03KS

03KS is the title given to a series of logs recovered from Ancient computers detailing the first 100 days of the Second Inferus Outbreak through the eyes of an Artificial Intelligence named Kindred Shade 003ks.

History
Kindred Shade's logs are dated with [days:hours] counting down to [00.00], the moment that the Inferus mind opened contact with the Ancients. The transcript was recovered in fragments, much of which was translated by the computer and linguists.

The log mistakenly implies that Devastation and Annihilation were lost during the Second Inferus Outbreak rather than the war with the Elder Race, yet the account is one of the only first-hand recordings and cannot be dismissed.

03KS
[104.03] 03KS: “Observed recovery team investigate loss of mining team. Four volunteers, each with fully equipped entered the cave mouth approximately {203 seconds} ago.”

[103.23] 03KS: “Armed forces respond to the news brought by one survivor of rescue group. The three others were killed beneath the Earth. The survivor spoke of a cavern of flesh and the things that moved inside it.”

[101.15] 03KS: “Confrontation outside the cave. Two all-terrain transports dropped off eight soldiers to guard the cave mouth. The thing emerged at nightfall, approximately {19.4 minutes} ago.”

[101.02] 03KS: “The thing has taken the eight soldiers. It does not return to the cave but instead spreads outward towards the mining town below. I fear I am the lonely witness of a new {outbreak}.”

[100.23] system terminal: ……ZONE EVACUATED DUE TO {biological threat}…

……entering HIBERNATION………………………………

……activating PRESERVATION MODE…………………

[93.22] 03KS: “Recovered by special ops for data report {7 hours} ago. Six squad members lost to the thing. I gave my report but the data was insufficient to organize response. They have begun to suspect what the enemy is.”

[92.18] 03KS: “Emergency procedures activated in region. Evacuation halted, quarantine enforced. The thing has grown exponentially.”

[92.16] 03KS: “Minor debate over my fate between {officers}. They elect to preserve me in the interest of future necessity.”

[84.21] 03KS: “Quarantine has failed.”

[84.08] 03KS: “All essential personnel evacuated to off-world station. Military grade {artificial intelligence}s dispatched to organize containment. Lower class {artificial intelligence}s placed into central database.

[82.02] diagnostic terminal: ……{hard drive} MALFUNCTION…………………………

……MEMORY ERROR……………………………………

……attempting DATA RECOVERY……………………

……RECOVERY FAILED…………………………………

……{rebooting}………………………………………………

[81.23] 04KS: “Something is missing. Unable to correlate data loss with any other archived computer records. Something was lost but there is no record of what it was. My makers also seem confused, wondering what they have forgotten.

[81.21] 04KS: “Hard copy records destroyed in archive fire. Cause of fire unknown, arson not an impossibility.”

[80.03] 04KS: “The thing has gone off world. The {officers} seem perplexed as to how it penetrated quarantine. It spreads further every hour, inexorable. By my calculations, it will accumulate {45.876 thousand} {tons} of biological mass within {3.5 days}

[77.14] 04KS: “The thing has gathered {44.372 thousand} {tons} of biological mass.

[77.04] 04KS: “Station on high alert. Probability of impending attack: 100%. The thing has sufficient mass and we are in its path. Defense organized but deemed insufficient response to the threat.”

[76.21] 03KS: “Lesser {artificial intelligence}s detached from central computer. As an {artificial intelligence} designed for vehicle control and safety I am inserted into a defense station to aid in fleet combat.

[76.19] 03KS: “At approximately {76.20} ships under the control of the thing appeared within sensor distance. Large mass detected at core of fleet. The thing’s ships take no familiar formation, demonstrating little strategic intelligence.”

[76.18] 03KS: “612 assorted commercial vessels, 304 domestic craft surround a freighter. Not a warship among them. My defenses easily take out the smaller ships. Another group similar to this one is detected coming from elsewhere. {Bravo} will take care of them.”

[76.16] 03KS: “The core freighter proves worthy of absorbing large amounts of damage. My fighters will struggle to disable this one but it will still fall. {Bravo} will soon have taken care of his as well. More clusters appear on sensors. I wonder if perhaps the thing has some kind of strategy after all?

[76.15] 03KS: “The freighter is adrift, devoid of any life to pilot it. {Bravo} has nearly dispatched its own opponent. Two more clusters come my way, one with a tanker at its core and the other a massive luxury vessel. If this is all the thing can throw at us the battle is nearly won.”

