Xaxonen

"Lights glowed in the midst of the all-encompassing gray. Banshees. New Banshees."
-- Booklet 053, "The Alien's Sanctuary," describing the final fate of the last six Xaxon consciousnesses

The Xaxonen (singular: Xaxone; also referred to simply as the Xaxon) are an extinct alien species native to the planet Xaxon, a world orbiting the red sun Chomeuze on the edge of the galaxy. A reptilian or semi-reptilian civilization with significant psionic abilities, the Xaxonen possessed advanced technology including interstellar spacecraft, ice-sleep suspended animation, and Simulation Cubes for consciousness restoration. Their civilization was annihilated in December 2501 when Kaiser Force technology -- deployed recklessly by humanity's Kaiser Corporation -- destabilized their sun, creating catastrophic spatial rifts that tore apart both Xaxon and its sister planet Ylian.

The destruction of the Xaxonen is one of the most consequential events in Die Terranauten. It serves as the first concrete proof that Kaiser Force causes cosmic-scale collateral damage to other civilizations, transforms the debate over the technology from abstract policy into moral reckoning, galvanizes the Entities (galactic supercivilizations) toward their threatened Final Strike against humanity, and produces the saga's most complex antagonist: Gorthaur, the last conscious Xaxone, whose campaign of revenge against Earth -- the Gorthaur Crisis -- destabilizes Terran politics and ultimately forces the Council of Corporations to abandon Kaiser Force.

Homeworld and Star System

The Planet Xaxon

The Xaxonen homeworld, Xaxon, is located at the edge of the galaxy, orbiting the red sun Chomeuze. It is a world characterized by diverse and often harsh terrain:

The planet's ecology was dominated by swamp environments teeming with life, including the Sumpfsegler (Swamp Gliders) of Liweuten -- creatures whose sounds resembled the language of Gorthaur's guide -- and the Koppelpartner, described as "wonderfully supple creatures" that maintained a symbiotic relationship with the Xaxonen. The Xaxonen also used Luftgondeln (air gondolas) for transportation.

Sister Planet Ylian

Physical Description

The Xaxonen are a reptilian or semi-reptilian species. Their true appearance is alien enough that when Gorthaur moves among humans on Earth, he must wear a body mask to conceal his form -- exposure of his actual features would immediately reveal him as non-human. During Gorthaur's psionic attack on Berlin, he transforms the city's inhabitants into "reptilian creatures" resembling his own species, providing an indirect description of the Xaxon body plan.

No detailed morphological description is given in the source texts beyond these indications. The Xaxonen are consistently distinguished from human physiology, and their alien nature is treated as self-evident upon visual inspection.

Culture and Society

Despite the limited direct depiction of Xaxon civilization (the homeworld is destroyed in the opening scenes of its introduction), several elements of their culture can be reconstructed from glossary references, Gorthaur's memories, and narrative details:

Governance

• Volksrat (People's Council) -- The governing body of Xaxon, suggesting a form of representative or democratic governance
• Wissenschaftliche Vereinigung (Scientific Association) -- An organized scientific institution, indicating a society that valued research and knowledge

Social Infrastructure

• Sozialstationen (Social Stations) -- Centers for social welfare, pointing to an organized social safety net
• Liweuten-Bau -- A city at the base of a high plateau, showing urban settlement patterns adapted to the planet's terrain

Spiritual and Philosophical Traditions

• Arma -- A meditative discipline using ritualized sentences to achieve extreme psionic focus. The Arma represents the Xaxonen's deepest spiritual practice, enabling feats of extraordinary psychic concentration including, in its ultimate application, the controlled dissolution of one's own consciousness. Gorthaur employs the Arma in his final act of self-sacrifice in Geneva (Booklet 053).
• Trockene Unterwelt (The Dry Underworld) -- A mythical place of the damned in Xaxon cosmology, indicating a developed eschatological tradition

Symbiotic Ecology

The Xaxonen maintained deep ecological connections with their homeworld's fauna:

• Koppelpartner -- Symbiotic companion creatures, described as "wonderfully supple," that the Xaxonen bonded with. Gorthaur later sent images of his Koppelpartner to a human psychologist, suggesting these bonds were emotionally profound.
• Sumpfsegler (Swamp Gliders) -- Creatures native to Liweuten whose vocalizations bore similarity to the language of Gorthaur's guide, hinting at a deep integration between Xaxon language and the sounds of their natural environment.

