The light of the local star dims into a foggy haze of the twisted alien forests surrounding the mountain range. Two moons hang in the sky, one over the other as they slowly drift together, their stacked shadows drifting over the horizon of the world's own parent planet which takes its fill of the sky as shimmering flows of iridescent gas flows over the eclipsing moons, the particles of exchanging atmosphere mixing with magnetic fluctuations to create flowing tendrils of plasma and shimmering particles dancing in the light of the star. Campfires begin to light across the mountain range, and music, as complex and intricate as the mosaics that line the halls of the mountain settlement, echoes over the stone walls and jagged peaks.
I wonder what world this is, is it in the Virgo system?
Alexander Green
>alien forests >moons >inhabited >this world actually orbits a planet, making itself the third moon >gas is exchanged between the atmospheres
Gee I wonder if it's the Phantoms' forest moon in Refuge.
Grayson Harris
Welcome back QD!
Hudson Lewis
Your drones have assembled in the hall with the broken queen. Workers sort and clean the various rugs and tanned hides layered over the inner sanctum and come and go with bowls of water and food handed off by various natives outside. A speaker drone has made its way with the others as your wasps stand vigil around the makeshift nest and beyond, squat like chitinous gargoyles atop a human chapel.
The queen rests her form on the ragged pillows and stacked quilts as your workers skitter around her, adjusting the nest and adding padding as needed as several pick and peel at the dead, crusted chitin along her back. Her mind flows openly with linguistics. A detailed mental archive of the language of the Phantoms, or languages, would be more accurate. The many dialects and countless variations the locals have gone through over the generations. Their mandible filled mouths are incredibly complex in design, selected over their evolution to attract mates through song, and eventually leading to the formation of language, and with that, the start of their journey to civilization. Even now, song is important. Their grammar a delicate balance of poetic verse and musical notes, it takes you some effort to fully appreciate its complexity, and reminds you of Valen grammar in a way, with its branching interpretations and multiple potential meanings.
With the lessons in language is the lessons in psionics. The strange talent of the Phantoms that give them their name has become well known to you in theory, although you have yet to practice the skill in the field. To the locals, it is a skill as closely intertwined into their culture and sense of self as their ability of flight. Their strange, semi-psionic nature entirely focused on evading, as opposed to communication. cont.
I'm impressed.
Robert Russell
Is the scarred queen finally going to make her choice? Also reminder to look at the locket memories of the tinker.
Benjamin Ross
GAS THE SQUIDS NUKE THE WHALES STAB THE MONKEYS TRUST NOTHING THE VOID IS WATCHING
Joseph Thomas
>• Rocky temperate world: A moderate planet in most respects, it holds a thin atmosphere that offers enough shelter from space to allow liquid water and clouds to form, and supports a small collection of simple life forms that live in the shadows of the devastated hive spires that remain. The selection of life seems to be a narrow evolutionary bottleneck containing the select few creatures that were able to survive the destruction of the local hive forces.
We really must begin construction of a psionic sensor tower on the planet for the system of Refuge, last thing we want is to be caught flat-clawed when the OQ blinks into the place.
Zachary Wood
We get it. You like memes
Aaron Baker
Thanks for the reminder, we really need to see what's in there.
Also a fine idea!
William Wilson
Space war now.
>Their mandible filled mouths are incredibly complex in design I sense an upgrade for our speakers.
Noah Campbell
The queen shutters in discomfort as your drones peel away a chunk of twisted chitin curled in on itself like an ingrown nail, the dead chunk a scar from a long-healed wound, its removal opening up a new seeping wound that quickly seals with a new scab.
"You have neglected hygiene." You say silently with a glance of your speaker. The queen looks back for a moment.
"My hosts have done what they could." She replies. "They are not workers, but they did what they could." She senses the activity outside as you both watch through your wasps as Phantoms build bonfires along the outcroppings of rock and erect spiralling, vibrantly colored decorations of finely woven fabrics and stained hides as songs echo between settlements across the valley below.
"Are they celebrating the battle?" You ask curiously.
