[OUTER LIMIT - FORTOSS MINING FACILITY – SUNSTONE QUARRY AND DISBURSEMENT FACILITY]

“SCOTT!!!! Where the bloody hell are you man!” a deep sonorous voice echoed through the primary storage room of the expansive facility. Looking around he cast his gaze among the crates and boxes littering the floor, a number of labels caught his eye showing how far the quarry's produce would travel. From the inner core to numerous middle and outer limit colonies, ‘sunstone’ as it had been dubbed was of varied use. From internal lighting to a weak electrical source of energy the possibilities were endless, the ongoing discovery of its broad properties furthered the demand for the mineral.

None of that crossed the mind of the individual prowling the storage room; his large frame casting shadows throughout with the yellow glow radiating down from the deposits dotted between the rafters giving the room a warm feel. Despite the rooms cavernous size the remarkable ability of the sunstone to generate a solid light source was it’s most sought-after use. Hearing the echo die down he finally heard a scrabbling from the direction of one of the doors leading to the outside.

“BOSS! BOSS! There’s something going on out there”. The individual came to a halt in front of the large frame of his superior.

“Pipe down or so help me you’ll be cleaning out the toilets for a week.” His tone brooking no argument with a smile spreading as he saw the look of horror flash on the younger man’s face. “Oh right, gotchya boss” seeming very agreeable, very quickly for some reason that definitely didn’t have anything to do with a certain porcelain throne.

“Now tell me what you’re on about, and be quick about it, we have to get the order sorted for the Powel’s, they’re picking up the inner core order tomorrow and I want no problems you hear?”, staring the shorter man down. “Oh right, well I was outside checking up on some…..stuff, yeah some stuff and as I was looking around and noticed something odd towards the sou’ east refinery. Needing a clearer view I moved over to that hill just off to the side of the landing pad for a closer look and….well……… ah…….it’s gone.”

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT’S GONE!!! You gone blind boy, been smoking too much of that grass? How can a whole refinery disappear!” his face quickly turning a deep shade of red as his temper sky rocketed.

“I swear it boss, there’s nothing, just nothing, like the whole area has gone dark.” Stammering out a response as he tried to calm his boss’ anger. “Bloody idiot, gone dark what do you think you’re talkin about, I’m gonna take a look and if you’re having me on….. “ pushing past the shaking younger man he marched past the crates and shelves lining the room and slammed the door open. Scott looked over as his boss gazed towards the south east area of the facility and seeing him squint in the direction he then moved out of sight.

Not hearing anything for awhile Scott started moving towards the door hoping that boss’s anger had started to go away, he knew what he saw and it didn’t have anything to do with some smoking or alcohol. As he neared the door he froze, not knowing why, just that he had an inkling that if he went near that door something bad would happen. “AAAHHHH!” a piercing cry rang out and it sent him running tripping over some nearby boxes and hearing the pile crash to the floor sending ore spilling across the floor, not caring about the mess and with a single minded desire to get as far away from that door as possible he ran. Tearing his way through the storage room he made it to the main door into the office’s and looked over his shoulder.

His blood froze, the same darkness he saw at the refinery was creeping along the floor like an inescapable tide that swallowed everything in its wake. He could see nothing inside and it gave him the feeling of insatiable hunger, yearning to consume all it came into contact with……

[INNER CORE – SALENA COLLECTIVE – SENATE HALL – MATRIARCH STATE ROOM]

Staring out of the windows wrapping around the room, they gave her a 270-degree view of the city spread before her eyes. The seamless blend of technology and nature gave the metropolis a mystical atmosphere. Coupled with the floating vehicles and flashes of light signifying the vast teleportation network spread over the planet, the vista was unearthly filling all who saw it with wonder. The jewel of the Collective and the most desired place to live, why the citizens wanted for nothing and knew they were part of something magnificent.

They weren’t like those fools in the Fortoss Alliance that thought they knew everything, always digging in the dirt and scrabbling over the smallest of trinkets. All they were good for was the products they supplied and their merchant network. For all that she despised the Alliance, she had to give it to them that they had established a vast network spread throughout the known universe. Whatever they could get their hands on they would sell, for all she knew they would probably sell their own mothers if it was for a fair price.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

The elegantly dressed Matriarch of the Collective was lost in thought as she heard a smart rap on the door, swinging around and composing herself before she called in a calm voice “enter”.

The door opened without a sound and her seneschal entered the room, walking with a smooth gait that almost seemed like he was gliding along the floor, the man made his way towards her desk and stopping within a respectable distance he bowed and waited for her acknowledgement before presenting a tablet.

