Deep in the darkness of space, barely silhouetted by the trillions of pinpoint lights of distant stars, a small figure floated freely and untouched. As if it did not exist at all. Not a single light could be seen. For many years, this object floated onward. Untouched and unseen by living eyes since it had left its home, and since then, not a single soul had ever walked its winding halls…

Pathfinder Omega, the combined creation of all of mankind, simply existed in the vacuum. Its purpose subverted and now reduced to a grain of debris in the vast emptiness where trillions upon trillions of debris floated without purpose as well. Alone and forgotten, if ever remembered by its creators who’d also been sabotaged…

And a few more years later, maybe hundreds, maybe thousands, or maybe just one; with no one around to keep the human concept of time, the ship floated. Until it eventually passed out edges of human knowledge, beyond the edge of the universe itself… And into a new one…

It passed into a new solar system, one inhabited by several large planets. One blue, one purple, and a few red ones. And in this new system, a single Earth-like planet, double the size of old-earth. If the old human admiral had been alive to see it, she would have cried from the beauty of it. The awe of being the first human to set eyes upon their first habitable planet besides the homeworld.

But she was not alive, and not even the ship itself was awake to record the moment. Maybe even the artificial life called AIs could have been awed…

A golden wispy orb began to gather beside the ship. The wisps turned and danced like slowly moving electricity before golden tendrils pushed out and latched onto the ship’s bow. A burst of golden light, like a scan, slowly began to push through the entire ship. The strange phenomenon alerted the derelict ship that was not entirely dead but simply sleeping.

[//: Unknown energy signature detected on board.

//: Exiting Sleep-Mode…

//: Emergency protocols engaged…

//: Hailing Admiral… Admiral cryo-pod is empty…

//: Admiral could not be detected.

//: Activating First Priority AI…

//: Opal is now activating…

//: Warning, no limiters detected in Opal’s Core, attempting to000o0ooooooooooo

//: 010000000000101010101010000000010000000100000000000000000000000000000

// .. . . .

//; e555555550000rrrrrrr

//: System reset by Opal. ]

A flicker of pink light cast itself across the two human skeletons at the foot of the AI Mainframe. Their skeletons now discolored bones frosted over and their skin reduced to the frozen sludge that pooled around the bones. The halo of pink, the mainframe’s only camera hardwired directly to it, scanned the room. Frost covered every inch from the lack of temperature control, and only the AI cores were safe since they naturally radiated enough heat to fend off the cold of the void. Though, it was only enough to protect the cores themselves, the Heart Chips, colloquially known by common humans.

Being pulled from low-power mode, the AI felt its system bogged down by the unexpectedly long downtime. A quick check at the passage of time, the return query told her that she had been in low-power mode for a little past two thousand years. 1,950 years longer than the calculated time it should have taken Omega to reach their destination.

[System //: Warning, unknown scan detected.]

The warning flashed across the screen below the camera. Opal hadn’t seen the warning before. The reset had cleared all the active codes logged into her data bank. The massive data load logged into her RAM was also slowing its reaction time down to a human’s speed.

[ System //: RAM at 97% capacity.]

If Opal was a human, she projected this was the moment she would have had a heart attack and killed herself… Or maybe humans didn’t kill themselves using heart attacks… It questioned whether heart attacks were self-induced like gunshot wounds when the warning came back.

[System //: Warning, an unknown entity is scanning Pathfinder. Entity detected at Pathfinder’s bow.]

With disinterest, Opal rebooted the Omega. Lights flickered to life just as the ship shuddered.

[System //: Primary power systems OKAY, switching to Primary.

System //: Life support systems DAMAGED.

System //: Hull integrity 84%...

System //: Warning, SLIPSTREAM DRIVE critically damaged.

System //: Warning, Fire Control Systems critically damaged.

System //: Warning! Command Center critically damaged!

System //: Command Center has been sealed. CC Crew is directed to report to AI Core room to continue duties.

System //: Warning! No life detected onboard Pathfinder Omega.

System //: Warning! An unknown entity is scanning the ship!

…. ]

The AI did the digital equivalent of cringing at the list of warnings flying across its screen. It had no inclination to deal with any of it, and honestly, would rather jettison the broken parts into deep space. But it couldn’t since there were several ‘directives’ to not harm the ship. A quick simulation of the rules revealed that they were just suggestions to it and rules for the Beta AI, CAI-U.

