Beneath a starry sky, on a planet thought by most to be myth, theorised by some to be Heaven and cursed by those who knew as Life, there was a glade in a forest. This glade was lit softly by the silvery moonlight above, illuminating the small clearing. In contrast, the rest of the forest was dense with shadows that moved as light filtered through the swaying canopy above.
Small white flowers dotted the clearing, their translucent petals glowing softly with an ethereal light. A light breeze carried these frail petals like stardust into the sky above.
The beauty of this place held a strange feeling of fragility, as though any sudden movement could shatter it, removing it forever from the world. Yet it was also strangely hypnotic. Once one set eyes upon it, removing one's gaze required a momentous effort of will. The rest of the universe faded to dull greys and browns as even the memory of this place alone outshines all else.
Consumes all else.
The flowers themselves seemed to be arranged in a spiral shape, echoing that of the galaxy spread in the canvas of the night above. It inexorably drew the attention of all who gazed at it to its centre. This arrangement gave the strong impression that they only existed in order to venerate that which stood in its centre. The thought that even those white flowers, each petal a work of such hypnotic beauty that it could paralyse a man, was merely a pedestal for another seemed sacriligious. Yet, more than that, it ignited a flame of desire in all who saw.
What lies in the centre? What deserves to be revered so? Let me honour it! Let me see it!
The strongest of wills was akin to paper in a rainstorm as ones eyes drew along the line of the spiral, tracing it with starcrossed pupils. Unable, nay unwilling, to blink lest the fragile beauty of this sight be lost forever, akin to a dream in purifying rays of the morning sun, all stand transfixed. Finally, after an age that lasted for a second, it becomes clear. What lies in that centre.
There, beneath the stars and the moon, lay ■. It starts with confusion. Then realisation and anger.
A sense of wrongness ripples from the space occupied by ■, hitting you with a solid force. No no no nono nononononono. Where is it where is it who stole it who stole it WHO STOLE IT.
A surge of nausea hits you as you react with visceral revolt and a fury rises within that seems to originate from the world around. Nonetheless, you cannot rip your hateful gaze from ■. As the last vestiges of your shattered mind slip away, you have a final thought.
Its...so...beautiful...
By now, all else has faded away.
You stand there, unmoving, glassy eyed.
There is nothing left. Nothing but that glade, beneath that starry sky.
***
Ziriothrax held his breath, awaiting the next words that would come from the mouth of the Trinacornagon before him.
"What I hunger for is...food."
A second tumblewood rolled past the background, joining its forebearer in immense confusion at its current state and location. Ziriothrax merely let out his held breath in a long-winded sigh.
"Speaking of food"
Jeffbob finally took notice of the leaf of cabbage that had been delivered by the messenger along with the letter whose contents were currently being digested in his stomach.
He held it before him for a few critical seconds. A spark of light flickered in his eyes, his synapses attempting to fire. Yet, like a combustion engine at absolute zero, they sputtered out and died and that spark faded.
Ziriothrax, even with his immense intellect, was unable to determine any possibility whatsoever for this leaf of cabbage and had, since several minutes ago, determined that further thought would be detrimental to his continued sanity. As such, he simply watched with detached fascination as Jeffbob brought his tongue as if in slow motion towards that leaf.
Just as the first few atoms were about to interfere with one another, Jeffbob and Ziriothrax disappeared with a pop.
The leaf of cabbage fell to the ground at an acceleration of 4.35 m/s/s, impacting the ground approximately 0.959 seconds later in a small cloud of red dust.
Several seconds later, a rusted bucket of a ship howled out from hyperspace in orbit above the planet. Its ion thrusters were so old and badly maintained, they had somehow managed to produce a black smoke that puffed out of the back.
So weak were they that the ship was unable to resist the pitiful gravity of the planet. They entered the atmosphere, thrusters desperately working to slow their descent. Their landing, if it could even be called that, seemed to leave the ship unscathed.
This was because there were already so many dents and scratches on it, that any more added would simply be lost amidst the rest like white paint on canvas.
Like flowers in a field. Like..likelikelikelike■■lieklie.
Like a white rabbit in a snowstorm. A door opened on the side and promptly fell of its hinges. Several suited beings stepped out onto the planet below. Coincidentally, they had landed in the crater where the dropship from the AGE OF SILICON AND STEEL had also landed. Perhaps some vestige of its aura remained, as the ship almost seemed to tremble like a hardcore fan seeing the authentic sweat of a celebrity they followed.
Of course, the ship only seemed to tremble and actually it didn't because the ship was an inanimate, non-sentient piece of scrap metal shunned by even the worst, most horrid residents of a scrap yard.
The best way to describe the suited beings that stepped out was to say that them and their ship were like a match made in heaven.
"Where in Gratches Great Gletrious are we", one of the suited figures roared. The three pointed hat on his head quivered as he shook in rage. The jellyfish on his shoulder warbled in agreement and waved a few tentacles menacingly.
"Apologies, Captain, but the hyperdrive malfunctioned. We're lucky to even be alive", one of the others stuttered in response along with several noddings of heads.
"Bah you're always going on about that Gletrious-damned hyperdrive", the Captain spat to the side but had forgotten about his visor and only smeared the inside in green, viscous fluid.
The others, in an uncharacteristic fit of extreme wisdom and immense will, somehow managed not to laugh. The jellyfish had no such compunction, but lacked the organs necessary for such an action and thus satisfied itself with a strange wiggle of its bulbous body.
"Anyways", the Captain cleared his throat. "How long will it take to get it up and running again?"
One of the other figures, with a black star on his left chest, spoke up.
"It'll take a week or so tops, Captain. Luckily we've got some iridium crystal left over from those mines on Kassius V so we can synthesise the loop core without requiring-"
"Yes, yes", the Captain interrupted dismissively. "Go do...that then. In the meantime, you lot come with me. Let's see if there's anything on this godforsaken rock."
Just a sidenote, in case you remembered, this kind of address is considered incredibly rude and derogatory towards rocky planets. You may have given this Captain the benefit of the doubt here - perhaps a translation issue or maybe even mere ignorance. This interjection is to rid you of such thoughts. Any implied maliciousness of his comments should be multiplied by a thousand and then by a thousand again in order to understand a single iota of the hatred this man feels.
Strange, I feel a sort of...kinship with him now. Anyways, the Captain dismissed the suited figure with the black star and indicated at the others to follow him.
He took out a strange looking instrument from his pocket that looked like a banana strapped to a brick and muttered to himself.
"Strange."
His eyes flashed with a cunning intelligence before quickly masked under irritation and ignorance.
He shouted at the figures lagging behind him, "Get a move on you jelly-legged space worms! Last ones here eat my week old flurdle-gloop for the next seventeen cycles!"