That wistful melody that had licked and floated around Kimiko her whole life, injecting itself into the quiet and lone moments,
had finally grown in volume. She had been aboard her little ferry, staring at the snow-white star of Omicron Lost, when the humming made itself known again. Its melody, as always, was one that could hardly be reproduced by human instruments or voice. It touched the very body of Kimi's mind and wove itself between the threads that made up her soul, splashing rainbows of color and feeling across her heart.
I have to follow the sound. The starsong has never been so strong... she thought, and focused deeply on the aura reverberating through the system. Whenever she usually attempted to track down a source, it was always in vain. The mystical music would almost always fade before she could find it. The dulcet tunes would constantly remain in the periphery of her awareness, making themselves known during quiet moments.
But this time, something peculiar happened. Instead of being everywhere at once, it actually sounded as if it were coming from somewhere. That purple marble floating contentedly in the distance. Planet Moros. Hastily, she set the autopilot to seek the sound's source. None had ventured onto the planet's surface before, so the only guide to a suitable landing site would be her own senses. This time, the song would be heard at its source.
The Gossamer groaned and struggled to keep stable as the OS&C ferry wove in and out of the asteroid ring surrounding the planet. The occasional small meteorite smacked the hull and pushed the vessel around. But Kimiko persisted, taking over with manual flight controls and finding the right approach vector to begin atmospheric entry. The real challenge was yet to begin, however.
"DANGER: ENTERING ATMOSPHERE," the shipboard computer declared. As the ship pierced the upper atmosphere, the ship's bottom heated up slightly as the friction of gases and metal fought each other. With a brief raising of shields, the problem was quickly averted, only for another to emerge in a few moments. Upon entering the stratosphere, temperatures dipped down to incredibly low numbers, and the canopy glass began to freeze over. In the next instant, the troposphere came into view, and a massive wall of purple fog consumed the ferry. Loud clattering and the sound of ice hitting the hull echoed deafeningly through the cabin. The frozen hailstones of carbon dioxide were like a hail of bullets impacting the hull with all the sound and fury of a Maxim chaingun. The ship's shields rose in response to protect the vessel, though even they would begin to waver after some time. Just when the hail became too much for the Gossamer, a respite was visited upon Kimiko's beleaguered chariot. The dark surface of Moros was made plain before her below the cloud, and a serenity that should have been impossible filled the air.
The scarred ferry leveled out and began searching for some shelter to land in before the hellish weather could start up again. It passed a variety of rock formations and towering crystals, and lakes of argon dotted the landscape as the ship entered the southern polar region. Every now and then, something vaguely artificial-looking would pass by. Old ruins, maybe? The song kept leading her south. Desperately pleading to whatever spirits might be listening, Kimiko hoped there would be something waiting at the end of the song. She needed to know what was calling her in the little, quiet corners of Freeports and bulk freighters.
The ferry eventually touched down on top of an elevated area, groaning under the increased gravity and shuddering as the landing struts made contact with the ground. The outside temperature read an inhospitable -146 Celsius.
"Who could possibly be crazy enough to settle down here?," she asked to no one, slipping into her bulkier, climate-controlled spacesuit. She had enough oxygen and power to last a few days, and the ferry had rations for quite some time. With a small kit of exploration gear, she would be able to scale any obstacle in her way. For once, she felt like a bit of a badass.
The cargo bay doors opened with an audible hiss, revealing a foggy purple plain littered with similarly-colored sands. Tiny fragments of CO2 crystals and hail flew through the sky, bumping off of the ship before continuing their endless journey in the winds. Turning on the helmet's floodlights didn't help matters at all. The fog was just so unbelievably thick that very little light could hope to pierce the veil. In the distance, the silhouettes of smooth stone formations towered dauntingly. With little to go on except her intuition and musical sonar, Kimiko closed the doors behind her and began her hike towards the song.
No shape, no form, no corporeal essence, only concepts and notions. It was aware, the center of experience gathered by the tribe. Whenever one of its drones returned to the tribe on Moros, it grew, contorting, writhing and ever-expanding. It reached out with one of its many incorporeal limbs, animating another drone to carry out yet another task. It blinked out of existence, leaving Moros. The same moment, more drones returned the same way, traversing a fickle corridor between hyperspace and Einsteinian space. Most of this was not handled by it. The routine operations were conducted by lesser creatures it had created. Parts of its body yet only equipped with the faculties necessary to handle administration where there was no need for its intervention — the Advisors, they were called.
