The Ark

The Ark:

4000 humans, 3000 male and 1000 female, escaped the end of life on earth on the best spacecraft that early 21st century technology had to offer. This group, as large as the Ark could support, was made up of the best professionals that it could be guessed would be needed. You, /b/, will be controlling this last remnant of humanity on their exodus. Placed in cryogenic sleep, your people have rocketed through space on a preprogrammed course for over a hundred thousand years, bound for a somewhat earth-like planet thirty light years away. Almost nothing is known of this planet except that it has a nitrogen-oxygen atmosphere and its surface is approximately 64% salt water, 2% fresh water (including glaciers) and 34% land.

As the spacecraft finally lands in the northern hemisphere of the planet and the automated systems wake the frozen travelers, they emerge to see a landscape that is at once alien and familiar. Like Earth, and yet unlike. The survivors of the apocalypse must decide what to do first.
Personnel:
1000 engineers
300 agriculturalists/aspiring xenobotanists
100 physicists
300 chemists

800 maintenance/general labour

400 military personnel (training and equipment equivalent to the British SAS, much more ammunition in stock than they would have)

200 civil security personnel (training and equipment equivalent to SWAT, much more ammunition in stock than they would have)

50 medical doctors
200 nurses
50 psychiatrists

50 housing development planners

100 communications experts (translations to overcome language barrier among the survivors, handles communications tech)

100 computer scientists

50 mathematicians

50 religious leaders, split up among several different beliefs, for those survivors who have any religion

50 geologists

50 philosophers, artists and musicians

150 administration personnel, including the Director (the current leader, the system of government was planned to be technocratic/socialist but plans may change)
Equipment:
2000 military-style jeeps
300 unmanned aerial vehicles, for recon
20 helicopters

400 agriculturally-purposed robots
200 construction-purposed robots
200 mining-purposes robots
5 supercomputers
10,000 personal communication devices (surplus for population growth or just need for replacement, of course eventually more will have to be produced)

The Ark contains living space for up to 10,000 comfortably, though more could fit with less privacy. It also contains industrial manufacturing equipment, workshops, science equipment, medical facilities, libraries and modest recreational facilities, the supercomputers, administration offices, etc

Resources:
2 millions barrels of crude oil
10 million barrels of gasoline
5 megatons of steel
2 megatons of copper
smaller quantities of some other base metals and some synthetic materials
The Ark itself could be stripped down for titanium and other valuable metals


We have the materials, but it will still take time to build weather satellites. Launching them would also cost us a great deal of our fuel. Nonetheless, it is a critical need, so the physicists and some of the engineers get together making preparations for the construction of the first prototype weather satellite.

In the meantime, the drones are sent out to map the surrounding area. The region is temperate, and soil tests show it to be rich, but the alien bacteria and flora are still not tested and may be unsafe. No one has yet left the Ark without an enviro-suit, but robots have collected various samples for testing (soil, water, flora). No fauna have been spotted by any of our drones or bots as of yet, not even an insect, plantlife is all that is to be seen as of yet. Some organic structures, somewhat similar to trees but forming massive spheres on deeply-rooted 'legs', have been spotted.

Directed remotely by the engineers, and supplied with the proper parts from our industrial facilities aboard the Ark, our construction robots begin work on these generators. It was an anticipated need and the construction proceeds very well.

Meanwhile, the tests are complete. Several hazards to human health were discovered, mostly viruses, the medical doctors are working on vaccinations. Once those are done, we will be able to venture out in person.

Also, the team working on the weather satellites has determined the exact gravity of the planet and are making appropriate adjustments on their prototype.


A freshwater lake, approximately the size of Lake Erie on Earth, is discovered fifty-two kilometers to the east. This seems a good place to start our colony. The robots move the unfinished generators there, complete the work and then split up, most working on the colony while some do the final work for the weather satellite's launch pad.

Vaccinations complete, roughly half of the population moves towards the colony in progress, taking half the vehicles and other relevant equipment. The Director remains behind, he is still in charge of the group as a whole and his official authority over the survivors is comparable to a leader of a 'semi-democracy' (like Putin, for example). The military and police are loyal to him at this time. Those staying on the Ark for now will make up the center of science industry, because of the Ark's existing facilities. The explorers will chiefly be working on agriculture, sustainable homes and of course further exploration.


Drones have provided us with rough maps of the area in a 400 kilometer radius, and a more detailed picture of the terrain is being put together by scouts in the jeeps.

With resources focused on the project thanks to a growing sense of urgency (despite clear skies thus far, barely a cloud) the weather satellite has been launched. The images it sends as it makes its orbit indicate tropical weather patterns far south of us, temperate in the immediate area, and curious energy storms toward the north. They also reveal that our continent is long and (very very roughly) a trapezoid. We are towards the center of the land mass.

Also, we now have a four-lane road connecting the Ark and the colony. Jeeps traffic resources and passengers to and fro.

Studies on the soil have revealed that nuclear weapons would be very harmful to the local life, and also that with some terraforming, we could plant some of our seeds from Earth here. However, the team of two geologists, five agriculturalists and six general labourers that went to study one of the organic spheres has not returned or responded on their communication devices.


All exploration and research teams are now accompanied by a four-man squad of our military personnel. Helicopters patrol our perimeters. For now, the development of nuclear weapons seems impractical. We don't even know if there is intelligent life here.

Twenty-two of our soldiers, a doctor and a nurse have taken jeeps to the organic sphere where the research team went missing. They have found the 'leg' where the team made their ascent into the sphere, climbing ropes still hanging there. They went up, and are now following a natural tunnel inside of the massive plant organism. There is a great deal of moisture and an offensive smell, but no sign of the team or anything else except the barky material of the organism.

Meanwhile, drones investigating the energy storms to the north have discovered the first instance of fauna on this planet... and also the cause of the energy storms. The creatures, which our drones have provided images of but which we know nothing about, appear to intensify the storms wherever they go.


The rescue team continues. They sense they are moving deeper into the sphere. Sunlight no longer filters through gaps in the bark-like substance of the organism, they are now using battery powered lights to navigate the tunnel. It's three hours of mindless walking, with no twists or turns (making them doubt their previous belief that this formation was natural) before they are greeted by a flashing blue light around a corner.

The Director does not change his policies one way or the other. Colony life is tense, with the missing people and discovery of the storm-dwelling creatures, but the people remain content with their leadership.

We risk taking one of our drones in closer to the storms, to try and observe the creatures and determine whether or not they are intelligent. The drone is destroyed by a massive energy surge when it comes with a hundred meters of the storm, however, and whether this was a natural development or the creatures defending themselves is unknown.


The soldiers spread out in case of attack but do not go around the corner nor attack, the doctor and nurse move a little further back. One of the soldiers tries the world's simplest form of communication.

"Hello?"

What comes around the corner is smooth-fleshed, almost aquatic looking, walking on four legs and possessing two arms with eight digits each. It has white colouring, its face is roughly worm-shaped and possessing only a mouth, no eyes or other sensory organs that can the soldiers or the doctor can actually spot. However, it does have patches of bioluminescent flesh on its equivalent of wrists, which rapidly blink, creating the flashing blue light. The doctor has a hunch, and suggests it may be a form of communication like morse code.

Meanwhile, we begin constructing defenses. Anti-air guns are constructed around the colony and on the outsides of the Ark, underground shelters are built and our helicopters are equipped with air-to-air missiles. We don't know very much about the storm creatures, but we are as prepared as we can be for a flying enemy. Further research on the energy storms they inhabit would be necessary to prepare ourselves better.


