Sun Wu Aalim Phaeron of the Tianzza Dynaty, gazed pensively over the empty crystalline boulevards of the Tianzza above-ground capital city. In his mind's eye, the avenues teemed with joyful crowds as they did before biotransference - the aroma of tantalizing street food wafting through lively markets, sunlight gleaming off intricate spires, friends, family, and children gathering in courtyards alive with laughter and music. His living flesh had reveled in those shining days.

But now only faint sensory data flickered in his neural circuitry, the barest fragmented echo of his living past. Like grasping at the fading mist, emotions eluded his Necron frame. Yet still memory persisted, an oasis beckoning from across endless barren millennia...

Outside the throne room stood Imperial Vizier Xu Cheng of the grand Ku’Lai planet capital, he adjusted his flowing silk uniform as he approached the divine throne room, a jade Necron Tianzza emblem palque prominently displayed on his belt. He had risen swiftly through civilian roles, his shrewd political trade negotiations with neighboring systems catching the god-king's attention.

Though only recently inducted into the lower celestial court, Cheng's success led to a rapid promotion as the Phaeron's official liaison, one of many to the mortal kingdom. The honor terrified Cheng, but he saw potential to uplift his entire world further than his predecessor.

And so he learned to temper awe with reason, guiding his people's growth while striving for the past few years never to offend the Cryptic Ones. It was a narrow path, but Cheng had managed five celestial audiences thus far.

The vizier took a deep, steadying breath as he stepped into the divine throne room, just as staggeringly massive and resplendent as he remembered. No matter how many times he was summoned here, its scale and grandeur overwhelmed mortal senses...

The harsh silent scrape of footsteps tore Aalim from his reverie, like nails on a chalkboard. Sun Wu Aalim turned slightly with acute displeasure as his Imperial Vizier entered bowing low.

"Your Radiance, I exist only to serve! Why do you gaze upon the empty streets so pensively?

Aalim turned further to the mortal, who trembled in awe and fear. "I was remembering eras before your kind walked these stones."

The vizier's eyes widened. "You mean...before the Celestial Ones came to enlighten Jinzhumao?" To him, Aalim was the immortal metal sun Phaeron who had reigned over the planet since time immemorial. Aalim with a feeling like disgust from the Vizier's correction waved a dismissive metal hand. "It was long ago. Your primitive tongue has no words for the scale."

Aalim waved the mortal silent, straining to reclaim his vanished daydream of warm sunlight and joy. But the moment had passed. The grim present closed around him once more, vacant and monochrome. "You may serve by not disturbing me further. Now BEGONE!" Aalim dismissively intoned, his voice hollow and cavernous, as he sat down on the throne, displeased that a moment of radiance was snatched away by the present.

The terrified vizier immediately retreated from the throne room, standing in the hallway with fear, and dread. To earn the disfavor of the Phaeron meant swift oblivion if not worse. Now alone, Aalim slumped almost imperceptibly. The divide separating his existence from true life yawned vaster and colder than the gulfs between stars.

Moments later, at an impatient gesture from Aalim, a Lychguard quickly escorted the cringing vizier back in, crying. "Divine Master, forgive my interruption! I merely wished to share auspicious news!"

As the Vizier glanced forward, there on an obsidian dais etched with eldritch glyphs, sat the Celestial One himself. The Phaeron Sun Wu Aalim, is known as the Nabh Al Zalam. Light rippled across his polished metal form in hypnotic patterns, his emerald optics burning with ancient intellect and power.

The vizier shivered, vividly recalling the last unfortunate soul who displeased the Phaeron. His ashen remains had decorated these very floors afterward. Only by maintaining perfect poise and humility had the vizier earned the god's favor so far.

He steadied his nerves and approached the gleaming black throne, prostrating himself at its steps. This was his fifth audience with the Celestial One, yet his heart pounded like the first time. To walk with divinity was to balance along a razor's edge. But he would serve with devotion as long as providence allowed.

