History Literature / LucifersStar

[[folder: The novel]]

* SexSlave: This is the role for many bioroids and they're often customized to personal kinks like the future's equivalent to ''Film/{{Frozen}}'' or ''Literature/HarryPotter''. This is played for BlackComedy as Cassius finds it horrifying once he realizes they're fully sentient.

* HumanSubspecies: The Crius are a genetically engineered BeautifulElite which also make extensive use of cybernetics to improve themselves. At least the nobility are since they run a FeudalFuture. They're blown away by the Chel, though, who have engineered themselves to live in zero-gravity asteroid belts and who look more like TheGreys rather than people. It's implied several other human human subspecies exist as well. Bioroids sit on the edge of this and RidiculouslyHumanRobots.

* HumanSubspecies: Bioroids and Chel are effectively this.

* DeflectorShields: Common enough to be equivalent to a flak jacket for troops.
* DeliberateValuesDissonance: The Crius are a bunch of SocialDarwinist FeudalFuture AristocratsAreEvil types. However, while Cassius looks like a Nazi posterchild, his siblings are actually higher-ranking and both black. It's also stated the Royal Family is of African American (and several other races) descent.
** It's also a FreeLoveFuture to a lesser extent with spacers known for having open relationships, polyamory, and causal sex. This actually makes Cassius uncomfortable as he comes from a more traditional society with rigid social rules about relationships.
* DoomedHometown: The planet Crius is bombed to oblivion by the Commonwealth in the opening chapter of the first book, forcing the Archduchy to surrender.

* FreeLoveFuture: Individual planets and cultures like the Archduchy of Crius may be conservative (though nobles of both sexes are expected to keep concubines as examples of status) but even the ANazyByAnyOtherName culture has no problems with homosexuality. DefectorFromDecadence protagonist Cassius is a bit off put by "spacer" culture sexual mores. Humans who live on ships or space stations invariably have multiple partners and care nothing about casual hook-ups while being in committed relationships. Notably, Cassius ends up romantically involved with two women on his ship who are involved with each other--which he finds off-putting than titillating. It's also noteworthy there's a thriving trade in SexSlave RidiculouslyHumanRobot units called "Bioroids" which is depicted as repugnant but widely practiced (since they're completely sentient--just BrainwashedAndCrazy).

* CrapsackWorld: More like ''Crapsack Galaxy'' as while the action of the series doesn't take place outside of the Spiral (often), it's generally a horrible place throughout. The Spiral (a.k.a Human Space) is full of FeudalFuture and CultColony worlds with TheEmpire being the kindest way to describe all of the major powers. Slavery of sentient androids is common and so are devastating galactic conflicts. Outside the Spiral are SmugSuper aliens who are TheFederation in name only and AbusivePrescursors who consider lesser races nothing more than a source of amusement.

* CruelAndUnusualDeath: [[spoiler: Hiro was tortured to death by Zoe due to his status as a spy and her own sadistic nature.]]
* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: The Commonwealth-Archduchy War has a lot of similarities to World War In IN SPACE with the ending being equivalent of the atomic bomb being dropped on Japan....except, in this case a ColonyDrop.

* NaziNobleman: Crius basically seems to have been ruled by a class of genetically engineered fascists who look down on all natural born races. Ironically, this makes Cassius himself one even though he has no such prejudices.

* ANaziByAnyOtherName: The Crius get called out as this, though they're more a FeudalFuture set of evil aristocrats. WordOfGod claims they're based on the Principality of Zeon and the Galactic Empire who both had Space Nazi inspirations. They are people who practice of FantasticRacism and wear a lot of black, though.

* CharClone: Cassius is a red-attired blond starfighter pilot who works for ANaziByAnyOtherName.

* DeliberateValuesDissonance: The Crius are a bunch of ANaziByAnyOtherName FeudalFuture AristocratsAreEvil types. However, while Cassius looks like a Nazi posterchild, his siblings are actually higher-ranking and both black. It's also stated the Royal Family is of African American (and several other races) descent.

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lucifers_star_final_version.jpg]]

* DeadlyDecadentCourt:

** Clones are effectively this on Crius but since Cassius is a famous war hero with a superpowerful father, it rarely comes up. Reversed with the treatment of "nats" (natural born humans) on Crius as the nobility consider them inferior.

* FeudalFuture: The Archduchy of Crius created one of these and became galactic pariahs as a result.
* ForeverWar: [[spoiler: How the Elder Races amuse themselves.]]

