za3k > archive > lexicon1 > Cataphract

A Cataphract was an intended spacecraft produced by the Golgori Sovereign Empire, although none ever escaped Mizar-5’s outer atmosphere. They were crafted of metals harvested from fallen meteorites, and propelled by a modified Balefyre Engine. The Engine was modified in such a way that the pilot of the craft could psycho-kinetically control how exactly the Engine operated, such as the speed of fuel intake and compression. This was necessary because a Cataphract had little in the way of electrical instruments, and very few options otherwise to control the spacecraft’s flight.

It is estimated that there were a dozen or so attempts to escape Mizar-5’s atmosphere with a Cataphract, but as far as it is known, none succeeded. The attempts were likely limited by the rarity of the metals used and the rate in which psychically-attuned Golgari reached the age of maturity. Most of the Cataphracts failed because of mental stress: the burden of controlling the spacecraft caused fatal cerebral hemorrhages in the pilots.

A perfectly preserved Cataphract can be observed in the Denmortia Rainlands, frozen in the air. It has yet to be more closely examined, because of the unique difficulties in reaching it.

-Selii Niramaned EWO, ITU, YE