Alternative ending AKA “The sad ending”. This is the ending that I had before I decided to implement all the technological escalation stuff and the time travel technology stuff
Unknown date — noon, 2309 AD
Eisenhower Family Tomb, South Africa, Earth
It was all over.
Eisenhower stood in front of two tombstones on a rainy day.
The low storm clouds hid the midday sun -- typical of South African weather -- and sprinkled water on his trench coat. Yet as much as the rain fell, he was very happy. He was happy to be alive, to be able to feel the rain. The sensation of water touching his face and his hands; the smell of the grass and wilderness and the dirt ground that the rain splattered against — he was happy to feel these sensations on his worn elderly body.
It was a gift from the gods. It was something the two people buried beneath the tombstones would never feel, again.
Eisenhower knelt. He touched the graves of his two favorite people who he’d never see again… except in his memories and on computer images.
Connie and David, I have avenged both of you. I hope I have made both of you proud, just as both of you made me proud by your sacrifice. Both of you can rest easy, knowing that the Gabans are finally defeated. They can no longer hurt us. Humanity is safe. We are safe. Humanity’s children are safe. The world you died for is safe.
Were your deaths worth it? No. Even to bring about peace, no death is worth it. All life is precious. Yet…
I would never have committed myself to this war fully without knowing that I must, to avenge your deaths, to make your deaths worth something.
All the pain we suffered. I hope attaining victory and revenge was worth it.
Eisenhower looked at their tombstones. On each stone was marked their full names and the year they were born and died. David’s body was never found, and neither was Connie’s. Nevertheless, spiritually they deserved to be buried on Earth. Earth is where humanity begin, and where both wife and son would want to be buried, because they had committed their entire lives for humanity.
The world is a better place with your sacrifices. It’s a safer place now. Humanity’s fate is secured now, at least for this century.
This century…
The greatest battles ever fought by humanity was fought this century because both sides committed their maximum into the war. There was no holding back. As warriors, both the Gabans as well as humans did what both sides must. In a way, that is how it should be.
The enemy fought with vast fleets of ships. And so did we…
Yet, we fought harder. We fought more brutally. We did more. In the end, it was our ingenuity that carried the day — human ingenuity and planning. For all the Gabans’ ability to link minds, it is still our individualism that defeated them. Our individualism is what makes us unique. It is what makes us strong. The idea that each human can use his life experiences and his individual mind and come up with an idea. Something the Gabans with their hiveminds could never have achieved. We are strong because we are different. We are strong because each one of us is unique.
That is our strength. That is the human condition. That is what makes us what we are. No other race can achieve this like we did.
Eisenhower was proud. He looked at the rainy sky. He looked at the dirt ground. He looked at his family’s tombstones. He was proud at all that humanity had achieved. It could not have been better. This is what we are.
This is what we can continue to achieve.
As for the future? Who knows? New enemies. New brutal wars. New technology and associated tactics. New people. New ways of thinking.
Who knows? One day, there may not even be a humanity. But for now…
Eisenhower touched his family’s tombstones. He felt his family’s cold rocky surface on his hands. He was once again reminded that the graves had empty remains. His family’s bodies were still out there in the cold interstellar void. Only their spirits were here, where they spiritually belonged.
All the new technologies. All the new constructions. It was to avenge their deaths. As much as we fight for hate, we fight for love. Love of the race, love for our people, love for our families.
Eisenhower knelt. Tears fell down his eyes. Both of his hands touched the tombstones of both wife and child. I love both of you so much. If only both of you were here to see this day… when we are victorious. When we are safe.
I love you both so much, Connie! David!
We will meet, again!
We will meet, again!
Unknown date — noon, 2309 AD
Eisenhower Family Tomb, South Africa, Earth
It was all over.
Eisenhower stood in front of two tombstones on a rainy day.
The low storm clouds hid the midday sun -- typical of South African weather -- and sprinkled water on his trench coat. Yet as much as the rain fell, he was very happy. He was happy to be alive, to be able to feel the rain. The sensation of water touching his face and his hands; the smell of the grass and wilderness and the dirt ground that the rain splattered against — he was happy to feel these sensations on his worn elderly body.
It was a gift from the gods. It was something the two people buried beneath the tombstones would never feel, again.
Eisenhower knelt. He touched the graves of his two favorite people who he’d never see again… except in his memories and on computer images.
Connie and David, I have avenged both of you. I hope I have made both of you proud, just as both of you made me proud by your sacrifice. Both of you can rest easy, knowing that the Gabans are finally defeated. They can no longer hurt us. Humanity is safe. We are safe. Humanity’s children are safe. The world you died for is safe.
Were your deaths worth it? No. Even to bring about peace, no death is worth it. All life is precious. Yet…
I would never have committed myself to this war fully without knowing that I must, to avenge your deaths, to make your deaths worth something.
All the pain we suffered. I hope attaining victory and revenge was worth it.
Eisenhower looked at their tombstones. On each stone was marked their full names and the year they were born and died. David’s body was never found, and neither was Connie’s. Nevertheless, spiritually they deserved to be buried on Earth. Earth is where humanity begin, and where both wife and son would want to be buried, because they had committed their entire lives for humanity.
The world is a better place with your sacrifices. It’s a safer place now. Humanity’s fate is secured now, at least for this century.
This century…
The greatest battles ever fought by humanity was fought this century because both sides committed their maximum into the war. There was no holding back. As warriors, both the Gabans as well as humans did what both sides must. In a way, that is how it should be.
The enemy fought with vast fleets of ships. And so did we…
Yet, we fought harder. We fought more brutally. We did more. In the end, it was our ingenuity that carried the day — human ingenuity and planning. For all the Gabans’ ability to link minds, it is still our individualism that defeated them. Our individualism is what makes us unique. It is what makes us strong. The idea that each human can use his life experiences and his individual mind and come up with an idea. Something the Gabans with their hiveminds could never have achieved. We are strong because we are different. We are strong because each one of us is unique.
That is our strength. That is the human condition. That is what makes us what we are. No other race can achieve this like we did.
Eisenhower was proud. He looked at the rainy sky. He looked at the dirt ground. He looked at his family’s tombstones. He was proud at all that humanity had achieved. It could not have been better. This is what we are.
This is what we can continue to achieve.
As for the future? Who knows? New enemies. New brutal wars. New technology and associated tactics. New people. New ways of thinking.
Who knows? One day, there may not even be a humanity. But for now…
Eisenhower touched his family’s tombstones. He felt his family’s cold rocky surface on his hands. He was once again reminded that the graves had empty remains. His family’s bodies were still out there in the cold interstellar void. Only their spirits were here, where they spiritually belonged.
All the new technologies. All the new constructions. It was to avenge their deaths. As much as we fight for hate, we fight for love. Love of the race, love for our people, love for our families.
Eisenhower knelt. Tears fell down his eyes. Both of his hands touched the tombstones of both wife and child. I love both of you so much. If only both of you were here to see this day… when we are victorious. When we are safe.
I love you both so much, Connie! David!
We will meet, again!
We will meet, again!