Journey to Pan'Dha, Part Two

'The Future' was going to break up, our careers and destinies dictated by Tau'va, as it should be. Yet I couldn't help but feel a pang of regret as I realised my comrades, who had been part of my life for so long, would probably see me or each other again. I knew this was the way of things in our society, and these emotions would pass but still I savoured them a while. We had a party to celebrate our new lives, and to mark our parting. It was a lively affair, full of debates and discussion. It had an undercurrent of sadness, as iwe played out the last chapter in our time.

My posting was of little interest in comparison with more exotic roles such an AI specialist to T'ros, gloriously added to the Tau'va, and many of our group to the homeworld, as if some great hidden enterprise was unfolding, sucking in the best and brightest.

And so it ended.

I was packed and ready at that point, and had been for days. The waiting was irritating, I had no fixed project to spend my energies on, and little indication of the time frame of my journey to Pan'Dha. The correspondence I had received stated bluntly to wait until called. And so I did.

It was surprising then, as I thought my time wouldn't come, when a young Fire Caste warrior called at my quarters. 

"You are to come with me, I assume you are packed?"

Her voice was firm and invited action.

"Yes ma'am, I ready."

"Please follow me."

She didn't seem to have time for academics, especially young and unproven ones such as myself. She was an intelligence officer, it was about the only information I could extract and even that was implied.

Our journey to the space port was quiet and uneventful. She piloted the simple transport and I sat in the back. I had work to do on my database... adding relationships, refining linkages, adding notes, pulling in new sources of information. Finally near the end, as the Space Port came into view she asked:

"I see you're busying yourself, personal project?"

I wasn't expecting her question, I betrayed my shock my jumping a little in my seat.

"Yes, its a database on Pan'Dha, I'm collating all available sources to begin analysing it's socio-historical background and putative trends."

There was a pride in my voice, and why not? This thoroughness was why was top of the class. Her response was surprising to say the least.

"An interesting approach, I think that's why they picked you. I had to read your work on xenos integration and the caste system, I see how you began that line of thought. That was good work."
"What? Are you in the Pan'Dha military? Who are 'They'?"
"All will be answered in due course. We're here"

Journey to Pan'Dha, Part One

Allow me to introduce myself, I am Suo'Khu. An unusual name but I digress. My past is not important in this tale but some needs to shared. I was a young student of Social Science, as part of the General Institutes, a group of educational institutes in Southern Bork'an. There was a group of us, high achieving students.

We called ourselves 'The Future". We were full of ourselves. Top marks across the spectrum, some like my self social scientists, others economists, AI specialists, engineers and even an astro-physicist. We rampaged across academic events on Bork'an like a Tidal Wave of youth and vigour. We all were in the same academic year, and graduated all within the space of a month. We awaited our assignments in the Empire. Some hoped for frontier postings, assisting in the expansion of the Empire. Others wanted to be posted to homeworld for top level research.

Pan'Dha is an insignificant outpost of the Tau Empire in the "northeast", and so it was with trepidation that I was assigned there. So insignificant I had never heard of it. Me, a recent graduate of the Bork'an Central Academy of Social Science, an educated member of society, ME! Suo'Khu!

Of course I immediately began investigating my destination  My initial research on the planet was only slightly less discouraging than my initial prejudice. I shall summarize here several available reports:

"A small observation outpost established at the close of the Second Sphere expansion, Pan'Dha - a moon of Dasak III, is neither ideal for our race in terms of habitability nor on established trade routes. As such it had a small population and limited importance, interesting only to Marine Xeno-biologists. This has changed in recent years due to breakthroughs in agricultural production of local sea plants, and in increased hydrocarbon extraction."

An isolated backwater, full of farmers and miners. I was to join the faculty at 'the' local educational institute and teach part-time while I documented local history and culture. There was only ONE educational centre on the whole planet! Of course, the Greater Good demanded it and I would obey, but I resented the sideways step my career was taking.

However deeper investigations began to pique my interest. More recently established colonies, when researched using academic libraries, have extensive volumes of socio-historical data and analyses. For example Fi'rios has two comprehensive and updated sets of social and linguistic trend data, which are analysed in the Bau'na series of journals. Pan'Dha has nothing. There a few scattered essays, the latest of which was14 years old, not to mention the poor methodology of its own research and poor referencing. My own work is far more thorough and rigorous. Perhaps I could begin a new journal, with myself as editor?

"The Pan'Dha Journal of Social Science, edited by Suo'Khu"

A scintillating thought. I began to see the wisdom in the guidance of the Tau'va and fully committed myself to my post.

 Naturally what was available was now safely stored in my personal archive. Already, I began to construct a database collating all available data and began requesting works on frontier worlds, even marine biology and hydrocarbon extraction - if it was important to Pan'Dha, it would become important to me.

Tau Update

I haven't posted in a while, having been busy with a tranche of my old models from my youth I found in my parents attic. In partiular some Space Marines, which included a Tactical Sqaud in metal, 4 plastic terminators and a Chaplain in Terminator armour. These have been stripped using the dettol method, and repainted as "The Swords of Midnight". Having worn myself out on these Gue'la warriors of repute, I got the urge to continue with the Cadre.

A thread on ATT inspired me, which detailed the creation of an all drone army. Accordingly I customised one spare gun drone so that instead of twin linked pulse carbines, it has one Pulse Rifle and an attachment indicating it's different configuration and role. I intend to run it as the Commander's personal drone, in addition to another similar customised drone. This is of course highly fluffy and not in the Codex, but it seems to fit the background.

Ten or so FireWarriors need basing and finishing so they are a priority once the custom "Rifle Drone" is finished. I also plan to finally attach the landing gear to the devilfish.

It feels good to be back paying attention to the Tau, there's just somehing about them. Even moreso the recent finecast releases open the way to more conversion opportunites. Happy Days.