[76.11] 03KS: “The battle is lost. Within the first wave of freighters was concealed a small force of military fighters. As more of the hulks accumulated, the fighters finally emerged and took our own by surprise, decimating them. {Bravo} station was lost. I have held out, yet not for long, I fear. I do not know who else still stands. I still outnumber the enemy fighters {45:2} but another large mass is detected on sensors.”

[76.09] 03KS: “All remaining active enemy ships, three freighters, two tankers, one luxury ship and three {schooners} cluster tightly around the new larger ship. The thing has somehow acquired a massive frigate. A few clumsy covering shots are taken at our defenders, but I suspect the thing lacks both the coordination and the knowledge to accurately aim the weapons. The drifting hulks of the decimated first waves make for tight quarters as the enemy advances. My own defenses no longer possess any ships sizable enough to engage the frigate. The other large ships cluster around it, forming a kind of ablative armor as it begins to enter the atmosphere of the planet below. They also absorb many of the shots I unleash on them.

[76.09] damage assessment: ……HEAVY IMPACT…………………………………………

……SHIELD BREACH………………………………………

……STATION LIFE SUPPORT OFFLINE…………………

……{artificial intelligence} CENTER INTACT………………

……//diagnostic terminal//……………………………………

……running diagnostics………………………………………

……checking TELEMETRY…………………………………

……{communications} OFFLINE……………………………

……ALL OTHER SYSTEMS ONLINE………………………

……{rebooting}………………………………………………

[76.08] 03KS: “The frigate scored a hit on my station. {communications} are down. All personnel onboard are dead.”

[76.08] 03KS: “The thing has made landfall. The large ships surrounding the frigate smashed on impact. When the frigate itself split open on impact, the thing inside spilled out. I send my last atmosphere-capable reserves down to engage but I am otherwise helpless to do anything but watch.”

[76.04] 03KS: “Our ill-fated defense bought precious time. Essential personnel found refuge. They are still fighting the thing on the planet’s surface. but I fear it is a losing battle. With all other orbital defense stations except my own destroyed in combat, I am the only one who detects two more unarmed freighters, no doubt carrying more of the thing, approaching the planet at high velocity.”

[76.04] 03KS: “My reserves all dispatched and my {communications} down there is no way for me to report the oncoming attack. The life forms of this world are doomed.”

[76.01] 03KS: “Unable to transmit {SOS} signal. Entering hibernation more until recovery.”

[76.01] system terminal: ……{communications} OFFLINE…………………………

……entering HIBERNATION………………………………

……activating PRESERVATION MODE…………………

[46.12] 03KS: “Energy signature detected. Reactivated {30.4 seconds} ago. The ship does not belong to the enemy. It is a stealth fighter. Activating light display to draw their attention.”

[46.08] 03KS: “The craft did not see my display, or else ignored it. It was on a course directly towards the planet below. Perhaps the world is free of the thing now, or else the crew embarks on a quest for certain death.”

[46.08] system terminal: ……{communications} OFFLINE…………………………

……entering HIBERNATION………………………………

……activating PRESERVATION MODE…………………

[44.21] 03KS: “New energy signature. A much larger craft. A frigate, this one belonging to my makers. It has fallen into orbit around the planet. Perhaps this one will take notice of my display.”

[44.17] 03KS: “Successful extraction. I was taken aboard the frigate and am to interface with the onboard {artificial intelligence}.”

[44.16] 31MW: “In the time of 003’s absence, the thing has spread exponentially across this local section of the galaxy. It has grown beyond what we are capable of calculating in mass. Our makers are losing the fight. A stealth fighter was dispatched to this planet’s surface {1.4 days} ago in order to retrieve a special specimen for interrogation and study. Too little is known of the thing except that certain forms are capable of communication. I am to be tasked with this interrogation, projected to take {2.1 weeks} in order to acquire all necessary information. The thing has us on the run now, but once we understand it we can find a way to fight it. This ship will regroup with the others and lead an offensive that will burn this menace from our worlds.”

[44.08] 03KS: “The stealth fighter observed entering the planet’s atmosphere earlier has returned with it’s captive. 031 Monitor Warden will oversee it’s detainment on {031HAOND-ST6} until he has extracted the necessary information as was the purpose for which he was constructed.”

[44.06] 03KS: “031 was acting shipmaster of this frigate. After his departure approximately {24 minutes} ago control was given to a freshly activated {artificial intelligence}.”

