Over a period of more than 2,000 years we Quendrii have shared the adult lives of over 1,000,000 human beings, joining our hosts at puberty and staying with them until their lives end. At the end of that time we return to Quend and to reintegration with the combined mind of we Quendrii.  Here the mental recording of every moment of our Human hosts lives becomes part of the combined knowledge of the Quendrii. Eventually we Quendrii will know what it means to be 'Human' and whether or not that Humans have a place in the galaxy.

Full integration may only have taken some fifty hours but acclimatisation, that was a different matter. Physically we Quendrii and humans could not be any different. To once again feel the confines of a material body was bad enough but no amount of training could prepare for the greatest challenge for any of the Quendrii. That of being alone. Completely alone.

Initially the process of integration had occupied my attention so completely but when that was complete, I noticed the silence. Sure, so I could experience all my host was/is/will be and hear/see his thoughts dreams and fantasies but I could not hear the Quendrii. Never before in my 3,000 years had I not been bathed in the collective consciousness of Quendrii.

Although of no benefit in preparing for the shock of alone, our training did show us how we could cope with it and continue to fulfil our function of life experience recorder.

For more than 30 years I, Yan of the Quendrii, have been integrated with the consciousness of the human male know as Hugh. Never sleeping, every moment, both night and day, I have experienced and I remember. Through integration. I also have access to the memories of my host. They are not the same.

We Quendrii volunteers record all. Whatever our host does, says or thinks, we record. Feelings, mental, physical and emotional, we record. Dreams, fantasies and imaginings, we record. There can be no mistake. My host's memory seemed to be a lot more selective.

During the first few years my host's main interests seemed to be on the opposite sex, mind altering drugs, reading and music. . .

I Yan, have now been alone for 38 years, no one has called my name, no one has spoken to me. That was soon to change.

I record the life experiences of the human Hugh, a 52 year old human male. His story has been long and convoluted and has been recorded in every detail. When the time comes for me to return to Quend then that story will be known.

When Hugh awoke this morning there was the shadow of my name in his mind. That shadow contained his concepts of another consciousness existing within him recording life's experiences. How could this be? In two millennia here on Earth and countless others going back in times, no host has ever become aware of the Quendrii within.

I followed the traces of those shadows

It could only be a coincidence. Hugh had always enjoyed reading SciFi and other speculative fiction. . .

As I pondered the. . . For the fist time in 38 years I heard my name. 'Good morning Yan'. My host was mentally talking to me. 'Of course I am. Now that I know you're there, of course I'm going to talk to you.


 
The Quendrii were first.

This is the answer to everything.

The Quendrii were first.

Well, in this Galaxy, that is a certainty

But in the Universe as a whole, it still is not known.

The Quendrii originated on a pretty standard rocky metallic planet, orbiting an unremarkable G class star somewhere in the Centaurus Arm of the Milky Way Galaxy. _Note- For ease of translation, all astronomical references are based on those as used by the Terran's from Sol3._

Their star, the name of which funnily enough, translates as 'The Sun' was one of the earliest 3rd generation stars to light up and their home planet was fortunately situated close enough to the star for liquid water to form on it's surface.

As has been worked out individually, by each and every member of 'The Eight', Evolution is a blind but totally irresistible force. Once the process starts life will flourish. Life will find every possible way of surviving, adapting to any available ecological niche.

The formation of intelligent life is not guaranteed by the process, that is yet a rare find in the Galaxy.

The Quendrii were first.

About 3.2 million years ago, after billions of years or evolutionary preamble, the species that was the Quend that were, began to form societies, refine technology and record history.

Within a few short millennia, they had began to unravel the secrets of matter, had visited in person two of the closest planets in their system and were making incredible advances in data storage and manipulation.

Within the span of some 10,000 years the Quend that were, had conquered their entire solar system and had sent thousands of probes and were preparing for their first interstellar manned expedition.

The next 40,000 years saw the preparation and colonisation of over 60 similar planets within 8LY of Quend.

Alone within their own region of the Galaxy and quite possibly the Galaxy entire, the Quend that were, had a working democratic federation of over 360 Billion Quend occupying a area of nearly 10 cubic LY.

For most of those 40,000 years the Quend that were, searched the nearby Galaxy for other forms of intelligent life. They listened to every frequency of radio spectrum for signs of a signal. Sent probes to possible targets and investigated in Person anything within range of their Sub-Lumina interstellar transporters.

All to no avail.

The Quendrii were the first.

During those same 40,000 years inner space exploration was given just as much focus as the study of any other science and it was from this area that the breakthrough finally came.

Thought amplifiers had been around for millennia but had been generally only used as a link in controlling automated machines in the more dangerous industries and in the entertainment industry. 

That is until Rii Quenslissnel made his discovery and instigated the process that would doom the Quend to be the Quend that were.

