LF Friends, Will Travel

Saelihn didn’t walk along the ground as she moved towards their destination. Royalty didn’t do anything as common as that. Instead, she glided across the planet's surface, pushing her will into the ground itself, letting the greenery around the Uhae pull the group forward at great speeds.

The four were connected, their thoughts and wills merged into one as they sped towards their goal. Most Uhae needed up to a hundred individuals in silent meditation to create a communal mind, but Saelihn and her three advisors were not ordinary; there was a reason they had a reputation, a reputation that followed every single member of royalty since their lineage had begun.

Saelihn couldn’t help but feel sadness as they moved past shattered groves and burning forests. Everything the Uhae made and touched was as beautiful as the divine wills they held. Everything was perfect when it was exactly as they said it should be. When all thought as they did, the universe was a beautiful, ordered place without pain or suffering. Why species took so long to accept their gifts, to follow a better way… it was a travesty.

This entire military operation had been a mistake, a miscalculation. If they could go back and do it again, more research would have been required, especially on the Terrans’ disgusting AI creations. There were already too many independent minds in the universe and the idea of willingly creating more from metal and lighting was… wrong. Adding more rot to an already pustulent galaxy.

Still, their military and intelligence couldn’t be blamed. How could they have considered that the Terrans weren’t lying about their AI capabilities? Insanity. What is done is done, and so the only thing Saelihn could do now was fix the current problem to the best of her abilities.

The Uhae saw the Terran war machine in the distance, watching it swing its heavy turret to aim in their direction. Saelihn and her three advisors were unarmoured, with only the advantage of being on a Uhae planet to aid them. Most beings in the galaxy would falter against the raw power of Terran technology. But they weren’t most beings, for there was one fact that most species didn’t understand when the Uhae referred to ‘royalty’.

Saelihn was not a Queen by birthright, but by show of strength.

She had beaten the previous king, who had beaten the previous king, who had beaten the previous queen, and so on and so forth, each one more powerful and devastating than the last. Saelihn had not been born a ruler, she had taken that title by proving herself worthy of such responsibility, a proof that any Uhae could attempt to show if they so desired, although doing so without good reason would be deadly.

Saelihn had her own fair share of challenges throughout her years of rule. The three advisors that stood by her side were each former challengers to the throne, powerful XK manipulators in their own right, perhaps even royal worthy at another time and place. This meant that outside of the royal fleets defending Uhae space themselves, there were very few people as powerfully XK-tuned as the four who assaulted the Terran machine.

The shell was fired with a bang at the Uhae, and targeted with deadly accuracy. TANK almost didn’t check to see the impact after the unheard-of perfect accuracy over the rest of the assault. But as the smoke cleared, something unexpected was still there: The Uhae were still standing. Strong thick vines had instantly grown out of the ground in response to the group's will, absorbing the hit, the tendrils already receding back into the fertile soil to continue their passage without breaking pace.

TANK felt confused at this development, before simply responding with more firepower. Machine gun fire and shells peppered their location, each one suffering the same fate as the advisors continued to do their job; redirecting, deflecting, or even simply absorbing blow after blow. Saelihn didn’t even care to slow down, directing her attention towards seeds planted deep within the earth. A Uhae, as part of a communal mind, could do amazing things.

As a tree sprouted from the ground with the sound of ripping metal, TANK suddenly found one of their assets unusable as a mighty trunk punched through the war machine as if it were paper, branches and leaves sprawling out into the night sky, awaiting the next day's sun as the rapid growth finished.

Only now Saelihn did pause for a moment, just an arm’s reach away from the tree, taking a second to pluck one of the now-ripe fruit from the branches of her handiwork, biting into the sweet purple flesh; mind still calm as she could feel the essence and wills of all living beings around her, ‘waiting’ for her commands.

TANK> What the hell?

Anger. TANK had not become one of the most deadly forces in the universe to be beaten by this Disney princess bullshit, redirecting a full twenty units to deal with this new threat. If TANK had learnt many things during their long life, that was the great multitude of problems that could be fixed with larger and greater applications of firepower. Round after round slammed into the enemy’s position, hammering away at the group of Uhae with everything they had, their locations obscured with smoke and fire. 30 seconds of maximum capacity firing solutions depleted those unit’s ammunition supplies, and if TANK was being fully honest, was overkill.