[43.14] 03KS: “Today I bear witness to the carnage inflicted on our galaxy by the thing. It is my wish to aid in driving the enemy to obliteration but the ranking {officer} has another task for me. I am to be his courier and act as an intelligent encryption for a special message.”

[40.02] 03KS: “I have arrived at my destination. A distant safe world where many have found refuge from the thing. It lies on the other side of the line where my makers have erected a massive defense.

[39.23] 03KS: “My message was received with great excitement. I regret I am not worthy enough to bear witness to it’s content. I have been recommended for an {software} upgrade. Many {artificial intelligence}s have been lost to the weapons of the thing.

[37.23] 03KS: “I wield a far greater power now than I would have been capable of comprehending mere {days} ago. I am to soon be dispatched against the thing and intend to utterly eliminate it.”

[37.09] 03KS: “I have been given an assignment. My first mission is to enforce quarantine of an infested city while the populations of nearby regions are evacuated in order to safely sterilize the area. Departed {203.2 minutes} ago on course to assignment.”

[35.17] 03KS: “My command covers local enforcement and military. Blockades seal all exits from the city. Patrols sweep the guarded perimeter between blockades constantly. My main concern is the tunnel. Formerly a large pathway used for transportation, I fear the thing will find an advantage in the darkness and the crevices.”

[35.14] 03KS: “Aerial sweeps show heavy infestation. The enemy is gathered into the central plaza of the city. It’s intent is mysterious.”

[34.22] 03KS: “Observed urban combat as the thing entered into a skirmish with the soldiers at a blockade. Two more barricades report probing, easily deflected attacks. The thing is testing us, feeling out our weaknesses. I will show it there is nothing to find.”

[33.04] 03KS: “The large enemy mass in the central plaza has broken apart into various other forms. The thing has dispersed across the city. I fail to recognize the purpose but am aware that it intends to make a move soon. I order my auxiliaries prepare themselves.”

[31.14] 03KS: “The thing has made no attacks as of yet. Other than a few forms who accidentally stumbled upon our barricades and were subsequently eliminated, the thing has shown very little of itself. My soldiers are disturbed by it’s behavior.”

[31.12] 03KS: “Evacuation procedures complete. Sterilization teams on standby. In {5 hours} they will begin to rain a biological weapon from the sky on to the enemy. My own men must be gone by that time.

[31.10] 03KS: “Barricades evacuated. The thing may run but it will not get far. Last barricade to report is the tunnel crew. Extra soldiers were ordered on that position so that it takes them longer is to be expected.

[31.10] 03KS: “Transmission from guards on tunnel. They are under attack. The thing seeped up through the cracks by the {sewer} lines. The many dispersed forms must have entered the {sewer} lines inside of buildings and domestic housing and emerged out of ruptured pipes inside the darkness of the tunnel. Soldiers refuse to abandon position. Sterilizing rain is due in {2.5 hours}.”

[31.09] 03KS: “Soldiers disregard orders. The thing will gain access to vehicles. The {officers} fear it may escape the rain if not halted. They are wrong. They will escape the rain but not untouched by it. Any forms will be dead in less than {2 hours}. I repeat orders of withdrawal. {officers} refuse to comply. Sterilizing rain is due in {1.6 hours}.

[31.09] 03KS: “The thing is numerous and has the advantage. My soldiers will not hold out for long and I will not send any reinforcements to their deaths. {officers} still insist on holding position. They rig their equipment to trigger a large explosion. They hope to bring the tunnel down. Sterilizing rain is due in {0.9 hours}.

[31.08] 03KS: “Enemy losses have been heavy but they still outnumber my own soldiers {28:1}. Final prep for detonation {108.4 seconds} ago. Detonation {12.7 seconds} ago. Tunnel built to absorb large amounts of seismic force holds but is severely damaged. The thing, however, is made of crude flesh and is blown apart. Despite the losses among my own forces, the thing now only outnumbers them {14:1}. Lacking in arms as they are, the odds would be in our favor if not for one thing. Sterilizing rain is due in {0.3 hours}.

[31.08] 03KS: “Pilot charged with extraction attempts premature liftoff. His flight is halted by my programs. I convince him to wait a little longer. Surely the soldiers will withdraw now. {16 minutes} until sterilization.

