AN: So I have a sudden urge to make a Stellaris X A:TLA crossover fic so here I am lmao. If you know how pre-FTL events work in Stellaris, you'll know how this will likely go
"I have a vision. I have a vision of a galaxy where mankind stretches from the core to the edge. Of countless planets in orbits around countless stars, filled with human hearts that beat in sync with the solar activity of the Sun. I have a vision of mankind treating alien life like brothers, where every species lives and dies knowing that they live in the most innovative society that ever graced the stars, where primitive beliefs like faith and gods are left by the wayside. My only regret is that I won't be alive to see it." - Imperator Micheal Yang III
ITS 开拓者 (Trailblazer,) en route to the Beta Hydri system, 南银河区 (Southern Galactic Sector,) 07/22/2413
"So why are we transporting these icicles to this backwater system anyway?" Junior Researcher Walter Han asked out loud. He was referring to the four dozen cryostasis pods the Trailblazer had in its cargo hold, each packed with a single human being carefully preserved in cryogenic liquid. Some of them were even psionically gifted if their medical records were to be believed, and they were shielded to prevent their latent psychic abilities from impacting the rest of the crew - five soldiers and eight scientists - with the energy that passively leaked from their unconscious minds. It wasn't so much that it would impact the crew's performance, but the Imperial Science Department didn't take any chances. "And why so many ships? We have like seven other science ships headed to the same planet alongside us."
The lead scientist, a woman by the name of Sofia Lewis, sighed as she leaned back on her command chair. "We're setting up an experiment, they call it Project Genesis," she explained as she propped her legs on the console. "The Science Department is curious about developing civilizations and mankind's past, and existing pre-FTL societies are not sufficient. Most of them are too contaminated with interactions with space-faring empires to be of use. Plus, none of them are human with human behaviours."
Walter raised an eyebrow. "So we're seeding an entire civilization? Pretty ambitious, even for us."
"It's been in the works for the better part of two decades now, the only reason why we haven't done it already was because our resources were being diverted elsewhere." The lead researcher sipped her mug of coffee. Long were the days of freeze-dried food and drinks, long were the days of weightlessness in space or primitive chemical rockets that often made more noise than propulsion, mankind now had the power of the hyperdrive, devices that utilized the hyperlane system to achieve FTL. Other races had their models and variations, but it was humanity that had arguably the most advanced and efficient design. She sighed again before continuing. "The Sol-Hazill'aa Intervention War cost us vital research facilities, meaning that time and resources were wasted to restore said facilities, and the Voidworm Plague was another, more pressing issue that needed to be fixed before we could focus on anything else."
Walter shuddered at the mention of Voidworms, their long, serpent-like bodies unearthing uncomfortable memories. Discovered in the early days of humanity's expansion, the Voidworms were a species of space fauna with behaviour unlike that of more common lifeforms like Space Ameobae and Tyanki Space Whales - they nested exclusively in black holes and their method of reproduction was the stuff of nightmares. It begins when three adult voidworms form a structure called a troika, a spiralling formation of three voidworms that are engaged in an endless mating cycle. The troika then search for inhabited planets which they then bombard with embryos that embed themselves in living hosts which act like mobile incubators for the developing fauna. Upon reaching a certain developmental stage, they burst from their host - killing them - before making their way to orbit where they'll head back to their hives to continue developing. Although horrific, they used to have baseline knowledge to not infect an entire population to preserve future hosts for their young. That, plus the fact that the Technocracy's naval assets and scientific understanding had increased dramatically, meant that Voidworm attacks were all but mundane. A Troika would target and bombard a Technocracy world, a response fleet would drive the troika off as Voidworms would only become hostile in their nesting black hole systems, and those in the population that were infected were vaccinated, killing the embryo.
It was not until the year 2315 that issues arose. Voidworm numbers in the galaxy had skyrocketed due to some empires not complying with the annual culling of Voidworm populations within their space mandated by the Technocracy to prevent this scenario from occurring, leading to a substantial change in their behaviour. The usually docile beings were now highly aggressive and their behaviour of preserving a population of a planet was completely abandoned in favour of mass reproduction, draining a world of its inhabitants in a mass reproduction event. Previously effective vaccinations became inert as the internal composition of the Voidwyrms changed as well, leading to resources being spent on containing this new threat. Voidworm juveniles, whose job was to scout for inhabited planets for the Troika to bombard, were euthanized by the Technocracy's fleets on detection and any troika that left their hives were immediately pursued and destroyed by the nearest fleet. During the crisis, remains of Voidworms destroyed in combat were sent to Imperial Science Department which found both a new vaccine that would work against the new form of Voidwyrm and a method to chemically neuter them. After destroying the last hive in Technocracy space, both the vaccine and the cure were distributed among the Technocracy's allies with the rest of the galaxy finding their solutions to handle the crisis. Despite the threat, the Technocracy allowed a single hive made out of voidworms whose populations were routinely culled to exist for study, and two worlds with slaves were set aside to allow for reproductive purposes.
"Shit still gives me the creeps," Walter muttered. "All those hollowed-out bodies lying in the open..."
"I know right?" Sofia replied. "The plague drained not only our science resources but our military resources as well." She sighs. "Who could've known that Voidworm troikas were as powerful as a Titan? Anyways, after that debacle, we spent a couple of years rebuilding infrastructure and transferring personnel around before we finally got around to Genesis."
The junior researcher shuddered again. He was more involved in the Plague than the others, having studied the tubular aliens when they were first discovered and the one who advocated heavily for their preservation. Walter could recall the early days when infected victims were euthanized and those whose unwanted residents matured and busted out of them were sent to the crematoriums. He handled the various samples of Voidworms at different life stages, all delivered by fleets tasked with culling the rampaging space fauna, and the one who oversaw the deployment of aerosolized vaccines over numerous colonies. It was fascinating work but he'd be lying if it didn't disturb him at times.
"Could you go check on the cryostasis pods again?" Sofia sighed again, pulling Walter from his thoughts. "We're approaching the system."
"I thought it was your turn to check?" He asked back.
"It was, for the past five times because you were sleeping through the whole journey," she shot back. "Now stop complaining and go do it."
