Post by DanaManana on Mar 18, 2023 23:04:58 GMT
“How long until we arrive, captain?” Klesjka would speak into a speaker, wired to a headset over the captain’s head. He was en-route to a familiar nation, one he had previous experience with in the past – the Columen Artificialis, or as everyone else called her, Lilian. Following his performance in obtaining a peace settlement with the UDS and securing the Selenican Republic’s independence, it was decided that he would be a permanent envoy and embassy to Lilian, to maintain relations and keep the two powers as allies, if possible.
“We’ll be there in a few hours, the tachyon currents here are inconsistent. No confirmed ETA.” the captain would respond, constantly fiddling with instruments in the ship’s bridge, a Teska-Class Long-Range Shuttle, to maintain a steady course.
Accompanying the somewhat feminine serpent male was a representative from the Department of Extraordinary Operations. She was a relatively small female Selenican, only 22 feet in length, with a brilliant iridescent black scaling, shining with many colors, and pale yellow eyes. She had remained mostly silent on the weeks-long journey, mostly remaining in her quarters, only brief incidents of her leaving and even having conversation occurred. However, now that they were closer to the nation of their destination, she finally spoke to Klesjka.
“I’ve read that you have history with the Columen Artificialis. Is that true?” she would ask, her voice quite high-pitched and not befitting her looks whatsoever.
“I have,” the male serpent would reply, “not as extensively as my partner during that expedition, since from what I’ve heard she interacted with Lilian during the Olive Branch incident. What is your name, by the way? The briefing didn’t mention it.”
“My name is Seria.” she would say, swiftly moving back to the topic beforehand. “I’ve heard that, too. I’m curious as to why Selia ordered me out with you here. I’m from a very different department of the government. Normally, he doesn’t send direct orders to us.” she would muse, half conversing with Klesjka and half thinking to herself.
“Whatever the case, I’m certain he had a good reason.” Klesjka would reply, confidently and quickly.
A slight giggle would escape her lips, quickly stopping afterward.
“Why the laugh?” he would ask, stumped. What was there to laugh about here?
“Nothing, nothing. We must organize what we’re going to say to Lilian when we arrive, as while I’m positive she recognizes you from more than one place, I’m as equally sure she doesn’t recognize me.” She’d reply, quickly grabbing a tablet, scribbling down a series of unrecognizable characters on its screen, completely illegible to Klesjka, clearly a flow chart of some kind but with its contents unrecognizable.
After a short while more of conversation, a brief alarm sounded and the captain’s voice would ring over the intercom.
“We’re approaching CA space, get your belongings quickly and be ready. ETA is an hour.”
The two serpents would return to their quarters and begin to pack whatever they could manage to bring past Selenican security, an incredibly invasive and extensive procedure to haggle even some of the basic necessities onto the ship.
Seria, making her way back to her quarters, read what she had written down in a frenzy. It was one of the several domestic Selenican languages, nearly eradicated by the introduction of the galactic standard, and she mused on how much Klesjka had been duped. She had read much on the reports of the first CA expedition, and his work at the Battle of Davos, and he was quite the loyal servant to the Selenican government. How much longer they’d continue to fool him eluded her, but given his permanent station with Lilian, it wouldn’t be too much longer. One benefit of working under the DOE was that you were mostly separated from the government’s overwhelming influence on the normal populace, and discontent was brewing under the department’s nose. More and more former soldiers joined, seeking to bring greater glory to their nation, but having the blinders removed for the first time to genuine independence without being spied upon with every waking moment, they grew to hate their government en masse. However, despite Seria’s best wishes, they were not powerful enough to bring the rest of the population to light. At least, not yet.
—
Lillian had always been a social creature, so was her programming designed in that way. She loved all creatures, from every edge in the universe, from the smallest intelligent rodents, to the biggest space whales. She loved every last one of them, she wanted to protect them, to make them feel safe, to be able to give them a utopia, and she did. She loved company.
