Post by kyleaveryx on Feb 2, 2024 15:27:48 GMT
Approaching Eliria, Elysion, The Altarian Systems Authority, The Unmar Expanse. Date is 127 Calidum, 32 EA
So, the ASA, what are they like… From what little contact the Marble Soul has had with their new neighbors, they seem interesting. Highly advanced, highly motivated, highly similar to the Marble Soul in some aspects, highly different in others. Not as religiously motivated, but equally fervent in their pursuit of personal freedoms and proud of it. The Elder Council has labeled them as friends already, but the Elder Council hardly speaks for everyone these days.
Rarux ponders these ideas as he approaches his landing point, sitting quietly in this clean, white interior of a vessel graciously provided by his hosts. It’s definitely well-maintained, but it doesn’t have much character to it… Very utilitarian. No chance of getting distracted or having your eyes drawn to anything that isn’t work-related. He and his assistants make up the most colorful things on this vessel, which is an odd feeling having come from the Marble Soul.
He has changed his form for the sake of diplomacy though, he currently stands at 7’9’’ tall, muscular, with tan skin, and opalescent eyes. His hair is black and short, and he has a pointed goatee on his chin. For the most part he looks perfectly human, with the exception of long, bone-white horns that sprout up and backwards from his forehead, curving around the back of his skull to ride just below his jawline, poking up next to his chin before coming to a point, almost like a cage his head is in. Normally his skin would be a crimson red to complete the devilish look, and he would have a tail, but those parts normally upset people, so he chooses to tone it down for diplomatic meetings.
As his vessel, which the invitation labeled a ‘star’ for some reason, touches down in its port, Rarux stands, stretches, and begins to make his way out, followed by a couple of fellow Maetant he brought with him. He doesn’t assume any harm will come to him of course, these are assistants, meant to help document the trip and any important notes touched on in the talks, to allow Rarux to focus on diplomacy.
One stands at a mere 7 feet tall, with black skin and 8 white, compound eyes scattered across her face, and another stands 7’8’’, with skin patterned like a koi fish, and long wispy whiskers above his lip. Both assistants are holding small handheld tablets, and all 3 Maetant are wearing sleek white wristbands with screens, linked to each other for the sake of subtle communication and recording should the tablets be unreliable. The koi-patterned assistant also wears a backpack full of supplies for healing rituals should the need arise, not that it’s expected.
As the small group steps down the ramp and onto the floor of the spaceport, Rarux looks around at the new world he’s entered, and takes in the sights, looking up and around at the buildings and other ships nearby, while also looking for his contact, the person he’s here to talk to.
Capital city of Eliria - Elysion - Altarian Systems Authority
Grand Velnerian-Aldrian-Doneliyan Starport
Amongst the shimmering light, the fate of two nations shun bright as the stars
Through the endless streams of light that shine bright even in the dark side of Elysion, forming elegant adorning patterns of life through dozens of orbits and within the planet as well, the Kadzelera scoutstar carrying the Marble Soul's delegates descended from the space Altarian had claimed as theirs, to the embrace of the capital's atmosphere and its surrounding beauty.
The sights promised during their stellar voyage were astounding, enormous festivals of light adorned the planet but unfortunately they were all too far away to fully gaze upon the architecture of Altarian space habitats and their mighty warstars. But the pilot and crew of the scoutstar, who had been trying their absolute best to give the best service possible to their guests, would make sure that mistake won't be repeated once they land.
The only complains that the Altarian crew could not do much about was the slightly small seats for someone like Rarux and his companions, noticing that the Altarian crewmembers tried their best to distract them from thinking too much about the minor lack of comfort. During their free time in the voyage, Rarux could see that the crew made each other company, throwing pranks at each other and making sure no one was bored during the trip. Perhaps to him and his companions, it would be amusing, to see these human-like aliens so excited, and far smaller than they were, standing anywhere from 5'10 to 6'2.
-"Altarian ladies, gentlement, AIs, and our most esteemed Maetant guests from the Marble Soul, welcome, to the capital city of Eliria!" -A voice from the radio exclaimed as the scoutstar finally began to slow down from its rapid descent from orbit into the atmosphere, the endless black color of space being replaced by a cyan both in the air and in the ground, as the scoutstar arrived to the starport across the ocean.
And just as it seemed like the rest of the trip would not be any more eventful than before, the scoutstar did a sharp turn to the left, not even the crew being alerted of this maneuever as they all held on to anything they had close to try and not fall to the ground, while the captain of the ship simply kept flying.
And it soon became apparent why. Heading into another runway, this time the windows available to the Maetants, Rarux included, were pointing straight at the capital, and with the city within their sight, there was no doubt in their minds on why the Altarians spoke so positively of this city. An awe-inspiring, harmonious mixture of azure, white, and green shun across the windows of the scoutstar striking into the eyes of the Maetant with the imposing, sophisticated, graceful skyscrapers of the city blending in with the nature that was welcomed into the streets of the city. Throughout the skies and the seas massive cruise ships, guided missile cruiesrs, and the fastest and biggest planes the Altarian Systems Authority filled the once empty landscape surrounding the Altarian homes with huge activity and life in every corner.
Upon landing, the starport was no different. From the size alone one could mistake the entire facility for a city itself, as the Maetant were warmly welcomed and guided through the starport using helicopters and maglevs that were far more elegant, brilliant, and polished than the scoutstar they had arrived on. Machines moved their equipment as it became apparent to Rarux by the words of the Altarians that every process in this arrival was automated, Altarians guided, and machines executed their every command.
The pilot of the scoutstar led the Marble Soul's delegation across the starport, before reaching a checkpoint with very formal officials present, accompanied by machines much larger than them standing at 2.5 meters in height.
-"3rd rank Dawnseeker Beskelta Fliori Nea Zania reporting!" -She joyfully reported to the guards who surprisingly welcomed her arrival with a warm hug before they let her speak again. -"Riiight here I have my declaration of diplomatic conduct, and my tickets for Elysean and Elirian access."
-Everything seems to be in check, are our guests expecting Ziria, or Thelia? -One of the guards asked.
-"Ziria! I have yet to be called to confirm the final meeting hour, but until then I have been allowed to give our guests a place to stay."
-"Then what are we waiting for? Come on Beskelta, people are even expecting you here, don't think you've gone under the radar this time!"
Despite the initial formal looks of the meeting, Beskelta's demeanor and the response from the guards showed an unexpected behavior from the guards. Had they known each other before? Or were people here always this casual and friendly? Whatever the case may be, all the answers to the Maetant's questions would be found throughout their journey, starting now, as it became clear that Beskelta was a respected figure, and now they could finally get a proper, more calm look at her as they all entered the large transport vehicles. The dawnseeker that had so rapidly arrived and built a bridge for the Altarian Systems Authority in the marble soul had a very cheerful attitude merging well with her spirited looks. Always happy, an attitude shining as bright as her emerald colored shining eyes and silver hair falling into a messy set of coats, backpacks, and belts holding all her utilities she had so eagerly showed during her journey. If all Altarians were as happy as Beskelta to meet aliens and engage on friendly, casual meetings with them, then the Maetant could more easily look forward to their stay with hope, and excitement.
Well these Altarians sure do know how to put on a show! Of course Rarux knows that such a display is indicative of the ASA putting its best foot forward, and that not every city could possibly be this utopian. That doesn’t stop his assistants from gawking at how every single building seems to be a monument to the art of architecture. It all looks very… clean.
That combined with the ship crew’s prior subtle efforts to distract him from even the most minor discomfort is interesting to say the least. He understands the desire to have such an important visitation go perfectly, but given his position he’s taking note of everything. Including the fact that the announcement of their arrival included AI? Ladies, gentlemen, AIs, and the Maetant. Even so early into the trip Rarux is dissecting every word and extrapolating possible conclusions as he goes.
Even after getting off the ‘star’, Rarux and his assistants still feel shuttled around. Guided from one method of transportation to another, everything so perfectly pretty. The orange and white assistant takes special care to ensure that no one takes his backpack from him in a moment of too-well-intentioned hospitality. Besides that, the simple trip from space-faring vessel to security checkpoint is overwhelmingly beautiful and well-put-on.
The trio of aliens relax slightly as they walk through the checkpoint behind their guide, relieved to not be questioned at this time. The 3 Maetant file into their transport along with Beskelta, the two assistants happy to sit down to take down notes, and Rarux glad to have some more relaxed time for conversation with this seemingly important woman, even though the ceiling of the vehicle may be a bit too close for comfort.
So while the two assistants write down their experiences so far, Rarux turns to their guide, and leans forwards, his elbows on his knees, as he takes in her appearance once again before speaking in Oratin, having been assured of the availability of translators for this excursion.
“Seems you all run a fairly tight ship here, I’m impressed so far. I had seen nothing but glowing reviews in preparation for this journey, but this outpaces every piece of praise I’ve heard. I’d like to ask you directly though, before I see anything else that’s been prepared for me. What’s the catch? There always is one with a place as beautiful as this.”
