getfeldsparred | TLV Inbox

“That’s just the bramble. It’s hard to explain - like a mass of parasitic, thorny vines with these seeds that tend to warp time and space. A seed found its way into the core of the planet and grew and grew.”

"Your system evolved in such an odd way. It's captivating."

He frowns. "I don't know much about the other planets in our system."

“So I’ve learned. I guess the physics work differently where I’m from, who knows?”

He glances towards Sym. “You were concentrating on your own planet. Hard to look outwards if you have to keep constantly maintaining where you are.”

"Our directive was for Vertumna," he agrees. "But I'm not certain that is the entire reason."

Huh. Feldspar cocks their head. “Whaddya mean?”

He smiles, waving it off. "I just wonder if we did get entirely too focused on our own planet. And, if it was different, would we have noticed the Earthlings' arrival."

“Managing a planet’s a pretty big responsibility,” Feldspar smiles. “But you’ve lost me. Eartlings? Humans, you mean?

"Yes," he nods. "But I do like to specify since there are some who look human and might call themselves human but who are not from Earth. They are from other planets. Apparently humans are quite prolific."

“Oh. Yeah, I guess that makes sense too. I’ve met some people who’ve traveled through space, so it wouldn’t be so far fetched to think humans have wound up on other planets.”

Feldspar frowns. “So Earthlings came to your planet?”

"Yes," he nods, looking past Feldspar. "They appeared in the sky one day, out of the wormhole. Landed on our planet. Well - crashed, really."

“Woah ho. Aliens crash-landed on your planet. That’s pretty wild.”

Sounds like something they would do.

"They were meant to land on it nicely, but - well, it was all doomed from the start," he laughs.

“What do you mean, doomed from the start?”

He shifts a little. "Ah. They crash landed and then - well, we began extermination procedures."

Feldspar frowns.

“To wipe them out? The earthlings? Why…?”

"Because they threatened the planet," he explains with a bit of a sigh. "The first thing they did was begin to strip down the planet's resources to build their colony. They brought in their exotic seeds and tried to plant them in the soil. They brought their bacteria and viruses with no regard for the local wildlife. What else were we to think other than they were - pests to be controlled?"

They don’t understand. Sym seems to admire and respect all living things, so to want to exterminate a whole species sounds…out of character.

But if the humans came along and started destroying the planet, what was Sym to think and do?

“I don’t understand, why would they do all that? It’s not their planet.”

"That is the nature of humanity, I've found. There are those who are different, of course. Those who care and who can be taught. But as a whole, they - don't seem to understand. They carry a great sense of entitlement about the land. But...I didn't agree. I didn't agree when the Overseer and the other Gardeners began to get more aggressive with their tactics. Making the place inhospitable in retaliation for cutting down the trees seemed like the right thing to do. Reward them when they worked with the planet. That's what I proposed. But - I was outnumbered. And threatened with erasure."

Feldspar falls silent, their expression soft and solemn. It’s not often they let themself get this way, but they’re humbled by what Sym is sharing with them.

“So what happened?” they ask gently. “Is that…why you’re here? To escape the erasure?”

"No," he says and there's a bit of relief in his tone. "No, they made a deal with the humans. If the humans don't hold their side of it, there isn't much more I can do. That's why I'm here. To save humans and - perhaps escape erasure."

“That’s a lot of pressure,” they say sympathetically. They’re sincere too, recognizing how much Sym must have on his computer-generated shoulders. They understand that kind of pressure, even if their own experiences were never life or death or really even significant.

His smile is fond. "Yes, but I think we all carry the same sorts of burdens." He tilts his head as he watches Feldspar significantly.

They raise their shoulders with a quiet smile. “Maybe. Some folks are more burdened than others though.”

"I know," he says gently, then glances to the screen. "Do you want to watch a little more?"

Feldspar nods, almost a little too eagerly. “Yeah, I do. I want to see what their forests are like.”

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agardener - 2026-02-06 03:39 (UTC) - Expand

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