[ WP ] Despite the fact that Earth is defended by several large space canons and a mesh of space debris , it is still losing the Martian war . Some are even calling for the doomsday device to be activated and for Earth 's moon to be hurdled into Mars ' orbital path .


 
 The space program had been a huge success, so much so it sealed the earth's doom. 
 
 Long had we imagined we would choke the earth of its resources, that we had perhaps already set into motion the destruction of our home planet. And so we set forth into the skies, several seed ships, each equipped & manned & stocked with our greatest minds, repositories of knowledge, gene-banks, self-replicating nano-builder units, from which could be rebuilt all the wonders our technocracy had wrought -- or from which we could grow new earth-like ecosystems. 
 
 Most of these ships had set course light-years beyond the solar system. Generation after generation, ships carrying descendants of their original crews would be caught up to by ships launched after those descendants' birth; every few years propulsion had made such huge leaps that we were finding the capacity to catch up to, and pick up our fore-bearers, loading them, their data records and their cargo into upgraded next-gen seed ships. -- Their abandoned state-of-the science derelicts would have their trajectory set to return them to an earth orbit, so that the homeworld could scrap them for parts and get the data recorded by these ships' travels... eventually... 
 
 But in all the time that has since passed that was as close as the seeders-of-far ever came to looking back. They had such vast voids to traverse, even with the upgrades of the last far-launchers, there's no telling which direction those who'd have long ago arrived at their primary destinations may have headed after. -- After all, the farther they got the farther they'd be able to see, especially with the greatest minds of each generation manning each seeder, there's no telling the kinds of sensor upgrades they've made by now. They must be able to see us. As I understand it though depending how fast they've gotten, if they were to look back at our solar system odds are they would only see the ghosts of our past. At least that's the sort of science that explained away why we'd never maintain contact with our far-launchers. 
 
 Some Pure-Earth conspiracy theorists would occasionally put forth the claim that the launches were a huge hoax, that the crews were people selected for population control. 
 
 One could hardly blame people for being sensationalists. Here we had supposedly mastered space technology & kept devoting generation after generation to pouring our most advanced tech & people & resources into seed-ship production, yet the global infrastructure was simply falling apart. Populations were booming out of control & resources were stretched thinner than ever. Humanity was choking mother earth & she seemed about ready to choke back. 
 
 She would n't have the chance. 
 
 We must have looked like such morons to our far-launchers... -- Or will look like such morons? The relativistic-time thing is a little beyond me or my peers. We are not the best & brightest, and even if we were what is wisdom without knowledge -- and what do simple folk who will die on the same mudball where they were born, working menial jobs need to know about travel at near-light-speeds apart from that they make for interesting devices when applied in works of fiction? I suppose that knowledge would be of more use than those large space cannons. 
 
 I suppose they at least kept people busy and employed, but when the orbits began to slip it became obvious we had bigger concerns than potential impacts from asteroids. 
 
 The seeders knew it first. 
 
 When the first returning derelict came into sensor range the worlds throughout this solar system cheered, small colonies on many inhospitable, but marginally habitable planets and moons. People who had spent their lifetimes building futures in the farthest spots possible still in reach of our sun's grip. In many cases the most fulfilled people within our system one might imagine, as many of them lived the life as terraformers, of world builders. They were like little gods. These little gods were so excited for the new telemetry data and first word from relatives & heroes of whom all had only but heard tale. So bright eyed & hopeful were these little gods they had n't imagined how the word of those who'd seen beyond their star & could foresee their path would break their hearts & make them weep. 
 
 It was gutting. The greatest minds of science sure, the best and brightest -- these champions of reason and logic -- who'd spent lifetimes on ships unaware the utter chaos their words would bring to our weak-minded little solar system. They told us what they could foresee, and what they could from their end offer in the way of counsel. It was about as far from promising for the earth as things could get. 
 