He asks this question with a sort of jovial affection, as if he could be joking as a way to compliment the city by saying it’s so nice there must be some dark underbelly making it this way. The way he leans forward in his chair though says that this isn’t a joke, and that he’s asked the question before, to mixed answers. His form isn’t one designed to intimidate, but it is one that has a powerful presence to it. It gives off feelings of authority as he stands above those around him, every aspect of his appearance perfectly self-tailored to exude confidence and charisma.
As Beskelta gives her response, the horned Maetant simply sits and nods along to it, never interrupting or disrupting her words. He listens thoughtfully and carefully throughout the journey to whatever the guide would care to tell him in fact, hoping that whatever she says ‘the catch’ is will branch off into a conversation about wider topics hopefully containing new information. He contemplates her response until the transport finally arrives at its destination, the city center. One of the assistants, the smaller, spider-eyed one, does pipe up during the following silence, with a question of her own.
“If I may ask… Why do you call them stars instead of ships?"
The catch. What was the catch about Eliria? Beskelta pondered, her remarkably over-the-top body language accompanying even the smallest of thoughts that crossed her head without saying a single word, yet conveying more than what entire books could tell, as it became very clear that Beskelta was simply way too excited to be on Eliria again. Right here was everything she treasured, everything she looked forward to visit and everyone she wished to talk to after several months exploring through the stars of the galaxy, of all her fond memories of the city and the people she believed herself to be so lucky to have met in there, among them and many others, she could not recall a single bad thing about Eliria in any way whatsoever. So, among trillions of stars, each with their own wars, conflict, dreams, and promises of peace, prosperity, and utopias, what was the catch?
-"We actually de-li-ver!~" -She so joyfully chants before directing her attention to the city itself, growing bigger and bigger around them as the cars that were carrying Beskelta and the Maetant drew closer to it, as at first, what surrounded them were nothing but tremendous expanses of lush green fields with a few houses spread across the horizon, where the first mountains could finally be seen, and among them was the sudden appereance of something far more imposing than the first buildings of Eliria witnessed.
The mountains in the distance, so strangely uniform at first sight, would rapidly reveal that they were not only natural formations, as unspeakably colossal walls were erected within them, standing tall around the tremendous city, like the shield and spear of a guardian angel ever vigilant on their mission to defend. But the wall was not all, the outside of the city wasn't only farming fields, plains, and a few houses scattered across kilometers, it was very clearly a militarized zone. A helicopter gunship flew above the vehicles, and headed towards the wall, on which several vertical launch systems and artillery could be seen. No Altarian had made mention of anything related to the military before the Maetant arrival on Eliria, thus the wall proved to be a surprising sight to the visitors.
But just as suddenly as it had appeared, the wall faded away, now its sight being blocked by huge white departments, skyscrapers, and commercial centers. No building within Eliria seemed to be small, even individual houses connected to neighboring buildings and carefully weaved the expanse of their structures into the roads and gardens of the city. Uninterrupted by any signs of destruction, lack of light, or poor maintenance. The cars drove through the coastal road having a direct view of the beach, having a direct sight of the countless festivals and parties in the sand and the crystal clear waters in front of them, decorated in the distance too with cruise ships and this time, more warships being present, ships the size of destroyers and frigates on the shores, yet none of them were the center of attention, the party stages were.
Beskelta knew they would soon arrive at their location, so she readied to jump out of the vehicle before her line of thought was stopped by the assistant's question. Everyone else on the vehicle seemed confused, no Altarian present knew how to answer except for Beskelta, having already spent a long time among alien species, she knew what the assistant meant.
-"Unlike most civilizations traveling across the stars of Ancerious, we Altarians never made the connection between naval vessels, and our first rockets. I mean, they look nothing alike! Hahaha, and besides, no one calls planes flying ships, riiight? It was a completely different vehicle to us, and when our curious lenses looked up at the sky to see their advance, we saw ourselves finally become one with the nightsky, another star among billions, yet shining brighter than any other! It's why in our native tongue, we now have two separate words for Altarian-made spacecraft, stars, and the stellar bodies, which we call true stars!"
The vehicles turn away from the beach and head into town through an enormous avenue, with a surprising lack of cars for its size. Only people on far smaller vehicles or simply walking could be seen, of which there were thousands, and many of them signalled and waved at the vehicle transporting the Maetants and their escorts. The guards inside stayed very calm despite the commotion in the avenue, but not Beskelta. She instead opened the window and waved back at the crowds on the streets with impressive energy and enthutiasm, almost as if she was making sure she would not go unnoticed by anyone, not pedestrians, people resting in balconies, guards, Beskelta's energetic waving was met with further joy from those witnessing it, with a few confused faces in between. It was safe to assume this dawnseeker was quite famous in this city.
Rarux watches Beskelta go through this whole thought process, this whole overacted show of thinking super hard about what could possibly be wrong with this place, only to have her say… there isn’t a single problem? Sure. He doesn’t hold it against her obviously, places like this have a talent for showing some people absolute perfection, while saving all the nastiness for those who don’t comply. It was a bit of a stretch to imagine he’d get scathing criticism from someone who clearly loves the place, but he figured he’d ask.
He turns to look out the window as he ponders the answer, only to be struck by the appearance of a wall… a militarized wall… Yes, walls and military patrols, the common signs of a place with absolutely no problems whatsoever. Especially comforting when not mentioned to the visiting party prior to their arrival.
“In my experience Beskelta, those who say there’s no catch are those who simply haven’t been caught by it yet. I truly want to believe that Eliria actually delivers as you say, but I’m afraid I can only believe that when I see it. On that note, may I ask why we were not informed of the military presence in the city? That seems like something you could have given us a heads-up on.”
As much as his cynicism and arrogance may lead him to negativity, he can’t deny that the city around him is indeed beautiful. Lacking in color, Rarux imagines an Altarian civil planner may just have a stroke upon encountering Maetant expressiveness, but this has an appeal in and of itself. Very clean, very put-together, again. He chuckles to himself, imagining an Altarian reaction to Totus, the Maetant homeworld. A barren, white snowscape, with no sight of color save for the guidelights and occasional bright red station. Maybe it would please their sensibilities.
But again he can’t doubt their advancements, their technology, their raw ability. To have made even this show-offy capital, it is a monument to something that is real. Which brings him right back to why he’s here. To see where relations go next. Obviously the two nations had similar views in some ways, so there is room for a friendship of some sort, but Rarux will have to explain where that gets complicated. He’s a representative of the Umbralum, not the Elder Council, and he’s not sure the Altarians will know why that’s an important distinction. Hence, this meeting to discuss next steps.
As the vehicle turns down the larger road, Rarux waves back at the passers-by who wave at the car, not wanting to appear rude. The assistants meanwhile are still noting down every single aspect of conversation between the two representatives as well as recording it, basically transcribing their words. Rarux speaks up again.
“And by the way, the word for flying craft in our native tongue does directly translate to ‘air ship’, though I don’t blame you for making the assumption.”
As he finally sits back in his seat, content that Beskelta, while naive, isn’t making any active effort to deceive or warp his perspective of the ASA. She’s likely just been treated well by the system, and that’s why she sees nothing wrong with it. There will be time for a ‘deep dive’ into this place’s underbelly soon enough. For now, the car continues to move, closer and closer to its final destination.
Almost having to be pulled back into her seat, still laughing uncontrollably at the sheer excitement she felt arriving at the capital again, Beskelta with some help from the rest of the bodyguards in the vehicle put herself together to answer the questions Rarux asked causing some questionable reactions towards Beskelta from some of the bodyguards, they wondered just how much information the dawnseeker had avoided or simply forgotten. Beskelta realized this, and after a brief moment of embarrassment, she replied after letting out a small sigh.
-"Right, I should have warned you about it. Not every capital has this much military presence..." -Beskelta pauses, looking outside the window to an open area in the interior of the city, surrounded by low height residential buildings and near a public space, on top of an elevated mount, rests a single laser point-defense turret.
-"Truth of the matter is, to most of the Altarian population, this is normal. Our endless war against the titans has normalized the proliferation of military presence and defense facilities where they are needed, it's the result of surviving through countless eons of war against our enemies, and campaigns from the central government. There's a fine line between readiness and paranoia. I hope we haven't crossed it yet."
For the first time since her visit to the Marble Soul and her return to the Altarian Systems Authority, Beskelta was visibly concerned, and far less joyful than she had been throughout the rest of the journey. Widespread military deployment may be common throughout her nation, but perhaps, her voyages across different countries and cultures has changed her perspective on what once were nothing more but great monuments of unyielding Altarian might.
Beskelta shaked her head trying to break the silence that had ensued on the vehicle, trying her best to return to her previous radiant attitude.
-"B-but! Our guns shall never aim, and our walls shall never block any peaceful starfarer! Ayna promised that, and I believe in her more than anyone else."
With Beskelta's comment, the car came to a halt and the doors opened automatically, allowing her before anyone else to jump out of the vehicle shouting the rest to follow her. As it turns out, the vehicles had arrived on the Elysean Sanctum, a massive public park and garden surrounding the capitol of the central government, a kilometer tall white and blue skyscraper just like the rest of the city had been colored beyond the realms of nature. Beskelta moved ahead of the Maetant team to jump into a crowd of other Altarians, of which none looked like official government authorities, instead they were similarly dressed in a very informal fashion with a lot of gear surrounding them. Other dawnseekers?