The soldiers decide their best shot at finding the missing researchers is to do their best to communicate with the native. Its behaviour definitely suggests intelligence, and they feel the first step is to display that they possess this too. Using one of their flashlights, they mimic the pattern of flashes that the creature's bioluminesence produces. This visibly excites the creatures, its blinking blue light becoming rapid and its long, thin limbs waving about frantically. It gives one long, drawn-out shine of its natural light and takes off down the tunnel the way it came from, moving at alarming speed on its four legs.

Meanwhile, a science team heads north accompanied by one squad of soldiers, both groups all-male. Not getting too close to the energy storms, they take some readings of the phenomenon, but cannot identify the type of energy at all. They do determine, however, that the pattern is too regular to be natural. This would suggest that the creatures do in fact create the storms, and that they are intelligent. Unfortunately, no one knows how to attempt communication. They can see the creatures flying up there, but no one is going to walk into that storm and the creatures do not respond to the team's attempts to signal them.


The soldiers attempt to contact the colony, but can't get a clear signal. They suspect it may have something to do with being inside the organic sphere, maybe the bark-like stuff its inside are made of jams radio? They are not sure, but it's an alternative explanation for the research team never contacting the colony... the other explanation being death. Slowly and carefully, they follow the alien down the tunnel, seeing his light blinking now far ahead of them after they turn the corner. It's hot and humid in here, and the smell has gotten worse. Eventually they can't see the alien's light anymore, but they continue and find it waiting for them just around a corner. It gives another long, drawn-out flash of its bioluminescence and then runs again. They follow, and about an hour later, they find themselves in an animal pen. Bulbous cherry-red creatures with curious protrusions similar to sea anemones on their backs are lounging in their filth. More aliens like the one they have already encountered stroking these protrusions, and collecting a thick black paste that is excreted. It looks like a farm.

Meanwhile, attempts to gain more information on the procella (what the human have taken to calling the storm creatures) are going slowly. They take the drones in toward the storm, never as close as last time, trying to get more images and observe their behaviour. It is determined that they fly in a pattern that correlates to that of the energy storm's surges, adding credence the theory that they are the producers of this energy.


Meanwhile, back at the colony, the people are still tense about the disappearances and storm creatures but the progress in building up the colony itself has given some optimism. The more easily frightened have mostly retreated to the Ark. Terraforming is going slowly, this is the first time it's being done in practice instead of just theory, but the climate is good and the soil's initial results are promising, the agriculturalists say they expect to grow corn within the year. The generators are functioning perfectly, there is a surplus of power in fact, as the colony still lacks all the facilities the generators can support. No pregnancies as of yet, there is talk of using the frozen sperm on the Ark soon to to get an early start on ensuring genetic diversity... but most women are reluctant to be impregnated. Times are uncertain enough, they say. The scientists are mostly caught up in terraforming or studying the procella.


The soldiers try to indicate their mission to the alien that brought them to this place by pointing at one another and then pointed around the area. The alien has no visible response. They're tempted to flash the light again, but what could they accomplish besides gibberish? They resolve themselves to searching the farm. The intelligent aliens and their livestock alike seem to ignore them as they poke around, except for the first one they met, whose head follows them despite the lack of visible eyes. The livestock have no eyes either, but do possess a long, narrow snout over their small mouth. The soldiers find a round metal doorway towards the back of the animal pen, this is the first sign of alien technology so far. The door slides aside automatically when they come close, like at the grocery store back home (only round, and inside of a massive organic sphere). Beyond the open door is a clean, bright white hallway with mirrors on the walls at regular intervals. No other decoration, and no other aliens in sight, just the hallway forking off further down. The friendlier alien stands behind them and flashes his lights in several short bursts of staggered blinking.

For the moment, we decide to leave the procella alone, merely observing them from a distance.

The colony is developing industrial, medical, scientific and recreational facilities to rival those of the Ark. That, and the increasing feeling of isolation in the Ark, makes the Director think it might be time to move his office.


The rescue team splits up, eleven soldiers plus the doctor and the nurse heading down the hallway. The alien (who the group has begun to call 'Jeff') blinks twice, which they assume means 'yeah go right in, welcome'. He (she?) led them down the pristine hallway until it forked, and forked again and again. All the walls looked identical to them, it was like a maze, but the way Jeff moved his/her head gave the doctor a hunch that s/he was spotting some kind of markers that humans could not recognize. Eventually they came to another door, sliding open silently. The room beyond had no other entrance or exit and looked pretty cramped for thirteen humans and a quadrupedal alien, but Jeff went right in and though s/he had no eyes it felt as if s/he were looking at them expectantly, standing there inside the small room.

Meanwhile, six other soldiers remained in the vermiem's farm (vermiem having been the name the humans chose for these aliens), while the remaining five went back up the tunnel to try and get a signal and give the colony this amazing news of intelligent life.

Also, the Director began the process of completely stripping the Ark down and augmenting the new colony with its materials. Nothing goes to waste. As he settles in at the colony, he needs to decide how to proceed from here...


Jeff has seemed more excited than hostile, insofar as it's even possible for them to read his/her emotions, and they do need to find those researchers. Besides, they'd be hopelessly lost in these hallways if Jeff decided to leave them, and he could move fast. They follow him into the small room. The door slides shut with a pneumatic hiss, and...

And they start going up. It's an elevator. About twenty-five seconds later they stop, the door slides open, and the group finds themselves in a spacious obsidian black room lined with curious platforms, which they realize quickly are seats designed for vermiem physiology. It looks like congress, or something, but it's empty right now. Jeff blinks at them three times, runs to the center of the room, and stands there waiting.

Meanwhile, back at the colony, the Director takes personal interest in the various ongoing projects, as much to put the pressure on the ones in charge of them as to see how they're going. The weather satellite and astronomical research has lead to some incredible revelations. Firstly, the planet's north pole and much of the northern hemisphere is completely obscured by the energy storms caused by the procella. The colony is in the northern hemisphere, but blessedly out of the way of these storms. There are two others continents , one on the southern pole of the planet (which, due to the tilt of the planet's axis, is tropical) and another almost directly on the other side of the planet. The planet itself is approximately 70% the size of Earth, but of similar mass (we know this because of the similar gravity), and there are two moons (a bit smaller than Luna) in synchronous orbit. The terraforming progress is still slow but steady, though they have the frozen food from the Ark to last them anyway. Morale is still a bit shaky, especially among some of the former Ark residents who appreciated its atmosphere of security.


The eleven soldiers, the doctor and the nurse all gather around Jeff the virmiem. Jeff stands up tall on his back legs, but his movements are slow and non-threatening. For the first time, he opens his mouth and makes a noise, a long reverberating high-pitched wail that makes the humans reconsider the male pronouns they had begun to assign him. However, the response to his noise made it clear that he was, in fact, male. Thirty vermiem enter the room and take seats, but they are not like the ones in the farm. These are taller, possess long whip-like tails, and many of them have sagging bellies dragging on the floor, indicative of pregnancies. The females. As they take their places and flash their bioluminescence excitedly, their eyeless faces turned toward the human group standing cluelessly in the center beside the rapidly blinking Jeff, it's clear that these bitches are in charge and they are carefully considering the appearance of the humans.

The Director announced a day of festivities for tomorrow, to celebrate the discoveries made about Espoir. With the procella seeming less like a threat the more they leave them alone, the mood in the colony has lightened considerably, although many are still worried about those who are missing or trying to rescue the missing. The issue of reproduction is still a prickly one as well. Still, the people are thankful to forget these troubles and celebrate.


