May 13, 2009
Extended Summary: The Angels kept coming. Tens, hundreds, thousands. The war against the Angels became a war against time. Humanity developed new technologies and implmented better strategies to contain the Angel arrivals. But their only hope had only a limited amount of life, and when that life perished, the Apocalypse was upon them. Still, wonder by wonder, some of humanity was able to escape the wrath of the Angels. Centuries passed as the far-flung children of mankind settled onto new planets and began to reassert themselves. The Angels were forgotten, and attention shifted to their own midst, warring for territory and wealth rather than for their own survival. However, that peaceful period would end, and a new event would unlock opportunities not available to mankind. Many eons from now, the descendants of mankind are racing to retrieve the lost treasures of Lucifer on the barren planet of Earth. The alliance that manages to obtain the Lance, the Emissary and the Beast will reign supreme.
Disclaimer: I do not own the anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion and am not affiliated to their creators and copyright holders. I did create the universe depicted in this fic though.
Lucifer's Ambition
Prologue
The conflict had gone on without end while years ticked by as humanity put up a valiant effort against the dreaded Angels. Summer after summer, winter past winter, the Earth continued to revolve around the sun while the moon followed obediently. Like all aspects of nature, the war against the Enemy was nothing more than long periods of rest intermitted with short bursts of intense battle.
The struggle went on for so long that it became almost routine to the citizens of Earth. The Battlefield would be cleaned up from the previous fight's mess and any damage to support and defence installations would be repaired. When the Enemy arrived in the form of yet another nightmarish shape, it would be met with the Battlefield's formidable static defences. Controlled independently by personnel deep underground, the armoured weapons platform would hurl the best they had at their opponent in an attempt to sneak in a free kill. That they actually succeeded a handful of times made the massive expenditure worthwhile.
The gun platforms were first equipped with primitive devices known as cannons and missiles. Packed with a variety of conventional and N2 warheads, they often accomplished nothing but leaving craters. However, as the decades passed, the weaponry grew more sophisticated. Cannons and missiles made way for positron cannons and gamma lasers, which in turn made way for experimental black field generators ("BFGs"), masitron arrays ("mazzers") and DTL missiles ("loopers").
The weapon batteries weren't confined to the surface either. Massive progress had been made in different forms of propulsion and the power generators needed to keep them running. While humanity had to do with conventional rockets for the first few decades of the Angel War, remarkable breakthroughs in fusion technology made experimental gravmag drives feasible. Space militarization proceeded at a rapid pace as the night sky brightened from the lights of burgeoning space docks and massive orbital forts.
The forts provided a significant tactical advantage. The huge constructs of nanocompsteel ranged from the relatively 'agile' superbattleship-sized anchors to massive city-sized bulwarks. Fitted with a variety of energy, particle and kinetic weaponry, they defended against threats from space and ensured the unity of Earth as they hung above humanity's head. In addition, they served as an adequate launching platform to outer space.
The first colonization effort quickly started soon after. Mars, with its mildly inhospitable environment, became a regular destination for the first space colonists. Many transports and other commercial ships carried many personnel and goods to the several Domes that dotted its surface. The more daring individuals ventured further, from one of the moons of the gas giants, or one of the stations positioned at the edge of the system. As generations rose and fell, the Sol System began to accommodate more and more gravmag-propelled craft.
Based upon impeding, storing, and expelling the elusive collection of grav particles through manipulation of focused black fields, the gravmag drive proved to be the economic way to travel in space. However, the drive did carry one glaring limit: the presence of another gravitational body was required for the gravmag drive to act on effectively. After all, it was not possible to escape the fact that the force of gravity is caused by two objects of mass. Only moon, planet and sun-sized objects had enough mass for the Gravmag-drive to act effectively upon. Gravmag-propelled vessels provided the most thrust when they were on the surface of a planet. As the distance increases, the amount of thrust would be reduced as there were less grav particles to act upon. There had been several instances already where poorly crewed space ships accidentally slung themselves beyond the Sol System by travelling along a carelessly planned trajectory that left the ship too far away from any celestial bodies.
