Harasha (Intaki)

Preface

Events in Parada is a piece of Player Created Fiction written by Ataharan Taldaraani as part of a series of first-hand accounts of black-ops and insurgency on Intaki Prime. Originally published in the EVE-online forums [1].

First hand account from Intaki Prime - The prisoners of Harasha

I'm sorry that it's taken me so long to collate this. It seems like I've been in classes nonstop, though I know it isn't true. We had our first experience in a pod today, just five minutes with a breathing mask in the gel, no weird wires or such. Still, I am relieved that the two Reborn in the room could go the full five minutes. Out of the thirty of us there, only one Jin-Mei did the same. I think that maybe achieving consciousness in the womb helps prepare you for the sensations.

Parada was at 47.245312°N 107.553298°E, near the southern limit of habitability. We mostly engaged in spice harvesting and the production of luxuries for the off-world trade. If you've ever bought Dimarush Soap, it probably came from Parada, though I understand they had opened a plant somewhere else.

From there we fled to Aram (47.249323°N 107.495432°E), which was the nearest town of any size. Only about a third of the inhabitants of Parada survived the trip in their current vessels. Aram had not heard anything about us, or anyone else for that matter. It has a small spaceport, but it was closed because of "electronics problems". This began a pattern that we would encounter many more times.

From Aram, my friends and I decided to go north along the road to see if we could find another town and find out what was happening. We hitched a ride with a man that I will call "Pasha-Jun", though he did not give that name at the time.

During the ride, we discussed much philosophy, including the nature of life and death. He also praised our courage. We reminded him that our bodies were nothing but the dust of the ground and that, being Reborn, we already knew how the spirit was immortal.

By the time we reached Tajimada (47.681209°N 107.432413°E), we realized that Pasha-Jun was a member of an underground resistance force. He had never seen any combat, but he was on the lookout for people who were willing to fight if the time came. Seeing as how I was already a wanted criminal at that point, I volunteered. My friends followed suit. There were five of us- Garam, Hidhurani, Jasal, Sacsaani, and myself.

In Tajimada, we practiced our fighting skills with a number of other Intaki, mostly men, but we had three women in our cell. I do not remember how long we spent there, but I know that one night, we met a man ("Pasha") who appeared to us in blinding light so we could not see his face, just like Daraka Suresha in the old tales.

He told us that the Caldari had taken Idamas and their students as hostages and were holding them in the village of Harasha. We were given plans for the building and we planned for three days before we rode in three separate hover vehicles just over the thick jungle canopy. We rappelled down to the ground about five miles from the town. We knew that we could only be extracted if we neutralized any threat from inside the village.

The building (47.804323°N 108.114253°E) was low and squat, an old-fashioned coldhouse, but made of concrete. It was pretty old, though someone had installed communications equipment on the roof and there was a Caldari Navy Marines logistical truck off to the side for power and such.

I do not remember much of the firefight. I had never faced gunfire before and it was a big jumble. I know that Hidhurani and Sacsaani transitioned. I found out later that Hidhurani had jumped on a grenade to save my body.

There were six Caldari in the "bunker", along with ten Intakis who fought on their side. Of the six, four had identity chips intact enough for analysis. The other two had barricaded themselves in a weapons locker. It cooked off or something. I'm not sure.

Genome scans from all six indicate they were of Caldari blood. The scan file links are in the message footer. The six surviving ID chip codes were:

• ADW12FE-09LIH-0A:1B:4A:BF:92:00-H34
• ADNM43Z-84DQR-32:D2:CE:13:04:A2-N15
• ADN984D-UTX3A-C9:42:5B:D8:3F:7D-B24
• AEYP123-3V154-DE:37:6F:0D:88:5A-W93

I would like to give you names, but we have not been able to get access to the Caldari personnel records. One of the Intaki, Gurat Mahardan, was later identified as a known Caldari sympathizer and anti-Reborn bigot.

In the rearmost part of the bunker, we found seventeen Intakis, mostly women, all torn to shreds. Only six bodies still breathed, all of them unconscious. Four were bloated and had obviously given up their souls some days earlier. Among the living were Kyraella Idama and Savisham Idama. He departed his vessel while we were being extracted.

In an adjacent room, we found holoreels documenting the terrible torment those monsters inflicted. I have attached in the footer a video scan of one with Kyraella Idama's permission. I warn you that I have seen battle, felt pieces of my friends entrails slap across my flesh, and I cannot watch more than a minute or two.

I do not understand why the Caldari (ADNM43Z) keeps asking her, "Do you still want to be reborn now?". He kept asking, every time they did any one of the countless horrible, unspeakable things they did to her body. I cannot understand such cruelty. If death must be caused, it should be done swiftly, mercifully.

I have also enclosed a genome scan from Kyraella Idama's body at the time of the incident. I doubt that much of material value remains at the site, but there is probably blood left in the cracks of the torture room.

We found ten more Intakis, all men, in an open grave behind the building. We buried the other empty vessels with them and said prayers to their spirits, encouraging them to seek new life.

After extraction, I did not see much of the survivors. We went to a jungle base. I cannot tell you where it was even if I knew. There were other cells there, but we kept apart from them.

The night after we arrived, I was assigned as a guard inside the medical tent where the survivors were kept. Through a flap, I could see that Kyraella Idama was in a life support bed of some kind. I had never seen anything so advanced in Parada.

About midnight, there was a screetching noise and doctors and nurses came running into the Idama's room. They adjusted tubes and did other things, then suddenly one of the doctors yelled, "CLEAR!" I saw a brilliant green light through the flap.

I did not know it at the time, but the bed was fitted with the kind of scanner used by pod pilots when their bodies are near death. We had not preserved the life of her vessel, but we had at least earned her a faster reincarnation. I sometimes wish that Hidhurani and Sacsaani might have had the same chance.

I really must sleep. But first I must clean the rest of that pod goo out of my hair. I will try to write again soon. If you want to see the holoreel in person, please come to the University of Caille in Bourynes. I have a few copies and some anti-nausea incense. The original holoreel has been sent to Federation Intelligence.