Tales of the Vuduri: Year Two

by Michael Brachman

  - Cuban sandwiches, Po'boys, paninis

  - Hamburgers, dogs, sausage and peppers (my daughter loves veggie burgers)

  - Even just plain old regular white bread sandwiches (especially meatloaf sandwiches!)

  - Sushi (although I really like sashimi)

  Wait, sushi? What the heck? Well, it is a kind of meat (raw fish) with seasonings placed on or between grain-based (rice) slices even though in this case the grain is rolled. So what exactly is it about a sandwich that makes it so delicious as compared to eating a piece of meat then a piece of lettuce then a piece of bread? More tomorrow.

  Entry 2-271: September 23, 2014

 

  Sandwiches and Umami

  Yesterday, we started enumerating all of the variations of a filling, a grain and seasoning lumping them all under the general heading of sandwiches. We also figured out that in the 35th century world of Rome's Revolution, they didn't have them. At least they didn't until Rei and the Essessoni came along.

  So why are sandwiches just so darned wonderful? Let's start with the gustatory (taste) system. Traditional western culture claims there are only four types of taste: salt, sour (acidic), sweet (sugar) and bitter (alkali). Eastern cultures believe there is a fifth sense of taste, called umami which can be called deliciousness.

  There are receptors on the tongue that react to glutamate and this is what sets off umami. You may scoff at the concept but there is no denying that even western cooks attempt to enhance umami, perhaps without even knowing it. People use bay leaf in spaghetti sauce. Did you ever lick a bay leaf? It has no flavor by itself. But it does have glutamate. So does soy sauce and Accent (Wakes Up Food Flavor!) which is pure MSG, mono-sodium glutamate. Chinese food is famous for getting a (sorry for the oxymoron) healthy dose of MSG. You can buy a book which is about nothing else but cooking with umami.

  It isn't surprising that humans (and I am assuming all mammals) have learned to love the sensation glutamate brings. Not only is glutamate the most prevalent amino acid in nature, it also the hardest working, performing more functions in the body than any other amino acid. This includes the most crucial task: glutamate is an important neurotransmitter. If you want to read a great article, click here to read an interesting treatise on the subject.

  I, myself, am a big fan of umami. I apply Accent liberally on all my foods during my annual Father's Day rib fest. Whatever I cook may not taste all that good but I have to laugh to myself because people can't help say this is delicious!

  So here is my hypothesis: sandwiches somehow activate the sense of umami. In other words, the chemical reaction within the pallet where the starch in bread or otherwise interacts with saliva and this enhances the flavor of the constituents. The sense of umami tells the body that the mouth has done a good job and the amino acids produced (beyond just glutamate) are ready to absorb and make the body stronger.

  So it's a good thing that Rei Bierak was born and raised outside Philadelphia. He was able to bring cheesesteaks and hoagies to Deucado and they are all the better for it!

  Entry 2-272: September 24, 2014

 

  A relay computer

  In the original long-form version of Rome's Revolution, we got a better understanding of what the Ibbrassati were trying to accomplish in their secret enclave in the north woods. Fridone was leading Rei out of the cave, on their way back to the fallen Ark when they stopped in the "work cave" where Fridone showed off what they had accomplished.

  “This is our workroom,” Fridone said. He pointed to one corner. “Over there, we are working on building a computer.”

  “Can I see?” Rei asked.

  “Of course.” Fridone led Rei over to the work area indicated. The people there leaned away so that Rei could see. There was a large flat surface, a table. Resting on it was a cabinet which was filled with blinking lights. The front plates of the cabinet had knobs and dials and banks of switches. It looked straight out a bad movie from the 1950s.

  “How do you build a computer?” Rei asked. “How do you power it?”

  “It is a mechanical computer,” said Fridone. “It uses relays. It can perform small tasks but we are using it mainly to design a more powerful computer.” Fridone motioned for Rei to come around to the rear of the table. He stooped down. Rei stooped down with him.

  “We have constructed batteries out of dissimilar metals in an acid solution,” he said, pointing to the wooden buckets stacked below. “None of them are very efficient but we use many, many of them to create the power we need.”

  Rei stood up. “I certainly can help you with that part. Every one of our sarcophagi have two power rods. You can get rid of these things and have real power, infinite power. And we have a nav-computer. That should help.”

  It was only because Rei was an engineer that he even knew what a relay-based computer was.

  Entry 2-273: September 25, 2014

 

  Rei goes for a walk

  The other day, in a post about taking a nap at the beginning of Part 2 of Rome's Revolution, I admitted I screwed up. I somehow got 23-chromosome mandasurte and 24-chromosome Vuduri mixed up and gave the mandasurte iRods to help them see in the dark. This is completely wrong. The mandasurte are genetically identical to us. I'm glad I excised that portion.

  Here is another section (also excised) which also exposed my confusing the facts:

  “Beo?” Rome said, looking up at her father.

  “Yes, my Volhe,” replied Fridone.

  “Rei does not have our eyes. He is Essessoni. You will have to help him in the dark.”

  “I understand, little Rome. He will be in good hands,” her father said.

  Fridone regarded Rei who was stretching his muscles.

