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This is a basic outline of my imagining for my made up alien species, Naerian's, and how I justify my decision that, while I like my personal charater, Nalz, having four arms, I often like writing characters with two. So, I came up with all this jazz to try and justify two-armed and four-armed characters. Mostly because the secondary main character in my The Art of Chance story is a two-armed Naerian.

This was also an excuse to write some fancy, Sci-Fi shit. Enjoy!

Rough Ideas [The Editors/Ascendent]

A Brief History

The Editors

With the advanced progression of genetic engineering technology a group of scientists emerged as a radical group bent on modifying their bodies to a superior state of being. Mechanical technology and the advancement of artificial intelligence did little to pique their interest. They strove to craft visions to be integrated as naturally as possible. All their naysayers said no form of genetic modification could be considered natural. Decades passed and the group fell from notoriety as they retreaded from the spotlight, as significant to history as a grain of sand.

Fifty years after the initial scandal obscure clinics began to appear in major cities around the globe, offering the ability to modify the clients body, however, they started with small procedures. They marketed the ability to drastically change scale color from normal to never before seen combinations. The clinics also offered other aesthetic procedures to alter the clients appearance beyond naturally occurring possibilities. Horns, spikes, spines, crests and other minor body mods up to improving sight and hearing. The more extreme or delicate modifications were reflected in the price. The most common method was the introduction of stem cells, engineered to promote specific growths.

The modified traits were phenotypic, they would not be passed on to any offspring. However, the changes some modifications could be made or could only be genotypic. The traits would be passed to the offspring. Instituting genotypic changes was highly controversial since the offspring had no say in the changes. In rare instances they were reversible but the majority of the time they were not.

The scientists that started the movement, reaching back to the founders, became known as the Editors. They read DNA like the words on this very page and edited it just as simply. Society viewed the changes people were undergoing as simple enough, nothing too threatening. However, there were those that took the procedures to the extreme, twisting and molding their original image into abstract, but by the large the Editors offered a new means of individuality. The Editors weren't treading the controversial of attempt to transfer consciousness from flesh to machine or building artificial intelligences capable of cognizance. The procedures themselves were, for the most part, reversible or surgically removable.

The only question the public vocalized was where the Editors originated. There had been no fanfare, no advertisement leading to the opening of the clinics. The technology and the Editors had simple gone from nothing to in vogue. They were content to let the public adjust to the pervasiveness on their own. Commercial campaigns were subdued and mainly local. Unbeknownst to the public at large the Editor scientific coalition was expanding vastly underground.

Among the Editors themselves experimentation was running rampant and the heads that had been voted into power were attempting to self-regulate. All this happened without public knowledge. The technology was advancing far faster than guidelines could be put into place. The stage was being set as some Editors formed splinter groups, disagreeing with the regulations. It wasn't long before the social economic war that had happened a generation ago began again. This time the implications would reach every corner of Naerian society, whether anybody liked it or not.

The Editors would be the harbingers of a new epoch for their species.

It happened on the 125th anniversary of the Editors original retreat into seclusion. The date was picked for obvious reasons. Society would be forced to accept them instead of being forced by society to hide. One of the original splinter groups that had risen in power among the main esoteric Editor body was making the announcement. Some had disagreed with the direction for decades but were powerless to oppose the movement. Keep in mind that, while the clinics had been operating for 75 years, nobody knew for certain that the Editors were behind them. There were suspicions and circumstantial evidence but nothing concrete. If nothing else they had secrecy down to a science.

This announcement slash unveiling, a small affair, would be the first time anybody had officially heard from the Editors in 75 years. No insignificant amount of time. Genetic body modification had become so normal it bordered on the mundane. The word that the Editor's were going to unveil a, supposedly, great new advance was met with great interest. The press conference they scheduled was going to be broadcast planet wide. The information that was disseminated hinted that the talk would involve procedures that vastly altered the body. They were said to be impassible to offspring. The therapies ran the gamut: skeletal, muscular, cellular and neurological. The procedures would be easily marketable. Individual treatments or bundles, big and small.