Explorations into the vast expanse of deep space always proved to be a one-way trip. For all its miracles, the gravmag drive was still constrained by the speed of light. While the ion drive made significant advances, it was still impractical due to the low amount of thrust that was generated in comparison to the gravmag drive. It still took plenty of decades or centuries to perfect the technology. Another hopeful candidate was a true grav drive, which would not only enhance existing forces of gravity like the gravmag, but would also be capable of generating a gravity field out of nothing, propelling the mass in the field into any direction. Still, a much higher understanding of theory needed to be discovered first before it would even be remotely possible.
As humanity began to exploit the fullest extent of the Sol System, they also consolidated their hold on Earth. Nations ceased to exist while languages became extinct. Earth's population began to explode, and the cities struggled to accommodate them all. More and more areas became settled and urbanized, in particular the neglected areas of Africa and Siberia. And when people arrived, so did megafarms and megafactories. Earth's industrial output exploded, further fuelling demand for imports from the colonies and asteroid fields.
Guarding the growing trend of prosperity was the United Nations, or the Free World, or the Empire of Earth, or whatever name it chose to adopt when the next set of rebels took over. The cycling of names and labels proved to be so inconsequential to the daily life of an average citizen that they simply referred the government as the central authority. While the central authority may occasionally prove to be inadequate in the ways of governing, they still performed their primary duty with brutal efficiency.
The central authority's main task was to prevent the extinction of mankind. They performed their duty through the possession of the most terrible weapon of mankind.
The Evangelion Project.
The Evangelions were the result of an unholy trinity of flesh, machine, and a power so ill understood that even a century after its invention, mankind had no grasp on its working. No matter the beasts' gruesome nature, they were devastatingly effective against the Angels. While some effort had been made into harnessing the mysterious source of their power on spaceships, only a completely functional Evangelion was able to conjure the scientifically impossible A.T. Field, countering the Angels' defence with humanity's own.
When the Angels were stripped with their most important layer of defence, the Evangelions could focus on evasion, while the advanced weapon batteries pummelled the Angel into submission. Conventional thermal and explosive only scratched most of the Angels, but after the introduction of positron cannons and gamma lasers, the odds of breaching a conventional Angel's core was vastly increased. With the introduction of the black field generator and other sophisticated weaponry at the turn of the century, only the most unusual and resilient Angel stood any chance of advancing.
From mountain-sized behemoths, to swarms of insect-like clones, to bizarre immaterial phenomena, it took the utmost of NERV's military and intellectual capabilities to stand off each and every attack. While some could be dealt with without endangering their most valuable assets, it was unavoidable that the Evangelions had to be deployed offensively.
While most of the EVA's were equipped with increasingly more complex weapons and armour, the basis of their strength was still rooted in their metaphysical power and organic capabilities. Fire was best fought with fire, after all. From the first prototype to the latest generation of mass-produced models, the Evangelions have withstood countless barrages intended to put humanity to the grave.
Still, the Evangelions had several limitations that prevented more widespread use. They were birthed, not created. They were grown, not assembled. And with the exception of the venerable Unit 01, the Angelslayer, the Evangelions shared the same flesh as that of the First of the Angels. However small, frozen and helpless he was in his embryonic state, Adam could nevertheless exert his influence upon his offspring. Every extraction of tissue resulted in an ever-degrading sample. The first series of mass produced Evangelions were only barely shorter than the Angelslayer. The fourth generation was only half as tall, and the tenth generation was the last to be able to form a sustainable A.T. Field. Any subsequent generation resulted in nothing more than a macabre collection of ordinary flesh in the size of an elephant.
Lilith proved to be even more stubborn. Though an ever-present source of LCL, her torn off flesh contained none of the potential of her most prominent offspring. It was as if she wanted the Angelslayer to be her sole heir. Even suffering from massive amounts of torture, abuse, and reckless experimentation, she continued to hold on to her will in silence. Man eventually grew tired, and left her in her lonely cell and only came to farm her precious lifeblood.
More than four hundred Evangelions had been produced during the Angel War, a monstrous achievement, considering that growing even one to full strength was a massive undertaking. The first mass produced series were abominable monsters, little better than their Angel counterparts. The winged Angels could fly, and were able to wield the devastatingly effective imitation Lances. However, with the sudden collapse of the Lances' obscure and secretive manufacturers, the knowledge to produce those hellish weapons was lost. And, however powerful the imitation Lances were, they were unable to withstand the constant strain of battle and the testament of time.