Rarux wouldn't know soon, as the bodyguards escorted the Maetants to the other side of the arrival zone to meet a single individual, who unlike the others, was completely on her own. A tall Altarian woman with shining silver hair reflecting the light of the dawn over Eliria's skyscrapers, and bright golden eyes over a welcoming smile. She formally greets the Maetants with an attitude fitting to her appereance, not only was she formally dressed with a military uniform, her stance and tone were something far more grounded and relaxed than Beskelta's. Despite the calmer demeanor, her joy was very noticeable.
-"On behalf of all the Altarian, Aluterian, Arkonian, and aliens living under the jurisdiction of the Altarian Systems Authority, the central government, and our most esteemed Master AI Thelia, dear Maetant friends, I, Ayna Iveria Karin Emmerand, welcome you to our capital. How was the trip?"
Rarux nods along to Beskelta’s answer, finding it… surprisingly reasonable. A discreet tap on his band sends a small green triangle to his assistants, an indicator of positive favor on this statement specifically, a note to come back to later to elaborate. Meanwhile, Rarux places his hands on his knees, a small smile growing on his face.
As the group steps out of the vehicle, Rarux’s two assistants fall in line behind him, taking notes as always. Being as tall as they are, the three Maetant look out over the crowd of Altarians, watching Beskelta be swallowed up by the mass of personage. She’s certainly one to look out for, one to keep in mind…
But soon enough, the party is shuffled around once again. All this escorting, while necessary, is getting a bit old at this point. Rarux keeps his polite smile on his face however, one of the most valuable skills a representative can have, as the group approaches this singular individual. In reply to her formality, Rarux elects for the same, clasping his hands behind his back, and bowing forwards, his assistants bowing as well, but keeping their hands at their sides.
“Ayna, it is a pleasure to finally meet you. I am Advisor Rarux of the Marble Soul. These two are my assistants, Parat and Exspe.”
The spider-eyed one nods to the name ‘Parat’ and the Koi-patterned one nods to ‘Exspe’, to indicate which one Rarux is talking about. The horned Maetant stands up straight again, and his assistants follow suit, resuming their note-taking as Rarux continues speaking, adopting a more casual stance.
“Our trip was… enlightening, I believe would be the right word. We’ve already learned much just on the ride in. We are looking forward to what you may be able to show us, as well as what we may be able to show you. So please, lead the way.”
Rarux takes the opportunity to size up Ayna, taking in her body language as she responds, her demeanor, her tone, the manner of her dress, everything, just as he had done with Beskelta earlier, he is getting the best read on this woman as he possibly can on first introductions. This will shape the rest of the conversation.
Ayna warmly welcomed the two assistants after greeting Rarux, approaching all three Maetants going for a handshake and casually exchanging a few more words with them, before standing in front of the three while listening to Rarux's opinion of the trip, a moment where he could see Ayna much more clearly, and notice that just like Beskelta, her face was marked by a warm and bright smile, but this one was very different from Beskelta's never-ending joy, while the dawnseeker smiled out of pure excitement, Ayna's expression felt much more calm, and sincere. She had been described by many in the trip as a serious woman and powerful military commander, but only Beskelta had pointed out a trait no one else had mentioned, as the dawnseeker put it, Ayna adored meeting new alien species and getitng to know them, a xenophiliac as she put it, the most famous speaker of such ideals in the ASA.
-"You could not have come at a better time my friends, there is no shortage of all sorts of activities in Eliria these days, I wish I could have arrived to enjoy them from the very beginning, but the frontlines called my name. That's aside though, please, make yourselves at home once we arrive into your staying place."
Rarux could observe that just like Beskelta, Ayna useed a lot of body movement to accompany her words, her gestures however were much more carefully executed in comparison, and she didn't seem to mind any differences between herself and the Maetant, simply staring at them with fascination, including the astounding height difference as she was merely 5'11"
-"Beskelta!" -She ordered after a few seconds, the dawnseeker arriving so quickly a single blink could make it look like she nearly teleported besides Ayna.
-"Yes?"
-"Would you like to help me guide our Maetant friends while we head towards the sanctum?"
Without a single moment of hesitation, Beskelta jumps besides the Maetants and walks alongside them an Ayna, their little walk being accompanied by Ayna and Beskelta's narration of the modern history of Eliria, most of which constituted constant tales about its improvement and perfection reaching into the utopian dream of the Altarian people, with brief mentions of anything related to military affairs or the battles the city had seen. By the words of the two Altarians, the city was easily accessible and far from dangerous, public services were never too far, and transportation did not invade aggressively the streets of the city, yet it was built to be able to travel to any important node of the city with great speed and efficiency. And the services at the Maetant's stay were no short of impressive either, while the rooms lacked large amounts of decoration, modularity and machine assistance seemed to make it possible to customize them to the needs of the Maetants, providing any service whenever they wished without any charges or concerns, and a view of the city with a main window staring out straight into the space elevator.
The walk is highly informative, and Parat and Exspe have their hands full with note-taking. All the while Rarux listens with rapt attention, eager to learn as much about this place as possible. All the while he waits for the caveat, waits for the one slip up that will damn this seemingly beautiful place as the corrupt masquerade he expects it to be.
Yet, that crack in the armor never comes. From anyone else he would expect this to be blissful ignorance, but Ayna is a much higher authority than would allow for that, so… Does this city genuinely approach utopia? Utopia with a military presence, what lessons the ASA has to teach the Marble Soul!
And of course the rooms are impressive as well, if under-decorated, that much was to be expected. Rarux takes a moment to wonder if this is the kind of accommodation every citizen has access to. Some sort of underclass is often a symptom of such comfort’s availability. He wonders if it would be possible to find this underclass and ask them some questions, rather than being guided by the privileged. That will have to wait for later however, for now he’s on the moving sidewalk of diplomacy.
However, while he’s on that sidewalk, he can learn a bit more about how it runs. A place such as this is bound to have some form of military museum, or perhaps an art museum with pieces inspired by past conflicts. After inquiring about the location of the nearest suitable museum, the three Maetant elect to travel there. Whether or not the Dawnseekers, or some other form of security decides to come with, is up to them.
Once they decided to depart their designated rooms and head deep into the city again, the three Maetant visitors would quickly learn that Ayna Iveria was going to be accomanying them for the rest of the day, as she happily reported. Beskelta would have to leave the group, as she was called by other authorities to deal with some important matters as she described them. However, she also told them they should look forward to that night, hinting at some major event happening.
But the end of the day was many, many hours away as the Maetants had arrived during the early morning in Elysion. With free time to spare and a city that stretches beyond the horizon at their disposal, they would have no shortage of activities to do to until the night arrived. And for their first stop through the city, it took them no time to be guided to one of the principal museums of the city. The building looked like a small city, constructed with an architectural design that constrasted with its surroundings. Rather than being sleek and highly technological, the museum was built with a much more highly decorated style, with immense detail in the shaping of its pillars, walls, and even floors with sculptures, mosaics, and a surprising lack of other decorations seen across the city such as holographic displays.
And as expected of this place, every minute that went by, the chances to learn something new about the Altarian Systems Authority grew by the hundreds. To their sides, corridors stretching into infinity with paintings and sculptures of the planet, its leaders, deities, important locations, events, battles, and megastructures, all accompanied by interactive displays with their entire history. Walking through the most modern corridors, Rarux and his companions would learn that Elysion was the most peaceful world of the ASA, fomenting the newer generations to explore the most avant-garde artistic movements and expressions, but it hadn't been that way since the start. Turning into the corridors with older art revealed an almost shocking sight when put besides the tiny sculptures of before.
In front of them was the fosilized remains of a tremendous creature, its maw still open, one that could easily devour them all if it still moved.
A titan.
The paintings depicting the destruction of countless cities at the hands of disturbingly gigantic creatures stretched for several meters, with an uncanny level of detail put in the nightmarish beasts that Altarians, and occasionally, Arkonians, were depicted fighting. Perhaps Rarux would find great interest in these paintings, as finally, he found a flaw in this perfect society he was trying to be sold. Clearly nothing could be truly perfect, there couldn't be an utopia with giant monstrocities threatening innocent lives with death in an instant. Looking at Ayna, it almost seemed as if she agreed, as she walked through the corridors displaying the wars against titans she seemed almost uncomfortable, that is, until they walked into the next section.
-Starpath be damned...I forgot this was here."
Ayna's embarrassment followed the group as their turn around the corner, and are met with a statue even greater than the massive fossil behind them, proving to be an even more impressive sight to behold as not only there was yet another massive titan, but above it, clearly, there was a statue of none other than Ayna Iveria herself, having pierced the head of the beast with a huge spear, before proudly standing on top of the titan.
Ayna rapidly tried to convince the Maetants that she hadn't brought them here just so she could boast about her popularity by trying to guide them into another corridor, but out of luck, Ayna had been already intercepted by a small horde of people overwhelming her with questions and praise. A situation she would normally handle with calm turned into a complete mess as she scrambled to find a solution, a second to speak in the multitude, and not ruin her image in front of the visitors.
