Shondyke

Shondyke, later renamed Neunfarben after its ecological transformation, is the secret central world of the Gray Guards and later the seat of the Clone-Queens' matriarchal civilization. Hidden within the Fire Bowl -- a shell of intense cosmic energy that serves as a natural barrier and gateway to Space II -- Shondyke is one of the most strategically and politically significant planets in the Terran Star Empire. Its location was unknown to almost all outsiders for centuries, accessible only through the Botanical Transmitter System and later via Space Roads established by Space-Time Stroboscopes.

Over the course of the saga, Shondyke transforms from an austere military stronghold into a living, terraformed world under Clone-Queen stewardship -- a transformation that mirrors the broader shift from authoritarian control to organic, cooperative governance that defines the final arc of Die Terranauten.

Physical Description

Environment and Atmosphere

Shondyke is a harsh, desolate planet with a thin Nitrogen-Noble Gas Atmosphere incapable of supporting unprotected human life on its surface without technological assistance. The surface is barren and rocky, characterized by Mountain Formations and desolate valleys, with crystal formations actively destroying and reshaping the terrain. The planet's sky is dominated by the eerie radiance of the Fire Bowl -- the Gleißen der Feuerschale -- which bathes the surface in shifting, otherworldly light.

The Fire Bowl is not merely an astronomical curiosity but a phenomenon of cosmic significance: it is a gateway to Space II, the alternate dimension used for faster-than-light travel. The fire-shell surrounding Shondyke makes the planet extraordinarily difficult to locate and approach by conventional means. Any instability in the fire-shell -- such as that caused by the Super-Drivers' psionic attacks in booklet 036 -- threatens catastrophic consequences, potentially tearing open the boundary between normal space and Space II.

Key Structures

• Arda-City -- The vast underground city that serves as the primary habitation and command center of the Gray Guards. Named after Arda, the legendary founder of the Guards, it is the nerve center of all Gray Guard operations, housing barracks, training facilities, the Central Database, and the seat of the Cosmorality.

• Star Building (Sterngebaeude) -- A major administrative and military structure on Shondyke where the Gray Guard base is concentrated.

• Star Spike (Sternzacken) -- Another prominent architectural feature of the Gray Guard installation.

• Control Pin -- A gigantic, petrified tree structure in orbit around Shondyke, used to control the system of space lanes that connect Shondyke to the rest of the empire. Its destruction would sever Shondyke's connection to the broader interstellar network.

• Urbaum of Shondyke -- The primal tree of Shondyke, a living element of the Yggdrasil network. It is connected to the botanical transmitter system and plays a crucial role in the planet's linkage to the space road network.

• Non-Human City -- Ruins of a pre-human settlement on Shondyke, suggesting the planet had inhabitants long before the Gray Guards claimed it.

• Zentralen Datenbank Shondykes -- The central database of Shondyke, containing the accumulated knowledge and records of the Gray Guard civilization.

History

Discovery and Establishment

Shondyke was discovered by chance centuries before the saga's main events. The Gray Guards, founded by the legendary Arda, claimed the planet and transformed it into their secret central world -- hidden from the rest of humanity behind the natural barrier of the Fire Bowl. The planet was accessible only through the Botanical Transmitter System, a network of ancient alien artifacts (the Transmitter Trees or Space-Time Stroboscopes) that allowed instantaneous travel between distant worlds. This extreme isolation made Shondyke virtually impregnable and allowed the Gray Guard civilization to develop in complete secrecy.

The existence of the Non-Human City suggests that Shondyke was once home to a pre-human civilization, and the presence of the Urbaum indicates a deep connection to the Yggdrasil network that predates human settlement.

The Gray Guard Era

Under the Cosmorality -- the ruling council of the Gray Guards -- Shondyke served as the heart of a military empire-within-an-empire. The planet was the site of:

• Training of Gray Guard adepts -- Young recruits like Abashe doNhor underwent extreme-worlds training, including simulated combat against dangerous creatures such as Springbeetles in harsh environments (booklet 035).
• Cloning and conditioning programs -- The Gray Guards maintained extensive genetic engineering facilities where Clone-Queens were produced. These genetically flawless beings, characterized by enhanced logistical brain regions and distinctive gold eyes, formed the officer corps of the Guard hierarchy.
• The Gray Doctors -- Medical personnel stationed at the Shondyke base, responsible for the biological maintenance and conditioning of Guard personnel.
• The Shadows -- The elite intelligence service of the Gray Guards, operating from Shondyke under the direction of the Cosmorality. Shadows wore Multisensory Masks and carried out covert operations across the galaxy.

