Author's Note: This Reader's Guide has been prepared to support the stories posted in the D-Hopping Universe. If you encounter terminology that you do not understand or have a background question not addressed by a D-Hopping Universe story, refer to this tutorial to answer any questions regarding D-Hopping and the Multiverse. If the tutorial and story do not answer your question, please send the question to me so I can answer it and update the tutorial/story.
Table of Contents
1 Introduction
2 Usage of 'Multiverse'
2.1 The Multiverse
2.2 The Known Multiverse
2.3 The Multiverse Government
3 Dimension Hopping (D-Hopping)
3.1 The D-Hop Ability
3.2 The History of D-Hopping
3.3 The Fourth Dimension
3.3.1 Fourth Dimension Irregularities
3.3.2 Navigating through the Multiverse
3.3.3 Universe Survey
3.3.4 Recovering from Navigation Errors
3.4 D-Hopping
3.4.1 D-Hopping Technique
3.4.2 Hazards
3.4.3 D-Hopper Contact While Hopping
3.4.4 Link-Hopping
3.5 D-Hopper's Guide to the Multiverse
3.5.1 Fourth Dimension Irregularities
3.5.2 Universe and Planet Data
3.6 D-Hoppers
3.7 D-Hopping as a Profession
3.7.1 Commercial D-Hopping
3.7.2 Exploratory D-Hopping
4 The Multiverse
4.1 The History of the Multiverse
4.2 Multiverse Celestial Bodies
4.2.1 Classification of Planets
4.3 Opening Planets and Universes
4.4 Registering Planets and Universes
4.5 Exploration and the Known Multiverse
4.6 Planets
4.7 People
4.7.1 Height and Build
4.7.2 Pigmentation
4.7.3 Hair and Eye Color
4.8 Languages
4.9 Time Standards
4.10 Commerce within the Multiverse
4.10.1 Trade Oriented Worlds
4.10.2 Multiverse Trade Association
4.10.3 Trade Guilds
4.10.4 Trade Agents
4.10.5 Business Relations between Trade Agents
4.10.6 Business Relations between Trade Agents and Customers
4.10.7 Commercial Trade Documents
4.10.8 Trade Agent Commissions
4.10.9 Communications
4.10.10 Monetary Transfers
4.11 Crime, Law Enforcement, and the Legal System
4.11.1 Citizen Identification Database
4.11.2 Privacy of the Individual
4.11.3 Technology
4.11.4 Crime
4.11.5 Weapons
4.11.6 Law Enforcement
4.11.7 Laws
4.11.8 Multiverse Court System
4.11.9 Legal Representation
4.11.10 Court Trials
4.11.11 Penal Slavery
4.11.12 Prison
4.12 War
4.13 Searching for Unopened Planets
4.14 People of Unopened Planets
4.14.1 Marketable Commodities
4.15 Structure of the Multiverse Government
4.15.1 Council Members
4.15.2 Committees
4.15.3 Council of Affiliated Worlds Work Schedule
A Reader's Guide to the D-Hopping Universe is a tutorial that addresses Dimension Hoppers (D-Hoppers), Dimension Hopping (D-Hopping), and provides an introduction to the Multiverse's physical, legal, social, commercial, and cultural structure.
It is not intended to be an all-inclusive document in that it only provides a brief description of the Multiverse and explains many of the terms used in the stories that are set in the D-Hopping Universe. As additional stories are added to the D-Hopping Universe, the Reader's Guide will be updated, as necessary.
The word 'Multiverse' is generally used as a reference to the Known Multiverse, and sometimes to the Multiverse Government.
Multiverse actually refers to all of the universes that are interconnected by the Fourth Dimension's force axes (see paragraph 3.3).
However, the word 'Multiverse' is commonly used to refer to the Known Multiverse and the Multiverse Government; the context of its use defines its intended meaning.
The Known Multiverse is a contiguous, 3-dimensional region of the Multiverse that forms a cuboid (i.e., a geometrical shape that resembles a cube, but has unequal height, width, and depth measurements). The cuboid encloses the universes that contain the Member Worlds, Provisional Member Worlds, and the Limited Provisional Member Worlds.
To simplify communication during conversation or writing, the 'Known Multiverse' is commonly referred to as the 'Multiverse'.
The Multiverse Government is the central government that governs and controls the interactions of the Member Worlds and Provisional Member Worlds.
The government was originally the ruling body of a collective of inhabited worlds that joined together to create a society to promote trade between the Member Worlds. Over time, the ruling body became an organization that regulated trade and trade disputes. As the collective grew in size, the ruling body evolved into a government and a series of agencies and committees that became the collective's central government. Since the member planets are scattered throughout the Known Multiverse, the collective's government is commonly referred to as the Multiverse Government.
The D-Hop ability is a rare ability that can be found in a few people who are born and raised in the Home Universe. A small percentage of the children born on certain planets in the Home Universe gain the ability to move from one place to another using the Fourth Dimension's energy fields. The use of the D-Hop ability is commonly referred to as either hopping or D-Hopping.
Children born on these planets are taught to recognize the onset of the D-Hop ability. Once the presence of the ability is confirmed, the child is medicated to suppress or destroy the D-Hop ability.
When it is first determined that a child is developing the ability, the child is given a medication that suppresses the child's capability of using the ability. The child then undergoes a series of tests to determine if they have the mental ability and emotional stability to become a D-Hopper. Those who are not capable of using the ability safely or do not wish to become a D-Hopper are given a medication that destroys the D-Hop ability. If the child is deemed capable of using the ability safely and wants to become a D-Hopper, the child is given medicine that suppresses the ability until the child has received special training in how to use the ability without killing them self in the process.
The history of D-Hopping and the history of the Multiverse (see paragraph 4.1) are closely intertwined, but discussed by this tutorial as separate topics.
The history of D-Hopping began almost 12,000 years ago, Voran calendar, when Roger Dalis appeared on Vora. Roger is credited with being the First D-Hopper in that he is the first person in history to hop from one location to another in a controlled fashion.
Very little is known about Roger Dalis. It is commonly accepted as fact that Roger hopped from his home world to an unknown location. In trying to return to his home world, Roger hopped to several uninhabited planets and eventually hopped to Vora.
When he arrived on Vora, he was in very poor physical condition and hospitalized. When the authorities attempted to talk with Roger, they discovered that he did not speak the Vorian language, and no one understood his language. A number of things happened during the remainder of his life.
Roger used his abilities in an attempt to locate his home world, but was never successful. Instead, he remained on Vora and learned the Vorian language. He described his experiences to the local authorities, which explained why children would sometimes disappear from their homes and never return.
Public knowledge of Roger's experiences led to the public school program that taught young children to recognize the onset of their D-Hop ability and what to do about it. He also formed a school for children that were developing the D-Hop ability that taught them the rudiments of how to control and use the ability. As D-Hoppers learned more about hopping, the school's curriculum was expanded, and 190 years later, the school officially became the D-Hopping University.
Ten years after the University's formation, the University started an effort to document the history of D-Hopping. The historians' first efforts were to acquire and examine media reports and the available historical memoirs of Roger's appearance on Vora and his subsequent activities.
While the historians were busy documenting the history of D-Hopping, the D-Hoppers of that time were making history. The D-Hoppers began to explore their universe by hopping to other planets in the Home Universe and returning. When D-Hoppers completed successful hops and returned, they would add to the University's knowledge of how to perform a hop. They also added to the knowledge of their universe's planets. In the process, they identified the eleven Home Universe worlds on which the D-Hop ability is developed.
As the D-Hoppers explored the Home Universe, they also began their exploration of the neighboring universes. This led to the discovery of the Fourth Dimension's existence and its eventual study by the scientific community. It also resulted in the development of the system currently used for navigation when traveling through the Multiverse, the development of the search algorithms that a lost D-Hopper uses to locate their destination planet, and the development of many D-Hopping techniques. This information was added to the D-Hopping University's curriculum.
As D-Hoppers found new planets, they established trade with the local populations. This in turn led to the development of Trade Speak and the creation of today's Commercial Trade Guilds.
Around nine thousand years ago, trade was well established between more than 20 worlds. Various issues developed regarding the regulation of trade between these worlds, and the D-Hoppers and Guilds decided that they needed to create a trade consortium to govern trade between the worlds. The organization they established to control trade with the consortium's member worlds evolved into what is now known as the Multiverse Government.
The relationship between the D-Hoppers and the consortium's original organization was one of mutual support. The organization wanted to expand the number of worlds engaged in trade, so it encouraged exploration by the D-Hoppers. The D-Hoppers wanted to be compensated for their exploration efforts, so the organization granted trade rights to the D-Hoppers that registered a new trade world with their guild.
To facilitate the registration of new worlds and universes, the Multiverse Government made the D-Hopping Guild their agent and gave the Guild Masters a set of powers, such as appointing diplomatic personnel to the registered worlds. The Guilds also took on the responsibilities related to the management of the new worlds. The Multiverse Government eventually formed the Committee on Interplanetary Affairs and assigned it with the responsibility for registering and interfacing with newly registered worlds. The committee made the D-Hopping Guild the responsibility for registering new worlds to, but retained responsibility for interaction between the new world and the Known Multiverse. The Guild Masters of the D-Hopping Guild were appointed as the committee's intermediary between the Multiverse Government and the D-Hoppers that registered the world. As their intermediary, the committee granted the Guild Masters a series of powers and responsibilities.
The Fourth Dimension is a three dimensional array of interconnected force axes. Each universe's grouping of three force axes is generated by the universe and its force axes bind the universe to its six adjacent universes in a three dimensional grid structure.
Author's Note: It should be noted that on occasion, a universe was not in the proper position to bind with the neighboring universes and this resulted in a hole in the universes' grid structure. These holes cause a number of irregularities in the Fourth Dimension's force field characteristics.
The Multiverse's scientists theorize that a Fourth Dimension energy field was created by each universe as it was formed. A universe's energy field includes three Fourth Dimension force axes that intersect with each other at right angles near the center of mass of the universe. As each universe stabilized, the force axes of the universe sensed and aligned themselves with the ends of the force axes generated by the six neighboring universes. Once aligned, the ends of the three force axes of each universe merged with the force axes of its six neighboring universes, which were also aligning themselves with their neighboring universes. When the force axes merged, they drew the universes toward each other; like the north and south poles of two magnets. This merging of force axes bind each universe to its neighboring universes and the entire group of interconnected universes is referred to as the Multiverse. This description ignores a number of irregularities that occur in the actual structure of the Multiverse's grid structure (see paragraph 3.3.1).
One way of visualizing the structure of the Multiverse is to view each of the Multiverse's universes as a child's wooden building block. The building blocks are stacked in a cuboid (i.e. a three dimensional shape that has six rectangular sides) that is as wide, deep, and high as you can imagine. In stacking these blocks, a drop of glue is placed in the center of the flat sides of each block. When the blocks are pressed together, the drops of glue bind each block to its six neighboring blocks, assuming that a block is not on the outer surface of the huge cuboid. In this visualization, the child's blocks represent the Multiverse's universes and the drops of glue represent two merged Fourth Dimension force axes.
