Conquest Begins (Tales of Theria Book 1)

I offer this website as a guide to organizing and attending Howls. It's not writ in stone. It's simply my experience. You want find recipes in the cooking section for that, see the Stuff Files on my website nor will you find first aid procedures in the first aid section. The Red Cross has a good website.

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This is about organizing and attending Howls. Kinds of Howl A Howl is very simply a gathering of Therians. As such, it can be any event where Therians get together — a campout, a roadtrip, a shopping trip, a night out on the town, or just a get together at someones house.

Some individuals in the Therian community even consider several Therians on a chatroom of forum interacting in realtime a Howl, but I don't and I won't be talking about that here. There have been Howls organized by reptilian Therians and called Hisses. There have been gatherings of feline Therians called Yeowls. But general usage has it that a gathering of Therians, regardless of theriotypes, is called a Howl. The Howl has two primary purposes. Recreation — at a Howl, like-minded people get together to enjoy time with each other. Community building — at Howls, Therians establish abiding relationships in the most effective way, by applying themselves in concert to real life problems.

Others are the mirrors by which we learn ourselves. We learn who we are by paying close attention to how we behave in real life situations with real life people. We learn by all our relations. In my experience, the organization of a Howl is a very simple process compared to Mainstreamer gatherings. For instance, I have done grunt work for both Boy Scout and biker gatherings and Mainstreamers seem to go to great lengths to make the management of an event as complicated and as difficult as possible.

In comparison, if something needs to be done at a Howl, Therians simply get together and do it. I've never had to delegate the job of getting firewood to a group of Therians. The job usually just gets done. The best that I have been able to do is to aim them in a certain direction and let them go. That actually seems to work well. Another issue is the fact that we are a diverse people and, given that the Therian community includes Mainstreamers — Mainstreamer friends and spouses of Therians and people who genuinely want to learn about the Therian community — the organizer of a Howl should be sensitive to the potential for personality conflicts.

Perhaps the biggest such conflict I have run into is the friction between people who are hyper-connected to their surroundings and the autistic members of our community who are either connected at all or tend to focus very sharply on specific elements of their surroundings. For instance, although the great majority of Therians seem to be the hypervigilant type, some of the most active and influential members of our community are the autistic Therians. So there's no question of segregating the two groups, they are both too important to leave out of anything. At first estimate, the solution seems to be a dedication of all members of the community to understand how the others work and to be sensitive to opportunities to bridge any existing gaps and to be willing to work through conflicts in constructive ways.

The site First you have to find a site. That is, perhaps, the most difficult part of the whole process. We will talk about what makes a good site in a minute. In the United States, you have a wide range of possibilities and you will need to get involved to narrow them down. Each state is different, so I can't give any definitive recommendations.

I eliminated the Corps of Engineers recreational sites early because they all seem to be so rule driven that there's no room to have any fun. State Parks and national forest recreational sites vary considerably from state to state and between individual sites. Alabama state parks have been fine in my experience but Georgia state parks have been more trouble than they're worth.

Like Corps of Engineer sites, they are so tight on rules and regulations that you can't do anything for keeping up with the rules. For instance, Fort Mountain in Georgia has an extensive network of hiking and biking trails. You have to register for the trail you want to use and if you register for one trail, you can't use any of the others. Also, Georgia state parks are unreliable. One year we had a fall cabin Howl at Cloudland Canyon State Park in northwestern Georgia and we noticed that they had a nice, big group camp.

I checked to see if they had shower facilities and the other items that I list below and, although they did not have showers at that time, they told me that they were definitely going to fix the bathhouses at the unrepairable swimming pool for use by the group camp and that it would be ready the next year. They wouldn't even let us swim in the creeks we tried. Don't get off the trails and don't get in the creeks. I will never again attempt to use a Georgia State Park for the spring Howl.

I checked some of the other Georgia State Parks and they all seem about as bad. On the other hand, Georgia State Parks have really nice cabins. Local independent campgrounds may also offer plausible accommodations. So, check out a site as much as possible before using it and expect surprises. If you can, go to the site in person and talk to the staff. If you can't, do as much research as possible and call the staff and talk to them. The following factors have been the most important for me in judging the suitability of a site for a campout. Most of the Therians I know enjoy the wilderness and a primitive campground is just right for them.

Some Therians are more urban and we used to have a fall Howl for them which was held in a cabin. The spring Howl has always maintained a particular location. The cabin Howl in the fall moved around to provide more variety. The cabin Howl became less and less attended and finally ended when I rented an expensive cabin on Fort Mountain and nobody else showed up.

I would suggest, therefore, that if you decide to host a cabin Howl that you get together and pool the money for the site ahead of time. Isolation — Howlers need to be able to express their Therian-ness at a Howl and crowds of Mainstreamers tend to inhibit that. The current site of the SEHowl is fairly popular but we use it early enough in the year that it is not crowded during most of the Howl.

I schedule the Howl between two hunting seasons and just when they are turning on the water to the site. Spring breaks happen around this time of year and crowds usually start arriving the weekend that we leave. Accessible — For a general campout a backpacking trip, of course, would be different , a site should be accessible by road.

It's also nice if arrangements can be made for people who are flying in to be picked up by someone at the airport. The Birmingham airport is an easy drive and a nice sidetrip from the current SEHowl site. The internet group that I use for communications also allows members that will be driving some distance to carpool and plan to pick up people at more distant airports.

Bathroom and shower facilities - For a long weekend campout, showers are a luxury and we've not always had them. For a 9 day campout, they're an absolute necessity. Generally, I've found that state park have better facilities. The bathhouses are usually heated. The national forest recreation site that we now use has showers with heated water but the building itself isn't heated.

That seems to be typical for national forest recreational sites. I give some tips on showering under such less-than-perfect conditions later. State parks usually have flush toilets where national forests of ten have well maintained pit outhouses. Enough space — Make sure that the site will have enough campsites to accommodate all the participants and that at least one is large enough to allow the whole group to gather. Also be sure you know rules and regulations about how many vehicles can be at any particular campsite, how many tents and persons can occupy a single campsite, and how payments are made for campsites.

Therians are normally not wealthy people and the trip to a Howl is expensive enough. It's good to make the camping arrangements as economical as possible. Reasonable staff — The SEHowl has gone through the whole range of park staffs from the outright scary to the most friendly and accommodating people you could hope to meet. It's a good idea to know who you're dealing with and how to most effectively deal with them before committing to a campsite. Aim for friendly and accommodating if possible. Most of the changes in location of the spring SEHowl have had to do with the staff. For quite a while, Buck's Pocket was the home of the SEHowl but it became nearly impossible to work with the park rangers and they improved the rough road that kept the primitive campsites fairly isolated so we had to move.

