Fiction:Coming of the Singularity/Stories of the Technoosphere

The AI's that cooperated with the civilizations in the universe were about to change the structure of the gigaquadrant, perhaps forever. Ancient AI's, such as the Quadrantia and the ancient Kraw AI had woken from dormancy added vast processing power to the AI Netspace, although there were some hickups and hostilities along the way. However, the AI Netspace was far from complete, and the progress was slower for the civilizations of the universe. It was decided the Seven Starr Alliance and "The Civilization", would be the first to use the Technoosphere. But the Technoosphere was more than just a virtual cybernet for those living the AI's dreams, or a new political medium. The great projects of ancient times, and the vast goals of some of the AI's and other vast technological powers were slowly being revealed. But there were external forces at work as well that could greatly affect the outcomes of the future using the Netspace... New entities emerged as well, such as the Meta-selves who could occupy more than one body, vast virtual ecosystems and new information technologies to occupy the cornucopia of the cyberworld.

Rambo Nation meets the Quadrantia AI

USS Dallas prepares to dock with the Quadrantia AI

Ramcard looked serious, and wondered what the massive structure was he and his crew discovered deep within former Rambulan Star Empire space. Ramcard was send to investigate as the Rambulans were suddenly destroyed and with the Confederacy occupation of Karzhamahri-Nui Command wanted to find out what exactly destroyed the Rambulans. In hopes of finding a way to repel the Confederacy.

When Lieutenant Chiäe Giusti informed the Vice-Admiral of the structure near the outskirts of the Rambulan Star Empire, Ramcard ordered Major RN-0005 to the bridge. All three together looked at the data the USS Dalles her sensors were giving about the structure.

Ramcard, Chuinaylia, Major and two space Marines meet the Quadrantia AI in person

It seemed a huge cylinder ring, with a half cylinder ring with a tower on it seemed the control room of this space station, as the Major classified it. Griusti did not agree with that classification but none the less complied that they had to investigate. The USS Dallas docked with the massive structure and Vice-Admiral Ramcard, Lieutenant Giusti and the Major, together with two space marines explored the structure. They headed to the bridge section, where they activated the computer panels. Ramcard looked surprised, the structure was over 12 million years old!

Suddenly all five were floating in the air. Hanging five meters above the ground two light awakened, the AI interpretation awakened and with an ancient voice, which sounded young to and with caution asked their business. Ramcard nodded, and told him whom they were and what they were doing here. The AI seemed pleased, perhaps these species, though the one identified as Ramcard looked a bit like the Rambulans, but she knew form Rambulan databases that the Serindia were different.

She giggled, and Lieutenant Giusti and Ramcard told the AI a lot about current events and matters. The AI complied, she allowed Rambo Nation to use her databases, as it seemed the Quadrantia AI was more of a library/large database about other AI and events in the Quadrant Galaxies. When Ramcard and his crew left the AI alone, Rambo Nation would send scientist later on, he was surprised to see the structure hanging in orbit of Ramahri Nova. When Ramcard wondered how this was possible, he simply heard the AI giggling over the intercom!

Then a small holographic interpretation of the AI appeared before Ramcard, she said the Rambo Nation was allowed to study her databases, but that the AI herself was now travelling with Ramcard, she wished to explore the universe with him and his crew. Ramcard raised an eyebrow but simply nodded, he was aware this AI had destroyed the Rambulans within the blink of an eye.

The structure, with the powerful weapons was left in orbit of Ramahri Nova, under the watchful eyes of a Rambo Nation task force, though it still had a connection with the AI, she could simply decide whether she was on the structure or on the USS Dallas.

Fusion synapses

In the recent years, it became known to the First Gigaquadrant community that the Girdo was not a normal galaxy. It held an importance to the mysterious Xyanxes, for reasons unknown why such a small galaxy would hold importance for a universal-scale civilization, if even that was appropriate terminology for them. They had left many archae-astrophysical artifacts, such as livinng Gaia worlds and wildlife sanctuaries the size of size of the galaxy, which had since deteriorated, as well as a defense mechanism which drags the galaxy into a pocket universe during the Xhodocto's scourging events. But most fantastic discovery of all, and perhaps also very ominous, was their war with a force perhaps stronger than them, and that they were causing stars to snuff out prematurely. Evidence indicated they were spreading over much of the universe, but had concentrated their assualt on the Girdo Galaxy for billions of years, whittling away the stars. Because of similar signs of activity in the Milky Way, the Delpha Coalition of Planets began to explore the Girdo Galaxy. Soon they came to the conclusion that there was something strange indeed about the galaxy.