Upon entering the museum, all 3 Maetant’s eyes are scouring the building for details in every exhibit. Of course more notes are scribbled down, some sketches of different pieces are included as visual reference, and Rarux directs his assistants to specific displays of particular interest.
The contemporary art is interesting of course, the statements of a civilization in the abstract can often be refined into impassioned statements far more honest than a press conference, but Rarux’s attention is quickly drawn to the older section, and the skull.
It all makes sense now. The walls, the constant military presence, all of it. This is a peaceful civilization, yes, but it’s one constantly on edge. This is a civilization born out of fear, safety in numbers, pragmatic militarism. While it is vindicating to learn of a flaw in the seeming perfection of this place, as Rarux looks to Ayna, and sees her uneasy expression, he can’t help but sympathize.
He can’t help but wonder what would have become of the Maetant had they not received significant assistance from other space faring civilizations. Perhaps they would have eventually become an ASA of their own, given their shared circumstances.
The Maetant homeworld of Totus is inhospitable as well, occupied by great beasts of its own and ravaged by intense cold. As the Advisor looks back upon the skull, he begins to see more similarity between the two nations than differences. After directing the assistants to take note of this in specific, he is alerted by the sound of Ayna’s voice.
He moves with her to the next section, only to see… Of course. Rarux puts a hand on Ayna’s shoulder as he gazes up at the statue, a slight smile appearing on his face as she stammers to try and clarify her intention, which only gets a chuckle from the horned Maetant.
“Now now miss Ayna, there is no shame in pride. I do not think you brought us here to boast, but given an opportunity, boasting is not a crime, is it?”
As more and more fans begin to crowd the group however, and Ayna's expression becomes more and more frantic, Rarux’s look sours just slightly, and he taps a few buttons on his band. Both Parat and Exspe check their bands and seem to receive the intended message, as they move to stand on opposite sides of the representatives and face out into the crowd, holding their arms out to form a barrier against the crowd.
Rarux speaks out in a booming voice, addressing the crowd around them.
“Miss Iveria is busy handling diplomatic manners on behalf of your entire civilization, and will not be taking questions! I, Rarux of the Marble Soul, encourage you all to back away, and allow these talks to resume uninterrupted. It is clear to me that you have much to praise her for, and I am certain that she is appreciative, but now is not the time for such flattery. Please disperse!”
Before lowering his voice and speaking directly to Ayna, taking her hand and beginning to lead her away from the swarm of fans, using his assistants to continue to keep the crowds at bay as the group moves into a less crowded corridor, bottlenecking the civilians on the other side of the assistant wall. Parat and Exspe both seem to have grown a bit as well, physically increasing their size in order to form a more effective barrier.
“Quite ironic that I’m the one escorting you now. Please, feel free to take charge here, I won’t judge you for your desire to not be swarmed in public.”
Not only that, but it should be interesting to see how Ayna handles such a situation when she has a bit more room to breathe.
Thanks to Rarux's efforts to control the crowd, the pressure and tension in that moment began to fade at a very quick rate, Ayna was no longer being swarmed by people from all sids, and a loud incoherent storm of cheering and praise faded away into much quieter and controlled talks, the message was clear, so everyone complied.
Something that hadn't become apparent to Ayna at first, who for a few more seconds still tried to shield herself against the crowd. She slowly peeks again, and, once she notices the situation was controlled, she rergains her original composture as quickly as she can.
-"Thanks Rarux." -She whispers to the Maetant, this time with a much more different tone of voice, not with a serious, monotone voice, but something far more honest and informal. She keeps silence before addressing the crowd, now that her embarrasment was gone.
-"I'll be present in tonight's festival, I can spare a lot more time then."
Once the people had an answer from their leader, most began to walk away. In the distance, some of the youngest members caught up in the whole event could be faintly heard talking in pure awe about the encounter, one or two high-pitched squeals among their words.
Having gone through many historical sections, Ayna and the group now walked through hallways and corridors similar to the room behind, the titans displayed no longer stood firmly above the ground. Instead, all of them were defeated, crushed near the ground as Altarian, Aluterian, and Arkonian heroes firmly imposed their weapons and the flags of the Altarian people above the enemy's skulls and shattered bones. These were halls of victory, triumph living in the awe-inspiring scale of the modern Altarian civilization, as portrayed by other statues in the rooms, showing the reconstruction of the capital city, the construction of truly enormous walls, and many, many spaceships that went by strange names.
"Commandstars", "Strikestars", "Star Defenders", the 1:200 scale replicas of the many spaceships of the Altarian people revealed many unconventional naming schemes, but that would hardly be the center of attention when these same ships were surrounded by a replica of some of the most important battles in Altarian history.
The rooms seemed to become emptier and emptier the more the group walked ahead, while also being noticeably higher than the other corridors, where did it all lead? They had gone through the historical halls depicting the early feats of their civilization, their struggle against titans until the modern day, what came next?
The question wouldn't linger for long, as the museum's decoration had wildly changed around them, no longer were the walls wildly decorated, instead, the rooms were much simpler, and far more spacious and severely lacking any proper lighting, at least, until Ayna raised one of her hands into the air and and with a single finger snap she made countless bright and colorful lights illuminate the enormous new gallery, which, unlike all others, was fully holographic.
But the surprises did not stop there, every holographic display was accompanied by a scarily realistic and accurate sound system representing everything portrayed. If the things shown were to scale, it would be hard to believe they weren't real. As enormous shows of lights and scenarios from all the worlds of the Altarian Systems Authority came to life, Ayna clapped twice, and the room changed again.
Watching Ayna, the maetants would soon realize that she was no longer touching the ground, she was hovering in the air effortlessly! Slight movements from her hands changing her trajectory as she wasted no time trying to spin around the holograms, dancing with the visions of people, starships, and the worlds of her nation. She then points to the maetants, and invites them to follow.
-"This system is completely harmless, try to move around and follow me!" -A much more notorious and sincere joy accompanied Ayna's voice this time.
As the crowd backs off with the promise of further interaction at a later time, Parat and Exspe relax, returning to their original sizes and letting their arms fall to their sides. They look at each other, and quietly bump knuckles in acknowledgment of a job well done.
The Maetant follow Ayna again through the halls, back to taking notes as usual, but now the two assistants have a bit more pride in their expressions after helping to hold back the crowd as they did. Rarux of course is smiling as well, though he lingers on some of the exhibits…
To see three separate peoples, the Altarians, Aluterians, and Arkonians, all flying the flag of just one, implies some sort of grave inequity. Do the Arkonian people even have a flag of their own to fly? Something to ask their host about further on in the talks.
Once this question is lodged securely in Rarux’s mind for later, his attention is back on the way ahead as his assistants continue to scribble away notes. A festival tonight? Perhaps they’ll be able to make an appearance, just to learn more about the culture of course.
Speaking of that culture, as the halls become emptier and emptier, Rarux takes some time to reflect. These kinds of museums don’t exist in the Marble Soul. That is not to say that they don’t remember battles, or document history, but that such a prominent museum is one devoted to that violence is strange to Rarux.
That this history is so proudly displayed, romanticized, speaks to the nation’s attitude towards it. Rather than a necessity for survival, this place frames the destruction of the titans as a proud conquest, a hunt that brought many trophies. While the circumstances of the ASA and the Marble Soul may seem similar, Totus remains wild, unconquered for the most part. Once the Maetant could inhabit kinder planets, they did, and left the Magni of their homeworld to live as they always had.
The Maetant had never shown love to violence, the Altarians seem to take pride in their victory over what is now their territory.
This train of thought is stopped, and filed away for later however, as this seemingly empty room lights up with holograms, looking realistic enough to touch. Parat in fact reaches out to confirm their intangibility, the lights reflecting off of their many eyes as their hand passes through.
Marveling at the display is only compounded as Ayna begins to float around the room, as if she were a holographic projection herself, unbound by gravity. The truth of the system becomes clear as she invites the Maetant to join, something they quickly do. Watching Ayna’s hands for a few moments as she wisps through the air, all 3 Maetant quickly gain an understanding of what movements cause what shifts, and begin to swim through the air alongside her before splitting off to different sections of the display.
The two assistants of course begin to split up and cover as much ground as they can, recording and assessing as many nodes of information as possible. Parat’s movements are more rigid and direct, while Exspe moves much like the fish his skin is patterned after, with a fluid kind of grace from point to point.
“Your technology continues to amaze, Domula Iveria! Though I hope you weren’t eager to watch us stumble, my people are very quick learners.”
Rarux, in the meantime, has a very specific goal in mind. He stays close to Ayna, just to make sure he doesn’t appear dismissive while he speaks to her. He looks not for conflict, but instead he actively searches for evidence of peace. He looks for great progress made outside of the theater of war, he looks for innovations made during peacetime, he looks for evidence that the Altarian people can prosper outside of violence.
“Do you happen to have a favorite scenario in this room, Domula Iveria? I’d like to hear your perspective on all of this.” He asks, flipping himself to face Ayna, hanging upside down in front of her, face to face. “To read what is written is fine, but I’d like to hear your candid opinion, if that’s alright with you.”