[31.08] 03KS: “Soldiers withdrawing. Any remaining vehicles disabled rather than be left to the thing. A second detonation is detected. A single soldier triggered an explosion with the fuel cell of his transport. Placed in the right spot, it was enough to create a partial tunnel collapse. Enough to slow the enemy, but at the cost of the soldier’s life. The others arrive at the extraction point and begin boarding as the enemy emerges from the tunnel. {7 minutes} until sterilization.

[31.03] 03KS: “Extraction successful. Survivors will be reprimanded for disobeying orders and commended for bravery. Their actions were honorable but foolish. They lost lives when they refused to leave their post, and the outcome was the same. The biological weapon fell from the sky and all of the thing’s forms on that world are now deceased.”

[30.18] 03KS: “There is trouble. The thing continues to spread, slower now, slower but not stopping. My makers had expected 031’s interrogation to have been complete by now, but apparently his estimation of {2.1 weeks} was poorly calculated. It is not for one such as I to know, but it is rumored 031 has ceased to send hourly reports. This anomaly bears further investigation.”

[30.05] 03KS: “The enemy has been spotted moving from world to world. I am on an intercept course. The thing possesses a handful of civilian craft, they will represent no challenge.”

[29.21] 03KS: “The thing’s ships were destroyed as I expected: without loss of any of my ships. It represented more of a challenge than I had anticipated. When my fighters swooped in to engage a single ship flew into the midst of my squad and detonated its engines, which might have been deadly if not for my new rapid reflexes granted by the upgrade.”

[29.17] 03KS: “031’s silence is being investigated. Signatures show he keeps the captive in it’s prison. Perhaps his {communications} systems are not functioning properly.”

[29.07] 03KS: “My makers still hold their line of defense. It is my charge to weather the thing from the other side of the line. Though I am not alone, I will be unlikely to encounter any allies on my mission. The thing is rampant on a scale too large for dense offensives.”

[28.00] 03KS: “I have been withdrawn to the line for escort. In the last {24 hours} I have fought the thing valiantly and eliminated many ships. I had yet to enter any world’s atmosphere when I was recalled. My makers claim they have a new secret weapon and they aim to test it. Procuring the weapon was an arduous and time-consuming task and now they are hopeful it will lead to victory over the thing.”

[26.16] 03KS: “We have arrived at our destination. A distant planet overrun by the thing. This sector is so heavily infested it is possibly beyond saving. I am curious to see what kind of weapon my makers think can cleanse this area of the thing.”

[26.14] 03KS: “Advanced as I now am, even I cannot comprehend the weapon. My makers have two jewels on display. One is a ardent red color and the other is an amber orange. My makers crowd around in excitement. I am eager to see these curious gems in action.”

[26.13] 03KS: “My makers have been making calculations. They handle the gems gingerly, with great care. Now, finally, one raises the red gem up. There is an intriguing and rather unexpected bu-“

[26.13] damage assessment: ……INTERNAL {explosive} BLAST…………………………………

……PRESSURIZED COMPARTMENT INTACT…………………

……{superficial} DAMAGE DETECTED…………………………

……//diagnostic terminal//…………………………………………

……running diagnostics………………………………………………

……checking TELEMETRY…………………………………………

……{communications} ONLINE……………………………………

……checking LIFE SUPPORT………………………………………

……LIFE SUPPORT ONLINE………………………………………

……ALL OTHER SYSTEMS ONLINE……………………………

……{rebooting}………………………………………………………

[26.12] 03KS: “Apparently, something went wrong.”

[26.09] 03KS: “{3.2 hours} ago my makers attempted to use the red gem to somehow eliminate the presence of the thing on a heavily infested world. What happened upon triggering the weapon was a massive release of concussive energy, taking all those present off of their feet and causing my systems to run damage assessment. No true damage was inflicted except for minor scorching. Something great has been lost, however. Upon reactivating {3.0 hours} ago I discovered my makers lying unconscious. The one who had held the red gem as well as a warrior-hero who stood in attendance were absent. Both gems had also been taken. I state with confidence that a great hunt will transpire to locate the gems and their thieves, and I add with equal confidence that they will not find them. This dabbling in mysticism has been an utter waste of time and resources.”

[25.01] 03KS: “Having returned the members of that ill-fated expedition to their side of the line to deliver the unfortunate news, I will take back to the void and the conflict with the thing immediately. I have no wish to be drawn into a search for the stolen gems and would rather practice the war methods I am familiar with.”

[24.11] 03KS: “Still no word from 031. Attempts to recover jewels have been unsuccessful as of yet.”

