If one were to ever truly be able to map the universe they would see just how small they are in the grand perspective. If you imagine that every sentient being on earth represents the number of possible galaxies and that each cell within each being represents the number of possible solar systems within each galaxy, the astronomical number of worlds is enough even make the most powerful computer bogged down in that calculation.
Despite being fast and for all purposes endless, life is still a very rare and precious commodity and space. While some races dedicate their scientific abilities and the pursuit of wealth and other material goods and to wage war, others seek to explore and find enlightenment.
Such was the case of my race eons ago when they first set out into the great unknown. As a technologically advanced race we become obsessed with unlocking the mysteries of the universe and set out beyond our home system find life wherever it may be.
As the centuries unfolded, and with fewer and fewer lifeforms being discovered my people decided to take matters in their own hands and give evolution of push. The idea was that we would find a world capable of supporting life and should not exist currently, we would introduce the necessary building blocks for evolution. The idea was not without its detractors, has amongst our people some questions the wisdom of creating organisms that proved no practical purpose beyond scientific study and he someday might become a threat to us.
Despite such detractors, the grand experiment commenced and before long hundreds of worlds had been seeded with the building blocks of life.
Evolution along and often painful process and thankfully my people possessed great amounts of patience and were able to wait out the scores of millennia needed for the process.
On some worlds my people would visit to assess the progress of their creations even going so far as to help them out from time to time. On other worlds more drastic actions were often required when life was not progressing satisfactorily such as possessing a threat to us for other races.
While it was often extremely difficult sometimes an ecosphere would have to be removed of certain lifeforms in order for the process to begin anew.
From time to time we would encounter a fellow sentient species and as long as there were no open hostilities between us, the free exchange of information and ideas was usually extremely beneficial to both species as we tended not to involve ourselves in the affairs of others so long as they were not a threat to us or creations.
This changed when a discovery of a rich and tropical planet. Our survey team discovered a technologically advanced world and reported a large reptilian race as the dominant form on the planet. Their initial attempts at relations ended disastrously when they were attacked and brutally killed by the inhabitants of the world.
The few survivors who managed to escape reported that the species took great pleasure in hunting other creatures and as they were developing highly capable means of interstellar transportation, poised a significant threat to any world in which they visited.
Attempts at communication and negotiations were for the most part futile, and there were more than a few skirmishes along the way. Our elders had decided the best option was to quarantine the new discovery so as not to waste valuable lives and resources in an all-out confrontation with them.
This seemed to be acceptable as by and large they did not hunt species to extinction, and tended to stay within their own section of the galaxy.
That all changed a few thousand years later won the race became more and more aggressive and ultimately corded confrontations with us as well as brazenly hunted on worlds in which we had seeded life. One daring group even went so far as to land on our capital and proceeded to slaughter scores of individuals before being driven off.
A review of their technology and tactics confirmed our worst fears, that the race had indeed become technologically equal and perhaps superior to us on many fronts. After much debate our consul decided that it was time to level playing field and decided to use our vast technology to develop weapons to combat this new threat.
While we had ships and weaponry my people are not soldiers as up until recently we had not needed more than our current defensive capabilities. They say desperate times breed desperate measures and nothing prepare us for what was to come. We created a creature that was so deadly and devastating to an ecosystem our hope was that the mere knowledge that we possess such a creature would be enough to deter any future aggressions against us.
With some misgivings amongst our senior leadership the new weapon was deployed on one of the alien races colony planets. The idea was that a demonstration on one of their lesser populated areas would more than serve notice but it would also be easier to contain down the road after the creatures had done their assigned duty.
I have often asked myself if we could have fully comprehended the magnitude and far-reaching ramifications of this decision if we still would’ve walked down this path that led to ultimate destruction. Sadly it seems that our fate was sealed the moment that horrific creature was unleashed centuries ago.
…..To Be Cotinued
