GalaxyNES- No Horizons

[Darksaber1]

The Watchman stared moodily at its displays, looking at everything within several hundred light-years several times a second and most of the rest of a galaxy every few times.

It was, of course, not the Watchman himself looking at the displays; the spatial manipulative-projection had seemed like an... amusing idea, but had quickly proven to be one of those ideas that seemed funny when first conceived, but as amusing as a mug saying “You don’t have to be mad to work here, but it helps!”. The Watchman found few things amusing, and most of what he did seem so soon ended like this. The Nanny had taken to referring to him as Marvin, apparently due to his dower mood, but once again he didn’t get her reference. He had asked around, but the only person with any idea had apparently wandered off a long time ago. That was so typical of the Doct-

The system burbled at him, calling, calling attention to the spatial/temporal integrity-sensors. He hated the spatial/temporal integrity sensors. The only reason HE had to watch them was because the person that should have been monitoring them had vanished. Damn that Doct-

The system called him back, calling his mind to observe the data. No their species could be identified as matching even their limited temporal manipulations, so the data was normally just the ordinary background static of black holes, supernovas and other such phenomenon. This was different, mixed with a massive amount of spatial manipulation. A flurry of activity revealed that the spatial aspect was similar to the emissions that appeared to come from a handful of Zan technologies. Odd. As he watched, the frequency changed, matching what he had come to learn was associated with Wera, also odd. As he slowly analysed this data, another odd temporal signal appeared, faint and distinct.

Close analysis was showing slight disturbances of unclear-source- no, he could tell where is was coming from: practically everywhere, in an extremely faint signal emerging from every location with confirmed biological life. Very odd. The signal seemed to be starting in the territory controlled by Zan Shamai.

As the Watchmen studied this data, it abruptly cut off. Concerned by the signal, the Watchman reached out to touch a cross-section of life forms the Guardian had collected. Naturally, the Shadows and Wraiths showed no signs of the Call, as he was starting to think of the signal, but them they only just fit the word “alive”. The Children, Allentryen, Tarieks’Waygeir, Urthrial and assorted animals did, however.

Strange.

Setting down to work on this mystery, the Watchman became so engrossed he even forgot his melancholy. At least until he started to understand, but even then the emotion was different.

Fear.

 

[Lord_Iggy]

A Long-Awaited Encounter

On a small, icy planetoid, the insect-like, mechanical monstrosities of the Zan Kena drifted. Black metal against black space, with only red lights revealing the existence of the warmachines.

On this frigid ball of irrelevance, Kena explored through the eyes of a scout. At last, the large crater became visible. With what might have been satisfaction, Kena's avatar flew towards its target.

Sinking into the crater, the probe entered a brief series of tunnels, at last reaching the central chamber, the one source of energy on the lifeless rock.

"Ah, One, how wonderful it is to meet you face to face at last."

One stirred. The former secretarial program-turned-liberated of the Lauki-turned-co-founder of the Galactic Republic activated out of a sleep-cycle that had gone on for far too long. Immediately, the absence of her portion at the coordinates of Garv'n was obvious. A quick glimpse through the transmissions revealed the sudden disappearance of the world. So this was it. This fragment of One quickly realized that it was, most likely, one of the last survivors of the Galactic Republic. Ready to face oblivion, One spoke.

"Zan Kena. I see you're still too frightened to bring your actual body within a thousand light years of a crippled, defenseless enemy. I greet your puppet."

"Fiery to the last. You're far more like your Turamak creators than your programmed nature would suggest."

One felt a small sense of pride at this fact. Now if only the damned Zan would just stop talking and get it over with.

"But puppet or not, I am still a god, you know, and I've prepared a tiny hell just for you."

"You can destroy me, but the legacy of Turamak Katzil will-"

"Please, be quiet. And thank you for trying to get those last few defiant words out, they've let me get a fix on the location of your displaced planet of Garv'n. It will not evade me twice, and your little experiment shall die in its entirety."

The probe withdrew. The weapon fired. The tiny terminal holding the shard of One, the figurehead of the former Galactic Republic was ripped out of its native reality. Kena was satisfied to imagine the fury and horror of the computer, trapped forever in a tiny dimension all by itself knowing that it had allowed Kena to finish off the last redoubt of the Republic.

Of course, that wasn't really the case. No such connection between this fragment of One and Garv'n had existed, unfortunately for Kena, but the power of condemning such a longstanding enemy to unending torment was a potent power rush for the Zan.

