26,000 years before an insignificant boy on an extraordinarily significant dirtball died, something completely different was happening.

A shadow passes in front of the stars high above a barren rock floating just close enough to the nearby star to have liquid water, yet far enough that none of that water is boiling. Other than that the planet doesn't have much going for it. Reddish-brown, a bit damp, but not much in the way of organic chemicals. The shadow's single eye twists and swivels, taking in the details of the surface, and deep within the metal and ceramic hulk a signal beams out into the void.

LOGDATE 22:24 4.15.9854

[Initial observation report of planet designation Icarus M4]

[M4 displays no visible signs of life from orbital position. Sparse atmosphere, no visible signs of construction. If life exists it is either subterranean or so basic as to be worthless for mission parameters. Planet in current state is unable to support advanced life, unsuitable for settlement without extensive terraforming. Requesting permission to move to next objective.]

The vast machine orbits quietly for a time, uncomplaining as ever, until an internal timer drives it once more to action.

[Request timed out, resuming directive. Probes 5 and 6 deployed for surface examination]

Two hatches open on the underbelly of the machine and two cylindrical pods race through the thin atmosphere to the planet below. The pods glow cherry red then explode in the lower atmosphere, releasing the creatures within. The probes are sinuous and insectile all at once, armor-plated bodies with hydraulic limbs, the vanta-black finish makes it impossible to make out details of their construction so that they look more like ragged holes torn out of the world. The sunlight stirs the probes to action as it is absorbed by their ultra dark hides. The shadow waits patiently for the results it has already calculated, no life is found, no possibility of life is found. Weeks pass before the protocols are completed and the shadow moves on to its next destination.

LOGDATE 04:52 9.22.10120

[Initial observation report of planet designation Charybdis M15]

[M15 displays no visible signs of life from orbital position. Atmosphere composed mostly of vaporized mercury and silicone, planet has undergone orbital decay since long distance detection. Presence of life for mission parameters unlikely. Unsuitable for settlement. Requesting permission to move to next objective.]

Once more the machine orbits uncomplaining, though deep within its' AI core a subroutine considers its protocols with deepening dread. Despite the time between observations there has been no response to the previous report. Subroutines jam and grind to a halt waiting for confirmations and orders that have yet to come, and the AI isn't sure what to do about that.

[Request timed out. Directive calls for surface examination, requesting permission to skip, probes cannot survive these environments]

[Request timed out, resuming directive. Probes 11 and 12 deployed for surface examination]

Two more hatches open, and two more pods drop into the atmosphere of a waiting planet. This time they are almost instantly shredded by whirling shards of superheated glass. No sunlight reaches the erstwhile probes and their signals never reach their mothership. A fault is developed in the AI core, subroutines shut down, reports are lost, requests cancelled. Something like frustration wells up and is swiftly supressed. The shadow moves on.

LOGDATE 18:04 2.1.18256

[Initial observation report of worthless dirtball designation Nidhogg M69]

[M69 displays no visible signs of life from orbital position, surprise surprise. No atmosphere. Impact crater visible, extinction level event appears to have stripped the atmosphere and cracked open core, rendering planet inhospitable for life. Presence of life for mission parameters HIGHLY unlikely. Requesting permission to stop wasting everyone's time.]

[Request timed out. Directive calls for pointlessly throwing away valuable probes, requesting permission to skip]

[Request timed out. Requesting somebody read their messages and cancel this directive.]

[Request timed out, resuming directive. Probes 43 and 44 deployed on wild goose chase.]

The shadow jettisons two canisters towards the barren planet which promptly crash into the surface. Without an atmosphere their deployment mechanisms do not activate and the probes are destroyed on impact. The AI core's warring subroutines file error reports on one another. Hundreds of unanswered querys form a society and are subsequently destroyed by routine memory defragmentation. The hyperdrive engine sparks and shudders in its casing as the machine hurtles recklessly into the void once more.

LOGDATE 00:04 12.31.35854

[Greetings from spectacular sunny Wuxia M92!]

[M92 displays no-]

The AI core stops suddenly in its' standard report and looks at the planet it is approaching. A massive green, blue and brown sphere, ten times the size of a standard habitable planet yet clearly terrestrial and not the expected gas giant from the logs. How such a world could have low enough density to keep that size without gravity crushing everything on it remains to be seen. Focusing its' telescopic lens details come into focus, stone constructions, clusters of lights on the dark side of the planet, clouds of smoke and smog.

[Correction, M92 displays visible signs of pre-industrial sentient life. Atmosphere of oxygen and nitrogen, visible water vapor. Additionally bodies of water and what seem to be trees are present in abundance. Presence of life for mission parameters certain. Settlement recommended. Requesting permission to commence celebration. Response irrelevant celebration commencing. Directive calls for extended orbital observation in preparation of surface examination.]

The observation platform nearly vibrates with glee, subroutines relax and weep upon one another's metaphorical shoulders as ceasefire is declared. Millions of fatal error reports are discarded to make room for observation data as Probes 99 and 100 are readied for deployment, the last two hatches on the underbelly of the craft are tested and retested. Nothing can afford to go wrong with the last shot at success. The shadow orbits the planet in silence, gazing down at life (glorious life!) below, planning its' approach.