When the Orlamu Foundation transitioned to a theocracy, its citizens set out to aggressively explore and develop territories among the stars. Their first claims involved the Ascension system in 2213. Today, Ascension remains the center of Orlamu power – with all significant religious, government, and scientific developments originating from its largest terrestrial world, Prophethome. As one of two class-1 planets in the system, Prophethome carries a high population density, which includes the nation‟s First Prophet. Ascension itself is a class G3 yellow star, with a very typical signature as main sequence stars go. From the very beginning, the initial colonization of 2213 hit Ascension like a tidal wave. Jeff Sendir‟s plentiful supporters were eager for a fresh start, far from the stifling population density of Earth and its superpowers. In only two short years, they established permanent settlements large enough that Sendir himself retired to Prophethome, moving the heart and soul of Orlamu government with him. The bureaucracy soon followed of its own accord, and Ascension soon gained recognition as the capitol system of the Orlamu Theocracy shortly thereafter. Once the First Galactic War erupted, the Orlamu joined a great many other nations in declaring their independence from the oppressive Terran Empire. Naturally, with Ascension‟s relative proximity to the heart of the Empire, the system became a target for Terran attacks. Fighting during those thirteen years proved fierce at first, but slowly ebbed as the rebellion gained progress and the powers of Earth fell back. By the time the Treaty of Earth ended the conflict in 2312, Ascension had become an unassailable fortress. In the following years, the necessity of war forced the Theocracy to harden its philosophical skin, even as its people continued to blossom and grow. Joyful in their newfound freedom, the citizens of Ascension fueled the progress of scientific and educational initiatives throughout the Orlamu territories, the likes of which have not been seen since. Many Orlamu look back on the Interbellum as a golden age of scientific discovery, unhindered by the ravages of war. Throughout the next 126 years of the Second Galactic War, enemy vessels never seriously threatened the Ascension system. Solar scout patrols entered the outer edges a few times, only to retreat at sub-light speed with sensor data. And, although the StarMech Collective pressed the Theocracy‟s border, and the Union of Sol railed time and again at the StarHeart Region, the Orlamu Stellar Navy always protected the capitol system. With the Treaty of Concord having ended the war almost thirty years ago, an entire generation of Orlamu has now come of age without the pall of war hanging over them, freed once again to pursue scientific exploration and the mysteries of the Divine Unconscious without distraction. As a result, the people of Ascension hope fervently for a return to the days of the Interbellum and look forward with optimism to even greater accomplishments.

As the closest planet to Ascension, the world of Ember suffers under a molten inferno of ever-moving volcanoes and choking sulfur. The thick atmosphere keeps greenhouse gases trapped inside and raises the atmospheric pressure to standards far above human tolerance. The Orlamu surrendered any ideas for terraforming Ember long ago, but have managed to maintain a highly automated and refrigerated mining facility buried beneath the surface. Personnel rotate through the site on a biweekly basis, extracting unique ores for refinement on Prophethome and Wakestream. These alloys often find their way into shipyards and stardrive construction.

The Orlamu nation began at Prophethome as the very first world colonized by the Orlamu people, mere years after the Foundation transformed into a theocracy. Now, over 12 billion sentients live and work on the six major continents of the Orlamu homeworld. As a class-1 paradise, Prophethome includes open plains and valleys, with 45% of the surface covered in water. Cities and industries have taken root across most of the land – all controlled from the capitol city of Prophecy located midway up the western coast of the largest continent. Prophethome also includes three moons, but only Glorybloom has received terraforming to allow for more pleasant living conditions. The city of Prophecy alone contains 800 million people, as well as the central structure dedicated to science, religion, and government – the Sendir Cathedral. Though it has expanded many times since its initial construction, the Cathedral has always remained true to the vision of the original architects, full of sweepingarchways and shimmering glass. The entire complex covers several square miles now, but the earliest building still sits at the center. From here, the First Prophet Galindus and his council rule Orlamu space. Reports and diplomats of all kinds pour into Sendir Cathedral on a daily basis, meeting with as much attention as the Prelates can spare them. All church councils have their main centers here, including each branch of the military, the Order of Secrets, scientific research, and education. The First Prophet traditionally holds the additional titles of both Planetary Intendent of Prophethome and System Intendent of Ascension. Naturally, Prophecy maintains a massive space port to handle incoming traffic, as well as a commercial sector, brimming with super-malls, holo-theatres, and imported goods from many different stellar nations. Embassies from these nations are spread throughout the city, with those of former FreeSpace Alliance members closest to the center.

By far the least habitable of Prophethome‟s moons, Ark has no atmosphere, and prospectors long ago stripped the crust of any useful mineral wealth. Today, it plays home to only a series of storehouses for people and businesses on Prophethome. With no native population other than a handful of workers, Ark has no Intendent government leadership.