It was all met with uncertain approval. These would give clear physical and mental advantages over others would couldn't afford the work. The price had come down significantly over time, but, as with anything new, it was expected to be unattainable. This was said to not be the case, it would be easily affordable. During the conference it was assumed that the speaker on stage was one of the Editors. He was not. The Editor's goal had always been to shape life into a more perfect image.

In the intervening years, they had done just that. Third generation Editors were poised to make their appearance. An appearance that would take one hundred years to accept. At which point Naerians, as a species and society, would finally again begin to coexist amicably. A 3rd Gen Editor took the stage. A collective gasp went up and turmoil took to the press like fire to dry grass. The Editor simply smiled, more coming out, ready to defend if the group turned violent.

They were so extensively modified they were almost a new species. The 3rd Gen Editors bore all the outward appearances of perfect as anybody had ever seen previously. The pinnacle of male and female beauty. Yet they were as alien as an undiscovered entity from space. Naerians had never had four arms at any point in their evolution. The Editors did. They had everything, naturally, that no normal Naerian could obtain without extreme dedication. Agility, reflexes, strength, senses and increased size. Curvacious and sharp bodies, scales that were practically glowing under the light and elegant.

Society was horrified, aside from the morbidly fascinated minority.

During their years of silence the Editors had been perfecting the genome, even before their first hint of publicity 125 years before. The 3rd Gen Editors were merely the first to be naturally born, the living embodiment of perfection, attained, in their eyes. They were the result of 2nd Gen Editors, consummating their devotion to improving the species; whether it was ready or not. The previous 125 years of genetic manipulations through their clinics had allowed them to sample millions of genes. Picking and choosing the purest and strongest traits, copying the genetic code and adding it to their collection. One year before the 125th anniversary they had began secretly modifying every customer. A virus, they had pioneered, was injected into each patient, permanently altering the ova or sperm of the victim. The natural, biannual, female cycle meant that all offspring that had been conceived the past cycle were all affected. The virus was not transmittable via blood or bodily fluids to the uninfected.

The method came to light after the fact and greatly upset a portion of the Editors. The end result was that all young born after the announcement would be as the 3rd Gen Edited. Effectively the 4th generation. It was a drastic change with vast, far reaching consequences. It was a pandemic. One side effect was that if either a male or female hadn't been infected and attempted to conceive with an infected individual, the egg was always miscarried.

Suicide became common place. Panic was widespread, many were aborted, euthanized, abandoned, put up for adoption and few reluctantly kept. The loss of life was epic in scale. Population rates were forecast to drop significantly. It was announced that the alteration was irreversible. Anybody that had been to an Editor clinic the previous year was permanently changed. With how widespread their use was, it was estimated that almost 83% of the population was affected. The birth to death ratio fell to 1:1000. Doomsayers predicted the end of the species.

It would be fifty years before the ratio stabilized, once the reality took hold. There was no going back, might as well deal with it.

In the wake of the disaster, two groups were emerging. Those who were four-armed 'descendants' of the Editors, termed the Tainted. The few who retained their original lineage were known as the Pure.

A generation of disaffected youth grew and came of age. The weight of guilt for unborn millions hanging over their existences. The lucky ones didn't feel so lucky. Many were abandoned by their parents for circumstances beyond their control and they rebelled. Governments, already struggling to maintain control in the previous years, nearly collapsed, a few did. The offspring of the 4th Gen were raised amongst hate, discontent, fear and constant rejection. Pure population centers were attacked and ransacked. Their numbers dropped by the millions due to violence, already dwindling from the lack of births. It was found that Tainted and Pure were only reproductively compatible if the Pure had been affected by the original virus. The time, starting from the day of the original press conference, became known as the era of the Gene Wars.

By the time the 6th Gen was at an age to affect change, animosity between the Pure and Tainted was dying. The Tainted were coming to terms with the fact that they were the majority.

They were in control now.

The Pure became a protected species. There were fewer than twenty million Pure still living. The ashes of billions, Pure and Tainted, had been returned to the ground. The divide was immense. 88% of Sihv's population was made up of the Tainted.

