Musings on Disorder, Order, and Existence

Imperial Archives, Early Atomic Era, Philosophy, Author Unknown

One of the basic laws of the physical universe, dear reader, is that entropy in a closed system always increases, a shameful simplification but it gets the gist across. The increase of disorder is an inevitable event, unless one introduces energy from outside. But what is entropy but the spreading out of energy? This would mean that the state of absolute maximum entropy would be a perfectly ordered system with zero discrepancies in energy, a state much akin to the Universe pre-Inflation, the moment before creation, the Singularity.

If one thinks about it, dear reader, one may posit that the end point of the universe, Heat Death, is identical to the moment before existence existed. If every point in the Universe is identical, then the Universe is a single point, and the cycle begins anew.

But Consider this, dear reader, if a Universe is composed of an infinite number of perfectly identical points, and thus is also a single point, then why can't such a Universe experience an infinite quantity of inflationary events.
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Now to complicate things with quantum mechanics, oh how I love that complicated nonsensical gobbeldeegook, Quantum vacuum energy is predicted to be the spontaneous creation and obliteration of particle-antiparticle pairings perpetually occurring at the smallest levels of reality. The Universe, as far as we can tell, dear reader, was once naught but a single zero-dimensional speck, and thus was certainly small enough at some point to qualify as sub-atomic; and space within the Universe is self-contained, separate from whatever dimensions may lie outside it and thus potentially just as zero-dimensional despite it's mind-boggling immensity within; much like a certain thingawhatsit from that one show... oh what was it, it was bigger on the inside than the outside, good show, dear me my memory is rubbish.
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But anyhoo, dear reader, back to the original topic. Order and Disorder, entropy. Look at it not as an inevitable increase in disorder, but a cycle, the breathing of reality, the Universe is alive, you just need to listen right. Existence comes into being and eventually spreads out into perfect uniformity, only to spawn an infinite number of new existences, rinse and repeat. Different Universes may even collide and interact like bubbles may, and the effects may even be observable from within, but don't bother trying to go from one bubble to another... have you, dear reader, ever tried to turn yourself inside-out whilst staying alive, maintaining your sanity, doing back-front-perpendiculartotime-and-purple flips, and thumbing your edhioqrnanananagjypghoaiwtg at the laws of existence? Neither have I, and I don't think I will, seems a wee bit bothersome if you ask me and possibly a little painful...
actually, now that I think on it, I might just put that on my bucket list in-case I happen to survive until the heat-death of the universe, 'twould be a fantastic way to go, unlikely tho.
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I'm rambling again... I suppose the point is, dear reader, that all of this has, is, or will happen in an infinite number of possible other existences, so maybe, just maybe, you managed to do that one thing that you really wanted to do, you just don't realize it cuz it's a whole other you in some other when-how-where-what or something like that, and maybe you can be the you that does the thing that all the other yous might not have done or something like that.
Bake a pie and leave it out for that one really cool bloke who's good with magic and thinking and stuff, the Universe could use more pies.
Oh, and Reality is just as eternal as the time it takes for water to boil when you watch it... seriously, it never boils when you watch it, don't bother trying because you'll only spend an eternity screaming in mental anguish as you feel the endless non-moments tick by when in reality nothing at all has happened in the surrounding world.
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I should totally publish this anonymously, it'll make for a great laugh. I'll be able to pull this out and be like, "hey, have you read this guy's ideas? That's some deep thinking man." except I'll use different words because then it'd be obvious that I'm the one who wrote this, but then it'd be obvious that I'm just making a joke about being the one who wrote this... wait, I'm a genius, everyone will just assume that I'm making a joke if I actually say that because everyone else would probably be making the same joke so it'd be impossible to tell and I'll be able to sit there smugly knowing that I'm the one who wrote it and everyone is making fantastic jokes because of it. I should also probably stop writing everything in a stream of consciousness.
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Anything, Dear Reader, is possible, perhaps just not in this version of existence.

Theoretical Xenologist's Report, Alien Civilizations

Imperial Archives, Social Sciences, Theory and Conjecture, Dawn of the FTL Era

Here's what we know:
Intelligent life has evolved on more than one world and created a society with advanced technology. Those from below were here long before we who live above ever arrived, and it was their folly in fact, that gave our ancestors a path to this awesome world. They were, in fact, more advanced at one time regarding certain areas of knowledge than we can currently hope to be.
Life is extremely resilient. On this world, there lives an immeasurable variety of life (mostly because those who've tried to get an exact number were eaten by trees) despite the ludicrous hostility of the climate. If life manages to get a foothold on a world, that world is doomed, only the most extreme of cosmic or manufacted events could possibly hope to get even a chance at erasing all life on a world.
Life comes in many forms. We have created inorganic life and know that self-replicating machines are more than just possible, they're almost inevitable when one considers the scale of the Universe and the amount of time that life has been possible within it. It may very well be that the stars are mostly populated not by sacks of water like us, but cold and unfeeling machines, going about their directives with the same certainty as an atomic clock.