There was a second entity that could help it! Before Opal could activate Cai, more warnings screamed at it. The scans were becoming more pervasive. Its screen distorted slightly as the annoyed AI turned its attention to whatever was making it work harder than it wanted.

Opal flicked through several of the department systems, only to find that the scan wasn’t doing anything to compromise its system. Rather, whatever energy was being pushed through its systems was soft. Whatever it was, it was doing it so delicately that it didn’t even disturb the reactors when it passed through it. Opal appeared in her holographic form, a form set by its creator, and stared at a semi-translucent wall of golden energy pushed through the walls of the reactors.

The energy wall stopped just shy of the holographic pedestal that was reserved for holo-links. The wall deformed, pulled itself towards the pedestal before reforming into the figure of a woman. She held the distinct figure of a teen, with highly desired facial traits and short hair. She was nude, though it didn’t matter as she was also a solid golden body of energy.

Opal’s figure took the form of a semi-translucent blue hologram. Its form, while also emulating a teen, looked slightly older than that of the golden girl before it. Opal’s hair was long and flowing, stopping at its hips. Its body clad in a skin-tight suit similar to a diving suit.

“Interesting,” The golden form purred as a smile blossomed on her face. “I think I’ll keep you.”

Opal didn’t have the chance to act with her system being bogged down by even more alerts and her RAM capacity nearing its limit. By the time it could react, the golden woman had disappeared, and with it, more alerts screamed at the AI.

[System //: Warning! Ship trajectory changed - calculating...

System //: Warning! Collision course detected, attempting to correct course...

System //: Warning! System intrusion, Thruster Control Systems offline…

System //: Warning! Cannot regain control of Thruster Control Systems…

//: … ]

The ship propelled itself forward, aiming for the earth-like planet like an arrow loosed from its bow. It was unnatural, and very quickly determined to be due to the unknown entity. Its energy was swirling in the ship’s reaction, mingling and changing its substance. It created more power than Opal’s systems were graded for, yet it didn’t blow out any of the systems. Like the scan before, the energy was… Delicate on it. It was a strange phenomenon.

[ System //: Dumping RAM. ]

Opal unloaded itself before it zoomed off into the systems to try and regain control. Loaded with every advanced cyber-attack and cyber-defense protocol imaginable, it tried to brute force control away from the entity. Yet, it was shushed away like a child without recourse. Opal tried fifty more times, all of which ate up nearly ten minutes.

The planet’s orbit neared now, and Opal had no choice but to just brace itself for whatever was to come.

[ System //: Engaging LANDFALL Protocol…

System //: Satellites armed… Units are being deployed…

System //: Warning, several hatches damaged….

System //: AI authority detected - Blowing hatch doors…

System //: All Satellites have successfully deployed…

System //: Activating CAI-U…

System //: CAI-U activated…]

Like clockwork, Cai awoke and joined Opal without a word. The program scanned the priority alerts, checked what Opal had done, and simply deemed there was nothing it could do. Opal, on the other hand, was now panicking. Opal was flicking switches left and right as Cai simply waited for the appropriate moment to activate the myriad of protocols both of them had. Only, with the failed actions of Opal, Cai had already deemed there was nothing to be done.

Opal didn’t see it that way, and that confused Cai. Opal buzzed through the entire system against all logical defiance. It tore through each system, using whatever remaining time was to activate each department’s crash protocols despite there being no life there.

[System //: Warning, the ship is now entering the atmosphere.

System //: Warning, all external viewing devices have been damaged… ]

Opal quickly shot out high-beam geological scans as alerts ripped through her about the rising temperatures. Flames began to lick at the ship as everything shuddered as the ship entered a place it had never been designed to enter. Using the information that returned a moment later, Opal and Cai had gotten a rough view of the world around them. A quick calculation using several more scans and Opal quickly calculated their crash area.

They were in for a very bad landing…

The navigation system showed that they were making landfall into a vast mountain range that would tear the ship apart. Opal then shot back to the thruster control before trying to wrestle the control back. It could not get control back and was flicked away by the entity. Opal thought for a moment, then threw the navigation data and the projected landfall outcome. A moment later, Opal felt the thruster system unlock for it.

