Fio'vre Ka'buto looked at the holo-displays with trepidation, as did the rest of his team. Decades have been spent scouring through the gue'la' confusingly primitive yet advanced technology, broken down, reconstructed, and then combined with pieces picked from Kroot Warspheres secretly salvaged through clandestine operations. He, who had joined the project as a mere la, had risen through the ranks into his current Fio'vre class and even came upon the breakthrough which brought about the AL-38 Splistream Module, the crowning jewel upon which the Fourth Sphere Expansion would bypass the fires of the Damocles Gulf entirely and bring further glory to the T'au Empire.
But he could not help but worry as the analytical part of his mind pondered over the consequences of a hundred such modules would bring when they're turned on at the same time. He had no doubt about the effectiveness of the Splistream Module itself, no. All of the prototypes and trial testing had shown it to work marvelously and at greater effectiveness than the ZFR Horizon Accelerator Engine by orders of magnitude. And yet for all that success, no test had been conducted where more than one such module were used close to each other at the same time. When Ka'buto had expressed his concerns to the Aun, they dismissed it calmly by pointing out his own team's rigor at proving their project a success, and that was that.
"-truly a momentous occasion for the archives. A moment." The Water Caste newscaster paused as he pressed a finger to his comms bead. "I have just been informed that Aun'Va has given the command for Commander Surestrike to start the countdown for the fleet's departure. We are witnessing history in the making, my fellow T'au. For the Greater Good." The newscaster disappeared, replaced now with a moving slideshow of the Expeditionary Fleet in all its glory, taking care to emphasize the sleek and factory-fresh sheen of the T'au vessels from the humble Manta to the vast Or'es El'leath carrier. Some brief shots and overview of Nicassar Dhows, Kroot Warspheres, Vespid Nest Vessels, Greet Stealthers, and even some repurposed Imperial ships ensured that those that embrace the Greater Good have their spot in the limelight, however short it may be.
"There is nothing to worry about. The calculation have been triple-checked, the simulations run-" Ka'buto heard the small whisperings of his assistant, Wiseword, and thought it a mirror to his own thoughts. That they were all doing as their duty commanded them did little to assuage his fears of the repercussion that would come should they fail at such a grand project. At best it would be censure or perhaps a fall through ranks back into a Fio'la or even Fio'saal. At worst? Ka'buto could not even imagine such a thing, and perhaps that was for the best.
"Ten. Nine. Eight." Ka'buto breathed hard though his nasal chasm, taking care to calm himself down with a quick game of reciting through all the elements of the periodic table from the heaviest to the lightest, including their isotopes.
"Seven. Six. Five." Halfway through the list, an errant thought derailed the Ka'buto concentration completely. What if we're all wrong? His hands turned into fists as he tried to reorder his thoughts once more, managing at least to keep his gaze fixed utterly to the holo-display before him. He will face whatever comes.
"Four. Three. Two."
He has no regrets.
"One."
All at once, space was lit up by the glow of anti-matter bubbles shimmering into existence around T'au and ally vessels alike. That brief of beacon of hope and progress quickly turned to horror as space was ripped apart at the seams all around the fleet. And from within this wound came forth misshapen things and colors that bleed the mind of all who saw them. The flicker of fusion-jets turned into full reverse thrust only belied the futility of such an action, as the darkness of unreality swallowed whole every craft that was within reach, leaving behind nothing but a vortex of sickening colors behind.
But that was not all that happened. Before the shock and panic could properly set in, that vortex yawned wide open, spilling forth something even more mind-boggling than the disaster that all had bore witnessed too just moments ago. A prow appeared first, steadily growing wider and longer in size until it had surpassed any ships the T'au had seen in size, and yet it still went on. By the time at last that the hulking mass was revealed fully to the T'au Empire, alarms and emergency protocols were flooding the cadre-net, urging all personnel of class Vre and above to report to their stations for further instructions. But Ka'buto ignored it all, entranced as he was by the sight that would haunt his dreams from now on.
Kor'O Ob'ur, or Admiral Strongchild as he's more commonly known, frowned as he reviewed the gist of the mission he was given to by the Ethereals. He was to observe the actions of the alien vessel that emerged out of the strange vortex at Numenar Point and assess its capabilities. To this end, he was given the command of a relatively small fleet composed primarily of older vessels like the Gal'leath Battleship and the Il'fannor Cruiser, escorted by Kir'qath and Kass'l ships. In his heart, he wished he had more firepower under his command, but the Ethereal have decreed it thus, and so he must obey.
"We are approaching the outskirts of Numenar Point. Decelerating now." Skillblaze, his ship' pilot, called out by the cadre-net. Golden glyphs of affirmation came from the rest of the fleet, the fleet as a whole slowing down enough to finally see the point where it all began. The vortex of unnatural colors was still there, as was the alien ship, though it had moved by a considerable amount since its entrance into T'au space. That confirmed to Strongchild it was not an abandoned hulk, as some had proposed while he was preparing for his mission.
