[Jmenschenfresser]

(I realize the Norak are genderless, but you try writing a story using only the pronoun "it". Sounds stupid.)

I am Raeghar, of the house of Samorim, a lowly monk and scribe in the service of the Continuum and this is my story. I am the personal assistant, spiritual guide and companion to one of the Continuum's highest officers. I will not give his real name, but rather I'll call him Tallik. It is because of my friendship with Tallik that I have so far seen things no one else will see or hear. I know such writings would be hard frowned upon by both my Order and the government, but it is Wisdom who knows that difficult times produce great learning. I dedicate these writings to She who first wrote the things unwritten, to the Ancient Order of Hujov, and to my sibling, Pellwain, who now resides on the colony.

I am no longer part of the Counsel for Spiritual Enlightenment, but a very good friend of mine is, and he invited me to sit in on what was and will be the most pressing debate concerning the survival of our beliefs, our religion, our people and our history. In the second cycle of the year 2400, the Elders of Norak gave their approval to the launch of a colony ship. The first step includes the Last, or so the old proverb contends. Many argued a step into space is the most pride-filled thing we could do. It is blatant disregard for what we have. She, who was, is and will be, gave us this planet as the scriptures tell. "A place to be ruled and to rule over." Many said such an act, as the colonization of other planets, meant we were not happy with that with which we were given. However, the old guard had grown few number, and the government of Norak was less inclined to follow them. No one could deny the fact that we were too many for our planet. People were starving. Food, water, land, and just about everything else which grew was rationed. Strict unwritten rules were concocted to slow the grow of our people. The rules had to remain unwritten because our scriptures say, "Nothing which governs the people can be written in contradiction to the text." And the text explicitly says, "The third goal in life is to reproduce."

Our scientists long ago began to survey the stars and the bodies of the Xiban system, and as this debate was raging, as to what we should do about our population, a probe sent out years before reached a not too distant planet in the Xiban system. The news spread like a plasma fire. The planet was almost identical to ours in every way. The people rejoiced; She had granted us stay from our dire situation. The opponents to space travel and colonization faded into the backgroud. The ship was sent carrying some 34 million terra-formers. The planet would be made habitable for hundreds of millions to come. I have yet to travel there. Tallik has been charged with developing our defensive capabilities, and it is in this I assist him.

2400.5
The Debate:
The Terra-formers had barely left the ship, when our asteroid sensors, which are supposed to pick up asteroids which pass too close to our planet, picked up some strange energy reading and what was determined to be an unidentifiable craft closing in on our new colony. Tallik and I were in the station when the first Messages were sent and received. They claimed to be an intelligent race called the Cue Cappa, from what we roughly translated, "the next star." We asked how they got to Xiban, and again we roughly translated their response to be "through an interstellar door." We offered them the scrolls of peace, a mutual agreement of non-aggression. To our surprise, they refused, saying it was too early to make treaties. How can it be "too early" to commit to peace and life?

As you can imagine, many things were claimed about the Cue Cappa. Conspiracies flourished. Some thought it retribution. Some thought them emissaries from She who rules. I personally think, as is the general sentiment of today, that they are like us...just another kind created to serve and honor the Almighty. The elders sat and talked and yelled and talked and became quiet and finally some fell asleep on the stools they sat on, and still the question, "How can another culture exist in the universe?" went unanswered. The texts said nothing about it. If the question could not be answered, it is possible the Pluralists could be right. The night wore on, the candles burned low and some went out, dropping the light in the hall to a dim backglow. I was yawning myself, but across the room, the wide, white eyes of a young Monk caught my attention. He stared unblinking. I thought possibly he'd gone mad, or that he'd died with his eyes open. So still and intense they were. Suddenly, he mumbled something, breaking the hours and hours of silent contemplation and prayer. Everyone woke or woke someone. The eldest turned to him, the young monk, and ask, "What was it you said, brother?" The young monk stood. "To answer this question, we must first answer something about ourselves no one has been able to...why we, the Norak, are here." I could see the sudden interest on everyone's face. It was a subtle arguement, but as far as I could tell, it could not be refuted as a premise. "If we cannot answer why we are here, then we cannot exclude the existence of others on the basis of not being able to explain how they fit into our plan...for in the end, we must all agree, the Norak have been given by She, the unmoved, only a temporary plan...temporary meaning unfinished. And if we cannot know the beginning of history to the end of it, and be able to say, 'see you do not fit in' then we cannot claim them to exist less than us. Nor can we claim them to be a work of evil, though evil they may be. If we cannot totally explain the entire universe, then we have not been given the power, by She who lives, to judge them." The debate was over.

Tallik has been given the task of developing planetary defense for Norak and our new colony. The Cue Cappa ship milled around just outside of visual range for more than a month. We sent a scout ship of the escort class to hunt down this interstellar door. I almost cannot believe it myself after viewing the visual records Tallik received. All one must do is take a ship to a certain spot and they open...like doors with motion detectors. I have no doubt that these in some unexplainable way are gifts from the Almighty. A way to meet all of Her children. Beyond the warp point, our ship recorded contact with a densely populated world, the Cue Cappa home world...two sectors from the warp point. Worried that the Cue Cappa might attack our fledgling colony, Tallik and I are on our way to there to inspect their newly constructed weapons platforms, built after Tallik's design and they are armed with extremely fast capital ship missles. It will be good to see Pellwain again.

The Cue Cappa ship is returning to its own system. The future as they say is upon us, and it's fog is thicker than ever.