Symphony of the Sea, Castello Island, Three Stellar Days Before Spring
A bronze-skinned woman in her early twenties approached, carrying four sacks.
"Lady Marlena, the labels on these four sacks of seeds fell off. We can't tell them apart."
She anxiously placed the seeds on the ground.
Castello Island sat at the heart of the Symphony of the Sea. Seasonal schools of fish from the Coral Sea always passed by, and the islanders had never practiced farming.
Her family was among the first to follow the shaman's call, exchanging caught seafood for seeds and preparing to plant crops.
Unsure which would thrive best, they bought four different kinds.
The shaman had said Castello's light and soil were well-suited for these fruits and that they would be easy to care for.
Their plan was simple: judge by the harvest which to grow more of next year.
But now, with the labels lost, they couldn't distinguish the four kinds of seeds. All were oval, dark brown, and looked nearly identical.
That meant they couldn't plant them in the optimal areas Marlena had recommended for each crop.
"Don't worry, Kerri, let me take a look."
Marlena's warm, soothing voice immediately calmed Kerri's anxiety.
The Planter opened one bag and took a glance. She recognized it instantly.
But instead of simply identifying it, she wanted the islanders to learn how to tell the difference themselves.
Scooping up a handful of seeds with her pale fingers, she patiently explained:
"These are papaya seeds. They're a bit larger and have smoother surfaces. See?"
Kerri nodded hard, curious.
"What about the others?"
"These are sweet potato seeds. Feel how rough they are by comparison."
Moments later, Kerri picked up the sacks again. Before leaving, she asked worriedly:
"Lady Marlena, are you sure there won't be a salt mist this spring?"
Castello Island's spring sometimes brought intense tides. Because of its equatorial location, evaporated sea spray could form a salt mist that blanketed the entire island.
This mist didn't just corrode metal and buildings, it could kill even inland wild plants.
For Kerri's family, salt mist was their worst fear.
"Absolutely not," Marlena replied firmly.
This was their first attempt at agriculture, and it had to succeed. Her enhanced spiritual senses let her predict the weather accurately; there would be no salt mist.
After Kerri left, Marlena pulled out her backup star chart data slate and continued her research.
Four Stellar Years Later, Castello Island, Autumn
Banana trees stood in neat rows along the shoreline, their broad leaves swaying in the wind.
Clusters of green bananas hung heavily from the branches, threatening to bend them.
In the pineapple fields, golden fruit gleamed among emerald leaves, releasing a sweet, enticing aroma.
At the island's center, the reclaimed farmland was full of rice plants bowing under the weight of golden grain that sparkled in the sun.
The cassava fields had tall, sturdy stalks.
Islanders trained by The Planter now used agricultural tools skillfully, working hard during the year's third harvest.
For the first time in thousands of years, the islanders no longer had to risk their lives fishing during tsunamis or storms.
With the grain stored from just one season, they were food-secure for the entire year.
Disaster prevention and response facilities were being rapidly constructed with help from tech adepts sent by Nareth.
From the top floor of the palace, Vieri Barella, leader of the Tirani, looked out over the thriving scene. He had once been forced to submit to Nareth.
Back then, he had no choice. But in these years, he'd witnessed a miracle: farming transformed the island, and fishermen now worked safer, more efficient vessels.
Now, other larger islands were enthusiastically requesting to join the development program. Ten had already been selected for the second phase.
Vieri had grown genuinely loyal to Nareth and had just completed a year of personal service.
He had passed Nareth's test and earned the right to be a "Sailor."
While Vieri reflected, Nareth was handling affairs in his new hive city palace when he received a message from Wojciech Bielek.
"My King, the Cult Mechanicum has completed construction of your battlecruiser. Magos Kivior-9 requests your presence for delivery."
Hearing this, Nareth resolved to begin his next phase of expansion.
Having unified Vostroya, Nareth had spent the last few years developing the two worlds under his control.
The Vostroyan system had only two habitable planets and no new targets within the system.
The Milky Way was vast, with huge differences between star systems.
Many had no habitable planets at all, and terraforming them was too expensive to be worthwhile.
However, Nareth was aware of some special systems, like the unexplored Koronus Expanse, or Serpents Cradle, which contained twelve habitable worlds, true paradises.
His previous ships were only suited for intra-system travel, not equipped for warp navigation.
So, he had not rushed into expansion. Instead, he focused on domestic development and sent various regiments on rotation for void warfare training.
He also bartered surplus food from the Symphony of the Sea with the Mechanicum in exchange for warship upgrades.
Now that the new flagship was complete, the time for expansion had come.
Nareth sent a message to Yelena, summoning the cabinet.
After one work shift, when everyone had gathered at the palace, he rose from his desk and entered the throne room.
Seated upon his throne, he looked at the ministers clad in black robes and gave his orders:
"I am setting out on a campaign. While I am away, the cabinet will remain under Yelena's leadership. Continue development as per current policy."
"As you will, my Monarch. May you return victorious."
Nareth looked over the regiment commanders. Their eyes burned with battle-lust, eager to follow their lord on his campaign.
"Howard, you'll oversee all defense operations in my absence."
"As you command, my Lord."
Howard was honored by the trust, but disappointed he wasn't chosen for the expedition.
"Bukayo, Gul'gul..." Nareth called ten names in succession. "You will come with me."
The chosen ones clenched their fists in excitement. The others lowered their gazes, stifling disappointment.
Nareth led ten regiments aboard warships bound for Sopot.
Through the bridge viewport, he spotted his new flagship immediately; it dwarfed the surrounding vessels.
The ship was long and spear-like at the front, massive and mountain-like at the rear.
Its hull was covered in turrets and weapons platforms, most notably the twin aether cannons on both sides.
The entire vessel resembled a coiled beast, ready to pounce on its prey.
At the starport, Nareth was greeted by members of the Mechanicum. Kivior-9 bowed slightly.
"Monarch Nareth, welcome."
"Magos, it's good to see you."
After brief pleasantries, Kivior-9 said:
"Requesting execution of contractual protocol."
"Permission granted."
Kivior-9's mask lit up.
[Initiating identity verification protocol / Delivery target confirmed.]
His mechadendrites connected to the interface of Wojciech's data slate. A synthetic voice followed:
[Contract identified / Proceeding with delivery / Please proceed to Dock A-2 / Retrieve: Battlecruiser.]