Shattered Enigma
By: Dark-Elk
The darkness beckoned invitingly to Jolrael, last of his people, last of the ancient Xel'Naga. He would die soon; no one knew that better than he. He wasn't sure even whether or not fighting death was worth it anymore.
At his last estimation, Jolrael was well over forty thousand years old, making him only middle-aged in terms of a Xel'Naga lifespan, but quite ancient when compared to the other races the Xel'Naga had interfered with.
Interference. . .was the only real way to describe the Xel'Naga culture, at least for Jolrael. It was interference that had raised the Protoss, the First Born, up from their primitive lodgings, up until they could touch the stars with their "gods", the Xel'Naga. But it was not to last. Pride took them, dragged them into the depths of rage and insanity, and a few suicidially attacked the far superior Xel'Naga, paying their lives for their zeal. The Xel'Naga left the race to their petty squabbles and left that sector for good, letting the Protoss indulge in their Aeon of Strife as they eventually came to call it.
The Xel'Naga reconciled their mistakes, and instead began seeking an organism that could become a race pure in essence, the single attribute the failed Protoss had lacked. The ash-world of Zerus became haven to them, far away from the world of Aiur, deep in the blazing galactic core. They began to tempt fate again with the miniature insectoid parasites known as the Zerg.
They found what they wanted. The Zerg were quickly evolved from wormlike slugs into a disparate race of host creatures, continually ensuring dominance of Zerus by assimilating only the most advanced and powerful creatures into their fold, eradicating any that were less than perfect. Everything changed when the Xel'Naga finally succeeded in removing the rudimentary intelligence the Zerg had, placing the heart of the Zerg race, or rather the brain, in the hands of a creature called the Overmind.
The Overmind was originally only semi-sentient, merely exhibiting instinct and basic intellect at first, but quickly developed a personality and a rather advanced intellect. This had all taken places within the span of a matter of generations.
The Overmind continued building its forces up, dominating every aspect of Zerus, being the perfect servant of the Xel'Naga, and would have become the champions of the galaxy, the defenders of peace and righteousness. . .but the Overmind had different plans. A race of gargantuan, space-faring creatures passed near the planet of Zerus, and the Overmind called to them, thus assimilating their super-dense hides and their ability to survive in vacuum. It was only days later that the Overmind launched its attack upon the Xel'Naga strongholds.
Masses of creatures flung themselves at the highly advanced structures of the Xel'Naga, slowly battering through the defenses by sheer numbers. The Xel'Naga retreated to their massive fleet, intent upon sterilizing the world, not knowing of the space capabilities the Zerg now possessed. The slaughter was horrible; every Xel'Naga present was assimilated into the Overmind, becoming a slave in spirit to their own creation. Less than a handful survived, primarily those elsewhere in the galaxy.
Jolrael was one of these few surviving Xel'Naga, having been dispatched years prior to search the fringes of the galaxy for more races that could be influenced. Not all the Xel'Naga had agreed that the Zerg race was the purest race possible, believing that some outside force had manipulated the higher echelons of Xel'Naga leadership. He had received the news of his races decimation only days prior.
Jolrael sighed, knowing his people had failed in their one goal, their one mission as a species. A new threat was growing, not in this galaxy, but in another dimension. Dimensional travel had only begun to be researched when the Zerg decimated the Xel'Naga; thankfully they had not assimilated those secrets, or the Swarm would be unstoppable. Had the Xel'Naga succeeded, the Zerg would have been a supremely formidable defense force, safeguarding the galaxy while leaving the Xel'Naga race free to tinker with other races, evolving them to the highest forms they could obtain.
