Vasari Sins Backstory
Personal Writing
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I had toyed with the idea of pitching an actual backstory idea to Ironclad as it seemed they really had only a vague undefined one. Recently I found an interview and Ironclad states they do have a definite backstory, i.e., they know all the "sins" of each faction and have a plan for them. Bummer.
I had written up a little intro treatment and it's going to waste otherwise...so I'm posting it here to show what an ubernerd-geek I really am. 
The Vasari--Be Careful What You Wish For
The science ship Skreeta glided silently from out of the glowing halo of interstellar gas that ringed the galactic center. It’s crew slumbered near death in shielded state-of-the-art phasic stasis pods--safe from the scouring radiation of the aging core stars and long dead supernovae, dreamless and unaware. The vast toroid expanse around the galactic center was long cleansed of all life--even stellar life--by the last great frenzy of annihilation and consumption of its sole resident--the super massive singularity at its core.
Eons past, this dark giant was birthed in the midst of swirling thick columns of star stuff. Spiraling inward, faster and faster--drawn by their own mutual gravitational attraction--interstellar gases collapsed into a great dark press of matter that smothered even the blazing fusion fires they ignited within themselves. In time, even matter and space became unraveled and in a stupendous blaze of incredible brilliance the core clouds parted to reveal the great dark star that had been birthed within them. In a final halo of blinding light, this never-sun was quiescent as the last streams of matter from thousands of shredded young stars fell into its wide open maw.
The shock wave precipitated by this great annihilation rushed through space and scattered the stuff of new stars in every direction throughout a new galaxy. Safe from the still radioactive hell of the center, new stars formed in relative peace--each consuming enough matter to grow and develop stably and enriched by the feast of newly created elements sleeted off by the first great explosion that birthed them. Clouds of gas slowly accumulated and formed into protostars--themselves surrounded by rings of matter that in their turn finally morphed into the planets. On one of these planets was the birthplace of one of the universe's first forms of life. A lifeform that in time would call itself and come to be known by the name, Vasari. Still near the galactic core, the Vasari home world sat just behind remaining great sheets of gas that provided enough shelter from the core’s radiation to allow life to form and evolve. As time passed, these sheets of gas thinned in the stellar breeze and life on Vasari home adapted--becoming stronger and more tolerant of the extremes of radiation and temperature. Life thrived and persisted against all odds and as the race of the Vasari rose to its feet, it found itself alone.
In the Vasari night sky, the last embers of burning matter lit the diffuse cloud light years away that surrounded the Dark Creator. It’s brightness was a beacon that convinced the Vasari they were not alone. The dark star was mother and father and the only companion of the Vasari--its parent, protector and God. In time, as rushing stellar winds of molecular gas scoured away at the surrounding clouds, other stars were revealed within the curtains of dust surrounding the Vasari home and their eyes turned outward--away from the core. In their minds and hearts, the Vasari could hear the faint whisper of the great black sleeping sun saying to them, “I made this for you--go, and possess!”.
...and they did.
The Vasari spread forth in a biological and technological explosion of their own making that touched the stars around them…and they then found they were not alone. To the Vasari, the abundance of life they found near their home was like a gift from their dark heaven. It seemed obvious to them they were to go and consume it as eagerly as their own parent had consumed its nearby suns. The sparse conditions of the home world had taught the Vasari to be frugal and to wring the value from everything they could find and so they did with these other forms of life. Biological and genetic experimentation, conscription as forced labor, personal servants and even conversion to food and fertilizer. All needs of the Vasari were provided by the lives of those about them. And to the Vasari it was all as it they most fervently believed it should be. Their ascension to dominance over all other races was their paean to their Creator--the instrument of their might, named in its honor--the Dark Fleet.