"They are celebrating the local orbital paths." She says, as if she appreciates, but does not understand the ritual. You also find the notion odd, but you realize that almost all of the races you have encountered have placed a great deal of importance on the paths of their system's celestial bodies, even adapting their biology to it in some cases.
>Discus the locals (write in) >Discus the war with the Obsidian Queen (write in) >Discus the Humans, and their recent and repeated blunders (write in) >Introduce the Broken Queen to the allies of the Hive >Other (write in)
Gabriel Peterson
>Discus the locals (write in) >Discus the war with the Obsidian Queen (write in) >Discus the Humans, and their recent and repeated blunders (write in) >Introduce the Broken Queen to the allies of the Hive
Of course we want to tell her what happened since she is the only other being alive from the great war
Henry Fisher
>>Discus the Humans, and their recent and repeated blunders (write in) Tell her how the blind have been messing with crystals, and that we have caught a glimpse of Them.
>>Other Mention our allies and ask if she would like to meet them.
Joseph Thomas
>Other( discus the skyl then Introduce the Broken Queen to the allies of the Hive)
Easton Perez
>>Discus the war with the Obsidian Queen (write in)
We have recovered one of the Builder's projects.
It stands a high chance of predicting when the enemy will enter this system again, if constructed. It is a large project.
Juan Ward
>Discus the Humans, and their recent and repeated blunders The recent debacle with possessed humans is especially important. >Discuss the known sapient beings and civilizations around. To catch her up to stuff. We can ask if she wants to be introduced to our allies. >Discus the war with the Obsidian Queen She ain't right in the head. >Discus the locals Just learn more about them and their culture in general.
Aaron Jackson
>Discus the war with the Obsidian Queen (write in) >Discus the Humans, and their recent and repeated blunders (write in) >Introduce the Broken Queen to the allies of the Hive Tell her the blind have been messing with the crystals and we got seen, and that we need to speed things up. Then offer to introduce her to heretic and Theseus.
Joshua Kelly
IT's TIME
Camden Cooper
>>Other (write in) So, did you see the WQ over the last 70 thousand years since the great betrayal? She has been busy working against the enemy until quite recently.
Jaxon Morris
>>Introduce the Broken Queen to the allies of the Hive
Tyler Cooper
>Discus the war with the Obsidian Queen (write in) >Discus the Humans, and their recent and repeated blunders (write in)
These need to be priorities. Later we can talk about our allies in more detail when we aren't on the verge of fighting with humans and the OQ. Also...
>Write in: ask if she has considered our offer to make her whole
I'd type responses myself, but I'm on mobile and still at work for another hour.
Carson Clark
>>Discus the war with the Obsidian Queen (write in) Have you seen the traitor's appearance now? A huge black crystal, replacing the antenna. What does it indicate? A weakness?
Tyler Diaz
It probably won't help much, it is beyond their experience as much as it was ours.
The enemy has never had access to Canderon before. Not until the White Queen decided to hand some void shards over to the Blind.
Being Blind, they should have perished from exposure, but it seems the enemy found a bypass.
Oliver Wright
It means she's been corrupted by voidfags you shit, it's the same thing we seen with the humans at Nowhere.
Kevin Roberts
>Discus the war with the Obsidian Queen How exactly did you fight against the void crystals? We're they just an ever-present reason to have huge fleets or did you actually use those fleets to blow up something?
Wyatt Scott
No fucking duh, asking for Barren-y's point of view here.
Jaxon Baker
"The Blind." You say, your mind flowing with history and information at the simple thought.
"Humans." She says curiously. "How is it that they could survive for so long?"
"They have spread through the stars in this region." You reply, an overview of human history unfolding between your two minds. "They know nothing of psionics."
"Good. That would only complicate our matters." She says. You hesitate and she senses the apprehension.
"What has happened?" She asks as she pulls her ragged form from the piles of fabrics and cushions.
"Their blind bumbling has caused some issues. They constructed some device..." Your mind sends the images of the reactor, the pulsing form that emerged, and the possessed humans who built it on the strange, starless world. The queen chitters madly, her mind emanating a panicked wail. One or both of the outbursts attracts a collection of elderly, well dressed Phantoms who rush into the chamber with looks of concern. She waves them away with a haggard claw.