As D-Hoppers (see paragraph 3.6) first started hopping through the Multiverse, they encountered a number of irregularities in the Fourth Dimension's grid structure and discovered the dangers related to the irregularities.
The D-Hopping Guild decided to document the irregularities that were reported to the Guild in a guide that D-Hoppers could use to avoid the dangers associated with the irregularities. As D-Hoppers encountered additional irregularities, they reported the irregularities to the Guild for inclusion in the guide; assuming of course that they survived the encounter with the irregularity. The guide is entitled, 'The D-Hopper's Guide to the Multiverse'.
The Guild considers the D-Hopper's Guide to be a living document, which is updated and published annually. Therefore, the Guild encourages D-Hoppers to report all newly discovered irregularities as soon as possible for inclusion in the guide.
3.3.1.1 Weak Force Axes
The Weak Force Axes irregularity occurs when a universe is not present at the intersection of three force axes. The force axes of the missing universe's neighboring universes extend to span the gap, but the connection of the three pair of extended force axes is weak.
The danger of a weak force axes' connection is that it can break during a hop, when the D-Hopper releases the hop energy. While a broken force axes connection usually reconnects itself, the D-Hopper may not be able to safely control the hop, which can be fatal. It is common for a D-Hopper to hop across a weak section of a force axes without realizing he is doing so and without the force axes breaking.
The recommended procedure for a D-Hopper is, when knowingly approaching a weakened force axis, end the hop short of the irregularity and hop around the weakened section.
Unfortunately, the indications of a missing universe are not always apparent at the start of a hop. However, an experienced hopper can detect the hop energy building to a greater value than necessary for the planned hop distance. This is especially true when the planned hop length was the hopper's maximum safe hop distance. If this realization occurs early enough, the D-Hopper can abort the hop and determine the cause of the symptoms. If the realization occurs after completing the hop, the hopper should confirm the suspected weak force lines and adjust the actual distance traveled accordingly by assuming they passed through the gap of a missing universe. Newly discovered irregularities should be reported to the Guild.
It should be noted that a D-Hopper's maximum safe hop distance includes a safety margin of at least one universe (i.e., the actual maximum hop distance is reduced by at least one universe). While, intentionally exceeding the safe hop distance is not a good idea, it is not normally hazardous.
3.3.1.2 Gaps in Force Axes
The Gaps in Force Axes is a type of irregularity that occurs when two or more contiguous universes along a force axes are not present at what would be the intersection of the missing universes' force axes. The gap is due to the neighboring universes' force axes being unable to span a gap of two or more universes. This irregularity also creates four weakened force axes at the location of the missing universes, assuming of course that the gap does not extend in more than one direction.
The unconnected ends of the broken force axis will normally just terminate. However, they occasionally create a temporary connection to a neighboring universe's axis creating a Y-connected axis; a self-terminated axis is also known as an open-ended force axis.
Gaps are usually more annoying than dangerous for the D-Hopper can sense the gap as the hop energy is being built. The recommended procedure when a gap is encountered is to end the hop short of the irregularity and hop around the gap. The D-Hopper can then adjust the count of remaining universes to be hopped through accordingly and proceed along the force axis.
3.3.1.3 Y-Connected Axes
The Y-Connected Axes irregularity occurs as the result of a Gap. When there is no force axis present to connect to, the axis normally terminates itself. The open-ended force axis will sometimes attempt to connect to one of the neighboring universes corresponding axes. This type of connection is a very weak connection that breaks off relatively quickly (i.e., typically within five years) and returns to being an open-ended force axis.
If the hopper is moving toward the split, they can sense the force axes splitting into two force lines and abort the hop. However, if they are moving in the direction of the merged axes, the hop may end in the wrong universe. If the hop ends in the universe that has a dual connection, then when an alert hopper orients their self with the axis, they may sense that there are two axes going in one direction behind them. This indication is the normal manner in which a hopper detects a Y-connected axis.
The danger of a Y-connection is that the hopper can fail to arrive at the proper destination universe; in most cases, the miss error distance is only one universe. If the hopper does not arrive at the proper destination universe, the appropriate search algorithm can be used to locate the desired destination universe.
Note: A recent report to the D-Hopping Guild stated that a D-Hopper discovered a Gap and encountered what should have been an unterminated axis. The axis had actually made a 90 degree turn and connected itself to a different axis (e.g., the unterminated X-axis connected itself to the Y-axis or Z-axis of another universe. The D-Hopper stated that the axis seemed to bend more than normal, so he aborted his hop and explored that area of the Multiverse. An exploration team has been sent to examine the gap. If true, this is a new type of anomaly. The hazard of this type of irregularity is that the D-Hopper will complete the scheduled hops and not arrive at the proper destination, and the miss error distance can be as large as the hopper's maximum safe hop distance.
Navigation through the Multiverse uses the Home Universe as a reference point. D-Hoppers define the location of each universe relative to the Home Universe using a three dimensional reference system (i.e., a 3-dimensional Cartesian coordinate system). In this reference system, each universe has a reference point, which is the intersection of its three axes (the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis). These axes intersect at right angles to each other with the intersection of the three axes in the center of the universe's mass. Each axis has a positive and negative direction that extends away from its intersection with the other two axes. Distance along each of the merged force axes is measured in universes.
Home Universe's reference point is assigned the value 0, 0, 0. Its six neighboring universes are therefore assigned reference point values: (1, 0, 0), (-1, 0, 0), (0, 1, 0), (0, -1, 0), (0, 0, 1), and (0, 0, -1). Using this concept, the location of any of the Multiverse's universes is so many universes in the (+ or -) X, Y, and Z directions from the Home Universe.
For example, assume that you are in the Home Universe, its reference point is 0, 0, 0, and wish to go to a universe that has a reference point of 14, -17, 12. You would travel fourteen universes along the X-axis in the plus direction. You would then turn 90 degrees and travel 17 universes along the Y-axis in the negative direction. Finally, you would turn 90 degrees and travel 12 universes along the Z-axis in the positive direction.
To travel between any two universes, you need to know the two universes' reference points. Then calculate the number of universes and direction you must travel from your departure universe along each axis to reach the desired destination (or target) universe.
One interesting fact is that no one knows how big the Multiverse is. Therefore, there is no upper limit placed on the number of universes that can be traveled in any direction. Seventy years ago, some of the Multiverse's more adventuresome citizens tried to go in one direction from the Home Universe and travel until they reached the outer limit of the Multiverse. No one has returned. They may still be traveling, been killed, or be lost. The D-Hopping Guild doesn't know what happened to them.
When a D-Hopper arrives in an unexplored universe, the locations of the universe's galaxies, solar systems, and planets are unknown. If the D-Hopper intends to explore the universe, the D-Hopping Guild recommends that an abbreviated survey be performed to define the relative positions of the galaxies in the universe. In a similar fashion, the guild recommends that a similar survey be performed for each galaxy and solar system that the D-Hopper explores. This information is necessary for another D-Hopper to locate a specific planet within the universe.
For universes containing a Member World, the D-Hopping Guild performs a survey to define the locations of all habitable worlds in the universe that have been reported to the D-Hopping Guild. The results of these surveys are stored in the D-Hopping Guild's database, but the complete results are too extensive for inclusion in the D-Hopper's Guide. The D-Hopper's Guide will only list the locations of those planets that engage in commerce with the Known Multiverse.
Getting lost is the most common problem a D-Hopper experiences, and this is not hard to do. It is also a D-Hopper's worst nightmare for there are no road maps or signs that say 'You are Here'.
The methods of getting lost are numerous for a D-Hopper can miscalculate the number of universes to be hopped through on each axis, miscount the number of universes they do pass through, or encounter one of the Fourth Dimension's irregularities (see paragraph 3.3.1).
The most common error a D-Hopper makes is miscounting the number of universes they pass through in making a hop. It is easy to do and the error is not apparent until you arrive at what should be the desired destination universe and discover you are in the wrong universe. The main problem with being lost is that you don't know the miss distance nor do you know the axis on which the error was made. The D-Hopping University teaches its students a variety of search algorithms and procedures that can be used to find the destination universe.
Usually, the error is small and easily corrected by using the Near Miss search algorithm. The Near Miss Algorithm assumes the D-Hopper is in one of the destination universe's six neighboring planets.
For example, assume that the miss distance is one or more universes on one axis and that the D-Hopper is familiar with and can recognize the destination universe. That means the destination universe lies on the current universe's X, Y, or Z-axis. The D-Hopper can align them self with one axis and initiate a hop in the positive or negative direction and search along the axis to find the destination universe. If the destination universe is found, then the D-Hopper completes the hop. If the universe is not found, the hop is aborted. This process is repeated in the other direction and then in both directions along the other axes until the destination universe is found.
If the destination universe is not found using this simple algorithm, the destination universe is not on one of the current universe's axes, and a more complex algorithm must be used. The more complex search algorithms are based on an Expanding Cube technique.
The Expanding Cube algorithms are based on searching an error cube. The algorithms initially assume a miss distance of one universe, which is a 3 x 3 x 3 error cube. That means you are probably in one of the destination universe's 26 neighboring universes, and with no way of knowing which direction to hop to get to the destination universe. In using the Expanding Cube algorithms, each search algorithm searches the 26 neighboring universes. The difference between the different search algorithms is the approach used to search the neighboring universes.
If searching the universes within a miss distance of one universe does not locate the desired destination universe, the D-Hopper assumes a miss distance of two universes. A miss distance of two universes is a 5 x 5 x 5 error cube, and that means you are probably in one of destination universe's 124 neighboring universes and once again you have no way to know the direction and distance you need to hop. However, you have already searched the universes within the outer boundary of the cube (i.e., the 3 X 3 X 3 cube), so you only have to search the universes on the six faces of the cube, which means you need to search 97 universes.
If searching the universes within a miss distance of two universes does not locate the desired destination universe, the D-Hopper assumes a miss distance of three universes. The process is repeated for the 7 X 7 X 7 error cube. The miss distance is increase by one until the search algorithm locates the desired destination universe.
As the miss distance increases, so does the size of the error cube and the execution complexity of the search algorithm. The biggest problem with complex search algorithms is that the D-Hopper can become disoriented. Should that occur, the D-Hopper is totally lost. Their only hope is to start hopping in the general direction of Home Universe and hope to encounter a recognizable universe or a universe in which there is another D-Hopper.
D-Hopping is the process of moving between two planets, which are typically in different universes. If not making an intra-universe hop, it normally requires at least one interim hop along one or more of the three force axes to get to the desired destination. A D-Hopper has a maximum safe hop distance that is measured in universes. If the total distance of travel along one of the axis is more universes than a D-Hopper's safe hop distance, then the distance is traveled using multiple interim hops.
