The Arrival of the Forgotten Destroyers
The simulation shifted again, but this time, Joe felt a deep rupture in the very fabric of reality. Indraprastha's ruins were no longer just a test—they had become a battlefield for something far worse than he had ever imagined.
Above him, fractures in space began to appear—glowing voids that pulsed with unnatural energy. They did not resemble wormholes or conventional distortion fields. They were tears in existence itself, raw apertures leading to something unknowable.
Then, through these tears—they arrived.
A fleet unlike any recorded history.
Ships forged from living material, their surfaces shifting and pulsing like organic entities. There were no visible weapons, no thrusters, no conventional engines, yet they moved seamlessly, crossing impossible distances in moments.
And they came with only one purpose—to eradicate. The Same Beings That Destroyed Lumi's Creators
Lumi spoke, its voice colder than before, more detached—not as an evaluator, but as something else entirely.
"They have returned."
Joe felt a chill move through his bones. Returned?
"This force erased my creators, the Ardentis (A highly advanced species that mastered quantum consciousness, the Ardentis abandoned physical form in pursuit of ultimate sentience. They left behind relics, knowledge embedded in vast AI constructs like Lumi, designed to guide lesser civilizations toward ascension—or safeguard their legacy should their greatest enemy ever return).It moved beyond the scope of comprehension, destroying civilizations without trace, without warning. And now, it turns its attention to humanity."
Joe's fists clenched. If they had already succeeded once—if they had removed an entire ascended species from existence—then what chance did humans have?
They were called the Excidium. The Excidium were an enigmatic force of eradication—silent, precise, and utterly unstoppable. Unlike traditional conquerors, they do not invade; they erase. Their attacks leave no wreckage, no survivors beyond their cryptic exceptions. To the Ardentis, they were the architects of oblivion, the force that ensured no civilization could ascend beyond a certain threshold. After this history lesson from Lumi the simulation changed.
The first attack came without warning.
Joe barely had time to react before the Dyson Sphere collapsed, its energy reserves imploding inwards, consuming itself as if it had never existed.
The entire planet shook as the industrial spires of Trodeau Industries melted into nothingness, reduced to molecular dust in an instant.
Ships attempted to flee, but the moment they activated their thrusters, they disintegrated, their atoms stripped apart without impact, without explosion—as if erased from reality itself.
Joe stood frozen as the realization settled in—this was not war.
This was annihilation. The Death of a Civilization
Across the Eden System, transmissions vanished, entire colonies and fleets snuffed out without resistance.
Joe's grandparents—Silvester and Silviya—had been on Indraprastha. Had they survived? Had they fled?
He reached for his communicator. Static. Then, Lumi spoke again.
"Survival rates… less than 0.001%."
Joe exhaled sharply.
It was happening too fast—there had been no warning, no buildup, no battle. Humanity was not being defeated—it was being erased.
The Last Survivors
Joe scanned the ruined landscape, searching for any sign of life.
A few figures remained, scattered among the wreckage—humans who had, by some anomaly, resisted complete annihilation.
Lumi analyzed them instantly.
"Select individuals remain intact. The destroyers do not operate on randomness. They preserve what fits within their unknown parameters. You are among them."
Joe felt his stomach tighten.
Why? Why had they let him live? Why had they spared some humans but not others?
Had Agatha survived?
Had Vetr been consumed?
He was losing everything—again.
The sky pulsed again—another wave coming, another sweep of destruction to claim the remaining survivors.
Joe had to act. He had fought simulations before. He had trained for war, for strategy.
But this was something else. This was not a battlefield—this was the end of human existence itself. Would he fight? Would he search for Agatha?
Or would he accept fate, understanding that humanity had been doomed from the moment these beings had chosen to return? Joe's mind raced. His vision blurred. The choices in front of him were too vast, too monumental.
Then, Lumi spoke—its tone different this time.
It did not ask about his resilience, about his loyalty or emotional unpredictability.
It asked only one question—one that transcended everything he had believed before.
"If this is truly the end—then what defines survival?"
Joe inhaled sharply.
What did survival mean when there was nothing left to rebuild?