The planet was commanded by Chan de Nouille, the Great Gray (die Grosse Graue), who served as the supreme commander and effective owner of the entire Gray Guard apparatus. She directed operations from both Shondyke and her secondary base at Lunaport on Luna.

The Terranaut Infiltration (2501)

The first major disruption of Shondyke's isolation came when David terGorden decided to investigate the Gray Guard homeworld after learning of its significance during events on Tamerlan (booklet 034). David, along with Llewellyn 709, Queen Mandorla, and Scanner Cloud, traveled to Shondyke via Space Roads from the abandoned non-human city of Bortzynn on the planet Rubin (booklet 035).

They arrived in a desolate valley on Shondyke's surface, where they discovered the planet's location within the Fire Bowl and witnessed the ongoing destruction of the surface by crystal formations. Their arrival coincided with a far more dangerous incursion.

The Super-Driver Attack and the Clone-Queen Revolution (2501)

The events of booklets 035-036 (The Pirate Lodge and Flames Over Shondyke) represent the decisive turning point in Shondyke's history.

Three Super-Drivers -- Ares 17, Artemis 11, and Plutos 23 -- loyal to Max von Valdec, arrived on Shondyke aboard the hijacked Gray Guard ship STEELFIST. Enhanced on the hell-planet Sarym, these Super-Drivers possessed artificially amplified psionic powers and had been sent to sow chaos and weaken the Gray Guards from within.

The Super-Drivers launched devastating psionic attacks on Arda-City, causing widespread destruction, panic, and the mental takeover of individual Gray Guards. Plutos 23 suffered a psionic breakdown due to the anti-PSI fields on Shondyke, while Ares 17 manipulated Artemis 11 into a suicidal mission that led to her death. Ares 17 then attempted to reach the Control Pin to sever Shondyke's connection to the empire.

Simultaneously, two golden-eyed Clone-Queens -- Ci Anur and Mi Lai -- revealed their own long-hidden agenda. These Clone-Queens had been secretly planning to separate Shondyke from the Council of Corporations and establish a matriarchal society free from the old power structures. The chaos of the Super-Driver attack provided the opportunity they needed.

In the aftermath, Chan de Nouille was removed from power, and the Clone-Queens, led by Ci Anur, seized control of Shondyke, establishing their matriarchal society. David and Llewellyn departed, leaving Scanner Cloud and his newly discovered daughter Abashe doNhor behind to help the Clone-Queens adapt to their new order.

Terraforming and the Neunfarben Era (2501-2504)

Under Clone-Queen rule, Shondyke underwent a dramatic transformation. The planet was renamed Neunfarben ("Nine Colors"), reflecting the ecological renaissance that the Clone-Queens and their allies -- particularly Scanner Cloud, the Green Partners, and the Lenkers of the Old Forest -- brought about.

Key developments during this period included:

• Terraforming -- The Clone-Queens, with the aid of the Green Partners (flora-symbiotic organisms that merge with human hosts, granting psionic abilities and a connection to the plant world), began transforming Shondyke from a barren world into a living, ecologically diverse planet. A new Eco-System was established.
• Bioregulators -- Enormous flying lizards were bred on Shondyke/Neunfarben. These creatures played a role in the ecological transformation and were later deployed during the liberation of Earth in booklet 099, where they helped prepare the planet for its own ecological rebirth.
• Space road maintenance -- Scanner Cloud, Morgenstern, and others used Shondyke as a base for maintaining and repairing the space-time stroboscope network, including the vital node at Urdbrunnen (booklet 078).
• Cosmic Spores -- The spores and Bioregulators prepared on Shondyke were part of David terGorden's grand plan to ecologically transform Earth, neutralize the Kaiser Guards, and end the tyranny of Max von Valdec (booklet 099).

The Breakthrough to Shondyke (September 2503)

By booklet 078 (Breakthrough to Shondyke), the planet had become a center of the new order. David terGorden, now Lord Colonel of the Council, proposed a breakthrough to Shondyke/Neunfarben to negotiate with the Clone-Queens and regain their support against Chan de Nouille's planned military crackdown on Earth.

