CHAPTER 15: SUMER
One of the most ancient civilizations in the galaxy, the Sumerian Empire had countless millions of years to develop, colonize, and construct a large and enduring society. Stretching across multiple star systems, Sumer stands as the magnificent heart of the Empire, home to its most dominant species. Sumeria, the second planet to orbit Sumer, is where the Sumerian species evolved and flourished for eons. Once a vibrant, multi-biome world, it bore a striking resemblance to a tropical paradise, teeming with life and rich in natural beauty, until the Industrial Age nearly obliterated its delicate ecosystems.
Before the Sumerians mastered the ability to traverse the vastness of space, they heavily industrialized the fossil fuels they could extract from their world. The relentless carbon emissions surged to almost catastrophic levels, trapping excessive heat from solar radiation and causing the planet to experience a drastic warming trend. As a result, Sumaria became increasingly incapable of supporting life. The rivers and small lakes were the first to succumb, boiling and evaporating under the oppressive heat; the oceans, too, initially swelled from the melting ice caps, wreaking havoc and destroying cities that had been built along the coastlines. After a relentless decade of rising oceans, they finally began to recede. Yet, the planet retained an abundance of radiation; the oceans partially evaporated, giving rise to massive, catastrophic storms that ravaged the landscape. Over the course of the 100 Sumerian year cycle of global catastrophe, the civilization scrambled to evacuate. It took them an additional decade to rescue as many citizens as they could. From a population of 10 billion before the crisis, only four hundred million managed to survive. Fortunately, the civilization had a sister planet, Nammu, orbiting just on the outer edges of the habitable zone, where they could seek refuge.
"Your history sounds a lot like ours, Admiral," Senator Rhindle replied thoughtfully to Admiral Enki, as he concluded a brief history of his people to the two human guests. "Except we didn't have a spare planet to seek safety on."
"How did you overcome the destruction?" Enki inquired, pausing his tour of the Capital building as they made their way to the Council chambers.
"In a strange way, it was the war between our people that compelled us to colonize the solar system. Once we began to seek resources in space to manufacture more weapons, the climate began to correct itself. That’s when we realized we needed to take action and help one another."
"We call those days, dolgozhdannyy otdykh," Lana chimed in, her tone reflective. "The welcome rest."
"How do you mean?" Enki asked, refusing to open the council chamber doors just yet, intrigued by the rich history of the humans before him.
"I don't quite think any of us understood why we were fighting for so long," Lana explained, her brow furrowing slightly. "We just felt an overwhelming compulsion to continue the conflict. When the time finally came to cease fire, to restore Earth's climate before it could destroy us all, I know the Republic welcomed that opportunity with open arms."
"I didn’t realize that, Minister," Jaekob remarked, his expression one of surprise.
"Please, call me Lana," she replied, a hint of warmth in her voice.
"Lana," he extended his hand, and she took it firmly. "I have to say it is an honor to finally be working side by side with our Eastern brothers and sisters."
As the door swung open, another Sumerian greeted the trio with a courteous nod. "Admiral, esteemed guests, the Council is waiting."
The trio stepped into the dimly lit room, where voices and whispers floated through the air like tendrils of smoke. The humans struggled at first to see in the low light, their eyes slowly adjusting as the room came to life around them. Hundreds of Sumerians filled the space, arranged in a semicircular formation designed to foster spirited debate. At the far end of the room, where both sides of the half-circle converged, a grand throne was propped up, occupied by a solitary Sumerian. Clad in the most extravagant gold armor any man could wear, his elongated skull was crowned with one of the largest headpieces either of the two humans had ever encountered. This man was the king!
"Your grace!" Enki spoke softly, bowing deeply to his sovereign. "And distinguished members of the council."
"Admiral Enki," Emperor Fuhan's voice boomed throughout the chamber, commanding attention as the bustling council members gradually quieted. "Why have you brought these Humans to our attention? I thought I made myself clear. We are not to interfere."
"Forgive me, your grace," Enki bowed a second time, his tone earnest. "But I beg for a different decision. If you would hear me out."
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"The Emperor has spoken," one council member interjected sternly.
"We do not interpose with the development of other cultures," another added, their voice laced with conviction.
"Members of the council, if you would please remember our history, let us learn from it," Enki implored, capturing the attention of everyone in the room. "Yes, we learned a hard and valuable lesson when we tried to stop the slaughter of the Arcturians. We could not prevent that genocide, but we could have intervened to prevent the atrocities the Alliance committed many cycles ago." A small murmur washed over the assembly as the Sumerians began to converse among themselves. "The Empire asked for our assistance; we declined and sat back while their planets burned. Their stations were vaporized, their children slaughtered."