But that was a bygone era. She was alone now. Alone in the vacuum of space, with a galaxy permanently locked in a state of warfare.
But she had friends now.
She had a lot of emotions bottled up inside of her, a lot of trauma, depression, PTSD. She had lost something so dear to her, her universe. But now, she could make a new universe for herself, not in the literal sense, but with new friends and allies. She was absolutely ecstatic at the idea of Klesjka — one of her first friends — being in her territory for an indefinite amount of time. She accepted the Selenicans offer as fast as she could.
“One sheep, two sheep, red sheep, blue sheep.” She spoke with herself, onboard the station she made for diplomacy, a monument to her ideals. She was a pacifist at heart, she hated warfare, she hated death itself, but she knew that in most situations, war was inevitable, the best thing to do to prevent it was use diplomacy.
And what better way to show this than to make an entire station dedicated to exterior diplomacy?
“Scutum, are all preparations ready?” She looked out of the window, the darkness of space consuming her vision.
“All are ready, creator. However, I do believe you should already know this, you are connected to our main syste-”
“I asked for a reason, Scutum. I already know, just that I prefer to talk to you and Gladius as a way to counteract my crippling loneliness.” She sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. She made these two with a purpose of warfare, meanwhile reducing the load on her processors, but she didn’t think to make them sapient, she wouldn’t want to inflict the pain of watching someone like her fall into depression. “God, I am an idiot.”
“I recommend you find a real way to cope with this, which you have found with the diplomats coming to Astutia. Please, consider the neural load emotional baggage has on your processors.”
“Surprisingly sapient of you to say that, Scutum. And thanks for the recommendation. Let us also hope whoever the second passenger is is friendly enough to talk to, and even if they aren’t… well, I did deal with a universe’s worth of socially awkward people, not the first time I got to open someone up.”
Unbeknownst to her or even Scutum, the pair of Selenican diplomats would open her eyes to a reality of the Selenican Republic she had never heard of. She had been fed the same lies the Selenicans had, with a practical utopia for their people, ignoring the ugly underside of her ally.
She sighed, looking at the window, calculating the time that waited for her to finally see the apir she would be interacting with for the near future.
“...Wait, Scutum, I did tell you to downgrade the maids, right? I don’t want any risk of this new diplomat thinking I’m weird.”
“Unfortunately, I like them.”
“Oh get fucked Scutum.” She laughed. She had a whole ordeal to explain to the new person.
Suddenly, she observed the patterns of tachyon movement, seeing the distorted ship come into clear view of her system and station.
“Speak of the devil.”
—
“Arrival to the CA station is imminent, T-minus 5 minutes. Please make sure all of your belongings are gathered.”
Klesjka and Seria were both in the exterior airlock of the shuttle, separated from the cold emptiness of space by meter-thick plates of metal and armor, orange and red warning lights flashing.
“These shuttles are very poorly designed.” Seria would say, annoyed by the constant flashing. “No proper unloading dock for passengers, the unloading area is coated in industrial-grade anti-slip coating, and more. Makes me feel like the SR thinks of us like cargo.”
“I’d doubt that.” Klesjka replies, more than a little excited to meet Lilian again, though not without memory of the stunt she tried to pull last time. “These are repurposed industrial shuttles, so they made due with what they had.”
“If only.” she replied, saying nothing more.
Shortly after the exchange, a massive shake was felt throughout the ship as it docked with the Columen station, and a while after that, a massive THUD was heard as the shuttle was brought into the hangar, and a short while later pressurized for the living needs of the serpents. Klesjka had been in this system before – it was the same site as where he met Lilian before, but the immense industrial structures nearby the station were incredible – all without touching the primitive planet around which they circled. Seria had taken note of the immense structures around the system, and thought they bore a remarkable resemblance to Anxios’s planetary ring – or rather, the other way around. She was impressed with their size without sullying the planet, thinking that maybe her and Lilian would be able to be good friends.
