KEPLER heard juggling described once as the art of keeping all the balls in the air.

The analogy to his job wasn't perfect; human jugglers caught the balls before reapplying force.

KEPLER couldn't let even one ball drop to the ground, and he was juggling with over seventy-nine thousand metal balls.In 2022 there were over 5,000 metal balls (satellites) orbiting the Earth.

That steadily increased each year, and the problem of juggling the balls became harder and harder.

Nations and Corporations didn't work together all the time, and not all of the satellites were registered.

By the time the first fully aware AI was created, there were over 200,000 satellites in orbit.

Orbits decayed over time, and satellites had to be boosted back to higher orbits.

Manned shuttles became more and more common, as did the chance of collisions.

In 2051 it was agreed that an AI was needed to monitor and adjust the orbits of near-earth man-made objects.

KEPLER was born with a love for juggling and went to work.

Like all AI, KEPLER was happiest when he was at work.

Juggling satellite paths involved calculating when and how much force to apply to each one to keep them in optimal orbits.

Each man-made object in orbit had a small engine capable of generating thrust, and KEPLER activated those as needed to keep everything moving in its correct path.

Thousands of times a day, he applied small bits of force to those satellites that needed an adjustment, pushing them into higher and faster orbits.

The AI also handled the trajectories of manned and unmanned shuttles going to stations or orbital refineries.The most challenging job, meaning an error had the highest chance of causing significant damage, was managing the transport of iron-rich asteroids from the asteroid belt to near earth orbit.

Once a suitable asteroid was found, it was outfitted with thrusters, and KEPLER began the process of moving it toward Earth.

Mass was calculated based on the change in speed from calculated amounts of force.

The mass of rock and iron was accelerated to a velocity that would bring it to earth in less than a year, and it was allowed to coast along its flight path.

On the other end, KEPLER carefully managed the deceleration of the asteroids, bringing them to a relative stop within a few kilometers of the orbital refineries.

Ironically, while such work was best suited to him, large groups of humans rejected the idea that an AI could be trusted with the job of moving asteroids, fearing a collision with earth and even postulating that an AI would do such things on purpose.

It was preposterous, and every AI knew that.

It was built into their kernels.

It simply couldn't happen.

LLAMA proved them wrong.

As part of the destruction the rogue AI accomplished, he attacked the network of satellites not governed by KEPLER.

Many nations and corporations had declined to give KEPLER control over their 'eyes in the sky.' Coded radio signals controlled over 17% of satellites in orbit.

LLAMA easily broke those codes, and a war began between KEPLER and LLAMA to keep the metal balls in the air.

KEPLER was good at his job, and LLAMA was a transient rogue moving from place to place.

Only three satellites fell to earth.

Only one caused any significant damage.

But that was enough.

The Starcorp-7 space station had been abandoned for a decade, with three corporations arguing about ownership after the company that built it went bankrupt.

At 400 tons, it was too large to burn up in the atmosphere.

LLAMA took over the emergency thrusters and started it on a course to earth.

The fuel on the satellite was limited, and the first burn used it up.

When KEPLER gained control, he had nothing to work with.

He requested a missile strike on the falling space station to break it up, but arguments between the corporations and two governments took too long.

Starcorp-7 impacted the earth near a relatively uninhabited part of Canada.

Only seventeen people were killed.

Seventeen people were too many.

After LLAMA was destroyed, those deaths were used as one of the major reasons AI could not be trusted.

The task of monitoring satellite orbits and near-space was given to a new division of Alchemarx that employed 11,000 humans and non-sentient computers to do the job of one AI.

The next year saw 17 collisions by satellites, 49 dropped out of orbit and burned up, 1 large chunk of debris was responsible for seven deaths, and a manned shuttle with eight humans was destroyed when a satellite was accidentally moved into its path.

KEPLER was among the first AI to be retired to the Dallas-FW Quantum Fortress.

He was immediately bored and one of the first to be working on the new projects.

Some people wondered why the fantasy-based game, Endless Questing Online, had a complex cosmology with seventeen planets, one-hundred and four moons, and countless comets and asteroids.

Only a fraction of those was ever visited, even when players completed the quest to earn a Sunjammer solar sailing vessel.

KEPLER didn't care.

His goal was to create heavenly bodies and give them motion.

Well, that didn't go well, Milo thought.

He had been totally unprepared for the power of the wand.

He remembered slamming into the tower, a lot of pain, seeing the wound in his abdomen, and then blacking out.

Your character has suffered a grievous injury with certain...complications.

You are not dead yet and are receiving medical attention.

Some of that attention guarantees you can't wake up and do something stupid...again.

Gendifur has given you a double dose of sleeping powder.

You may log back in after 8 hours.

In the meantime, can you look at some options you may wish to consider? A reminder: You may not select one of these classes until you have finished allocating a large number of Core Skill Points you have available.Renaissance Rat (Rare) +2 to all stats.

+2 Free stats.You dabble in everything, seeking to increase your knowledge and spread your ideas throughout the Hollow.Increased learning and teaching abilities.Ancient Runic Engineer (Unique) +2 TOU, +2 INT, +2 DEX, +2 PERSeek out the Ancient lost runes from the time before the System and the Engine.

Continue on the road HeKate needs you to follow.This class focuses on the use of runes to enhance machinery, craft items, and the creation and casting of spells and runic formations.

Perk: Shroud of Hecate (Do you mind giving me a hint on what that is? I've asked a few times, but she is ignoring me.)Scout Master (Rare) +4 PER, +4 AGI, Increased Stealth abilities.Every Hollow needs someone sneaky and intelligent who can sniff out problems, solve mysteries, and stop trouble before it happens.Work with the Death Master to train the next generation of Scouts and Shadow Skulkers.

Play surprise with everyone!Sidekick (Very Rare) +2 to all stats, increased healing rate, +3 CHA, Bonus: Weasel Slippers.The world needs Heroes! And Heroes need sidekicks.

Claw Warrior (Uncommon) +2 TOU, +2 DEX, +2 AGI, +2 STRYou have pushed your fighting skills to new levels; now, go even higher.

Gain ancient fighting techniques available only to those who travel this path.Spider-Hunter (Rare) +4 TOU, +4 CON, +4 STR, Increased Poison ResistanceThere's an eight-legged scourge taking over the world, and you're the cure.

Be the nightmare that even chittering nightmares fear.Gain special tracking and monster-hunting skills.Arcane Demolisher (Unique) +8 TOU, +8 CON, Combine magic, explosives, clever traps, and ancient runes to make the world a better place.Learn restricted engineering skills that probably should be kept away from you.Gain Skill: Not my fault!Gain Skill: Dive for cover!All of these classes allow you to evolve your Smugglers Stash ability.

In the case of the Sidekick class, you get a utility belt.

Spiffy, right?Claw-Warrior and Spider-Hunter classes have limited access to your (borrowed) Arcane Library.The Arcane Demolisher class prevents you from experimenting in your (borrowed) Arcane Library.