"The machine of innovation and progress must be fueled time and time again with the blood of the ignorant and cowards." - Imperial Science Department motto

曦光之城 (City of Radiant Light,) Tech-world 新武汉 (New Wuhan,) Xi Cygnas system, 11:33 pm local time

"ITS Illuminator, report," Head Researcher Donald Liang said into the comms. He and six other scientists and researchers were at their posts, eager to receive and process the data the science ship would transmit. It had not even been twenty days since Admiral Williams and Admiral Conner had traversed through the newly completed Project Riftjumper gate when imperial survey teams noticed an anomaly when prospecting in an outer star system. Originally, they thought it was a mere error, but upon further investigation, they realized it was a new hyperlane, an unfathomably long one, but a hyperlane nonetheless. As soon as the news reached Earth, the Technocracy immediately took over the station in the system, restructured it for military purposes, and tasked Donald and his colleague on the Illuminator, Head Researcher Amanda Chao, with charting the hyperlane to the new galaxy. "Progress?"

"Still traversing the 'lane," Amanda replied, voice distracted. "It's 2,000,000 light-years long, it'll take a while."

"Estimated time of arrival?"

"Err... three hours, give or take a few minutes."

Donald shifted his focus toward a holographic screen bearing both the logo of the Technocracy and the Imperial Science Department, both spinning slowly. He tapped it and the screen showed both the vitals of all four scientists, including Amanda, and their five guards, each taken from the Imperial Planetary Guard, and the current location of the Illuminator, which was halfway along the hyperlane towards its destination, another galaxy bearing a striking resemblance to the Milky Way.

"Ever guessed what this new galaxy will contain?" Amanda asked, her curiosity peaking.

"No idea," Donald replied.

"C'mon, take a guess."

Donald sighed. "I don't know, hopefully, it's empty so the Technocracy can expand further, but..." He gripped his sword in boredom, the one every citizen of the Technocracy, alien or not, receives once they turn the human age of eighteen.

"I hope it's full of new alien races that the Technocracy and The Pact can assist. Humanity always needs more allies, especially on the intergalactic scale."

"We need more allies?"

"Always."

Donald sighed. Humanity had already made allies with or subjugated multiple various alien races and empires throughout the galaxy, with the ones not wanting anything to do with humanity being either genocidal empires that some federation or empire hasn't bothered to wipe out yet, or democratic nations who disliked humanity's authoritarian governance, even though it was much more free than other authoritarian empires. A few awkward hours later, Donald noticed that the Illuminator was nearing the target galaxy.

"Begin de-warping protocol," he heard Amanda ordering the crew. "Full power to scanners I want- what? Repeat that."

"Amanda?" Donald asked. "What's going on?"

"No, no that's impossible."

"What's impossible?"

"We're detecting the signatures of multiple space-faring civilizations."

"Have you exited the hyperlane yet?"

"We're about to. Wait. What do you mean there's-" An explosion cut off the Head Researcher's words.

"Amanda, what's going on?" Donald said with much more concern. "Report!"

"Struc... omethi... los... trol...! Mak... re-ent... occu... plan..! FUCK-"

Her broken transmission tore through the stillness of the control center before being cut off. As the sound of the vital systems monitor flatlining replaced the noise of Amanda's transmission, and the Illuminator's tracking beacon disappearing, Donald knew not to bother making any form of contact attempt. Standing, he tried to maintain his composure as he excused himself from the control room, leaving the rest of the stunned scientists in silence since someone had turned off the vitals monitor. As he left, he tried to suppress the emotions that he was currently feeling. He knew that no progress could be made without shedding blood, no discoveries could be made without risk. It was cold comfort when his friend and coworker of five years just lost her life to the unknown. He wouldn't let his emotions get the better of him, however, for he had casualty reports to fill.

中海城 (Zhonghai City), 1:22 am local time

"They what?!" Junior Director Steven Zhou yelled in incredulity at the poor Head Researcher. "I leave you alone for two hours and you already lose a science ship?!"

"With all due respect, sir," Donald began, choosing his words very carefully. "No one could've predicted that she'd encounter spacefaring civilizations at her destination, and it's truly a tragedy-"

"I don't care about the manpower loss, I have tons waiting in line for a promotion, and the Planetary Guard isn't exactly hurting for troops either. What I'm infinitely more concerned with is the fact that our technology is now potentially in the hands of who-knows-who!"

Donald just stood there and tried to formulate a solution while clasping his hands behind his back. The Technocracy was known to be exceptionally ruthless when it came to the lives of its scientists and soldiers, both risking life and limb with smiles on their faces knowing that their sacrifices would benefit the greater good of humanity. The Technocracy is also well known for having failures punished with the utmost degree, which is why he was formulating a plan to hopefully redeem himself.