Here's what we may derive from that:
Life is abundant: in our galaxy alone, there may be hundreds or even thousands of civilizations all vying for supremacy. We are privileged in our placement upon the edge, for it is incredibly unlikely that we're surrounded on all sides, for it may be that there are infant stellar empires that are doomed to either stagnation, conquest, or obliteration due simply to their proximity to another more advanced society.
Intelligence is inevitable: From everything we can see, and as many writers before have stated, the Universe appears to be a living entity. Reality gives way to Fantasy when the self pulls on the strings of something that lies beyond our current understanding, something that scholars currently can't agree on the name of... Aetherstream, Cosmic Humors, The Astral Realm, The Nexus, and my personal favorite the Oi-Don't-Bloody-Give-A-Rat's-Arse-What-Yee-Call-It-Jus'-Decide-Godsdamnit. The Universe is Alive, and We are it's equivalent of a Nervous System, we are how the Universe experiences itself.

Here's What we need to be careful of:
Advanced Interstellar Societies far Older than ours are so probable that they're practically guaranteed. As mentioned above, Intelligent life is probably everywhere, and there's most likely thousands of FTL capable societies in the galaxy. Their Gods are also likely to be unimaginably powerful, fueled by the faith of trillions of souls. Be wary of those with significant military forces, some maintain them for peacekeeping and deterrence, but others may seek to wipe us from the face of the universe. If we are to endure and spread the Zaran way to stars now beyond our reach, we must exercise caution and keep other civilizations from finding out exactly where we are before we learn their motives.
Logistical problems are likely going to be absolutely critical in the future... It isn't entirely related to the subject, but this would also be a problem for other civilizations. We could learn much from observing how they operate, taking that which works and avoiding making the same mistakes that they do.

Known Twilight Flora and Fauna, and the Green Zones

Wan Light falls on pitch coloured leaves in the upper latitudes of a world scarred by the hubris of it's mortal children, the heat of the core warms and protects the land from the ravenous glaciers surrounding the jungle. The Canopy slowly roils, contrary to the wind, the branches of the tallest trees constantly twisting and stretching as they compete for light, their vigour sourced from otherworldly energies that none fully understand.
Deep beneath the Canopy, not a mote of natural light exists. The Darkness is breached by millions of lights; pale blues, alien greens, and deep crimson reds all illuminate the forest floor. Funguses grow everywhere, and scurrying creatures flit between bits of cover. Larger beasts stalk these penumbral paths seeking both prey and safety from greater predators, sleek feline forms flicker in and out of sight in ways that defy logic soon followed by the terrified warbling of some unfortunate creature as it's crushed between jaws that melt out of the air moments before they strike.
Insane laughing echoes through the forest as dozens of dark forms erupt into dazzling light shows that overwhelm the senses, the hapless prey torn apart by hundreds of teeth before it can process the threat to it's life, it's silence forever guaranteed as it's killers bark and yip over it's rapidly reducing mass.
A clever forager swings between the branches as it seeks out sustenance, only to completely cease it's motion mid air, caught on a thousand silken strands. It's struggling only further dooms it as the trapper watches silently as it's catch slowly exhausts itself.
This twilight is shattered as the brilliant light of fire erupts from the brush and a massive beast of Steel is escorted by multiple Bipeds clad in full armour through the jungle. Darts, nets, and bullets fly through the darkness as the intruders capture or kill whatever they can find. Sharp Orders echo through the paths as the intruders are assaulted by tooth, claw, and branch alike, but all fall to unyielding steel and cleansing flame. Blood still spills, red, blue, bright, and dark, luminous sap burns in exotic colours as the intruders retreat with their plunder, the forest soon returning to it's natural rhythm as the voids are rapidly filled with lesser plants, the trees themselves slowly shifting themselves in the earth to take advantage of the new space.

