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Description
Once Mankind had managed to leap over the numerous hurdles leading to wormhole creation and stabilization, not the least of which was the exawatts of power needed, human colonization of space took off in a frenzy. In a matter of less than four decades, over a score of extraterran colonies had been established.

What we did not know at the time was that we had, by then, been observed by watchful eyes for a few centuries. And by expanding our borders beyond the limits of our yellow star, we had gone for the watchers from curiosities to threat...

Their strikes came without warning, wiping out the five most outer colonies, counting each between 100 000 and 200 000 extraterrans, in a matter of days... Immense forces were amassed on Samulayo1, their logical next target, and there Mankind managed to hold back the Watchers... The siege has been held for more than 12 years now, as waves of Watchers come crashing onto the small red world, claiming hundreds of millions of human lives. No one knows where they come from. They have not once tried to establish or respond to communication. No one knows why they don't attack on new fronts. It is as if they are toying with us. And they don't seem to be thinning out...

Back on earth, an entire generation of mankind is offered in sacrifice to the war. Every man and woman between the ages of sixteen and thirty is drafted and deployed. Stripped of all rights, effectively made into slaves. The lucky ones are sent to fortify the defenses on colonies that haven't been attacked, most go to Samulayo. I am one of the latter.

I have been on this hellish sphere for 7 years now... The Terran Government has imagined a "wonderful" plan to both motivate and replenish the troops. When deployed, my ovaries were taken. One of my ovules was fecunded by some male soldier's spermatozoa. Through accelerated development in vitro culture techniques, the speed at which adulthood is reached is doubled. Which means my seven year-old must look like, and is considered by law, a fourteen year-old...

It's a girl...

I've never met her, never even had her in my womb, but the authorities did have the "humanity" to tell me her name and regularly send me pictures. They make sure I understand that if we don't win this war, my girl might be fighting at my side within the coming year...

I hate this hell...
I hate the Watchers...
But I'm afraid, most of all...
I've come to hate us...

1The name Samulayo comes from a polynesian god of war. When the planet was discovered, its iron oxide-rich red top soil reminded explorers of Mars, itself named after the roman god of war.

If you've read through all of that: extra special thanks!

Description
Once Mankind had managed to leap over the numerous hurdles leading to wormhole creation and stabilization, not the least of which was the exawatts of power needed, human colonization of space took off in a frenzy. In a matter of less than four decades, over a score of extraterran colonies had been established.

What we did not know at the time was that we had, by then, been observed by watchful eyes for a few centuries. And by expanding our borders beyond the limits of our yellow star, we had gone for the watchers from curiosities to threat...

Their strikes came without warning, wiping out the five most outer colonies, counting each between 100 000 and 200 000 extraterrans, in a matter of days... Immense forces were amassed on Samulayo1, their logical next target, and there Mankind managed to hold back the Watchers... The siege has been held for more than 12 years now, as waves of Watchers come crashing onto the small red world, claiming hundreds of millions of human lives. No one knows where they come from. They have not once tried to establish or respond to communication. No one knows why they don't attack on new fronts. It is as if they are toying with us. And they don't seem to be thinning out...

Back on earth, an entire generation of mankind is offered in sacrifice to the war. Every man and woman between the ages of sixteen and thirty is drafted and deployed. Stripped of all rights, effectively made into slaves. The lucky ones are sent to fortify the defenses on colonies that haven't been attacked, most go to Samulayo. I am one of the latter.

I have been on this hellish sphere for 7 years now... The Terran Government has imagined a "wonderful" plan to both motivate and replenish the troops. When deployed, my ovaries were taken. One of my ovules was fecunded by some male soldier's spermatozoa. Through accelerated development in vitro culture techniques, the speed at which adulthood is reached is doubled. Which means my seven year-old must look like, and is considered by law, a fourteen year-old...

It's a girl...

I've never met her, never even had her in my womb, but the authorities did have the "humanity" to tell me her name and regularly send me pictures. They make sure I understand that if we don't win this war, my girl might be fighting at my side within the coming year...

I hate this hell...
I hate the Watchers...
But I'm afraid, most of all...
I've come to hate us...

1The name Samulayo comes from a polynesian god of war. When the planet was discovered, its iron oxide-rich red top soil reminded explorers of Mars, itself named after the roman god of war.

If you've read through all of that: extra special thanks!