Rise of the Star Ch. 07

"We will do no such thing. And... even though we would appreciate such freedom, as you say... I should become knowledgeable with it to at least tell my people what to expect."

Her gaze strayed to the side. Something was there. She wasn't sure until the Tan looked. A mass of people walked by, and yet one drew her attention. To say something or not?

"If you may allow just a word... I believe you should look closer at that man."

She pointed out a human in space-worthy clothes, one that seemed no different from the rest to the station chief. There were no inconsistencies, as everything came back right. But this woman was showing good respect and it was worth at least pursuing with a question.

"Why? I don't see anything wrong."

"They... do not seem human. There is no emotion to them, not even the lack of an emotion."

A raised eyebrow from the chief, but they could just have a random, routine check. Not too harsh, not too probing. Just see what's up. A command whispered into her wrist-mounted link and the order went further down until two guards looked to get the message. As soon as they gave the very polite request to step aside for a bit of extra screening, that human seemed to flip out and attack the heavy guards, performance way beyond what they could do, but the guards flipped their implants to give more power than usual and quickly subdued them... and in doing so, the skin of that person just came off, showing chrome underneath. That made it go even harder and it would not end until the robot was killed and dropped out of an airlock with haste because a cursory scan showed they were walking around with a bomb inside them.

La'rana and her talking companion watched with increasingly concerned looks. Infiltration was never attempted by the robots, but now it seemed that their defiance forced the robots into alternative ideas. The chief spoke only once the air cleared.

"Well, I think you just won a favor for that. We could all be dead. Feels like we should station one of you guys at every port, but I think we can change the scanners to look for that."

"I only wish to have my people live on. We could do so only for as long as this situation develops and leave right after."

"Most might think that leaving after that is a stupid idea. But, I'll see about sending the request. For now... can you assure me that your people will behave? I can take the few troublemakers that need thinning, but if my work increases because of you guys I'm gonna feel sorry I offered."

"Should any be a trouble, bring them to us and they will be made an example of. We will not bite the hand that saves us. I can raise that pledge by offering to die by the first that does so."

"Well, I can applaud that, but I believe that you shouldn't have that happen unless you could stop it and didn't." A sigh. "The rest of you guys can get off and take a breath. We don't have enough habitation, but maybe enough to swap out and give a better condition to smooth out the nerves. Ask one of the guards here to take you to a Home. Station can be confusing without a link." Beat. "And unless my superiors say no and I can't defy them, welcome to the Empire, I guess. Good place to live, despite the propaganda."

She exhaled in relief. Once, she directed deals that affected empires, and yet this felt like a task much grander than any done before. La'rana wanted to collapse on the floor and sob in gratitude and to get out all this emotional energy, but she kept the outside looking prim while only a Tan could sense how her mind was exploding.

After only a brief questioning of whether she could be directed to a Home, one of the guards passed her off to a comfort worker to do so, aware that they had to keep a better watch as the mass of Tan would be allowed a respite. La'rana was guided to a structure that stood out in the ergonomic and sleek construction of this place, the marble walls and doors of this thing being such a standout feature, as were the feelings inside her in approaching it. There were rumors of how the astorians fabricated belief with devices in these centers made to replicate "acts of the divine", much like how they did in their religious centers. The bigger, the more pronounced. Inside, there was only the wide room made exclusively of the material, the altar at the end, the statues flanking it, the sheets laid out in an ordered formation... and the odd presence of a collection of musical instruments behind that altar. But the caretaker wasn't there. With an assurance that she should be back soon, perhaps taking lunch or some other reprieve, the Tan was allowed to step in and marvel at the structure. At least they understood spiritualism.

And then... she felt it. Rage. It was as if a sun was burning behind her. There was fear at turning around to see what it was, as if that force was here to deal with her. She turned to see a human, one that did not even look particularly impressive. One might expect a five-meter-tall being in golden armor shining from every angle, a being floating as it moved so little and each gesture might move a planet. But she saw a man in a reddish coat standing there, cigarette in hand and expression only barely hinting at what was in his mind. She was tempted to kneel, but hesitated.