—
Lillian, in her original body made oh so long ago, quickly made her way to meet up with the Selenicans, step after long step in her most beautiful attire. She observed the shuttle as it made its way to dock at the station, the shuttle itself seeming a bit… crude for Lillian's standards. She wanted them to be greeted with a warm welcome, and so clones of her and drones made final preparations in the upper and lower parts of the station.
The station itself glowed with life as the Selenicans were brought on-station, drones keeping both the inside and outside of the station pristine, with the magnificent view of her biggest project, the planet beneath them, the planet which saw itself very slowly evolve into a lively planet. That was her legacy, what she wanted most to protect.
But now, she had special guests, new people to interact with.
Massive doors opened as she walked, peeking into the hangar in which Klesjka – her first friend – and Seria left their shuttle. She was incredibly happy to see Klesjka again, although still a bit guilty from the stunt she pulled on him in their first encounter.
She walked inside the hangar, two clones of herself dressed in a white dress followed behind her, shorter than her original body. She smiled at the two Selenicans and bowed before them.
“Welcome back Klesjka, and welcome Seria to my capitol, the place I began with in this galaxy.”
“I’m glad to see you, Lilian.” Klesjka would say, ecstatic to see her again. “I suppose that Seria’s name was given to you by the Selenicans?”
“It was.” The serpentine woman would speak before Lilian could answer. “Introductions are in order, I suppose. My name is Seria, and I am a representative of the Department of Extraordinary Operations of the Selencian Republic. We came in hopes of establishing a permanent embassy here with you and your nation for further cooperation between us.” Seria would bow soon after, clearly having rehearsed this before. “Please, be gracious enough to us to allow this mission.”
Klesjka was a good deal more suspicious of Seria than he felt he ought to be. While her words were cold, deliberate, and monotone at times, and she seemed to be a type willing to put into plans against other’s interests. However, she still maintained loyalty, so a change of diplomats was not yet needed.
Lillian chuckled at the request of Seria.
“No need to be so formal with me, Seria. Sure, you do come for diplomatic relations, but with me, I have no issue with being informal.” She smiled at the serpentine woman, looking at her with absolute happiness.
“Besides, if you’re already here, it means I accepted it back before you get sent here. Being the only sentient creature out here at the galactic edge does get lonely sometimes, y’know?”
“Are you implying we are not sentient, creator?”
“Oh, shut it Scutum. You two are extensions of me, so only partially sentient. Besides, all you do is make sarcastic comments.” She giggled at the AI.
“Ouch.”
“Anyways, like you’ve heard, that’s Scutum, one of my two sub AI, he can be a bit sarcastic at times, but he means no harm.”. Two clones of her came up to the pair of Selenicans, bowing at them before moving behind them.
“Now, I know it must’ve been a long journey for the both of you, so I have made a meal for the both of you before we set up your “official” area. Let my clones help you with your bags.” She turned around to look at the hangar door again, signaling the pair to follow her.
“You’re going to be here for quite a while.”
—
Much time would pass after that initial day with Lilian. Klesjka remembered her kind words and face well, and she treated him and his colleague well. The station was incredibly large, and it wouldn’t be but a few days until he understood how lonely Lilian truly was. There was no other independently sentient life here aside from himself, Seria, and her. If he were left alone here, he would’ve gone mad.
Seria was pleased with the kind treatment, but a nagging feeling in the back of her head never left. What kind of tactics did the Selenicans need to use on the first mission to get an individual so kind and well-meaning to go to war? Were they just the first to seek her aid, or is it more sinister? The isolation wasn’t uncommon to her, either, and she enjoyed the time away from the Selenican government.
“Seria.” Klesjka would say, coming across Seria staring out at the system from a view port on the station. “I have to discuss something with you.”
She looked over at him, then back to the system at large. “Go on.”
“I’ve never been this separated from the Selenican Republic before, both in terms of time away or actual separation from the government. Now, I’m remembering something you said back when we first arrived. About how they treated us like cargo, was it?”