"And what about Almora? Do you honestly believe that was justified?" Emperor Fuhan interrupted, his voice cutting through the murmurs with a sharp edge.
"No, my grace," Enki responded, sending the room into an uproar.
"Let him finish!" The Emperor shouted, slamming his staff on the ground, demanding order.
"Almora was the Empire's lowest moment, but they acted in desperation. Yes, that does not justify the planet's annihilation. Those war crimes should have been addressed under galactic law, the same law our two Empires had agreed upon. Allowing the Alliance to hunt down and murder every single one of them, committing the greatest genocide in recorded history, was our greatest failure."
The room erupted in shouts once again, voices raised in indignation as Enki criticized his own people. "Calm down!" the Emperor bellowed, slamming his staff once more to regain control. "Admiral, what makes you think these 'Humans' are worthy of our assistance?"
Enki turned to face the two humans standing beside him, both of whom appeared anxious, their expressions betraying their unease. "Because of these two here," Enki gestured toward the diplomatic representatives of humanity. "I have personally observed the development of Humanity since they first learned to harness the power of fire."
The two humans exchanged looks of astonishment, realization dawning in Senator Rhindle’s eyes. "So the legends and mythology are true. Ancient astronaut theory is indeed true. We did have help from the stars during our development."
Enki simply nodded in affirmation.
"That was you then, ancient Mesopotamia; it all makes sense now. The elongated skulls we unearthed, the tales of the disappearance of Sumer, the very first human civilization. It was you!" Rhindle's voice was filled with excitement, the threads of history weaving together in his mind.
"Admiral Enki," the Emperor interjected once more, his tone curiously probing. "Did you assist with the development of a primitive culture?"
"I did," Enki admitted, the weight of his revelation hanging in the air. "The operation was ordered by Emperor Tsi and then disbanded by Empress Soto." A ripple of shuffling spread through the assembly as everyone leaned in to listen intently to the Admiral. "These two humans, one Senator from the dominant faction of the Federation and the other a Minister of Foreign Affairs of the second dominant faction of the Republic, have fought against each other for a vast period of their history. The two factions have had many names and many leaders throughout their storied past, and both sides have had numerous opportunities to annihilate each other through mass destruction. Their wars did not differ from our own. And now," he paused, the gravity of his words settling over the room, "they have called for peace between them, uniting their entire species for the very first time in their history. They deserve a second chance."
"You assert they had chances to wipe each other out?" the Emperor questioned, scrutinizing Enki's conviction.
"Yes, your grace. Both sides possess weapons capable of effectively destroying their own worlds. They have held these weapons for a significant portion of their history."
"The East and the West have had many differences throughout our history, your grace," Minister Lana interjected, bowing respectfully. "But no one in our planet's history has ever wanted to use those weapons in anger, spite, or revenge." She hesitated, weighing her words carefully. "Apologies, but my government would have me imprisoned for speaking this outside the Kremlin. We wouldn’t even resort to using them in retaliation."
"You mean," Senator Rhindle interjected, his curiosity piqued, "if we launched an annihilation-level attack, you wouldn't respond in kind?"
"Yes, please, allow me to clarify, Minister," the Emperor urged.
"We would not," she explained, her voice steady. "We refuse to kill everyone due to the ignorance of a single leader or a misguided council."
"But then, all your people would die?" Senator Rhindle remarked, shock evident in his tone.
"They would die regardless," she replied, her expression somber. "We know your weapons, we understand your capabilities. If you were to launch your missiles at us, we would have no hope of survival. Every Republic citizen on Earth would perish. If you discovered the location of Andronov and launched an assault with those weapons, we would be killed there as well. We could retaliate, destroy Earth, Alpha Centauri, Orion." She sighed heavily. "My colleagues in the Kremlin agree with me. What would that accomplish? If you launched an attack, we’re dead. There’s nothing we could do to stop you. Why bother killing your innocent lives as well? We beat our chests and make sure the threat is always known, hoping that you would never launch in fear of our retaliation."
"We have the same policy," Senator Rhindle replied, locking eyes with his counterpart, a newfound respect overwhelming his long-standing animosity. "They classified that policy at the highest possible level. Not many in our government are aware of it, but I am one of the few who do. We don’t want your destruction any more than you want ours."
Lana returned his gaze, and raising her hand to her head, she saluted the Federation veteran with genuine respect. "From one war vet to another, it is an honor to be standing here at your side."