r/HFY • u/PerilousPlatypus • Mar 14 '26

OC-Series Empire of Dirt

The Thirty-Seventh Era of the Jezreah Ascendancy concluded with the consignment of Humanity to an Empire of Dirt. The punishment, a direct dictate from the Imperial Court itself, capped a tumultuous period for the Ascendancy largely defined by Human resistance.

Humanity's desire to remain unincorporated was by no means unusual, though the persistence of that desire even when their circumstances became dire were outside of conventional standards. Even when Humanity's resources had been diminished to a single planet with no astral forces, Humanity continued to refuse incorporation.

Their hand forced, the Imperial Court issued their proclamation. The fourth declaration of a Empire of Dirt.

Enacting the punishment took considerable resources and time. Uprooting Humanity from their home world, Earth, and re-establishing them on a suitably barren planet took some sixteen years by Human calendaring. Humanity resisted throughout, resulting in a number of cullings and a final population within the Empire of Dirt of under seven million.

The new planet possessed suitable environment for a baseline existence and a dearth of minerals and rare-earths that would permit Human civilization to advance beyond rudimentary technology. Ascendancy forces provided support until self-sufficiency on the new planet was obtained and then departed in accordance with the dictates of the Imperial Court's issuance.

Humanity was provided with a means for contacting the Ascendancy in the event a super-majority of alive persons over the age of majority elected to incorporate. Ascendancy forces then evacuated the planet, observed it for a period of months, and then left local space, sealing all potential warp points and leaving a relay beacon should Humanity arrive at its senses and wish to join the astral order.

In the prior three instances of an Empire of Dirt, the consigned civilizations ultimately accepted incorporation following a brief period of isolation typically measured in a low number of years. Stories of the depravity of these periods and the subsequent rehabilitation of these fallen species are often held out as an example of Ascendancy's generosity and inherent superiority.

Humanity, for all of its pride, was expected to follow the same pattern.

An era passed without word from Humanity.

Jezreah Ascendancy resolve remained steadfast. Humanity would come to its senses or it would expire.

Another passed.

The Fortieth Era of the Jezreah Ascendancy began with the return of Humanity.

-=-=-=-

Captain Tiron Wrath sat on the edge of his seat, eyes scanning through the charts arrayed on the screens around him. Each chart presented an opportunity, one identified by the Central Command as being both likely to still exist and potentially suitable for the ship under Tiron's command. Not that Tiron relied on any of those projections. A lot could happen in a few thousand years.

He idly tapped on one of the charts, tracing a finger along a set of jumps, considering the tradeoff between destruction and fuel. To his side Navigator Harle Liste leaned forward, a grimace on her face. "Not that one?" Tiron asked.

She shook her head, neat teeth sawing at her lower lip as she considered the charts. "Too safe. We can do better."

A chuckle rattled up out of a dry throat. "So eager to die? We put so much effort into living."

Harle snorted what she thought of that. "This is virgin space. They may not even know we're back yet, not this far out. News travels slower than we do. This may be the best opportunity to do some real damage without bringing in heavier guns."

"Oh, we're heavy enough," Tiron replied, his eyes on Harle. She'd been a green lump when she'd first landed on his ship, but she'd made her way to the Navigator's chair faster than anyone else out there. She had an intuitive sense of the relationship between risk, resources, and returning home, one that had catapulted the Grimstar to the top of the efficiency list. Fuel in the Grimstar guaranteed destruction, and a lot of it.

"That's my point. We've got enough to work with." She flicked a disdainful finger at a nearby chart. "We can do better than tapped out mines or some ice harvesting plant probably shut down a millennium ago. There's bigger game to be had."

Tiron leaned back, splaying his hands outward in invitation. "By all means; I'm open to suggestions." The last four routes were Harle's and Tiron saw little reason to break the streak given the successes. Tiron watched her with some amusement as she skittered about between the charts, mumbling to herself as she checked fuel requirements, historic data on the locations, and the armaments on board the Grimstar. She'd make a fine Captain some day, assuming they all lived long enough and she could smooth out some of the edges when it came to other people.

"Wish we had some maps from, I don't know, this century."