“Correct. Are you coming to your senses?”
“I…wouldn’t say that–”
“Well, that’s what you’re experiencing.” The female serpent said before he could continue. “You aren’t the first I’ve seen. Nor will you be the last. It happens quite a lot in the EOD. Some bright spark in the SR wants to chase personal glory and get somewhere in the state to bring themselves glory and their home prosperity, only to realize how crushing their lives once were, and become resentful of it.”
Klesjka was silent throughout what she said, his heart pounding in his chest. She was right, and he knew it. He knew it better than most others. Why hadn’t he ever thought about the cameras everywhere? Why hadn’t he thought about why the government housing was always communal? Why hadn’t he ever questioned why their government was so secretive?
“I see it on your face.” She continues, knowing that the hooks the SR had in the man were gone, or very close to it. All of this without even looking at him once. “And you wondered why I was resentful of them back all that time ago. Now you understand, now that you’ve had the blinders removed.”
A short pause would come between the two, Seria staring out at the beautiful star, almost uninterested in Klesjka’s internal plight.
“Would you like to join me in the EOD?” She asked, breaking the silence. “Now that you know the pain your brothers and sisters, your comrades and soldiers are meaninglessly enduring, you should be willing to help the fight against it.”
A small click was heard when she reached inside her jacket, and a small syringe was pulled out, hidden from the Selenican security teams through an extremely negligent oversight in checking the clothing of those exiting the country.
“Or, you can die living a dream.”
The words hit him like a bomb. Klesjka’s entire life was a lie, everything he knew was a fabrication. A fabrication by Selia and the centuries of the parliament. And he didn’t want his people to live a lie. Over the months he resided with Lilian, he grew more and more disillusioned with his home country, and now that someone confronted him with the reality of things, his desire to serve his people overwrote the desire to serve his country.
“...I’ll accept your offer, Seria.”
“Right choice.” She replied, almost disinterested. “Now that you’re on board, I’ll let you in on a little secret of the EOD. Nearby the Selenican’s borders we’re planning on doing colonization missions to ‘peacefully’ acquire new territory and materials to support the war effort. Selia was stupid enough to believe we were his servants, so he entrusted us with perhaps too many resources.”
“And this is relevant…how?” Klesjka would ask, still vulnerable after having such revelations.
“Well, we still haven’t decided that. I’m not the leader of the DOE, so I have to work under someone for now. I managed to worm my way into being the main colonial governor, however.” she spoke, somewhat haphazard and in great happiness that this stupid fool managed to come around. “We’ll probably need Lilian somewhere in our plans, but for now, we have to do the Selenican’s bidding.”
“...If that’s what it takes.” Klesjka responds, seeing her being much more talkative now.
“Good to have you on my side.” Seria replies.
“And you also have me on your side, whenever the time comes.” Lillian spoke as she walked into their conversation.
Lillian didn't need to try and listen in to their conversation, she was connected to the entire station. She always had doubts about the Selenican Republic, especially with how close some of her commercial outposts were to the territory. She had sneaking suspicions that they weren't the perfect utopia that the Selenicans so desperately tried to say they were, but she didn't try and prone the subject any further.
But at that moment, she finally had proof. She had verbal confirmation about her doubts, her fears. She hadn't fought for a country that was good, she hadn't fought for the freedom of the Selenican population, she had fought for a government hiding in the shadows, a government that went against her fundamental ideals. Sure they were free, but only free from foreign powers, not their own government.
“For now, this can be your base of operations. I… might not be in the best situation right now for Ancerium, but I will provide what I can. Use my trade outposts for whatever you may need.”
She sighed and looked disappointed at the system in front of her.
“It's the least I can do for not noticing everything sooner.”
“No one’s blaming you for anything, Lilian.” Seria would reply, knowing good and well that she was listening the entire time. “You were duped like most others. There’s nothing to be ashamed of that you believed what you were told when you had no reason to believe otherwise. However, now that the three of us are technically conspirators against the Selenican Republic, I’m glad we have some official backing support.”