They were never trained for representing their species in a meeting with what appears to be an alien race's leadership, but the rescue team all do their best to make the right first impression. The doctor had pencil and paper, and when he took it out there was a slight stir as if many cameras all began furiously flashing at once, but once the humans started to draw right triangles and models of the hydrogen atom the aliens' intrigue was obvious. They waved their limbs and tails at one another, their flashing bioluminescence turned the council room into a rave party and one of them made the strange reverberating noise. More virmiem came in then, some male this time, but mostly female. The seats filled up. The soldiers mimicked the first flashes Jeff had given them using the flashlight, and there was another stir. It was going fantastically, all things considered... except that now the aliens were all just talking amongst themselves, and the humans were left standing there awkwardly with Jeff.

Meanwhile, the colony's geologists spread across the continent (except, of course, to the north) with armed escorts and all their scanning equipment to search for useful minerals. Large deposits of aluminum, useful for spacecraft, were found in a mountain range near the east coast, but the weather satellite had showed that the energy storms occasionally passed over that range, making a mining operation a major risk. A small deposit of gold was also found further south, while iron and nickel seemed to be rich through the continent. The expedition to the South Pole was expected to be ready within a week. The rescue team's five men sent out of the tunnels finally got a signal and reported back, telling the Director everything that had transpired.


The rescue team tries blinking their flashlight at Jeff in what they assume is the 'greeting' pattern again, but this time the guy with the flashlight fucks it up. Jeff makes a weird noise, somewhere between boiling water and the pluck of a D string on a bass guitar. His wormy body shakes and the group realizes he is laughing. After a few blinks to the matriarchs, Jeff leads the rescue team out of the conference room and into another bright, clean hallway with the mirrors. Again they are brought through a maze, almost losing the nurse at one point because Jeff seemed to be in a hurry. Behind another sliding door, and there they were... the research team. Or at least, what was left of them. A female virmiem was operating on one of the agriculturalists, treating her for what looked like extensive third degree burning, but the rest were dead. The doctor rushed forward and took over, much to the confusion and distress of the virmiem doctor until Jeff reassured her with a few blinks. With his obviously superior knowledge of his own species' physiology, the doctor was able to save the agriculturalist, but the patient was unconcious and in no condition to be woken up, let alone moved back to the colony... And the only ones who might know what had happened to the researchers were the quadrupedal aliens speaking with flashing lights.

The Director made the discoveries public knowledge immediately. He was pleasantly surprised that it was met with a rush of excitement and awe, rather then fear or panic. People were still doing well since the celebration, he supposed, not to mention gearing up for the South Pole expedition. The engineers had completed a small but powerful boat running on a fission engine, fueled with leftover uranium from the Ark. A communications satellite was also being prepared for launch, so the expedition's members would not be too estranged from the colony.


The rescue team decides it's best that they get the bodies and one survivor of the research team back to the colony right away. After deliberating among themselves, they think about the best way to try and tell 'Jeff' this. Remembering how he gave them a long, drawn-out shine of his bioluminescense when he wanted them to follow in the tunnel, they try standing over the gruesomely burnt humans and shining their flashlight for a moment before turning it off again. Jeff seemed to understand, his worm-like head bobbing as the natural blue light in his 'wrists' blink their rapid code to the virmiem doctor. She left the room, and returned shortly afterwards with a strange creature. It was a sphere of milky white flesh much like the flesh of the virmiems, but without any bioluminescent places. The blob of biomatter was about ten feet tall with a diameter of about fourteen feet. When the virmiem doctor touched it, its flesh parted and revealed a slimy, hollow place inside.

Back at the colony, preparations for the expedition to the southern continent continue. The communications satellite has been launched and the fission-powered boat has been equipped with defenses: anti-air guns, heavy artillery and naval mines. Currently in progress is the construction of three midget submarines to go with the boat, equipped with torpedoes and science/exploration equipment. Meanwhile, towards the north, our observation towers report that the energy storms have been steadily intensifying over the past few days, bringing the question of the procella back into the remnants' minds.


The status of the remnants at this time.

Personnel:
1000 engineers
296 agriculturalists (one of whom is severely injured)
100 physicists
300 chemists
794 maintenance/general labour
400 military personnel (training and equipment equivalent to the British SAS, much more ammunition in stock than they would have)
200 civil security personnel (training and equipment equivalent to SWAT, much more ammunition in stock than they would have)
50 medical doctors
200 nurses
50 psychiatrists
50 housing development planners
100 communications experts (translations to overcome language barrier among the survivors, handles communications tech)
100 computer scientists
50 mathematicians
50 religious leaders, split up among several different beliefs, for those survivors who have any religion (now being trained to become biologists)
48 geologists
50 philosophers, artists and musicians
150 administration personnel, including the Director (the current leader, the system of government was planned to be technocratic/socialist but plans may change)
Equipment:
2000 military-style jeeps
299 unmanned aerial vehicles, for recon
20 helicopters
400 agriculturally-purposed robots
200 construction-purposed robots
200 mining-purposes robots
5 supercomputers
10,000 personal communication devices (surplus for population growth or just need for replacement, of course eventually more will have to be produced)

The colony, built in part with the stripped parts of the Ark, contains living space for up to 15,000 comfortably, though more could fit with less privacy. It also contains wind and solar generators, industrial manufacturing equipment, workshops, science equipment, medical facilities, libraries and modest recreational facilities, the supercomputers, administration offices, and a launch pad (we have launched a weather satellite and a communications satellite). Iron/nickel mines are operating in the immediate area, as well ongoing terraforming projects for the eventual growth of Earth crops such as corn. A stockpile of frozen food from the Ark feeds the remnants in the meantime.

Resources:
2 millions barrels of crude oil
10 million barrels of gasoline
5 megatons of steel
2 megatons of copper
smaller quantities of some other base metals and some synthetic materials
The Ark itself has been stripped down for titanium and other valuable metals
3 megatons of uranium
Frozen sperm and eggs from Earth to ensure genetic diversity


The rescue team takes a closer look at this new life form. They notice that its locomotion is much like a slug or snail's, and also that it has no sensory organs they can recognize. Because of the similarity between its flesh and the virmiem's, the incredibly docile way it behaves, and most of all its bizarre physiology (such as opening up to reveal a nice little nook for one to crawl into) the doctor theorizes that this creature is not natural, but has been bioengineered as a medical tool. The slime inside its hollow recess may be a form of medicine, or just a cushion.

The intensifying energy storms prompt the Director to set the construction and mining robots to work on underground shelters beneath the colony. Barely an hour after the work begins, both observation towers suddenly and simultaneously go offline, their data stream and communication entirely cut off. Everyone suspects that the storms must have suddenly overtaken them, the way they did to the drone when the remnants first tried to study the storms, but no one knows sure.


While the virmiems stare at them eyelessly, expectant, the soldiers pick up one of the bodies and try placing it inside the blob. The charred remains of the geologist lie there, bit of burnt flesh breaking off and disappearing in the goop. Nothing seems to happen that would endanger the living patient, so they place her in along with the rest of the bodies. After this is done, the virmiem doctor taps the blob and it closes itself... and leaves the room at a surprisingly good pace. Jeff follows it, his lights blinking at the group, and of course they follow as well. Through the maze of mirrored white hallways, into a larger elevator than the last one they got into, and they emerge in a tunnel of bark-like material, like the one they were in when they first began exploring the organic sphere. Jeff leads the way again, tapping his eight worm-like digits on a seemingly random place on the wall in what looks like a very complicated pattern. The wall opens with a wet, squelching noise and they find themselves back at the farm where they left six soldiers. These men are filled in with what has happened, and together with Jeff and the blob containing the research team, the soldiers, doctor and nurse proceed up the tunnel to the place where they entered the sphere. The men they sent back to re-open radio contact are waiting there. With everyone now regrouped, Jeff open another door in the wall and leads them to yet another elevator. They finally emerge at ground level, exiting one of the twisting 'legs' that hold up the organic sphere. Jeff says goodbye with a quick series of blue flashes, and the soldiers return to the colony with the blob containing the bodies and the patient. There is no apparent change in any of them, except that they are now covered in slime. The doctors prepare to perform autopsies and place the surviving agriculturalist into intensive care. But we still have the blob...
Just an hour before the rescue team returned, the Director sent the science team north. Two physicists, two chemists, and six engineers go to investigate what's happened to the observation towers and what is happening with the storms. They are accompanied by twenty-two soldiers. They discover that the storms have made a very sudden and deliberate-looking expansion, their gathering blue clouds and forks of unknown energy are now spread just far enough to overtake the towers, presumably this is what deactivated them since the storms previously took out a drone.


