I was planning on releasing this chapter and starting on the next chapter of Date a Fate last week, but I became sick and couldn't find the motivation to do so. At least I'm better now! *coughs violently*

I intentionally tried to make the situation on Terra as vague as possible. The Arknights storyline is only just starting. I'm trying to avoid conflicting with canon as much as possible.

Operators from CN may appear, but they will likely be soon-to-be-released operators in global. The problem with doing CN operators is that I don't really have a good grasp of their personalities, since most of their voice lines and such still aren't translated. On a related note, I do not have all the operators in-game. It's a bit difficult to grasp the personality of operators that I don't have. I will generally try to stick to operators that I have an understanding of (this is the actual reason I chose Lappland over Croissant - I don't have Croissant). OC operators (yes, Rhodes has non-playable operators) may appear, but they will be the minority. Doesn't mean they can't play a part in the story, though! In fact, there's an OC in this very chapter. Kudos to whoever figures out where I got the inspiration for her from.

Dust is overall weaker than Originium. Even specific Dust such as ice Dust is weaker than Originium fueled ice arts. In addition, each type of Dust produces a limited number of effects, while Originium can be used to produce a wide variety of effects - some of which Dust is completely unable to replicate. A strong Originium caster/Infected like Talulah would curbstomp anyone on Remnant, unless they were a Maiden or had some other special power to balance the scales. However, it's worth remembering that Originium is a limited resource on Remnant.

EDIT: Okay, maybe not curbstomp. Now that I think of it, there are some strong Huntsmen and Huntresses capable of standing up to Casters. But Talulah is still hard to top.

Rhodes Island does, canonically, have its own operators who live at Rhodes. Most of them are patients (Angelina, Mousse, etc.) but some are refugees (Istina, Zima, Gummy), independents (Skadi, Granni, Saria, etc.), or simply on-loan from allies (Shirayuki, Shaw, Jessica, etc.). That said, I agree that not all operators stay at Rhodes Island all the the time - SilverAsh, Pramanix, Ch'en and Hoshiguma are all important figures, and Texas, Exusiai, Franka, Liskarm, and a couple others only work for Rhodes Island under contract.

"So, is this prologue arc going to be several chapters long?" - A reviewer

Me: uh-oh.

I don't like long AN's. There's more I'd like to say, and more people I'd like to address, but I'm stopping here for now. This is about the limit I impose on myself for author notes/responses, so expect most future responses/AN to be shorter. And just because you feel like I didn't address you, doesn't mean I haven't considered your review/PM. I just don't want 20% of the word count to be notes and responses.

"Good work, everyone," the Doctor called as Siege dispatched the last of the wolves with a smash of her hammer, "Mayer, Magallan, how are things going on your end?"

"Eheheh," Magallan chuckled sheepishly, getting up from her position at one of the massive wheels. Each wheel beneath Rhodes Island was half-covered by a large pillar of metal, and from the Doctor's own knowledge, he knew there was a complex set of springs and pulleys designed to soften the impact of any rough patches the complex crossed over. The pillar Magallan had been working on had been opened up, exposing both the inner spring system - in which many springs were tangled and bent horizontally - and a large number of wires - over half of which sparked dangerously.

"Sorry, Doctor. The damage is really severe," Magallan confessed. Her gloved hands were covered in grease, and her hazard suit-dress bore a few scratches. As if on cue, one of the springs sprung out with a twang, but was caught by one of Magallan's hovering drones. "Mayer and I will need to come down here a few more times before we can finish everything," she continued, as if nothing had happened.

At another pillar, Mayer said nothing, still entirely engrossed in her task as her mechanical otters - Meebos, as she called them - scurried up and around the pillar, removing and replacing parts as she manually controlled all of them at once. The box at her back had expanded further, with both a calculator and a control panel that she worked with furiously as her mechanical arms brought gears and springs to her eyes for brief inspection as she made snap judgments on what could be reused and what needed replacing.