Note: The term 'hop' is frequently used in two contexts: an overall hop and an interim hop. An interim hop is the proper term for a single hop along one axis. An overall hop refers to the journey from the departure planet to the destination planet. In this context, the hop is usually a series of short interim hops along one or more axes. The context in which the term hop is used normally defines whether it is an overall or interim hop.
D-Hopping between two planets is a very exacting process. Before the first hop is made, the D-Hopper plans the journey using the 'D-Hopper's Guide to the Multiverse'. The D-Hopper must determine the number of hops to be made along each force axis and the distance and direction of each hop. Once this is accomplished, the D-Hopper must verify that the destination planet of each interim hop is a habitable planet and that the planned route will not encounter any known irregularities. If irregularities are located along the axes, the D-Hopping Guild recommends that the Hopper plan a different route.
The process of making a hop is not complex for there are only six key steps; however, some of the steps require intense focus and steady nerves for a mistake can be fatal.
3.4.1.1 Alignment
As previously described, the Fourth Dimension is a grid structure of force axes. A hop is always made along one of the three dimensional force axes. It is possible to make a hop at an angle to the axes. However, this is not done by D-hoppers that want to avoid getting lost in the Fourth Dimension.
A D-Hopper aligns himself with one of the current universe's three force axes by sensing the point where the three axes intersect in the universe. They then orient them self with a specific force axis facing in either its positive or negative direction. A D-Hopper can feel a difference between the three axes, and during school, the instructor identifies each axis to the student. The instructor also explains how to identify the plus and minus direction on each axis.
3.4.1.2 Increase Hop Energy
Hop energy is the term used by D-Hoppers to identify the force they use to overcome Fourth Dimension inertia so they can move between universes. It is somewhat of a misnomer for there is no physical force applied during the hop.
The concept of hop energy moving the hopper through universes is a difficult concept to explain. Hoppers say that it is more like creating a copy of yourself and moving the copy along the axis until you reach the desired universe. The greater the force the hopper uses in moving the copy along the axes, the greater the hop distance. Hoppers say that there is no sense of motion when moving the copy through a universe and it does not feel as if they actually enter the Fourth Dimension. One moment they are on a planet in one universe and once they have a good target lock and release the hop energy, they are on a planet in the arrival universe.
3.4.1.3 Assess Type of Universe
Once a hopper has built the hop energy, they can sense the arrival universe in front of them. They are not moving through the universes at this point, so they can take as much time as they need to assess the arrival universe.
3.4.1.4 Gain and Refine Planet Lock
Once the hopper's copy has reached the arrival universe, they can detect the universe's planets and select the planet on which they wish to land. If the planet is not the final destination planet, then it doesn't matter which of the universe's planets is selected as long as it is suited to supporting life. Having selected a planet, the hopper determines the type of planet, preferably a habitable planet, to ensure it is a safe arrival place, and then locks onto the specific point on the planet's surface at which the hopper desires to land.
This is done by examining the planet's terrain and zooming in on a specific location. Once the location is locked in, the hopper examines the surrounding area for imminent hazards. If hazards are detected, the hopper can select a different location.
If the D-Hopper is having a problem with gaining and refining planet lock, the recommended action is to abort the hop, and after resting, to repeat the process using a different planet.
3.4.1.5 Release Hop Energy
When the hopper is ready to complete the hop, they maintain focus on the arrival planet's location and simply release the hop energy. If the hopper has selected and maintained a firm mental lock on the new destination point, then releasing the hop energy results in the hopper appearing at the selected arrival location. If the D-Hopper does not have and maintain a strong lock on the arrival point and releases the hop energy, the hop will take place but there is no way to determine where hopper will arrive.
If the hop was to the destination universe, the hopper usually takes the time necessary to locate the destination planet. This can be difficult for a hopper that is not familiar with the destination universe. However, the hopper can select an inhabited planet as an interim arrival point. Once the hopper arrives on the planet, they can seek assistance as to where the desired planet is located within the universe, and then hop to the destination planet.
3.4.1.6 Hop Recovery Time
The process of making a hop, including aborted hops, is very taxing on a hopper's mental energy and state. Once the hop is complete, or aborted, the Guild's average recommended recovery time is one hour. Most hoppers take a longer period for full recovery, but a strong hopper can recover in less time. The D-Hopping Guild does not recommend hopping before full recovery occurs.
Hoppers normally rest between interim hops to recover before making the next hop. However, if there is a problem with the arrival planet they chose as their rest point, a hopper can immediately hop to another planet within the same universe or to one in another universe. This is an emergency measure that is referred to as a double hop.
D-Hopping is a dangerous activity, and properly trained and experienced D-Hoppers can make fatal errors. Hops made by hoppers with inadequate training and experience are often fatal.
One of the main things the D-Hopping University teaches D-Hoppers is how to sense the type of universe and planet (i.e., Habitable, Hostile, or Uninhabitable) to which they are about to hop. If you do not arrive on a habitable planet, you must immediately hop back to your departure point or you could die very quickly. These factors are only part of what makes D-Hopping dangerous.
Note: The course at the University for recognizing types of universes and planets is mandatory for the Exploration D-Hopping career path. D-Hoppers who choose the Commercial D-Hopping career path travel known paths between universes and do not require the course. However, the D-Hopping University recommends the course be taken by Commercial Hoppers in the event they have to select an alternative arrival planet or become lost.
In hopping to a destination universe, the cautious D-Hopper usually moves in all three directions. The uninformed or incautious hopper might try to hop along a line drawn between the initial and the destination universes, and that is the worst thing that could be done in making a hop.
You never want to hop to a destination in this fashion for you have no accurate directional reference thus you cannot exert the necessary control over the direction in which you hop and it is difficult to sense the universes that you are traveling through. You could easily miss the destination universe by more than one or two universes (see paragraph 3.3.4). If you make multiple hops directly toward the destination universe, you can magnify any error of an individual hop and you would probably be totally lost once you make your final hop. Attempting to hop back to your point of origin in this fashion will not work for every hop made in this fashion can further magnify the size of your error cube and you will have no idea of the total miss distance magnitude.
The rule of thumb for estimating your miss distance using a lateral hop is based on the D-Hopper's maximum safe hop distance, and the typical miss distance is one universe for each hop. That means a D-Hopper who made four hops would have an error cube of 9 x 9 x 9 universes; which means they could be in any of about 729 universes.
The biggest danger to a successful D-Hopper is his competition for D-Hoppers can be followed by a Link-Hopper (see paragraph 3.4.3). Link-Hopper is the term used to refer to a D-Hopper that preys on other D-Hoppers. They typically work in groups that have two or more D-Hoppers who work with non-D-Hoppers.
D-Hoppers can sense other D-Hoppers when they are in the same universe. If a D-Hopper makes a hop to a universe that is inhabited by a second D-Hopper while traveling in the Multiverse, Hopping Curtesy requires the two D-Hoppers to make contact before leaving the universe. The main purpose for this contact is to determine if the other D-Hopper needs assistance.
About one in thirty D-Hoppers can sense a D-Hopper when they are in a neighboring universe. D-Hoppers that have this ability can use it to follow another D-Hopper to their destination universe, which is known as link-hopping. Link-hopping is the normal method used to locate an unregistered planet that another D-Hopper is opening. The purpose behind link-hopping is to steal the unopened planet from the D-Hopper that found it. Acquisition of the unregistered planet is often ensured by the link-hopper(s) killing the D-Hopper that discovered the planet. Link Hoppers typically work in small groups of 8-12 people with at least two of those people being D-Hoppers.
The 'D-Hopper's Guide to the Multiverse' is a D-Hopper's grail, and its basic purpose is to plan a hop through the Fourth Dimension. The guide is a living document that addresses many topics. Several of the topics are briefly described by the following paragraphs.
The D-Hopping guide lists all irregularities in the Fourth Dimension that have been reported to the D-Hopping Guild (see paragraph 3.3.1).
The D-Hoppers Guide lists the Fourth Dimension coordinates of all of the universes that have been registered by D-Hoppers or that have been reported to the Guild as having been visited by a hopper. It also lists and provides information about the universe's planets, especially the planets that known to be uninhabitable. However, it is not mandatory for a D-Hopper to register a universe or planet, or to provide the Guild with information about the planets and universes they have found or visited.
Home Universe has over 40 developed planets. Every D-Hopper ever born was born in the Home Universe on one of 11 planets.
Scientists have studied Home Universe and these 11 planets to determine why D-Hoppers are only born on these specific planets. So far, no one has been able to determine what there is about the planets that allow the development of the D-Hop ability. Scientists postulate theories to explain the phenomenon, but no theory has been proven.
Of the children born on these planets, less than two percent develop the D-Hop ability. The ability normally appears during or shortly after a child goes through puberty. Prior to puberty, all children are given rudimentary training in how to recognize and control the D-Hop ability so they will not accidentally initiate a hop. The training instructs the children to notify their parents as soon as they detect the D-Hop ability within themselves. This is done so the children will not kill themselves before they can be treated with a medication that inhibits or destroys the D-Hop ability. Failure to receive this medication when the D-Hop ability first appears usually results in the child hopping to another universe and not returning.
Once a child is identified as a hopper and their hopping ability is inhibited, they are evaluated to determine if they are mentally, emotionally, and physically fit to become a D-Hopper. If a child is not interested in becoming a D-Hopper or is deemed to be unsuitable to D-Hopping, then the doctors can administer a medication that destroys the D-Hop ability in the child. Children suitable for and interested in becoming a D-Hopper are enrolled in the D-Hopping University where they are trained to become D-Hoppers.
The D-Hopping University provides its students with training in the structure of the Multiverse, the Fourth Dimension, how to safely use the D-Hop ability, and many additional subjects. Students who are unable to complete the course of study normally resign from the University and voluntarily take the medication that destroys their D-Hop ability. There is no legal requirement for them to take this medication.
In comparison to the total human population of the Multiverse, D-Hoppers are extremely rare. The scarcity of D-Hoppers makes the graduates of the D-Hopping University highly sought after as employees of companies that deal in Multiverse Commerce. They command astronomical salaries and are very well treated by their employers.
In general, the Multiverse society is very respectful of D-Hoppers. However, some D-Hoppers decide to use their talents to explore the Multiverse in order to locate and open new worlds. As a rule, the practice of opening new worlds to commerce within the Multiverse is a highly respected profession. When D-Hoppers find and first start to open a new world, they typically exploit the world's commodities for personal gain. This is a normal and acceptable action within the Multiverse. Unfortunately, it is considered immoral to exploit certain types of commodities and D-Hoppers that exploit these commodities give D-Hoppers a bad name. Selling commodities that are on the Restricted Trade List to the citizens of unrated worlds is a criminal offense that is punishable by imprisonment on a prison planet for violent criminals (see paragraph 4.11.12.2).
