Generational ship

A generational ship is a spacefaring vessel designed to carry large populations across the galaxy over hundreds to thousands of years. Around the late 2300s in the Gregorian calendar of ancient Earth, humanity began constructing these ships to explore other star systems. Spacefold technology had not yet reached the technological levels seen in the Valerian Empire, so travel was much slower. Thus, these ships were limited to maximum speed of approximately five times the speed of light using a warp drive.

The Mogus, an extraterrestrial species from the Pinwheel Galaxy, also used generational ships to reach the Milky Way. It is thought that it took them millions of years to cross such as vast distance.

History

The ultimate goal of these ships was to establish humanity's presence throughout the universe and to preserve the species should something ever happen to Earth. It was known that the colonists would likely never be in contact with anyone else ever again, but this was an accepted risk. The crew of these ships was to escort passengers and cargo one-way to a designated planet deemed to be a habitable candidate for humanity. Upon arrival, the crew was also responsible for establishing the settlements so that the colony could spread and start a new life. The project had varying levels of success. Some ships reached their destination with no issues. Others were forced to adapt to less than ideal circumstances. And others never made it.

Centuries later, probes were sent out to rediscover and make contact again with as many generational ships as possible to see if they had reached their destination. These efforts eventually led to the founding of the Valerian Empire who sought to reunite humanity after having been scattered across the galaxy.

Known generational ships

• UES William Adams - Destination was the planet Yeddo. While the planet was in the habitable zone, it had not developed multicellular life. The crew set the groundwork for terraforming the planet into becoming an Earth-like world.
• UES Atlas - Destination was the planet Merin. Due to the planet being covered entirely in water, the UES Atlas could not land directly on the surface. The crew used boats and submarines to explore the planet and construct habitats.
• UES Ymir - Destination was the gas giant moon Frey. Despite the world having a nitrogen-oxygen atmosphere, the oxygen levels were too great for breathability so the inhabitants were forced to genetically engineer themselves to become the Sylph.
• UES Anubis - Destination was the planet Loupa. The ship was carrying embryos which unbeknownst to the crew was actually a stash of werewolf embryos created by Shinich Nekomata. After a malfunction with the interstellar deflector shields and the onboard AI going rogue, only the embryos themselves arrived.
• UES Elysium - The ship never reached its destination. A mathematical error sent it off course. The crew and passengers were put into a deep cryostasis where they entered a permanent virtual reality world.