“My lady we have been receiving reports of strange disturbances in the Outer Limits, various facilities within our space and the adjoining territories are disappearing.” Reporting succinctly and waiting on her response. “I am to assume that tablet contains the reports detailing the occurrences?” she replied.

“Indeed, my Lady” with a nod of his head.

“Place it on my desk.” Knowing a dismissal when he heard it, he moved forward and placed the device on the edge within reaching distance. Taking a few steps back, he turned with the grace belying his age and flowed out of the room.

Staring at the tablet she picked the thin device up and flicked through the reports glancing over the details. The more she saw the more her face fell until after the last report her face was as white as snow. “It cannot be, there is no possible way……..” forcing her chair back she stood up and moved towards the window she had just been looking out of.

Coming up to the wall she stepped down with more force and a hidden panel detached from the ceiling and lowered to chest level. On a pedestal covered in a dark cloth that seemed to drink the light and almost felt like an absence in the environment, was a book that seemed barely kept together, the cover was peeling back and you could see the fibres binding the pages together. Yet when she picked it up, it felt as sturdy as a newly made one, the appearance contrary to the quality and survival of the book over many ages.

No one knew where it had come from, though it had been in her family for millennia going back to the founding of the current Collective. Moving to her desk she activated the privacy switch and hearing the hum signifying the activation placed the book down, carefully leafing through it’s pages until she came to a set of images. They portrayed a figure covered in a radiant yellow light a benevolent and regal demeanour shaping his form.

Yet looking further you could see an almost inky darkness spreading across the pages, consuming all that was before it. Thinking back to the reports the Matriarch knew she had to look further, originally only being able to get to her current page she had to persevere and push past the cold and hunger that radiated from the darkness covered sheets.

With a deep and forceful breath she reached down and feeling a shiver run down her spine upon touching the page she turned it and her vision fled. Panicking and calling out, the Matriarch was surrounded by silence and darkness, the absence of light and sound even from her own body terrified her in ways she couldn’t have imagined. What felt like an eternity was causing havoc on her mental faculties and she was unsure how long she could endure.

Upon the cusp of losing her sanity, the vision that had once abandoned her came back with a vengeance. Fearing the loss of sight from being blinded she shut her eyes tight, after she was sure there would be no more surprise flashes of light opened them carefully, the sight before her sent a shock through her body; the very universe itself was spread out before her. However, it was different from what she remembered, there were far less planets yet it didn’t look out of place.

If anything what was before her was a work of art, each planet, system, asteroid, galaxy and nebula was simply perfect. They moved around each other in perfect harmony, a field of the most perfect jewels laid out to enchant the senses and steal the breath. It was hypnotic in its beauty and she knew that nothing she had or would ever see could match the sight before her……

“It’s wonderful isn’t it?” Turning around the Matriarch covered her face from the light, yet it didn’t blind her. It felt like the most perfect spring day, she could almost smell the flowers in the air and hear the meadow around her filled with a multitude of sounds from animals to tree trunks settling, early morning dew dripping onto the lush earth, the wind flowing through the grass, water running through a stream bed, it all coming together creating a concert just for her.

“Everything in it’s place, all fitting together to create the most perfect vista.” His voice surrounded her and washed all her stress and fatigue away with just a few notes. “wha… what is thi….. where is this? I need to know!”. He almost looked sad as he gazed down at the Matriarch.

“This is your universe, or as it was meant to be. I don’t know how you came to be here but let me show you what happened, I feel that is why you have ended up here.” He turned and waved his hand making the surroundings speed up and dance around each other creating a mesmerizing tableau. Yet the cold hungry feeling returned, much less than before as his presence kept it from taking root. Gazing out among the universe you could see an almost inky black wave start to move among the celestial bodies in the Outer Limit.

It was an inexorable wave, moving further inwards and growing as it went, “the VOID, it was taking everything I had created, contaminating my perfect pieces and knew nothing but hunger. We fought for eons, back and forth, whatever he gained I made again, however it seemed futile as I couldn’t create fast enough to keep it at bay. Reali…. w.at had to be ..ne I sa..if…. mys… to push it back for …d, ……ing my …y and sp……g my …..ce th…….. my crea…n, to deny the …D a ….hold in the ….er.e and ….e.. t… ….h I ..ld dear.” Confusion crossed his face, which was followed by sorrow as his final words were being drowned out as a buzzing started in the Matriarchs ears.

With a massive shove she was forcefully pushed out of the vision and fell back into her chair at the desk. Sweat running down her face from thinking of the implications of what just happened and what she had seen caused her to freeze, terror filling her being, unaware of the eyes staring into the room from beyond the door.