M’dkar stood at the virtual dock. The courtroom manifested around him with millions watching as he was confronted by the avatars of the judge, jury, prosecution and defence. The watching millions could see his horns, heavy sheaths covering them. His tail spines covered in gel, hardened into a heavy ball pulling it down, destroying his balance. He had not been allowed an in-person trial, it was deemed cost ineffective due to the security that would have been needed from the many threats on his life and the numerous calls for duels. Duels the court did not want as many of those wanting one would be nothing more than fodder to him, destroyed within seconds to a warrior caste noble. They wanted the trial and punishment to be seen to be done, not him being released after he destroyed all his challengers.

M'dkar knew he would be found guilty. He was, he had even admitted as such. All he could hope for was a lenient sentence, that in admitting guilt some leniency would be shown. If the court showed mercy, perhaps he would be granted death, the alternative was not something he wanted to contemplate.

The mechanical voice of the tribunal boomed out, making his heart sink. None of the human judges wished to state the sentence, even the non-humans were wary, a sure sign that a merciful ending was not coming.

“On the charge of GENOCIDE of new side species, the defendant has pleaded guilty. On the charge of DELIBERATE AND PLANNED GENOCIDE he has pleaded not guilty. The court has considered the acceptance of charge one, but notes that he has been found guilty of charge two as well. The plea that he was taken by surprise and unaware, that he reacted without forethought and malice, is not accepted. The entire mutated side species was murdered. Surprise would be an acceptable excuse for a limited reaction, but not for the extended period required to murder all individuals of the new side species. The reason for mitigation of it being self-defence is rejected. It has long been held in law that an individual life does not take precedence over the preservation of a new side species. Further, testimony from acquaintances confirms that the defendant is a member of PURE SCION and has been voluble in his condemnation of the acceptance of mutations as new side species rather than medically treatable conditions.

Given that the defendant has not shown any remorse for his anti-evolution views and the genocide conducted by him, along with the acceptance that he was indeed the sole perpetuator of this genocide, sentence has been decided.

The defendant will spend a minimum of five hundred years as a mentor to game players. All nanites, skills and psychic abilities will be stripped from him, and he will be reduced to non-material form, inserted into the consciousness of a new game player. The Game Player to whom he will be attached will be a new player inserted into a primary reality undergoing first exposure. The death of the Game Player shall not be a release from the sentence. To be eligible for parole in five hundred years, the Game player being mentored must reach at least the fifth racial evolution. Additionally, the accused must accumulate enough evolution points from being a mentor from those he is assigned to for him to evolve to the seventh racial evolution. Reaching these targets will allow a review for, but not a guarantee of, freedom. For higher odds of freedom, higher levels of evolution of self are expected and/or greater achievements of the Game Player are required. On discharge, said evolution points must be used on racial physical evolution, or the accused will be returned to being a mentor.

Should the Game Player die, the cause of death, and level of assistance provided by the accused will be evaluated. Should it be determined that the accused caused the Game Player’s death through deliberate withholding of information, sabotage or negligence, the sentence will be extended, length of extension determined by the evaluators. On death of the Game Player, or on their choosing to abandon the Game, the accused will be assigned to another until his sentence is complete.

Sentence is to be carried out in three days, no pleas or appeals shall be allowed.”

M’dkar stood, numb, the worst possible outcome confirmed. Not just a stripping of everything he had achieved and built up, but dematerialisation and being forced to be a mentor to a Game Player. He would not even be himself, no body, no way to interact directly with the world around him. He would be attached to a game player unfamiliar with the Game. He would be coming into a the mind of a player seeing their reality destroyed, possibly seeing him as a hostile entity. Pleading for leniency would be impossible, and a public council judgement such as this would allow no appeals, no delays.

Worse, he knew the consequence of such a mentorship, and why some worked hard to be allowed to mentor others, though voluntary mentors were only mentors for as long as they chose, though their performance would be evaluated and penalties applied if they had treated their mentee badly or caused their death. In his case, he would be stuck there for five centuries, possibly passing into many Gamers. And while doing so, he would gain evolution points alongside his host mentee. Evolution points he had no control over, changes that would manifest when he was once again corporeal. He, a proud noble of the kin, who had worked his way to power eschewing physical evolution. He, who had joined Pure Scion, working against those that altered their ancient bloodline and their ancient form. He would depart from that pure form, most likely to be amongst the worst that Pure Scion spoke out against. But it meant they would be allowing him to connect to the Akashic record governed by the mana sapience. He was being allowed to retain his sense of self, though perhaps that was also seen as part of his punishment, given his association with PURE SCION, forcing him to go against the principles it espoused. Truthfully, that was less of a punishment than they thought. He had joined to get closer to Princess Lin, though her association remained secret and if it did ever get out it would be very quickly hidden. He agreed with their philosophy and aims, though he was not the fanatic many members were. He would mourn his last purity of form, just not to the extent they imagined he would.