Meddlers, tinkerers. . . this was the Xel'Naga. IPerhaps we deserved to fall for our arrogance, our sheer contempt for the natural process of life/I, thought Jolrael. IWe were so smug, believing that our race knew what was better for the galaxy. And look what we achieved: our own annihilation. Had we not tried to create a servant race to do our bidding, our fighting, we might still be alive now, and have at least given the galaxy a fighting chance. Instead, now we are a dead race, and I alone must carry on the mission of my people../I
Jolrael glanced back at the console behind him, assuring himself that it had not occurred yet. The console wasn't indicating anything out of the ordinary, and Jolrael turned back to the window, contemplating the stars. IAll of this could have been ours, ours and our creations. We could have spread in unity across the known galaxy, staunchly defending the borders against incursions from our unknown nemesis. Arrogance, among other things, was the prime fault of my race. Perhaps arrogance is natural for a race; the First Born, the Protoss, were arrogant, culminating in their attack upon us, and our retreat from their planet. The Zerg, in their arrogance, decimated my people. As hard as it is for me to believe, I don't hate them for that. We needed to be stopped before we created a race that was insurmountable. The Zerg may have defeated us, but I believe that the Protoss should be able to halt them. . .the last reports I received from near Aiur indicated they have finally united, and I believe that they should be able to halt the Zerg long enough for this race to emerge from its shadow./I
The panel finally began blinking, demanding Jolrael's attention. Taking one final glance at the starry field before him, he turned and sat down at the controls and slowly gazed at the screen's contents.
When he had been sent on his mission to this outer arm of the galaxy, it had been expected that a Xel'Naga exploration fleet would follow shortly after bearing any resources needed to evolve the planet before his screen. With the uprising of the Overmind, a fleet had never been sent, and Jolrael was left without resources. As much as he did not wish to, he knew he needed to carry out the final orders of his people, the final tampering with another species the ancient and venerable Xel'Naga would ever undertake. The asteroid hurtling towards the planet would miss it, although only barely. The computer onboard the IGenesis/I, Jolrael's starship, predicted that if the asteroid impacted at a certain point, the entire planetary ecology would change, allowing the dominant family of mammals to diminish and allow another species to begin its ascent. Predictions were vague, but it suggested that the planet would undergo a period of severe change, followed by the development of a species the Xel'Naga classified as primates. Unfortunately, without the resources of the exploration fleet, there was little Jolrael could do. . .without great sacrifice.
Mentally steeling himself for the final act of his race, he issued a command the to IGenesis/I, ordering it to fire its engines and change its course slightly. Standing up from his seat, he looked around the small cabin that had contained his life for so long now. Bowing his head, he walked slowly to the rear of his craft, the acceleration threatening to throw him off balance. His palm searched the wall, and finally met with the small pad that opened the small hatch nearby. Crouching low and cursing the designer of this class of starship, he settled into the small escape pod and slid the door closed. Magnetic fields holding the pod to the starship weakened, and he engaged the engines behind him to slowly drift away from the craft. The massive thrust engines activated, hurtling him away from his home, but allowing him to view the final end to his craft and the beginning of a new race.
The IGenesis/I continued to accelerate towards the asteroid, making slight adjustments to its vector the entire time. Jolrael's sacrifice would be in vain if the ship struck anywhere outside of the exact zone he had plotted. With a spectacular explosion that completely darkened the viewport of the pod, the starship struck the asteroid, its massive fusion generators detonating with the force of a supernova. The asteroid shuddered, wobbling on its course now. Jolrael performed a final visual check and confirmed the asteroid would strike the planet in the right spot. Then he reached behind and toggled the engines once more, hurtling towards the moon of the planet before him.
A tear slid down his smooth face, knowing he was giving his life to these creatures before him so that they might confront the Zerg and help save the galaxy. He was performing a final act of redemption to atone for the heinous sin of creating and releasing the Zerg Swarm. Without his escape pod, the creatures below would never find the Koprulu sector worlds where the Zerg were headed, and would never be able to save the galaxy.
