Ominian System

Automated Border Outpost 1D-25

1,893 light years from Earth, 2175 A.D.

Hreth’nir finished performing its ablutions and was now ritually cleansed. It headed to the inner sanctum of its private quarters to pray to the supreme being and atone for the sins it committed.

It entered the dim room and walked around the perimeter, lighting incense and candles before kneeling on the ground in front of the one-meter-tall obelisk of black stone that was in the center. In front of the obelisk was a small, shallow pool filled with sacred water. It bowed to the ground, touching its forehead to the black granite tiles and feeling the coolness of them on its skin.

“Creator of life, Bringer of light, Savior of souls, Judge of righteousness. I submit to you, full of sin. I beg for mercy and ask that you grant it.”

Hreth’nir lifted its head off the ground and looked at the obelisk in front of him before continuing to whisper.

“I murdered millions. I passed judgment on others, and I succumbed to my anger and fury. They were evil, and I punished them for their sins. I did such things to save others, and now my soul is filled with anguish and regret, black with the evil I committed.”

Hreth’nir lowered its head back to the granite tiles, ignoring the pain shooting through the middle joints of its legs as they pressed against one of the hardest stones known to exist in the galaxy.

“I ask that you wash away my sins and find me worthy again. I ask that you show me the errors of my ways and guide me along the path of righteousness. Forgive my mortal weaknesses and make me whole and pure, that I might one day stand before you without shame.”

Hreth’nir lifted its head again and looked at the obeslisk, reaching down with cupped hands and putting them into the sacred water. It lifted its cupped hands and brought them over its head, pouring the water over it.

Two more times it did this before performing the final cleansing rites. It started wiping its body from its torso outwards and down the length of both arms before symbolically flicking its hands to expel the sin that the purifying water carried away.

Hreth’nir slowly got up, resisting the urge to cry out in pain as the patella of both middle knee joints shot pain signals to nearby nerves from the new fractures that were caused by the floor tiles.

It walked around the perimeter of the inner sanctum in the opposite direction, snuffing out the incense and candles before departing and returning to its main quarters.

Once inside, Hreth’nir walked over to a cabinet and took out a small device, activating it and waving it around the fractured patella of both middle joints and feeling the device knit them back together again. Soon, the pain was gone, and a slight tenderness was all that remained.

Walking over to the small heating element, Hreth’nir started preparing a simple meal when a chime came over the communication system, informing it that someone was outside. It pressed an icon on the wall panel nearby and saw that it was the human child outside of its quarters.

Sighing, it slowly walked over to an alcove on the wall and pressed an icon that was next to it. The recessed wall panel slid to the side, and his exosuit quietly slid out on a track system one meter past the wall.

Hreth’nir walked behind it and activated the exosuit, the back splitting open and revealing the form-fitting space inside of the suit that he would slip into. It entered the suit, and the back closed before numerous electrodes snaked out, connecting the cybernetic receptors along its spinal column to the suit.

The cerebral tap plunged into the port at the base of its skull, and it was now one with the suit, able to control the construct with its thoughts and nerve impulses.

Accessing a sub-menu, Hreth’nir activated the environmental controls of the quarters and purged the air that was in it, replacing the atmosphere with fresh, purified air that was saturated with antivirals.

Turning to the entry, it activated the door, and the door slab slid sideways into a recess of the wall, revealing the child standing in front of it. Hreth’nir smiled with pleasure, knowing that the human representative could not see it before speaking. “You may enter, human.”

It watched with interest as the human child entered the quarters timidly, unsure of the new environment he was entering. They are so like children; everything is still new and wondrous to them. Hreth’nir thought to itself as it gestured a suited hand towards a sitting bench that was emerging from the floor at his thought of needing one for the human.

“May I offer you refreshments, my human child?”

He nodded, a curious quirk of their species as he sat down on the proffered bench before answering. “I would be grateful for some water, honored elder.” Hreth’nir sent a thought, and a servant android emerged from a hidden panel along the far wall, heading towards the refreshment station.

In a few moments, it was in front of the human with a tray and a small glass vessel with water. The human took it, thanking the android unnecessarily for performing its function.

Hreth’nir found it endearing whenever the human thanked a machine incapable of understanding gratitude; he was a very polite being and a credit to his species.

