BEFORE THE INTRODUCTION...
Deepest apologies for the delay between updates as of late, I've hit a bit of Writer's block, due to me not wanting to be repetitive, nor sudden like GETH's chapter. This is going to be a bit different than the previous chapters once again, but still mostly normal. I am excited for the next chapter, so that may release later today or tomorrow depending on my mood. If not, expect an update 2 days from now.
It has begun.
The stars align.
One person stands tall once more.
One people meets their demise.
This is our finest hour. The Zenith has been re-awoken.
This is the story of the Jehact, a people who once were a glorious empire that challenged the might of the Eternal at both of their zeniths. The Jehact are bipedal and ape-like, very muscular and furry. All Jehact are rather capable of combat, yet are not enhanced by the mystical properties of Eternium.
The Jehact are bound to their sense of armor, and fight wars with a code that is very closely followed, and have a deep respect towards strong fighters, and thus hate fighting dirty.
The Jehact lost a bloody war, the Jehact-Eternal war of Persistence. The war marked the end of the Jehact as they were at the time, and all Jehact were relocated to an incomplete city world, the world's construction abandoned halfway through.
Many Jehact were able to live without the fear of war or death after the forced relocation. The Jehact were immunized from genetic diseases for a time as a Scion of the Eternal, but now are no longer supported by the Eternal, due to their sudden disappearance.
WE CRUSHED ALL DISEASE UNDER OUR FEET. FIRST SMALLPOX, THEN THE DISEASES THAT LURKED IN OUR GENETIC CODE, AND FINALLY THE GREATEST DISEASE OF ALL; AGEIS TEMPORIS Ageis is (mis)spelled intentionally.
The old man stared at the stars that was out of his grip. He knew that it was just another cycle, just another day without the shadow of Eternity to keep him reassured. Yet, he also knew that this could very well be the end of the Jehact. The Geoloid descend upon the Jehact worlds once more, but there were no Eternal to be the timeless barrier between genocide and survival.
They were once called the Jehact Ascended Union, a glorious empire at their zenith who could not be slowed down by anything else. The War of Persistance was the Jehact's greatest mistake. The Jehact launched an offensive to wipe out the Eternal who ventured into their galaxy, and almost won, if it were not for the great fleets of Eternity that came in the second wave.
The war had decimated the Jehact, and at the edge of oblivion the Jehact surrendered, and were summarily forcefully relocated to a planet that was seemingly just a massive city, but some parts of it incomplete. The Jehact were immunized from many diseases that had plagued them for so long, only one disease was left out of their grip when the Eternal vanished.
Age.
Two billion years passed from the vanishing of the Eternal, and then the Geoloid had descended. The Jehact had immediately begun to fight hard against the Geoloid. Many battles were tough, and many soldier died. Despite this, society pushed forwards...
WITHIN A JEHACT CITY, SOCIETY CONTINUES.
One ape-like aged male sat on a sleek bench, physical papers on him for him to write upon. He continued to do this work in the public for around 15 minutes, before packing his bags and going to his destination.
A couple hundred meters away, a youthful Jehact whose not begun the climb to maturity just yet plays with their peers in a public park, the group of children throwing a red ball at each other, the children trying to catch the ball, all visibly having fun.
A little over a kilometer away, a Jehact covered completely in dark clothing emerges from an alleyway, looking carefully for any watchers before fleeing from the area. Within the alleyway lies a locked box, left by the suspicious Jehact.
Even with its faults, the Jehact city keeps pushing forwards...
...Yet some cities are not as well off.
Skyscrapers of dull concrete stands high in the skies, a vast cityscape of concrete skyscrapers designed to hold countless are a hub of noise and pollution, this city was not built by the Eternal, but rather the Jehact in a bid for handling a overpopulation crisis.
The gigantic slums housed a dozen Jehact a residence, all toiling away at difficult labor, or fighting a growing war. Most of the wealthier Jehact hid from the conflict, but the poorer were driven towards combat. Soldiers are well-paid and looked up to in Jehact society, even if many soldiers never return home, countless sign up.
Yet hundreds of kilometers from the center of the city lies a even greater conflict that was pushed aside and cast into the shadows, something even deadlier to a city than an invasion. Something that could make invasion easier, that the greatest soldier could never hope to overcome.
Unemployment and Homelessness. Even with the dense and inefficient infrastructure hundreds of thousands of Jehact across the planet are unable to have a decent home, or a paying job. Some consider themselves to have any access to labor in the first place, in fact.
Of course, not all cities are bleak. Some more well off cities…
...Soar to the skies and beyond, a true hub of industry.
The cityscape was of floating buildings and cyan lights everywhere. Hundreds of Jehact walked on a visually appealing sidewalk at every second of the day without fail, all on some duty that they must fulfill.
Many floating buildings are devoted to mastering the sciences with the materials available, the same buildings having been occupied for 2 eons, countless generations tirelessly working away on the sciences, until the very end of Jehact civilization. Many worked tirelessly to get another insight, another discovery, even if incredibly rare.
Elsewhere, a great factory attached to the ground produced countless amounts of consumer & construction goods, the only exhaust being scalding steam as a coolant, and leftover raw materials. The factory by itself was more than enough to supply its city and multiple dozen nearby settlements as well.
