Darkworld: Earth

2.17.

Major Mary Phillips slumped in her chair in the conference room. She was exhausted. A cup of coffee rested in her hand, the eighth since she’d awoken that day. She was getting an average of four hours a sleep per night since the Yonohoans had arrived, and she had lost track of the last time she’d had a real meal. She’d been subsisting on energy bars and whatever take out her aides delivered while she either spoke directly with the Yonohoans or gave presentations, either repeating the same information endlessly or providing to-the-moment updates on the situation to her superiors and others who were being read into the situation.

She had hoped that with time her responsibilities would lesson, but apparently the Yonohoans kept asking for her specifically in their communications request. They were often directed to her peers, often with her apologies that she was busy and assurances that the other contacts were her equals, but the Yonohoans expressed a willingness to wait until she was available that bordered on sadistic.

Fortunately she wasn’t giving this presentation. She just needed to be present and remain awake for it.

Eventually the room was filled, and Mary sent a signal to the Yonohoans that everyone was present. Immediately the hologram appeared of former Sergeant Diego Cruz, startling half of the attendees who weren’t used to the slow integration of the Yonohoan communication devices and practices yet.

“Hello everyone,” he said. “In case you don’t know me, I’m the NCO who first boarded the Yonohoan flagship and eventually went native. I was discharged from my commission in the field by Captain Moon, but I retain my loyalties to Earth. It’s the planet where my family lives, and my body will break before I allow it to come to harm.”

He paused a moment. “That’s a Yonohoan Oath. It’s a strong one, and the Yonohoan’s take their oaths very seriously. Especially that one. You are expected to say it about your homeworld. If you ever hear a Yonohoan make this oath about Earth, it means that they are seriously considering immigration and integration with our culture, to the point where they may forsake their previous obligations.”

“As many of you are aware, I am a sworn brother to the person you believe to be the Yonohoan leader, Eolai. This is a simplification of the actual Yonohoan social structure. Eolai’s official rank would be more equivalent to a five star general than a head of state. Their civilian government defers to him on any matter which acquires his interest, however. This is not done out of fear but out of respect for the sacrifices he makes for their people.

“He is authorized to make oaths and promises which the government is obligated to uphold for the duration of his lifetime. Which will last for quite a while. He was born almost three hundred years ago, but thanks to the use of stasis technology he is only my age, approximately twenty-eight years old. He will continue to be placed in and out of stasis for the rest of his life until he dies either a natural or violent death. In addition, with the advanced medical capabilities of the Yonohoan society, their average lifespan for their men is approximately one hundred and eighty years without the use of stasis.

“In other words, I suggest that you take his negotiations very seriously, because his oaths can continue to impact Yonohoan policy for many of our generations.”

The hologram paused for a moment, and Mary watched the man take a drink from an invisible glass or bottle of water. He continued.

“It is my opinion that Eolai is an advocate for humanity and Earth, and that attempts should be made to cultivate a relationship with him. Because of the oath that I exchanged with Eolai, he is formally obligated to personally defend Earth and its people for the duration of the lives of my immediate family on Earth. If Eolai engages in battle, you can expect the entirety of the Yonohoan military to respond in his defense.

“Eolai is also particularly important in the larger galaxy and universe due to his heritage. Many interstellar treaties were negotiated by his father or his father’s allies. These treaties do not have specified durations or end dates measured in fixed amount of time, but are rather based on the lifespan of individuals and their families. One key phrase in many treaties is ‘until the death of the Last Son of Eodar.’ Eolai was selected before birth to be Eodar’s final son. That means that when he dies, the political landscape of the entire universe will shift.

“So, yeah. He’s kind of a big deal. Does anyone have any questions at this time regarding Eolai and his role in Yonohoan society?”

“Eodar is also the name of the rogue agent who is suspected of infiltrating Earth, is it not?” one of the generals in the room inquired. “I’m curious as to the relationship between Eolai and Eodar.”

“That is a complicated subject. In order to explain it, we’ll have to cover a piece of technology that was abused in the past during the Liberation wars. Specifically what many of you have taken to call the ‘Replicator.’ It is possible, using the replicator, to create a fully functional living human with a lifetime of memories, experiences, and skills taken from an original subject whose ‘imprint’ was acquired. The use of this technology to create living humans has been illegal for thousands of years thanks to the negotiations and treaties for which the Yonohoan war hero Eodar is responsible.