Waiting for the human to drink, it walked over to where he was sitting and had the exosuit crouch down so that the human would not have to look up at it while conversing.

The human drank the water, and the servant android waiting nearby took two steps towards the human, taking the empty glass vessel from him before retreating to the refreshment station to wait until it was needed again.

“How may I serve you, my human child?” Hreth’nir asked, curious about the reason why the human came to its quarters—an unusual occurrence.

The human looked down at the floor, grabbing his hands together before looking back at the suit sensors and answering. Hreth’nir could see the anguish in his eyes, and it felt the paternal love it had for the human child growing, already knowing what was bothering him.

“Honored Elder, I find myself regretting asking for the Ma’lit to intervene here. I feel guilty for all the deaths, as if I murdered all those people myself. Please do not think that I am passing judgment on the actions undertaken; I cannot help but feel sorrow for all the lives lost and the true suffering that has yet to come upon them.”

Taking a few moments to consider a response, Hreth’nir continued to look at the face of the human child. It saw that the lacrimal fluid of his eyes was beyond the ability of the eyelids to contain, and the excess fluid started falling down his face.

Compassion swelled inside of Hreth’nir at the grieving of the human in front of it, and it took considerable self-control to resist the urge to exit the suit and comfort him. I cannot risk contamination, and they must not see our true form, though I think I could trust this human, Hreth’nir thought to itself before responding.

“We rendered judgment based upon the past actions of the Ominians and the future acts they had yet to perpetrate. We know what they were willing to do to assure victory, and they are fortunate that we did not succumb fully to our anger and select them for extinction.”

The human’s face took on a confused expression as his eyes locked on the exosuit sensor lenses.

“Please explain, honored elder.” The human asked after the appropriate time had passed, sitting up straighter. He used a small piece of fabric he had taken from a chest pocket to dry his face and shifted his position closer to the edge of the sitting bench.

Hreth’nir responded. “For the sake of efficiency, let us forgo the customary length of time employed in official talks between speakers. Is there a gesture you wish us to use to indicate when we have finished speaking, human?”

The human nodded again. He put up his right hand and held it up before speaking. “I will hold up this hand while I speak and put it down when finished. Would this be acceptable to you, honored elder?”

Putting up its hand, Hreth’nir responded.

“An excellent suggestion, my human child. Now, I will answer your last question. Before launching our assault, we harvested all the databanks of the Ominians while deciding on the severity of the punishment.

One such database was isolated from all the others and heavily encrypted, requiring almost three seconds to break the encryption. This was an astounding feat of cryptography by the Ominians, and we were duly impressed. It was the contents of this database that ultimately increased the severity of our punishment.”

Still holding up its hand, Hreth’nir continued speaking as the human listened intently to its words, holding his hands together and both arms on his leg joints as he leaned even closer to the exosuit.

“Among many evil plots, there was one so abhorrent that we considered it to be a jest or the ruminations of an insane being at first. That notion was quickly corrected when we realized the true extent of the planning involved.

They intended to use some of the AI ships offensively if they were in danger of falling to the invasion and have them exit null space within the atmosphere of certain targeted worlds.”

Putting its hand down, Hreth’nir watched the emotions roiling across the human’s face as he processed what it had just revealed.

Exiting or entering null space in the atmosphere caused such cataclysmic destruction that twenty small ships like the AI vessels would trigger an extinction level event on a planet the size of Earth.

It would destroy all life on the targeted worlds, rendering them inhabitable for at least a galactic year before microscopic life would return, if at all. It was an unthinkable crime, and the human was truly fortunate that he was able to convince the Ma’lit to intervene.

“Which worlds were targeted, honored elder?” whispered the human, his dark skin visibly paling as the true implications of such an act dawned on him. He forgot to raise his hand, an easily forgivable oversight.

Raising its hand, Hreth’nir responded.

“Nekul Prime, Xenxia, Eleania, and your home world were the first targets to be hit. Secondary targets included the home worlds of the species that joined the rebellion, as well as every single colony of the Republic. Plans were also drawn up to do the same thing to the Insectoids, and they would have targeted all known or suspected Hive worlds.”

It paused, thinking of the calamity that was narrowly averted before continuing to speak.

“They thought to emerge as the undisputed masters of this quadrant, forgetting about us. The Ma’lit Domain would not have allowed such an act to go unpunished. We would have exterminated the Ominians and the Grimiisans in our righteous fury.