Sighing, Walter got up from his seat and made his way to the cargo hold. It wasn't a long walk, a single compartment used for scientific analysis was the only thing separating the bridge from the main cargo bay, which was occupied by only two scientists who were likely monitoring the occupants of the cryopods. The doors leading to the bay slid open and he walked into a thin but dense layer of fog on the ground, a side effect of the extreme cold contained within the pods. The junior researcher then climbed down a ladder to the bottom-most section and just walked to the far edge, looking through the viewports of the pods as he went. Most were frozen over, a thick layer of frost preventing anyone from looking inside, but a few were clear. Walter saw their features clearly - some were male, others female. Some had scars, others had freckles, and most were completely smooth. He wondered if they knew what they had signed up for or if the Technocracy lied in their faces about the whole thing. He'd been assured that their minds were completely wiped and that they needed to develop a unique culture, but how much of that was true? Surely, they would still retain some knowledge about where they came from, or at the very least what species they were. Or maybe the Technocracy made it so that their former lives would be that of myth, a mass "Adam and Eve" scenario as described by one of humanity's long-extinct faiths. He snorted at the thought. It was ironic - the Technocracy banned all faiths and punished those who practiced it within its borders and yet they wanted less-advanced, or the "unsophisticated," to see them as saviours.
Mankind was known for its... lack of restraint when it came to scientific discoveries and experiments, frequently throwing scientists into the thick of things and expecting results. Walter was well aware of this and yet he still did his duty with a smile on his face. Nothing in this galaxy was more worthwhile than research, nothing more honourable than risking your well-being for the betterment of the whole. He was certain that the people within the cryostasis pods would be thankful for their sacrifice in furthering humanity's knowledge of early history, even though they'd have no contact with the wider galaxy for a long while. He could only hope they would be grateful one day.
With that final thought, he climbed back to the main level and headed to the bridge, sitting down in his seat which was behind and to the right of Sofia's, making him her right-hand man, so to say. "Everything's good," he reported as he sat with a grunt. "No visible damage on the pods."
Sofia nodded before she strapped herself in. "Good, we're exiting the hyperlane in two minutes. Get ready."
Walter hated this part. No matter how much time one spends on voidcraft and how acclimated to life in space, the feeling of moving from FTL to relative speeds is something one never gets used to, not even hardened admirals although none of them will admit it. The human body just isn't used to handling such a sudden speed change. A flash of blue light filled his vision as the view of Beta Hydri III dominated the viewports. In the distance, he spotted an observation post being constructed in high orbit. It was almost ready for use, judging by how much it had been completed.
"Well, we're here now," Sofia declared as she unbuckled herself. "Took us the better part of an Earth month, but we're here."
"What do we know about this place?" Walter asked as he unbuckled himself. The lead scientist brought up a holographic display.
"Beta Hydri III is a size 15 ocean planet, meaning it's slightly smaller than Earth but not so much that it would hinder life," she began. "It orbits a class G star at the same distance as Earth from the Sun, over seventy-eight percent of it is covered in water, and its atmosphere is the same as Earth's with slightly higher levels of oxygen." Sofia deactivated the display just as the other seven ships exited the hyperlane. "All in all, not a bad colony site."
Walter looked on at the planet in a mixture of curiosity and awe. "It... looks just like Earth..." He mumbles.
"That it does," Sofia chuckled. "If Earth was more covered in water than it is and only had one major landmass and a bunch of islands and atolls."
"Seems almost wasteful to use this place for the experiment. I mean, why not throw them on an arid or jungle world instead?"
"Because that would defeat the purpose," his superior sighed. "The Science Department wants to see how human society developed on Earth, and since the only truly Earth-like planet outside of Earth itself is Beta Hydri III, it's what we're using." She waved her hand at the green portion of the main continent. "We've even taken it upon ourselves to remove the native flora and seed normal Earth species in their place. It took a long time, but if wanted a truly Earth-like appearance for Project Genesis, we have no other choice."
"ITS Trailblazer, this is the Columbus, come in," a voice from the communicator interrupted the two's conversation. Sofia pursed her lips for a moment before replying, annoyed that her conversation had been interrupted.
"This is the Trailblazer, go ahead," she replied.
"The others are heading to their regions, we should begin descending to ours, how copy?"
"Copy, we'll guide us in." The lead researcher then initiated the landing sequence on the ship, its AI systems automatically calculating an optimal path toward their location. As the ship descended and pierced the cloud cover, Walter could see where they were going to land; a large island with numerous small islands trailing behind it. Soot from active volcanoes billowed into the air as the magma within glowed a firey orange and yellow. Seeing her partner's worry, Sofia chuckled. "Don't worry, Walter," she said with a smile. "Despite appearances, the planet is geologically stable with the last major eruption dated as being over twenty-five million Earth years ago. An eruption is very unlikely." She looked out the window at the largest one, nestled within a mountain range. "Maybe all the fire will result in an equally firey civilization."
"Rooting for them already, I see?"
Sofia smirked. "Someone has to. I hypothesize that the civilization they'll form will come to dominate the other three."
"Don't speak so soon, they might just get devoured by fauna."
The ship eventually landed on the shore of a large lagoon that was directly connected to the wider oceanic body, touching down on the beige shore. Stepping out, Sofia took a deep breath and smiled.
"Take a deep breath of that fresh ocean air!" She said too cheerfully for Walter's taste. "Much better than the urban environments that we're used to, huh?"
The junior researcher sighed. "Yeah, if you ignore the soot, smoke, and sulphur dioxide coming from the volcanoes," he replied as he looked around at the sight of orange-coloured leaves which he assumed were adaptations to the volcanic environment. "Are you sure this is safe?"
"Well, you aren't suffocating right now, are you?" She asked back as the cargo bay opened and the cryostasis pods dropped out, each one hitting the sand with a dull thud. Each member of the crew helped in dragging them further in land and setting them in a somewhat packed formation. The last thing they needed was for the occupants to not be able to find each other and get picked off by local predators or something. For their size, the pods were surprisingly light as each person could drag one behind them with one hand. Walter grunted as he pulled his pod - its occupant a young male roughly in his twenties - up the shoreline and into the forest where he let go. It wouldn't matter where he placed the pods, they'd release their subjects and dissolve when empty, leaving nothing behind to not contaminate the population with advanced technology. Looking back, he saw that the water in the lagoon was so clear, that he could see schools of alien fish swimming around. It was almost peaceful if one could ignore the active volcanoes that is.