Rii was, even before his monumental discovery, known as the premier thinker on any of the 61 planets.

In a society of genius' he shone above all.

For a number of years Rii had been studying the way the brain of the Quend that were, communicated with itself.

So the history books say, he had been deep in thought after a particularly nice evening meal, when jumping quickly to his feet he ran into the entertainment room and grabbed one of the console headsets. After pulling them to pieces, changing some of the wiring and adding something from his work bench, he reassembled them and put them on.

In less than a second, he had pulled them from his head and slumped to the floor.

After taking a couple of very deep breaths he determinedly set the headset back on again.

Any lesser Quend would have died from the shock, the shock of suddenly hearing the thoughts of each and every Quend within a few kilometres of where he was.

Rii was made of stronger stuff and used his great intellectual capacity and strength of character to order the chaos around him.

Within the space of an hour Rii could see the one and only future course for the Quend and he saw that the change would be so great that would be very little to connect the Quend that were with the Quend that were yet to be.

 
My name is Yan, I am one of 12,000. For more than two millennia there have been 12,000 of us. Not the same 12,000 but always that same number. I myself have been here for nearly 38 years and depending on the health of my host, I could be here for a few more decades yet.

Who are we? We are of the Quendrii but not all of the Quendrii. We are volunteers, we are always volunteers. As the first of the eight member races of the Galactic Mind, it is the responsibility and indeed the desire of the Quendrii to undertake the close analysis of the rise of intelligent life within the Galaxy.

Our mission over the last two millennia, a most important mission, is to study the Planet known by its inhabitants as Earth and to learn what it means to be 'Human'.

The Quendrii are an old race, having evolved on a Planet much closer to the centre of the Galaxy. By the time the Planet Earth and its siblings were being formed and the first  fusion reactions took place within its star, we were already a star-faring race.

Having walked the path of technology for more than fifty millennia, three million years ago we Quendrii reached a turning point. It was then that we turned inwards, we turned towards the mind. Over the following twenty millennia our need and use of technology waned as the power of our minds increased. Our already long lives increased exponentially giving us both the time and perspective to undertake long range projects, projects that could be measured in millions of years.

We Quendrii, learnt that mind did not need to be contained within a body and that we could project our consciousness at will, anywhere instantaneously. We discovered that any number of Quendrii could work together in concert further increasing sensitivity and range.We also found as individuals that we could insert our minds into other life-forms and share their experiences.

One group of 12,000 Quendrii, are charged with finding the faintest sparks of intelligence wherever they appear in the Galaxy. By working in concert this giant mind is able to pinpoint the potential for intelligence anywhere within a 150,000 LY radius.

Some 150,000 years ago, that faint spark was discovered out on one of the smaller spiral arms of the Galaxy. On observing the location, it was discovered that an intelligent species of bipedal animal had evolved on a small rocky metallic planet circling a small G class star.

Remote observation continued for the next 148,000 years until it became obvious that this species of animal was showing signs of improved technology and cultural development. It was then that the decision was made for direct observation and the first volunteers were called.

It is not easy to be a volunteer, as it means being separated for a period of years from all other Quendrii. You who have never been joined in mind with others, can have no idea what that means, how it feels to be so completely alone. Only those with the strongest sense of self and the highest moral standing are selected.

Those lucky enough to be selected undergo additional mind training to further strengthen their sense of self and to instil the necessary constraints against tampering or influencing with the mind of their future host.

Hosts from the indigenous species are chosen at random the only factor considered being the relative health of the subject. All host subjects are selected for mind integration while they are going through puberty, this ensures that there is the least disruption to the subjects life. The hormonal changes of the host masking any temporary and minor personality disturbances that may occur during integration.

After integration with the host, we Quendrii become silent observers and remain so until the death of the host and our subsequent return to Quend.

My story on Earth starts some 38 years ago. My future host was fast approaching his 15th birthday and was currently travelling with the rest of his family by ocean going transport, to start a new life in a new country.

For we Quendrii, initial integration always takes place during the host's sleep cycle. This gives us time to tap into the major sense pathways and thought processes without interfering with those processes. I slipped in easily, my host was dreaming and I experienced a jumble of images, sounds and smells. As integration usually takes some 48 hours to complete, I could make no sense of his dream, that would come later.

By the second morning, integration was complete. Every thought, feeling, sight and sound experienced by my host went through and was recorded in my mind. My task for now, to integrate the thoughts and memories of my host prior to my arrival. By the 3rd morning, my hosts 15th birthday, all was complete. Everything experienced and learnt by Hugh over the last 15 years was now part of me and I could now begin my long term task, that of observer.

Although gross tampering and influence of the host are not possible due our training and to the strong moral ethics of we Quendrii, a small amount of influence can be applied to enhance any of the host's already apparent tendencies.


To be continued. . .




