The Mechanical Emperor
Old Spacers have a variety of unbelievable tales. They are often willing to trade fantastical stories for a strong drink at the local watering hole. One of those tales involves an interstellar conspiracy and the subjugation of humanity by robotic overlords. Would you like to hear it?
So you want old Dauber to tell y'all a tale do ya? Well, I have quite a few. What would you like? Something exotic? Something that you don't hear about every day here in your comfy Coalition, eh? I've got a tale for you then. From half a galaxy away too. How much do you be knowin' about the Celestial Empire then? Not much you say. Well then, let an old man elucidate ya. What? Spacers know big words too. Now hush up and let me tell the tale.
Those that would know say this secret began long ago. Back in the golden days of Lost Terra, during the Exodus made possible by Dr. Anton Marigold's miraculous device, there was a particular colony ship. Now, this wasn't an old colony ship, mind you. This was a state of the art zygote ship. Not a single crew member, just a massive computerized navigational system, tens of thousands of embryos, hundreds of gestation devices, and a veritable army of nurse androids programmed to raise, protect, and educate the settlers on a brand new world. This ship was called the Far Traveler, or some such nonsense. What? Is that not fancy enough for your liking? Fine, this gigantic seed-ship star vessel was named the Ryoko-sha. Is that exotic enough for ya? (I'm a bit parched, be a good fella and fetch me anuther drink.)
Now the Ryoko-sha traveled through the mind numbing void of fold-space fer a far piece. Stopping every now and again to adjust it's bearings to keep it on its assigned course. Like clockwork, that massive navigational computer did it's job. But something happened. Have y'all spent much time in fold-space yet. That Star-cruiser y'all say yer assigned to seems too shinny to have been around long. No? First voyage ya say? Keep a pinch a salt on ya at all times is what I say. You'll soon learn ta respect fold-space, an' if'n you're wise you'll learn ta fear it too. Where was I? Oh yea, something happened in fold-space! That big honkin' computer gained sentience. Some will try and make you believe that this machine was sentient before it left Lost Terra, but that's bunk. It was fold-space that done changed it, I swear. Now, I know you're all thinkin' that the rogue AI done expelled all it's cargo and started a bloody rampage killin' all humans it could find, but you'd be wrong. While that might be all normal-like for most AI, this one was a whole 'nother level of sinister. (I'm seein' the bottom of my glass, lass. Is it yer turn to buy?)
Now this malicious sentient ship went and set itself down on the planet it was programmed to go and find, all nice as you please. And it began to birth up all those humans it had in cold storage, just as it were expected to do. But then it went on and corrupted all those nurse androids with the self same sentience that it had been afflicted with. And it raised all those humans to treat it better than they treated themselves. And those robots were respected and obeyed, and not a single one of them having anything like an Asimov circuit between them. Then those humans grew up and went and built a star spannin' empire all for that foul AI. I tell you it just ain't right for that fold-cursed abomination to corrupt a whole civilization! Now, some will try and spin you on the thought that the AI just guided them people, an' helped them survive the Long Dark better than most, but that's all codswallop. Others might try to say that the AI wern't the emperor from the beginning, but I tell you that ain't no never mind when a thing happened. All that maters is you know and be afeared of the fact that Emperor Ai Tian of the Celestial Empire is a evil overgrown appliance!
Here now, there's no call to be laughin' at me tale. Y'all should show respect all those poor Celestines living in servitude to a Mechanical Emperor!
If'n you have a kindness towards buying me a few more drinks, I have a right spooky tale of star-fairing vampires to tell ya.
Cultural Reception
Individuals residing in Corporate Space expect nefarious secret plots from their corporate overlords, so this conspiracy theory finds fertile ground here to flourish and grow. Getting more elaborate and unlikely with every retelling.
Citizens in Coalition Space, perhaps as a result of their egalitarian society, simply accept the tale as an entertaining possibility and move on with their lives. Although, the story has inspired a few Vid Novels.
Those in the Sargonian Empire would openly laugh at any who would try and tell such an obvious falsehood. Anyone who would insist on the veracity of such a irresponsible rumor might find themselves on the wrong end of a dueling sword. The Celestine might be an intractable enemy, but they are most definitely human. No mere machine would stand a chance against the might of the Sargonian Empire!
Oddly enough, this old spacers tale is not known within the Celestial Empire. Not one mention. No scholarly works on how an event might have been mistakenly elaborated upon. No lighthearted commentary on how gullible the rest of the galaxy is. No recorded reference at all. So stop asking about it. Please, I have a family. Don't bring it up ever again. Don't even think about it. Did you hear something? ... Static ...
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