So, the ASA, what are they like… From what little contact the Marble Soul has had with their new neighbors, they seem interesting. Highly advanced, highly motivated, highly similar to the Marble Soul in some aspects, highly different in others. Not as religiously motivated, but equally fervent in their pursuit of personal freedoms and proud of it. The Elder Council has labeled them as friends already, but the Elder Council hardly speaks for everyone these days.
Rarux ponders these ideas as he approaches his landing point, sitting quietly in this clean, white interior of a vessel graciously provided by his hosts. It’s definitely well-maintained, but it doesn’t have much character to it… Very utilitarian. No chance of getting distracted or having your eyes drawn to anything that isn’t work-related. He and his assistants make up the most colorful things on this vessel, which is an odd feeling having come from the Marble Soul.
He has changed his form for the sake of diplomacy though, he currently stands at 7’9’’ tall, muscular, with tan skin, and opalescent eyes. His hair is black and short, and he has a pointed goatee on his chin. For the most part he looks perfectly human, with the exception of long, bone-white horns that sprout up and backwards from his forehead, curving around the back of his skull to ride just below his jawline, poking up next to his chin before coming to a point, almost like a cage his head is in. Normally his skin would be a crimson red to complete the devilish look, and he would have a tail, but those parts normally upset people, so he chooses to tone it down for diplomatic meetings.
As his vessel, which the invitation labeled a ‘star’ for some reason, touches down in its port, Rarux stands, stretches, and begins to make his way out, followed by a couple of fellow Maetant he brought with him. He doesn’t assume any harm will come to him of course, these are assistants, meant to help document the trip and any important notes touched on in the talks, to allow Rarux to focus on diplomacy.
One stands at a mere 7 feet tall, with black skin and 8 white, compound eyes scattered across her face, and another stands 7’8’’, with skin patterned like a koi fish, and long wispy whiskers above his lip. Both assistants are holding small handheld tablets, and all 3 Maetant are wearing sleek white wristbands with screens, linked to each other for the sake of subtle communication and recording should the tablets be unreliable. The koi-patterned assistant also wears a backpack full of supplies for healing rituals should the need arise, not that it’s expected.
As the small group steps down the ramp and onto the floor of the spaceport, Rarux looks around at the new world he’s entered, and takes in the sights, looking up and around at the buildings and other ships nearby, while also looking for his contact, the person he’s here to talk to.
Capital city of Eliria - Elysion - Altarian Systems Authority
Grand Velnerian-Aldrian-Doneliyan Starport
Amongst the shimmering light, the fate of two nations shun bright as the stars
Through the endless streams of light that shine bright even in the dark side of Elysion, forming elegant adorning patterns of life through dozens of orbits and within the planet as well, the Kadzelera scoutstar carrying the Marble Soul's delegates descended from the space Altarian had claimed as theirs, to the embrace of the capital's atmosphere and its surrounding beauty.
The sights promised during their stellar voyage were astounding, enormous festivals of light adorned the planet but unfortunately they were all too far away to fully gaze upon the architecture of Altarian space habitats and their mighty warstars. But the pilot and crew of the scoutstar, who had been trying their absolute best to give the best service possible to their guests, would make sure that mistake won't be repeated once they land.
The only complains that the Altarian crew could not do much about was the slightly small seats for someone like Rarux and his companions, noticing that the Altarian crewmembers tried their best to distract them from thinking too much about the minor lack of comfort. During their free time in the voyage, Rarux could see that the crew made each other company, throwing pranks at each other and making sure no one was bored during the trip. Perhaps to him and his companions, it would be amusing, to see these human-like aliens so excited, and far smaller than they were, standing anywhere from 5'10 to 6'2.
-"Altarian ladies, gentlement, AIs, and our most esteemed Maetant guests from the Marble Soul, welcome, to the capital city of Eliria!" -A voice from the radio exclaimed as the scoutstar finally began to slow down from its rapid descent from orbit into the atmosphere, the endless black color of space being replaced by a cyan both in the air and in the ground, as the scoutstar arrived to the starport across the ocean.
And just as it seemed like the rest of the trip would not be any more eventful than before, the scoutstar did a sharp turn to the left, not even the crew being alerted of this maneuever as they all held on to anything they had close to try and not fall to the ground, while the captain of the ship simply kept flying.
And it soon became apparent why. Heading into another runway, this time the windows available to the Maetants, Rarux included, were pointing straight at the capital, and with the city within their sight, there was no doubt in their minds on why the Altarians spoke so positively of this city. An awe-inspiring, harmonious mixture of azure, white, and green shun across the windows of the scoutstar striking into the eyes of the Maetant with the imposing, sophisticated, graceful skyscrapers of the city blending in with the nature that was welcomed into the streets of the city. Throughout the skies and the seas massive cruise ships, guided missile cruiesrs, and the fastest and biggest planes the Altarian Systems Authority filled the once empty landscape surrounding the Altarian homes with huge activity and life in every corner.
Upon landing, the starport was no different. From the size alone one could mistake the entire facility for a city itself, as the Maetant were warmly welcomed and guided through the starport using helicopters and maglevs that were far more elegant, brilliant, and polished than the scoutstar they had arrived on. Machines moved their equipment as it became apparent to Rarux by the words of the Altarians that every process in this arrival was automated, Altarians guided, and machines executed their every command.
The pilot of the scoutstar led the Marble Soul's delegation across the starport, before reaching a checkpoint with very formal officials present, accompanied by machines much larger than them standing at 2.5 meters in height.
-"3rd rank Dawnseeker Beskelta Fliori Nea Zania reporting!" -She joyfully reported to the guards who surprisingly welcomed her arrival with a warm hug before they let her speak again. -"Riiight here I have my declaration of diplomatic conduct, and my tickets for Elysean and Elirian access."
-Everything seems to be in check, are our guests expecting Ziria, or Thelia? -One of the guards asked.
-"Ziria! I have yet to be called to confirm the final meeting hour, but until then I have been allowed to give our guests a place to stay."
-"Then what are we waiting for? Come on Beskelta, people are even expecting you here, don't think you've gone under the radar this time!"
Despite the initial formal looks of the meeting, Beskelta's demeanor and the response from the guards showed an unexpected behavior from the guards. Had they known each other before? Or were people here always this casual and friendly? Whatever the case may be, all the answers to the Maetant's questions would be found throughout their journey, starting now, as it became clear that Beskelta was a respected figure, and now they could finally get a proper, more calm look at her as they all entered the large transport vehicles. The dawnseeker that had so rapidly arrived and built a bridge for the Altarian Systems Authority in the marble soul had a very cheerful attitude merging well with her spirited looks. Always happy, an attitude shining as bright as her emerald colored shining eyes and silver hair falling into a messy set of coats, backpacks, and belts holding all her utilities she had so eagerly showed during her journey. If all Altarians were as happy as Beskelta to meet aliens and engage on friendly, casual meetings with them, then the Maetant could more easily look forward to their stay with hope, and excitement.
Well these Altarians sure do know how to put on a show! Of course Rarux knows that such a display is indicative of the ASA putting its best foot forward, and that not every city could possibly be this utopian. That doesn’t stop his assistants from gawking at how every single building seems to be a monument to the art of architecture. It all looks very… clean.
That combined with the ship crew’s prior subtle efforts to distract him from even the most minor discomfort is interesting to say the least. He understands the desire to have such an important visitation go perfectly, but given his position he’s taking note of everything. Including the fact that the announcement of their arrival included AI? Ladies, gentlemen, AIs, and the Maetant. Even so early into the trip Rarux is dissecting every word and extrapolating possible conclusions as he goes.
Even after getting off the ‘star’, Rarux and his assistants still feel shuttled around. Guided from one method of transportation to another, everything so perfectly pretty. The orange and white assistant takes special care to ensure that no one takes his backpack from him in a moment of too-well-intentioned hospitality. Besides that, the simple trip from space-faring vessel to security checkpoint is overwhelmingly beautiful and well-put-on.
The trio of aliens relax slightly as they walk through the checkpoint behind their guide, relieved to not be questioned at this time. The 3 Maetant file into their transport along with Beskelta, the two assistants happy to sit down to take down notes, and Rarux glad to have some more relaxed time for conversation with this seemingly important woman, even though the ceiling of the vehicle may be a bit too close for comfort.
So while the two assistants write down their experiences so far, Rarux turns to their guide, and leans forwards, his elbows on his knees, as he takes in her appearance once again before speaking in Oratin, having been assured of the availability of translators for this excursion.
“Seems you all run a fairly tight ship here, I’m impressed so far. I had seen nothing but glowing reviews in preparation for this journey, but this outpaces every piece of praise I’ve heard. I’d like to ask you directly though, before I see anything else that’s been prepared for me. What’s the catch? There always is one with a place as beautiful as this.”
He asks this question with a sort of jovial affection, as if he could be joking as a way to compliment the city by saying it’s so nice there must be some dark underbelly making it this way. The way he leans forward in his chair though says that this isn’t a joke, and that he’s asked the question before, to mixed answers. His form isn’t one designed to intimidate, but it is one that has a powerful presence to it. It gives off feelings of authority as he stands above those around him, every aspect of his appearance perfectly self-tailored to exude confidence and charisma.