He remained standing as the virtual court dissolved into nothingness and his drab grey cell reappeared around him. He felt the forced disengagement of his nanites before he could access them. He stood in his cell, putting his hands above his head to allow the restraining bracelets to be reapplied. He had tried resisting, and that had resulted in harsh punishment, the guards coming in blasting him multiple times with paralysis bolts, laced with pain amplifiers, the last just a touch to show their contempt, to make sure “he could not attack anyone”. A rubbish excuse, but anything was acceptable since he was accused of genocide. He had accepted that he had wiped out the creatures, but not that it was an actual genocide. They were merely mutants, not even a major departure from the baseline, something easily fixed with a simple RDNA treatment. It was insane how every mutation was now accepted as if it were holy writ, at least the obvious anomalies resulting in shortened life expectancy and quality of life were treated, but to treat every other variation as a new species was just an insane overreaction to the excesses of the Gate Wars.

He pulled his bed out of the wall, settling back onto it with a paper-based book, something he had never seen before his incarceration, one only needed since his nanites were completely blocked and nothing could be projected into his HUD. He had been hoping he would not receive this sentence, yet he had also expected it. He continued reading, hoping his research would help prepare him for a world governed by mana instead of manatech. He had no idea how primitive his new host would be before the immersion, hopefully they know of manatee and was not a technophobe or mana fanatic ranting against anything that destroyed mana’s purity.

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Two days passed in monotony. He finished his book and requested another. Food was delivered on a regular basis, his cell wall dissolved twice a day to allow him out into the attached courtyard to exercise. By himself as a security precaution. Many joked that prisoners showed that they were not completely immoral by the way they treated those accused of genocide, and known members of Pure Scion, even if in on lesser charges, tended to not fair well and needed to be kept isolated from others.

On the third day, as he finished his breakfast, the entrance to the cell opened, not to the courtyard, but to a group of four guards all armed with stun sticks. One, his epaulets making him as a lieutenant, smiled at him, no warmth, just cruelty. “Stand, Midkar, come with us, time for you to fulfil your sentence.” His smile grew wider, “Or don’t, and we get to have fun stunning you and dragging you to where you need to go. No need to worry about damaging your body, it is going to be dissolved anyway!”

M'dkar stood, trying to keep his face neutral. The restoration of his birth name instead of its split to indicate his elevated status an indication he had been expelled by his House. He had worked hard for elevation to nobility, to be accepted into a House, to be seen as one of the upcoming, even befriending the emperor’s daughter. All had been stripped from him. He moved though. He knew the Lieutenant would not hesitate to carry out his threat, and it would be stun bolts interlaced with pain inducers and pain multipliers. Supposedly illegal, but no one would bother investigating.

The room he was led to had a standard manatech surgeon’s chair. Nano injectors stood ready, but he knew enough nanotech to see they had been removed from the injection mechanism to a different unit, a cleanser. He had used one once, to remove nanites that contained hostile mana to his affinity and were poisoning him, this time there would be no filters. All his nanites would be removed. Briefly he berated himself for staying with the long tradition of his world and growing himself only through manatech, but he had always feared forced evolution if he allowed changes to his core and inner self, and he wished to retain a purity of form.

M'dkar moved, sitting down without being prompted. No point in delaying it, the sentence was passed and fighting it would only result in pain. Some might have seen a final act of defiance as a point of pride. He was more pragmatic and saw it as nothing more than foolishness resulting in torture.

He tried relaxing, moving into a meditative mindset. He tried ignoring the bustle, the muted voices, the rustling of people’s clothes as they moved about and prepared the requisite equipment. He offered no resistance when his arms were taken, strapped onto boards attached to the chair. He tried to ignore the moving injectors as they hovered in place, but could not. He could only stare at them, the gap in the needles far wider than normal, being manoeuvred into place over his arms. A screen turned on before him, normally not needed as a message could be sent directly to his nanites, but they would not risk turning on his nanites now and risk him choosing to try and escape, through freedom or into the embrace of death.