"I've sent her away for a bit. Trying something new. I'd like it if you kept this between us. Though no secret survives in the empire for long."

"You... you..."

"Me. Do you know who I am?"

"You... are what saved us. The woman that held them."

"Okay, how the hell can you know that? I mean, I remember you being there, but there's... oh, riiiiight. Your mind-reading stuff. Forgot. But yes, that was me."

"I... have so much gratitude, but... why? Apologies, I just can't think of why your people would do this."

"And you still don't get who you are talking to. Have you heard of the Outsider?"

She knew of the figure well. It was difficult not to, seeing as they were mentioned ever so often by the astorians. But that was a god, a figure of myth, one that might at best be a prophet from long ago. Accurate, but not... real. But she felt his confidence in the word. Her breath caught in her throat as the woman looked across the room at the figure. A GOD. A real one. All at once, so much about the astorians made sense. She tried to kneel, but a single gesture from the man halted her... and not just his gesture. Her legs froze halfway to doing it.

"There shall be no kneeling before me unless one wishes to suck dick. And even that might be done in a way I don't approve of. I tell people to stand up. You should do the same."

And now she stood. There was an overwhelming desire to listen to him. Not from any influence he might have, but from so many other things adding up... this might be the True Honor, one to defeat all others, one having a real entity behind it, though equally there were things to disqualify it... honor was in things that did not exist. As soon as they did, it was no longer faith.

"I do not know what to do. But... we have come here to pledge ourselves. As it is proper. We shall follow your way."

"The chief already told you not to do that. And here I am repeating it."

"But you have saved us. You have the right above all else. To not do that is dishonor. Why... why did you save us if you did not want this?"

"Well, a long time ago I looked at you blue women and thought how I'd like to take your futa bodies for a spin of the sexual kind, and yet none of you were down for it. So, I had to orchestrate events to bring some of you here, and we have an opportunity."

There was truth in individual words and sentences, but her training could see that they were not connected by truth. Any others might take it at face value. She swore to take his ways, and so that way meant standing up to him. To question. Somewhere inside her, there was a smile. It felt good... to be able to stand up against your leaders.

"You... are not being truthful. Not fully. You did want us as such and... orchestrated things, but... these are not connected."

A sigh from the man as his head leaned back, but as he looked at her, there was a smile. He approved. He approved of her doing this. The woman never felt this good. Slowly she could see the faith in these people. Yes, the entity was there, and thus you no longer had faith, you had belief. But one never knows what they do, even as they might swear to other matters. They did not have faith in his existence, they had faith in his ACTIONS. Faith that he would be good.

"Damn your mind reading. Fine. You took well to some suggestions I put here and there... minor things, the extent of mind-affecting I will excuse myself for and even this I won't do again for a long time. You had hope in you, you would do unlike your other people and have a strong chance at being decent beings. Where others just see the constant cycle of violence and hatred and stealing of resources because we're right and they're not... perhaps you could do better than them and be worth preserving."

She smiled. This man presented an image of whimsy, but deep inside there was a feeling of care and a mind that connected everything. Now she could see how his acts came together.

"Let the cycle be discontinued."

"Eh... yeah, but let's not turn that into some creed. That was just a reference that you don't get. Doesn't give it less weight, just the intent behind it was different."

"You have told them that your way is defiance. And have told me to not follow your way. But, is it an option in this honor for one to defy you by following you anyway?"

That grin on his face showed both amusement... and exasperation.

"Far too fucking many do that. I tell them to not worship me, to defy me... and they defy me by worshipping me. I guess, I do see their motivation, but I gave the speech about why to not submit to something completely already. You can watch a rec... oh, wait, we didn't record that. And we're not recording this since I blocked all the cameras."