As Beskelta gives her response, the horned Maetant simply sits and nods along to it, never interrupting or disrupting her words. He listens thoughtfully and carefully throughout the journey to whatever the guide would care to tell him in fact, hoping that whatever she says ‘the catch’ is will branch off into a conversation about wider topics hopefully containing new information. He contemplates her response until the transport finally arrives at its destination, the city center. One of the assistants, the smaller, spider-eyed one, does pipe up during the following silence, with a question of her own.
“If I may ask… Why do you call them stars instead of ships?"
The catch. What was the catch about Eliria? Beskelta pondered, her remarkably over-the-top body language accompanying even the smallest of thoughts that crossed her head without saying a single word, yet conveying more than what entire books could tell, as it became very clear that Beskelta was simply way too excited to be on Eliria again. Right here was everything she treasured, everything she looked forward to visit and everyone she wished to talk to after several months exploring through the stars of the galaxy, of all her fond memories of the city and the people she believed herself to be so lucky to have met in there, among them and many others, she could not recall a single bad thing about Eliria in any way whatsoever. So, among trillions of stars, each with their own wars, conflict, dreams, and promises of peace, prosperity, and utopias, what was the catch?
-"We actually de-li-ver!~" -She so joyfully chants before directing her attention to the city itself, growing bigger and bigger around them as the cars that were carrying Beskelta and the Maetant drew closer to it, as at first, what surrounded them were nothing but tremendous expanses of lush green fields with a few houses spread across the horizon, where the first mountains could finally be seen, and among them was the sudden appereance of something far more imposing than the first buildings of Eliria witnessed.
The mountains in the distance, so strangely uniform at first sight, would rapidly reveal that they were not only natural formations, as unspeakably colossal walls were erected within them, standing tall around the tremendous city, like the shield and spear of a guardian angel ever vigilant on their mission to defend. But the wall was not all, the outside of the city wasn't only farming fields, plains, and a few houses scattered across kilometers, it was very clearly a militarized zone. A helicopter gunship flew above the vehicles, and headed towards the wall, on which several vertical launch systems and artillery could be seen. No Altarian had made mention of anything related to the military before the Maetant arrival on Eliria, thus the wall proved to be a surprising sight to the visitors.
But just as suddenly as it had appeared, the wall faded away, now its sight being blocked by huge white departments, skyscrapers, and commercial centers. No building within Eliria seemed to be small, even individual houses connected to neighboring buildings and carefully weaved the expanse of their structures into the roads and gardens of the city. Uninterrupted by any signs of destruction, lack of light, or poor maintenance. The cars drove through the coastal road having a direct view of the beach, having a direct sight of the countless festivals and parties in the sand and the crystal clear waters in front of them, decorated in the distance too with cruise ships and this time, more warships being present, ships the size of destroyers and frigates on the shores, yet none of them were the center of attention, the party stages were.
Beskelta knew they would soon arrive at their location, so she readied to jump out of the vehicle before her line of thought was stopped by the assistant's question. Everyone else on the vehicle seemed confused, no Altarian present knew how to answer except for Beskelta, having already spent a long time among alien species, she knew what the assistant meant.
-"Unlike most civilizations traveling across the stars of Ancerious, we Altarians never made the connection between naval vessels, and our first rockets. I mean, they look nothing alike! Hahaha, and besides, no one calls planes flying ships, riiight? It was a completely different vehicle to us, and when our curious lenses looked up at the sky to see their advance, we saw ourselves finally become one with the nightsky, another star among billions, yet shining brighter than any other! It's why in our native tongue, we now have two separate words for Altarian-made spacecraft, stars, and the stellar bodies, which we call true stars!"
The vehicles turn away from the beach and head into town through an enormous avenue, with a surprising lack of cars for its size. Only people on far smaller vehicles or simply walking could be seen, of which there were thousands, and many of them signalled and waved at the vehicle transporting the Maetants and their escorts. The guards inside stayed very calm despite the commotion in the avenue, but not Beskelta. She instead opened the window and waved back at the crowds on the streets with impressive energy and enthutiasm, almost as if she was making sure she would not go unnoticed by anyone, not pedestrians, people resting in balconies, guards, Beskelta's energetic waving was met with further joy from those witnessing it, with a few confused faces in between. It was safe to assume this dawnseeker was quite famous in this city.
Rarux watches Beskelta go through this whole thought process, this whole overacted show of thinking super hard about what could possibly be wrong with this place, only to have her say… there isn’t a single problem? Sure. He doesn’t hold it against her obviously, places like this have a talent for showing some people absolute perfection, while saving all the nastiness for those who don’t comply. It was a bit of a stretch to imagine he’d get scathing criticism from someone who clearly loves the place, but he figured he’d ask.
He turns to look out the window as he ponders the answer, only to be struck by the appearance of a wall… a militarized wall… Yes, walls and military patrols, the common signs of a place with absolutely no problems whatsoever. Especially comforting when not mentioned to the visiting party prior to their arrival.
“In my experience Beskelta, those who say there’s no catch are those who simply haven’t been caught by it yet. I truly want to believe that Eliria actually delivers as you say, but I’m afraid I can only believe that when I see it. On that note, may I ask why we were not informed of the military presence in the city? That seems like something you could have given us a heads-up on.”
As much as his cynicism and arrogance may lead him to negativity, he can’t deny that the city around him is indeed beautiful. Lacking in color, Rarux imagines an Altarian civil planner may just have a stroke upon encountering Maetant expressiveness, but this has an appeal in and of itself. Very clean, very put-together, again. He chuckles to himself, imagining an Altarian reaction to Totus, the Maetant homeworld. A barren, white snowscape, with no sight of color save for the guidelights and occasional bright red station. Maybe it would please their sensibilities.
But again he can’t doubt their advancements, their technology, their raw ability. To have made even this show-offy capital, it is a monument to something that is real. Which brings him right back to why he’s here. To see where relations go next. Obviously the two nations had similar views in some ways, so there is room for a friendship of some sort, but Rarux will have to explain where that gets complicated. He’s a representative of the Umbralum, not the Elder Council, and he’s not sure the Altarians will know why that’s an important distinction. Hence, this meeting to discuss next steps.
As the vehicle turns down the larger road, Rarux waves back at the passers-by who wave at the car, not wanting to appear rude. The assistants meanwhile are still noting down every single aspect of conversation between the two representatives as well as recording it, basically transcribing their words. Rarux speaks up again.
“And by the way, the word for flying craft in our native tongue does directly translate to ‘air ship’, though I don’t blame you for making the assumption.”
As he finally sits back in his seat, content that Beskelta, while naive, isn’t making any active effort to deceive or warp his perspective of the ASA. She’s likely just been treated well by the system, and that’s why she sees nothing wrong with it. There will be time for a ‘deep dive’ into this place’s underbelly soon enough. For now, the car continues to move, closer and closer to its final destination.
Almost having to be pulled back into her seat, still laughing uncontrollably at the sheer excitement she felt arriving at the capital again, Beskelta with some help from the rest of the bodyguards in the vehicle put herself together to answer the questions Rarux asked causing some questionable reactions towards Beskelta from some of the bodyguards, they wondered just how much information the dawnseeker had avoided or simply forgotten. Beskelta realized this, and after a brief moment of embarrassment, she replied after letting out a small sigh.
-"Right, I should have warned you about it. Not every capital has this much military presence..." -Beskelta pauses, looking outside the window to an open area in the interior of the city, surrounded by low height residential buildings and near a public space, on top of an elevated mount, rests a single laser point-defense turret.
-"Truth of the matter is, to most of the Altarian population, this is normal. Our endless war against the titans has normalized the proliferation of military presence and defense facilities where they are needed, it's the result of surviving through countless eons of war against our enemies, and campaigns from the central government. There's a fine line between readiness and paranoia. I hope we haven't crossed it yet."
For the first time since her visit to the Marble Soul and her return to the Altarian Systems Authority, Beskelta was visibly concerned, and far less joyful than she had been throughout the rest of the journey. Widespread military deployment may be common throughout her nation, but perhaps, her voyages across different countries and cultures has changed her perspective on what once were nothing more but great monuments of unyielding Altarian might.
Beskelta shaked her head trying to break the silence that had ensued on the vehicle, trying her best to return to her previous radiant attitude.
-"B-but! Our guns shall never aim, and our walls shall never block any peaceful starfarer! Ayna promised that, and I believe in her more than anyone else."
With Beskelta's comment, the car came to a halt and the doors opened automatically, allowing her before anyone else to jump out of the vehicle shouting the rest to follow her. As it turns out, the vehicles had arrived on the Elysean Sanctum, a massive public park and garden surrounding the capitol of the central government, a kilometer tall white and blue skyscraper just like the rest of the city had been colored beyond the realms of nature. Beskelta moved ahead of the Maetant team to jump into a crowd of other Altarians, of which none looked like official government authorities, instead they were similarly dressed in a very informal fashion with a lot of gear surrounding them. Other dawnseekers?