During this mission:

• A Vokus-Ry, a shape-shifting spy for the Varen Navtem, infiltrated Shondyke/Neunfarben to gather intelligence on humanity.
• Margit Aacht, a Shadow agent unknowingly carrying an antimatter bomb, accompanied David -- planted by Chan de Nouille as a contingency to destroy Shondyke if negotiations failed.
• Scanner Cloud exposed the bomb and defused the crisis. Margit Aacht was freed from her conditioning and joined the Clone-Queens.
• David sent a message to the Varen Navtem via the Vokus-Ry, promising to end the use of Kaiser Force technology.
• Morgenstern and Mi Lai found romance on Shondyke, symbolizing the deepening bonds between the Terranauts and the Clone-Queen civilization.

Later History

By the final arc of the saga, Shondyke/Neunfarben had become the headquarters of the Lenkers of the Old Forest and the new Guardians -- a center for the Space-Time Stroboscopes and Kaiser Force traps that formed the new interstellar infrastructure (booklet 089). Luther Straightwire and Scanner Cloud communicated from Shondyke, monitoring humanity's crises and coordinating responses to threats like Max von Valdec's restored dictatorship.

In the saga's climactic events (booklet 099), the Cosmic Spores and Bioregulators prepared on Shondyke were deployed to Earth, transforming the planet's ecology, neutralizing the Kaiser Guards, and ending Valdec's reign. Shondyke had evolved from a hidden fortress of oppression into the seedbed of humanity's ecological rebirth.

Political Structure

The Old Order: The Cosmorality

Under Gray Guard rule, Shondyke was governed by the Cosmorality (Cosmoralitaet), a ruling council of senior officers. The Cosmorality directed all military operations, training programs, intelligence services, and cloning activities. Individual Cosmorals held specialized portfolios:

• Chan de Nouille -- The Great Gray, supreme commander and ultimate authority
• Ansyn Crow -- Logistics expert, later responsible for reorganizing supply routes
• Gambelher -- Military strategist who advocated for armed intervention
• Calinnen -- Leader of the Shadows
• Oolga -- Political observer

The Cosmorality of Shondyke held its own authority independent of the broader Council of Corporations, reflecting the Gray Guards' unique status as a mercenary force owned by Chan de Nouille rather than a state military.

The New Order: The Clone-Queens

After the revolution of booklet 036, power passed to the Clone-Queens (Clon-Queens), led by Ci Anur and Mi Lai. The Clone-Queens established a matriarchal society with fundamentally different values from the old Guard hierarchy:

• Rejection of Kaiser Force -- The Clone-Queens opposed the destructive Kaiser Force technology and sought alternative means of interstellar travel through the Yggdrasil network and Space Roads.
• Ecological stewardship -- Rather than treating Shondyke as a mere military installation, the Clone-Queens embarked on an ambitious terraforming program, transforming the barren world into a living ecosystem.
• Alliance with the Terranauts -- Unlike the old Cosmorality, which viewed the Terranauts as enemies, the Clone-Queens cooperated closely with Scanner Cloud, Morgenstern, David terGorden, and other Terranauts.
• Autonomy from the Council -- The Clone-Queens sought to separate Shondyke from the Council of Corporations entirely, establishing true self-governance.

The Clone-Queens

The Clone-Queens are genetically engineered women -- cloned members of the Gray Guard officer caste -- who are characterized by their distinctive gold eyes, enhanced logistical brain regions, and resistance to telepathic attacks. They represent a specialized branch of the Gray Guard genetic program, bred for leadership, intelligence, and operational command.

Under the old system, Clone-Queens served as officers (holding the rank of "Queen") within the Gray Guard hierarchy, subordinate to the Cosmorality and ultimately to Chan de Nouille. However, a faction of Clone-Queens -- particularly those with gold eyes, like Ci Anur and Mi Lai -- secretly harbored ambitions for independence and self-determination. They desired a society organized around their own values rather than the militaristic imperatives of the Council.

After seizing power on Shondyke, the Clone-Queens proved to be capable and visionary rulers. They oversaw the planet's ecological transformation, maintained the space road network, bred Bioregulators, and cooperated with the Terranauts in the broader struggle against Max von Valdec and the Kaiser Force. Former enemies like Margit Aacht -- a Shadow agent sent to destroy Shondyke -- were freed from their conditioning and absorbed into the Clone-Queen community.

Notable Clone-Queens

Relationship with the Gray Guards

Shondyke's history is inseparable from the Gray Guards -- the genetically engineered, conditioned female military force that served as the enforcement arm of the Council of Corporations. The relationship evolved through distinct phases:

1. Foundation -- Shondyke was established as the Guards' hidden central world, the seat of the Cosmorality, and the site of all cloning, training, and conditioning programs.