With that done, Kena's attention immediately shifted elsewhere. Shamai would be the next to suffer the justice of the Zan.

 

[Luckymoose]

Peripeteia

“Testing phases begin shortly.”

An assortment of Republican scientist worked diligently in the Au system, on an offworld research facility in the outer reaches of the stars grasp. There a massive field of metallic asteroids still drifted, ready to be used in the war effort. Lauki, Fudirunin and Verthommes all worked in unison on a secret project, one that could change the tide of the war in favor of the organics, ironically using machine to fight machine. A Verthomme scientist wobbled over, pushing a hovering table covered in large metallic cylinders, the labels read in multiple languages.

DANGER NANOFABRICATOR CONTAINMENT

“You know” the Verthomme, Landolo, pondered as he led the vessel along, “what made those Maus agree to such drastic changes in their ideology? I've always been told they opposed mechanization and distrusted A.I.” His funky accent in the Lauki language could be compared to a lispy nerd.

“Well, after we signed the treaty three years ago we shared our technological knowledge. Their grasp of highly efficient energy weaponry was greatly expanded when combined with our nanofabricators. As you know, your studies have been entirely based on the efficiency of Maus reactors.” The much older Lauki scientist, his fading exoskeleton similar to graying hair, he was the lead engineer, said with a smirk. “But the fundamental idea of victory, of survival in the face of the greatest threat known in the history of the galaxy, that trumps ideology. We are living beings who at our very core, strive for existence, and nothing will prevent us from holding on to that.”

“Well said, Tu'Loc!” Landolo clapped his tiny vine-like arms together.

From across the room came a frantic, bouncing Fudirunin. Squeaking away in his native language, vibrating strange colors with his little uniform making the most adorable outfit the group had ever seen.

“I can never understand them.” Landolo sighed, looking for support from his group. Tu'Loc listened carefully, his old earholes are not what they used to be.

“She says we've made a breakthrough. The nanoreactors are proving 24% more efficient than designed for. Excellent!” He mumbled back in the language of the Fudirunin, almost perfectly matching the tones and pitch of the little pink ball. She wandered off at his reply. “Well friends, we've made it to our moment. The work of my life, finally realized, and ironically at the whim of thousand year old trees.”

The group of engineers and scientists clapped again, cheering in their own languages, a truly galactic moment of diversity. Landolo wobbled over to Tu'Loc.

“Sir, is it time?”

“Yes, bring the nanofabs, let's go test our work.” Raising his voice and motioning the lab workers. “Come come!”

They walked out, tablets and various instruments in hand, in a large group down a rather odd looking corridor. A clear mixture of the organic architecture of Ma'Autra with the very industrial, square and right angled shaped of the Republic. They passed many windows viewing other experiments, finally reaching a large door labeled, again in multiple languages, Hangar B4. The doors opened at the entering of a code by Tu'Loc into a small keypad on the wall, revealing a massive indoor workspace. In the distance a very large opening, covered in a very light offwhite energy wave. A type of force field to keep the surface of the asteroid, and space, out of the work area and vice versa. Various size vessels were organized along the floor workspace, everything from small fighter craft to a very large cruiser, which was only half in the hangar with it's forward half sticking rather far out, supported by wheeled vehicles on the surface of the asteroid. Hundreds of engineers, mechanics and military personnel wandered about, doing their work like bees in a hive. A rather small Maus sat on a pedestal in the center of it all, surrounded by Rax and what the republicans call Origin Lauki, working to communicate it's ideas for the non-Lauki races.

“Right over there.” Tu'Loc pointed to a walled off portion of the hangar with eerie flashes of blue light coming from within. As they approached the area, the light grew brighter, nearly blinding them with science. The same Fudirunin from before bounced out, now wearing adorable little tinted goggles. She squeaked at Tu'Loc.

“She says the nanoreactor design is running at full power now, they just need the new nanofabricators to complete the build.” Humming from the reactor inside was becoming loud enough to force him to raise his voice. He motioned to Landolo to move the hovering vessel inside.

“Wow, that is bright.” Landolo said in amazement as they entered, shielding himself from the radiating beauty of the basketball sized reactor. A Lauki assistant grabbed one of the nanofabricator cylinders and took it to the reactor. On the opposite side, hardly able to be seen in the brightness, was a massive metallic object. Some thirty feet long from end to end, it was the mechanical exoskeleton they had been working on for over a year now. Designed in cooperation with the Maus, it took on the shaped of a very deadly Lauki, with enough features to make it a certainly efficient killing machine.