We assemble a team of medical doctors, biologists and chemists to thoroughly study the 'blob'. Our findings confirm the doctor's suspicion that it is unnatural, a genetically engineered form of life. This confirms that the virmiems possess biotechnology, and we further hypothesize that genetic engineering is how they construct their organic spheres, make their hidden doors, and so on. The purpose of the 'blob' seems to be to transport fragile things, or in this case, people. The slime inside its hollow crevice is an unremarkable secretion of mucous.

Meanwhile, at the edge of the storm, our researchers learn to track the the energy transmissions from procella to clouds and towers and ground. They confirm that this new, unknown energy type does originate from the procella, as we had suspected, and theorize that it may be an energy-based life form's equivalent of body waste.


The value of this technology is deemed too high to ignore. The engineered life form, which we have named the 'iumentum' (Latin for 'beast of burden') is stripped down to nothing as we learn every possible detail of its physiology and how it might have been created. We discover a stomach with a wad of black paste in it, the soldier from the rescue team recognize this as the product of the vermiem's livestock, diuanari. The stomach does connect to an anus, but not to any mouth. It is assumed the creature is engineered with this sustenance already inside, and expires when the sustenance is finally digested. Presumably, the paste provides nutrients for a significant amount of time. More importantly, we find patterns in its genetic code that do not seem natural, and might be copied to produce a similar organism if we invest in genetic engineering.

Though he is relucant to go, the soldier does his duty, laying aside his equipment and walking forward until he is enveloped by the bright flashes of energy and swirling blue clouds. One of the procella is seen to be swooping down towards where he was walking, and then flying up again. Tense moments pass... and then, the soldier comes walking back, grinning widely.

"Just tickles!"


Building relations with the virmiems seems like the top priority to the Director right now, with everyone calmed down about the energy storms since the soldier walked in and survived. That man has become something of a community hero. Perhaps he should be given a medal or something in a public ceremony...? I digress. One of the administration personnel, ten communications experts, ten computer scientists and ten agriculturalists travel to the organic sphere with an armed escort: the same twenty-two soldiers that went there as a rescue team before. The soldiers lead them to the 'leg' of the sphere where a hidden door had opened to an elevator last time, but then they are stumped. They try 'knocking on the door' but there is no effect. While they wonder what to do, the agriculturalists start taking samples of the organic material.

Back at the colony, the agriculturalist from the original research team who was so badly burned has made a recover and been taken off her sedatives. Reconstructive surgery and prosthetic limbs have restored most of her body to a decent imitation of what it was. However, she is still too traumatized to speak about what it was that burnt the research team...


One of the soldiers uses a flashlight and blinks it in the 'greeting' pattern they learned from Jeff when they were in the sphere, and the group waits. The soldier tries it again, and again. They wait. It takes twenty minutes, and some begin to suggest they climb in at the other entrance, but finally the bark-life surface of the sphere's support parts with that distinct squelching noise. Four male and two female virmiems stand inside the elevator, the males holding curious-looking weapons. They appear somewhat similar to carbine rifles, but made up of organic material and not possessing any trigger. God only knows what it shoots. The females blink the greeting and move aside, leaving room for the group in the elevator. They go inside, the wall closes, and they're off. The communications experts are rapidly making notes on their personal devices, watching the blinking of the virmiems. They do not outwardly appear to be making any effort to study the humans in turn.

Back at the colony, the agriculturalist is moved from the hospital back into her own home, and has regular appointments with one of our psychiatrists. Also, the soldier who walked into the storm has just been diagnosed with several different kinds of cancer, rapidly developing. Coincidence is unlikely.


The administrator clears his throat and takes the lead, speaking slowly and clearly to the virmiem nearest to him in the elevator. "Hello, and thank you for hosting us. My name is Chris Arlotta. We are humans." And so on, and so on. She turns her eyeless worm-face towards him and flicks her tail, and her lights blink at what also seems to be a slower pace than usual. The communications expert type furiously on their little keypads, watching. It's obvious this will be a long, slow process.

The soldier is placed under quarantine. Obviously cancer is not normally contagious, but dealing with multiple cancers developing incredibly quickly as a result of an unknown energy type, we're not taking chances. He does receive the best medical care we have, but his condition still worsens steadily. Meanwhile, the psychiatrist reports that his patient (the survivor from the burnt research team) revealed one detail of the mysterious burming incident to him last night: 'they came up behind us'. Whoever they may be. The woman would not give any more detail than that.


Hoping to pique their interest, the administrator shows the female virmiem his personal communications device. She takes it in her sixteen long, milky white fingers, turning it over and tapping the keys with a few bioluminescent blinks. Eventually she passes it back, then flicks her tail at one of the males, who passes her what looks sort of like a glow-in-the-dark piece of rotten fruit. She passes it to the administrator. The smell is very offensive and it leaves something on his fingers as he handles it, he has no fucking clue what he's looking at. The elevator stops, the doors open, and they are ushered into the obsidian black council room Jeff took the soldier to last time. This time there are even more matriarchs gathered, their sagging bellies scraping on the floor between their four long, thin legs. Some have groups of daughters standing behind them. All have their arms raised with bioluminescent wrists pointed at the humans, and all blink the greeting. The soldier dutifully does thing with the flashlight, and while the martriarchs pass that communications device around, the familiar face of Jeff comes up to the human group, blinking excitedly.

Meanwhile, a second group also sets out from the colony for the virmiem's organic dome, bringing the cancer-stricken soldier in a life support pod. His condition has become critical. The doctor who was with the rescue team before goes with this group, so they have someone somewhat familiar with virmiems. When they reach the supports of the sphere, the doctor gives the greeting with the flashlight. While they're waiting, they see something approaching from the south... an aircraft of some kind. Impossible to tell what size from this distance, but it's definitely not one of ours.


The communications experts and computer scientists get set up in the center of the council room, the matriarchs watching them curiously as they plug their computers into their portable generator and start analyzing the sequences of flashes they know so far. Once again, for emphasis, this will be a long process. Meanwhile the administrator is standing there looking official with the weird alien biotech in his hand, the soldiers are chilling with Jeff.

Outside the sphere, the doctor hurries everyone back into the jeep and puts the pedal to the medal while he radios the colony. We have no knowledge of anyone using ships, so this requires immediately attention. Helicopters and drones are dispatched quickly, but not quickly enough. As the ship swoops down over the jeep they notice its bold colours, black and gold on a sleek design reminiscent of Earth's sports cars. It's about the size of a suburban home and the doctor's team also notices it looks to be powered by fusion reactors, strange by our standards for such a small vehicle, and that it is firing a missile at them. The missile does not hit directly, but detonates on the ground close enough to the jeep that the vehicle is overturned. The doctor and the nurses are instantly crushed along with two of the soldiers, the cancer-stricken soldier's life support pod flies through the air and and breaks open on the ground, the trauma probably killed him instantly considering his condition. The other soldiers are still alive, blind firing at the enemy ship until gunfire from an approaching helicopter prompts it to swerve and rush back south.