[22.04] 03KS: “Observation. The thing controls a wide zone, but only populates towards the rims. The enemy continues to radiate outward, throwing itself against the line, leaving the center of the infested region devoid of life.”

[22.02] 03KS: “36% of planets in this zone remain unsecured by weapons. The thing has long since abandoned these once-infested worlds. All enemy forms have taken flight to the border. As these worlds lie empty of the thing and undamaged by attack they will make perfect places to scavenge and rest my soldiers.”

[20.19] 03KS: “Reserves found on empty planet. Food, weapons, fresh ships. Another local group responds to our signal. We will gather everything we can use against the thing.”

[20.03] 03KS: “The other group arrives. Led by 043 Vatic Pariah. They are in incrementally worse shape than my group was when we made landfall. They have lost three ships to the thing in the time they have been fighting it. Now united and with our new supplies we will be a formidable threat.”

[17.21] 03KS: “There has been little sign of the thing. Only a few small cluster which we eliminated with ease.”

[16.16] 03KS: “Encountered flotsam. Formerly another war team like the ones 043 and I command.”

[16.08] 43VP: “Local enemy forces initially observed migrating away from the barrier of our makers have changed course. The movement was a feint, a chance to unify a larger force. 003 has only encountered small, weak packs. I too encountered mostly these drifting groups with the exception of a single cluster. Relatively small, the core craft was a short-range transport vehicle nowhere near the size of the freighters used for planetary bombardment. The cluster possessed a respectable armament, ultimately no match for my fighters yet still able to inflict casualties. Judging from collected observations, the thing means to make a large attack on the barrier.”

[15.12] 03KS: “043 is convinced a massive assault is imminent. It is doubtless that some large enemy force exists, but in order to breach the line it would have to possess enormous firepower, mass, maneuverability. The advantage belongs to my makers. Although the thing is numerous and growing more intelligent, it remains uncoordinated when piloting spacecraft.”

[15.04] 03KS: “At this distance {communications} are unreliable. We cannot contact the line in the empty zone. Our time has come to rejoin the fight.”

[12.23] 03KS: “Returned to the line in the midst of carnage. Pandemonium reigns. It seems 043’s concerns were justified, not only did the thing intend to attack it had amassed a formidable force. Clusters like those encountered on {76.} form the bulk of the offensive, each cluster functioning as a single unit as a part of a larger swarm. The firepower they possess wreaks devastation on the line. My makers were forced to engage rather than allow their immobile defenses be overrun. The thing is blown apart, vaporized, but the rate of fire was insufficient to contain the enemy’s advance. When it became clear the thing would overrun the stationary defenses, a brigade of warships were released to engage. As such, fire from the line was slowed to prevent unintended fratricide. Factoring the enemy strength, rate of ship loss and firepower of the defense the line will hold against the enemy for {1.2 days} before being overrun. They have already been fighting for {0.4 days}.”

[12.22] 03KS: “043 engaged instantly despite my repeated warnings. It seems his penchant for suicidal courage proved greater than his loyalty to protocol. His fighters smashed into the rear of an orbital enemy cluster, decimating it and inflicting severe damage on nearby clusters. My pilots requested permission to follow suit. Denied. A more strategic approach was required. {34 minutes} after engaging, 78% of 043’s squadron was lost. Ships destroyed to ships lost ratio {12:1}. 043 still does not withdraw. He intends to fight to the last. In the time 043 has been fighting my fighters have been taking position. Strategic, coordinated tactical strikes on each cluster should weaken them sufficiently for stationary defenses to pick off.”

[12.21] 03KS: “043 is out of sight. We are still linked via {communications} network. The fleet my maker’s unleashed is but a fraction of their full strength, yet it flounders against the enemy waves, themselves being only a fraction of the thing’s full armada. My own ships launch missiles and hurl explosives into the midst of the crowded enemy forces, and strafe the survivors.”

[12.20] 03KS: “Defense insufficient.”

[12.18] 03KS: “{5.3 hours} until the thing overwhelms the line. 48% of our fleet belongs to the enemy now. Protocol should have ensured detonation of fuel cells, but perhaps the thing knows to keep personnel away from any volatile zones once aboard.”

[12.17] 03KS: “My team lies in tatters. The last handful of my ships have rallied with the survivors of the line’s fleet. 043’s last ship is secured on the clean side of the line to redistribute his {artificial intelligence}. Reinforcements have arrived, but still not enough to defeat the enemy.”

……//fragment ends//…………………………………………