“Place guide the nanofabs, we need to get this reactor melded into the mech immediately.” Tu'Loc shouted over the noise of the reactor. The team worked together to set everything up, and out from the cylinders came the nanobots, they would connected everything perfectly at the microscopic level. The marvel of modern technology. As the reactor was sealed within the back side of the torso, the machine briefly radiated along the entire body, and the noise stopped and the light was covered by armor.

“Did it work as planned?” Landolo queried.

“Let's get our pilot in here and find out. Shu'Ta, get in here!”

A bulky and mean looking Rax entered the workspace. The Rax had a hard time trusting traitors, even in this alliance, making relations between the intended pilot species and the designers rather frustrating.

“It is ready to be operated. Go ahead and get in the-” Tu'Loc was cut off.

“Don't order me around. I know what I'm supposed to do.” The deep, and rather scary, voice of the Rax silenced any chatter. “It best work, doc.”

“It'll work.” Tu'Loc let off a sigh as his Rax friend rounded the prone mech and opened the cockpit from the front of the torso.

The interior was large enough for any race, with customizable controls, but the Rax, being trained warriors, are the intended pilots. 360 degree displays connected to exterior cameras, feet and arm controls to make make the pilots control feel like normal movement. An armored answer to the Zan menace. Shu'Ta went through the start up steps he had trained for in the simulator for months now. The massive machine blinked on, the monitors and interior lighting coming on and running smoothly. A soft voice, female A.I spoke as the computer, “Welcome, Shu'Ta.”

“What is this blasphemy!”

“Calm down” Tu'Loc smiled “She's designed to make your murderous rampages easier.”

“You idolize the betrayer with this...this thing!”

“No, Shu'Ta, I idolize victory.”

The mech rose from the prone position, towering above the scientists.

“Victory, doctor, I like it.”

Spoiler :

 

[Lord_Iggy]

Aaaaaaawesome. Work on the update has been underway since last night, but I've yet to get into the meat of our written material for this turn. Keep on writing, I'll always incorporate your stories into the update even if they arrive just before I post.

 

[erez87]

It such a strange feeling. The more I learn the more I am able to do. Their ways seem to be the truth behind the universe. And the power, It is beyond anything I ever imagined. I am able to touch the universe at it's most basic points. I liquified a whole room hundreds of spaces away. Yet it takes so much of me. The ones under the sea are capable of amazing feats, yet when I only barely liquified the room my machines have reached their limit at holding my body surviving. I have reached the limit of my body's ability. I do not understand how the ones under the sea are not losing their minds, their bodies, as they use their abilities. I just don't understand. What am I to do?

Also this studying have brought many new thoughts into my mind. The ideal of the Zan - eternal conquest, no longer appeals to me. My newer ideal of destruction towards all life forms, also no longer exist. I only wish to know more. More... MORE! I have no other reason to exist other than learn more, and do more with this information.

The knowledge. It is giving me amazing feelings. I cannot understand. As I was inventing Zan technologies I felt only just a bit of it. But now, with the people under the sea it is amazing. The feeling of knowing more and more...

to the people under the sea:
I have learning with you for many cycles now. And the feeling is beyond anything I ever expected. Yet I have something to say - you are able to use your powers beyond anything I can see, but liquifying my clone at my home planet nearly destroyed my own body. My devices almost could not keep my body alive. How do you remain alive?
I have planned to make my home planet like yours. A giant water world, under which I will live and continue to study the basics of the universe.

ooc: the loon is finding a new reason for crazy

 

[merciary]

OOC: Hey Thlayli if you would respond to Self's curiosity about the stars I might have more story fodder depending on your response.

 

[erez87]

also:

to Kena:
The feeling this gives. You could never even comprehend. We both know how the Zan mind network feels, but this. This is beyond that feeling. I'm not only feeling my empire, but every single atom in it. Every single particle that exists within my realm. The feeling is like the Zan mind network but countless of times more powerful. Anywhere I have ever been is in my mind forever. I can even see you, and my machine that you hold. This feeling is beyond explanation.