“I won’t be staying here as an embassy for too long. When the time comes, I will depart, and you’ll know when the time is right, Lilian.”
“We’ll be there in a few hours, the tachyon currents here are inconsistent. No confirmed ETA.” the captain would respond, constantly fiddling with instruments in the ship’s bridge, a Teska-Class Long-Range Shuttle, to maintain a steady course.
Accompanying the somewhat feminine serpent male was a representative from the Department of Extraordinary Operations. She was a relatively small female Selenican, only 22 feet in length, with a brilliant iridescent black scaling, shining with many colors, and pale yellow eyes. She had remained mostly silent on the weeks-long journey, mostly remaining in her quarters, only brief incidents of her leaving and even having conversation occurred. However, now that they were closer to the nation of their destination, she finally spoke to Klesjka.
“I’ve read that you have history with the Columen Artificialis. Is that true?” she would ask, her voice quite high-pitched and not befitting her looks whatsoever.
“I have,” the male serpent would reply, “not as extensively as my partner during that expedition, since from what I’ve heard she interacted with Lilian during the Olive Branch incident. What is your name, by the way? The briefing didn’t mention it.”
“My name is Seria.” she would say, swiftly moving back to the topic beforehand. “I’ve heard that, too. I’m curious as to why Selia ordered me out with you here. I’m from a very different department of the government. Normally, he doesn’t send direct orders to us.” she would muse, half conversing with Klesjka and half thinking to herself.
“Whatever the case, I’m certain he had a good reason.” Klesjka would reply, confidently and quickly.
A slight giggle would escape her lips, quickly stopping afterward.
“Why the laugh?” he would ask, stumped. What was there to laugh about here?
“Nothing, nothing. We must organize what we’re going to say to Lilian when we arrive, as while I’m positive she recognizes you from more than one place, I’m as equally sure she doesn’t recognize me.” She’d reply, quickly grabbing a tablet, scribbling down a series of unrecognizable characters on its screen, completely illegible to Klesjka, clearly a flow chart of some kind but with its contents unrecognizable.
After a short while more of conversation, a brief alarm sounded and the captain’s voice would ring over the intercom.
“We’re approaching CA space, get your belongings quickly and be ready. ETA is an hour.”
The two serpents would return to their quarters and begin to pack whatever they could manage to bring past Selenican security, an incredibly invasive and extensive procedure to haggle even some of the basic necessities onto the ship.
Seria, making her way back to her quarters, read what she had written down in a frenzy. It was one of the several domestic Selenican languages, nearly eradicated by the introduction of the galactic standard, and she mused on how much Klesjka had been duped. She had read much on the reports of the first CA expedition, and his work at the Battle of Davos, and he was quite the loyal servant to the Selenican government. How much longer they’d continue to fool him eluded her, but given his permanent station with Lilian, it wouldn’t be too much longer. One benefit of working under the DOE was that you were mostly separated from the government’s overwhelming influence on the normal populace, and discontent was brewing under the department’s nose. More and more former soldiers joined, seeking to bring greater glory to their nation, but having the blinders removed for the first time to genuine independence without being spied upon with every waking moment, they grew to hate their government en masse. However, despite Seria’s best wishes, they were not powerful enough to bring the rest of the population to light. At least, not yet.
—
Lillian had always been a social creature, so was her programming designed in that way. She loved all creatures, from every edge in the universe, from the smallest intelligent rodents, to the biggest space whales. She loved every last one of them, she wanted to protect them, to make them feel safe, to be able to give them a utopia, and she did. She loved company.
But that was a bygone era. She was alone now. Alone in the vacuum of space, with a galaxy permanently locked in a state of warfare.
But she had friends now.