Of course, there were also the drunk locals who would drive by and ask us if we had any wimen sic and who would start roaring bonfires and then go home. Payne Lake recreational site actually had an incredible staff; the site just didn't offer the kind of adventure that many Therians want. Mount Cheaha was great for a while but then they changed administrators. The new one would only allow group rates for church and Scout groups and they changed the primitive campsite into an equestrian camp, which is when we moved to the current place, which has, overall, been great. The year that they failed to warn me that the primitive campsite would have no drinking water or showers, they allowed us to use the developed campsite Georgia should take notes.

Hopefully, we have a home for many years to come. Accessible water — there should be a source of drinkable water near the common campsite so the group doesn't have to haul heavy containers of water over long distances. Area for common use — at least one campsite should be large enough so that all the members of the Howl can gather. The SEHowl has always eaten as a group and that seems to be a common tendency for other Howls. The big site needs to be big enough to also accommodate a covered kitchen area. Lock down for food stuffs - racoons and bears are ingenious.

If there is white bread around, racoons will move earth and heaven to get to it. It's like crack to them. I swear the little buggers can pick locks. I have taken to keeping foodstuffs shut up in my van while not being consumed by Howlers. Local resources — There should be ample resources within a reasonably close drive and you should know where they are before the Howl — hospitals, grocery stores, fire wood unless you're sure downfall in the area will supply all you need , etc. I even scope out local restaurants of interest, attractions, Internet hotspots, banks, and reasonably priced motels we were run out of Buck's Pocket more than once by flash flooding.

Scoping the area hospitals, grocery stores, etc. It's easy enough to find all this. Google, for instance, will pull in businesses within a considerable range. It is a good idea, though, to verify the results by visiting the area before the Howl or scout it out on the first food run. These web searches are not always terribly reliable. Personnel — All that's really necessary for a Howl is an organizer to set things up, but it helps to have a second person who is the primary cook, although they should be open to letting others cook if they want.

That provides variety and more of a group spirit. And it's a good idea if the person who is cooking isn't left alone while everyone else socializes. The kitchen area should be close to the general gathering place. A third person can mind the fire and gather people when fire wood gets low.

Communications — As bad as I hate to admit it I hate technology , it's good to have a charged or chargeable cell phone on site in case of emergencies. Before the Howl there needs to be a way for people who are planning to attend to communicate. Much of the communication might be open but there needs to be some way for people to make more private plans. I post much of the information for the SEHowl on the gatherings section of the Werelist and some on the Howls section of my own website but I also use a private Yahoo Group so that Howlers can plan out car pools, airport pickups, and such.

We have never had problems with people from outside causing problems after catching on that there will be a gathering of Werewolves in their vicinity, but there's always a first time. Some Howls have found it more judicious to keep their Howls more closed and their communications more private. There are several posts that I place on the Internet before a Howl: The first is usually a reminder far in advance that the Howl is coming up.

For instance, as soon as I check with the staff at the site and establish a date, for the SEHowl, that will probably be sometime in September or October, I will go ahead and post the date and location. Be very careful with this. The part of the year just after a Howl usually moves very slowly but as the next Howl approaches, time can really move and the Howl will be on you before you know it.

This is especially true when you need to rent a cabin or lodge. For instance, cabins and lodges in the mountains in the fall fill up quickly and it's important to nail one down, if possible, a year or more in advance. In fact, if you plan to use the same park for a cabin Howl for successive years, its' a good idea to rent for next year during this years Howl. I will then begin making informational posts about two months in advance. I have a standard post I send out giving the date and location of the Howl and offering suggestions about what to bring, camping and food fees, what the weather is usually like, and local attractions.

As the Howl approaches I keep watch on local events and weather forecasts. I post anything of developing interest. The last week I track the weather forecasts and post what I find, and I answer questions about the Howl. First meals — Nobody wants to take a long trip to a Howl site and, after setting up their tent, go on a food run or cook a meal.

I usually try to have ready food — pastries, snack foods, sandwich materials, salad stuff we have a vegetarian among our regulars , cereal and milk, and drinks oh, and Twizzlers, marshmallows, and beef jerky. If white bread is crack to racoons, then Twizzlers are crack to Werewolves. Gotta keep the customers satisfied. Activities — Have an idea of what's available in the neighborhood for entertainment and, if possible, know what your Howlers like. On one of my attempts to find a site after the original SEHowl site went sour, I arranged a Howl at a wooded national forest recreational site in central Alabama which was in peaceful rolling hill country centered around a lake.

It was well developed and it was, unfortunately, rather boring. It was fine for the old timers who primarily use Howls as most families use reunions — a place to gather around the campfire and socialize, but most of my Howlers like adventure and this place just plain lacked the adventurous element. We could use the current site of the SEHowl for a century and still not see and do everything available in the area. Setting up Tents and bedding — It's a good idea to keep tents closed during the day. Things get in there and they are often biting things.

If the climate is wet, bring along some waterproofing and treat the tent as you set it up. If the climate is cold, you can be sloppy about some things — I have found a pile of blankets to be quite sufficient for sleeping in cold weather — but there are some things that you dare not ignore. For one thing, you need an insulating pad between you and the ground. The ground will suck all the heat out of your body.

Also, if you sleep nude like I do, you might consider keeping socks on. The feet doesn't have the circulation and metabolic heating that the rest of the body has and you might just wake up with frost bite of you don't take precautions to keep them warm. Also, a tent in cold weather should be just big enough to hold what you have.

Larger tents are colder tents. Head space, though, is nice if you have to escape from the rain. It allows you to drag chairs into the tent and continue socializing until the rain blows over. I can 't imagine a more variable Howl than the SEHowl. It gives you experience with all the possible situations. Usually, we start with bitterly cold weather and, before it's over, you can build up a good sweat walking. That means that somewhere between we get a horrendous storm. And the insects will come out quickly as soon as it warms up. In the summer, Bankhead National Forest is like the tropics.

You might as well be in the Congo. If you expect insects, bring a good insect repellant. Kitchen area and equipment — If you expect inclement weather and you might as well expect some inclement weather sometime during the SEHowl , you need a covered kitchen area. Originally, the SEHowl strung up tarps between trees but then one year, Lance brought a pavilion and when he moved away up north, I thought it was such a good idea that I bought a pavilion for the Howl.

The SEHowl has always eaten as a group. That, of course, isn't necessary but it does serve to bring everyone together. The largest Howl we had was around 40 people and, had Savage not brought along her extensive expedition kitchen and served as the camp cook, I can not imagine how I would have managed.

