Cazz-ak-tak shuffled out of the entrance to the Entho-la-ah-mine tunnel habitation. The emerald green of his exoskeleton shone brightly in the light of Lith-elo-hi-rosh’s blue primary star.
The beauty and vastness of this planet never ceased to inspire wonder within him. Tall, emerald green grass waved gently, looking like a vast ocean. The leaves on the mighty palos trees rustled in the breeze, small groves of the huge hardwoods breaking up the grassy plains. In the distance, grand mountains reached for the sky, their heights unknown, unexplored.
Cazz-ak moved out into the long grass, his six legs easily taking him through the waving plants. He followed a well-defined path, one he could see with both his eyes and his mind.
A short distance across the prairie, he startled a tak-ai, a small rodent-like creature indigenous to Lith-elo-hi-rosh. Its green body blended into the grass perfectly when it stood still, but the animal was very skittish. As it fled from Cazz-ak, it inadvertently darted into a calath plant. The sharp leaves sliced the poor animal, and after a few moments it fell over, dead. The neurotoxins produced by the plant were fatal to most wildlife on this planet. Cazz-ak moved by both the plant
and the tak-ai, not taking any special precautions. His exoskeleton protected him from the sharp leaves. Besides, the chemical was a psychedelic for the Entho-la-ah-mines, rather than a neurotoxin.
After a few minutes of walking, a huge canyon appeared before Cazz-ak. Emerald grass grew all the way to the edge. He continued on the path, and soon it wound down into the canyon and entered a tunnel. A short distance inside the narrow passage, Cazz-ak reached an enormous, vaulted chamber housing several gleaming ships. Each vessel was made from a resin the Entho-la-ah-mines secreted, a substance close in composition to their exoskeleton. It was their primary building material, easily molded into whatever shape was needed, whether it was a food basin or hull plating for a ship.
Cazz-ak thought about how much life had changed for the Entho-la-ah-mines within the past few years. Initial contact with humans had been rewarding. Both species had come together, had exchanged knowledge and information about themselves. Unfortunately, something about the way the humans had evolved caused them to see the Entho-la-ah-mines as resources rather than friends. It hadn't been long after the Unification and Harmony Tour that the humans invaded their first Entho-la-ah-mine world.
Cazz-ak could hear and feel his fellow Entho-la-ah-mines throughout the galaxy, and they in turn could feel him as well. Everyone was connected through the central mind known as the Great Thought. He sensed the deep joy and harmony of those on peaceful planets still undiscovered by humans. He also felt the pain and agony of those suffering from human expansion. The misery of his kin was like the edges of many calath leaves being drawn slowly across his mind. It was excruciating, yet somehow he and his people managed to bear it.
It was this call, this alarm, that Cazz-ak-tak was answering.
Even though his race was peace-loving and had never fought in the past, Cazz-ak-tak was going to war. He felt ill-equipped to perform his mission, knowing the humans' warfare technology was vast compared to that of Entho-la-ah-mines. It had been just a few decades since the Entho-la-ah-mines had even learned the concept of war. Now they were forced to fight for survival.
Cazz-ak approached one of the many ships arrayed in a triangular pattern inside the cave. They were massive objects, crewed by up to five hundred Entho-la-ah-mines. The ships looked like two pyramids stacked bottom to bottom, a bi-pyramid. They hovered in space above him, silent, hulking, their organic hull plates shining bright green in the artificial light. Cazz-ak knew the bi-pyramid shape had been chosen because of its efficiency in focusing the mental powers of his people.
Using his mind to reach out to the hatch on the ship above, he identified himself to the security protocols. It was an easy task, one he did subconsciously. Stopping below the vessel, Cazz-ak focused on drawing power from the Great Thought. He then channeled this force towards the ground below him, rising gently into the air.
Cazz-ak floated upwards towards the mind hatch and the aperture lensed open at his approach. It was just big enough to fit his elliptical, six legged body. Once inside, he began to walk again. The corridors were oval, one body wide by two tall. As he continued through the ship, a few of the crew walked on the ceiling above Cazz-ak's head, mentally greeting him. After passing several branching corridors, he finally came to another mind hatch.
