See Asborg.
Asborg is on the "...far fringe of human settlement." (p. 58)
- although, in this timeline, hyperjumps eliminate distance. Interstellar jumps are instantaneous, as in World Without Stars.
The planet has been settled for two hundred years and Davy, Head of House Windholm, has been on the World Council for nearly that long.
Houses, run by the ruling families of Asborg, also include client families bound by oaths of fealty. Gerward Valen, a resident foreigner not owing any fealty, is a mate on an ore freighter of the Comet line owned by House Eastland whose Head, Arnus Eastland, is a religious fanatic according to Lissa Davysdaughter Windholm who also describes another House, Seafell, as "...reckless commercialists..." (p. 60)
As ever, societies are more complicated than they appear on the surface.
1 comment:
Kaor, Paul!
Exactly, as we see here, with members of different Houses criticizing each other!
One thing which should be kept in mind is that if means of indefinitely extending human life spans was ever worked out, that would tend to strengthen social and political "conservatism." That is, there would be slower changes in political leaderships if office holders could hold longer than they are likely to do now, in our time. Which means it was fortunate FTL exists in FLAG, to serve as an outlet for the more restless and ambitious.
Sean
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