Finally a story written with real maturity that understands how actual politics and war works. One that knows what the real costs are and not some teen drama level bs like 99% of them. A true gem of story with the best understanding of morality in unrestricted warfare.
A Story about Humanity and the lingering darkness in every single human who had ever lived and will live in the aeons to come. Unspoken War-crimes as the last straw of hope to end a war before going extinct - Humanity would do it. Humanity would crack planets and burn out entire stars - hell Humanity would forge Black Holes if necessary to end a war.
Idk bro we can't even commit to a new international space station or a permanent base on the moon, we're probably gonna nuke each other into oblivion and the only thing aliens will find is a layer of plastic in the soil. Maybe calm down with the whole intergalactic war crimes lmao
_"I do this not to kill Billions... But to save Quadrillions. My humanity is my sacrifice so they may live"._ ~Cpt. Kyte~ [Unofficial Proto-Inquisitor of the Ordo Xenos]
"Igitur qui desiderat pacem, paeparet bellum" works too ("May he who desires peace, prepare for war.") The above is where "Si vis pacem, para bellum" originates from I believe.
Now that’s a great story. I was hoping that the Captain started some type of personal relationship with his lawyer. She seemed nice and was almost certainly the only being that understood him. Is it fair to say ‘It’s better to be judged by 12, than to be carried by 6.’
incredibly well written, i loved it from start to finish. interesting perspective of a guardian with a dark past born not of hate but of desperation to survive. amazing story that i wish for more people to see
We taught them the same lesson we are learning the hard way. There needs to be a better option. Survival of one's body demands hard choices, survival of one's soul demands a better way.
@@TheGoIsWin21 capability isn't the problem, it's the willingness that is the problem. Willingness to indulge in, or use a tools, those malfactors. Otherwise, your point stands.
This story reminded me of the belief I had a half century ago, that our future could be a deeper understanding of ourselves and our place on this brilliant blue marble. Thank you for reminding me of what I have lost from a more hopeful time.
Simply amazing. This story is so brutal, so real, I could almost believe it actually happened, and truly, even thought this is a story about humans, the humans in it are not anything special. Sure, they are fast to adapt, they are strong, and smart, but in that tribunal hall everyone understood that while looking at Humanity, they just looked inside of themselves. An introspective of their nature, of everyone's nature.
Reminds me of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. The Jedi who left to fight in the Mandolorian War were branded heretics and villains by some, saviors and heroes by others, especially given how that war ended, using a device that literally ripped a planet into pieces, an act that, since it used the Force to power it, caused the fall of almost every Jedi there. That said, this was the same sort of choice, and without the threat of a metaphysical thing behind it to corrupt people. This was the story of a man faced with no way to save his people, without becoming a monster, and he chose that path, if not willingly, then at least knowingly, since it was the only one that would see them as anything other than thralls or lessers. I'm still curious about the Council. Again, this sort of alliance of bastards really doesn't bode well for the future dealings. They would condemn what one race does to survive, without condemning those who put them to it until they're forced to confront it, as there's almost no way anyone who knew what he'd done, wouldn't know at least SOME of what happened to drive him to it. A really good scene and setting, thank you for sharing.
"...I must remind you that it is an undeniable, and may I say a fundamental quality of man, that when faced with extinction, every alternative is preferable." - The Director, Red vs. Blue
This is powerfully written, almost quixotic in its hope that moral ambiguity would hold so powerful a watch over the galaxy that no other species dared step out of line too far.
14:34 Did I hear that right? Were ther actually some aliens who wanted Humanity disarmed? 😂😂😂😂 We can't even disarm ourselves without risking a war. I would love to see how any of these xenos would even try that.
Thank you for this tale. Few who haven't been there can understand the true costs paid by the soldier who does the killing. Rarely does the soldier forget those his actions ended. They haunt his memories until the day he dies, and his regrets for the violence he was a part of are echoed in his dying breath.
A beautiful story of twists, and turns and different takes on morality. Incredibly thought provoking and makes you wonder, can atrocities or monstrous acts like kytes ever truly be forgiven or forgotten if it's in the name of self defense in the face of overwhelming odds and extermination?
This hit hard. The thing is, every conscious being might be like this. Calculating and brutal when cornered. War would be devastating if this is the case
You gotta do voices. Nothing crazy but slight variety between characters. The voices make it more immersive media than an “audio book” First time here, looking for an addition to ASN. Thanks for the great story and great voice
@@TheH8redd I do wish there was more voice direction. like yelling, with great clarity, slurring, anger, bemusment, etc They are pretty good now for with content like this tbh What are somethings you find lacking now?