With a skeletal wave of permission, Aalim bid him to continue. "A child of the capital has passed all sections of the Imperial trials, o Exalted One! The first in a generation to achieve such success."

As Sun Wu Aalim stood up he strode back to the balcony, gesturing for the vizier to follow. "Tell me, child, in my absence has the Ku’Lai capital been prosperous? Do your people want for anything?"

The vizier shook his head fervently. "You are most benevolent, my lord! The blessed rain you summon nurtures bountiful crops so none go hungry. Our people give thanks and offerings to you each day!"

"Good, good," Aalim murmured, half-listening. His thoughts turned to grander plans. The Ku’Lai were primitive, their lives fleeting. But perhaps in time, they could be molded if not more...

He turned, eyes blazing. "Increase tribute of your youth to the temple schools. All those of intellect must be inducted into the holy rites of the Celestial Ones."

The vizier bowed so low his beard brushed the polished obsidian floor. "At once, great one! We are honored to serve your divine will!"

Aalim allowed a moment of satisfaction. Progress was gradual, even for one as eternal as he. But the seeds had been planted...in time, his vision would reshape Jinzhumao and its inhabitants to his design.

Aalim paused, interest sparking in his emerald optic lenses. "Was that a prodigy you spoke of earlier, and brought with you? Summon them to me at once."

The vizier quailed. To be in the god-king's presence was to gaze into the abyss! But he dared not refuse. "Of course, Luminous Majesty. I shall retrieve her immediately!" The Vizier stood up hastely, and step out of the throne room.

Soon he returned with a diminutive girl of no more than ten years, perhaps younger. She met the baleful gaze of Aalim's metal skull without fear. Her posture was straight and poised with preternatural confidence.

Aalim sat back down in his golden jade onyx throne. The Imperial Vizier ushered the small girl before Aalim's gleaming throne. She met the baleful emerald optics of the metal god-king without fear.

Aalim analyzed the unassuming child who showed no dread in his imposing presence. "You have proven yourself gifted beyond others of your flesh, little one. The computations and cosmic mysteries of the Ku’Lai let alone what few mysteriers we allow you to see from the Tianzza Dynasty are not easily grasped by mortal minds."

The girl bowed low, her golden crimson braided hair brushing the polished obsidian floor. "Our laws and star maps are most wondrous puzzles, Golden Lord. I devote myself fully to unlocking their architectural marvels."

Aalim leaned forward, intrigued by her articulation and poise. "You find our laws and science akin to dazzling puzzles then, child?"

"Yes, Exalted One. Like charting the very mysteries of creation itself."

The vizier added eagerly, "Wise Aalim, she shows immense promise in applying advanced science with ancient Cryptek teachings! None have absorbed so quickly, let alone progress at such speeds in ages."

Within a few seconds, Aalim accessed the girl's records. The metal overlord nodded contemplatively, pride and bittersweet memories stirring. "You remind me of my sister, whose keen intellect ever amazed me. But alas, she perished too soon..." He trailed off a few moments before continuing.

"Young one, you shall join the echelons of my Cryptek. Your singular gifts will help uplift your people, or you will burn with divine knowledge." The Vizier thought to himself, will she be strong enough to handle such knowledge or burn away like so many before her? Only time will tell if she is worth raising above her station.

The girl bowed gratefully. As she turned to leave, Aalim's optic lenses lingered on her small form. A bright-burning flower of potential, but fleetingly so...yet in that ephemeral brilliance, hope once again kindled.

"One last question, child - what meaning do you find in your lack of knowledge?"

She paused thoughtfully. "To learn your mysteries is to touch the divine, my Phaeron . When shared, it blossoms to enrich all."

Aalim let out a joyful laugh, which even caught the few Praetorians off guard "Spoken like a true cryptek," Aalim replied approvingly. "Go now, and unlock ever deeper insights."

As the girl departed with a Praetorian, the curtain of bleak reality fell over Aalim once more. But for a fleeting moment, the ancient Phaeron had touched fulfilling purpose again.