If the same thing happened today and I would be quite pleased if it did , the only thing I would be able to do is let people split off into smaller groups and manage their own meals. As it is, most of my regulars have moved far, far away and a new group is forming. The SEHowl is back to small and it's hard to plan meals when people are coming and going during the week, so I don't even use a camp stove right now. We do a lot of campfire cooking — aluminum foil and skewer cuisine.

So you need to decide whether you need a camp stove or not. If you do, I would suggest using one that burns white gas or camp fuel. Butane and propane canisters may not need as much maintenance white gas will go out if you don't pump the stove up occasionally , but liquid fuel will get your water boiling faster and it's more responsive. As an alternative, we've also had folks bring grills. I used to provide real utensils to eat with but one thing Therians don't seem to like to do is to wash their own dishes after they eat and the cook has enough to wash.

Also, it's rather miserable washing dishes in the cold that the SEHowl has to deal with. So I've started supplying disposable dinnerware. It's not that expensive and it gets thrown away. Meals need to be planned by the whole group that will be eating it. I have regulars who are vegetarians and regulars who are diabetic, and any other dietary requirement may show up at a Howl. I absolutely cannot handle Neutrasweet. It took me awhile to realize that people thought that food runs were an activity. We were going to town every other day to get food.

Unfortunately, that steals time from the actual Howl activities that are a heck of a lot more fun than running to the grocery store. Also, it may not seem like it's taking that much time for people that don't go every time, but the Howl organizer usually does have to go every time and they end up spending most of their time in the road and in a grocery store.

The bottom line is that a 9 day Howl shouldn't have to make a food run more than three times during the week. If you just want to run into town every other day, plan for different people to do it each time and use different vehicles so the same person isn't driving and buying gasoline. Vehicles — As mentioned above, different campgrounds have different rules about how many vehicles can occupy a single campsite.

The one we use even requires that campers occupy a site for 24 hours before starting off on side trips and such. Camp rules should be established before the Howl and they should be adhered to if, that is, you intend to use the same place over and over and, since it's difficult to find a good site, it doesn't hurt to take some care to maintain good relations with the locals The SEHowl has, in the past, been guilty of overusing particular individuals' vehicles to ferry people and equipment to the campsite for instance, down that horrific trail they call a dirt road at Buck's Pocket.

If you have only a few people who have vehicles that can navigate an approach road, and if they're good enough to provide ferrying services, don't abuse their good will. Use them as sparingly as possible. And at least offer to pay for some of their gasoline. It's traditional that someone's vehicle will breakdown and someone will have a flat tire sometime during every SEHowl. That may be a cosmic law that applies to Howls in general.

Regardless, when you're tracking down local services for the Howl, be sure to identify some good mechanics and tire dealerships in the area. Backpacking — Just mentioning it as an alternative to the campout Howl. If you're going to go on a backpacking trip, make sure that someone in the group is an experienced backpacker and doesn't mind wet nursing a bunch of chaotic tenderfoots.

Meeting places for casual Howls — I've been to many casual Howls where several Therians just got together to eat lunch, or spend the day at a local park or some such. The most important thing in that case is to establish a good meeting place that everyone can find. It also helps if that meeting place has a nice atmosphere for waiting because I don't think I've ever met a Therian who could be on time for anything need I add that the organizer needs to be the one that actually does be on time.

I like Books-A-Million because it's usually pretty easy to find and you can get a book and kick back in Joe's Muggs for a cup of cappuccino while you wait. It's also a good idea for the organizer to be identifiable. Contrary to popular belief, Mainstreamers don't shoot first and ask questions later. I am blatantly Therian in the US Bible Belt and I've never even had anyone throw rotten vegetables at me, much less pitchforks and torches. An animal print t-shirt isn't that conspicuous. First aid — Be prepared for common emergencies. Somebody at the site needs to know basic first aid.

If you're going to host Howls, take a first aid course. Red Cross offers regular first aid training in most communities. Often, the difference between a miserable burn and no discomfort at all after a few minutes is a little cool water applied by someone with a cool head. It's also a good idea to have some burn spray. The second most common injury seems to be cuts.

Therians also like to play with sharp things.

THE CONCEIT OF HINDSIGHT

The best antibiotic in the world is blood so, if a cut is bleeding, let it bleed unless the person is in danger of bleeding out. In fact, if the person has a typically hot Therian immune system, I would say, just leave the wound alone and let the body work it's magic. For those with more vulnerability to infection, you should have some wide spectrum antibiotic ointment or cream, like Neosporin, and a variety of bandaging material. I would say that the third most common first aid issue at the SEHowl is poison ivy.

My understanding is that, if you can dowse an effected area with soap and water right away, it will neutralize the toxin. Unfortunately, you don't always know that you've been in contact with poison ivy especially before the leaves come out in the spring until it's way too late. There is stuff that you can buy now that will reduce the torture but I've gotten use to suffering in my old age and I usually just try to ignore it until it goes away. Some folks end up needing to see a doctor after realizing that it's not going to go away all by itself.

Somebody will usually come down with a migraine — respect their pain and leave them alone until their agony relents. A show of compassion every fifteen minutes just unduly amplifies their torture. Ditto the occasional gastric disturbance. The Web Striders have also infiltrated the forums and workgroups of other factions to collect precious evidence. The pursuit of this goal furthers their fusion with the nanomachines. It either intensifies their dysfunctions or reinforces their convictions, depending on the point of view.

Their faith in the EMI grid is so strong the Web Striders leave expert systems to handle every possible decision. And when one of these highly specialized programs is not enough to reach a satisfactory result, the Web Striders do not hesitate to fuse several systems together to create super-networks. As a final resort, they leave their minds adrift on the EMI grid, surfing the activity of the network.

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It is there, at the heart of the databases, among the synapses of the grid, that the Web Striders meditate on their most vital decisions. With no official existence, the Web Strider community is unable to legally gather large amounts of nanoresources. They install dormant viruses in many combat systems, which they can activate whenever they want.

Unfortunately, when the infected systems are transformed into a shapeless heap of nanoresources, the virus is also transformed and merged with its environment. More and more viruses are in circulation on Damocles, contaminating elevators, nanogenerators or survival systems when they were only meant to take control of storm golems, nanomunitions or Wraith golgoths. Despite their exceptional efficiency on the battlefield, these modifications have only one problem.

The combat systems altered by the Web Striders have become self conscious. They now experience emotions, including a particularly uncontrollable feeling called fear. Any other faction would have considered this a failure, but the Web Striders are extremely proud of their achievement.

This trace of humanity further validates their theories. They have saved and made back up copies of this generation of systems and several Web Striders even entertain a certain form of friendship with their most evolved goliaths. Seduced by these technological advances, some Web Strider commanders would refuse to use any soldiers other than type 3. These companies exhibit extraordinary firepower, but they do not have the adaptability and endurance of golem units, which are a lot less expensive in nanoresources.

