The moment your body came alive, your mind exploded into activity. Knowledge poured into your synapses as your mind reached forth instinctively seeking to connect to the others around. From the tiniest rat that thrived in the dark corners to the bright sparks of human life your mind encompassed all. Tingles of static raced through your body as you connected to all those that lived upon the dying station of Olynn.
Power thrummed within your body, yet you lacked the knowledge of how to use it, seeking to learn that which you needed to know, you tore knowledge and information from the neurons of the minds that surrounded you. Perhaps, one lesser would not be able to do such as you found yourself barred from their thoughts, but their physical minds were open to the taking. Knowledge encoded in ions and tendrils of flesh on the cellular scale rushed through your soul, triggering your own mind to evolve to handle the surge of knowledge that an infant body of humanity was never meant to hold.
You knew the names of your parents as you integrate the knowledge of over five hundred million people into a cohesive whole. Discarding the useless emotional imprints and only taking the pure knowledge that they held. You knew now that you were being born, your body disconnected from your mother's for the first time. You also knew that you were born to serve the God Emperor of Mankind and by extension his Imperium of Man.
Yet, you gained perspective that others lacked. Your new found faith would never be so limited, instead you saw a greater whole. A being that stood as far above you as you stood above those of your home. In the end the only reason your existence could have happened is if the God Emperor had blessed your people, yet enough was clear that only the Ecclesiarchy was allowed to make such claims.
Your mind began to settle as the knowledge gleamed from a half a billion became yours in a way that was undefinable. You knew more than the greatest mind upon this station, but you also knew that the body affected the soul. Your soul had been crafted by the hands of the divine, but your body had been created through poorly understood relics of a past era. You could see how Astein the Lord Apothecary of the station had tried to convince your mother Lysa the Station Master, of the folly of using such unsanctioned tools of genetic mutation. For the teachings of the Ecclesiarchy were clear that Man had fallen from their unconstrained usage.
Your mind turned towards your mother and knew that you were not her child in the sense of others. You were but a project to her, a method of hope that was abstract in nature. She cared not if you lived or died, she cared not if you saved the station Olynn for its people, she cared that you would save the technology inherent to the station. For her belief was that Man was created to Serve Technology and that only by reducing all to the service of cold logic could hope return to Man. Her view of the God Emperor was distinct in tone and nature for she saw in Him, the only person worthy of standing below the throne of machinery. He was to be the voice of the machine that one day would consume Humanity into its absolute service. He was the fulcrum upon Humanity had to lean to prepare itself for its coming sublimation.
In bright contrast stood your father, a man that cared for technology as a tool that needed to be repaired to function. He found the idea of machinery supremacy to be a dream of horror unmatched, whenever he looked upon your mother, you knew that inside he dies a little bit more. But in the end he was a good man, and would be a good father in time to come for you. Even from your low understanding you knew that he was a person that one could trust, for he was the rarest of all people a true optimist.
For the first time your eyes saw light as you were removed from your mother's body. "Lord Apothecary Astein, preform the genetic analysis. If its genetic code is malformed prepare the incinerator for immediate disposal." A cold female voice reached your young ears as you were placed on a warmed metal tray.
"Lysa, please, don't make me have to kill a child. I have seen too much death, I have already prevented too many families from forming." The broken tones of Astein, countered, a man that had seen far too much death and the mantle of duty weighed heavily upon.
"Irrelevant, do your duty. The Technology has no use of a malformed servant. If its genetic code is broken or sub par, I shall try again. I see no reason to tax my body in service to a gear that is missing its teeth."
Even as your mother responded to Astein, you could feel and hear the approaching footsteps of others. With a hiss of air, two people entered and with a strain of effort you forced your eyes to focus.
A man of average height, slender in form stood to the left of the pair that had entered. Glasses that you knew were more than they seemed perched on his nose. Orsion stepped forward and punched Lysa in the chest.
"I have HAD enough of you. If you try to have my child killed for some nonexistent issue, I swear by the God Emperor that I will see you die. I might not have wanted a family, but I will be dammed before I let you kill it now that I have it. You have no more innate right to determine the right of the child now that it has left your womb.
Lord Apothecary Astein, turn off the incinerator and instead bring my child to me if she wishes to have them killed." Orsion's voice echoed in the small room, with a fury that you could feel pulsating against your mind, a fury that drove the spark of chaotic energy in his mind to wild heights.
"Enough!" The last newcomer thundered with authority lacing her word. "Please forgive my outburst, but before anything is to be ordained, the child has to be checked for mutation.
Lord Apothecary, please inspect the child for any sign of mutation." Eliza commanded in the void left by her order. You knew that she had sympathy for the parents of the mutants, but that would not save any mutant from the fire if she felt that it was needed to protect the spiritual purity of Man.