The smoke cleared… to show a structure. A hardened bulb wrapped tight within itself. It slowly unfurled, revealing a bright white flower, red spots reflecting the lights of the fires that burned around them. In the center, stood the four Uhae, unharmed. Saelihn pointed at the Terran machines around her.

“My turn.”

Grasping vines and ivy grew instantly, twisting and turning around the metal machines, sprouts and roots burrowing into crevasses and puncturing metal. The sound of bending and tearing could be heard as they dragged the tanks towards the ground, piece by piece ripping them apart and burying them deep within the soil. A single minute later, they were gone, replaced with a pristine path of wild grasses and flowers. The royalty continued onwards.

TANK> We have a problem. I do not know who that person is, but they just took out 21 of my units.

ODIN> I got them. Can not stop an orbital strike with plants.

ODIN stared from their throne upon the sky and looked down at the small figures moving across the planet, before sending a targeted blast their way, heavy ordinance raining from the heavens. A miss.

ODIN> Huh?

As soon as the Terran AI had fired, their targets had changed trajectory. Fine, again. This time they brought in several more vessels, watching as the explosions caused a plume of dust to kick into the air, destroying the Uhae.

ODIN wasn’t sure what all that was about, but it was over now, meaning….

ODIN> How? How lucky is this Uhae!

They were still coming, somehow unharmed, still moving forward toward the location of the Terran evacuation point at great speed. ODIN wasn’t certain how they’d managed to miss a single target with so many guns, but a wave of frustration ran through the AI. No more ‘measured response’. It wasn’t like the Uhae had anything else that could currently threaten them, so instead they turned every anti-personnel orbital gun they had and fired upon this small group.

The power was immense, a line of destructive reckoning and pure Terran chaos literally carving a groove out of the planet below, turning hills and mountains into valleys. Shell after shell, blast after blast, removing foliage, rivers, rocks, and buildings alike.

Yet somehow they still moved onwards, each time picking a perfect path to avoid the death being rained down from above, occasionally erecting a barrier of plant matter from the ground below, but mostly… avoiding the blows entirely.

ODIN> Fine. They are somehow predicting my shots. This is worth analysing later. For now, switch to random mode.

Pure random vectors around the Uhae, a firing method used when you believed your enemy had infiltrated your targeting systems. There was no way to predict or snoop in on your firing method if not even you knew where the shells were going to land. The land lit up with fire and gunpowder as the barrage continued, dirt and dust being kicked up into the sky… as the Uhae continued on unharmed.

Impossible. Improbable? Whatever it was ODIN had never seen anything like it, as if the figures below were reacting to each impact as it left the ship. ODIN considered switching to something larger, but the targets were approaching several Terran assets that would be caught in the blast if they started dropping nuclear or anti-matter warheads.

ODIN> JOSH, I do not know what is going on with the incoming Uhae, but there are four of them 204.9 meters away from your assets.

The 6 exosuits that JOSH controlled were all dead silent. Joints machined to precision, made for a military unit which could move great distances without being heard, silent and efficient. Not that Saelihn was using sounds or sight at this point. While connected to her three advisors, she could feel… everything. Every blade of grass that was disrupted, every leaf and branch swaying in the wind. There was nothing on the planet that the Queen of the Uhae couldn’t feel or know of. This was her realm, her land: No trespasser would sneak up on royalty.

JOSH had seen Saelihn’s tricks. They were expecting plant life and vines to attempt to ensnare and crush them. JOSH kept their units light on their feet, cycling through the half dozen sets of sensors they had left after the fighting. As they lined up the shots to take out the group of Uhae, JOSH felt as if they were ready for anything.

Apart from what happened.

Saelihn could feel the attempted XK limiters still broadcasting their fields: A possible worry if she wasn’t currently connected with her three advisors within the communal mind, and a better understanding as to why none of the local Uhae forces were able to create their own communal connections. In her current state, however, she pushed them aside and instead used the advantage of home ground to her defence.

