Story Thread: 1st Darwin's Legacy

[Hornet X1]

2399.9 God Emperor Abraxus the IX, State of the Concordium Address, Excerpt 1.

“There are things in the void for which nature could not adequately prepare any species.” The crystalline column slowly twirled in harmony to an inner glow. “Yet it granted one distinct grace onto all sentient life. A distinct inability of the conscious mind to truly comprehend all of its content. We each live on an island of blessed ignorance within a personal cosmos itself contained within a void far greater than our senses can encompass. The black ocean of space reaches further than any thinking entities are meant to travel and we are but a mote of dust floating in the cosmic eye of a grand accident.”

The Corathan never developed names for individual members of their society. Each individual formed a unique crystalline matrix that when perceived by their inborn sensory apparatus glowed with an intricacy more profound and more identifying than any name could ever be. When transmitting information about a specific individual they could actually send an image of that sentient’s unique matrix. However it could be time consuming taking an actual second of real time. This small fact led an individual commonly known between two speakers to sometimes be denoted by position and number. One partial exception was known to all.

God Emperor Abraxus the IX floated toward the center of the spherical cavity which a biologic might call a room. It was the spiked ball like structure dominating the room interior that allowed the God Emperor to commune with the citizens of the Galactic Concordium wherever they might choose to pause and listen. The electromagnetic pulses of information he generated were absorbed by the construct and passed onward to receptors scattered across the travel ways of colonized worlds. Each receptor pulsed the information through out its local area. It was as if the Emperor appeared out of thin air with a message whispered by ethereal tongues for their ear alone.

“Science stretches the boundaries, shining light to reveal mysteries new and sealing the old away as supposed fact. Historically, science always outstrips a society’s ability to deal with its conclusions. Each generation tries to seal some fact behind barriers both legal and forceful. Cloning, Nuclear Power, Pleasure Chemicals, Abortion, Anti-Matter, Genetic Re-Engineering, the list goes on forever. Each generation finds something they are unprepared to deal with that they attempt to seal away and forget, leaving it for future generations to resolve. In ancient times, when people delved into these matters they were accused of playing god and somehow devaluing cosmic law.”

The discovery of the artifact hidden on the colony world’s moon had come as a shock to the Concordium. At first citizens had found it difficult to become excited over a metallic sphere most likely left over from the time of the Cataclysm. When the object was dated as originating millions of years before that time curiosity began to grow. At the God Emperor’s insistence, information was kept from the public until he felt secure in sharing.

This lack of candor led the free elements of the press to take an increasing interest in the subject. Eventually, the secret came out. The sphere was a historical archive that had been recording their people’s history from the race’s birth till modern day. However, that was the least of the discovery.

“It is almost as if we fear that by putting together these small seemingly unassociated bits of knowledge a greater truth will be revealed opening a window in the mind’s eye onto a view of reality and our place in the cosmos which we are unprepared to accept. We attempt to bury that which we fear returning us to blissful ignorance, forgetting what we have seen, as if life could go onward unchanged.”

The artifact revealed the presence of other empires forming in the void. Empire’s that faced the same decisions before the Concordium, expand and strengthen or stagnate and wither away. The lesson of history was particularly strong in the Concordium mind. When a stronger empire meets a weaker force, the lesser is always consumed. Even the history of other races viewed within the artifact reflected the same truth. In particular, one visage of a group mislabeled Indians stood out.

“We do not have the luxury of placing the burden of action on a future generation. Life has changed and we may not turn back the clock to previous times. Even now these others strive to collect the raw materials and habitable worlds our people need to survive. Even now they begin to spread in our direction. They will not simply go away nor can they be expected to leave us be. This is a revelation we must face collectively as a people now.”

The Concordium had endured hardship. In times not long forgotten their home world was reduced to ruins. The species survived through persistence and luck. Never again would they allow something as fickle as luck to decide their fate. A civilized people, the average citizen might regret the needed actions and rally against the machines of war. The God Emperor would shatter his own unique matrix before allowing his people to hide away from the species greatest challenge to date.

“What is peace but the label we apply to an increment of time that exists between two wars. No one can ever guarantee a Lasting peace because the use of force is somehow engraved in the genetic code of every sentient species on record. There will always be war. To ensure our ability to survive we must prepare. We must expand our borders, exploit the resources granted onto us, explore our surroundings, and regretfully we must exterminate those who refuse to be guided by the light of reason. If we are to be plagued by these others we must endeavor to suffer them from a position of strength. To do otherwise harms the future of our people irrevocably.”

In the years since the founding of the Concordium, the average citizens wanted for little choosing to dedicate themselves to the construction of real art. Much time was spent in peaceful contemplation. The idea of returning to primitive ways of war and exploitation was abhorrent. With the survival of the species at stake what means would be required to see a justifiable end?