 These returning seed-ship derelicts became knows by all means of biblical names as they each nestled into a pre-programmed orbit. First the Angel of death, then as the next 3 came into range simultaneously the ships were given the standard `` four horsemen'' title. as they streaked red across the skies they became known as the `` Fjalar'' -fleet.. Once the planet became encircled by a web of seeders forming a mesh of space debris that dimmed the sun they became known as the death shroud. Our Death Shroud sustained us beyond the time we should have been able to inhabit the earth... It afforded enough time to build & launch several Arcs as per the designs sent by those who'd programmed our Death Shroud -- they could not get us far, but they could carry immense volumes of water and atmospheric gasses, and millions more live people than any seed ships, colony ships or transports in the past. 
 
 The earth was doomed, the earthers would die, or defect to mars. There were no other options, and there was not enough room for everyone. Not by a long shot. There had been conflicts about the Pure Earth movement trying to put a kibosh on mars colonization throughout history -- but our greatest minds had it figured out. The Earth already lost what the P.E. Preachers had come to call the Martian War, ironically with the martians persistent course of non-hostility. 
 
 The clouds are all wrong, and dark. Even so I know that the wiping out of these pure-earth idiots will be a silver lining as our orbit decays into the sun. I remember when I was a child it shone so bright... But that was before the four horsemen were knitted into the shroud... And as I've been led to understand it- it should brighten again when the doomsday device is activated -- albiet a brief brightness before those of us still on the surface are scorched from it and cast into the vast darkness of space's vaccum... 
 
 I hope some of the others fated to ride our mudball to its demise find as much amusement as I have in pondering how resentful people are of their loving Death Shroud -- she's protected us this long from certain death, given us this stay of execution, and warned us of the impending radiation floods. She afforded us the opportunity to send a great many of our brothers and sisters and children to our sister-planet, to send them there with a sky to breathe and an ocean to drink... 
 
 And now her children, her petulant little brats, they curse her calling her last gift, the Tachyonic condensation repulsion field that will rip the moon from earth's orbit & fling it into the path of mars a `` doomsday device''. Yes, it will by its activation & the deactivation of the shroud's protective barrier spell doomsday for earth, but transplanting the moon from our orbit to mars will grant the transplanted ocean the tidal forces humanity's new home will need to thrive. Those shortsighted P.E.ers ca n't see past the details of the lunar transplant depleting earth's ozone, or the sudden halt in earth's rotation sending ashes of those still here drifting into space. But let it be known to you that there are a great many who view your acts as those of merciful gods, sending your ships of warning like Heimdall... 
 
 Your world will flourish, and need not mourn. Those here who pass have been granted a grace from above to afford us the opportunity to make our peace. And great many of us seem to have found peace or at least solace, as hopefully a great many of my fellow earthers' final transmissions will likely attest, in the knowledge that you, our brothers, sisters, children and grandchildren are out there, living, learning, growing for us, in our stead. 
 
 This message will arrive on Mars before the device has been activated, but those of you descended from far launchers are unlikely to hear this message until generations after when it was transmitted -- that is if it ever catches up to you. 
 
 On the off chance it does reach you -- and by you I now mean the far-launchers -- I... I have no idea if the actual people who sent us back the shroud can ever hear this, I suppose from a rational point even a thick earther-till-deather-from-birther like myself realizes probably not... But you... -- or your ancestors -- you... I just can not thank you enough. You are the heroes of humanity and given the gift you bestowed upon us I can only hope that should certain death be looming for you or your progeny you are as fortunate as were we, to have someone looking out for you for above... Or that you can at least take solace in knowing your kin will persevere... 
 
... Or at the least let's hope your cataclysm wipes out your nutjobs the way this one is gon na spare Mars from those P.E. throwbacks... 
 
 Godspeed little gods. Godspeed, from your humble Einherjar, in rags upon the first rock, at the end of its last days. 
 
 Godspeed. 
 
 
 < TRANSMISSION ENDS >
