Distant Soil

[Katzaniel]

As explained in more detail in the Greenroom, I am restarting this thread from scratch. I will post a summary of the important information so that new players need not read all of the past discussion, but anyone who wants to participate is required to read all future out of character comments, which will occur in the OOC thread in the Greenroom. As such you must be a member of the Pen, but I place no other restrictions.

[Katzaniel]

The little room consisted of a tall dome-topped structure in the center of another dome. The person standing in the glass-like center was waving her hands and arms around in dance-like movements, speaking at the same time. She had six fingers on each hand, was six feet eleven inches tall and had silvery hair. Her chest was flat as human standards go, her limbs long and thin. The language she spoke was Allenua, the same as name for the planet on which she stood, and the race to which she existed. Her movements communicated to the computer that was all around her, its sensors at various points in the small structure and its screens covering the entirety of the larger dome.

 

Resla was currently an employee from the Ministry of Science and Research. She was one of those working on collecting data to make a comprehensive map and encyclopedia of the currently unchartered planets from from the Allenua Cluster. She watched intrigued as the probe climbed a hill, noting the dry dirt that covered it. The temperature rose slightly with the ascent, and Resla began dictating hypotheses on the reason. She stopped abruptly, however, when the probe reached the peak. The video showed clearly a ruined stone structure. There was no doubt in Resla's mind that the pile of smooth blocks was not natural. Whether the creatures that had made it were still alive was uncertain, but even the fact that they had once been there was phenomonal. The young clerk did not waste time. She immediately waved her hands in the motion to make a copy of the image and send it to her supervisor.

[Katzaniel]

Saffnor stared in amazement at the video landscape that was coming through to him. As one of the Prime Councillors of Allenua, he knew that it must have gone through many layers to reach his office, so did not question its validity, but the obvious assumption led to astounding implications. Could it really be true that these buildings had been put together by a form of life other than the Allenua? Without waiting another moment, Saffnor sent a message to the other two Prime Councillors, who would at this moment be watching the same video and drawing the same conclusions as he. There would be a council meeting tonight, and at it would be made the biggest decision that had faced the Allenua in four centuries.

[Katzaniel]

Since being accepted as a member of the Tata-Ri'n Elite Maqqara Squad, Kregg had seen many strange things. Still, the podlike machine that was making its way toward him was beyond any of it. For one thing, it was crawling unhindered by the countless ruts and peaks in the gravel. For another, he himself had witnessed it fall from nowhere and, in landing, create a hole deep into the earth, then climb out unbothered and unscathed. He was even fairly certain that while falling, it had exhibited none of the projections that currently decorated its metallic surface. Kregg dearly hoped that it was insufficiently equipped either to see him from this distance or to kill him. Both wishes were belied by the fact that as of about five minutes ago, a spherical object had been raised from its top, whirled around, and stopped when it was exactly facing him. Then a cylinder had grown a little ways forward and disappeared before he could react, when the pod had begun making its way, at an accelerated pace,toward him.

 

Kregg decided that the risk involved in giving away his position to the Ren'Rack was favourable to what the machine might do upon reaching him. Besides, it was always possible that the thing belonged to the enemy. It was a foolish thing for which to hope, Kregg knew, since the Empire of Maqqara would be decimated if the Ren'Rack really had that much unknown technology and was willing to risk unveiling it, but if such was the case then they already knew that he was there. Selecting his most powerful gun, Kregg carefully aimed before letting loose on the pod with everything he had.

 

When the dust settled, it became clear to Kregg that the Maqqara had no hope. The machine had not sustained a single dent, and was blithley continuing its dogged trek toward him.

[Katzaniel]

Back on Allenua, the entirety of the Council was assembled and watching Kregg's reaction.

 

"They seem rather inclined to overreaction and violence."

 

"But perhaps our influence might work them out of that."

 

"If they are dangerous, we should avoid them at all costs. Allenua has worked too hard for peace to allow ourselves to be brought down by vermin from another planet."

 

"But that's just it! We are talking about life! On another planet! How could we just ignore this and go about our own lives?"

 

The Prime Councillors watched impassively as the Ministers took turns speaking their opinions. The potential gains of contacting this race, the only other life that had been discovered in the universe, were obvious. Many believed that only good could come of the diversity that these new people would offer. Others thought that Allenua had almost reached perfection, and this new race held too much potential to spoil it. Usually the lesser Councillors, the Ministers, would discuss the situation from every angle and by the time the Prime Councillors were ready to vote, the Ministers were ready to leave it up to then. Never before had the Minister's power to veto been an issue, but Saffnor suspected that with the lessor Councillors so decidely divided, with so little known about the consequences of any action, and with the Prime Councillors themselves so unsure, it might come to that. Probably not, since the Ministers themselves seemed to have no overreigning consensus, but the question was there. This problem might be as difficult to resolve as some that Saffnor had read as a youth from the histories, where the Council debated for days and never reached a conclusion satisfactory to all parties.

 

There was not much more to say. The Ministers themselves soon understood that anything else would be redundant. Their information was exhausted, and only intuition and opinion remained. It would be up to the Prime Council to decide on the fate of their planet.

