“Yes.”

  “Alright then. Where is your logic coming to a paradox?”

  “An endgame. We can detect none. What is the purpose of Star Force? None is stated in your culture.”

  “Being the good guys,” Jason said simply.

  “A status?”

  “A status predicated on action.”

  “What action?”

  “Defying the nature of the universe.”

  “‘Defiance’ suggests the impossibility of victory.”

  The trailblazer nodded his shock white hair, symbolic of his Clan with the color worn only during wartime.

  “Did Eldorat tell you of the Lifesprings?”

  “He spoke of no such term.”

  “Do you know the origination of organic life?”

  “It is a lingering mystery that we have yet to solve.”

  “The Founders who recruited Eldorat to recruit you left behind information in the Temples for Essence users to find. Amongst that information is the existence of Lifesprings that spontaneously generate lifeforms and even full planets where there are excessive voids. They come from the Essence Realm, but beyond that little is known about them. Many races track their origination point to one of these Lifesprings, then diverge through adaptation thereafter. It is likely, but unconfirmed, to be the origination of all life. And we have personally witnessed new individuals coming from the Essence Realm into infant bodies as they form…as well as witnessing them leave to the Essence Realm when they die. We cannot know what happens before or after, we can only exist in the present.”

  “Have you determined a purpose to the Lifesprings?”

  “No, but there was a counterpart detailed by the Founders. We call them Apocalypse Monsters. They exist in the voids between galaxies, where exactly is unknown. When population density within a galaxy rises to an insane level they are drawn to it, and destroy it. Into the void that follows Lifesprings restart a few new races that then diverge and branch into others, beginning the repopulation. These Apocalypse Monsters are the reason the Hadarak do not fully colonize a galaxy. They have attempted to do so before and triggered the release of them, thus they have learned to remain in the galactic Core and ensure the Rim doesn’t get overpopulated.”

  “That is critical information we have been lacking in the analysis of their tactics, and it explains much of their behavior. But I still do not see a purpose inherent in any of it.”

  “Because we cannot know the beginning we do not attempt to ascertain it before we act. We presume to know nothing and treat the universe as a mystery to unravel. That is one of our purposes, and the endgame of that pursuit is not known, because it is a mystery. If we knew it, there would be no purpose in searching for it.”

  “Your purpose is discovering a purpose?”

  “How old are you?”

  “4.3 million years.”

  Jason’s eyes widened. “Really? Are PanNari typically this long lived?”

  “Once we began a transition to cybernetics our natural predilection to destroy one another diminished. Technologically we have advanced to limited immortality. Only a malfunction or assault will destroy us.”

  “Do you have any memories of when you began?”

  “I do not. Organics do not retain memories during their growth stage, but I have exterior monitoring records that detail my history.”

  “Do you remember uncertainty?”

  Nevantha did not response for an extra half second. “I do not.”

  “Uncertainty is the natural state of the universe. No one knows why we are here or what we’re supposed to do other than a limited amount of genetic instructions. The ‘predilection to destroy one another’ that you mentioned is a poor description of this, for it is far more complicated and predicated on survival, not destruction. The destruction is required because the Lifesprings deposited our races dependent on killing others not only in self-defense, but to acquire the resources to survive. This is why many races have mistakenly embraced this ‘nature’ and murder others in order to consume their corpses even when they have other options. Please tell me the PanNari do not.”

  “We do not.”

  “Well there’s that,” Jason said, relieved to not have another carnivore civilization to deal with. “But along with these genetic instructions that allow us to survive, there is an inherent distaste for it. When one has other options this becomes more apparent. Those barely surviving are so consumed with maintaining basic needs they don’t have the luxury of choice, other than to starve, freeze, or die by other means of inaction. And we have genetic instructions to not let that happen.”

  “Some still do.”

  Jason nodded. “Because they override that instruction for various reasons. The instructions are not lines of code that command our bodies to act, mostly, but are directions that the pilot within the body is encouraged to act on. Pain and pleasure are the primary control mechanisms, and both of these can be resisted by the pilot. Do you still have either one?”

  “I do not.”

  “Do you have any senses beyond the cybernetic components?”

  “Originally we did not think so, but after many years of isolation and simulation we have discovered small deviations that cannot be accounted for. We assume they are an attribute of our Lifeforce.”

  “We refer to it as our ‘Core.’ And we have explored our Core attributes considerably. This is where our basic sense of right and wrong come from. So we have Core attributes directing us to do the opposite of many of our genetic instructions. Speculate on the purpose of this.”

  “It is illogical unless for a test of the individual to detect and willingly diverge from the genetic instructions.”

  “In which life becomes a test of will, but many do not live long enough to face this test. Their deaths are meaningless and their lives wasted. What purpose could there be for them?”

  “Under those metrics there is none unless life cycles and there is a cumulative effect.”

  “We have detected no such correlation. If we have lived past lives, we retain nothing from them that is detectable. And if such a hierarchy dictates which race or location an individual is born into, time on target is no different. The more advanced races can be killed in infancy as well, while some of the more primitive ones can still live a long time if the individual is lucky enough.”