He stared out the rear viewport into the disk of the moon, watching as it seemingly sped towards him. IWe were meddlers. I can only hope those who follow us will know better than to tamper with life itself./I
-_-_-_-_-_-
I"That's one small step for man. . .one giant leap. . . for mankind."/I
Mere hours after these words were spoken, a discovery so monumental took place, one of the most monumental things that ever affected the planet of Terra. Terrans in the highest echelons of government were shaken with the knowledge.
IWe are not alone. There are those who have come before us that have shaped the history of our world, and the histories of other worlds. It is time to join with the rest of the galaxy./I
Within a few hundred years, the Terrans united under the banner of the UPL, and a massive colonization effort was undertaken, flinging supercarriers filled with hibernating Terrans towards the Koprulu sector, never knowing that the government was sending them to see if there were indeed other children of the Xel'Naga still alive.
Within a scant few hundred years after arrival, the Terrans first confronted the Zerg, finally carrying out the grand design of the last of the Xel'Naga.
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-
Dark-Elk here again, just wanted to speak a bit about this story.
This was difficult to write. . . unbelievably difficult. There are few other fics that I could use as a reference point for this one containing plausible information about the Xel'Naga. The manual, while rather detailed for an instruction booklet, still contains little working knowledge about the creator race. The majority of events portrayed in this fic are taken from the booklet, such as the rebellion of the First Born, and the destruction of the Xel'Naga race by the Overmind.
I would rather like to see more fics featuring the Xel'Naga, but not in the post-Brood Wars universe that people seem to view them in. THEY ARE AN ANCIENT RACE! Creating the Protoss and the Zerg were not the only things they did.
I hope that you, the reader, enjoyed this fic. And unlike I have previously stated, this story WILL NOT be my last short story. I had intended this to be the end. . . but writing short stories appeals to me far to much to give it up. I have another short fic in the making, titled "Darkness of the Void". That one should take a while though, so don't expect it very soon.
Keep reading, keep writing. . . keep dreaming. For without dreams, the second is impossible, and without the second, the first would not exist.
Fight on, Dark-Elk
By: Dark-Elk
The darkness beckoned invitingly to Jolrael, last of his people, last of the ancient Xel'Naga. He would die soon; no one knew that better than he. He wasn't sure even whether or not fighting death was worth it anymore.
At his last estimation, Jolrael was well over forty thousand years old, making him only middle-aged in terms of a Xel'Naga lifespan, but quite ancient when compared to the other races the Xel'Naga had interfered with.
Interference. . .was the only real way to describe the Xel'Naga culture, at least for Jolrael. It was interference that had raised the Protoss, the First Born, up from their primitive lodgings, up until they could touch the stars with their "gods", the Xel'Naga. But it was not to last. Pride took them, dragged them into the depths of rage and insanity, and a few suicidially attacked the far superior Xel'Naga, paying their lives for their zeal. The Xel'Naga left the race to their petty squabbles and left that sector for good, letting the Protoss indulge in their Aeon of Strife as they eventually came to call it.
The Xel'Naga reconciled their mistakes, and instead began seeking an organism that could become a race pure in essence, the single attribute the failed Protoss had lacked. The ash-world of Zerus became haven to them, far away from the world of Aiur, deep in the blazing galactic core. They began to tempt fate again with the miniature insectoid parasites known as the Zerg.
They found what they wanted. The Zerg were quickly evolved from wormlike slugs into a disparate race of host creatures, continually ensuring dominance of Zerus by assimilating only the most advanced and powerful creatures into their fold, eradicating any that were less than perfect. Everything changed when the Xel'Naga finally succeeded in removing the rudimentary intelligence the Zerg had, placing the heart of the Zerg race, or rather the brain, in the hands of a creature called the Overmind.
The Overmind was originally only semi-sentient, merely exhibiting instinct and basic intellect at first, but quickly developed a personality and a rather advanced intellect. This had all taken places within the span of a matter of generations.