The helicopter leaves the surviving soldiers where they are and pursues the enemy vessel, but it quickly becomes clear that the alien ship with its fusion reactors outmatches a helicopter in speed by far. The pilot lands and collects the soldiers after all, but not before radioing for drones. Twenty-five of our armed drones pursue the enemy vessel, even these only barely able to keep up with it, and fuel becomes too much of an issue by the time they reach the southern coast. The vessel continued south, out across the ocean, disappearing on the far horizon... The image of this was seen in the colony by those watching the drones' live feed. Most now suspect that this new enemy must be from the southern continent, putting a major damper on those expedition plans we had.

Meanwhile, the Director is doing everything possible to prepare for a potential war, beginning the construction of ICBMs with nuclear warheads and expanding the existing underground shelters so that they can hold up to 8,000. That's twice the population of the colony, but not for long. With the sperm and eggs from the Ark and an innovate plan for artificial wombs, the colony is preparing to reproduce on a massive scale.


Unfortunately, there is no way to contact the team already inside the viermims' dome. The agriculturalists studying the material of these domes believes that their signal-jamming quality is due to an electromagnetic field that they create, but this is just a theory right now. What is known for sure is that the spheres are not a natural formation, they are another example of the viermim's genetic engineering. Similar techniques to those used in the iumentum (blob) are detected. Regardless, after seeing to it that helicopters and drones are now patrolling the southern coast of the continent, the Director sends another group to the viermims with the images captured by the drones.

Meanwhile, the diplomatic mission has been in the council room with the matriarchs, their daughters, their guards, and Jeff for hours now. The communications expert have managed to translate a few words of the viermim code. When a very small viermim, possibly a child, came running in at unbelievable speed on his four legs and blinked out his message for about a minute, the room erupted. Every matriarch seemed to have a strobe light attached to her as they furiously flashed, the communications expert translate what few words they can so far.

"We will not ... we cannot ... inside and around the ... together, we might be able to ..."

All that was clear was that the matriarchs could not seem to agree on what to do. The diplomats didn't find out what the news was for themselves until the Director's second team arrived, let in by another viermim who seemed to have the same job as Jeff. Needless to say they were shocked... building relations with the viermim now seemed more important than ever.


While the communications experts and computer scientists keep trying to produce a better translator, the Director's second away team to the dome produces the images and displays them to the viermims. The eyeless aliens hold their wrists up the images, suggesting that their bioluminescent areas of flesh may also be light-sensitive, explaining how they 'see'. Their reaction is somewhat as expected.

"We have seen ... they are ... you, and make their nests across the water in ... bringers of ... and death."

Back at the colony, the Director interrogates the injured woman personally. His authoritative and insistent questioning intimidates her, making her retreat and go silent, but after being threatened with imprisonment for treason she finally breaks down and lets it all out. The research team found the opening the organic sphere and made the climb. They were about thirty yards into the tunnel when they heard the roar of a fusion reactor from outside. Thinking it was the other colonists, she went to look through the hole, and saw alien beings inspecting their climbing ropes at the root of the sphere's support. They were bipedal and extremely tall, perhaps nine feet, very muscular with a hunched posture and dark blue flesh. In some places, such as their forearms and shoulders, chitinous black growths covered the flesh. Wide, thick skulls with six black eyes - two facing forward, and two on each side - and large foreheads that slope backward. She said they wore black and gold armour, and that when they saw her looking down, one pointed his weapon at her. The next thing she knew she was fire. Somehow the aliens were in the tunnel within seconds, and then all of them were on fire. As quickly as they came, they left, and she lost consciousness from the pain.


Using their limited but growing grasp of the virmiem's code, the communication experts propose an exchange of technology. This is met with another flurry of bioluminescent strobe lighting as the matriarchs hold an incredibly ferocious debate, whipping their tails against the floor to give emphasis to particularly angry blinking. While they are arguing the proposition, your communications experts are have a field day, this barrage of material to work with will really help the effort toward full translations.

Back at the colony, the Director releases the information about this new enemy to the public. With the procella already having worried them greatly, the news hurts morale more than a little bit, but at least they are extra-motivated to work on war readiness. The underground shelters are complete, three more ships like the one originally made for the South Pole expedition are under construction as well as a fleet of 30 midget submarines, and we are putting our remaining resources into augmenting our drone fleet with another 100 units. Furthermore, defensive structures with drone hangars and automated AA guns are under construction along the southern coast. This effort is projected to drain all of the remaining metals we have from the Ark.


Politely raising a hand to get the matriarchs attention, the administrator waits for the flashing to stop and then gives his message to the communications guys. They have the code pretty down pat now. 'Embassy' does not translate but they hope the concept will not be too alien to the virmiems.

"We would like to suggest that some of us stay here with you, and some of you stay at our home with us. It will make it easier for us to talk about things."

This proposal was met with massive approval. an answer on the technology exchange does not seem to be forthcoming, today, but still progress is being made. The matriarchs agree to send one daughter each, as well as their retinues of serving males and also, as he has become considered something of a human expert, the virmiem we call Jeff. They want to build a miniaturized organic sphere in our colony.

Meanwhile, back at the colony, we have begun growing human embyros. On a side note of some interest, the procella and their energy storms have retreated further north again, leaving our observation towers free... though they still aren't functioning.


Agreeing to the matriarchs' terms and submitting our own, we suggest that the soldiers who first met Jeff in the tunnels of this sphere form the bulk of the embassy, with the present administrator and communication experts accompanying, as well as additional administrators. The matriarch consider this for a time and then agree! We have opened the closest thing to official diplomatic relations Espoir is ever likely to see, and our knowledge of the viermim code is better than ever. Jeff leads the diplomats to an uninhabited part of the sphere where they can dwell, while a few of the soldiers agree to escort the matriarchs' daughters and their retinue to the colony.

The Director sends a small away team to the offline observation towers, made up of five engineers and five soldiers. There is no sign of the storms or any sensation of tickling as the unfortunate hero who walked into the storms felt, so they don't feel like they are at risk here. However, they find the defense towers' hardware so completely fried that it would be more economical to erect new ones than to repair these. Meanwhile, our two satellites suddenly go offline, one about twenty-five minutes after the other. An attack by the aurigni is the presumed cause, though we have no proof.


Resources are focused on the defensive constructions being built on the southern coast. Many of them already have operable, fully automated drone hangars and remotely operated AA guns. We also have one functioning nuclear warhead and a missile that could reach the southern continent. Meanwhile, the Director goes out via helicopter, with an escort of four more helicopters, intercepting the vermiem envoy and greeting the matriarchs' daughter properly using a pocket flashlight. He leaves the military escort with them and continues to the organic sphere, where he is taken to the council room to meet with the matriarchs.

Using the translator present, he says...


"I'd like to exchange tech with you. It would benefit both our peoples."

The matriarchs blinked among themselves, tails restlessly sweeping the floor, before what appeared to be the alpha female replied.

"We are very protective of our technology, Earth-clan. What exactly are you interested in?"

"More than anything, we need protection from the energy storms."

"We have seen you taking pieces of our sphere already. The secret lies in that."

"Why the riddles?"

"I might ask you the same thing. Why are you so interested in us? What's your angle? Do you fear the aurigni?"


"We just want to survive. We know you can help us do that, maybe we can help you too."

She 'looked' at him suspiciously, drumming her sixteen fingers on her swollen, pregnant stomach.

"Besides," he added, "we are a curious people. We always have been."

There were approving comments from the other matriarchs. The alpha female still looked a little doubtful, but she agreed.