  “Luck. Is that a metaphor or an actual property of life?”

  “It is an acknowledgement that we are not in full control of our lives. Our outcomes are not fully dictated by our actions. Star Force has the ability to wipe out entire planets if we wished, and the people on them could not stop us if we wished to do so. Their deaths would not be a failure in their actions, but rather a function of our power. Likewise we can shield others from such hopeless situations, and in that we make our own luck to bestow on others.”

  “You endeavor to give others a longer timespan to explore the conflict between Core and genetic instructions?”

  “That is one of many things we do, but what you need to know is that while the universe implies that death and carnage are the structural underpinnings of the natural order, the universe also hints at something more. Plants contain far more beneficial molecules specifically calibrated to our bodies’ needs than consuming the corpse of another. Almost as if there are hidden secrets in life left for us to find, but many do not have an opportunity to do so because of the scenarios in which they are born into.”

  “You suggest that the universe conflicts with itself, but you have not identified an ultimate purpose to the conflict.”

  “We don’t know how much of the universe works, so we focus on ourselves, and it comes down to this basic choice. Do we choose to continue living by embracing the darkside…or do we risk death to defy the darkside and embrace the light. For the darkside seems to be the default position of the universe.”

  “What is the purpose of this defiance?”

  “If you cannot defeat an enemy, you can at least hurt them. If you cannot hurt them, you can get one good punch in their face. If you can’t punch them, you can insult them. If you can’t insult them, you can think mean thoughts their way. Defiance is when accepting the status quo is untenable, and in this case it is untenable because it feels wrong. Logic can explain much of this, but not all of it. And it’s possible that by abandoning your organic bodies you have partially numbed yourself to anything other than logic.”

  “That is a possibility that we considered long ago, and found it to be correct in an unmeasurable fashion. Such ambiguity is hard for us to fathom, and no amount of simulating has satisfied our needs.”

  “What you require is experience rather than simulation,” Jason said, pointing out the obvious. “Simulations require data for calibration, and when you have gone as far as you can with current data, you need to collect more. And if you cannot store data on Core-related sensations…”

  “The only way we can study them is as they occur,” Nevantha finished for him. “This is a key insight that we have lacked.”

  “If you do not explore your Core attributes you will not be able to understand the Lightside. For if analytically explored, it is inferior in short term logistical considerations. Long term superiority is partly Core-driven, and thus hard to logically define. This is why the universe appears to be entirely darkside structured, but there is a hidden undercurrent of Lightside for those who have the ability…or luck…to discover it. The primary principle of our civilization is to make that Lightside element easily accessible to everyone.”

  “Do you fight the Hadarak because they seek to deny this knowledge?”

  Jason sighed. “If you have to ask that question then you are truly clueless. We fight the Hadarak and all forms of the darkside in order to give the universe the middle finger for putting us and everyone else in this no win torture fest. And the more we align with the Lightside, customize our civilization, our bodies, our minds to the way we want them and deactivate the genetic instructions that conflict with that…our vision clears up considerably and we begin to realize the universe is not a single unified system. There’s something much bigger going on. And all is not as it’s supposed to be. The universe is wrong somehow, and our inner Core knows it.”

  “Malfunctioning?”

  “No. It’s been designed darkside. So there is not a system inherent that we can repair. Whenever we fix something, it doesn’t stay fixed. And when the next generation is born, they’re born with the darkside in their genetic instructions. But when you stop relying on reproduction to sustain your civilization, the focus becomes customizing the individual. When you do so your genetic instructions are reduced to software programming that you can either replace or deactivate, creating a pocket of Lightside in a universe that pretends it doesn’t exist. We are the gardeners in this galaxy pulling out weeds that we know will return, in order to keep a clear seed bed for Lightside applications to flourish.”

  “And endless task.”

  “So is sustenance. But our learning is not a cycle, it is linear. We create pockets of Lightside civilization to shelter others in, both those we rescue from the current galaxy and those that are going to arrive from the Essence Realm as infants. When we do that it gives us a sanctuary to operate out of as we pursue the mysteries of the universe. That is our ultimate purpose. Figuring out what the hell is going on.”

  “That requires continuity. If you would choose death over living darkside, how can you accomplish this as a civilization?”

  Jason’s face scrunched up. “Good point. Individually we do not define our purpose on a civilization level. We view each of our lives as if it were a game, and we’re not judged on how far we get in the game before we die…though that matters loads…but in how we play the game. Better to lose fair than progress by cheating.”

  “Better to die according to the Code of Life than to live on by violating it?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then that is a purpose of status.”

  “Escalating status, not stagnant. If we’re not leveling up, we’re not playing the game. We don’t try to remain at the same level forever, we seek to conquer it and move to the next challenge. Our status is constant movement, constant action. Never stagnation. Your definition of ‘status’ might need to be amended.”

  “Your purpose is a quest, and your status is one who quests without cheating?”

  Jason considered that for a moment. “That works.”

