Hyperspace Sub-Dimension

=Hyperspace Sub-Dimension Lore=
ORIGINAL DRAFT BY:
@Jestephos


=Hyperspace=

Among the many methods of transportation available throughout the modern galaxy; such as teleportation, warp fields and wormholes, one such method has remained the most reliable for travel outside of high-infrastructure areas; this being Hyperspace. Hyperspace is the usage of an alternate sub-dimension that exists concurrently along our own to significantly decrease travel time between destinations. It is accessed via a ship installed with a Hyper-drive, which upon being fueled with Erchius is capable of temporarily forming a portal known as a ‘tunnel' through which a ship can enter at acceleration near light-speed (approximately 266,815,288m/s, or 89% light-speed).


These engines are almost always programmed to create tunnels into the nearest stable Hyperlane, so as to keep the crew safe from the dangers of outer-Hyperspace. Hyperspace itself functions upon the principal of space dilation compared to what is coined "Realspace", 200m in Hyperspace would be around 200km in Realspace, allowing travel between star systems in a very short amount of time.


Hyperspace requires both a charging and discharging time when entering and leaving Hyperspace, leaving many ships very open for attack when they are doing either, and also requires usage of what is known as a "Hyperlane". The space between these Hyperlanes can be considered somewhat similar to our own dimension, with collections of star systems and very alien planet clusters. Very little of this is explored by any means, due to the extreme dangers of remaining in this sub-dimension for long periods of time outside of a Hyperlane because of the immense anomality of Hyperspace as a whole.


=Hyperlanes=

Hyperspace is an incredibly risky business for the unlearned, as it requires usage of calculations made on the fly to travel anywhere, as with even the slightest miscalculation could cause a ship to go rocketing into a sun, and so explorers and scientists have utilized what is believed to be an incredibly ancient network of "Hyperlanes", which act like copy-paste calculations for travel between set areas. Over the millennia, many species which have discovered hyperspace in the ancient past have gradually built upon the Hyperlane network to create a map across the galaxy. Hyperlanes act as safe travel routes between these set areas and are often used by military and civilian ships. New Hyperlanes are often seen as significant discoveries as in a war, they can turn the tide of battle.


Roughly 60% of the galaxy is mapped out in the Hyperlane network, with areas surrounding the edge of the galaxy, Avos space and the area where the Black Empire currently resides, as for one reason or another, Ancient species did not travel through these areas and it is in progress of being mapped. The Galactic core is largely unexplored due to the high density of stars creating an unnavigable mess of Hyperlanes. These lanes basically operate as highways of entanglement between Realspace and Hyperspace.


From the outside, these appear like massive pipes of glowing plasma-like energy running through areas of space, connecting in tree-like paths that branch out all around, nearly constantly collapsing and forming save for the few fully stable lanes which exist as the most traversed Hyperlanes between worlds. For some unknown reason, these lanes seem to connect the main homeworlds of the core species of the galaxy, whether this is coincidental or has some reason behind it is entirely unknown. Powerful storms surge around these collections often, making it dangerous to get too close to the edge of any Hyperlane whilst travelling within one.


=The Galaxy and Hyperspace=

Many species in the galaxy utilized or utilize Hyperspace, including the Humans and the Apex, who mapped out extensively the areas surrounding their homeworlds, and the Floran who have access to some of the most strategic Hyperlane access in the galaxy. Much of the natives of the area known as the Fringe are also quite rich off of becoming mappers for the largely non-existent Hyper-lane network in the Fringe. Many civilian travel ships utilize Hyperspace due to the ease and speed of travel, which is often a cause for concern as Hyperspace pirates do in-fact, exist.


hese pirates utilize Hyperlanes like hunting grounds, lying in wait within it for ships to pass by, which they will ambush due to the lack of radio in Hyperspace. For the daring, exploration of outer-Hyperspace is a possible venture than can result in either a very lucrative career with many stories to tell about your adventures, or a very painful demise. Both indigenous species and native materials within Hyperspace are sought after by manufacturers and researchers because of their unique properties compared to what can be found in Realspace; and because of the minimal exploration of outer-Hyperspace, especially that which is far from semi-stable Hyperlanes, this career path is one most craved by frontiersmen looking to make both a buck and a name for themselves.


=Other characteristics of Hyperspace=

Hyperspace as previously mentioned, is essentially cut off from the rest of the universe's radio signals, which allows ambushes and other nefarious deeds to occur within there. Ships that get their hyperdrives removed tend to spend the rest of their days floating through Hyperspace, or will get violently shunted out, possibly being destroyed by debris or pure speed. Hyperspace isn't uninhabited, with many exotic fauna living within, and more talked about among this, sentient species. Very few of these species have been cataloged scientifically, however, as the majority of them cannot subsist outside of Hyperspace due to their wildly differing biology not making it possible for them to live in Realspace, just as the majority of species in Realspace cannot subsist in Hyperspace without assistance of technology. However, for a very select few species, existence within both planes is possible.


These species are collectively referred to as "Interlopers". They often come about from evolution around areas where tunnels between the two dimensions naturally occur and can remain stable for longer periods of time than the few seconds provided by artificial tunnels. Materials from Hyperspace often exhibit anomalous properties somewhat similar to metamaterials, which can make them a very lucrative source of profit if they can be properly contained and brought back safely to Realspace. This form of profiteering is extremely dangerous, however, as most of these materials exude ludicrous amounts of dangerous radiation, cuils, or other dangerous properties that prove lethal or damaging to organic molecules with prolonged exposure.