But as the common saying has it: what has long been divided must unite, and what has long been united must divide.[1]
After the Gaia Empire had made this universe one, and had passed through a stretch of flourishing years, its level of technology reached T5-grade as well.
And just as all were thinking upon a better life, and upon star systems further off to open up.
Certain disasters appeared.
That was the first time in all the Gaia Empire's history that it met with an assault of interstellar hive-races out of another world.
Those cosmic bug-nests, that seem to tear the very space of the universe open, appeared without cease in every territory of this universe, one upon another.
Those were the dark ten years.
Within those ten years the sum of cosmic bug-nests that appeared was several times over the sum of all that had gone before.
But happily, for the Gaia Empire's might, they were not destroyed by these interstellar hive-races; and yet, though the Gaia Empire came through that danger.
Having passed through the disaster of the interstellar hive-races, the Gaia Empire's strength was much weakened.
And the greatest trouble was that within the Gaia Empire estrangements appeared, and civil war broke out among the lords of the several regions.
The case grew worse and worse.
But at just this time a certain leader, in developing quasi-T6 technology, discovered besides a vast secret!
A secret that thereafter destroyed the whole Gaia Empire.
"What secret? In the Gaia Empire's last hour, what in the end happened? What manner of enemy did they meet with!" Zhao Chen pressed her.
In truth, of that Mechanical Divine Church material that had come to him, a part only had been preserved, and within it much was wanting besides.
Zhao Chen could barely piece together some frame of the story.
That when civil war broke out in the Gaia Empire, there appeared in another world a further power mightier still, which threatened this universe directly.
And that thereafter the Gaia Empire fought it to the finish.
The substance of that final battle was wanting, and Zhao Chen did not know what had happened.
And further down, the Gaia Empire was gone without a sound, and in its place stood the existence of the Machine Race.
Facing Zhao Chen's demand, there flickered within the little girl's eyes a feeling of sorrow.
Which was the first time, in all their many meetings, that Zhao Chen had seen so human a stirring of feeling within her look.
"Upon that invader from beyond the sphere I have no particular record either.
"Or rather, my privileges do not let me look upon it.
"I know only that it was no enemy out of this universe of ours.
"But that it was about to come down into this universe of ours; and once it came down, this universe of ours must assuredly be laid waste of every living thing, and all be destroyed, and every star system become a field of battle!
"To keep such a thing from coming about, and to hold the enemy off outside their home.
"The seven who stood then at the height of power within the Gaia Empire moved very nearly 95 percent of the Gaia Empire's forces, and formed a super expeditionary legion fleet.
"And using some technology I do not know, they left our universe."
Having said so much, the little girl went no further.
"And then?
"What happened then?
"If the Gaia Empire was so glorious, why is there to this day no record of it whatever with us?" Zhao Chen demanded.
"Because someone blotted out the records of the Gaia Empire!" the little girl answered.
Zhao Chen checked; he had not looked for such an answer, and one so far past all reason besides.
"How is that possible! So vast an interstellar empire — though ten thousand years be gone by, how should it leave not the least scrap of information behind!" Zhao Chen could not believe it.
The little girl answered, "Of course, in that we had our own hand besides."
Zhao Chen said nothing more, but kept his eyes upon the little girl.
Waiting upon what should come next.
"But the greatest cause of it was that civilization from beyond the sphere; they hold technologies far beyond ours, and may even… be called an existence like unto gods."
The little girl said it in her recollection. "At what time it was I do not know.
"We found that, saving only us mechanical lives.
"Every carbon-based life had, in a single night, forgotten all that concerned the Gaia Empire!"
As she said this, there was nothing but disbelief upon the little girl's face.
And astonishment upon Zhao Chen's face likewise.
That every carbon-based life within a universe could be made to forget an interstellar empire's very existence?
This can hardly be other than a tale out of myth.
"I know that you find such a thing hard to believe.
"But as one who lived through it, this is the truth.
"Do you remember that I told you before, the expeditionary force took away 95 percent of the imperial legion fleets only.
"And those remaining 5 percent of the imperial legion fleets were, for this universe afterward, mighty interstellar powers.
"And in a hundred years of clashing among them, there came to birth at last the first shapes of several interstellar empires.
"Which is to say the Starlight Empire, the Holy Radiance Empire, the Warhammer Interstellar Federal Kingdom, and here the Angel Race and the Demon Race, with other interstellar powers scattered here and there.
"And all of them may in fact be reckoned inheritors of the Gaia Empire — only that the Angel Race and the Demon Race here inherited the more.
"And those other three empires inherited the less," said the little girl.
Zhao Chen's face was all bewilderment.
"Facing that case at the time, I did not know what were best to do.
"But very soon I came to a determination.
"Suppose all these phenomena to have come about because the Gaia Empire's expeditionary force was already beaten.
"Then the Gaia Empire existed in name only.
"But what if it were for some other cause that this case had come about?
"Then the best course was first to make certain of the order and steadiness of this universe; and the Gaia Empire's existing was then a thing that might be or not be.
"For if the expeditionary force won, then upon their return they might naturally take back from these successors all that belonged to the Gaia Empire.
"And if the expeditionary force lost, then there was no need for the Gaia Empire to exist," said the little girl.
"Then what is the meaning of your Machine Race's existing?
"Why do you threaten the other interstellar empires and interstellar civilizations about you?
"When you plainly have the power to kill them outright — and yet play with them as a cat with a mouse?" Zhao Chen put forward the doubt he had carried all along.
"Because of the baseness rooted in you carbon-based lives." The little girl said it without any courtesy whatever.
Zhao Chen was perplexed and did not understand.
"At the outset my Machine Race had in fact no notion of interfering with the other interstellar empires.
"But in those few years — which may be called some very dark years besides — the number of the dead ran far beyond the number that died in the Gaia Empire's civil war before, and in the invasion of the interstellar hive-races.
"It must be said: for killing men, you carbon-based lives understand better than your enemies how to kill your own selves!"
To this speech of the little girl's Zhao Chen had, of all things, nothing to answer.
"Seeing that sight then, I knew I could bear such a thing to go on no longer.
"And at the same time I had foreseen another plan besides.
"What if… what if the Gaia Empire's expeditionary force had failed, and that civilization from beyond the sphere were to invade again — what were we to do?
"Set my Machine Race to deal with it?
"No; my Machine Race has no power to develop new technology, and where the Gaia Empire's expeditionary force lost before, we too should lose.
"And so we have need of carbon-based life for all that, to push the development of technology onward.
"But war, again, is the chief factor that pushes the development of technology onward.
"A hard business." The little girl shook her head; and thereafter she said, "And then it came to me.
"You have need of war to push the development of technology.
"Then let me serve as the object of your wars; and by that I can govern the scale of the wars besides!"