The Light of two stars leaks through breaks in the ashen clouds to nourish the dark green leaves of an equatorial forest, the same heat from below preventing this place too from being consumed by ice. The canopy is occasionally broken by great voids where trees once stood, having been brought low by their murderous neighbors. Vines and countless other varieties of flora wrap around the great wooden pillars, creating a tangled web of green that greedily drinks nearly all the scant light that gets through the verdant roof of the forest. This web is filled with a cacophony of sounds as uncountable creatures clad in fur and feather scrabble about their groundless domain. A sharp squawk is nearly drowned out by the rest as some bird is snagged by a cluster of vines that rapidly thrash about, breaking the poor creature in seconds
The floor, like the higher latitudes, is cloaked in darkness, but unlike the other lands, it isn't absolute. Spears of light pierce the darkness, casting the surroundings in a dim spread of browns, reds, and greens. A Crimson Willow sits in the middle of a clearing, painting the surroundings in the red light it reflects. Water surrounds the tree, and a weary creature emerges into the light to drink. The clearing becomes a red blur filled with thrashing sounds and the screams of the beast, but it shortly clears up to reveal the Willow silently drawing what used to be a beast towards a widening gap at the base of it's trunk.
The Snapping and Cracking of vegetation can be heard as a massive chitinous form snakes it's way through the forest as it scrounges for biomatter. The groans a a few old trees may be heard, then the snapping of roots and a thunderous crash soon followed by the crunching of wood between jaws larger than a small car. Deafening chittering fills the air as more crashing can be heard and a great obsidian carapace shines in the light. Claw and Stinger flash through the light and dark as the crashing gives way eventually to silence and then the sound of exoskeleton snapping apart as the predator eats it's fill.


Mesmer Beasts are thought to be descended from creatures that had come across in the time before the Great Gates collapsed. Their position at the top of the Penumbral food-chain is cemented by their ability to bend light with skill borne of millions of years of evolution, rivaling Imperial Mesmers. Slain specimens reveal them to be six legged felines with prehensile tails and tentacles that sprout from their shoulder regions. Efforts to tame them have only succeeded a handful of times, and even then they remain fickle creatures. Never enter a penumbral Green Zone without armour, as it is nearly impossible to detect these creatures before they strike, and an unarmoured individual would stand no chance.

Flash Hounds are relentless pack hunters that posses thousands of light producing organs distributed about their entire bodies. These creatures hunt by surrounding prey and stunning it with vivid light displays that show signs of conscious control. The Hounds are able to produce nearly any colour through varying the amount of red, green, and blue light they produce, and this combined with the ability to varigate their skin texture as made them one of the most visually dynamic creatures known to the empire. Taming them is possible, and domesticated breeds are slowly beginning to become as varied as dogs, though note should be taken that Flash Hounds and Dogs are not compatible. It is though that they were originally descended from wolves that were mutated by the strange energies that permeate the Green Zones. Some Specimens grow to sizes matching Dire Wolves, and such specimens are particularly dangerous as they can sometimes crush the armour around the joints even in the heaviest Imperial suits.

Arachnoids as large as a bear are relatively common in the Penumbral regions but do not pose much of a threat to expeditions. Their webs, while strong enough to capture an unprepared individual, such individuals are practically guaranteed to die if they're foolish enough to venture into a Green Zone; any individual clad in the proper armour or riding in a crawler is perfectly safe from these oversized horrors.

Under no circumstances are any individuals to approach a Sanguine Willow without at least Full-Body Semi-Powered Combat Armour. The Plant is predatory, using it's smell and the pool of water to lure prey in. It then uses it's numerous tentacle-like branches covered in razor-like leaves to rend it's prey into numerous small pieces that it then deposits into it's digestive cavity. The branches are strong enough to rip off limbs through shear force, and the leaves will cut through flesh and bone with ease, but not metal. It is advised to either burn these trees or simply avoid them.

Assassin Vines are another variety of predatory flora and there are numerous known species. The smaller ones prey on only birds and the like, but larger specimens are capable of killing wyverns. Individuals are to avoid any specimen large enough to wrap around one's limbs unless one desires to lose it.

Colossal Millipedes are dangerous by virtue of the fact that they're big and don't care about obstacles. They won't attack, but may crush a small crawler accidentally if said crawler is in the way, even mid-sized crawlers are vulnerable to damage if this creature collides with them.

Flayer Scorpions are to be avoided unless one is equipped to destroy mid-large sized crawlers, these creatures are big, nasty, terrifying, and built like tanks. They will eat anything they can catch, and will attack anything they find including crawlers.One should be wary of Claws, Stingers, as well as a caustic substance that they spray from their bottom and sides when threatened. Despite being arthropods, the creatures are extremely clever in combat. Specimens start out as small as a cat, but rapidly grow to epic proportions, any found juveniles are to be neutralized and brought back for testing.

On War

Imperial Archives, The Tenebral War, Author Unknown

The Following is written in numerous different styles and languages, each flowing into the next without pause, as if written by a single hand.

We watch, We observe, We see. The Fires of destruction spread across the land, the screams of the innocent and the guilty form discordant songs that echo across lands scarred by merciless machines of death and destruction, and the ground itself shudders in pain as bombs burst above and below. Pain seeps into the land like a lamb's crimson ichor into the wool around the rift.

Towns are turned to crumbling husks riddled with rubble and voids. Hills are turned to muddy craters. Cities are turned into glittering mausoleums filled with naught but the echoing of mortar-fire.

