[MISSION END] Captain Roshanara Rahman:

[r.rahman]

((Bridge, USS Veritas))

If they were to have any chance of succeeding here in saving both the lives of the miners on the Dunbar as well as the inhabitants of the asteroid, they needed to convince the alien AI, this Maker, that they could be of use to its mission.

Rahman:  =/\= We are a Starfleet vessel. As our messenger has just stated to you, we hold sacred our oaths to provide humanitarian aid and protection to those who ask for it. If you request our assistance, we will gladly provide it and help you accomplish your mission. =/\=

She watched as chunks of the asteroid tore off and spun away into the void of space. If they couldn't prevent the asteroid destruction, there were going to be many more chunks filling up this nebula soon.

Rahman: =/\= Together, we can work to ensure you deliver the living. If their lives are lost, you will have failed in your mission. =/\=

The AI didn't take long to answer her, the benefits she supposed of negotiating with a computer over an organic counterpart.

Maker2: =/\= Chamber 2 must be protected at all costs.  I agree to grant you data access if you agree to the same.  After analysis, I will consider your offer of assistance. Maker2, the essence of the one true Maker, accepts your office of assistance.  However, as is sacred protocol, I must seek Onchon from a member of the Assembly of the Maker. =/\=

Rahman: =/\= Your words are still new to us. "Onchon." "Maker." Can you tell us more about them. =/\=

Maker2: =/\= Very well.  The Maker was our sacred live giver. It shined its life-giving for 8,302 seasons.  The Maker is what your Federation crudely identifies as a “star”.  Our orbiter, Reborbht, fourth orbiter from the Maker, was home to the Maker’s people.  When a person dies, their essence is sent to the Host of the Heavens.  The Prophecies of the Ancients foretold: that the living would meet the dead at the Host of the Heavens; and that Reborbht would one day be no more.  The Maker’s blessed society worked to fulfill the first prophecy.  In time, The Divine Scholars and Builders invented methods that allowed our experimental coldnight vessels to achieve faster than light travel.  But the Divine Scholars could not harness protection from the Maker.  This is what you crudely call a “warp field”.   Our achievable distances were limited to one-half light year, at a maximum speed of Warp 1.2 by your scale.  Every experimental vessel perished. =/\=

So they weren't dealing with a pre-warp society after all. Just one that had forgotten their own history at some point... maybe even their own identity. 

Holokaia: =/\= Please do continue. I am interested in your history thus far. =/\=

Maker2: =/\= During season 8,293, it was discovered that the Maker had attracted a large asteroid to collide with Reborbht.  It would be destroyed, along with the Maker’s people, as foretold by the Prophecy of the Ancients.  The Assembly of the Maker convened, and ruled to abandon all attempts at mastering Faster than Light travel – it was deemed the incorrect answer.  In its stead, a small asteroid was colonised, and transformed with one purpose – to locate the Host of the Heavens, so that the living could meet the dead and find a new home.  The asteroid became known as “The Preservation”.  It is the Maker’s One True Answer for the continuation of the Maker’s people. =/\=

The captain of Veritas nodded, understanding now who and what they were really dealing with. This wasn't some sort of defensive program like the Menthar AI Sentinel but an AI built as a civilization's final salvation.

Rahman: =/\= The continuation of the Maker's people. Your ultimate purpose. =/\=

Holokaia: =/\=This would prove disastrous if the colony should stay upon the asteroid.=/\=

Maker2: =/\= In season 8,301, the high priestess Inzanai held the essence of the Maker in her hand.  It was blessed upon Maker2, Controller the Preservation.  I am the holder of the essence of the Maker.  I seek a new viable sacred live giver so that I may transfer the essence of the Maker, allowing the Maker’s people to continue civilization on a new orbiter. =/\=

Holokaia: =/\=This does pose an interesting situation, Captain.=/\=

Maker2: =/\= The Prophecies of the Ancients foretold that a Messenger of the Host of the Heavens would provide guidance.  Probability analysis predicts your Veritas is that Messenger.  Maker2 seeks your guidance, Messenger.  =/\=

Well, with a query like that, she was sure now this mission was going to end up being reviewed back at Command and perhaps even the Academy in regards to applications of the Prime Directive. Roshanara took a breath, having made her decision.

Rahman: =/\= Then we will provide it. We have charted vast areas of space. We could provide you both technological as well as navigational support. =/\=

Holokaia: =/\=If I may make a suggestion? Given what has been explained to us thus far, according to my libraries, there is an uninhabited class-M planet in this system. We may be able to transfer the colony to this planet and provide a proper computer core for the AI to continue monitoring the colony and the planet. This is one such option available to us that will guarantee everyone’s safety.=/\=

Rahman: =/\= That's certainly one possibility. We could forward you our data for your own analysis. =/\=

Maker2: =/\= Response =/\=

Holokaia: =/\=I can arrange this with the Captain’s permission.=/\=

Rahman: =/\= Yes, grant Maker2 access to our records. And what we ask in return is that you shut down your hold on our vessel as well as that of the one that has crashed on the surface of the Preservation. =/\=

Maker2: =/\= Response =/\=

Rahman: =/\= The people from my ship already down on the Preservation are experts in science and engineering. If you permit, they can begin helping you repair your systems. =/\=

Maker2: =/\= Response =/\=

She breathed a sigh of relief as she could feel the strain of the engines disappearing as the helmsman decreased the power.

Rahman: =/\= Thank you. =/\=

Maker2: =/\= Response =/\=

Rahman: =/\= Our people are explorers, and we are always interested in learning about new cultures and civilizations. If you permit, we would like to learn more about the Maker's people and add it to our library. =/\=

Maker2: =/\= Response =/\=

Rahman: =/\= I look forward to working with you over the coming days. =/\=

Once the comline to the Maker AI had closed, Roshanara tapped her combadge, calling Ukinix.

Rahman: =/\= Veritas to Commander Ukinix. =/\=

Ukinix: =/\= Response =/\=

Rahman: =/\= It's good to hear your voice. We've just talked to Maker2. We've made... an arrangement. =/\=

Ukinix: =/\= Response =/\=

Rahman: =/\= Good. Then get started immediately. Assign additional personnel as needed. =/\=

Ukinix: =/\= Response =/\=

Roshanara stood up and set off to check back down in sickbay with Blake and Niran, but before she left the bridge, she gave one more look at the asteroid, which now seemed less like an ominous harbinger of doom. No, as the starlight hit the surface, she saw it now as surely its builders had thousands of years ago: the hope that a new dawn waited behind every sunset.

((One hundred years later))

The Maker's people had survived the long journey, and though it had not been quite the smooth continuity of their civilization as their ancestors had envisioned, enough of the Maker's cultural database had remained for them to rediscover who they were. Since the time of the Preservation's launch, though, the Maker's people had developed their own traditions and culture after a subset had been awakened from their slumber during the voyage. On their new home in the stars, they merged the two, along with that of the wider galactic community they now found themselves a part of.

As the sun shone down on the capital city, a monument stood proudly in the central plaza. At its base, a dedication had been etched in stone:

In honor of the sacrifices of our foremothers and forefathers. May their love never be forgotten.

And to their faithful servant, Maker2, who never wavered in its mission to see the living delivered to the Heavens.

CUE END CREDITS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wuJIqmha2Hk

Captain Roshanara Rahman

CO, USS Veritas

I238705TZ0