FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Ultimate Furry Crossover: An Adult Choose Your Own Adventure

Background Information 5: Limbo

By Gideon Kalve Jarvis

Found right at the juncture of the Big Three of Selected Universe politics, Limbo is a strange region indeed. Though one of the smallest areas in the SU, Limbo is often considered one of the most strategically important due to its location. Power struggles between various factions regularly play out in this relatively tiny area (tiny in relative galactic terms, that is - in terms of actual overall size, it's actually quite large), and the region is also home to numerous planets containing precious materials, both mineral and organic, not found anywhere else.

As the crossroads of the SU, Limbo is inhabited by the most diverse array of races found anywhere, including species from just about every other world in the SU. Government in such a chaotic zone is, naturally, highly suspect at best, and is typically left to the oversight of local planetary governors and corporate liaisons. Corruption is quietly accepted as an unfortunate part of doing business in Limbo, and both piracy and banditry on the spacelanes and planetside is common, and the most common form of entertainment is bloodsport. A few planets are embroiled in their own internecine struggles, such as the ongoing battles between the worlds of Thundera and Plun-Darr, which keeps them from becoming too involved in overall galactic politics. These same planets, however, are usually more than willing to take advantage of any offers of military assistance to battle their enemies, especially Plun-Darr, whose Mutant inhabitants are known for being quite aggressive toward any race that lacks sufficient military might, but which have occasionally formed alliances with numerous races not liked by the rest of the SU, including the Space Pirates of Dark Space.

Perhaps of greatest importance to the management of Limbo are the various lawkeeping organizations in the region. These organizations and individuals are absolutely essential to maintaining the peace, and at least somewhat reducing the rampant corruption that is omnipresent. All police forces sent into the region are required to sacrifice a certain amount of connection to their originating government, and are at least theoretically neutral in terms of galactic politics.

The most important police forces in Limbo are the SilverHawks, cybernetically-enhanced humans mostly from the Sol Imperium (albeit with a few notable exceptions), and the Galactic Rangers, among whom the most famous is the man known as Marshal John Bravestarr. The SilverHawks are almost exclusively interested in patrolling the spaceways, while the Rangers specialize in dealing with situations that take place on individual planets.

Perhaps at least as important as the legitimate forces of the law in Limbo, however, are the bounty hunters. More than anywhere else, these paid manhunters are in almost constant demand, and can be found freely plying their services to anyone willing to meet their price. Even bounty hunters who are primarily active in other regions of space typically maintain a base in Limbo, due to its light legal restrictions on bounty hunting, and even lighter taxes, to encourage bounty hunters to maintain a presence in Limbo, and thus assist with local law enforcement simply by being available.

What makes Limbo so important, aside from its location, is the effects of its location. Positioned right at the juncture of the three major SU realms of space, Limbo is a magically-active region, and in a good portion of its space, it is actually possible to "breathe" space, just like in the Realm of Magic. Numerous minerals found in Limbo, most of which are found nowhere else in the SU, are also naturally infused with magic radiating outward from the Magical Realm. However, Limbo is also heavily prone to wild fluctuations of magic, which can produce galaxy-spanning storms, and regions where almost literally anything might happen as the magic runs wild. Visitors are strongly encouraged to be constantly on their guard.

Notable persons and organizations of Limbo:

Marshal John Bravestarr: One of the best Space Rangers ever to don the tinstar, Bravestarr is noted for having extensive magical abilities, which are so potent that they work outside of magic-heavy areas like Limbo or the Magical Realm (though, admittedly, not as well). He claims to receive his powers from a shamanistic connection to animal spirits. Bravestarr is assisted in his duties by his partner, a cyber-steed by the name of Thirty-thirty, who is also noted as a crack shot and immensely strong, albeit short of temper.

Captain Douglas Jay Falcon: A notable bounty hunter who keeps his residence in Limbo. Captain Falcon, however, is perhaps even more famous for taking part in Limbo's exclusive, expensive, and extremely dangerous racing circuits. Generally considered a standup sort of guy, Captain Falcon isn't noted for his subtlety, and so he tends to stay mostly in Limbo, where people aren't as bothered by the levels of violence he's been known to dish out in his pursuit of justice.

The Silverhawks: Headed by Commander Stargazer, the cyborg Silverhawks make their base in a hollowed-out asteroid on the Sol Imperium end of Limbo. While maintaining strong ties to the Sol Imperium, and primarily interested in enforcing laws as they pertain to Imperium ships and citizens, the Silverhawks are widely trusted due to their hard work in the region, and for their general impartiality and trustworthiness, and so are regularly given free rein to act against piracy in the starlanes.

The Mutants of Plun-Darr: Considered terrible villains by most other races, the Mutants (differentiated from persons with mutations by the capitalization of their race name) are known to be aggressive, militaristic, and profit-minded. What makes the Mutants most dangerous, however, is not their mental capabilities, as most of them seem to be fairly dim-witted, but their ability to breed with just about anything - the result of which is almost always another Mutant - and their phenomenal rate of maturation both during gestation and after birth. This trait of the Mutants has led them to be able to conquer and then absorb several other races, by simply breeding them out of existence, then absorbing their technological innovations and military capabilities. Presently the Mutants are engaged in an ongoing war against the feline-like humanoids of Thundera, aided by their allies, the Tiger Sharks, who have proven to be perhaps the most successful opponents the Mutants have ever encountered thus far, and who might even have a chance of winning against the rapidly-breeding Mutants.

Thunderans: The Thunderans are a race of feline-like humanoids that rule a small kingdom of several planets, with their seat of government on the world of Thundera itself. They are powerful warriors, and have a strong tradition of magic as well as technology, being among a handful of true natives of the Limbo region of the SU, and thus having been born to both heritages. Presently they are locked in mortal combat with the Mutants of Plun-Darr, and while they have the assistance of their icthian allies, the Tiger Sharks, they are nevertheless stuck in a stalemate with the Mutants, due mostly to the superior numbers of the Mutant hordes.

Limbo is the home for series that combine magic and technology freely, while having a strong indication of galactic dealings. For instance, He-Man, which has both magic and technology, would not be included in Limbo, because the adventures in that series are primarily limited to one or two worlds, while Bravestarr would be included in Limbo, despite being limited primarily to only a single world (i.e. New Texas), because it has both magic and technology, and also a strong implication of connection to a much wider universe via space travel, from which many of its characters originate.

Series found in Limbo include:

Bravestarr

F-Zero

Fighting games (the bloody ones, such as Mortal Kombat, Killer Instinct, and Soul Caliber)

Silverhawks

Thundercats

Tigersharks