* {{Megacorp}}: Ares Electronics produces massive amounts of military hardware but it's primary sales product is bioroids. They're rich enough that Shogun, the planet the Rin-O'Harras rule as stockholders is just a minor part of their holdings.]] It's also stated it's just one of many "transtellars" that rule their own regions of space.

** Bioroids are treated by most characters as equipment and are causally sold, killed, or memory-wiped. It's chattle slavery in every conceivable sense.

* RagtagBunchOfMisfits: A drunken ex-nobleman, a MafiaPrincess turned security chief, a escaped slave bioroid, and a former gladiator. Yeah, this qualifies. The entire crew of ''The Melampus'' also turns out to be this as they were assembled by Ida Claire in order to get specialists who could be easily controlled. [[spoiler: This proves a mistake on her patr.]]

* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: The Commonwealth-Archduchy War has a lot of similarities to World War In IN SPACE with the ending being equivalent of the atomic bomb being dropped on Japan....except, in this case a ColonlyDrop.
* DoomedHometown: The planet Crius is bombed to oblivion by the Commonwealth in the opening chapter, forcing them to surrender.

* FakeUltimateHero: The false Cassius Mass [[spoiler: a bioroid created by Zoe]] plays on his RedBaron WorthyOpponent reputation and FamedInUniverse status to serve as a figurehead for the Free Systems Alliance military. The actual Cassius Mass has been retired on a space freighter for years.

* GodzillaThreshhold: The Commonwealth suffered massive casualties but won the war through WeHaveReserves and an acknowledgement of this. The Crius eventually inflicted enough damage, they decided to destroy their homeworld.

* PaperThinDisguise: Cassius surgically alters his appearance but doesn't change his DNA (which is possible in the future) and everyone calls him on it given his is on file. Becomes a bit of RefugeeInAudacity as no one actually bothered looking for his because they'd have assumed he'd do it.
* ReasonableAuthority: Despite being TheCaptain and [[spoiler: TheSpymaster]], Ida reacts fairly well to the discovery she has a Crius war criminal/hero working for her. [[spoiler: She threatens and bribes him into helping her prevent another war.]]

''Lucifer's Star'' is a SpaceOpera science fiction novel by Creator/CTPhipps and Michael Suttkus.

Count Cassius Mass was the greatest star pilot of the Crius Archduchy. He fought fiercely for his cause, only to watch his nation fall to the Commonwealth. It was only after that he realized the side he'd been fighting for was the wrong one. Now a semi-functional navigator on a interstellar freight hauler, he tries to hide who he was and escape his past. Unfortunately, some things refuse to stay buried and he ends up conscripted by the very people who destroyed his homeland. Their mission for him? Destroy his clone before he's used to rouse the defeated Crius Archduchy from their apathy.

LUCIFER'S STAR is the first novel of "A Spacer's Saga", which is a dark science fiction space opera novel set in a world of aliens, war, politics, and slavery.

This novel contains the following tropes:

* AristocratsAreEvil: Played with. Cassius is probably the most moral individual in the cast but seems to have been completely blind every other Crius nobleman was a complete asshole. [[spoiler: Including his siblings.]]

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler: Cassius and company escape with Judith and the Melampus. Zoe is killed after she's revealed to be a psychoapth. They also manage to destroy Ida Claire's reputation with the Watchers. Unfortunately, Cassius has discovered his family is a collection of monsters and the Insurgency is now on.]]

* {{Doppelganger}}: Cassius believes someone has surgically altered themselves to look like him in order to lead LaResistance using his wartime reputation. [[spoiler: In fact, it's a bioroid blessed with his memory upload. This results in a in-universe case of FridgeHorror as Cassius realizes he would have been doing the exact same thing had circumstances been different.]]
* GrandTheftMe: Zoe pulls this on [[spoiler: Judith's bioroid. Judith later returns the favor.]]

* GambitPileUp: ''Every single character in the novel is plotting something.'' [[spoiler: Ida Claire is actually working for the Commonwealth while pretending to be a tramp freighter captain and blackmails Cassius into going against freedom fighters from his homeworld, Ida's being betrayed by one of her subordinates in Hiro who was sent to spy on her by the government, Zoe is working against Ida while secretly working for the rebels, and Cassius ends up betraying them all to forge his own path.]]

* YourTerroristsAreOurFreedomFighters: How many feel about the Free System Alliance. They're fighting against a repressive government but aren't much better.
* ZergRush: How the Commonwealth defeated the Crius in the first place. This proves impractical when the Free System Alliance shows up with enough allies to nullify that advantage.

