First Contact

Chapter [Comparing Checksums] - Aftershocks

There are countless reality-shattering events during the century in question, from the Return of the Digital Omnissiah to the Dissolution of the Confederate Senate, but all of these are mere ripples compared to the Terran Xenocide Event. I know that this is somehow simultaneously a controversial and cliché statement, and I will gladly welcome discussion on the subject at another time. The study of Hariseld'n Advanced Sociomathematic Theorems by the likes of Lanaktallan scholar Bo'okdu'ust show why this is the case, and for the time being I ask that we proceed on this assumption.

Before I continue, I must ask you to please indulge another tangent. I promise it will be relevant for discussing the topic at hand.

Violence has shaped human history for longer than there has been human civilization. What began as an evolutionary arms-race between various species in the hell-pit of young Terra-Sol fundamentally and irreversibly changed the moment humans first began using flint and sticks to hunt or domesticate any other lifeform on the planet. The other species were beaten, they just didn't know it. As humans solidified their victory over the rest of their birthplace, their capacity for extraordinary violence was only further honed by its use in facilitating and resolving intra-species conflict. This capacity played a key role in humanities countless achievements, including surviving new post-Diaspora external threats from the stagnant existing powers they encountered.

What I will say next will most likely be even more divisive than what I said earlier regarding the TXE.

While violence is a core aspect of humanity, it is far from its defining one. The single most powerful defining trait is humanity's ability and willingness to attach themselves to & form bonds with others.

Call it pack-bonding, cooperation, symbiosis, mutual beneficial arrangement, domestication, whatever you want.

During the Mantid-Human conflict, when Terra-Sol was on the verge of collapse, when the miasma of genocide was at its thickets, when humans were desperately fighting to survive... they encountered the Mantid worker caste. "Free, we die free", was the shout of joy, of defiance, of life in the face of imminent death that heralded countless millions of little blade-arms being raised, expecting to be struck down.

Had violence been the defining aspect of humanity, what would have followed would have been mass executions of greenies, followed by the utter xenocide of the Mantid species as a whole.

Instead, Humanity saw in these beings before them a kindred spirit. Beings capable of thought, of feeling, just as humans or their other family members themselves.

Did the immortal Daxin, Enraged Phillip, mighty apostle of the Digital Omnissiah, after all the abuse he suffered at the hands of humans not take his goodboi Fido with him into the long dark between Stars?

Fundamentally, humans are beings who survive through cooperation. Through growth and attachment beyond themselves.

With this foundation laid, let us return to the discussion surrounding the historic Nandeval vote.

As the remaining races of the Confederacy grappled with how to face the Atrenka threat, two camps emerged.

There could be no denying that the Atrenka were an extinction level threat, not just to the Confederacy, the untold trillions in occupied systems, or the Milky Way. They were a cancer that would metastasize and spread to the entire universe and beyond. They had proven that they would do so already. It was also clear that military victory alone would not be sufficient to clear the threat the Atrenka posed. A simple 1% doctrine would only delay the inevitable resurgence of an inherently hostile species.

Coexistence with the Atrenka was not possible.

But this was not the first time that such a situation had been reached. Indeed, the aforementioned case of the Mantid already showed that it was possible to create new possibilities.

If you did the reading over the weekend, you should all be familiar with the words of legendary Mantid scholar u/Vagabond_Soldier. Beings such as him helped preserve the spirit and soul of humanity at a time when humanity was all but extinct. Those few of Terran Descent Humanity left behind were so hurt by what they had lost, by what had been taken from them, they couldn't see how they were on the verge of loosing what little they had left of themselves.