This is reminiscent of the original style of Sci Fi. An exploration of what might be, of what could be, an exploration of what the limit of understanding is weighed against what we are ultimately able to do about it or willingness to become.
Just wanted to say thanks for the captions, I’ve got pretty severe hearing loss and they make it so that I don’t have to have my iPad’s volume all the way up! Really appreciate it!
@@StarboundHFY Will do! And if you ever need a North American character voice I’d be happy to donate my time! 😋 trying to knock it off my bucket list haha
You say that, but look again at human history and scale it down to burning cities, scattering the ashes and salting the soil. If there isn’t a monster contained inside you that will fight back with no regard for rules, you will eventually be eaten. If humanity didn’t contain such a monster we would have gone e tincture long before we ever achieved the Stone Age. The monster is not to be celebrated. Recognize it, contain it, but know that someday you will either have to unleash it or die. That’s the lesson the aliens learned but wanted to pretend they were above. That’s why, when things got really scary, they sent humans in instead of going in themselves. What will you do when things get really scary, pretend there’s no monster within you and hope there’s someone else that will unleash theirs to save you, or take the fearsome responsibility yourself?
Lizard race, bear race, insectoid race, galactic council.. This gives me VERY strong Master of Orion 1 vibes. Wonder which of these 2 pieces came first and if one was an inspiration for the other?
Sometimes there is the danger that if you have to use any means necessary to survive you will lose your soul in the process. And if you use inhuman means your original ends are replaced by the means you use because our means always become our actual culture.
Put any sane mind that can fathom true horror through that horror, and there is no telling what they might become. Survival is more often than not something where you don't have the luxury of morals. Ultimately, I would place the blame with the hand that forced this shift to happen. Edit: So, I listened to this video again and thought over what I said. Maybe the mind that twists into the necessary monster first is the one that can't imagine it ever happening...
Sounds like Kyte opened up the entire galaxy towards planet cracking from the strongest powers. Survival for a moment but death in the long run for who he was and everyone around him.
yup, when everything is at stake, nothing is held back. When it's not about how many, but if we survive in freedom, there is no such thing as a forbidden weapon, even if we have to crush spacetime itself around them like tin foil.
Most of the issue is the xeno's inability to see humanity in any other way out side of their own narrow minded schizophrenic paranoiac prejudges fear's. They gave into all their abnormal xeno fears which killed their minds and a ability to be rational beings.
How did they end up blaming a Captain for the decisions of his human leaders? It makes no sense? I suppose in the future perhaps a captain could be the senior military leader and this author never thought to address this inconsistency, perhaps, but I just don't think they even realized. Where were all of these alien groups doing during this war? Who are they to judge, if they feel legally they can judge then they must also be held accountable for allowing first the Xill to commit genocide against humans and then for humans to commit genocide against the Xill. War is hell and the armed forces are a broad sword not a delicate diplomatic tool, a flower child. In a war of survival, anything goes or simply accept extinction. I also don't think the author understands the meaning of the word toxic.
Great story. 5/5 Narration: 3/5 Humans pause at the end of sentences. The AI used to narrate this needs a 150-250 millisecond pause at the end. This narrated like a single run-on sentence. The voice was great with mild tonal inflections and the mild english accent but it just never "took a breath".
Finally a story written with real maturity that understands how actual politics and war works. One that knows what the real costs are and not some teen drama level bs like 99% of them.
A true gem of story with the best understanding of morality in unrestricted warfare.
10th like
Umm . . . check out The 3 Body Problem by Cixin Liu to understand ultimate politics. This is still childish drama.
@@raymondwall8187Dark Forest is Doomer Blackpill wankery.
Every fifth sentence is about how unique and special humans are. How is that not a childish fantasy?
@@rumenkostov7949 that's kinda the core conciet of "HFY" - "Humanity, Fuck Yeah"
Tyranids "Finally! WE FEAST!"
Council: "Release. The Humans."
A Story about Humanity and the lingering darkness in every single human who had ever lived and will live in the aeons to come. Unspoken War-crimes as the last straw of hope to end a war before going extinct - Humanity would do it. Humanity would crack planets and burn out entire stars - hell Humanity would forge Black Holes if necessary to end a war.
