Psycher Chronicles

Interlude IX

Bakshee Developmental Observation Station T&$5*# - (TASSOH)

Ambassador Col'inte stood at the helm defeated. The orders to pack up and return to central for reassignment were within her hands. The crew, the members of the observation station that had once looked to her for guidance and hung on her every word, now acted with clear disdain towards her. Her

Col'inte's purpose here was over, the world had achieved an apex Reaper, meaning her status was no longer needed to ensure the future growth of this planet. Instead, directives would be sent directly from central to Reaper One.

She watched, as the team slowly disassembled the more intensive feeds first, these were the planetary monitoring feeds that mapped the growth and germination rate of the planet. Ones that proved the planet was well and truly beyond critical mass and could no longer turn back.

Vwooom.

With such intense scanners deactivated, the level of power being released by the observation station dropped by half. Almost instantly Col'inte saw their reserves tick up to full, ensuring enough time for travel out of the distant solar system, and that her crew could survive in cryo sleep, while she piloted the ship by herself.

That was the one thing she was not looking forward to, the monotony of being by herself. Yes, she would have full use of the ship's onboard computers, but the Bakshee prized organic life more than anything. Meaning, what interactions she did have would be related to her instructor, her dispatcher, and sadly herself as she piloted. Everything else would be allowed to sleep and reserve energy while they traveled.

With the main scanners down, the first set of workers were allowed to take their resting spots, again causing minor fluctuations in the fuel gain ratio, but minimal enough to not be a true factor.

Then all too quickly, Col'inte sat and watched her empire crumble. There were so many things she had yet to do, but in the end, she squandered them all by expecting there to be a tomorrow. Now she would go back, and while she might get a few accolades for performing well ahead of time, she would not be awarded with nearly enough time to reach all her personal benchmarks she set for herself. No increases of power, if anything she would be lucky to get a three-cycle pass that would mostly be spent trying to overcome any fatigue such a long travel would cause on her.

From there, Col'inte watched as the last few scans went offline, followed by people reaching their cryo pods. Then finally the last words she would hear for the mission, an echoing confirmation that her job and time here was over.

"Sensors retracting, heading to cryo," the lead engineer stated.

With that the final team check was assigned, and blinking twice Col'inte realized that the station was packed up and ready to go. In a way she understood this, as an observation station would not be needed at this stage of development. Protocols dictated a value of life and resources, meaning that her staying here just to fill a spot was unnecessary. The planet was conquered, and by leaving now, any signs of their involvement in the conversion of this new world would be gone. This way if people found them, it would be considered a happy accident, or prove the convergent evolution theory that the leaders were last passing around as a way of showing how every planet now had Bakshee influence.

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

From a big picture standpoint Col'inte understood why they were no longer needed here. There was nothing left for the Bakshee to do with this planet. Any future meddling would only be seen as a sign of trying to tamper with future Bakshee evolution templates, a feat that many were against. How a planet evolved after the saturation point was met was a blessing. For here, at this point, the planet could go in many different ways, and trying to alter that evolution to some perceived ideal standard was criminal in the eyes of the Bakshee. Thus, removing oneself and any perceived connection to the area was of utmost importance.

Systems clear.

Col'inte saw the final message that everyone was sealed up in their pods, all major sensors were retracted, leaving only the few required for space travel. Following protocol, she sent the notification that she was prepped and ready to travel. Entered her flight path to central.

Confirmation, clear for extraction.

Lifeless words scrolled across the consol letting her know that she was now able to leave. Taking one last long sigh, she looked down at the planet that she had seemingly only just begun to watch. A mere few thousand years of growth and development, and she was already done. Mentally she prepared herself for the research paper she would have to compose as part of her debriefing. If she was smart, part of her trip back would be focused on this task.

But first, she had to begin to get out of here.

Going through the prep-list she turned on the special repellant fields that would push away dirt and debris in the vacuum of space while traveling. Then she put up inertia dampening fields, again to divert larger pockets of dirt that might not get instantly repelled by the first layer. Then she began charging up the magnetic thrusters, ones that would grab onto magnetic fields of larger heavenly bodies, only to then burst past at greater speeds.

The real ships of the fleet didn't have to use such antiquated travel techniques, but her station was meant to make as few signatures as possible. Thus what was often termed as space sailing, that is a form of movement entirely dependent on weather, and circumstances of the area around you was to be utilized. At least for the first few hundred light years. Once they were outside this newly established area of expansion, she could convert to more traditional methods of travel. Until then, it was pure math and her talent at the helm.

Any failures, or miscalculations would be hers to bear, as she was now only wasting her own time.

Taking a deep breath, she steeled herself. Then just before she was about to begin her farewell voyage, she felt something.

Looking at the screen that depicted what was happening outside the vessel Col'inte saw it, a giant burning comet. Seeing the object hurtling through space, her blood froze as she realized it was on a direct course with the planet she had just been monitoring all this time.

Swoosh!

The object was so fast and traveled by so closely that it actually grabbed and pulled the observation station into its orbit, if only slightly. Panning the field of view to follow the burning object, she watched as the giant form crashed into the atmosphere of the planet, only to be extinguished in a second. A plume of billowing smoke the only sign that the object had arrived at all.

For a moment, Col'inte watched, trying to see if anything else happened. But nothing. For a moment she thought about unpacking one of the scanners to get a reading, only to then shake her head in contempt as it took too long. By now nothing of importance could be gained from such a reading.

Beep.

After a moment of continued staring and nothing happening to the planet she had watched over, her alert letting her know her departure window was growing close to its end. If she waited too much longer she would need to reschedule a new flight plan, and explain why she missed the first one.

Not wanting to have to fill out more forms and explain why she was so fascinated by a meteoroid that didn't last long enough to be of any concern as a potential meteorite.

Adjusting her launch angle ever so slightly due to her lightly altered launch position, she corrected her measurements and then taking one last look, panned her field of view forward, and launched, never looking ahead to see what happened to her planet. A planet that would now be given to leaders with more accolades and prestige.

What she didn't know, what she couldn't know, was that the meteoroid that she watched was no meteoroid at all. Instead, it was a threat that she and her leadership thought had been extinguished long ago.