Few beings within the universe were gifted with a talent for creation and it was one of them. Not only had the tribe been created by it, but the hive itself as well. The tunnels on Moros were of its design. The creatures called the Vagrants were, at least when it came to their crystalline shells, its creation. While the animation of each shell required it to 'shed' part of itself, a shard of consciousness necessary for the crystalline life to function, the continuous growth of it compensated for the loss, leading to a steady growth. Whereas a human might imagine it as a godlike being, if they could grasp the concept of its existence, it, too, had masters and their command compelled it inexorably. They compelled it to continuously follow the threads of causality unraveling within its sight and to find a way to meet the criteria. In the end, it, too, was a servant to a long dead lord. However, that did not mean it was not dangerous.
Yet there was no tiring. There was no rest. It needed none. And one day, its sight, which had rested on the strings of causality in front of itself fell upon a peculiar aberration.
It took a closer look.
The harsh winds continued to howl. While the surface had been remarkably even, the constant wind-speeds and frozen crystals blown around made traversing the surface excruciatingly difficult. The worst part was the lack of direction, however. With each step forward, it felt like one was lost in a haze of particles that zipped by so fast it was dizzying.
There were no landmarks, nothing to really go by in terms of visuals and anyone else might have gotten lost if they had no technology to guide them back to their ship, but there was an urge, an inexorable tide, a melody that impelled the girl. It rose and fell in cadence, sad and happy at once, yet there was no melancholy. It was as though the singer was lost as well in their own world, unaware of the outside and singularly focused on its task.
Task?
Where had that thought come from? The pondering was interrupted as the already fleeting light suddenly dimmed even further for a moment and returned to normal. Looking up, there would be nothing that would have cast the shadow. Upon resuming to walk, the landscape was changed, however. There was a landmark visible through the veil of particles, like the maw of a ravenous creature emerging from the earth below. An eldritch, teal color had beset the stone. A cave.
Ah, there it was. A glow of progress and direction. This was the way to the song, which had grown in clarity and strength. Kimi couldn't help herself from humming a humble harmony with it, skipping across the notes and rhythm with a mixture of fear and excitement. She was terrified, being alone on this alien world with no hope of rescue if she was in danger. But deep within her mind, she felt that the singer was the only help she'd need. The only help she ever needed.
The cavern was not a shallow little crevasse with a nightlight shoved in the middle. It was a narrow entrance into a massive, expansive network of tunnels that boggled the mind in their scale. There was no running water, acidic liquids, or anything that could possibly show any natural indication of the formation of these hollowed halls. No, these were made by an active effort on part of an animal or entity. The tunnels were massive, to say the least. Probably the size of a fighter, maybe a bomber or freighter. Beyond this, Kimi couldn't discern much else about these underground roadways. She merely lacked the education or experience to discover more. But in time, the tunnels grew steeper and harder to traverse. Eventually, the switch to climbing gear had to be made.
By no means was Kimiko an experienced climber. The most she had ever done to that effect was scaling cliffs on Curacao's sandy shores. And this gravity, though not outright crushing, was more oppressive than she was used to with her human body. As she prepared to rappel down a 20 meter drop, her foot slipped and she was sent tumbling down into the void, screaming at the top of her lungs. Death felt near and certain.
But Lady Luck would have her way with Kimiko as she did with all things. The cable was still fastened to both her belt and the hook at the top of the escarpment. As it uncoiled from its spool on the girl's belt, she was spun rapidly down to the ground. Her left arm was the first thing to impact the stone below, making a sickening crunch as it snapped against the floor. An agonized cry of pain followed as Kimi cradled the broken extremity.
"Major fracture detected. Administering anesthetic," droned the suit's AI. Hypodermic delivery of extreme painkillers and numbing agents cooled the raging inferno of pain within the limb, but it would still need to heal with proper medical care. After some time, the song came back to Kimi, and she hobbled down the tunnel further.
After some time, the cave opened up. Hues of color danced across the dark rock walls, and drips of some unknown liquid pitter-pattered on the smooth floor. Within the surrounding walls were rows upon rows of hexagons with some kind of large... animal in them? Honeycombs? For a brief moment, Kimi couldn't help but wonder if she had stumbled across a long-forgotten hive of space bees. But a few more steps brought the melody into further focus. She could identify the singer's voice clearly, and the song brought a range of emotions that would be incapable to express through human notation. She felt in awe, yet strangely inadequate. Joining such a song would be euphoric, to say the least.