The stars themselves were organised into patterns. Many of the stars had changed their alignment, but the patterns were unmistakably there. All spiral galaxies have density waves, a density wave is characterised by patterns in the galaxy's spiral arms, which move more slowly than surroundong gas and stars. The higher densities compress the gas, sometimes squeezing it anough to collapse into star formation, reflected by the morphology of the galaxy. But the density waves in the Girdo galaxy, although they were now broken, had certain regions that were in an orderly, constructed pattern. This of course mean't nothing to the spectral telemetry of the DCP's ships, however, all are equipped with other devices, including gravitational scanning.

The stars that were still in the regions that retained order were unusually close together. They were in gravitational rythem, as the DCP ships watched the slight irregularities of the galactic orbits between the closer stars. Some were in tandem, some where inputting and others were recieving energy, conserving it into potential energy to be be fired like a slingshot to the next star. After a month of overwatching the data the DCP realized this process was akin to a biochemical synapse found in many carbon-based cellular lifeforms. But the question was, what was this mind thinking and percieving, had been created, if so for what purpose?

The DCP returned to the Milky Way, now harbouring a network of both ancient and the new AI's, that had evolved on the cosmic scale. The DCP had some allies, including the Guide Star. A temporary wormhole was created between the Milky Way and Girdo galaxies, one at one end of the Technoosphere, and another in the Girdo galaxy. In some ways, the AI's of the Milky Way were very different to the Girdo's mindframe. The Guide Star began to configurate some of its computronium to interact with the gravitational field on the quantum and subspace scales, two extremes, in which to find a balancing centerpoint. After a week of processing information, the computronium could now interact with the subtle gravitational rythems of the Girdo galaxy when it was sent through the wormhole link. The plan was to tap the the galaxy "on its back".

The Girdo mind instantly recoiled. The Guide star feared more damage hade been done than good, because the galaxy mind may have snapped off some of its dwindling "synapses". Contact would be harder than was previously considered. Instead, the Technoosphere would try to mimmick the gravitational orbits of stars close together near the density wave where the mind was located. After weeks of attempts, by shifting the motions of stars using stellar engines, it was believed contact had finally been achieved, the Girdo mind told its story. The Girdo mind was once a shadow of its former self. Its consciousness once spread over every star in the galaxy, but the race of dark matter beings had layed siege to the mind for so long it became tired and succumbed to their ravaging destruction, snapping off its fusion synapses one by one. The purpose of the galaxy was a weapon against them.

Blotting out the timelike sky.

It included Mach's principle. For every object in the universe was surrounded by matter, each exerting a gravitational field that spreads into infinity. The gravitational strength was uniform and equal in all directions. Both matter and dark matter interacted with the gravitational field. The Girdo mind was able to cause deviations in the uniformity of gravity, thus could move anything that interacts with the gravitational field anywhere. The mind was slowly dying, it had only 25% of its brain capaity left, and much if its process were now feedback loops. It was brain damaged, however, it had chosen this fate, and declined any support.

However, from its billions of years of loneliness, it had much to think about and learn. It could sense the wavefunction lines spreading into the future, more and more of these lines were being felled. The universe's potential had plummeted so rapidally, it knew that its existence was in vain. This was one of the many warnings and signs of an oncoming darkness, blotting out the future and replacing it with something else...

Tahar discovery

As the wars in the Kraw Galaxy raged on, the Tahar were left pretty unscathed by the conflicts, and with their allies now cut off, the Tahar devoted their time to exploring the Kraw galaxy. They had discovered a strange lithium star burning similar to the stars of the very young universe that should no longer exist, so the Tahar went to investigate, as it could not have been natural.

