Tantalus Voidstation

Tantalus Station is a huge mining asteroid, once known as KJ-383na/201. It was colonised after the Aegean Hypercomplex was destroyed in the war. In the local year 4881 Survivors of the war cleared out the Orks that had been using the massive asteroid mine as a base and made it fit for Imperial life. In the present era, the year 5011, Tantalus forms the core of the Ithacan Star League. It’s currently home to just over 39 million citizens, an increase of 9million after a massive influx of refugees and immigrants due to the increased Ork threat and the loss of Niobe Station   The Interior of Tantalus was created by mining out areas and building into the caves left behind, this process is ongoing, so Tantalus has many construction/mining zones around the outer edges (inside). The gigantic station is divided into living spaces for the millions of citizens and the ‘working’ areas which include the massive space-docks that ring the equatorial region. Buried deep inside are vast smelters and machine shops that churn out everything a space-faring society needs to live. In recent years this expansion has abruptly halted as more and more material is diverted to the war effort. This has resulted in huge abandoned construction zones.   The core of Tantalus consists of several gigantic caverns that have been turned into extensive industrial farms. Tantalus produced more than 90% of all organics in this sector of the system, and without it millions of people would quickly starve. In the last few years these vast, complex, farms and bioplants have been increasingly put under stress. Shortages in raw materials, specifically rare minerals for more delicate systems has resulted in lower-than-average yields in some sectors.     The ‘residential citizens’ levels at Tantalus were once clean, open, airy spaces with green spaces and growing plants everywhere. Rather than having to build outwards, Tantalus expands by mining away the metal core of the gigantic asteroid that houses it, so there is plenty of room inside. Citizens of the Star League (those at Tantalus) could once expect a level of luxury not seen since before the war - this is deliberate, the Assembly Council wanted it’s citizens to remember what everyone is working for, they value quality of life very highly. Over the past five years the quality of life has been steadily dropping as material, personnel and funds are funnelled into the war effort.   Now, in 5011, every citizen of Tantalus is feeling the pinch. It started slowly, but has become more and more apparent in everyday life. Food, especially more exotic or luxurious items is in shorter supply and costs a great deal more. Even wealthy individuals are finding themselves eating more textured protein and nutrient soups usually consumed by the poor. Unemployment has been steadily rising as fewer people have been willing to risk crewing Privateer and scavenger ships into the Graveyard since the Navy withdrew patrols - this has resulted in overall less work in the warehouses, docks, repair shops, and more significantly the Mercantile district as a whole.     While technically the smallest overall section of Tantalus, the docks and merchant areas are the beating heart of Tantalus. Demeter Holding is a vast cavern that's entirely given over to catering to passing trade. It's a market hub, temporary accommodation, shopfront, warehouse district, catering centre, shipwrights, all rolled into one sprawling, chaotic mass of commerce and trade. Scavenging was once the #1 profession, with 60% of all non-military ships and ship crews devoted to salvaging the wrecks of the war - this was often immensely lucrative. 30% of all non-military space traffic was devoted to hauling, large or small, materials and goods between the various Star League outposts. The remaining 10% consisted mainly of passenger transports and various Privateer Contracts. This created a solid foundation for an economy, and Tantalus grew rapidly as a result of hosting all this trade in a safe environment.   These numbers have been slowly dropping since the destruction of Niobe Station and more people have joined the Ithacan Navy or taken up jobs inside the safety of Tantalus. Many see the end of the 5th month of 5011 as the biggest Turning point in Tantalus' history, the so-called "Truth March " being the start of this shakeup. Several days of civil unrest and riots that saw the toppling of the Assembly Council and declaration of Martial Law. The Mercantile district began to unravel as almost all Privateers were conscripted under the Barnstable Act into the Ithacan Navy as active reserves to provide an emergency screen against Ork probe raids. Now only around 5% of all civilian ships were exempt as 'essential civilian positions', all others were expected to fight. Predictably an undisclosed number of ships immediately left before port lockdowns could be established - the unofficial estimates state that as many as 40% of all civilian ships vanished from Tantalus port records.   As part of the Military coup that revealed the second Ork fleet to the people over the objections of the Assembly Council, several prominent figures in the Trade Guilds were shown to be highly corrupt, as well as key members of the Assembly Council. This created massive unrest in the economy and prices, already high due to the ongoing defence of Amphion Point, began to climb ever higher.    Within only a few weeks, the Mercantile district was functionally shut down. With no trade from scavengers and Privateers bringing in goods from the Graveyard and other outposts, and almost all material produced at Tantalus being diverted to the war effort, there was no need for the massive trade conglomerates. Black markets and smuggling exploded rapidly as people scrambled to get basic supplies and luxuries. Warehouses, shops and supply depots were being raided at a rate that stretched the Tantalus Custodians past their limits. Civilian private contractors took over guarding places where the legitimate Custodians couldn't, and this led to even more corruption and splintering.   Many of the missing privateer ships began docking at Tantalus using old, disused, or unfinished docking bays in some of the (many) unfinished areas of Tantalus. Without the resources to properly police these dangerous and out-of-the-way places the military government can do little to enforce the law.   Within a month Tantalus has (unofficially) become a warren of independent fiefdoms as wealthy individuals or groups began 'securing' their own assets. This came with an equal reduction in the resources of Tantalus' new military government to enforce local laws. Left with little real choice, the military government focused on keeping essential areas under their control and enforced this security with aggressive policies.     Much of the rest of Tantalus - on the surface at least - seems to be running as normal. Although the closer someone looks, they more they will find mass unemployment, vastly increased crime rates and fear burning in the heart of every citizen.   In the residential levels, once models of high-density community living, citizens are turning to local protection groups to ensure that they aren't the victims of crime. Some of the districts that were home to the poorer citizens have descended into outright gang territory, policed by local 'citizen custodians' who often fight amongst themselves as much as protect their residents.