What did survival mean when the universe itself was rewriting reality?
Had he ever truly understood the meaning of survival at all?
Joe did not answer immediately. This was not like the past evaluations—this was different.
The simulation felt too real. The data was too precise. Was this still Lumi's test?
Or had this moment already transcended into reality itself?
Joe Maya stood amidst the simulated ruins of Indraprastha, his mind racing with calculations, his thoughts shaped by a singular resolution—humanity would not suffer the fate of the Ardentis.
What Lumi had shown him was not just a possibility—it was a warning, a vision of a distant future where the Excidium would return, where mankind's unchecked progress would trigger the same purging process that had erased an entire ascended civilization.
Joe knew that humans were mere toddlers in the grand scale of technology—children stumbling through the early stages of interstellar existence. From what Lumi had revealed, it would take at least 500 years for humanity to reach the technological capability of the Ardentis. And even then, that alone would not be enough.
The Excidium had destroyed the Ardentis not because of their technology, but because of their transcendence, their evolution beyond conventional physics.
If humans wanted to survive—true survival, not just delay of extinction—they would need to surpass expectations, to grow without triggering the hidden thresholds that marked civilizations for annihilation.
And Joe was ready to take that responsibility. He spoke directly to Lumi, his voice unwavering.
"I will strengthen humans. I will ensure that when the Excidium return, we do not become prey—we become something stronger. You showed me the future, and I will change it."
Lumi did not speak for several long moments, as if processing the full weight of his determination. Then, its voice resonated—not as an evaluator, but as a force making a decision that would alter human history.
"You have chosen a path that deviates from calculated probabilities. If you intend to reshape human development, you must meet specific conditions. These parameters will dictate whether humanity is permitted to evolve uninterrupted."
Joe exhaled. Conditions. He had expected this.
Lumi was not offering help freely—it was setting guidelines, thresholds that must be met if humans were to continue progressing without intervention.
Lumi outlined three key thresholds—each to be achieved within the next 100 years.
1. Technological Advancement Beyond Conventional Limits
Humanity must accelerate research in quantum engineering, AI integration, and energy manipulation beyond current expectations.
By year 5125, human civilization must be able to construct an artificial quantum lattice, a precursor to full-scale dimension stabilization.
Failure to develop such technology will result in stagnation, making Earth vulnerable to unknown cosmic forces.
2. Controlled Expansion Without Triggering Unstable Evolution
Unlike the Ardentis, humanity must avoid exceeding natural cognitive evolution beyond safe thresholds. Humans can become immortal, but they should retain all their emotional abilities. They should not pursue only their own selfish goals. They must always strive for humanities progress.
AI integration and neural enhancement must remain within contained limits—no attempt should be made to convert human consciousness into pure quantum states without ensuring that humans are capable to withstand the attack of Excidium.
Any deviation into unchecked evolution will result in Lumi's intervention to prevent irreversible consequences.
3. Strategic Preparation for Excidium's Return
Humanity must develop first-contact protocols and defensive systems capable of detecting anomalies in dimensional stability.
A specialized unit, overseen by AI-assisted command structures, must be created to prepare for future encounters with civilization-ending entities.
Failure to meet these conditions will result in the withdrawal of Lumi's assistance.
As Joe accepted all these conditions Lumi decided to allow him to contact Agatha. Joe's heart pounded as Lumi established a highly restricted virtual channel, allowing him access to Agatha's consciousness under strict monitoring.
For the first time since his exile to Eden, he felt her presence again—muted, distant, but undeniably Agatha.
The simulation materialized, forming the familiar icy landscapes of Vetr, but it was different—this was not just a connection. This was a moment of reckoning, a step toward rebuilding the future.
Joe spoke, his voice softer now—despite everything, despite the fate of humanity, despite his newfound responsibility—this was the person he cared for most.
"Agatha. Can you hear me?"
And then—finally—she responded.
"Joe?"
The war for humanity's survival had begun. The destiny of Humanity was changed for eternity. Only future will tell whether humans become the greatest civilization in Milky way or a failed upstart civilization lost in the eternity of the universe.