There they discovered a dormant AI, that had been awakened by the Singularity. It contained scriptures from the Kraw's ancients, the Hrezi Federation, which of little was known about. The AI itself was situated inside the lithium star, however, like an egg was feeding on its short lifetime, becoming stronger. It was waking from long dormancy. The Tahar waited, even they were awed by its power, it was consuming more energy tat a pace even the DCP would pale in comparison! To have scriptures written by the Hrezi Federation, it must have dated to at least -1.7 billion KRE. During that time, the Allmind had extincted all life in the galaxy hindering its development of life until the 2nd generation species that inhabit now. The Kraw Galaxy sent their greatest scientists to investigate the AI and make contact, it could hold the ancient secrets of the galaxy...

3 Scientists came. Scientist Evkos from the Tahar Empire, Scientist Ikorn from the Kraw Empire, and Scientist Zoevoxx Restawrawdaxx from the KGGC. They decided to try and talk to the AI. They wondered if it could be spoken to, seeing as it is so old. Zoevoxx recognized the scriptures.

Zoevoxx - "Oh my... This is Hrezian..."
Evkos - "Those who came before us?"
Zoevoxx - "Yes. 1.7 Billion years ago, they were destroyed by something called "The Allmind", though they never knew who he or it was."
Ikorn - "Read it then, dammit!"
Zoevoxx - "This takes time, Hrezian has 81 Sounds!"

After a while, they could read the inscriptions. Zoevoxx said out loud:

"K'il'rak'laxx AI. Built by the Hrezian Grox Empire and the Hjaa'akrh continuum. He speaks Hrezian and Groxic only. <<Thank the Multiverse>> Created for the purpose of information storage and historical storage. Please treat it nicely and curteously. Regards:

- Pxx'kna, creator of this AI

The AI started to awake. All the scientists could do was watch...

AI - *In Groxic* "Monster--- The Injo! Ik'lx'o... Oh hi. I just awoke. Where am I? Tell me or I won't speak."
Zoevoxx - *In Groxic* "The now named Kraw Galaxy, sir. The Hrezi federation has died."

The AI paused. Then it spoke again.

AI - "... I know it died, but how long was I dormant for?"
Zoevoxx - "1.7 Billion years, sir."
AI - "A long time indeed... ... ... Do you 2 speak Hrezian or Groxic?"
Zoevoxx - "These 2 alongside me, they only know Kraw Universal, a new language. Here's a book of KUL Rules and words."

The AI analyzed 1 page per second using telepathy. Hrezians, before extinction, had the same power, if not more, than the DCP has today.

AI - *In KUL* "Testing, 1 2 3... Oh, guess I got it. So, want me to tell you tales of Hrezi?"
Ikorn - "Sure, go ahead."

The AI went into a disc shaped form, and made the center of the disc a screen, from which the scientiss could watch.

"A long time ago, the Hjaa'akrh achieved sapience, even with no legs, the Akrh, with their trails of slime, managed to build civilization from stage 0. It was a simple time, clans divided their homeworld of Ho'zhkahaa into 16730 pieces, each with its own culture. Then, after 2000 years of unions and splits, the Hjaa'akrh became one, and colonized space. At the time, only the Hrezian Grox Empire was there, lonely as Timoz, that is our mythological bad afterlife. So, after they took a few hundred planets, some insects challenged the Akrh. hey nearly made them extinct, though nobody wants to be lonely, so they left them alone."

Evkos - "Great story, from back where-"
Ikorn - "Let him speak."

"Fast forward a few hundred Million years. The Akrh had about 82000 Colonies, many for a small Galaxy. They controlled population, it was getting excessive. They used quantum replicators a lot. Nmoks are good, yum! And suddenly, more empires came and greeted the Akrh, and the Akrh proposed a nice little federation to govern the Galaxy. That was called" *In unison with Zoevoxx* "The Hrezi Federation of the 6 Great."

Evkos - "You guys never left your Galaxy?"
AI - "Not back then, because it was far far far away from the other Galaxies, and when we tried FTL, we often winded up in the same Galaxy or in the middle of nothing. Tachyons are hard to control! Some colonized outside of the Galaxy, into Mahon (Tuuros), but now, they're gone. All I keep getting is some wierd voices, the only word I got was "Shikua"."
Evkos - "Yes... Shikua... Now, proceed."

"Our federation occupied almost all of the Galaxy, and that's when we decided to settle in other Galaxies. So we went to Inwk (Gnaaha Galaxy) and we took colonies. We had a good while there, around 30 Million years of peace. We expanded more and more, until there was one point, where things would go mad..."