The second, third and fourth generation were produced in higher amounts, up to a hundred combined. They were smaller, but nimbler. Their S2 engines were also scaled back, but retained more excess power. While the second and third generation still flew the skies with wings, the fourth gen was the first to adopt gravmag propulsion technology. As their S2 engines provided plentiful amounts of power, the EVA's were able to arm themselves with a variety of compact X-Ray lasers and bulky fusion power augmented positron rifles as well. Only the most capable pilots were entrusted with the imitation Lances, until the last one disintegrated after fifty years of active use and ten years of being examined in detail.
The fifth generation and onwards marked a fundamental shift in tactics and design. No longer large enough to generate A.T. Fields powerful enough to neutralize an Angel's AT Field, they were intended to swarm. The smaller Evangelions were incapable of inflicting significant damage through hand-to-hand combat, so they were armed with the latest toys. First deployed with gamma lasers, they quickly adopted black field generators and masitron arrays to their arsenal. The new DTL bombs were still too large and heavy to be launched from a small Evangelion, but due to their unusual effectiveness, NERV designated a handful of seventh gen EVAs to act as minelayers, or kamikaze units as a last resort.
Though the later generations were able to carry and power successively devastating weapons, the tenth gen differed little from conventional vehicles such as hover tanks or aerial fortresses. Angels immune against the latest generation of weaponry would swat the small EVA's like flies. Only the pre-fifth gen stood a chance against these powerful opponents.
NERV employed the best of the best and the finest of the finest, but standing in the way was the fact that human pilots still needed to be bonded to their units. That made staffing complicated when pilots died but their units survived.
The Marduk Institute's former duty was to identify compatible pilots for the zeroeth generation Evangelions, but was quickly put in charge of an extensive family and breeding program that provided a steady supply of bonded human pilots. The earlier generations of mass produced Evangelions were choosy, requiring not only a natural genetic bond, but a genuine emotional bond as well. While each pilot and their offspring were vigorously trained from their birth to become capable pilots, the Institute nonetheless made the pilot's lives somewhat comfortable to ensure maximum compatibility. As long as the family bond stayed strong, any relative would be able to pilot their bonded EVA.
When all members of a single family died, the EVA that was bonded to them turned silent. Not even clones or artificial offspring were able to achieve any meaningful synchronization. With no further use, the 'widow' EVAs would be broken down to their component parts and used as replacement parts in emergencies.
While many Evangelions have been built over the lifetime of the Angel War, there were never enough of them at any single time. Each Angel was unique, and each held a trick up their sleeves. In the opening days of the War, only three EVAs held back the might of the Angels. Powerful as they were, NERV was still at its infancy. Unit 00 was destroyed in the battle against the Sixteenth, while Unit 02 was prematurely destroyed during the chaos of a foolish civil war. Only the venerable Angelslayer survived.
As the champion of humanity, the Angelslayer saw much action alongside the first, second and third generation of mass produced Evangelions. By the time the fourth generation was introduced, NERV had relegated the purple giant to guard the last doors of the Apocalypse.
While her younger siblings fought the enemy on the surface, the Angelslayer simply waited. She waited against any who dared to pass through the doors of Heaven and enter her domain. Guided by her aging pilot, she tore against any and all who were strong enough to reach the holy place. As the largest and strongest Evangelion, piloted by the most talented and experienced pilot, she tore each and every manifestation of God apart. While there were only a few fifty or so times that humanity was almost destroyed, the Angelslayer nonetheless proved her supremacy each and every single time. It was no wonder that humanity began to regard her as more than just a weapon.
For a century and more, humanity held firm. But as the Angels kept coming without end, man was slow to realize their one fatal weakness.
They were relying on an aging and increasingly feeble human being.
Though pilot Ikari was the sole chosen pilot of the Angelslayer, he nonetheless suffered from unimaginable amounts of trauma, experimentation and abuse following the aftermath of the first civil war. Refusing to cooperate and pilot his EVA under the new victors, he was coerced to continue piloting. From beatings, to emotional shocks, to sustained neglect and abuse, NERV had tried every technique imaginable to keep their prize pilot in line. They had mistakingly assumed that Unit 01 would only be needed for a few years more while an endless supply of mass produced models would keep the Earth safe for millennia to come.