Magallan followed the Doctor's gaze to the other engineer. "She's really something, isn't she?" Magallan laughed, "Rhine Lab wasn't exaggerating when they called her the one-woman workshop!" The penguin operator glanced back to her own handiwork. While at first glance it would seem that Magallan had been more productive, with the column she had been working on closer to completion, the Doctor spotted a few tags labeled 'complete' on two other pillars.

It seemed Mayer worked at nearly three times Magallan's speed. Impressive, considering Magallan was no slouch either. Though to be fair, Magallan was also a field operator, and was probably more used to data collection.

"Your work is appreciated too," the Doctor spoke from beside her, patting another pillar, "There aren't many people capable of repairing these things."

"Thanks!" Magallan beamed, "I'll get right back to work then! These wheels aren't going to fix themselves!"

"Go ahead," the Doctor felt amused at her enthusiasm as he began the short walk to Mayer.

"Mayer?" Mayer was still lost in her tinkering, so he reached out and tapped her shoulder.

Mayer let out a small scream and jumped at the contact. At the same time, her right hand swung out in a backhand slap as she spun around. Fortunately, the Doctor was already used the maim-on-interruption response, and a hasty step back made sure that the woman didn't break her hand on his mask.

"D-Docter?" she gasped, "Don't do that!"

"I tried to call out to you, but you seemed a little absorbed in what you were doing," the Doctor said, "How's it going?"

"Er, pretty well, I suppose?" Mayer huffed and turned back to controlling her robots as she continued, "It'll take some more time - three days, at most - before we can get this thing running again. Fortunately, even if we had to throw out every part in every damaged column, we'd still have enough spare furniture parts and building materials to fix all of them. It wouldn't hurt to save as many materials as possible though."

The Doctor watched as one of Mayer's mechanical arms accepted a black box from one of the Meebos and plugged it into an opening. Another arm, bearing a drill-shaped head attached to its end, emitted a clicking sound as a screwdriver head emerged. With a whir, it began to screw the box into its place, even as a third arm was seemingly checking for loose parts.

"I see you have things handled," the Doctor observed, "I'll leave you alone for now. The sun's setting soon, and we'll go back once it does, alright?"

Mayer groaned. "But my arms have lights build in," she complained, her third arm stopping its current action and lowering to be right in front of the Doctor. "See?" she said as a light right below the hand turned on and off.

"The combat operators are going to have a hard time keeping watch in the dark, though," the Doctor reminded, "Remember, even though we're directly under Rhodes Island, it's not safe with those monsters lurking around.

Mayer grumbled but didn't complain further.

"Thanks, Mayer."

"Put me on the team again tomorrow, alright?" she huffed, "I get bored when there's nothing to do."

"Noted. Keep up the good work," the Doctor stepped away. Now that he had checked up on the two mechanics, he returned to the combat operators patrolling the area around Rhodes Island. The sky was turning pink and orange as the sun set when he approached Texas, who was patrolling the perimeter. "Anything?" he asked as he kept pace beside her.

"No. No sign of any more enemies. Though some birds have recently begun to circle us."

The Doctor looked up into the sky, glad that the sun was already making its way down. Indeed, black specks were circling above them.

"Have they done anything?"

"No. It's just suspicious."

The conversation promptly died. Neither of them were particularly good at socializing, so it was only to be expected. They continued their walk, the silence only interrupted as Texas munched on some pocky.

The Doctor took the moment to observe their surroundings. The land was barren, with not a single tree or blade of grass in sight. The soil that crunched beneath their feet was a dark reddish color. Around them, large, purple crystals stuck out of the ground. Texas and the Doctor were careful to steer clear of the crystals. Neither were interested in possibly contracting Oripathy.

Off in the distance, large crags and other rock formations stood out of the landscape, yet even they were bereft of plant life. The sun had set, but the last dregs of daylight still colored the sky pink.

Strange. If there was no life here, where did the wolves come from? What did they eat? Every food chain had producers at the very bottom, usually plants that converted sunlight into energy. But if there were no plants...

The Doctor paused, causing Texas to stop as well. "Is something the matter?"

The Doctor shook his head, then rummaged around in the many pockets of his coat before finally pulling out gloves and a baggie. Slipping the gloves on, he scooped up some dirt and put it in the baggie.