If you had not reminded us of our sacred duty, the Ma’lit Domain would have again found itself alone among a graveyard of trillions. Thank you for saving us from that despair, my human child. I do not think we could have gone through that again and maintained our sanity, or the will to keep existing.”

The human was breathing heavily, and he abruptly stood up before pacing back in front of the sitting bench with his hands on his hips. Hreth’nir adjusted the height of the suit a little bit so that they were now on the same level and waited patiently for the human to speak again.

He raised his trembling hand before resuming, remembering this time.

“Honored elder, I am scarcely able to comprehend the magnitude of such an evil act, and I see now how your response could be considered… justified. However, what about the hundreds of millions of innocent civilians that were killed? My AI has calculated that upwards of a billion more are going to starve to death before they can successfully convert to an agrarian society capable of feeding themselves.”

He put his hand down, and Hreth’nir raised its own before answering.

“Human, the Ominians have long succumbed to their base instincts and desires. They were consumed with vanity, status, and power. They controlled their true avarice when the Commonwealth was whole, and they dropped any pretense of continuing to do so when a large segment of the membership was eradicated.”

Hreth’nir paused, thinking of how to get its point across to the human.

“Instead of rising to the occasion and doing the right thing, they took advantage of the power vacuum and the perilous state of the Commonwealth government to seize control and act upon their worst impulses.

Billions of Ominian citizens did nothing to stop it. They did not engage in civil disobedience; they did not strike. Instead, they supported their government, sought to aggrandize themselves at the expense of others, and brutally suppressed anyone who rebelled. They were guilty of complicity when they chose not to rise and overthrow their evil government.”

Hreth’nir put its hand down and waited for the human to respond as he continued to pace back and forth while listening to what it had to say. Finally, he stopped pacing and turned towards it with a raised hand.

“I will explain your reasoning to my government. I might not agree with everything you have said, but I do see your point, and I will do my best to convey it. I came here in part because of a request by the Republic that I am to ask of the Ma’lit Domain. May I do so now?”

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Putting his hand down, the human took a seat on the sitting bench once more. Hreth’nir crouched his suit once more before raising a hand and responding.

“This is highly irregular, but I will allow it this time. State your request, human.”

“The Republic of Humanity officially requests that you allow for the shipment of food and medical supplies to the Ominian people to alleviate some of their suffering. It is the determination of my government that they have suffered enough. In the interest of future relations with the Ominians, we wish to provide humanitarian aid.”

He put his hand down, and Hreth’nir raised its own, answering immediately.

“Even after what I told you they were going to do, you still want to provide aid to them?”

“No, not really, honored elder.” He replied. Hreth’nir truly laughed for the first time in many cycles, its suit broadcasting the laughter and scaring the human as the external speakers blared.

Putting up both suit hands to stop the human from getting off the sitting bench and fleeing, Hreth’nir spoke to him. “My apologies, human. I have not laughed in many cycles, and your honest reply surprised me. Thank you for this; I had almost forgotten how nice it feels.”

“That was you laughing? It sounded like the suit was malfunctioning. I didn’t even know that the Ma’lit laughed.” The human replied, leaning back as he settled himself on the sitting bench again.

“There are many things you do not know about us, my human child. The answer to your request is no. In the interest of maintaining good relations between the Republic and the Ma’lit Domain, I will allow for Ma’lit food synthesizers on this outpost to manufacture enough food to meet the minimum caloric requirements to sustain the life of every Ominian on the planet until they become self-sufficient. Is this a suitable counterproposal for you?”

The human nodded while raising his hand and replied.

“It will have to be. May I ask why you will not allow us to contribute?”

Hreth’nir took a long moment to think of its answer before replying, trying not to reveal too much at once. We cannot keep them in the dark much longer; it is better to start preparing them for the coming tribulations they will face.

“Your resources will be needed elsewhere, not tied up trying to supply food to almost nine billion Ominians. You are already stretched to the breaking point trying to help the Jaleeni refugees.

I must tell you something, my human child. Will you vow not to speak of this until the time I deem it necessary to reveal it to your government? I will know if you do, and I will be severely sanctioned and lose my status for doing this. Can I trust you?”

The human took a long while to respond, his face a dizzying array of emotions as he considered the want of knowing against the desire to not be forced to withhold information from his government. Finally, he nodded slowly, agreeing to its conditions for revealing a terrible secret.

