Grandmama Tai Sui walked up from her seat and stood regally on the stage, her flowing imperial robe shimmering with iridescent threads that caught the light from the holographic displays surrounding her.
The Empress Dowager let out a smile which instantly drew the undivided attention of the kids standing scattered below. The Empress Dowager of Astral was a revered figure, though she rarely made public appearances, she was a symbol of power and wisdom that transcended time and space.
No one really knew how long she had lived but anybody who was anybody knew that she was a power never to be trifled with. Many of the kids in the audience did not know this but she exuded a warm aura of reverence and authority that demanded obedience from the essence of their beings.
“Dear children,” she began, her voice ringing clear and strong despite her age. “You must all be quite confused about the recent events, be at ease, you are neither captives nor prisoners, we have but staged a chain of abductions to ensure the secrecy of our operation ”
“Though many Tertiuns may not realize it, we are in extremely perilous times, with unbelievably strong enemies both within our planet and extraterrestrial threats.”
“100 years ago, the Astral Empire lead Tertius’s first voyage into the skies and landed on the fiery planet closest to us which we have coined Mars, and after decades of exploration, we the United Alliance of Tertius have made a discovery that will change the course of our history…”
Empress Dowager Tai Sui waved her arm and a holographic projection flickered into life behind her, a projection of a decrepit fortress materialized in the background.
“This is the ruins of an underground fortress that our exploration team have excavated on Mars, it spans an area of 2 acres but most importantly,” the Empress Dowager gracefully pointed toward a section of the hologram, causing the entire projection to zoom in.
A wave of gasps followed, a sculpture of a human stood at the entrance, seeming frozen in time. The figure's arms were stretched out wide, as if reaching for something beyond its grasp. Its face was etched with an expression of fierce determination, refusing to concede or be denied by the universe.
“The fortress on Mars is adorned with sculptures of humans such as this and carbon dating analysis date them back to at least 100 million years ago.”
The Empress Dowager did not expound further, the implications were blindingly apparent. All she did was wave her arm once more, the hologram transformed into a battered spaceship with tears and holes scattering across its surface
.
“ This is a galactic spaceship measuring 6 kilometers in length and 4 kilometers in width, when our excavation team discovered it, it was buried in rubble a distance away from the fortress and while it could no longer fly, a significant portion of it remained undamaged and the technology we discovered within it far surpasses the technology we know today by orders of magnitude.”
After revealing this information, the Empress Dowager paused, almost as if to give the audience time to absorb the news shared.
“What? We’ve already left the planet?”
“Mars? Fortress? Human Sculptures? There was an ancient civilization far more advanced than us?”
“A galactic spaceship?!”
“100 million years ago??? Fuck! What material can last so long?”
“I wonder what technology was found in the ruins and ship!”
“There were humans on a planet this close to us?”
The group of children burst into a flurry of discussion, it was the first time many of them had seen each other but the gravity of the discovery was so mind blowing that they felt like they had to let their shock and awe out.
After the moment of commotion, the Empress Dowager continued to say,
“Though the space exploration initiative was led by the Empire of Astral, the wealth of Mars belongs to the entirety of Tertius and thus in Astral Year 280, we established the United Alliance of Tertius and have been jointly exploring Mars.”
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“The past few years, we have been scouting and assessing the most talented of the younger generation and have selected 156 of you to join us in our journey,”
“For amongst the multitude of technological marvels we have found in the galactic spaceship, our greatest discovery is what we call the Simulation Development Initiative.”
A cloaked subordinate walked up on stage, with an armored case, and made way toward the Empress Dowager.
“Each and everyone of you have participated in Telluria Online SRPG I assume, with the technology found on Mars, we have been working tirelessly to mimic and refine its capabilities for widespread use throughout Tertius…”
The Empress Dowager proceeded to open the armored case and retrieved a helmet made of a metallic material which shimmered an iridescent pearl color.
“The widespread simulation matrix of the MetaVerse in Tertius does not allow for the sensation of pain and the incorporation of a cultivator's full power yet…”
“But these simulation helmets we found on Mars allows for 100% immersion of all senses and cultivation powers, it took us decades to crack and translate the codes needed for Tertiun use.”
Chronos and the rest of the kids widened their eyes in shock, most of them had their jaws hung open.
100% immersion including cultivation?!
