Human

Overview

Humans are the most common people in the Drift. They live on Core, Mid and Rim worlds and do every kind of work. They run the Central Authority, most banks and most syndicates. They also run a lot of the Free Companies, the hired crews who take whatever job pays this week.

Human life is split by money and by region. A Core family lives in a tiny apartment in a tall tower and pays rent forever. A Rim family lives in a dome, a bunker or an old ship hull and guards its own street. Few Humans get by alone. They join crews, unions and neighborhood groups. Most of them owe somebody money.

History and Worlds

The Human constellation has four main worlds.

• Kedra is the old Human capital in the Core. The Central Authority was founded there in the year 0, and its main offices, courts and old universities are still there. Everyone comes to Kedra sooner or later to renew an ID, and everyone waits in line.

• Armistice is the Core's big farm world. It grows much of the food eaten in the Core and stores it in huge warehouses. Warehouse gangs got their start there.

• Brackenfeld is a Mid farm world of grain, oil and cold storage. Its harvests draw migrant workers from all over, and many Human work crews form there.

• Red Harbor is the money world. Banks, insurers and loan sharks all have offices there, and its debt courts are fast and harsh. Many Human crews got their first ship on a Red Harbor loan.

From these worlds, Humans spread along the Jump Lanes and took the jobs in between. Today they are the clerks, cops, bankers, pilots and gangsters of the Drift.

Body

Humans come in every skin tone and build. Many have cheap cybernetics or small gene edits. Core clinics do clean work, such as better lungs for thin air, stronger bones, or eyes that see in low light. On the Rim, parts come from back-alley shops and break down often. A working cybernetic arm is a sign of money. A sparking one is a sign of a bad loan.

Culture and Daily Life

Food depends on where you live. Core people eat grain bowls, vat-grown protein and algae packs. Mid worlds are full of food stalls selling fried roots, noodle soup and grilled fungus. The Ladle noodle bars are a cheap chain found on most Human worlds. On the Rim, people eat what they can trade for. Sharing a meal means trust, and turning one down is an insult. On a long haul, the cook is the most important person on the ship.

Fun is cheap and loud. There are bars, gambling dens, fight rings, old jazz and blues records, and replays of last season's games. On the Rim, syndicates run most of it.

Human crews live by a few simple rules. Protect your own. Pay back what you owe. Do not turn down a shared meal. Keep your tools clean. Remember who owes you.

Debt runs Human life. People borrow against years of work, family ships or crew shares. Missed payments bring collectors, seized ships and sometimes forced labor. Few crews are debt-free. Most just pay the interest between jobs.

Politics and Law

Humans fill most seats in the Central Authority. It issues IDs and ship papers, runs customs and the courts, and commands the Authority police. Its patrols are too thin for the Rim, so it posts bounties and lets freelancers do the catching. Many officers take bribes. Honest ones exist, but they are overworked.

Local governments vary. Some worlds elect councils. Some are run by companies. On the Rim, bosses and old families rule. Every one of them adds its own fees on top of the Authority's.

Law changes with the region. In the Core, cases take years and bribes are risky. In the Mid, bribes and favors fill the gaps. On the Rim, the law is whoever has the biggest gun or the best lawyer, and a debt court can turn a missed payment into a lost ship in a day. The usual charges are smuggling, flying without papers, and stolen cargo.

How Others See Them

Humans have a name for being flexible, pushy and quick to form crews with anyone. They trade with everyone and fight with everyone. When two other species cannot agree, a Human broker usually ends up in the middle, taking a cut.

Humans also tend to expect everyone else to live by Human habits, and that annoys the other species. A good Human captain learns what the crew needs. A Vellari needs water. A Talarq needs a warm corner. A Caraphex needs pay on time. A Synthborn needs to be treated as a person.

Each region sees Humans differently. In the Core they are the ones who love forms and long lines. In the Mid they are the traders who know who to pay. On the Rim they are the risk-takers with fast credit and faster guns. All three are true.

Final Note

Humans hold the Drift together with ordinary work. They feed worlds, move ships, collect debts and file charges. Their culture is not grand. It is a set of small habits that keep cargo moving and families fed, and for many Humans their crew is the closest thing they have to a country.