 

1507 - 1774

Approximately 500 kilometres east of the Patagonian coast, the Falkland Islands is an archipelago of just over 12,000 square kilometres comprising of two main islands, East Falkland and West Falkland and some 776 smaller islands.

Early History.

First mentions of the islands, comes in 1507, when a group of islands appeared on a map by German cartographer Martin Waldseemuller. During the following century, the islands are mentioned a number of times, including a report from 1521 by Estêvão Gomes, a Portuguese captain with Magellan, some inclusion of some islands on a chart by Pedro Reinel in 1522 and a reported spotting of the islands in 1584 by the English navigator, Cowley.

In 1592, Captain John Davis in the Desire was driven by strong winds among, what he thought were a previously undiscovered group of islands. This was followed by the 1594 expedition by Sir Richard Hawkins, who noted a group of islands, some 55 leagues east-northeast from the straits of Magellan. The earliest accurate charting of the islands was around 1600, by Sebald de Weerdt, of the Dutch East India Company.

The first recorded landing was at Bold Cove by Captain John Strong from the ship Welfare, after sailing down the passage between the two main islands on January 29, 1690, He named the passage the ‘Falkland Channel’. Six years later, William Dampier returns and circumnavigates the Falklands.

First Settlements.

The first to build a permanent structure on the islands were the French, under the command of Louis-Antoine de Bougainville, who named the islands ‘Les Iles Malouines’, constructing the Fort St. Louis on East Falkland in early 1764.

The following year, unaware of the French presence, the British ships Dolphin and Tamar arrived on the islands, claiming the islands, based on prior discovery, for the British crown, and establishing a watering place and vegetable garden in a sheltered bay they named Port Egmont.

In August that year, the Spanish, their claim based solely on the Papal grants as described in the Treaty of Tordesillas, demand that the French immediately relinquish all claims and remove all settlers. In Bougainville ‘s opinion, the Spanish claim was invalid; as they didn’t know where the islands were and had not as yet, ever stepped foot on the islands.
In January 1766, under orders from Henry Conway, Secretary of State for the Southern Department, Captain John MacBride arrives at Port Egmont in the Jason, with the HMS Carcass and the store ship HMS Experiment and commences to construct permanent buildings, a garrison and blockhouse.

By October of 1766, under pressure from the Spanish, Bougainville, signs over his claim on the islands and accepts reimbursement of his expenses. It was around this same time that The Spanish also try to exert pressure on the British to relinquish their claim to the islands, by invoking Article 8 of the Treaty of Utrecht. Lord Shelburne, the British Southern Secretary replied that the British claim is based on first discovery and that Britain does not regard Article 8 as a prohibition on discoveries in the South Seas.

In April the following year, Bougainville meets for the official handover of the islands to the Spanish at Port Louis, with Felipe Ruiz Puente, the new Spanish Governor of the Islas Maluinas. A few weeks later, after accepting the handover and planting the Spanish flag at Port Louis, now renamed Puerto Soledad, the new Spanish governor and his ships leave. Bougainville and the last of the Arcadian settlers left in June, thereby abandoning the islands completely.

The British presence on the islands continued, notwithstanding the constant claims by the Spanish until June 10, 1770 when the British forces there surrendered to overwhelming Spanish forces sent from Buenos Aires under the orders of the local Governor. This event quite nearly caused war, between the two nations with Britain preparing a large Naval fleet. Eventually, over a number of months of intense diplomatic negotiation the situation was resolved with the Spanish Crown declaring that they did not authorise the expedition against Port Egmont, or the force used against the British forces and ordering that all things shall be immediately restored to the precise situation in which they stood before the 10th of June 1770.

By 1774, the British garrison departs, leaving behind a Union Jack and a lead plate stating -

‘ Know all the Nations, the Falkland Islands, with its ports, warehouses, landings, natural harbours, land and coves belonging thereto, are of exclusive rights and ownership of his most sacred Majesty George III, King of Great Britain. In testimony whereof, placed this plate and the colours of his British Majesty left flying as a sign of possession by S.W.Clayton, official Commander of the Falkland Islands. 1774 A.D.’


References
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Falkland_Islands (Wikipedia)
http://falklandstimeline.wordpress.com (Lord Ton)
http://www.falklandnews.com (Falkland Islands News Network)
http://www.historyworld.net/timesearch/default.asp (History World)
http://britishempire.co.uk/maproom/falkland/timeline.pdf (Roger Lorton)
http://www.falklands.gov.fk (Falkland Islands Government)
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/fk.html (Central Intelligence Agency)
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Falkland_Islands (New World Encyclopedia)
http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/samerica/fk.htm (Woolwine-Moen Group)

Image Credit
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Hawkesworth-Byron-Map.PNG

Note: This piece was written as an assignment in a Communication & Media course I am currently studying. 

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    I am an opinionated, atheist, sceptic. Sometimes I write stuff.

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