Society had changed dramatically. Life again became valued, desperately. The importance of young achieved levels not seen for decades. The family structure became fanatically devoted to raising children. The mistakes of generations were ingrained into them, to never repeat. The overall population of their species had been halved. That was an optimistic figure. Fertile, Pure females were elevated to Godlike statuses. Polygamy amongst the Pure was extensive. Males became subservient to females. Aside from protecting them, the Tainted left well enough alone. They were free to go about at will but mostly stayed in tight knit communities.

Amazingly, technological progress had continued, largely unimpeded.

One thing was certain. Genetic modification was outlawed. Even experimenting with it was punishable by death. Aesthetic genetic manipulation was allowed in certain circumstances but was heavily policed.

Animosity lingered in the hearts of the older Pure but it was quickly dying away with them. It was common belief among the Tainted that Naerian society would never be one entity until all the Pure ceased to exist. None wanted to expedite the process, but acknowledged the truth in the belief.

The next two hundred years contained vast technological advances, social changes and the discovery of the first habitable planet and founding of a colony on the world. This brought even greater change. New ambitions, a new home for the Pure and the first missions into extrasolar space.

The Ascendent (Rough)

One large, well supported group, emerged amongst the Pure during the years after the Gene Wars. The Editors mind altering work of allowing the first few generations of Tainted to use their extra arms as if they had evolved with them, was as far as they went with tampering with the brain. This new faction of Pure, whom would eventually become known as the Ascendent, threw themselves at neurological modification, advanced artificial intelligences and even, eventually, into transposing consciousness from flesh to machine. The latter of which didn't happen for centuries. Some of the Ascendent had conflicting interests in why they pursued their goals but the end result was the same. The Pure needed something to stay relevant. It was a nagging fear that the Tainted would decide to do away with them. The Ascendent would be the tip of the spear. Immortality through the transfer of consciousness was often discussed but advanced artificial intelligence and neurological modification would be where all bets were placed.

The Ascendent held no overtly hostile intentions but the majority of Pure society saw their views as desperate. This led many of the Ascended to be looked upon as dissenters, wishing to seek revenge for history's wrongs. The opinion quickly grew until the Ascendent were exiled from the Pure society. While a few decided to abandon the ideals of the Ascendent, to stay behind, the majority of the scientists viewed this as a positive, allowing them to carry out their experiments uninhibited; essentially forming their own society. Those that left were clearly did not believe in their mission. Greater numbers than expected had splintered off with the Ascendent. They settled another area of the planet, as far from inquisitive eyes as possible.

Whether by intention or coincidence, the original Editors had fundamentally and irreversibly fractured Naerian society. For years the scientists that made up the Ascendent toiled. Each generation of tech far superior to the last. Artificial Intelligences that were capable of learning, limited free thought and personality. Their population experienced a boom after several generations. The neurological modification experiments resulted in allowing people to interface directly with computer systems and A.I.s.

At the same time, starships capable of extrasolar expeditions were being manufactured on Sihv by the Tainted. Their culture was experiencing a space based industrial boom. The Ascendant, on their own colonized planet with the Pure, sold the Tainted on their superior abilities with machines. The manufacturers hired Ascendent that had the ability to interface directly with the ships in a myriad of different areas. The AI's were also sold in astounding numbers. The Ascendent economy exploded. The money was largely reinvested into their research and colony.

The Ascendent's AI's were unmatched in capability and complexity. Other AI creators existed but none could achieve the complexity the Ascendent were capable of crafting. Their trade secrets were never revealed to anyone outside of an extremely esoteric circle of Ascendent elders. Rumors insist that the AI's are not AI's at all. Others believe that the AI's are really brains that have been scanned and copied. Even grown from cultures in vats filled with ochre fluid. There is only one rumor that has any truth. The Ascendent do not comment on rumor or speculation.