Hreth’nir decided to trust the human. It did not want their species exterminated again, especially since they proved that they were worthy after struggling for over 100,000 years to better themselves and finally returning to space.

“125,000 years ago, we were part of a great civilization called the Galactic Federation that spanned over hundreds of star systems and had dozens of species within it. It was a glorious time of peace and exploration, and our ships traveled known space and beyond in the pursuit of knowledge. There was no war, no famine, and this great assembly of kindred spirits reigned supreme among many other space-faring species.

The four founders of the Galactic Federation were the Ma’lit, the Slikaath, the Wan’sho, and the Magnati.”

It paused, gauging the risk of revealing the truth to the human.

“The Magnati were your fore-elders. You are the descendants of a civilization once known as the Great Ones.”

The human was very still, his face a stone mask that revealed nothing. He nodded and whispered, “Please continue, honored elder.”

I expected more of a response, Hreth’nir thought to itself before continuing the story.

“The Magnati were like you, but half a meter taller and much stronger than the average human now. Theirs was a mighty civilization, and they were renowned across the sectors for their arts, engineering abilities, and scientific aptitude.

They were also great warriors, and their powerful warships and inherent martial abilities suited them well to the task of protecting the Galactic Federation and other weaker species from depredations by other aggressive and warlike species.”

The human raised his hand.

“Why is there no evidence of their existence on Earth? Surely there would have been some signs or traces of their presence discovered by this time.”

Hreth’nir answered while raising its hand.

“The answers to your questions will be revealed after I finish telling you the story. Shall I continue?

The human nodded, and Hreth’nir sent thoughts to the servant android to bring more drink and food.

“For two thousand years after the signing of the charter between the four founding species, we incorporated many others, and we grew in both size and prosperity as we unraveled the secrets of the universe. Art, engineering, science, and culture were our primary focus, and we pushed ever deeper into the unknown as we sought to expand our knowledge.”

The android appeared with a tray laden with food and drink, placing it on a newly emerged table that Hreth’nir thought made so that the human could be comfortable as he refreshed himself.

“Your ancestors were at the forefront of the expansion and the primary drivers of the greatness of the Federation as they made first contact with numerous species. Being the natural diplomats they were, they continually sought out new species and civilizations to learn from as they ventured ever outward into the galaxy.

They were also the primary military force that dealt with any aggressive species that tried to attack the Federation or any other peaceful species within our spheres of influence, ending any threats decisively and rapidly. The Wan’sho, a canid species, were also natural warriors. The two species enjoyed a natural affinity for each other, becoming almost inseparable in all matters, especially when defending others from aggression.”

The human raised his hand, and Hreth’nir paused to let him speak.

“Honored Elder, how many species were there in this area of space at that time?”

Hreth’nir answered him. “There were thousands of species within this quadrant alone, and of those thousands, several hundred were spacefaring but primitive, and there were hundreds more that were far more advanced than the species currently inhabiting this area of space. Now they are no more.”

The human asked another question, an incredulous expression on his face.

“So many? Did they all die from the plague?”

“Patience, human. When the Ma’lit finally discovered null space and built the null drives, the technology was rapidly disseminated among the four founding species. Your ancestors, in their zeal for more discoveries, took a small convoy and entered null space to travel to the neighboring arm of the galaxy, crossing the vast distance of empty space between them.

They returned two solar months later with only eight out of the twelve ships they left with and told of their encounter with a violent species that attacked them without provocation. The area of space they entered was devoid of any sapient life, though they came across many worlds that had evidence of advanced civilizations.”

Hreth’nir paused to see if the human had any questions before continuing.

“After days of scouting, they finally came across a massive debris field within a solar system, and the AIs confirmed that the mass of the wreckage and the scorched debris indicated that this was the result of a massive battle involving tens of thousands of ships.

The fourth world was once habitable, and the ruins of an advanced civilization were on the surface. The scans they took showed evidence of planet-wide antimatter bombardment by thousands of bombs. It was in this system that they encountered the Balrikans.”

Hreth’nir paused again. “Any questions, human? Or shall I continue?”

He answered. “Please continue, honored elder.”