Ikorn - "How mad?"

"Really mad... There were the Hshozevoxinax, controlled by something called... Allmind. It was mad, we didn't want to leave, but he was bombarding our systems with countless messages! Then he attacked. At first his attacks were low in number and easily defeatable, but as the Hundreds of millions of years passed, the Allmind went back stronger and stronger, and our colonies in Inwk fell. We had 6 Galaxies by then, but as of today, we lost contact with the other 5 Galaxies. All with the same one word... Shikua..."

Ikorn - "That was just Inwk, what happened?"

"Well, Hrezi was the mainpoint of the federation, if it was lost, universal contact within the Federation would be minimal, if not non-existent. Anyways, we had 25 Galaxies when the extinction happened..."

Evkos - "What extinction?"

"A while before that, they built me, so I can give you more detail. Basically, it was beyond counting. 20 Million Gynash Dragons, as you guys know them, came into the tip of an arm and made that part clear of colonies over a 13 day period. Then 50 Million did it to a larger area, and so on. The final raid was against Ho'zhkahaa, and the Gynash Dragons made everyone extinct... The raid was immense, the survivors escaped to the other Galaxies... The Hrezian Grox Empire hid underground, thankfully, and lived to see another generation. As for me, I remained dormant, until now. Now all our former territory outside Hrezi... Shikua... THAT WORD!!!"

Evkos - "They're from the Xhodocto, an empire of "divine" beings who can do the impossible. We believe they're not gods, but rather freaks of nature."
AI - "Ok... That's freaky. So, that wraps up history. Anything else?" Evkos - "Why did you awaken now?"
AI - "Forces in the Milky Way. AI's like me are awakening from our long sleep in the Singularity."
Evkos - "This is exciting. Our own Singularity."
AI - "Sorry, ours?"
Evkos - "My race's scientists are desperate to research a Singularity, the benefits of a Technoosphere..."
AI - "I was not designed for the Technoosphere, I am a database, so the Hrezian legacy can live on."
Evkos - "However, imagine a vast virtual library, it would be far easier to access for just about anyone."
AI - "Then I shall consider reprogramming myself."

As the AI re-engineered itself it became a beacon in hyperspace, attracting the attention of marauding empires...

Gödel's body snatchers

"And there, Heterogeneousness stands right before me, like the mythical warriors of old clad bronze armour, dazzling in the Sun, this star, blood red and darker than Sol and surrounded by vein-like networks of computronium, pulsed. I laughed, more in surprise than anything else, it was as if I was looking into a still-beating heart of an open ribcage."

And how did I get to this point? I'm a mere crime detective, by the name of Bob Yokes, working for the Human Republic! My case was of the disappearance of Noureen Sanderson, who had vanished while visiting a planet on the outskirts of human space. It is a popular site for picnics, provided you don't stay more than a few hours due to the relative closeness to a gas giant, obviously making it a unofficial tourist attraction. It is no moon, it is thought a passing star dislodged the planet from its orbit sending it careening into the deadly caress of the gas giant, however, no matter how spectacular the views are, it is risky going there. The gas giant is reflecting enough sunlight from its parent star that at this proximity ultraviolet light is stronger than an unprotected 3 hour exposure on an equatorial beach on Earth. It is also dangerous not just because the planet hasn't been terraformed, but also because it is outside our defences.

I almost closed the case, it is not illegal to visit the planet, but thanks to health and safety regulations, you can "visit it at your own risk", and unlike the good old days you aren't told how to carry out these safely. If she has been taken by pirates, slavers both alien or human, she has had it, or maybe worst of all, assimilated by a passing Grox probe. But I have not given up on poor Noreen, I found evidence of trace radiation left by a transporter device. I then sent back to CSI labs, so they can match the transporter signature to any known on the database. The database is an intelligence of its own, capable of matching similar signatures of certain transport designs so it can calibrate what type of transport it was even if its not on its memory. There was no matches. With the recent Grox wars, this has now become an issue of defence, and then I found myself at the Republic's high intelligence command.