Rarux wouldn't know soon, as the bodyguards escorted the Maetants to the other side of the arrival zone to meet a single individual, who unlike the others, was completely on her own. A tall Altarian woman with shining silver hair reflecting the light of the dawn over Eliria's skyscrapers, and bright golden eyes over a welcoming smile. She formally greets the Maetants with an attitude fitting to her appereance, not only was she formally dressed with a military uniform, her stance and tone were something far more grounded and relaxed than Beskelta's. Despite the calmer demeanor, her joy was very noticeable.
-"On behalf of all the Altarian, Aluterian, Arkonian, and aliens living under the jurisdiction of the Altarian Systems Authority, the central government, and our most esteemed Master AI Thelia, dear Maetant friends, I, Ayna Iveria Karin Emmerand, welcome you to our capital. How was the trip?"
Rarux nods along to Beskelta’s answer, finding it… surprisingly reasonable. A discreet tap on his band sends a small green triangle to his assistants, an indicator of positive favor on this statement specifically, a note to come back to later to elaborate. Meanwhile, Rarux places his hands on his knees, a small smile growing on his face.
As the group steps out of the vehicle, Rarux’s two assistants fall in line behind him, taking notes as always. Being as tall as they are, the three Maetant look out over the crowd of Altarians, watching Beskelta be swallowed up by the mass of personage. She’s certainly one to look out for, one to keep in mind…
But soon enough, the party is shuffled around once again. All this escorting, while necessary, is getting a bit old at this point. Rarux keeps his polite smile on his face however, one of the most valuable skills a representative can have, as the group approaches this singular individual. In reply to her formality, Rarux elects for the same, clasping his hands behind his back, and bowing forwards, his assistants bowing as well, but keeping their hands at their sides.
“Ayna, it is a pleasure to finally meet you. I am Advisor Rarux of the Marble Soul. These two are my assistants, Parat and Exspe.”
The spider-eyed one nods to the name ‘Parat’ and the Koi-patterned one nods to ‘Exspe’, to indicate which one Rarux is talking about. The horned Maetant stands up straight again, and his assistants follow suit, resuming their note-taking as Rarux continues speaking, adopting a more casual stance.
“Our trip was… enlightening, I believe would be the right word. We’ve already learned much just on the ride in. We are looking forward to what you may be able to show us, as well as what we may be able to show you. So please, lead the way.”
Rarux takes the opportunity to size up Ayna, taking in her body language as she responds, her demeanor, her tone, the manner of her dress, everything, just as he had done with Beskelta earlier, he is getting the best read on this woman as he possibly can on first introductions. This will shape the rest of the conversation.
Ayna warmly welcomed the two assistants after greeting Rarux, approaching all three Maetants going for a handshake and casually exchanging a few more words with them, before standing in front of the three while listening to Rarux's opinion of the trip, a moment where he could see Ayna much more clearly, and notice that just like Beskelta, her face was marked by a warm and bright smile, but this one was very different from Beskelta's never-ending joy, while the dawnseeker smiled out of pure excitement, Ayna's expression felt much more calm, and sincere. She had been described by many in the trip as a serious woman and powerful military commander, but only Beskelta had pointed out a trait no one else had mentioned, as the dawnseeker put it, Ayna adored meeting new alien species and getitng to know them, a xenophiliac as she put it, the most famous speaker of such ideals in the ASA.
-"You could not have come at a better time my friends, there is no shortage of all sorts of activities in Eliria these days, I wish I could have arrived to enjoy them from the very beginning, but the frontlines called my name. That's aside though, please, make yourselves at home once we arrive into your staying place."
Rarux could observe that just like Beskelta, Ayna useed a lot of body movement to accompany her words, her gestures however were much more carefully executed in comparison, and she didn't seem to mind any differences between herself and the Maetant, simply staring at them with fascination, including the astounding height difference as she was merely 5'11"
-"Beskelta!" -She ordered after a few seconds, the dawnseeker arriving so quickly a single blink could make it look like she nearly teleported besides Ayna.
-"Yes?"
-"Would you like to help me guide our Maetant friends while we head towards the sanctum?"
Without a single moment of hesitation, Beskelta jumps besides the Maetants and walks alongside them an Ayna, their little walk being accompanied by Ayna and Beskelta's narration of the modern history of Eliria, most of which constituted constant tales about its improvement and perfection reaching into the utopian dream of the Altarian people, with brief mentions of anything related to military affairs or the battles the city had seen. By the words of the two Altarians, the city was easily accessible and far from dangerous, public services were never too far, and transportation did not invade aggressively the streets of the city, yet it was built to be able to travel to any important node of the city with great speed and efficiency. And the services at the Maetant's stay were no short of impressive either, while the rooms lacked large amounts of decoration, modularity and machine assistance seemed to make it possible to customize them to the needs of the Maetants, providing any service whenever they wished without any charges or concerns, and a view of the city with a main window staring out straight into the space elevator.
The walk is highly informative, and Parat and Exspe have their hands full with note-taking. All the while Rarux listens with rapt attention, eager to learn as much about this place as possible. All the while he waits for the caveat, waits for the one slip up that will damn this seemingly beautiful place as the corrupt masquerade he expects it to be.
Yet, that crack in the armor never comes. From anyone else he would expect this to be blissful ignorance, but Ayna is a much higher authority than would allow for that, so… Does this city genuinely approach utopia? Utopia with a military presence, what lessons the ASA has to teach the Marble Soul!
And of course the rooms are impressive as well, if under-decorated, that much was to be expected. Rarux takes a moment to wonder if this is the kind of accommodation every citizen has access to. Some sort of underclass is often a symptom of such comfort’s availability. He wonders if it would be possible to find this underclass and ask them some questions, rather than being guided by the privileged. That will have to wait for later however, for now he’s on the moving sidewalk of diplomacy.
However, while he’s on that sidewalk, he can learn a bit more about how it runs. A place such as this is bound to have some form of military museum, or perhaps an art museum with pieces inspired by past conflicts. After inquiring about the location of the nearest suitable museum, the three Maetant elect to travel there. Whether or not the Dawnseekers, or some other form of security decides to come with, is up to them.
Once they decided to depart their designated rooms and head deep into the city again, the three Maetant visitors would quickly learn that Ayna Iveria was going to be accomanying them for the rest of the day, as she happily reported. Beskelta would have to leave the group, as she was called by other authorities to deal with some important matters as she described them. However, she also told them they should look forward to that night, hinting at some major event happening.
But the end of the day was many, many hours away as the Maetants had arrived during the early morning in Elysion. With free time to spare and a city that stretches beyond the horizon at their disposal, they would have no shortage of activities to do to until the night arrived. And for their first stop through the city, it took them no time to be guided to one of the principal museums of the city. The building looked like a small city, constructed with an architectural design that constrasted with its surroundings. Rather than being sleek and highly technological, the museum was built with a much more highly decorated style, with immense detail in the shaping of its pillars, walls, and even floors with sculptures, mosaics, and a surprising lack of other decorations seen across the city such as holographic displays.
And as expected of this place, every minute that went by, the chances to learn something new about the Altarian Systems Authority grew by the hundreds. To their sides, corridors stretching into infinity with paintings and sculptures of the planet, its leaders, deities, important locations, events, battles, and megastructures, all accompanied by interactive displays with their entire history. Walking through the most modern corridors, Rarux and his companions would learn that Elysion was the most peaceful world of the ASA, fomenting the newer generations to explore the most avant-garde artistic movements and expressions, but it hadn't been that way since the start. Turning into the corridors with older art revealed an almost shocking sight when put besides the tiny sculptures of before.
In front of them was the fosilized remains of a tremendous creature, its maw still open, one that could easily devour them all if it still moved.
A titan.
The paintings depicting the destruction of countless cities at the hands of disturbingly gigantic creatures stretched for several meters, with an uncanny level of detail put in the nightmarish beasts that Altarians, and occasionally, Arkonians, were depicted fighting. Perhaps Rarux would find great interest in these paintings, as finally, he found a flaw in this perfect society he was trying to be sold. Clearly nothing could be truly perfect, there couldn't be an utopia with giant monstrocities threatening innocent lives with death in an instant. Looking at Ayna, it almost seemed as if she agreed, as she walked through the corridors displaying the wars against titans she seemed almost uncomfortable, that is, until they walked into the next section.
-Starpath be damned...I forgot this was here."
Ayna's embarrassment followed the group as their turn around the corner, and are met with a statue even greater than the massive fossil behind them, proving to be an even more impressive sight to behold as not only there was yet another massive titan, but above it, clearly, there was a statue of none other than Ayna Iveria herself, having pierced the head of the beast with a huge spear, before proudly standing on top of the titan.
Ayna rapidly tried to convince the Maetants that she hadn't brought them here just so she could boast about her popularity by trying to guide them into another corridor, but out of luck, Ayna had been already intercepted by a small horde of people overwhelming her with questions and praise. A situation she would normally handle with calm turned into a complete mess as she scrambled to find a solution, a second to speak in the multitude, and not ruin her image in front of the visitors.