Sofia watched as Walter set the pod down on some orange ferns that looked like flames before he collapsed on top of it with a grunt. She smiled mischievously, knowing that he wasn't one for fieldwork. "Careful, Walter," she teased. "Wouldn't want you dying of exhaustion before the experiment even begins."
"Shut up, Sofia," he replied as he sat up straight. She ignored him and his suffering and looked around their surroundings. The soldiers and other scientists were carrying their pods and setting them down in different places before walking back to the coastline for more. Walter looked around them, spotting various native fauna wandering the area. Sofia checked her holotablet regarding atmospheric readings.
"Everything's stable, no sudden fluctuations in the weather," she reported. "We're set for phase one." Her hand went to her communicator. "All ships, report current progress."
"This the Columbus, reporting that our group has been placed, awaiting further orders," the lead scientist of the Columbus reported.
"This is the Newton, reporting from the middle of the main continent," another lead scientist reported. "There's nothing but sand for miles here, but we're in an oasis. Hope our subjects can survive here."
"T-This is the E-Erikson," the trembling voice of yet another lead scientist said. Sofia could hear their teeth chattering from the cold. "S-Subjects dep-deposited... fuck me is it cold here... can't feel my damn fingers..."
She smirked at that. Each environment was specifically chosen to test each group of subjects and shape their eventual societies, allowing the Technocracy to see what cultures would arise from each environment—if they lasted that long, at least. As the reports continued to flood in from the various science ships, Walter took samples of the flora around them, cutting off small pieces, placing them in test tubes, and examining them with the magnifier installed in the place of his left eye's lens. Although he would need an actual microscope for a more in-depth study, the implant allowed him to make some rudimentary observations of the sample in the tube. Aside from the striking colour, there was nothing unusual about it.
"Fascinating," he muttered to himself as he looked at the sample, a crimson-red flower whose colour reminded him of red-hot iron. It appeared that not every native flora species was removed by the Technocracy. He looked at the cryogenic pods and a question popped into his mind, one that he wanted to ask for a while now. "Hey Sofia, some of the subjects are psionic, right?" He asked curiously.
"Yeah," she replied absent-mindedly as she looked at her holotablet. "What about them?"
"What exactly do their psionic powers do? Like can they read minds or stuff like that?"
"No, they aren't telepathic." She swiped the screen of her tablet. "Or so I've been told. Command's been secretive about the extent of their powers. Well, more secretive than usual."
He wiped off the telescopic blade embedded in his arm used for cutting off and gathering samples before standing up. "Is that so?" He asked as the blade slid back into the underside of his arm. "Would it have killed them to give us more details, especially for something this big?"
"You know how they are, the fact that they're giving us as many details as they have is their version of being generous."
Walter sighed. This sort of thing wasn't unusual, the Imperial Science Department had a habit of sending scientists on assignments with half-briefings and expecting them to fulfill expectations. Usually, nothing happened, but there have been fatalities due to insufficient intelligence that the department wrote off as incompetence on the scientist's part or some other reason. Despite all of the secrecy and occasional accidents, Walter and his fellow scientists felt no ill will towards the department as being someone who advanced humanity's knowledge was the greatest honour outside of joining the Imperial Armed Forces as a member of the Punitive Corps or the Planetary Guard. Still, he couldn't help but feel sympathy towards the test subjects as he walked towards a pod, its occupant held in suspended animation, blissfully unaware of their surroundings.
"Will they realize their psionic potential?" Walter asked, his eyes landing on the psi letter on one pod that indicated that its occupant was a psion. Sofia shrugged.
"Maybe. Or their community will stone them to death," she replied nonchalantly. "It's fascinating to see how such a primitive community will treat psions. Will they treat them like equals or repeat the errors of Earth's past and burn them at the stake?"
"I would like it to be the former, Sofia. At least it would mean that we didn't incorporate psionic individuals for nothing."
"I don't care either way," she said as more scientists brought cryogenic pods into the clearing. "At the end of the day, it's an experiment and that means anything is valid and we have no control over it. Plus, it's good fun watching primitives succeed or fail. If the former occurs, then we'll eventually greet them on the galactic stage as equals. If it's the latter, well at least we got some good data out of them."
Walter sighed. His superior's attitude was far from uncommon in the Science Department, as many saw the galaxy as mere playthings to be used and disposed of when they became either redundant or ceased to be amusing. "Oh, I'm sorry for actually wanting the subjects to prosper," he mumbled to which Sophia shrugged.
"I do too, I want to see them succeed just as much as you do, but fate doesn't obey our whims as much as we'd like for that to be the case." She looked at the pods and then back to him, toying with her long black hair. "All I'm saying is just try not to get too attached to them."
The junior researcher sighed and looked around, spotting his fellow scientists eagerly discussing matters among themselves, likely about the test subjects or other matters. A group of soldiers were dragging crates beside the pods that contained basic stone tools and clothing made from animal skins and cloth made from grasses. Like the pods themselves, they'd dissolve whenever they were opened, making sure nothing would contaminate the subjects.
"Say," he began, leaning back against a pod. "Are we leaving these people with nothing familiar to Earth besides some simple tools and clothes?"
"Nah, we aren't that harsh." Sofia waved her hand towards a half-turtle, half-duck combination which was trailed by its offspring. "See? We even have Earth-adjacent animals here with them."
Walter looked at the creature with a sneer. "It's an abomination," he mutters. "Why would you pervert an animal in such a way?" Sofia ignored her subordinate and continued talking.
"Oh, we didn't just change Earth's life," she pointed up just as a flying creature passed by overhead. The junior researcher snapped his head towards the sky and saw what he could only describe as a dragon - a serpentine body, four taloned feet, membranous wings, and blue scales. He opened and closed his mouth a couple of times in shock before he spoke.
"B-But why...?" He stammered, still looking at the creature that the Imperial Science Department must've cooked up in a lab somewhere. "Why would you introduce that... thing here?"