“They sent down a small team to the planet to collect samples, and they inadvertently triggered a detection drone that was left there. The drone fired on them, and they returned fire, destroying it. A short time later, they finally returned to the convoy and began preparations to depart the system when they detected a few dozen superluminal objects entering the system.

Seeing that it would take just over thirty solar minutes for the objects to reach them, the convoy began charging their null space capacitors and sent numerous messages broadcasting peaceful intentions and the first contact protocol that were used when encountering new species.”

“Was there a response?” the human asked.

“Not until they dropped out of FTL drive right on top of the convoy. Their response was weapons fire from over forty ships that quickly destroyed two unshielded science vessels. The rest of the convoy tried to flash into null space, but the emergence from FTL by the Balrikan warships flooded the area with a type of radiation that prevented them from making the transition.

They were forced to flee on sub-light engines while the two Magnati warships in the convoy stayed behind to engage the attackers.”

The human put up his hand. “How did the radiation prevent transit to null space? Is this still an issue today?”

Hreth’nir answered. “You must understand that the null drives were a new technology, and we did not fully understand null space itself back then. Do not worry; the null drives we seeded do not have this weakness, and only we currently have the technology to inhibit null drives.”

The human nodded, relief evident on his face. “Please continue, honored elder.”

“The two Magnati warships engaged the attackers, and the rest of the convoy fled towards the outer system on sub-light drives, where they were finally able to make the transition to null space. The last thing they saw before flashing out was the sole remaining Magnati warship continuing to fight the last twelve Balrikan warships.

The surviving ships of the convoy made the long journey back home and told us of what happened. We were alarmed and saddened by the lives lost, and the Federation restricted travel to that region of space to prevent any other incidents. Scans taken by our ships indicated that the attackers were using a type of FTL drive that puts out a rare type of radiation, and we adjusted our null drives to compensate.”

“Was there any concern of the attackers figuring out where the Federation ships came from and attacking you here?" The human asked.

“No further thought was given to the incident since it would have taken almost two hundred cycles for the Balrikan ships to travel the vast distance between the arms, and the Magnati warships had systems in place to scuttle their ships to prevent technology from falling into the wrong hands.

Sixty-one years later, a science ship detected a stellar anomaly on the fringes of known space, and it was sent to investigate. The ship’s bridge log drone returned to Federation space a week later, badly damaged. The sensor readings of the science ship confirmed that the anomaly was a fleet of almost eighty thousand Balrikan ships.”

The human’s mouth opened and closed several times, his eyes wide with shock at what he was just told. “Eighty thou—that, that’s not possible!” He exclaimed.

Hreth’nir continued. “I assure you that it is human. They were in that trinary star system for at least a few cycles prior to detection, as they had built an incredible amount of infrastructure. They had almost a dozen shipyards, fuel refineries in the atmosphere of the seven gas giants, and a massive ore extraction network mining the asteroid belts and the planets for resources.

We only discovered them because they accidentally exited null space within the corona sphere of the red giant, and the massive flare that resulted was detected by the science ship’s astronomical survey system. The control AI deemed it enough of an anomaly to bring it to our attention.”

“Null drive? I thought you told me that they used FTL drives.” The human interjected.

“So did we. They must have somehow managed to capture the last Magnati ship, or they were able to reverse engineer the drive from the wreckage of the convoy ships they destroyed. Regardless, they managed to cross the empty space between the arms, and there was no question of their intentions.

That many ships and the type of infrastructure they built in the trinary system made it readily apparent that they were establishing a base from which to launch their invasion.”

“What did the Federation do?” asked the human after a long moment of silence while he absorbed the information.

“Despite their obvious intentions, the Federation was committed to trying to open diplomatic channels and prevent a war with the invaders. A fleet of warships, along with a convoy of official diplomatic vessels, was hastily assembled and sent to the trinary system. They exited null space one light year away and sent a vanguard force of stealth ships to the outskirts of the systems.

There, the stealth ships sent messages and enacted first contact protocols to open a line of communication and forestall a war. The signals were transmitted by multiple spy drones that sent the signals from different locations to prevent the Balrikans from being able to triangulate the true source of the communication attempts.”

Pausing momentarily to see if the human had any questions, Hreth'nir continued.

“The invaders reacted to the signals by sending thousands of ships to scour the systems and try to find the source of the transmissions. After fruitlessly searching for almost a full solar day, they finally responded with their own transmission.”

