The galaxy is littered with hundreds of intelligent species. Many are spacefaring, and have thoroughly explored their home systems and even completed colonization efforts within them. The most intelligent have moved beyond their home star system, out into the galaxy, colonizing, or exploring alien stars and all of their worlds, satellites, and mysteries.
Many others are still trapped on their homeworlds, slowly progressing, or regressing, as the galaxy spins around them unaware. Some species are ignorant of the world above their heads. Others see, communicate, and study the stars, but are unable to touch them. Not all have the technology, the know-how or the ability to follow their neighbors into the vast wilderness above.
Only the few, the smartest, the most ambitious, and the luckiest civilizations pursue the stars. These highly advanced civilizations have conquered FTL in their own ways. They’ve risen above the other species in their systems, in their sector of the galaxy, even. These special lifeforms stand above ten billion years of evolution to mark their place in the Milky Way’s history. These are the civilizations that rule the galaxy.
Humanity is one of those civilizations. Ever hungry for expansion, and always driving progress, humankind has pushed their way into the galaxy and onto the powerboard of the most powerful civilizations known to the Milky Way. But they are a drop in a bucket…
2050: First true AI is realized. This explosion in technology launches humanity centuries into the future. With the ability to accurately run difficult simulations in a matter of seconds, humanity unlocks the secrets of gravity, dark matter, and dark energy. Further developments in AI lead to astounding advancements in medical, economic, and warfare technologies. The path towards space travel is unlocked.
2055: The key to unlimited energy sources is found. Resources become limitless. Earth population booms. Humanity looks to the stars.
2075: Space exploration continues to advance. Humanity opens settlements on the moon, reaches mars on a long term scale and explores Venus with manned missions. Humans learn to fully harness the power of their sun. They also exploit dark energy and antimatter energy sources for more energy intensive experiments. Slip Grav Drives, Antimatter Engines, and Dark Energy Field Effectors are invented within months of each other. These marvels of ingenuity combine to create quick, efficient space travel like never before. Space travel becomes viable throughout the system. Humans compete in open space.
2150: Population of humanity reaches an all time high. Period of settlement in the system ends. Era of growth begins. AI led machines help to continue human expansion and growth. Scientific study slows. Technological advancement slows. Humans push the boundaries of their system looking to the stars beyond.
2175: A new device named the Quantum Slingshot allows for instant transmission of data across infinite points of space. Communications across the system becomes faster than light. Using centuries long research, the first Quantum Engine is born.
2200: An object is sent from one end of the solar system to the other successfully in a matter of seconds using Quantum Entanglement principles. Calculations take a decade, but are pin point accurate. Intragalactic travel becomes not only possible, but it is safer, quicker and more energy efficient than ETL or FTL travel. Humans look to the galaxy.
2210: First extrasolar travel takes place. Mission to a nearby system is successful. Humanity celebrates. At the tip of the solar system, at the beginning edge of the Oort cloud, human researchers exploring Quantum Signaling accidentally tap into an unknown quantum messaging line. They don’t know what it means, but they understand that it is not a natural signal. Humanity’s biggest discovery in history takes place. Humans discover they are not alone…
300 Years later
Humanity has joined the rest of the galaxy.
Many species have been intersystemary for centuries before the rise of humans. Even as a relatively new player to the galactic board, however, humans are far from inexperienced. Millenia of war, and progress have taught them how to navigate the chaos of the galaxy, and even thrive in it. In just a few short centuries, humanity has carved out a place for itself among the other powerful species in the galaxy.
Sitti’s umber eyes scanned the data with disciplined acuity. The display was a circular device on the floor of the dim room. It emitted three dimensional images, writings that hung in the air like ghostly scripture, and spiraling bits of data fading in and out periodically throughout the room.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
Sitti was an Aratid, one of the galaxy’s most powerful species; a Prime Eight civilization. His concerns were centered on the Earthling crew currently headed to the station. An image of the Voyager 8 was dissected by the station’s AI program, each piece explained in detail.
Some of the images looked like a plate of spilled spaghetti. These symbols and shapes chained together in confusing masses were the Aratid’s version of a three dimensional language model. Most species had three dimensional versions of their own languages. The human model was called the New Galactic Standard. Humans hadn’t found too much use for it yet.
Three hundred years ago they were monkeys playing in trees. Now, they are a galactic force. Small, but strong. He respected the human’s tenacity as much as he despised their fleshy bodies. Sitti still mulled over the decision to give humans a position within the Initiative. He wasn’t sure it was a good idea. They could be a sleeping giant…
A string of numbers ran wild through the air. Human historical and current events flashed in sequences of connected images. He’d seen it all before, a multitude of times. Sitti had been a key member of the Initiative Board back before the species were officially chosen. That was over a decade ago. Even then, he was conflicted.