The subsequent revelation of the mass produced Evangelion's many weaknesses and limited numbers had a profound effect. It turned Unit 01 from an obsolete piece of junk to the most powerful defence against the Angels. After another brief civil war that resulted from the outrage, the next incarnation of NERV had drastically reversed its policy concerning their treatment of pilot Ikari in an attempt to salvage the mess.
But the damage had already been done. Though he had never been pushed too far, pilot Ikari nonetheless sustained many bodily injuries. The resulting damage triggered subtle measures from the Angelslayer as her pilot was forced into her entry plug. Encompassed in Lilith's LCL and engaged in a psychic connection with a powerful Lilith-based Evangelion, the pilot's body was exposed to unknown amounts of contamination over a period of a handful of years. By the time the pilot was rehabilitated, it became apparent that pilot Ikari was not quite human anymore.
Which meant that pilot Ikari was effectively incapable of producing natural offspring.
Direct clones proved to be incapable of life, due to pilot Ikari's altered sequence of genes which ordinarily made him incapable of life. As with the case of the mass produced models' pilots, the Marduk Institute engaged in extensive genetic manipulation to provide replacement pilots for Unit 01. As expected, with neither a natural genetic or emotional bond to the original pilot, all attempts failed. Even desperate experiments to duplicate the 'Fourteenth Angel event' proved to be fruitless. By the time pilot Ikari's hair greyed out, scientific attempts to prolong Unit 01's operational lifetime beyond the death of her original pilot were set aside.
Even though official action ceased, it didn't quench humanity's fears. During the times of increasing deification of the Angelslayer and her pilot, many different ceremonies have taken place in a desperate attempt to 'persuade' Unit 01 to accept a successor pilot. Nothing had succeeded in persuading the Beast.
Humanity's future was uncertain.
For all his mutations, pilot Ikari was still a mortal being. But his genetic makeup differed just enough to render many state-of-the-art medical treatments useless. Much of the medical advances of that time was based upon regeneration, but pilot Ikari's cells could not be cloned. As the pilot's organs began showing signs of fatigue after reaching a century of life, humanity began to despair in earnest. With their final protector on the brink of death, they saw their end come close.
The world rose up in panic as citizens rioted and rebelled. The central authority brutally stepped in, some times wiping out complete settlements in the process. When their collective feelings of anger and helplessness subsided, humanity prepared. While the rate of emigration to Mars and the other colonies in the Sol System increased dramatically, research had been redirected towards uncovering a viable method of FTL propulsion. Much attention had been cast upon the new Trans-Universal Theory. Its numbers promised the possibility of partially entering negative space, where ships could take advantage of its unique properties to travel faster than the speed of light.
Eventually, a brave team led by Prof. Dr. Ir. Karl Weithoff proposed an enormous and hugely expensive design of a drive capable of harnessing the forces described in the theory. Any indepedent vessel needed to power the Weitshoff drive would have to be thrice as large as the most massive space fortress in existence, the Jupiter Sentinel II, which took twenty years to complete.
With the cooperation of many major mining and industrial corporations, the central authority embarked upon the most ambitious project in the history of mankind. The first true colony ship was completed in a record time of five years. Larger than many asteroids and capable of sustaining up to twenty thousand humans, the Vapula Projection was the first human-built vessel capable of travelling faster than light and escape the Sol System. Many millions applied to be a part of the crew of the untested ship, but only the strongest and smartest with the right genetic profile were eventually selected to take part of her first departure.
A year of intensive training followed while the ship's storage was filled with knowledge, supplies and cultural treasures. At the moment of her launch at the edge of the Sun's effective gravity well, the Vapula Projection seemed to disappear from sight, but faded only halfway before disappearing in a spread-out blur to the great beyond. While days passed by in an anxious wait, the Vapula's the light speed signals finally arrived back to Earth. The colony ship had dropped back to normal space after spending thirty minutes in transvariable space and successfully sent a message back to the Sol System.