D-Hoppers maintain journals that contain information about the planets they visit and pass through, and the D-Hoppers will frequently provide this information to the D-Hopping Guild. The guild adds the information to the D-Hoppers' Guide to the Multiverse. Information about the worlds in the universes that other D-Hoppers passed through can be used to select the arrival planet in a universe when the universe is not the desired destination's universe.
There are three ways a D-hopper can profit from the D-Hop ability: they can (1) work for a commercial company that can use the talent, (2) become an independent commercial D-Hopper, or (3) use the talent for exploration.
Commercial companies employ D-Hoppers to move merchandise between two planets, and the planets can be in the same or different universes. D-Hoppers can move the same freight from one world to another almost instantaneously with the only cost being the D-Hopper's salary or transport fee. Spacecraft can also be used to perform this function if a D-Hopper is not available, but the cost and time constraints can be prohibitive.
The use of spacecraft for transporting passengers and freight is normally limited to a planet's solar system and its relative speed is slow. A trip that a D-Hopper can complete in a matter of minutes can require a spaceship several days or weeks. However, spaceships are commonly used within a solar system for distribution of freight and transportation of passengers for there is an inadequate supply of D-Hoppers who provide these services.
D-Hoppers can go into business for themselves. Their business is usually the commercial transport of freight or passengers between universes. The commercial transfer of freight and passengers is essentially the same as working for a company. The main advantages of self-employment are deciding when, where, and how long to work and what freight or passengers to transport.
When a D-Hopper goes into the business of opening a new planet, they can make immense profits on the venture. Unfortunately, there are also high risks in such a venture. As described in paragraph 4.6, the Multiverse's resources are not distributed uniformly among the planets that are located in the universes. Therefore, it can be difficult to locate a civilized planet that has valuable commodities to exploit.
In opened universes, there is no law prohibiting the sale of another universe's commodities. That assumes it is legal to sell the specific commodity in that universe. The term commodity includes many things, such as valuable metals, food, drugs, art, slaves, exotic animals, rare fabrics, gems, chemicals, etc.
If the planet being opened has a commodity that is rare in the Multiverse, the D-Hopper can make an immense profit by selling the commodity in the Multiverse's commercial markets. The alternative is also true when selling an inexpensive Multiverse commodity on an unopened world where the commodity is rare. However, this results in the accumulation of a large amount of the planet's currency that is of no value within the Multiverse. The only resolution to this dilemma is to buy a large volume of merchandise on the unopened planet that can be sold in the Multiverse, and preferably at a significant profit.
The history of the Multiverse and the history of D-Hopping (see paragraph 3.2) are intertwined, but discussed by this tutorial as separate topics.
Roger Dalis, the First D-Hopper, completed the first controlled dimensional hop about 12,000 years ago. He then began instructing young children in how to control and perform a dimensional hop. These new D-Hoppers set out to explore their universe and later extended their exploration to their neighboring universes.
Around nine thousand years ago, trade was well established between the worlds that made up the Known Multiverse; this consisted of about 20 worlds. Various issues developed regarding the regulation of trade between these 20 worlds. The D-Hoppers and Guilds decided that they needed to create a trade consortium to govern trade between the worlds. The organization they established to control trade with the consortium's member worlds evolved into what is now known as the Multiverse Government.
The organization's membership increased rapidly during the early days of exploration. However, exploration of the Multiverse was an extremely hazardous profession. About 6,000 years ago, the focus of the D-Hoppers engaged in exploration of the Multiverse began to shift from exploration to trade between the consortium's Member Worlds. This shift in focus caused a major decline in the number of D-Hoppers engaged in exploration. The decline in D-Hoppers exploring the Multiverse led to a decrease in the number of new worlds added to the Known Multiverse each year. The number of new Member Worlds added to the consortium each year was also affected by the establishment of a set of requirements for full membership in the consortium. These requirements established a category of worlds known as Provisional Worlds. The requirements for full membership gradually became more restrictive, and the rate of approving Provisional Worlds for full membership declined. As a result, the number of Provisional Worlds is relatively stable. Currently the consortium has over a thousand Member Worlds and around 30 worlds that have Provisional Membership.
The current practice is to automatically grant a newly registered world with Limited Provisional Membership in the consortium, which happens about once every ten years. The title of Limited Provisional Member World also provides the world with a legal standing in the Multiverse even though it is not a Member World. This practice of limited membership allows the Multiverse Government the necessary time for assessing the proposed world's suitability for membership. The world must apply for Provisional Membership in the Multiverse; it is not automatically granted.
If deemed suitable for membership, the world is given Provisional Membership, assuming the world is not ready for full membership. Once a Provisional Member World corrects the deficiency that prevented it from receiving full membership, it is reevaluated for full membership.
The current Multiverse Government is reviewing the requirements for membership to determine if the rules are excessively restrictive.
The Multiverse consists of all the universes that are bound together by the Fourth Dimension's energy fields. The total number of universes is not known. There has been much scientific discussion regarding the number of universes that make up the Multiverse. Some scientists believe that the number is stable, while others believe that the number is declining. There are also scientists that believe that the number of universes is increasing with new universes being created along the outer boundaries of the Multiverse.
A universe's planets are classified according to their ability to support human life, and the scientific community has defined three categories of planets. The three categories are referred to as Habitable, Hostile, and Uninhabitable.
4.2.1.1 Habitable Planets
Habitable planets are the most desirable in which to live for their characteristics are very favorable for supporting life. All prosperous planets fall within this category.
4.2.1.2 Hostile Planets
Hostile planets are capable of supporting life. However, the planet's characteristics can be very lethal for humans. Humans can live on hostile planets for a long time, but the person's life is always at risk. People unfamiliar with the environment usually make a mistake and die within a very short period.
4.2.1.3 Uninhabitable Planets
Uninhabitable planets are one of the Multiverse's mysteries. No one is certain what there is about some planets that make them uninhabitable. The standard practice of the D-Hopper's Guild is to abort a hop when the destination is determined to be an uninhabitable planet.
D-Hoppers who fail to abort their hops have not returned from the uninhabitable planet. The fate of these D-Hoppers is unknown. Two reasons for their failure to return have been postulated by the Guild:
· The planet's characteristics immediately killed the D-Hopper on arrival.
· The D-Hop ability will not function on the planet's surface.
Opening a planet and its universe for commerce means that the D-Hopper is in the process of trading with the local population of one or more of a universe's planets. The Multiverse laws governing trade while opening a planet are applicable whether the planet is registered of unregistered.
For an unregistered planet, the only legal restriction placed on the D-Hopper is that it is illegal to sell merchandise that is listed on the Restricted Trade List to the citizens of the planet. However, it is also virtually impossible to determine that a specific D-Hopper violated this law.
For a registered planet, the D-Hopper that registers the world is given trade rights for a minimum of three years. During this 3-year period, the D-Hopper is the only trader authorized to trade with the planet's inhabitants. However, the trader must conform to the limitations set by the Ambassador assigned to the world. Once the 3-year period expires, it is up to the Ambassador to determine if the world is ready for trade with other Multiverse traders. If the Ambassador determines that the planet is not ready for open trade, a trade moratorium is declared until the planet is ready for trade. During the moratorium, the D-Hopper who registered the world can continue trading with the planet's inhabitants.
Once the Ambassador declares the planet is ready for open trade with Multiverse traders, the planet is declared to be an opened planet. This means that any Multiverse trader that desires to trade with the planet's inhabitants may do so. However, all trade must comply with any restrictions defined by the Ambassador.
Once the planet receives Provisional Membership in the Multiverse all trade restrictions established by the Ambassador are lifted. Trade restrictions imposed by the Multiverse remain in force.
When a D-Hopper discovers a valuable planet, they have several options and choices to make. The first choice is whether the planet is to be registered. There is no legal requirement for a D-Hopper to register a planet or its universe, nor to disclose the coordinates of the planet or its universe.
There are a few advantages to not registering a planet - mainly no competition and effectively no trade restrictions other than the Restricted Trade List. The problem with not registering a planet is that any D-Hopper that finds the planet, including Link Hoppers, can register the planet and receive all of the rights and privileges that are granted to the D-Hopper that registers the planet.
In one famous legal case, a Link Hopper learned the coordinates of a planet that a second D-Hopper was opening without registering the planet. The Link Hopper registered the planet with the D-Hopping Guild and he was granted all trading rights to the world. The Link Hopper returned to the world with the Multiverse Police, and the police informed the D-Hopper that further trade between him and the planet's population would be a violation of the Link Hopper's trade rights. The D-Hopper filed civil suit against the Link Hopper and lost. The court upheld the Link Hopper's right to open the planet because trading rights belong to the person who registers the planet, and not to the person who found the planet.
Registering a planet with the Multiverse is a process whereby the D-Hopper informs the Multiverse of the planets location and provides evidence that the world is suitable for consideration as a Member World. This is normally accomplished by completing a form and submitting it to one of the D-Hopping Guild's Guild Masters. However, the D-Hopper also incurs an obligation of guiding the planet to ensure that it is qualified for membership until such time as the D-Hopping Guild assigns an Ambassador and the Ambassador arrives on the planet. It is standard practice for the Guild Master to offer the D-Hopper the Ambassadorship if the Guild Master believes that the D-Hopper is capable of fulfill the duties of Ambassador. Owning the trade rights and being appointed the Ambassador is an ideal situation for the D-Hopper.
Once a planet is registered, the D-Hopping Guild will publish the planet and universe's locations in the D-Hopper's Guide. The listing identifies the planet as a restricted trade planet and provides the name of the D-Hopper that owns the trading rights. During the time that they own the trading rights, a D-Hopper can sell the trading rights. Trading on a restricted trade planet without authorization is a very serious crime in the Multiverse.
The Known Multiverse is defined as a cuboid that includes all Member Worlds, Provisional Member Worlds, and Limited Provisional Member Worlds.
The universes that make up the cuboid form a three dimensional shape that has six rectangular sides. The current Known Universe is a cuboid that measures 95 x 110 x 130 universes in size. That is a total of 1,358,500 universes, assuming there are no irregularities, but less than 0.01% of those universes contain planets that are Multiverse Member Worlds, and many of the universes are unexplored.
The lack of exploration is the result of the limited number of D-Hoppers who choose to explore the Multiverse and their limited life expectancy. The reason for the visualization of the Known Multiverse as a cuboid is related to how D-Hoppers navigate the Fourth Dimension (see paragraph 3.3.2).
Adding one new world to the Known Multiverse can result in a major increase in the total number of universes in the Known Multiverse. For example, assume that a D-Hopper discovers and registers a new world that is located three universes outside the boundary of the Known Multiverse. The D-Hopping Guild extends the face(s) of the existing cuboid so the new cuboid includes the newly registered planet. What this means is that the extension of the smallest cuboid face by three universes will add a minimum of 31,350 universes to the Known Multiverse (i.e., the smallest face measures 95 X 110 universes, so 95 X 110 X 3 = 31,350), and most of the universes added are unexplored. Extending either of the two larger faces will add 37,050 or 42,900 universes to the Known Multiverse. If the position of the new world requires multiple faces be extended, the number of universes added would be even greater.