"Something for Eyjafjalla and Earthspirit to look at," he explained, pocketing the baggie. Texas nodded and accepted the explanation.

If there were no plants producing energy, then it was possible that there were microorganisms serving as the producers in the ecosystem of this place. Even if there weren't, Eyjafjalla and Earthspirit were geologists - they could probably extract some information from a rock sample.

With that, they continued on their way. After some time, they ran into Siege, heading the opposite direction, who merely gave them a nod.

They kept walking for some time, before a thought occurred to the Doctor. "Texas, you fear Red, yes?"

Projekt Red was an operator that specialized in dangerous missions, including assassination, sabotage, and infiltration. She generally kept to herself, and most other operators were fine with doing the same, except for other Lupo - wolf people. All Lupo seemed to treat her as a threat, and Texas was no different.

Texas frowned, finishing a pocky stick before continuing. "...If I said no, I'd be lying."

"Does it have to do with the fact that you're both Lupo?"

Texas bit another piece of pocky. "In part."

"So if you feel something towards Red because you're both Lupo," the Doctor asked, "Can all Lupo feel each other?"

"...To an extent. I always know when Lappland is close. Why?"

...That actually explained a lot of strange behavior he had seen before. Like the number of times Texas stood up in the middle of a briefing and walked out. Or the fact that she seemed to have more bathroom breaks than Exusiai and Sora combined.

"Did you feel anything towards the wolves you killed?"

"So that was why," she muttered. She considered the question, then shrugged. "Not really. Unless you consider the satisfaction of a job well done to be something."

"So they aren't Lupo."

"No, I'm certain that they were not some sub-species of Lupo," she confirmed, "I do not-"

"Doctor, Doctor!" The two turned to find Siege running towards them.

It was now that the Doctor realized that the moon had already begun to rise. He hadn't noticed that darkness had set in, since the lights of Rhodes Island had illuminated the area.

...Wait.

"Doctor, the moon!" Siege said the instant she caught up to them, "The moon is-"

"Yes," the Doctor murmured as he and Texas stared at the shattered shape above them.

"Nice job," Amiya greeted them as they entered the reception room, "How was the situation outside?"

The Doctor didn't answer, seeming lost in thought. Thus, Amiya tried again.

"Doctor?" she tilted her head, "Did something happen?"

"Take a break in the dorms," the Doctor told the operators, who left in twos and threes through various doors, all talking about something. What was it? He then turned to address her. "Did you look through the cameras outside?"

"The cameras? Yes, I was watching you all from the control room. The locals attacked you on sight, and our operators successfully drove them away. After that, you just did patrols. I, um," she flushed from embarrassment, "I missed a bit at the end though. Was there something that I missed?" She may have left on a water break when she saw nothing was happening. As Amiya led the Doctor forward, she tapped a panel, and a door slid open before them. The two passed through and found themselves in the control room.

"The moon is broken," the Doctor told her.

"The moon is... broken?" despite the trust she placed in the Doctor, Amiya still had a hard time wrapping her head around that. "U-Um, broken, as in-"

"Shattered." Ch'en stepped out from behind a monitor. Her clothes were slightly dirty and sported a few scratches, evidence of her involvement in the repair work currently under progress. "I left Hoshiguma in charge of the internal repairs and returned to the control room to meet you, but it turned out neither of you were here at the time. But enough about what I've been doing - there are more important things for us to worry about. The moon is completely shattered." She gestured to the screen she had been sitting behind. She must have been watching the monitors while she waited. "Take a look for yourself."

Amiya walked over and checked the screen. And then she kept staring at it. The Doctor was right - the moon had been broken, with large shards separated from the main, vaguely crescent shape. "...How?"

"We can only guess," Ch'en admitted, "Considering we don't know what the Rift Reactor was designed to do. My first guess would be that the Reactor destroyed the moon. However, the Reactor, at the time it fired, was situated horizontally."

"...It shouldn't have done anything to the moon," the Doctor agreed, "Unless whatever it fired curved upwards. But that explanation still doesn't explain how Rhodes Island was transported, and there should have been massive damage to the hangar."

