Thalassa-Nine

At a glance

World Type: Oceanic core world for standards and certification
Primary Role: Sets and audits water, brine, and meter-seal standards for the Vellari constellation and partners
Constellation Link: Vellari route (Thalassa-Nine → Brinelight → Deepmere → Salt Crown)
Reputation: Precise, rules-driven, strict on documentation; fast for clean paperwork, slow when seals or meters fail checks
Key Institutions: Vellari Water Council (VWC), Hydrometric Standards Authority (HSA), Central Seal Laboratories, Blue Ledger Archive, Meter Guilds, Port Inspectorate
Primary Imports: High-grade alloys and ceramics (Talarq), relay compute (Synthborn hubs), legal forms and arbitration templates (Kedra), reagents (Salt Crown)
Primary Exports: Certified meter seals, calibration ampules, canonical purity tables, audited cargo stamps, compliance circulars, training and accreditation

Role in the galaxy

Thalassa-Nine defines how water and brine products are measured, sealed, moved, and sold. It issues the reference tables that ports use for purity bands, salinity grades, and contamination thresholds. It accredits the meters that sit on pipeline heads, cargo holds, and transfer hoses. It maintains the Blue Ledger Archive, which records batch identity, seal lineage, and chain-of-custody for bulk shipments. Courts and insurers across the core and mid cite Thalassa-Nine circulars during disputes. Carriers that pass its inspections gain better rates and faster clearances at other Vellari-aligned ports.

History and USD markers

USD 0003.1 — Vellari Water Council adopts sealed meter rules. Tamper-proof water seals become mandatory for interworld shipments.
USD 0023.2 — Vellari constellation formalized with Thalassa-Nine as standards anchor; Brinelight (reef composites), Deepmere (kelp fuel), and Salt Crown (brine chemicals) attach to its tables.
USD 0042–0045 — Syndicate toll experiments in nearby corridors trigger clampdowns on counterfeit seals; HSA introduces multi-factor seals (mechanical + chemical + time-hash).
USD 0082.7 — Meter-seal fraud wave tied to Salt Crown reagents; Thalassa-Nine issues recall notices and emergency re-inspection guidance.
USD 0101+ — Signal integrity protocols expand; Blue Ledger moves to mirrored relays to reduce tampering risk; random audit windows increase.

Government and law

Vellari Water Council (VWC): Sets policy, publishes standards, approves enforcement directives, and signs interworld accords.
Hydrometric Standards Authority (HSA): Designs test regimes, maintains reference fluids, accredits meter makers, and licenses seal shops.
Central Seal Laboratories: Perform destructive and non-destructive tests on seals, valve collars, and meter casings.
Blue Ledger Archive: Maintains shipment identity, seal chains, meter calibration history, and recall notices.
Port Inspectorate: Executes inspections at berths, validates seals, and flags cargo for bonded review.

Law style: Clear thresholds and fixed procedures. Each action requires a case ID, a calibration ID, and a time-stamped record. Sanctions escalate from fines to seizure to export bans.

Economy

Services dominate: certification, inspection, calibration, training, document storage, and standards publishing. Manufacturing focuses on meter cores, seal collars, hose couplers, tamper-evident tapes, and microfluidic test kits. Research labs produce new reference ampules and faster field tests. Price and throughput track convoy seasons, storm windows, and recall cycles. When a recall hits, seal shops, inspectors, and bonded storage book out quickly.

Ports and districts

Standards Ring: Council halls, HSA offices, exam centers, and the public circulars desk.
Central Seal Labs Complex: High-security clean rooms for seal design, stress rigs, and accelerated corrosion testing.
Meter Forge District: Accredited shops that build meter bodies and swap cores; strict lot tracking.
Blue Ledger Vault: Climate-controlled archive with mirrored relay uplinks; accepts trace samples and hash slips.
Inspectorate Docks: High-turn berths for tankers and container ships with integrated test gantries.
Bonded Aquifer Park: Secured storage for disputed cargo with continuous monitoring and automatic sampling.
Training Basin: Simulation bays for hose transfer, emergency isolation, spill drills, and field test practice.

