This post is the 6th of the ten chapters of the speculative fiction scifi story Orussian Quarantine. If you havn't read the first 5 chapters yet, the first is available here.
Paradise
The ant-monkey revolt in South Uhm City was exactly the opportunity that Lucius had been preparing for. Lucius knew he himself wouldn't have long to enjoy it; he was getting up there in years, but in addition that, like many Dammons, he was old way beyond his years. For years he had slaved for the mining guild in their dreaded carbon mines before being replaced by ant-monkeys. Unlike many other Dammons, Lucius was too proud to beg for scraps. He was a thief, and a damn good one at that. Better to steal and be proud than to beg and abandon his pride. Lucius was a Cherubian and proud of it. Before becoming a Dammon, Lucius was a level 7 trading guild master. For a short moment even Lucius was a senate representative. But politics are a dangerous mistress indeed. Lucius had been granted full settlement powers by the Senate, so when they asked him to take care of the South Uhm housing problem, Lucius created a bold plan which ended up destroying him.
Against interstellar guidelines, Lucius decreed a new settlement on Orus-3. A big mistake indeed. He underestimated the bioengineering guild’s influence in the Senate. The Bio's had laid claim to the forest planet Orus-3 and were using all their political influence to maintain this stronghold. Being a true Cherubian, Lucius remained loyal to his principles. South Uhm was built to house 10 million settlers, no more. Building new houses closer to the dam wasn't an option. The surface temperature near the dam rose to unacceptable levels, especially in the boiling-sea periods during high summer. No way would he subject even a single Orussian to such circumstances.
But things didn't go as Lucius had decreed. Not only did those horrid Bio's manage to have his Senate mandate revoked, they even managed to get his fellow guild members to disband him and his entire clan from the trading guild. Lucius had fallen from the very top of the food-chain to the very bottom. And now, not only had the city expanded so much that buildings were now built against the dam, outcasts like himself had to live inside the boiling hot dam structure. At least working in the dangerous carbon mines got the Dammons access to thermo suits. After ant-monkey introduction however, Dammons were no longer needed in the mines, and after all these decades, many of the thermo suits were starting to malfunction. If such a malfunction happened while asleep, a Dammon would die of dehydration within one standard hour.
Something had to be done for the Dammons, and this ant-monkey uprising provided just the opportunity. In fact, Lucius had a big hand in the uprising. He had discovered the nest when the first generation were only just eggs. He had kept Attame alive in her hostile dam housing, feeding her stolen apples, and he had educated her offspring in the art of pickpocketing.
Lucius could not believe his luck when he discovered that, just as in the Lilith incident, Attame's offspring had imprinted on its queen. Lucius had set himself up as Attame's high priest, preparing the young pickpocketing ant-monkeys for a holy war against the false gods of Uhm. Lucius was not expecting his plan to commence until next year when many more generations would be functionally mature.
To his surprise however, the younglings were so eager for a sign from their goddess father that they had triggered prematurely. Fortunately Lucius was a prudent planner so most preparations had been in place; though unfortunately there were only four trade ships docked to the trading guild’s docking station instead of the maximum capacity of seven that Lucius had planned for. Four trade ships, each capable of housing ten thousand Dammons and everything needed for creating a settlement on Orus-3. Lucius was about to exact his revenge on all the guilds that had wronged him. And he and his clan, together over thirty thousand other Dammons, were about to start a new settlement on what, compared to the Great Dam, was nothing less than paradise.
Continue to Chapter 7.