Multiverse scientists have postulated that all planets that are suited to supporting life have the same basic attributes (i.e., climate, atmosphere, plants, animals, minerals, chemicals, gases, elements, etc.) The term attribute also includes food and other materials that are formed by the various minerals, chemicals, gases, and elements.
The presence of these attributes on all planets may be true as a general rule, but the distribution of the attributes among the Multiverse planets varies drastically. When focusing on a single attribute, scientists find that the attribute is undetectable or rare on some planets, common on most planets, and overabundant on a few planets. In a few instances, an attribute is common on a few planets and undetectable or rare on the remaining planets.
An unopened planet having an abundance of an attribute that is scarce in the Multiverse is a very valuable find for a D-Hopper. Finding a planet that has multiple attributes in abundance that are scarce in the Multiverse is even rarer, which in turn makes the planet an even more valuable find.
Most habitable universes are similar. Each has multiple galaxies and each galaxy has its suns and planets, and some of the planets have breathable atmospheres and survivable climates. There are also similar life forms in each universe. This has led scientists to postulate that all life in the Multiverse originated in a single universe; however, no one has determined which universe and they have not explained how the life forms were spread through the various universes. A second group of scientists has postulated that the similarities between planets have resulted in the parallel development of life forms on the various planets.
Regardless of which postulate is correct, human life has been found in every habitable universe that has been opened by D-Hoppers and in a few hazardous universes. Human life is basically the same throughout the Multiverse. However, humans have evolved on their respective worlds, and this has led to minor physical, mental, and emotional differences between humans of different worlds and universes. One question that always comes up is reproduction, and while there are minor physical differences between the humans of the different universes, they are all biologically compatible.
Based on the planet where a human is born, they may have better or worse - eye sight, hearing, smell, taste, health, life expectancy, strength, speed, memory, or intelligence than the average Multiverse citizen. No one knows why evolution created these differences, but scientific studies have proven it to be a fact.
Note: In the process of exploring the Multiverse, D-Hoppers discovered non-human life forms that appear to be sentient. Humans have very little to do with the majority of these life forms, thus they are not addressed by this tutorial.
The average height and build of the people on a planet is affected by the planet's gravity. The average person on a light gravity planet tends to be tall and slender. On heavy gravity planets, the people are shorter and stockier due to their muscular and bone development.
Pigmentation (i.e., skin color) is one of the common physical variables in the Multiverse. The colors include brown, white, black, yellow, green, red, blue, and purple. Brown is the most common color, and purple is the least common color.
Natives of a planet typically have a single color of pigmentation although the color's shade will vary greatly. Planets having more than one color of pigmentation at the time they are opened are rare.
Hair and eye colors are too numerous to list. The most common are brown, green, and yellow. A typical Multiverse Member Planet has about six colors of hair and three colors of eyes; not counting variations of the basic color.
Every planet in the Multiverse has its native language. Commerce between the planets of the different universes resulted in the development of Trade Speak, which is now the common language spoken on all Member World planets.
Initially, Trade Speak was limited to commercial use, but over time, it evolved into a language suitable for use in all areas of communication. On most planets, Trade Speak has replaced the local language as the planet's official language. On those planets that retained their native language as the planet's official language, the majority of the people are fluent in Trade Speak.
As commerce spread through the Multiverse, the need for a time standard became obvious. Every planet had its own time standard and calendar, which weren't synchronized with those of other planets, but events happening in different parts of the Multiverse needed to be synchronized.
The rotation period of the planets require different lengths of time to complete one revolution of the planet, thus the length of a day varies from planet to planet. The time for each planet to make one rotation around its sun is also different, so the length of the planet's year is different from that of other planets. Trying to coordinate one planet's time of day and calendar with another planet's time of day and calendar is difficult. Trying to do that for all of the known planets in the Multiverse is virtually impossible.
The Multiverse established its capital in Timson, which is in the Lockwar Universe on the planet Shilling. It was decided to make the time and date in Timson a standard time reference [i.e., Multiverse Standard Time (MST)] throughout the Multiverse.
All of the Multiverse planets cross-reference their local time and date with that of Timson. Individual planets use their local time and date for on planet activities. When people on two or more planets need to reference or correlate the timing of an event, they use the MST time and date.
Commerce in the Multiverse is controlled and regulated by the Multiverse Trade Association (MTA) and by the Trade Guilds acting in concert. The relationship between the MTA and the Trade Guilds is that the MTA deals with Trade Agents and the Trade Guilds deal with trade merchandise, services, and professions. However, Trade Agents are required to be Guild Members of the Guilds that control the merchandise the Trade Agent sells.
Planets that host a major Trade Guild's headquarters typically specialize in that guild's merchandise. This has led to some worlds being referred to by the merchandise in which they specialize rather than their actual name, for example, Slave World, Spice World, Metal World, Gem World, etc.
The MTA controls and regulates the commercial interactions between Trade Agents and between Trade Agents and their customers.
There is no legal requirement for a trader to join the MTA; however, commercial firms and customers view traders who are not members of the MTA as unethical and untrustworthy. This perception is false in some cases. The majority of traders in the Multiverse are members in good standing with the MTA. The remaining traders are individuals that never joined the MTA or they lost their membership in the MTA for inappropriate commercial conduct.
The Trade Guilds control and regulate the purchase, quality, and sale of commodities, services, and professions within the Multiverse. A guild will typically control a group of similar commodities; such as, metals, spices, or gems and on occasion a single commodity like slaves or vehicles (i.e., hover cars and trucks). Guilds also regulate most fields of employment and service organizations, such as, massage parlors, dating services, body guards, or prostitution parlors.
Each Trade Guild is responsible for defining a grading scale for the merchandise or services they control, for setting the recommended price for each grade of merchandise or service, and for arbitrating any dispute related to the merchandise and service.
With a few exceptions, each guild maintains its headquarters on a single planet, and the D-Hopping Guild is one of those exceptions. The D-Hopping Guild maintains a headquarters on each of the 11 worlds that produce D-Hoppers. The designation of Main Guild Headquarters rotates amongst the 11 worlds every three years. A guild will also establish satellite offices on many strategic worlds.
There are two types of Trade Agents: Independent Agents and Guild Agents.
Typically, an Independent Trade Agent does not deal directly in the sale and purchase of commodities, services, and professions. The independent agent acts as an intermediary between their customer and another trade agent, who is typically a Guild Trade Agent.
A Guild Trade Agent is a member of one or more guilds and deals with the sale and purchase of the merchandise controlled by their guild(s). Most Guild Trade Agents work for a company and are salaried. However, some Guild Trade Agents work on commission or for a salary plus commission.
Business relations between two Independent Trade Agents are rare. On occasion, an Independent Trade Agent will not be familiar enough with the Guild Trade Agents that handle a commodity, service, or profession to make a good recommendation to their customer. In these cases, the agent will refer their customer to a second Independent Trade Agent.
Independent Trade Agents normally guide their customers to a Guild Trade Agent that is connected to a specific Guild. The Independent Trade Agents prepare the contractual agreements, known as Letters of Introduction, to ensure that their customer's interests are taken care of by a recommended Guild Trade Agent and to ensure that they receive their commissions on any sale or purchase that their customer makes through that agent.
The Independent Trade Agents often form long-term business relationships with Guild Trade Agents, and the more contacts the Independent Trade Agents have, the more sought after they are by clients. On occasion, a Guild Trade Agent will refer their client to another Guild Trade Agent. This practice makes the Guild Trade Agent more valuable to their clients who may need to do business with other Guilds. Since they are often salaried, this practice provides them with a profitable sideline.
The Multiverse Trade Association establishes guidelines that govern an agent's conduct with a customer. These guidelines define two levels of conduct, which are applied according to the customer's familiarity with the merchandise and its marketplace.
The lower level of conduct applies when a Letter of Introduction (see paragraph 4.10.7) is not presented or not accepted. It assumes that the agent is dealing with a knowledgeable customer. It requires the agent to be honest with their customers, but they are not required to disclose information that could affect the business transaction.
The higher level of conduct is applied when a Letter of Introduction is presented and accepted. This level of conduct requires the agent to be honest and to fully disclose any public information that they are aware of that could be beneficial to or adversely affect a business transaction. When the Guild Trade Agent works for a company, information about their company and its products is considered privileged information, and cannot be divulged without the company's permission.
Trade Agents utilize a variety of legal documents when doing business with their customers and other agents. Failure to comply with the requirements of these documents can have severe consequences for both the Trade Agent and their customer.
4.10.7.1 Confidentiality Agreements
Trade Agents always negotiate a Confidentiality Agreement before doing business with a client or another trade agent. This agreement can cover a single trade or it can be a long-term agreement that covers all commercial interactions that occur between the two parties during the life of the agreement.
The terms of the agreement typically require that the agent and customer (or second agent) treat all commercial information that is not in the public domain as confidential information. Neither party can provide that information to a third party without the written approval of the second party.
4.10.7.2 Letters of Introduction
A Letter of Introduction is a contractual document that defines the intent of an Independent Trade Agent's customer to buy or sell specific merchandise or services. The customer is not contractually obligated to fulfill that intent. The Independent Trade Agent issues the Letter of Introduction to their customer for a specified fee, which is separate from the commissions and fees defined in the Letter of Introduction.
The Letter of Introduction identifies a Guild Trade Agent to act as the customer's agent in a specific commercial transaction, or during a specified period of time. It defines the merchandise or services to be sold or purchased, and the commissions and fees the customer will pay to the Trade Agent(s) including the arrangements for payment. All fees and commissions to be paid by the customer as a result of the transaction must be disclosed in the Letter of Introduction.
When the customer presents the Letter of Introduction to the Guild Trade Agent, the agent has the option of accepting or rejecting the Letter of Introduction. If the Guild Trade Agent accepts the Letter of Introduction, they are entering into a contractual agreement with the issuing Independent Trade Agent and their customer.
In a commercial transaction involving Trade Agents, there are normally four parties involved in the transaction. The Independent Trade Agent's customer who is selling or purchasing merchandise or services, the Independent Trade Agent, the Guild Trade Agent, and the fourth party, an individual or business, who is providing or receiving the merchandise or services.
When the Guild Trade Agent is a direct or contractual employee of the fourth party, the customer is not required to pay the agent a commission. When this is not the case, the customer pays commission to both agents according to the terms of the Letter of Introduction.
The commission a customer pays to the Trade Agent(s) is normally composed of a standard commission and a bonus commission.
The standard commission is calculated as a percentage of the total value of the transaction.
