The Gelean Republic

Outpost Gamma Black was located on an undisclosed Asteroid solely for the use of the Engineering Bay, for projects deemed too dangerous to operate on-planet or on populated space stations. This...object was one of them, a device of unknown purpose produced by members of the Cult of the Navigator for no clear reason. Nevertheless, the instructions were clear, and though she had her doubts as to what good could come of...whatever this was, the potential Sagan Scenario was enticing. Admiral Elizabeth came alone, clad only in her gold-and-green encounter suit, with an arc pistol at her side and a miniaturized fission bomb tuned for optimal EMP generation on the exterior of her suit in place of the traditional jetpack, should she actually encounter a superior - and hostile - entity on the other side.

She couldn't be sure it would work and activating it would annihilate her body more or less instantly, but it was an emergency measure. Just in case. In the worst case, she could be replaced. Her family group's finances were not in dire straits and she had no children of her own to orphan.

...A morbid subject. She turned her thoughts to the white room, as everything changed.

---

This Guardian may have been similar to the Navigator, or it may have been the same entity prior to three hundred years of distortion. She couldn't be sure, but she had her doubts. This certainly didn't look like the Control Spire of the Aeternus, not that she'd ever been inside. The false sense of tranquility unnerved her; she'd been affected by an Esper with a similar power once, and the disconnect between her own nerves and the reality of the situation was clear enough to one keeping a cool head. The map was fascinating: A list of locations for various civilizations and their origin points. She scanned the image quickly for WristTop recall, and referenced it for her own purposes. Nearby: Nyxians, Kombuch, Kamisati, Lyraens, Tal-Amanyn. Priorities.

It was shortly after this that she noticed just how many humans and near-humans were present in the disparate corners of the area, from far-flung corners of the Galaxy, moments before another brought it up directly, a representative of a group antispinward of the Amanyn. She swore under her breath.

"Nonsense, truly. Worthy of comparing notes at a later time, but this mystery won't be solved today."