Vorta Prime

Vorta Prime is the first planet to orbit Vorta, one of six planets in the habitable zone of the Vorta System, and home to Ennead, the Capital City of the Veran Alliance. Vorta Prime has one natural satellite, a moon called Kedo.

Vorta Prime is a terrestrial planet, with an atmosphere composed mainly of nitrogen (77.6%) and oxygen (21.8%). Vortan Astronomers believe Vorta Prime was formed roughly 6.43 billion years ago, shortly after a supermassive black hole pulled Veran from its gravitationally-locked twin galaxy, Mylon.

For more information on Mylon and the formation of the Veran Galaxy, see article The Great Separation.

Evolution of Life
Life began to evolve on Vorta Prime roughly 2.2 billion years ago, after a series of cataclysmic events rendered the planet's atmosphere breathable. It wasn't until approximately 1.2 billion years ago, however, that any form of intelligent life began to evolve. Over the course of 500 million years or so, several billion unique species were born on the planet; most of the original species which evolved long ago have since died off, either as a result of natural selection, or to one natural catastrophe or the other.

The Dawn of Intelligence
Vortanian Scientists hypothesized in V.P.Y. 346 (P.C.) that roughly 50,000 years ago, Vorta Prime might have been home to a race of super intelligent beings who discovered the Vortan System and inhabited the planet for a short time. This theory, called The Brule-Tyng Theory––named after Egur Brule and N'Viltri Tyng, the two scientists who formulated the original hypothesis––states that this super intelligent race was responsible for providing a pseudo-intelligent ancestral race of proto-Ortaii with either information or technology, or both, which allowed for a massive surge in intelligence. The theory is widely considered conjecture, and has not been officially adopted as a prevailing opinion among the scientific community, due to its speculative properties and the lack of supporting evidence.

Brule-Tyng As Conspiracy
Both Egur Brule and N'Viltri Tyng openly claim that either the now defunct Vortan Federation or the Order of Seekers has strong evidence to prove their theory, but that the evidence has been classified and is being kept a closely guarded secret. This public claim against the government from two oft-refuted scientists has, in recent years, jettisoned the theory into the realm of conspiracy. Still, many non-religious galactic citizens seem to accept the Brule-Tyng theory on the basis that there is no other logical explanation for the great leap in intelligence which had to have occurred sometime around V.P.Y. 50,000-40,000 (P.C.). However, it should be noted that the Brule-Tyng theory was largely extrapolated from then-recent archaeological evidence of a pre-Ortaii nomadic race present on Vorta Prime in the last 10,000 years. For more information, see references below.

Native Species
Vorta Prime is the native homeworld of both the Ortaii and the Thirans.

Ortaii
The Ortaii are a hominid race of bipedal, upright beings characterized by featureless, indistinct faces and slim, fragile bodies. Their skin is translucent and grey, exposing their muscular, skeletal, and vascular systems beneath a thin layer of flesh. Due to their fragile physiological state and lack of any natural exoskeleton, the Ortaii are recognizable throughout the galaxy by their red hooded robes, which every Ortaii wears at all times.

The Ortaii make up the governing class on Vorta Prime, and represent the largest incumbent species active within the Veran Alliance. Until roughly 140 Alliance Years ago, the Ortaii ruled over the Thirans, the only other intelligent species native to Vorta Prime. While the Ortaii are not a hostile race, their intelligence and natural affinity for diplomacy has made them adept politicians.

Thirans
Thirans are race of bipedal hominids native to Vorta Prime. Until recently, the species was enslaved by the Ortaii. It was only within the last century that the Thirans gained their freedom as a species. Little is known about the origins of the Thirans; however, they seem to have appeared in galactic history around 5000 BVC, and were enslaved by the Ortaii soon after. For more information, see article: Thiran.

Major Cities and Territories
Vorta Prime is divided into four major territories called dom (literal translation, "house of–"). These are Dom Phtur, Dom Thira, Dom Aggu, and Dom Athlu, in order of largest to smallest population per capita. Each dom is controlled by a house of elected Ortaii officials, with the notable exception of Dom Thira, the only Thiran-controlled territory on the planet, of which the species only recently gained control. For more information on Dom Thira and the Thiran rebellion, see article: Thiran Uprising.

Current Status
Vorta Prime is classified as an Alliance-controlled planet, acting as the original and current seat of the Veran Alliance and the base of operations for The Order of Seekers, the pseudo-militaristic extraterritorial hand acting in the interests of the Alliance.