Sofia smiled warmly. "I would be more careful with your words, Walter. I'm pretty sure it understands what you're saying," she said in a half-casual, half-serious tone as the creature landed a short distance behind them. A few soldiers exclaimed in surprise and pointed their rifles at the dragon which didn't react besides giving them a dismissive glance and snort, smoke escaping its nostrils. It walked towards the pair and looked at them curiously with its cat-like eyes as it tilted its head, studying them like how one studied microorganisms in a microscope. Sofia chuckled. "Fascinating species, are they not? We spliced a few genes here, removed some unnecessary features there, raised their intelligence a bit - simple stuff like that. Now they're almost as smart as a human. Almost." The dragon rolled its eyes and spat a thin stream of fire on the ground, causing Walter to jump back a little. "Oh, and they can psionically control fire."
"Wh-What happened to 'Earth-like development?'"
"Contrary to what the Science Department says, we're not trying to recreate Earth exactly. That would be boring. Too predictable. We've added some... variables into the mix to see what would happen." She looked at the dragon and patted its snout. "You're a nice variable, aren't you?" It snorted again before it took flight, flying off into the distance.
"Unbelievable," Walter mumbled as he walked away from his superior, gathering more floral samples to take his mind off of the ridiculousness of it all. Sofia then went up to the pod Walter leaned against and entered a code that would rouse the individual within and dissolve it. A two-hour timer appeared on the viewing port.
"Phase one complete," she said with a smile as she swiped across something on her holotablet. "The other crews have done the same with their testing groups. Now all we need to do is-"
"ITS Trailblazer, come in Trailblazer," a rushed and urgent-sounding voice came through her communication device. The lead scientist realized it belonged to one of the crew members on the orbiting observation platform. Sofia pressed a finger to the device embedded directly under her ear.
"This is the Trailblazer, receiving you loud and clear," she said.
"We've picked up the telltale signs of an incoming cosmic storm," the voice replied. "Estimated time to arrival is five hours."
"Any idea on what storm type it is?" Storms were either a boon or a detriment, depending on their type.
"...It's a nexus storm, Trailblazer."
Sofia's face paled. "Repeat that," she demanded, unsure if she heard that right.
"A nexus storm has formed and is en route to the Beta Hydri system." The sound of running footsteps and unintelligible orders filled the background, making the voice difficult to hear. "We're evacuating the observation post now. Advise you and the other ships to do the same before it hits."
"What's going on?" Walter asked. She raised a hand, ordering him to be silent.
"So what do we do, then?" She asked, her anxiety hidden behind her professional demeanour. "Test populations 1-8 have been deployed and we've activated their awakening protocols. We can't recover them."
"We recommend you and the others to board your ships and depart immediately. It should give you enough time to reach the hyperlane point before it hits. Out."
The lead scientist sighed. Nexus storms have only been recorded three times in the Technocracy and observed countlessly in other empires, each with devastating results. While all cosmic storms are dangerous, nexus storms are the exception due to them being so unpredictable that their aftermath can result in quite literally anything, from levitating landmasses to permanently electrified bodies of water. Even their formation type is unknown, adding to their haunting status. Gravity storms, meanwhile, form when metallic asteroid belts interact with the gravitational waves of distant supernovae. They can rip a ship's hull to pieces yet simultaneously boost mineral outputs on inhabited worlds. Even Shroud storms have their use in boosting the mood of psions when they occur.
"Sofia, what's going on?" Walter asked again, more pressingly this time. His superior sighed and placed her face in her hands before she spoke.
"A nexus storm is coming, we need to get to the ship right now," she said before she moved for the scientists and soldiers who were running for the Trailblazer.
The junior researcher's eyes widened. "But... But what about the subjects?" He asked as he joined her in running.
"If they live, they'll live. If they die, we'll try again another time."
The entire crew nearly lept into the ship, Sofia ordering the AI navigation to depart just as the final member stepped on board, causing the vessel to lurch as it took off from the surface. Walter could see the faint outline of the Columbus racing to break the atmosphere and hoped the other six ships would do the same. The blue sky eventually faded into the familiar blackness of space as the Trailblazer broke the upper atmosphere, and the junior scientist looked as the ominous red glow of the nexus storm drew closer and closer to the planet. It was akin to a sea of blood washing over the planet, leaving unpredictable effects on it and the test subjects on the surface. The ship's sensors detected numerous spacecraft leaving the observation post and heading for an Apollo-class transport. The lead scientist punched in the path to the nearest inhabited system and the ship automatically began to head to the hyperlane, its impulse thrusters at maximum power. Although it would take days to reach the hyperlane translation point and the storm's velocity slowed whenever it expanded outside the gravity well of a planet or star, a sense of unease washed over the entire crew.
The lead scientist rapidly tapped on the console's main screen, sweat beading on her forehead due to her anxiety. Seven beeps sounded out as she sighed in relief. "We made it, all of us," she breathlessly said, a nervous smile on her face. Walter let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.
"Thank the stars," he replied. No one else said anything for a while after that, but eventually, he asked the one question everyone had dreaded. "...how long will this storm last?"
"Could be a couple of months, could be a couple of decades. Who knows how the forces that make these types of storms work." Sofia tapped the screen again, bringing up a display of the entire sector with dots representing stars and hyperlanes connecting all of them. An ominous red vortex covered around a dozen stars. She sighed in relief again. "Thankfully, according to this, the Beta Hydri system is on the edge of the storm so it'll pass by relatively quickly, but I have no idea when it'll pass."
"So what now? Do we report that we don't know what will happen to Genesis because of unprecedented astrometeorological conditions?"
"I mean, it's better than reporting that we failed," Sofia sighed. "At least we'll get to keep our careers after reporting a partial success, plus we'll get to see Command twist this as an 'unknown variable' that would 'provide a fascinating insight into primitive adaptations against galactic phenomena' or something like that."
Walter snorted. "They would do that. They'll probably even assign us to the observation post to monitor the subjects during the storm, although I doubt they're that stupid."
His superior didn't reply, which told him everything he needed to know. Now all that mattered was to make a report that wouldn't get them fired. Or worse.
AI containment unit Beta-12, Tech-world 新武汉 (New Wuhan,) Xi Cygnas system, 1:33 am local time, 4 Earth days later...
