Homeworld 2 Backstory

From a document made available by Rob Cunningham in Aug 2004.
Published on Homeworldlore.net by Homdax.

It is said in a time of great conflict,
When the stars are choked with the dust of war,
That the exiles will face their greatest challenge:
They will lose all they have fought for;
They will encounter a foe from the past, given new form;
They will be betrayed and sacrificed;
They will come face-to-face with their Creator who banished them,
The one they call Sajuuk, He Whose Hands Shape What Is,
And stand on the brink of the End Time…

HOMEWORLD 2 takes place during the DUST WARS, a 100-year conflict that’s been raging between the races of the Inner Rim following the collapse of the Galactic Council. The hopes of peace and prosperity have been dashed for the Hiigarans, descendants of the exiles, and all they’ve inherited is war. As the game begins, the Hiigarans are finalizing the construction of the Pride of Hiigara, the largest Mothership vessel build since the original Exile ship. Using the same Hyperspace Core as the Exile ship, the Pride of Hiigara is the only known vessel, aside from the Bentusi Trade Ships, to be able to Long Jump (most ships are only capable of short Hyperspace jumps). The Hiigarans are hoping to use the Pride of Hiigara to their advantage in the Dust Wars. However, they are unaware that a deadlier foe lurks in the Easter Fringes of the Galaxy…

Backstory

[Note: This is mainly for context and flavor]

⇒ During the Dark Age of the Progenitors, a great war was fought that ultimately destroyed the Progenitor civilization(s) [it is unsure whether the Progenitors were one race or many] and leaving countless ruins and derelicts scattered throughout the Galaxy.

⇒ So terrible was this war, that whole systems were destroyed, their suns extinguished by devastating weapons of mass destruction. Across the cosmos many stars flickers and then vanished, the last rays of the explosions drifting towards infinity their only legacy. To this day, evidence of these explosions remain, condemning whole tracts of space into virtual no-mans lands, littered only by the ancient wrecks of the progenitors ships — their secrets entombed forever by their silence.

⇒ But not all Progenitors wanted war. One, a visionary called Sajuuk, deiced to take his ship and hide among the dead stars of Balcora. Along the way, he abandoned his crew of over 1 million on desolate planets, far from the eyes of his warmongering brethrens. Many, Sajuuk knew, would perish, but others he hoped would survive and birth new civilizations. He then continued his long journey to Balcora, all the while being chased by other progenitors. Once in Balcora, he would wait until all that remained of his civilization was dust so that he could rebuild it. However, he new he would never live to see this day. Instead, he coded all his memories and knowledge, as well as all the secrets of the Progenitors, into the databanks of his ship. He then cast into the void the three hyperspace cores that powered his ship. His hope was that in time one or more of his seeded civilizations would find the cores, unravel the secrets of hyperspace travel and return to Balcora with them to reclaim their birth right — Sajuuk’s ship and the last surviving records of the Progenitors. With that, Sajuuk powered down the
ship except for the automatons needed to repair and sustain the ship, and entered cryo-sleep.

⇒ The remaining progenitors searched for the traitor Sajuuk, but found nothing. Some were jealous that Sajuuk had the courage to turn his back on the war or felt betrayed by him while others wanted the ship he commanded. However, in time the war consumed all the progenitors. Not all Progenitors vanished. What happened was similar to the fall of the Roman Empire — no longer united the various colonies and planets become isolated. Some lost all ability (through war or otherwise) to use Progenitor tech while others simply vanished.

⇒ Millennia passed and the Progenitors faded from history, then legend and finally myth all the while the three cores that Sajuuk jettisoned drifted in the void.

⇒ The Bentusi where the first to find one of the cores, and in doing so ushered the First Time. Already one of the most advanced Fledging Races, the Bentusi quickly unlocked most of their Core’s secrets and used them to bring hyperspace to the galaxy. The Bentusi founded the Old Trade Routes with the knowledge gained from the core and taught Short Jumping to the races they encountered.

⇒ Towards the end of the First Time, a race hailing from the blue planet discovered the second core. Although not as advanced as the Bentusi, the resourceful Hiigarans realized they had stumbled across something special. This attracted the attention of the Bentusi, but also that of Hiigara’s enemies.

⇒ The Hiigaran discovery precipitated the War of Exile and once again, the Inner Rim found itself at war.