Upon entering the museum, all 3 Maetant’s eyes are scouring the building for details in every exhibit. Of course more notes are scribbled down, some sketches of different pieces are included as visual reference, and Rarux directs his assistants to specific displays of particular interest.
The contemporary art is interesting of course, the statements of a civilization in the abstract can often be refined into impassioned statements far more honest than a press conference, but Rarux’s attention is quickly drawn to the older section, and the skull.
It all makes sense now. The walls, the constant military presence, all of it. This is a peaceful civilization, yes, but it’s one constantly on edge. This is a civilization born out of fear, safety in numbers, pragmatic militarism. While it is vindicating to learn of a flaw in the seeming perfection of this place, as Rarux looks to Ayna, and sees her uneasy expression, he can’t help but sympathize.
He can’t help but wonder what would have become of the Maetant had they not received significant assistance from other space faring civilizations. Perhaps they would have eventually become an ASA of their own, given their shared circumstances.
The Maetant homeworld of Totus is inhospitable as well, occupied by great beasts of its own and ravaged by intense cold. As the Advisor looks back upon the skull, he begins to see more similarity between the two nations than differences. After directing the assistants to take note of this in specific, he is alerted by the sound of Ayna’s voice.
He moves with her to the next section, only to see… Of course. Rarux puts a hand on Ayna’s shoulder as he gazes up at the statue, a slight smile appearing on his face as she stammers to try and clarify her intention, which only gets a chuckle from the horned Maetant.
“Now now miss Ayna, there is no shame in pride. I do not think you brought us here to boast, but given an opportunity, boasting is not a crime, is it?”
As more and more fans begin to crowd the group however, and Ayna's expression becomes more and more frantic, Rarux’s look sours just slightly, and he taps a few buttons on his band. Both Parat and Exspe check their bands and seem to receive the intended message, as they move to stand on opposite sides of the representatives and face out into the crowd, holding their arms out to form a barrier against the crowd.
Rarux speaks out in a booming voice, addressing the crowd around them.
“Miss Iveria is busy handling diplomatic manners on behalf of your entire civilization, and will not be taking questions! I, Rarux of the Marble Soul, encourage you all to back away, and allow these talks to resume uninterrupted. It is clear to me that you have much to praise her for, and I am certain that she is appreciative, but now is not the time for such flattery. Please disperse!”
Before lowering his voice and speaking directly to Ayna, taking her hand and beginning to lead her away from the swarm of fans, using his assistants to continue to keep the crowds at bay as the group moves into a less crowded corridor, bottlenecking the civilians on the other side of the assistant wall. Parat and Exspe both seem to have grown a bit as well, physically increasing their size in order to form a more effective barrier.
“Quite ironic that I’m the one escorting you now. Please, feel free to take charge here, I won’t judge you for your desire to not be swarmed in public.”
Not only that, but it should be interesting to see how Ayna handles such a situation when she has a bit more room to breathe.
Thanks to Rarux's efforts to control the crowd, the pressure and tension in that moment began to fade at a very quick rate, Ayna was no longer being swarmed by people from all sids, and a loud incoherent storm of cheering and praise faded away into much quieter and controlled talks, the message was clear, so everyone complied.
Something that hadn't become apparent to Ayna at first, who for a few more seconds still tried to shield herself against the crowd. She slowly peeks again, and, once she notices the situation was controlled, she rergains her original composture as quickly as she can.
-"Thanks Rarux." -She whispers to the Maetant, this time with a much more different tone of voice, not with a serious, monotone voice, but something far more honest and informal. She keeps silence before addressing the crowd, now that her embarrasment was gone.
-"I'll be present in tonight's festival, I can spare a lot more time then."
Once the people had an answer from their leader, most began to walk away. In the distance, some of the youngest members caught up in the whole event could be faintly heard talking in pure awe about the encounter, one or two high-pitched squeals among their words.
Having gone through many historical sections, Ayna and the group now walked through hallways and corridors similar to the room behind, the titans displayed no longer stood firmly above the ground. Instead, all of them were defeated, crushed near the ground as Altarian, Aluterian, and Arkonian heroes firmly imposed their weapons and the flags of the Altarian people above the enemy's skulls and shattered bones. These were halls of victory, triumph living in the awe-inspiring scale of the modern Altarian civilization, as portrayed by other statues in the rooms, showing the reconstruction of the capital city, the construction of truly enormous walls, and many, many spaceships that went by strange names.
"Commandstars", "Strikestars", "Star Defenders", the 1:200 scale replicas of the many spaceships of the Altarian people revealed many unconventional naming schemes, but that would hardly be the center of attention when these same ships were surrounded by a replica of some of the most important battles in Altarian history.
The rooms seemed to become emptier and emptier the more the group walked ahead, while also being noticeably higher than the other corridors, where did it all lead? They had gone through the historical halls depicting the early feats of their civilization, their struggle against titans until the modern day, what came next?
The question wouldn't linger for long, as the museum's decoration had wildly changed around them, no longer were the walls wildly decorated, instead, the rooms were much simpler, and far more spacious and severely lacking any proper lighting, at least, until Ayna raised one of her hands into the air and and with a single finger snap she made countless bright and colorful lights illuminate the enormous new gallery, which, unlike all others, was fully holographic.
But the surprises did not stop there, every holographic display was accompanied by a scarily realistic and accurate sound system representing everything portrayed. If the things shown were to scale, it would be hard to believe they weren't real. As enormous shows of lights and scenarios from all the worlds of the Altarian Systems Authority came to life, Ayna clapped twice, and the room changed again.
Watching Ayna, the maetants would soon realize that she was no longer touching the ground, she was hovering in the air effortlessly! Slight movements from her hands changing her trajectory as she wasted no time trying to spin around the holograms, dancing with the visions of people, starships, and the worlds of her nation. She then points to the maetants, and invites them to follow.
-"This system is completely harmless, try to move around and follow me!" -A much more notorious and sincere joy accompanied Ayna's voice this time.
As the crowd backs off with the promise of further interaction at a later time, Parat and Exspe relax, returning to their original sizes and letting their arms fall to their sides. They look at each other, and quietly bump knuckles in acknowledgment of a job well done.
The Maetant follow Ayna again through the halls, back to taking notes as usual, but now the two assistants have a bit more pride in their expressions after helping to hold back the crowd as they did. Rarux of course is smiling as well, though he lingers on some of the exhibits…
To see three separate peoples, the Altarians, Aluterians, and Arkonians, all flying the flag of just one, implies some sort of grave inequity. Do the Arkonian people even have a flag of their own to fly? Something to ask their host about further on in the talks.
Once this question is lodged securely in Rarux’s mind for later, his attention is back on the way ahead as his assistants continue to scribble away notes. A festival tonight? Perhaps they’ll be able to make an appearance, just to learn more about the culture of course.
Speaking of that culture, as the halls become emptier and emptier, Rarux takes some time to reflect. These kinds of museums don’t exist in the Marble Soul. That is not to say that they don’t remember battles, or document history, but that such a prominent museum is one devoted to that violence is strange to Rarux.
That this history is so proudly displayed, romanticized, speaks to the nation’s attitude towards it. Rather than a necessity for survival, this place frames the destruction of the titans as a proud conquest, a hunt that brought many trophies. While the circumstances of the ASA and the Marble Soul may seem similar, Totus remains wild, unconquered for the most part. Once the Maetant could inhabit kinder planets, they did, and left the Magni of their homeworld to live as they always had.
The Maetant had never shown love to violence, the Altarians seem to take pride in their victory over what is now their territory.
This train of thought is stopped, and filed away for later however, as this seemingly empty room lights up with holograms, looking realistic enough to touch. Parat in fact reaches out to confirm their intangibility, the lights reflecting off of their many eyes as their hand passes through.
Marveling at the display is only compounded as Ayna begins to float around the room, as if she were a holographic projection herself, unbound by gravity. The truth of the system becomes clear as she invites the Maetant to join, something they quickly do. Watching Ayna’s hands for a few moments as she wisps through the air, all 3 Maetant quickly gain an understanding of what movements cause what shifts, and begin to swim through the air alongside her before splitting off to different sections of the display.
The two assistants of course begin to split up and cover as much ground as they can, recording and assessing as many nodes of information as possible. Parat’s movements are more rigid and direct, while Exspe moves much like the fish his skin is patterned after, with a fluid kind of grace from point to point.
“Your technology continues to amaze, Domula Iveria! Though I hope you weren’t eager to watch us stumble, my people are very quick learners.”
Rarux, in the meantime, has a very specific goal in mind. He stays close to Ayna, just to make sure he doesn’t appear dismissive while he speaks to her. He looks not for conflict, but instead he actively searches for evidence of peace. He looks for great progress made outside of the theater of war, he looks for innovations made during peacetime, he looks for evidence that the Altarian people can prosper outside of violence.
“Do you happen to have a favorite scenario in this room, Domula Iveria? I’d like to hear your perspective on all of this.” He asks, flipping himself to face Ayna, hanging upside down in front of her, face to face. “To read what is written is fine, but I’d like to hear your candid opinion, if that’s alright with you.”