Remember kids. It's never a war crime the first time
Idk bro we can't even commit to a new international space station or a permanent base on the moon, we're probably gonna nuke each other into oblivion and the only thing aliens will find is a layer of plastic in the soil. Maybe calm down with the whole intergalactic war crimes lmao
😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊
😊😊😅😅
Lmao y'all deleted my comment about maybe slowing down with genocidal fantasies, sorry didn't mean to interrupt your dorks jo session 😂
_"I do this not to kill Billions... But to save Quadrillions. My humanity is my sacrifice so they may live"._
~Cpt. Kyte~ [Unofficial Proto-Inquisitor of the Ordo Xenos]
Kripman would have been proud!
Numbers don't tell anything about souls.
An all too rare 'intelligent' command of language in these times.
Fascinating story. Thought-provoking also.
Thank you.
Humanity first prime directives of war: NEVER kill the messenger.
Welcome to M.A.D.
And " the savage wars of peace"
And "vis pacem para bellum"
"Igitur qui desiderat pacem, paeparet bellum" works too ("May he who desires peace, prepare for war.")
The above is where "Si vis pacem, para bellum" originates from I believe.
Now that’s a great story. I was hoping that the Captain started some type of personal relationship with his lawyer. She seemed nice and was almost certainly the only being that understood him.
Is it fair to say ‘It’s better to be judged by 12, than to be carried by 6.’
incredibly well written, i loved it from start to finish. interesting perspective of a guardian with a dark past born not of hate but of desperation to survive. amazing story that i wish for more people to see
We taught them the same lesson we are learning the hard way. There needs to be a better option. Survival of one's body demands hard choices, survival of one's soul demands a better way.
As long as beings are capable of cruelty, malice, or apathy, preserving the one might require the sacrifice of the other.
@@TheGoIsWin21 capability isn't the problem, it's the willingness that is the problem. Willingness to indulge in, or use a tools, those malfactors. Otherwise, your point stands.
This story reminded me of the belief I had a half century ago, that our future could be a deeper understanding of ourselves and our place on this brilliant blue marble. Thank you for reminding me of what I have lost from a more hopeful time.
What an awesome story and a great cautionary morality tale embedded within...
10th like
Simply amazing. This story is so brutal, so real, I could almost believe it actually happened, and truly, even thought this is a story about humans, the humans in it are not anything special. Sure, they are fast to adapt, they are strong, and smart, but in that tribunal hall everyone understood that while looking at Humanity, they just looked inside of themselves. An introspective of their nature, of everyone's nature.
Reminds me of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. The Jedi who left to fight in the Mandolorian War were branded heretics and villains by some, saviors and heroes by others, especially given how that war ended, using a device that literally ripped a planet into pieces, an act that, since it used the Force to power it, caused the fall of almost every Jedi there.
That said, this was the same sort of choice, and without the threat of a metaphysical thing behind it to corrupt people. This was the story of a man faced with no way to save his people, without becoming a monster, and he chose that path, if not willingly, then at least knowingly, since it was the only one that would see them as anything other than thralls or lessers.
I'm still curious about the Council. Again, this sort of alliance of bastards really doesn't bode well for the future dealings. They would condemn what one race does to survive, without condemning those who put them to it until they're forced to confront it, as there's almost no way anyone who knew what he'd done, wouldn't know at least SOME of what happened to drive him to it.
A really good scene and setting, thank you for sharing.
Revan blowing up Malachor 5 with Mass shadow generators:
[He planned it.]
"...I must remind you that it is an undeniable, and may I say a fundamental quality of man, that when faced with extinction, every alternative is preferable." - The Director, Red vs. Blue
This is powerfully written, almost quixotic in its hope that moral ambiguity would hold so powerful a watch over the galaxy that no other species dared step out of line too far.
14:34 Did I hear that right? Were ther actually some aliens who wanted Humanity disarmed? 😂😂😂😂 We can't even disarm ourselves without risking a war. I would love to see how any of these xenos would even try that.
"Some may question my right to destroy a world of ten billion souls, but those who understand realize I have no right to let them live."
Best example of "humanity first" type of character. Saviour of our species, no matter the cost
Thank you for this tale. Few who haven't been there can understand the true costs paid by the soldier who does the killing. Rarely does the soldier forget those his actions ended. They haunt his memories until the day he dies, and his regrets for the violence he was a part of are echoed in his dying breath.
A beautiful story of twists, and turns and different takes on morality. Incredibly thought provoking and makes you wonder, can atrocities or monstrous acts like kytes ever truly be forgiven or forgotten if it's in the name of self defense in the face of overwhelming odds and extermination?
Forgotten? No. Forgiven? Look at what _some_ humans say now about WW2. It didn't take a century.