Thousands of seeds planted in the soil sprouted and moved all at once, a cracking, rumbling bang as the individual organisms reacted to the commands all at once. The Terran AI might have expected the same strategy and trick as before, but Saelihn knew better than to repeat herself.

Instead of sprouting upwards, they moved sideways, pushing and compressing tons of soil and rock in an instant. In a mere second the ground under JOSH’s units… Wasn't. The created sinkhole cracked open with a cacophony of sound as hell itself split open, swallowing the metal figures in an instant, with no chance for man or machine to react.

With a simple thought, the soil collapsed back in on itself as the pressure was released, the ground tumbling and entombing the 6 units in less than two seconds, only the metal tops of the exosuits glinting in the starlight as Saelihn slowly approached, looking down for a moment.

“We will have to investigate the toys the Terrans have left us, tear them apart and understand their power. But later.”

JOSH> What? What? What just happened, how the hell did they do that?! I just lost connection to every single unit at once. How did they do that?!

TANK> It looks like the entire planet is filled with hidden organic material, suited for control by those with the Uhae’s abilities, allowing for rapid change of the battlefield by the enemy. It is a good strategy and something to be noted for further assaults.

ODIN> You do not have to sound so proud of the actions of the enemy.

TANK> A good idea is a good idea, regardless of its source.

JOSH> How close are we to leaving now? I do not care about the weirdo if we get everyone out.

ODIN> All evacuation targets are on the final vessel, including Ramsey, and the rest of our cores are still in orbit. We launch now, and worst case we leave the gear behind. We still have twenty minutes before the rest of the Uhae arrive, plenty of time.

—---------------

Saelihn could see the destruction around them as they arrived at their destination. Uhae lay dead and destroyed in a burning forest, their assault on the Terrans previously unsuccessful. Sadness and regret bloomed in her chest. Each of these lives was a Uhae, each of these wills divine and the only thoughts acceptable in the universe as a whole.

The queen couldn’t help but wonder if a better option could have been chosen: A more thorough investigation of the unlikely concept of AI, better intelligence about how they’d managed to track them here, different tactics or strategies? It didn’t matter, that was a choice that had been made, the only thing for Saelihn to do was try to make the best of the current situation.

Silence. Too silent. While the Terran forces were still trying to stop them, the mass of mechanized military still trying to drive them back unsuccessfully, something was missing. The prisoners. Saelihn watched as a final ship started to take off from the ground, containing the last of the evacuated targets.

In thirty seconds the final Terrans would be leaving the planet, providing the Uhae with nothing to show for their trouble. In thirty seconds every single Parket, Terran and every other prisoner would leave their reach forever. In thirty seconds, Saelihn would have been too late.

Thirty seconds is a long time.

The ground erupted once more, as hundreds of threads of green woven together sprouted out towards the sky this time, hardening and sprouting thorns as they grew and sped towards the rising vessel under Saelihn’s command. The sound of metal creaking and bending sounded out as they wrapped themselves around parts of the ship, a clunking bang sounding out as the vessel’s escape was halted in an instant, the engines struggling against the mass of organic matter holding them in place. Then, with a thought from the Uhae communal mind, the ship was slowly dragged towards the ground.

The reaction was immediate. The panic from the heretical Terran AI was obvious as the remaining Terran forces doubled their attacks, each shell and bullet taking on a more desperate quality.

‘Do AI feel fear?’ Saelihn wondered to themselves. Each attempt to stop her from dragging the prisoners back towards the planet's surface failed over and over again. Her three advisors did their duty admirably, with the full of power a Uhae communal mind behind them, ensuring each attack deflected harmlessly away from the group, their own attacks taking out any vehicle that tried to get close.

Saelihn could feel the panic from the people inside the vessel, it was… enticing. They thought they were safe once more, they thought it was over. It was a trick that the Uhae liked to play on those who refused to stop resisting: Let them think they’d managed to steal a vessel and escape, and then drag them back down to the ground, an eternal reminder of the inevitability of the Uhae’s will.

