Tales of Rimworld

Youth Sacrificed (Sarai colony)

Sarai stood tall and proud, as she was glad that her colony was finally back. To celebrate such event, a speech was in order. Everyone gathered at the temple, from the children to the elderly, everyone was present. Sarai proudly walked to the altar, resting her hand on it, feeling its polished texture. She smiled to herself before looking at the crowd of familiar faces while remembering their journey.

It took a lot of hard work and ammunition, but the base had been retaken from the mechanoid presence, their remains being recycled for useful parts. They had fought tooth and nail, fighting from street to street, taking cover in the ruins of their destroyed bedrooms or running across the scorched field of their once opulent home. Every time Sarai closed her eyes, she could remember that nightmarish night where the screams of dying colonists were mixed with the screeching noises of those metallic beasts. She could still smell the black smoke and the blood of her comrades when she was protecting the hospital. And every time, she would get back to reality with the fiery explosion that had gravely injured her.

The woman looked at the wall behind her, bullet holes were still present. Sarai was aware that the scars of war were still visible, but time would heal them. She gently rubbed her burnt back, reminding her of the sacrifices she went through to recapture her colony.

The restoration of the colony's members was thanks to the sleeve incubators that had been left intact. Although, the process of bringing back everyone was quite tedious, since it required a lot of rare materials. They scrounged for silver just to buy the required neutroamine. Even in the most remote planet, money would still appear. Basic components had a lot of value, despite requiring few materials to make them; and so, they raided enemy outposts for their steel and components - anything that could help the survivors to bring back the dead. They would do everything and anything to bring back the colony to its former glory.

Thus, an entire generation of children had been vat-grown, so they could become warcaskets, enabling the colony to wipe out resource rich outposts without sustaining any casualties. They acted as tanks while specialist adults took down the enemies from afar, using anti material rifles. While the approach was unconventional, it worked well enough to keep this new combat doctrine.

Sarai always had a heavy heart when her gaze landed on these vat-grown children. They paid the price, sacrificing their childhood and a normal life, so that they could become the machines of war that would ensure the colony's survival. They sacrificed their everything to fulfill the wishes of these adults that never once hugged them, only teaching them the ways of violence. While the adults didn't give affection, they still looked at them with a hint of sadness. Sarai was aware that it wasn't fair for these children, but she would do anything so that the next generation wouldn't suffer the same fate. Her colony was her family, and she was ready to go to extra length to kept it from harm.

In the end, it took a year of constant struggle, but Sarai's family was finally back to life. Her colonists were her cherished family and nothing could ever change that. With all the weight of her emotions and regrets, Sarai brought life to her speech, acknowledging the struggles and sacrifices of everyone one. And so she concluded with comparing the mind as an artillery piece.

To her, the mind was like a Howitzer, it needed a lot of preparation before it could unleash its explosive power and succeed accurately in leaving a powerful impact.