@@TheGoIsWin21 forggiven look at isreal imagine being so mad at whites you want them all dead even after they save you from extermination lmao
This hit hard. The thing is, every conscious being might be like this. Calculating and brutal when cornered. War would be devastating if this is the case
You gotta do voices. Nothing crazy but slight variety between characters. The voices make it more immersive media than an “audio book”
First time here, looking for an addition to ASN. Thanks for the great story and great voice
It's narrated by an AI.
@@TheH8redd jesus...what beatiful voice...and it´s a robot..
@@TheH8redd Some TTS support SSML which allows you to wrap the text with markup so you can specify different voices for different sections
@@Waitwhat469Like I care about that. It's still artificial and lifeless. No matter the amount of voice you are using, it will still feel lifeless.
@@TheH8redd I do wish there was more voice direction. like yelling, with great clarity, slurring, anger, bemusment, etc
They are pretty good now for with content like this tbh
What are somethings you find lacking now?
This also sounded like an awesome Stellaris story, glad to read it! Humans are weird... or Space Orcs, take your pick.
Excellent story - much credit to the author & you for reading it.
No need to do voice's - stay as you are 👍
"Milked for tech" this is how you can tell the guy who wrote this is a stellaris player
"NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOPE. Nope. Nuh-uh. Fuck this shit. Fuck that shit. Fuck you, fuck off."
The true bravery was standing, not lying, in a room full of diplomats.
The Commonwealth of Man takes the Become The Crisis tradition and accidentally becomes the galactic custodian.
Leonard Church: It is an undeniable, and may I say fundamental quality of man, that when faced with extinction, every alternative is preferable.
That was a thoroughly interesting and thought provoking story, thankyou writer and narrator. Please keep up the great work. 👍
Glad you enjoyed it!
This is reminiscent of the original style of Sci Fi.
An exploration of what might be, of what could be, an exploration of what the limit of understanding is weighed against what we are ultimately able to do about it or willingness to become.
Ender Wiggin, Speaker for the Dead? Is that you?
Demosthenes
Wow, that was excellent
glad you enjoyed!
>"Survival has fangs, no matter what fangs we *bear* "
- Ursinoid League Representative
This is basically a what if Darth Revan was put on trial for the Mass Shadow Generators he used on Malc. 5.
Just wanted to say thanks for the captions, I’ve got pretty severe hearing loss and they make it so that I don’t have to have my iPad’s volume all the way up! Really appreciate it!
You’re welcome! Let me know if there’s anything else we can do to improve the experience for you :)
@@StarboundHFY Will do! And if you ever need a North American character voice I’d be happy to donate my time! 😋 trying to knock it off my bucket list haha
This would great lore for tv series that isn’t about Star Trek more gray human race in the stars
And then... some backroom GalacNet many aliens learned about the Human's Rule 34... and many were horrified, disgusted... and curious?
The Earth Commander was right. You should never go down without trying to fight back.
glassing worlds with active biospheres is bad enough, but literal planet cracking? unacceptable.
You say that, but look again at human history and scale it down to burning cities, scattering the ashes and salting the soil.
If there isn’t a monster contained inside you that will fight back with no regard for rules, you will eventually be eaten.
If humanity didn’t contain such a monster we would have gone e tincture long before we ever achieved the Stone Age.
The monster is not to be celebrated. Recognize it, contain it, but know that someday you will either have to unleash it or die.
That’s the lesson the aliens learned but wanted to pretend they were above. That’s why, when things got really scary, they sent humans in instead of going in themselves.
What will you do when things get really scary, pretend there’s no monster within you and hope there’s someone else that will unleash theirs to save you, or take the fearsome responsibility yourself?
in 40k its just Tuesday 🥱
Great story with great depth. And I love the long format narration with no background noise or flashing imagery. Thank you
Glad you enjoyed it!
Elias Kyte unwantedly achieved the dreams of every emperor/ leader.
AN IMMORTAL
One of the most chilling HFY Stories I heard so far. Brilliant.
Fun Fact : In German Kite translates into Dragon.
That is was a good story and do what a good sci-fi story should do entertain and make you think
Man... I've listened to a lot of these for fun, this one hit different.
This story would be considered comedy in Warhammer 40 000
Little did they know, while this 'trail' was going on virus bombs entered the atmosphere.
That was truly amazing! Bravo!
A hero, not in the modern sense, of course not. But in the historical sense.
Iָt is easy to condemn a person like Kyte, when you sit relaxed and sure in your peoples survival.
Psychic horror monster: * existing *
Humanity: Hey man, hey man, hey man, let's not do this.
Psychic horror monster: Okay...
