God Star

Prologue - The Magellanic Heresies

Prologue - The Magellanic HeresiesFragments recovered from the journal of Aysha Zand, xenobiologist of the deep space exploratory vessel Magellanic Cloud, as reassembled and translated by Ondo Ynwa Lagan from discoveries made on the (now extinct) planet Maes Far.

Warning: These fragments form part of the Magellanic Heresies as proscribed by Concordance. Ownership or propagation of these documents is considered an act of extreme heresy against Omn. Read or distribute at your own risk.

…the long debate on whether the planet's oceans are home merely to teeming trillions of monocellular creatures or whether, in fact, the biosphere should be considered a single, integrated being with a fluid but complex nature. Researches into this question are continuing although the remarkable…

…there is certainly a great deal of physical activity within the depths of this mysterious ocean world. The substrate within which the cells exist is relatively gelatinous, meaning that most cells remain fixed in relation to each other. It is possible even to consider these arrangements as structures. But, at the same time, consistent currents flow around the globe at all pelagic levels, and numerous thermal plumes have also been identified, constantly moving a percentage of cells between the sunless depths and ocean's surface levels. There is both fixity and variation to the ordering of the cells within the planet's oceans. No doubt it is fanciful to liken this to the flow of memories and impulses between the subconscious and conscious parts of a conventional mind. Similarly, while the silvery flashes of ghostly bioluminescence that may often be seen in the oceans at night are certainly beautiful, there is no scientific evidence to back up the notion that these are analogous to ideas flickering through a conventional nervous system. Regardless, the oceans are most certainly teeming with life and activity…

…cells account for 99% of the mass of the planet's seas, the vast majority of the water having been absorbed into their microscopic structures. In this sense, the planet is not an ocean world at all, but a protoplasmic biosphere.

It is also undeniable that these cells perceive and react to the presence and absence of light, although this is clearly not proof of any degree of intelligence. Even very primitive monocellular creatures exhibit this behaviour, having evolved to detect the light/dark cycle so that they can predict when protection against the damaging effects of solar radiation upon delicate DNA is needed. Nevertheless, it is intriguing to consider whether this mechanism – given the complex patterns of light from the planet's triple suns – might be a trigger for the development of a higher order of predictive intelligence…

…also clear that the planet's lifeform(s) evolved very early on in galactic history. The biological, geological and chemical dating evidence all convenes on this point. In fact, no older life has been identified anywhere in known space, and it is tempting to assert that the planet is home to the earliest creature(s) ever to live in our galaxy.

In all probability, the lifeforms(s) achieved a stable evolutionary state very early on in its/their existence, with relatively few morphological changes in recent aeons. Some diversity of cell structure has been noted, although it is unclear whether these constitute different species or (as some suggest) form specialized cells within a single organism. It is now known that the cells have evolved to exchange information chemically, although the nature and purpose of this communication is still the subject of active research and speculation…

Five years after Selene's descent into the black hole, three months after her return…

Part 1 - Omn