Operation Deep Sleep

Not everyone of the then still very new United Earth Congress bought into the plan of Richard Stahl :Wiping out the Xunx with one strike before they would awake (Project RAID / Operation Steam Roller) To many there were to many variables and unknowns for it to be the only plan for humanities survival in case the Xunx did attack and the Military's plan did not succeed. The Xunx attacked garden worlds, devoured everything organic and left a lifeless planet behind.They stayed on the world until they had eaten everything or carried all they could away. Studies of previously raided planets (provided by the Sarans) showed that organisms and life survived that was either deep under water or hidden in deep caves. The Krubera Cave in Abkhazia and the Lemprechtshofen Cave in the Austrian Alps were chosen to create two hermeically sealed and hidden chambers where 2,500 humans would sleep in suspended animation (A then new Saran technology) until the Xunx would suspend their activities again and emerge either to repopulate Earth or to join Humanity after successfully beating the Xunx. Both Cave projects were kept secret to prevent any potential alien spies learning about it... The project was completed and the sleepers were in suspended animation..and forgotten. Many things happened above. The Xunx were beaten and the Union was founded. Earth population reduced to 1 Billion and great efforts were made to restore Earth's natural beauty. Cavers (Speleological research and sports focused on thousands of spectaclar caves now found all over the Galaxy... It was Admiral Stahl who asked in an off duty conversation with Admiral Mc Elligott : "Whatever happened to our Sleeper Project" (in 4800) As they were confronted with a Sleeper Ark full of Aliens Only then an Expedition was sent to Earth. The Deep Sleepers in the Lamprechtshofen Cave had all died after a System failure, but the 2500 Sleepers of the Krubera Cave were successfully reanimated after sleeping a good deal over 2000 years, finding a completley changed reality.