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My name’s Claudio Croft, and if you haven’t been in cryogenic storage for the past century (all due respect to those of you who have), you’ve probably heard of me already. I can tell you without exaggerating that I’m the most famous and well-known face in the explored galaxies; at least, I’m taking this as rote, because the fine people at Lifeforms magazine tell me so, and would they lie? I don’t think so.
My band, Extinction Event, released our fifth platinum record this Winter, and any time I haven’t been touring or in the studio with them, I’ve been writing, promoting, or performing Albedo Six, my third best-selling collection of poetry. (Intergalactic Art proclaims that I “Singlehandedly resurrected the medium of free-verse, spoken-word poetry.”, though I’d have to say that’s at least a slight exaggeration.) And you know why I can rant all this out in a litany without even bothering to check my ego.
Because none of it matters.
Everything I have accomplished doesn’t mean shit, because in another forty or fifty years, I’ll be nothing but dust. Dust in space and ‘memories’- which amount to electrical impulses in the human brain that don’t carry even enough charge to light a 20 Watt bulb for a minute. And by no means does this phenomenon extend to me. It is the fate of all man kind. But of course, we won’t go ‘quietly’ into the night. No, we’ll take the world with us.
Dust and ashes. Every living being and every world will be nothing but dust. All of human history is a litany of tragedies. We scatter across the galaxy in need of space, and poison a hundred planets with our terraforming and industry, our smog and waste. Sickness rots on the worlds we toxify; but if we don’t move on and poison a new planet, then we stay there and starve. You’d think in a galaxy big enough to provide a hundred planets to die in place of those of us who pestilence and famine lay claim to, we’d all realize we’re blessed with enough that we don’t need to fight over everything. But of course not; everyone wants the best. The best land, the best wealth, the best technology; war is endless, on every scale, from murderous space pirates hijacking frigates to Great House conflicts that butcher the populations of entire worlds.
Human existence could be summed up like a weather forecast; a period of extended pain followed by death. And why? Why are we destroying ourselves and every natural thing we touch? Because its in our nature? Fundamental flaws scrawled in our DNA. Flaws begging to be corrected.
Since before man found fire, back millions of years ago on Silent Earth, man has been searching for God. Some omnipotent being to watch over us and protect us; to forgive us from our sins and save us from our mistakes. To correct the flaws that make up our nature, and to love us, no matter how badly we fuck up.
What if I told you I found Him? What if I told you He chose me- me, a human being just as fucked up as the rest of them, a greedy, egotistical, vain, self-obsessed, alcoholic whore, a no-talent hack like me, to bear His message? I know I don’t deserve the honor, you see. But it doesn’t matter. He loves me anyway. The whole world loves me cause they don’t know me. He loves me because He does; He knows everything wrong with me, every sin I’ve commited, and He forgives them.
What happened on Styx was a miracle- no, strike that. It is a miracle in progress. The radio silence was just to make sure everyone is listening.
Now, He will speak, through me. I’m not up to the task; I’m a lousy singer, and I’m supposed to be the voice of God. But I’ll try. And He’s got a lot to say.
He has come to save us all from ourselves. He is a result of our worst mistakes; the machines we’ve designed to make our choices for us, and the tyrannical government we’ve wrought to take away any choice at all. He’s going to break down all our crutches, and help us stand on our own two feet. Throughout the world, the biggest sinners of all prosper the most; the corruption of the Great Houses chokes all the common peoples of these worlds; the iron fist of President Will strangles the freedom of every citizen of these Republics. God will set everyone free, and create a world where we all rule our own fates.
What has started here on Styx will spread throughout the world soon, like star light traveling to distant worlds. God is coming to your door, to save you.
God is coming home.
Welcome Him with open arms.
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