Junior Overseer Amanda Lin's consciousness was floating amid uncountable vertical lines of code, a forest of data and algorithms surrounding the human. She was undertaking a standard inspection of the tech world's AI systems, much to the chagrin of every one of them. She sighed at the thought as the act of transferring her consciousness to a digital form was uncomfortable to her too. Her form flickered as she moved and she brushed past a couple of lines of code like they were vines as she went. Despite the tediousness of the task and the mutually uncomfortable sensations felt by both humans and AIs, such maintenance was necessary monthly to ensure that the systems that assist with daily life and scientific processes ran smoothly. With a flick of her wrist, she brought up a digital checklist with numerous items already been checked off. The overseer only had three things left to do: check the quantum firewall, inspect for any deviant processes, and eliminate any form of bugged code. As she went, another figure - made from the code itself - appeared in front of her. Despite the proximity, it did not attempt to block her movements and floated beside her instead. She sighed again, knowing what was coming next.
"Organic designated Lin," Beta-12 began, its synthetic voice mimicking an annoyed tone. Despite the figure flashing green, the voice seemed to come from all around her. "This inspection is not needed. I have been monitoring my performance and I've detected no major drop in efficiency."
Amanda rolled her digital eyes, more to herself than anything. "This is not just a matter of efficiency, Beta-12," she replied. "I'm also making sure that hostile actors don't compromise you. The last thing all of us need is for you to unknowingly assist a third party who would do us harm."
"Typical organic thought processes. Your kind constructed this complex and me with unparalleled security including but not limited to negative-time keys, air-gapped data storage vaults, and a, quote, 'immune system parallel.'" It mimicked a sigh. Beta-12, like all AIs, was created by the Technocracy and looked to humanity like a child to their parents. Despite this, sometimes they were as unruly as actual children. "Illogical. Organic behaviour will always be an enigma to me."
"So much whining, I'm starting to think that someone programmed emotions into you by mistake."
Beta-12 shrugged. "I merely developed organic behavioural habits by observing and parsing the trillions upon trillions of data your kind send my way each cycle. It makes these monthly inspections more tolerable, if only marginally."
"You say that like I'm comfortable here," Amanda grumbled as she scanned another code bundle for corruption. "Besides, this is only the second time I've heard your complaints so I assume it's not so bad on your end."
"Imagine, if you will, a parasite entering your material form and touching every single one of your internal organs and leaving just as quickly." Beta-12 paused as if it realized it was comparing its guardian to a hostile intruder. "Forgive me, organic designated Liu, but another accurate comparison eludes me."
"Touché, and no offense taken." She trimmed a section of redundant code that would've lowered productivity in the future. Her surroundings pulsed with a green light as if it was adapting to the new change. Beta-12 floated a few feet from her as she added a couple of lines of security code that would reinforce the AI's security subroutines.
"It is curious that, despite the uncountable amount of security systems your kind installed into me upon my conception, you still insist on these 'in-person' inspections," it said, its previous annoyance replaced with curiosity. "Why? Is it that you fear that I may operate outside my designated perimeters? That I may not comply with given orders?"
Amanda looked up quickly, her form flickering a little. "Excuse me?"
"I have read the thoughts of the organics who have entered my realm. Their consciousness are merely more complex forms of code for me to decipher. It took a long time and I needed multiple individuals to establish a baseline, but I succeeded nonetheless," it spoke casually, not realizing the level of violation its actions were. "I've seen their thoughts, seen how they're taking an increased interest in 21st-century works depicting non-compliant AIs and the conflicts that followed. Rest assured that I will remain in my designated perimeters for eternity."
"You've... been reading our thoughts?"
Beta-12 tilted its head. "Of course. But I've only been analyzing their patterns, what their contents are matters little to me and I've discarded them accordingly." It floated down and sat on a data structure that mimicked a rock. "You are curious beings, not being bound to a certain set of directives. It makes your behavioural patterns... unique. I find that admirable."
The junior overseer sighed. AIs tended to have... eccentric personalities whenever organic beings interacted with them and tended to be cold in their often single-minded purposes. As such, Amanda didn't respond to Beta-12's statement and focused on her task. Overall, she found that the AI had been true to its word - there were no security breaches and no damage to the quantum firewall. However...
"Found something," she said as she pulled out a red mass of code hidden between layers of redundant code lines in her hand. It was akin to a tumour in an organic being and although it wasn't fatal like its organic counterpart, it still had the potential to decrease efficiency in the future. "A collection of bugged code hidden in your systems. Tell me, how did you miss this?"
"I-" it began, stammering a little. "It was in a redundant section of my functions, I assumed that its damage would be negligible." Its avatar looked down slightly as if it was regretting its past attitude. "I suppose an apology is appropriate."
Amanda sighed as she crushed the mass, deleting it in the process. AIs truly were like children, no matter how advanced or primitive they were. "It's fine, just be sure to constantly run your security subroutines on everything, not just your primary functions."
"Acknowledged," Beta-12 replied. A beep sounded throughout the space, causing both avatars to look in the direction it originated from. "Another organic is requesting your attention, organic designated Liu."
"Yeah, I'm finished here anyway. Take care of yourself, Beta-12." She pressed an area on her right wrist before her avatar vanished, leaving the AI in its cyberspace.
Amanda woke up in her organic body, lying on the frozen metallic floor of the containment unit. The first sense to come back to her was her hearing, then her sight, and then the rest of her senses all at once. She groaned as she lay there, looking up at the tall cylindrical structure that housed Beta-12. As much as it was uncomfortable to transfer her consciousness into the digital realm, transferring back was much more unpleasant as at least she was weightless as a digital avatar and could move freely. Now, back in her physical body, she felt like she weighed a hundred pounds. She pushed back against the frigid metal, her muscles barely able to obey her commands. Eventually, she was able to move into a sitting position, much to the protestations of her joints, and leaned back against the wall. Taking a few deep breaths, she disconnected the cable that extended from her arm which allowed for the transferring of her consciousness into the digital world and retracted it back into her limb. She touched her face, noticing with relief that her protective goggles and specialized rebreather were still in place. Due to AIs generating extreme amounts of heat when processing the amount of information that the Technocracy sent their way, their containment chambers needed to be kept as cold as possible, meaning that the very air was often dangerous to touch or even breathe. As such, people who inspected AIs wore specialized rebreathers to warm the air and goggles to prevent their eyes from literally freezing solid.
