Cessation of War

After a long wait of two months, the orders from Earth have finally come through - we are to abandon our base on Io and to return to Earth. But the reasoning has eluded us; why now? The last of the civilian population had left a long time ago and Io has not seen any bloodshed for those past two months, a length of peace previously unheard of until now. The general sentiment is that of isolation - isolated from the rest of humanity, another forgotten segment of the EUC. But the sheer fact that we are heading home lifts the spirits of even the most disillusioned battle veteran.

There has been still no official news from Earth, only scratchings of rumours and hearsay from unauthorised Partex drones - maybe just propaganda from factions against the EUC. Through we will certainly be glad to head home, we are anxious to learn of the sentiment of home. After all, rumours evolve from the origin of truth. What has become of our sanctuary, our beloved homeworld? Is the EUC bearing witness to its final glory? We still do not know. One thing is for sure, we are getting off this 'moon of nightmares', torment will reign no more, at least for awhile.

In one week, the jump gate will open and we will head back home, to the welcoming chaos of a fragmented humanity. I am sometimes torn between the battlefield of the outlying planets and the battlefield of a broken society. We need to become human again, to hopefully re-learn what being human really means again, but who shall we learn from? We are caught between two dark similarities that most of our generations cannot decipher either.

Amongst the messages from Partex drones, a short but strange message from an unknown source keeps arriving addressed to me. I have received four such messages so far. It only says, "Ariarania beckons for its saviours". I have looked up the word "Ariarania"; but there are two illogical references and both are of slightly dissimilar spelling - one to a home product and the other to a wild desert plant. It doesn't make any sense but every time I receive this message, it makes me feel uncomfortable.