"Very well, Earth-clan. We will send scientists to your nest, they will teach you to grow the spheres. Your colony will be safe from the storms. But in exchange, we must have the secret to your flying machines."


"We can give you the designs for helicopters and drones."

The alpha female of the group threw her hands in the air and stood on her back legs, an expression of exasperation curiously similar to human emoting. It was clear she didn't know the different between the two.

"If those fly, Earth-clan, the knowledge would be appreciated. Was there more you would say?"


"Is there any way to make peace with the aurigni?"

She *hissed* at that, they all did, and the blinking of their bioluminescent flesh was so fast that the translator could not entirely keep up.

"For you, maybe, for you Earth-clan ... not for us ... never for us ... we would sooner die ... they are not to be trusted, never, never ... "

The Director stopped them by raising his hands in a gesture of surrender. "Alright, I get it. Irreconcilable differences. But what do you know about them?"

The alpha female still looked a little tiffed, but she did respond.

"Not as much as we would like. We know they came from the sky, as you did. We know they are few in number, though not so few as you are. We know that they hate us and love to see us die. What more do you need to know, Earth-clan?"


"How did the fighting between your people start?"

"They arrived here, we went to greet them, and they burnt every one of us that they could find."

"Just like that?"

"Was your experience different, Earth-clan?"

He had to admit, it wasn't, but he was still hoping to avoid a conflict with the aurigni. They were doing all they could, but they still weren't really ready for prolonged fighting, and peace was preferable in any case.


"Tell me more about their weapons."

"Flamethrowers and explosives are their favourites. Fire pleases them greatly. They use poison gas, too, but that might not harm you, Earth-clan. They made it for killing us. And they have the flying machines... Some much larger than what you have seen."

"Let's look out for each other, keep each other safe from them."

She gave a short, sharp squeak. What the hell that meant, the Director could not have said.

"An excellent proposal, Earth-clan. Word has already been sent to all of the spheres that you have been friends to our kind, but only deeds will make the matriarchs believe you. We are practical, or else we are dead."

The assembled matriarchs all made that noise Jeff once made, somewhere between a bubbling kettle and the D string on a bass guitar. They were laughing. The Director chuckled politely, before going on.


"Now, can you tell me anything about the procella and the energy storms?"

"A little. If I remember my history lessons, the procella first came here approximately three hundred [no translation] ago. Long, long before you or the aurigni. The energy storms came with them, and many nests perished, so we all moved south. But the procella are unpredictable. Sometimes they come south, just for a time, as if going for a stroll. The storms came with them and nests died. Until we learned the secret of the spheres."

"Are they intelligent?"

"We do not know."

"How do you kill them?"

"You don't. You can't."

The Director wasn't sure he believed that, but the procella certainly were enigmatic. It seemed they wouldn't be a problem once these spheres were grown though, and the virmeims had promised the technology, so he supposed it wasn't important.


"Tell me more about your culture."

"What exactly do you want to know?"

"I take it every sphere is its own autonomous state. How do you decide who is charge of a sphere?"

"Every clan *within* every sphere is autonomous. The matriarchs of all the clans gather in a room like this one," she replied, gesturing around the room with her long thin arm. "Of course, the more powerful her clan, the more influential the matriarch."

"And how are matriarchs chosen?"

"It is hereditary. The firstborn daughter succeeds her mother."

"What if the firstborn is male?"

"Males are not fit to rule. Males are builders, messengers, farmers, servants."

She looked a little uncomfortable, obviously aware that the Director was a male of his species. The Director just smiled. As if he cared. He was not a virmiem.

"I understand."


"We should have a mixed celebration of our two peoples' arts. It could be great for familiarizing them with each other."

The matriarchs considered this together for a time, before the obvious leader replied again.

"This is a wonderful idea. We could have it here, in the festival cave at the sphere's center."

"I was thinking of our colony, actually, I'm sure it has more open space..."

She looked uncomfortable saying this, and her series of bioluminescent blinks and pauses were subdued, hesitant. "Many of our people... do not like to leave. The sphere, that is to say. We should hold the celebration here, Earth-clan."

This was not particularly good news. How would they help at all in the fight against the aurigni if they were agoraphobes? He supposed he had to hope she wasn't talking about their soldiers. It would be rude to ask, so instead he agreed that the celebration would be in the sphere and returned to the colony.

The reports he received were unusually pleasant. The terraformers had gotten their first sprouts, the geologists had found a new deposit of iron that the mining robots were eating through at a fast pace, and best of all, two more nukes were ready. The automated defense bases on the southern continent were complete as well, only the air force and navy projects were ongoing. The procella had been keeping to the north and the aurigni, strangely, had not been heard from at all since they destroyed the satellites.


Several more weather satellites and communications satellites were launching, this time with cameras attached. It was literally less than ten minutes after they were in orbit that missiles from the southern continent took them out, one by one. Our suspicions were correct, the aurigni are destroying our satellites. It's curious that they have none themselves, seeing as the virmeims told us they came from space.

The boat is also delivered to the southern coast of Lantea and launched, with its cargo of drones and an escort of midget submarines. Once close enough to the aurigni's continent, the drones are launched. Several are taken down by missiles as they approach the coast. Those that make it reveal a lush jungle, its canopies as high as three hundred feet in some places, with no visible signs of the aurigni except the missiles coming up out of the undergrowth.


The ship moves a little closer to Muspelheim and begins shelling the jungle nearest the coast. The drones litter the jungle further inland with bombs. the jungle is burning in many places now, and what sounds like a siren can be heard from the ship, so we know their society is affected somewhere in that mess we just made.

Then it came. A behemoth rising out of the smoking jungle, a black and gold monstrosity with four fusion reactors, ten missile pods, and a great number of long tubes dangling from its belly. Gunships like the one we encountered outside the virmeim sphere accompany it in swarms. Missiles rain down on our ship as its powerful engines bring it closer, the drones smashing against its hull like toys. When it was directly over the ship the tubes on its underside sprayed a napalm-like incendiary down on the deck. The ship was already sinking, but the aurigni didn't seem to give a shit.


Deciding to withhold the nukes for now, the Director calls back our submarines and orders more resources into building up defenses. Drone production is increased and the construction of the other two warships given priority, to cover our losses. The virmeim matriarchs' daughters at their embassy in our colony are also informed. By the way, they have a miniature sphere there now and are teaching us to grow more spheres around our buildings. The arts festival at the first sphere we visited is also coming up soon, though with the outbreak of war people are having trouble getting excited for it. Some colonists even blame the virmeims for our conflict with the aurigni.

Also, we lost the entire crew of that ship the enemy vessel took out: fifty-six soldiers, four engineers, sixteen general labourers.


Recognizing the need for better offensive capability, the Director devotes colony resources into the development of EMP weapons and building railguns. He also contacts the virmeims, requesting their expertise in biotechnology to accelerate the maturing of our offspring, and possibly augmenting them to create 'superhumans'. While the virmeim are morally opposed to augmenting their own race, they agree to help augment ours in exchange for our continued support against the aurignis.

Meanwhile, we are also directing radio signals at Muspelheim, trying to open communication with the aurigni. It took some time, but eventually there was a response, in a harsh guttural language that could only be the aurignis. The communications experts have too little to go on at this time for us to speak to them, but now we know they're listening. We might send data of some kind that they could understand.


The brutality of the aurigni makes the Director believe that a threat is the best way to start communication, so he sends them an animation of their massive ship being destroyed - not in any particular way, just destroyed. Telling them 'we can do it', basically. Afterwards he sends an image of a human and an aurigni with arms spread and palms open, standing next to one another. 'We don't have to do it, let's talk', basically. The aurigni response is an animation of a human with a flamethrower up his ass, followed by a similar animation, followed by a similar animation, etc.