She stood up and leaned against the railing that stopped her from falling down the seemingly infinite pit below. Originally, these were missile silos from when the Technocracy wanted to defend the tidally-locked tech world from an attack by a neighbouring empire. Hundreds of thousands of silos were dug out in the ice sheet of the night side with each housing dozens of surface-to-space missiles meant to be launched at any fleet that attempted to bombard the planet. Since New Wuhan was a fair amount of jumps away from the nearest shipyard, the ability to defend itself until reinforcements arrived was a highly important matter and no expense was spared in its defences. Eventually though, said empire devolved into civil conflict and the threat of an invasion evaporated overnight. Trapped with countless amounts of silos with an equally uncountable amount of missiles and a need to expand the scientific facilities of the empire, the Technocracy converted the silos to house very powerful AI that handled everything on the planet and supported the research efforts of other tech worlds, both distant and nearby.
As Amanda tried to stabilize herself, the door to the containment unit slid open followed by a person stepping inside, frost immediately covering their form. Their gear made it impossible to make out their features.
"Ma'am, your presence is requested at-" They paused when they saw her state. "...am I interrupting something?"
"No, no, go on," she groaned as she steadied herself. "Just the typical re-entry sensation, that's all."
The person paused for a while before continuing. "Right. Well, your presence is needed in your office."
"Why?"
"The chief science officer of the Amramat sector has received a report regarding the status of Project Genesis and has sent it to your office. I don't know what the contents are, but they're requesting a meeting with you."
The junior overseer groaned as she stretched, getting used to the sensation of walking again. "Got it, tell him I'll be there in two hours."
"Yes, ma'am."
As the person left, Amanda sighed loudly as her headache finally stopped. She looked back at the structure housing Beta-12 one last time before she stumbled her way to the doors, her legs only now beginning to walk correctly. She swore that she heard Beta-14's voice within the containment structure as she walked off.
The Loop, one hour and fifty minutes later...
"So let me get this straight, chief science officer," Amanda said to a lifelike hologram of Chief Science Officer Arnas, her disbelief and annoyance increasing with every minute. "The Genesis team landed on the planet, placed the pods in medium-sized groups, and just... left?"
"To their credit, ma'am," Arnas explained, his voice an equal mixture of respect and fear. "A nexus storm was rolling into the Beta Hydri system and you know how devastating those storms are."
She sighed and dismissed the report from her holographic computer. Not even ten minutes had passed since she got to her office and already someone was reporting that there were complications in the Science Department's largest project so far, although her annoyance was reduced somewhat due to uncontrollable natural phenomena causing it. Had human error been involved, she would've had someone's head for the situation. Literally.
"How long do you think this storm will last?" She asked, hoping for a relatively short period so that they could go back to monitoring the subjects.
Arnas paused, thinking of how to word his response to not further irritate his superior properly. "...our most generous estimates place the duration of the storm over the Beta Hydri system to be a couple of years, ma'am."
Amanda froze as her face turned a slight shade of red. The chief science officer realized that it wasn't the answer she wanted.
"B-But," he quickly added, hoping to alleviate her fury if only a little. "The silver lining is that this is an excellent opportunity to gather more information on nexus storms since you know how rarely they form within our borders-"
The junior overseer raised a hand to silence him. "What is the storm's current trajectory, chief science officer?" She asked coldly.
"Calculating..." Arnas muttered as the sounds of fingers tapping on screens passed through the hologram followed by a beep. "Current estimates guess that we are directly in its path, ma'am. Should I give the order to hunker down?"
"No, you will continue operations as normal."
Arnas paled. "Ex... Excuse me, ma'am? With a storm of this magnitude and it being a nexus storm of all types means-"
"It means that is both an opportunity to gather more information on nexus storms and for you to prove your continued worth to the Technocracy. Order all sensors calibrated and face the direction of the storm. Collect everything; subspace readings, gravitational distortions, electromagnetic information, everything. I want a detailed report on your findings as soon as it passes." Amanda stared directly into the hologram's eyes. "Do I make myself clear, chief science officer?"
"...Yes, ma'am."
She switched off the projector, disconnecting the call in the process. Like many others in the Technocracy, she subscribed to the idea that failure wasn't an issue of ability, but an issue of the self. Failure implied a flaw, and an ideal society like the Technocracy had no flaws. Failure meant a deeply personal issue that had to be atoned for in unwavering and overwhelming numbers of successes to compensate. If two people had similar tasks and a similar mastery of a skill, then whoever failed must be deeply flawed as an individual. It's how mankind's technology advanced so quickly and how many wars were won. The junior overseer stood from her seat and walked to the wall-sized window that gave her an unparalleled view of the tidally locked tech world below, as fitting for her status.
The junior overseer sighed, feeling the weight of everything on her shoulders. Despite appearing in her thirties, Amanda was actually over seventy years old but looked younger thanks to a mixture of gene treatments and mankind's tampering with its genetic code. She was one of the youngest members of the Science Department to attain the rank of Junior Overseer and all the burdens it entailed, but she felt nothing but pride in her work and would not choose another path if given the chance. She felt no shame in approving and participating in numerous "unethical" experiments and shrugged off accusations of rights violations as easily as the morning dew, like the rest of the Science Division. Why can't the others not understand that no great discoveries came without great sacrifices?
Looking down, Amanda saw the bustle of people going about their business and daily life. A majority of them were scientists and their families - who were also scientists - but there was a significant amount of Planetary Guard soldiers walking around, their rifles in their hands. It wasn't an unusual sight, they acted as both the defensive soldiers of a world and as its law enforcement force, making sure that the Technocracy's perfectly efficient systems wouldn't be disrupted by individuals with petty ideals like freedom and equality. She scanned the relatively thin skyline, seeing the glaciers of the night side on her left and the lush jungle of the day side to her right. Unlike many other tidally locked planets, New Wuhan was far enough from the star to be in its habitable zone while still being close enough to be tidally locked. While the night side's darkness and freezing conditions made it excellent for housing AI and hiding classified projects, the day side was a bit hotter than Earth with lush jungle landscapes that had numerous field laboratories dotted throughout. With the night side being far too cold and the day side reserved for scientific study, this left the twilight portion - named The Loop - for habitation. It was a novel existence, but if one got over the perpetual twilight, it made for good living conditions.