S’ciara came crawling through a port in the ceiling.
The Aratids had changed quite a bit since they’d left their homeworld a thousand years ago. Originally a species akin to earth crustaceans, the Aratids used to have large carapaces and lived a semi aquatic lifestyle. In the swampy waters of their home planet, the Aratids spent their time surviving against more massive deepwater predators, and outcompeting the smaller amphibious species of the shallows. Over time, they developed the capacity to survive on land for days at a time.
As the planet changed from an ocean world to one dominated by giant land masses, the Aratids adapted to living on the surface permanently. In the coming hundred millennia they thrived, becoming the planet’s first intelligent species.
In the old days, they truly resembled large crabs, the size of a small car: Eight thorny legs with spikes on the ends for climbing, pinchers on two thick arms, and a multitude of extra limbs and mandibles. Through the ages, the Arotids developed smaller arms with more complex forms, a pair even had primitive hands. Mandibles, and a mouth full of sharp teeth in vertical rows stretching a foot across the body became smaller, and more complex.
This end result is what S’ciara resembled. Her aquatic nature was fully gone, but the crab-like semblance of her species was still very much alive. However, Aratids were a far more complicated species than that.
S’ciara was called the old breed. They were excellent for spacecraft, were Zero G specialists and highly regarded for their comprehension of large amounts of technical data. Sitti was a new breed.
Though genetically identical, the new breed of Aratids were famous for their synthesis with technology. Their bodies were completely transformed. Now bipedal, and more humanoid than their classical counterparts, the new breeds boasted mixtures of cybernetics, and machinery introduced into their highly surgically adapted organic bodies.
Much of their top half retained the primitive organics but with the help of machines and surgery, Aratids like Sitti had their extra arms and mandibles removed, and were given a prosthetic spine to tac organs and limbs to. A makeshift skull was crafted out of leftover bits of carapace to house a more recognizable face and body form comparable to other sapien-like life forms. Their lower bodies were mainly synthetic and mechanical, mixed with superfluous leftover organic material.
Why the changes? Because the new breed was lighter, faster, and more tactically inclined for battle situations. With a head on a swivel, a spine for easy micro maneuverability despite loss of vertical mobility, and hands and feet made for quick adjustments and standard fitting weaponry, the new breed was as good a soldier as any other sapien creature. Better even when paired with the old breed.
Diplomacy was easier, as well, if a species looked similar to your own.
Sitti poured over the information, still deep in thought.
“What do you think of these humans?” He asked S’ciara. The Aratid’s standard verbal language consisted of clicks and taps of mandibles with deep guttural sounds. Aratids like Sitti could only produce half of the noises necessary, though. Instead, he relied on a neural link that interfaced with a computerized translator. Everything said back and forth was translated in real time.
S’ciara clicked and groaned, going about her business on the ceiling.
[I think they are soft, and squishy like fish. Too young. Too bold.]
“Three hundred years is a long time. There are younger species out there. I think it’s been too long to assume they’ll die out, S’ciara. They are too strong. Humans are here to stay.”
[Perhaps for the worse.]
“That’s yet to be seen.”
[I think you have a soft spot for these things. You spend too much time studying them.]
“Hm. I wish it were that simple. I despise these creatures, I truly do, yet I don’t know why. Is it simply prejudice?”
[Perhaps. They are one of many species that are the same. Commendable boldness. But they are alone, and unafraid. Those like them die out, yet earthlings prevail. It is easy to be prejudiced. Species like earthlings do not know what it takes to join the galaxy. They are too young, too quick to leave home. They do not know what it means.]
Her words cut deep into Sitti. She was right. A revelation visited him.
All at once he knew why he hated humans. All those years ago when the talks started, he knew too. Sitti recognized humanity in himself.
“For that, I can not blame them. We were no different. Now, what are we as a species? I don’t even know. I guess in the end, you’re right, I do hold a soft spot for humans. Maybe, it’s even jealousy. Perhaps they can do what we can not.”
[And what is that, Sitti?] S’Ciara was messing with different things on the ceilings: wall displays, buttons, levers, and such.
“You wouldn’t understand.”
[You are strange, Sitti.] S’ciara crawled back through the tunnel in the ceiling, leaving Sitti alone. He studied the data with an empty mind.
“Maybe so,” he said, before closing the file and focusing his attention elsewhere.