Steven sighed.

"Did she at least find out where the hyperlane leads to?"

"Yes, sir, from her transmissions, it seems to be a mirror copy of the Milky Way."

"And..."

"And there are multiple signatures indicating spacefaring civilizations."

The Junior Director sighed again and rubbed his face. This threw a significant wrench in his plans. Had the galaxy been devoid of such traces, he could've easily dispatched a recovery team to collect the wreckage and bodies. Even if the ship had crashed on a pre-FLT society world, he could've sent someone to eliminate the traces of their existence easily. Now, however, he had to be much more careful in his planning. Nonetheless, his approach would not change. He pressed a button below his desk to signal a specific task force to enter.

Donald turned around to see the doors opening and eight people entering, half male and half female, and all of them were around eight feet tall. He knew that such size was the result of nanite infusion. As soon as the group finished spreading out, they eyed the Head Researcher with a predatory gaze and smile, and he soon realized their eyes were vertical slits, akin to a fox.

"I assume you have no idea who these individuals are, correct?" Donald feverously shook his head. "These individuals are collectively identified as the KTSN-01A Division, but you can simply call them 'Kitsune.' These are the ones that will clean up your mess." The Junior Director turned to the group. "Is that right?"

"Yes, sir," all eight of them replied.

"Good. Now then, since apparently there are multiple spacefaring civilizations, these lovely individuals will be deployed to the new galaxy as an 'expeditionary force,' so to speak. They will eliminate every and all trace of our existence and keep them ignorant of our existence."

"A-and what about me, sir?" Donald asked.

"We still need to document the new galaxy, don't we?" Steven replied.

Donald sighed. He knew that the Junior Director would say that, and he assumed that should he fail too, the "Kitsune" who were surrounding him would surely "take care of him." Thankfully, they left first through the doorway, their footsteps nearly silent as they walked in a sadistically giddy manner, much akin to homicidal schoolchildren. Donald soon left as well, headed to another science ship to prepare for his expedition to this new galaxy, and hopefully be more successful than Amanda was.

Steven on the other hand stood and looked outside the window that was the back wall of his office at the city below, the sky being in an eternal twilight due to the planet being tidally locked to its star. The day side of the planet was surprisingly mild, with a climate similar to Earth's tropical rainforests but slightly hotter, with Technocracy outposts and field research laboratories, while the night side was lethally cold, perfect for the AI and supercomputer systems to operate in, as well as hiding classified facilities and projects. This left the band bordering the day and night side, affectionately named "the Loop," which is where the majority of people lived and worked, Zhonghai City being the capital of the planet.

The Junior Director sighed. He was only forty-two, the youngest ever to receive his position, yet he already felt twice his age. He could only hope that this mission would be smoother with another Head Researcher at the literal helm — for the researcher's sake. He also hoped that whatever civilization could become an ally or brought to heel to the Technocracy, and if they couldn't, well, more slaves never hurt anybody.

Information Data Logs

星际太阳技术专家 (Interstellar Solar Technocracy): The Interstellar Solar Technocracy is the largest empire in the galaxy in terms of fleet and troop power, economic output, research output, and sheer size. Despite other empires being near equal in an individual aspect, none can compare to the strength and size of the Technocracy's fleets and the power and discipline of the Technocracy's troops. Established in the year 2122 from the Imperial Asiatic Technocracy on Earth, humanity waged a long and bloody war now called the "War for Societal Unification" to unify the human race and eliminate the borders that held humanity in "bondage" and "shackles." It is a monarchal autocracy, with the Imperator holding absolute power, although he very rarely uses it. The Imperator himself is surprisingly relaxed and moderate in his rule, with him disliking the traditional imperial robes, and preferring his military uniform instead. The Technocracy is divided into sectors, each of which is under control by various governors whom the populace elects into power, although the candidates are selected by the imperial government. It is shockingly free for an autocracy with very little propaganda present (one poster or billboard per 12 city blocks), as the populace genuinely enjoys living and serving the Technocracy. While not xenophobic per se, the Technocracy is very protective of its traditions and way of life, taken from an amalgamation of various East Asian cultures, and its reliance on slave labor for a decent portion of its economy is one of the main critiques for oppositionists.