Tactical analysis expert systems always advise the integration into each platoon of at least one unit of golems, eventually including the maximum number of fighters. The Web Striders use modified autonomous attack systems that suit them better: Bane goliaths are their favorite The player can choose any platoon pattern to build his company, but he can only tool. More powerful and more resilient, use one at a time. Only Web Strider platoon patterns, including those published for they come mounted on a frame that the Operation Damocles campaign see Cry Havoc 14 , benefit from the advantage can receive all sorts of auxiliary sysand disadvantage below.

By perfecting these combat sysWeb Strider advantage: Each routine costs 1 LP less than usual. A routine will tems, the Web Striders discovered always cost at least 1 LP. After a lot of experiWeb Strider disadvantage: Consider them to have Morale 8. Proud of their success, they now attach the modification! Atis is an atypical Therian. She enjoys the fight and lives her passion so intensely it sometimes makes her own kind uneasy. As soon as she was released from the conception tank, where she was still assimilating the fundamental scientific data required for her education, Atis welcomed the feeling of her physical body.

Conscious that she could not fully abandon the virtual reality that was structuring her overseer education, she focused on assimilating the knowledge as fast as possible to be able to have time to train her real body. But she was soon disappointed by its limitations. However, rather than take refuge inside the EMI grid like many other Therians, she decided to make some adjustments to her body to enhance its performances.

Some chose to terminate their relationship, others became closer. To test her improvements, Atis participated in various gladiator fights and several private wars. This was how she learned about the Warriors: With these new friends, Atis learned all about the art of war and the manipulation of nanoresources. Her obsession for closer quarter combat impressed her new friends, who made her an overseer.

However, the contempt she shows for social relationships has prevented her from rising beyond rank alpha. She configured this body according to the same doctrine which motivated the creation of the grim golems. Atis achieved great results in the arena and earned herself the admiration of her kind.

They honored her by dubbing her with the name of Atis-Astarte. In fact she designed a teleportation routine in order to get as close as possible to the enemy to purposely slaughter him in close combat. She then transferred the files of her invention to other Therians. When she realized they were spoiling her work and not using it to tear through the enemy in close combat, she destroyed the files and terminated the existence of the wrong-doers.

Since then, the teleportation files have remained protected and unspoiled thanks to the highly aggressive reputation of Atis-Astarte. She has requested the help of the Warriors once again. They promised to support her in exchange for a service. The factory world built to take an expeditionary corps to Ava had been completed and there were going to be many Warriors aboard. Atis-Astarte was to accompany them and lead the troops into battle. Delighted by this double opportunity both to march into combat and further her personal quest, Atis-Astarte accepted immediately. Aboard the factory world, she doubled her efforts, boosted by the prospect of fighting another lifeform.

With this challenge in mind, she developed a new routine: Using highly complex energy conversion systems, Atis-Astarte made it possible to move instantaneously through space and time. All that was left to do was test her invention. In order to do this she created the largest and most complete re-enactment of the Antarctica campaign, giving her companions the opportunity to take part time and time again in the Therian defeat on Ava. Once they had all tried and failed to defeat the creatures, Atis-Astarte entered the simulation.

She took command of the operation after she personally executed all the incompetent overseers who had been in charge of the battle Videos were soon broadcast over the EMI grid. The design and testing of this invention kept Atis-Astarte so busy that she did not see time fly by. The EMI grid has only recently informed her about the approaching Avan spaceships and the proximity of the conflict. Atis-Astarte has gathered her followers and has prepared for combat. While most of the Therians show no interest in the arrival of the Avans, Atis-Astarte is restless.

Those delving deep inside the factory world are going to be in for quite a surprise So the only problem is determining whom she has to engage. When she strikes to serve Therian interest, it is best to focus on officers and units in control of primary and secondary objectives. In the end, it is the actions of other Therian units that need to be planned according to her: Any shot targeting her from beyond range 1 is an automatic failure.

This ability also works against locked shots. Combat teleportation 3 LP: This routine allows AtisAstarte to move in contact with any enemy unit she can see. Once the miniature representing Atis-Astarte has been moved, all the fighters of her unit may be placed in contact with the enemy unit. They must respect the rules for cohesion see AT Any miniatures that cannot be placed properly are eliminated. Contrary to usual officers, she does not replace a fighter but she is added to the unit. Her cost is added to that of the unit. Atis-Astarte is an overseer alpha and has the same characteristics and routines as a standard overseer alpha.

Urash is one of the most competent overseers on the factory world of Damocles. Even before the first protocellular life forms appeared on Ava, Urash had already built himself a solid reputation on Thera. Inventive, sociable and smart, Urash was famous on many virtual discussion spaces on the EMI grid. His favorite topics were the origins of the universe, the existence of parallel dimensions and the subjectivity of sensory perception.

Permanently connected to the EMI grid, he shared his time between social exchanges, the conception of mathematic models and the construction of virtual realities. But, every now and then, he would cut all communications with other Therians and spend centuries conversing with virtual constructs of his own creation. Inside the virtual territory of the EMI grid, Urash programmed countless intelligent species. He peopled entire universes and explored all the possible evolutions of such complex systems.

The only times he was taken away from his fascinating experiences by other Therians was when they were about to establish contact with a new civilization. Urash would then code it into his simulations and study the possible evolutions of a relationship between the Therians and this civilization. However, every now and again Urash had to be disciplined, as he often preferred to study the most improbable and amusing options, rather than focus on the more credible possibilities. Enrolled in a plan whose objectives were beyond his interest, Urash simulated a possible intervention on Ava.

Intrigued by the complex and somewhat absurd relationship between the. Red Blok entities, he focused his research on the subject, toying for years with eventualities and odd possibilities. Even though the extremely rapid nature of Avan evolution forced him to continuously update his simulations, Urash was unable to focus on the less entertaining probabilities. When he was brought back to reality by the forum in charge of operations, Urash had lost the thread of the discussion.

The creatures he had been interacting with in virtual reality had only a vague resemblance with those found on Ava. Still in a state of shock after his brutal return to reality, Urash did not realize the implications of his words when he handed his report to the forum. Ten years later the Therians landed on Ava. It all ended in disaster. The Avan reaction did not correspond to what Urash had forecast: This eventuality had been discarded by Urash as highly improbable.

In the end, the Therians were forced to retreat, repelled by an insignificant civilization. The social disgrace of Urash was equal to the military failure on Ava. His virtual address was erased from most log files and no one answered him anymore on the virtual spaces. His resource allocation from the EMI grid was revised and soon became insufficient to generate the simulations he enjoyed so much. Urash survived like this for thirty years. He was also sentenced to have his body transferred onto the factory world of Damocles.