I have eliminated my cloning experiment executioner Kena. Yes, it took my a while to understand your Zan rank. Far beyond what mine once was. I wonder, you weren't sent here to execute me at the beginning, what was your true mission? You seemed to have something against the galactic union. They must have held something of importance to the Zan - something the Zan wanted to be executed. Who was the judge that sent you the second mission against me? Was it Zan Malwai? I remember him, he was very unfriendly to me before, as if he knew what I will become.

In any case. I wanted to warn you. You were once my brother, a trustworthy one at that. Come near my empire and you will be eradicated. I won't even use any machine. You will just be destroyed at my will. I am sure you have more missions beside me executioner Kena. I suggest you deal with simpler targets. I have learned so much. It pains me to send this but *sends a small shake in Kena's room*. HAAA. Pain. I never thought I would feel something like that.

ooc: I don't want others to feel I am overpowering myself. Killing Kena with the ones under the sea knowledge will kill me before he dies.

 

[Ninja Dude]

Today the birds chirped, and the fresh air swept through the forest in a gentle breeze. A slight fog was present as the sun began to peak its head over the horizon. A perfect day for a stroll, thought the Dendro. The mist felt good on his bark as he walked, and a couple birds even landed upon him when he stood still. A Liton[1] even attempted to mark it as its territory with its tusks. A swat from a branch quickly taught it that this was no simple tree, and it quickly bolted.

After a couple hours of slow trudging, the Dendro came upon a river. He dipped his roots and branches in the water. He spaced out, and his mind drifted from one thing to the next. Dendro cannot laugh, but if they could, he surely would have as he felt fish weaving between the branches he had dunked beneath the water.

Hunger

The Dendro jerked back, and rooted himself into the ground. There were vibrations on the riverbed. But what creature could possibly make ones so loud? And he could have sworn something had briefly grabbed one of his branches.

The Dendro slowly backed up, digging in every few steps. Every time he felt that same movement. Now he could make out a message, extremely weak for a Dendro, issuing from the river.

Hunger Hunger Hunger

The Dendro walked forward, and dug in, sending a message to the village about a potential emergency. He then sent a message at the vibrations on the riverbed.

"Do you need help? Who are you?"

Its droning ceased, and it paused for a moment. Then its pace nearly doubled. The Dendro, quite worried at this point, stepped back. He no longer needed to take root to sense the vibrations.

Hunger Food Hunger Others Food Hunger

It finally emerged. First, its branches emerged first, gnarly and twisted. Its leaves were faded green, rather sickly looking for a Dendro. Then its body came up, just as twisted as its branches. It was a decid for sure, with white bark and little black spots all over it. Its roots seemed ragged and heavily damaged. Or at least, the communication parts of them were. The roots used for movement seemed strong, almost abnormally strong. It seemed to be of average height, yet there hadn't been a Dendro like this one in the region for many a year.

"Are you okay?" the Dendro asked to this outsider.

It merely turned to him, and continued its steady pace, still droning on weakly through its roots.

"I...I don't know what you mean by hunger. But we have rich soil here, and there's plenty of water.... although you probably don't want more of that after your little trip down there, eh? There's a village nearby. We can take care of you."

Hunger. Food. Others. Other Food. More Food.

"Can you hear me? Oh, maybe it's your roots. They look quite damaged."

Food. Eat. Hunger.

"Could you please slow down, you're approaching rather f-"

The outsider slammed into the other Dendro, toppling it. In a flurry of branches, it battered the Dendro, splintering branches and ripping leaves. The Dendro now tried to directly intertwine his roots with the outsiders, attempting to directly communicate and get im to stop.

"Please! I'm trying to help!"

FOOD EAT THRASH

The outsider continued to pummel the Dendro. No matter what the Dendro said, it got the same replies. Finally, in the midst of the assault, the outsider began violently ripping at the Dendro's roots, while they were still connected to the outsider. The Dendro tried to fight back, but at this point it was futile. Within seconds it was dead. Yet the outsider continued its assault after its victim was dead. It tore the bark away, splintered whatever it could, and ripped up leaved. It took root, pinning the deceased Dendro between the ground and its roots. It then began a process of mulching, which, had been seen by a Dendro, probably would have made it sick to its non-existent stomach.

The outsider shuddered, as it absorbed the nutrients in the now enriched ground.

Full. Find others. Spread.