At the center of the city is a group of buildings whose architecture is alien to the surrounding the blue light instead being red, and the centermost building being the only floating one present. Within, a group of Jehact tacticians & generals preparing for the next assault against the Geoloid.
THE WAR CENTRE
Nearly a hundred Jehact with dozens of badges on their clothing each sits at a massive table, at one edge of the table being a Jehact who is the ruler of the fallen Jehact civilization. The conversation had paused for a short while, before it continues.
The ruler Jehact spoke loud and clear. "With the recent developments of Geoloid activity, I am planning on recalling our soldiers and setting up a no step back defence. We cannot risk a hole in our defences being opened, even if it does not exist yet." the ruler declared.
"Overseer, I have to object to that plan." the Jehact with the most military badges declared, drawing the attention of the other Jehact. The veteran continued. "The Geoloid are a snowball type enemy, the longer we leave them alone the easier it will be for them to open a hole in our defences forcefully. I recommend that we send in a large razing force to wipe out all enemy assets." The veteran sent a file for the other Jehact to see on their own digital screens.
The so-called Overseer looked at the plans and frowned. "Aegis, you do understand that if this plan fails we will have suffered such a great setback it would do better for us if we destroyed the entire planet?" the ruler had asked.
The veteran did not seem fazed by this, and simply retorted. "Overseer, they will keep pushing at our defences until it breaks. They will eventually grow strong enough to break through even our most fortified city. They will stop at nothing to wipe us out, and we will surely all die if we do not stop them before they begin." A group of Jehact nodded silently to each other in agreement, but most minds seemed to not have been changed.
"Is that all, Aegis?" the Overseer asked, and Aegis simply nodded.
"We will make a vote then, all raise your hands if you believe that fortification would be a viable idea." A vast majority raised their hands.
"All who see a blitz as a viable idea, raise your hands." A little less than half raised their hands, some who previously raised their hands. This extra support was not enough, apparently.
"It appears that the majority find fortification to be the best idea. We will still send out assaults, but we will focus on our bulwark defence. Meeting adjourned." the Overseer then stood up, and walked out of the room to get to whatever buisness he was now supposed to be working on. The many Jehact flooded out of the meeting room, continuing their goals.
THE FORTIFICATION BEGINS.
Thousands of Jehact stationed in floating buildings stand ready for any assaults, the many floating fortresses ready to respond in less than 15 minutes.
The months that passed after the declaration of fortification went fast, surprisingly. It took rather little time to recall the majority of the deployed forces, and even less time to retrofit the designated buildings for fortresses.
The victory was near, everyone could feel it. There was little activity from the Geoloid, and the cities were nearly unbreachable. There was nothing that could simply destroy the Jehact, now.
...And then, the second wave came. Just like how the Jehact fell to the Eternal, they had begun to fall to the Geoloid. The size of the Geoloid fleets was immeasurable, dozens of large ships crushed the pitiful Jehact forces. The Jehact have always been unlucky when it comes to hostile comebacks, and now this spells the doom of the Jehact.
ELSEWHERE, AN ENIGMATIC FORCE ALIGNS. THE STRUCTURE SHIFTS.
Deep in the depths of space above the planet below, a hand extends out to a massive space station. Carefully, canisters of a material labeled "CATALYZED ETERNIUM" are open to the atmosphere, starting violent chemical reactions with the air. Then, the hand forces the station in its entirety down, it flinging towards the planet below.
The station turns into a blue fireball, catalyzed eternium and the atmosphere crashing together in many tiny explosions, getting closer and closer to the ground. Above the station, the eyes of a behemoth's soul blazes down upon the planet, cosmic retribution ensured.
ON THE FALLEN PLANET
It was hopeless. We were too weak. Our fleets scattered, cities burning and millions dying. We were in a hopeless daydream, we're never going back to what we once were. If only we had run away from our planet when the Eternal vanished, if only-
The surface is split the the collision of a fallen space station and the ground, a blue fireball reaching hundreds of kilometers high. The crust of the planet splits, and the impact site of the station leaves a gaping hole in the planet, the planet's mantle & core visible.
The planet splits to pieces, its component parts flying off into space, some debris hitting the shields of a massive starship, and a single humanoid figure staring down at their handiwork, slim spacesuit protecting the enigmatic figure from the cosmic wreckage. Tattooed on the suit is the word "ZENITH OF FALLEN EMPIRES", and under it the skintight suit is labeled "Iota"
Gazing down upon his genocide, Iota closes his eyes for a moment, and then vanishes in a flash of light.
The Culmination soon after vanishes in a FTL jump.
THE DREAM NEARS, AND EARTH'S FUTURE IS IN HIS HANDS.
Well, that's a wrap for today. Kappa's gonna be very different from all the chapters so far, for Iota's past will be revealed, and a bridge to Earth shalt be constructed.
WHAT IS TO COME:
Time is but a dream. Time is but a dream. Time is but a dream. Time is nothing more than a nullified memory, and Unix shall reach for the stars. Rise, Eternal, my Scion.