“What did they say? What did they look like?” The human blurted out as he leaned closer, an intent expression on his face. He raised his hand after asking the questions. “My apologies, honored elder.”

“It is an understandable oversight, my human child. Before I continue, would you like a short break to refresh yourself and eliminate your waste?”

The human nodded before responding. “I would; thank you for thinking of my comfort. Where do I go?

Hreth’nir pointed towards the door of its quarters. “The android will escort you to the waste facilities; please follow it. I will be here waiting for you.”

“Thank you, honored elder. I will be back shortly.” The human responded before bowing his head gratefully and following the android out of the quarters.

While they were out, Hreth’nir made a small plate with some of the food the android had put on the table and inserted it into a small opening in the torso of the suit. After the opening closed, an internal hatch opened, and Hreth’nir used its real hands to take it out. It quickly ate the food before taking a few sips from the water dispenser to wash it down.

After a few minutes, the human and his android escort returned, and he resumed his seat on the sitting bench with an eager expression on his face. Hreth’nir waited for the human to stop fidgeting before resuming the story.

“The spy drones received the message and broadcasted it on several carrier waves, which was received by the vanguard stealth ships hiding in the Oort cloud. The invaders were reptilian in appearance, and their language was translated by the AIs. Would you like to see and hear it?”

The human nodded with a confused expression. Hreth’nir pointed towards a bare wall, and the human looked in that direction. The bare wall shimmered, and on it appeared an image.

The human gasped before quietly uttering, “That’s what they look like? They look like the velociraptors that inhabited my world millions of years ago, though they only had two arms, not four like these guys do.”

Hreth’nir had the AI access the databanks regarding Earth’s lifeforms, and an image came up, the AI putting the image of the velociraptor side by side with the image of the reptilian Balrikan. They did indeed look remarkably similar. Now Hreth’nir understood why the human responded the way he did.

Hreth’nir activated the recording, and the Balrikan started talking in its native language, which was primarily snarls, hisses, hooting, and guttural clicking. It was extremely difficult to listen to, and Hreth’nir could see that the human was having the same visceral response as he involuntarily flinched at the sounds the Balrikan was making.

Hreth’nir activated the translation matrix, and the terrible sounds were replaced with the emotionless voice of the AI program. Hreth’nir activated the playback, and the message started from the beginning again.

“Impure creatures, we are the Bal’Ri’Kan. We have your scent, and we will hunt you until your warm-blooded foulness has been removed from existence. Your impurity is an affront to the gods, and we will purge you from this celestial body.

We do not hear your pleas for mercy. We do not negotiate with disgusting inferiors. Your time has come to an end. All trace of your filthy presence will be expunged from the stars, for this sacred galaxy belongs to the Bal’Ri’Kan alone.”

The message repeated on a loop, just as it did 123,000 years ago. The human turned away from the wall and quietly walked back to the sitting bench, an apprehensive look on his face.

“Human, my rest period is almost upon us, and I have yet to eat my last meal. If you wish, you may return in thirteen of your hours, and I will continue to tell you of your fore-elders and the invasion.”

“As you wish, honored elder. Forgive me for the disruption.” The human replied as he got up, and Hreth’nir could see very plainly that the human did not want to leave or wait for the rest of the story. It chuckled to itself, making sure that the suit did not transmit the mirth it was feeling this time.

“There is nothing to forgive, my human child. I will see you in thirteen of your hours.”

“Good night, honored elder.” The human said as he walked towards the door. He glanced back one more time at the image of the Balrikan that was still being displayed on the far wall before he left the quarters, the door quietly sliding shut behind him.

“Good night, son of the Magnati.” Hreth’nir said sadly to the empty room before turning its suit around to bring it back to the alcove. It looked at the image of the Balrikan on the screen and pointed a suited finger as it addressed the hateful creature.

“A curse upon you and your kind, evil one. You took our greatest friends and allies away from us, and now we are less without them. The Ma’lit will not let you do the same to their progeny.”

Hreth’nir flicked a finger, and the image of the Balrikan disappeared as the wall shimmered back to a blank surface. Walking back to the alcove, Hreth’nir suddenly felt much older than the three hundred cycles it had known.

Worried thoughts flooded Hreth'nir's mind as it waited for the suit track system to finish deploying. It has been too long. They are coming soon; I can feel it.