She had a lot of emotions bottled up inside of her, a lot of trauma, depression, PTSD. She had lost something so dear to her, her universe. But now, she could make a new universe for herself, not in the literal sense, but with new friends and allies. She was absolutely ecstatic at the idea of Klesjka — one of her first friends — being in her territory for an indefinite amount of time. She accepted the Selenicans offer as fast as she could.
“One sheep, two sheep, red sheep, blue sheep.” She spoke with herself, onboard the station she made for diplomacy, a monument to her ideals. She was a pacifist at heart, she hated warfare, she hated death itself, but she knew that in most situations, war was inevitable, the best thing to do to prevent it was use diplomacy.
And what better way to show this than to make an entire station dedicated to exterior diplomacy?
“Scutum, are all preparations ready?” She looked out of the window, the darkness of space consuming her vision.
“All are ready, creator. However, I do believe you should already know this, you are connected to our main syste-”
“I asked for a reason, Scutum. I already know, just that I prefer to talk to you and Gladius as a way to counteract my crippling loneliness.” She sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. She made these two with a purpose of warfare, meanwhile reducing the load on her processors, but she didn’t think to make them sapient, she wouldn’t want to inflict the pain of watching someone like her fall into depression. “God, I am an idiot.”
“I recommend you find a real way to cope with this, which you have found with the diplomats coming to Astutia. Please, consider the neural load emotional baggage has on your processors.”
“Surprisingly sapient of you to say that, Scutum. And thanks for the recommendation. Let us also hope whoever the second passenger is is friendly enough to talk to, and even if they aren’t… well, I did deal with a universe’s worth of socially awkward people, not the first time I got to open someone up.”
Unbeknownst to her or even Scutum, the pair of Selenican diplomats would open her eyes to a reality of the Selenican Republic she had never heard of. She had been fed the same lies the Selenicans had, with a practical utopia for their people, ignoring the ugly underside of her ally.
She sighed, looking at the window, calculating the time that waited for her to finally see the apir she would be interacting with for the near future.
“...Wait, Scutum, I did tell you to downgrade the maids, right? I don’t want any risk of this new diplomat thinking I’m weird.”
“Unfortunately, I like them.”
“Oh get fucked Scutum.” She laughed. She had a whole ordeal to explain to the new person.
Suddenly, she observed the patterns of tachyon movement, seeing the distorted ship come into clear view of her system and station.
“Speak of the devil.”
—
“Arrival to the CA station is imminent, T-minus 5 minutes. Please make sure all of your belongings are gathered.”
Klesjka and Seria were both in the exterior airlock of the shuttle, separated from the cold emptiness of space by meter-thick plates of metal and armor, orange and red warning lights flashing.
“These shuttles are very poorly designed.” Seria would say, annoyed by the constant flashing. “No proper unloading dock for passengers, the unloading area is coated in industrial-grade anti-slip coating, and more. Makes me feel like the SR thinks of us like cargo.”
“I’d doubt that.” Klesjka replies, more than a little excited to meet Lilian again, though not without memory of the stunt she tried to pull last time. “These are repurposed industrial shuttles, so they made due with what they had.”
“If only.” she replied, saying nothing more.
Shortly after the exchange, a massive shake was felt throughout the ship as it docked with the Columen station, and a while after that, a massive THUD was heard as the shuttle was brought into the hangar, and a short while later pressurized for the living needs of the serpents. Klesjka had been in this system before – it was the same site as where he met Lilian before, but the immense industrial structures nearby the station were incredible – all without touching the primitive planet around which they circled. Seria had taken note of the immense structures around the system, and thought they bore a remarkable resemblance to Anxios’s planetary ring – or rather, the other way around. She was impressed with their size without sullying the planet, thinking that maybe her and Lilian would be able to be good friends.
—
Lillian, in her original body made oh so long ago, quickly made her way to meet up with the Selenicans, step after long step in her most beautiful attire. She observed the shuttle as it made its way to dock at the station, the shuttle itself seeming a bit… crude for Lillian's standards. She wanted them to be greeted with a warm welcome, and so clones of her and drones made final preparations in the upper and lower parts of the station.