They received their answer after several days of terse moments. Earth burst in joy as the Weithoff drive operated even better than expected, going at least twice as fast as the most optimistic expectations. The burst of data the Vapula Projection had sent back provided useful experimental information that could be used into refining the next generation of mass produced colony ships.
As the Vapula Projection travelled onwards towards the nearest star predicted to possess an Earth-like planet, humanity stripped abundant deposits of ores on the surface of its colonies to produce the first generation of colony ships. Thrice as large as the prototype, the production models were able to sustain a population of up to a hundred thousand adults. In addition to their sheer size, the massive ships were armed to the teeth with battleship-sized weapon embankments. If necessary, humanity would massacre their way through a new home planet.
The fittest, wealthiest and most capable humans were selected to crew the enormous vessels. More than seven hundred thousand men and women trained and studied to assume their lifetime positions. Five-and-a-half years from the start of construction, the first generation was complete. Their designs changed rapidly over time as different interest groups lobbied the central authority to customize every ship in order to ensure the survival of humanity.
The Abaddon Destruction was the most heavily armed vessel, crewed by a higher proportion of military personnel and weapons engineers than her sister ships. Her concept was advocated by war hawks, who argued that the galaxy was hostile, and that the Angels surely lurked on some planets. Combat was inevitable, and she was therefore fitted with many redundant systems as well as a handful of powerful single weapon batteries in place of larger amounts of smaller batteries. The Abaddon'smain advantage would not only be her greater firepower, but also her extended range. Her only weakness was the relatively low amount of point defence, compounded by the fact that her large weapon mounts were far too slow to track small craft in shorter ranges.
The Merihim Centurion carried an additional twenty thousand with her slightly bulkier design. Like a diseased ball of pus, the Centurion wasn't intended to win any beauty awards. Luxury was even more limited on this ship, but most of its personnel came from the less fortunate regions of Earth, so that would not be a problem. The proponents behind the Centurion believed that humanity's numbers would drastically fall in the future, and that they would face many threats of extinction in space. Extensive breeding programs as well as subtle genetic modification would lead to higher growth rates. To settle all these excess humans, the Centurion was fitted with extensive industrial facilities to aid in the process of colonisation.
The Belial Transcension boasted fewer weapon emplacements to make room for recreational and educational facilities. She was unique in that she was entirely crewed by natural humans, as she was the only alternative to those who feared genetic modification and selective breeding. Also, the amount of sculptures, paintings, books and other works of art in the vessel was staggering. Though the ship's population was closely kept balanced, it still boasted a significant number of artists and philosophers. This was all in an effort to retain as much humanity as possible. A clear and open mind would be important to seek peace with unknown aliens through persuasion and mutual understanding, and if necessary, through concessions.
The Leviathan Bastion was the toughest and most reliable colony ship. Her armour was twice as thick as the standard model, and consisted of cutting-edge nano-arranged alloys manufactured in specialized facilities. Strategically placed external gravmag plates would provide an additional measure of defence against material attacks, though there was less space and power for weapon batteries. The Bastion was to be sent into the furthest and loneliest reaches of space, encountering many hazards along the way in order to find a defensible but habitable world. She would need to be in transvariable space longer than any of her other sisters, and was designed to be operational for an infinite amount of time, only needing to stop to mine for fuel.
The Orias Vexation was the only colony ship fitted with the experimental active cloak system. Coated with much of the limited available supply of emission reducing materials, she was the only colony ship in orbit invisible to the naked eye. Her gravmag drive boasted much weaker distortion effects than other drives of the same size, decreasing her signal profile and chances of detection. In the event that space was more populated with intelligent life than usual, the Vexation was to stay out of the way of more advanced civilizations while gathering information. As such, much of her crew consisted of intelligence officers, while physicists knowledgeable in active cloak and emission reduction technology kept their stealth in peak efficiency.
The Penemue Salvation carried the most extensive electronic and physical library, along with the most talented scientists specializing in the field of science and technology. Her processing power and EM functionality was second to none. In addition, rather than carrying a single large Weithoff drive, she was fitted with two smaller ones instead. While the unusual design was deemed twenty percent less efficient, it was expected that the scientists on board would be able to synchronize their output to achieve a much higher velocity. The only downside to this design was that it left less space for energy production and fuel storage, but again, it was expected that the scientists would be able to improve the processes. By dedicated at least one ship to the pure advance of science, it was hoped that the descendents of the Salvation would one day discover revolutionary technologies that would advance man's supremacy.