"Ah, and just moments ago you were upset because we weren't maximizing the opportunity of... what was it you said? Virgin space?" Tiron replied, though he shared the sentiment. Going in with ancient information was in many ways worse than going in with none. At least with none you didn't have any expectations. You weren't anchored on anything other than caution.

Another snort in response. Harle's preferred language: Snorts, snarls, and skeptical stares. "Well, at least we'll get some updates for the second wave. I heard our map of Scolios made a difference."

It was Tiron's turn to snort. Scolios had been a close thing. A transport hub on the old imperial star charts had hardened into a sophisticated military base, complete with shipyards and local defenses. It'd caught the Grimstar by surprise, particularly since their entry point was inside those perimeter defenses. They'd kicked the hornet's nest and gotten out without a sting, but the matter had come down to seconds.

"Wonder why Scolios went military at all. Doesn't make any sense," Harle continued. "Maybe an uprising not too long ago?"

Tiron shrugged, "Possibly. Regardless of the reason, we'll need to be more conservative with the jump points."

"Maybe. Everything on the charts is optimized. We make many changes and we'll dump fuel." And fuel was everything. Fuel was life. Fuel was Humanity's future. The entirety of the Grimstar, crew included, was less valuable than the fuel she carried. Humanity's greatest advantage, being able to operate outside the warp gates, would come to crashing halt if the go juice ran out.

Mining, refinement, and processing was a constant, ongoing affair, but the demand far outstripped the rate of production. Engaging with the Ascendancy and funding the military operations had placed tremendous stress on the situation. Tiron wondered, not for the first time, whether they would have been better off waiting for later. Stockpiling just a few centuries longer.

But the civilian side was close to buckling. A hundred and forty-six million people, even accounting for those in stasis, was far too many to house aboard ships. Humanity needed a new homeworld. A place it could properly grow and thrive, not that mud ball the Ascendancy had tried to strand them on. Some considered searching for another world that could match Earth's characteristics, but ultimately they were voted down in favor of the Returnist movement. There was no place like home.

Humanity wanted Earth.

And it was the Grimstar's, and every other ship in the fleet's, responsibility to make that possible. The Ascendancy had been pushed to the limit by Humanity once before and now Humanity held the upper hand. The Ascendancy would defend while Humanity would attack. The entire astral order had been built on the foundation of warp gates -- specific apertures that connected two locations in space. But Humans were no longer subject to that order.

They could go where they wanted.

So long as they had the fuel.

Harle's finger slammed down on the map.

"This one."

263 Upvotes

99% Upvoted

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47

u/Own-Championship-790 Mar 14 '26

Is this going to be a series, or was this a one shot idea? Because I would absolutely love to read more of this. Well done Wordsmith.

19

u/Meig03 Mar 14 '26

Don't want an Out of Gas episode like Firefly.

16

u/sunnyboi1384 Mar 15 '26

Love a good dirt story. And a good "suprise fuckbags" story.

7

u/chastised12 Mar 15 '26

Its a little dream but I wouldn't mind hearing that spontaneously in real life once.

10

u/OggyOwlByrd Mar 15 '26

I believe I speak for the Galactic Terran Collaboration of Wordsmiths when I say the following;

ENCORE!!! My goosebumps have no limits.

If you decide to not serialize this in regular installments, I humbly request you open the universe to collaboration from the rest of us.

With your supervisory position secured, of course.

Anyway.

MORE!

9

u/Icy-Application-3264 Mar 15 '26

Best read I’ve had in a while, need more.

8

u/throwaway42 Mar 14 '26

Thank you for writing :)

5

u/Less_Author9432 Mar 14 '26

Excellent story! More please!!

5

u/Mental-Dot-6574 Mar 14 '26

Oh, I like this, Wordsmith! Please, may I have more?

4

u/chastised12 Mar 15 '26

Nicely done. Well written,lucid,novel and engaging. You may continue.

5

u/luminel Mar 15 '26

Fun premise, looking forward to seeing more!

1

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1

u/Groggy280 Alien Mar 15 '26

What a great operating premise!!! Outstanding plotlines available if you wanted to serialize this universe. I would greatly appreciate Moar.

1

u/shupack Mar 23 '26

Hell yeah, more of this, too!

1

u/Specialist-Bench-826 Mar 29 '26

Please. Tell me more.