APPENDIX 1:
D'Iem Hadar

This legendary band was formed in the Sixties and took its name from a story published in one of the group of British monthly SF magazines. This is the plot outline:

An outpost on the edge of the Solar System detects a moving object. It looks like a fairly small asteroid where an asteroid has no business to be and there is great interest in it as the object has to be coming in from another solar system.
   An unmanned interceptor probe detects seven more objects of similar size, which are flying in formation and decelerating rapidly. The objects turn out to be artificial, which moves them from the small category in planetoid terms to absolutely huge in terms of the artificial structures that the space agencies of the Earth can put into space.
   A smaller craft detaches itself from the fleet of seven and heads into the heart of the Solar System. Hailing it fails to gain a response, so paranoid Earth defence forces see an outrider of an alien invasion force and throw every weapon they have at it. Nothing has any effect.
   Earth becomes resigned to conquest, domination and slavery when the object goes into orbit.
   Then the orbiting visitor broadcasts an announcement. It is a messenger vessel from the D'Iem Hadar. They are just passing through and they plan to stop off to take a comet from the Oort Cloud and some minerals from the asteroid belt to resupply themselves. The scout craft is stating their intentions as a courtesy to the inhabited planets.
   The Earth defence forces realize that the D'Iem Hadar have no interest in them or their miserable little planet, and they don't care that the Earth defence force has been shooting missiles at their automatic messenger probe.
   The message of the story is: 'We are not alone but the others out there may have their own business to get on with - which may be more important to them than messing about with mere Earthlings.'

 No trees were consumed by Farrago & Farrago and Henry T. Smith Productions, 10/12 SK6 4EG, UK in creating this material for Jon A. Gored. Sole © Jon A. Gored, 2001.

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