Prompt 4 - Aliens and the Ringworld
Prompt:
We know there are non-human sentient species, but are they native to the moons? Were they just visitors? Why did they stop building the ringworld? Have they ever been seen?
Answer:
Thousands of years before humanity reached this system, the Native Aliens have always known about the metal world in their system. When they finally set out to explore it they discover a fungus like growth that consumes all their basic probes and remakes them into a metallic (rust) growths. Finally discovering a configuration that will not be immediately consumed they collect a sample of this fungus and bring it on board a space station built specifically to run experiments on the fungus.
It isn't long before they realize this fungus is trying to build something. Every time they feed it, the growths of rust begin to look like something. A ship? A home? With scientific curiosity (and strict containment suits) they begin to feed the fungus more, and more. The metal planet is destroyed and the chunks brought to the station to feed the fungus and the growing ring world.
Unbeknown to them, the fungus was constructed by an old alien civilization. These creator aliens sent the fungus out into the universe to build them homes and signal them once they was ready for them. Because the fungus was self-protecting, in it's spore form it can infect all life forms, even though it does not have intelligence. However, it has a different effect on sentient life. The scientists believe it to be a symbiote improving their health and stamina, not realizing that it influences their thought patterns creating a driving force to complete the ringworld.
Finally the metal planet had been moved chunk by chunk to the station. The ring world is nearly complete but the native aliens have exhausted their resources moving the metal planet and feeding the fungus. Everything they have built in space is sacrificed to building the ringworld, even the scientists, but it is not enough to complete the ring world.
The infected planetary populace still had the spore driving them to "get to space, build the ring". They spent all efforts on finding a nonmetal way to space, to the extent of starving to death due to a lack of farming. They died because they stopped caring about their physical needs. The fungus spores are no longer active on the moons, however... the settlers will soon discover this dangerous fungus in archeological digs. As well as on the ringworld itself.
We know there are non-human sentient species, but are they native to the moons? Were they just visitors? Why did they stop building the ringworld? Have they ever been seen?
Answer:
Thousands of years before humanity reached this system, the Native Aliens have always known about the metal world in their system. When they finally set out to explore it they discover a fungus like growth that consumes all their basic probes and remakes them into a metallic (rust) growths. Finally discovering a configuration that will not be immediately consumed they collect a sample of this fungus and bring it on board a space station built specifically to run experiments on the fungus.
It isn't long before they realize this fungus is trying to build something. Every time they feed it, the growths of rust begin to look like something. A ship? A home? With scientific curiosity (and strict containment suits) they begin to feed the fungus more, and more. The metal planet is destroyed and the chunks brought to the station to feed the fungus and the growing ring world.
Unbeknown to them, the fungus was constructed by an old alien civilization. These creator aliens sent the fungus out into the universe to build them homes and signal them once they was ready for them. Because the fungus was self-protecting, in it's spore form it can infect all life forms, even though it does not have intelligence. However, it has a different effect on sentient life. The scientists believe it to be a symbiote improving their health and stamina, not realizing that it influences their thought patterns creating a driving force to complete the ringworld.
Finally the metal planet had been moved chunk by chunk to the station. The ring world is nearly complete but the native aliens have exhausted their resources moving the metal planet and feeding the fungus. Everything they have built in space is sacrificed to building the ringworld, even the scientists, but it is not enough to complete the ring world.
The infected planetary populace still had the spore driving them to "get to space, build the ring". They spent all efforts on finding a nonmetal way to space, to the extent of starving to death due to a lack of farming. They died because they stopped caring about their physical needs. The fungus spores are no longer active on the moons, however... the settlers will soon discover this dangerous fungus in archeological digs. As well as on the ringworld itself.
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