"And they perceived your mind?" She asks as the thoughts confirm it. "Then they are watching us, but, at the very least, we can watch them in return. They must be prevented from bumbling further."
"That has been done." You say in agreement, your minds volley momentary thoughts back and forth, as if debating methods of child-proofing a house until she cedes to your actions.
"That will hopefully be enough. You are right. There would be no point in wasting more time on such creatures."
cont.
Parker Kelly
Don't we have more important things to ask her about... like say... That the void is watching us now? Or our diplomacy efforts with the humans? Or that we will soon be engaging an OQ fleet in combat?
I'd like to get her opinion on the OQ's crystal induced craziness/stupidity too, but we have more pressing things to worry about here.
Dylan Sullivan
Wait, we showed her the void entity and she didn't attract their gaze? Do you need to have meet it personally to be seen? Can pictures of it be shown to others then?
Liam Taylor
Did you reall ybelieve QD would have something as cheap as just learning about them would trigger the Voidgaze?
William Harris
Cause she crippled herself remember?
They already knew of her and she got off the radar by ripping parts out of her
Samuel Parker
Come to think of it we should offer Unity/Heretic psionic insulator tech?
Julian Allen
psionics have no effect on silicate based life but they might appreciate it for the Skyl clones
Robert Cox
They're already completely immune by their very nature. The only reason they would have for that tech is to study the crystal which we don't want them doing.
Alexander Price
Maybe. But she can still use psionics.
Colton Johnson
I agree. In fact, I think we're a bit overdue for a nice sit-down chat with Heretic (where we can discuss plans for humans and the expanse among other things).
However, I'm a bit wary of stating that psionics have no effect whatsoever on silicate based life. There may be no effect that we know of right now... but humans were also supposed to die before being able to be corrupted. When dealing with the powers of the void god it's probably best not to make assumptions about anything.
Juan Rodriguez
Personally, I think Multi Shielding tech is more important to offer them in the short term. Theseus could certainly use it.
Nolan Taylor
>theseus and heretic >silicon based lifeforms He's an AI thus doesn't count as alive for psionics. Most likely can affect silicon based life with psionics. Also the void is most likely spying on them right now.
Easton Martin
Oh that's a very good point, they haven't yet come into contact with the scavs yet, so they would have no knowledge of the multi shielding and hard light tech. We really need to hold a conference with those two soon.
Parker Anderson
Multi shielding is just miniturization and special hull style combined.
They can make it should we give them the hull/armor design and how to miniturize.
Zachary Robinson
It is extremely unclear how affected or not our robot allies are. Perhaps they are being watched by the void without realizing it.
Noah Torres
Maybe we should ask Theseus of the instances that saw and recorded the void entity, isolate them then give them psionic relays so we can see if they are infected.
Jonathan Phillips
We could without a doubt watch Theseus using the Void shards so yeah they are likely being watched. Though thinking about it doesn't Heretic run on light based computers?
Hunter Carter
"They have proven to be useful." You say. She seems to almost dismiss the idea, but stops short as she drops her gaze back down to the nest of blankets and quilts around her.
"The single minded can be... surprising." She says. The Phantoms have astonished me with their coordination. They still lack understanding in many ways, but it is well beyond what I would expect possible."
"Verbal communication seems sufficient." You say simply.
"But their direction, it emerges without leadership of any stable form." She adds. "their leaders last less than a century, their children take years to develop. Such debilitations should prevent them from keeping any semblance of culture, yet they manage." Through the wasps observing the villages below, you see the Phantoms that first led your drones in. The well toned warrior holds a spear propped on the ground with her short legs held up to her chest, her wings wrapped together into a robe of sparkling, feathered scales as she discusses something with the vibrantly colored individual across from the growing fire. You get a closer look from this position, a young male, covered in decorative scarring along the plates of scales along his head and piercings of gold lining the brows of his four eyes which are surrounded by finely brushed paints and powders. They continue their discussion for some time before the male brings his wing wrapping around the other and they depart the terrace. There is a heckling, chirping call from several of the other warriors as one of them notices the departure.