"All ships, make for intercept course of the alien vessel. Do not let it escape from our sight." Strongchild spoke by the cadre-net. "Do not engage in hostilities until fired upon." Another wave of golden glyphs was sent from the other ships of the fleet, their engines now straining to bring them up to speed to catch up to their massive target's unlikely speed.
"The target is slowing down. It appears to be powering up its faster-than-light capabilities." A quiver of fear came through Skillblaze even as he tried to suppress it. "By the Greater Good, their energy signature is massive! Admiral, what are your orders?" Strongchild took in a deep breath through his nasal chasm and pondered on what the right course of action would be. As he was pondering however, a bright flash of light came from where the alien ship was, a wave of energy washing over the admiral's fleet shorly after and overloading their systems, turning them into disabled wrecks for a short while until emergency power kicked on.
"Status report!" Admiral Strongchild barked into the cadre-net. "What's going on?!" Only static greeted the t'au for a short while until the blurry image of an Earth Caste Engineer resolved itself on the bridge' holo-display.
"Farlight, what has happened to my fleet? Are we not shielded from electromagnetic attacks such as that one?" The admiral spoke the technical term with some difficulty, only being familiar with such things as simply a matter of course on the dangers of navigating through the hostile environment that was space.
"Apologies, admiral, on behalf of the Earth Caste. It appears that our current countermeasures are not up to par to that level of electrical discharge. Rest assured, core systems will be brought back online in a short while, and we will be able to resume the mission without delay." The engineer gave the sign of contrition and resolve-upon-failure before disconnecting. Strongchild grit his teeth at this failure but restrained his anger for now.
Yes, such was unbecoming of an Air Caste Admiral. He was not a Fire Caste after all; he did not have the luxury of engaging in combat where the enemy could be seen most of the time. He needs to temper his fury, turn it into the cold focus of one who is in tune with their vessel. His endeavor bore fruit just as an Ethereal entered the bridge, followed closely behind by her two guards. A grav-belt on her waist ensured every step she took was light and airy, as though she'd take flight with the next one. She was Aun'H'an, who was enlisted into the mission by the divine will of Aun'Va himself.
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
"A great tremor ran through the ship, Admiral. What has become of our pursuit of the alien craft?" Aun'H'an said, making the gesture of inquiry-without-fault. Admiral Strongchild stood up from his command throne, cursing himself for forgetting to call upon
"Master H'an, I apologize for the delay. Our quarry has proved to be an elusive one that has escaped our grasp this time. I will ensure that we are better prepared for the next encounter once our fleet have completed their repairs." Aun'H'an looked around the bridge, taking note of the fizzling holo-screens and other electronics with an unimpressed stare before looking back at Admiral Strongchild.
"No need. We shall turn back to Au'Taal and make the repairs there." Strongchild's eyes widened as he went through a slew of emotions all at once. Surprise, then confusion, followed by a spike of disbelief, before turning into calm acceptance of the situation.
"Of course, honored one. Your will be done." Admiral Strongchild said, making the sing of the Greater Good before returning back to his duty, overseeing things with a focus usually reserved for combat. He would not fail on this task. That is a promise.
The Au'Taal Sept's deep space sensor buoys were the first ones to detect the incoming alien ship's enormous energy signature as it slowed back down to subliminal speeds in realspace. The closest ones found themselves damaged beyond repair by the energy surges that clung to the alien ship as it passed them by. The alien ship's trajectory brought it close to the orbital path of a gas giant, where an orbital habitat inhabited mainly by T'au auxiliaries lived. They were the first one to witness the alien ship in its entirety, as well as the massive electrical discharges the vessel unloaded onto the gas giant's atmosphere before moving on to a course that would bring it within spitting distance of Au'Taal Prime. Before long, the entire Au'Taal Sept had became aware of the new unwelcome visitor to their system.
This was without a doubt the greatest crisis to have befallen the Sept since its inception centuries ago. The atmosphere was heavy as the Elemental Council of Au'Taal convened an emergency session to discuss what should be done about the alien ship whose size still escaped the comprehension of most who saw it without reference moving through space. All members of the T'au Castes were in attendance without exception, as well as a Kroot Shaper and Nicassar delegate.
"I believe that is everyone in attendance." Aun'Eldi, the Ethereal in charge of the Au'Taal Elemental Council spoke up. "Let us start this emergency meeting of minds to discuss the best approach possible in light of Unknown Species No. 4521, to be referred to as 'Xetans' for the remainder of this session. High Ambassador Understone, how goes your efforts to communicate with the Xetan ship?" A holographic projection of the vessel in question appeared in the middle of the room, its details remarkably precise with how little time there was to gather any data.
"My deepest apologies, ethereal master, but so far we've only been met with silence in our attempts to hail the Xetans. The ship bears no markings whatsoever, not even a symbol upon which we might be able to extrapolate some information. In this, we have failed you most deeply." The T'au in question bowed deeply at Aun'Eldi's direction, his hands making the gesture of deepest contrition and regret.
"I see. I give you no fault High Ambassador, and thank you for your efforts." The Ethereal gave a curt sign of gratitude to the Ambassador, who returned it with the sign for the Greater Good, and moved his sights next to the Air Caste representative. "High Admiral Nightstorm, what have your scouts been able to glean from field observations of the Xetan ship in motion? Does it have any armaments? How fast can it move?"