1. Dependence -- The Gray Guards across the empire depended on Shondyke for leadership, genetic material, intelligence coordination, and access to the space road network.

1. Rupture -- The Clone-Queen revolution severed Shondyke from the old Guard hierarchy. Chan de Nouille lost control of the planet and spent the remainder of the saga attempting to reconnect with it (booklets 076, 078).

1. Transformation -- Under Clone-Queen rule, the military culture of Shondyke gave way to an ecological and cooperative society, though the planet retained its strategic importance as a nexus of the space road network and as a base for monitoring cosmic threats.

The loss of Shondyke forced the Gray Guards to establish secondary bases such as Shondyke II (formerly Perculion), a desert planet in the BF-1930-12 system that served as the largest military outpost of the Cosmorality near the League of Free Worlds (booklet 077).

Notable Inhabitants

Key Events on Shondyke

Satellite Bases

The strategic importance of Shondyke led the Gray Guards to establish secondary installations:

• Shondyke II (also known as Shondyke Zwo, formerly Perculion) -- A desert planet in the BF-1930-12 system, developed as the largest Gray Guard fleet base near the League of Free Worlds. It was commanded by Commander Nugade until her suicide, after which Melwine Knyvett took charge and attempted to establish a permanent colony (booklet 077).
• Borzeyke-Two -- A secret Guard world mentioned in booklet 035.
• Contradom -- Another Guard installation visited en route to Shondyke.

Themes and Significance

Shondyke's transformation from hidden military fortress to living, terraformed world encapsulates the central thematic arc of Die Terranauten. The planet's journey mirrors humanity's own:

• From secrecy to openness -- Shondyke begins as the most closely guarded secret in the empire and ends as a node in a cooperative interstellar network.
• From conditioning to freedom -- The Clone-Queens' revolution replaces the rigid conditioning of the Gray Guard system with self-determination and matriarchal governance.
• From sterility to life -- The ecological transformation from barren rock to living ecosystem reflects the saga's ultimate argument that bio-technology and organic cooperation must replace the destructive Kaiser Force paradigm.
• From isolation to connection -- Shondyke's role as nexus of the space road network makes it, paradoxically, one of the most connected places in the galaxy -- a hidden world that becomes a crossroads.

The planet's dual nature -- secret fortress and cosmic gateway, military stronghold and ecological paradise -- makes it one of the most richly layered locations in the entire Terranauten saga.

Appearances

1. 027 - The Transmitter Tree -- Mentioned as the mysterious destination of the Gray Guards' Transmitter Tree network
2. 034 - The Renegade -- David terGorden decides to investigate Shondyke
3. 035 - The Pirate Lodge -- First direct appearance; Terranaut infiltration; Super-Driver attack begins
4. 036 - Flames Over Shondyke -- Clone-Queen revolution; Chan de Nouille deposed
5. 066 - In the Light of the Murder Sun -- Scanner Cloud welcomes refugees from Lancia
6. 068 - The Programmed Assassin -- Morgenstern transported to Shondyke by Cosmic Spore
7. 076 - War of the Castes -- Chan de Nouille attempts to reach the lost central world
8. 078 - Breakthrough to Shondyke -- David negotiates with Clone-Queens; Margit Aacht crisis
9. 089 - The Emperor of Berlin -- Headquarters of Lenkers and new Guardians
10. 099 - The Eco-Shock -- Bioregulators and Cosmic Spores prepared on Shondyke deployed to Earth

See Also

• Gray Guards -- The military force that founded and ruled Shondyke
• Clone-Queens -- The matriarchal rulers of Shondyke after the revolution
• Fire Bowl -- The cosmic energy shell surrounding Shondyke
• Arda-City -- The underground city on Shondyke
• Control Pin -- The orbital structure controlling the space lane system
• Yggdrasil -- The primeval tree network connected to Shondyke
• Space II -- The alternate dimension accessible through the Fire Bowl
• Chan de Nouille -- The Great Gray who ruled Shondyke before the revolution
• Scanner Cloud -- The Psyter who became Shondyke's foremost resident after the revolution
• Shondyke II -- The secondary Gray Guard base established after the loss of Shondyke
• Neunfarben -- The name given to Shondyke after its ecological transformation
• Bioregulators -- Giant flying lizards bred on Shondyke