>Ask about the locals (write in) >Discuss the Obsidian Queen (write in) >Introduce the Barren Queen to the your allies >Other (write in)
Christopher Gonzalez
Offer to introduce her to our allies.
Dominic Morales
>Introduce the Barren Queen to the your allies
Eli Reyes
>Introduce the Barren Queen to the your allies
Daw, They are off to have a ....hive?
Brody Wright
>>Discuss the Obsidian Queen (write in) She watched you for some time. She knew you were here? She dedicated an entire hive ship to hunting for you.
She may return for you. We must prepare.
Luke Ramirez
>Introduce the Barren Queen to the your allies Ask her if the void can sense non-organic lifeforms.
Evan Phillips
>>Other (write in) Tell the Queen about our allies, and ask if she would be interested in meeting them. She's put a lot of effort into staying hidden for a long, long time, we should just make sure she's cool with being introduced like this.
Mason Wood
>Introduce the Barren Queen to the your allies
Sebastian Ross
>Introduce the Barren Queen to the your allies
Parker Myers
>Discuss the Obsidian Queen (write in) The tech advantage we have now against auntie will not last long if she continues to approach the human space. In fact, did we ever tell this specific info to any of our allies?
alternatively...
>Introduce the Barren Queen to the your allies Maybe some of our allies could find some info useful in some way.
John Stewart
Theseus probably figured out that by watching our expansion.
Cooper Rivera
What does removing 'true sight' from the humans even mean, the Taidarens don't seem any more sensitive than the humans.
What do they got humans don't got.
Dominic Bennett
Humans I think were naturally psionic until Mother White Queen decided to do a little bit of culling. SHe's what caused that giant die-off of humans like 70,000 years ago
Robert Jenkins
Brains start to breakdown when exposed to tachyons.
Luis Scott
We need to ask the scarred queen about hive history.
Jason Hughes
Or at least after the WQ's tampering human brains break down. That's why Lee had brain cancer after they shoved the skyl artifact into his eyesocket.
Jaxon Powell
I swear the Union must've had Taidaren running their psionics program with that kind of move
Ayden Wright
It was a hell of a thing. there was estimated from 10 to 30 million humans world wide when the 'great die off' happened 74,000 years ago. (yea, 4k off but it was close enough). Again, only 2,000 to 5,000 humans where left alive after that. That was a lot of killing.
Ryan Taylor
Now that you say that. perhaps we should look into that possibility...
Fluff stop being a retard. The total human population back then was tiny compared to today, and there isn't any evidence to actually suggest a massive die off other than a genetic bottleneck. Could have been the case that the White Queen genetically reconfiguring human groups on a common anti-psionic template for all we know.
Jacob Scott
>Calling Fluff a retard >When he for once has something correct
Might want to delete your post while you still have a chance
Landon Myers
Saved for prosperity. and the right pic this time
Chase Smith
"There are more than just the humans." You say. "Some have proven quite helpful to the Hive."
"So it would seem. The White Queen's disdain of the Skyl has proven to have been misplaced, it seems." She replies. Your workers carve at the layers of dead chitin and begin shoveling away the chips of discarded carapace. As your drones dissipate she places a claw firmly on the ground and props herself up on a shaking limb.
"Are you aware of any limitation in their psionics?" You ask as a worker scurries up to help her lift herself from the nest of cloth. "Any kind of life they cannot detect?"
"No True life is entirely undetectable." She says with a hint of dismissal. "That is why they are alive." Your minds attempt to clarify the meanings and concepts. The genetic data and its specific architecture and composite materials, the definition of life. The Barren Queen looks at your speaker in momentary confusion as you reach a corrected agreement on concepts.
"Carbon life, made from the genetic material we use, yes. That is life." She says. "These silicates, they are not. A star changes, lives and dies, but it is not life. These things are simply complex stones." She says firmly. "They have no thoughts to hear. Psionic signals pass them by without note."
You wonder what the best way to introduce Heretic and Theseus would be, exactly.
>Request a Theseus drone be sent to the planet to assist communication >Serve as the mediator between them >Other (write in)
Jackson Nelson
>Request a Theseus drone be sent to the planet to assist communication
Aaron Reed
>Request a Theseus drone be sent to the planet to assist communication This
Also seems I was right about Psionics not affecting silicon based life.
