HEADS UP: I apologize in advance if the quoting below is confusing. I'm accessing through a computer at work which seems to be having issues with gmail . . .

On Sat, Jul 5, 2014 at 5:17 PM, Timothy Collinson <timothy.collinson@port.ac.uk> wrote:

Hi there

<On 5 Jul 2014, at 14:49, Richard Aiken <raikenclw@gmail.com> wrote:
<Some settlers were Vilani (my version of Collace is a traditionally Vilani world, although one that's been isolated from other such worlds for about a millenia),

Interesting. How do they differ from bog-standard Vilani? (I'm assuming culturally rather than physically although maybe that too)

They don't, really.

I just wanted a traditionally Vilani world in my version of the District. After considering all the candidates, I decided that Collace with it's Imperial leanings but also it's apparent reluctance to join the Third Imperium outright was the best fit. My "Collaceii" First Families - after successfully keeping their culture intact here in the hinterlands throughout the entire (~800 year long IMTU) Long Night - aren't precisely eager to join the new (225 years young IMTU) "mongrel Empire" that's been proclaimed by these "backwater nobody" Syleans. The First Families secretly hope that the homeworld (Vland) has a deep plot in progress, one aimed at subjugating the Syleans and returning control of the Empire to its rightful rulers.

And the Collaceii might even be right. After all, the Vilani ruled Charted Space for millenia through a Shadow Emperor. Maybe they never really stopped doing so . . . :P

<Of course, what none of these retailers know is that these items have hidden backdoors, which allow (admittedly quite rare) IMPERIAL GOVERNMENT psions to bypass their <protection . . . <evil grin>

And particularly sneaky! If I pinch that (if it's ok) would certainly give credit.

No problem. You're quite welcome to it. :)

Richard Aiken

"Never insult anyone by accident." Robert A. Heinlein