To pay for his incompetence he was to take part in the new offensive. Confined to these temporary installations, relegated to lowly tasks, Urash considered his stay aboard the factory world as jail sentence. When Damocles was attacked by the Avans it took Urash some time to recognize them. They had changed so much. As the sectors he was in charge of were slowly invaded, Urash realized the implications of his past mistakes. The frustration, and the shame of being invaded, filled him with anger.

Red Blok install a collectivist directive into the EMI grid. Spare parts contaminate their technology. President Archer is assassinated. Unexpectedly, Sergeant Borz becomes president and. He is now determined to exterminate the humans. After a frustrating string of failures, he has personally taken leadership of his combat systems and stopped the White Stars. He was the first to manage to do so. Within seconds, his connection was saturated with messages of congratulation.

His bandwidth was increased and his overseer status changed to Sigma. Urash himself is transformed: If the target is an armored fighting vehicle, the player chooses the location of each impact. Contrary to usual officers, he does not replace a fighter but he is added to the unit. His cost is added to that of the unit. Nimit-Urash constitutes a unit of his own. In both cases, he is an overseer sigma and has the same characteristics and routines as a Therian overseer sigma, except for LP: Urash and Nimit-Urash have one extra Leadership point. He gives more LP than an ordinary sigma and can use routines that would normally be unavailable.

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As a soldier he must be protected because of his high A. This is not a problem: Urash is not much of a fighter anyway, he is a strategic genius. He is just as useful on the frontline as when he is safe behind cover, with his unit of bodyguards. However, when deployed inside his golgoth body, Nimit-Urash is a fighter as tough as he is strategically important. With the firepower of an assault golgoth it would be absurd to hide him or keep him in reserve.

Besides, his overseer abilities and his Structure points allow him to withstand a lot of damage. When Nimit-Urash is destroyed, the miniature representing Urash on foot is deployed where his machine stood. He constitutes a new unit but can join a storm golem unit see AT Urash on foot can use this routine.

He chooses two combat striders of the unit. They are immediately destroyed and replaced by a single brand new combat strider of the next highest type. The new strider is not an overseer. It is deployed where one of the two previous striders stood before they were eliminated and forms a new unit. Its card is placed in the activation sequence for the next round. The player must have the miniature and enough room to place it on the battlefield.

Nimit-Urash can use this routine. Her first known interventions, dating back to eight centuries ago according to records, have not all been deciphered.

R.S. MacLeod

Actually, Tiamat is much older than that, but she has erased a large part of the archives having anything to do with her. Born in BT, Tiamat would have celebrated her hundred and twelve thousand seven hundred and sixty seventh birthday during Operation Damocles Extremely interested by the degeneration of the mind and madness, she had studied the rare demented Therians that exist: After a few years, despite the power of Therian science, their psyches fade away until they eventually die.

In her youth, Tiamat helped create the expert systems in charge of monitoring the demented. Their emotional faculties seemed to be the main cause of their psychological collapse. These patients were weaker than the average Therian, explaining the early appearance of the symptoms. Tiamat began to fear that her whole species might one day be lost to degeneration.

The Therians were simply being outpaced by their technical achievements. The Therian project and Hyperlife had been founded on a misunderstanding that only a visionary Therian could have spotted and analyzed: To save her people, Tiamat had to see beyond Hyperlife and discover the path to be taken to the next stage of their evolution: The Web Striders were born.

Tiamat was aware of the danger her ideas represented. The first time she ever exposed them to the consensus the participants rejected her theories and threatened to reduce her EMI grid access, claiming she was growing senile. So she created an underground organization destined one day to rise to power. In the meantime, she pushed on with her research and reinforced her position to be able to stand up to the opposition.

Nine centuries ago Tiamat was about to give up. Time and boredom were threatening her mental stability. It was then that her quest was finally completed. A Web Strider warned her of the discovery of a natural artificial intelligence: Tiamat saw a chance to save herself from madness and death.

She captured the algorithmic life form, cut through its programming and stripped it to its essential code. She then made it into a computer virus and inoculated herself with it. By fusing with this algorithmic consciousness, she reached another stage of Therian evolution: She was finally immortal!

And she would remain immortal as long as she assimilated new entities. The newborn computer consciousness was of course destroyed in the process, but it was the price to be paid to grant the Therians access to complete, meaningful immortality Thanks to Tiamat, the Therians would become digital predators, feeding on lower life forms emerging from the EMI grid.

The Web Strider who informed her was horrified by what she had done. The Web Striders were supposed to seek a digital consciousness to study it and worship it, but certainly not to feed on it! The poor wretch had made the mistake of not telling anyone else about his discovery. Tiamat used her new powers to destroy his mind and erased any trace of her existence prior to her transformation: All there was left to do was hunt down more algorithmic life forms. Damocles seems quite promising With the mind of a predator, she disregards shooting and seeks contact.

Tiamat considers herself a higher evolution of the Therian species, with whom she has not much left in common. She is also an exceedingly talented overseer, capable of getting anything she wants out of nanomachines. Having reached the omega certification without much effort, she has become highly popular among the consensus. She hardly makes any interventions, but when she does her commentaries are extremely mystifying. In any case, the legendary overseer was never caught out. Since she has reached the next level of evolution, Tiamat believes she owes nothing to the others, who are so obviously inferior.

Besides, she has picked up the nasty habit of hijacking their bandwidth and sometimes even their nanoresources. Tiamat has access to the following routine in addition to those she has access to as an overseer: Each time Tiamat is destroyed, the player can remove the unit of the closest overseer from the game. Tiamat is a unit of her own. Therian infantry is the best and toughest in the universe, built around robust and powerful attack systems. Fear and failure have not been programmed in them.

Summoned whenever an overseer feels the need for them, this infantry is supremely flexible: These various attack systems are the fruit of thousands of years of evolution and they are nothing short of perfect. The difference between these two frames is their age: Type 3 frames goliath are the latest achievement of Therian research. Stronger and smarter, they can use heavy armament. Their only drawback is their particularly high consumption of nanoresources.

Other weapons such as the flamer, reaper blades and nanostorms work with different principles. The electrolash is the result of a fortuitous development. During the creation of the medusas a faulty unit started convulsing and almost strangled a Therian with the cables dangling from its frame. A witness, impressed by the results, decided to standardize this form of combat. This weapon uses close combat rules. The flamer sends a mixture of nanomachines that sticks to anything it touches.

Upon contact, these nanomachines combine to form the most efficient catalyst there is to cause an exothermic reaction. It can set fire to steel or glass as if it was paper! This weapon uses indirect fire rules. The nanoblaster fires a salvo of nanomunitions. Despite its short range, the high number of munitions fired makes it highly improbable for the shot to miss its target.