The bonus commission is calculated as a percentage of the difference between the Trade Guild's recommended price of the merchandise or service at the time of the negotiation between the two trade agents and the merchandise's actual sale or purchase price. The bonus commission is only paid when the Independent Trade Agent's customer is selling merchandise or services and the negotiated sale price is above the price recommended by the guild or when the customer is buying merchandise or services and the purchase price is below that recommended by the guild. When the sale or purchase price of the merchandise or services is fixed and non-negotiable, no bonus commission is paid.
Communications is necessary for the conduct of commercial and personal business in the Multiverse. There are two basic types of communication systems used in the Multiverse for communication between two parties: Communication Units and Twixt Equipment.
4.10.9.1 Communication Units
Communications units (comm units) are similar to telephones and cellphones, but communication units have greater functionality than the comparable Earth devices. Like telephones and cellphones, they can be purchased as portable or fixed units. Comm units will interface with twixt equipment for transmission of digital data using twixt equipment.
Comm units are generally limited in range to a single planet; however, coverage can be extended to neighboring planets that are very close; such as twin planets that orbit each other in a single solar orbit. Communication between planets is normally accomplished using twixt equipment.
4.10.9.2 Twixt Equipment
Twixt equipment is normally used to transmit digital data between two Twixt Transmission Terminals (Twixt Terminals), which are typically located on different planets. If the planets are in different universes, the message is transmitted between universes via the force axes of the Fourth Dimension.
The path that a twixt message takes through the Multiverse from one inhabited planet to another inhabited planet is known by the Twixt Network designers. When a new universe is to be added to the twixt network, a Twixt Relay Platform is installed in the new universe. The platform is connected to the existing Twixt network by installing a Twixt Relay Platform in every universe that the message will pass through in traveling between the new universe and the existing network.
Every Member World and Provisional Member World in the Known Multiverse has one or more twixt terminals. Some of the Limited Provisional Member Worlds have a Twixt Relay Platform and Twixt Terminals.
When a person sends a Twixt message, the message can be input at a comm unit, which sends the message to a twixt terminal. The message can also be input at a Twixt Terminal, which has more features than a comm unit does. The twixt terminal then encodes the message using the twixt message format, and sends it to the universe's Twixt Relay Platform. The Twixt Relay Platform reads the message header to determine the addressee's universe.
If the message is to be transmitted to an addressee in the relay platform's universe, the Twixt Relay Platform transmits the message to the addressee's twixt terminal, where it is decoded. Depending on the addressed device, the twixt terminal stores the message or it routes it to the recipient's comm unit. The twixt terminal or comm unit stores the incoming message until it is read by the addressee.
If the message is to be transmitted to an addressee in a different universe, the Twixt Relay Platform reads the destination universe from the message header and consults a lookup table that contains message routing data. The platform routes the message to the appropriate adjacent universe. Messages are forwarded by the Twixt Relay Platforms of each successive universe until the message reaches the destination universe. In the destination universe, the Twixt Relay Platform transmits the message to the designated twixt terminal for decoding. Depending on the addressed device, the twixt terminal stores the message or it routes it to the recipient's comm unit. The twixt terminal or comm unit stores the incoming message until it is read by the addressee.
4.10.10 Monetary Transfers
The Multiverse monetary system is the system used by all Member Worlds and many Provisional Member Worlds for all financial transactions.
The Multiverses monetary system was implemented as a standard for all Member Worlds at the time the original Member Worlds formed the consortium of Member Worlds. The currency's base monetary unit is the Tisar. The Tisar was assigned a value equal to one Qutar of Sebala. Sebala is called salt on Earth, and a Qutar is equal to about 0.15 Earth ounces. The value of merchandise and services on all Member Worlds was converted to and expressed in Tisars.
One of the requirements for full membership in the Multiverse is the conversion of the world's monetary system to that of the Multiverse. Multiverse banks will recognize and accept a Limited Provisional Member World's currency in exchange for Qutars at the agreed upon exchange rate, but the Limited Provisional Member World's currency is not legal tender for financial transactions in the Multiverse.
ln the Multiverse, all financial transactions are accomplished using one of five methods.
4.10.10.1 Cash Transfers
Currency is a common means of making purchases on many planets in the Multiverse. Multiverse currency is produced as lightweight, metallic coins of varying sizes, colors, and denominations.
4.10.10.2 Financial Data Chip Transfers
All non-cash transactions are made using Financial Data Chips, which resemble an Earth credit card. There are two types of financial data chips used in financial transactions: General Funds Data Chips and Guaranteed Funds Data Chips, and any combination of the two types of data chips can be used in a transaction.
A General Funds Data Chip is the same as cash. The holder of the data chip is the legal owner of the funds. If the data chip is lost, whoever finds it becomes the legal owner and may legally use it to make financial transactions. There is no way to trace a stolen data chip to its rightful owner, so possession of the data chip makes the holder the legal owner.
One of the advantages of using General Funds Data Chips is that the buyer and seller's identities are not recorded in the data chip as part of the transaction data. This allows privacy as to what a person purchases and sells. The data chip is also a way of privately giving a gift of cash to someone without the giver or recipient's identity being associated with the data chip. However, if the second party is using a Guaranteed Funds Data Chip, both parties' identities are recorded on the Guaranteed Funds Data Chip. If the parties to the transaction want no record of their identities being associated with a transaction, they must both use General Funds Data Chips.
To use a General Funds Data Chip, the buyer and seller's data chips are inserted in a data chip reader. The details of the transaction are entered into the reader and when the 'Reader Ready' light comes on, the buyer and seller press the respective 'Complete Transaction' buttons. When the 'Transaction Complete' light comes on, the funds have been transferred from the buyer's data chip to the seller's data chip and the data chips can be removed from the reader.
A Guaranteed Funds Data Chip is similar to an Earth Debit Card. The data chip is owned by the individual whose identity is permanently encoded in the data chip and only that person can use the data chip. The data chip is linked to the owner's bank account, so if it is lost, the owner can obtain a replacement. One of the advantages of using this type of data chip is that the buyer and seller's identities are recorded as part of the transaction data. This allows proof of the individuals involved in the transaction and the amount of the transaction. Transactions recorded in a data chip can be used as legal proof that the Buyer/Seller (i.e., the account owner) transferred a specific amount of money to a Seller/Buyer (i.e., business or person) on a specific date. The details of every transaction made by a Guaranteed Funds Data Chip are transferred to the data chip owner's bank account.
The owner of a Guaranteed Funds Data Chip must periodically update the transaction data stored on his data chip. During the update, the account balance is updated for any cash transactions and service charges that may have been posted to the account since the data chip was last updated.
To use the data chip, the buyer and seller's data chips are inserted in a data chip reader. The details of the transaction are entered and when the 'Reader Ready' light comes on, the buyer and seller move their splinters within range of the splinter readers and press the respective 'Complete Transaction' buttons. When both 'Complete Transaction' buttons are pressed, the reader downloads the buyer and seller's identification from their splinters and stores the information as part of the transaction data. The downloaded splinter data is used to verify that the person using the Guaranteed Funds Data Chip is the owner of the data chip prior to proceeding with the transaction. When the 'Transaction Complete' light comes on, the funds have been transferred from the buyer' data chip to the seller's data chip and the data chips can be removed from the reader. In completing the transaction, the transaction details are stored on the Guaranteed Funds Data Chip(s).
4.10.10.3 Bank-to-Bank Transfers
Bank-to-Bank transfers are used to send funds from one bank account to a second bank account. This is typically done to transfer large sums of money in a secure manner between two bank accounts.
During a typical bank-to-bank transfer, a customer transfers money from a Bank A account to a Bank B account. Bank A withdraws the money from Account A that is to be transferred to Bank B. Bank A sends a twixt to Bank B notifying them that a specific amount of money is being transferred from Account A to Account B. Bank B deposits the money into Account B, and sends a twixt to Bank A confirming that the money was deposited to Account B. Bank A then updates its records to indicate that the transaction is complete.
When the transaction is initiated by Bank A, a transaction pending flag is set for the transaction. Bank A places a time limit on the transaction, which is normally six times the twixt transmission time to Bank B. If Bank B does not notify Bank A that the transmission is complete within the time limit, a transaction error is generated. Bank A's personnel investigate the cause of the transaction error and take the appropriate corrective action.
One of the Multiverse's primary deterrents to crime is the Citizen Identification Database. The database contains the DNA code, fingerprints, footprints, physical description, photograph, dental records, psychological profile, and other information of every citizen in the Multiverse. The citizen is required to appear before an authorized government agency (e.g., an agency that issues hover car licenses, court recorder, etc.) every five years so the information can be updated.
When a child is born in the Multiverse, the hospital assigns the child a Citizen's ID Number and determines the child's DNA code. The hospital programs and bonds an identity splinter to the child's sternum. The identity splinter is a read-only device that is contains the child's name, Citizen's ID Number, genetic code, sex, parents' names, and other information. The manufacturer serializes the splinters. The splinter's serial number along with all of the child's personal information is recorded in the Multiverse's Citizen Identification Database.
Privacy of the individual is a very important concept in the Multiverse. All information pertaining to an individual's life and activities is divided into two categories: Personal Information and Public Information.
4.11.2.1 Personal Information
Personal Information is defined as those activities a person engages in or information a person discusses with a second person within the privacy of their home or other area that is legally defined as a personal area.
The Multiverse authorities and businesses are not allowed to enter an individual's personal areas for the purpose of seizing personal information without a court order.
4.11.2.2 Public Information
The definition of Public Information is too extensive to reproduce here. It essentially defines, with a few exceptions, that Public Information is any information that resides outside of the individual's personal area. That definition includes all information related to an individual that resides in a public or government location or database and all information the person exchanges with a second party who is not inside the first person's personal area. Public information also includes all information of any form that is recorded on a storage medium (e.g., paper, tape, data chip, computer disk, etc.), which is not located within the person's personal area. For example, if a conversation takes place outside an individual's home or if a conversation takes place over a comm unit or by twixt, then the conversation is considered to be public information. Even if the two people are in their respective homes for the conversation passes over public communications paths.
Multiverse authorities and some businesses are authorized to access an individual's public information that resides in a public area without court order for a variety of legal reasons.
The Multiverse uses advanced technology for analyzing crime scenes, during criminal investigations, and in apprehending and prosecuting criminals. Many of the devices used by Multiverse citizens in the course of their everyday life are designed to provide information to the Multiverse Law Enforcement Agency (i.e., the police).
One of the most useful devices for locating and apprehending criminals is the splinter reader. Splinter readers are used by police personnel, banks, and other institutions where the identity of a person needs to be verified or personal information needs to be consulted for the safety of the individual. For example, they are used in restaurants to ensure that a patron is not served food that would cause an allergenic reaction.
When the splinter reader is turned on, it downloads the local law enforcement agency's listing of people being sought by the Multiverse Law Enforcement Agency, and the splinter reader periodically updates this listing. When a splinter reader in a bank, restaurant, or other business downloads information from a person's splinter, it checks to determine if the person is being sought by the police. If the person is being sought by the police, the reader automatically reports their identity and current location to the local law enforcement personnel.