Imperial Science Department: The Imperial Science Department is the primary research and development portion of the Technocracy, involving every single branch of science from physics and statecraft to void craft engineering and biology. It is considered to be the second most honorable position one can obtain within the Technocracy behind joining the armed forces. Headquartered out of the tidally locked world of Xin Wuhan and led by the Chief Research Overseer, the Imperial Science Department is granted an entire sector dedicated purely to scientific research between the three major branches of the sciences. The best and brightest men and women of all species work tirelessly to further the scientific understanding of the Technocracy and said researchers send knowledge to their home empires which in turn advances their technology levels as well. While it is undisputed that the Imperial Science Division is the most efficient in the known galaxy, its complete and utter disregard for ethics and morals is the most targeted topic for critics, when asked, members simply reply; "No discovery found without breaking ethics is worth persuing." The pursuit of knowledge and understanding of the ISD is unrelenting and unshakable, as no risk nor critique, no matter how great, has dissuaded their goals, with the scientists having a near fanatical fervor in the pursuit of new knowledge, no matter how "forbidden" it may be, eagerly risking life, limb, and sanity in their efforts to unravel the mysteries of the universe.

帝国行星卫队 (Imperial Planetary Guard): Contrary to the name, the Imperial Planetary Guard's purpose isn't solely the defense of planets from invasion. Members of the guard also act as law enforcement on various planets, security for VIPs and important heads of state, wardens for the Technocracy's various prison and re-education planets, and security for field teams against hostile fauna or combatants. They are armed with HT-988 assault rifles, LH-777 pistols, and armor made from neutronium that can deflect lower-caliber rounds and some wavelengths of laser weaponry, although the heat will still singe the skin. Every single citizen of the Technocracy, regardless of gender, is to be conscripted to the Planetary guard as soon as they reach the equivalent of eighteen Earth years. There, they will receive combat training, discipline, and adaptation to various environments. Conscripts will also be infused with nanites, not to the level of the Punitive Corps, but enough to make them above normal humans and members of their species. These nanites grant the individual increased stamina and reaction time, and also a minor healing factor. They remain for five years before either remaining in the guard, joining the Punitive Corps, or pursuing other careers. The number of troops deployed to a planet varies but is roughly the same amount since the majority of troops stationed on a planet are of the local population with very few outside reinforcements.

泛银河共荣条约: The 泛银河共荣条约, or Pangalatic Co-prosperity Pact, or the Co-prosperity Pact, or simply The Pact, is a hegemony established by the Interstellar Solar Technocracy in the year 2267. Originally formed between the Interstellar Solar Technocracy, the Galactic Hesukar Regime, the Galactic Imanakka Union, and the Lilarobian Transstellar megacorporation, it is a hegemony in every sense of the word where the Technocracy holds most of the power, with the rest split between the three other founders. An Interstellar Assembly megastructure in the orbit of Jupiter acts as its headquarters and doubles as a hub for the Technocracy's diplomacy efforts. It is by far the largest federation in the galaxy, second only to the Galactic Community itself, and is the constant target of insults and accusations from rival federations, whose members shrug off as easily as the morning dew. The Federation fleets, known as the Vanguard, is the main military might of the Pact, composed of various ship designs of member empires, all made with the oversight of the Big Four (the founding members,) while each empire's fleets are reserved for personal affairs. Whenever an individual member declares war on an independent empire, they may not utilize the Vanguard in their conflict, and member empires will only assist if the situation is truly desperate. Although the Pact, and by extension the Imperator, claims that the Technocracy only has a medium centralization in the Pact and everything it does is out of benevolence, detractors point to the requirement of a Technocracy bastion on every planet of a member empire as a means of covert subjugation, and to make others a vassal in all but name.

KTSN-01A Division: Officially known as the KTSN-01A Special Infiltration and Espionage Operations Division, and affectionately called the "Kitsune," these men and women are examples of nanite-infusion taken to its logical extreme, as like their fox-spirit inspiration, they can use their nanites to turn into any individual, irrespective of species, down to the genetic level, including their fingerprints, voice, actions and mannerisms, and even their memories, all it takes a sample of an individual's genetic material. The victim doesn't need to die, but many Kitsune kill to prevent their covers from being blown. They are arguably more nanite than humans and also experience minor physical changes, mainly their irises and pupils, which change to that similar to a fox. Numbering over a million in number, they are deployed on highly extended, extremely deep cover operations in ally, hostile, and pre-FTL environments alike, and are adept in all of them. They may live for weeks, months, or even years along the target population, steadily integrating into their society, waiting for a mission to be given from high command, which usually involves political and scientific espionage, assassination, or even shifting politics to the Technocracy's favor. Unfortunately, they often exhibit sadistic tendencies and get in trouble with local law enforcement as a result. A sure-fire way to identify a Kitsune is to look at their eyes, as the eyes are the only place that cannot be changed with their nanites, but it isn't obvious unless you know what you're looking for. A severe electrical shock, however, will "short circuit" their nanites and force them to "hard reset," which reverts them to their human form. This is, predictably, extremely uncomfortable to the Kitsune and is often used as a punishment method in case they get too bold and imitate someone they shouldn't.