Psionic Abilities

The Xaxonen possessed significant psionic (PSI) abilities that placed them well above baseline human capabilities, though below the level of the Mushni (Star Riders) or the galactic Entities. The Mushni observer Zsa-non classifies Gorthaur as a Nichtmushni (non-Mushni) -- acknowledging his considerable psionic power while distinguishing him from the post-technological civilizations that have fully transcended material existence.

Known Xaxon psionic capabilities (as demonstrated by Gorthaur) include:

It is unclear whether Gorthaur's abilities are representative of average Xaxon capabilities or whether he was exceptionally gifted. His role as an astronaut undertaking solo deep-space missions suggests he was selected for exceptional competence, and his possession of the six surviving ego-fragments may have amplified his power.

Technology

The Xaxonen achieved a level of technological sophistication sufficient for interstellar space exploration:

The Xaxonen did not appear to possess Driver-based space travel or Kaiser Force technology. Their interstellar capability relied on conventional propulsion and ice sleep for long voyages. This technological profile -- advanced but not cosmic-tier -- is consistent with their classification as a mature spacefaring civilization below the threshold power level occupied by the Genessaner and far below the Entities.

The Xaxon Ego System

A distinctive feature of Xaxon consciousness is its capacity for fragmentation and independent survival as disembodied ego-fragments:

Xaxonenegos

The Xaxonenegos (Xaxon Egos) are the six surviving ego-fragments of the Xaxon race that Gorthaur carried within his skull after the destruction of his homeworld. These consciousnesses survived the death of their bodies by taking refuge within Gorthaur's psionic matrix. They participated in reconnaissance and information gathering during Gorthaur's campaign on Earth, suggesting they retained intelligence and agency even in their disembodied state.

Half-Ego

A Half-Ego (Halbego) is described as a "fragment of a Xaxone consciousness" -- indicating that Xaxon egos could split into partial entities, perhaps as a result of trauma, incomplete transfer, or the natural degradation of disembodied existence.

The Need for Host Bodies

The Xaxonenegos required host bodies to survive. Without physical vessels, the ego-fragments grew progressively weaker, their consciousness fading toward dissolution. This imperative drove much of Gorthaur's desperate behavior on Earth -- his possession of Anlyka terCrupp and other ASK managers served the dual purpose of revenge against humanity and providing temporary bodies for the last six members of his species.

Transformation into Banshees

When Gorthaur sacrificed himself using the Arma in Geneva, the six Xaxonenegos were ripped from their stolen bodies and cast into Space II, where they became new Banshees -- disembodied souls trapped in the counter-universe. The phenomenon is identical to that affecting humans and other beings who die in Space II, though the Xaxon egos arrived there through psionic ejection rather than physical death within the dimension. Their transformation into Banshees represents the final extinction of the Xaxon race in any coherent form -- the ego-fragments, already weakened by their disembodied existence, were condemned to the maddened, isolated wandering that characterizes all Banshees.

The Xaxonen-Banshees are catalogued as a distinct sub-type of Banshee, the "last surviving members of the Xaxon race carried in Gorthaur's mind."

History

Pre-Destruction

Little is known of Xaxon history before the catastrophe. The existence of a Volksrat (People's Council), a Wissenschaftliche Vereinigung (Scientific Association), Sozialstationen (Social Stations), and organized space travel capacity indicates a mature, structured civilization. The Xaxonen were members of the galactic community known to the Varen Navtem and monitored by the Mushni, suggesting they had established diplomatic or observational contact with other civilizations.

The Destruction of Xaxon (December 2501)

The annihilation of the Xaxonen homeworld is depicted at the opening of Booklet 050 (Threat from the Stars). Gorthaur, a Xaxon astronaut, awakens from ice sleep during a deep-space mission to discover that Chomeuze, Xaxon's sun, is undergoing a catastrophic destabilization. "Cracks in space" are tearing apart both Xaxon and Ylian.