Prophethome‟s second moon presents a frigid world of snow and ice, with an incompatible atmosphere for habitation. Trapped in a perpetual ice age, some life has adapted to the extreme conditions, eking out a meager existence. As a result, the Theocracy placed the moon under ecological quarantine except for xenologists who may visit for the purposes of study. For this reason, colonists passed over Glacier for Glorybloom as a terraforming project, although large amounts of water were taken from the former‟s surface for use elsewhere.

Once an inhospitable class-2 world, Glorybloom became the Orlamu Theocracy‟s very first terraforming project. Using the same basic techniques implemented on Mars and a healthy supply of ice from Glacier, Glorybloom slowly grew into the lush class-1 environment it enjoys today. Unfortunately, the population needs of the 26th century have covered much of the original work with urbanization. Regardless, the moon now provides homes to more than five billion people, nearly a fifth of the system‟s population. The Binjara Temple, one of the best mindwalker academies in the entire Theocracy, resides in the primary city of Deliaspool. The famous fraal priest, Lo‟kinrae Binjara, founded the temple shortly before the First Galactic War in 2290. A lifelong friend and confidant of Jeff Sendir, Lo‟kinrae was among the most fervent explorers of drivespace in the early days of the Church, founding the temple to ensure the Orlamu would never squander the mental gifts bestowed on them by the Divine Unconscious. Despite his funeral near the end of GW2, rumors persist that Binjara still lives in the catacombs beneath the temple grounds. Many students doubt such talk, however, as the fraal would have to be truly ancient even for one of his long-lived race. The master of Binjara Temple, Franklin Adamo (Hm/Orlamu/MW-12) dismisses the rumors brusquely in public, but has experienced odd dreams about Lo‟kinrae in recent years. Planetary Intendent Joras Tembronin (Hm/Orlamu/DTO-7) sees to the smooth operation of Glorybloom‟s economy. A quiet man, he proves exacting in his edicts and when managing his subordinates. Recently he has also become embittered with the Council of Science for turning down a research grant request for the Markshield University of Glorybloom, a well respected and growing center of science. He also sits on the Board of Deans there

The existence of Wakestream as a second naturally occurring class-1 planet, clinched the Theocracy‟s decision to make Ascension their capitol system those many years ago. Though clearly larger than Prophethome, Jeff Sendir felt that Wakestream‟s 37-hour days would prove less familiar and tolerable to natives of Earth. So he delegated Wakestream to a secondary role for colonization, a fact that some of its loyal citizens have never quite accepted over the years. This perceived slight, in fact, served as the driving force for Wakestream‟s highly competitive educational institutions. Many view the Retrarae School of Science as the most notable of these. It holds distinction as a highly praised research center, long ago surpassing other universities in Ascension by becoming the first to break the 40 light year starfall barrier. The other most notable institution on Wakestream is the Temple of Divine Awakening, a long-time rival of Glorybloom‟s Binjara Temple. Although founded by a human rather than a fraal, the priestly psionic school has proven extremely capable in scholarly competi-tions. The overall academic frenzy of Wakestream has even attracted members of the Borealin School of Unism-Deism, based around understanding a supreme being (similar to the Divine Unconscious) through understanding the natural laws of the universe. Several such Borealin students participate in a foreign-exchange program at the Retrarae School of Science. In all, nearly ten billion people live on Wakestream now, many of whom could care less for the academic competition thriving around them. Planetary Intendent Helena Laraine (Hf/Orlamu/DMW-8) keeps things running smoothly here, but strongly shares the competitive view of the capitol world. In fact, she graduated from the Temple of Divine Awakening and takes great pride in her alumni status. She would never, however, allow a collegiate rivalry to interfere with her feelings for the Church hierarchy or the Divine Unconscious.

The larger of Ascension‟s two gas-giants, Cumulus received its name for the thick roving clouds in its upper atmosphere. The Theocracy eventually chose Cumulus as a naval operations center due to its strategic orbital position within the system. Of its 37 moons, twelve are dedicated to the Orlamu Sacred Navy for repair, construction, communications, housing, command and tactical facilities. Commodore Michael Taranakis (Hm-/Orlamu/DTO-14) ensures the safety of the system. His flagship, the battleship OSS Ocam’s Razor, patrols Ascension along with a fleet of two carriers, and dozens of cruisers and smaller craft. Several of the gas giant‟s other moons house research facilities and old mining stations.

At one point a valuable source of minerals, the airless rock of Brink has officially laid abandoned now for well over a century. Only the remnants of ancient mining equipment and facilities mark its surface. The system‟s inhabitants largely ignore the planet now. The Galactic Concord is currently in negotiations to build a small military outpost on Brink.

The outermost gas-giant Stratus marks the de facto system border, while its brother, Cumulus, marks the practical border for most inhabitants. An ocean of neon and hydrogen gas endlessly swirls across the surface of Stratus, creating a sea of blues. Miners stripped the planet‟s twenty-one moons of precious ore long ago, and now only an Orlamist research monastery and sensor relays remain behind.