Titan [A.E.] 2

Gallop

A boy from P'lochda. Lost and aimless, but with eyes full of determination, this drifter survives on poorly paid jobs and scraps by with his small gang of petty criminals. Live each day, don’t ask questions. The rest is figured out along the way.
And yet, one day he was contacted by the emperor of a new world, and his destiny changed forever.

Cale

Emperor of New Earth (Planet Bob). There is no transition on a new planet. So Cale was unanimously chosen as the provisional leader. In reality, he never had a knack for politics, but charisma proved to be much more practical and necessary. Beyond that, he received help from the best advisors among his allies and... learned as he went along.

Audrey

"Do you need a hand?" A cheerful mechanical saurian, talented but insecure and with low self-esteem. He settled in P'lochda, competing with low prices. It was then that he was found by Gallop by chance, who took him to New Earth/Planet Bob.

Stith

After creation of New Earth, first emperor, Cale I, needed allies. Stith the sogowan, one the survivors from the original Valkyrie team, stayed by his side. Later on she became his official master-at-arms. Still kicking, never rusty, despite all these years.

Gune

Laughter and flashes of light. The messy laboratory, a dilapidated annex to the palace. One of the surviving Heroes investigates in solitude. Everyone has forgotten him. A pitiful fate. For although he has lost his sight, this poor Grepoan has not yet closed his inner eye to the secrets of the Universe. Nor to the biological disaster now thriving on New Earth. Can we save it? But, who can you trust these days? After all, the line between genius and madness is not very thick.

Vaelor

The hardened General Vaelor was once one of the Gaoul allies from Sesharrim who fought in the quest for the Titan. He quickly stood out as one of the key leaders, and with the founding of New Earth, he had the chance to remain true to his oath. Cale I, the symbol of hope for the future of all races, placed his trust in him as his right-hand man and General. But the stability of the new empire is paved with innocent blood. Necessary decisions and sacrifices. But are they, really? Is this the justice of his people? Though he shows no weakness, the hardened General Vaelor is breaking inside, a little more each time. In these times of crisis, the Gaoul code of honor is blurring into a faith increasingly confused with fanaticism, with no apparent way out...

Seiko

The mysterious leader of Amalgam. Even here, on this young planet, revolution was quick to emerge. It seemed impossible, yet inevitable. A logical response to the emperor's autocracy.

They began calling them "The Other Races." Impure, condemned, and oppressed, for they were far from the ideal of the divine man. They unraveled the steps of so many years of interstellar coexistence. They created a planet and felt like gods. "The Other Races." And yet, a human woman became their voice and their fist.

"It’s easy to speak of justice when the price isn’t your blood. But every word has a cost, and I’m tired of paying."

Vra'ulith

The explosion of Earth was to mark the beginning of an era of purification. The Human Plague would be extinguished forever, hastened by the intervention of the Drej. This was taught to us by Ka’traash, the Father of the Cycle. All was written in the Sacred Texts. The Tserkaash believed it.

We were wrong.

The heretic humans survived thanks to the Titan, a secret experiment. They cheated their destiny, and once again, we are threatened. But by the Holy Cycle, and the blessed Shaat’ruun, we must exterminate them before the Plague can regain strength. Even with their spectacular terraforming, their young, impious new planet is more vulnerable than ever. Like a newborn of its kind, soft and pathetic.

Another messenger has arrived. Very tall and large-legged. Another insult. Its footsteps echo like the sounds of humans trampling our ancestors in the ancient days of Earth. It offends me. But this time, I will answer them. I have ordered its legs cut, so it may walk as a human.

“-WHAT!?” That’s all the small mechanical saurian could say. He had never served as a pilot. Never gone this far.

“-They’ll pay well. The Emperor is my lifelong friend.”

Obviously, Gallop had never met him. He lied, filling in the gaps left in Cale Tucker’s message, and played it like a wild card, even though he used up all the money he had left. “...Sorry, Gallop, transport is on you. An unregistered flight... maximum discretion... your destination awaits on New Earth.” Damn scrooge.

Audrey was a naïve fool, which turned out to be an advantage. A few hours later, he was in orbit (in the worst excuse for a shuttle), and couldn’t believe his luck. Crap. He hadn’t expected any of this. He had nothing to lose. At least he’d carve out a space for himself, start over, even if it was on a human planet. He had no idea what he was doing there.

“-This is such a bore. You thirsty?” Gallop pulled out a bottle of herb liquor. He didn’t like celebrating alone.