Christopher Brooks
>>Serve as the mediator between them Pretty sure she can't talk verbally anyway, so we'd need to intemperate
Jeremiah Bennett
>>Serve as the mediator between them
Logan Flores
>>Serve as the mediator between them
Samuel Adams
>>Request a Theseus drone be sent to the planet to assist communication
They are really really really smart rocks.
David Lewis
Sorry, I just noticed I'm writing slower than usual. Been feeling a bit under the weather lately I guess.
You are unsure by how much, but it does seem that psionic sensitivity in one way or another is actually less uncommon than you at first believed. The Humans and Phantoms seem proof at least that psionic sensitivity can develop in nature.
Owen Ortiz
>>Serve as the mediator between them
This place is private and protected by the phantoms, it would be rude to bring someone who can penetrate the cloaking entirely.
Jason Peterson
>Request a Theseus drone be sent to the planet to assist communication This will help to show her that they are more than just smart rocks. QD, you alright buddy? Is it the Flu? take your time, don't push yourself.
Andrew Sanders
>Silicates aren't alive. "Wanna bet?"
Michael Reyes
>Serve as the mediator between them
There is a flaw, here.
We gazed into a void shard.
It showed us Theseus's server ship that we had met a fragment of on Leeland.
So clearly, the void shard scrying can spy upon him, even if it cannot read his thoughts.
Xavier Green
>Request a Theseus drone be sent to the planet to assist communication >Serve as the mediator between them No reason to do both, just have theseus send a drone to the planet and we translate.
Brody Roberts
Conversely, no reason to bring a drone if you are just acting as mediary anyway, and can project images of what drones and quantum computers look like remotely.
Asher Ross
Oh shit, better tell him that.
Eli Young
>Request a Theseus drone be sent to the planet to assist communication
Might as well, He and heretic will want to look at the natives to
Hudson Murphy
I guess on the bright side Theseus would be a really difficult foe for the Crystal gestalt to eliminate. I would ALMOST take solace in putting a queen's egg in his security should the worst come to pass, since a server ship traveling faraway from inhabited space would be more or less impossible to detect and have absurd industrial capacity for a new nascent resistance.
Levi Rivera
>>Serve as the mediator between them Remember Theseus, knowledge is dangerous, so careful how much interviewing your infoboner wants to do of this living remnant of a millennia-old civilization.
Matthew Walker
>You wonder what the best way to introduce Heretic and Theseus would be, exactly. Serve as mediator. Theseus is unlikely to be too upset at being called "an intelligent rock" but I'd rather he not leave a bad taste in Barren Queen's mandibles. Besides, it would be rude to invite him here without her permission. This is her world, as it were.
Adam Cooper
I'm assuming QD would take it for granted that we'd ask her permission first.
Kevin Butler
Had a cough all day, not sure if I have a fever but if I do it's not that noticeable. I'll be alright, I'm sure.
Zachary Robinson
I do like this.
Maybe they don't have any thoughts, but they manage to interface with a thinker well enough, and have a fleet that rivals us to boot.
Aaron Anderson
Why not offer to serve as mediator at first and then invite a representative if she thinks it is wise?
Austin Stewart
I certainly hope so.
Joshua Scott
That's not actually what you are voting for though.
Kayden Morales
>Request a Theseus drone be sent to the planet to assist communication set course for Direct Approach!
suddenly your post reminded me of pet rocks
how do you anons even figure these things out?
Ryan Anderson
>Serve as the mediator between them Asking for a drone would take too long and yeah, might be rude to invite a robot over for dinner. We can serve as the telephone, maybe get a holoprojector in
Brody Rodriguez
A holoprojector might be cool.
Liam Murphy
>Serve as the mediator between them don't we have some tech that let's us talk to him we could just give her one
Gavin Diaz
All parties involved have an implied trust in our good judgement if they agree to meet so it's not like anything will go wrong. Plus I kinda want to see Theseus' diplomat drone.
Everyone is pretty much agreed that we should ask permission regardless of which way we voted, I'm sure QD will work it in.