The Overmind continued building its forces up, dominating every aspect of Zerus, being the perfect servant of the Xel'Naga, and would have become the champions of the galaxy, the defenders of peace and righteousness. . .but the Overmind had different plans. A race of gargantuan, space-faring creatures passed near the planet of Zerus, and the Overmind called to them, thus assimilating their super-dense hides and their ability to survive in vacuum. It was only days later that the Overmind launched its attack upon the Xel'Naga strongholds.
Masses of creatures flung themselves at the highly advanced structures of the Xel'Naga, slowly battering through the defenses by sheer numbers. The Xel'Naga retreated to their massive fleet, intent upon sterilizing the world, not knowing of the space capabilities the Zerg now possessed. The slaughter was horrible; every Xel'Naga present was assimilated into the Overmind, becoming a slave in spirit to their own creation. Less than a handful survived, primarily those elsewhere in the galaxy.
Jolrael was one of these few surviving Xel'Naga, having been dispatched years prior to search the fringes of the galaxy for more races that could be influenced. Not all the Xel'Naga had agreed that the Zerg race was the purest race possible, believing that some outside force had manipulated the higher echelons of Xel'Naga leadership. He had received the news of his races decimation only days prior.
Jolrael sighed, knowing his people had failed in their one goal, their one mission as a species. A new threat was growing, not in this galaxy, but in another dimension. Dimensional travel had only begun to be researched when the Zerg decimated the Xel'Naga; thankfully they had not assimilated those secrets, or the Swarm would be unstoppable. Had the Xel'Naga succeeded, the Zerg would have been a supremely formidable defense force, safeguarding the galaxy while leaving the Xel'Naga race free to tinker with other races, evolving them to the highest forms they could obtain.
Meddlers, tinkerers. . . this was the Xel'Naga. IPerhaps we deserved to fall for our arrogance, our sheer contempt for the natural process of life/I, thought Jolrael. IWe were so smug, believing that our race knew what was better for the galaxy. And look what we achieved: our own annihilation. Had we not tried to create a servant race to do our bidding, our fighting, we might still be alive now, and have at least given the galaxy a fighting chance. Instead, now we are a dead race, and I alone must carry on the mission of my people../I
Jolrael glanced back at the console behind him, assuring himself that it had not occurred yet. The console wasn't indicating anything out of the ordinary, and Jolrael turned back to the window, contemplating the stars. IAll of this could have been ours, ours and our creations. We could have spread in unity across the known galaxy, staunchly defending the borders against incursions from our unknown nemesis. Arrogance, among other things, was the prime fault of my race. Perhaps arrogance is natural for a race; the First Born, the Protoss, were arrogant, culminating in their attack upon us, and our retreat from their planet. The Zerg, in their arrogance, decimated my people. As hard as it is for me to believe, I don't hate them for that. We needed to be stopped before we created a race that was insurmountable. The Zerg may have defeated us, but I believe that the Protoss should be able to halt them. . .the last reports I received from near Aiur indicated they have finally united, and I believe that they should be able to halt the Zerg long enough for this race to emerge from its shadow./I
The panel finally began blinking, demanding Jolrael's attention. Taking one final glance at the starry field before him, he turned and sat down at the controls and slowly gazed at the screen's contents.
When he had been sent on his mission to this outer arm of the galaxy, it had been expected that a Xel'Naga exploration fleet would follow shortly after bearing any resources needed to evolve the planet before his screen. With the uprising of the Overmind, a fleet had never been sent, and Jolrael was left without resources. As much as he did not wish to, he knew he needed to carry out the final orders of his people, the final tampering with another species the ancient and venerable Xel'Naga would ever undertake. The asteroid hurtling towards the planet would miss it, although only barely. The computer onboard the IGenesis/I, Jolrael's starship, predicted that if the asteroid impacted at a certain point, the entire planetary ecology would change, allowing the dominant family of mammals to diminish and allow another species to begin its ascent. Predictions were vague, but it suggested that the planet would undergo a period of severe change, followed by the development of a species the Xel'Naga classified as primates. Unfortunately, without the resources of the exploration fleet, there was little Jolrael could do. . .without great sacrifice.