That rumor insists that the name Ascendent arose because the first scientist, the brood mother of the Ascendent, scarified her physical body, transferring her consciousness from flesh to machine in the process. Turning her intelligence into machine code. Her soul into ones and zeros. That all future Ascendent AI's are based off the technology she pioneered and was the first to test. Those who scarified were said to have 'ascended,' become more than they would ever have been capable of during life. Watching over and protecting the lives of thousands on starships as they crossed the cosmos.

That one was too crazy to believe.

Fifty years after the first Ascendent made the journey at the end of her physical life, from flesh to conscious machine code, another alien civilization was discovered. The controversies and conflicts that existed for centuries quietly took a back seat as all attention turned to a new era and all the possibilities it held.

For a new dawn.

Or a tragic twilight.

Time line

[Year - Event]

0 - First controversy of genetic modification and altering DNA. These original scientists would become known as the Editors.

5 - The original Editors move into seclusion to continue their work and far from the public eye.

50 - Up to this point genetic manipulation had been small news. An Editor controlled campaign to soften the public opinion on the subject of genetic manipulation.

60 - First production of engines capable of achieving near light speed travel. Rockets as engines are made obsolete.

70 - First starships begin production. However, they are prototypes, built to test interstellar travel and the previously developed engines.

125 - The Editors unveil their new genetic modifications, as well as the 3rd Gen Edited. Widespread descent arises. The species falls into a dark time. Sanctions descend upon genetic manipulation. The day is widely considered the first day of the Gene Wars.

133 - The birth to death ratio peaks at 1:1000. The overall population is in steep decline. The standard of living plunges, economies collapse and violence ravishes the planet. Female suicide rates reach an all time high.

162 - Despite vast racial conflicts, infanticide, suicide, population decline and the collapse of several continental governments, two space ships are launched on an exploratory mission. The crew is completely made up of Pure. Everybody hopes that in the cosmos a discovery will be made that will fix everything. The mission is expected to return 80 years later. Due to the effects of time dilation at near light speed.

175 - After 50 years an equilibrium has started to form. Conflicts are dying out as the racial divide vastly changes. Society is coming to terms with the changes that were forced upon them. Infanticide rates are in single digits for the first time since the start of the Gene Wars. Suicide rates dropped significantly. Pure communities have sprung up, segregating themselves from the rest of the population. The concept becomes popular and takes off amongst the remnants. The 4th Gen Edited are also coming of age during this time. Female to male ratio reaches an all time low, 30:100.

178 - A group of Editors splinter and create a new scientific faction that eventually becomes known as, the Ascendent. Their work focusing on AI, mapping the brain and neurological interfacing. They are against the more zealous intentions of the Editors.

180 - New conflicts erupt between Pure and the 4th Gen, cooling hatreds are reignited. The actions are mostly amateur and perpetrated by the 4th Gen against Pure communities. Crime rates soar, especially amongst the 4th Gen's age group. Retaliatory attacks are committed by the Pure youth. Riots happen sporadically in large cities.

186 - Vastly bolstered police forces have brought an end to the conflicts. Tainted government figures did not want genocide hanging over the heads of their people. Pure communities merge to try to mitigate the effect of the deaths.

237 - 5th Gen youth come of age, raised amongst the animosity, discontent and constant rejection of their parents. Many believe the Pure are at fault for all the wrongs, despite the fact that many of the 3rd Gens are dead, as well as the original Editors. The riots are met with head on. Multiple governments enact state of emergencies. Fears of a police state arise, thousands 5th Gen youth are killed or incarcerated during the riots. Crime rates begin to drop.

239 - Pure become a government protected people. Fewer than 20 million remain alive, more than half of that beyond the age of reproduction. Crime rates have dropped to a level comparable to the decades prior. Tainted realize they are the majority and draw up sweeping changes to law.

249 - Tainted now make up 88% of Sihv's population. The Pure live in communities of usually less than 200,000. They are protected by the government and Tainted that have been thoroughly screened against lingering hate or brought up in families that harbor it provide the roving security forces.

