctions against TerraGenesis itself. Likewise, the Consortium is uncomfortable with TerraGen’s links to some reclaimer groups, and has gone so far as to implicate TerraGen in some of the memetic attacks they have launched against reclaimer interests.
On the same front, TerraGen has an ongoing rivalry with the Consortium’s own [[Pathfinder|Pathﬁnder]]. Though TerraGen has never made any public accusations, there have been several notable incidents of sabotage that others have deemed most likely to have originated from Pathﬁnder itself.
TerraGenesis has also needed to balance between the opposed interests of some of their smaller partners. In one infamous incident, hostilities erupted on Caldwell between two hypercorps who were disputing a mining claim on an extrasolar planet. Though one hypercorp was accessing that particular exoplanet through the Martian Gate, it happened to also be engaged in another operation via the Vulcanoid Gate. When the conﬂict came to blows on the exoplanet, one team returned through the Vulcanoid Gate to encounter another team from the rival corp in the staging facilities, and so blood was spilled. Both corps have since been banned from Caldwell. TerraGen has permanently banned several others from access to the Vulcanoid Gate, notably their rival [[Ecologene]].
==Caldwell Facilities== 
With a length of 4 kilometers and a diameter of only half a kilometer, Caldwell is not a large place. The Vulcanoid Gate complex consists of six large pressurized domes on the surface of Caldwell and a subterranean network connecting them together. Four of these domes are clustered together at one end of the asteroid, which has an elongated, spindle-like shape. These are dedicated to scientific research labs, spaceport facilities, supply chain logistics, and residential quarters/entertainment areas respectively. Four kilometers away, at the asteroid’s other pole, lie the other two domes. The larger of these is the staging area for gate operations, while the other houses the gate itself.
While security is tight throughout the complex, it gets increasingly more strict as you approach the gate dome. The surface, underground tunnels, and air space within three kilometers of the gate are heavily restricted, with an automatic shoot order engaged on all intruders. A close watch is also kept on all spacecraft within several hundred thousand kilometers.
==Vulcanoid Gate Operations== 
The gate control operators on Caldwell follow the standard protocols used by most other gate controllers within the solar system. The bulk of gate missions here—possibly half or more—are dedicated to periodic link-ups and supply runs to various worlds on which TerraGen is engaged in terraforming or running research stations or other scientific projects. Most of the rest of the gate operation time is assigned for missions initiated by various groups who have leased gate time. Less than 10% of Vulcanoid Gate operations are currently assigned to exploration ops, though TerraGen does maintain a small dedicated program to search out new worlds.
==Gatecrasher Incentives== 
TerraGenesis offers several incentives to gatecrashers who sign up for freelance exploration ops with the cooperative. First, they offer full medical care for any gatecrashers injured on a mission they sponsor. Second, they offer bonuses to crashers that sign up for multiple missions, raising the standard ﬁnder’s fees to about 10% higher than those offered by Pathﬁnder and Gatekeeper, presuming the crasher commits to three missions within a year.

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