The age of the second galactic expansion was a period of many discoveries and advances, but none of them were as significant as the expedition to the planet Seraphim II. The expedition was initially presumed lost when there was no contact for the several weeks after arrival. A second expedition was mounted to discover the fate of the first, and they too were lost when they did not return contact with Earth, causing the planet to be marked as a HAZARD and added to the growing list of areas requiring further investigation of the Colonial Command.

Unbeknownst to Earth, the planet of Seraphim II was inhabited by sentient alien life. The Commander in charge of the expedition is unable to handle the first contact he receives from the aliens and readies to go to war without the approval and knowledge of Earth and Colonial Command, despite the fact that the aliens have not committed any overt acts. Severing his contact to Earth, “to protect them from this newfound menace” and to hide the location of Earth in case the aliens have any means to track communications, he pursues a deadly agenda.

A biologist and member of the colonization team, identified only as Sarah, meets with the aliens without the Commander’s knowledge and authorization in order to attain a peaceful resolution to the conflict. Her initial assumptions are proven correct, and the aliens are indeed peaceful, and she is able to gain their trust. However, the increasingly paranoid Commander accuses her of being subjugated by the aliens and increases his frequency of attack on the aliens, giving them no choice but to resist and counterattack. In the end, the Commander releases a biological agent into the atmosphere of Seraphim II deadly to the alien species, but not before the alien race is able to impart all of their vast knowledge and technology to Sarah and the other Seraphim sympathizers. None but the humans survive on the planet.

Part of the aliens’ technology involves the ability of “future sight”. The Seraphim could foresee the future, but refused to do anything to change it when it was in their ability, because they did not want to tamper with the purity of what is to come in eventuality. They imparted a limited “future sight” to Sarah and her compatriots – limited only because the human brain was not as evolved as that of the Seraphims’ to the use of the ability. The colonists, now known as the Aeon Illuminate, build upon the alien technology imparted to them by the Seraphim and continue to expand the spread of the “peaceful” teachings of the aliens.

More than 120 years after the first colonization expansion, Earth finally receives word from Seraphim II. Delegates from the surviving colony of humans explain what has happened, and how the aliens imparted upon them “something beautiful”, before being destroyed by the insane Commander. They announce that they have evolved and intend to help Earth by sharing their knowledge to avoid “the calamities to come”. In response to the contact, Earth quarantines the entire sector of Seraphim II and all available Colonial Commanders are detached to the sector to pacify what Earth sees as its greatest threat to date.

Earth loses contact with numerous planets bordering the Quarantine Zone within the course of a year, but not before receiving cryptic messages from various Commanders of strange attacks. No further communication is received from the afflicted planets, thereafter, and Earth assumes that the worst has happened. By the end of the year, all contact with Colonial Command forces on colonies 10 light years of the Quarantine Zone is lost. Fragmented video shows forces utilizing vaguely familiar weapons and vehicles of Colonial Command design, but with unusual and unrecognizable modifications. Earth attempts to some half-hearted diplomatic negotiations that fail, and all Commanders in the surrounding areas are ordered to destroy the Quantum gates along the Quarantine Zone in an effort to isolate the Aeon.

Next: The Infinite War