Earth six months past

A vicious grin opened on the face of its avatar. Leternum had taken the bait. All those social functions, preening and acting more arrogantly than Earth's status would dictate. It was bound to get a response. Couldn’t have happened to nicer cosmos either.

Earth watched the red wave cross the Grand Expanse. It’s power was not wielded quite right just like the gladiator arena something about the cosmos’s actions was off.

Being raided was always an exciting event. After putting so much time and effort to grow and develop life having it stripped away was an offense tantamount to forced servitude. Always, Earth and any other lesser planet being raided could rely on two things. One they could hide away some of their work. Beyond the hands of those who would raid. Two the raider's would temper their theft to be the lesser threat that the Arbiters. This always took the stakes off the event. Often raids became a civil tax like affair.

Not so for this plan, this time Earth would subvert the natural order. The weak would prey on the strong. Hiding any fluctuations in energy to avoid giving away the ruse was all Earth could manage. But it’s all that was needed.

Leternum’s energy arrived past the moon and finally abducting its first target. A whale contemptuously drawn across the expanse. Not very valuable just a spiteful theft. Not good enough. Stirring power Earth lashed back out, the smaller well of power fought back. Leternum’s power hardly slowed at all. A ship bobbing about in the ocean, a cargo tanker in its shipping lane. Complex technology, chemistry, history, culture, and even the crew ripped from Earths cosmos and into a rift of the Great Expanse. Yes!

Raiding energy swatted aside Earths efforts to fight back with a sick and twisted joy. That was alright though. Reaching inside Earth willed an intercomos intelectus to existence.

“Arbiter I call on you to mediate a raid.” Earth messaged the Great Beyond.

The Great Beyond answered.

Powerful weight pressed down on Leternum’s raid. The red energy stalled. Earth was happy.

“What do you think you are doing?” Leternum’s gravely voice echoed oddly. Despite the distortion rage was loud and clear.

“Only what is withing my rights under the law.” Earth replied.

“Law.” Leternum scoffed. “Power is the law. And I-”

Arriving the Arbiter's pressure magnified choking off any further reply.

“Hello children.” Only Arbiters could get away with calling ancient cosmos children. “As called, I am here to oversee the raid between cosmos Leternum and cosmos Earth. As the challenged party what method of conflict would you like this conflict resolved by?”

Challenged parties could dictate terms within some limit letting a specializing cosmos defend itself. Usually that ended when one raider would sell information off to a powerful cosmos that held the same specialty.

“No contest.” Earth’s avatar let slip a sly grin.

“No contest.” The Arbiter looked over the raided damage. “Leternum knows to keep damage withing acceptable amounts and seems to have keep to the limits. I don’t understand what you want from me. Arbiters sanction civil raiding. We do not sanction false alarms.”

“My concern is not for my own well being Great One. Rather my concern is that the totality of existence is being squandered. Just now Leternum destroyed great worth and potential rather than integrating it into its own planet.” Earth accused.

“Very good.” The Arbiter smiled. Reality warped. The principle was something that Earth had only recently gained a feel for. Causality broke as the Arbiter tied a new chain into the rule of reality. Leternum’s red wave drew backwards. The ship and its cargo reassembled from the energy it had been broken down into a moment before.

Casually re-breaking causality the Arbiter restitched time. “I see. Indeed Leternum was doing the least integration of raw material transfer. Leternum your efforts won’t even cover the cost of coming on this raid. What do have to say to defend yourself?”

“I had no idea Earth had so little wealth. Nothing here worth mentioning. Even the humans, clearly Earths best effort, are weak compared to my own. You understand I would gladly integrate anything that would bring me strength. These things just don’t have anything to bring to the table.” Leternum’s avatar glared daggers at Earth’s.

“Raiding to keep other cosoms from advancing is forbidden. All must be allowed to add the strength of our CONTINUUM. This mark will go against your record.” Turning back to Earth. “Leternum still has the right to raid and now you may not hide anything from inspection. Do you have any reasonable requests?”

Victory! Not all was assured when calling a Great One. “Only that the humans be taken according to their ability to survive and invested in as Leternum would its own.”

“It will be so.” The Arbiter spoke. A great moving body of bureaucracy followed laying demands and hemming Leternum in on all sides. This victory would come at a price though. Earths veil fell and every adult man and woman of sound mind and body was stripped from the surface and the deep. Even astronauts deep in the cosmos were taken away. Billions of lives were taken from Earth’s surface. Many to die in the transition. Even more in the harsh world of a greater cosmos. No felling of remorse was found within Earth's existence. Some would make it. All Earth needed was a foothold. From here it was a matter of time. Cosmos were excellent at waiting time away.

More plans came into motion though. The wait would not be an idle one. As soon as the raid ended and the eyes left Earths space, Earth moved. A well of power that was Earth itself opened up and bled into those who remained. Children and the once crippled offered a system of power.

Live my children! Be a poison to the heart of the strong. Dig out of the stomach of the strong and feed on its greed.