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Description

The first human colonists who reached the planet Arathea found a world poor in metals but rich in life. Its creatures so closely resembled some that lived – or had lived – on Earth they were most likely introduced, though the agents responsible, together with their motivations, have disappeared without a trace.

The colonists fared poorly at first. Generations in deep space had weakened them physically and they also lacked resistance to the diseases of their new world. Their numbers declined and their culture regressed to an almost Neolithic state. Their situation only improved when they rediscovered the lost art of domesticating animals to help with hunting, transport and agriculture. Their numbers gradually increased and in time they spread across the globe.

The second great revolution came when ceramic technology provided close equivalents, if not perfect substitutes, for rare metals such as iron. Larger population centres rapidly industrialised and this process reinforced itself through mass-produced machines and tools.

The third great revolution came through computing and genetics. Arathea had never witnessed the mass extinctions of old Earth due to its smaller human populations with more pragmatic attitudes. Its natural ecosystems provided a wealth of raw material while its domestic animals were further altered and enhanced. Cybernetic constructs combined the best attributes of livestock and machinery which they gradually replaced.

Diamaru were a natural choice for cybernetic alteration. These flightless predatory birds had long been used for transportation; they were easily tamed when hatched from eggs which had been removed from their nests as they identified with other bipeds, including human handlers. Third revolution scientists also found their embryos much easier to extract and modify than those of placental mammals. Cybernetic diamaru are larger, stronger, and much more controllable than their ancient ancestors. Their heads are usually fitted with systems that augment – or replace – their riders’ senses and light rapid-firing armament for defence against outlaws and predators. Diamaru scout ahead of larger, slower-moving constructs that support Arathean trade, screening them from ambushes and supplying their handlers with game.

Description

The first human colonists who reached the planet Arathea found a world poor in metals but rich in life. Its creatures so closely resembled some that lived – or had lived – on Earth they were most likely introduced, though the agents responsible, together with their motivations, have disappeared without a trace.

The colonists fared poorly at first. Generations in deep space had weakened them physically and they also lacked resistance to the diseases of their new world. Their numbers declined and their culture regressed to an almost Neolithic state. Their situation only improved when they rediscovered the lost art of domesticating animals to help with hunting, transport and agriculture. Their numbers gradually increased and in time they spread across the globe.

The second great revolution came when ceramic technology provided close equivalents, if not perfect substitutes, for rare metals such as iron. Larger population centres rapidly industrialised and this process reinforced itself through mass-produced machines and tools.

The third great revolution came through computing and genetics. Arathea had never witnessed the mass extinctions of old Earth due to its smaller human populations with more pragmatic attitudes. Its natural ecosystems provided a wealth of raw material while its domestic animals were further altered and enhanced. Cybernetic constructs combined the best attributes of livestock and machinery which they gradually replaced.

Diamaru were a natural choice for cybernetic alteration. These flightless predatory birds had long been used for transportation; they were easily tamed when hatched from eggs which had been removed from their nests as they identified with other bipeds, including human handlers. Third revolution scientists also found their embryos much easier to extract and modify than those of placental mammals. Cybernetic diamaru are larger, stronger, and much more controllable than their ancient ancestors. Their heads are usually fitted with systems that augment – or replace – their riders’ senses and light rapid-firing armament for defence against outlaws and predators. Diamaru scout ahead of larger, slower-moving constructs that support Arathean trade, screening them from ambushes and supplying their handlers with game.