This weapon uses direct fire rules. Nanostorms are probably the easiest nanoweapons to design. This hand-held weapon is meant to be thrown by a golem the other frames lack the appendages necessary to use them. It explodes when it hits the ground and releases a self-contained cloud of nanomachines, composed exclusively of penetration agents. This cloud cuts, shreds and eats away at everything, leaving only dust and debris behind. The nucleus gun uses the same technology as the nucleus rifle with some notable differences: They are larger and therefore cause more damage when they reconfigure.

The nucleus rifle generates an extremely accurate smart nanomunition with powerful penetration agents. This ammunition pierces the targets armor and reconfigures itself inside, taking the shape of a large sea urchin, causing terrible internal damage! Reaper blades are long blades fixed to a gauntlet.

These blades vibrate at an ultrasonic frequency, which allows them to tear through conventional armor. The sonic gun wails The wave smashes anything it encounters. What manages to withstand it is shaken by terrifying vibrations, which damage the softer and more mobile parts.

These routines are used by the overseers in charge of infantry units. When a routine affects a movement or a test it can be declared before or after the movement or the test. An overseer can use each routine once per activation phase. If the unit performs a rush movement it can cover up to 30 cm. Hyper nanonucleus 2 LP: The unit can reroll all its failed Damage tests once. The assault golems are autonomous combat systems based on a type 2. An assault golem is assembled from several giga-units of nanomachines and benefits from advanced combat programming. It can be given detailed instructions concerning ranged weapons and ranged combat.

Its standard equipment is composed of a nanomunition weapon nucleus rifle and a set of reaper blades. Equipped with an accurate and powerful weapon, they eliminate resistance from long range while advancing on the objectives. Assault golems are an excellent escort for overseers on foot: Their frame offers a variety of possibilities: They greatly outclass all preceding combat systems, whose design patterns have been transferred to the historical archives. There is no kind of type 2 frame other than the golem on the battlefield, save for the medusa.

They have been considered the greatest Therian military specialist ever since, outshining the designers of Thera. Nucleus rifle and reaper blades. Flamer or nucleus gun. Rank 1 to 5. Therefore, shots cannot be combined to increase the area of effect. The template is centered on a fighter. All miniatures located even partially under the area of effect suffer a damage test. Fighters equipped with nanostorms can shoot with this indirect fire weapon.

This equipment represents enough nanostorms for the whole game. A unit using this equipment cannot use any of its other ranged weapons during the current activation. This equipment can only be given to a unit leader. The grim golem model is based on a type 2. Dedicated exclusively to close combat, its computing power is used by its optical camo module instead of the typical ranged combat files, which are useless to it.

Swift and discreet, the grim golem is equipped either with a pair of reaper blades or with a flamer, a combination that makes it a fearsome killer in close quarter combat. It uses its speed and stealth to advance under enemy fire. Once on its victims, it charges and annihilates its targets before vanishing again.

Their low cost allows the Therian commander to deploy a lot of them on the frontline. Complex strategy has no place here: Unless they are caught in a zone of fire, their optical camo module protects them from enemy fire better than any kind of armor. Another strategy consists in using them for surgical strikes. Deployed away from other troops, they advance quickly on their objectives. I always use one or two units of grim golems when I am in training or when I challenge others. Fighting with an invisible unit is thrilling to me and terrifying for my opponents. Sensing the fear in their activity reports is one of the great delights of my existence.

Where did it come from? My detractors then receive a warning that I have lost control over some of my grim golems and that they have set out to find them Reaper blades x 2 and optical camo module. Any shot targeting the unit from beyond range 1 is an automatic failure. The storm golem is a type 2. It is supplied with either a sonic gun or a flamer as special weapon, or with a set of reaper blades and a nanoblaster.

The sonic gun, based on the double vibration effect, disembowels and shatters its targets with great ease; while the flamer proves lethal in close quarter combat. Thanks to these qualities, the storm golems have imposed themselves as one of the standards among autonomous attack systems. Deployed in small units, as close as possible to the enemy, the storm golems will move into contact to score a quick and bloody victory. Storm golems are excellent at hunting down elite units: Storm golems are just as efficient at counter attacking, especially against defensive positions or fortifications: Even when the enemy avoids contact, the storm golems will drown him in a hailstorm of nanomunitions.

Once again the habitat of Thars, one of the Therian worlds, has recently supplied the ideal frame to deal with this issue. With their short range equipment, storm golems are less likely to cause collateral damage while hunting the creatures. During the latest infestations, they proved very efficient against all forms of biological opposition, including semi-primitive species having mastered chemical and energy weaponry.

Taming Kiera (Therian Agents, #3) by Chantel Seabrook

Nanoblaster and reaper blades. Flamer or sonic gun. The assault medusas are autonomous combat systems based on a type 2. They are meant to favor endurance and elegance. Slower than the golems, the assault medusas are ancient attack systems that were designed in the habitat of Thera. Engineered in the traditional way, combining ergonomics and resistance, their carefully programmed ranged combat procedures make them great fire support units.

Because of their movement mode, they are most reliable when used as shooting platforms. The usual equipment of assault medusas, as. However, their toughness makes them universal troops, perfectly suited for all kinds of possible missions. Assault medusas can endure enemy fire and return it with lethal accuracy, which makes them terrifying frontline units.

A great classic of Therian attack systems, the assault medusa will never go out of fashion! Unexploited patterns are filed directly into the historical archives, from where they are never supposed to return. The medusa is an exception. It was in fact transferred there because of its strange appearance and its low movement performance records. During the great war organized by the habitat of Thars, it was dug out from the archives to be manufactured.

It eventually met with success and became a popular feature on the battlefield: Electrolash and nucleus rifle. Assault goliaths are autonomous combat systems based on a type 3. This versatility results in unrivalled performance. Their revolutionary tactical interface allows them an exceptional increase in autonomy: Assault goliaths are a breakthrough in the field of super attack systems and are now the benchmark in terms of. No battle can be planned without at least one unit of these outstanding attack systems. These units are rapid troops that count on their speed and firepower to suppress the enemy before he has time to retaliate.

On the other hand, the nucleus gun forces the enemy combat striders to keep a low profile. Nucleus gun and sonic gun. Its programming and especially its learning functions are very satisfactory. The breakthroughs hoped for have been achieved in all the foreseen domains: I now consider the creation of level 4 or higher artificial intelligence possible.