* {{Doppleganger}}: Cassius believes someone has surgically altered themselves to look like him in order to lead LaResistance using his wartime reputation. [[spoiler: In fact, it's a bioroid blessed with his MemoryUpload. This results in a in-universe case of FridgeHorror as Cassius realizes he would have been doing the exact same thing had circumstances been different.]]

* CloningBlues: Averted. All of the clones have no problem with their individuality but the people they're cloned from have issues with their existence.

* GambitPileUp: The Fixers, the Watchers, the Free Systems Alliance, and Cassius are all playing off against one another.

* XanatosGambitPileUp: ''Every single character in the novel is part of one.'' [[spoiler: Ida Claire is actually working for the Commonwealth while pretending to be a tramp freighter captain and blackmails Cassius into going against freedom fighters from his homeworld, Ida's being betrayed by one of her subordinates in Hiro who was sent to spy on her by the government, Zoe is working against Ida while secretly working for the rebels, and Cassius ends up betraying them all to forge his own path.]]

* AncientConspiracy: [[spoiler: The Cognition A.I. who weren't infected by the Elder Races went deep into humanity's servers and eventually constructed the Commonwealth to help rebuild humanity.]]
* ANaziByAnyOtherName: The Crius get called out as this, though they're more a FeudalFuture set of evil aristocrats. WordOfGod claims they're based on the Principality of Zeon and the Galactic Empire who both had Nazi inspirations.
* ArtificialHuman: Bioroids are apparently completely human but for cybernetic brains which work identical to human ones. This allows them to be mind-controlled, mind-wiped, and otherwise abused by normal people, though.
* ArtificialGravity: Subverted as a character explains ships actually use the acceleration of the ships to provide a gravity-like effect and magnetic boots when not moving.

* BalkanizeMe: The EvilPlan of the Free Systems Alliance for the Commonwealth. [[spoiler: To prevent the Nobility from destroying the human race by creating a ForeverWar to amuse them.]]

* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: ''Every single character in the novel.''

* CoolShip: The ''Melampus'' is a heavily modified super-freighter with massive amounts of spy equipment.

** Cassius Mass is one for Manfred von Richthofen as well as a CharClone.

* TheKingdom: Crius believed itself to be this but, in practice, was a smaller version of TheEmpire than the Commonwealth.

* NoTranshumanismAllowed: Implied to be the practice of the Commonwealth but shown the downside of with the fact the Crius crush them in most battles until they're defeated by sheer numbers.

* TheRedBaron: The Fire Count is a name for Cassius.

* WeWillUseManualLaborInTheFuture: Slavery is allowed as long as its of biological androids ("bioroids"). The majority of their use is for sexual purposes but they're also used in other professions requiring lots of technical knowledge but little prestige.

* BiTheWay: Ilsa and Clarice are bisexual. It's implied to be quite normal in the future.

* TheAlliance: The Free Systems Alliance (FSA) is between this and YourTerroristsAreOurFreedomFighters.

* Terraform: Humanity has terraformed thousands of worlds since entering space. This hasn't made them anything more than a third-tier power in the universe, though.

''Lucifer's Star'' is a SpaceOpera science fiction novel by Creator/CTPhipps and Michael Suttkus.

* AbusivePrecursors: The Elder Races turn out to be these. [[spoiler: They are so bored with immortal life thanks to having transcended their mortal existences so long ago, they deliberately cause massive wars and havoc to amuse themselves. They've also eliminated 999 out of every 1000 species which have existed in the galaxy.]]

* FantasticRacism: Bioroids are treated by most characters as equipment and are causally sold, killed, or memory-wiped. It's chattle slavery in every conceivable sense.
** Clones are effectively this on Crius but since Cassius is a famous war hero with a superpowerful father, it rarely comes up.
*** Reversed with the treatment of "nats" (natural born humans) on Crius as the nobility consider them inferior.

* StateSec: Literally used with State Security being the secret police of Crius.

''Lucifer's Star'' is a SpaceOpera science fiction novel by Creator/CTPhipps.

* WhatMeastureIsANonhuman: Bioroids are considered to be property in the Commonwealth and most other human territories.

* FeudalFuture:

* GambitPileUp:

* InTheFutureWeWillUseManualLabor:
* InterserviceRivalry:

* TheResistanceWillNotBeCivilized:

* ShoutOut:
* SpaceFighter:
* SpaceMarine:
* SpaceNavy:

* Terraform:
* WetwareBody:
* WhatMeastureIsANonhuman: