Noah's Children:
This story is inspired by the manga called Hotel released in 2008. Before the Protheans, possible before the Reapers themselves, there is a human civilization on Earth whom doomed the planet to extinction. Two AI where created, one to save humanity the other to bear responsibility for Humanity's Mistakes. One failed, the other succeeded. The Galaxy is forever changed.
Disclaimer: I don't own Hotel or Mass Effect if I did, Hotel would have more than one chapter for the Hotel Story and Mass Effect 3 wouldn't have been rushed. Most of this chapter is taken out from the manga almost word for word.
Chapter 1: Louis's Hotel
/ Millions of years before the founding of the Council /
Earth the beautiful jewel in the galaxy, once home to a sentient race known as Humanity. Is now more like her sister planet Venus, with howling winds and unbearable temperatures in the hundreds of degrees Celsius.
"Father … I'm Sorry. My Name is Louis. Everybody called me Louis. I'm the manager of a 'Hotel'. The Hotel ... The Hotel, engulfed in the never-ending winds … It's the last hotel on Earth." A large blurred tower is seen in the engulfing winds.
"Time and winds are blurring my memories. I currently lead an idle life. I would have liked to become a worthy manager… I'm searching through my fading memory… And suddenly, I remember my Father."
"The oldest memory I can recall of is … The moment when the world sank."
/ 20## /
In 20## the world changed forever, the grandfather effect has finally taken its toll on humanity, flooding the world where the only evidence of most cities are the skyscrapers and dooming the Earth forever.
/ Unknown Location /
Louis, a small Virtual Intelligence program is within a room recording a meeting with the world's leading scientist Doctor Dokins and the remaining leaders of various governments.
"To sum up … what do you think is going to happen Dr. Dokins?" a nameless politician asked.
The old man known as Dr. Dokins looks at the assemble group of leaders and responds "Humanity has finally opened … The Pandora's box known as Ocean." The group of old looking men are somewhat confused by this statement.
Dokins then turns to the large display behind him. "The waste of fossil fuels led to a rise of temperature. The cities and most of the landmass of Earth were submerged by the sea and humanity was forced to migrate. However that's not important. The problem comes from the fact that the seas have been warmed. The seas are an endless reserve of water and methane. Carbon dioxide, methane and water vapor are three gases responsible for the greenhouse effect. Because of this the oceans release more water vapor, causing the temperature to rise. This rise generates more gas and the increase of gas contributes to even more increase in the worlds temperature. This monstrous chain reaction constantly heats the atmosphere. By the year 2250 … a thermometer should register 100 C and the seas would then disappear. Earth will then become a new Venus. Mankind is doomed to annihilation. Every organism will disappear. After this, Earth will be nothing more than an Eternal Hell."
At this statement everyone was sweating, their actions and the actions of other generations have taken away the future of their entire species. Before they could voice their opinions about how to stop this transformation, Dr Dokins continued his speech.
"There's no going back. We've already pulled the trigger" the doctor finished his speech by forming a gun with his hand, raised it to his head and imitated a gun shot.
"Wha… What will the temperature be at its peak?" asked the politician who previously suggested using the money for the project to build underground bunkers for survivors.
Dokins pulls out and lights a cigar "Luckily it won't be as hot as Venus. According to my calculations it shouldn't exceed 270 C." The politician looked in horror no human in any specially designed bunker could withstand those temperatures. Any attempt to survive is … impossible.
"The proposition accepted by this organization is the building of the Ark. The Ark would travel to a planet approximately 127 light years away where mankind could seek refuge with our current technology. It would take 170,000 years to reach. Our maximal cargo won't exceed thirty tons. And so, this ark won't save those currently living or their successors. The only things that we'll be able to save are our species DNA and the memories of our civilization."
Dokins gestures to a young Japanese scientist in the room holding Louis. "We also have another proposal. The one who brought it is Mister Anno. A PhD student, who has been doing research for me, Mister Anno."
My father Anno, nervously approaches the stand with me in hand. He uses my Wifi connection to display his proposal. A large tower appears on the display, it's shaped like a large stretched out funnel shape. "My project is to build a 4,720 meter high tower on the exposed ground in Antarctica. The construction could be done before 2079 and with less than 1.7% of the budget allocated to the Ark. This tower would allow us to keep the DNA of organisms other than humans to potentially survive once the Earth turns into another Venus."
Unfortunately this gave the wrong impression "Does that mean that one day the Earth will recover!".
"No" my father replied.
"Then why can't we keep our DNA?" shouted another.
"There is no hope for the Earth's environment to recover … And it's also useless to believe that the stored DNA would allow the return of life. The tower's only aim is … to bear responsibility ... for humanities mistakes … that's all there is."
/ 2031, April /
"The tower construction began … My father Doctor Anno and I were in charge of the construction site. Then Doctor Dokins died. However none of his students went to his funeral. They kept working, as the doctor mentioned in his will. My father was one of these students."
There are dozens of cranes with construction workers wearing winter clothing despite the raising temperature in Antarctica. Everyone is determined to complete this project as soon as possible.
/ 2038, May /
"Methane begun to gush out of the sea's great depths, in desperation a man set the first methane bubble was set ablaze in an immense pillar of fire. This resulted in many surviving cities to become engulf in flames. This set back both projects, however the tower wasn't discontinued.
/ 2052, February /
"After parting with my father I was installed in the tower."
Anno, in front of group of scientist has a curtain over an object in the center of a room. He counts down from 3 and reveals a capsule … With a drawn picture that looks like a human with fox like ears sticking its tongue out where its noise is the lens for optical Camera serving as an eye for the capsule.
A blond female scientist giggled, causing everyone to chase her around a room after shouting her name Kiera.
"Kiera Knightly was one of Father's students. She would later become my Operating System manager."
"Louis" she says to me "You love it right?"
"Louis?" my father asked.
"Yeah, Louis Armstrong, I gave him this name. Whenever I look at this tower it reminds me of the song 'What a wonderful world'. That's why I chose to call him Louis."
The scientists consider this and agree to the name "From then on everybody called me 'Louis' … A woman's power is great"
A display of the tower is shown with 7 spots shown. It also showed that the tower's base the largest part almost done. "The following year, I was separated into seven modules. The probability for these seven modules to sustain simultaneous damage was extremely low. With the 'Guest' room completed DNA's storage started in 2055, that's when people started to call the tower a 'Hotel'."
/ 2060, July /
The tower was finally completed. All the DNA of plants, animals, marine, insects, and all organisms except humanity was finally stored. The reason that human DNA isn't being stored is capacity of the 'Guest' room. The rest of the tower is designed to ensure the guest rooms survival. Its capacity is only 1 sample from each organism. With 140,000 human samples gathered for the Ark already therefore wasting a space for even one human sample could me the ensured extinction of another species.
However after news of its opening and purpose of the tower, the general population didn't care. Many in mass attempted to attack various alcohol fire bombs trying to burn down the wall surrounding the tower shouting.
"What use is that thing?"
"Preserve our child's DNA"
"You think that flies are more important than Humans?"
"My father was on his knees crying while this happen"
/ 2068, December /
Kreia, stood in front of the entrance to the 'Guest' room. "Louis" she calls.
"What do you need, Professor knightly?" I asked.
"I'd like you to preserve this for me." She holds out a DNA sample capsule.
"What is it?" I inquire.
"The DNA of Doctor Anno's child!" Kreia answered.
'The DNA of my father's child …' I thought, I immediately opened the Guest's Door, revealing columns upon columns of DNA samples.
"He chose not to store it on the Ark … I'd like you to take it." She says as she walks into the center of the guest room. She opens one of the containers already full of samples. "Please … keep it safe forever."
But before she could place it within the container, Anno appeared taking the sample from her.
"Doctor … We're going to die soon anyway no?" she asked.
Anno looked at her with the sample in hand "Listen Kiera, a lot of people asked me to keep their marking. But I always refused. To bear the same fate as these poor people … Is the path that we must follow isn't it?"
Kreia started crying before shouting "But … This is … This is … This is our baby!"
"Sorry … " Anno replied, before lighting a cigar and leaves the Guest room leaving Kriea crying on the groung.
/ 2079, September /
A large two cylinder spacecraft is leaving Earth's orbit heading towards its destination. The front cylinder contains the samples and facilities to rebuild the human race, the other being the advance engine capable of achieving 1/10th the speed of light.
"My father died the following year. In 2079, the ark left the Earth's orbit and went to reach a faraway planet. My father's Genetic Marking wasn't among the 140,000 Human DNA stranded stored.
In the tower Keria is the last scientist to leave the tower. "Professor Knightly, are you leaving?" I ask. But see continues walking. I decide to sing to her "I'll hum you a song as farewell."
"I see trees of green …"
Keria stops "Fu … Isn't it 'What a wonderful world'?"
"red roses too …"
Keria gets a cat look on her old face and walks up to my module. "Here, a present to Thank you" She says before scribbling something onto my module.
"I watch'em bloom for me and you … "
Keria walks away again "Stay Strong …" she says before closing the door. I change to the speakers throughout the tower so she could hear me continue singing. She placed a fox like face drawing with the words funny underneath almost like the drawing she place on me so many years ago.
"I will never … forget you …"
"And I think to myself what a wonderful world …"
"I see skies of blue clouds of white …"
"Bright blessed days …"
"Warm sacred nights …"
"And I think to myself …"
"What a wonderful world …"
"The colors of a Rainbow so pretty in the sky …"
The Ark aka NOAH starts its engines and journey lighting up the sky so bright that even the drowned cities could see it.
"Are there on the faces of people …"
"I see friends shaking hands sayin' how do you do …"
"They're really sayin' I love you …"
Birds take flight from one of the antenna towers in a sunken city
"I hear babies cry …"
"I watch them grow …"
"They'll learn much more than I'll ever known …"
"And I think to myself …"
The light of NOAH continues to shine.
"What a wonderful world …"
A series of sites are shown, ships, trees, and methane continues to rise from the ocean.
"Yes …"
"I think to myself …"
"Oh, yeah …"
Kreia never left the Hotel alive, she died staring at the Guest Room listening to Louis sing, unable to open because Anno order that she isn't allow and no other samples are allowed inside. She died with no sample on hand as Anno order Louis to destroy the only sample as their son had already died in child birth and she only had the one sample. The doctors who took her body said her body just shut down having lost the will to continue. The Hotel is sealed and Louis is order to have all gates sealed.
/ 2130 /
The Rising Sea level started to subside. However the atmospheric pressure rose. The majority of mankind was already dead.
/ 2250 /
Inside the thermometer rose up to 30 C, while the sea was boiling at the equator. The atmosphere was now composed of over 30% of carbon dioxide.
/ 2272 /
Surprisingly, some humans that were still alive came. They tried to force their way in with a rocket launcher. But the gigantic typhoon formed at the equator wiped them out. After that no one else came by. The Hotel was now buried in clouds and never ending storms. I then chose to call that storm the Atmospheric current.
/ 2323 /
Out of the seven modules forming my system, four turned out to be defective. While replacing, I took the opportunity to run a full system check. Being cautious is the first necessary reflex to maintain long system live.
/ 2372 /
A large part of the outer shield was ripped off. I had to make emergency repairs. No doubt the result of cutting corners in construction. Humans will always be humans wherever you go.
/ 2543 /
I already replaced my modules 142 times. The length between these replacements was decreasing, as I didn't want to grow old. I started searching for ways to rebuild my system. Fifteen years later, I made a ground-breaking discovery. I changed all my components and am now smarter. The new system was managed by factories following a cellular layout where each element was able to repair itself. I redrew my face the one that … mother gave me.
With my new intellect, I tried remembering my father. Would he have been proud of me? Or would he have been sad to see me fail?
Is the Ark cruising safely?
Are the auroras still floating past these clouds submerging me in 800 hectopascals of pressure?
Are they still dancing unbeknownst to anyone?
/ 5021, December /
Something breaks up in Earth's atmosphere and a part of it crashes into the tower.
The unidentified object reduced the tower's height by 420 meters. It must be something made by Humans long ago.
Because of the shock the energy production by thermodynamic based generators stopped. The cooling system ceased to work. Assuring a pleasant temperature is essential for the guest's lodging in the hotel. That worries me.
I've built lots of wind turbines around the Hotel to produce electricity, it helps that wind is only blowing in one direction. If my father was alive, he would have told me "wind turbines are better at generating electricity than thermodynamic systems."
I also sent a scouting party, composed of robots. They are less intelligent than me but still smarter than humans were. I placed my face on them they remind me of spiders but with two arms and six wheels instead of 8 legs.
If I'm right there must still be some nuclear fuel in North America buried in military bases the WMDs made during the cold war.
The scouting party made me able to discover the earth 3000 years after mankind's extinction. The strong winds made every single trace of civilization disappear, but the scouting party was able to bring me back some of the old nuclear warheads.
I'm still lacking in energy. I chose to let the temperature rise everywhere except for guest's rooms. Summer is here. After living through 500 summers, in some sort of astronomical miracle, five modules burned up simultaneously. The somewhat stupider me left the cables that had snapped in the incident be.
/ 5072 /
I shortened the Hotel's height and increased the number of modules to 63. I made more and more of the ever breaking wind turbines. I also built a factory to produce a new scouting party that would be sent to seek other nuclear warheads as the other broke down. As the modules were easily breaking down, I increased their number to 189. I'm aiming for 200.
/ 120,000 years later /
Without noticing, another 120,000 years went by. The earth was still there. The fall in temperature that I met with joy 50,000 years ago was nothing more than a short 'ice age'. An ice age where the temperature averaged around 245 C that's when the tower started to crumble.
I upgraded my system so I can operate without cooling, even with an external temperature of 260 C. The towers energy production was 2,000% more efficient than it was at the start. All of that energy was to fix the tower.
The repairs felt like an eternity once done another 100,000 years had passed.
Did the Ark make it to Destination?
Aside for the Guests rooms nothing made by humanity remains. The atmospheric current, the storm, didn't change. I'm still waiting for a day that will most likely never rise.
/ Unknown Number of Years Later /
Will father forgive me? What am I saying? Will mother … No will Kiera Forgive me?
The tower's interior is has been breached the winds is howling inside the tower.
What time is it? Since when did I lose track of time? Ah … the Hotel is crumbling.
I must fix myself … I must fix myself … I must protect the DNA …
I'll repair myself for sure … because I have something to protect. That's why I will keep repairing …
The temperature is 260 degrees. The Earth is cooling down. Someday … Someday … until the time when life returns my mission is to protect the Hotel.
/ Unknown Number of Years Later /
"I … have just … two modules left. They're functional, but I can't identify any faulty areas. The machine controlling the gene expression broke down without me noticing … and so I am no longer able … to bring back 'life'."
Louis's primary module looks heavily worn down and damaged.
"It doesn't matter."
"But I have to protect it …"
"I exist to protect the Hotel. Father … Please forgive me … "
The winds dissipate, and something is falling from the sky.
"Ah, what is this?"
"Water?"
"Rain?"
Louis shifts his camera up … he sees two young almost ghost like people my parents.
"Illusion? A system error? This kind of error must be a sign of my end."
Louis activates his damaged speaker. "Mother … Father … I'm sorry … I was unable to fulfill my mission. I was unable to protect my guests … What's more … I didn't follow your instructions" I no longer see myself as a module, I see myself as a little boy. The rain is my tears.
"I'm a bad boy. I'm sorry … Father. I'm sorry …" the image of a crying boy still my identity.
"You did will Louis" my smiling mother said to me.
"You're wonderful" my father replied.
"The water are still my tears but their tears of … joy" I thought, they disappeared as the clouds where forced away by this approaching mech like machine. Surrounded by some type of flying creatures.
One of these creatures approaches me. They have wings, a bat like head but geometrically smooth, and two human arms and a tail. But most significant of all was a drawing of a person with the word Noah under it.
"Are you humans?" I ask.
"Manager, we are the new version of the systems that once loaded in the ark. Humanity went extinct. They are no more." The now identified robot responds.
"I need to know what happen. When is it … Now?" I rambled.
"All of the DNA samples stocked on the ark were lost once it reached its destination. Our mission is now useless there… We returned to Earth in order to reviv other living organisms whose DNA was being preserved at the hotel. As humanity's descendants. Earth's environment has been restored some time ago. The hotel's appearance … No longer looks anything like we remembered." The robot replied.
The tower was barely 50 meters high. It actually looked like a circle with spires going about 50 meters into the sky.
"It shows how terrible your ordeals were. Manager … "The flying robot admired. "You protected life … For over 27 million years. It's a miracle."
Another robot flews towards the speaking robot. "Raphael! The DNA is perfectly preserced."
"WOW!" "Ohhh!" "We'll be able to bring back life on earth!" other many robots we shouting.
"We failed. But you were successful … I'm … so … glad." The first robot Raphael said, its eyes were changed to an image of eye's crying … crying for joy.
They're happy … They're happy no "STOP CELEBRATING!" I shout. "I wasn't able to fulfill my mission … The one entrusted to me by Dokin and my parents. Please stop celebrating." My modular starts sparking, as my remaining module begins to fail after so long.
"Look through the guest's room. There should be … some … Human's DNA." I barely said.
Inside the room on top of other samples is another sample laying on its side with its name tag revealed.
TYPE: DNA SPECIES: Homosapens
MALE JIRO DATE: 2068
NAME: ANNO 09
FEMALE KIERA SEXUALITY: MALE
NAME: KNIGHTLY
"It's my little brother's. I felt sorry for my parents. So I kept it preciously, even if I felt guilty for going against my father's wishes. "With it … Will you be able to fulfill your mission and bring back humanity?"
My systems and process are degrading, I don't' have much time left.
"Take. It. Pl.. ea… se…" Raphael watches as Louis is shuting down.
He bows towards me "Understood … Manager … big brother"
My last memory was … the sight of the blue sea, finally back. Then a bright light … inside this light I see my parents waiting for me with a little one between them with its little arms open.
Hotel: AD 2079 – AD 27034732
Manager: Louis Armstrong
Author Notes:
Instead I writing my own version of I decided to use Hotel. I wept reading the manga and righting this chapter. The next chapter will be how Raphael and its younger brothers help rebuild Humanity. Or I can do one about NOAH/ARK and how this tries into the Mass Effect Universe.
Please give me your thoughts.