“-What are you doing? This shuttle doesn’t have autopilot! And you’re supposed to help me land...”

“-I told you I’m not a fucking pilot. And we’re not going to crash into anything.”

Foolish, naïve Audrey. But they shared the Akrennian herb liquor. It was strong. The atmosphere lightened up, and for a moment, he was able to forget his worries. No radios. Just an Old Earth playlist.

By the time they approached the Andali System, "Domino Dancing" by the Pet Shop Boys was playing.

"...Gallop Yoa...because he is, the son of...".

"Damn you, Cale. What were you thinking? Could he be a spy impersonator? And if not, what does he really know? Why bring him here?" -she tried to process the flood of possibilities.

"...Stith will be thrilled to show you the facilities...".

"Bastard."

"...one of ours now..."

"The boy probably felt the tension. I think I almost caught him trying to look at me out of the corner of his eye. Please, don't talk."

Emotions crawled up to his throat. Stith had to muster all his emotional control to keep from screaming.

Not a single word throughout the entire descent. Nothing. Except for the hum of the elevator.

(This was inspired by the elevator scene in Neon Genesis Evangelion.)

Even though he was accepted among them, Gallop never stopped feeling the weight of his father's shadow. "What is that gun for, Gallop? Your enemies, your friends, or yourself?"

"Have you found anything new? The crops are collapsing, and the food reserves are dwindling. We need solutions now."

The emperor had arrived once again, seeking answers. Gune straightened himself in his worn-out chair, blue neon against green flesh and the garments of a shaman. The monitor was only for visitors. Gune spoke while staring into the infinite. Sometimes he turned his head; just a courtesy. Meanwhile, he read by caressing the electro-braille board; small stars on orange glass. Brighter than the dull stars of his pupils.

"This rot is not organic, as I said. We’re still analyzing the pure samples from the quarantine fields. There are no similar incidents recorded in the terraforming protocols."

"A chemical substance in the fuel from our ships? That would be my first suspicion. Or some failure in decontamination."

"There’s no single source. It appeared simultaneously at geographically distant points. And they don’t align with our landing sites."

"A mutation? A rapid biological adaptation generating pathogens that rot the roots. Or something from Earth’s flora brought in one of the colonial ships."

"This planet is already terrestrial in essence, and the environmental sensors detected nothing. Your father imported all the genetic codes from Old Earth on the Titan. If something else intervened during an intermediate stage, we have no way of knowing…"

"Is it possible that there was some variation during the cryogenic preservation of the species?"

"We can’t know, Emperor. We discovered and activated the Titan. Now it’s sealed off, in ruins. We already tried reverse engineering, but we had to suspend the project. It would take our lifetimes to recover the information. There was no black box. It was never completed. It was launched in desperation."

"Then it must be something brought by one of those aliens. That’s the only variable out of our control."

"A likely hypothesis."

Silence. The data pathways marched by. Impossible triangulations. Slim probabilities. A slight rocking of boots.

"I want the countermeasures you’ve discovered to be applied immediately. And I want a report tonight."

"Emperor… Cale, we could disrupt the ecosystem if we act prematurely."

"Do it now, Gune. If this planet dies, we die with it."

Cale left.

Gune grabbed his new device, a hexagonal prism with rotating faces, and noticed it no longer worked. He hadn’t heard anything unusual. He didn’t sense anything strange on its surface. But he knew Cale had broken it in the most subtle way possible.

Gune didn’t sleep that night, either.

The orange smoke filled the private lounge as if it were a dream. "Semifluff with a kaloud and two cubes of synthetic charcoal, natural stone bowl, smooth purge...". Despite everything, the seri was strong; a type of moss that expanded consciousness, suitable for smoking. A recent discovery. Not the sweetest or most flavorful herb; in fact, it was incredibly bitter. It left an orange glow in the sclera. But he enjoyed it nonetheless. He could imagine paths within paths, see the equations with their unknowns, feel the flow of the pieces on the board and all the possibilities. They said it wore down the mind and brought about symptoms resembling dementia. But there would be time to quit.

-Your assistance in the trade routes has been crucial for New Earth -he began, forcing a smile at the alien beside him. Diplomatic, yet informal.

-Trade, yes. And security as well, Kael. Do not forget that your borders remain vulnerable.

Cale had long since given up on Vra'ulith, leader of the Tserkaash, ever pronouncing his name correctly. But he had more pressing matters to discuss.