"Which there isn't," Amiya muttered, finally taking her eyes off the screen. She thought back to the initial reports on the damage. "In fact, our hangar is completely intact. Almost like the eye of a storm."

"...There's a second possibility that I've thought of," the Doctor said. Immediately, he had their attention. "It is possible that the Rift Reactor sent us to another planet."

"That's... unlikely. But possible." Ch'en seemed doubtful.

"Yes, I can see the reasoning behind this," Amiya agreed with the Doctor, "If our moon wasn't destroyed, maybe we were placed somewhere with a different moon - one that is already shattered."

"Before we start confirming any theories or make any new ones, let's gather some more clues." The Doctor held up the bag of dirt. "I'll give this to Eyjafjalla and Earthspirit. We'll see what they can make of it."

"We'll also need to form another team to extract some of those crystals," Amiya added, "In case we can't replenish our Originium stores here. And another team to survey the land. We're going to have to be very active for the next week." Amiya was already running through the possible teams they could send out. They were going to have to arrange several teams, in fact, since there were multiple tasks at hand.

"There is still the matter of repairs," Ch'en reminded her, "Those cannot be neglected."

Amiya nodded and began to count off on her fingers. "So the list of things we have to do include: repairing damaged sections of Rhodes Island, restoring mobility, retrieving crystal and soil samples, and surveying the land. We will also need operators to examine the Rift Reactor, to see if we can understand how it functions and whether we can repair it."

"Restoring our mobility is still the most important task," Ch'en stated, "We don't know the combat capabilities of the creatures that live here - for all we know, the wolves may only be the weakest. We need to be able to retreat, if necessary."

"I have to disagree," the Doctor argued, "Getting samples of the crystals should be most important. Development of an Originium substitute won't be instantaneous, and there's no guarantee that the substitute will be as effective as actual Originium. We need to make our Originium reserves last."

"That may be a concern in a week, but the monsters can attack at any moment. If we are overrun here and cannot move, then we are finished."

"A small team of our operators already handled those wolves with ease," the Doctor shot back, "Anything capable of threatening us would have to be several magnitudes higher to-"

"Wait, wait, wait! Hold on!" Amiya interjected, "There's no need to argue. We have enough operators to do both, and then some."

"That's... true."

"Very well."

"Alright." Amiya let out a sigh of relief, crisis had been averted. Now, to figure out their game plan. Usually, she had Kal'tsit offering advice, but while the Doctor probably would not be able to help, Ch'en should be at least somewhat familiar with dividing tasks in an organization, having served as head of the Lungmen Guard Department's Special Inspection Unit. "This is what we'll do. We'll send three teams to collect samples, as well as four squads to survey the land. We'll also have three squads dedicated to fixing Rhodes' wheels. Our research and development branch will work on the Rift Reactor, and once the crystal samples are retrieved, the Originium substitute as well. The rest will work in teams to repair the damaged areas within Rhodes Island. We'll have operators working outside switch with operators working on interior repairs, to give returning operators a chance to rest. We'll tweak things a bit, but that's the general outline. Is that a good balance?"

Rhodes had many operators - roughly 500. But even with most operators having been called back to handle the security required of Pramanix's visit and the transfer of the Rift Reactor, many operators had still been in the field when they were transported. Now, their numbers were around 300.

At Rhodes, a "team" was three to five people, while a "squad" was at ten to twelve - usually of three or four teams. If they followed the plan Amiya outlined, there would be slightly less than 100 operators sent outside to investigate. The research and development branch consisted of 50 or so operators. Thus, the remaining half of the operators would be assigned to work on reopening damaged sections of Rhodes and to be on standby if necessary.

"It is acceptable." Ch'en gave her approval. "I see you have experience."

The Doctor, however, shook his head.

"What about managing food and keeping our medical wings open? There must be people to prepare food and care for anyone who is injured while at work. We also have operators like Specter who need constant attention."

Amiya completely forgot about that! She had been too focused on getting everything done. "Then we'll instead reallocate..." She thought for a bit. "forty or so operators from interior repairs to keep Rhodes running. They'll be in charge of maintaining the complex, preparing food, and providing medical care."

