Departure
Printed pages 180–185. Records documented in this chapter; later article sections may include subsequent events.
Showing introductory records. Switch to Full archive above to include later names and revelations.
American death-chamber strikes
Eastcott destroyed thirty-four Flaxen death chambers across the Americas in a single scorpion mission. He selected the targets in preference to a second conventional military base proposed by Minister Eppleston.
Brookes–Flaxus agreement
Avalon Brookes and Claudius Sirister agreed to exchange advanced military assistance for Brookes's future rule of the cylinder. Brookes promised to defeat Echo and secure Flaxen conquest of Earth.
Claudius Sirister
Claudius Sirister held the title Flaxus and ruled the Flaxens from the Hawk's Retreat on Venus. He struck an agreement with Avalon Brookes to defeat Echo and accelerate the conquest and extermination of Earth's remaining Human population.
Death chambers
Flaxen death chambers were heat-based execution facilities used against captive Humans. Their operation depended on capacitors that required time to recharge.
Departure
Departure is the Flaxen euphemism for murdering prisoners deemed unfit for work. It forms part of the occupation's system of forced labor and extermination.
Earth
Earth is humanity’s homeworld and the birthplace of United Earth. Almost ten thousand years after Echo’s departure, it is divided by the war against Flaxen conquest.
Flaxen salute
Flaxen public gestures of allegiance included raising a fist and invoking the Flaxus. Subordinates also bowed their heads before senior officers.
Flaxens
The Flaxens are the people of Venus who claim a separate and superior identity to humans. Their state wages a campaign of conquest on Earth.
Hawk's Retreat
The Hawk's Retreat was the unofficial name of the Capitol building in Venus's northern hemisphere, where the Flaxus conducted state business. Its name reflected Flaxen admiration for birds of prey.
Hawks
Hawks were advanced arrow-shaped transport craft taken from Cylli by Brookes and modified as weapons. Their speed, stealth, protection, and sphere beams initially overwhelmed Echo's remaining defenses.
Kilter Shrader
Field Marshal Kilter Shrader was the most senior Flaxen on Earth and the highest military official of the Flaxus. He threatened United Earth with daily mass killings unless it ended its alliance with Echo.
Mega chamber
The mega chamber was Brookes's proposed replacement for the Flaxens' reduced death-chamber network. He offered to build a continuously powered structure capable of killing at least fifty thousand captives at once.
Ribous
Ribous is a Flaxen alcoholic drink produced from a genetically engineered grain suited to Venus's climate. Jaakobah Flint drinks it at his Camp Skadi house.
Zoons
Zoon is the dehumanizing term Flaxens apply to humans and captives of mixed ancestry. Its use reflects the occupiers' belief that non-Flaxens are inferior beings.