“Midkar, the clanless and houseless, sentence will now be carried out. We hope you are able to learn and cleanse yourself from your prior deeds.” The screen went blank, and the syringes darted forward, each penetrating into an artery. He watched as his blood entered the first, circling to the purification unit, and then being pumped back in. Briefly he wondered why they bothered, he was being removed from this body and the nanites would not follow his consciousness. There really was no need to wonder, he knew, it was only his fear causing him not to think. His Nantes would work to anchor him, to fight against intrusion and removal of consciousness. It was one of his higher-level skills, and clearly, they wanted to make sure he would offer no resistance.

M'dkar leaned back, trying to at least appear relaxed as his blood flowed through the machine. Eventually it finished and the syringes withdrew. Fear spiked as a bracer would round his neck, holding his head in place. A helmet descended on his head and darkness fell.

MEDIA BREAK: MILEU NET NEWS AND ENTERTAINMENT SERVICES

Focus on the holo-image, and on the two very different looking humanoids, well dressed in what could be mistaken as fashionable attire from Earth.

One, shiny silver horns perched above his ebony skin, silver teeth and fangs in a sculpted face smiled at his co-host, her red horns a contrast against milky white skin. High cheekbones highlighted by red scales, fading into sideburns where scales lined her face. Her mouth small and dainty, with sharp rows of teeth visible when opened.

“Welcome sapiens of all descriptions, from us at Mileu Net, your best source for news, analysis and entertainment! I, Shilna, and my co-host, the beautiful Diini, have news that will delight and titillate all! It seems the gossip was correct and the rumours now confirmed. A new group waits to be introduced to the Crucible! Or, for those of us watching from home, enjoying the trials and tribulations of the contestants, THE GAME!

Numerous corporations and governments are lining up to sponsor those joining the game. We, of course, will be following the Gamers, watching as they embrace the chaos and dangers of a mana saturated planet. What remains down there? Will they find those that came before them and be helped by them? Will they find remnants of civilisations before they fell before the mana saturation, portals to side dimensions or hiding places of those escaping as mana descended? We will follow as always, adding the new contestants as they show themselves, so you, the viewers, can cheer or mourn.

You know the rules, volunteers can call for extraction at any time, taking their game rewards, or lack thereof, at any time to return home. There are even some from a lottery world, their origin hidden from their fellow contestants, and us! A pity, it would enhance everyone’s viewing pleaser to know who they are, but the Council forbids it.

As for the non-volunteers from Judicial punishment, we have three in this iteration. Let us review them as they will be where the biggest betting takes place as they will not be leaving any time soon!

The one who has been waiting longest in detention, almost five years now, is Thoss Klidik, formerly known as Th’oss Kl’dik. We all know him as the serial killer from planet Liverace. He killed over three hundred and fifty sapiens through cascading feedback in their mana paths, all so he could watch their suffering. I have been told he has found religion in prison, but that does not change his sentence. Prior to his imprisonment he had been a Magister for Liverace. Like all contestants coming in under judicial judgement he has been forcefully devolved back to his unevolved state and his honorifics removed. We hope he can adapt to his new powerlessness and not deprive is of watching him persevere! He will be there for a minimum of fifty years and three evolutions, whichever takes longer.

Next is Delos Mide, a teacher from Heri, who decided that experimenting with her own Gate near to one of the instabilities created during the Gate Wars, would enable acceleration of her own gene structure and allow her to move up the evolution tiers without the hard work others undergo. Her little experiment blew up in her face, literally, and resulted in an emergency lockdown of the gate war anomaly and two years of extensive surgery and reconstruction, as well as extensive property damage and the death of thirty sapiens nearby. She has recovered, just in time to be part of this Game. Her sentence is the same as that of Thomas Klondike, though many feel it to be too lenient given the possible side effects if her experiment had gone any worse!

Lastly, there is Midkar, formerly known as M’dkar of House Scerios. Known for his genocide of a newly emerged side species and his affiliation to Pure Scion. He will not be a Gamer, but an inserted consciousness as a Mentor to a mentee. Due to the seriousness of his crime, he is required to serve as a Mentor for a minimum of five hundred years, though that could be extended if he fails to perform his role diligently. A further condition of his release is that he accumulate enough evolution energy to reach at least the fifth racial evolution, though that will probably not be enough given the tone of the judge!

Our channel shop is now open with merchandise and view passes for those wishing to repurchase viewing time the game. Galactic Bet Corp has opened the betting lines, and those who heard this news first are already placing those early bets. Get those passes, get to betting, and if you have deep enough pockets, choose your champion to sponsor, the Game is afoot!