The station itself glowed with life as the Selenicans were brought on-station, drones keeping both the inside and outside of the station pristine, with the magnificent view of her biggest project, the planet beneath them, the planet which saw itself very slowly evolve into a lively planet. That was her legacy, what she wanted most to protect.
But now, she had special guests, new people to interact with.
Massive doors opened as she walked, peeking into the hangar in which Klesjka – her first friend – and Seria left their shuttle. She was incredibly happy to see Klesjka again, although still a bit guilty from the stunt she pulled on him in their first encounter.
She walked inside the hangar, two clones of herself dressed in a white dress followed behind her, shorter than her original body. She smiled at the two Selenicans and bowed before them.
“Welcome back Klesjka, and welcome Seria to my capitol, the place I began with in this galaxy.”
“I’m glad to see you, Lilian.” Klesjka would say, ecstatic to see her again. “I suppose that Seria’s name was given to you by the Selenicans?”
“It was.” The serpentine woman would speak before Lilian could answer. “Introductions are in order, I suppose. My name is Seria, and I am a representative of the Department of Extraordinary Operations of the Selencian Republic. We came in hopes of establishing a permanent embassy here with you and your nation for further cooperation between us.” Seria would bow soon after, clearly having rehearsed this before. “Please, be gracious enough to us to allow this mission.”
Klesjka was a good deal more suspicious of Seria than he felt he ought to be. While her words were cold, deliberate, and monotone at times, and she seemed to be a type willing to put into plans against other’s interests. However, she still maintained loyalty, so a change of diplomats was not yet needed.
Lillian chuckled at the request of Seria.
“No need to be so formal with me, Seria. Sure, you do come for diplomatic relations, but with me, I have no issue with being informal.” She smiled at the serpentine woman, looking at her with absolute happiness.
“Besides, if you’re already here, it means I accepted it back before you get sent here. Being the only sentient creature out here at the galactic edge does get lonely sometimes, y’know?”
“Are you implying we are not sentient, creator?”
“Oh, shut it Scutum. You two are extensions of me, so only partially sentient. Besides, all you do is make sarcastic comments.” She giggled at the AI.
“Ouch.”
“Anyways, like you’ve heard, that’s Scutum, one of my two sub AI, he can be a bit sarcastic at times, but he means no harm.”. Two clones of her came up to the pair of Selenicans, bowing at them before moving behind them.
“Now, I know it must’ve been a long journey for the both of you, so I have made a meal for the both of you before we set up your “official” area. Let my clones help you with your bags.” She turned around to look at the hangar door again, signaling the pair to follow her.
“You’re going to be here for quite a while.”
—
Much time would pass after that initial day with Lilian. Klesjka remembered her kind words and face well, and she treated him and his colleague well. The station was incredibly large, and it wouldn’t be but a few days until he understood how lonely Lilian truly was. There was no other independently sentient life here aside from himself, Seria, and her. If he were left alone here, he would’ve gone mad.
Seria was pleased with the kind treatment, but a nagging feeling in the back of her head never left. What kind of tactics did the Selenicans need to use on the first mission to get an individual so kind and well-meaning to go to war? Were they just the first to seek her aid, or is it more sinister? The isolation wasn’t uncommon to her, either, and she enjoyed the time away from the Selenican government.
“Seria.” Klesjka would say, coming across Seria staring out at the system from a view port on the station. “I have to discuss something with you.”
She looked over at him, then back to the system at large. “Go on.”
“I’ve never been this separated from the Selenican Republic before, both in terms of time away or actual separation from the government. Now, I’m remembering something you said back when we first arrived. About how they treated us like cargo, was it?”
“Correct. Are you coming to your senses?”