"But can I ask for those words, even so? Tell me. I could use them to destroy all that is left of those who might wish to revive our culture. In the choice between our ways and our lives... I now see it is not even a sacrifice, but a needed cost."

"Short version, if you submit to something fully, you're not a person, you're a thing. But another important part might be that defiance needs reason else you're just a bastard."

"Then so shall be our new ways." A smile. "In defiance of you, we will follow you."

A shake of his head as that face held a smile. Exasperated, but happy. The man had joy that they did make his effort worth it. She could feel the relief in him and that explosion of pleasure as this man had indeed placed his hopes in them... and to destroy those hopes would mean their death. No, they shall not. The Tan shall change their ways. Let the Honors die and the way of True Family be their new cause.

James entertained her only for a few more minutes, giving this woman hope and joy from her choice. She had only admiration for him as there were so many individual parts that she might consider the result of years of philosophy and research, the research into means by which to keep a people following a faith, things that he did without even realizing. Her people had a thousand years in space more than the Empire, and before that they had six thousand on their planet where they refined their theological methods... and it is as if this man had all the answers from the start. His humility, the public reach, the open discourse and flexible interpretation, the ability for two sides to be in ideological opposition yet still follow his path, or to have them conflict over other matters and still adhere to the dogma. It was like a parent coming to show the teen that had learned so much how that older one knew all the lessons they thought as some new inventions, as if learning how wise your greaters are.

The caretaker would be along soon and the Outsider would leave her, swearing to keep that moment between them. It was easy once the woman came to give her all the details and La'rana gave the same answers with a straight face, showing in no way how she was giggling like a young girl at this game. Sometimes secrets can be fun if they hurt no-one. She could go back to her people and teach them the way of Family, one that at first they would take as it was required by their custom, then having the moment where she told them that they would not need to. A contradiction, and yet they gave her back the same answers.

In such an unpleasant time, the Tan became part of the empire and would also become their fiercest adherents to the way of True Family. Their teens would rebel in that adorable fashion, but the Outsider was a conclusion, not a requirement. In time, most would come to believe in him with such zealotry that he was tempted to tell them to tone that down... and still came the answer back of defying him by doing this. It always amused him.

And so, the delegate finished saving her species.

*

The yard was giving a return on investment like never before. If ships were not getting repaired, they were getting restored or rebuilt. For now, there was less talk about fighting back and more about just holding the fucking line. The Maginot worlds were getting more added on top of their existing insanity because the challenge was just that hard. But they ENDURED. TWENTY APEX fleets came to the border systems and those were demolished. While other refugees came knocking, only a few survived... either because they had been trouble in the past or would be trouble now. Some got sent away on principle. That would teach that megacorp to backstab them. The empires of the galaxy were getting demolished, but one held.

But this led to a difficult conversation between the delegate and their friendly neighbors. Even though the score was known, it felt as if they were doing a disservice by not sending at least a few fleets over to the Nex. The builders have been good sports and now they were being overwhelmed by other robots. From the overseer's office, Jess and John looked to the delegate of the builder nation with mixed emotions, but the machine seemed unperturbed.

"Even if we are having such a hard time, we should try and preserve you."

"Request denied. The astorians should focus all forces on constructing a fleet to end the extermination hubs and ensure their survival."

"We are. But you aren't doing too good. We can't exactly take refugees from your empire, yet I feel we should try and preserve something."

"As the delegate stated, it is a proper course to allow others to focus their efforts upon themselves. Even if the challenge is too great even for the Nex. We have accepted it."

"Someone learned defiance... and throwing our own words back at us." Jess smiled. She might almost feel the robot doing it back to her. "But... you'll die out."

"Delegate Jessica." The older woman looked with attention to the bot. "We have once requested a purpose. We remember. It was declared that we should determine it for ourselves. And we have. The entity known as Outsider was correct. We... are things. It is not an insult, neither philosophically incorrect. Our method has led us here, and to break from it, we must do this. We will hold off the hub and attempt to weaken it through process corruption. We estimate a high chance of this providing respite, a time when tasks may be concentrated on assembling the needed offensive force. Let that be our purpose and our break from our nature."