Traffic and procedure (for visiting crews)

Pre-arrival: Send manifest, meter model numbers, last calibration dates, and planned transfer method (hose, pipeline, modular tanks).
Berth assignment: Expect a numbered berth with a test gantry. Hose standards and coupler specs must match the booking.
Initial checks: Seal collars scanned, tamper tapes inspected, meter cores queried, sample taps verified.
Sampling: Inspectors draw sealed samples into kits tied to the case ID. On-site tests compare against purity tables.
Disposition:
- Pass: Cargo cleared with a Blue Ledger stamp and export window.
- Minor deviation: Remedial treatment or re-blending under supervision.
- Major failure: Cargo to bonded storage; investigation and possible recall.
Departure audit: Meter cores re-hashed, seals re-capped, and transfer logs uploaded.

Common delays: Expired meter cores, missing calibration receipts, non-conforming hose liners, sample-tap faults.

Society and culture

The local culture values accurate records, clean workspaces, and predictable schedules. Apprenticeships are common. Crews and clerks publish test results openly inside their institutions. Personal status often follows accreditation level and audit scores. Public festivals mark new standards releases and successful recall completions. Food service and lodging cluster near the Standards Ring to support short, task-focused stays.

Languages: Vellari trade dialect first; Trade Common widely used; technical staff often read Keth navigation notes and Synthborn relay guidance.

Factions and power players

VWC Presidium: Final sign-off on standards and cross-world agreements.
HSA Directorate: Controls accreditation pipelines and test design.
Meter Guilds: Compete for contracts; lobby for or against new materials and core swap intervals.
Seal Shops Cooperative: Shares traceability tools and bulk reagent buys; expels members after audit failures.
Brinelight Composite Cartel: Pushes for hose liner specs that favor its reef composites.
Deepmere Fuel Syndic: Advocates for kelp-derived fuel bands with flexible additives tables.
Salt Crown Chemical Board: Negotiates brine reagent listings and contamination codes.
Neutral Escrow Houses: Hold payment until Ledger stamps post; enforce recall clauses.

Relations with other worlds

Kedra: Cites Thalassa-Nine circulars in tariff and liability rulings; requests expert witnesses for complex cases.
Slipwind (Keth): Syncs beacon advisories to reduce transfer during storms or high-risk windows.
Brinelight: Supplies liners, hose materials, and composite tanks that meet current specs.
Deepmere: Ships kelp fuels pre-banded for fast testing under Thalassa-Nine tables.
Salt Crown: Provides reagents and salts; subject to strict verification after past fraud waves.
Brightline (Synthborn): Mirrors the Blue Ledger and provides audit-proof compute for recall analysis.

Security and crime

Primary risks are meter fraud, seal counterfeiting, data tampering, and sample substitution. The Inspectorate runs surprise audits and cross-checks hash histories with Ledger mirrors. Penalties include cargo seizure and multi-year export bans. Physical piracy is rare here due to patrol density, but bribery attempts occur at the shop and warehouse level. The Council funds internal affairs teams and sting operations.

Technology and standards

Meter Cores: Swappable, signed modules with embedded time-hash; strict replacement intervals.
Seal Collars: Multi-layer devices with mechanical lock, chemical ink path, and hash-tag.
Reference Ampules: Canonical purity and salinity samples; used to verify field kits.
Sample Kits: Single-use, bar-coded, with custody seals.
Blue Ledger: Append-only record of batches, seals, cores, and custody. Mirrored to trusted relays.
Alert Bands: Green (clear), Amber (watch), Red (recall). Ports observe bands as binding guidance.

Notable locations

VWC Assembly Hall: Public release site for new standards and recall notices.
Core Integrity Tower: Houses stress rigs, corrosion tunnels, and pressure cycling bays.
Open Tables Gallery: Public reading room for current purity tables and circulars.
Recall Coordination Center: Links Inspectorate, Ledger, escrow, and ports during emergencies.
Harbor 7 Test Gantry: Demonstration berth used for training and vendor proofs.

Life on Thalassa-Nine

Housing is dense and water-efficient. Workdays follow inspection blocks and lab cycles. Schools teach measurement, documentation, and incident reporting. Many residents hold at least one accreditation. Visitors plan for short stays aligned with inspection or training windows. Public transit is reliable. Waste and spill rules are strict.

Risks and pressure points

Recall surges: Overload labs and bonded storage; slowdowns ripple across the constellation.
Reagent quality swings: Affect test repeatability until new lots are validated.
Relay outages: Delay Ledger writes and push ports to manual fallback procedures.
Syndicate pressure: Attempts to normalize off-book transfers around corridor toll points.