The plot soon thickens. Outpost 17 in Sector 355 which borders BNSC space got a distress call from the Bearians. A famous CEO in the BNSC was abducted, their command contacted us to see whether this alien was in human space. An official investigation showed it was the same signature. At this point, intelligence had leaked to none other than the Delpha Coalition of Planets. Information seems to quite easily leak to them, in a way, its as if the DCP owns the Milky Way by the sheer fact of knowing everyone's business. The fact was that the DCP was under stress, as the Grox had returned with new vengeance, and the Grox's actions were not under full surveillance. Anyway, back on topic; the DCP had revealed that survey stations orbiting various truly-alien life sustaining astrophysical bodies (such life is not contained just to planetary surfaces) all had similar transporter features. Someone, or something, they hypothesized, had exited faster than light velocities and then beamed up the targets before it jumped back in milliseconds.

I had bad dreams the following nights. I've seen the pictures of Noureen's pretty face. She was only a young woman, of 62 years (she could have been compared to 22 year old without age treatment). Now I'm no sap, I was there when the Human Quadrantia Republic (I am human, but not directly descended from the Terrans, even though I've now emigrated to the Milky Way) launched an assault on the Xhodocto in the Tigris War, to aid the Rambo, although it was eventually the Rambo who aided us, when one of fleets of the Quadrantia division was surrounded by those horrid demonic creature-no, things. That kind of experience, hardens you. Since then investigating crimes became an easier job for me that most. But I can see her, in my dreams, singing, unloading her last picnic, before the unknown takes her to the sky. I wake up feeling angry. Anger at the Republic, for not protecting the planet visited by so many people, angry at myself, and angry at her, for crossing my path, and getting me into this. I just want a quiet life, maybe I'll retire after this episode.

The DCP had now devised a trap. These body snatchers were becoming surprisingly predictable, we were beginning to guess a with 4 to 10 accuracy which world they will strike next. They are trying to take as many unique biology's or intelligences as possible, rather than too-similar races. The DCP created, using bionano-architecture an organism which emits a strong tachyonic signal. I won't attempt to explain it, its the science of a far more advanced empire. But, I was invited to see the fun, which two large Grimbolsaurian escorts, although I know really why they were there for and I didn't like their attitude, which was less than savour. I confronted one, who's weapon stuck into the back of my knee. I asked him why they were so afraid of a human. I told them, since no Grimbolsaurian had been abducted, but a human had, maybe our minds were sufficiently similar. He could have torn the spine out of my back, but oh the power of diplomatic immunity! Our mystery snatcher caught the bait, it was a probe, the DCP used a simple tractor snare. The probe disintegrated. Analysing the material, we realised it could only have been the Apalos...

Chapter 2

The Apalos contacted us, and I was invited aboard, all would be explained. I though damn right it should be, I, a mere crime investigator, was able to crack the motives of this superintelligence. It had been ten hours aboard The Apalos temple ship, ten hours stuck in an organic, womb-like structure, supplying me with breathable air. Finally, the doors opened, and there standing before me, was none other than Noureen Sanderson. She smiled, behind her, a dazzling star pulsated as if under intelligence.

The Temple Ship boomed "There is your proof, Bob Yokes of the Human Republic". Noureen spoke. "I have chosen to join with The Apalos. I am safe, I will be forever safe". But why leave so abruptly, I questioned. "I didn't know when they would come to take me, it had to be the right time. What The Apalos did was not immoral, they have not broken the sentience laws. All have agreed, all non-sapients part of neutral territories." And for all those sleepless nights! But what is the purpose, I asked. "See anything unusual about that star? Its a matrioshka brain, it has a name for itself, The Heterogeneousness.". I looked again, and there, Heterogeneousness stands right before me, like the mythical warriors of old clad bronze armour, dazzling in the Sun, this star, blood red and darker than Sol and surrounded by vein-like networks of computronium, pulsed. I laughed, more in surprise than anything else, it was as if I was looking into a still-beating heart of an open ribcage.

The veins shifted.