The Doctor nodded. "Okay. That's the only thing I noticed. Well done."

Amiya smiled. "Alright, then. That's the end of our impromptu meeting, then."

"No, wait," Ch'en stopped her, "There is still one more thing to address."

Amiya tilted her head in confusion. "What is it?"

"You need to address how you will treat operators that don't serve full time. Operators such as myself, and those from Penguin Logistics and Blacksteel Worldwide," Ch'en reminded her.

Rhodes Island had employed operators from various other organizations. These other organizations, such as Kjerag, Penguin Logistics, and Blacksteel Worldwide, had lent them operators, but said operators technically were not Rhodes Island employees, and their time with Rhodes Island was supposed to be temporary.

"We were also brought into this mess as well. I assume you still want us to work with you? Then we need to determine the nature of our contract. Will we be required to work the same amount as full time operators? Will we be paid while under your employ? Will you kick out those that refuse to work? These are questions you have to answer."

"And the refugees," the Doctor added absentmindedly, as if talking to himself, "We do still have people we rescued from Chernobog... what'll we do with them? I guess I just assumed we'd keep them around."

"I-, um, I'm thinking about it. Give me some time. All I can say for certain is that we won't kick anyone out. Rhodes never leaves anyone behind. Other than that... we'll do our best to come up with a fair answer that satisfies everyone. So please, Madam Ch'en, work with us." She ended her request with a small bow. That was how Lungmen customs worked, right?

Ch'en's eyes narrowed as she stared into Amiya's own. After a brief moment, she turned away. "That's the best promise I can get, I suppose. In return, I can assure you that until we return home, the Lungmen operators are willing to lend a hand, as long as you keep searching for a way back. It is in our mutual interests to get back quickly, after all, and at the moment, you are our most reliable ally." And with that, she exited the control room, the sliding door closing shut behind her with a woosh.

"I should be going too." The Doctor also turned to leave. "I'll be back to arrange the teams. We'll also talk about how we'll resolve the issue of contracted operators and the refugees then, alright?"

"Wait!" Amiya managed to squeeze out, "Is it okay if I walked with you?"

"Hm? Don't you have other work?"

"Not really." The assignment of roles was really the only thing she had to do at the moment.

"Alright, then. Let's pay those geologists a visit, get all the roles assigned, and then turn in for the night. We can announce everything tomorrow. It's already late, and when we're done, it'll probably be past midnight. No one's going to be awake then, are they?"

Echo was pretty sure they weren't supposed to be awake past midnight.

Nor were Vigna and Mousse supposed to be playing music at this ungodly time of night, and Sora just straight up wasn't supposed to be in their room. Echo honestly didn't mind, except this meant she had to use her Arts to soundproof the room. Which, in turn, meant she had to stay awake with them. Echo's Arts could bounce noises, mute sounds, and make a tune come from multiple places at once, but she couldn't magically make them stop.

The dorm had two bunk beds, enough for four people. Echo shared the dorm with Mousse, Vigna, and Manticore, though since Manticore was both quiet and preferred to stay invisible, it was as if there were only three people. Echo shared one a bed with Mousse, with her on the top bunk and Mousse on the bottom.

Currently, Vigna was giving Mousse another one of her lesson on the guitar, the cat girl trying to listen attentively to every word the red-haired demon said. Unfortunately, Echo could tell she was distracted by Sora, who stood slightly to the side and commented every now and then. If Echo remembered correctly, Mousse was a fan of Sora, who was an idol back in Terra. It was a small world, apparently.

All of them were still dressed in their standard gear. For Vigna, that meant a white button-up shirt, shorts, and a sleeveless jacket. For Sora, a skirt and a white shirt with a vest over it. And for both Mousse and Echo, dark blue coat-like dresses with frills.

The similarities between Echo's and Mousse's outfits were no coincidence. Someone had remarked that Mousse and Echo looked like a palette swap, both sporting the same medium-length hair style, similar faces, and even the same cat ears, with the only difference being that Echo had black hair, dark green eyes, and one tail, compared to Mousse's yellow-and-brown hair, lighter green eyes, and two tails. They had joked that if the two wore the same clothes and one of them dyed their hair, they'd be indistinguishable. After a dare from Vigna, Echo really had changed her wardrobe and dyed her hair.