  “You are too tall for Vuduri,” he said. “And your clothes will give you away, should we be caught. You speak well enough. Let us dress you in something more appropriate and you will have to take care to walk hunched over.”

  I cleaned this up in the modern version by simply having Rome say, “Beo, please watch over him. Everything here is new to us.” But that's not the point. Rei, now wearing Ibbrassati clothes (why? who was going to catch them?) and the rest slip out at night to return to fallen Ark.

  It was during this walk that we get the first sense that Rei was developing his sonar vision. It's a little heavy-handed but it is foreshadowing nonetheless:

  The star, Tau Ceti, was already setting as they exited the cave. Very quickly, it became so dark that Rei could barely see the way ahead. As they marched forward, Rei found that it actually seemed easier to walk with his eyes closed, a condition that made no sense. He just concentrated on following Fridone and not falling. They emerged from the gorge and reentered the cane-tree forest.

  Could I be any less subtle?

  Entry 2-274: September 26, 2014

 

  No map

  When I was younger, before the Internet was so robust, I often had to fly to a client's site to install software. Sometimes the weather didn't cooperate. Sometimes the flights were diverted to an odd place (like Minneapolis) and you had to stay overnight in a motel before going back to the airport the next day to get to your final destination.

  When those events occurred (and they weren't that often), I always found it completely disconcerting if I didn't know where I was. I would often grab the phone book and look in it for maps, just to see where I was. When you think about it, such a token act wouldn't really make any difference. I was still in a hotel and somebody would still take me back to the airport regardless of whether Minneapolis was near the Wisconsin border or halfway to Canada.

  When you are writing novels such as Rome's Revolution and you want your characters to have a three-dimensional feel, it helps to build in human frailties. So when Rei first set out in the woods with Fridone, before he knew he had sonar vision, he found the whole experience disconcerting because I would. Here is the passage:

  Rei looked up again trying to get his bearings but he gave up. He re
alized he didn’t even know where on the continent they had set down. He found his lack of knowledge very disorienting. The star charts that he memorized weren’t coming in very handy right at this point. When he was younger, back on Earth, there were some times when he had to fly to a far-off city. He always tried to find a map, to figure out where he was. Not that it made any difference but it just made him feel better. Now, here he was, 12 light years from Earth on an alien world, in the pitch black. No map would comfort him this time. Strangely, it actually seemed easier to walk with his eyes closed, a condition which made no sense. He just concentrated on following Fridone and not falling.

  At least he wasn't in Minneapolis!

  Entry 2-275: September 27, 2014

 

  The Blankets

  The creatures called "Falling Blankets" were the first alien life form I ever invented. While the Stareaters may or may not be living, we only became aware of their existence; we didn't directly encounter one. In the beginning of Part 2 of Rome's Revolution, we are introduced to 'falling blankets' by Fridone as Rei begins his trek back to the fallen Ark.

  “You must be on alert here,” Fridone said. “There are some animals that can hurt you if you are not careful.”

  “What kind?” Rei asked. “What are they like?”

  “They are not like animals from Earth. They do not have distinct form,” answered Fridone. “They are more like living cloth or blankets. They are slow but they are strong. Sometimes, they climb the trees…” Fridone pointed up. “They sit up there and if you walk underneath, they drop onto you. The larger ones are big enough to completely cover you up. They can suffocate you and then eat you in tiny, tiny pieces. Do you see the poles there?”

  Fridone pointed to some men in their hunting party that had tall sticks shaped like gaffes. Rei squinted but could not see anything.

  “They watch for the ‘falling blankets.’ They move them, they can pull them off. If you are paying attention, you will not be in any danger. They are very slow. If you are with someone, you will be all right.”

  Of course, all of this is before we learned in Rome's Evolution that the 'blankets' were really semi-sentient. At least as a species they are. They were descended from a true, sentient species that made the conscious, genetic decision to devolve into the form described above because they just did not have the ability for stop death from raining down upon them whenever the meteors came. They decided the simpler form and simpler brains would enjoy what little life was afforded to them as much as possible.

  P.S. Happy Birthday to Rei Bierak. He will be born in 2042, 28 years from now.

  Entry 2-276: September 28, 2014

 

  Introducing The Deucadons

  The Deucadons were the descendents of the survivors of the Ark III whose original target was Beta Hydrii.

  When their Ark arrived in that star system, their AI found no habitable planets so it automatically diverted to its backup target which was Tau Ceti. Sadly, the long trip took its toll on the Ark III and the crew compartment holding the colonists was not capable of the aerobraking maneuver required to land safely.

  They arrived 500 years before the events of Rome's Revolution and crash-landed. Their presence was first hinted by Fridone as Rei and he continued their walk through the woods on their way back to the fallen Ark. This brief conversation took place just after Fridone told Rei about 'falling blankets' that inhabited the woods. Here is that little section. Look for the sentence in bold:

  “Who knows?” shrugged Fridone. “Perhaps it is because Deucado is hit so often with things from space. Meteors, comets and the like. The animals have survived by becoming so adaptable. They just take it in stride. And they live as they must until the next strike. The larger ones are a little more cunning. They sometimes drop from above if you are not paying attention.”