The girl approached one of the ground-level chambers, looking inside. Either her eyes were deceiving her, or there was a tiny Nomad resting in that little hovel. Well, tiny for them. The form was still the size of a shuttle bus, though it seemed a lot less defined than others of its kind and lacked the distinct glow of its brethren. A strange calm swept over her as she approached the being, and she reached out to lay her hand gently on the organism.
The being followed the little mote in its vision along a string of causality. It appeared to actually be a sapient creature, not just an animal or a force of nature. Reaching out to take a closer look, there did not seem to be any sort of weapon on the person. A female. Protected by technology which she had cocooned herself in. There was the impetus to merely move in a drone to vaporize her, as the carbon could be used in another place. However, doing so would cause instabilities, especially in the incubation chamber. Worst case, the woman started damaging the drones and they would be lost. If it killed her, the drones would likely be lost as well. However, if the female had no intention of harm, then it could keep the drones. It was the most logical option to wait.
It watched as the female touched the unfinished shell of a Nomad with her gloved hand. The veils were usually dangerous. Those drones were not finished and had none, though. The gesture sparked a mild curiosity within the observer. It traced back slightly, watching the approach of the female again. She seemed to be moving with purpose. The caverns had purposefully been constructed in a manner that would put any intruder on the back foot. Was it sheer luck that this woman had found the first chamber this easily? Granted, it was only barely eighty meters below the surface, but still. Not even one wrong turn.
It resumed its observation of the female. Her shell had been damaged during a fall. Kinetic energy had snapped the bone. From the way she had impacted and its knowledge of the human female, he knew exactly where the limb had been broken. No signs of pain. The shell was mitigating the effects...
Premise, conclusion. The was it thought was mechanical, yet efficient. By observing, it deduced more and more, most of it irrelevant. The female seemed to have no fear. It was unusual, considering that a combination of low light and the unknown tended to inspire a sense of dread within her species. More noticeably, though: The female seemed to emit a vibration that reverberated through the thin atmosphere, albeit badly. It rose and fell in cadence the more or less attention it directed at her. Now the being truly was intrigued. Did that mean the female had an affinity for the presence of the being? There was a way to find out.
Slowly, as not to break the feeble creature, it reached out with one of its ephemeral limbs and touched the mind of the lesser creature in the dwelling, carrying a simple concept that encapsulated the purpose of the chamber: Growth.
A thought. A concept. Not a conscious word or anything, but something on an even more instinctual level. Was it the singer?
The psychic siren's song echoed through the cave and her mind. It now sang a tune of the first Spring melting of snow. The cries of a newborn emerging from her mother. The sun rising over a sleepy, rustic hamlet. A child measuring their height by the doorway. A plant bursting forth from the ground. Sounds turned to images and sensations that evoked personal memories and sentiments. It was beyond a visual hallucination. It was like something had plucked a string in her mind to play a specific note. That note was a feeling that eventually manifested itself into a single word she could identify.
"Growth," she whispered breathlessly and without willing it.
Now that she looked around, the room did look like a nursery of sorts. Little cradles with little lights. She smiled. It was weirdly comforting to know they had to grow somehow. Tiny Nomad babies. Heh. She caressed the exterior of the infant, feeling a pang of almost motherly love and adoration for the creature, much as any other human would treat a small puppy. For Kimi, all life was beautiful. These pre-Morphs were no exception. The peace of a sleeping child was not lost on her.
Subconsciously, she broadcasted, albeit weakly, a concept in return.
The female understood it. It did nothing for a while, observing how the creature moved about the growth chamber, touching the various Nomad shells. The way she felt was not lost on it. It was certainly an unusual reaction to garner in a situation like this. A broken arm, being lost in the middle of nowhere, the female did not behave in ways that would be appropriate for her situation. The feint echo conveyed was familiar, however.
It traced back to where the semblance of this female came from and came across an experience made by Melia, another one of its creations. There had been multiple prolonged encounters with this entity. The female was not a stranger. It pondered a moment longer before deciding that it was probably best to cajole the female into leaving the chamber. There was no danger coming from her, it was sure. However, the spot was vulnerable. A plan formed within the depths of its consciousness, and with another touch, the entity impelled the female to leave through an adjacent tunnel and walk for a while before she would spy a light a little farther away.