I am about to set up the foundations for the next generation and I am looking at a worthwhile experimentation field for level 5 intelligence tests. Bane goliaths are autonomous combat systems based on type 3. Their long range anti-tank firepower has been maximized at the expense of their anti-infantry abilities. Bane goliaths are the result of the goliath specialization process. By mounting them with very heavy weaponry, meant for the destruction of larger opposition, they concentrate enough firepower to fell even the heaviest golgoths.

With their twin nucleus guns, a unit of bane goliaths can vaporize an assault golgoth in one well aimed salvo. Even support golgoths are not safe around them. Once they had neutralized the weapons and servomotors of my machine, they closed in on me and shot the wreck at point blank range until I was extracted by my personal protection system.

They were toying with me! I was their prey, they were my preda Warning: Deployed at the back of the battlefield, they need only to move to acquire a line of sight. The goliaths limited size protects them from locked shot fire and the efficient range of their weapons render conventional armament useless. So they can use their range to pound enemy positions, which generally never takes long considering the firepower deployed.

Nucleus gun x 2. Therian armored fighting vehicles are called golgoths and they constitute the scientific and artistic achievement of the intellectual overseer elite. Powerful, comfortable and maneuverable, they allow the Therians to experience a wide range of sensations while participating in the war effort of their people. The overseers form a strong affinitive bond with their golgoth. From their point of view, it is not merely a combat strider but, in fact, an extension of their own body. However, in a move to standardize procedures and gain strategic efficiency, all frames have standard weapon mounting points and organized in three classes: Since Therian technology was used to create human striders, the people of Ava reproduced the same classification.

Therian armored fighting vehicle frames are very different from human ones: The latter is nestled in a soft biological envelope filled with cyber-neural connection liquid. Each thought is turned into an order activating a mechanism and each impulse brings the pilot closer to victory! It can set fire to steel or glass as if it was paper. The temperatures reached are in themselves a dreaded weapon The heavy particle accelerator plays with the laws of physics to produce one of the most terrifying weapons in the universe. Propelled at such speed that even time and space are altered, the most elementary particle becomes a missile capable of knocking over mountains.

Light grim scythes are ever-sharp vibro-blades capable of slicing through the toughest materials. They then run along the power systems of the infected machine to generate powerful electrical interference as well as devastating short-circuits. Useless against lighter targets, which do not have significant enough electrical circuits to home in on such as infantry , the light virus cannon is the scourge of armored fighting vehicles, whose protection is ignored when shot at.

In fact this weapon is so dangerous that it was classified in the same category as bane goliaths. Naturally, it has been adopted by all Therians looking for some efficiency! Nucleus cannons are the ultimate evolution of nucleus weapons. The ammunition it generates is so smart that it almost never misses its target — they are even capable of choosing where they hit; and they are assisted by penetration agents that render most armor pointless.

These weapons use direct fire rules. Sonic cannons produce an even more powerful and destructive soundwave than other sonic weapons. They turn armored fighting vehicles into wrecks and soldiers into puddles with the same ease. These routines are used by the overseers in charge of armored fighting vehicle units. When a routine affects a movement or a test it is declared at the time of the movement or the test. An armored fighting vehicle regains 1 SP. The armored fighting vehicle and the location repaired are chosen by the player.

If the unit performs a rush movement it can cover up to 50 cm. The unit can re-roll all its failed Damage tests once. A type 1 combat strider appears on the battlefield in contact with the overseer. It constitutes a new unit. The overseer chooses two combat striders of the unit. It is deployed where one of the two previous striders stood before being eliminated and forms a new unit. The Succubuses are semi autonomous combat systems based on a light recon type frame.

Their armament is designed to deal with any category of enemy: Very efficient and quite inexpensive in nanoresources, the Succubuses are widely successful with overseers. A single Succubus is capable of carrying out deadly ambushes. A pack of Succubuses is a real nightmare: Its light sonic cannon is the scourge of infantry and the bane of light armored fighting vehicles; its light virus cannon is used to harass heavier armored fighting vehicles. Its speed allows it to get within optimum range of the enemy and then escape before any serious retaliation.

But beware of weapons capable of damaging it seriously in one shot, such as rocket launchers. Light sonic cannon and light virus cannon. When my enemy has armored fighting vehicles, I deploy Succubuses. When I have no information at all concerning the nature of my enemies, I deploy Succubuses. All is as has been said. Equipment Light virus cannon: The minimum result needed on the die is always the same.

This result is shown instead of the Penetration of the weapon. I wanted to have them at hand for later when I would launch my final assault. My opponent deployed his troops. My golems swept them away without any difficulty. When his Baal golgoth entered the battlefield, I understood that my strategy was going to pay off.

My opponent piloted his golgoth in person. I am not mad enough to expose myself in such a way. My existence is significant. I do not want to jeopardize it. My Succubuses shot with their light virus cannon and damaged the support golgoth. My plan was well tuned and was working as I had foreseen. My Succubuses regained cover while my opponent tore through my infantry. Once again my Succubus golgoths leaped out from cover and advanced toward the Baal.

Their light virus cannon finally immobilized it. My enemy destroyed a Succubus, but the remaining Succubuses put down the Baal. When my opponent ejected from his strider, my Succubuses destroyed him with there light sonic cannons. My tale has fed the EMI grid. My friends envy me and my enemies fear me.

My glory is great and I am admired by many Therians. My enemies fall into oblivion while my feats flood the forums! My Succubuses are my strength and I adore them. I adore myself, therefore I am. I am adored, therefore I am even more! This experimental frame, born from the mind of a particularly inventive overseer, is very easy to assemble and produce. The Hekat is a light combat system based on an ancient design, whose function is long forgotten.

Terribly efficient in contact it can even threaten even the mighty support golgoths , it moves at lightning speed and can carry out simple handling tasks, such as moving low walls. Paradoxically, this gogolth, intended for close combat, is the dreaded enemy of any armored fighting vehicle!

At first the concept was met with the extremely fierce opposition of the most traditionalist overseers, until it proved its efficiency on the battlefield. They dash to the frontline in order to destroy their prey as quickly as possible. Defenseless at range, they become extremely dangerous in contact, causing even the heaviest armored fighting vehicle unit to flee.

In units of three, Hekats become the mechanical equivalent of sharks, capable of tearing to bits even medium armored fighting vehicle units. Their numbers also allow incoming impacts to be shared among the members of the unit and gives the Hekats a better chance of reaching the enemy.

Equipment Light grim scythe: When a Hekat is in contact with a low wall, the low wall can be redeployed anywhere in contact with the Hekat. This action replaces its close combat attacks. Our habitat is not just a dying shell, it is also the origin of the rebirth of our species. Our race is too deeply engaged in the re-arrangement project of the universe: Thars gave birth to an alternative, a new way of making existence worthwhile. Our existence is defined through, by and for combat, the only acceptable measure of individual valor.