The destruction is not natural. It is the result of technical manipulations related to Kaiser Force -- the entropy-accelerating space drive developed by humanity's Kaiser Corporation. The side effects of Kaiser Force technology, deployed across human space without regard for its cosmic consequences, have destabilized the Chomeuze star system. The Pilots -- representatives of post-technological supercivilizations -- confirm to the Mushni observer Zsa-non that the destruction was "caused by technical manipulations related to Kaiser Force" and "is not an isolated incident."

Gorthaur experiences the destruction telepathically, sensing the death of billions of his people across the void. When the destruction is complete, he is the last conscious Xaxone alive -- carrying within his skull six surviving ego-fragments, the Xaxonenegos, who desperately need host bodies before they fade.

The Gorthaur Crisis (December 2501 -- January 2502)

Acting as an instrument of the Varen Navtem's counter-action plan and driven by grief-fueled rage, Gorthaur travels to Earth under the false identity of Kormolan Jilith. His campaign of revenge -- the Gorthaur Crisis -- constitutes the final chapter of Xaxon history as an active civilization:

1. Infiltration: Gorthaur arrives disguised as a human Servis claiming to possess a functioning Triadic Monochord, exploiting Max von Valdec's technological obsessions (Booklet 050)
2. The Berlin Attack: Gorthaur unleashes a massive PSI-field that transforms Berlin into a swamp landscape reflecting Xaxon ecology, turning humans into reptilian creatures (Booklet 050)
3. Possession and Sabotage: After the Berlin attack fails, Gorthaur possesses Anlyka terCrupp and other ASK managers in Geneva, using their corporate infrastructure to manipulate Earth's computer network and downgrade millions of Relax to Noman status (Booklet 053)
4. Assassination Attempt: Gorthaur attempts to assassinate Max von Valdec in New Berlin using Vyria Vram; Valdec is saved by Gray Guards (Booklet 053)
5. Self-Sacrifice: Confronted by the Terranauts in Geneva and recognizing the injustice of condemning all humans for the crimes of their rulers, Gorthaur uses the Arma to sacrifice himself in atonement (Booklet 053)
6. The Last Banshees: The six Xaxonenegos are cast into Space II, becoming new Banshees (Booklet 053)

Aftermath and Legacy

The destruction of Xaxon and the Gorthaur Crisis have lasting consequences across the saga:

• The abolition of Kaiser Force: The Council of Corporations formally agrees to abandon Kaiser Force and return to Driver space travel in the aftermath of the combined alien attack and Gorthaur Crisis (confirmed Booklet 056). This is one of the most significant policy shifts in the saga.
• The Entities' escalation: The destruction of Xaxon is cited by the Entities as evidence of humanity's recklessness, contributing to the escalation toward the threatened Final Strike against the human species.
• Valdec's consolidation: Paradoxically, the Gorthaur Crisis strengthens Max von Valdec, who uses the chaos to dissolve the Council of Corporations, frame his opposition, and declare emergency rule.
• The Xaxon as moral argument: The destroyed Xaxonen become the saga's most powerful rhetorical weapon in the case against Kaiser Force. While human characters debate the technology's dangers in abstract terms, the Xaxonen embody the concrete, irreversible cost: an entire civilization annihilated, a species rendered extinct.

The Only Known Xaxone

Gorthaur

Gorthaur (also known as Xaxone Gorthaur, Kormolan Jilith, and the Technician) is the only individually named and characterized member of the Xaxon species in the saga. An astronaut who survived the destruction of his homeworld because he was in ice sleep during a deep-space mission, Gorthaur is the last conscious Xaxone and the carrier of six ego-fragments -- the final remnants of his people.

Gorthaur's arc -- from victim of cosmic genocide to agent of revenge to self-sacrificing penitent -- is one of the saga's most complex character studies. He appears as a central character in Booklets 050 and 053, with his legacy referenced in Booklet 056 and beyond. For a full account of his biography, abilities, and significance, see the dedicated article: Gorthaur.

Galactic Context

The Xaxonen occupy a specific tier within the galactic hierarchy of civilizations:

The Xaxonen were advanced enough to engage in interstellar exploration but not powerful enough to protect themselves from the entropic effects of Kaiser Force. Their destruction served as a warning to the galactic community: if Kaiser Force could annihilate a spacefaring civilization at the edge of the galaxy, no world was safe.

