PART TWO: CATASTROPHE

This chapter is an interlude presenting a philosophical statement from Ekur-Tkalal, a Carryx keeper-librarian, reflecting on the Carryx worldview and their treatment of subordinate species. The passage articulates the Carryx justification for their dominion over conquered peoples, comparing subjugation to natural processes and rejecting moral frameworks as primitive constructs.

Ekur-Tkalal's final statement argues that the Carryx do not recognize moral binaries like good and evil, viewing them as insufficient constructs used by lesser beings. The Carryx instead align themselves with the implacable truths of the universe itself. The statement explains that all species under Carryx control—the Rak-hund, the Gar of Estian, Kirikishun, Ouck, the seven Lek-Variable, and the Whirl-Ghost—have been genetically or selectively modified through culling and sterilization to serve Carryx will without question. Ekur-Tkalal draws an analogy to the act of carving a tool from a tree, arguing that just as a species feels no moral compunction in using a tree branch, the Carryx feel none in using conquered species as instruments. The statement concludes by dismissing the question "Why me?" as something the universe never answers, implying that resistance or moral objection to one's subjugation is futile.