  “Are there any intelligent ones? Like us?” Rei asked.

   “No. There have been stories about some, ones that are intelligent, that live deeper in the woods. But I have been here for ten years. I have never seen them. I think they are just stories.”

  “I did not see any Earth animals,” Rei said. “Did the Vuduri bring any of them with them?”

  “No, that would make life too easy for us. We must rely on the native life forms to support us.”

  “You mean, like to eat?” Rei asked.

  “Yes,” answered Fridone.

  The full story of how the Deucadons came to live on Deucado will be presented when I come out with The Vuduri Companion but I'll give you little taste of it tomorrow.

  Entry 2-277: September 29, 2014

 

  The Deucadons, part 1

  As I mentioned yesterday, the full story of how the Deucadons came to live on Deucado will be presented when I come out with The Vuduri Companion. This book will be a compendium of short stories, novellas, deleted scenes and other supplementary material that was part of the construction of the Rome's Revolution trilogy.

  The Deucadons were a critical element of the resolution of the crisis of Part 2. Unbeknownst to the readers, the Darwin Project members were required by their charter to go to war within 24 hours of their resurrection. This was seemingly absurd but actually ends up forming the basis of the novel The Ark Lords. Because Captain Keller was forced to defer to the "true rulers" of the planet, Rome was able to defuse the crisis before lives were lost.

  Rather than keep you in complete suspense, here is a little taste of the short story that will be entitled (shockingly) The Deucadons:

  The first thing Captain Dan Harrison felt was a searing pain shooting through his chest as the defibrillator fired off a 200 joule stimulus. Despite the fact that he was now awake, the instrumentation picked up no heartbeat so it automatically increased the intensity to 300 joules. After the paddles were fully charged, the defibrillator discharged with another agonizing bolt of electricity. Thankfully, this time, Harrison’s heart started up immediately.

  Two years of training paid off. Instinctively, his lips clamped down on the ventilation tube so that he could start breathing air despite the fact that his cryo-hibernation chamber was completely filled with the liquid that served as the reanimation bath. His sarcophagus and those of the other two members of his command crew were different from the 540 colonists still asleep in the passenger compartment. The command crew’s chambers were built to reanimate a frozen traveler in the zero-g conditions of orbit. There was no gravity to cause the reanimation fluid to drain out so they had to be able to breathe essentially underwater.

  Harrison’s lips and muscles were weak and the seal around the breathing tube was not perfect, consequently, a tiny bit of liquid leaked into his mouth. He aspirated some of the salty fluid and started coughing and inadvertently caught a lungful of liquid. This made him cough all the more. He was in serious danger of drowning but through an act of sheer will, he just stopped. He squeezed his lungs and spit out as much of the liquid through the corner of his mouth as he could then he drew in a full breath of air through the breathing tube, overcoming his natural instinct to cough. The drowning drills were not a waste of time, after all.

  Tomorrow, the realization that things had gone horribly wrong.

  Entry 2-278: September 30, 2014

 

  The Deucadons, part 2

  Yesterday, I presented the first part of the short story entitled "The Deucadons" which will be incorporated in the compendium The Vuduri Companion which will come out after The Milk Run. The Deucadons were instrumental in defusing the crisis at the end of Part 2 of Rome's Revolution. Here is the next part:

  Harrison continued his slow and concentrated breathing, all the while trying to regain his strength. When the internal sensors determined that his core temperature was high enough, a switch was tripped. Pumps activated to begin drawing out the fluid leaving a cold and wet Harrison helpless until the blowers came on and threw heated air, drawn from the outside, across his body. He continued to warm up and soon his shivering stopped. H
e reached over, feeling around until he found what he was looking for. He punched the large button by his hand and the cover to his casket slid back.

  Harrison lay there for a long while, trying to wrestle his eyes open enough to see where he was. He blinked and sighed and finally focused on the ceiling of the command compartment with its conduits and indicators providing a dim glow to the capsule. His body floated around gently within the constricted chamber so there was no weight to contend with.

  When he felt up to it, he pushed on the cover of the chamber and its internal strain gauge detected the pressure and retracted fully. Harrison slowly floated free of the chamber and he practiced moving his hands and feet until he was satisfied that he had a tiny bit of control over his body. The slightest pressure on the ceiling sent him spinning back to the chamber, which he grabbed a hold of and pulled himself down. He lowered himself until his knees were touching the floor and he unlatched the compartment holding his coveralls. Just then, a white-hot pain shot from the base of his spine to the base of his skull. He cried out and tried to reach behind him. He had to take deep breaths and eventually the pain passed.

  “What the hell was that?” he asked out loud, knowing no one was listening. It didn’t matter. Just that tiny amount of motion was enough effort for a while so he stayed perfectly still, floating there, staring at his clothing, wishing they were already on his body. At long last, he felt sufficiently refreshed that he was able to dress himself. In the next compartment were his Velcro slippers which were surprisingly difficult to get on, due to the pain in his back. At last, he was fully dressed. Finally, as a symbol for all to see, he put on his baseball cap proudly proclaiming he was the captain of the Ark III, Beta Hydri mission.