Metamorphosis Alpha to Omega: Part 17: Deck 1 - The Agrifrigate: City Domes One and Two, Garden Domes One and Two

The oddly named Agrifrigate came about its appellation as the result of a now long-forgotten ship architect who wanted to tweak the noses of the space navy. After grudgingly accepting the loss of a potential battleship hull to become Warden's Codicil, the reallocation of another warship hull to Warden's construction set off howls of protest. That ship's architect, when presenting the final plans, blandly noted that "Agrifrigate" was chosen as the term used for that outrigger portion of the Warden out of respect and honor for the warship it might have become. No one was buying it, but the damage was done.

The Agrifrigate is another outrigger attachment to the Warden, connected to the great ship with three massive struts. Largely intended as the platform upon which a series of domes would be placed, the Agrifigate also has its own set of sensors, controls, and propulsion systems. While it would never have the range or speed of Warden, the Agrifrigate was meant to detach from its mothership after arriving at the Xi Ursae Majoris system and ferry the domes to whatever destination the crew determined would benefit from them most. Now that the terraforming of Scion and Essence has been completed and suitable cities constructed before the order could be given to detach the Agrifrigate, the domes now remain as integral parts of Warden. In fact, they may contain the salvation for Warden and its crew.

Citydome One is an anomaly. It contains a thriving, human civilization. When Warden passed through the radiation that wreaked so much havoc, the medical technology in Citydome One had progressed enough that much of the worst or most radical effects were avoided. The medical staff of Warden had critical lapses in judgment, refusing the help of Citydome One as unnecessary. Before the med centers of Warden realized that the crucial advances of the Citydome were all that could mitigate the damage, the disaster overwhelmed them. Citydome One and Two locked all entrances into themselves, and waited and watched nervously over the long years as the Warden became a bizarre wilderness.

Brief incursions by hostile mutants into Citydome One a century after the initial disaster shocked the citizens. The decision was made to not simply lock all entrances, but to permaweld them shut and reinforce all bulkheads shared with Warden itself.  Centuries later, the population of the dome has become pessimistic and paranoid, believing they are last vestige of civilization not just on Warden, but in the galaxy. Locked within their databanks lay some potentially paradigm-shifting advances, from medical advances that seem miraculous, to theoretical models that, if applied to Warden's mighty thorium fusion drives, could allow the ship to breach the light barrier. The trouble is, the citydome-dwellers' technical know-how has eroded and their civilization has stagnated, rendering most of them incapable of making use of the advances left by their forbears. Still, there is some hope left. Acceptance of the few mutants among the population has begun to grow, helped by some very public and beneficial deeds performed by some of these mutated folk. These heroes attempt to instill some optimism into their fellow citydome-dwellers, confident that there is still a chance for life beyond the dome.

Citydome Two has fared even less well. Its population was hit hard by the radiation disaster. It had begun to recover when a massive meteor struck the dome, smashing a huge hole in it. Force fields kept the atmosphere contained, but the citizens of the dome had grown so fearful of the chaos that swept Warden that they refused entrance to the repair-bots sent to restore the dome. When a strong force of mutants invaded, the chief among them decided to cut power to the city, not comprehending the danger. The force fields blinked off and the atmosphere was vented into space; all within the dome died, both mutant army and citizens. Now it lays empty of both life and air. No resources were allocated to repair it, as nothing now lived there. But much of the resources of the city are still intact.

Garden Dome One is another haven of tropical and subtropical flora and fauna. There is a sense of calm here that is unusual for the Warden. The peaceful attercops, mutated garden spiders about the size of large dogs, have built a civilization of contemplative sages in this dome. Some few wander Warden's decks in search of truth, but most return here. Their flame-resistant webs are spun into intricate works of art meant as the foci of meditation. Many attercops are entranced by the stars outside their dome when the night cycle comes, and spend long hours mentally connecting the points of light with "memory strands" of "thought webs." This mental discipline has granted them the ability to shrug off any type of psychic intrusion or attack. While non-violence is their first tenet, they can and will defend themselves and innocents. This dome is one of the safer places anywhere on Warden, for those who come with no ill intentions.

Garden Dome Two was once an experimental environment, constructed to replicate the ecosystem of the American West and Southwest of approximately half-a-million to fifty thousand years ago. Revivified species, like cave lions, short-faced bears, mammoths, and woolly rhinos shared the plains and hills with horses and retrocamels. The radiation disaster did little damage to the reconstituted species, besides increasing the size of some of them, but many mutations occurred among the species which had been left without genetic alteration during the initial design of the dome. Centuries later, the dome is riotous with life. Among the apex predators are the cal-then, or Roach Lords. Almost three meters long and possessed of frightening intelligence, the legendary toughness of their ancestors is as increased as their size. Vicious and evil, cal-then will attack anything fearlessly if hungry. Only their tendency to fight among themselves keep them in check.

An intriguing organization also makes this dome their home. The Restorationists have made it their mission to gather all the information about and artifacts of the pre-radiation-disaster civilization of Warden. Decades of wandering the ship and recovering artifacts, recordings, and oral histories have given them a surprisingly accurate picture of what life was like for the original crew. Skilled with technology and possessing a reasonably accurate layout of the Warden, the Restorationists are the only beings short of the original crew who could expect to restore the ship to at least a semblance of what it was. Their base, housed in an old veterinary station, is filled with recovered tech items, and is, effectively, close to being a functioning control station for Warden. Only a small staff mans it, as most Restorationists are out and about on Warden's decks, seeking out more information and technology. While most Restorationists are unmutated humans, the organization is accepting of any sentient being who values the recovery of what was lost. Most of the mutants, particularly the animals and plants who have attained sentience, are more interested in building a new civilization than rebuilding the old one. Still, despite this difference in philosophy, all agree that restoring a stable society built upon learning from past mistakes is a noble goal, and recovering all the technology and knowledge that was lost or misplaced is a good way to go about that.