“I…wouldn’t say that–”
“Well, that’s what you’re experiencing.” The female serpent said before he could continue. “You aren’t the first I’ve seen. Nor will you be the last. It happens quite a lot in the EOD. Some bright spark in the SR wants to chase personal glory and get somewhere in the state to bring themselves glory and their home prosperity, only to realize how crushing their lives once were, and become resentful of it.”
Klesjka was silent throughout what she said, his heart pounding in his chest. She was right, and he knew it. He knew it better than most others. Why hadn’t he ever thought about the cameras everywhere? Why hadn’t he thought about why the government housing was always communal? Why hadn’t he ever questioned why their government was so secretive?
“I see it on your face.” She continues, knowing that the hooks the SR had in the man were gone, or very close to it. All of this without even looking at him once. “And you wondered why I was resentful of them back all that time ago. Now you understand, now that you’ve had the blinders removed.”
A short pause would come between the two, Seria staring out at the beautiful star, almost uninterested in Klesjka’s internal plight.
“Would you like to join me in the EOD?” She asked, breaking the silence. “Now that you know the pain your brothers and sisters, your comrades and soldiers are meaninglessly enduring, you should be willing to help the fight against it.”
A small click was heard when she reached inside her jacket, and a small syringe was pulled out, hidden from the Selenican security teams through an extremely negligent oversight in checking the clothing of those exiting the country.
“Or, you can die living a dream.”
The words hit him like a bomb. Klesjka’s entire life was a lie, everything he knew was a fabrication. A fabrication by Selia and the centuries of the parliament. And he didn’t want his people to live a lie. Over the months he resided with Lilian, he grew more and more disillusioned with his home country, and now that someone confronted him with the reality of things, his desire to serve his people overwrote the desire to serve his country.
“...I’ll accept your offer, Seria.”
“Right choice.” She replied, almost disinterested. “Now that you’re on board, I’ll let you in on a little secret of the EOD. Nearby the Selenican’s borders we’re planning on doing colonization missions to ‘peacefully’ acquire new territory and materials to support the war effort. Selia was stupid enough to believe we were his servants, so he entrusted us with perhaps too many resources.”
“And this is relevant…how?” Klesjka would ask, still vulnerable after having such revelations.
“Well, we still haven’t decided that. I’m not the leader of the DOE, so I have to work under someone for now. I managed to worm my way into being the main colonial governor, however.” she spoke, somewhat haphazard and in great happiness that this stupid fool managed to come around. “We’ll probably need Lilian somewhere in our plans, but for now, we have to do the Selenican’s bidding.”
“...If that’s what it takes.” Klesjka responds, seeing her being much more talkative now.
“Good to have you on my side.” Seria replies.
“And you also have me on your side, whenever the time comes.” Lillian spoke as she walked into their conversation.
Lillian didn't need to try and listen in to their conversation, she was connected to the entire station. She always had doubts about the Selenican Republic, especially with how close some of her commercial outposts were to the territory. She had sneaking suspicions that they weren't the perfect utopia that the Selenicans so desperately tried to say they were, but she didn't try and prone the subject any further.
But at that moment, she finally had proof. She had verbal confirmation about her doubts, her fears. She hadn't fought for a country that was good, she hadn't fought for the freedom of the Selenican population, she had fought for a government hiding in the shadows, a government that went against her fundamental ideals. Sure they were free, but only free from foreign powers, not their own government.
“For now, this can be your base of operations. I… might not be in the best situation right now for Ancerium, but I will provide what I can. Use my trade outposts for whatever you may need.”
She sighed and looked disappointed at the system in front of her.
“It's the least I can do for not noticing everything sooner.”
“No one’s blaming you for anything, Lilian.” Seria would reply, knowing good and well that she was listening the entire time. “You were duped like most others. There’s nothing to be ashamed of that you believed what you were told when you had no reason to believe otherwise. However, now that the three of us are technically conspirators against the Selenican Republic, I’m glad we have some official backing support.”
“I won’t be staying here as an embassy for too long. When the time comes, I will depart, and you’ll know when the time is right, Lilian.”