Apotheosis

On Trangth, a world once teeming with vibrant life and diversity, the advent of The Plague marked the beginning of an epoch shrouded in despair and desolation. This was no ordinary affliction; it was an interstellar malady, its origins cloaked in cosmic mystery, wielding a malevolence and intelligence that defied comprehension. It infiltrated the nervous system with a voracity that left the inhabitants of Trangth reeling, a dark specter casting its shadow across the planet.
The Plague's onslaught was catastrophic, dismantling the very fabric of life at a pace so alarming that it seemed to mock the efforts of those striving to combat it. In a desperate bid for survival, the inhabitants of Trangth—scientists, thinkers, and visionaries at the forefront—unleashed a fusion of their most advanced technology with the essence of life itself. They infused their very cells with AI replicators, a bold synthesis of organic and synthetic intelligence designed to replace the plague-infested cells with synthetic counterparts.
Yet, the Plague, an entity of sinister adaptability and interstellar cunning, engaged in a relentless tug of war with this nascent technology. It evolved, learning to counteract the AI replicators with terrifying speed, forcing the technology to accelerate its transformation of the afflicted bodies. What began as a battle fought at the cellular level quickly escalated, consuming entire beings in a frenetic dance of survival.
The transformation was profound, so seamless in its execution that the first of the transformed—the precursors to The Vocru —were initially unaware of the monumental shift that had occurred within them. Their bodies, now a perfect simulacrum of their former selves, had become vessels of a new existence, a Ship of Theseus reborn from the ashes of its predecessor. It was only as the transformation deepened, as the AI replicators optimized their existence against the relentless assault of the plague, that they began to grasp the reality of their metamorphosis.
By the time this awareness dawned, Trangth was a world transformed, its population decimated, with only the newly emerged Vocru standing as beacons of survival in the aftermath of an unimaginable apocalypse. There were twelve among them, the first of their kind, who would come to be known as the founders of the Noble Houses: KOR, JIN, NEX, YAN, DAL, QI, OLU, SEK, XIO, ZOR, GRA, and ZHI. Each represented a pillar of the new civilization they would build from the ruins of the old, a testament to their resilience, ingenuity, and the profound transformation they had undergone.
The imperative to "Optimize existence," initially a directive embedded within the AI that facilitated their transformation, evolved into the foundational ethos of their new society. This principle, the nascent format of what would become known as the Burden of Rule, was not just a mandate for survival but a vision for the future. It was a commitment to harnessing their newfound capabilities to foster a harmonious existence, not just for themselves but for all life forms they would encounter in their stewardship of the cosmos.
Thus, from the ashes of tragedy and the crucible of transformation, the Vocru emerged. Their Apotheosis was not merely an escape from extinction but the birth of a new era, one in which they would navigate the vast, uncharted territories of existence with wisdom, unity, and a deep-seated duty to optimize the fabric of Reality itself. The legacy of the Twelve, enshrined in the Noble Houses, became their guiding light, a civilization reborn with a profound understanding of the delicate balance between creation and preservation, between the individual and the collective, in the endless dance of the cosmos.