It took our friends, our family, to see that there was a way out of this. With humanity gone, those left committed themselves to being the saviors of life and the universe, carrying the torch and honoring the legacy that humanity had given them. - "Understanding the Nandeval Vote", from the "Omnibus Collection on 500-level Post-Human Humanities lectures" by Digital Sentienceu/Pixxel_5, Mars University adjunct professor inPhilosophyHaving Opinions About Stuff

CRUSADE OF WRATH

We of the Crusade of Wrath speak for all of our brethren, the Martial Orders of Terra. From the DokiJoan of the Neko-Marines to the Wearer of Many Hats of the Waagh Orders to the Lament of Bongistan Chapter, we speak with their words unto you.

Hear our words, oh Gestalts, and take our wisdom unto your hearts.

We, the Martial Orders of Terra, shall abide by your decision regarding Overproject Nandeval. Eloquently spoken from all sides, impassioned rhetoric and pleas, and logical discussion of what should weigh heavy upon the immortal souls of all who took part in the vote.

However.

We, the Martial Orders of Terra, have long accepted an option that moves beyond simple and joyous warfare, through the vaunted 1% Line, and into what must be done while leaving open the options of a species survival should they change or seek diplomatic channels and avenues in good faith.

The Prorsus Destrue.

To Totally Destroy.

That which is destroys leaves behind wreckage and ruin.

A forest fire totally destroys forests as it sweeps through.

Yet in the ashes flowers and new trees grow, revitalizing the soil and the landscape.

Many of you brought up the Mantid as an example.

Yet, weren't the Mantid put under Exterminatus, Exterminus, put under the Prorsus Destrue?

And from the wreckage and ruin grew the flower that is the modern Mantid?

You of the Gestlats and the Confederacy voted to carry out a Total War upon the Lanaktallan Civilized Council, which carries the precedent of the 1% Line and Overproject Nandeval. Of slow and steady footsteps toward whatever the future does bring.

The Prorsus Destrue is carried within the Total War declaration.

The Atrekna are covered by the previously voted upon and authorized Total War declaration.

We, the Martial Orders of Terra, upon our own chains of command and permissions, shall lay upon the Atrekna the Prorsus Destrue, which has no time limit upon it.

From here until the end of time, the Atrekna, as we know them, are to be totally destroyed wherever they are found. To be sought out and brought to wrack and ruin. Until such a time as they are no longer recognizable, no longer present a clear and present danger to the Confederacy, the gentle species known and unknown, and the universe itself, open diplomatic channels to sue for peace, or become extinct.

Even extinction does not lift the Prorsus Destrue for a species that has undergone Prorsus Destrue may still have machinations that can bring about their dead will upon the universe. Look no further than the Terran Descent Humanity M.A.D.ness that has brought forth the Lolita Sorceresses of the Sisterhood of Sailor Moon, the Fleet of Eternal Torment -known as the Black Fleet to you-, the Doomed Marine, and the Screamers in the Dark for such examples now set loose upon the universe.

You may follow our example.

Or not.

We, the Martial Orders of Terra, declare Prorsus Destrue upon the Atrekna.

You, the Gestalts of Civilization, shall be allowed to join and assist, should you wish.

---END OF ALL HOPE---

...

...

...

HAT WEARING AUNT

Is he gone?

Can I come out from under the couch?

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

LEEBAW CONTEMPLATION POOL

HOLY CRAP! THAT WAS AWESOME!

Who was that?

They have an avatar that manifests as a bloody warsteel skull with a flesh face stretched across it and living eyes, all dripping with blood and wrapped in barbed wire that holds open the jagged toothed mouth and all of it wreathed in dark purple fire!

THAT'S SO COOL!

BRING HIM BACK!

I WANT AN AVATAR LIKE THAT!

HOW DO I GET AN AVATAR LIKE THAT?

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

PUBVIAN DOMINION

Wow.

That was...

I don't even know what to say about that!

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

LANAKTALLAN FREE HERD

Is that thing watching all the time?

I'm going to have nightmares for decades.

A third of the users logged on and watching this dropped patty right where they were standing.

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

TELKAN FORGE WORLDS

Yeah, that's the Crusade, all right.

