Hardwired
prelude.
Pharsouk, was the new Earth, the saving grace planet that saved the human race.
In the year 2164, the Earth had been depleted of its natural resources leaving the planet a shell of its former glorious self. Humans left in large spaceships that were akin to cruise ships, one hundred of them to hold a small portion of the populace. Anyone who wasn’t able to afford the fare on the transport or couldn’t contribute to New Earth was left behind without a care.
Quickly, the humans realized the journey to another galaxy could be arduous and dangerous. Meteor showers picked off twenty percent of their fleet within the first three years of their seemingly endless drifting.
By the beginning of the fifth year, hope for a new planet was waning. Terror reached a boiling point and mayhem broke out through the fleet. Another ten ships decided to turn back and return to whatever remained of Earth. It was only logical that they would die trying.
The end of the sixth year the ships were dragged into the immense gravitational pull of a black hole, sucking them in before they even realized what was happening. It could have been minutes or years they were trapped on the inside, no one knew for sure but when they appeared on the other side only ten ships remained. The ships were damaged beyond repair; barely held together by their bolts and navigation systems had been fried from the extreme magnetic polarity of the black hole.
The final one thousand humans all resigned themselves to imminent death knowing that they would likely die before reaching a new planet they would call home.
As if answering the silent prays, ships similar to their own appeared on the horizon. They were larger, more advanced and equipped with weapons.
On that day, humans had their first legitimate alien encounter and they couldn't have been happier. They called themselves Pharsii and we're humanoid, their bodies as close to the real thing could appear except for several details that were hard to miss. Their skin was tinged red, their irises a bright yellow that could never occur naturally in a human, their hair, and nails jet black, which only made them more imposing.
The Pharsii brought the humans back to their planet, provided them with their own colony but it was much akin to the refugee camps of Old Earth, overcrowded and dirty. While there were those who opposed the conditions, they were few in comparison to those who were grateful for the generosity of the alien species.
In the year 2164, the Earth had been depleted of its natural resources leaving the planet a shell of its former glorious self. Humans left in large spaceships that were akin to cruise ships, one hundred of them to hold a small portion of the populace. Anyone who wasn’t able to afford the fare on the transport or couldn’t contribute to New Earth was left behind without a care.
Quickly, the humans realized the journey to another galaxy could be arduous and dangerous. Meteor showers picked off twenty percent of their fleet within the first three years of their seemingly endless drifting.
By the beginning of the fifth year, hope for a new planet was waning. Terror reached a boiling point and mayhem broke out through the fleet. Another ten ships decided to turn back and return to whatever remained of Earth. It was only logical that they would die trying.
The end of the sixth year the ships were dragged into the immense gravitational pull of a black hole, sucking them in before they even realized what was happening. It could have been minutes or years they were trapped on the inside, no one knew for sure but when they appeared on the other side only ten ships remained. The ships were damaged beyond repair; barely held together by their bolts and navigation systems had been fried from the extreme magnetic polarity of the black hole.
The final one thousand humans all resigned themselves to imminent death knowing that they would likely die before reaching a new planet they would call home.
As if answering the silent prays, ships similar to their own appeared on the horizon. They were larger, more advanced and equipped with weapons.
On that day, humans had their first legitimate alien encounter and they couldn't have been happier. They called themselves Pharsii and we're humanoid, their bodies as close to the real thing could appear except for several details that were hard to miss. Their skin was tinged red, their irises a bright yellow that could never occur naturally in a human, their hair, and nails jet black, which only made them more imposing.
The Pharsii brought the humans back to their planet, provided them with their own colony but it was much akin to the refugee camps of Old Earth, overcrowded and dirty. While there were those who opposed the conditions, they were few in comparison to those who were grateful for the generosity of the alien species.