Lizard race, bear race, insectoid race, galactic council.. This gives me VERY strong Master of Orion 1 vibes. Wonder which of these 2 pieces came first and if one was an inspiration for the other?
Sometimes there is the danger that if you have to use any means necessary to survive you will lose your soul in the process. And if you use inhuman means your original ends are replaced by the means you use because our means always become our actual culture.
Put any sane mind that can fathom true horror through that horror, and there is no telling what they might become.
Survival is more often than not something where you don't have the luxury of morals. Ultimately, I would place the blame with the hand that forced this shift to happen.
Edit: So, I listened to this video again and thought over what I said. Maybe the mind that twists into the necessary monster first is the one that can't imagine it ever happening...
This story was really well done. I enjoyed it a lot, thank you for posting it.
One of the better stories out there :D
Wow, this is far way better than i expected. Truly a realistic depiction of how politics move around power and utility
An excellent story
This reminds me of Captain Lincoln Stern & Hannover Fist from.Heavy Metal.
"Don't worry Charlie, I've got an angle."
Wow. Painful and mature. Impressive.
Sounds like Kyte opened up the entire galaxy towards planet cracking from the strongest powers.
Survival for a moment but death in the long run for who he was and everyone around him.
Could humans do this, yes, could humanity all agree it's needed, possibly but what a line to cross, uniting humans against you!
Great story!!
Great story 🖖😎👍 Moral of the story. Don't screw with the hairless monkeys from Earth, and if you do so prepare to reap the whirlwind 🌪️🌪️🌪️🌪️.
USA in the back: " Dont touch my damn boats!"
Outstanding story with an excellent understanding of the real cost of war to an individual, country, planet, or even galaxy.
"Survival has fangs"
Rare ... Sad... and make one think. Thinking is good. If people think this ''' I can do this yet should I do this.'''
Excellent.
Thanks for listening!
It takes a monster to stop a monster.
He did not tell him everone we will be here for 10 hours
Great story so different thx
Wow this was so good
yup, when everything is at stake, nothing is held back. When it's not about how many, but if we survive in freedom, there is no such thing as a forbidden weapon, even if we have to crush spacetime itself around them like tin foil.
That was fantastic!
Greatly enjoyed
I'd watch or read a series with this lore/backstory
Great story. Thanks.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Great story, pals. Really Rad I appreciate that. 😎⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Yeah. Growth potential. We expected flying cars by now.
1:19 - alright, what is that guy showing on the right screen from the edge? I assume Earth's greeting to the galactic council
strength is not striking repeatedly but striking true.
simply amazing
to hell with A.I narrations!
When the Geneva convention becomes the Geneva checklist.
Wow! What a story 😲
Pretty good!
Most of the issue is the xeno's inability to see humanity in any other way out side of their own narrow minded schizophrenic paranoiac prejudges fear's. They gave into all their abnormal xeno fears which killed their minds and a ability to be rational beings.
like a university student
How did they end up blaming a Captain for the decisions of his human leaders? It makes no sense? I suppose in the future perhaps a captain could be the senior military leader and this author never thought to address this inconsistency, perhaps, but I just don't think they even realized. Where were all of these alien groups doing during this war? Who are they to judge, if they feel legally they can judge then they must also be held accountable for allowing first the Xill to commit genocide against humans and then for humans to commit genocide against the Xill. War is hell and the armed forces are a broad sword not a delicate diplomatic tool, a flower child. In a war of survival, anything goes or simply accept extinction. I also don't think the author understands the meaning of the word toxic.
Very original, much credit to the author.
A morality play.
It's an abject lesson. Wich maybe should of been It's title.
5th like
the shere stupidity of using such a terrible thumbnail for a story this good
So agreed lmao
Interesting story.
oh ursinoid league, slippin in a play on words
The AI art is ugly, but story was pretty good
i would like to read that story rather than hear it narrated, however i cant find it
Is there a written version anywhere?
Great story. 5/5
Narration: 3/5 Humans pause at the end of sentences. The AI used to narrate this needs a 150-250 millisecond pause at the end. This narrated like a single run-on sentence. The voice was great with mild tonal inflections and the mild english accent but it just never "took a breath".
Dunno about anyone else, but this story kinda got me a bit teary eyed several times.
You're not the only one.
this says 'reddit stories' in the tags but lacks a link to the original text?
That's ok, because redditors are all commies therefore they believe in sharing
This is one of those new "make money with AI channel" schemes...
@@didndido3638ah -.- gotcha
Warcrimes against Aliens is a contradiction in terms.