Fiction:Inheritance

There were years and periods where it was the time for an empire to meet an ultimate fate, only to soon to be remembered as a legend in recorded history and memory prone to decay. The year was one of them - this time it was an empire often associated as older than dust, but now it is regarded as questionable at best. It happened within a lapse of few days, it started off as communication connections were cut from exploring and traveling fleets, by one and one. Initial investigation expeditions were sent to the last known locations. Little did they realize the moment before they jumped, it would be the last physical evidence of them. Over the course of the events reports of connections and communications severed with frontier colonies and stations at the outer premises started flowing in. Trading stations and fleets of foreign origin within same premises were reportedly missing as well. Out of instinct, governments of the foreign fleets' origin immediately conducted investigations but, unlike the former attempts, they returned. Empty-handed and completely clueless, however. The only details and clues they could find were the complete lack of biological signatures and the non-existence of technology belonging to the disappeared. The only traces were urbanization, geology and structure on planets; those craved by an intelligent advanced civilization. With the addition of large heaps of metal slag formed like lattice; purposely the prime structure of space stations, in place where the stations were supposed to be. Completely clueless were everyone and the only thing they could do was witness the empire eaten away by a completely unknown influence without any physical manifestation. By day an day, the extra-galactic manifestations of the empire went silent by one and one with similar traces seen by foreign powers. Dots disappeared by one and one from the maps maintained by the communication agencies, until the last stand in Bunsen,, finally went silent and disappeared from the digital maps. The once prosperous capital known as Elabos, known for its' ring, a truly amazing feat of large-scaled engineering, is now a dark silent husk with deep ravines left by the civilization that occupied it and a wide ring of worthless metal orbiting it. The only shine was the golden dust and sand covered crust stroked by the suns it belonged to. The empire itself which was on the maps a large lump of body demonstrating the territories it manifested with multiple dots representing the star systems it held, now nothing but a bare black void, stripped off of activity and life. Leaving only the star systems it formerly occupied remaining The last remaining individuals have tried returning to their home territory despite the recommendations and interventions against it by foreign powers and the former allied, of many have never returned or heard off again. While other and those who were refused to return have submitted to isolated nomadic lives, off which they were, too, never heard of again. At the climax of the murmuring those who disappeared, a dot immediately sprung to life in the same void, a communication contact! Fleets rushed to the signal's location and on exit they were greeted by a large object resembling a large pod, its' body dominated by a wide but long cylinder, a cubic construct on top with long appendages of different physical characteristics. After an immediate joint-effort research on the object it could identified to be a lifeboat of some sort, containing many smaller pods for cryostatis and was very rich on signs of life. Uncannily, the object was perfectly built and fit after its' only needs to house the smaller pods. Further investigation of the pods broke the ground, they contained the very same foreign individuals that disappeared with the empire. They however could not restore the memory or recall any of the recent events and what they did prior. The cause and events still remaining a mystery to everyone. Additionally not all who disappeared returned, only 2 thirds of the foreign reported missing returned on the pod. One day later, several communication relays and stations received a signal of very alien origin, the message alien and mysterious to everyone. Until linguists could determinate it was chipped in a language used by the now gone empire, translating to:

TIME PASSED, WE CAME. .. WE RETRIEVED OUR REMAINS. NON-REMAINS OFFERED CHOICE. .. ACCEPTED - SUBMITTED. REJECTED - RETURNED. .. OTHER SIDE OF LIFE AND DEATH. .. THANKS FOR EVERYTHING. .. .. .. LIMBO. SEE YOU THERE.