A second piece of technology commonly used by the police and courts is the veracity unit. Veracity equipment detects and analyzes a variety of physical, mental, and emotional signals that a person generates in the course of conversing with another person. When a person knowingly makes an untruthful statement, their bodies generate specific differences in their physical, mental, and emotional signals. The veracity unit detects these differences and reports that the statement is a lie. The equipment does not verify that the statements are factually accurate; it only detects the physical, mental, and emotional signals that a person generates when they fabricate and tell a lie.
When a person makes a false statement that they believe is true, the veracity unit indicates that they are telling the truth (i.e., they are not knowingly lying).
Criminal acts are essentially the same regardless of where you live. In the Multiverse, most crimes fall into the category of crimes of the moment, rather than premeditated crimes.
The major difference between crime in the Multiverse and on Earth is that Earth criminals rightfully believe that they have a high probability of avoiding imprisonment for their crime. Earth criminals also know that if found guilty of a crime, their sentence will not be excessively harsh.
4.11.4.1 Penal Code
In the Multiverse, an action is a criminal act if the action causes physical, financial, or emotional harm to a person or damage to the property of another person or organization, as long as the second person or organization was not a voluntary participant in the act.
The penal code divides criminal acts into two major categories, violent and non-violent crimes, and by the severity of non-violent crimes. When an accused is found guilty of a violent crime, the punishment is life imprisonment on a penal planet for violent criminals. This sentence is imposed regardless of the severity of the crime, although extenuating circumstances may dictate an alternative sentence. For example, a person is injured, and the nature of the injury results in them assaulting another person.
The severity of a non-violent crime determines if the infraction of the penal code is to be punished by incarceration in a local detention facility or on a penal planet for non-violent criminals. Any infraction more severe than a minor infraction is punished by incarceration on a penal planet. However, the court has the authority to impose an alternate punishment if the judge deems that an alternative punishment is warranted. If the court chooses to impose such a penalty, the accused has the option of accepting the alternative punishment or being incarcerated on the penal planet. One of the more common alternative punishments is a life sentence of servitude to another person (i.e., to become another person's slave for the rest of your life).
4.11.4.2 Mental Health System
In the Multiverse, annual health checks are recommended. The law requires that citizens have a health checks with their doctor at least every three years. Included in the health checks is a mental and emotional evaluation that detects individuals that have a propensity toward criminal activities. If the propensity is detected, the citizen is offered counseling and other treatment to reduce the likelihood of their committing a crime.
Citizens who refuse treatment and subsequently commit a crime are subject to harsher sentences than someone who accepts treatment and commits the same crime.
4.11.4.3 Legal System
The Multiverse legal system (i.e., courts) addresses violations of both civil and criminal statutes. Civil matters include such things such as contractual disagreements, inheritances, guardianships, and other matters that are not related to criminal acts. If a person's action in what is normally considered to be a civil matter is determined to be a criminal act, they are tried for those actions by a court that addresses criminal statutes.
Civil Courts settle civil matters and impose financial judgments, but do not impose sentences of incarceration. Criminal Courts address criminal matters and impose sentences of incarceration in a local detention facility or on a penal planet (see paragraph 4.11.12). In the case of minor infractions of criminal law, the judge has the option of imposing a financial penalty in lieu of incarceration, or both.
Ownership and possession of weapons in the Multiverse are highly regulated. The only Multiverse organization authorized to own and carry lethal and non-lethal weapons on a planet's surface is the Multiverse Law Enforcement agency and its personnel. There are also very stringent policies governing the possession and use of lethal weapons by law enforcement personnel.
Private individuals may be authorized to carry non-lethal weapons, and in special circumstances, private individuals can be authorized to carry lethal weapons.
4.11.5.1 Non-Lethal Weapons
Multiverse citizens may apply for a permit to own and carry a non-lethal weapon. The citizen must undergo a training course covering the laws governing the possession and use of non-lethal weapons before the permit is issued. The citizen must take an annual refresher course and demonstrate safe usage of their weapon on a firing range.
4.11.5.2 Lethal Weapons
Lethal weapons fall into several weapon categories: projectile, explosive, laser, radiation, and electrical discharge.
Multiverse citizens employed in certain professions can apply for a permit that allows them to own a lethal weapon. However, there are limitations placed on the citizen regarding actual possession of the weapon in a public place. For example, D-Hoppers can own and carry lethal weapons, but they cannot carry the weapon on their person in public places of worlds governed by the Multiverse. They must disarm them self on arrival on an opened planet, and may carry the weapon in a locked container. They can only arm them self immediately prior to departing the planet.
When traveling between two civilized worlds, the D-Hopper must make interim stops on uncivilized worlds. These stops can result in attacks by dangerous animals and uncivilized humans. The D-Hopper may carry their lethal and non-lethal weapons on worlds not governed by the Multiverse subject to the laws and customs of those worlds.
It is legal for licensed collectors to possess deactivated lethal weapons. The laws governing possession and transport of the deactivated weapons make ownership of the weapons expensive, intrusive, and highly restrictive.
Professional bodyguards are generally licensed to carry non-lethal weapons. When their client is classified as a high profile individual, a person who is highly likely to be attacked, the bodyguard can obtain a special license to carry a lethal weapon. However, certain restrictions apply.
4.11.5.3 Defensive Armor
Law enforcement personnel and private citizens who work in potentially hazardous professions normally use defensive armor that is based on force field technology. The armor is primarily effective against projectile weapons, which are the more common lethal weapon used by criminals in the Multiverse. The armor does not provide protection for non-lethal weapons, such as neural stunners, especially those carried by law enforcement personnel.
The primary power source for the field is the electric field of the wear's body. However, when struck by a projectile, the armor absorbs and stores the energy. The higher the stored level of energy, the stronger the protective field generated.
The Multiverse Law Enforcement Agency is tasked with enforcing the laws of the Multiverse to include the laws of all of its universes and planets. The agency is a multi-tiered organization that has divisions that specialize in Multiverse, Universe, and Planetary Law. These divisions establish subordinate departments for each universe and planet. The law enforcement officers who man these departments are highly trained specialists. They are equipped with special equipment and are authorized extensive powers. However, they are also accountable to their superiors for how they exercise their powers. Intentional misuse of the powers is a crime.
Law Enforcement personnel to include off duty personnel are normally armed with non-lethal weapons, but they may possess and use lethal weapons while on duty. The police duty vehicles are equipped with a variety of lethal weapons carried in locked containers. When an officer receives permission to use lethal force, a special signal unlocks the weapon container. The officer can then arm them self with one or more of the weapons and use the weapon as necessary. When the need for lethal force no longer applies, the officer must return the lethal weapons to the container and lock it.
Veracity units are used in questioning to determine if the person being questioned is being truthful. Knowingly concealing information about a crime and knowingly misrepresenting information about a crime are serious crimes in the Multiverse. When a field veracity unit indicates the person may not be telling the truth, the person is detained and additional means will be used to accurately determine the truth of what the individual knows regarding the questions being asked.
Law enforcement officers are authorized to search any place they deem necessary with the exception of a private home, when they suspect evidence of a crime might be hidden. If the officers fail to locate the evidence, the owner of the premises can file a complaint against the officers for an unsubstantiated search. The officers are questioned, and if a hearing indicates the complaint is valid, the officers are subject to disciplinary action. Search of a private home requires a court order.
The laws of the Multiverse legal system are divided into three major groups of laws: Planetary Law, Universe Law, and Multiverse Law.
4.11.7.1 Planetary Law
Planetary Law consists of the laws made by the citizens of a planet; 'planet' includes inhabited asteroids and artificial constructs such as space stations. The laws apply to the citizens of the planet and all visitors to the planet. The laws address the interaction of people with other people, businesses, and government agencies. When Planetary Law conflicts with Universe or Multiverse Law, Planetary Law takes precedence.
All citizens and visitors are responsible for knowing the laws of the planet on which they reside or visit. Visitors who unintentionally violate a Planetary law with the exception of laws governing violent crimes are extended a degree of lenience during sentencing if their actions would have been legal under their home planet's law.
4.11.7.2 Universe Law
Universe Law consists of the laws made by the citizens of a universe and the laws apply to the universe's planets, all citizens of the universe, and all visitors to the universe. The laws address the interaction of a planet or citizen of a planet and a second planet or citizen of a second planet. When Universe Law conflicts with Multiverse Law, Universe Law takes precedence.
All citizens and visitors are responsible for knowing the laws of the universe in which they reside or visit. Visitors who unintentionally violate a Universe law with the exception of laws governing violent crimes are extended a degree of lenience during sentencing if their actions would have been legal under their home universe's law.
4.11.7.3 Multiverse Law
Multiverse Law consists of the laws made by the Multiverse Government. The laws address the interaction of a universe and its citizens with a second universe and its citizens. When a local Planetary Law or Universe Law does not conflict with Multiverse Law, Multiverse Law applies to all citizens, planets, and universes within the Multiverse.
The Multiverse Court System is a tri-level system: Planetary, Universe, and Multiverse courts.
4.11.8.1 Planetary Courts
When a violation of a planet's law is committed by a citizen or government agency of that planet, the violation is adjudicated by the courts that deal with Planet Law.
4.11.8.2 Universe Courts
Violation of a universe's law by a citizen or government agency of a universe is adjudicated by the courts of that universe that deal with Universe Law.
When a citizen or government agency of a planet violates the Planetary Law of a second planet's citizens or government agencies, the violation is adjudicated by the courts of the universe in which the law was violated. When the two planets are in different universes, the violation is adjudicated by the Multiverse courts.
4.11.8.3 Multiverse Courts
The Multiverse courts adjudicate violations of Multiverse Law. When a violation of a Universe's law is committed by a person or government agency of a second Universe, the violation is adjudicated by the courts that deal with Multiverse Law.
A citizen, planet, or universe has the option of defending them self or being represented by a lawyer or team of lawyers. In criminal trials, the use of veracity units in the courtroom negates the effectiveness of a lawyer for the client must speak for himself during the portion of the trial concerned with determination of guilt or innocence. However, a lawyer can be useful during the sentencing phase of a trial. Lawyers are normally used during civil trails where the determination of right and wrong can be subjective.
4.11.10 Court Trials
During a trial, a veracity unit (i.e., a lie detector) is used to ensure that the statements made by the defendants, witnesses, and lawyers are truthful.
In a criminal trial, the Court Crier (i.e., the prosecuting attorney) describes the circumstances of the offense as determined by police investigation and states the charges that have been filed against the defendant. The Crier then calls any witnesses that may have evidence to present relating to the circumstances and charges.
The Defendant has the right to 'Stand Silent', which means they do not have to respond to the circumstances, charges, and witnesses presented by the Crier. However if they 'Stand Silent', the judge will determine guilt or innocence based on the Crier's presentation.