They really had confused a lot of people. Though it was also funny to know that Lancet and Castle instantly knew what was going on even when everyone else was running around like chickens with their heads cut off.

At any rate, though the hair dye had eventually washed out, Echo had kept the clothes. They were at least more practical than her previous clothes.

...No one talked about her previous clothes. She'd claw anyone who did. That was a time of shame, of deep embarrassment.

"U-Um," she tried to speak, but the other three didn't seem to hear her.

"So you see, you need to put your right hand here to play G."

"Uh-huh!"

"And then run the pick over the string."

A single note resounded within the room as Mousse strummed the guitar. "Okay! I got it."

"Great job, Mousse!" Sora cheered. Mousse turned pink at the praise from the idol.

"Th-Thank you!"

"Let's bring it to the top. Try to play the short song I taught you."

"Okay!"

"U-Um," Echo tried again, "G-Guys? I think we-"

She was interrupted when Mousse began to strum. "L-Like this?"

"That was good! Keep going."

Mousse continued to play the melody. It was a simple melody of 16 notes, but when she finished, she looked as proud as if she had played Canon in D Major. Echo was also proud of her, but really would have preferred if they did this during the day and not now. "Was that okay?"

"Yup! Could use a little work, but if you remember those notes you played, that'll help with a bunch of other songs." Vigna grinned. "Ready to move on?"

"Okay!"

"Then for our next song... Hey, Sora, whaddya think?"

"Hmm... maybe something from one of your books? I think she's ready for that"

"Maybe. Okay! Got it." Vigna shuffled around in a bag by her bed before pulling out a thin book labeled "Learning with Music: Guitar Level 1" and flipping to the middle.

"Um-" Echo managed.

"Nah, too easy." Vigna then flipped towards the back. "Ah, this might be closer. Try this!"

"A-Are you sure? It looks a little hard..."

"I'm sure. Once I teach you to read the notes - which should be easy peasy - you'll find that it's a breeze!"

Echo had enough. "Guys!" she yelled. Or so she did in her head. On the outside, what came out was a slightly louder "Guys?" that still failed to get their attention. So she turned to an old, tried and true method.

"Guys?" The voice was just as quiet, but with her Arts active, she sent the whisper straight into their ears, causing them all to jump.

"Oi, Echo!" Vigna complained, "I told you to stop doing that! It feels weird!"

"O-Oh, sorry. Didn't mean to-" Wait, no, she wasn't sorry, and she definitely did mean to do that! "Wait, no, I mean..."

Sora opened her mouth to speak, but Vigna stopped her. "Echo, what is it? Spit it out."

Chance!

"I, um, I think we should go to sleep now. I-It's pretty late, and I think we might have work tomorrow. Um, if that's okay...?" No, wait, don't ask if it's okay! Be more assertive!

As Echo mentally scoded herself, Vigna rolled her eyes but nevertheless turned to the other two. "You heard her. How about it?" Vigna asked Sora and Mousse, "Wanna turn in for the night?"

"Nah, Exusiai always sleeps late, and Texas always stays up with her," Sora proclaimed as she stretched her arms, "I can keep going!"

Mousse seemed to be a different story. "If you want me to keep going, um, I can. But..."

"Fine, fine. Sorry, Sora, but it looks like we're stopping now." Mousse handed over the guitar, and Vigna put it back in its case. "Do you want me to walk with you to your room?"

"Sure! It always feels weird to walk around Rhodes Island alone at night. When there's no one around... things just feel really creepy, you know what I mean?"

"Yeah, it's like any one of those horror movies could happen in real life. Like in 'the Scream,' when-" Vigna closed the case. "-Gale was-" she paused, then seemingly realized that she and Sora were in a room with three introverts that couldn't even handle a jump scare. With another sigh, she stood up. "Come on, we can keep talking on the way to your room."

"Huh? Sure then."