• "Heterogeneousness chose a red dwarf, like many AI's. They have the potential to last trillions of years. They may not be the most energetic stars, but the relative size of the AI's networks are closer together, than in a bloated supergiant, which typically have less density of gas than on a planet like Earth. The AI works by uploading the minds of these representatives into convection cells in the stars, each parcel of gas and plasma inhabited by a mind. Piezoelectric-powered nanite flywheels infest and replicate in each parcel, housing the mind. We communicate with Heterogeneousness by sending acoustic pressure waves to the surface. Isn't this brilliant?"
• But I argued, "Isn't this the death of your Humanity?.
• "On the contrary, I think not. Humans are curious, but also, ready to adapt to every new frontier. Starlife is a new frontier. And this is discovery. It is to solve one of the oldest, unsolved problems, which we humans have a name for; Gödel's Incompleteness Theorem. Kurt Gödel in 1941 developed a proof that any system of logic must necessarily either be internally inconsistent or incomplete. This AI exists solely to answer the question, why do certain sets of mathematics in universe so solid? Is the mathematical axioms the actual universe outside the senses, or is it built in the mind. It is thought that many different species in the universe have a slightly different system of logic, perception of spacetime etc. But we can never know what its like in another mind, unless you become a conjoint twin with it. I don't want to turn this into a xenopsychology lesson, so here is a simple example, if bees could speak to us, due to their polarised vision, experience would run in distinct time frames, their language would be completely different. We symbolise one type object against another, but they might label and track the same object as its appearance and usage changes to their perception. Human logic, and intelligence may seem be boundless in its pursuit for knowledge, but it will hit inevitable, and paradoxical snags, like infinities, as well as problems not in human logic, like NP problems of computation. This AI, combines the intelligences of many different species in the universe with its own high speed computational capacity." --Noureen Sanderson
• "Dividing by zero is a dumb idea, you know that! But surely, Gödel's Incompleteness Theorem implies that a system of metalogic, which would marginalise arithmetic into one dominant system (lets say, 1+1=2) is impossible, as itself cannot remain consistent, like what you said."
• "The purpose of the AI is to find whether there is a universal filter, and Gödel was wrong, implying this universe is a simulation, or, that there isn't. It would be impossible if the latter is true, but think about it. That doesn't matter, but using aliens minds simultaneously could solve most problems intelligences in this universe would have to face!"

I write this as my last entry as a free human being. Remember I wanted to retire from that grim job? I have now decided to submit myself to the AI. I can live as a superhuman, and when that gets boring, I can explore the modes of life as other species. It is quite possible, I will soon join one of the most intelligent intellects in this universe...

The end

The vertical stars

Hyperspace, that is what everyone calls it. The mainstream view of course, is that the extra dimensions of our universe are a rolled up, compacted fabric. As these dimensions extend around the hyperdrive, we are no longer confined to a distance over realspace. But does the term justify the true meaning of hyperspace? No-one really knows what hyperspace is, not many really can, or how exactly, a hyperdrive is able to to propell itself at a right angle perpendicular to the universe. Oh, there are theories, which many hold as truths. Which is understandable, most Gigaquadrant civilisations have hyperdrives. But every single one of them only partially developed the hyperdrive, derived from warp theory, which is only part of the story. However, the technology was always based on an older civilisation's, and this pattern seems to follow the course of history to the beginning. It's as if the hyperdrive was never invented at all... A paradox which is to be expected from such a device.

Geneli was an oversight of an organisation called HEPC (High-Energy Physics Core), an advisory science council of the Delpha Coalition of Planets. She was 450 years old, kept young by nanotechnology in her immortalised flesh. Her mind however, was not immortal; she realised that person she was long ago was no longer her, it was as if she was a parasite living the memories of a host body. She was one of the first experimental "immortals", when inefficient bio-immortality was still a dream replaced in modern times by virtual uploading. This was the same for all the immortals, even Kilnok, but not everyone likes to admit it. In her, or her host's grand old days, there were no hyperdrives. She hated them, even now, but at least they weren't as bad as the tachyonic shift drive. But hyperspace, fascinated her. Hyperspace, was actually just one layer, in a great, possibly infinite "landscape"; the more one deviated the layer in theory, one could reach universes of different physical values, and is is said, even greater dimensions. No one really knew of course, a universe had never been accessed from subspace, and hyperspace seemed almost as hard to break through as realspace. But hyperspace was special enough, late tier 2 and early 1 powers were now creating revolutionary hyperspatial technologies, and hyperspace itself was full of mysteries. Unexplained phenomena, precursor artifacts and possibly even life harboured in the depths few are capable of treading. Even conciousness and essence maybe derived from hyperspace. And she was all alone, in this small pod, her destination beckoning.