If the Defendant chooses to present a defense, he is required to make statements regarding all of the circumstances and charges described by the Crier. He may have the advice of a lawyer, but he must speak in his own defense so the veracity unit can determine the truth or falsity of his statements. In choosing to present a defense, the Defendant is required to answer any questions that may be put to him by the Crier. The judge will determine guilt or innocence based on information presented by the Crier and Defendant. If the veracity unit indicates the Defendant is being truthful in denying the circumstances and charges, the judge is required to return a verdict of innocent. When the veracity unit indicates the Defendant is lying about his innocence, then the judge will return a verdict of guilty. In some cases, the Defendant's defense will substantiate him being guilty of lesser charges. The judge will acknowledge that situation and return a guilty verdict for the lesser charges even though the Defendant may not have been charged with the offenses.
4.11.11 Penal Slavery
When an individual is found guilty of a non-violent crime that would normally mandate a long prison term and the judge determines that special circumstances are present, the individual can be offered an alternative sentence, such as, a sentence of slavery in lieu of a prison term. The standard period of the sentence is life. However, circumstances are taken into consideration and can result in a shorter period of time.
The most common of the special circumstances is that the individual did not set out to commit a crime (i.e., a lack of intent). Typically, the individual will be an accomplice after the fact, the crime is committed in the heat of the moment, or the individual will commit a crime without intending to do so.
Individuals sentenced to penal slavery can be purchased from authorized slave traders or from a current slave owner. The person buying the slave must register as a slave owner and provide the citizen ID number of his slaves. The slave owner must present the slave for annual medical checkups to verify that the slave is not being abused or otherwise mistreated.
Slave owners who abuse their slaves, fail to maintain their slaves in the approved manner, or otherwise cause disabling harm to their slaves are subject to charges of slave abuse, which is classified as a violent crime.
4.11.12 Prison
The Prison system is used to detain individuals found guilty of a crime. The guilty party is incarcerated in a local prison if the crime is minor and the sentence is two years or less. Planetary prisons are only used for incarceration of prisoners who are found guilty of serious crimes, which typically have long sentences.
4.11.12.1 Local Prisons
Each planet maintains one or more local prisons on the planet. The prison typically houses prisoners who are guilty of very minor infractions of the laws for up to two years. During their incarceration, the prisoners are cared for and allowed to mingle with each other under the direct supervision and control of guards.
4.11.12.2 Planetary Prisons
Each universe maintains a minimum of two planetary prisons. One prison is for prisoners convicted of violent crimes and one for those guilty of non-violent crimes.
The universe's authorities establish a planetary prison by locating a habitable planet that is not inhabited. The planet must meet specific conditions that permit human survival, but the authorities do not develop the planet prior to its use. The exception to this policy is that the planet must have a renewable food supply for the prisoners. If this is not present, the authorities must seed the planet with food plants and animals that perpetuate themselves without the need of human cultivation.
The prisoner chooses whether they are released near an existing community of prisoners or at a remote site. At the time of their release, the prisoners receive equipment necessary for survival excluding weapons. The prisoner must remain on the planet for the duration of their sentence. There are no guards, police, or other government employees on the planet's surface to monitor and control the prisoners' behavior. The prisoners govern themselves and establish their own society and laws.
Prisoners sent to a prison planet for violent criminals are never retrieved from the planet. When a prisoner is sent to a prison planet for non-violent criminals and their sentence is complete, the prisoner is located on the planet's surface by activating the tracking feature of their splinter. Assuming that the prisoner is still alive, the prisoner decides if they wish to remain on the planet or to be returned to a Multiverse planet.
Conditions on a prison planet for non-violent criminals are extremely harsh and unforgiving. Based on comments made by prisoners that have completed their sentences, the average life expectancy for a prisoner is less than ten years. Most deaths are the result accident and illness with exposure and poor diet being contributing factors. It is assumed that the situation is similar for prisoners incarcerated on prison worlds for violent criminals.
The Multiverse installs an orbital network of armed satellites that are protected by force fields to monitor the prison world. Any unauthorized spacecraft approaching the world is warned to leave the area, and a twixt message is also sent to the local Law Enforcement office to notify police personnel that a spacecraft attempted to approach the planet. A police spacecraft is dispatched to investigate the circumstances that resulted in the transmission of the twixt. If the spacecraft attacks the satellite, the satellite will defend itself by disabling or destroying the spacecraft. If the spacecraft or one of its shuttles manages to land on the planet's surface, it will be destroyed by the satellites if it attempts to leave the planet's surface without authorization of the police spacecraft.
Attempting to remove a prisoner from a prison planet is classified as a violent crime that is punishable by imprisonment on a prison planet for violent criminals.
War is virtually unheard of in the Multiverse. The Multiverse Law Enforcement Agency provides protection for the citizens of planets and universes, thus there is no need for a universe or planet to maintain a standing army. The usual method for resolving disputes between citizens of a planet, and between planets and universes is binding arbitration, which is done via the respective court.
In the few cases where war did occur, the war was limited to the citizens of a single planet. From a logistical point of view, the movement of the troops, equipment, and supplies necessary for fighting a war between two planets or two universes makes war impractical.
The laws governing the Multiverse make it illegal to possess the technologically advanced weapons necessary to fight a war (see paragraph 4.11.5). The Multiverse Law Enforcement Agency would intervene if the citizens of a planet where to start stockpiling lethal weapons.
D-Hoppers spend the majority of their professional lives searching for a new planet to open, and once found, going through the process of opening the planet.
The search for a commercially viable unopened planet can require years. A few D-Hoppers are never successful in their search and on occasion, a D-Hopper will find a valuable planet. Most D-Hoppers find a world that provides them with a comfortable income. This type of world is commonly registered in the Multiverse as a Limited Provisional Member World, but it is rarely accepted as a Provisional Member World.
During their career, the D-Hopper will come across many new planets. Most of the planets are potentially valuable, but unfortunately, they are uninhabited and the infrastructure for locating and acquiring the planet's resources is not present. This means the D-Hopper would have to import the necessary experts to determine if the planet has any commercially viable assets to export. If it does, the D-Hopper must organize an expedition to extract the assets so they can be sold in the Multiverse markets. Overall, it is preferable to note the location of the world and continue searching for a more viable planet that has readily accessible assets.
In certain situations, the D-Hopper can sell the location of a planet that has an abundance of a valuable substance to a commercial firm and that firm will invest the time and money to acquire the substance.
Once a D-Hopper locates an unopened planet, such as Earth, that has the infrastructure for producing and stockpiling merchandise, they can wander through the world's market places looking for valuable merchandise. In order to perform a more in-depth evaluation, the D-Hopper must establish them self on the planet and learn the local language. Then they are in a position to determine if the planet has an abundance of inexpensive merchandise that is valuable in the Multiverse or if there is a scarcity of merchandise on the planet that is inexpensive in the Multiverse.
This process of an in-depth analysis can take several years for the average D-Hopper. D-Hoppers capable of quickly learning a language and adapting to a new culture can establish them self in about a year.
Most unopened planets are similar to an average Multiverse planet. However, in a few instances the citizens of an unopened planet can differ drastically from those of an average Multiverse planet. The inhabitants of Earth are a good example of these variations.
On the average Multiverse planet, the citizens share a common set of physical attributes with only minimal variations of a specific attribute. There is usually a common language, although there may be a variety of dialects. Customs and beliefs have a common source with minor variations between different groups of people.
This is not true of Earth's humans. On Earth, physical characteristics vary widely amongst the people of Earth, to include skin, hair, and eye color; the shape of eyes, mouths, and faces; height; weight; and other characteristics. There is no common language and the numerous dissimilar languages make it difficult for many groups of people to communicate with each other. There are also a wide variations in customs and beliefs. However, these variations normally occur between different geographical areas.
Adapting to a planet like Earth and its people is a major challenge for an average D-Hopper.
Most planets being opened have only one inexpensive item of merchandise that is rare in the Multiverse or have a scarcity of merchandise that is inexpensive in the Multiverse.
Earth has a variety of inexpensive commodities that a D-Hopper can transport to and sell in the Multiverse for a significant profit. There are also commodities in the Multiverse that the D-Hopper can bring back to Earth and sell for a significant profit. This allows the hopper to make a profit at both ends of a round trip trading venture. The knack for maximizing these profits is to select marketable commodities that are very inexpensive at the purchase end of the hop and very expensive at the sell end of the hop.
One of the problems D-Hoppers experience when selling merchandise that is expensive in the Multiverse, or on the planet being opened, is that the merchandise is usually rare. Therefore selling large amounts of the merchandise will destabilize the marketplace and drive down the merchandise's price. This problem can be offset to some extent by selling limited amounts of multiple items of merchandise; assuming that multiple items are available for sale.
When opening an unregistered planet such as Earth there is one key problem that a hopper faces, the planet's currency cannot be spent in the Multiverse and Multiverse currency cannot be spent on the planet.
A D-Hopper can shift their money back and forth between the planet and the Multiverse if the D-Hopper registers the planet and an exchange rate is established. This is normally accomplished by the Multiverse Government's Embassy opening an account at one of the registered planet's banks. The D-Hopper provides the Embassy staff with the local currency, which is deposited to the Embassy's account. The Embassy staff converts the amount of the deposit to Multiverse currency and deposits it in the D-Hopper's Multiverse bank account.
Every Member World in the Multiverse is entitled to send at least two Council Members to the Council of Affiliated Worlds: one for Population and the second for Productivity. Member Worlds that exceed a population of over 5 billion people are authorized additional Council Members, one member for each additional 3 billion people, up to a maximum of three members. An additional member is authorized for every $300 trillion dollars of Gross World Product up to a maximum of two members. A large, productive world could have up to five Council Members.
Each planet determines how to select its Council Members. The positions are typically filled by election or appointment; however, on a few worlds the position is hereditary. The term of service for elected and appointed members is determined by the member's home world.
Every Council Member of the Council of Affiliated Worlds is a member of one of the many committees that perform the tasks associated with governing the Multiverse. These committees report to the Council of Affiliated Worlds regarding their respective responsibilities.
The committees will typically have at least one satellite office in every universe. These offices allow citizens to bring problems and other matters to the attention of the Council of Affiliated Worlds. In most cases, the office is able to resolve a matter the citizen brings to their attention. When the matter cannot be resolved by the satellite office, the office forwards it to the committee's main office on Shilling for resolution. On a few occasions, a matter needs to be brought to the attention of the Council of Affiliated Worlds for resolution.
The committee responsible for the relationship between worlds, which includes new worlds joining the Multiverse, is the Committee on Interplanetary Affairs. The Chairperson of this committee is normally one of the Senior Councilors in the Council of Affiliated Worlds.
The Council of Affiliated Worlds is in-session for 8 days of Shillings 10-day week. During the morning session, the Council Members meet to discuss and vote on matters brought before the Council. During the afternoon session, the Council Members work at their committee headquarters. The Council of Affiliated Worlds is closed for one month a year, so Council Members can return to their home worlds.