“This particular species had a trait always unnerved me - unnerved and fascinated. Their curiosity. When I first came to their worlds, these creatures - who had not even left their homeworld yet - showed no fear nor religious awe. Instead, they saw me merely as an object of research: they studied and analyzed me, our technology, our biology. For them, the entire universe exists only to sate their thirst for knowledge.”
“And so, the Demiurges saw THE UNIVERSAL TRUTH
And so, the Demiurges began THE CYCLE OF LIFE
And so, the First Children were created, and given THE FIRST MANDATE
And so, the First Mandate was revealed: to see THE UNIVERSAL TRUTH.''”
- - Scroll of Faith 1:4:1:4
Masters of gene engineering, Aedifiraadaesacaenai, commonly known as Rades or the Demiurges, while not the most powerful species of the ancient Andromeda, are certainly the most prominent. Inquisitive, enigmatic, and highly intelligent, the Rades' scientific experiments made them both feared and respected during the Times of the Four. And like the rest of the ancient empires of Andromeda, the Rades mysteriously vanished five billion years ago.
Unlike the other Andromedan precursors, however, the Rades have left something more than ancient relics and constructs. All across Andromeda and beyond, there are species whose evolution cannot be explained by any scientific means; while all of them are different biologically and separated by thousands of light years, they all share a common creation myth: the legend of the Demiurges, the beings from the sky. Now, these species are seeking for their creators all over the galaxy, but find nothing but myths and forgotten relics which purpose and meaning has been lost to the ages long ago. Still, the search continues, and the Rades' children believe that one day, the truth about the ancient Demiurges will be revealed.
History[]
It is known that the Rades saw knowledge as the greatest power in the universe; and because of that, they guarded it well. Very little information about the Rades species, or their technology, remains, and even less of it can actually be decrypted. The history of the Rades is mainly known through mythology of the species they created and the databases of the Tertamian Alliance and the Grox Empire.
According to the Tertamian Alliance, the Rades advanced at an incredibly fast pace; in less than six thousand years, they evolved from hunters and gatherers to a fledgeling stellar empire; from that point, thdeey started to develop even faster. This rapid advancement rate is also believed to be the reason an extragalactic force became interested in the species; under its wing, the ever-curious Rades quickly became a formindable force, comparable to the rest of the Andromedan precursors.
In the last war between the Tertamian Alliance and the Metropoly, which predated the Andromedan Apocalypse, the Rades took a neutral side, supplying both sides with their advanced biomechanical technology, while continuing their ultimate mission: to discover the mysteries of the universe and see the Universal Truth. After the war, the Rades, like the rest of the Andromeda, vanished, leaving no trace of their existence.
However, it seems that the Rades understood, or at least feared, that their species will become extinct during the war, and started the Genesis; creating countless new species, they spread them all across Andromeda and the universe using the Praesperos, which would then, after the billions of years when the universe would have become safe again, have started reseeding it with new sentient life. The real reason for the Genesis remains unclear, but its results are obvious: countless sentient species all across the galaxy can trace their origins back to this project.
Even now, the Rades remain a source of mystery and legend, the living gods that gave life to the universe. Many believe that the Rades never truly died and will, one day, return...
Characteristics[]
Biology[]
“Saw their statues on one of the Tertamian worlds. Look kinda like Radeons, but... smaller. And, if I was reading the tablets I stole borrowed from the ruins, much more arrogant (and that's saying something)”
- - Lemmo Meronis
The Rades' look resembled that of their most prominent creations, the Radeons: humanoid nocturnal rodents with large eyes, triangular ears, enlarged craniums and lithe bodies, though much smaller, more akin to the Radeons' relatives, the Sader; it was quite unusual for a Rades to be more than one meter tall. However, the Rades lacked fur, with their skin instead being covered in a bluish, metallic liquid that protected their bodies from temperature and physical damage, skin to a protective suit. This is believed to be an artificial modification; the Rades were quite known for their willingness to modifying sentient life, and their own species was no exception.
The internal Rades biology is mostly unknown, although it is speculated to be similar to the Radeon biology: mostly artificial, extremely complex and combining organic and inorganic on a microscopic level.
Abilities[]
Rades, much like Radeons, are known to have possessed a certain degree of control over elemental energy, even more so that their creations like the Radeons. It is, however, believed that the Rades, despite being powerful psychics, did not fully understand the nature of their powers; one of the theories of the reasons behind Project Genesis is that they seeked to find out more about the nature of Essence by developing several psychic races and then analysying their abilities.
Whether this is true or not, they certainly succeeded in making species attuned to Essence: Radeons, Sader and Ryketians are all believed to be the result of Project Genesis.
Society[]
The Rades society was based on one thing: knowledge. Inquisitive and curious, science was the most important thing in life for Rades, and their entire empire was ultimately, based around it; whether through developing new technology, studying the curiosities of nature or destroying those who stood in the way of progress, all Rades, regardless of gender or age were supposed to further their Collective's ultimate goal: to achieve complete understanding of the universe.
Although not inherently xenophobic, the Rades usually deemed most of the species of Andromeda and indeed, the universe as ignorant and primitive; argumentative, pedantic and arrogant, they earned a bad reputation amongst the people of Andromeda. They also had a notable distaste of religious civilisations, deeming them as cowardly and scared of the truth. There was a species, however, that the Rades considered to be equal and even superior to themselves: the Oikoumene. As a civilisation that helped them to find a way to the stars, the Rades owed much respect to the Cyrannian precursors.
Relations[]
Allies[]
“We shall stand together in order to see the Truth.”
- Oikoumene - Our species is ever grateful for what you have done for us. However, we believe that your fear of the Universal Truth limits you.
Creations[]
“Do not forget who has created you.”
- Radeon - Our greatest success! Our greatest failure!
- Sader - Hm...
- Solonese Union - Perhaps they will ascend to the stars one day.
Neutral[]
“Unable to percieve the truth...”
- Tertamian Alliance - Ignorant and limited.
- Kormacvar - Why fear the Truth?.
- Isio'Nar - You shall not hinder our mission.
Enemies[]
“Whosoever stands against us, stands briefly.”
- Grox Empire - Ignorant contraptions.
Quotes[]
“Such curiosity.”
“The Demiurges, the hands of Spode. We always treated them as a myth, and now... seems they have not been a methaphor after all.”
“Supposed predecessors of the Radeon race. Andromeda was seemingly riddled with advanced civilizations long before we arrived.”
- - Tyraz
“False. Metaphorical. Substance. The intangible is your Demiurge. Destroyed. False.”
- - Xhodocto
“I never liked their attitudes.”
“Out of all the precursors, their work is the most...bizzare. I'm no good with biology so I cannot say much on them myself. They did rather enjoy their essence technology however.”
Trivia[]
- The Rades are one of the oldest fictions ever made by Imperios, dating back to 2008; they come from a currently-defunct Russian Spore forum, Sporepedia.Ru. The original concept of the Rades was a highly religious, militant species worshipping Spode (the concept has since then evolved into the Rades' creations, the Radeons. When adapted to SporeWiki, the Rades were at first mostly the same as their Sporepedia.ru and the Radeons were their direct descendants, but were later retconned to be a species of precursor scientists with Radeons as their creations.
- The Rades have gone through three distinct versions.
- Future for the Krogan is the Rades' theme.