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A short research paper by Prof. Horgan

One of the most frequently asked questions civilizations ask before first contact with an alien race is the "Are we alone ?" question. Throughout galactic history almost every race has asked this question, usually without being able to answer it for sure. Only after a first contact with an alien race does the galaxy open up and a civilization can enter the vast regions of space for exploration.

This civilization then transforms quickly and becomes part of the universal community that covers our region of space. They will either adopt or retrieve from further relations under the pressure of knowing that they are not the center of the universe. If they choose to move on from planetary egotism or to use the translated Melarian term 'Planetary Isolationary Syndrome', they will soon forget their isolated past. The overwhelming richness of the galaxy, the sheer amount of new technology and other aspects that will influence their civilization will soon erase further questions in the 'Are we alone` area.

But are we really alone? Is it possible that there are still unknown races out there who we just have not seen yet? In this article we will try to determine the validity of the question as well as present a number of fascinating standpoints that raise some interesting questions about the way we perceive our galaxy.

After a civilization is absorbed into our galactic culture it seems that the first contact issue becomes solved. After all, the answer seems to be found; we are not alone! But is this a realistic perception of our galaxy? Most races go through an enormous culture shock and this will undoubtedly colour their ways of thinking. They stop asking the question and never go beyond their newly found interpretation. Is the question really answered? Perhaps not!

Do we not limit ourselves by this easy answer? We probably do. Because beneath the logical but easy answer of the newly found alien diversity there lurks an unknown presence, an eerie unconscious, almost metaphysical manifestation of unknown origin.

But what causes this feeling? An increasing number of individuals from all races have pondered this question. And this has lead to the forming of many a society of worship or intellectual investigation. The source of these feelings are found in reports made by many individuals of many races of strange and unknown manifestations in the form of ships, spacial disturbances that science cannot explain, as well as religious and mythological streams. But also in our shared galactic past we find clues that seem to lead us to the idea that we are actually not alone!

Let us give a list of the different sources that has so far been uncovered.

• Sightings
  There are an increasing number of reports of individuals who witnessed the appearance and disappearance of ships that are unknown to them. Verification of these reports combined with camera recordings show that these ships belong to no known species. One particular incident near the start of the 23rd century involved a large convoy of Terran ships which were involved in a battle in hyperspace. Only two ships managed to escape but were severely damaged with no visual records of the attack. Survivors that saw the attack through some of the windows gave conflicting reports of the attacking ships design which could indicate the involvement of several different races. It has never been determined whether the attack was unprovoked or a first contact cultural misunderstanding which the race(s) thought to defend itself.
• Spacial Disturbances
  Every method of hyperspace travel is recorded with the exception of the Ovaska and Vaipen. Some suggest that the sightings and disturbances are in fact new organic technologies one or both races are testing. Still, the evidence shows a completely different way of entering and leaving hyperspace than we are used to and as such cannot be explained by what we know of organic technology. Disturbances include ripples through space, temporary gravity wells and a range of broad bandwidth radiational occurrences
• Historical Reports
  There seem to be a number of historical anecdotes that could be interpreted as reports of alien visitation before first contact. Usually they can be explained by comparing records of other races visiting these worlds in question. But not all can be explained by this, as we will explain in this article.
• Ancient Ruins
  On many worlds, inhabited or not, inhabitable or not, there are ruins to be found. Are these the remainders of a previous civilization existing on a world or on a planet that lost its capability to sustain life?

We will present examples of all these sources. Of all the evidence that points at this separate reality, most of it can be regarded as circumstantial. Yet, the vast amount of material seems to invite to a less fixed perception of our galaxy that asks us to be open minded and allow this separate reality to exist.

One of the most intriguing questions we can ask is who they are and what their objectives are. This question is important because in the case of an unknown race really existing, why are they holding back to establish communications? Why do they not wish to reveal themselves?

There are many obvious reasons for that. They could be investigating this region of space and the races that inhabit it, to check if any dealings with them could be dangerous. They could be a withdrawn race that suffers from a natural xenophobia. They could also be beyond our current state of technology for which there is evidence in the form of the unexplainable phenomenon that are witnessed. Like these, many reasons can be found. Let us list the major ideas we have come across.

More theories exist. But mostly they are mixes of the above mentioned ones. An important theory that has been left out is the theory regarding the Ovaska and the Vaipen. As mentioned before, some say that these strange occurrences are caused by technologies created by the Vaipen for unknown reasons. We have contacted ambassadors of these species but so far only the Vaipen have responded. They responded to our question if these occurrences are caused by them with a curious statement.

"Life is the fulfillment of destiny. We all have our destinies ; we must adapt to the future. Destiny is not an aim, it is a path that we choose, we must choose wisely..."

We feel it is inappropriate to indulge in easy accusations towards the Ovaska and Vaipen. We are aware that they can be incomprehensible at times.

With all these possibilities in mind, what can we expect to happen in the future? Will this unknown species reveal itself or are they beyond our level of existence? We may one day find out. And we need to be prepared for their arrival, Whatever it, or rather, they will bring us.

But how do we prepare? If they are hostile, will our forces be competent enough to withstand a race that has the technology to cloak themselves so well from which we may draw the conclusion that their offensive capabilities are equally sophisticated? And if they only pose a thread to one species, how will the other alien races respond?

On the other hand. if they are friendly, will we be the ones posing a thread to them? And is that possible regarding their (assumed) state of technology? And do we want relationships with a race so powerful, even if they mean only well? In our opinion, there is nothing more dangerous than an all powerful species smothering us in a deadly embrace. As individuals, most species have their own identity and more often than less, this identity is the basis for conflict. As a species, we have the same problem. Regardless of that, we fight and protect our own identities. If this new race interferes in our identities, they may cause more harm than that they improve our existence. Much worse, they might disturb the balance between the races in our region of space.

Hostile or friendly, we should prepare ourselves for the impact they will have on our lives. We cannot tell you how to prepare, so we have listed a number of links to other sources that have some information. It is up to the reader to select the criteria, to follow a belief or to study these topics so that the reader can decide on his own what he will do, how he will react in case of a first contact. The reader must choose a course of action and all we can do to make it easier is to gather all the information.

Selection of References Related to Possible Unknown Alien Species