After a few minutes, Sun Wu Aalim stood up from his throne and began walking, the imperial Vizier stood with his head bowed low in terror at what he witnessed today. A Ku’Lai child was to be taken into the inner Tianzza palace, a forbidden city to all outside Tianzza, but a blessing to learn from the gods themselves. "Come, Vizier, we have much to discuss." the Vizier lifted his head and followed the Phaeron out of the throne room.

Sunlight filtered through crystalline ceilings, scattering prismatic rainbows across the cavernous hall. Aalim's metal footsteps clacked loudly as the vizier struggled to match his tireless pace. Outside the arched viewing portals, soundless cybernetic servitors meticulously tended lush gardens and water features of impossible beauty. The soaring walls were frescoed with larger-than-life depictions of Tianzza's ancient kings and cosmic wonders long lost to time. Scenes of legions clashing and planets birthing blazed in vivid pigments extracted from neutron stars. Intricate anti-grav lanterns hovered above, their distorted shadows swirling like talons grasping from beyond reality. The vizier shivered as they passed, fighting the instinctive dread rising in his stomach.

As they walked, Aalim expounded on a dizzying array of projects - defense fortifications, geoengineering initiatives, and biotech augmentation. The vizier nodded deferentially, not comprehending half the god-king's references but knowing refusal was impossible.

Rounding a corner, they came upon a young Ku’Lai maid approaching from the opposite direction. catching sight of Aalim, terror flooded her face and she froze, trembling uncontrollably. In her panic, she had neglected to don the insignia sash denoting service in the palace. A grave insult to the Celestial Ones. With casual, almost bored cruelty, Aalim made a slight gesture with two fingertips. Sound and color bled away from the girl instantly. She stood trapped out of time and space, silently screaming in an endless instant of abject horror. "Let her stand as a reminder," Aalim pronounced, his words echoing with fell authority. The vizier averted his eyes, bile burning his throat. To alter reality so effortlessly, snuffing out life and hope without a second thought...he dared not dwell on how insignificant all their lives were by comparison.

At last, they reached Tianzza's inner sanctum, its obsidian walls inset with flickering geoscape displays of Tianzza's domain. Adamantium doors slid open silently at their approach. Within, the towering vaulted ceiling glittered with holographic galaxies turning majestically through their cosmic cycles.

Aalim's words were honeyed, but his tone brooked no argument or defiance. The vizier found himself promising ever more resources and youth inductees for the cryptek training programs, groveling in terror at each cold demand.

Celestial rainbows scattered across the crystalline ceiling, dappling the pathway with prismatic luminance. Aalim's taloned feet clicked loudly on the polished stone, the vizier struggling to match his tireless gait. They passed through soaring archways of engraved jade into the inner sanctuary gardens, a meticulously designed galactic arboretum. Gravity-conforming planters nurtured alien flora and fauna from across the eons. Schools of quicksilver fish glinted as they leaped in graceful synchrony amid the burbling streams and ponds. Exotic avians with shimmering plumes sang in haunting mathematical melodies from crystalline branches.

The vizier stopped, awestruck by such impossible grandeur. Each component was a flawless work of genetic and stellar craft. "Sire...this is Lèyuán itself! Your works are divine creation made manifest." Aalim nodded indulgently, pleased at the reaction. "My previous gardens spanned five galaxies, holding wonders your mind could not comprehend while awake, but within your dreams will fall short. Alas, this shall suffice… for now."

They walked on as harmonious scents wafted from blossoms chiming in complex melodies, absorbing and refracting light. The entranced vizier nearly tripped over the frozen form of the maid from earlier. The Vizier question himself, how did the maid get here from the hallway? With casual ease, Aalim made a small spatiotemporal gesture. The maid collapsed gasping for breath as color and motion returned. "Mind yourself henceforth in this place, child." The vizier was shocked at this casual reversal of eternal punishment. "T-thank you, luminous one!" she managed shakingly before a piercing golden light split the air behind the maid.