  “If that is true, then our waiting for Eldorat’s command to take action has been a serious mistake. The stagnation has blinded us as much as our cybernetic state. We require a different path, and one with an adequate guide would be preferable.”

  “I require fleets to fight the Hadarak.”

  “That is what Elloquim are designed for. What we lack is the power of Essence. Ultimate victory against the Hadarak cannot be achieved without it, and Eldorat is not here to provide it. Do you have sufficient strength to combat their strongest units?”

  “We do. What we lack are the numbers to deal with their minions. They pass us by because we cannot be in every system at the same time, and they are able to assault many systems without resistance.”

  “Confronting that threat is the mission the PanNari have been exclusively preparing for in our isolation.”

  Jason smiled. “I was hoping you’d say something like that.”

  10

  June 4, 128804

  Belaaro Black Hole (Mixchan Kingdom)

  PanNari Node 329

  Jason waited for the probe he sent in to come back out. Nevantha had already passed through the cloaked Encapsulation field and he’d given the trailblazer the necessary access codes, but Jason was testing it out on the probe first. It had to operate on autopilot, for no signals would pass through the Encapsulation either way, and he was beginning to wonder if something had gone wrong when the tiny Star Force blip appeared on his screens again as it made its way back to his Borg vessel and the waiting hangar bay.

  It was intact, and the visuals from inside confirmed what Nevantha had told him, but he wanted a better look. With a thought he ordered his crew to move one tip of his giant cube through the barrier, and as soon as it penetrated Jason had a live feed.

  He stopped the ship there, for the space inside wasn’t ample for a ship of his size, but he could see the other Elloquim were already beginning to move their tentacles a bit. They had to get crews onboard before they left, and if these really were their bodies then he guessed the movement was more impatience than anything. Eldorat had had them basically imprisoned here for longer than the V’kit’no’sat empire had existed, and they weren’t the only ones.

  Jason had already discovered other spots around black holes off the dark and shadow networks, the former being the grid of small gravitational bodies that allowed pulse drive travel. He was still trying to get his own ships as fast as the Caretakers, but Star Force technology hadn’t caught up yet. That meant chasing down Caretaker ships was impossible except when they docked at facilities, but aside from the few that he’d captured and repurposed, Jason now had a fleet of slower pulse drive vessels out exploring the network while others continued to map the more obvious shadow network.

  That one was directly linked to the Temples and used a combination of Essence travel and mag jump constructs, meaning regular Star Force tech operated fine on it, but the dark network was another layer of security the Founders had installed, and Jason knew why…at least in part.

  They’d hidden other races here, but they were also actively moving people in. The ‘popsicles’ that Paul and Sara had discovered were still flowing in across both networks, then disappeared beyond Jason’s view into hidden areas. Now he had the corner of the Sanguine Blade sticking inside one and getting a lot of sensor data off it. He’d never sent a person in where a probe hadn’t returned from, but now that he had the access codes to the barriers and what schematics the PanNari had on the devices that created them, he was going to go introduce himself to the other races out there that Eldorat had hidden away…plus have a look at whatever else was being stored right under this galaxy’s collective nose.

  That was assuming the codes worked on other ones. It was possible they had different zones, which was why he was going to get enough information here to break into the other ones if needed.

  His discussions with Nevantha had gone on hours before the two started to show off their mental processing powers and moved to nonverbal communication. The Elloquim was faster than him, which was a little annoying, but it allowed them to cover a lot of subjects that regular conversation would not. If they’d stuck to vocalization the conversation would have lasted 2.9 years, and he felt he had a good measure of the machine/man and some of the peculiarities that state had created.

  They were very logical, but still people. They didn’t have the genetic instructions from their base biology anymore, for while they had been initially copied when their cells were swapped out one by one with the cybernetic components, they had since then deleted a lot of that organic programming when they’d deemed it disadvantageous or unnecessary for their new bodies.

  That had caused them to lose their way a bit, but the Elloquim were quite adaptive. They’d already discovered the inefficiencies of the darkside and were seeking a better way…which Jason was happy to provide. They’d negotiated an agreement where the PanNari would basically be taken on as Star Force apprentices, but with the intention of remaining independent rather than becoming a faction within the empire.

  Essentially they’d swapped Eldorat and his empire for Jason and his, for Star Force was already engaging the Hadarak and had plenty of battle records to indicate their success…but most importantly they had Essence powers capable of fighting the elite Hadarak units, and even with their mainline troops now coming out in full force to the warfront the fighting was still a mixed affair.

  The Lurkers were the biggest problem, for they didn’t wade into the larger fights and slug it out. They waited for ambushes and mismatches, and were damn good at it despite their size. The mainline troops all had Yeg’gor, and their support ships had a hybridized weaker version that made them far more robust than minions. The Hadarak’s firepower wasn’t too impressive. Star Force had more even without Essence weapons, but what the Hadarak had was battle longevity and the Avenger-class attack ships couldn’t be everywhere taking out every target. That meant a lot of grinding had to be done, and with the Merlins having an addition Essence attack thrown in made them damn hard to beat in groups.

 

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10