Memory transcription subject: Governor Tarva of the Venlil Republic

Date [standardized aurigan time]: Heather 5, 1 AA

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This was not how I hoped my day would go. Sovlin escaped justice, my shuttle stolen, and Recel was scared half to death.

"What's the bead on the Sovlin situation?" Zolya asked Kam, bringing out of my stupor.

"He's heading towards the Zurulian border, into Federation space. We lost track of him a few systems away, but that was his heading." Kam responded, eliciting nods from all around the table.

Kam, Cheln, and myself were sitting on one end of the table, while Zolya, Raudd, and Serz were sitting on the other end. The tortured mezari had quickly recovered from his wounds, somehow already fully healed. I wasn't sure if their medical science was at work, or their biology.

"Are you sure it's wise we didn't blow him out of the sky?" Zolya asked Kam, before adding. "Our Magtay archer almost had him, it was only due to Recel acting as a living shield that she failed to kill him."

"I don't think it would've been wise to kill them. They're misguided, not evil." Serz responded. "This is why I didn't press charges." His voice was calmer and softer than the others. I wasn't sure if he always spoke like that, or if he censored himself around us. "Plus, we need to play this tactfully, we do not want to be seen as the aggressors." The tattooed mezari then added.

"I agree with Serz. Capturing them for trial was one thing, but shooting them out of the sky is a whole other basket of fruit. However... The Gojidi Union is still planning another assault on Venlil Prime. We have no choice but to attack first and prevent their ships from ever reaching our world." Kam asked, turning to look at me.

"I know... It's sad. These plans were meant to assist mezari in the raiding of cattle worlds, but now we're going to have to employ them against the Gojids." I sighed and looked around the table at the others.

My eyes fellon Serz again, who was pawing at his furry chin for a moment, before turning his gaze over towards Zolya. "If I may, I would like to go on a diplomatic envoy to the Federation."

This seemed to upset Cheln, as he instantly stood to his feet and slammed his hands down on the table, surprising everyone. "That's madness, they already hate mezari and most other aurigan species. You should send a herbivore instead." The diplomatic advisor barked.

"No offense, Cheln," came my response "But if the Federation are to trust the mezari, they need to meet the mezari."

Motioning for him to sit down, I continued. "I will go with Serz. They will not dare harm me. And proof of my safety might tide some of their concerns over. I will take Recel as well. So that he can testify to what he witnessed."

Serz turned to the leader of his people, giving her an inquisitive look. "Zolya?" He defered to her thoughts, and she raised a finger in response, staying silent for a little longer.

"Alright. Serz can go with you as part of an envoy." She then responded, giving me a nod of approval. Her eyes falling on me made me twitch for a moment, but I had to remind me myself she wasn't going to pounce on me just by looking in my direction.

"As for you, Serz. Keep yourself alive. We have few heroes left as it is." She then added, looking over at Serz.

"Hero?" I blurted out in confusion, not realizing I was thinking out loud.

This caused the mezari to exchange glances, before Zolya whispered to Raudd that he should be the one to explain.

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"Do you remember Dust?" Raudd spoke up, raising a brow.

That made me tilt my head. I'd heard them mention Dust before, but only in relation to their technological needs.

"Yes, I remember it's some sort of nanomachine used in your ancestors' industry."

"Well, Dust is more than that. It's highly dangerous to handle on its own, because it's semi-intelligent and self-replicating. To safely use it, it must be filtered and bound to some medium, such as alchemy, or construction materials."

I shuddered at the thought, but I still didn't understand what this had to do with heroic deeds, so I motioned for the red furred mezari to continue.

"However, Dust can also be bound to a living thing, and be used to give supernatural powers to a person. On Auriga there were entire societies that used Dust to perform what was once believed to be magic."

"All of this from a single nanomachine? Why is it so... Versatile?" I inquired, tilting my head the other way.

"Dust is- Well, in our quest to find the Argosy and escape Auriga, we discovered that Dust was created by an ancient race known as the Endless, it was created to maintain everything, from inert objects like roads and walls, to the complex workings of their bodies and machinery."

"And its use to maintain their bodies is why it can used to augment a person?"

"While controlled exposure to Dust, such as through alchemy, is safe, uncontrolled exposure is often fatal, leading to violent mutations, organ failure, or other gruesome fates, as the Dust doesn't know what to do with the body."

Raudd paused for a moment, to make sure he wasn't overwhelming me with gruesome imagery, and I motioned for him to continue.

"However, it can sometimes lead to a symbiotic relationship between the Dust and the host instead, and rather than rampant mutation, the host is left with greatly improved mental and physical ability. These people were called Heroes on Auriga, and every race had them, even the dreaded Necrophages."

I shuddered to think of a necrophage imbued with these nanomachines. The descriptions the aurigans gave us was the stuff of horrors in its own right.

"Wait, the same nanomachines that you use to fabricate equipment are also inside his body?" Kam spoke up, pointing at Serz, resulting in the mezari nodding slowly.

"Heroes are rare, and there were only five of us on board. Out of five million souls. So you can see why I'd rather not lose Serz." Zolya then added, clarifying why she'd rather not risk Serz's life.

I nodded, though I still had a hard time wrapping my head around the concept of such technology. This must've been what it felt like to discover nuclear energy, so much potential yet incredibly dangerous.

"Ok, then that's settled, we go to the Federation to plead our case." Serz spoke up again, before standing up. "I'll let you all deliberate on the plan to attack the Cradle should we fail."

Serz then gave everyone a nod, and left the room. I sighed softly and looked over to Zolya. "Ok, so what's the plan for the Cradle?"

"We need to find ways to obtain Deuterium and Titanium. With your permission, we'd like to search for Titanium under the ice of your planet's night side, and under the deserts of the day side. At the very least survey the areas for resources."

I nodded in agreement. We didn't do much exploiting of those areas ourselves, but the aurigans had species amongst them that could handle the extremes. "Permission granted. Anything else you need from us?"

"Other than that, we need a list of gas giants in your space. Deuterium would be easiest to find there." Zolya added.

"Ok. You continue to build your forces, while Serz, Recel, and I try to get the Federation to stop the Gojids through diplomatic means. If that fails, we'll have to attak them first and secure their surrender." I then turned to Kam, seeking his approval.

"Are you sure the Argosy's recyclers can build enough ships? The Venlil have a limited space force, we relied on the Gojidi Union for protection until now." My military advisor asked.

"Hopefully. We just need to keep feeding them raw materials. We are currently focusing our entire production on war ships, so there's something else I'd like to ask you. Could you provide some habitats for our people? Prefabricated housing, tents even, something to get them into rather than keep them in stasis. Thank you for helping us keep the ship powered, by the way. Your fusion reactors are marvelous things."

"Of course, it's the least we can do." I replied. "I'll have prefabs set up outside the ship. Are you sure the cold won't bother your people?"

"No, no. We're used to the winters on Auriga. Plus, our old home was near the Antarctic circle, so it wasn't exactly warm even in summer."

I nodded, shuddering at the thought of living year round in such a cold place. "Alright, then everything should be settled. Hopefully Sovlin hasn't turned the entire Federation against us after his escape. Though I imagine Recel's testimony will undo any sympathy he may have garnered."

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I need a long break from this madness." I sighed and fell back into my chair, dismissing everyone with a tail swish. I was starting to regret running for office.