As the vizier watched, stunned, a being of otherworldly grace and terrible magnificence materialized before him. She was at once entrancing yet dangerously inKu’Lai like a dragon of ancient myth sprung to life. Her shapely form seemed carved from liquid quicksilver, gleaming with a supple metallic sheen. Flowing tourmaline sapphire tresses cascaded down her back, defying gravity with preternatural motion. When she turned, her vulpine features were flawless, shining with prismatic colors that hypnotically shifted just beyond sight. But it was her ever-changing opal eyes with glints of garnet that transfixed the vizier, threatening to swallow his soul. They sparkled with eons of cosmic wisdom and power, burning with brilliant intensity despite their impossible antiquity. To meet that gaze was to witness the birth and death of galaxies, matter, and eternity meaningless before such vast consciousness.

Yet one thing marred her otherworldly perfection - an ornate...at best description a geometric tesseract choker encircling her slender neck, strangely out of place. Its bejeweled geometric shapes clashed with her flowing lines, as though binding her very essence. When she smiled, it was radiance beyond comprehension blooming to greet lowly Ku’Lai. The vizier fell to his knees, reality crumbling. She was at once unspeakably beautiful yet terrifyingly incomprehensible. Before this divine cosmic intellect, Ku’Lai kind was but motes in a limitless expanse.

The Queen gave Aalim an indulgent smile. "Dear Kaminir, your stasis incarceration was unnecessary. But I will accept the morsel regardless." With terrifying speed she grasped the maid's head, lifting her up and arching the maid’s head back. With a gentle crackle of lighting a ichor slowly seeps from the girl's eyes and mouth into the Queen's palm. The maid’s body was shaking, quivering, and unable to scream. The vizier watched in horror as she seemed to drain the very life force until the husk collapsed, and desiccated. Lifting the limp corpse, she turned and casually tossed it into a nearby pond. With a flurry of motion, iridescent metallic fish descended to feed ravenously.

The Queen turned to Aalim, eyes flashing. "Now, shall we walk, my love?" Linking her arm in his, they proceeded through the impossible gardens. Linking her arm in his, Aalim gave her a tender look. "Of course, my dear Itzalming. I cherish these moments together."

They proceeded through the garden, the vizier forgotten behind them. Aalim continued discoursing on the arboretum's intricate systems, the C'tan Itzalming listening with rapt interest, as one empowered beyond imagining might give a loved one's trivial passions full attention.

Knees buckling, the vizier swallowed bile. These celestial beings were beyond law and morality, capricious as the forces that birthed galaxies. To exist in their presence at all was to touch the infinite. What were Ku’Lai souls but motes before their absolute power?

Oblivious, Aalim discoursed on the arboretum's intricate xenobiotic systems with Itzalming. The vizier followed numbly, his reality shattered. How could one stand before such entities and retain one's sanity? He focused on placing one foot after the other, praying to survive this ordeal.

As they strolled down crystalline pathways, Aalim glanced back. “Ah, you still attend us, good vizier? Come, we have matters to discuss.” The mortal stumbled after them in a daze. Seeing his tireless dedication, Aalim was reminded of his longtime imperial treasurer before the biotransference - unceasingly loyal and devoted. Such fidelity was rare, even then.

“Itzalming, be a dear and fetch one of the shimmering lunar saplings for our faithful friend here.” The C’tan nodded, vanishing in a flare of light. She soon reappeared cradling a small white tree covered in delicate fractal golden leaves that chimed softly in the breeze. Kneeling before the trembling vizier, she stared into his eyes with her piercing platinum gaze. The man was stunned by her smooth metallic pearl skin and lush ruby lips. She seemed a courtly xiannǚ princess from old myths come to life. “Well now, are you and your family up to the task of caring for such a royal gift, little one?” she asked teasingly.

Aalim placed a paternal chrome hand on the sweating vizier’s shoulder. “I foresee great things for you and your lineage. Your loyal service shall be rewarded.” Relief flooded the man at his monarch’s benevolence. Perhaps he would survive this ordeal after all.