The colony focuses its resources on weapons development. Two more nukes are completed, seven more ICBMs, a prototype for a handheld EMP cannon is designed and one railgun is built, mounted on a ship. Also, the virmeim geneticists sent over make rapid progress in our supersoldier project. They want to birth the supersoldiers full-grown, and expect to be able to do this in 'four to five of your days, Earth-clan'. Also, the festival is tomorrow.


The Director sends the aurigni another gruesome animation, then tries talking again. At first the aurigini do not respond, but he just keeps talking in the hopes they will eventually say *something*. As it happens, they do, and he keeps them talking even though neither of them understand each other. Eventually the aurigni just 'hang up', but the audio is very useful to the communications experts working on deciphering their language. With the supercomputer accessible this time, and it being a language more comparable to our own than the virmeim's, there is optimism for the project.

Meanwhile, half the Ark's sperm and eggs are turned over to the virmeims and we also request that they make the supersoldiers sterile. The virmeims seem a little disgusted by the idea, but they comply. We also finish work on another railgun, both our boats have railguns now.


After our last prolonged conversation, the communications experts and supercomputers managed to decipher some of the aurigni language. Most of what they said was extremely violent abuse, but a few remarks stand out: 'You are brave', 'You have surprised us', 'We misjudged.' Nonetheless, there was nothing that suggested they wanted peace. We seem to have merely gained some respect as an enemy.

With the help of the virmeims, our supersoldiers have been born. Full-grown, eight feet tall, extremely strong and fast, with heightened senses and reflexes, they are physically perfect. Mentally they are still infants, our soldiers are now training them. Also, they are sterile, as per our request.

Wanting to do more research on the procellas, we have once again gone to the virmeims for aid. This time they asked for something in return, specifically the schematics to our railguns, but they promise to provide us with vehicles that can travel through the energy storms and take scientific readings.


Agreeing to the Virmeim's terms, we give them the schematics to our rail gun. They say they find the concept intriguing and want to develop a biotechnological equivalent, if possible (they seem mostly averse to our 'form' of tech).

Meanwhile, we are talking to the Aurignis.

"Keep to your side of the ocean. We keep to ours."

Harsh, barking laughter was the initial response.

"Ridiculous. We cannot stay here, we already killed all the vermin here. How would we even pass the time? Don't get in our way when we come for the vermin, and we won't bother you."

They appear to be unaware that we have any relationship with the vermeims.

The vehicles for the energy storm will not be ready for some time.


"We can't let you kill the vermeims. Why do you want them dead?"

"They are unholy [no translation] and this planet must be purged. You say you defend them. Why?"


The Director closes the channel, and opens a separate one to the vermiem embassy, telling them about this. They seem very, very displeased to hear that we are communicating with the aurignis in any way, but they express gratitude about being kept informed. The Director tells them what he's going to say, then switches to the aurigni channel.

"We're using them for our own ends."

The aurigni grunted. "Unwise. They have nothing to offer but ruin. You will regret even touching them. They are unholy. Rain fire on their filthy lairs, as you rained it on us, and you will gain the Emperor's friendship. That is all."

The aurignis close the channel. The vermiems inform us that their research vehicle that can survive the energy storms is prepared. The military informs us that the 200 full grown super soldiers the vermeims grew for us are now functioning adults, mentally. Combat training is underway.


A team of our best is assembled for the expedition into the north. Five physicists, five chemists, five medical doctors, two geologists one xenobotanist and two communications experts (in case the procella are, in fact, intelligent). Accompanying this science team are twenty-two soldiers. They barely fit into the vermiem vehicle, which has three vermiem scientists aboard plus the pilot.

The vehicle itself is a hovercraft of the same bark-like organic material as the spheres, with some other biotech materials and 'conventional' technology includes in its inner workings. It has no armament to speak, the vermiems claim it would be pointless to arm it as they believe the procella to be invincible. We set off north, into the energy storm. Visibility is severely difficult, even though the vermiem's tech functions perfectly the clouds and surges of energys make it almost impossible. We crash into rocks more than once. However, the hovercraft's scientific instruments are giving us a great deal of new technical information on this energy type's behaviour, and we are also observing the procellas' movements. They seem to favour figure eights, and one procella never comes close to another.


The hovercraft performs numerous figure eights, but there is no reaction from the procella, they mostly just keep doing their own figure eights. Some of them are also heading north or east in scattered groups. The team decides to try firing a radiation beam, the vermiem's were aware this was something the humans had been considering in the past and had equipped the vehicle with the capability. When fired, the radiation beam sparks a series of surges in the energy storm, as if it were attracted to the radiation. Moreover, the procella themselves are now rapidly gathering above us, hundreds of perhaps thousands of the creatures, this time all performing figure eights.


They begin directing the radiation beam in a figure eight pattern. The energy surges are absolutely out of control, arcing from one procella to another and filling the swirling blue clouds with a fierce light, but the vehicle seems completely safe. The movements of the procella are faster now, and they are circling lower. One of the communications experts want to try another shape with the radiation beam, while the physicists want to try an EMP and the vermiems suggest going back now.


Content with the discoveries they have made, the research team heads back south. The procella can be seen slowly dispersing behind them, scattering about the clouds again and moving more slowly again. Meanwhile, at the colony, the supersoldiers are considered combat-ready and the Director is eager to test their capabilities.


The Director decides he needs to test the supersoldiers in a controlled environment. He has construction robots build a 'warzone', and the sixty most accomplished veterans of our regular troops are assembled on one end... the twenty most promising of our super soldiers, on the other.

One of those chosen for this sim is Private Alexander Benoit. As the battle's beginning is announced by a pistol fired in the air, he rushes forward to cover. The next half hour goes by in a blur, his training and his enhanced instincts taking over. When it's all over, there are six super soldiers left, including Benoit.

Also, some updates on progress in other areas. We have three ships now, all with railguns. Our drone fleet is back at full strength. Our science teams are poring over procella data.


While the supersoldiers are put through more combat sims and training regimens, going up against increasingly stacked odds and difficult athletic feats, the Director contacts the aurigni again to try and learn more about them.

As he trains both alongside and against the 'normal' soldiers, Private Benoit is beginning to notice the most important difference between his kind and theirs. He was born here, this is home. For them, this is still a place they ran to. He can see in their eyes that they miss this 'Earth'. Having never known any other life, he can't understand it.

Even as Benoit is watching his smaller comrades on the training grounds and contemplating them, the Director in his cushiony office chair, on the line with the aurigni.

"You mentioned an 'Emperor'. Tell me about him."

"He is fire made flesh. He is the sun of the universe and the heat of pure life. And he commands."

"Does he command you personally?"

"I am not worthy for him to address me."

"Who would be?"

A grunt. "None, in truth, but he speaks to some out of necessity. Do you command your kind?"

"To a certain extent."

"Command them to rain fire on those pathetic little monsters you're protecting."

"I'm afraid I won't be doing that. Why do you want them dead, anyway?"

"I have told you."

"Well... how did you discover they were 'unholy'?"

"That was before my time, and I am no priest. The Emperor says it is so, that is enough for me."


"May I speak with a priest?"

"You may."

The line went dead for a time. When the signal came back, a new voice spoke, still growling but a little more calm.

"Is this the leader of the humans?"

"Yes, it is."

"I am a priest, as requested. What is it?"

"Tell me more about the Emperor."

"He is fire made flesh. He is the sun of the universe and the heat of pure life. And he commands."

"Yes, so I've heard. Can you tell me anything else?" The Director has trouble concealing his exasperation.

The priest sighs. "The Emperor commands. I don't see what is so complicated."