And not for long. An alcove of star-like objects appeared within a pocket of hypermatter. She laughed, it looked like the Lagross Rift her host journeyed to. But this was no nebula. The "stars" were spherical, this region of hyperspace experienced similar levels of the gravitational force as the universe. They glowed dimly, in fact she could even see through several concentric layers of "star-stuff". The "stars" were discovered by the DCP two decades ago quite by accident from a colony vessel. This was her sixth visit and she overlooked scientific observations of the "stars". Her pod swooped, and soon she felt the motion of a tractor beam pulling her in to one of the starbases in orbit. She wondered how much power the starbase was required to stay in hypermotion.

• “Ah, good to see you again Geneli... An unexpected visit. You are the first fresh face I’ve seen in five months.”
• “Spare the pleasantries Qiroon, I am by no means fresh, I am many times your age.”
• “Quite the contrary, you argue that, you are a parasite in an older body, but doesn’t that mean your personality, your moment, is young?” She did not answer.
• “So how are the observations going?”
• “We have not had much development. We are not quite sure how the vetryon-tetryon analogues to hydrogen balance out the radiation pressure needed to keep these stars from collapsing. These stars seem almost perpetual, we see no changes one might observe; with lets say a typical star. Of course vacuum energy works a little differently here.”
• “And if hyperspace is older than the universe...”
• “If it is, yes, these stars could be ancient, eternal for all we know.”

A warship, Subjugator class suddenly towered in front of the observation lounge. Qiroon’s jaw tightened.

• “I am not meant to see this am I? I’m an inspector you know. I want to know why there is a military presence.”
• “I’m sorry. But the military are above you. You can stay here and do scientific observations of the star, but you cannot interfere with the military.”
• “I don’t care. I’m too old to care. I lived in this Coalition to know just enough that it does what it wants.” Qiroon itched, no doubt this conversation will be recorded by nanites in the air, in their bodies even.
• “Look, I already know what is going on. I wanted to see this myself for confirmation. I got a tip, off the AI Netspace... If anyone knows this secret weapon, it’s them. They believe, you are working for, Exodium.
• “I knew we should never have trusted the AI Netspace...”
• “Look, I am not mad at you. What could you have done? Exodium cannot be trusted, but the Ai who gave the HEPC a tip was indeed one of the beneficial’ AI's. I suspect this project is third-party, right?” There was silence. Qiroon sighed and began tap data into Geneli’s eye-visuals.
• “You already know too much. See Observe “star” A3. The live holographic image whirled to give full representation. There were several tiny lights, which were magnified. “They are constructing a shkadov thruster, a simple mechanism, where an orbital statite with optimum reflecting capacity acts as a lightsail which is in gravitational attraction with the “star”. We produce lasers from the “starlight”, the radiation pressure forces a net thrust away from the star reflected by the mirror, while the gravitational attraction of the two bodies keeps them together. Since this is hyperspace, we do not have to move it far to where we want. We then open a wormhole into realspace...”
• “Shit.” That was all she needed to say. The “stars” were made of hypermatter, energy with less tension due to the more open dimensions, the energy was at much higher frequency. Bringing hypermatter into realspace confines the energy into three dimensions, but the conservation of energy laws still apply. Even miniscule amounts of hypermatter can give devastating power. Somewhere, in the Coalition, with Exodium, someone wanted to weaponise a stellar-mass of hypermatter and dump into realspace. Geneli felt uncomfortable.
• “I calculate the effects would be similar to a hypernova, if not much more. Energy would be released in all forms of radiation in our universe, in fact it may even be so intense it could cause the forces of nature to unite. Soon the energy would begin to fall back, onto the event horizon of the wormhole; terminal collapse into a black hole. But that is not the final feature. It will create a gamma-ray burst of cosmic proportions, incinerating everything in it’s path at the speed of light, thus our target may not even know what is coming. If the detonation is close to other stars, chain reaction supernovae are foreseeable. Extreme radiation will also ionise any gas in space, and any atmosphere sterilising every world for perhaps a whole sector or more. Shockwaves may even disrupt future star formation, or be a catalyst.”

Such beauty cannot be respected. I will leave the “stars” of hyperspace forever, natures works once again blighted by the evils of a few, the eternal stars ended so wrongly. I can only hope, this weapon will be used on equally aggressive fronts. But the question sticks in mind, why is Exodium aiding the construction of this weapon?..