War is suboptimal, it drains a nation's resources like nothing else. In peace one may find prosperity, in war one always get's adversity. Food, once plentiful, is diverted to feed the soldiers; Steel, once cheap, is now bought at a premium due to consumption by war machines; Men, once everywhere, are now seen rarely as they are inexorably pulled to fill the ever existent void on the front.
What does all this mean? Smaller Work Forces, Less Food for said Work Forces, Less materials for the Work Forces. All This leads to less output, less activity, less prosperity.

But wait, what about already slow economies you ask? Those are different, War provides impetus, War provides Jobs. A Trailing Economy can find new vitality in war as the people rally to the call of glory and honour, as the propaganda machines swings into full gear. This makes nations with slow economies dangerous, for they have something to gain from war whereas the strong economies have much to lose.

In Times of Strife, Technology explodes, as foes struggle to out do the other. Advancements that most think impossible suddenly become reality when victory is on the line. Adversity breeds innovation, so it is in nature, so it is in artifice. Without war, stagnation; without agitation, complacency.

This pattern can be exploited by the clever, perhaps. False War, War Without Blood, Ways to manipulate the populace into an elevated state of preparation for periods of time potentially extended into perpetuity. In a Society where such engineered conflicts are presented, a semi-wartime economy may become the norm, and the government may grow fat with power as their might steadily grows. Such systems are not stable, however, as they eventually grow to the point where the infrastructure cannot support their weight since things like space and territory are ultimately limited.

This thing that many love or hate is complicated, with so many variables flying around that a single bullet may change the course of history, with benefits and detriments that are nebulously defined. A tool in foreign policy best wielded by the shrewd and powerful, yet most often exploited by the mad and desperate. A horror that transforms the prime material into a caricature of the hells. Dangerously Seductive, Seductively Dangerous. It Always Changes, yet it always stays the same.

We will bear witness, with great interest, to all that unfolds.

Technological Superiority, Civilization, and Morality

Imperial Archives, Governance and Records, Dawn of the Age of Solitude.

It has come to our attention with the discovery of practical FTL travel that there is a distinct possibility of meaningful interactions with civilizations of a lesser technological sophistication. This brings to light such questions as "What should we do?", "Should we do anything?", "Do we know better than they?", and "What if they have the potential to become a threat?".

Regarding the second query: "Should we do anything?", the answer is quite simply "If the net benefit is positive, preferably for both, then you're likely good; otherwise consent and/or self-preservation take priority". Bringing such a civilization into the Empire as a Semi-Autonomous region and allowing for/facilitating more complete assimilation over time is the ideal solution, they benefit from our technological and societal achievements whilst we benefit from increased genetic diversity as well as an influx of new resources and ideas. If assimilation is not achievable, then trading relations whilst avoiding their elevation to a substantial threat through our own action is optimal.

What should we do? As previously mentioned, full assimilation would be optimal. The one thing that we absolutely shouldn't do is nothing. Now, studying the civilization in question before initiating contact is our responsibility, we hold the advantage and thus the onus of making sure it goes right is ours. We should at least learn enough that we may maximize the chances of a positive "first" contact. Doing nothing is apathetic negligence, especially if the civilization in question is struggling with things we have solutions to.

As for "Do we know better than they?", we certainly know more than they, and as the ones who know more, it is our responsibility to use said knowledge wisely. Providing the guidance to solve things like food shortages, droughts, pollution, etc are simple, easy, and extremely low-risk to us, and to not provide assistance is hypocritical in the extreme. Whether we are better or not would be up for debate, but our system has stood strong through every single test thrown at it, and it has yet to be proven to be wrong.

If they're a potential threat, like if they're extremely xenophobic and/or violent/aggressive to the point where taming/reasoning with them is futile, then full action to defend the security of the empire is merited. Complete genocide is suboptimal, but preventing them from attaining space-travel until they become more amicable/manageable is not only sensible but responsible, as allowing such beings to run amok in the galaxy would make us responsible for any resultant deaths/destruction.

So, let the Empire be a shining beacon of enlightenment, compassion, and stewardship within our corner of the Universe. We shall safeguard and nurture all civilization within our reach, and protect it from barbarism and decay.

Curator's Notes:
Sensible, Responsible, Logical [Numerous possible scenarios that end negatively, recommend non-interference](Possible Positives outweigh Possible Negatives) {Consensus Not Achieved} Unsure, Split, Divergent
Further thought can fix this, solutions found that satisfy all points {Insufficient Data, Sample Size Too Small} (perhaps some compositions, thought to sound to thought again)
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... Year 0 Age of Prosperity
Document Reconsidered [Deemed irrelevant at this time, current dataset holds no applicable scenarios] (Still insufficient to come to full conclusion) {Inverse Rule should be considered, what do we want/hope from current scenario} Survival, Continuity, Sovereignty {It Will Be Done, The Empire Will Stand, Even From Ashes}