"Your ethereal majesty, the Xetan ship bears no armaments of any kinds. It also does not appear to have what we can identify as sensor suites, entry points, command modules, or indeed any kind of identifiable features besides the six fins attached towards its back." The High Admiral made a gesture to zoom in at the back of the alien ships, where those eponymous fins could be seen in much more detail, with three of them clasping what appears to be an invisible orb that refused to be seen. "We have detected faint emissions coming from this area which would suggest that this part is responsible for the Xetan ship' propulsion. As for how fast the vessel is moving, it is comparable to a Kass'l Gunship class at normal cruising speed." The true scope of that statement went unnoticed for most in the room save for the Ethereal and the High Admiral himself, who looked positively haunted as he delivered that little tidbit of news.
"Thank you Admiral for your contribution." Aun'Eldi gave thanks with a gesture of polite-retreat. There were now only two T'au left to consider, High Commander Needlesight or High Planner Shadeguard. The former was a veteran of the Second Expansion Sphere, earning the right to retire to Au'Taal after an Ork ambush left him with severe injuries which was only salvageable with extensive cybernetic replacements. He, of course, turned the ambush back on the orks and led the counter-attack to ork positions further in beyond the frontline. The latter was an unusually acerbic T'au by Earth Caste standards. This friction with his fellow Earth Caste members caused him to be indirectly isolated by his peers, which led his current posting at Au'Taal, where his behavior was either ignored or seen as a source of entertainment by the planet's aging Fire Caste population.
"High Planner Shadeguard, your report please on the possible technological make-up of the Xetan ship. Is there a way to discern its internal structure? What have your sensors told you about" The Earth Caste T'au nearly leaped out of his seat, his body positively vibrating with excitement and awe.
"Yes, your ethereal highness. We've found a wealth of information from our drones and sensor relays scattered throughout the system. Observe." Shadeguard brought up a display of Au'Taal star system and plopped in the alien ship' current position as well as its previous path through space. "It first appeared at the edge of the system' gravity well, discharging an enormous amount of energy which was registered by the deep space sensor buoys placed there for observation purposes.
"It then made for Kor'vash'a and discharged once again what appeared to be static charge onto the gas giant's upper atmospheres before now going on its current course to Au'Taal Prime. What this tells us is that the Xetan ship is composed of a material orders of magnitude stronger than any alloys we currently have in our tech base.
"Additionally, gravitational analysis has revealed that the Xetan ship is somehow sheathed in layers of artificial gravity molded into itself like a shield. It brings up an exciting new possibility for our own applications of anti-grav, but that's not the most profound thing that was found in the data." Shadeguard zoomed in the holographic display once more into the alien ship, turning it around until the viewpoint was not looking at the vessel from the back straight-on, to find absolutely nothing staring back.
"This is an artificial singularity. The Xetans are able to manipulate gravity to such a degree that the extreme gravity of this celestial object is not a problem for them. In fact, I believe they are utilizing this singularity to somehow affect space-time itself in ways we cannot even begin to imagine. They are, by far, one of the most advanced alien species I've ever seen in the galaxy." The Earth Caste representative sat back down after his provocative report none too disturbed by what he just said. If anything, he seemed positively giddy, almost euphoric in fact.
"We will discuss further later, High Planner Shadeguard. Thank you for your contribution." Aun'Eldi gave a smile that had no warmth to them to the Earth Caste T'au, before moving on to the last member of the Ethereal Council yet to give his voice. "High Commander Needlesight, do you have any insight into our current situation which might illuminate the path forward?"
The Fire Caste T'au looked pensive before he stood up before his peers and master, clearing his throat before speaking. "Esteemed ethereal, I believe the Xetans, whoever they are, are not hostile to the T'au. No move was made to retaliate against any Air Caste vessels that fired upon them, nor did they intentionally try to destroy any orbital installations that were in their way. Their moves are not those of a hostile alien race. Until new information arrives that says otherwise, my recommendation is hold hostilities with them for now." A mild shock came over the Elemental Council at the sight of a Fire Caste Commander urging non-combat as an option, but that was soon quietened by the Ethereal's next words.
"I agree with your assessment, High Commander. Au'Taal Sept shall move to ready itself for first contact with our new alien guests. Cancel the state of emergency for the civilian population. High Ambassador Understone, I want you to work with High Planner Shadeguard to ensure our visitors will have the very best impressions of T'au culture and civilization. High Admiral Nightstorm, prepare to receive the alien ship in orbit and make sure to prepare enough shuttles on-hand to transport their people down should they need it. And High Commander Needlesight? I want you to pick out your best warriors to form the honor guard that will be escorting myself, the Water Caste delegations, as well as the alien's delegations on the ceremonial parade through the city. Am I understood?" All present nodded and gave the sign of the Greater Good, which was echoed in kind by Aun'Eldi, who for the first time since the meeting started gave a genuine smile for all to see.
"Meeting dismissed."