“Eodar had his imprint harvested repeatedly over the duration of the long war. There are records of thousands of versions of him, taken while he was serving in many different positions. He was an infantry man, a scout, an officer, a researcher, a negotiator, a politician, a diplomat, and ultimately a peacemaker. It is presently unknown which version was printed out and sent to Earth.

“According to Yonohoan tradition, it doesn’t matter which version of Eodar is on Earth. All that matters is that he is there. Any land upon which Eodar walked is considered historic, and any land where he died is close to sacred,” Diego explained.

“That said, we believe that this is a young version of Eodar, from before he rose to prominence. He will likely not remember his many grand accomplishments and believe that he is a small cog in the war machine. He self-identified as a forward scout, implying that he is from the early stages of the war. Specifically while the human forces were ramping up and pushing back the old empire. It was common to send children onto a planet in order to integrate into their society to identify threats and abuses that were being done against the human population.”

Mary frowned and raised her hand. “I’m sorry, you said children? Eodar is a child?”

Diego looked at her and frowned. “Was that not previously available information? Yes. This Eodar was born tens of thousands of years ago, but he has only lived for twelve years.”

Diego looked away and then corrected himself. “Actually it is more accurate to say that he only believes that he has lived for twelve years. Physically he would resemble an adolescent Yonohoan. However, he might have only been printed out a few months ago. He might even be so young to believe that he is the original Eodar and that little time has passed between his birth and the present. The use of Replication technology on children was reprehensible, but it was used extensively during the Liberation Wars by all sides. Harvesting an imprint is fatal, ladies and gentlemen. It was a common practice when it was deemed necessary not to explain to the poor kids what was happening so that they wouldn’t be afraid. If he wasn’t told before they harvested him, he’s probably very confused about his place in the universe We don’t know who printed him or for what purpose. All that I’m certain of is that it wasn’t the Yonohoans.”

“What makes you certain of that?” one of the men, Mary couldn’t remember the man’s rank, inquired.

“Yonohoans would consider it sacrilege to print an Eodar. His beliefs are based upon ancient Yonohoan traditions which mean that every time he is printed by their replication technology, his soul is pulled from the afterlife and forced to return to a life of torment and the service of humanity. Although there was a lot of sorrow when the last Eodar died, there was also celebration for the fact that his soul was finally free to walk the halls of his ancestors, as he believed was the fate that awaited him,” Diego explained.

“So you believe that there is another player, as of yet identified, involved in this scandal?” the man pressed.

“Yes sir, that is what both I and Eolai believe.”

“How do you believe that you should handle Eodar once we find him?” someone else inquired.

“That is not my decision to make, Ma’am. I would recommend caution. He defeated Eolai, who is a trained combatant enhanced by Yonohoan military technology, as well as slaughtering an entire ship filled with Topokans. He’s dangerous. That is without getting into the politics of the situation,” Diego explained.

“How do you recommend that we proceed, sergeant?” Mary asked.

“With extreme caution, Ma’am. I realize that you’re not going to stop searching for Eodar. I believe that it would be best, once he’s located, to observe from a distance before making contact. I know I said that he’s a kid, but I would not recommend underestimating him because of his age.”

There was a lapse of silence, then another question was asked regarding the nature of the interstellar treaties and how that impacted Earth.

“We are not a signatory to any interstellar treaty,” someone objected. “How does that effect us?”

“In this galaxy, as is common throughout the universe at large, Earth is considered to be what is called a human Darkworld. The official definition of a Darkworld is a world inhabited by humans which due to choice or historical events has disconnected from the larger information nets that are utilized by Brightworlds. There are specific provisions and laws regarding our treatment. Now that we’re reaching out to the stars, the expectation will be that we integrate into one of the three major empires of the Milky Way.

“We can attempt to maintain our independence, but we’ll be a very small fish in a very large pond. Right now everyone is clamoring to know more about us. They want to learn about our history and culture. That will eventually change as we become more familiar and people lose interest.

“Our relationship with the Yonohoans should give us a significant advantage. They’re not as large as the empires of this galaxy, but their culture is largely independent and autonomous. I strongly recommend attempting to reach a mutual defense pact with them, ladies and gentlemen. They might be a relatively small society, but if someone declares war on them or one of their allies, half of the universe is required by treaty to go to war in their defense.

“It’s one of the main reasons why the universe is at peace.”

The discussion continued for some time. During the first break, Mary slipped into the back of the room, forgoing the use of the bathroom despite the growing need, and made a call to one of her subordinates to expand the search for the rogue agent.

‎