SIKKIM CITY, SAJHA (BRAREL II) – Following several days in which small tremors were felt within the Sajhan Colony’s capital city, the sky last night erupted in light as Mount Daagna roared to life for the first time since the colony’s founding.
Many leading scientists are scrambling to account for the Mount Daagna’s renewed activity, contradicting years of assurances that the volcano was extinct and not simply dormant.
“We know that Sajha had a very profound volcanic history, but prior to the seismic activity this week, there was no indication that Daagna would erupt again,” said Keeri Koothrappally, of the Sajhan Institute for Volcanic Study.
Koothrappally said several teams of vulcanologists have been sent to the volcano to monitor its eruption, which is being described as “minor.”
“As eruptions go, this one is not particularly impressive,” Koothrappally said. “Lava flows are minimal and large projectiles are virtually non-existent. It appears to us that this is more a venting of gases than anything.”
Daagna is located about 160 kilometers from Sikkim and is visible on the horizon during the daylight hours. Last night’s eruption was startling to many residents here because it was accompanied by a violent electrical storm.
At least two injuries have been reported in the small community of Paashaanmay. About 5,000 people live in the community, most of those employed in harvesting obsidian from ancient lava flows. One woman was reportedly hurt when tremors collapsed her home and a man suffered burns when he ventured out to see the lava flows up close.
Among the more superstitious residents of the colony, the sudden eruption has a darker undertone. Several shops in Sikkim’s market district were closed this morning with signs reading “Yasur kehna, Yasur smaran” or “Yasur Speaks, Yasur Remembers.”
Mount Yasur is a volcano on the southern hemisphere of the Intaki homeworld that has a religious significance to local residents. Yasur erupted violently at the time of first contact with the Gallente and has been dormant ever since.
For others, though, there is a different theory as to why Daagna is now erupting.
“It’s those damned spacers,” taxi driver Yash Amroliwallah mused while waiting for a customer. “They’ve been setting up those command centers all over the place and most people don’t realize how little research went into the long term effects.”
Amroliwallah said he was serving a term in the Sajhan congress when a report on the planetary interaction of capsuleer organizations was published.
“The best they could come up with that the operations would have ‘minimal risk of adverse planetary effects,’ but they never did explain what ‘minimal’ meant or what the possible effects might be,” Amroliwallah said. “I voted against allowing development on Sajha and we passed it. The voters shot us down though. Now look at the mess we’re in.”
Koothrappally, however, said the Sajhan Institute for Volcanic Study has looked into claims such as those made by Amroliwallah and found them to be without merit.
“We’re not certain was caused Daagna to erupt, but it had nothing to do with the capsuleers,” he said.