The Three Stars
Geba is a brown-dwarf world with a radius of 88,971 km, orbited by three Child stars. The planet's immense scale means that different regions of the same continent can experience the stars entirely differently. Climate is determined not by continental position but by placement on a sphere so vast that orbital geometry creates extreme regional variation.
Izhara
White-blue, closest to Geba, fastest orbit. Drives the 32-hour day cycle. Its orbital plane cuts across the planet at an angle, creating a belt of intense illumination. Regions under its direct path receive sustained white-blue light and heat. Regions angled away from this plane receive glancing light or extended shadow. Inland Thazvaar sits within Izhara's belt; Ngorrhal does not.
Zhaerys
Orange-red, slow orbit, stabilizes seasons. Its orbital plane differs from Izhara's. Where the two paths overlap, regions experience compounded light—scorched zones of extreme heat. Where Zhaerys passes alone, warmth is more temperate. The 520-day year tracks Zhaerys's position: which regions receive doubled illumination, which receive single-source light, which fall into shadow. The year is marked by the Izhara–Zhaerys eclipse, when their different planes briefly align.
Saethern
Silver, fixed over the south pole. Saethera sits directly beneath it and never experiences darkness—constant silver illumination sustains the warmlight forests. As latitude increases northward, Saethern drops toward the horizon, then vanishes entirely. The far north of Kela, approaching the Uncharted, may never see Saethern at all. Its light is steady warmth rather than the searing intensity of Izhara.
There is no global day-night cycle. Illumination varies by region, determined by position relative to all three orbital paths. The imperial day is standardized by Izhara's position over the capital on Geba continent, but this is administrative convenience, not planetary reality.
Regional Light
The Desert East
Inland Thazvaar lies within Izhara's direct orbital path. White-blue light strikes at steep angles for extended periods of the 32-hour cycle. When Zhaerys aligns overhead during its slow orbit, the compounded illumination creates the most extreme surface temperatures on the inhabited planet. The desert is not a product of distance from water but of sustained stellar exposure across a landmass larger than ancient Earth's entire surface.
The Frozen West
Ngorrhal sits angled away from Izhara's primary path, receiving glancing light during the day cycle and extended periods of shadow. It is also far enough north that Saethern provides little warmth—the silver star hangs low on the southern horizon or disappears entirely depending on season and precise location. Ngorrhal exists in the gap between light sources. The Frost Sentinels adapted to this over millennia.
The Silver South
Saethera lies directly beneath Saethern's fixed position. The silver light never sets. Full darkness never arrives. Temperature holds constant between 10–25°C. Bioluminescent fungal forests and vast moss oceans dominate the lowlands, thriving in perpetual twilight. Light-reactive flora and aggressive fauna devour outposts and repel settlement. Only Scout-Class Engineered, accompanied by Assault-Class companions, form small self-sustaining communities here. A few imperial outposts cling to the northern coast. Saethera remains untamed.
The Temperate Center
Geba continent, the imperial heartland, occupies a position that receives moderate Izhara exposure and partial Saethern visibility depending on season. Neither frozen nor scorched, it became the administrative center of the empire in part because its climate permitted the largest stable population density. The 32-hour day and the calendar itself are measured from here.
The Uncharted
The far side of the planet. Larger than all other continents combined. What light conditions exist there—whether the orbital geometries create zones of total darkness, perpetual illumination, or something else entirely—remains unknown. All navigation systems fail when approaching. The few who have glimpsed its coastal edges and returned report temperature swings from -90°C to 120°C within hours. Imperial doctrine forbids entry.
The Day
The imperial day consists of 32 hours, measured by Izhara's position over the capital on Geba continent. This standardization allows administrative coordination across the empire, though local experience of light and darkness varies enormously by region. A citizen in Ngorrhal and a citizen in Inland Thazvaar may both record the same hour, but one stands in dim cold while the other endures searing brightness.
Hours are not formally subdivided for civilian use. Common speech references "early in the hour," "mid-hour," and "late hour." Military and scientific contexts employ precise measurements, but these systems are not standardized across institutions.
The Year
The Geban year consists of 520 days divided into 16 months. Odd-numbered months contain 33 days; even-numbered months contain 32 days. The year begins with the Izhara–Zhaerys eclipse, when the two stars' differing orbital planes briefly align as seen from the capital.
There are no weeks. Days are numbered within months.
1
33
33
2
32
65
3
33
98
4
32
130
5
33
163
6
32
195
7
33
228
8
32
260
9
33
293
10
32
325
11
33
358
12
32
390
13
33
423
14
32
455
15
33
488
16
32
520
Year Notation
Geban history is divided into three temporal categories relative to the establishment of the modern calendar.
BMG
Before Modern Geba. All recorded history prior to the Post Warlord Period. Years count backward: 1 BMG immediately precedes the PWP; 6000 BMG marks the approximate beginning of the Early Dominion under Vaer'karesh. Those who lived during this span measured time from Vaer'karesh's unification, but modern scholarship uses BMG for standardization.
PWP
Post Warlord Period. The seventeen years between the end of the Warlord Eras and the establishment of Modern Geba. No standardized dating exists for this interval. Records from the period use regional systems that did not survive reconstitution, if they are dated at all. Referred to simply as "during the PWP" without numbered years. The time when time stopped.
MG
Modern Geba. Year 0 forward. The current era, beginning with planetary reconstitution under the Shadow Rule. Years count forward indefinitely.
Date Format
Standard date notation places day first, then month, then year with era suffix.
Example: Before Modern Geba
Day 14, Month 8, 1847 BMG
Example: Modern Geba
Day 3, Month 12, 326 MG
Example: Post Warlord Period
During the PWP (no standardized date)