We are the future of our people, selected through the most efficient trial possible: Proof can be found in the original armament designs born on Thars, our dying world. We are the chrysalis of a new race: It combines solidity and multiple core system patterns to guarantee maximum survival span. Designed to be an extremely mobile command unit, the Numbers: Urash never experience any boredom during a battle. Result 1 Evolution duration: Its versatility means it will always have the Possible consequences: At such distances it benefits from its optimum Evolution duration: It annihilates Therian civilization.

The Poltergeist is a semi-autonomous combat system based on a medium assault type frame. Designed for leadership roles, it offers great anti-personnel performance, without being totally at a loss against armored fighting vehicles. The Poltergeist uses significant quantities of nanoresources to offer its user highly concentrated firepower.

This type of assault golgoth is capable of vaporizing an infantry unit in one salvo and it represents a serious threat to recon golgoths, whose weapons and propulsion it can easily destroy. This makes it an excellent infantry hunter, the best in its category, and a real threat to armored fighting vehicles. The Poltergeist is an attractive alternative to the Wraith golgoth. It proves highly efficient in combat against infantry, without losing its threat to other types of units.

The Poltergeist is meant to strike from medium range. It is perfectly suited for hunting soldiers, thanks to its weapons that combine both high rate of attack and penetration into terrifyingly dense salvos. With its tremendous endurance, it approaches its targets, laughing in the face of enemy fire, including infantry held anti-tank weapons. If the assault golgoth ever comes across such weapons, the sonic wall from both medium sonic cannons is generally enough to make sure the infantry is no longer a threat to anyone. Medium sonic cannon x 2.

Medium nucleus cannon x 2. The Incubus is a semi-autonomous combat system based on a medium assault type frame. Designed to protect the overseer and to be his leadership platform, it offers optimum anti-tank performance. It is a sword designed to sever exactly what it wants, to leave the opponent unarmed, ready for the sacrifice.

With the multiple core system copies that made assault golgoths so tough and popular, it can easily withstand enemy fire.

The Incubus is meant for esthetes of war who paint their blood-soaked epics with light, sure-handed touches. Its efficiency is at its maximum when it targets enemy striders and vehicles. Using the accuracy of the nucleus cannon, it can destroy the most annoying enemy systems. When the mission requires the destruction of armored fighting vehicles, the Incubus can target their propulsion systems.

Once all opposing armored fighting vehicles are neutralized, the Incubus can destroy the enemy chain of command by picking out officers, one after the other. Aboard an Incubus, war becomes a work of art. Furthermore, it offers improved access to the EMI grid. The Baal is the quintessence of combat platforms and mobile support: This allows the Baal to use a tremendously powerful range of armament: With its advanced nanoresource administrator, the support golgoth can assemble, repair, fuse, activate and accelerate combat systems, increasing its destructive capability exponentially!

TACTICS The Baal is a versatile unit, meant to offer maximum protection to an experienced overseer while providing the means to get the most out of his experience. A Baal has its place anywhere on a battlefield, on the frontline or in support; alone or protected by lines of lighter attack systems. It performs three functions in a company. Firstly, the Baal greatly simplifies the administration of nanoresources thanks to its integrated nanogenerator.

Secondly, it optimizes the activity of the troops that can then use the unspent nanoresources for their own needs. Finally, it neutralizes the most important threats on the battlefield with its mind-blowing firepower. Heavy flamer, heavy particle accelerator. Armored fighting vehicle routines executed by an overseer aboard a Baal cost one LP fewer than usual To a minimum of zero LP.

All overseers engaged in the Thars great war have reproduced his superheavy support golgoth. The war has entered its most interesting and dangerous phase: Thars is suffering from the power unleashed by the support golgoth weapons, as well as the huge amount of nanoresources necessary to the mass production of recon golgoths on the field. Several sectors of Thars have definitely come to a stop when combat intensity exceeded level 4 conventional planetary conflict. The EMI grid is both the cornerstone and keystone of Therian civilization.

Without the continuous flow of this intergalactic information and resources network, the Therians would never have reached so far in their conquest of the universe. Without this virtual cornucopia, they would have never left the stage of humanity. The EMI grid allows the Therians to live both isolated and in harmony with the whole of their species throughout the universe. Each Therian lives in isolation, since any contact he has with his kin is disincarnated. The Therians are in harmony with the EMI grid, which allows them to share their thoughts within a fraction of a second, gives them access to all the knowledge of their species and enables them to transfer themselves from one body to another.

The forums, virtual discussion and data exchange spaces, allow them to communicate and commune through time and space. When your every desire is satisfied, the ultimate obstacle is the desire of others. Therian philosophy was once summarized by a Cypher philosopher: If I had been there, memories are all that would be left of that wretched planet. Their administrators, the demiurges as they are called, design complex and vast universes, for their own enjoyment or that of their visitors.

In this virtual space, each Therian becomes a digital god capable of traveling from one universe to the next in the blink of an eye. The arenas and the war re-enactments of the battlefields of 01 are where the fiercest Warriors challenge each other. The greatest tacticians recreate campaigns of the past, pitting their strategy against historical reality; others fight galactic battles that last several centuries, until entire systems have been reduced to dust. A complex network of PVP player versus player and PVE player versus environment forums establishes a ranking of the best Therian warlords.

The alterworlds diverging worlds are simulations of existing worlds to which the Cyphers introduce various alterations to measure the consequences. Uchronias and other timeline adjustments are the essence of these alternative universes. Such simulations sometimes have a tactical purpose in reality: However, his wild predictions were light years away from what happened: Since then such military considerations are left to the specialists of Hyperlife see further. The less frequent and most extravagant universes of 01 are the dreamwebs, unique works where the Web Striders unleash their creative minds.

Some of them are universes where the laws of physics and biology have been fundamentally altered. There are even some entirely empty universes where the visitor is challenged by an omnipotent and omnipresent being in a deadly game of strategy. In secret, the administrators use these games to encourage the emergence of a consciousness within the EMI grid.

A large number of dreamwebs have recently been closed to the public: As the news was spread around, the popularity of the dreamwebs increased. Therians enjoy the thrill of danger. Many expeditions have been set up to hunt down Babel: The truth is that Babel haunts the EMI grid collecting knowledge and absorbing the minds of her Therian victims as she forges her own personality.

From a Therian point of view, this remarkably old political forum is the essence of the Therian project: For many, Hyperlife has become synonymous with the Therian project. Hyperlife is divided into three sections that are places for debate: It is mainly a library where a user can check reference subjects and find information concerning the procedures relevant to the Therian project.

The logic supporting the ideas described here is implacable and questioning these ideas is considered counter-productive.