Mentally steeling himself for the final act of his race, he issued a command the to IGenesis/I, ordering it to fire its engines and change its course slightly. Standing up from his seat, he looked around the small cabin that had contained his life for so long now. Bowing his head, he walked slowly to the rear of his craft, the acceleration threatening to throw him off balance. His palm searched the wall, and finally met with the small pad that opened the small hatch nearby. Crouching low and cursing the designer of this class of starship, he settled into the small escape pod and slid the door closed. Magnetic fields holding the pod to the starship weakened, and he engaged the engines behind him to slowly drift away from the craft. The massive thrust engines activated, hurtling him away from his home, but allowing him to view the final end to his craft and the beginning of a new race.
The IGenesis/I continued to accelerate towards the asteroid, making slight adjustments to its vector the entire time. Jolrael's sacrifice would be in vain if the ship struck anywhere outside of the exact zone he had plotted. With a spectacular explosion that completely darkened the viewport of the pod, the starship struck the asteroid, its massive fusion generators detonating with the force of a supernova. The asteroid shuddered, wobbling on its course now. Jolrael performed a final visual check and confirmed the asteroid would strike the planet in the right spot. Then he reached behind and toggled the engines once more, hurtling towards the moon of the planet before him.
A tear slid down his smooth face, knowing he was giving his life to these creatures before him so that they might confront the Zerg and help save the galaxy. He was performing a final act of redemption to atone for the heinous sin of creating and releasing the Zerg Swarm. Without his escape pod, the creatures below would never find the Koprulu sector worlds where the Zerg were headed, and would never be able to save the galaxy.
He stared out the rear viewport into the disk of the moon, watching as it seemingly sped towards him. IWe were meddlers. I can only hope those who follow us will know better than to tamper with life itself./I
-_-_-_-_-_-
I"That's one small step for man. . .one giant leap. . . for mankind."/I
Mere hours after these words were spoken, a discovery so monumental took place, one of the most monumental things that ever affected the planet of Terra. Terrans in the highest echelons of government were shaken with the knowledge.
IWe are not alone. There are those who have come before us that have shaped the history of our world, and the histories of other worlds. It is time to join with the rest of the galaxy./I
Within a few hundred years, the Terrans united under the banner of the UPL, and a massive colonization effort was undertaken, flinging supercarriers filled with hibernating Terrans towards the Koprulu sector, never knowing that the government was sending them to see if there were indeed other children of the Xel'Naga still alive.
Within a scant few hundred years after arrival, the Terrans first confronted the Zerg, finally carrying out the grand design of the last of the Xel'Naga.
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-
Dark-Elk here again, just wanted to speak a bit about this story.
This was difficult to write. . . unbelievably difficult. There are few other fics that I could use as a reference point for this one containing plausible information about the Xel'Naga. The manual, while rather detailed for an instruction booklet, still contains little working knowledge about the creator race. The majority of events portrayed in this fic are taken from the booklet, such as the rebellion of the First Born, and the destruction of the Xel'Naga race by the Overmind.
I would rather like to see more fics featuring the Xel'Naga, but not in the post-Brood Wars universe that people seem to view them in. THEY ARE AN ANCIENT RACE! Creating the Protoss and the Zerg were not the only things they did.
I hope that you, the reader, enjoyed this fic. And unlike I have previously stated, this story WILL NOT be my last short story. I had intended this to be the end. . . but writing short stories appeals to me far to much to give it up. I have another short fic in the making, titled "Darkness of the Void". That one should take a while though, so don't expect it very soon.
Keep reading, keep writing. . . keep dreaming. For without dreams, the second is impossible, and without the second, the first would not exist.
Fight on, Dark-Elk