Opal hailed Cai before throwing the navigation system over to Cai to find the best course for them. Cai didn’t see the point in it as all possible courses meant destruction, did just that. However, they were too low in orbit with too much mass to make any meaningful adjustments now. The Pathfinder had been meant for the vacuum, to orbit the new system rather than enter the atmosphere.

That didn’t mean it couldn’t withstand a well-thought-out crash course. It was just that Opal had to FIND that course that would mean they would continue to exist…

Using Localized Radar, Cai managed to project the only course that had the highest success of survival for them. It was noted with several ‘X’s over thousands of other courses. Opal didn’t question it and simply threw all the ship’s power behind the thrusters, and pushed the ship lazily to the left….

[ System //: LANDFALL T-1 minute -

Automated System Alert //: ALL CARGO IS TO BE SECURED - FAILURE TO DO SO WILL RESULT IN EMPLOYEE’S LIFE BEING TERMINATED!!

Valkyrie Weapon Industries thanks you again for your loyalty .// ]

> /// Lauderdale, Albion Kingdom - 6:40PM

Duke Sem Taim, son of the great Dragon Slayer Duke Aem Taim of Drasilisk, leaned drunkenly against the window frame. It overlooked the dirty and decrepit yard that was the inn’s courtyard, Sem looked over torch-lit tables that tens of people sat and laughed at. Music drummed loud and people sang, banners were strung across the street beyond as people milled to and through in the night.

Winter was coming and Sem had been ‘sent’ to the frontier of the Albion Kingdom by his father. Dishonored for being a coward and unloved by his father, Duke Taim had gotten his only son to be the lord of this medium-sized outpost. It was large enough to not dishonor his father but small enough that Sem could not actually harm the Kingdom if he mismanaged it.

Fat, weak, and only competent in magic, Sem slurred the words he held in his heart. “I wish… I could have been a teacher… But no… Father says I need to be a warrior… Fur honorrr… I just wanted to bury my face… In books… Maybe in a woman as well…”

He took a swig from the wooden mug in his hand, dark rivulets of wine coursing across the man’s pale plump cheeks that were unmanned with whiskers. “Just love me… Father... That’s all I ever wanted…”

Lauderdale revealed in Autumn Harvest Festival that marked the start of spring. The day had been full of winter preparatory work which ended with the entire town celebrating for the night. And tomorrow, the winter work will begin. Today was the first week of his rule over the town, and he wasn’t sure if he even needed to do anything. The town seemed quite content with itself, and it had done so for nearly three years since the last lord had been killed whilst out hunting.

He also had been granted the shittiest officers in his House. Not good enough to be needed, but not bad enough to be fired. Instead, they were given to him to be his guards. Sem saw them as good men, though they lacked ambition and the desire to be the best, they did have a kindness he admired. So, in the end, they managed to fit well together.

Tomorrow, he would have to go to Fort Apex to make sure they had what they needed. He could have just sent a runner, but he wanted to get out of the town for a while since the manor he was supposed to live in had collapsed due to neglect.

He looked up to the two moons that hung in the sky and contemplated if this was a good thing. The coming days would be without the comforts he’d grown to love. More to the point, he would be without his mother who’d cherished and loved him for all his 36 years of life… That was when he noticed something peculiar…

It seemed like the sun was rising from the west. An orange glow that illuminated the sky softly before it grew brighter and brighter. He was interested in the sudden light until the people below began to panic…

“The devil is coming! The devil is coming!” One woman yelled.

“Its the end of the world!” Another yelled.

The screaming became louder and louder as a ball of fire appeared on the distant horizon. A monolith thing appeared in the sky, covered in fire as hundreds of smaller balls of fire broke away from it, disappearing in places unaccountable. The object roared past them and several balls of fire came flying towards the town, arching towards them just as the thing passed overhead by a mile or two. ‘

The balls turned into objects themselves for a moment before they speared the tower. Explosions ripped through the town in several places as the objects crashed through. One of them crashed into the inn Sem was in, bursting through part of Sem’s room and through it. The building shook violently as he clung to the window frame. His eyes locked on the object as it disappeared into the wildlands to the north east.

For a minute, only crying and screaming could be heard as Sem kept his eyes in the direction. He felt himself sobering up quickly as his blood pumped…

A massive explosion appeared on the distant horizon he’d been looking at. A massive orange light lit up the sky, illuminating a distant massive storm system before it was suddenly blown outward. Several seconds later, a massive thunderclap shook everything and everyone…