Star Force: Temple Wars by Aer-ki Jyr (fox in socks read aloud .txt) 📗

“Appearances can be deceiving. Internally we are always active, and we need to match the physicality to that pace. That is something I will change in our Construction, along with many other things, but we cannot be mundane. What is a challenge for your little Irondel is stagnation for a Neofan.”

“That I can understand,” Davis said as the breeze in the room finally cleared it enough to hazily see to the other side. “But we’ve had a lot more experience remaking civilizations than you’ve had. Wouldn’t an adviser be of help?”

“You have already advised me much, but no. This is something that has to be done Neofan to Neofan. Just as if you had a problem with your Archons, you would need to deal with it personally and not bring me along to overpower them.”

“Could you?” Davis asked skeptically.

“I could now. Not before. I have upgraded considerably since I was last here. I have trouble remembering my former status.”

“Advancement or amnesia?”

“Perhaps both.”

“Are the headaches getting worse?”

“They remain steady, as does the fog. I feel conflict that I cannot articulate. There is an impediment…I am nearly certain of it. Once removed, the pain will dismiss.”

“Has that happened before?”

“Many times, in other forms. If Neofan are not calibrated properly, there are many internal malfunctions. Our minds hold a greater influence over our bodies than yours. A sick mind will manifest in the flesh, and insanity is said to be contagious if left to run its course. Or so we were told. Now, I am unsure.”

“For a race as old as yours, it seems you have a lot left to fix.”

“The burden of superiority can be carried in many ways, not all of which are completely beneficial. The pressure must be met, or we die. I suspect it will be the same for your Furyans, and if it is, I warn you, the danger does not go away with experience. They must be superior, always, or their fall will be more catastrophic than the lesser races.”

“They have higher to fall from,” Davis said wistfully as his mind darted elsewhere for a moment.

“Indeed,” Plausious agreed as the Ren’mak flew back down through the now cleaner air and landed on his right shoulder. “We all have our challenges, and superiority does not mean what I used to think it did. It is a greater burden, rather than greater privilege, and with it comes a mandate. As the Hadarak have their current, we have our destiny, and we will never be whole if we do not pursue it.”

“I take it practice is done for today?” Davis asked them both.

“We have other practice to attend to,” Plausious said darkly. “For when I return, it will not be a peaceful one.”

“Drones?”

Plausious shook his massive head again. “If you conquered them, your methods would work. But what I must do is something far harder, and it must be done in a very specific way or I will lose them all. If that happens, it would be best to take the young and give them to you to train. But we don’t have time for that. The Endgame is upon us, and the Neofan must do their part in guaranteeing its success.”

“I hope you’re wrong…about the time, anyway. We’re rather busy right now, as it is.”

“They will not give you time. They will snuff you out before you can manifest. That is their way, and it is what the Hadarak have been designed to do. They are an early warning system so they can see the next Endgame attempt coming with time to disrupt it. You must have the power of the Neofan shielding you, or you will not last. I can see this plainly.”

“Then why are you conflicted?”

“I am pursuing an Endgame without knowing what it is. I need to see my challenges so I can tackle them.”

“The universe doesn’t make it that easy,” Davis warned. “Sometimes you have to get comfortable with the ground under your feet while everything else is obscured.”

“That is a lesson already learned.”

“Your head obviously says otherwise. I hope the Gahana can help.”

“I felt the relief when I witnessed them in your records. They hold answers. Perhaps not all. But it is where I must go next. That much of the future is certain.”

“And if it doesn’t help?”

“We have other reasons for coming,” he reminded the Director.

“Will you go into battle while the confliction remains?”

“If I must. But I will not rush it. We have come too far to surrender to impatience now.”

“Alright, go do your other training. I’ll see you in the morning.”

Plausious nodded, then walked off with his Ren’mak, leaving Davis in the Archon sanctum onboard the Command Ship, knowing they were a little more than 18 hours out from their destination.

And one way or another, they were going to get some answers.

He just hoped he liked them.

Plausious, Davis, and the Ren’mak rode the dropship through the nebula between where the Command Ship had parked on the outskirts of the purple/orange frozen maelstrom of gas that encompassed more space than the star system did. The hidden station was just inside the edge, but far enough in that it could not be detected from the outside.

The massive wall of gas dwarfed the star system, with several gas giants in the outer orbits around the single star growing in size each time they passed near it and pulled more gas towards them. Given enough time they’d grow in mass to become stars of their own, but they were far from that now…and even those gas giants were now obscured by the outer edge of the nebula that left the dropship in total darkness within the thickening haze.

Little ripples flowed outward as the dropship traveled, following no beacon or path other