Estini and the Radnian Empire

 

Estini

The shipyard of Estini was an archaeological find of Radnian origin discovered in 2345 in Attel, in the starsystem of Namii, on the fifth planet. The shipyard was situated in the Estini subsurface starport adjacent the east bank of the Renan River, about 90 kilometers down-river (south) from the city of Estini. The entry portal to the starport was nearly six kilometers in diameter. Its position was three kilometers west of the remains of the sky-lift port of the ancient city of Inan.

Before its discovery in 2345, tales of the grandeur of the Estini starport persisted for centuries after its abandonment. Local historiographers had repeatedly mentioned the presence of the structure. The origin of the word Estini is Radnian and it has been used to indicate a place where capital ships were built to for the Radnian Navy.

The geographer Tusio Kastra mentioned the location, writing a description of a shipyard of Estini although he believed it was a Proto-naplian site. Kastra did not suggest any evidence to support his description and so, the story of an ancient shipyard was never investigated, leaving only a general idea of the size and value of the site. Most scholars claimed that the site was actually an ancient mining facility or was perhaps used for local transport of people and goods within the starsystem. Once the ruins were actually discovered, it was realized that due to the scale of the works and effort that had gone into building it, it was something more significant.

Discovery

Decades prior to the rediscovery, dam construction upstream raised the water level and submerged the site. The geographical coordinates of the ancient starport were revealed in the 24th century by the Attel Jesutto priest Alva, who saw it. He wrote, "One thousand meters beyond the river, there was once a starport, as demonstrated by some traces along the opening to the subterranean harbor." Some years later, the superintendent for provincial archaeological heritage visited the site but no investigation of the site was undertaken.

Shipyard Structure

The remains were situated inside an artificial shaft dug in the rock, about eight kilometers deep. It was a chasm nearly six kilometers in diameter, with a series of rectangular holes in three horizontal lines, for a total of 30 portals per wall. The function of these holes appeared to be commercial starship hangar bays. The holes were each 35 meters in width and 20 meters in height and appeared to be for smaller space-going vessels. Berths for larger vessels were farther below. Docks suitable for warships, such as Radnian Quin class cruisers or the even bigger Reme class were located in the lower regions of the starport. The reasons for a shipyard so close to the rim of the galactic disk were obvious, but the abundance of raw material offered by the Namii starsystem was probably a factor. The violent nature of the region was evident in the choice to build a subterranean starport. In fact, later historians asserted that the shipyard of Estini could be one of the fortified structures used in the age of the usurpers and the civil wars of the Radnians in the 4th century BC.

Warship

A series of finds in the surrounding surface area uncovered an urban settlement. In the year 2350, an ancient spa pool was unearthed, while two stones with inscriptions were found close to the shipyard in the years 2352 and 2373. Then, in 2422 deep excavations revealed the hulk of a Radnian class five Marauder. The discovery of an ancient capital warship was rare and the strategic importance of the find triggered the termination of all civilian archaeological operations. The site was occupied by Attel military officials and all communications about the site ceased.

  

The remains of the shipyard were abandoned during the cybernetic rebellion. Information about the derelict marauder is sparse but many historians believe that the hull of the derelict remains entombed on Namii-5 and over the centuries the location of the Namii starsystem was lost.

Next…  the Fight in Terra

Artwork by Dmitry Borodin

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