The contrast between the Xaxonen and the Genessaner is instructive. Both species suffered from Kaiser Force's effects. But where the Genessaner -- closer to threshold power status and possessed of deeper connections to Space II and the Entities -- were able to weather the crisis (albeit at the cost of Cantos's sacrifice), the Xaxonen were destroyed utterly. The difference in outcome reflects the galactic hierarchy's brutal logic: civilizations too advanced to be ignored by the Entities but too weak to survive the crisis occupy the most vulnerable position.

Parallels and Contrasts

Xaxonen and Genessaner

Both Cantos (Genessaner) and Gorthaur (Xaxone) are alien figures driven to interact with humanity by the cosmic damage caused by Kaiser Force. Both possess formidable psionic abilities. Both seek to change humanity's behavior. But their responses diverge fundamentally:

That both paths lead to self-sacrifice underscores the saga's argument that aliens who engage with humanity are consumed by the encounter, regardless of method.

Xaxonen and Banshees

The transformation of the Xaxonenegos into Banshees connects the Xaxon extinction to the saga's broader metaphysics of consciousness. In the universe of Die Terranauten, death does not end consciousness -- it transforms it into disembodied existence in Space II. The Xaxonen's final fate -- six ego-fragments condemned to the maddened isolation of the Banshee state -- is arguably worse than simple extinction: it is extinction of the body combined with the eternal persistence of the mind in its most wretched form.

Appearances

Related Articles

Characters

• Gorthaur -- The last conscious Xaxone; astronaut, infiltrator, and tragic avenger
• Kormolan Jilith -- Gorthaur's false human identity
• Technician -- The Xaxone entity inhabiting Anlyka terCrupp's body
• Anlyka terCrupp -- The corporate leader whose body Gorthaur possessed
• Max von Valdec -- The dictator whose Kaiser Force technology destroyed Xaxon
• Cantos -- The Genessaner who represents the diplomatic alternative to Gorthaur's vengeance
• Zsa-non -- The Mushni observer who witnessed and reported on the crisis
• David terGorden -- The Terranaut leader who broke the Berlin PSI-field

Species and Classifications

• Xaxonen-Banshees -- The last six Xaxon ego-fragments in their final Banshee state
• Xaxonenegos -- The six surviving Xaxon consciousness-fragments carried by Gorthaur
• Nichtmushni -- The Mushni classification for Gorthaur's psionic level
• Koppelpartner -- Symbiotic companion creatures from Xaxon
• Sumpfsegler -- Swamp Gliders of Liweuten
• Banshee -- The disembodied souls in Space II that the Xaxonenegos became
• Genessaner -- The alien species whose response to Kaiser Force contrasts with the Xaxonen's

Locations

• Xaxon -- The destroyed homeworld
• Ylian -- Xaxon's sister planet, also destroyed
• Chomeuze -- Xaxon's red sun, destabilized by Kaiser Force
• Liweuten -- Iron oxide swamps; Gorthaur's home region
• Liweuten-Bau -- City at the base of the high plateau
• Astrozent -- Xaxon spaceport
• Trockene Unterwelt -- The Dry Underworld, mythical place of the damned
• Sumpfozeane -- Swamp oceans

Concepts and Technology

• Kaiser Force -- The technology whose side effects destroyed the Xaxonen
• Arma -- The Xaxon meditative discipline for psionic focus
• Simulation Cube -- Technology used for consciousness restoration after ice sleep
• Half-Ego -- Fragment of a Xaxone consciousness
• Xaxonen Egos -- The concept of surviving Xaxon consciousness-fragments
• PSI -- The psionic abilities central to Xaxon capabilities
• Final Strike -- The Entities' threatened extinction of humanity, partly motivated by Xaxon's destruction

Organizations

• Volksrat -- The People's Council on Xaxon
• Wissenschaftliche Vereinigung -- The Scientific Association on Xaxon
• Varen Navtem -- The galactic community on whose behalf Gorthaur acted
• Entities -- The supercivilizations whose counter-action plan Gorthaur served
• Council of Corporations -- The human governing body that abolished Kaiser Force after the crisis

The Xaxonen appear in Booklets 050, 053, and are referenced in 056 of Die Terranauten. They are the first species confirmed destroyed by humanity's Kaiser Force technology -- and the embodiment of the saga's argument that reckless power exacts its toll not in abstractions but in the annihilation of entire civilizations.