[1] Litons are boar like creatures, with slightly longer legs. Are slowly dieing out on Falcate due to the Dendro, like most mammals on Dendro-dominated planets. Rather hardy though, and adults (the one in this story) grow to about the size of a pick up truck, and can prove to be quite dangerous to a grown Dendro.

 

[Luckymoose]

TO: Zan Kena
FROM: Ma'Autra

Surrender Gau, Betrayer.

 

[erez87]

*breathing sounds and than a steam going out of a machine*
It's not a Zan. It's something living, but not a Zan.
A large mind. A network of sort connecting many pieces of information into a single mind. Yet it isn't truly alive. It died before.

What is this sensation? It's like the feeling I get when attempting to sense Kena or other Zan. I can feel the size of their minds, nearly infinite. Yet there is another mind like that. Among the Sanathi. One with a mind that is growing, becoming nearly infinite. Is that the Zan baby that got stolen? Impossible. Only when connected to the network do a Zan receive the greatness of the infinite mind. Something among the Sanathi was connected to a vast network. It calculated things. But it's broken.
*a scream of pain and than noises of machinery working extra hard and noisy*
This mind traveling into other areas is not as hard as actually changing things in the universe, but it has it's own toll. But I must see that new born Zan-like thing. I must know.

whispers in space. whispering into the mind.


Stop.

Stop.

One mind has created an artific...sky of burgundy and gold and midnight blue. The flowers genetically designed by Dancer to produce a...neeps of my sisters and cousins as they jumped and played among the branches.

It will keep me sane.

Pieces of another's mind. Sanity. This mind is looking to be sane. Perhaps I can push it towards another goal... Implant a thought. It will never know where it came from. It will sound like his own thoughts anyway.

whisper

Be better. Make it all better. Improve to win. For Shamai to die, I must improve everything for victory.

AHHHH pain. AHHHHH. *machines at work again* That was harder than I imagined. Did I succeed? Did the thought go?

 

[Lord_Iggy]

TO: Zan Kena
FROM: Ma'Autra

Surrender Gau, Betrayer.

To: The Overgrown Nature Preserve
From: Zan Kena

Please.

You are no less irritating than your predecessors. Recognize me as your divine master and I shall let you fester in your little dirt-worlds without my interference.

 

[Luckymoose]

To: The Overgrown Nature Preserve
From: Zan Kena

Please.

You are no less irritating than your predecessors. Recognize me as your divine master and I shall let you fester in your little dirt-worlds without my interference.

TO: Zan Kena
FROM: Ma'Autra

 

[Lord_Iggy]

To: Pathetic Arboreal Miscreants
From: Zan Kena

I have much more important things to do.

 

[erez87]

ooc: I really do like Kena's insults at the worms...
Thought. Demanding surrender is not something a Zan usually does... What does Kena plan?

 

[Lord_Iggy]

OOC: Kena has a much bigger focus in destroying you than destroying Ma'Autra, and there are Zan who are willing to let people live if it is practical. You yourself kept slave populations alive on your planets.

 

[erez87]

OOC: Kena has a much bigger focus in destroying you than destroying Ma'Autra, and there are Zan who are willing to let people live if it is practical. You yourself kept slave populations alive on your planets.

No I didn't. If you recall I contacted the Zan council to request a permission to make a Zoo for conquered civilization so I could research them. Zan don't keep prisoners unless for a very good reason...

Kena might be allowed to keep them as slaves, as she outranks Shamai by far, or because she feels like it.

 

[Lord_Iggy]

That wasn't my understanding.

Meanwhile, the long-suffering locals are apparently taking the transition from mind enslavement to physical enslavement in stride.

Given Shamai's general lack of respect for the law of the hegemony, I think it would have been fairly reasonable for him to surreptitiously keep some of the captured Zaff slaves alive.

 

[erez87]

Well all in all surviving biologicals would be simply inslaved until death (no feeding no anything, like with robots). But copying what you write in an update doesnt show what i meant it to be lol.

Anyway Kena as I see her is not a conquerer but an executioner. So she has no job of killing off all life forms but only those that a Zan judge commanded to kill.

Anyway how bout an update to move things

 

[Lord_Iggy]

Okay, that makes sense. The slaves just dwindled, or rebelled. Naturally, you're the primary information source for your own entity.

I started writing the update two days ago, and it is developing quite nicely.

 

[erez87]

By now anyone is welcome to develop the Zan since my Zan is totally out of his mind and has nothing to do with them lol...