This path led to the apex of the top pyramid. Cazz-ak went through the mind hatch and the orientation of gravity changed. He now stood on what he previously thought of as a wall. Each of the five points of the bi-pyramid was its own “up”, which
allowed them to be observation points and command bridges in case of damage.
Now that he was on the primary command deck, Cazz-ak was able to look out through the hull plating on all three sides, seeing the upper points of the other vessels. He was amazed they had been able to build so many ships in such a short period. And with so few of us left...
Images flashed through Cazz-ak's mind. He saw his people systematically exterminated on Kii-la-ta, the first planet attacked by humans. They had been unable to defend themselves and the massacre was excruciating to remember. He saw the great councils meet, saw the philosophical debates about violence and warfare, about what they must do as a species. None of them understood at the time that they were being killed so the humans could take the resources of their worlds. More planets fell and the councils had resolved to fight against the extinction of their species. They had to do it their own way though, had to use the tools evolution had provided.
The bi-pyramids were a result of this effort. The Entho-la-ah-mines knew they could not resist the humans in battle. Cazz-ak himself had seen the power of the human ships and it would be many years, even at Entho-la-ah-mine speed, to develop the abilities to fight in that way. In the end, considering the circumstances, the Great Thought had decided it best to abandon the home worlds to the humans. The bi-pyramid ships evacuated as many as possible, but many had to be left behind.
Cazz-ak found himself wishing he was rescuing those individuals, but he knew his mission was far more important. Instead of saving hundreds or thousands of Entho-la-ah-mines, he would be saving his species as a whole.
He forced his mind back to the present and hailed his Hax-ax-ons, a group of three Entho-la-ah-mines who controlled the
ship's primary systems. They returned his salute, and Cazz-ak instructed them to begin departure procedures. Each was standing in their control focus point, a Hax-ax-on at each of the three side points of the pyramid. Cazz-ak took his position in the center of his officers, the focal point of their energy. It was his channel to the Great Thought that would ultimately power and move the vessel.
In his mind, he could feel the readiness of his crew, as well as their apprehension. It was dangerous to transport the cargo they had on board, but it was far more unsafe to leave it on Lith-elo-hi-rosh. Cazz-ak felt an immense honor to be part of this mission, to help bring about the continued existence of his species. These facts created a swirl of emotion that had everyone on edge.
Cazz-ak momentarily observed the officer in charge of the ship's mind soothing and comforting all those aboard, instilling confidence and unity within the group. Cazz-ak was proud of his crew. This was not their first deployment, And with the Great Thought's aid, we will continue to help our people.
He sent out the signal to depart. All around the ship, the Entho-la-ah-mines gathered their thoughts and focused on the apex of the ship. Cazz-ak felt their power enter him and drew it in deeply. Once he’d pulled in everything available from the crew, he invoked the might of the Great Thought, drawing it into himself as well. Cazz-ak reflected and magnified the strength of both power sources into the ship's propulsion officer. She then turned the mighty force towards the surrounding fabric of space-time, warping it in such a way that it made the massive vessel rise out of the hangar chamber.
Cazz-ak gave another order and the ship accelerated through the atmosphere. As it left the planetary boundary, he gave a course towards the system’s edge. As they traveled, Cazz-ak continued listening to the thoughts of those suffering due to human action. The more he listened, the more his
sorrow and resolve deepened.
Once they were outside the Lith-elo-hi-rosh system, the propulsion officer slowed the ship, stopping in empty space. Cazz-ak watched her refocus her attention on a point just in front of the huge bi-pyramidal ship. The visible stars behind the focal point disappeared, but were quickly replaced by a new, different set.
As the ship began moving towards the newly created distortion, Cazz-ak fervently hoped their return to the Entho-la-ah-mine origin world of Haak-ah-tar would not end in the extinction of his species.