Upon meeting the first resistors--a race that dared to challenge the Vasari right to dominion--the Vasari finally encountered a species with knowledge and power that nearly equaled and perhaps in ways even rivaled their own. It shook Vasari beliefs and caused social chaos. In a desperate effort to re-establish their faith in their destiny, the Vasari launched the full weight of the Dark Fleet against the bulwark fortress systems of the others. The sheer brutality and ruthlessness of their assault so dismayed their enemy that within days they capitulated and offered themselves up to Vasari mercy. Their surrender was accepted and followed by their immediate extermination. To the Vasari, this was further evidence of divine aid and their right to rule the galaxy was no longer to be doubted by any among them. Those who dared suggest doubt were cast bodily into the stars as sentence and homage to their Great Dark God.
As the centuries passed, Vasari understanding of science grew exponentially--propelled by the infusion of the knowledge of hundred’s of different cultures subjugated by their might. In this time of intellectual growth, a very few Vasari began to openly suggest that perhaps their species was simply the recipient of chance…that there was no “God” and no divine destiny--only simple luck that had given them their position in the universe. Such small seeds of doubt spread quickly through the nanite-infused neural net that connected all Vasari and it alarmed those who had risen to places of command and power through their prowess in conquest and rule performed as acts of devotion to their God. A nanite-connected artificial intelligence had long ago been created to monitor those other races serving the Vasari and for the first time, this virtual intellect was allowed access to the Vasari themselves. As the Vasari debated, the AI was tasked by its leaders to observe and report notable cases of heresy or disloyalty amongst their own but as time passed, it was seen more and more as an advisor. With loyalty programmed into its very essence, the AI was beyond suspicion and with its immense reach and knowledge it came to be considered wise and worthy of counsel. When finally asked to assist in removing all doubt regarding the Vasari right of dominion, the AI, in its childlike literalness, made a stunningly simple suggestion:
“Go to the core and see what is there.”.
This suggestion fanned the flames of Vasari imagination and it silenced all critics of the faith--none of whom could dispute the logic of the Great Mind. These same critics were also cowed by the fervor of their compatriots and had no choice but to silently acquiesce without further challenge. Vasari true believers had no doubt that the trip to the core would reveal a greater plan for the Vasari--that it would prove their destiny. Some even believed that they would meet the actual Creator and that they would be welcomed by it. Many were concerned that the representatives who reached the core must be pure in heart and mind and spirit--with no doubt within themselves--and the AI was tasked to find the individuals who were most worthy. Its program functions were enhanced to allow it access to the very thoughts of the entire Vasari species within whom its nanites lived. True to its integral programming, the AI did exactly as it was asked and assembled its selection of candidates for the great Core Expedition. It was further decided that the AI would oversee the expedition as the crew and passengers onboard the exploratory ship would be far beyond connection range of the species' vast neural net.
And so, the construction of the science ship was begun.
The Skreeta was the physical embodiment of the AI universal...the Great Mind. Possessing hardened shields, armor and powerful sensors the ship was constructed so as to be able to shape time and space--even reality itself--about its hull. This ability was necessary to breach the great divide--to cross space and time and to reach the actual heart of the singularity itself.
Spun to fantastic speeds and highly charged by the millions of suns drawn into its great vortex, a region was theorized to exist within the singularity--beyond its event horizon--that was stable and visitable…even inhabitable. It was there, it was postulated, that the seat of destiny…the place of the Dark Creator itself--would be found and Vasari divine right would be finally and eternally proven for all to see.
After decades of research and construction, the Skreeta was finally launched. As it entered the last great cloud sheets between Vasari home and the core, communication was lost. It was expected that hundreds of years might pass before a signal could be received and so the Vasari Empire continued on as it had always. Those who would dissent, held their tongues now before the ever-present AI and only the highest ranked were shielded from its scrutiny. Stability was the most prudent state and the leadership had now provided it through the ever-watchful eye of the Great Mind. Should the Skreeta ever return--who could doubt that it would be anything less than proof the Vasari faithful were right? Should it fail to return--then the hope and promise of its one-day return would always be present --a never ending reminder of Vasari’s divine destiny. In either event, the Vasari way of life was firmly set and would never change. What other race had ever dared to dream of sending a ship to heaven itself? Could their ever be any doubt now of Vasari power and glory?
And so Vasari hubris opened to the door to Nemesis.
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