I still remember Daxin landing on Telkan. How the entire world, the entire SYSTEM, heard the roar of "LET THIS PLACE TREMBLE AT THE WRATH OF LOST TERRASOL!"

There's recordings of the broodcarriers singing with the podcarriers the "Lament of a Lost Terrasol" and "To Temper Wrath to a Sword and Plowshare" that people sometimes watch.

One recording has a Neko-Marine sitting with broodcarriers and podlings and singing with them although you can't understand what she's saying.

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

HAT WEARING AUNT

I hate to say it, but the Martial Orders may be the solution.

Wait, that sounds wrong.

They may have the solution.

As much as they terrify me, most of them are over eight thousand years old and have spent most of that in combat.

They stopped the Mar-gite dead in their tracks.

Perhaps, maybe, I mean, just maybe, we should listen to them.

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

LANAKTALLAN FREE GRAZING FIELD

They're over eight thousand years old?

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

TREANA'AD HIVE WORLDS

Yeah, even if they aren't, they might as well be. New recruits that 'fall' to the orders have their DNA combined with that of a paternal or maternal ancestor from the Glassing to fight in their name.

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

LANAKTALLAN FREE GRAZING FIELD

Perhaps that is why they survived the archeoreversion attack?

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

RIGELLIAN SAURIAN COMPACT

batobot ui wer throdenilt acceptable anyui

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

HAT WEARING AUNT

What?

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

RIGELLIAN SAURIAN COMPACT

Sorry. That was Draconic. We're still remelding.

That's probably the more acceptable answer.

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

LANAKTALLAN FREE HERD

Hmmm.

>display TDH.pop.int

>>2.7342000E+4

Hmmm.

>display PrGH.pop.int

>>5.7823E+9

>display PrGH.pop.int -- sleeper.pop.int

>>6.872E+7

Huh.

>display PrGH.pop.int -- sleeper.pop.int -- TDH.pop.int

>>6.872E+7

>display TDH.pop.int -- PrGH.pop.int

>>2.7342E+4

>display psh.pop.int

>>3.50E+1

>display PrGH.pop.int -- psh.pop.int

>>5.7823E+9

>display PrGH.pop.int -- psh.pop.int -- sleeper.pop.int

>>6.872E+7

How interesting.

Hmm...

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

TNVARU GRIPPING HANDS

What? What's interesting?

What are those?

It doesn't look interesting.

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

TREANA'AD HIVE WORLDS

No. It is.

TDH.pop.int is the number of Terran Descent Humanity left.

PrGH.pop.int is Pre-Glassing Human population displayed in integer form

psh.pop.int is "Pure Strain Human" which are functionally extinct.

sleeper.pop.int is the population metric of the Sleeping Ones.

There's thirty-five pure strain humans left according to our data gathering apparatuses.

Let me twiddle with something.

Huh, up until a few days ago the Pure Strain Human population was at zero. A few weeks before that there was a single Pure Strain Human. Now there's thirty five listed.

Even more interesting. None of them have System Identification Numbers. Genecode is not on file. They aren't linked in with datalinks.

Good catch, Tally.

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

HAMAROOSA PINCHING FESTIVAL

OK, but what does it mean?

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

LANAKTALLAN FREE HERD

I'm not sure.

I think it means there are many more humans out there than we are aware of.

I also believe it means they are, largely, not hooked into the gestalt system.

But I find it more than slightly interesting that the archeoreversion attack did not get them all.

Fed, are you in here?

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

FEDERATION OF LARP SYSTEMS

Yes.

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

LANAKTALLAN FREE HERD

The genetic lines based on pre-Glassing homo sapiens sapiens gene code, how did they fare?

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

FEDERATION OF ROLE PLAYERS

(Sorry, I'm still melding back together)

They did just fine.

Darth Harmonus is a good example. He uses 501st genecode, they came through unscathed.

The Mechworlds of Terra came through with 80% survival rate.