Empress Dowager gave a light nod before proceeding to explain,
“These capabilities are secondary to the main reason you are here, the most important aspect of this technology is the database and training regimes within these Simulation Helmets… to accelerate evolution of the human species!”
Chronos took half a step back, lost in shock and deep thought,
‘The technology in this world already matches any futuristic sci-fi film I could’ve imagined, there’s cultivation, now there’s extra-terrestrial life and … evolution?!’
Empress Dowager waved an arm and the hologram transformed once again. This time, a group of hundreds of people of all ages materialized as the six other elders sitting behind the panel stood up in unison.
“The excavation, experimentation and decoding of this ancient technology cost us greatly, these are the brave souls who sacrificed their lives to further the progression of our species. Let's take a moment to give thanks and salute these heroes…”
The entire main hall fell silent as one person after another proceeded to salute respectfully in the ways of their own cultures.
How many people had to contribute their lives to uncover this technology?
What were the threats that deemed this all necessary?
“Bear in mind that while we have made strides in understanding the usage and technology within these Simulation Helmets, there is still much to uncover. You will be at the forefront of research that will allow widespread use of this technology throughout the entire Tertius!”
“After years of experimentation, a list of criteria to minimize casualties on the paths of evolution taught in the Simulation Helmets have been formulated.. Subjects who portrayed cultivation talents early on in their lives seemed to have higher success rates. There also seems to be a direct correlation between youth and the malleability of a human’s physical form. Lastly, subjects who have not formed their cores have had an exponentially higher success rate.”
“This is why each and every one of you have been carefully selected amongst billions of your peers to participate in the Simulation Development Initiative…”
“The concept of evolution and manipulating genealogy may sound incredible and intimidating but the fundamental concepts are actually quite simple,”
“Martial artists train their bodies to strengthen their being, cultivators consume valuable ingredients or dimensional energy to improve their physical form, this constitutes evolution albeit to a relatively small extent.”
“The offspring of two such strong individuals would manifest a stronger physical form or develop talents and unique affinities to dimensional powers as a result of the fusion of their parents genealogy, this is evidently how we as a species have been slowly evolving on a genealogical level. ”
“But this is the most primitive development route of any living being, it has become blindingly apparent that the method of evolving and the rate of evolution is limited to the understanding of the human condition.”
“What happens then when a civilization manages to become advanced enough to analyze and understand their own species on a genealogical or even at a molecular level?”
Empress Dowager Tai Sui continued as she slowly turned to look toward the holographic projection, “ Within these Simulation Helmets, we have found and translated an extensive database of a multitude of paths suitable for accelerated human evolution, here are some recordings of our experimentation…”
The 3D hologram flickered and showed a middle aged man taking off the simulation helmet and sitting down cross-legged in a meditative pose. He then started to visibly take in deep breaths following a repetitive pattern, absorbing dimensional energy to the same rhythm.
Suddenly, his body convulsed, writhing in agony. He coughed up blood and fragments of his internal organs before falling limply to the ground. The next few minutes were of similar recordings of failed attempts which led to the target's demise.
Chronos stared intently at the holographic projection and noticed it! The moment at which they collapsed. The absorption of dimensional energy deviated from their breathing pattern for a split second!
The holographic projection flickered emotionlessly once again, this time however, the younger female subject succeeded! Her body began to glow with a bright, pulsing light. A screen appeared beside her showing what was happening on a molecular level. Her cells were dividing and multiplying at an incredible rate!
As the light faded, it was perceptible that she had grown taller, her muscles had grown stronger, her bones denser and her skin smoother and more resilient. A screen then appeared beside the hologram, listing the astounding boosts to her five senses and physical abilities.
As the recording came to an end, the children stood in silence, absorbing what they had seen. The children in the audience were visibly in awe, their eyes wide with wonder and amazement, their minds racing with questions and possibilities. They could see the potential for greatness within themselves, and they were inspired to explore the limits of their own potential.
Chronos looked around and to his surprise, not one of his peers seemed affected by the gruesome scenes of death that preceded the first successful attempt. All that met his eyes were fiery looks of determination and clenched fists. A grin of approval and excitement surfaced on his handsome 10 year-old face, things were getting interesting - he was amongst a handful of elites filtered from billions of Tertiuns.
The Empress Dowager’s clear voice echoed once again, this time stern and brimming with a tone with demanded caution,
“This is but the first small step toward accelerated human evolution, many will try and many will fail, but for those who dare tread this perilous path… Welcome to Project Prometheus!”