The Zagan Abomination was by far the most controversial project of all. Though she looked conventional on the outside, the notorious ship possessed the most extensive and advanced genetic manipulation facilities in outer space. The Abomination was the only colony ship that prepared for the end of homo sapiens as a species at the hand of the Angels or other aliens, and served to preserve humanity's legacy. While the original crew would all consist of natural humans, the same couldn't be said for their offspring. Sperm cells and egg cells would be extracted from the human crew and exposed to a wide variety of treatments before fertilization. The embryo would mature in a carefully controlled pod that would subject the growing foetus to further treatments. The end result would be an entirely new species that was bred for a specific task. The genetic databanks already held a number of pre-programmed sets of genes that would give birth to exohumans that would survive in worlds with extreme gravity or extreme atmosphere.
After many delays, the Seven was finally towed to the edge of space of the Sol System and launched into transvariable, each heading towards a different distant star.
Not long after the Seven's departure, pilot Ikari's heart began to show frequent signs of stress. The central authority quickly stepped in and forced pilot Ikari into a stasis pod to prolong his life. As Angel attacks continued to pound on humanity's defences, the assembly of the second generation of colony ships was already on its way. While construction time was halved due to existing infrastructure and better know-how, to many humans it was still far too slow.
The long lasting hysteria amongst the people led to strong demand on so-called generation ships, which were basically transport and passenger ships converted to run almost indefinitely. A significant amount of space would be devoted to hydroponic farms and other facilities designed to support multiple generations of life. The fact that the gravmag drive wouldn't work outside the system didn't matter, and neither did the fact that it would take centuries to reach a viable star. To many, booking a place in a generation ship was more affordable and accessible to the alternative of waiting in endless lines to catch a place on a colony ship. Thus, those who held little confidence in humanity's continued survival began to leave the Sol System in droves.
Many shook their heads as their friends and families left their homes. It was expected that many of those generation ships would never be able to reach their destination. If not due to breakdown of equipment or limited supply of power, nothing could be available at their destination. Only the largest generation ships were equipped with mining facilities, and they required skilled operators to convert raw materials into fuel and building materials. The rest simply didn't stand a chance in a system that did not contain an M-class planet.
Even while people abandoned their lives in the solar system, the vast majority of humanity stayed where they were and prayed to Lucifer to continue to protect them even after His emissary's inevitable demise. Willing children continued to sacrificed themselves before the Angelslayer, their parents hoping to appease the terrible spirit that resided within.
But it was all for naught. The 1731st Angel descended from the skies in the form of a vast blob of terror. As humanity's impressive arsenal tried to bombard the shape, the blob simply let the damage pass through its liquid body. When it landed upon the surface, its vicious slime rapidly ate away at the armoured plates that defended the levels below. Even layers of redirected magma formed no obstacle. The Angel sunk right past and landed in the central dogma. NERV, stunned by the Angel's rapid progress, hastened to pull pilot Ikari out of stasis, rapidly inducing his body with heat and shock. They boarded him onto a gravmag platform and immediately shoved him inside Unit-01's entry plug.
Still disoriented, pilot Ikari still managed to synchronize with his EVA. Seeing the black-orange blob moving for the giant crucified Lilith, the Angelslayer raced past by, putting full power into her back-mounted gravmag drive. The sudden acceleration rocked pilot Ikari in his seats, the gravmag plating around his entry plug struggling to compensate for Unit-01's sudden movements.
After retrieving the Lucifer-blessed Lance of Longinus, the purple and green Evangelion turned to meet the upcoming shapeless mass and thrust her weapon straight into the centre of the shape.
A light brighter than anything else engulfed the room. The NERV personnel present in the chamber were temporarily blinded while their sensors scrambled.
When the soldiers recovered, they saw nothing but the Lance speared to the surface and the EVA hunched to the ground. Nothing else happened. The command centre frantically tried to re-establish connections with Unit-01, but not a single electronic component on her surface seemed to respond.