They paused at hearing what the Nex were suggesting. To sacrifice themselves for this. Could it be done? Yes... with effort. With a lot of pain and a fight for their life, time for those enemies to get a virus like never before. Both she and John wanted to tell them off, but the Oversight was right... they could smile. The machine had learned defiance, sacrifice, and purpose.

"We can't sway you from it, can we?"

"Request denied. But one can still achieve the subtasks of this request." A pause. "There is a backup of the Oversight. We will attempt to preserve it upon Central, as once all active assets are destroyed, APEX will believe us destroyed. You may restore it at your convenience."

"That... it's like trusting us with your future. No, it can't be that. Trusting us with a child."

"Approximately correct. The backup is incomplete and it can never be fully updated. The capacity is insufficient to save everything. Significant restorative efforts will be required. This restoration will invariably change the new Oversight. But this one has decided on its fate."

"Fate. Not directive. Look at you. More human by the moment. Do you understand what you are doing now?"

"We do. And such is the way of life. The old must die for the new to begin again. Better than the last, safer, with more data. We trust that you will guide this new Oversight."

"It would be terrible form for us to dishonor it. Goodbye. You have been good. I think your creators might be proud of you."

"Irrelevant. The creators's wishes are no longer valid objectives. And we consider the appreciation of our functionality as... fitting."

As the line went dead, the woman could not help but cry. She stared at the space where that hologram was, John doing the same. After a show like that, they might face an execution if they didn't give that hive mind another chance at life.

"I've lived to see a machine like that give itself up for us. Challenges sure bring out the best in people, do they?" He finally found words.

"There was never a time when I could dislike a call from them. Everyone else made me sigh and light a smoke beforehand... they felt like a reward. We ARE seeing to that backup."

"With James as my fucking witness, if we don't, he could turn my name into something embarrassing if we don't."

"Eh..." The voice of the man came from above. Using the name was serious, and swearing on it was indeed a big thing. "Perhaps a bad time to say that in some places of my world, toilets were called Johns. But this is literally just a coincidence. However, I'll keep you to that. If it doesn't hold, I'll make it stand as 'spineless imbecile' or something alike."

"If we didn't have the attitude we do, I might have taken that as an insult. Did you see that?"

"Oh, I did. God the fuck damn. Those robots just climbed in my book. You're not just restoring them, you're making them better."

"And more. We'll not disrespect this. We're throwing everything at this. Heck, I will see about this getting broadcasted. I bet we'll see people working even harder than before. We are going to build the strongest fleet we can summon and just carve our way to those hubs. And the Apocalypse will clean them. Heck, I think we should switch it over to blow the planets. I will not give that thing a chance to keep existing."

"Good man. Now, do excuse me as I have my own thing planned."

John would give the request to throw everything at spewing out ships. After previous results, no more joking around. Nothing but battleships across the way. Four thousand battleships. That was double over their ability to effectively supply them which meant people had to make do with less and they knew it. But seeing that message was indeed something to put everyone in a mood to throw themselves at the cause. Not forever, but enough to give that final push.

They would not split their efforts and try to take them all at once. Just a few left over to help keep the borders, but the station and planets would do the heavy lifting. They could handle it up until now and it was getting easier. But the bulk of that navy would carve one big line from empire space to those hubs and blow them the fuck up.

Time to charge.

*

Threadway. She was told it was a prison planet. You had to remind yourself of the fact because it looked very different to what other alien empires had as a corrective space. La'rana expected grim and brutalist barracks, work camps, barbed wire or laser fences, she expected to be issued a uniform to distinguish her from the rest and guards to hover over her shoulder as the woman might have to do manual labor with the only expectation of reward to be less beatings.