Imperial Archives

The Imperial Archives, known as Koshitshu no Akaibu in Yamataigo, or simply as the Archives, is a multimedia repository located in the Imperial District of Kyoto, Yamatai (Planet). It is maintained by a combined team of Department of Information and the Scientific Studies Service (SSS) personnel. Rather than being one building, it is a complex of five or seven buildings (depending on the administrative buildings) situated around the large Imperial Library. It was built by architect & archaeologist Yuri Shihagana in YE 26 over the much smaller Imperial Archive using a large sum of funds received from retired politicians Harold Clipper and Itshi Nogara. Other important contributors include computer scientist Koshita and astronomer Tokomori.

Its tallest building - the Observatory - is 100 metres high and the complex spans just under 800 metres in width and 600 metres in length. It is accessed through the south-eastern gate, which is connected to the aptly named Archive Street that leads eastward back to the Palace Square, which houses the Empress' Palace and Imperial Palace. From the skyline, the buildings are not very visible, but from above, the distinctive compass-rose shape of the complex can be seen quite easily.

Although the Archives are seen as a governmental organisation, they also host a large number of non-governmental personnel and are open to all visitors, civilian and otherwise; despite this, however, a small number of undercover police maintain the security of the complex in order to prevent vandalism and theft.

The following sections contain information about the notable locations of the Imperial Archives.

After entering the complex from the Archive gate - which stands between the Computer Labs and the Shihagane Museum - a long walkway leads to the Archive Plaza directly in front of the Imperial Library. In the centre stands a compass rose, with instructions for each direction. On the east side stands a small statue of Shihagane (holding a skull and humerus), on the west side are sculptures of Clipper and Nogara (one one pointing a finger up, the other pointing his hand down), on the north side is an effigy of Tokomori (staring through a telescope), and on the south side is a statue of Koshita (holding a GPU and computer monitor). Several walkways lead directly to the other buildings, while the Imperial Library is accessed through a broad staircase from the northwestern side of the plaza. Etched into the compass are two mottos: For the pursuit of knowledge and To enlighten that which was first unknown.

In the heart of the 'rose' stands the large Imperial Library. It is 60 metres wide, 200 metres broad, and contains a massive collection of endless shelves filled with electronic books that can be viewed using the various monitors surrounding them; at the library's entrance, several stewards can be found helping visitors and maintaining the collection. The library is divided into several sections, including fiction, non-fiction, and educational works. Each of these sections have a large auditorium, where visitors can read in silence. The library is said to contain the largest selection of works in the entire Empire and is considered to be the heart of Imperial knowledge.

A smaller building stands at the western end of the rose. It is 20 metres high, 80 metres broad, is shaped in the fashion of a Shinto shrine, and is home to the Kyoto Debate Team. It is the place where many debates about many more topics are held - and some Senators visit the house in their spare time to teach and learn from these young minds in their rhetorical techniques. While seemingly insignificant, it is also the place where multiple TV shows are recorded, mostly surrounding the house's intent. The house is divided into four corners, each dedicated to one of the house's four mantras: Think, Listen, Respect, and Speak.

Located on the south end of the rose, the Computer Labs is the place where most of the complex's computer equipment is located. It is 30 metres high, 100 metres broad, and is open to most visitors, who use the computers for educational reasons. At the main floor, there are three long rows of computers, each equipped with internet access and multimedia databases. In the basement section, it is home to the complex's KAMI supercomputer - whose military components have been repurposed for the use of making advanced calculations - which is often used for cracking, solving, and verifying both mathematical, physical, and other scientific theorems. It is maintained by a team of SSS engineers, who also monitor against abuse of the system. The facility was named after Tori Koshita, the engineer who - along with his team - developed and installed most of the Lab's hardware and software.

At the eastern end of the rose stands the most visited building of the complex, the Natural History Museum. It is 40 metres high, 120 metres broad, and has a large collection of natural history specimens. Behind the entrance, which boasts a small statue of Ketsurui Yui, stands the large lobby; behind it, the museum is divided into several sections, including prehistory, tropical, artic, oceanic, and Humans. The museum also holds temporary exhibitions - gathering specimens from across Yamatai space - and is home to several eyecathers, including a massive skeleton of a prehistorical woolly mammoth, the skeleton of a blue whale, and various objects saved from the destruction of Geshrinopolis. In terms of visitors, it lacks behind the Yamatai National Museum, but it is the most visited scientific museum on Yamatai (Planet).

On the northern part of the rose, in the middle of a large garden named 'Tokomori Gardens', stands a small observatory with a large telescope. It is 100 metres high, 60 metres broad, and is home to the Kyoto Astronomy Enthusiast Club, a team of amateur astronomers who operate the observatory and give tours to visitors. The telescope in question is a 30-centimeter reflecting telescope with an optimal zoom of 150x; additionally, there is also a 300mm telescopic camera used for astrophotography by the Club. This is then used in the large area below the telescope room: the planetarium. Using data gathered from multiple sources and the computing power of the Koshita KAMI, the Kashitara Planetarium hosts a stellar collection of the Kikyo Sector and from elsewhere in the Kagami Galaxy. It is one of the most complete planetariums in Yamatai space and was named after Sogai Tokomori, who donated both of the telescopes and was the first chairman of the Club, and Sone Kashitara, who developed the software used in the planetarium.

Near the Library stand two administrative buildings. They are 20 metres high and 40 metres broad. The west one, nicknamed 'Linkings Building' after administrator Thomas Linkings, is dedicated to maintaining the complex's facilities and houses most of the archive's administrative, IT, and repair personnel, while the other, nicknamed 'Fumiaki Building' after chemist Tada Fumiaki, is dedicated to R&D and houses most of the archive's of the scientific and economic personnel. The buildings are the only part not open to visitors; limited tours, however, are available to government officials.

Yoerik created this article on 2018/09/30 03:34; Frostjaeger approved it (using the checklist) on 2018/10/02 08:24.