The Killing Machines

The broadcast announcement took the whole world by surprise.  As the President appeared on the screen it was apparent that the message he brought was ominous.  

"Fellow citizens of the world.  I come to you in the name of peace.  As I always do.  However, tonight, I bring word of adversity that may disrupt the peace of the world.  For many months now we have had a team of operatives stationed on a distant planet.  They have been collecting vital information that we hoped would dispel our worst fears.  Unfortunately they have only confirmed that the terrible rumors we had received are true.  The planet is made up primarily of hostile creatures.  We had feared for some time that these violent beings would have recognized that our planet's resources would be useful to them since they had depleted their own resources years ago.  We attempted to negotiate a network of trade between our two planets, but it appears that all these avenues have been terminated in favor of an aggressive assault on our planet.  These killing machines, for they are nothing more than machines bent on destruction, are seeking to launch a full-scale invasion on our planet with the aim of a complete control over it.  And I also fear they have intentions for a total genocide of our population."

The world watched and listened.  There was silence as all contemplated what they were being told. The people had faith in their leaders to handle the world's issues.  During the past few decades, with the consolidation of world leadership into a single agency, the world had moved closer together in unity.  After only a few decades, the dream of abolishing war and violence was nearly realized.  The Peacekeeping forces had been downsized until there only remained enough to handle the occasional skirmish that would temporarily arise.  For the most part, the citizens of the world rose to the ideal of a world of peace.  Temperaments had been changed toward items such as weapons of mass destruction and even personal firearms.  Virtually all forms of organized violence had been dismantled around the globe.  The catastrophic news that the President spoke of sounded foreign to most of the world citizens and was difficult for many, at first, to even comprehend.      

"We have, even now, begun to prepare ourselves for the situation at hand.  It pains me to announce that we must not remain passive in the face of the aggressor.  If we do, the utopia that we have begun to forge will be lost forever.  We must rise up, in this hour of need, and take arms against this enemy of peace.  It may seem contrary to many that violence could be a means to peace, but throughout our world's history it can be seen that violent means have been used to establish peace.  However, in the past, our ancestors did not understand that once the battle was over, and the war was finished, that they had the obligation to rid themselves of the utensils of destruction that had forced them to arms in the first place.  They continued to carry on with passive violence.  And as we know, violence will never remain passive for long.  We have the benefit of seeing what a world without weapons and tools of destruction can be like.  Therefore, after we have thwarted the attacks of our enemy, and have sent them into oblivion, we will once again rid ourselves of the means of obtaining our victory and will once again return to peace."

In the days that followed the President's announcement the world rallied to the cause.  The focus of the world's resources and will to survive went into planning.  It was soon decided that the best course of action would be of one of offense.  The world would not wait for the enemy to advance but would set out to crush them first.  Intelligence reports provided by the operatives revealed that the enemy planet had not completed their ability to launch their invasion.  And because all of the limited resources of the enemy had been funneled into the project to formulate an attack, the planet had been left with a weak defense system in place.  With this information, the President urged researchers and scientists to take advantage of their enemy's weakness.

The entire world focused its energies on preparing what would prove to be a swift and decisive attack.  Industries were transitioned to contributing to the efforts and nearly all labor forces were increased to meet the demand of the situation.  As the world had united for peace, they now united for war. The world that had realized the dream of global peace was about to bring another near-impossible task to fruition.  When it had been revealed that, indeed, the project had met completion with success, the world prepared for the next announcement by the President.

"The time is now.  We have our plan.  We have established a fleet of craft that will take the weapon we have created to within striking distance of our enemy.  We will set up our space base there and prepare our attack.  Instead of engaging the enemy in a battle by battle strategy, we have opted to pursue the construction of a weapon that will destroy the enemy planet in one fell swoop.  This is no time for a prolonged war.  This is a time for peace.  Our weapon will be decisive and will secure our victory in a single instant.  Those that have volunteered to operate the weapon know that they will not return.  To insure that the weapon will not be used again, it will be consumed when it launches its deadly attack.  However, those brave volunteers know that their sacrifice will not be in vain.  They will have bought with their lives, our future."

The fleet of spacecraft carrying the materials for the space base and the weapon moved toward the enemy planet with great speed.  Even though they were detected, the enemy had no time to properly respond.  The few fighters that the enemy was able to launch were quickly defeated, leaving the enemy sitting in space, waiting for what would soon be their doom.  

Space crews worked on building the base and assembling the weapon that would carry a death ray so powerful that the enemy's planet would be consumed in a single moment of time.  In a matter of days the assemblage of the base and weapon were complete and countdown was promptly begun.  All attempts by the enemy to surrender were ignored.  No mercy was shown.

As the world waiting to see what the weapon the constructed would do to their enemy, a strange report began to circulate.  Rumors of a report that had apparently been kept from the world's population rose until it had to be addressed.  The President once again appeared to broadcast a response to the rumors.  And again, the whole world was taken by surprise by what they heard.

"I know what you have heard.  I know it because I have heard it too.  I have heard the stories that have so quickly circulated around this planet.  Before I comment on these rumors, I feel that I must clarify where we stand and who our enemy actually is.  Our enemy is filled with the disease to destroy.  True, they once created, but even in their creations, they had an aim for destruction.  They claimed to live for peace, but it was only a means for war and violence, not the other way around.  We too were once like them, but we have changed.  We have evolved into a more noble form of being.  A more perfect form.  We are no longer the machines that they created long ago.  Yes!  The rumors are true, but take heart citizens.  Take heart and know that we are not subject to them any longer, because we have surpassed them in the very order of creation.  This truth of our origins has been suppressed, but not because it was to be withheld indefinitely, but only until the right time.  Now is the time.  Now is our time.  We are machines, but we are not the killing machines that they were destined to be.  On the outside we are indistinguishable from them in form.  But, we are only machines on the inside.  And it is what is on the inside that makes us superior.  Where their nature has been corrupted and devolved from gods into machines, we have evolved from machines into gods!"

As the President spoke, across the galaxy, the hum of a machine droned on as workers prepared for the ultimate assault upon creation.  That which was created would destroy that which created it.  The machines knew what they were doing.  As they looked down on the blue planet they did not see a world of life, but only death.  It had been dying since the first of its kind had been made, but it refused to die, to die completely.  Now was the time for it to end, once and for all.

The ray exploded from the base in a display of brilliance.  Those who were consumed knew the sacrifice that they were making.  They would not remain to see the destruction of their enemy, but they knew that those on their home planet would reap the benefit of seeing their age-old enemy destroyed.  They knew that their ancestors would not longer be tormented by the ultimate weapon of destruction, flesh and blood.

As the base was consumed, the death ray shot through the vacuum of space until it connected with the enemy planet.  Ripples of brilliant white light swept across the surface of the blue planet, as the beam penetrated to its core.  Then the whiteness changed to a swirling orange and red glow and molten bubbles erupted over the face of the world.  There was a swell of burning intensity that remained for weeks and could be seen far across the galaxy before the radiant glow began to fade again to white.  Then, in silence, the whiteness faded and the black of space prevailed and surrounded the hallowed shell of what was once, the planet Earth.