LoaC Pt 1: Please Reman Calm.

  The day had been, thus far, a peaceful one.
  It had been almost a month since the last time the Eslaoni attacked the Aschi, but no-one in their military was getting comfortable; indeed, it probably meant they were just massing their forces for a bigger attack than before. The Analyst was a pessimist, and he found it strange that The Creator was so calm. This was their last defendable system, with two colonies and their home world.
  For now, however, life was as normal for the Aschi here. The Analyst peered out of a window. No signs of panic, no burning trees and buildings. He made a bubbling sound – a sigh – then returned to his desk. The Aschi themselves, without their carapace-like shells or armour, seemed somewhere between a frog and a snail. Their skin and flesh was fairly squishy, grey or brown, and often seemed to shift its shape over the basic skeleton of the creatures. They were excellent at jumping and climbing; with powerful legs having two joints at the middle, similar to those of a deer or frog, and could hold on to surfaces well. If they needed to, they could use their hands and feet like a snail's foot. They didn't need stairs.
  The Analyst looked out, with eyes which were perched on stalks that seemed to have no fixed length, as he was sitting consuming a meal in a tube, holding it with two very fleshy feelers either side of his mouth, at the glinting metal paths that cut through the tall trees and bridged the ponds, lakes and rivers like glowing threads. They were more comfortable and easier to walk on than most other surfaces, and the Aschi made sure that they would not conduct electricity easily. Sculptures of many sizes stood alongside the clusters of buildings dotted the landscape. It was all beautifully sculpted, though that was all it was – a sculpture. Much of the Aschi civilian population lived below ground and came up during the day. This was good, though, it gave the plants and other animals above some room to breath.
  The Aschi turned back to the screen on his desk. Everything about the room was smooth and curving, and plants grew from holes built into the walls. It was a pleasant place to work. The Institute of Research and Investigation, or 'IRI' as those who worked there usually called it (or, the equivalent in the native language), had been for some time working on a new weapon. They had been named the 'Kree'th'. The Analyst didn't know what the word meant and right now he didn't really care. They were a set of squid-like creatures that would only survive out of clean water for any real length of time if they had semi-organic armour to protect them. The Analyst picked up his data pad and gazed at it. Tedious, he thought. The Eslaoni were indeed taking their merry time.
  He glanced out of the window at a skyscraper that sported almost no windows, but several large screens; mainly used for showing news. He frowned at one of the screens.
  "Eh?" He asked himself, dully, squinting at it and rubbing his six-'spiked' crest. The dark-toned fleshy gland had been slit in five places; it was sort of like getting a piercing, for an Aschi. Military Aschi tended to have them deeply cut at the middle.
  The screen was blank. That was unusual, the Analyst noted. And, again, rather boring.
  He turned an eye to something in the air. He blinked, and then looked at the screen again. Still nothing. The Aschi looked at the only interesting thing around; he guessed air transport. Or something. He blinked when it became more visible to him. It looked like a small shiny circle with a ring around it. He hesitated, unwilling to move.
  This wasn't so boring.
  The screen lit up, at last, and said, in neon-blue symbols and a friend font; Please Remain Calm.
  Clutching his data pad, the scientist ran.