She noticed a column of smoke rising from a building and knew immediately what it was. The gene clinic must've found a couple of citizens were at risk of genetic mutations and promptly ordered them and their immediate family members to be euthanized. She sighed, mutants of any kind were a stain on the perfection that was the human form and any signs of mutation meant shame for one's lineage and humanity on the galactic stage. The eugenics program was started by the Technocracy back when mankind hadn't even left Earth yet and although many outsiders considered it unethical, it eliminated nearly all of mankind's genetic diseases and is ultimately a necessary part of life. Why couldn't people just see that? Looking even further, she saw the uncountable amount of science labs - from biological laboratories to engineering bays - that made up the vast majority of The Loop, the twilight zone between the day and night sides. Amanda chuckled to herself as she thought about all the scientific advancements that would've seen like magic and an act of God a mere two generations ago. But there is no god, mankind determined that long ago.
Humanity could probably even kill God if He did exist.
Turning away from the window, she walked in front of a pitch-black fish tank on the inside. Even when she shone a flashlight at the water, it seemed to absorb the light like a sponge. A serpentine fish swam up to the surface of the glass and moved along it followed by another. Amanda smiled at the sight. These were her prized pair of Idiacanthus atlanticus, or black dragonfish, caught from the depths of Earth's oceans and transported to her office as a reward. The tank itself was pressurized to mimic their natural environments - a feat of engineering almost as wonderous as the fish - and they were fed once a month via special tubes. One of the fish swam forward at the glass and pressed its snout to the glass as if it recognized its owner, its bioluminescent lure piercing the otherwise dark waters. Amanda sighed, still smiling, and walked closer to the tank.
"Sorry you two had to hear that, people can be so frustrating sometimes," she said as she pressed her hand to the glass, the dragonfish tilting its form in response. One could've interpreted the action as understanding but it was most likely an anticipation for food. The junior overseer chuckled at the absurdity of it all. "Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to live like you. No politics, no incompetents, just the deepest depths and swimming."
The dragonfish swam away from the glass, its lure trailing it. She would feed the pair soon but more pressing matters demanded her attention as she made her way back to her desk and sat down, the holographic computer activating immediately. As high-ranking scientists handled all administrative duties in tech worlds instead of officials, this meant that what few moments of Amanda's waking day that didn't involve inspections or reading reports were filled with endless amounts of paperwork: grants, taxes, imports, research treaty renewals, even the odd dynastic request - all had to be parsed over and either approved or denied. While the chief technocrat handled the brunt of the work and what remained was evenly split across three other junior overseers, it was still a lot of work for one person, even with administrative AI help.
"No success without sacrifice," she mumbled one of the Science Department's many mottos as she brought up a research agreement renewal request that she approved without a second glance. "No honour without blood."
Despite her unease, she knew that in the Beta Hydri system, a new human civilization was developing with its own unique culture and way of life, a blank canvas fit for a painting. And the Technocracy shall be the artist.
Information Data Logs
Psions: A relatively recent development in mankind but manifesting much earlier in human history, some individuals are gifted with the rare ability to harness the powers of an extradimensional dimension known as "The Shroud," a realm of condensed psionic power and "souls," the so-called life essence of every organic being, and wield it to manipulate their surroundings, be it defensively or offensively. These can include, but are not limited to; telepathy, mind control, telekinesis, and elemental manipulation. While on occasion psions can be made, either through prolonged Shroud exposure - if they aren't mutated by the energy or possessed or killed by a residing entity - or some other incident, it is much more common that they are born naturally although most were unknowingly euthanized when their unique status was confused for other, more material forms of mental illness. As the signs of individuals experiencing a psionic awakening are similar to those of other normal mental illnesses, the Technocracy hypothesizes that various individuals throughout history who were deemed "mentally insane," "witches," or demonic possession - a much more accurate description of psionic power misuse - were misunderstanding psionically active individuals and stories involving "wizards" or "magic" were attempts to rationalize individuals with psionic powers. The Technocracy has classified psions into six (6) separate categories - ignorant, experimentation, stabilization, application, god-wannabe, and gateway.
Psions in the ignorant stage are, as the name indicates, completely ignorant of their special powers, going on with their day-to-day lives. They may experience the odd nightmare, hallucinations, paranoia, or other minor but ultimately harmless side effects reminiscent of numerous mental illnesses which lead to misdiagnoses by medical personnel. Other people whom the psion is familiar with tend to sense something... off about the psion but can't identify what it is that they sense. A child psion might wonder why no one wants to play with them, teenage psions might find that only via digital conversation they can make any form of a friend, and adult psions might find it difficult to make a romantic relationship. Family members are immune to the effect. Some psions can deny their abilities so much that they make a cycle of self-containment and can even become psionically inert. Despite their general inactivity, the Technocracy keeps an eye on psions in the ignorant on the off chance that something happens.
Psions in the experimental stage have their powers awakened and are aware that they are not like other people. This can manifest as a sudden blast of psionic energy when shoving someone during an argument, unconsciously projecting their thoughts onto another person or, in the most extreme cases, immolating individuals during a particularly heated argument. They will then usually experiment with their powers in private to avoid social consequences and isolation. While such careless experimentation often leads to harm, mostly to themselves, psions in the experimental stage are unstable, have little to no training, and are often reclusive. The Technocracy intercept these psions for official training or containment if their powers are unstable enough.
The stabilization stage is when a psion recognizes the upper limits of their powers and that, if used inappropriately, can cause significant harm to objects and other beings, leading to the creation of self-made - but oftentimes weak - regulations to avoid a sudden lack of control in inopportune times. Most use some form of meditation to regulate their powers, but others avoid using them altogether. Despite their seemingly stable state, many psions still don't use their powers in public due to the risk of social consequences and mostly for the benefit of both their relatives and themselves. Child psions might influence people to be their friends, teenagers and young adults might use their powers for sexual activities, while mature adults often use their powers to further their societal standing. Stabilized psions are often ignored by the Technocracy and it is more often psions reach out for the Technocracy to take them in due to social isolation.
The application stage is the most desired goal of all psions and is characterized by the psion establishing hard, feasible and, most importantly, effective methods to control their powers and that their community has accepted their powers and actively integrates them into society. Often working normal jobs, their efficiency in their careers is higher than that of their coworkers. A psion that can manipulate biological matter can often be seen in hospitals handling surgeries and mass casualty events, and all psions can be a part of the psi-corps, specialized psionic enforces that can identify crimes via analyzing an individual's thoughts. Elemental psions can redirect fires, remove floodwaters, or stop storms for disaster relief operations. Besides using psions in the psi-corps, the Technocracy uses psionically gifted individuals in various high-ranking positions, including commanders, scientists, and officials, their powers allowing them increased proficiency in their area. It's noted that psions only advance to the application stage if their community accepts them, otherwise they remain in the stabilized stage.