You felt a prick of a needle on your left arm as Astein took a blood sample to test for any markers of mutation. You knew already that your body was not going to registrar as having no mutations, but at the same time, the list of allowed divergences was long indeed. Time passed slowly for everyone in the room as they waited for the machines to give the first verdict.
With a beep Astein moved over to the banks of cogitators that had spit out the first of several tests. "Mutation has been confirmed. Hair and eye color are nonstandard variants." As the first of the verdicts was read, you could feel the mood in the room dropping, for everyone there had hoped for something different but none the less none wished to end a new born life.
The next verdict was soon present, "Mutation in cerebral cortex confirmed: neuron density increased, neuron connectivity increased, neuron reaction speed increased. Further mutation in psyker genes: genes mutated in unknown way. No sign of unnatural mutation so far. God Emperor please not make me kill a child." Astein spoke in a stoic voice as he read the transcript of the newest machine, at the edge of your natural hearing you heard his whispered prayer.
The final machine then provided the last of the machine given verdicts. "No core mutation detected. Human Genetic profile matched with greater than ninety nine point five percent." With the final verdict spoken the palpable weight in the room lessened.
"Thank you, Lord Apothecary. Now, I will test the child's spiritual integrity, if it passes then I believe it is safe to be allowed to live."
You watched as Eliza walked towards you, her robes drifting around her body in the changing gravitational fields of the station. Your eyes met as she bent down to look over your body and you knew what she saw, a child fresh from the womb, with eyes of piercing purple gleaming in the soft light of the room and a tuff of hair of metallic gold on its head.
Reaching out you try to find a way to make your presence known. You can't find her soul, or mind, her thoughts are beyond your reach. Yet, you know she thinks, you can feel her soul, but you can't reach forth to touch it. You draw upon your knowledge and instead of using telepathy, that which comes so easily to you, you instead vibrate her eardrums.
'I live to serve the God Emperor, the one that created my soul. For only by his glorious light could one such as I hope to come to existence.' You let her hear as her brain takes the vibrations of the ear and turns it into words.
Her body shakes in surprise as she stares down at you, you returning the stare with eyes brighter and clearer than any newborn's should be. "Who am I?" She whispers to you in a voice low enough that only you could hope to hear.
'Eliza, priestess, devout, Pontifex of Olynn.' You return to her for that is all you know of her, you only partook of pure information, the sort that everyone knows. Language first and foremost, but with the secrets of this station more is known far and wide than in most places within the glorious Imperium of Man. Yet, even now as you look upon the echoes of memories you have of the Imperium, you feel it in your heart that it could be more. A better monument to the glory of the God Emperor, a proper vessel to contain His mortal form.
As you pondered what you knew and how little you knew, Eliza turned back to the others in the room and spoke, "By my authority as Pontifex of Olynn, I declare the infant free of spiritual mutation and allowed to live. I will watch closely over them, but I will take my leave now."
As she left after giving her pronouncement, the room quickly boiled over. You noticed Astein leaving closely after Eliza, as he could quite clearly see how the events would soon unfurl.
"Good, now that the gear has been tested, I shall take it with me. To further refine into a proper servant of the Machine. Orsion your purpose is complete, leave us."
Your father, instead of yelling or assaulting your mother as you expected, ground his teeth and sat down on a chair near the door. Before polishing his glasses. "No, just no. You might be the child's mother but I am its father. Neither one of us will let the other have absolute command in this regard. You know this, you understood it when you approached me for this project of yours.
We will raise the child together, I know that you will not become attached to it as a normal mother would, but you can take over the teaching while I take the socialization aspects of child rearing.
Also, both of us working together, is the only method by which your plan will reach its proper conclusion." Orsion spoke as he replaced the glasses on his face as he turned to look at your mother lying in the bed.
"Explain." Was all the he got as a response from Lysa.
"You came to me with the idea of breeding our genetics together, in order to breed a child that has both of our aspects. Your genius and my ability to learn, by extension it stands to reason that only together can we help the child make the best use of those gifts." His voice was low and careful, even his body was relaxed or giving the appearance of being relaxed for it was clear that he was on edge as he waited for your mother's response.
"Your logic is irritating, but correct. I would be unable to teach the experiment how to properly learn for that is not where my own skills lie. Very well, you will take over the flexibility training while I handle the other side." Her response was colder than ice, but she was able to see the logic of your father's statements.
A slight smile appeared on your father's face as he nodded. "The child does need a name."
Name Vote (you will accept what name your parents give you if its not stupid)
[] Write in
Gender (note that at least in this the greater Imperium is basically perfectly egalitarian)
[] Male
[] Female