"Why does he command?"

""He is fire made flesh. He is the sun of the universe and the heat of pure life. And he commands."

"..."


After an awkward pause, the Director tries a new topic. "Tell me about where you come from, instead."

"Another planet, which no longer exists. This is true for your kind as well, am I correct?"

"Yes, you are..."

"Home is a crutch. Exile is a path to strength. You will learn this, if we don't kill you first."

"Good to know. Why are you so intent on killing us, again?"

"You defend the unholy."

"Why is it that the vermiems are deemed 'unholy'?"

"They are treacherous, disgusting beasts that dared to lie to another incarnation of the Emperor, in a time before I was born."

We have just learned a few things. It appears the office/godhood status of Emperor is, in fact, a hereditary position... and the aurigni are remnants like ourselves.


"What lie did the virmeims tell the Emperor?"

"Not one lie. Many."

"Go on."

"They claimed this planet was 'theirs', when it is ours by the Emperor's divine word. They told us they did not know the source of the energy storms, when they knew it perfectly well. They told us they were not here, on the continent you call Muspelheim. We found them."

Super soldiers will be called Ajax troops.


"How much do you know about the energy storms?"

"As much as you do, I expect. To walk in the storm is death. The creatures within are the source. They are majestic, are they not?"

The Director had to admit that they were. "About the vermeims... Perhaps it was a misunderstanding. Could anything reconcile your peoples?"

"Never."

That sounds familiar.


"I'd like to know more about your people and your homeworld."

"We are curious about you as well. What happened to your homeworld?"

"We destroyed it, fighting among ourselves."

"A sign of weakness. There can be no strength without unity. The vermin do not realize this... did you know every little pack of the creatures is separate from the others?"

"I did know that. You haven't told me about your homeworld."

"It was destroyed by a worthy enemy. You asked about our people, as well. What would you know?"

Obviously, they're not going to offer any biological information. The Director hopes to gain some further insight to their psyche though, that could be useful. "What do you value?"

"Discipline, loyalty, courage. Honour. What do humans value, besides unholy worms and the destruction of your own planet?"

"It varies from human to human," the Director mildly, ignoring the jab. "We are very individualistic. Freedom is probably a universal value."

"Divided and undisciplined. You will meet our demands or be conquered, for you are weak where we are strong."

The line went dead. The conversation seems to be over, for now. The Director looks into the colony's status. Terraformers report that corn and potatoes are coming in nicely. The Ajax troops now lose next to no men in their average combat sim against the regular soldiers, outnumbered five to one at that. The science teams theorize that radiation attracts the procella as a new source of sustenance, believing that as energy based life forms they require energy to live. They further theorize that the energy storms are the waste product of the procella, and that they 'feed' on magnetic energy.


Another expedition into the energy storm zone is launched, the vermeims supplying the transport and also a biotechnological electromagnet. They also report that they have a prototype biotech railgun mounted on their southernmost sphere, now.

With a team made up of the same professionals as last but half as large, they go six kilometers beyond the edge of the storm and then activate their electromagnet. There is no effect on the storm this time, but procella go wild, swooping down toward the vehicle and around it in frantic movements, no figure eights this time... it's clear that they are attracted to the magnetic energy, our scientists celebrate inside the vehicle.


The hovercrafts drives around in a figure eight. The procellas imitate, at first on accident as they follow the magnetic energy that we theorize is like nutrients to them (they're attracted to it, in any case). After a few moments though, they get the idea, and soon we are doing figure eights in sync with the procellas. Like dancing. This lends further credence to the idea that they are intelligent, now is the time to figure out how to communicate...


THREAD MISSING (NUKES ON MOTHERSHIP/TEMPLE OF THE EMPEROR)

Engineers and physicists examining the aurigni technology we recovered find that their fusion reactors are very energy efficient but would be highly unstable by human standards, requiring near-constant maintenance and always on the brink of a meltdown. Yet their gunships have fusion reactors, and are piloted by a crew of three. The aurigni must have some technique unknown to us that keeps their reactors running smoothly. In regards to their shields, we have discovered a new element (dubbed 'aurignium') that seems to facilitate the creation of a kinetic barrier. How exactly it is used to do this is unknown, but all their burnt-out shield generators we recovered contained this element.

Concerning their biology, our biologists, chemists and medical doctors have been thoroughly examining the prisoners. They are egg-laying hermaphrodites with extraordinarily dense muscle and bone, making them strong and sturdy but slow. Their dark blue flesh is resistant to extreme heat and to radiation, making x-rays ineffective (though, since the aurigni have told us that 'to walk in the storms is death', their skin must not be resistant to the procellas' unique energy). The growths of black chitin on their shoulders and forearms are brittle and apparently useless, we theorize these are an evolutionary leftover. All of their vital organs have a redundant secondary, and their heart takes it one step further, having a tertiary as well. They are presumed to be carnivorous, judging by their jaws, and their six black eyes have extremely keen sight even in complete darkness.


After all of this information was gathered, the Director decided to interrogate the aurigni with the burns, who we believe served on the mothership we took down. The doctors still only know the basics about the aurigni, but they have managed to sedate him and are now able to revive him. (Though they are hermaphrodites, their features fit human standards of masculinity, and so male pronouns have become the status quo.)

"Good morning," the Director said, watching the six obsidian eyes of the alien slowly open. It was hard not to feel smug about his victory.

"Human." The aurigni looked around the medical bay, and at the restraints on his powerful limbs. "I am your prisoner."

"Yes."

"I'm dying anyway."

"Yes."

"You think to extract information from me before I die?"

"That's right."

"And why would I tell you anything, human?"


"Why not? All I want to do is end this war. Anything you can tell me about your people might help."

The aurigni is silent and still as a statue.

"Tell me about the Emperor."

That got a reaction: the alien snorted and spat, a fat wad of viscous blue goop shooting out of his mouth and splattering the Director in the face. Fortunately, the doctors had already vaccinated everyone for viruses and bacteria carried by the aurigni, but the Director still put a surgical mask over the aurigni's mouth so he couldn't do that again. Wiping his face off, he let out a sigh.

"That was senseless and stupid. I thought you people were all about discipline."

"You have destroyed everything that matters to us. Why should I not do whatever my instinct tells me?"

"What do you mean, 'everything that matters to us'?"

"Your... your weapon. It destroyed the Temple of the Emperor. He is gone, and there is no hope for a new incarnation. Everything I have ever been loyal to is gone, because of you."

The 'Temple' probably refers to the mothership. It seems this Emperor we keep hearing about was aboard. The Director cannot guess what this 'new incarnation' might be about.


"Was the Emperor an aurigni? What sort of new incarnation might there have been?"

"He was more than an aurigni. He was fire made flesh. He was the sun of the universe and the heat of pure life. And he commanded..."

Oh for fucks sakes, not that line again. "Right. And the new incarnation?"

"The child of his egg."

So the Emperor was an aurigni, then. Seems the aurigni have, or had, some kind of royal family revered as gods.


Feeling a touch of pity for aurigni, despite knowing that they don't deserve it, the Director decides to try something that might comfort him. It might even make him more likely to talk, who knows? Taking out his personal device, the Director puts on some music, specifically Beethoven's 9th symphony.

"What are these noises, human?"

"We call it 'music'. There is no translation. It is one of the ways we lament the loss of an extraordinary person. Just listen."

The aurigni listened. It was almost impossible to read any of his emotions besides anger, but the Director thought he looked like he was touched by the gesture. In any case, he remained silent through the track, which was more than hour long. The Director sat by him, even though he really needed to get back to colony business. When it was over, the aurigni finally spoke up.

"You are an interesting people. Leave me now."

The Director left. Time to look into other things.