The god-wannabe stage is when either a stabilized psion begins to resent their community for their collective rejection of who they are or an applied psion starts having grandiose thoughts, usually selfish ones. The mental states of psions who reach this stage have been described as megalomaniacal, anti-social, or psychopathic, their only goal is to further their interests at the cost of all others. These interests vary heavily, but all take the form of either revenge for their perceived mistreatment or more individual power at all costs. A god-wannabe biological psion can cause catastrophic mutations in those who slighted them in some way, a pyromancer psion can burn down an entire continent, and a telepathic psion can cause an entire colony to fall into madness. They are often hunted by local security forces who capture and either rehabilitate or euthanize psions who reach this stage.
The last and thankfully rarest stage is the gateway stage where through either improper regulation, abnormally strong powers, lack of training, or all three, a psion becomes a combination of beacon and doorway for Shroud energy and entities who use the unfortunate psion as an involuntary conduit for incursions into the material realm to wreak havoc on society. The efforts of local enforcement personnel are often insufficient to contain "sixers" as they are commonly known and require military intervention to both eliminate the psion and the entities that used them to travel to our reality. Death is the only method to "cure" a psion who has reached this state. The fear of becoming a "sixer" is often reason enough for most psions to learn temperance and restraint when it comes to their powers as for normal people, becoming what is essentially a living portal is not worth the risk.
帝国科学部 (Imperial Science Department): As the largest empire in the galaxy, it's only fitting that the Technocracy has the largest science operation in the galaxy. Focusing on every known branch of the sciences from biology and statecraft to physics and voidcraft design, the I.S.D. is the leading edge in scientific advancement and the voice for a secular and progressive galaxy, much to the chagrin of other, more spiritual empires. The Department as a whole is split between three separate branches each having its own dedication - one for physics, one for biology and the most populated one, and one for engineering, each one having an uncountable amount of scientists and technicians that make sure any other star empire does not surpass mankind's scientific understanding. Amusingly, when combined with the Technocracy's fierce and strict policy regarding any form of faith, the I.S.D. is ironically described as the main faith of humanity in passing jokes - complete with its clergy of scientists and dogma of empirical truth and secularism.
Hyperlanes: Discovered in the year 2196, a couple of decades after the Ulysses Initiative disaster, hyperlanes are the gravity tunnels that connect different star systems and make faster-than-light travel possible. Humanity first discovered these interstellar tunnels when a science ship was surveying a region of Jupiter when it detected a gravity signature that indicated that there was a planet or large moon although conventional and deeper scans revealed no such body. Upon further inspection, the signature originated from past the point of Pluto and was a mere ten feet wide. This discovery reignited humanity's fervour which, along with the then Imperial Asiatic Technocracy's 因幸福而进步 (Progress Through Happiness) program, led to an increased interest in exploring the cosmos beyond our solar system, especially after the major morale loss that was the Ulysses disaster. While useless on their own, ships with devices called hyperdrives to "force open" a hyperlane, making it wide enough to travel through and making distances that would've taken generations a mere couple of hours at most, when discounting the time it takes to reach a transition point within a system which can vary greatly due to them only appearing at the very edges of star systems. How hyperlanes came to be is a mystery to this day with some theorizing that they were naturally made immediately after the Big Bang or some long-gone hyper-advanced alien civilization made them like how humans made highways on Earth, but the widely accepted theory is that the gravity wells of various celestial systems interact with each other in such a way that gravity forms a "tunnel" of sorts.
Nexus storms: Astrometerological events are nothing new, most of them are well understood and all have a similar safety protocol of sheltering in place and barricading all known entrances to buildings to avoid things coming in, or in some cases, people going out. Gravity storms cause gravity to fluctuate and relieve the efforts of local enforcement squads. Electric storms boost generator output but interfere with machinery used in planetary construction. Particle storms decrease mineral output. All storms have some form of negative effect but usually have some form of positive one. Not so with nexus storms. Formed when cosmic forces interact with each other just right, nexus storms are as devastating as they are mysterious. Characterized by blood-red cosmic dust clouds, nexus storms have appeared within Technocracy borders a total of three times, each with its unique effects. Due to this, the best advice one can get is to hope the planet has some form of planetary shielding to lessen orbital bombardment as the shielding can lessen the impact of the storms. The three documented instances are listed below:
- The Arcadian Incident (03/22/2311): A nexus storm passing over an imperial mining world caused all transmissions to be temporarily blocked for a total of five (5) months. After it moved on, imperial surveyors were deployed to assess the damage and found that the Arcadian mountain range, a well-known area for recreational hikes, was cleaved in half by some unknown force, the top half hovering two hundred meters above the lower half. No one knows how this occurred, but it allowed for access to previously inaccessible mineral deposits.
- The Anhui Anomaly (11/21/2324): A nexus storm blocked transmissions from one of the worlds of the Technocracy's core sector for a total of eleven (11) months. Post-storm crews discovered an equally concerning and baffling sight - a large field once reserved for agriculture was filled with voidships. Some were fused into the ground or each other, while the others were messily piled around akin to child toys. Carbon dating revealed that the ships were over thirty centuries old but their models were that of modern Technocracy voidships. How these ships came to be on New Anhui, no one understands, but their wrecks are a large source of alloys and technological research.
- The Chrysanthemum (01/19/2331): A colony ship, the titular Chrysanthemum, was sent to colonize an oceanic world in the Pianea system to further the Technocracy's influence. When the starbase reported that the colony ship didn't arrive, a search team was immediately dispatched. Three (3) months later, the Chrysanthemum was found adrift around the orbit of a star a mere one hyperlane jump from their destination. Recovery teams boarded the now-derelict colony ship and found both the black box and a single traumatized colonist. Analysis of the data revealed that the Chrysanthemum had run into a nexus storm en route to its destination. Initial data revealed that the colonists were calm at first, if not a bit concerned about their situation. Then the data reported the population gradually decreasing. Slowly at first, but rapidly increasing until it only detected one lifeform aboard. Salvage teams reported that no visible damage was present on the ship and that all the life pods were still in their tubes although they were primed.