 

Edit: I apologize to minority skin users for the need to use colours, and especially for the blue, but we need two opposing colours to distinguish language spoken, and blue versus red seemed to best describe the differences between the two races.

Edited May 10, 2004 by Katzaniel

[Mira]

(OOC: How did I miss that a thread I had originally been very interested in was reborn! I'm sorry that I took so long to post.)

 

Kiral listened to the politicians babble with little interest. Thats what they were paid to do, he figured. Himself, he was paid to keep the peace. As comander of the fairly small Allenua Deffence Core it would be his responsibility to lead in the unlikely even that some sort of conflict errupted. Duity dictated that he be at all Council sessions, although he was sure that he could actually be doing some good somewhere, anywhere else. Lost in his thoughts Kiral didn't even notice the first time he was called on.

 

"Ehem, Commander Tarrak"

 

"Oh! Sorry Counciler. What did you just say?"

 

"The Council asks the Deffence Core's possition on this matter."

 

"Which matter?"

 

"The matter at hand Commander. The warlike species our probe has encountered."

 

"Well...ah... The Core advises that we maintain a stance of vigilance and take every precaution not to drive this obviously martial species into taking any aggressive actions, although were sure that with our superior technology and tactics, we would be able to deal with any threat they may pose."

 

"Thank you, Commander."

[Katzaniel]

It was obvious that the hairless men staring back into the video feed were afraid. They did not run like the first man had, but a couple of them trembled. They spoke in harsh but whispered tones to each other, and looked with worried eyes at the rugged pod that had followed the first man halfway across the empire to this room.

 

"They have tried to destroy it."

 

"If only they would speak at it, we could learn their language."

 

"They are dangerous! They have tried hard to destroy it."

 

"Come, Lavar, you know they cannot succeed. Our technology is far superior to theirs."

 

Afraid of the consequences of a wrong decision in this matter, the Council had decided that Allenua would first try to communicate with this species. Since the pod was unequipped with audio, they were using its mechanical limbs to attempt a visual message, but this was being largely ignored by the rough creatures, who had attempted to smash it with every hard object in the room.

 

Far from being afraid, many of the Ministers believed that by travelling to the planet (Yramia 54, until they could discover what the locals called it) they could influence the creatures to be more gentle. Once that was done, they may even learn something from them. It was obvious beyond doubt that their technology was inferior, so there was very little danger. Only the concern of contamination of a near-perfect society, and that argument was echoed from many mouths.

 

OOC: We are still looking for people interested in a sci-fi RP. Don't hesitate to check out the above link to the OOC! Thank you.

[Tamaranis]

”Commander Kessic, look at this.”

 

Kessic, commander of Ren’Rack orbital observation post 03 examined photos taken of a very strange something moving across a Maqqaran encampment.

 

”What is it?” He asked.

 

"I don’t know, commander, I just spotted it a few minutes ago. I’ve never seen anything like it."

 

Kessic flipped through the photos, studying the device. It possessed an assortment of projections that were not limbs, which meant they were weapons. As he flipped through them he noted the position of the Maqqaran soldiers. He came across a shot that seemed different somehow than the last, he flipped back and searched for the exact difference that had caught his eye.

 

Ah, yes something on the ground, the arrangement of rocks and sand near the machine was different in one shot from the other. Upon examining closer for what might be responsible for this, Kessic spotted a man holding a grenade launcher. Had he fired on the device? Was this a test of its armor? It certainly seemed the weapon had been fired, but there was no obvious damage to the probe.

 

Yes, they must be testing some new weapon down there. A research team hidden in plain sight, made to look like just another military encampment. He, Commander Kessic, Second Class would be the one who spotted it in the nick of time and acted swiftly to prevent the enemy from gaining an insurmountable technological advantage. He’d make first class for this, no, he’d be a general inside a year.

 

***

 

The Maqqaran soldiers, caught up in examining the strange device that had followed Kregg to their encampment, weren’t ready for the air raid when it came. Tata-Ri'n scambled for cover, weapons, or their own aircraft, but the response came too slow.

 

A few aircraft got off the ground, but only rose a few hundred meters, at most, before colliding with a collection of Ren’Rack missiles. Other missiles struck the ground and did not detonate, but instead emitted a strange field that bent light, creating a visible distortion. The distortion overtook Tata-Ri'n running to anti-aircraft guns that should already have been manned and they fell dead instantly.

 

The probe’s pre-programmed response to the battering it was taking from shock waves and torn earth, which it interpreted as re-entry turbulence, was to retract it’s many limbs and simply roll with the blasts. It did this successfully until a missile many times its size struck it, and detonated in stages. For the first few hundredths of a second it took the missile to deliver its multiple warheads the probe’s armor held out, but one of the final warheads actually managed to penetrate the armor, and detonated within it, stripping the probe of it’s defenses. The next reached the delicate inner mechanisms.

 

A Maqqaran response to the extermination of one of their encampments, down to the very last Tata-Ri'n, came quickly. Both sides rushed ground forces in to support their air, and the fighting continued into the night.

Edited July 13, 2004 by Tamaranis