⇒ The Bentusi were unsure what to do. To some, the Hiigarans were unworthy of possessing the core, others were afraid that if it remained in the Hiigara’s hands it would only being more destruction. The Bentusi Elders, those who knew of the Progenitor myths, worried that the finding of a second core only brought the End Time nearer. For the first time in their history, the Bentusi defied their edicts of neutrality and lent their support towards Hiigara’s enemies with one stipulation — the Hiigarans, when defeated, were to be exiled. The Bentusi hoped to keep the Hiigaran core hidden until a time when the Bentusi could collect all three cores and unravel their mysteries. They also hoped to stop all future bloodshed over the cores.

⇒ With the support of the Bentusi, Hiigara’s enemies soon defeated the Hiigarans. As promised, the “exiles” were loaded into prison ships can scattered across the galaxy. Known only to a few Bentusi, the Hiigaran progenitor core was smuggled onboard on of the prison ships along with a Guide Stone to guide the exiles back home when the time was right.

⇒ Following the War of Exile, all records of the Bentusi involvement were destroyed and considered forbidden knowledge. Many died keeping secret safe. The Bentusi, ashamed by what they had done, but knowing it was the right thing to do, retreated from the public sphere, becoming in time the esoteric merchants and traders they are now known as. From that point onwards, the Bentusi forbid themselves to actively influence galactic events.

⇒ 3000 years passed, and the exiles drifted to the end of the galaxy. On a desert planet some 2000 years after the exile, a signal is detected in the sand. The discovery of the hyperspace core and the guide stone set the Homecoming in
motion. It is not until the Exiles save the Bentusi, that the Prophecy of Return is actualized. The time has come for the cores to be reunited. Few, even among the Bentusi remember the actual prophecy, and once indebted to the Exiles, the Bentusi can only watch as the Hiigaran Empire is reformed and the Galactic Council collapses.

⇒ The Bentusi Elders, of which only 2 remain, know that the each core have a way of attracting the others. They are right. In the Eastern Fringes of the Galaxy, an area known as Stars End the third and final core is unearthed.

⇒ A race of nomads and warriors discovers the final core. With the core, the Vaygr quickly grow, slowly expanding across Eastern Fringes and moving core-ward. Along the route and about the time of the Homecoming, the Vaygr come across a progenitor derelict. Noticing that the construction of the ship and core to be similar, the Vaygr connect their core to the progenitor ship. As the ancient ship is powered on, so to does it’s databanks and for the first time in millennia, a progenitor consciousness is awoken. Calling himself Makaan he promises the Vaygr both infinite power and riches, becoming their messiah. All the Vaygr have to do is collect th other cores and find the traitor Sajuuk. With Sajuuk in their possession, Makaan promises the Vaygr an empire so grand and powerful that the very stars will tremble.

⇒ It takes the Vaygr close to a hundred years to rebuild Makaan’s ship and begin the journey towards Inner Rim. When crossing the Gehenna Rift that separates the Eastern Fringes from the Inner Rim, Makaan dispatches advance elements. They soon report that the Inner Rim is at war, and that one factions, the Hiigarans, is in possession of one of the cores. From a distance Makaan watches and learns of the Hiigarans reverence for the Great Maker Sajuuk, an front surely. He also learns the Hiigarans are not united, some Kiths feel that the current war is blasphemous. Makaan quickly contacts these Kiths and offers a bargain — “break Hiigara and in return I will show you the true face of Sajuuk.” The Soban agree, and on the eve of the launch of the Pride of Hiigara, the Soban betray their follow kindred kiths and allow the Tobar to attack.

Prelude

On the eve of the launch of the Pride of Hiigara, the Hiigaran 15th Fleet is on high alert. Most elements are patrolling the debris fields that surround the secret Hiigran base at Tanis, including Soban ships tasked with parameter security. 10 minutes ago, all contact with a Sobani detachment was lost. In response, Fleet Command has ordered Battlefleet Archon to investigate.

This fleet consists of a Carrier ship, called The Sword of Kharak, and its escorts: 3 Frigates, 2 Fighter, and 1 Bomber squadron. The fleet is under the command of CADIUS S’JET (voice of Fleet Operations). S’jet is the grandson of KARAN S’JET, the woman who brought the Hiigarans home over 200 years ago…