The more in-depth primitivism game worlds did well.

Hilariously enough, Electronic Artist Studio gene-lines, which haven't actually been updated in centuries, came through with a 95% survival rate. They're acting like it was all part of their plan to not update core races instead of it being laziness.

When you get even deeper, the ones who were elves, dwarves, halflings, gnomes, dragonkin, kobolds, and the like? They had almost a 90% survival rate.

Arctic Snowstorm's prime LARP systems had a 99% survival rate.

But, for some additional data, you can't go BACK out of the bodies.

Arctic Snowstorm tried having a few volunteers go from various races back to TDH. Either the system refused to print them out or they died within a few minutes.

So, it's pretty well known, if you LARP, it's life.

Why?

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

LANAKTALLAN FREE HERD

The archeoreversion attack, while extremely powerful, which did hit the Biological Artificial Sentience Systems as well as the Digital Artificial Sentience Systems and Cybernetic Organism Collective with an over 80% lethality index, is perhaps more limited then we thought.

I was thinking, during the discussions, about the actual limits of the Atrekna temporal powers? We know, through scientific investigation, that temporal meddling results in the worst possible outcome, eventually, for the meddlers.

But we also know, through the efforts of Generals P'Kank, NoDra'ak, and others, that after a period of time, the matter is 'exhausted' when the Atrekna bring it forward.

Perhaps we should look at limitations. Not what they can do, but what they cannot do.

In those limitations, we may find the questions that may lead to answers to our conundrum.

Oh, and we started a project investigation targeting Atrekna genetics by using the spooky particle chronotrons around any Atrekna activity, by attracting the vector mechanism to high levels of phasic energy but allowing the range in twelve Daxins or more range to burn out the vector mechanism.

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

TREANA'AD HIVE WORLDS

Wait... "twelve Daxins"? What's that? What range?

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

LANAKTALLAN FREE HERD OH IS THAT A COUPON FOR FREE GOODY YUM YUM BARS?

A unit of Daxin is the amount extreme emotional condition known as rage needed to heat one cubic centimeter of warsteel that starts at 200 Kelvin to at least 273.15 Kelvin across the entire surface and interior.

Isn't it obvious?

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

RIGELLIAN SAURIAN COMPACT

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

HAT WEARING AUNT

Wait... what kind of project, Tally?

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

LANAKTALLAN FREE HERD

Our own version of a black box program.

Fairly simple, and quite merciful, that we gave authorization to when the decision was made. With the Crusade of Wrath's impassioned speech, we gave the black box the go ahead.

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

HAKANIAN FLUFF TOWN

What kind of black box?

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

TREANA'AD HIVE WORLDS

Yeah, I kind of want more data too.

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

LANAKTALLAN FREE HERD

When we lost the Big C3 (I like that name, much greater than the Great War against the Confederacy) we turned all research into gentling the Confederacy's species into undoing the gentling of the neo-sapient species as atonement for our actions.josei

We merely shifted all the black box programs doing manhattancrash programs to gentle the Terran genome into gentling the Atrekna genome.

We determined the primary vector should be spooky sub-particle encoded chronotrons with self-replicating showering capability that burn out when exposed to more than 12 Daxins of energy. This should allow it to propagate up and down the timestream without affecting any temporal events nor inducing a temporal cascade failure.

Initial data, including alternative Atrekna genetic lines sent by TerraSol Intelligence to Professor Bo'okdu'ust by the MARDUK Foundation, show great promise in gentling the Atrekna.

Why, our researchers have even determined that two of the Dwellerspawn are easily genetically manipulated to be Atrekna larvae gestators with no ill effect, as a matter of fact, making it part of their health and life function.

My people are adept at genetic alteration and we feel our efforts toward negating the Atrekna should only come naturally as we did not finish the job during the First Precursor War.

Don't you agree, Mantid, my sister?

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

HAT WEARING AUNT

Um....