259 - Ten years of vast socioeconomic changes have reshaped society, especially among the Pure. Rebuilding the species has become the main focus. Subsidies abound for families with multiple children. The Pure have elevated females, due to their relatively low numbers, to a near Godlike status, especially those found to be especially fertile. Polyandry is rampant and encouraged. Children are raised among multiple families, all sharing the child rearing duties.

271 - Expedition returns from deep space. A habitable planet was discovered and named, Soro, in the nearest solar system. All gathered information was disseminated and the expedition was deemed extremely successful. The expedition left at the height of the Gene Wars and had no contact in the intervening time. The Pure aboard the ship were reluctant to leave their ships or allow any Tainted to dock. Eventually the two ships were allowed to leave, to start a colony in the neighboring solar system, and took thousands of Pure with them. Many among them part of the Ascendent faction. Soro would eventually become the home world of the Pure.

302 - Ascendent make public a breakthrough in artificial intelligence. They have created an AI that is near sapient, capable of learning and given nearly free thought. Restrictions are placed on the technology for fear of the implications. Would sapient AI's be allowed the same freedoms Naerians enjoyed? Protected by the same laws? The Ascendent reject the fears and continue their research.

307 - Ascendent are exiled from the main Pure colonies on Soro, forced to build their own on the opposite side of the planet. Some Ascendent scientists choose to abandon their work to stay. This ends up having the opposite effect. Now completely free of any outside intervention the Ascendent's progress reaches a frantic pace. Pure and Tainted fall far behind in the fields of AI and machine interfacing.

351 - Hostilities between Pure and Tainted are nearly nonexistent. Multiple joint fleets have been dispatched in different directions to explore the space surrounding their two known solar systems. The Ascendent have been selling AI's and Naerians that have neurological implants that allow them to directly interface with electronic systems and the AI's. The ship building business experiences a boom. The standard of living is at its highest since the beginning of the Gene Wars. The Pure and Tainted names are finally eradicated. The Pure were now known as True-Born and Tainted as Gene-Born.

358 - Rumors begin to circulate that some Ascendent have attained a form of immortality. Theories arise that the AI's the Ascendent have been selling are not really AI's but the scanned consciences of previously living people. The transfer of consciousness from flesh to machine. The Ascendent representatives refuse to confirm or deny the accusations. Bits and pieces of data correlate the theory as AI's on ships do unexpected things thought to be beyond their abilities of reason and free thought. Sales only experience a slight drop.

383 - Regulations against genetic manipulation loosen. All is closely regulated but the Editors original work of phenotypic change is allowed, in small amounts. Many feared another Gene War but, so far, none has happened. Genetic augmentation is strictly prohibited.

409 - Several fleets return with no significant findings. One new habitable planet was discovered but its distance made colonization difficult and is still in its infancy. One fleet is still out among the stars. It was supposed to have returned around the time of the others. No communication is possible.

421 - Populations have stabilized. Male to female ratios are nearly even for True-Born and Gene-Born. Polygamy among True-Born becomes rarer, no longer being necessary. Naerian's have always been an evolutionarily monogamous species. Prosperity has finally returned to the species after being permanently changed. The disparity between True-Born and Gene-Born population is so vast it may never recover. True-Born will always be a minority.

426 - The missing fleet returns with unbelievable news. A new, highly evolved species has been discovered. While not as advanced they are still quite capable. Contact was made and the fleet had stayed for ten years in orbit of their planet. They called themselves Homo sapiens. Great opportunity was envisioned. Naerians, as a now diversified species, is at its height in homogenous belief. Violence is rare, crime rates are abysmal, economies flourishing and society healthy.

436 - Ten starships are dispatched to Earth. The previous fleet had forged an agreement with the various Earth governments. The program was dubbed the Alien Exchange. Naerian's from every background, ideology and specialization would cover the globe and offer their skills to improve Humanity's technological prowess. True-Born, Gene-Born and Ascendent were all represented, if not evenly.

466 - Fleet reestablishes contact with Earth two years before its arrival. Arrangements are made, plans made and the foundation for peaceful coexistence laid.

468 - Arrival at Earth. The future is uncertain but prosperity is foreseen as the leading possibility. The Exchange program begins in earnest.