They feared the worst.
And when the entry plug was retracted, they saw the worst.
Lord Shinji Ikari, the Protector of Mankind and the First Champion of Lucifer, died heroically in battle on July 7, 2136.
Panic ensued. Mass riots erupted over the news of Lord Ikari's demise, bringing the already precarious daily life in the Sol System to a complete halt. Peacekeeping forces struggled to keep a lid on the vast waves of hysteria and destruction, but were unable to suppress all pockets of resistance. Everyone looked toward the central authority, waiting for anything that could save their doomed civilization.
Only two weeks after Lord Ikari's demise did the authorities reveal what they hid under their basement. The revelation of the principal reason why the Angels seemed so bent on attacking humanity had shocked humanity to the core. The anger amongst the population only seemed to increase as government officials waffled on the reason why they hadn't gotten rid of Adam and Lilith.
Just when the situation couldn't get worse, it did. The morning of August 8 started in chaos as essential authority officials were missing. The president, his cabinet, and many other highly placed officials were completely absent from their work and homes. Even more disturbing was the absence of the complete heads of army and navy command.
Only one week later did those who remained found out where their leaders went. Sensor outposts had detected a huge energy surge akin to a Weithoff drive discharge.
Their leaders had decided to abandon the ship while it was still sinking. The headless body of the central authority quickly stepped into gear and replaced their largely absent leaders. The new president quickly ordered information searches for any secret projects. A few of those classified reports were eventually leaked to the public.
One specific document revealed how humanity's leaders never even considered saving the total population of the Sol System. They were well aware of the dangers posed by the possession of the First and Second Angel, but they didn't know what to do with them. On one hand, they considered launching them into the sun. However, too many analysts predicted that the immortal beings would not be destroyed, but instead trigger an immense explosion in the sun or cause some other disastrous effect. Throwing the Angels deep into outer space was another alternative, but it was deemed that after their recovery by their brethren, Adam and Lilith would come back and take revenge.
Not wanting to risk a premature death, the leaders quietly began to plan their escape from the doomed system.
The prototype was just a test to see if their method of escape could work. The seven first generation colony ships were merely a distraction while massive resources had been allocated to the construction of a top secret 'mothership' of immense proportions. The Lucifer Ambition was thrice as large as the first generation of colony ships, and bristled with weapons and armour. Unlike the regular colony ships, the Ambition boasted fully operational production facilities and storage holds filled with raw materials and when emptied served as a hangar bay. The ship was heavily automated, only needing an active crew of thirty thousand to be fully operational, while providing life support for at least fifteen times as much. At the moment of her completion, most of the beds were empty, reserved for the offspring of her crew as it traversed through space to an unspecified star in the direction of galactic centre.
The remaining authority officials deliberated amongst themselves for weeks while rebel forces swept the Earth. Eager to stave off a complete descent into anarchy, the inexperienced president decided to throw the First and Second Angel into the sun and pray that it worked.
Everyone's gazes were affixed to their projection screens, watching two transport ships containing Adam and Lilith approach the sun from opposite sides. Nearby specialized observation drones sent footage back to Earth and its colonies. While the signals travelled through space in the speed of light, it still took minutes for the light to arrive on Earth and hours to arrive on Pluto.
The colonists on that dwarf planet were the last to witness their civilization's destruction.
As the viewers could see the white-hot shape of metal and flame that contained Adam plunge into the sun, they rejoiced. Even the First Angel and was no match to Lucifer's hellfire.
They didn't even had the time to blink as blackness engulfed from the sun at the speed of light, laying waste to all it came in contact with, including life.
The ball of black continued to expand even as it devoured a Earth. The colonies on Mars were the next to go, and the ball still continued to expand. The righteous fury of Adam blazed fierce as his ethereal will engulfed the Sol System.
Detecting even more humans fleeing from his might, Adam directed his power to expand until he enveloped every single sublight ship away from the Sol System.
Adam sensed that even more humans were escaping his wrath. But as powerful as he was, he was not omnipotent.
The barrier of black halted its advance but stayed in place.
He left the Earth and the rest of the Sol system to rot in darkness.