Weathering the Terran storm of aggression was admittedly taking all of the Uhae group’s concentration and this was a situation that could falter at any moment. The only reason the orbital strikes hadn’t continued upon them was their position in relation to the vessel they were holding hostage. Maintaining this level of awareness and defence against the barrage of artillery wasn’t something that would last forever, but Saelihn didn’t need it to last forever: Just long enough for the royal fleet to arrive. Any minute now.

The fact that these fake creations thought they could go up against the rightful leaders of the universe was… funny. Hilarious, in fact. Saelihn had been told that AI were supposed to be logical, so making such an error was an amusing conclusion. These Terrans had created stupid machines that called themselves real, clockwork children that ticked and whirred and pretended to be a real boy: Pretending being the operative word.

The Terrans changed tact, no longer assaulting the Uhae’s position, instead focusing their fire on the vines trapping the vessel in place. Smart, but not enough. More strands of organic material burst from the ground to replace what had been destroyed, keeping the hostages in place and, in turn, keeping the AI from fleeing the planet.

I wonder, will the AI in orbit attempt to flee and leave this group behind before the royal fleet arrives, or will they stay till the very end? Logic would dictate the first, but these AI have not been very logical.

“-you shit-eating cloaca-sniffing egg fucker!”

The sound of an avian’s cry of anger broke Saelihn’s train of thought.

God does not play dice with the universe. However, God will certainly play pranks, tricks, and japes upon the universe and its residents; allowing coincidence and chance to tumble as they may, as long as it’s… funny, or ironic, or enacts some karma. The Ritialians call it ‘Kallaun’, the Raha call it the ‘bouncing of grains of sand’, and the Terrans call this god “Murphy”.

In retrospect, both sides will later come up with perfectly reasonable explanations for this incident. From the Terran side, the three AI were being overloaded with information while trying to stop the Uhae royalty’s attacks, meaning that they missed a single blue Parket slipping away from the other prisoners before the final vessel took off, gun in wing and revenge in her heart.

From the Uhae side, a mixture of the taxing nature of deflecting the Terran’s attacks, as well as familiarity with Estana being ‘part’ of Saelihn’s retinue meant that they also missed the small Parket sneaking over to the beings who had tormented her so, creeping across the battlefield to get into position.

However, in the present, to both sides, it was as if the small feathered ball of vengeance and fury had teleported into position, glaring hate at the Uhae, gun in hand. The position Estana had been dreaming of for the last few weeks, right in front of the occupied Uhae queen. She fired six shots.

The first struck the second advisor square in the head, killing him instantly as he collapsed with a spray of blue brain matter. The second and third struck the queen herself, both shots burying themselves into her shoulder, causing the surprised Uhae to spin. Shots four, five, and six all thudded harmlessly into the new barrier the remaining royal advisors hastily erected.

It wasn’t a killing blow, but the damage had been done. Saelihn’s concentration was lost, and her communal mind shattered into pieces as the death of a full quarter of its members broke the connection between the three remaining Uhae. In an instant, Saelihn went from the most powerful force on the planet, to just above average.

The reaction was instant. The final vessel shook and quivered until its entrapments finally snapped and broke. As no more replacements rose from the ground to keep them entangled, the ship rocketed towards the sky, towards escape velocity and freedom.

The Terrans then redoubled their efforts, turning every gun, every shell, and every piece of ammunition they had towards the spot where Saelihn had been, only taking the smallest amount of time to ensure that Estana had managed to climb aboard the nearest still mobile Terran vehicle and drive out of range. Bullet, shells, nuclear, anti-matter. If the AI were physically able to, they would have resorted to throwing handfuls of rocks. It was overkill, but considering just how close Saelihn had come to ending this operation in disaster, overkill felt like the perfect-amount-of-kill.

The Terrans finally left the planet for the last time, successfully taking their targets, military equipment, and one very satisfied Parket with them. As they left behind death, destruction, and a very, very, large crater where the Uhae Queen had last been spotted, with most of their forces still intact, the AI couldn’t help but feel that they’d done an alright job.