And with that, the two of them left the room, leaving just Mousse, Echo, and Manticore - oh, so Manticore was in the room the whole time. Situated on top of the other bed and already in her pajamas, she peered over the edge, as if checking if they had actually gone. Once she confirmed it, she promptly buried herself in her sheets.

"Erm..." Echo glanced over at Mousse. There was only one bathroom per room, after all, and both of them needed to get ready to sleep.

"You can go first," Mousse offered quietly. Echo nodded and headed to the bathroom to brush her teeth.

As she did so, she couldn't help but wonder what tomorrow might bring.

One did not usually consider the (planned) destruction of the human race something to be happy about.

Salem was not most people.

From her castle in the Grimmlands, she gave the orders that would lead to the eventual destruction of humanity. As she stood on the balcony, she gazed off in the direction that she knew Vale was.

She couldn't see Vale, of course. Though she had powerful magic, even she could not see across entire continents without some preparation. She didn't need to see that far, though. She already knew Ozpin would be training his warriors and Cinder would be putting her plans in motion.

Two years. That would be all it took for Vale to fall.

"Oh?" A small crow-like bird approached her, and she raised a finger for it to perch on. "What does my nevermore have for me today?"

The bird gave a series of chirps, though Salem understood every word.

"My, that is interesting. Humans are trying to establish a settlement on our land?" Slowly, very slowly, a smile crept onto her face. "It's only fair that they receive an audience with their queen."

Rhodes Island Files

Originium

A material found in the aftermath of a Catastrophe, Originium serves as the primary fuel source of all technology on Terra. It powers everything, from everyday appliances such as lights and telephones to combat gear, such as guns and missiles. It is also used to power special abilities called Arts (see Arts, pg. 5), who's users are called Casters, though most Infected (see Oripathy, pg. 4) use the Originium within their own bodies instead. Refined Originium is called Originite Prime, or often shortened to just Originite. There also exists a less concentrated and impure version of Originium, called Orundum, which works serves as an excellent conductor in appliances. Most Casters prefer to use Orundum to fuel their Arts, as Originite is too dangerous.

Originium is primarily obtained from Catastrophes (see Catastrophes, pg. 2). Catastrophes are the only renewable source of pure Originium, and due to their dangerous nature, Originium, in all of its forms, is expensive and difficult to obtain. Since large amounts of exposure to Originium may cause Oripathy (see Oripathy, pg. 4), most nations chose to avoid areas that have been struck by Catastrophes for years. Pure Originium may also be obtained by mining, as there are Catastrophe sites that have not been discovered and were eventually buried by time, the Originium still intact and waiting to be found.

Though battles have been fought over Originium-infested grounds, cities themselves continue to avoid such areas. As we have learned from the unfortunate Messina incident, it is unsafe to situate cities over such grounds, even if there are walls and such, for it is near impossible to completely block the effects of Originium with regular walls. The city of Messina discovered this when the whole city became infected with Oripathy in a week. Often times, a group is sent out from the city to collect the Originium, where it can be stored in appropriate containers, ensuring that citizens are exposed as little as possible.

Before it can be used, Originium is first refined into Originite Prime. In this form, pure Originite is kept in small, special containers, and used as batteries for appliances. Due to the massive amount of power contained in Originite, most small Originite-powered tools, such smoke alarms, may last years, or even decades, before requiring replacement. However, the engines required to move cities and the use of Arts and larger devices expend much more energy, and thus need more frequent replacement. Still, most Arts do not expend much energy, and under the Werg's Principle, it is impossible for an Infected to cure their Oripathy by attempting to use up all the Originium in their body. The spread of Originium in an Infected will always outpace any attempt to use it all.

It is possible to artificially produce Originium, but the result is impure and instead called Orundum. Orundum may be produced in factories, but the process is inefficient and not usually worth the time. In cases of Oripathy (see Oripathy, pg. 4), the death of an Infected results in their body crystallizing into Orundum, making it possible to farm the bodies of the Infected. A few nations used to follow this practice, until it was banned under the Third Terranian Accord, deemed unethical. It appears even politicians have standards.