Star Pawns

What if everything you ever knew, everything you ever were and intended to be, was little more than a small insect stuck to a windshield, waiting to be scraped off?

It is the middle of the 21st century, and Humanity dreams of ruling the stars. They have even begun to colonize nearby planetoids, such as the Moon and Mars. How cute.

Then, without warning or provocation, two massive interstellar war fleets appear on opposing ends of our star system. The one introduces itself as the Galactic Defense Force; the other, as the Zed. From both we learn that our small home is now caught amidst a vast intergalactic struggle for power, which has stretched on for aeons, and consumed countless worlds.

Both sides proclaim their peaceful intentions. Both seek diplomatic relations, asking for territorial concessions, and cautioning the beings of Earth not to trust their opponents. And both warn of punitive consequences should their envoys be turned away.

What decision should we make? Does it even matter? Or is it a simple formality? Whatever our choice, and whatever becomes of our species and our world, this day will be forever remembered as one in which we awoke as masters of our own destiny, only to slumber in humble insignificance and defeat.

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