The song drew her further and further inside, past the nursery and into a large, open chamber. This place looked decidedly different from everywhere else because of one odd reason.
“There was a tree. A massive tree reaching up to the ceiling of the cave, and it almost looked like it were made of glowing crystals.
The music filled the air and imparted upon her a sense of... belonging. A feeling that grew with each step towards the massive trunk. It was here that she lowered herself down with her good arm, taking a seat under the branches of the imposing column of life. In her mind, she couldn’t help but make a mental connection to Yggdrasil. She doubted the veracity of the tree, but trusted in the song to guide her. It had led her this far.
One look at the branches above took her by complete surprise, though. Whatever she expected to see was not there.
The eyes of the feathered creature looked down at the injured human. A ruse, an image evocative of mythical beings created for worship and admiration by the humans. The two species were so radically different that adequate communication needed a bridge, an analogue to function. After all, it communing with the female would be akin to the wisest elder speaking to the youngest and most foolhardy youth. Not even that did the circumstances justice, however.
Four wings, adorned with white primary feathers. Pristine. There was something about perfection that appealed to it. In this twisted refraction of reality it wove around the female, it could practically display anything. A human, a bird. Why not a bird? There was an elegance to them that humans simply were not able to display.
The bird above moved its head and cawed, drawing the attention of the bird's guest. At the same time, a slight pressure descended upon her skull, as though a hand had gripped it. Albeit painless, the surroundings seemed to slow down and even though there were no major sources of sound, the slight dripping of water in the distance distorted. It could easily crush the feeble mind and needed to be careful not to if it would prove to be useful. Did you find what you came for? Again, no words, only notions and concepts. The understanding was nigh instantaneous yet there was a certain sluggishness to it. The bird above tilted its head slightly, this motion, too, slow, its black eyes bearing down on the visitor.
That pressure... it wasn’t excruciating, but it didn’t help matters much, did it? Kimi knew for certain that she was in the proverbial belly of the beast. The tree, the bird... it was doubtful they could exist on such a barren, inhospitable wasteland of a planet. They could be illusions, or maybe just artificial. But for the moment, they seemed real enough. The mental talons dug ever so much into her head, and the moment the question was asked, Kimiko provided an answer without even thinking to speak. The song was overwhelming here. It felt like this room, this bird... it was all connected to the song. Maybe the winged beast was the singer?
She concentrated as best she could, bringing to mind concepts and feelings that she hoped would communicate her intentions.
A small girl playing on an oversized guitar, alone in a quiet meadow with the wind whistling a tune. It feels like the wind has always blown, but only she has felt it. She plays and sings for all the world’s creatures, clumsily but with great effort. She seems disappointed with her performance and wishes to become more than an amateur.
A collection of Nomad Mind Nodes drenched in heavenly light and letting out the most beautiful, sense-overlapping display. It brings to mind the wind of the previous feeling. Song was the closest approximation she could muster, but it was so much more when Melia showed it.
Her dark body, and a lighter silhouette emerging from it, ascending away from the humanoid oblivion of its previous form. It flies up and up, before merging with e agreater light.
Cities, countries, planets... all join in doing the same. The greatest chorus. The highest unity. All life singing as one, each being adding their own talent and color to this majestic tapestry of existence.
Perfection.
‘I search for the song. I want to share it with all.’
The eyes of the bird above remained unchanged during the exchange. The avatar of it stared down at the injured female, contemplating. It knew that the female likely had a peculiar mindset that allowed her to think this way in the first place. The continued exposure to Melia and other Vagrants in various Omicron systems had helped matters in that regard. Still, it could not deny that the female had gotten its attention. While most of her kind would probably consider her slightly insane, it hardly mattered here.
Virtue. There was something of the human concept thereof that it loathed. Maybe it was because of the continued nuisance that this species continued to be or because they held it in such high regard, but it enjoyed taking it apart. When she had been in the growth chamber, this human did not harm the infantile drones, even though, from her species' perspective, it would have been in her best interest to do so. This female was a compassionate character. Everything about her, the thoughts emitted the demure posture broadcasted it for everyone to see. And to that end, you climb into a dark cave and nearly break your neck in a fall? There was a certain amusement in the message. The bird above ruffled its feathers. The growth chamber, it began, while another distorted dripping sound was heard, why did you do what you did there?
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