-My men are murmuring about the concessions granted. I must remind you that the agreement must remain fair. A guarantee of protection against external threats; to both the planet and our trade routes. In exchange, the agreed-upon premium -he replied, tightening his jaw slightly.

-Indeed, Your Majesty. And we have served with great interest. Prosperity and glory for a rising new society- Vra'ulith said with a cold smile, full of pointed teeth. -Our society -he emphasized, stressing the first word.

From a human perspective, the Tserkaash had a grotesque face and barely any facial expressions. But Cale couldn't say they didn’t at least try. Even so, the damned cockroaches were going to bleed him dry. Back in his TAU-14 days, he had encountered so many different species… each worse than the last. But at least those had been transparent about their intentions. With these creatures, he could never see what they were truly hiding. The fact that they were fanatics of their own hermetic religion (of which barely any information existed in the interactive encyclopedias) didn’t help either.

-So then, Delegate Vra'ulith, what is this rumor about taking control of the spaceports? Furthermore, General Vaelor has informed me that Tserkaash deployments have been spotted in the surrounding fields, training sessions conducted without notifying my officers. We had made the protocol clear in these cases.

Vra'ulith moderated his smile, took a theatrical pause, and stood up from his seat, pacing behind him.

-Surely just drills and extraordinary training sessions, to better prepare our troops. Difficult to document in time through official channels, Your Majesty. The notion that you have heard about us seeking better access to the spaceports and greater exemptions for our fleet, these are merely suggestions yet to be discussed. All of this is meant to strengthen our pact, for mutual benefit and peace between our peoples.

Cale felt one of the Delegate’s claws brush against his sleeve. An intentional gesture, or an accident? After so many years of negotiation, he never felt entirely at ease with this alien. He had never given up having an escort at any of their meetings. Vra'ulith was not a friend but a business partner, one who would stab him in the back if given the chance. Just like so many others. As a child, he had never imagined the universe would be this hostile. The terror of the void and its black holes should have been enough to unite all living beings under a common destiny. But that was not the case. It never would be.

And here we are.

Once the main course of the conversation was over, other, more trivial details followed. The voices echoed in his head like liminal ambient music. A waste of time.

They said their farewells. He was left alone. The smoke was running out. And so was his time.

"Slap my servos…" Audrey murmured, falling to his knees. "I wonder how it’s built on the inside. Humans are amazing if they constructed that. Does it still work?" he asked skeptically.

"A miracle. Humanity's greatest dream, the one that gave birth to the planet we now stand on," Vaelor proclaimed. "Though it fulfilled its purpose, today it is nothing more than an empty shell, abandoned. And there is no other like it in the Known Universe," he added, disheartened.

In the early years, the crater became a site of pilgrimage. Tents, improvised altars, and meditation groups crowded the surrounding area —a spiritual destination. And a tourist one. Later, it was sealed off and heavily guarded by Cale’s soldiers. Now, violent automated surveillance drones flew around the enormous ship on random routes. They hummed melodies resembling a lullaby in an eerily human tone —a sonic scan, anticipating a bittersweet, deadly end for any intruder who dared set foot in the forbidden land.

"This makes no sense. Too much security. What are they guarding in there? We need to get inside and find out what they’re doing with the Titan," Stith said.

She felt a sudden rush of memories from the past, the same feeling she’d had when that treacherous explosion hit her just as she’d arrived…

Gallop was climbing the rocky slope, using one of the legs of the Sogowan for support. Panting, he kept his eyes fixed on the wonder dominating the landscape.

Stith glanced slightly toward him, catching the Akrennian’s silhouette outlined by the sun, and for a split second, she doubted him. She felt guilty. So close. She hoped the mission would keep the kid focused. That he wouldn’t ask too many questions. Not now. Not now…

"You okay?" Gallop asked her.

"Kid, stay close to me," she said, raising her rifle and flashing a bold half-smile.

"Your way, boss. But if we’re here to play, don’t leave me out, longlegs," he replied with a grin, drawing his trusty, modified Maelock —the pistol he had inherited.

They had devised a plan to bypass the drones, using a decoy that Gune had secretly handed over to them. They reviewed it one more time. But time was running out, and soon there would be no light left. There was no turning back. They had woven a solid excuse to leave their posts, but hiding from the Emperor’s watchful eyes was never easy.

"Let’s move," Stith ordered.

The rest of the team followed her.