As they walked, the vizier stared in awe at the shimmering sapling in his hands, its golden fractal leaves chiming softly. "Exalted One, forgive my ignorance, but what manner of plant is this? I have never seen it before. It smells like a mixture of fruits from the southern deserts." Aalim nodded indulgently. "I imagine not. Your scholars have found fossil imprints dating to prehistoric eras. But only here has the species flourished again." The vizier's eyes widened. "You mean...this extinct lunar tree lives solely in your cosmic gardens?" "Just so. My crypteks worked for centuries deciphering degraded genetics from fossil fragments to resurrect it. This little sapling is what you would call a cousin to those fossils. Imperfect but unique." Aalim stroked one of the warm branches fondly, the leaves shimmering gold in kind. "To hold an ancient wonder reborn...this is too great an honor, luminous one!" The man fell to his knees in reverence before the sapling.

"Rise, rise, dear vizier," Aalim chuckled. "Consider it a token of my faith in your loyal service." Tears of joy brimmed in the vizier's eyes. "That your Eminence would bestow such a priceless living relic upon me...I am unworthy of this gift." Aalim tilted the man's chin up paternally. "Nonsense. Tend it well, as you have tendered your people. In time, more will flourish across Jinzhumao once again." The vizier clasped the pot to his chest. "I vow to nurture this sapling with my lifeblood, Divine One! Its descendants will stand as a symbol of unity between your Celestial Kind and my people."

They walked on leisurely, the vizier following while gently cradling the Priceless sapling. The hypnotic aquatic gardens soothed his frayed nerves. Aalim elaborated on various projects to uplift the Ku’Lai people - aqueducts for emerging cities, enhanced biotech crops, and cities orbiting Jinzhumao. The vizier nodded along deferentially, comprehending little but knowing these gifts would raise his people to greatness.

Unexpectedly, Aalim turned to him, emerald optic lenses bright. “Ah, remind me - when do your system survey ships return from charting the local stars?” The vizier was caught off guard but replied, “N-not for ten several more lunar cycles, luminous one.” Aalim replied softly.“Good, good. Time yet remains then.” Aalim placed a friendly hand on his back. “Before you return to the capital, are there any needs among your people I might assist with?” The vizier shook his head, overcome by the living divinity's generous concern. As they exited the palace gardens, the C’tan suddenly leaned in close, her long cold chrome nails tracing the vizier's cheek. He shuddered at her cool metallic touch.

"Do take good care of that precious sapling now," she whispered, her voice silken yet strangely resonant. As her fingertip brushed the sapling's leaves, they began emanating a gentle warm glow, cycling through patterns of light. The vizier gasped, clutching the pot tighter in confusion and awe. "We shall be...keeping an eye on your stewardship," the C'tan continued lightly, tapping the chilled vizier on the nose. "Fail in your duty, and consequences shall manifest. But excel, and rewards beyond imagination may flower." Her smile was dazzling yet hinted at an unfathomable darkness yawning behind her beauty. The vizier trembled, filled with longing and terror in equal measure. "Y-yes, radiant mistress, I swear to nurture this treasure with utmost devotion," he stammered. What cosmic forces had he stumbled into?

The C'tan laughed, a sound both musically beautiful and grating hauntingly. "See that you do, little mortal. My dear Kaminir has such hopes for your kind, it would be a shame to cull the garden prematurely again." With that, she vanished in a crackle of golden blue light, leaving the vizier breathless with dread. These beings tended Jinzhumao like a flower bed, discarding weeds on a whim. He must prove worthy of cultivation.

Clutching the sapling reverently, he swore devotion unto death. The Celestial Ones had shown him favor - he would answer with fidelity beyond question. Back at the palace, Aalim affectionately bid the vizier goodbye, praising his work. Still clutching the precious sapling, the man departed in wonder at his fantastic fortune. The Celestial Ones were truly benevolent and wise! He swore to honor them eternally.